Brad H.'s Perspective

Saturday, May 22, 2021

Why Your Intentions Outweigh The Benefits Of What You're Trying To Achieve.

I believe that to be alive is to have ambitions. Living a life without having anything to strive towards is an empty existence from my perspective. Saying that everyone has certain ambitions in life is something that most people can probably agree with. We may all have different types of goals that we're hoping to reach in life, but the fact remains that everybody has ambitions. I believe that every goal has a journey that is included within that goal. A goal often isn't reached in a single day, and there are many that will take an extended length of time to reach. One of my favorite quotes is "It's not the destination, it's the journey." Now that quote can mean different things to different people. However, my personal interpretation of it is that the journey towards what we're aiming for has to be one rooted in truth. All of this boils down to a person's intentions when it comes to what goals they're hoping to obtain. Many people don't take into account how important our reasons for why we do the things we do. I personally think that this is something isn't addressed enough, and I think it is hurtful to us in the long run toward our goals. Intentions matter, and the intentions that are behind what we do can often outweigh the benefits of what we're hoping to gain.

Hey, what's going on everyone? This is Brad H. back once again, and welcome to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I am back to give my perspective on a topic that I think would be beneficial to our lives. I hope that things are going well for you wherever you are, and thank you for joining me again. So for my soapbox this week, I have to say that I am pretty excited! We have the NBA Playoffs kicking off today! I am currently watching the last game for the night, which is the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trailblazers. There were some pretty good games earlier today. We had the Milwaukee Bucks taking down the Miami Heat in an overtime game. The next game saw the Dallas Mavericks beat the Los Angeles Clippers. Then we had the Boston Celtics lose to the Brooklyn Nets. If you are an NBA fan, you have got to love playoff basketball. I'm not going to give my predictions on all the series because that would take up too much time. I will just say now that I believe Milwaukee, the Clippers, Brooklyn and Denver will probably win their first round series. We have another full day of games on tomorrow as well! If you are a basketball fan, I would love to hear some of your predictions in the comments. Well I don't want to keep this long, so lets go on and get into why I believe intentions outweigh the benefits.

Now before we get into intentions and how they have a correlation to goals and achievements, I want to start off by mentioning that this topic isn't meant to demean and question anyone's motives for what they do. Everybody has to define for themselves what their reasons and motivations are for the decisions they make. It's a personal matter that must be defined by you as an individual. The idea that I have with this topic is that I want to address why I personally feel that intentions are so important. We all have intentions, and I think it is more pertinent to focus on those for the reasons and examples that I will be mentioning throughout this topic. Also, all of what I'm going to bring up is my own personal perspective. I'm in no way trying to imply that what I say is law when it comes to this topic. I just hope that I am able to give a perspective that some, if not all of you that read this can identify with. I have a feeling that most of you will be able to relate to this, so lets go ahead and begin with intentions first and foremost.

Intentions for the most part are the reasons as to why we attempt to do something. You can also view it as a motivation for wanting to do something. As I pointed out earlier, we all have intentions and motives when it comes to why we chose to do certain things. The kicker with intentions is just like much of life in general, there can be both good and bad behind them. Even more of a kicker is that sometimes there is a grey area that is somewhere in the middle between good and bad. It can be confusing to determine, which is why I stated that everyone has to define their reasons and motivations for the choices we make. Now the reason I pointed out both the good and bad that comes with intentions is that there are many people in this world that have bad intentions behind things they do. For example, we are all aware of people that will help someone else, but their reasons for helping may not be entirely pure. They may be doing something for someone else in order to gain something instead of doing it with good intentions. I personally believe that this is something we've all been guilty of at sometime or another. However, this is is something that we have to look towards changing if it applies, and the reasons as to why I think we do is what drove me to bring this topic up in this week's edition.

Now you can be someone that may not always have the best of intentions behind what you do, and you can very well still have things work out for you. That is just the reality of life sometimes. However, from my personal perspective, more times than not, there will often be some sort of retribution in the long run from not having good intentions. This is primarily why I feel that our intentions outweigh any possible benefits that come along with what we're trying to do. I believe that if your heart and your mind isn't in the right place when it comes to making decisions, whatever you may be attempting will not be successful long term. I can say that I would personally rather have something not work out for me if I knew that my intentions behind what I was attempting were good. You can call it karma, the law of attraction, etc, but the reality is that you will likely end up playing yourself when you have bad intentions. I had a conversation with my sister a couple of weeks ago, and I can recall telling her that your intentions are much more important than the benefits a person is hoping to receive. That is ultimately led me to write this topic. I'll end by saying don't play yourself when it comes to your intentions. Make sure they are aligned with whatever you're trying to do. That's the best way to live and be at peace from my perspective.

That is all that I got for this round folks! I would like to thank you once again for joining me for another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I hope that I was able to convey the message from this topic in a manner that was easy to relate to. If you have any comments or feedback that you would like to leave, please feel free to do so in the comment box. You can also connect with me on Twitter @BradrickH if you'd like. I truly appreciate you all, and I hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend. I'm going to sign off and finish watch this game, so till next time, peace out and take care. See you all on the next topic!

