PKay Reflections

The Universal Narrative: When You Feel Unworthy https://zenhabits.net/unworthy/ By Leo Babauta A little boy was told by his father, from a young age, that he wasn’t good enough. Not in so many words, but through his actions — by criticizing him, yelling at him, hitting him, leaving him. The boy grew up into a man, knowing that he was unworthy of praise, of success, of love. The boy, as an adult, got a job, but didn’t really think he was good enough to do the job well. He faked it, deathly afraid every single day that he would be found out and mocked, then fired. He tried to hide, not to put himself in the spotlight, because then maybe no one would see his unworthiness. But he was always deathly afraid of people seeing him fail. So he held himself back, careful not to do anything where he might fail. He put off taking on tough tasks, and formed a long habit of procrastination. This came to rule his life, affecting his health habits, financial habits, relationshi...

The Practice of Silence for Lay People https://www.catholic.sg/the-practice-of-silence-for-lay-people/ Silence. It’s a word that is both appealing and terrifying. It is a word that can either connote peace and calm, or frightening isolation. While some might find the idea of silence appealing, the truth is, most of us don’t do well with perfect quiet. Have you ever sat alone in a room, only to hear sounds you had never noticed before? The ticking of a clock. The whooshing of air moving through ducts. The hum of a refrigerator. A lawn mower running in the distance. It is all a bit unnerving. But perhaps the thing we fear most about silence is being alone with our own thoughts. When confronted with true quiet, we begin to hear the mad and chaotic rush of thoughts filling our minds. The anxieties, the deep longings, the painful questions all seem to come bubbling to the surface of our consciousness–and it makes us uncomfortable. We fear this confrontation with our inn...

Three Rules of Willpower: 1. Willpower is a finite resource Science has shown that willpower is strongest early in the day and wanes as the day goes on. 2. Willpower is a “muscle” which can be strengthened Science has also shown that willpower acts like a muscle and can be strengthened with “exercise.” 3. Willpower is subject to your environment Structure your environment in a way that eliminates the need for willpower. For more details, Read " The 3 Rules of Willpower (and How to Make Them Work for You) "

Gratitude Can Change Destiny There was a small bird living in a desert. With no sign of greenery the bird use to hop around on the hot sand through the day. An angel while on his way to God saw the little bird and felt pity. He went and asked “O little bird! What are you doing in this hot desert? Can I do something for you?” The little bird said, “I am very pleased with my life, but this heat is unbearable. Both my feet are getting burnt. Only if there was a tree here, I’d be delighted”. Angel said, “Growing a tree in the middle of desert is beyond my scope. I am to going meet God, let me speak to him and ask if he could fulfill your desire”. Angel asked God, if he could help the bird. God said, “I could grow a tree, but her destiny doesn’t allow it. And I can’t change that. However, you can give her my message, which will help her survive the heat. Ask her to hop with one foot at a time. That ways she can rest the other one for a while and change foot often. This way onl...

Listen, my son, to the master’s instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart. This is advice from a father who loves you; welcome it, and faithfully put it into practice - St Benedict When the two ears are put side by side they form the shape of the heart. Interestingly, the word 'ear' sits right in the middle of the word 'heart' (h-ear-t). The ear is the way to the heart. So, if you want someone's heart, learn to listen to them. If you want God's heart, learn to listen to Him through the pages of His word. We need both a learner’s ear to learn from others and a lover’s heart to love others.

Chinese is a pictorial language. The Chinese character for Listening is as follow: We need to use the ears to listen. We need to use the eyes to read book  (listen to the author)  and newspaper  (listen to the reporter) . Our disposition must be “ One Heart ”. Single-minded or undivided attention to listen properly. Most of the time we are not listening: Not interested – mind wanders Interested but eager to respond or give advice The purposes of listening are: We listen to obtain information We listen to understand We listen for enjoyment We listen to learn There are five key techniques you can use to develop your active listening skills: - Pay attention - Show that you're interested - Provide feedback - Do not judge - Respond appropriately

Doing vs Thinking Doing is carrying out a series of tasks. Thinking is reflecting on what tasks should be carried out. Balancing thought and action will always be a challenge for many people. This is because they want the right task to be carried out effectively. There are risks and costs to a program of action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction   - John F Kennedy What you want is progress, in life and career. And that can only achieved through action. "Doing" involves risk but it's the only way to make progress. Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned - Peter Marshall Example: https://pkay-reflections.blogspot.com/2018/11/the-boy-and-starfish-one-daya-man-was.html Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will define you - Thomas Jefferson Results come to those who act while others are discovering the "right" ways to generate results. W...