Built for More: 101 Short Stories, Essays, and Insights to Improve Communication Skills

By Armani Talks

Built for More is a collection of short stories, essays, and insights to help you improve your soft skills. Learn to think clear and speak even clearer. Each entry is meant to fuel your logic and imagination so you are better equipped to deal with people.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Armani Talks
• Release date: Nov 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9798868992346

Book preview

Author’s Preface

I’m not sure how you discovered this book. But I am happy that you discovered it. This book is a part of the:

‘101 Short stories, essays and insights to improve communication skills’ series.

Don’t worry, the books in the series are not connected. You can read any of them and not worry about having missed any content.

The first of the series was, Word Play: 101 short stories, essays, and insights to improve communication skills.

I initially had the idea to write the book when a few different experiences led to 1 moment. That’s how ideas normally work. It’s rarely just 1 thing that influences the idea, but rather, a connection of things.

I had a conversation with a few childhood friends who ended up visiting me in Tampa. As they were chilling, I was catching up on some reading. I recall the exact book I was reading. It was Relentless by Tim Grover.

As I was reading, the friends began making fun of me. Just a typical roast session, nothing serious. One of them said:

‘Look at Armani reading, what a dork!’

I thought that was funny because a few years back, I would have said the same thing.  Who the hell reads a book once they graduate from college?

However, at this stage, I was different. My roommate at the time had a filled bookshelf that was collecting dust. I decided to grab a few books and give this reading thing a try.

I loved reading as a kid.

Fell out of love with it in my teens and young adult stage.

Then fell back in love with it in my mid-20s.

So, I could empathize with these friends.

I asked them when the last time they read.

They were like:

‘Hm…like a book from beginning to end?’

I nodded.

The more they thought about it, the more they had to think about it. Eventually, they came with the answer:

‘We haven’t read a book in over a decade.’

I was mind blown.

I’m pretty sure a lot of 90s babies have not read in a decade.

But just hearing it out loud made it more puzzling.

A few days later, a person began following me on Twitter. After following me on Twitter, he subscribed to my daily newsletter. This is a newsletter where I drop daily short stories that discuss improving soft skills.

This new follower began reading a few of the newsletters.

Then one day, he emailed me:

‘Hey bro, how can I get a collection of all your writings in 1 location?’

I was never was asked that question before…

I thought:

I don’t know.

2 days later, I got another similar question.

A father was looking to get his son to read at an early age. He wanted to familiarize his son with my writings.

Question was:

‘Where was the collection of my writings?’

Hm...

2 similar questions in a span of days?

That’s unique.

When outsiders see a coincidence, they think it’s whatever.

But the person who is experiencing the coincidence feels like it’s a sign…

And for me, this coincidence was some sort of a sign.

I merged the experience of my buddies who haven’t read in a decade with the experience of the readers who wanted a collection of my works.

That’s when I thought:

‘There are so many short stories for kids. The main short stories for adults are normally X-rated erotic content. But what about educational and entertaining short stories for adults?’

I like to move quick.

So, I quickly gathered 101 of my short stories and created Word Play.

A lot of my readers loved having a physical copy of my writings. Some of them gave the book to their family as a gift.

This was a type of book for adults to read.

We get busy as we add on the years.

A lot of adults want to sit down and finish a book.

But unfortunately, they don’t always have the time.

So, 800 to 1000-word entries give them their time back.

They are transported into another word.

They learn.

They think.

Then they go back to their daily lives.

None of the short stories are connected which makes it easier to pick an entry that works for them!

After Word Play, I went on to release Streets Smarts, Limit Breaker, and Tough Love.

Now we are at Built for More.

This is the largest book in the series so far.

In this book, you will be given tons of insights on how to improve your speaking skills, breathing skills, thinking skills and much more.

A lot of content nowadays is so negative!

Pinning 1 person against the other person and spreading hate mentality.

The content in this book is not meant to give you deflating energy.

Instead, it is meant to make you feel 10 times taller.

It is meant to make you strive for more because you were always built for more.

How To Get Over

a Breakup Fast

There are certain moments in someone’s life where they get hit hard.

