Heartmanity's Blog

A frequent question I get asked is “So, how do I change?” Change doesn't happen overnight, but one thing is for sure: the quality of our lives is an accumulation of our habits. You're either forming healthy habits that create a better life, a happier self, and a more loving relationship with yourself and others. Or you are reinforcing bad habits that inhibit your best self and life.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

How many of you grew up encouraged to freely express your emotions when you were a child? What happened when you got angry? Or sad? Growing up in a family where the whole spectrum of emotions was accepted, encouraged, and explored is rare, yet it’s one way that children develop emotional intelligence. Most of us grew up with a double standard where it wasn’t okay for us to express our challenging emotions, yet our parents sometimes reacted out of tiredness or stress.

 

Do you remember seeing your mother cry when you were young? I do. I remember asking my mom what was wrong as she sobbed—her [...]

Being a parent is difficult and complicated. On top of parenting being a full-time job, it costs an estimated quarter of a million dollars to raise each child to the age of eighteen. We dedicate ourselves to keeping our children safe and healthy for nearly two decades—a huge feat in this crazy world. Even after they’ve grown up, we have heartstrings connected to them 24/7, no matter where they live or what they’re doing.

It can really hurt when we unexpectedly find our adult relationships with our children strained. Do you think to yourself, "Why is my grown son so mean to me?" or "Why is my [...]

Emotional intelligence and social intelligence are no longer optional in leadership. And there are many leadership styles, yet there is only one kind of leader that raises profits while also growing people, engaging employees, cultivating thriving teams, and producing brilliant results.

That’s authentic leadership. This leadership style can make the most significant difference. And showing up authentically as a leader clears the obstacles to success with one irreplaceable skill that outshines all others.

"Forgiveness" is a term used so often that few people question its intrinsic value. You'd probably agree that asking for and offering forgiveness has become common practice. Just like many others, I was taught growing up that when you hurt someone—even accidentally—the right thing to do is to say you're sorry and ask for forgiveness. Children quickly learn when adults expect an apology, even when a child may have lacked the skill to respond differently.

Have we erred and put too much emphasis on behavior and not enough attention on understanding the person and their needs?

Estimated reading [...]

Are you a people pleaser? I was! In fact, growing up, I majored in pleasing others. I honestly believed as a child and young adult that if people didn’t need me, they wouldn’t want me. So I worked at being indispensable. My pleaser habit was so deeply rooted that I didn’t know I was giving up myself on a regular basis, in every relationship at home and work. My pattern of over-giving had great benefits—or so I thought.

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Whether you're parenting a toddler, preschooler, middle-schooler, or teen, parental stress is guaranteed. Being a parent is demanding and is an ever-changing job. One of the most important roles that a parent plays is assisting in their child's emotional development. Whether or not children grow up to be emotionally-savvy adults depends largely on the stability and loving responses of their parents.

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Most of us (especially parents) know what to do if our clothes catch fire: STOP, DROP, and ROLL. But do we know what to do if our relationship catches fire?

Our relationship may function smoothly and harmoniously most of the time. But when a conflict does arise, we may find out that we just don’t know how to resolve it. Many times, the problem lies in our lack of communication skills.

We all want to feel heard and understood. If we don’t know how to establish real connection through effective communication in our love relationship, we may find ourselves competing within the relationship for [...]