How Happiness Can Help Your Workplace And How To Achieve It Happiness is a personal experience, easily influenced by a number of personal and impersonal factors. In a workplace, it can be easy to lose sight of why it matters to hold happiness as a priority. However, research suggests that happiness could be the cog […]
Mental Health Inevitably Impacts Physical Health It may not occur to most people that mental health and physical health are very interconnected. However, a large body of research shows how your brain effects the well-being of the rest of your body. Our thoughts, feelings and behaviours relate to one another and sometimes accumulate certain habits […]
Have you ever felt pressured, controlled or questioned what you are thinking or doing by another person? It may be a sign that manipulation is at play. What is Manipulation? Manipulation is defined as the exercise of ‘unscrupulous’ influence or control over others. Rather, then asking for something in an upfront, direct, truthful and clear […]
What is Pathological Narcissism? Narcissism has become a term known among almost everyone. For example, in Woody Allan’s 2006 movie, Scoop, when asked what religion he is, he replied that he had converted to narcissism. Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) or pathological narcissism is associated with ways of thinking and feeling about oneself and others that […]
You may have heard the saying (or have said), “I am losing my patience!!”. What does this saying around losing our patience actually mean? If patience is described as “waiting calmly for what I want”, losing patience means we are no longer calm, and no longer waiting. We have given into our impulses (our thoughts […]
1. Get in your Body…Slowly Take five slow breaths. Focus on breathing from your belly and count each breath in and out. Try to slow it down…. Get up and do your favourite stretches Walk or stand barefoot on grass or sand or lie down in a forest or on a beach Place your feet […]
What is actually going on for me? During our day-to-day reality, we may often experience strong emotions. These emotions may cause anxiety, restlessness, burnout, and other negative feelings. Grounding yourself in the present moment is a simple, evidence-based technique that can quickly soothe unpleasant emotions and provide psychological benefits. Focusing on Our Reality Focusing […]
We Didn’t Start the Fire What is Gaslighting? Gaslighting is a form of emotional abuse whereby an individual will manipulate the targeted person into believing they’re wrong, even when they’re right, causing them to doubt their perception of reality. The target may be convinced that their memories are wrong or that their feelings are […]
Women’s Equality Day Special What is Women’s Equality Day? Women’s Equality Day is an American celebration of allowing women to vote. Just because it’s American doesn’t mean we can not take this time to reflect on what Australian women have achieved. Women’s Equality Day is a day of reflection. A day of appreciating the sacrifices […]
‘Stress-Mas’: The Stressors of Christmas Christmas can be a very stressful time for some people for a variety of reasons. Maybe you are finding this year difficult or had a difficult holiday experience previously, this can make you worried and stressed for the coming Christmas. On the other hand, you might enjoy Christmas but […]
Identifying Identity What is Identity? Identity can be viewed as the unique puzzle pieces that when put together, make you, you. Identity includes your memories, experiences, values, beliefs, relationships, strengths, weaknesses and many more. Your identity is something you can’t control. However, you can help it develop over time as you learn, grow and experience […]
Holiday Stress The holiday season is here. It is a time to make good memories with family and friends and to celebrate getting through to the end of one turbulent year that was 2021. Despite the premise of relaxation and fun, the holiday season can also bring about increased stress. With Christmas and the New […]
Returning to Socialising After Lockdown Over the last year and half our country, and the broader global community have become used to living in a state of lockdown isolation. The limits of our conversations over this time have been reduced to nodding along in Zoom meetings. Previously, we enjoyed chatting with housemates before dissolving to […]
What is Flow? To be in a state of flow is to be utterly absorbed in an activity, with time seeming to pass in the blink of an eye. It is a mental state in which one’s whole being is completely immersed, typically in an activity which one enjoys and is skilled at. While flow […]
Flow and Organisations Organisational cultures are transforming and shifting to new models. New importance is being placed on employee well-being and the need for a culture that supports employee mental health and engagement. Organisations that only focus on profitability have seen their employees lose their drive to work, particularly where their job is viewed as […]