Saturday, May 1, 2021

The Importance Of Addressing Trauma From Our Past.

"Trauma" is a word that many of us are familiar with when it comes to hearing about the way that it affects people lives. We often hear about it on various news platforms, and we sometimes may hear the people that we're close to talk about it. Though trauma is something we often hear about when it comes to people and their lives, the true meaning of trauma is probably unknown to most of us. Trauma is simply defined as an event or experience that is deeply distressing. This basically means that in the grand scheme of life that trauma is something that we will all expedience at various points of our lives. The longer that a person lives, the more there is the opportunity for traumatic events to happen. Also, while trauma is something that we can experience at any point of our lives, I believe that the traumas we endure from the youthful times of our lives have the greatest affect on us. This is just my personal opinion, and I am in no way implying that trauma from later on in our lives isn't valid. My reasoning for stating that previous experiences of trauma play such a role is theme of this week's topic. This is why I will be getting into why I believe it is of importance for us to address the trauma from our pasts.

Peace and blessings everyone! This is your boy Brad H. back again to bring you all another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I am here to discuss a topic that will hopefully be beneficial towards us both moving forward, as well as staying inspired in our lives. I hope that you all have been doing well since the last topic. So for my soapbox this week, I want to briefly give my opinion on the Mortal Kombat movie that was released last week. Now I am personally a big fan of the Mortal Kombat franchise. I played all the games up until Mortal Kombat 4, and I have watched all of the various series that have aired over the years. I love the movie from 95, and though the second film from 97 wasn't good at all, I still enjoyed it when I was younger. After waiting over 20 years for another Mortal Kombat film, I have to say that I was pretty disappointed with this reboot. The first 10 minutes or so were great, but most of it fell flat for me after that. I won't go into details for anyone that hasn't seen it, but I thought that making a character that wasn't from the game the main character was a mistake. There were a few good moments, and there were a couple of characters that were well done. However, just overall it was a letdown for me. I've seen that most of the reviews have been mixed, so we'll have to see what a sequel will be like if and when it happens. Well that is my soapbox for this week, so lets go ahead and get into the importance of address past trauma.

Now I began this topic by giving a general definition and overview of what the word trauma means from the context in which I will be discussing for this topic. Trauma can mean different things for different people, so it is important for everyone to personally define what trauma means to them. Also, I want to let it be known that all trauma isn't the same when it comes to us being individuals. The trauma or traumas that I have experienced throughout my life may not be the same as another person. It is always wise to recognize the differences that are our life experiences. We have to avoid getting caught up in comparing our experiences to others. The goal that I have here isn't to necessarily focus on any specific type of trauma, but rather why I feel that it is important for us to make an attempt to address these things. Taking the step of addressing trauma is one that isn't always an easy first step. To be quite honest, I believe that most people are not willing to do it. Again, much of this depends on the degree of, as well as what type of trauma that a person has experienced.

One of the main traits that I've noticed from people that even compelled me to bring this topic up is how the avoidance of the darker aspects of ourselves is so prevalent in our society. Of course this doesn't apply to all people, but we as a society have more of a tendency to avoid addressing traumatic things from our pasts. We would rather not bring up or address certain things that could possibly be crippling our growth in not only life, but also within our relationships. Now I believe it is totally understandable to not have to a desire to address certain types of trauma. As I stated earlier, there are different degrees to certain things. However, from my own perspective, not addressing things from your past is a bad idea if it isn't adding to your peace. This also applies when it comes to family affairs that stem from past events. I don't need to go into extensive detail when I speak on these things, but we all have families and our share of experiences from the past that involve family members that we'd like to forget. Now a person can claim that they have moved on from certain traumatic events, but has a person truly moved on if those events are creating tension in our present day life? From my perspective, the answer to that question for me would be a hard no.

We have all seen television shows and movies where people talk about how their past has come back to haunt them. If it's not being heard on television or being read in a book, it is probably an occasion where we ourselves are saying it. Often times we get fortunate enough when certain things that happen in our past are easily put behind us. However, there are going to be occasions when events from our past come back to haunt us. It is for this reason why I believe that it is of importance for us to address the traumas that occur from our pasts. As I brought up earlier, most people nowadays would rather not address things because it forces a person to be vulnerable. This can be very difficult for many in today's society, but what is even more difficult is stunting your growth as a person because you would rather not face the aspects of yourself that could be hindering you. This can entail a variety of things from growing as an individual, or growing in your relationships with others. Now if you're a person that doesn't care about potentially bettering yourself, then by all means you have the option to ignore things from your past that are affecting you know. However, if you are someone that wants to move forward and progress in multiples areas of your life, taking a hard look at yourself and facing your past traumas is the way to go. That's pretty much my perspective on it!

