Why Not Having Others To Support Or Believe In You Can Be Beneficial.

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Love and support from other people are two of the many actions and emotions that this world thrives on. Not only do we all need and want these things as an active part in our lives, we often have a deep desire to receive them from those we care about most. I may be wrong in saying that, and I'm aware that there are some that will disagree. However, I believe anyone that feels otherwise is either fooling themselves, or maybe don't care much about life in general. While it is indeed a fact that we long for others to believe in and support our dreams and aspirations, the fact of the matter is that truth will not always be the case for many of us. Most of us are aware of this, but there will even be times when our own family won't have our backs on the things we're passionate about. Not having their support or belief in us doesn't necessarily make them bad people, it just means that whatever our vision may be at that particular time isn't for them. Understandably so, this can cause most of us to develop bitter feelings and wonder why others do not believe in us. While we may not always understand the reasons, it is actually okay if others do not always believe in the things we do. Furthermore, I'm learning that not having that belief and support from others can actually be beneficial towards our lives if we allow it to.

Hey, what's going on ladies and gentlemen? It's me, Brad H. coming back at you all again, and I'd like to welcome you to another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! As always, I'm back at it once again to give my perspective on topics that I feel will not only be beneficial for myself, but hopefully for other people as well. I hope that everyone has been doing great since the last entry. If that hasn't been the case for you as of late, keep on persevering and enduring. Remember that things are never as good as they seem, nor are they as bad as we always think. So what's been going on in the world as of late? Well it's a presidential election season, so that of course has been a big topic in the news. The 2016 Olympic games in Rio are currently underway, which is an exciting time for the world, however, the event is being somewhat overshadowed by the water crisis happening there. On a more happier note, we're in the month of August, which means that football is right around the corner. I was having a discussion just yesterday with someone about how fast this summer has seemingly gone by. I think that most of us can agree that it's been a very hot one, so I'm definitely not going to complain about it coming to an end soon. I'd like to give a big shout out and wish good luck to all the countries participating in the Olympic games. I'm hopeful that the United States will bring back the bulk of gold medals. Alright, now that I've gotten on my little soapbox for a bit, it's time to get into this week's topic of why not having support from others can actually be beneficial.

As I always mention in my writings, a person's individual viewpoint on a topic will always vary. The focus here isn't to put too much emphasis on what is considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give those that read something to hopefully think about and consider more in depth. My main goal with this entry and this blog in general is to hopefully inspire others, as well as myself via this platform. Of course if anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. So how did this topic of how others not having belief in us can be beneficial come about you may wonder? Like the majority of the topics that I write about, it deals with personal experiences that I'm either currently facing, or have dealt with in the past. This particular topic for me is interesting in the sense that I know where I once was in regards to how I reacted to others not believing in me, and now I have a clearer understanding of how and why it can actually be beneficial to our lives. I want to stress that I'm not saying that we don't need support or belief from others, especially our friends and family. Having their support is crucial to any successes that we hope to achieve. However, my aim is to hopefully show how a negative can become a positive with a change in our state of mind.

As I stated earlier in this post, many of us often become angry and bitter whenever the people we love most don't take interest in the things we're passionate about. The result of this causes many of us often develop a "me against the world" type of mentality that can alienate us from those we're closest to. While some may see this mentality as a positive thing for becoming extra motivated to prove others wrong, I personally see this mentality as being self defeating in the sense that it doesn't accomplish much. First off, we should never push away the people we're close to if it can be prevented. Like I stated earlier, a person not believing in the same things you do doesn't make them a bad person; it just means that they don't see eye-to-eye with you on a particular aspect of life. Now I understand that in some cases that a split cannot be helped, but learning how to coexist and get along with others despite having differences of opinion is important. Secondly, because the me against the world mentality frequently stems from the anger and bitterness of not feeling support, it can be counterproductive in the sense that the anger is negative energy. From my perspective, the angrier you become regardless of who or what it is directed towards, the more room you leave for mistakes and bad decisions. This is something that I've written about in the past.

Now with all that has been pointed thus far, some of you may wonder; how exactly can not having support be beneficial for us? Well from my perspective and from my personal experiences as of late, it can help in teaching us how to develop a stronger belief within ourselves; something that many of us lack. See, there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting others to believe in and support us, however, the problem is that we often become too reliant on others for this support. We have become so accustomed to relying on validation and support from others, that we forget that the most important validation should come from within ourselves. The biggest reason I see this as a beneficial thing has to do with the added bonuses that come along with having self belief first. The biggest bonus that I would point out is the added confidence in going after what you're passionate about. The added boost of confidence comes from having the extra inner belief that you don't need anyone else to motivate you to do the things you want. You're able to look at yourself from a more positive perspective when you have an added boost of self belief. Another bonus I would add is the development of a stronger mind and will to succeed in the things you want. I believe that not having others in your corner can help train our minds towards becoming more disciplined, and we all know that discipline is needed when it comes to going after our ambitions.

Having that added belief and support from others can greatly help us in achieving the things we want, but not having it doesn't mean it's the end of the world. Think of it like this here; when we're faced with difficult issues, we can either wallow in them ,or make the choice to do something about it. If we sit around and wallow because our family and friends don't see the same vision we do, then we'll never have the motivation to do anything. If we make the choice to do something about it, we'll come to realize that having their blessings for the things that are important to us only adds to our lives, rather than being the sole motivating factor in our lives. I know that I've touched on a lot here, but my advice for anyone that struggles with this is to train your mind to develop an almost unbreakable feeling of self belief first. Don't ever allow others opinions of the things you enjoy doing deter you from staying on your path. Whatever path that you're on is for you and you alone. Don't get down because people doubt you, but let their doubts be a driving force for you to keep on pressing forward. Most importantly, remember that having support from others is always helpful, but having faith in ourselves is all we really need. Not having others to believe in us can be make an already difficult journey even rougher, but it can truly be beneficial to our lives if we maintain an open mind.

