Not Taking Things Personally?

 

YES dude, it's much easier than done WHEN we hear that age-old advice of NOT TAKING THINGS PERSONALLY.  I myself, I would remind myself that same reminders over and over again BUT admittedly, many times in the past, I did take things personally.  WHAT happened next?  You're 'spot on' with your guess.  I ended up much worse after TAKING THINGS PERSONALLY.  LIKE those moments WHEN I was like too onion-skinned, too sensitive with every single turn of events and if things DIDN'T turn my way, I would take things personally.  BUT you might ask, did my lot improve?  No sirrrrrs.  Ironically, 100% of the time, things turned from bad to worse most of the time.  That remaining 1 to 3%, things turned out the worst ever💚💛💜

HOW often did you feel isolated?  Most likely NOT so often BUT in those isolated instances WHERE you were like the square peg in a round hole, surely you were like questioning WHY were you in that predicament in the first place.  At the workforce, that's pretty normal WHEN you are new to the organization.  That's WHEN you need the support structure, starting with your immediate line manager.  Without that support structure, your situation is like positioning you to fail no less💥💥💥

So, WHAT's the fuss WHEN we take things personally?  The ramifications are quite serious to say the least.  An incident WHICH you could have easily shrugged off suddenly looks like that sword of damocles hanging from your very top.  HOW in the world can you survive with that threat hovering on you💥💥💥

Once OR twice, in one of my back-to-back flights, there I was queueing for onboarding and WHEN I finally found my seat [YES, often I would settle with coach tickets], the overhead bin was fully stacked with luggage after luggage all in place.  At least twice in the past I almost blew up my top [after hurdling the long queues right from the Check-in Counters and over to the stringent immigration procedures].  BUT the question, WHEN I did take things personally, did it improve my lot?  Absolutely NOT.  Instead, it did ruin my mood and more than that, suddenly, I felt all hell quite broke loose during those inconsequential incidents.  WHEN did I learn that I should NOT take things personally?  Seriously, I learned that long way back BUT the truth is, there were a handful of outliers WHEN I lost control of myself, all because of an unfortunate incident❌❌❌

Our takeaway:  Take it OR leave it, nothing beats better than NOT TAKING THINGS PERSONALLY.  Why?

• It saves you unnecessary emotional spikes
• It helps you divert priorities to what it's worth
• It reinforces your focus on what you need to do
• It improves your resilience in your daily lif
• It shields you from irritants NOT worth it
• It enhances your overall persona

YES dude, you DON'T HAVE TO TAKE THINGS PERSONALLY, if it's not worth it😡😡😡

Those TELL-TALE Signs In Life!

 

Those TELL-TALE Signs In Life, do they deserve to be ignored?  For some of us, you would hear, ABSOLUTELY but is it really so?  WHEN things happen NOT as you expected, WHAT do we do next?  LIKE WHEN you were expecting people to think of you this way BUT they end having a perception of you the other way around?  LIKE WHEN you least expected to be disrespected BUT you end up to be treated shabbily?  LIKE WHEN you tend to fix your sleep way before you even gave a serious thought to be fixing your life instead?  LIKE WHEN you end up embroiled in arguments with people WHO seem more comfortable living in a chaotic world?  LIKE WHEN you thought you're still living in a bubble💚💛💜

LIKE WHEN you want nothing else but peace and serenity in your everyday life NOT UNTIL you end up explaining things too much to folks WHO are grappling with comprehension and empathy.  LIKE WHEN you almost always have the best intentions in life BUT at times, your habits are perceived to be more honest than your sincere intentions?  LIKE WHEN you want to be treated the way it is humanely acceptable until WHAT happens is the other way around instead💧💧💧

So, WHAT's a TELL-TALE sign then after all?  Simple yet NOT so simple dude.  WHEN things are running it's course, then that's pretty normal NOT UNTIL when something goes off track.  WHEN consequential events pop-up in the unnatural OR illogical circumstances.  WHEN directions turn topsy-turvy by at least a 180 degrees turn💥💥💥

So, you might ask, WHY the help should we be bothered with TELL-TALE signs?  Very simple dude.  It is very rare in life when things happen like the Universe's BIG BANG Theory.  To be factual and truthful, only force majeure and anything that's relatable to the Acts of God may NOT be preceded by those TELL-TALE signs.  Other than those outliers, personally, I am quite incisive when TELL-TALE signs surface☝☝☝

Our takeaway:  Let me play devil's advocate here.  How much effort needs to be exerted to recognize those TELL-TALE signs in life?  Frankly, there is almost little efforts to be exerted if at all.  WHY?  Because TELL-TALE signs are right there for your picking.  All that is needed is for us to alert our cognitive part, that's all.  Question:  ARE WE AT RISK if we ignore OR miss out those TELL-TALE signs?  Absolutely and the ramifications could be quite telling unless we recognize those TELL-TALE signs in life😡😡😡

Those Productivity Pitfalls!

