Category Archives: Develop Understanding

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 →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged offering information, perception | Comments Off

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 →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged making choices, responsibility, self-evaluation | Comments Off

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 →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged conflict, improving relationships, offering information | Comments Off

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 →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged choosing influences, conflict, offering information, perception | Comments Off

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 →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged choosing influences, choosing thoughts, making choices, offering information | Comments Off

Reality Check: The Joy and the Sadness of Special Events

Posted on March 27, 2022 by RealityCheck

It’s been customary to mark special occurrences in our lives with events. We celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, graduations and other happy occasions. We also mark sad, difficult events with funerals and memorials. So much has changed in just a few … Continue reading →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged "should", choosing actions, examining options, examining wants, improving relationships | Comments Off

Reality Check: Opinions, Beliefs, and Relationships

Posted on February 27, 2022 by RealityCheck

Do you base your opinions on facts? Science? Data? Common Sense? Of course you do. So do I. So, how can it be that we have different opinions about important things? It’s easy enough to accept that we have different … Continue reading →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged choosing thoughts, conflict, improving relationships, learning | Comments Off

Reality Check: Defining the Good

Posted on July 12, 2021 by RealityCheck

“There is good in everyone.” I expect that you’ve heard this declared; perhaps you’ve even said it yourself. Granted, sometimes it’s coupled with a caution that we may have to dig pretty deep to find good in some people. Perhaps … Continue reading →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged "should", choosing influences, conflict, examining wants, fairness, freedom, need satisfaction | Comments Off

Reality Check: Above and Beyond

Posted on October 18, 2020 by RealityCheck

You can tell when you’re dealing with someone who goes above and beyond. It’s the store clerk who not only asks if you’ve found what you’re looking for, but who makes sure that it meets your needs. It’s the person … Continue reading →

Posted in Develop Understanding | Tagged encouragement, helpful, making choices, work | Comments Off