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Life is Like Chocolate ♥

Indulging myself with a bar of dark chocolate. I may not a connoisseur, but I’m enjoying each and every bite. Sweet with a bit bitter. Just like life. Life is sweet. Sweeter if you have someone to share with, but might be bitter to loose our companion. Life’s like eating chocolate, we do taste the bitterness, but we still continue to savour it.

Life goes on whether it is sweet or bitter. Maybe not as simple as eating chocolate and not as easy choosing our favourite out of diverse range of chocolate but we’ll find our way to cope with our new life. We, human are survivor. Sometimes we didn’t notice our abilities are beyond what we really capable of. We can’t pick who we want to be, but we can decide how we want to live our life.

We All Need Somebody To Lean On

It’s very important to learn to be self-sufficient and independent, but the truth is that we can’t go it alone, and we shouldn’t. Just as vital as possessing drive and determination is building a strong support system of people who have our best interests at heart. We need supporters in every aspect of our life, personal and professional, to be there for us when we need words of encouragement, a vote of confidence, or confirmation that we are, in fact, not crazy.  Developing these relationships takes time and effort, but is well worthwhile.

In your personal life, realize that different kinds of friends provide different kinds of support. When you’re going through a tough time, sometimes laughter can be the best medicine. Know which friend tells the best jokes and always seems to lighten the mood, and which friend is the best companion for a night on the town. It’s also important to have someone you can spill your heart to when you’re happy or sad. Not everyone is a good listener in person, but some people write really thoughtful responses to novel-length e-mails, so use technology to your benefit. Also, make sure you share good news with your supporters, instead of just going to them when disaster strikes. If they are true friends, they’ll find as much joy in your happiness as they would in their own.

We don’t all become friends with the people we work with, and that’s okay. But, it’s important to find at least one co-worker who you can trust to give you their honest opinion.  Even if it’s just running an e-mail by them before you hit Send, practicing a presentation, or getting advice on how to deal with a particular client or co-worker, having someone to turn to in the office is incredibly helpful. Having these types of professional relationships can also prove beneficial when you move on to another job. You will have someone, in addition to your supervisor, who can speak knowledgeably about your work and vouch for your skills and experience.

There is nothing wrong with asking for help, even though it might be easier for some people than others. As the classic song says, we all need somebody to lean on. But, we can’t just expect people to be there for us if we haven’t given them a reason to be. Building a strong support system is a process much like building any structure. You have to start with a good foundation; in this case, things like trust and reliability are key. Certain parts serve different purposes, just like the various types of friends and acquaintances we have in our lives. Gratitude is like a roof; it tops it off and keeps it secure for the future.  The process of building is hard work, but hopefully the finished product will last for a long, long time.

Who do you lean on?

Does Anyone Know the Real You?

If there’s one thing that really bothers me in this world, it’s people who are fake.  They’re one way to your face, and a completely different way behind your back.  And, when it comes down to it, they don’t really know you at all.

I’ve been watching MTV’s new series “If You Really Knew Me,” and I have to admit that I think it’s brilliant. The people behind Challenge Day really know what they’re doing, and it’s a program that should be mandatory in every high school.  For those who haven’t seen the show, the basic premise is trust building activities that get teens to open up to one another and reveal who they really are on the inside. It sounds corny, but it’s not.  Once you can see beyond the outer shell, you will often find that seemingly polar opposites have a lot in common.

The thing is, it’s not just high schoolers who are afraid to show their true selves to the world. I know plenty of adults who do things they’d rather not, just to fit in. It’s sad to say, but we don’t all outgrow our tendency to be judgmental either.  I bet it won’t take you very long to think of the last time you slapped a label on someone, or made a generalization, without taking the opportunity to get to know them first.

One of the key exercises on Challenge Day is when the students sit in small groups and complete the sentence “If you really knew me…” The things they reveal are almost always unexpected, and often those who call themselves their friends had no idea. How many people know the real you? Are there things that have happened or are happening in your life that no one knows about? If you had to complete that sentence, what would you say?

It’s funny…before this blog, I would have a lot of ways to finish that sentence. Don’t get me wrong, I still have some things that aren’t publicly known, but there are quite a few aspects of my life, my true self, that I’ve written about here.  Doing so has made me more open with my IRL friends. I bottle my emotions less, and share more. It’s definitely a healthier way to go!  It’s very important to me to be genuine in the offline and online world, and I can honestly say that people definitely know the real me. What about you?