Well that about does it for this round folks! This has been another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective' brought to you by Brad H. I hope that I was able to present this post in a way that was easy to relate to. I also hope that those of you that have read this far found some sort of value from this. As always if any of you would like to leave any comments or feedback, please do so in the comment box. If you are on Twitter and would like to connect with me, you can follow me @BradrickH. Thank you to those of you that read and have shown support to me throughout the years. I truly appreciate you all! I hope you all have a great rest of your weekend, and I'll see you all on the next topic! Peace and blessings!

Saturday, April 10, 2021

The Importance Of Not Overwhelming Yourself With Life's Priorities.

There is something that I like to call the "plate of life" that I frequently use as a comparison when it comes to the responsibilities of life. You may remember back when we were kids in school, and our teachers would use a drawing of a plate that includes various food groups. You had your protein, your fruits, grains and vegetables included on the plate. The plate of life that I like to reference to is similar, except instead of various food groups being what the plate entails, our priorities and responsibilities that come with life are the main course. The plate of life is interesting in the sense that while it probably includes obvious things that we can all relate to, everyone's plate will ultimately be different when it comes to life priorities. We will dive more into this later on in the topic. In essence, it really isn't hard to imagine that everyone's priorities in this life are different. Going back to the food example that I have provided, everyone has different tastes and preferences when it comes to food. Though we may all have different responsibilities and priorities on our plate of life, one thing that can easily happen if we're not careful is overloading our plate. Overloading yourself with too many things can lead to a feeling of being overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed isn't a good thing, which is why I believe it is of importance for us to not overwhelm ourselves with life's priorities.

What's going on everybody? This is Brad H. reporting once again, and I would like to welcome you all to another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I am here to once again give my perspective on a topic that has been on my mind as of recently, and hopefully use that topic to help inspire us all to stay motivated on our life's journey. I hope that you all have been doing fairly good since the last topic. So for my soapbox this week, I want to talk about the news and how it can control us if we allow it to. I know that a lot of you out there probably watch the news pretty much everyday. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with watching it daily, but we have to always be mindful of how the news is manufactured to us. Most of the news that we watch comes from people and networks that have an agenda when it comes to what they broadcast to us. This makes me wonder if their mission is to actually inform us, or convince us to adopt their point of view. Again, I'm not saying don't watch the news, but realize that there are a lot of bots out there that are more concerned with narratives than informing the people. One of my favorite things I've heard which oddly came from a rap song goes: "Look on the news there's a little bit of lies mixed with a little bit of truth." Pay attention to what's happening, but don't allow it to consume you. So now that I've gotten that out of the way, lets go ahead and talk about the importance of not overwhelming ourselves with the priorities of life.

Now when it comes to the plate of life that I have used as a reference point to begin this topic, it is very important to remember that everyone's plate is going to be different. Like the food comparison that I used in the opening, you can't go to a buffet and expect everyone to put the same items on their plates. I want to bring this up because priorities in life will differ with everyone. Some people are going to have responsibilities that others may not. A person in their 30s are going to have different life priorities compared to someone that is in their teens and early 20s, etc. In order for us to avoid overwhelming ourselves with life's priorities, it is important for everyone as individuals to recognize what priorities are individually tailored to their life. As with the majority of viewpoints when it comes to life, this is something that has to be defined for you personally. So with that being said, try and assess the priorities that you have in your life before breaking down how not to overwhelm yourself with them. For the purpose of the points that I am aiming to make with this topic, I will be coming from a general perspective of priorities. I want us to recognize that while we do have priorities, it defeats the purpose when you overwhelm yourself with them.

So now that we've been able to establish what our individual priorities are when it comes to life, how and why do we become overwhelmed? To begin with the aspect of how we allow ourselves to become overwhelmed with life, much of this stems from not having restraint when it comes to the things we're aiming to do. Going back to the food comparison that I've been using, a person that doesn't have restrain when it comes to eating will probably overdo it at a buffet. We have to learn how to say no to certain things that aren't at the top of the list when it come to priorities. There are many reasons as to why an individual can be overwhelmed, but the main thing that I've noticed in my own personal life is that I put too much pressure on myself to accomplish certain things. Now while there isn't anything wrong with having some sense of urgency when it comes to your priorities, putting too much pressure on yourself can contribute to living a more overwhelmed life. If you are someone that often finds yourself being overwhelmed with your responsibilities, t is important to define how and why you as a person are feeling this way. It differs for us all, which is why it is important to define this for yourself.

So we've talked about how priorities are different for everyone, as well as how and why we as people become overwhelmed with our priorities. So why is it so important for us to not overwhelm ourselves? From my own perspective, and I'm sure many of you will agree with me on this; nothing good comes from consistently being overwhelmed. There are so many negative things that can happen when a person feels like life has become too much for them to handle. There are all kinds of potential health related issues that can come into our lives when we're overwhelming ourselves, but more importantly, overwhelming ourselves can rob us of life's joys. We all know that there is a lot of bad that can come along with living life, but we also know that there is so many more good things in this world. I believe that it is hard to really enjoy all of life's joys when your constantly feeling overwhelmed. I've talked in previous topics about how truly short life is in the grand scheme of things. I believe that life is way too short to be overwhelmed all the time. Besides, overwhelming ourselves can potentially lead to a shortened life span. It is normal for us to feel overwhelmed at times, but we should always be working to limit this feeling as much as possible.

