Remember, you don’t have to attend every gathering, and you don’t have to interact with certain people. It’s also important to remember that you don’t have to make excuses for anyone just because they share your last name or bloodline.

Depending on the issues your family faces, sometimes the best thing can be to leave toxic people behind.

It can be considered rude to not attend family gatherings, as it can be seen as a lack of interest or respect for your family. However there are many valid reasons for not attending. Whatever your reason for not wanting to attend, know that you are not alone. Take time to think about what the healthiest decision for you is.

You don’t always fall in love with someone your own age. Sometimes the age gap in years can be surprising. Despite their age differences, some can compliment one another really well. The purest form of love is consideration. When someone thinks about how things would make you feel. Pays attention to detail. Holds you in regard when making decisions that could affect you. In any bond, how much they care about you can be found in how much they consider you.

Nowadays, travelling alone is very normal!

The ability to be okay with being by yourself, not to need constant stimulation and company, is extremely empowering. It opens up choices for you that are not contingent on what others want and it enables you to be out in the world with others and then be with yourself to reflect, to regroup and to feel replenished.

When you’re going through challenges related to loneliness and anxiety it can be helpful to stay mindful of the growth opportunities form solo travel.

What springs to mind when you hear the word “weddings”. It is only in marriage where you can be who you are without being worried about what the person will think of you, in this union, you won’t have to hide your flaws or imperfections, and pretend to be somebody you are not. You won’t be judged.

Office politics refers to the complex social structure of a workplace. Which usually involves employees using their position for their personal agenda.

It’s more than just a game, it’s a skill. It refers to the ability to use one’s power to push their own agenda to gain some sort of personal advantage over their colleagues.

Many of us enter the dating world not knowing that a lot of our beliefs about relationships are toxic to begin with.

A toxic relationship occurs when one, or both, people are prioritising love over the 3 core components of a healthy relationship - which are respect, trust, affection.

Why do people do “scandalous” things? Perhaps we have all been through so much trauma that now the journey of life isn’t really about becoming anything, but perhaps now it’s about “un-becoming” anything and everything that isn’t really you.

In turn you then become who you were meant to be in the first place.

Should you date a coworker? Before you act on your feelings, it’s important to think through the risks - and there are quite a few. If you still want to move forward, research shows that your intentions matter. Your coworkers reactions will reflect what they believe your motives to be. It’s also important to know your companies policies. Many companies prohibit employees from dating coworkers, customers or suppliers so you’ve got to investigate before diving into a relationship with a colleague.

Before proceeding with a romantic relationship with a colleague - understand that there may be a chance that the relationship won’t work out and feelings will be hurt on one, or both sides.

Having multiple relationships with someone creates possible conflicts of interest that can be incredibly difficult to resolve.

Set boundaries - while you want people to know what’s going on, you don’t have to subject them to your relationship.

Finally. As painful as it may be, you need to prepare for a break up.

Money is an essential commodity that helps run our lives. Exchanging goods for goods is an older practice. Money has become important because people are trying to save their wealth for their future needs - rich people are rich as they know or realize the true value of money.

In this second instalment of “The Money Hour” I’ll be discussing the upgraded South African currency, what helps me save my money and what doesn’t.

Whether you’re pursuing a career in education, retail, culinary, editorial or HR, just remember the future depends on what you do today. Your time is now. Chase that dream now. Live now. Be here now. Follow your heart now. Take chances now, because if you don’t take every opportunity now, who knows when it will come again. Now or never. So, pick now.