It doesn’t matter what you believe about Jesus or religion, the Christmas story is pretty fantastic! It starts with two ordinary young people, Joseph and Mary. They are engaged to be married and probably pretty excited about starting life together.
We have been talking about the insidious negative impact of drama on civility and interpersonal harmony. Many of you recently shared Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends with whom, due to Covid, you may not have seen in person for
Our “stories” lead to drama because, while they were prompted by actual facts, they become blended with our prejudices, fears, slights, and wounds from the past. They stir up feelings that rile us up and for which we blame whoever
Drama occurs when you turn some small slight or problem into something big and bad! And you may be doing this all of the time. Two of the most important skills you can master in life are learning to differentiate
“Oh, quit being so dramatic!”, you may have been told. Sometimes it seems that drama may be its own pandemic! It is everywhere. And it brings emotional distress, anger, relational pain, and even violence with it. I define drama as
You may not think of yourself as someone who has entitlements but, most likely, you do! Entitlements are expectations of how you think things should go. Let’s see if any of these fit you: I am entitled to be kissed
We don’t always like the feedback life is providing but we always need it. Going below the line is natural but staying there is problematic. When we are below the line we aren’t open to learning and so are resistant
You are “below the line” when you are turning a deaf ear to the feedback life is sending your way and, instead, are insisting that you are right and don’t need to change. Some people are committed to living below
One of the most fundamental skills everyone who seeks to improve is called “shifting from below to above the line”. It is so important that we will invest in a few posts in order to make the concept clear. Imagine
It might sound simple but constructive change rarely happens without a plan. The difference between a wish and an accomplishment is the plan. Hopefully, the last few posts that discuss thriving and taking radical responsibility for your life have prompted