What is Flow? Have you ever been so absorbed by an activity that you lost all sense of time? Were you ever so focused on your task at hand that all your worries drifted away? If so, you may have been in a mental state psychologists refer to as, ‘flow’. According to psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, […]
Imposter Syndrome What Imposter Syndrome Can Look Like The concept of Imposter Syndrome is the idea of someone not being able to internalise their success. They believe their success or accomplishments are dependent upon external factors. Such as luck, fluke or even the stress they applied to their preparation. There are five patterns that have […]
What is Women’s Equality Day? Women’s Equality Day is an American celebration of allowing women to vote. Just because it’s American doesn’t mean we can not take this time to reflect on what Australian women have achieved. Women’s Equality Day is a day of reflection. A day of appreciating the sacrifices of the women in […]
What is an identity? How do we know what parts of our identity are truly ours and not a projection of those around us? The different aspects of creating an identity can make it a very difficult thing to do. Especially in a time of change or stress which is when the assurance of who […]
What is an Identity Crisis and How Can it Occur? An identity crisis is a developmental life event where a person questions themselves, their purpose and their place in the world around them. This is a time of deep analysis, reflection and exploration of various ways a person sees themselves. An identity crisis is not […]
What is Identity? Identity can be viewed as the unique puzzle pieces that when put together, make you, you. Identity includes your memories, experiences, values, beliefs, relationships, strengths, weaknesses and many more. Your identity is something you can’t control. However, you can help it develop over time as you learn, grow and experience new things. […]
Changing Your Habits of Gaslighting and Recovering From Gaslighting Do you stoke the flame? Gaslighting can be difficult to identify, it can be even harder to identify if you’re the gaslighter. The main concept of gaslighting is an assertion of power and control. Denying other people’s feelings and perspectives and further reiterating yours is the […]
Gaslighting Gaslighting has recently come to light on social media and is being increasingly spoken about. It’s not a new concept though, it’s been around for a long time and was actually named after the 1944 movie, ‘Gaslight’ where the husband manipulates his wife into thinking she is losing her sanity. Gaslighting is a form […]
What is Gaslighting? Gaslighting is a form of emotional abuse whereby an individual will manipulate the targeted person into believing they’re wrong, even when they’re right, causing them to doubt their perception of reality. The target may be convinced that their memories are wrong or that their feelings are overreactions, leading them to rely on […]
The Need for Adaptability In an ever-changing world, where no day is the same, the ability to adapt to our surroundings is quickly becoming vital, although a difficult skill to possess. In the wake of growing global civil unrest, climate change, financial debt, and a global pandemic; feelings of angst, stress and more than a […]
Ups & Downs of Living in a Pandemic COVID-19 has forced us to acquire new knowledge and skills to assist with generating a new way of thinking that accommodates our current, ever-changing times. We never know when or how our everyday life is going to be changed. What may have made sense last year, may […]
There are three important questions to ask yourself in any relationship who am I? where am I going? and, who is coming with me? Who am I? Is a big question, and one that is both not stagnant, and answered by a series of other questions such as “what do I like/dislike?” Where am I […]
What is Memory? Memory is widely understood to be defined as the process of learning, storing and retrieving information. There are two overarching types of memory which are then subdivided depending on the kind of stimuli (senses) and how it’s recalled. ‘Temporary’ memories or information that is stored for a short period of time is […]
Control your thoughts, clear your mind. “Mind control”– it’s the stuff from science fiction movies typically with sinister overtones. In its purest form though, it’s simply about training your brain to serve you better. Previous blogs have covered ‘exercising your mind’ and ‘your thoughts aren’t necessarily facts’. In this post, we’ll focus on controlling your […]
Can you tell the difference between a fact and an opinion? Sometimes it can be difficult to see the difference. Often, we respond to our thoughts as if they reflect facts about the world, but they more often represent opinions or assumptions. Being able to tell the difference between facts and opinions is a valuable […]