Those moments range from a death of a loved one, getting fired, being accused of something they didn’t do…..and a breakup.

‘A breakup?? What’s so bad about that?’

It’s a tough moment champ.

‘Yeah right. Quit being soft Armani.’

I’m not, I’m being real.

The thing with breakups is that it brings out a deeper side to you.

It brings out your human side.

I’ve seen the toughest dudes become shattered when they had to wave a permanent goodbye to the love of their life.

‘Really bro?’

Yea.

Let me explain what happens & how you overcome this dark moment in your life.

Breakups can make or break you.

Let me shed some insights into how you can use the breakup to turn your life around for the best.

The Birth of a Breakup

You are dating a person for a while.

It’s been a few months to a few years.

You two have gone from liking each other to loving each other.

Y’all have been thru the honeymoon stage, taken trips, created memories, and even…..

Talked about marriage?

Life seems to be going great & you can’t imagine the other person not being in your life.

You shudder at the thought of your loved one being with someone else.

But you shoo away those thoughts because you know that it will not happen to you.

Until one day, your worst nightmare comes true.

You two break up.

The invisible bond of love that held you together is no more.

A few potential reasons for a breakup:

Content– Either one or both of y’all got content & quit putting in the effort to make the relationship work.

Cheating– One person cheated on the other & broke all the trust in the process.

Love fades– Not malicious, but the feeling fizzles out. This can often be tied to point 1.

Distance– Long distance is doable, but only for the determined. Many couples end once distance takes place.

These are just a few reasons for the breakup.

Side Effects of A Breakup

Getting over a loved one is tough as fuck.

I’m about to give you a morbid analogy, but oh well.

A breakup is very similar to coping with the death of a loved one.

‘Get the fuck out of here.’

Nope, dead serious.

A few side effects include:

· Nightmares

· Emotional roller coasters

· Being plagued with ‘what ifs’

· Loss of appetite

· Loss of sleep

· Depression

How Long Does it take to Get Over a Breakup?

Depends on plenty of variables.

There is no set time for you to get over it, you just take it day by day.

‘Well, that’s a shitty response, Armani.’

I know.

But I have good news.

‘And what is that bucko?’

You can speed up your recovery process.

‘Oh, yea?’

Yep.

I am going to give you a few tips to get over a breakup.

If you follow my tips, you will one day realize that this relationship ending was one of the best things ever.

You are going to see what it means to turn pain into power.

Let us begin.

1. Commit to the breakup

Spoiler alert: but ex’s often try to come back.

And what happens is that people are foolish enough to go back to their ex & see if it’ll work out.

‘Does it?’

Rarely.

The ex comes back into your life with their best behavior, puts on an act & y’all give it another try.

But as the days pile up, the old fights that tore y’all apart start coming back.

And your ex begins acting the way they initially did.

Eventually, y’all 2 end up breaking up & you have a whole lot of your time wasted.

Tsk tsk.

Commit to the breakup & know that you are never going back.

No pussyfooting.

Go all in.

2. Cut off all ties & get rid of their memories

Delete all their pictures, throw out their gifts & eliminate anything that reminds you of them.

-You’re doing this because those gifts & pictures spark emotions in you. And those emotions set a chain of thoughts regarding your ex. No bueno if you’re trying to move on.

Then block them on social media & block their number too.

-The last thing you want to do is stalk their social media & stay updated on their life or drunk call them.

This step starts the entire healing process.

Note: If y’all have kids together & can’t do this step, all good, just proceed to the next one.

3. Refrain from Alcohol & Weed

‘Wait, forreal?’

Yea.

Alcohol & weed are going to get you in your feelings.

This will cause you to go on a chain reaction of thoughts & ‘what if’ scenarios.

This has your mind pulling back while you need to be pushing forward more than ever.

If you want to know how to get over a breakup fast, push alcohol & weed to the side.

4. Get your ass to the gym

Understand this.

In this world, there will be a lot of people that lie to you, leave you & hurt you.

But the weights will always be by your side.

Okay, enough of the poetic shit.