Well we've come to the end now, so I'm going to go ahead and sign off for this time. I hope that I was able to get my point across in this entry of 'Brad H.'s Perspective', so thank you again for anyone that stopped by. Like I always mention at the conclusion of my writings, I hope that some meaning and understanding was gained from this post. If that happens to not be the case for you, your visit is still greatly appreciated. Feel free to leave any feedback and comments below. For those of you following the Olympic games, I hope you enjoy them. Alright, I'm out, so have a great weekend everyone. Till next time, I wish you all peace and positive thoughts. See you in the next one!

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

The Only Way To Be Rewarded For Your Suffering Is To Endure.

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"You're already in pain, get a reward for it." Those are the words from popular motivational speaker Eric Thomas in his viral video on Youtube titled 'The Secret to Success'. I'd highly recommend anyone who has yet to view this particular video to give it a look. Mr. Thomas touched on many important points in that video, but the words he spoke that I quoted earlier have been resonating with me recently. As human beings, we're naturally inclined to give up whenever we're facing any kind of adversity we're not accustomed to. It's almost as if our bodies and minds are programmed to shutdown whenever we're confronted with something out of our levels of comfort. I believe this notion applies to every aspect of our lives regardless of what type of challenges we're facing. I believe the biggest thing with facing obstacles that do not coincide with our level of comfort deals with growth. Having a willingness to endure in times of hardships is how growth happens, and growth is one of the biggest regards that comes from suffering.

Hey, how's it going ladies and gentlemen? It's your guy Brad H. once again, and welcome to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I'm back at it once again to give my perspective on another topic that I feel will not only be beneficial to myself, but hopefully to you all as well. At least that is my hope. I hope that you all have been maintaining since the last time we spoke, and like always if that hasn't been the case for you, keep on holding your head up high. Things can always get better or worse for us, but the better will not come without some effort and a positive state of mind on our part. As for me personally, things have been pretty good since the last installment. Some of you may know that I'm a San Antonio Spurs fan, so you can imagine that I was disappointed to hear about the retiring of longtime Spur Tim Duncan. I've always admired him as a player, and I hate that I never got to see him play in person. However, after such a long and distinguished career in the NBA, I suppose it was about time for him to get out. Thanks for the memories Tim, and I'm certain most fans of the Spurs feel the same way. There are also a few birthdays happening within my family the next few days. Actually, there was one celebrated yesterday. One of my cousin's will be turning 18, and his little brother celebrated his very first birthday yesterday (June, 20). Also, today is my grandmother's youngest brother birthday. It's kind of amazing when you think about how much time seems to pass so quick. I can remember when the 18 year old wasn't even a year old yet, and now he is grown. I can also remember writing last year about the birth of his younger brother whose birthday was yesterday. Kinda hard to believe that it's been a year already. At any rate, although I will be seeing them both, I want to say Happy Birthday to both Biggie and Zay, as well as my great uncle Grover. Now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, it's time to get into this week's topic that deals with being rewarded for your suffering.

Like I always mention in my writings, a person's individual viewpoint on a topic will always vary. My focus here isn't to put too much credence into what may be considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give anyone that reads these posts something to hopefully think on and evaluate further. If that happens to be the case for you personally, then these entries are doing exactly what they're intended to do. The main thing for me here is to use this platform as a way to express my views and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. So we're going to be discussing how enduring our struggles is the the only way to be rewarded for your suffering. Besides drawing inspiration from Eric Thomas as I mentioned earlier, I've been dealing with some personal issues as of late that I'm looking to see through to the other side. It's not anything serious or life-threatening, just some habits that I'm trying to cut off that I feel will give me a better clarity of mind, body, and spirit. We're all aware that it isn't always easy to break habits, and sometimes there will be some pain and suffering on the journey towards breaking them. However, I do believe there is always a light at the end of the tunnel, and that's what I keep telling myself on my personal journey.

Now what is suffering? What exactly qualifies as suffering? Everyone is different and have different interpretations of what they consider to be suffering, so it's purely subjective for the most part. The official definition of suffering that I found is; "the state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship." When the majority of us think of suffering, we normally liken it to something that deals with the more serious aspects of life. Examples of this could be the loss of a loved one, financial hardships, or dealing with chronic illnesses and diseases. These are only a few examples of suffering, and I think we can agree that they are definitely the most serious examples that I'm going to provide. Unfortunately in most cases, these examples often come with no real rewards or benefits. While all of these examples, as well as any other serious forms of suffering is both unfortunate and sad in many cases, I want to address suffering from a lesser perspective than the examples I mentioned. I'm aiming to view it from the perspective of having to endure the suffering that is required in order to achieve something you may want. I'm talking about the kind of suffering that we sometimes purposefully choose to put ourselves through in hopes to see a greater reward in the end.

