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Mindset

How To Be An Optimist

28th November 2021 by Larry G. Maguire Leave a Comment

Cartoon image of a man smiling how to be an optimist

A psychological model for reducing pessimism, increasing optimism for the future and developing meaning and purpose in one’s life. I have always been interested in having a go, taking a punt on an idea in spite of the potential for failure. It’s both a strength and a weakness of mine. This doesn’t mean that I’m […]

How To Be Resilient

11th September 2020 by Larry G. Maguire Leave a Comment

How To Be Resilient

I read a post this morning on The Resilience Institute LinkedIn profile on how to be resilient in face of challenges, and it prompted me to put a short article together. The LinkedIn post shared an article reporting that exercise helps build resilience. In short, I’d have to agree. Here’s why It seems to me, […]

Whitehead: The Fallacy of Misplaced Concreteness

16th August 2020 by Larry G. Maguire Leave a Comment

The fallacy of misplaced concreteness

I watched The Truman Show for the second time in a couple of days this evening. It was released in 1998 – imagine that! It’s such a great movie with an excellent script and actor in the leading role. Carey understood the metaphor. He knew what the movie needed to portray, I would argue, because he perhaps had already lived it. Or maybe he was living it. Either way, he played the part well. I believed him. The story attempted to show the thinness of contemporary life, the deception of the firework display, and the fallacy of misplaced concreteness

Building Resilience In Turbulent Times

7th June 2020 by Larry G. Maguire 4 Comments

building resilience in turbulent times riots in the streets

I’ve been researching lots recently on resilience; the process of building resilience, what resilience is, what resilience is not and so on. I’m writing an extensive piece on the topic and so I want to share some of those findings with you. I also want to share some of my personal findings on the psychological […]

When Sitting With A Problem…

7th May 2020 by Larry G. Maguire Leave a Comment

When sitting with a problem

When sitting with a problem, avoid settling for “this is hard”, and instead, add a “but”. The “but” leaves the door open to a solution. So then, “this is hard” turns into, for example, “this is hard, but I can find an answer”. “This is hard” is a verbalisation of a state of mind. It’s a definitive state of mind–a close loop from which there is no way out.

Leave The Door Open…

30th March 2020 by Larry G. Maguire 2 Comments

Leave the door open

A neurological explanation for this is that the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for instigation of the fight-or-flight response, is switched on and the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for executive function and decision making, is switched off.

What To Do When Creative Ideas Overwhelm

15th July 2018 by Larry G. Maguire 2 Comments

When Creative Ideas Bring Overwhelm

Having many creative ideas is something that many people wish they had, but for others, too many creative ideas can be accompanied by overwhelm. As a result, we do nothing. Or maybe we try everything and end up with a scattered or diluted focus.

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