Cognitive dissonance occurs when there is a conflict between a belief you hold and a behavior, new information, or a conflicting belief. The "dissonance" in this case causes discomfort, necessitating a change in the person's behavior or beliefs to alleviate it. The most famous example in history is the Aesop fable of Sour Grapes. In the fable, a...
Read MoreWhen you can’t feel anything other than depression, loneliness, isolation, dread, or emptiness, getting back to normal can require a monumental amount of willpower and effort to push through the resistance and lack of motivation. Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet or perfect solution to the problem because there are several different causes...
Read MoreLife is getting more grim, right? Climate change, fascism, a global pandemic, social unrest, terrorism, potential wars of the cold, nuclear, and civil kind, flattening of lifespans and homeownership levels…it seems like every day there is a reason to be pessimistic. But of course that’s absolutely absurd to think that’s an objective assessment....
Read MoreThis seems like it should be the shortest blog post ever: “Should you believe what’s true or what benefits you? What’s true, of course! What a stupid question!” Okay, well what if someone just had the greatest failure or disaster of their lives and the truth is that their life will never be the same again? What if their dog, friend, or family me...
Read MoreBelief. It can get you through the greatest tragedies. It can also hold you back. How do you know the difference, and how can you prevent your beliefs from being a roadblock to realizing your full potential? One of the saddest situations is when someone chooses to live in misery because of their beliefs about their situation. An example is when...
Read MoreThe pandemic has caused a lot of soul-searching and deep questions on the meaning of life. The biggest one is whether people can find deeper meaning in their lives through COVID-19, but they are also asking why things like this happen. Let's address these questions in this post:
Read More"There are plenty of fish in the sea." "Everything happens for a reason." "Maybe this was a blessing in disguise." I know, I know...it sucks hearing these clichés when you'd rather be sulking. Your significant other left you. You lost your job. You are facing a career-ending injury. You've been betrayed or hurt. You don't understand why, ar...
Read MoreOkay, so the title is a little "in your face" in nature, but I wanted to get your attention. There are a lot of philosophical discussions out there about impermanence, and they all seem to be the same Buddhism-like narrative about how everything is impermanent and so you should detach from everything and learn to let go to evolve beyond attachment...
Read MoreLife can be tough. But even in the best of times, you need support to reach your full potential. In either case, it helps to have a base of support to help you, whether it's to fall back on when you stumble or to stand on to reach higher than you could otherwise. So, what or who is your rock? This is a big question so that you can prepare for to...
Read MoreFreddie Mercury might have been born to love you, but you were not born to suffer. While I try to remain objective, analytical, and dispassionate in helping people find meaning in their lives, this mistaken conclusion that people come to is reinforced by popular philosophies...and so it irritates me to no end. Buddhism talks about dukkha, which is...
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