So what I am referring to when I talk about the kind of suffering that we intentionally choose to put ourselves through? From my perspective, I'm thinking of various achievements and goals that we may be striving to reach. It doesn't always have to necessarily have a tangible reward at its conclusion, but the completion of it leaves you a sense of joy and accomplishment that can't be bought by any price. I want you to think about this for an example. Imagine someone running in a marathon or any kind of distance related race. Throughout the course of testing your body to the limits and physical rigors required to finish, there is going to be some form of pain and suffering along the way. Now imagine the person running the race quitting at the halfway point because it has become too uncomfortable for them. Think of it like jumping out into the deep end of a swimming pool without a life vest. Now I'm not saying that a person should push themselves to the point of harming their body. However, the point I'm trying to prove that quitting while we're facing any kind of adversity won't leave us with a sense of fulfillment if we know we didn't do our best with whatever task is at hand. You can liken it to one of those feelings we have when something is wrong or missing in your life, even if everything else may be going right for you.

Before I bring this post to a close, I want everyone to realize that regardless of what kind of suffering you may be enduring, whatever you're dealing with is exactly where you're supposed to be at that moment. I'm one of those people that doesn't feel that things happen by accident. Furthermore, I want to stress this point. Anytime you're facing challenges that are causing you pain and suffering, that's probably where all the change and growth is happening in your life. This is the exact reason to keep on enduring when you want to give up. The only way to truly test your character and know what you're made of is if you're willing to go through the pain and suffering that is required. It's kinda like a rights of passage in my opinion. Again, we're always going to have that inkling of doubt that wants to trick us into giving up because it doesn't feel comfortable. However, like I mention in most of my writings, this is where the power of the mind comes into play. We can get through nearly anything with a strong and healthy mind. So to all my friends out there facing challenges, keep on enduring if you're able. There is always a greater payoff for your suffering if you're willing to stay the course, and I truly believe that we'll become better people at the end for our willingness to endure.

Well ladies and gentlemen, I'm going to go ahead and end this one. I believe that I was able to get my point across in this installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. Thank you once again to everyone that stopped by. My hope is that there was some meaning and understanding gained by this post. Of course if that wasn't the case for you, your visit here is always both welcomed and appreciated. I hope that everyone has a great weekend ahead, and feel free to drop any feedback or comments. Alright I'm out of this joint so until next time, I go by the name of Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts. Peace!

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

The Importance Of Not Allowing Other Peoples Negative Vibrations To Affect You.

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It is a statement that has been uttered a countless amount of times by many, but "negativity exists everywhere within our world." While many of us try not to put too much energy into the many negative aspects that come along with living life, the fact is that we're always going to encounter negativity in some shape or form. Probably the biggest form of negativity that we will encounter comes in the form of people that we have encounters with. It may come from someone as close to us as a family member, or be as distant to us as a random person that we may encounter out in public. Regardless of how close or distant someone with a negative vibe may be during our encounters with them, people that bring negative energy can have the same damaging impact on our psyche if we allow them to. The key phrase in the previous sentence that I want to stress is "if we allow them to." I stress this phrase because although we encounter others with negative vibrations, we are the ones that often allow their negative vibrations to rub off on us. Allowing other peoples negative vibrations to affect us isn't beneficial nor helpful to our lives, but it's something that we're all going to have to address at sometime or another. Things happen and some circumstances can't be prevented, however, the way we choose to react to others is something we do have control over.

Hey, how's it going ladies and gentlemen? It's your boy Brad H. checking back in with you all once again, and I'd like to welcome you all to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I hope that you all have been doing great and staying positive since the last entry. Of course if that hasn't been the case for you, keep holding your head up high and continue to strive for better in your life. I know it can be a hard thing to implement during trying times, but have some patience and faith that everything will work itself out in due time. As for me personally, things have been going pretty good since the last installment. This past Sunday (July 3) was a special day for myself and many of my family members. It marked the day that my late Aunt Gloria, who I've mentioned several times in previous posts would have celebrated her 70th birthday. Her daughter and grandchildren gave her a celebration party, so it was great being able to attend that. While she is greatly missed by myself and others who loved her, it was comforting to be able to celebrate her life with those that she was the closest to during her time on this Earth. I know that her spirit was somewhere smiling down on everywhere that attended the event. I just want to say again Happy 70th birthday to you Aunt G. We will always love and miss you. Now that I've talked about what's been going on in my world as of late, lets go ahead and get into this week's topic of the importance of now allowing other peoples negative vibrations affect you.

As I always mention in my writings, I realize that a person's individual viewpoint on a topic will always vary. My focus here isn't to put too much energy into what may be considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give anyone that reads these posts something to hopefully think about and evaluate further. The main thing here is to use this platform as a way to express my views and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. So as I've stated, we're going to be discussing the importance of not allowing others negative vibes to affect us. The inspiration for writing about this topic came from a guy that I follow on Youtube. He made s video awhile back that dealt with how other peoples vibrations can have a negative affect us. I've been pondering on several points that he stated in regards to this topic, and much of what he said made a lot of sense to me. The main point that I'm going to touch on in this entry is how energy and vibrations subconsciously play a large part in how we react to others. With that being said, I want to be sure to add that anything that I talk about in this post applies to me as well.

As I've grown wiser and more aware with the understandings of life, I've come to realize how much "energy" plays a factor in nearly every aspect of life. There are all forms of energies flowing through this Earth that we occupy. There are various forms energy flowing through almost everything that we see and encounter, and this isn't only limited to living things. Think of plants, trees, the grass, etc for example. Although these are not considered to be living beings, they still contain and have various energies flowing within that give them a certain form of life. The life force that is carried by the things I mentioned isn't always obvious, but it's there despite us not always being able to see it outright. Most people normally classify the various energies of this Earth as being either positive or negative. While I am a firm believer that the classification of energy goes beyond just being positive or negative, the general gist of life shows us that both positive and negative forms of energy dominate our being. Furthermore, what is considered to be positive or negative energy is left up to each individual to interpret.