 

Those PRODUCTIVITY PITFALLS are no different from the mines planted by all the protagonists of that recent U.S.-Israel-Iran MIdEast War.  Mines were planted all over the place, especially at that hotly contested Strait of Hormuz.  Swinging over to that boring topic about PRODUCTIVITY, WHAT could be its PITFALLS?  A lot, man.  A lot, dude.  How manhy narratives have we heard the productivity-focused guy ended up abandoned by his spouse/partner, all because of PRODUCTIVITY?  OR those business guys WHOSE operations was thriving until the cream of the crop of his workforce ended up walking away, all because of his PRODUCTIVITY focus!@#$%?

Oh, have you ever had a fly in your soup?  That's WHAT PRODUCTIVITY pitfalls are like.  You're all set to sit down at your desk and power through your tasks [and multitasking].  You're prepared to accomplish your goals in a certain period of time.  And then something unexpected happens, OR maybe you fall into that sickening trap of OLD HABITS you've tried to break, over and over again, BUT all in vain.  Then, suddenly, you get distracted from work.   It's like sitting down to enjoy your favorite bowl of soup and just as you raise the spoon to your mouth, a fly lands on it, ouch!!!

So, HOW's PRODUCTIVITY?  Oh YES, PRODUCTIVITY is a recipe, done to taste.  So, although you and me may have a great recipe right now, it may NOT be right for you.  Maybe, just maybe, one of the elements is just NOT in alignment with you OR me.  Just like, getting up early in the morning often enhances PRODUCTIVITY.  BUT if you're more of a night owl than a morning person, that practice could make you sleepy partly through the day and in the end, impacting on your PRODUCTIVITY.  In other narratives, albeit outliers, you might have the perfect PRODUCTIVITY system, BUT it's missing one ingredient, like the time you're into your favorite running exercise only to realize your gym outfits are all for laundry

OR, there's this common narrative.  LIKE we seem busy [WHICH we are] BUT NOT PRODUCTIVE.  Let's get into that email syndrome.  LIKE you're a sales executive and you submitted a proposal to a client and then you keep refreshing your INBOX a 100 times WHILE anxiously waiting.  So, YES, you seemed busy BUT NOT PRODUCTIVE at all.  Hey dude, you would have been better off looking for more potential clients in the pipeline for you to pitch, rather than locked-in and locked-out in that REFRESH button 

Our takeaway:  PRODUCTIVITY PITFALLS come in multiple shapes and forms, which, for brevity we'll compress it as follows:

• PERSONAL PITFALLS - Health issues, lack of consistent sleep, perfectionism, on and on
• DIGITAL PITFALLS - Do we need to elaborate
• ENVIRONMENTAL PITFALLS - Could be a fridge full of food right next to your workdesk!
• MOTIVATIONAL PITFALLS - Procrastination, boredom, your weak planning habits name it

Those PRODUCTIVITY PITFALLS, dude!@#$

When Motivation DOESN'T Work

 

Does MOTIVATION WORK?  Of course, it does.  BUT WHEN MOTIVATION DOESN'T WORK, WHAT gives?  Few times before, I heard people blurt out, that's nonsense!  WHY get bothered WHEN MOTIVATION DOESN'T WORK!@#$% Precisely my point, WHAT IF MOTIVATION DOESN'T WORK?  BUT WHAT befuddles me is that quite a number of us DON'T seem eager, even on the surface] to spend a minute OR two, to paint those WHAT IF scenarios☝☝☝

BTW, I'm NOT referring to the challenges faced by our political [national OR local] leaders.  NOT even managers at the workplace OR across business enterprises.  As I always believe that we've got to clean our own backyard before we start getting bothered with the front yard of our neighbor, I always believed that we've got to start things from within us.  And talking about MOTIVATION, nothing is more apt than focusing on our own self-motivation.  WHAT IF a setback causes more than just a dent on you? WHAT IF a major blunder in your business forays just CAN'T give you a restful night to recharge yourself?  WHAT IF a highly impacting tragedy within your family just totally wreaks havoc on your very own backbone❗❗❗