Here’s some scientific stuff:

A broken heart leads to stress.

Stress leads to your brain releasing cortisol.

Excess cortisol leads to excess blood being pushed into your muscles.

This leads to muscle aches & headaches.

Lifting weights releases endorphins in your brain.

Endorphins are feel-good chemicals that lighten your mood.

This is why you feel happier after a great workout.

Don’t go every now and then homie.

Go consistently.

Soon, the gym will become your safe haven.

By the way, not sure if you know this, but many bodybuilders & fitness freaks were born thru heartbreaks.

Use this info to push your body to new realms.

5. Find a Creative Hobby

At this stage, you have a lot of emotions within you.

This is why you need to release those emotions on a creative channel.

Spend time finding your creative channel.

A few recommendations from me are:

· Start an eCommerce business

· Create a Youtube channel

· Start a blog

· Learn painting

· Learn an instrument

· Go to dance class

· Take improv classes

You get the point.

Every time you get done with the creative hobby, you will feel a level of emotional weight removed from you.

6. Use a Journal as a Therapist or a see a Therapist

Your journal is your best friend at this stage, so write in it.

You can be vulnerable if you need to be.

Pretty sure you want to say some stuff that you don’t feel comfortable saying out loud.

So write it your journal.

Writing is one of the best ways to deal with destructive emotions.

It will become your therapy.

Or you can even go to a therapist.

If you’re someone who is in college, pretty sure they offer free therapy sessions.

Or invest in your moving on process & shell out some money on a therapist.

The sessions may be expensive, but your sanity is worth it.

7. Be Social even when you don’t want to be

Go out & be social.

You’ll be very tempted to stay home all day and wallow in misery.

But don’t.

Go catch up with friends, call your parents & join a few clubs.

‘Should I begin dating?’

Not yet.

Begin dating once you have moved on.

Don’t run away from your heartbreak by immediately jumping into another relationship.

It may work out in the beginning, but your unhealed emotions will come back & will make the relationship difficult.

Go out with the intention of being social & talking to everyone.

No need to chase at the moment.

You’ll begin to attract some dope people into your life.

8. Learn your Breakup Lessons

This part may be tough, but you have to learn the tough lessons.

This will include you finding where you were wrong in the relationship.

Tame your ego & learn how you could have carried yourself better, find red flags that you overlooked & other takeaways.

A failed relationship leads to more lessons than you can ever imagine.

It’ll teach you so much about life that your mind will be BLOWN.

Lessons that you’ll never get from a book.

So learn the lessons.

9. Commit to Leveling Up for Life

Want to know a secret?

The dark emotions never go away.

But with time, your mind becomes stronger than the dark emotions.

When your mind becomes stronger than the dark emotions, that’s when you have moved on.

Till then, I just want you to take it day by day.

Make today better than yesterday & tomorrow better than today.

If you are able to do that, you will grow stronger & stronger.

And the more you level up, the more your confidence will skyrocket.

Within some time, you will notice the pain melting away because your mind has become so strong.

And at that point?

You will find it laughable to ever think about getting back with your ex again.

Your newly leveled-up life has you attracting new people that put your ex to shame!

Keep going to the top.

Get Over Your Breakup & Alter your life

Getting over a breakup builds character like none other.

No lie.

Most people run away from conflicts that are present in the external world.

But when the conflicts are in the internal world, there is no running.

Either you deal with it like an OG or go on a downward spiral.

The one’s who go on a downward spiral end up playing catching up for a huge portion of their life.

But the ones who deal with it level up to Godlike Levels.

Your future is just getting started from this moment.

You will get over this breakup & realize how strong you were all along.

Now get off your ass & apply these tips.

Turn your pain into power.

Turn your sadness into understanding.

And turn your rock bottom moment into glory.

What is Monk Mode?

The phrase monk can stir up a whole bunch of strange images to the imagination.

One minute, you see a bald man.

The next minute, you see a bald man wearing orange robes.

And the minute after, you see a bald man wearing orange robes in a mountain.

That’s a simplistic view of a monk.

A highly simplistic view that has been dumbed down.