Now going back to the point of how energy plays a factor in our lives. Whether we're aware of it or not, we are constantly absorbing energy every second that we live. Think of this as an example; when you're in a closed room with a person or a group of people, you are inhaling the same air that they're taking in and breathing out. The same applies for those people as well when they're around you. They're absorbing your energy as well. Whether you believe it or not, the vibrations of the people that we're around are rubbing off on us also. Again, it may not be something happening intentionally, but it's happening on a subconscious level. It's not the same as when you're outdoors breathing in that natural air from the Earth. I believe that natural energy that comes from the Earth is better for us compared to the kind of enclosed energy we receive from the presence of others. We don't always generate the same energy from people as we do naturally from the Earth. So what does any of this have to do with this week's topic you may ask? Well, it doesn't have a lot to do with it from a technical standpoint, but the mission is to show how other peoples energies and vibrations can factor into how we go about our lives, which can ultimately have either a positive or negative effect on our state of being. As I mentioned, much of this takes place on a subconscious level, but there are ways out there to combat against the negative energies that others may bring our way.

So why is it important to not allow others negative vibrations to affect us? I think the answer to that is pretty self explanatory, but the simple answer is that we don't need the negative vibrations of other people affecting us, because we want to focus on staying as positive as we possibly can. From my perspective, I believe that the biggest way to fight against the negative vibrations of others is to focus on limiting the negative things that society and the media throws at us. I know I'm beginning to sound repetitive here, but there are things that we often give life to inside of our minds. When you watch and listen to the various images that are being shown online and through television, we are subconsciously planting those images within our minds. I think that making an effort to limit these negative images can help in allowing us to develop a certain level of immunity to the negative vibrations that others throw our way. You cannot control who you come across and the vibes they throw off, but you can work towards developing an almost impenetrable like force field to protect you from their negative energies.

Well I hope I was able to get the point that I was trying to make across. I'm going to go ahead and sign off for this time, but thank you again to everyone that stopped through for another entry of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. Like I always mention in my closings, I hope that some meaning and understanding was gained through this. Even if someone didn't find this to be helpful or insightful, I'm still grateful of those that take out the time to read. If you have anything that you want to contribute to this topic, please feel free to leave comments. I'm always open to listening to what others think. Alright I'm out folks, so until next time my name is Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts. See you all in the next one.

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

The Importance Of Living In The Moment.

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The past, the present, and the future. All three of these spaces are a representation of where we've been, where we are now, and the unknown of what lies ahead for us. While all three aspects are important components of who we are as individuals and where we are going with our lives, many of us give too much of our energy to the spaces that represent our history, and the unknown that's ahead. As important as both the past and the future are to our lives, neither should have precedence over the moment that we're living in right now, which is known to be the present. There can be all kinds of reasons for why so many of us put so much focus into what's happened already, and what has yet to occur. However, the importance of being present in the moment is something many of us don't give enough of our energy to. I once heard a lyric in a song that goes; "The present is a gift." If the present is indeed a gift that we're given, it can be argued that many of us aren't fully appreciating this gift to its greatest extent. Focusing on the present can be a daunting task for many of us, but the importance of living in the moment is something we must learn to appreciate.

Hello once again ladies and gentlemen. It's your boy Brad H. back again, and welcome again to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! Hope all has been good and well with you all since the last edition. Of course if that hasn't been the case for you, keep on holding your head up high, and maybe you can find a bit of inspiration here. Well summer is officially here, and I'm sure many of you can agree with me when I saw that you can definitely feel its presence. There has been some absolutely horrible humidity here in Southeast, Texas as of late, and I know it won't be getting better anytime soon. I'm not going to complain about it too much though. There are always people dealing with much bigger problems than the heat. The NBA Finals have also come to an end, which is something that I'm definitely happy about. I'm not sure if I stated it in previous posts, but although I'm not a fan of either team that were participating, I was pulling for the Golden State Warriors to take it all. It looked promising for them being up 3-1 in the series, but of course Cleveland came back and won the series. I kinda had a feeling that the Warriors would lose the series if it went to seven games, and that turned out to be the case. Although there were quite a few bad calls by the refs throughout the series, congratulations goes to the Cavaliers. Believe me when I say that it pains me to say that, which is why I stated that I'm glad it's all over with. Well now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, lets go ahead and get into this week's topic on the importance of living in the moment.

Before getting started, I always try to mention in my writings that a person's individual viewpoint on a topic will always vary. My aim here isn't to focus on what is considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give anyone that reads these posts something to hopefully think about and evaluate further. The main goal here is to use this platform as a way to express some of my views and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. So how did we come to this week's topic of the importance of living in the moment? Well, just like the majority of the topics I choose to discuss, the importance of living in the moment is something that I personally struggle with. While a struggle, it is however something that I've become more aware of as time goes on, which is ultimately inspiring me to put more focus and thought into at least getting a hold of this problem. I'm not going to act or pretend that I have everything about life figured out, so I want to stress that because my ears to closest to my eyes and mouth, anything advice that I dish out here applies to me as well. So many people try to portray to others that they have it all figured out, and I'm striving to not be one of those kind of people since that's not the case.