That pretty much sums up what I got for this week's topic! I hope that those of you that have read this far found this to be inspirational to your life. I'd like thank you all once again for stopping by to check out another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! If you found this to be of help to you, please feel free to let me know in the comment section. You can also reach out to me on Twitter @BradrickH if you'd like. I hope you all have an enjoyable rest of your weekend, and an even better week ahead. I'll see you all next time. Stay safe and stay positive! Peace!

Saturday, March 20, 2021

The Importance Of Moderating Yourself In Today's Society.

It could just be me thinking along the lines of about what I'm about to say, but I'm sure that some others can agree that the world that we're living in has become even more chaotic over the years. There are so many reasons as to why the world has become the hectic place that it is now. We'd probably be going on and on as to why the world has changed so much, but one aspect of change with anything stems from a natural progression of things. Nothing in life stays the same, and that right there is something that none of us can deny. With a change in the world and how society has progressed (or regressed) over the course of time, we as people are going to change and adapt to the times as well. One of the unfortunate things about change is that sometimes change isn't always good change. From my personal perspective, many of the changes that have taken place over the decades in our society haven't been all good. I know that some may not view it that way, and that is totally fine. Also, while I do believe that there have been a lot of not so good changes in our society, I in no way want to diminish or take away from the good changes that have come. Going back to society and change, the hectic world that we're in now has consumed so many people for the worse. When things are chaotic and there seems to not be a solid foundation of order, the best thing that we as people can do is learn to moderate ourselves even more.

Hey, what's up once again good people! It's your boy Brad H. here bringing you all another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I am here to once again give my perspective on a topic that I believe can help serve as some inspiration for our lives. Thank you to those of you that are joining me for another week of hopeful inspiration. Last week was the week that this topic was supposed to be published. However, I celebrated another birthday last week and just decided that I would try and enjoy the entire week free of any commitments. It was a good week last week, and I am thankful to have lived to see another year pass on the storybook of my life. So for my soapbox on this week's topic, I want to briefly talk about why my birthday will probably no longer be viewed in the same light by me. So my birthday is on March 11th, which is the day last year that the COVID-19 virus was labeled as a global pandemic. As a matter of fact, I'll never forget that it was my birthday last year that the NBA halted its season due to players testing positive. Though I had a much better birthday this year than I did last year, I will always remember that my birthday is the day where the lives of nearly everyone changed. Things are seemingly improving with the pandemic, but it is clear that we are not out of the woods yet. Looking back and reflecting is something that I always like to do because it is a constant reminder of how life is constantly changing. I know that may be pretty random, but I just wanted to use my soapbox to address why my birthday will likely be viewed in a different light for me for as long as I live. So now that I've gotten that out of the way, lets go ahead and talk about the importance of moderating yourself in today's society.

There are so many ways that can define what it means when it comes to the idea of moderation and how it relates to an individual moderating themselves. As with the majority of the topics that I bring up on here, this is one that is subjective to the individual. However, for context within what I'm aiming to convey through this topic, I want to put the emphasis on what I mentioned in the opening. That being moderation within the boundaries and constraints of society at large. I brought up in the opening how the world in general has become so hectic and chaotic over the many spans of decades. There is always going to be change happening, but what happens to society when the changes begin to decay at the fabric of who we are as people? Now again, I don't expect everyone to agree with my assessment on how this world has changed in ways that I personally don't view as being positive towards the advancement of society. Also, I want it to be known that just because I have some of the views that I do about the changes that have happened, I in no way believe that this world is all bad. I am a firm believer that everything is about balance, and things naturally tend to balance themselves accordingly. That being said, I have developed a greater appreciation when it comes to moderation and how it relates to the world in which we live.

Now American culture is general is primarily dominated by a few things when it comes to how people tend to think and behave. Two of the biggest are social media and television. Because many of us spend so much time on these activities, there are so many of us that tend to be drawn to the same things. Of course this doesn't apply to everyone, as there are people that are outliers to my theory on this. Point being is that when it comes to the things that dominate our world, there isn't as much moderation as there was in past years. For example, there was a time when marijuana was use was considered to be a crime. While it is still a crime in certain areas of the world, as well as this country, there are states where it has gained legalization. Now I'm not going to say whether I believe it should be legal or not. Quite frankly it doesn't matter anyway. However, for those that participate in the activity of using marijuana, knowing that there is free reign to use it without any type of consequences could possibly lead to addition. Also, the fact that something is being pushed so hard by the media and television can lead to more people becoming willing to experiment with whatever is being pushed. I know I used the marijuana thing as an example, but this can apply to anything. The main point that I hope people can take from this is that the ability to freely engage in things that were once shunned upon can potentially lead to more addictions.

