Youthful Life: X

"The only thing you sometimes have control over is perspective. You don't have control over your situation. But you have a choice about how you view it." Chris Pine Reframing makes the picture different. Reframing is a powerful tool that we have in our arsenals to view our experiences in the ways that we dictate. Reframing let's us craft the narrative, and the story we tell ourselves about our own lives. So much of our lives can be dictated by fear. Fear is paralysis. Fear is a blockade. Fear is holding us back. Fear is not a way to live. Fear prevents us from living. Oh, what our lives could be if we lived in spite of fear. Fear, apprehension, nervousness, and all their dastardly cronies that prevent us for the fullness of life can sometimes be overcome through reframing. We can take a hardship presented to us, and make it small. We can take it is a challenge that will benefit us in the process. We can turn it into something of our own creation. It's taking ...

" The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another." William James Stress is meant to be temporary; not a permanent state of being. Once more with feeling, and I'll say it again for those in the back. Stress is caused by our reaction to the things going in on our lives, not the things themselves. Think about that. That means that as we are able, we can manage our reactions. We have the choice to downplay or highlight the impact of what we face. We get to determine what something or someone means to us. In a world that glorifies the disease of being busy, demands contribution to an incessant news cycle, and a sacrifice of the entirety of who you for are for "productivity" - stress has become normalized. If you're not stressed out, to the point where its toll is visible on your body, then you're not working hard enough.  Stress is not a measure of success nor is it a quantifier of hardship endured. Stress should...

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.” Audre Lorde I'm tired . I mean like physically, and emotionally exhausted. I feel run down, run ragged, and run over. I'm not as young as I used to be, and the effects of living a nonstop go life are finally catching up to me. Things that came effortlessly in college are little bit more arduous now. I have to be more cognizant of the ways that I exert myself. I also just so happen to do one those jobs that almost exclusively emotional intelligence, and interpersonal relationship building. Maintaining connections is hard. As an introvert, I use every last ounce of energy I have to be accommodating, welcoming, and warm to others at work. Constantly having to smile, be friendly, and genuinely show interest in other people takes a lot out of me. I love people, but I find interactions draining. Then I go home, sit in silence for a bit, read books, watch excessive amo...

The 20s are all about embracing uncertainty. Society grooms us to always be planning our next steps. We're supposed to be preparing for the future, prepping our next move and crouching to be ready to pounce. If you don't know what you're going to be doing five or ten years life, your life is apparently a mess. I'm here to tell you that I don't know what I want to do tomorrow much less next week or next year even. That's too damn real. It's okay to not know. Stop and read that again - I'll wait. It's time to change mapmakers. It's time to chart your own path, in your own time. It's time to become your own cartographer.   The first time I ever heard the word cartographer was in the context of this infamous level of the smash hit first-person shooter Halo: Combat Evolved that came out in 2001 (right in the childhood). I never really processed fully what it meant to be a map-maker. Maps have always just seemed to be there. Remember the days w...

The 20s are all about realizing your personal importance. Self-esteem, self-image, and self-respect all have to come from you.  There is no one that can treat you better than can for yourself but recognizing that you need to do so can be an uphill battle. Sometimes it takes some prompting, reminders from others, and obnoxiously positive affirmations to let us know that we matter. It shouldn't have to come from someone else but it's okay if it does. You don't need anyone's permission to love yourself. Go team natural, let yourself be a little raw, and know you're imperfectly perfect. #NoFilter necessary.    " To be human is to sense and to be sensed." There is nothing more invalidating then sharing part of yourself and having your courage disregarded. In a world of barriers, disconnection, and aversion to contact, to give your memories to another is bold. Sharing our opinions face to face, from our lips to another's ears, with our unique voices bein...

The 20s are all about understanding your latent potential. Each and every one of us has something special to offer the world. There is something you do that literally no one else in the entire world can do. Every person you meet knows something that you do not know. I believe life is all about figuring out what our purpose on this Earth is and using it to help other people. The crazy thing is that not everyone figures out what they're supposed to be doing and that right there is the hardest part about life. These are some of the most important and exciting years of our lives. Some people are taking off, others are just getting started, and even more are almost there. They're at the climax. *Every special occasion deserves a video blog post from yours truly, enjoy me being my goofy self and taking on the "Cottonball Challenge" - subscribe to my YouTube channel for more videos! * Get at my social media - Follow @drjotengii (twitter, instagram & pinterest), J...

The 20s are all about challenging yourself. Experience can go a long way. There are some things you don't need to try to know that you won't like them while there are others you could do to dabble with before writing them off. College is all about experimentation. All those alleged "phases" and "benders" people go on come with good reason, simply that it's time to decide for yourself what you want to include in your life. It's good to push yourself outside your comfort zone every once in while to remind yourself you're alive. Play it self and you might just end up stranded in a cabin in the woods (figuratively and literally). Serving as a peer advisor for the bridge program I'm taking part in has definitely been a formative experience for me. The students are may share some similar identities but how they exemplify them speaks volumes about how we are intersections of not only the identities we hold but our experiences. They are such indi...