In regards to dealing with the struggles of living in the moment, many of us are either focused on things that have already happened that we can't let go of for whatever reasons, or we're overly concerned with upcoming things that have either yet to happen, or will probably never happen. It can be something as big as worrying about what's going to happen years down the road, or as small as what's going to happen in the next few hours. As I stated earlier in the post, there can be many reasons for why many of us struggle when it comes to living in the moment. I personally believe that one of the biggest reasons many people struggle with living in the moment deals with anxiety. Now there are all different kinds of anxiety that an individual can possess, but for the sake of this entry, I'm going to look at it from a more generalized perspective rather than a particular form of anxiety. Now I'm sure that most of us are aware of anxiety and how it affects so many people. However, many people do not know the true extent of it's meaning. Anxiety is defined as "A mental health disorder characterized by feelings of worry, anxiety, or fear that are strong enough to interfere with one's daily activities." Some of you may wonder how does this relate to the importance of living in the moment, and that's definitely a fair question to ask.

As someone that struggles with anxiety from time to time, I can personally attest to it hindering a person's ability to live in the moment. Just speaking from my own perspective, the reason anxiety can deprive us of living in the moment is because we're too worried about what's going to happen next. It's almost like your brain is working several steps ahead of your mind and body, which causes us to lose conscious of the present. From my perspective on this topic, anxiety can totally sap our ability to enjoy being in the moment with others. Now why is trying to live in the moment such an important thing? Well, simply stated, the present is all that we really have. There's a lyric in a song by one of my favorite hip hop groups (Cunninlynguists) that goes; "You can't count on the future, only the past." I think those lyrics pretty much define why focusing on being present in the moment is vital to our lives. We know where we've been with our lives, which is defined by the past. While it's okay to reflect upon the past every now and again, the fact is that the past represents a time that's over. In regards to the future, because the future hasn't happened yet, we don't know what lies ahead in our lives. How can we enjoy today when we're already worried about yesterday, as well as tomorrow? I personally feel that life cannot be fully enjoyed if we're not in the present.

So how do we train ourselves to live in the moment? If I'm being honest here, it can be a very difficult thing for most people to do. However, there are some habits that we can implement to help with this. I'm not a professional when it comes to this, but here are a few tips that have helped me out quite a bit. First, learning to be grateful can help with living in the moment. Many of us take that glass half empty approach with life and don't realizing that we're truly blessed beyond what we may believe. Make it a daily priority to focus on being grateful for all the small things in life. Next, I would say that learning to meditate can help with living in the moment. Meditation can be a helpful tool when it comes to controlling our thoughts, which can help with controlling anxiety. Finally, getting outdoors and just breathing in that good fresh outdoor air can be of great help. While there is a lot of bad going on in the world, there is still a beautiful world out there for us to enjoy. Looking at little things like the trees, birds, flowers, etc can be a huge reminder of how blessed we are to be here. Again, living the moment can be a difficult thing for many of us to do, but it's definitely not impossible. Just work at it daily and lets learn to enjoy the moment. Remember that every second that passes is another moment that is gone, and never coming back.

Alright now folks, I believe I was able to get my point across, so I'm going to go ahead and sign off for this time. Big thanks as always to everyone that stopped by for another entry of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! Like I always mention, I hope that some meaning and understanding was gained through this. In the event that this wasn't the case for anyone that read, I still appreciate your visit. I hope you all have a great weekend ahead, and feel free to leave any comments that you find relevant to this topic. Some of you may have some input that could help myself, as well as others who may struggle with this topic. Alright I'm out, so until next time my name is Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts.

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

Being Patient With Achieving A Goal (Marathon Not A Sprint).

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I'm pretty sure that we all have heard a famous quote that goes; "Life is a marathon, not a sprint." Many people believe this statement to be a fact, and I'm one of those many that will co-sign as to how truthful and authentic I find it to be. That said, for such a profound and honest statement to be embraced by so many, we still live in a world that predominately believes in doing things fast. Maybe it has to do with the fact that we live in what some call a "fast paced" society, where time is considered to be too valuable to waste. While I'm personally strive to not get caught up in the "fast paced" aspect of the society we live in, I do understand how crucial of part of our lives that time plays in our lives. From my perspective, one of the downsides to being in a world that moves fast is that many people believe that the fast paced aspect applies when it comes to achieving our goals as well. I believe we have fallen into a misconception that because our society is fast paced, everything else should happen fast for us as well. In my opinion, this is definitely not the case when it comes to setting and reaching goals, and I think this is something that must be addressed. They say that patience is a virtue, and that mindset definitely applies when it comes to achieving goals.

YO! What's going on good people? It's your boy Brad H. hitting you all up once again, and welcome to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I hope that everyone has been doing great since the last installment, and if things haven't been going well for you as of late, I hope you can find a bit of inspiration here. We're in the month of June for 2016, and a lot has been happening in our world as of late. The world suffered the loss of a true icon and legend in former boxer Muhammad Ali, who died on June 3, 2016 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease at the age of 74. I believe that the reasoning for Ali's passing having such a big impact on the world is due to him being such an ambassador for having courage in our society. Yes he was indeed a great fighter, but the impact that he made on the world as an activist and for standing up for what the believed in is something that resonates with the entire world. I send my condolences to his family and anyone that is affected by his passing. Also, Mixed Marital Arts fighter Kimbo Slice died unexpectedly this week. My condolences go to his family as well. It can't be stated enough, but times like these are a testament to how precious life truly is. Cherish those close to you, because life is so unpredictable. I know I used my weekly soapbox a bit longer this time around, but I believe that it was fitting in this situation. Lets go ahead and get into this week's topic of the importance of having patience when it comes to achieving goals.