Now we're all adults here, so I don't think we need to tell people how to live our own lives. However, I believe that when there is a lack of order that exists within a society, the possibility for chaos comes eventually. Just from my own perspective, this world doesn't have what I consider to be proper moderating. This is why I feel that it is of importance for us to be able to properly moderate ourselves as individuals. Now whatever that means for you as a person is totally up to you. Again, I mentioned earlier how this is totally subjective. I just believe that with the way that our society has progressed throughout time has created a world where people are easily brainwashed by media. I will attest that we all have been brainwashed at points of our lives, and it is likely something that will happen for as long as we live. However, one of the goals I have in my life is to be able to live and think freely on my own terms. It isn't always to our benefit if we're always conforming to what society is doing. This may be a bad example, but if you were around a group of people that all decided to jump off of a cliff that you all are near, you wouldn't jump with them would you? Probably not, right? It can be difficult to moderate yourself in a society where people are often shunned for not always taking the popular way of living. As long as you are happy and content with who you are, that is all tha matters in the end. Remember the importance of moderating yourself in today's society.

That's what I got for you all this week! I hope that you all that stopped through found this to be helpful and inspirational to you. Thank you once again to those of you that stopped by for another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! As always, I hope that I was able to present this topic in a way that made sense for you all. If any of you would like to contribute any feedback to this topic, please do so in the comment box. You can also connect with or reach me on Twitter @BradrickH. Well I hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend, and I hope you all have a great week ahead. I'll see you all on the next topic. Take care, and peace out!

Saturday, February 27, 2021

Realization, And How It Plays A Role In Our Lives.

Life can be a complex thing to figure out and understand when it comes to the important aspects of how life operates. There are many infinite details that are both big and small that make up life what entail life. I believe that it is quite normal for the good majority of people to go throughout life without paying attention to the small details that make up life. Most of us pretty much take life day-by-day without always acknowledging those details. It really isn't that hard to imagine being that life doesn't come with a handbook on how to live. Furthermore, when you factor into account how a world that has billions of people will never be seen through the same lens for everyone. I've come to learn over the years that when people say that life is what you choose to make it, you can best believe it is a truthful statement. However, regardless of how a person lives or chooses the view their individual world, there is something called realization that affects us all throughout our lives. Realization is going to happen to us all at some point in various spots. It is something that we'll have while we're young, but it really affects us if we're fortunate to be able to live a decently long life. Even if you're blessed to see a long life, realization is something that will never stop happening for as long as you live. I believe that realization plays a large factor in our lives for those of us that make an attempt to pay attention to the detail of life. It is for that reason that I chose to use realization as a main theme for this week's topic of Realization, And How It Plays A Role In Our Lives.

What's going on once again folks? This is Brad H. coming through once again for another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I am here to bring a topic that I believe would be beneficial to us in our life's journey. I hope that you all have been maintaining and doing well since the last topic that was covered. It has been a pretty wild couple of weeks for me personally. As some of you may already know, I am from Texas and we were hit with a very rare winter storm last week. It wasn't just Texas that was affected by the storm, but we were the only state that had massive power outages. I was one of the lucky ones that never lost power, but with everything that was going on with the storm, I just decided not to even attempt this topic last week. If you all could do me a huge favor, please keep the people of Texas in your thoughts. There were a lot of tragedies that came from the effects of this storm. People died from not only the cold weather, but also things like carbon monoxide poisoning from trying to stay warm through dangerous methods that most people wouldn't attempt in normal circumstances. There are also a countless amount of people that have busted pipes and damage to their homes of devastating proportions. I pretty much liken this storm to a winter hurricane when it comes to the aftershock of what took place. So now that I've gotten that out of the way, lets go ahead and delve more into my thoughts on realization and the role that it can play in our lives.

Now when it comes to the idea of realization and how it relates to our lives, I would be doing a disservice to the readers if I didn't point out that realization is something that is purely subjective to whomever it applies to at a specific point in their life. As I mentioned in the opening, realization is something that will happen throughout life. However, for where I am planning on going with this topic of realization, I mainly want to give my perspective from a viewpoint of becoming older. This may not apply to everyone, but I still hope that it is a topic that most can at least relate to. Now before going further in this topic we have to define what realization is. A broad definition of realization is defined as "an act of becoming fully aware of something that is fact". I personally think of it as having epiphany type of moments in our lives where things suddenly come to us and make sense. Now of course this can and does happen at many points throughout our lives, but I personally feel that it becomes easier for us to pick up on realizations as we become older and mature. Again, this isn't always the case due to what I point out in the opening. That being the idea that most of us go through life while not always giving attention to the details that we generally overlook. From my own personal perspective, glossing over the fine print that comes along with living life can hinder us when it comes to having realization.