This post isn’t to talk about monks.

It’s to talk about ‘monk mode.’

A phrase that has lit up during the past couple of years in the self-improvement space.

What is it?

And why do people do it?

I’ve seen monk mode create winners.

I’ve seen monk mode create a lot of lost causes.

This mode has a fine line.

And it’s easy to cross the boundaries when left unchecked.

Summing Up Monk Mode in 1 line

‘Can you distill this philosophy down to 1 line?’

Sure can.

Monk mode is taking a temporary break from society to work on a worthy goal/s.

Every word has been chosen very carefully.

But a few words are more important than others.

One of the important words is temporary.

Temporary implies that there should be a rough deadline for this mode.

Monk mode without a deadline creates a loner.

Also, during this state, the individuals should be working on a worthy goal or goals.

Just sitting at home watching tv and eating Ho-Hos won’t do the trick buddy.

This allows the monk mode to have some structure.

But still, the definition is highly subjective.

What is temporary for one person may seem like an eternity for another.

And what is a worthy goal for one person may seem foolish for another.

Monk mode requires the participant to engage their subjective experience.

My 1st Encounter with Monk Mode

My first encounter with monk mode happened by accident.

This was a couple of years back when I was trying to get shredded.

So I decided to do this 90-day workout program.

I thought it would just be some basic working out and that was it.

But I was completely wrong.

In order to get shredded, my whole life had to flip upside down.

It was time to get proper sleep, meal prep, eat at the right times, avoid junk food, avoid alcohol, rinse and repeat.

Soon enough, my disciplined days had me spending more time by myself.

And monk mode was activated.

As the 90 days were up, I proudly looked at the mirror.

The abs were there.

And now it was time to go to the birthday dinner I was invited to for the night.

Strange.

‘What?’

I felt more resistance at the birthday dinner.

Something about the conversations felt more forced on my end.

Although the fitness levels improved, the social skills suffered.

Didn’t suffer too much.

But it was enough for me to notice.

How to do Monk Mode Correctly

That was my first ever experience with monk mode.

A break from society to work on a worthy goal.

I learned that in order to do this mode correctly, there needs to be some nuance.

It’s all about seasoning the meat, rather than sticking it in the back of the cold side of the fridge.

‘Huh??’

Let me clarify what that means.

When I got so focused on my fitness goals, I put social skills completely in the backside of the fridge.

I was adamant about not doing anything social-related.

Because around that time, I had a lot of friends who would eat junk and drink a lot.

I came to realize after my monk mode that it would have been smarter to keep the social skills available.

And sprinkle it in every now and then.

Not enough to make me distracted.

But just enough so my skills didn’t suffer.

It’s important to make the goal the highest priority during monk mode.

Don’t get that part twisted.

But if you see a certain facet of your life is crumbling too much, where it’s negating the value from the initial goal…

Then you may want to sprinkle the seasoning in rather than putting the item in the fridge.

Read between the analogy.

How Long Does Monk Mode Last?

It’s difficult to give a set deadline for monk mode.

Because goals are different

And lives are different.

For me, it was easy to know my deadline.

Mainly because my 90-day program indicated it.

But the real world doesn’t always give the exact date.

Let’s say you are starting a business.

This is a state of iterative changes.

Who knows when you will be profitable?

Setting a 3-month deadline may sound great on paper.

But it may be longer due to the nature of the complex system.

A simple baseline does help.

‘I will go back to being more social and engaged in society once I hit 10,000$ of passive income a month. Till then, I need to dial it back.’

The baseline goal may change.

But it does indicate to the mind that a deadline is lurking in the corner.

Monk mode without a semblance of a deadline creates a loner.

Not making fun of loner’s.

Just know what you can potentially get yourself into.

Leverage Monk Mode, Don’t Be Leveraged by It

It’s easy to confuse the tools as the goal when the fundamentals are missed.

You ever see a person who is controlled by their phone?

Dummy.

You’re supposed to use the phone.

The phone isn’t supposed to use you.

That’s because this person entered the digital landscape without a semblance of a worthy goal.

