Category: Self-Improvement
Top 6 Lessons from the Past Year
To be honest, I’m still scratching my head wondering why I’ve been unusually happier this past year. It’s not like I accomplished anything big. The resolutions I made last year are the exact same ones I have now. I’m still scrambling for a greater sense of meaning and purpose. I’m still trying to reacquaint myself ...
For A New Beginning
This past year has been very special for me, to say the least. It was the year I finally listened to a strong ache for change that had been gnawing at me for some time now. I finally stopped making excuses and did what I had to do to get to a new state, and ...
If Growth Feels Like Destruction, Don’t Fret — It’s Normal.
Growth is extremely exciting, admittedly humbling, terribly frightening, yet ultimately necessary. We tend to romanticize growth as an exciting time of flourishing and transformation, of trading our former lives for improved versions of ourselves. And most of the time, that is the case. But we often overlook the fact that growth can also be very ...
Challenging Your Assumptions and the Need to Predict
In an effort to minimize risk, we all have the tendency to predict possible outcomes and plan accordingly. To make these predictions, we can't help but draw from past experiences and preconceived notions of the world in order to keep ourselves safe. And this is not always a bad thing. Predicting and falling back on ...
A Meditator’s Advice for Measuring Progress with Anxiety or Depression
When it comes to mental health challenges like anxiety or depression, it can be tricky to measure progress in a tangible way than, say, weight loss. Progress is often slow, subtle, and incremental, and the changes we make on the inside are often barely detectable on the outside (at first). It's incredibly frustrating to feel ...
Top 5 Lessons from the Past Year
I love witnessing the excitement and buzz surrounding each New Year. There's something special about the world sitting in anticipation and wondering about the possibilities that lie ahead. It's a time to relish how far we've come, re-assess where we're going, and ultimately cling on to hope and gratitude. The past year was a special ...
We Can’t Always Protect Other People’s Feelings & That’s OK
Yesterday I accidentally upset a woman by texting very briefly in the movie theatre (mind you, I was texting underneath my jacket with my screen dimmed to maximum, but I guess she still caught a glimpse of the glare). It was the kind of text that needed an urgent reply, but I get it: people go to ...
Say “Yes” to Life — It Might Surprise You
As sobering as it is to admit, I allowed many years of my life to be governed by fear. Almost every move I made was done out of self-protection or self-preservation. I'd approach most situations with caution, paranoid that a good moment would go sour or that a bad one would go from 'worse' to ...
This New Year, Dare to Dream Big
"Dreaming" hasn't always come easily for me. I've always admired my brother's naturally confident disposition, his believing mindset, and his ability to dream with ease. I don't know if it's a mixture of my temperament and life experiences, but I've always approached life with significantly more caution, somewhat afraid to dream big out of fear ...
Life Lessons from Latin Dancing
It's only been one month since I started taking Latin partner dance classes (like salsa, bachata, and Brazilian zouk), and I'm surprised by how restorative it's been for me. At first I thought I was simply learning something new—taking up a hobby to sneak in some physical activity after work—but it ended up being so ...
Celine Diaz: Real Talk 