So when we're talking about the small details that we as people generally overlook in this life when it comes to realization, what does this mean exactly? Well from my own perspective, the small details in life are the truths that come along with life that we tend to overlook. One example of many that I could give is the fact that we has humans have a short span of life. Think about it from the following viewpoint. Even if a person lives to be 100 years old, that is a small amount of time compared to infinity. That's not to say that life is short, but is a lot shorter than we think. Most of us tend to overlook this because we don't typically think about death when we're young. It doesn't feel like a reality because it feels like it is far away, even though we all know that isn't the case. We all know that death can happen at any age or any moment, yet we tend to overlook things of this nature until it becomes a realization. Now again, this is just one example of many. The main point here is that it is easy for us to overlook life's small truths, but despite how easy it is to do this doesn't mean that we shouldn't be making an effort to not overlook them. I believe that the biggest realizations happen when we get to the point where we're no longer glossing over life's smaller details.

So we have established how the small details of life have an influence on our lives, and I've given an example of what it means to overlook certain aspects of life. We've arrived at the end where I feel that realization plays its biggest role. From my own personal perspective, I believe that realization when it comes to life is something that we should be striving for sooner rather than later. One of life's realities that most of us hate to think of is the fact that one day we're all going to die. We've all heard stories of what many people have said while they were on their deathbed taking their last breathes. Some of the stories we've heard from others have been harrowing, and that is where I think that there is an opportunity to learn from. Though it is something we all long for, the truth is that not all of us are going to see a long life. This is why I believe it is important for us to have the ability of realizing things quicker than those that have come before us. One of my favorite quotes is that "a wise man learns from his mistakes, but a wiser man learns from the mistakes of others". Life is a gift that should always be cherished. It is for that reason that I believe working towards giving more attention to the small things that matter in life should be prioritized. We're here now, so now is the best time for realization. Whatever realization means to you personally, do whatever you must to find it before life passes you by.

Well that is all I got for you all this go round. Thank you once again to those of you that stopped through for another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I truly appreciate the support that you all have shown me over the years. I hope that I was able to bring this topic in a way that had some understanding for you all. If you have any comments or feedback that you'd like to contribute, please do so in the comment box. If you would like to connect with me on Twitter, you can find me @BradrickH. Well I hope you all have a great rest of your weekend, and an even better week ahead. Take care and I'll see you all on the next topic! Peace and blessings folks!

Saturday, February 6, 2021

Why Keeping Your Mind Sharp Is So Critical In Todays World.

I'm fairly certain that most of you that are reading this probably knows someone that seems to know a little about almost everything. Maybe this is applicable to some of you that are reading this. These people of course don't know everything since that is impossible, but they seem to have a general sense of things that are happening. These are people that are able to recall a lot of things from the past, and have a good way of interpretation when it comes to connecting things together. When I think of people that have these traits, I think of a phrase that I used to her when I was a child. People like this were often described as being "sharp in the head". Another way that it is frequently used is by saying that a person has a "sharp mind". These are individuals that have the ability to think fast on their feet and recall a lot of information with ease. There are many other traits and qualities that could define someone that is sharp in the head, and we would probably be going on for hours if we had to point out everything that correlates to a person being sharp-minded. When I was growing up, being sharp in the head was something that people seemed to embrace more. I'm not saying that it is embraced or celebrated today, but it just doesn't seem to have the relevance that it once did from my own personal perspective. Although I personally don't see this being heralded as often as I used to, the fact of being sharp and staying on your toes is still an important aspect of life. The world has obviously changed a lot since I was young, which is why I think keeping our minds sharp in today's world is an important aspect to maintaining ourselves.

What's going on once again everybody? This is another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective' brought to you by me, Brad H.! I am here to once again hopefully bring some inspiration that can hopefully serve us in our daily life's journey. I'd like to say thank you to those of you that are joining me for this installment. Before we get into the meat of this week's topic, I'd like to get on my soapbox and give my thoughts on the big event happening less than 24 hours from now. Yes, that's right, the Super Bowl! So we got Tom Brady and the Buccaneers going up against Patrick Mahomes and the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. Some are deeming this "The GOAT vs The Future GOAT"! For those that may not know what GOAT means, it means "Greatest Of All Time"! As for the game itself, I think it is going to be an interesting one with this being the first time a team in the Super Bowl will have a home field advantage with the game in their home stadium. That would be the Buccaneers! I'm not sure how this game is going to go, but I am rooting for the Chiefs for two reasons. For one, Patrick Mahomes is from Texas like I am. Secondly, I don't care for Tom Brady. I respect his skills, but some of the things that went down when he was with the Patriots always made me sketchy about him. I think the Chiefs will likely win if they're able to slow down the Bucs defense and protect Mahomes. Regardless of who wins, lets hope that we see a fun and entertaining game. I'm sure that most of us could use a bit of a distraction during these crazy times we're in. So now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, lets go ahead and talk about this week's topic of the importance of keeping our minds sharp in today's world.