They aren’t building anything.

A business.

A social network.

Memories.

Nothing.

So they just spin in circles wasting time.

The tool has now become the master.

It’s time to end monk mode if the tool is becoming the master.

If your productivity is turning into spinning in circles.

The definition of monk mode is:

Taking a temporary break from society to work on a worthy goal/s.

And 3 words are the most important.

Temporary

Worthy

Goals

If any of them are missed, then the fundamentals have been missed.

And it’s easy for the tool to become the master.

The True Meaning of Breaking The Ice

A large part of communication skills comes down to mindset.

That’s because of the fear of being judged.

One part of social skills that is feared is ‘breaking the ice.’

Otherwise, known as introducing yourself.

But it’s much more than an introduction.

It’s about building a bond with this stranger.

It’s about meeting this person at a similar wavelength, hopefully.

‘Why did you say hopefully?’

Because not all strangers are nice.

Some are catty.

And the person who breaks the ice needs to be okay with catty individuals.

It’s just the nature of the game.

Let’s understand the true meaning of breaking the ice.

Why Communication is About Mindset

Words are the byproduct of thought.

The thought is formulated and then it is converted into word format.

Poor communicators just focus on the words and completely disregard the mind.

And that’s what leads to communication quirks.

Like polishing someone’s grammar and ignoring the message.

And getting offended for a message ‘coming off’ a certain way.

‘Why do you tell me this Armani?’

Because right now, you may be focusing too much on the words.

And this is causing the fear of breaking the ice.

Getting caught up in words will make breaking the ice feel like a very scary task.

But in-depth communicators who understand that words are a byproduct of thought will use words, sure.

But won’t place too much importance on the words alone.

A simple ‘hello‘ beats ‘hello, how are you. My name is Tom and I am from Missouri. Just wanted to say hi because I thought it would be nice….‘

You can already tell who is the word communicator.

The True Meaning of Breaking the Ice

Breaking the ice becomes less daunting when an intention is assigned.

Without an intention, the conversation spins in circles.

If I tell you to go in the forest and walk, is that descriptive?

‘Not really.’

Why not?

‘Because you didn’t give me any specifics.’

What if I say, go to the forest and find me a big rock and a small rock, better?

‘Yea, that’s a lot better.’

Same with breaking the ice.

Let your big rock and small rock be the desire to find familiarity with the other person.

That’s the true intention in my opinion.

The common advice for breaking the ice is to ‘get to know them.’

But what does that exactly mean?

In my world, that makes me a word communicator rather than a mind communicator.

When you try to ‘get to know them’, you are mainly placing importance on them.

But what about you?

If you don’t place importance on yourself, then genuine curiosity can easily warp into an interrogation.

Why Familiarity Wins

When you make it the intention to find familiarity between you and the other person, now it becomes a game.

And more importantly, you are factored into the mix as well.

The true meaning of breaking the ice is to create an initial conversation that will break down walls and build bridges.

Walls represent having a guard up.

Bridges represent a connection being formed.

Walls are up whenever you approach a stranger.

It’s a crazy world we live in.

Strangers have common sense for having their guards up.

Bridges are always a possibility based on the other person.

Sometimes, others will turn down your bridge request.

I’ll be talking about that shortly.

By setting the intention to build familiarity, you make yourself the big rock, not the small rock.

And you make the other person the small rock.

With you leading the charge, you assign yourself the higher social value.

Much smarter.

Because when you approach a stranger like you are the high valued creature, subconsciously, they love it.

They feel important.

‘Why is this high valued individual approaching me from all people?’ they wonder.

That’s when you can ask questions or make statements to probe for familiarities.

‘Hypothetically, what if there are no familiarities?’

That’s not the point.

Simply setting the intention to find commonalities takes you on an adventure.

And even if you don’t find anything, you still went on an adventure with the other person.

How to Deal with Cold People

When I was in college, I was chilling with a bunch of my friends at the mall.

And this cute girl walks by.

I didn’t notice, but apparently, I was staring at her.

And my friends were like, ‘Armani, we see you looking.’