Oh, I love this poster as it says it all.  And it debunks that age-long myth that we need READINESS as a catalyst of our MOTIVATION.  Seriously? For alignment, can we agree on the context of READINESS in this aspect.  BTW, READINESS should NOT just be a magic buzz word.  Let's hear those narratives WHERE MOTIVATION was lacking OR missing all because of READINESS😁😁😁

Looking back WHEN I took that quantum leap of faith, I thought I was NOT into that stuff of READINESS.  In the first place, WHAT did I need to do to be READY WHEN I was about to plunge into the deep blue seas?  I thought that if there was anything to be READY of, it was my READINESS to take on the risks at hand.  Other than that, it was a GO or NO GO for me to thread on by then💥💥💥

Our takeaway:  If there is one singular ingredient that has to go in hand with our MOTIVATION, it is our own DISCIPLINE as that will lead us to either our success OR failure.  Our DISCIPLINE to keep focused to our goals.  Our DISCIPLINE to be consistent with our determination.  Our DISCIPLINE to never give up regardless of the setbacks that will hit us from time to time.  Our DISCIPLINE never to pull our foot off the gas pedal once we are gaining that momentum BUT instead, let's keep that foot right on that gas pedal because WHAT will lead us within breathing distance to the finish line is sustaining our momentum even WHEN MOTIVATION DOESN'T WORK😡😡😡

Change DOESN'T Happen On Its Own!@#$%

 

Change DOESN'T Happen On Its Own!@#$%.  Exactly, we can preach for CHANGE CHANGE and CHANGE but even as we speak now, there are GAPS and GAPS around us.  GAPS in understanding HOW CHANGE needs to be executed.  GAPS in accepting the responsibility and ownership to drive CHANGE.  Not far different once we board vehicles.  We need the driver  seated right behind the steering wheel.  Otherwise, the car AIN'T move forward.  Swinging back to our life, CHANGE seems to be part of us, ticking in parallel with the clocktime itself.  And that has been happening so casually such that, for some of us, CHANGE is NOT something that deserves to be injected with that Xtra attention and Xtra focus + Xtra zeal.  BUT CHANGE DOESN'T HAPPEN ON ITS OWN dude!@#$%?

Those years WHEN my work responsibilities were very much embedded alongside CHANGE.  And more than just all the fanfare and communications strategies we plotted up front, having our 'top honcho' as the executive sponsor was the very first 'MUST HAVE' even before kicking the tires.  BUT here comes the scary part.  Most CHANGE initiatives are often doomed from the start.  WHY???

One recurring narrative I've heard a zillion times is that, WHETHER in our personal life OR at the corporate world, at times we end up with entirely flawed assumptions that CHANGE will happen on its own, all because we kickstarted it.  NO sirrrrrs.  Let's NOT make things complicated here.  DON'T look far.  Every year as we approach the next upcoming New Year, WHO has not scribbled OR mumbled his NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION WHEN the calendar flips?  Almost twelve months down the road, it's deja vu.  Count ten years after OR decades after, it's the same cyclical pattern we have been locked-in and YET, WHAT's the difference comparing every NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION year-in year-out???

Can we blame that CHANGE mindset?  Me thinks that's the safest culprit [a.k.a scapegoat] any Tom, Dick and Harry can pass the blame. Let's rattle off the most common narratives.  The previous year, you had cash flow problems almost year-round, so on New Year's Eve, here you are, seriously blurting to cut your impulse-shopping [and that includes those frivolous wants via the ADD TO CART buttons].  WHO's to blame?  YES I'll blame those mobile apps WHOSE sole mission is to entice you, right???

Our takeaway:  Let's give justice to CHANGE and to be brutally frank here, if one keeps failing in his CHANGE initiatives, let's give justice to you yourself because you just DON'T deserve to be fumbling and stumbling down flat on your face as long as we embrace this mantra:  CHANGE DOESN'T HAPPEN ON IT'S OWN, NOT that path dude😡😡😡

ALWAYS Find A Way To Reach The 'FINISH LINE'

 

I am NO marathoner BUT I'm quite aware of America's annual marathon events like the Boston and New York Marathons.  BUT we'll NOT delve into those marathons but instead, allow me to pay tribute to American Rachel Apa. Two days ago, while being a first-time NYC marathoner, she trained damn hard and YES, she started off well the marathon until she ran out of steam 2 miles from the FINISH LINE.  Sadly, she was hit with an unexpected twist in her health and sadly, she succumbed despite all the efforts exerted💚💛💜