As I always try to mention in my writings, a person's individual viewpoint on a topic will always vary. The aim here isn't to focus on what is considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give people something to hopefully think about and evaluate further. My primary mission here is to use this platform as a way to express some of my ideas and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. Now as I stated previously, we'll be discussing the importance of having patience when it comes to our goals. Back in early 2014, I wrote a post titled "Focus On Daily Goals, Rather Than Long Term Goals. (Marathon vs. Sprint Mentality)", which can be read here. That particular entry dealt with more smaller daily goals that amount to something bigger. This week's topic isn't going to ignore the importance of daily goals, however, it deals with moving towards goals that many would consider to be bigger. Whether you're focusing on something daily, or trying to move towards something bigger, the whole marathon vs. sprint mentality still applies. Now before I get started, I want to say that I don't want anyone to think that I'm endorsing or saying it's okay to not expect results in our goals because I'm delving into this particular topic. People's level of patience will vary, so it's up to you to decide whenever it's time to throw in the towel on something that may not be working our for you as quickly as you'd like. However, I believe that many of us give up too quickly on certain things that may be important to us, which is the main reason for me addressing this is topic.

Now most of us have various goals and dreams that we aspire to achieve. Remember when we were young kids in grade school, and our teachers would ask us that question that we're all heard before; "What do you wanna be when you grow up?" Most of us came up with lofty goals like becoming an astronaut, or becoming president of the United States, etc. For many of us as we age and become older, many of those big expectations we had during our youth become tempered. You may wonder what does any of this have to do with this week's topic at hand. Well, there are two points that coincide with what I'm talking about. First off, when we're younger, many of us are not often not told much how much effort and patience that is required in order to reach a goal. Because we're young and fragile, many of our elders seek to inspire us through more positive avenues, rather than a more realistic one. Secondly, setting goals for yourself at an advanced age requires a different mindset from being younger, however, the biggest rule of thumb is that you're never too old to set new goals for yourself. Now I personally believe the latter is probably the biggest mistake that many of us make in regards to our goals. We play these mental games on ourselves and think that because we're older and the clock is ticking, we have to rush in obtaining our goals. In turn, our patience towards our goals wear thin, which results in total burnout. We all know know what often comes after burnout; a lack of motivation to keep going.

Now, lets go back to the whole life being a marathon not a sprint mentality in regards to having a goal. As we mature and become older, we all become aware that nothing happens overnight, and that anything worth having is worth waiting for. Yes, this state of mind definitely applies to life in general, but the same mentality is required in order stay driven to succeed in something. Of course it is true that a great deal of effort is required in order to reach a goal, that goes without saying. However, a great amount of diligence is key as well. When we're moving towards something that may be considered big and is important to us, we have to exhibit a deal amount of patience before getting to that point. Again, living in a fast society where people expect results fast can make this an even more difficult journey. Think of it like this as a prime example to follow. Summer is almost here, and many people out there are looking to get fitter for this time of year. We all know that losing those pounds isn't going to happen overnight, and even if you're losing weight quickly, you're more than likely putting your health at risk. The bottom line is that anything that you're passionate about likely takes time to achieve, but it's only doable if you're able to stick with it. Again, it's a marathon not a sprint.

From my perspective on this topic, the importance of having patience with your goals all comes down to how much you really want what you're pushing towards. More than likely, if it's something that you're deeply passionate about, you'll continue to persevere and put in the effort to get where you're trying to be. If you're willing to toss in the towel when you don't quickly see the results you want, then you're probably not as passionate about your goal or goals as you may think. If you're the type of person that puts time limits and restrictions on your goals, you'll probably end up not succeeding in them. Going fast may be the desired way to get somewhere, but can also lead to a multitude of mistakes along the way. Regardless of what it may be, only you can decide when something isn't worth your time and effort any longer, so listening to others who may tell you when you need to give up on something is null and void. Regardless of your age or where you are in life, if you still have a passion for something, keep striving towards it. If and when you figure out that fire isn't there anymore, then maybe it's time to let it go, but make sure to do it on your own terms. So for anyone out there reading this, continue to be patient and long suffering towards achieving the things that give you meaning, and always be mindful that working towards a goal or goals is a marathon, not a sprint.

Well I'm going to go ahead and end this week's topic, so big thanks again to anyone that stopped through for another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. I hope that some meaning and understanding was gained through this, and even if there wasn't, I still appreciate your visiting. Summer is almost here (June 20), and it's starting to get warm outside. Just as a suggestion, try to get outdoors and enjoy the beauty outside this weekend. I hope everyone has a great weekend and rest of the week ahead, and I'll see you all in the next one. Till next time, my name is Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts.

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

Thinking Out Situations Before Jumping Into Them (The Look Deep Before You Leap Mentality).

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There's a fairly popular saying that goes "Look deep before you leap." I can't remember exactly how old I was when I first heard that remark, but it was one that struck me, and has stuck with me for a good portion of my life. The making of mistakes is something that most of us will experience on a regular basis. One of the unfortunate aspects of our society is that it has conditioned us that the few are perfect and never make mistakes, while the many are condemned most for our shortcomings. Regardless of what your position may be when it comes to making mistakes, no person can deny that mistakes are a part of life that EVERYONE will experience. While mistakes will always happen and can vary in their degree of severity when it comes to our lives, the ones that we make from lack of proper planning normally have the biggest consequences. There will also constantly be times in our lives where we may find ourselves in certain situations that we're not entirely sure about. I believe this aspect of life applies to every human-being on some level or another. It is a known fact that we all have general doubts and concerns about certain situations that we find ourselves in, but the truth of the matter is that many of us jump into situations that we don't entirely think through. I like to refer to this as the look deep before you leap mentality; a mentality that I feel we must work on implementing more often.