I chuckled.

Then they kept pushing me to talk to her.

I thought that was ridiculous.

I don’t even know her.

‘And that’s the point Armani. What’re the chances you’ll ever see her again?’ they asked.

After the peer pressure, I decided they were right.

I walked to her and asked her for the time.

Not kidding when I say this.

She responds back with, ‘fuck off! I don’t want to talk to anyone.’

And she said it in a way where all my friends heard.

I was embarrassed as hell.

And my friends were laughing nonstop.

To make matters worse, it’s not like I asked her a complex question.

It was simple.

Yet, she was rude.

That’s just the nature of the game.

By being open to moments of rejection, fearlessness is a byproduct.

The friends who encouraged me to talk to that girl eventually all moved out of Florida.

However, I talked to one of them last year.

As we were having the conversation, I asked him if he remembered the mall situation.

And he didn’t.

After reminding him for 15 minutes, he FINALLY remembered.

Lesson?

Even people who we think will never forget our mistake, will most likely forget.

Breaking the Ice When Appropriate

With the newfound knowledge of:

-aiming to build familiarity

and

-being okay with rejection

I want to give you 1 final word of warning.

‘Warning? That sounds scary.’

Not really.

Let me say ‘disclaimer’ instead of ‘warning.’

My disclaimer is:

Just because you know how to break the ice does not mean you have to break the ice with everyone.

That’s my personal philosophy.

Some people love talking.

Whether it’s with friends or strangers.

Others are more reserved and talk more when they have to.

This final disclaimer is for the people who do not always have to talk.

But when you talk, do so with some swag.

Remember, you are the high-valued creature.

And you are seeing what they have in common with you.

That’s the true meaning of breaking the ice.

How to Deal with Narcissism In Yourself & In Others

Narcissism is defined as showing a sense of entitlement.

That’s one of the definitions on Google.

I found that definition to be surprising.

I thought it was going to have a more shocking meaning.

Which it does.

Such as:

A lack of empathy.

Showing little remorse.

‘You don’t think entitlement is bad?’

I do. However, I view it as a common trait nowadays.

Which made me think, how many narcissistic people are out there?

The reason why entitlement is on the rise is because things are getting easy.

What’s spooky is that narcissism is taking up a remix in the information age.

Victims are trying to become victims to get more glory.

As information technology is fragmenting a lot of media resources…

Yellow journalism and sensationalist news are non the rise.

This leads to glorifying victims to show how much there is a lack of opportunities.

‘Are there a lack of opportunities?’

For some groups, sure.

For most groups, absolutely not. They are simply suffering from entitlement.

Narcissism 101.

Being Self Centered

This article is going to be twofold.

First, you are going to see whether you are narcissistic.

If you consider yourself a victim of some kind, I challenge you to look within.

How much of a victim are you and how much is being dramatized?

Don’t answer that.

Ponder on that.

Next, I’m going to talk about how to deal with narcissism in others.

Do we confront them or let it slide?

Before talking about either of those topics, I want you to know something.

‘What?’

The mind is wired for narcissism.

Empathy is earned over time.

The mind focuses on itself & its own needs for survival reasons.

It eventually stretches beyond personal needs when a creator role is taken up.

This is when the person is forced to create & see the different moving variables required to make something significant happen.

When the person sees FIRSTHAND the different moving variables required for creating a system…

That’s when wisdom dawns.

More on this later.

Are you Narcissistic?

I asked you earlier how much of a victim you are & how much is being dramatized.

I told you earlier not to answer it.

Now, I want you to answer it.

The mind when left unchecked creates narratives.

The default narratives tilt towards negativity.

With the current climate of media, negativity sells.

So not only is the natural state of the mind working against you, the mainstream media is constantly shoving negative narratives into the mind.

This leads to entitlement and a lack of hope.

‘Shit….what do I do in this scenario?’

Learn.

Wisdom dawns.

But wisdom dawning is earned.

It’s time to adopt the role of a creator in some form.

Maybe you were a victim of something sinister.

It still stings you to this day.

The question is, now what?

Hold a grudge and succumb to the stream of endless negativity?

