Single and ready to mingle An interrupted delay on my journey to the city center has turned it from a simple journey, into an expedition to the center of the Earth. “How about instead using the extra time to write a blog post instead of stressing?” I take out my mobile phone and start typing. … More Single and ready to mingle at 50
I’ve been writing about happiness recently. This is the third (and final) installment in a series of pieces on this subject. The first installment can be found here and second one, here. While prepping myself to write this, I began to think of analogies. Can happiness be cultivated in the same way a farmer prepares for a good … More Repost: Can Happiness Be Cultivated?
Two years ago, I published two short posts about the difference intrinsic or true self-esteem and merely contingent self-esteem; the importance of intrinsic self-esteem; and the problem with only having contingent self-esteem. I think it’s time to revisit this topic. Having reviewed the old posts, they seem good to me. However, some of the comments … More Intrinsic Self-Esteem: What It Is and Why We Need It
A few days ago, I had a Zoom meeting with Omar, my nephew by marriage. It’s been a while since I last mentioned that I married an Egyptian woman—a truly beautiful person named Azza—a little more than twelve years ago, back when I was living in Cairo, Egypt, and teaching at the American University in … More I Wish You Well, Omar
Dear, Readers, I’m speaking for all Wise & Shine writers when I say that we so appreciate your continued support of this blog. To show how thankful we are, we want to ask you to share a link to your blog or site in the “thoughts” or comments section at the bottom of this page. … More Sharing is Caring
Today I want to talk about one major cause of depression and the prospect of counteracting or removing that cause. This cause is disconnection from others, or loneliness (more on that shortly). I’m basing this largely on Johann Hari’s investigation and discussion of these matters in his amazing book Lost Connections, which I wrote about … More Disconnection from Others and Loneliness: One Social-Environmental Cause of Depression
Changing a behavior is supposed to favor improvements of people. There are mechanisms that can help the achievement of healthy goals. However, our brain is dominated by unconscious patterns that hinder the integration of new habits. Research from the University of Vermont, for example, highlights an important point. Changing a behavior is a complex and … More Why Changing a Behavior Is a Complex and Very Unstable Process
Procrastination means postponing, setting aside what we should do today to a hypothetical tomorrow. Who hasn’t done that at least once in their life? Studies revealed that procrastination affects one in five people. It could concern only some areas (for example study or work) or all the actions of one person. What is procrastination? Steel’s … More Why Procrastination Is One of Our Internal Enemies, and How We Can Fight It
Most of us are familiar with the old saying, “When it rains, it pours.” I’ve been thinking a lot about that adage recently because there’s been quite a lot of pouring rain in my life over the past few months. A few weeks ago, I wrote about needing to take a leave of absence from … More It’s Been Pouring
“The harder we try with the conscious will to do something, the less we shall succeed. Proficiency and results come only to those who have learned the paradoxical art of doing and not doing, or combining relaxation with activity.” – Aldous Huxley Drown-Proofing When it comes to our psychology what’s happened is this. Our hands … More Stalling: Why Letting Go Is the Key to Regaining Lift
Hi, all. Wise & Shine is looking for a few new writers. If you’d like to apply to join the team, send samples of your writing via our “Contact” form. Please familiarize yourself with the sort of things our blog publishes before contacting us. We’ll send a set of writing guidelines to those who send … More Want to Write for Wise & Shine?
At the end of last year, this site started a podcast. We came up with a few topics and scheduled conversations, almost entirely among ourselves (those of us who publish our writings on the site). We then recorded those discussions and posted them. We were going at a great clip in the beginning. We managed … More Whatever Happened to the Wise & Shine Podcast?
From a specialist point of view, emotions can be defined as a response that originates following the activation of specific brain circuits and manifests at the organic, behavioral, and cognitive levels. They play a crucial role in regulating mood, motivation, and behavior. Emotions are often linked to body reactions. I am sure you have heard … More Why Learning to Recognize and Understand Your Emotions is Important for Your Wellbeing
The clothes you wear do not have the only primary function of protecting you from low or high temperatures. They don’t have either the only function to make you more attractive or trendy. Clothes are also one of the most immediate forms of non-verbal communication. There are several scientific studies that demonstrate the relationship between … More Fashion Psychology, How What You Wear May Help You
Dear Wise & Shine Readers: As some of you might have noticed, I’ve been mostly away from the site in recent weeks. I’m writing to let you know that I’ll be taking a leave of absence from the blog. I’m suffering from extreme burnout. Additionally, I was recently diagnosed with an incurable degenerative condition. I … More An Explanation
“What does nihilism mean? That the highest values devaluate themselves. The aim is lacking; “why?” finds no answer. — FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE The Elephant in the Universe Now, the elephant in the existential room known as the universe here is God. It’s not uncommon to hear atheists deride the idea of God while failing to see … More Stalling: The Death of God
Imagine the following terrifying scenario. You’re on a flight that is out of control and destined to end in a fatal crash. There is nothing you can do about it. The engines have flamed out. The pilots are incapacitated. No one else knows how to fly. Now for some devastating news. This is you in … More Stalling: The Paradox of Meaning
I’ve been putting off writing this for weeks, maybe months. I’ve been reluctant to admit that I’m going through a tough period right now. For the first time in my life, I’ve been having something similar to a “mid-life crisis,” but that’s not it exactly. I’m not sure there’s a name for what’s been bugging … More Let Me Get This off My Chest
I’m currently reading The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart, with “Willie” being the great Willie Nelson, musician and songwriter extraordinaire. As you might guess from the title, the book, coauthored by Nelson and Turk Pipkin, elucidates the singer’s philosophy of life, which was strongly influenced by Buddhist and Taoist … More Question of the Day (Inspired by the Red-headed Stranger)
In October of last year, Wise & Shine started a podcast. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be recording new episodes for your listening pleasure. Tuesday will be the day we publish new podcasts to the site. If you haven’t already done so, please have a listen to our recordings from 2022. We are interested in hearing … More Wise & Shine Podcasts in 2023