Indeed, it's a sad narrative given Rachel's demise BUT let's pick up the positive lessons we can learn from Rachel's heroics.  Thing is, we should ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO REACH THE 'FINISH LINE'.  True, life has never guaranteed us 100% successes.  In truth, for the tough stories, at times, our scorecards in successes may even hit 50% at best BUT that's part of life's realities.  Even with that batting average, it does NOT justify that we abandon our pursuits, with wanton disregard to reach the FINISH LINE.  This should NOT be a huge ask, NOT for anyone to plead us at all.  Rightfully, WHAT we started should be finished regardless even if the cards are stacked against you [as such is life]💥💥💥

As we endeavor to carve out our own path in life, we always hear motivational words like 'DREAM BIG'.  Granted, having challenging and ambitious goals are a key part in planning out our future.  BUT are BIG GOALS really the right way to accomplish WHAT you've set out to do?  WHAT IF, just WHAT IF the real secret to crushing all of our goals is to make them more realistic via smaller ones?  Psychology experts shared their research efforts WHERE they stumbled across a big surprise that those small goals, once we do cut our goals in half, are 63% more successful than those huge, big crazy goals, whew😡😡😡

YES, it's nuts.  WHEN we're looking for a principle in fact, we're looking for at least that five percent change.  You may be looking for a ten percent change but the reality is WHEN you say like "AIM FOR THE MOON" [because even if you fail, you'll [still] land amongst the stars].  BUT  that's NOT how life really works dude.  Problem is sometimes, people quit WHEN they fail.  The problem is we tend to judge on a very simplified scorecard like that PASS or FAIL scale, so IF we want to lose ten pounds and we lost eight, we kind of failed by two and then, do we give up???

Our takeaway:  That idea of having that huge, monstrous goal may be laudable BUT c'mon dude, it may just cripple you right from the starting line.  So, let's take a leaf from the late Rachel Apa.  WHILE she was a first-time joiner at the NYC Marathon, she prepared for it, NOT leaving a single stone unturned.  And WHILE sadly she failed, it was like two miles before the FINISH LINE and NOT after she gave it all.  YES dude, ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO REACH THE 'FINISH LINE' regardless of the cards and odds you're facing.  After all, it was you WHO set that goal dude!!!

YES, Sometimes Life Isn't Fair!@#$%?

 

Trueness.  YES, Sometimes Life Isn't Fair!@#$%? You worked your butt out.  You sacrificed everything.  You risked way beyond WHAT you used to take.  You put your very own self right on the chopping board.  YES, FAIRNESS is culturally universal.  Supposedly, you DON'T have to haggle for FAIRNESS.  History tells us that even hunters from the past centuries would the spoils as evenly as possible WHERE judgments, transactions and decision that are free from discrimination.  BUT alas, a good number of us still [wrongly] think that FAIRNESS prevails only with children and NOT adults.  That explains WHY SOMETIMES, LIFE ISN'T FAIR!@#$%?

BUT can we agree that FAIRNESS is a choice and as such, it is something over WHICH we have that personal control.  It likely comes as no surprise that often, we can choose to treat others in a fair manner, NOT exploiting someone, NOT taking a disproportionate amount of resources from someone, as long as we are very much in control to have that choice of FAIRNESS.  WHAT might be more surprising [and I personally believe that many of us do struggle with this from time to time, that is HOW we act in regard to a broader concept of FAIRNESS in life, because FAIRNESS in life is NOT the same as FAIRNESS in interpersonal transactions because the fact is, it is NOT💥💥💥

Can we agree that more often, WHAT prevails these days is that world of ironies that only substantiate that SOMETIMES, LIFE ISN'T FAIR.  Factual news around will bear with us.  At times, our society's most moral citizens fall ill with cancer WHILE the most hardened criminals remain healthy.  The most talented writers earn much significantly less than the less talented ones.  Some are born into poverty WHILE others are born into affluence.  The idea that LIFE ISN'T FAIR ISN'T just some 'hard knocks' philosophy that popped out of thin air and espoused by tough-as-nails elders and mentors WHO are more noted for being survivors even after the strongest storms and hurricanes would have hit them😡😡😡

Quite interestingly, we often feel that life ISN'T fair WHEN we compare ourselves to others in the absence of an interpersonal transaction.  Hey dude, even healthy criminals and sick saints DON'T really have a direct relationship, right?  NOR do people WHO happen to wind up being born to rich OR poor parents.   NOR do two people WHO are working hard at books of different genres [OR even of the same genre].  YES, in these instances, the personal slight you feel ISN'T actually about fairness OR unfairness.  YES, it's about entitlement!!!

