Psyche | on the human condition
Avoiding sadness can backfire, here’s how to turn towards it. Everyone has stretches of sadness. Shifting how you think about and relate to sad feelings could help you through these times. Psyche is a digital magazine from Aeon Media that illuminates the human condition through psychology, philosophy and the arts.
The virtue of honesty requires more than just telling the truth
Dec 13, 2021 · There is little controversy that honesty is a virtue. It is an excellence of character. It also promotes trust, fosters healthy relationships, strengthens organisations and societies, and prevents harm. Sadly, though, honesty has gone missing in recent decades. It is largely absent from academic research.
When a tricky task makes your brain hurt, here’s what to do
Nov 9, 2021 · The everyday equivalent to this task would be something like keeping a shopping list in your mind as you walk through a grocery store. Here, you must remember the items you already have, which items you need, and update your mental list each time you add an item to your basket. Meanwhile, to apply the painful temperatures, we used a ‘thermal ...
How to make a difficult decision | Psyche Guides
Jan 5, 2022 · It can be tempting to kick a difficult decision down the road – but that itself is actually a decision, and probably the wrong one. Identify the parts of yourself that want different things. Be clear on which parts of you want what, and try to find a compromise between them. Create distance from the decision.
How to perform well under pressure | Psyche Guides
Nov 17, 2021 · To perform well under pressure, you need several elements in place: an ability to distance yourself from destructive thoughts and self-talk; a way to cope with overwhelming feelings; the mental flexibility to respond in the most effective way; and, …
How to overcome a fear of heights | Psyche Guides
Apr 14, 2024 · Key points – How to overcome a fear of heights. Recognise and understand the symptoms of anxiety. Understanding the body’s fight-or-flight response will help you recognise and tolerate the unpleasant bodily sensations you might experience when you’re up high, and prevent you from misinterpreting them as something dangerous.
How to deal with being bullied at work | Psyche Guides
Jan 24, 2024 · Key points – How to deal with being bullied at work. 1. Workplace bullying is a common experience that takes many forms. If you are repeatedly targeted by unwanted, unreasonable and harmful behaviour at work that seems to involve an abuse of power, it likely rises to the level of bullying. 2.
How to not fear your death | Psyche Guides
Aug 19, 2020 · Learn more. Epicurus’ argument against the fear of death has been challenged far and wide. Perhaps the best-known counterpoint in modern times comes from Nagel, in his esteemed paper ‘Death’ (1970), which did much to renew philosophical attention on the problems of not-being. The gist of Nagel’s argument is that there is …
How to motivate yourself to change | Psyche Guides
Jan 21, 2024 · Use ‘evocation’ exercises to prioritise your concerns and reflect on how the changes you hope to make will help you live according to your values. Build confidence. Identify your strengths, past successes, and sources of hope and inspiration that might help you make the changes you seek to make. Make a plan.
How to defuse catastrophic thoughts | Psyche Guides
Aug 23, 2023 · Key points – How to defuse catastrophic thoughts. The tendency to think the worst is common and manageable. You can learn to spot and defuse what therapists call catastrophising (assuming the worst-case scenario is happening or will happen), as well as awfulising (believing a possible event is absolutely awful or …