Now I mentioned in the opening a brief overview of my thoughts when it comes to what I believe entails a person with a sharp mind. Again, there are so many alternative and unique ways to define what qualifies as a sharp-minded individual. This topic is one of those themes where we as individuals have to determine what it means to us when it comes to being sharp in the head. Furthermore, I also want to state that I'm in no way implying that someone has to have these qualities to be sharp-minded. As I have mentioned already, this is something that a person must define for themselves. We are all different when it comes to the way we think and process things as individuals, so I am simply stating my own viewpoints here. Now to expand on what was addressed in the opening, being sharp-minded from my perspective doesn't have the prevalence that it once did. I do have a couple of theories as to why this has become the case from my perspective. First off, the world has changed so much since the time I was a youth. The way people lived was so much simpler compared to how we live now. Secondly, people in general do not do a lot of the things that we once did that kept us sharp. For example, it was nothing for people to read several books in the span of a month or two. Now we live in a era where we have traded reading and watching things that enhanced our knowledge to social media and realty television shows. There is nothing wrong with social media and reality TV, but I think many of us can agree that much of what is being shown through these platforms aren't the most positive.

Now that we've established a general overview of what I personally believe it means for a person to be sharp in the head, I wanna get into some of the ways that I believe we can sharpen our minds. I want to stress again that this is all subjective, and my personal point of view. Now from my personal perspective, one of the biggest qualities of a sharp minded person is someone that is able to retain and recall a lot of information. Now everyone is different when it comes to retaining information, but I think that we would all agree that frequent reading is one of the best activities towards keeping our minds sharp. I've talked several times in the past about how our brains are a muscle that needs to consistently be worked, and reading is a great way for us to utilize our brains. Another key that I believe helps toward keeping a sharp mind is getting enough rest at night. Sleep is very important to not only our bodies, but our minds as well. Finally, moving your body and exercising is key towards keeping your mind sharp. I'll use myself as an example when it comes to exercise and how it keeps your mind sharp. Now I'll be honest and admit that I've slacked off a bit from running, but I remember when I was doing it at my peak how much it helped my mind. When I would get a few miles into those runs and began to feel tired, I had to tap into my mind to push forward. By utilizing my mind during these runs, it helped me not only to go further in those runs, but it helped me be able to think clearly. Clear thinking is a byproduct of good habits, and I believe that good habits are what helps with keeping the mind sharp.

So why do I feel that it is of importance for us to aim towards keeping our minds sharpened in today's world? Well to be frankly honest, we should all have a desire to keep our minds sharp just because we should be striving to be as physically and mentally healthy as possible. However, the main reason why I believe it is of utmost importance in today's world is due to the fact that the world today is so full of distractions that can drain us mentally. I talked earlier about how the world has changed so much over the years. Life is no longer as simple as it once was, which means that there are a limitless amount of ways for our minds to be pulled away from the things that help make us sharper. I believe that much of this comes down to focus, or a lack thereof. The world in which we live in today is has an unabashed way of subtly controlling us through the programming that we receive. I believe that this is how so many of us fall victim to becoming mentally drained so frequently, which in turn takes away the aspects of our minds that help make us sharp. I can't speak for anyone else of course, but this is not a way that I would prefer to live, especially with the fact that I'm getting older. As I get older, I truly understand and value what it means to have a sharp mind. I believe from my perspective that it makes us able to think clearly, but also express ourselves in a way in which others can understand us. Remember that mostly everything is in life is all a mind game. There are always things that will be aiming to conquer your mind. I believe that having a sharp mind is how we consistently conquer those battles in this new world we're living in. What it takes and works for you personally, continue to try and keep your mind sharp everyone!

That is what I got for you all this time around, so it is time for me to go ahead and sign off for now. Thank you once more for those of you that stopped by for another installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective'! I hope that those of you that read this found it to be helpful, and I hope that I was able to present it in a way that was meaningful. If any of you have any comments or feedback that you'd like to leave on this or any other topic that has been covered, please feel free to do so in the comment box. You can also hit me up on Twitter @BradrickH if you'd like to connect. Well I hope you all enjoy the game tomorrow, and have an even better week ahead! I'll see you all on the next topic! Take care and peace out!

Sunday, January 24, 2021

The Importance Of Embracing Your Individuality In The Times We're Living.

I feel that I'm one of those people that were fortunate enough to grow up during the era that I did. Being that I'm what you would call an "80s Baby", I, along with other people from that era can say that we grew up in quite an interesting time. Not saying that any other eras of time weren't interesting or unique, but those of us that grew up in the 80s and 90s have a perspective that not everyone can say. We grew up in an era that was considered to be before the Internet became what it today, but we also grew up in the Internet era as well. It's interesting due to the fact that we were at the cusp of the age of the Internet. Now everyone may not entirely agree with my assessment of the generation that I grew up in, and that's okay. I just remember growing up in a time where the average kid actually played outside with their neighbors and friends as opposed to looking at a screen most of the day. Again, I have nothing against the generation of the Internet by saying what I've said. Times are constantly changing, and we have to change and adapt right along with them. Some of you may be wondering why I did that entire spill over the generations and eras that various people have grown up in. The main reason for my bringing this up is because the Internet era is the main outlet for how the world at large sees itself. I can't speak for anyone else, but it seems that the idea of embracing our individuality in this age we're in has quickly vanished. I dare say that now more than ever is a time where we need to be embracing who we are.