Our takeaway:  I realized as well that at times, it is a bitter pill to swallow for us WHO want to be the heroes of our very own stories.  With an eye on our own effort and our own virtue, it can be easy to confuse entitlement for FAIRNESS [or even the lack thereof, right?].  To be clear, FAIRNESS is something over WHICH we can have direct control because it involves an interaction in WHICH you are part of it.  BUT NOT for entitlment.  WHICH explains WHY SOMETIMES, LIFE ISN'T FAIR!@#$%?

Do You Have Much Ground To Make Up?

 

Do You Have MUCH GROUND TO MAKE UP?  Less discussed around these days is the need for GROUNDING.  And to listen to the experts, they have developed multiple techniques to help us move through distress by focusing on tangible objects, LIKE even holding an ice cube OR tasting something spicy.  On the other hand, they encourage mental GROUNDING techniques to distract us from those distressing feelings by redirecting our thoughts back to the present through memory games OR reciting something!!!

Before we get lost in the maze with regard GROUNDING, let's have a quick alignment here.  GROUNDING is that set of techniques designed to reconnect oneself to the present moment, helping us to find that rarefied balance, calm and stability all rolled into one [especially WHEN things become that stressful].  Taking a leaf from the experts' techniques, we DON'T need to reinvent the wheel here.  The mental techniques would involve using one's mind to distract and eventually calm oneself.  By focusing on mental exercises even like counting backwards [from 100 in multiples of 7], in a subtle way, we tend to shift our attention away from anxiety and toward a task that requires concentration💥💥💥

At times, there seems to be a mix-up when it comes to GROUNDING.  As literally defined, GROUNDING happens WHEN we stand on the earth OR we establish contact with a product that's grounded into the earth.  And that is thought to connect our body to the natural electric charge of the earth and transfer electrons into our body.  Experts tell us that the electrons we absorb through GROUNDING works as 'natural antioxidants' to neutralize harmful free radical molecules in our body.  And they believe that exposure that our exposure to those electrons is vital for functioning at best.  YES, it is said to help improve sleep and reduce inflammation😡😡😡

Let's dive into the benefits of GROUNDING as unearthed by researchers.  WHILE there is NO definitive evidence to show it can actually prevent any ailment, experts have 'some' evidence that changes do occur in the body soon after one connects to the ground.  Lo and behold, experts believe that GROUNDING may help to counteract even cardiovascular and auto-immune diseases.  Oh yes, we heard it all, inflammation is linked to many diseases as well as pain.  There was even a study that found concentrations of known indicators of inflammation more in people WHO are GROUNDED than those WHO didn't❎❎❎

Our takeaway:  WHETHER we take GROUNDING literally OR figuratively, the common denominator here is that we've got to stay GROUNDED in life.  Simply put, we should NOT lose touch of life, of its realities [including especially the harsh realities].  We've witnessed those 'Cinderella Stories', those 'from rags to riches' stories BUT at the end of a circuituous narrative, everything that was so good to hear and witness can dissipate in thin air faster than one can expect.  Lesson learnt:  Let us NOT get drunk with success, with monies, with all the stuff that are shiny and dandy because all of those 'good tidings' DON'T last forever.  Things will ebb.  Good things will subside.  And NOT to sound like an alarmist, at times, before we know it, GOOD things turn upside down, ouch.  YES dude, do you have much GROUND to make up???

Are You TRAVELING [through a] SLIPPERY SLOPE?

 

Are you TRAVELING [through a] SLIPPERY SLOPE?  YES, many times we do travel through it.  BTW, are SLIPPERY SLOPES uphill?  Nooooo sirs, SLOPES are always downhill no less!@#$%? Our habits are the best examples.  Take an unethical behavior which can worsen and increase over time.  We all know, it starts with like taking a little bit, maybe a few hundred, then a few thousand.  Then, we get comfortable with that and before we knew it, it snowballs into something big.  Sounds familiar?  Another SLIPPERY SLOPE, right dude💥💥💥

YES it's scary HOW even small ethical indiscretions can potentially lead to huge and bigger ethical missteps.  And WHAT perplexes researches is the phenomenon as to WHAT motivates people to veer into a path NOT rightfully the correct one, leading them to do increasingly bad things.  YES, those small unethical actions might seem innocuous and people can easily rationalize their behavior to justify it, LIKE 'no one got hurt' OR LIKE 'hey, everybody does it'!@#$%?