Or break the rat race of the mind?

A creator is never entitled.

The day that entitlement melts is the day that you work for everything earned and earn everything that is worked for.

Unlocking the bigger picture.

How to Deal with Narcissism in Others

This one gets tricky.

Hopefully, now you’re starting to understand that entitlement is a norm for the mind.

Breaking out of it requires conscious effort.

Before, you may have thought that this narcissistic fellow was the only person of their type.

Nope.

Plenty more others like him or her.

The question is, do you bring up the narcissism to them or not?

This is when a one-sized fits all resolution is impossible.

For certain people, it’s best to not bring it up.

Maybe you rarely see this individual.

Just once in a while at a family gathering.

Trying to change them will require a lot of work with low ROI.

Probably not worth it.

Your call.

On the other hand, if you live with the person, bringing it up is important.

The narcissist may be problem unaware.

Narcissism can happen to highly logical individuals and perfectionists.

It’s not always malicious.

Sometimes, they want things to be so perfect that they can throw others under the bus to make it happen.

It’s all about making the person problem aware through gentle reminders.

If the response back is routinely hostile, then you may want to reevaluate the relationship or your delivery.

Another option exists.

‘Which is?’

Ignore.

This move works for the type of person who actively tries to get a response.

When dealing with them, ignoring is the main recipe for success.

Indifference is a strategy of its own.

Wisdom Dawns

Dealing better with people comes down to wisdom.

Wisdom is different from information and data.

Data is random jumbles of symbols.

Information is meaning from data.

Wisdom is personalized meaning from information.

It’s good to be problem aware of YOU having once been a narcissist.

‘Me? Nah. I’ve never been a narcissist!’

That’s what the mind has been programmed to think.

You probably have.

I probably have.

The most saintly person you know probably has.

That’s what sparked the saintly person’s journey to becoming a saint in the first place.

True wisdom occurs when looking in the mirror happens not by force…

But by own volition.

That’s when it’s easier to deliver a message to a narcissist who is problem unaware.

It’s because we were once them.

Rather than coming at them sideways, we have a state of grace to us.

Or it’s easier to show them indifference.

Can’t change someone who doesn’t want to change.

May they take their journey towards sainthood one day.

Overcome Entitlement & Be the Black Sheep

The black sheep is often seen in a derogatory way.

As someone who lets others down.

I view the black sheep as someone who decided to be different.

It’s easy to be entitled nowadays.

Especially because it’s becoming a fashion statement.

Great communicators are beyond that.

Because great communicators are the black sheep.

It’s impossible to be interesting when you’re like everyone else.

Whining & talking about what’s wrong.

Pain adds depth.

Pain adds structure.

Ultimately, pain brings awareness & teaches you how to deal with narcissism among others.

Loosen Up! How to Have Fun as an Adult

This may seem like a comical headline.

Yet, it’s very serious.

The ability to have fun is a skill set.

And it’s a skill set that’s even more important as an adult.

The adult mind is primed to think of ‘fun’ as ‘slacking off.’

Therefore, the adult mind associates a negative stigma to enjoying themselves too much.

This leads to resistance.

The resistance spills over to social skills, public speaking & content creation.

Time to quit being stiff.

Go from a stiff stick to a dynamic rubber band by mastering the science of fun.

Fun is the Original Focus

Focus is something that is great to do.

Without focus, 30-minute tasks become 3-hour tasks.

Different people get into the focusing zone in different ways.

Some block out time to be productive.

Others create a game plan for the day.

And others tune out all distractions.

These are great ways to be productive.

‘I feel like you’re about to say a but.’

I wasn’t.. But now that you bring it up…

BUT, what if focus was the byproduct rather than the source?

Rather than ‘having to focus.’

Have fun & allow focus to be a byproduct.

We will explore this idea more shortly.

For the time being, I want you to keep this in the back of your mind.

Building Emotional Literacy

Emotions are a compass.

Each one is meant to guide the human.

Nowadays, society deifies logic.

However, if you are looking at the grand scheme of civilization…

Emotions have more impact in