Hey, how are you all doing out there? This is your boy Brad H. back on the blogosphere once again, and I would again like to welcome everyone to another installment of
'Brad H.'s Perspective'! This is an hub that I use to give my personal perspective on a topic that has been on my mind as of late. The aim is to use the topic at hand to hopefully give us some hope and encouragement in these uncertain times that we're living in. I would like to thank you all that are joining me for another installment! So for my soapbox section on this edition, I want to get into some sports talk. So the NFL playoffs are quickly winding down as we only have four teams left. We have the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills from the AFC left. On the NFC side, we have the Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I think that these are all quality games that will be featured. So can the Buffalo Bills pull off the upset over the defending champion Chiefs? If Patrick Mahomes is healthy and recovered from his injury last week, I don't see it happening. I predict the Chiefs will win if Mahomes is healthy. As for Green Bay and Tampa Bay, I really don't know who to go with. I see this as a toss up, but if I had to lean towards only one, I would pick the Buccaneers. Kinda hard to go against Tom Brady. I don't care for either of these two teams, but I think that is going to be the game to watch. I pretty much have no stake since my team didn't even make the playoffs, so all I hope for is some good games. We'll see how it all plays out this weekend. Now that I've gotten on my soapbox for a bit, lets go ahead and get into this week's topic on embracing our individuality.

Now I talked in the opening about the Internet and how it has had progressively throughout the course of time has had a gigantic impact on how so many of us view our lives. This of course doesn't apply to everyone, because though it is highly rare in this day and age, there are people that don't even use the Internet. That's besides the point due to the fact that everyone has their own opinion on the Internet. However, there is one word that I can think of when it comes to the Internet, and even the media at large when it comes to influencing us as people. The word that I'm pondering on of right now is "narrative"! Everyone knows that the news and media in general has always been the biggest influences when it comes to pushing a narrative. I personally feel that the Internet hasn't always been part of the narrative driving force that influences our thoughts, but as with pretty much everything else in life, the way the Internet has been used over the course of years has changed. I once viewed it solely as a source of connecting with others and obtaining information that could not be accessed instantly. That aspect of the Internet does still exist, but probably the biggest reason as to why so many people use the Internet deals with the social media aspect. The way that social media has expanded over the years has become one of the largest influences on individuality and how we view ourselves relative to our peers.

Now that I've addressed the topic of the Internet at length, I want to get more into how it has a place in our lives when it comes to individuality. From my own perspective based on what I see regular online via social media apps, etc, most people seemingly are influenced by what others are saying and doing. Now I hope no one takes offense to me saying that. Quite frankly, I myself am not immune to this. I know that I have personally fallen victim to this myself, so it is definitely understandable. While I feel that there is nothing wrong with being influenced by what we see via the television and Internet if done in a healthy form of consumption, we don't want to be people that lose sight of our own beliefs that make us individuals. Too many of us have lost sight of who we are from the amount of consumption of media and social media. From my perspective, you can tell a lot about what a person thinks about a certain topic based on what and who that person is paying attention to. There are so many of that want to be liked by others so much that we're willing to change our viewpoints to what the masses think is the popular viewpoint to adopt. Now we're all individuals regardless of whether we follow what the masses do, but coming across people that are truly confident in their beliefs and who they are has nearly become a thing of the past.

So now that I've gotten into a few areas as to where and why we as individuals have lost our sense of individuality when it comes to how we think, why exactly is it important for us to embrace our individuality? Well from my personal perspective, I believe embracing our individuality is important because there is an inner peace that comes with a person staying true to who they really are. I believe that a person that doesn't think for themselves and is easily influenced will never totally be at peace within themselves. I know that there's a lot of bullying and shaming that goes on within our society when it comes to how people choose to live their lives. However, going along with the crowd just to get along and be accepted can also be a form of bullying; internal bullying. I believe that a person that isn't being totally honest with themselves with who they are are contributing to the greater problem when it comes to being an individual. In a world where the average person can be easily coerced by others so easily, I believe that we need more people that are willing to be themselves. There's a famous quote that goes something along the lines of: "A lion isn't concerned with the opinions of sheep." I believe that when a person truly embraces who they are as an individual, then that is when that person has elevated to the status of a lion. This is why I believe that it is of importance for us to embrace who we are as individuals.

Well that is all I got for this installment of 'Brad H.'s Perspective' folks! I hope you all found this both enjoyable and something that you can relate to. Thank you once again to all of you that stopped by. I truly appreciate those of you that do so! I hope the new year has been treating you all well so far. If any of you have any comments or feedback that you'd like to contribute, you can feel free to do so in the comment box. You can also find me on Twitter @BradrickH. Well I hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend, and I hope everyone has a positive week ahead. Brad H., out!