Category Archives: Develop Understanding

Reality Check: That First Impulse

Posted on September 9, 2024 by RealityCheck

“Follow your heart.” This phrase is on T-shirts, plaques, coffee mugs. People quote it and presumably rely on it as a guiding principle. Let’s take a look at what that might mean.

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Reality Check: Expectations and the Pictures We Carry

Posted on August 11, 2024 by RealityCheck

Whenever two or more people get together and talk, we have an opportunity to share joy, to create understanding, and to deepen relationships. Getting together can be such fun! Getting together also creates an opportunity for conflict, and there’s plenty … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: The Power of Presence

Posted on May 12, 2024 by RealityCheck

We have so many options in how we can communicate. There’s phone, text, video chat, email, interactions on social media sites.…We could even write a letter! One could easily get the impression that we run the risk of too much … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: The Love Knot

Posted on May 5, 2024 by RealityCheck

In skilled hands, two pieces of rope can be manipulated in such a way that they resemble a pair of intertwined hearts. This is known as a love knot. Romantic, isn’t it? A story told by E. Annie Proulx in … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: Colouring Our Outlook

Posted on March 25, 2024 by RealityCheck

Do you ever feel that many situations in your life are random, where you can’t pin down a reason for why they happen? Even if the events are good, when we can’t find causes, life can seem out of control. … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: The Price of a Mistake

Posted on February 18, 2024 by RealityCheck

How do you make decisions? Perhaps you use a process, such as: start by collecting information, discuss the issue with people you trust, then weigh pros and cons, and finally, based on logic and due diligence, you decide! If you … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: How Do You Know You’ve Understood?

Posted on October 9, 2023 by RealityCheck

Do you ever feel misunderstood? I’ll hazard a guess that the answer is “yes.” If that’s true, then it’s also likely that other people feel misunderstood, too. Why? One answer is that some communication methods are more effective than others. … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: May I Persuade You?

Posted on October 2, 2022 by RealityCheck

It would be difficult to ignore all of the persuasive messages that come into our lives, wouldn’t it? Many of those messages are focused on getting us to do something, often it’s to buy something. Marketing ads have a clear … Continue reading →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged basic needs, choosing influences, examining wants, need satisfaction | Comments Off

Reality Check: A Change of Mind

Posted on July 10, 2022 by RealityCheck

Like me, I suspect that you sometimes change your mind about small things. For example, you were going to have chicken but Johnny said, “The fish is really good here,” so you changed your mind. Johnny’s comment is new information. … Continue reading →

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Reality Check: Fables and Values

Posted on June 5, 2022 by RealityCheck

What values guide your life? Where did your values come from? When I refer to values, I’m thinking of qualities such as loyalty, trustworthiness, prudence, generosity, perseverance, compassion, respect, work. There are many more. My curiosity about values was inspired … Continue reading →

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