What's going on people? It's your boy young Brad H. coming back at you once again, and welcome to another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I hope everyone has been maintaining since the last time I wrote and if this happens to be your first time stopping by here, let me be the first to say thanks and welcome. We've found ourselves nearly at the end of May, which means that many high school students either have or will be graduating this week. One of my cousin's will be graduating and walking that stage this upcoming Friday. I'm very proud of and happy for his accomplishment, and a good portion of the family will be out there in full force to support his moment. Big shout out to all the high school students that are graduating no matter where you are located. I also want to acknowledge and give a shout out to my younger sister for another successful semester of college. She is now only three courses away from obtaining her degree, so I'm very proud of her as well. I just wanna give a big shout out to everyone out there that are achieving their goals regardless of how big or small they may be. Now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, lets go ahead and get into this week's topic of thinking out situations before jumping into them.

Like I always aim to point out in my writings, a person's individual viewpoint on any topic will always vary. The goal here isn't to focus on what is considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give anyone that reads something to hopefully think about and evaluate further. My mission here is to use this platform as a way to express some of my ideas and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally okay with me. Now for this week's topic, I'm going to be talking about the importance of thinking out situations before jumping into them so quickly. I know for many that this particular topic likely applies to the youth, however, I feel that a person is never too old to learn the lessons of life. Even if you're well versed on certain life lessons, it never hurts to get a refresher course every so often. Another reason why I'm addressing this topic is to hopefully encourage more people to think certain things through instead of just acting. I want to stress that my ears to closet to my eyes and mouth, so anything that I mention here applies to myself as well. Too many people are out here are looking to give advice to others, and many of these people aren't following the advice they're giving. I personally strive to not be one of those people.

Now those who maybe are not familiar with the "Look deep before you leap" saying may think that it only applies to water, etc. If we're being honest here, most people will likely equate this saying to someone going to the edge of something that has a stream of water below, and then examining how shallow or deep the water is before jumping in. From a straight forward perspective, that is exactly what it means. However, it can also be an analogy for many of the mistakes we make that come from not always thinking before we act. See, in some instances, many people do not fully examine certain decisions and situations before jumping into them. Similar to the water comparison, there are times in life where we don't thoroughly examine some of our decisions, and then we find ourselves in a situation where we're possibly drowning. I don't mean drowning from a literal sense, but I mean from a perspective that we often find ourselves in too deep in regards to certain situations that we didn't think through properly. Then again, there are some situations and decisions that can have dire consequences for ourselves, as well as for those that care for us.

So what are the situations and decisions that require in depth consideration before jumping into? Well I personally think it's subjective to how well an individual is able to handle life issues. However, for the sake of this blog entry, one of the biggest examples I can think of jumping into a serious commitment with another person. I'm far from an expert on relationships, but I think we can all agree that a serious relationship with another human being is a serious commitment. Now where does the look deep before you leap mentality come into play? From my perspective, a person must seriously examine anyone and anything that they're considering a long term commitment to. This is important because the wrong people or the wrong situations can ruin your life in ways that can't always be easily fixed. I know it sounds cliche, but many people put too much value only into what they can see with their own two eyes. In order to apply the look deep before you leap mentality, you have to be willing to look beyond what's in front of you. Imagine a person that is only focused on how beautiful someone is, but doesn't pay attention other aspects of this person's character. Just because a person looks good doesn't necessarily mean they are good for you. Like I mentioned earlier, making a serious commitment to the wrong person, place, or thing can have lasting consequences on your life.

I know that I mainly focused on the relationship aspect of this topic as an example, but there are many others out there where improper planning can be devastating to a person's life. Again, the goal here is to encourage more of our society to look deeper into situations before diving head first into them. Like I stated previously, we all make mistakes, but the truth of the matter is that mistakes are no excuse for knowingly making ill planned choices. Furthermore; and this is an even harder truth, there are some situations and decisions that don't always afford us the do-overs of correcting our mistakes. Like the drowning analogy I used earlier, some situations don't always end in a lesson learned. So with all of that said, lets start adopting the look deep before you leap state of mind more often, and this goes for everyone regardless of how young or old you may be. Never ignore any and all situations that you find yourself presented with that find you uneasy or questioning things. Always listen whenever that inner voice tells you when you something isn't right. Mistakes are a part of life and never ending, but I believe that we can at least cut some of our losses if we take out the proper time to evaluate before acting. Lets start looking deep before we leap folks.

Well my friends, I believe I was able to get my point across in this entry. I'm going to go ahead and sign off for now, but big thanks goes to everyone that stopped by again for another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. My hope is that some meaning and understanding was gained from this installment. If that happens to not be the case for you, then your visit here is still extremely appreciated. I hope everyone has a great rest of the week ahead, and I'll see you all in the next one. Till next time my name is Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts.

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.

Finding Positive Outlets For Channeling Anger and Frustrations.