The mind like any muscle, must be exercised. When we think about our health and well-being, we tend to focus on our physical health. Thus, we typically neglect the health of our mind, which is a critical aspect of our overall well-being. Whilst a healthy body keeps us active, fit and well. A healthy mind […]
Ever faced a challenge so big it fills you with terror? Where the sheer size of the what you have to deal with makes you feel completely overwhelmed? What Happens? For a start, you might feel bit of a “brain freeze”. The brain’s pre-frontal cortex (where logic, problem solving, analysis, prioritisation take place) goes off line, and our amygdala fires up the fight, flight, freeze response. The perception of […]
So often, in everyday life, we are faced with important decisions concerning new challenges. These could include applying for a new course at university or deciding on taking a new job. These kinds of challenges are a vital component of our ability to grow and develop as an individual. The more we test ourselves, including […]
Challenges Stimulates Growth and Progress As young humans, we are faced with daily challenges. From learning to roll, to crawl, and then to walk, none of which are easy feats. All have obvious (i.e. new physical capabilities), and not so obvious consequences (i.e. wiring of neuron pathways) that ultimately stimulate growth and progress. Have you […]
A health crisis. A marriage breakdown. A death of a close friend. A workplace crisis. A global pandemic. Life is no doubt full of life challenges. Challenges that are unexpected and hard to overcome. Challenges are what makes life interesting and overcoming them makes life meaningful. It’s inevitable that you will experience adversity and challenges […]
Empathy What is Empathy? Social researchers normally define empathy as the ability to sense other’s emotions and the ability to imagine what someone else might be thinking or feeling. According to vulnerability researcher Brene Brown, the empathetic person will recognize the struggle of someone else without minimizing it, and be able to communicate a powerful sense […]
Self-Compassion Self-compassion is often associated with shame and dismissed as something that leads to self-indulgence or self-pitying. It may be avoided as it forces us to think of times we were not compassionate to ourselves or when others weren’t compassionate to us. However, it is a real and important thing. It helps us internalise stressors […]
At some stage of your life, you’ve likely used the terms extrovert and introvert to label another, even yourself. Imagine this, you’re at your work Xmas party. An hour into the social gathering, you have recognised that one person, Matthew, has been doing the most talking by a significant margin. You feel yourself become indignant, […]
Not succumbing to an opportunity to address and improve As humans, we often find ourselves overthinking and reliving certain situations. This could be a situation that transpired at work, or something that occurred several years ago that still may cross our minds. During this time of reflection and contemplation, emotions may resurface that cause a […]
Comparative to many of our monthly topics, radical open mindedness is relatively unknown, however, being able to harness it as a skill you bring to your personal and professional life provides tremendous benefit. Open mindedness, particularly radical open mindedness is about being open to alternative perspectives and willingness to accept that you might be wrong. […]
What is Mental Fitness? Have you ever thought about how mentally fit you are? You’ve probably heard of the buzz term “mental toughness”, but have you heard of “mental fitness?” Mental fitness is the ability to live life in a satisfying and sustainable way that enables you to cope with day-to-day challenges. It’s not just […]
As you may have heard many times, this year has proven to be one of the most significant years in our lives. We have gone from Bushfires, to Drought, to Floods and now the almighty Coronavirus. At the beginning of the year, we all focused on how we could achieve our new year resolutions and […]
It wouldn’t be a ground-breaking, earth shattering statement to say that COVID-19 is likely to impact many people’s mental health. It is impossible to the think that the change and uncertainty forced upon us wouldn’t cause a heightened level of mental and emotional strain in the community. But to date, what has been the impact […]
Thoughts are a part of life – there is no way to avoid them or escape them. But for something that is an innate part of your daily routine, how often do you stop to think about your thoughts? Things that have happened in the past, in the present, and in the future all affect […]