WITHOUT turning this thread into something political, here's a million dollar question.  WHY IS CORRUPTION indemic across?  YES dude, blame it on that SLIPPERY SLOPE WHERE things started on petty, 'drop in the bucket' stuff until it turns big time until its tentacles will spread across, deeply enthrenched.  Sounds familiar?  Exactly dude.  Because of that 'rationalization process' WHICH some of us would [wrongly] call as moral disengagement, people tend to be more likely to slip into a pattern of behavior.  They feel fine about doing something a little bit worse the next time and then commit more severe unethical actions.  Coincidentally, the expert psychologists have called this as that 'SLIPPER SLOPE' effect no less😡😡😡

WHAT's alarming if NOT hair-raising are recent results from studies which concluded:

• People are more likely to justify small ethical indiscretions than major ones.
• Over time, as they justify more and more, they can be led to justify even those bigger and worsening indiscretions
• And WHEN faced with major dilemmas. they are less likely to be unethical
• And in the end, they are more LIKELY to make unethical choices if they are faced with indiscretions gradually over time

Our takeaway:  SO HOW do we stem that slide towards that [quite] treacherous SLIPPERY SLOPE?  Nothing fancy here.  NO rocket science either.  With ethics, it is NOT and should NOT be compared to the kaleidoscope offering tons of colors because in ethics, it is as simple as a black OR white.  NO grays even.  And if ever we go astray and tag things as either gray or ash-gray, you're already one foot into that path that will lead you offtrack one day.  As we all constantly travel through, especiallu those SLIPPERY SLOPES, it pays to be mindful and incisively aware WHEN things take a different turn!!!

A Crisis Is A Crisis

 

Call anything by any name except a CRISIS because a CRISIS IS A CRISIS no less.   We can downplay things and coax things to reduce the severity of a CRISIS BUT there's no other way to get around a CRISIS except to tackle it, contain it, resolve and the bottomline is to survive a CRISIS even if one does NOT end up unscathed.  BUT before I get read wrongly, I am NOT trying to sow anything that approximates those Armaggedon-like scenario, no sirrrrrs, NOT even my least intent here💧💧💧

In simplest semantics, CRISIS can be anything that comes out of a variety of stressful events in our lifetime.  YES, each of us has unique ways of dealing with these 'uneventful' events in order for us to maintain that level of comfortable emotional balance and WHEN our usual coping mechanisms fail, we tend to seek and find ways of coping.  YES, sadly, a CRISIS state comes into being WHEN those new attempts fail to return us to that pre-CRISIS level of emotional balance.  YES, CRISIS is that state of feeling, an internal experience of confusion and anxiety to the degree that formerly previous successful coping mechanisms fail us and ineffective decisions and behaviors take their place💚💛💜

WHAT happens next?  Your guess is as good as mine.  We would likely end up confused, vulnerable, anxious, afraid, guilty and to an extent, driven to anger and veering towards hopelessness.  In the end, perceptions get altered and even memory may end up distorted, often beyond our control☝☝☝

WHEN we get hit with CRISIS, WHAT most of us miss out like 99% of the time is that we could in the midst of an opportunity.  YES, CRISIS is useful WHEN it causes us to go beyond familiar coping skills and instead, we end up driven to hone new skills, becoming more competent and even autonomous and less reliant on others [sounds familiar in some tightly knit cultures were families are so glued to each other even and most especially even in the midst of one CRISIS after another CRISIS.  To an extent, it's saddening😡😡😡

Our takeaway:  As there is NO ONE SIZE THAT FITS ALL, you might get back to me and ask me, HOW DO WE HANDLE A CRISIS?  Easier said than done BUT let's endeavor to dump and throw out the window our vulnerabilities related to anxiety, helplessness and anger.  WHY?  Because they will do more harm than good WHEN weathering a crisis.  Instead, take things objectively.  Define and clarify the CRISIS you are in and list down your options in weathering it.  Take it.  DON'T rush with conclusions.  Bottomline is reach an informed decision because A CRISIS IS A CRISIS and you've got to deal with it dude!!!