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There's a saying that we're all familiar with that goes; "Nothing in certain in life except death and taxes." Whether you believe this to be true or not is up to you, but one thing that we cannot deny is how that quote has stood the test of time. For the sake of the argument that I'm going to be making in this week's post, I'm personally going to go a bit further and put the emotion anger in that category of guarantees that come in life. Being human means that we're going to experience a multitude of various emotions, and one of them is anger. While some people have no problem with expressing their anger and frustrations publicly, many of us try to lock this emotion away in an invisible closet that doesn't exist. Whether you're the former or latter in this case isn't what we're going to focus on this week. While constant or even every now and again anger is guaranteed, the way we choose to react to our anger isn't. We can always look for more positive outlets for channeling our anger and frustrations.

What's going on folks? It's me young Brad H. coming back at you again with another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. How has everyone been doing out there? I hope that everyone has been staying up and maintaining since we last came together on here. If you happen to be a new reader here, let me be the first to say welcome, and thank you for stopping through. Well we're nearing the midpoint of the month of May, and we've definitely been seeing our share of showers and thunderstorms in my area as of late. Hopefully the weather has been accommodating to you all wherever you are. In the previous post that was written, I talked about the then upcoming NBA Playoff series between the Spurs and Thunder. Well my Spurs have fell in the series 4-2. I'm pretty disappointed about it, but I kinda had a feeling that they weren't going to win last night. Congrats goes to the Thunder, and if last night was Tim Duncan's last game, big thanks to him for all the great seasons he has given us. We'll see what happens with the Thunder vs. Warriors series next. Don't care for either team, but it should be a good series. Now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, lets go ahead and get into this week's topic of channeling our anger and frustrations towards more positive things.

As I always look to mention in my writings, a person's individual viewpoint on any topic will always vary. My goal here isn't to focus on what is considered to be right or wrong, but rather to give anyone that reads something to maybe think about and evaluate further. My aim here is to use this platform as a way to express my ideas and opinions. If anyone happens to feel differently or disagree with my views on this or any of the topics I write about, that is totally fine with me. Alright, we're going to be talking about looking for more positive outlets to channel our anger this week. Back in the year 2014, I wrote a blog post titled "You Don't Have to Pay These People Any Attention(Controlling Your Anger and Reactions Towards Others)." It can be read here if anyone wants to read it, but that particular post focused on how we react to other people that may cause anger within us. Now for this time around, I want to address the point of looking for ways to turn anger into something more productive. In essence, this post not only deals with anger that is caused by others, but also the anger that can come with life in general.

Now we're all aware by now that anger for the most part doesn't accomplish, nor does a whole lot of good for us. Anger often triggers actions that lead to things like lashing out at others, violent tendencies, and doing or saying things that we often have to apologize for later on. I'm not even going to mention the health related downfalls that anger can cause, but to sum up the main point that I'm trying to make here, uncontrolled anger definitely isn't a good thing. Now a more controlled form of anger on the other hand can be a more positive asset at our disposal, but there's a certain amount of discipline required for most to get to that point. I'm far from an expert on this topic, however from my own personal opinion and perspective, one of the biggest keys to developing a habit of controlled anger is to first find more positive avenues for channeling our anger. Believe it or not, there are activities out there where being angry can actually be somewhat beneficial to our lives.

So what are some of the activities that we can use to channel our anger? Well there are many of them out there, so you'll have to find one that interests you. For the sake of this topic however, I'll give a brief story on an activity I engaged in years ago that brought me positive results whenever I found myself angry. Years ago, back in 2003, I received a workout set as a Christmas gift. During that particular point of of my life, I was severely out of shape, overweight, and constantly battling with anger due to my situation back then. I would often overeat and indulge in bad foods whenever I was frustrated, and on occasion, I would say certain things to people that I cared about that I shouldn't have. Basically, I was handling many of my problems all wrong during that particular period. Then something happened that I believe changed me for the better. I decided that whenever I found myself becoming angry or frustrated, I would go exercise with the workout set that I received. I'd take all my frustrations, along with that negative energy I was experiencing, and channel it all into working out. This lead to pretty intense workout sessions, and as a result, I began to lose weight and tone up. I believe that decision was the catalyst which lead me to seek out other avenues for becoming a more healthier individual.

Now I'm not saying that working out is the only avenue for channeling anger, and there are several outlets that I've discovered on my journey of trying to become a better person that suite me well. However, the point that I'm trying to make here is that none of us have to allow our frustrations and anger to control us. Regardless if you're sitting around being angry at the world, or engaging in bad habits during those periods of anger in your life, the results of it all is often counter productive. Why take your anger out on others when you can take it out at a gym? Why sit around being angry when you can get outside and be active, or at least read self improvement books or paint if you're sitting? Even when there are dark periods of anger in our lives, there are still opportunities for growth if we're willing to acknowledge that a change for the better is necessary. Again no one is perfect, and we're all going to deal with anger and frustration. However, just because the emotion of anger rears its head every so often, we don't have to allow it to control us. So to all my people out there, continue to look for more positive avenues that will inspire you to channel your anger for something better. Remember that even in the darkest of times in life, there is still always light.

Well that's all that I have for you all this time, so I'm going bounce out of here. Again, much thanks and appreciation to everyone that stopped by for another edition of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'. As always, the hope is that some meaning and understanding was gained from this post. It's perfectly fine if that doesn't apply to you, and I'm still appreciative for anyone that hears me out. I hope everyone has a great weekend, and I'll see you all in the next one. I go by the name of Brad H., and I wish you all peace and positive thoughts. Till next time friends!

©2016 Bradrick H. All Rights Reserved.