Life For Experts

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How to avoid loneliness?” Loneliness is a common experience, and I’m sure most of us have been there. Research shows that 80% of those under 18 years of age and 40% of adults over 65 years of age have been reported to feel lonely at a certain point of time, with levels of loneliness gradually diminishing through the middle adult years and increasing again in old age. I can’t even imagine how this number has probably progressed since the pandemic, with many people losing their relatives, friends, or other things that matter to them. Although it’s hard to measure loneliness precisely, according to the CDC there is strong evidence that loneliness can produce health risks, especially in elderly people.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "What are the best practices of consuming coffee daily?” Well hello there, my fellow coffee addicts! Welcome to my favorite episode of Life for Experts ever! I drink coffee everyday, and for all of you who have the same habit, coffee has practically become a part of our lives. For us, everything about coffee is good - its taste, its aroma, its stimulant effect, and more others. But believe it or not, a long time ago coffee was once believed to be an inducer of cancer, which made it seen as a bad substance to drink daily.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "Should we invest in property?” Be honest with me and answer this question: how often do your parents advise you to invest in property as soon as possible? For me, the answer is always. The generation X and baby boomers see property as the best way to invest money in, both for the definite increase in long term value and also a sign of success and wealth. The millennials, not as much. With more and more types of investment instruments emerging in this digital age, the situation has offered much simplicity towards the younger generation that makes them slowly shifting away from property as a main choice of investment. Now both sides present valid points.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How can I stop procrastinating?” Ah, the sweet problem of the modern world. I believe we are all aware of this issue, and how multiple sources and platforms are actually trying to get into the bottom of this. Well, it is true, more and more of us built the tendency to waste our time and procrastinate. According to a study from the University of Calgary, the proportion of us who chronically procrastinate has increased from 5% in 1978 to 26% in 2007. What a huge growth, right? What’s worse is that, the younger we are, the more prone we are to this particular trap.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "When should I apologize?” Mistakes are bound to happen. And in every mistake, there is always at least one person to blame. Sorry, let me rephrase. In every mistake, there is always at least one person that causes it. Ideally, finding the root cause is the way to fix a mistake, but in reality, it is not that simple. Since feelings and ego are usually part of the equation, sometimes it is difficult to do so. Previous researchers had focused almost exclusively on the victim’s perspective, especially how apologies can trigger good impact for ourselves. However, they barely investigated why apologies can be so hard to make.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How can I even start forgiving someone?” Despite the fact that forgiveness is an act of giving to another person, the heart of forgiveness is about our own self. Multiple research throughout the course of decades, has also come up with the same conclusion: forgiveness provides vital benefits to our mental and physical wellbeing, such as reduction in stress, depression, and increase in compassion and better yet, increase in immune response. So before we move on to the practical things we can do to start forgiving someone, ensure that you understand how we are not doing it for others, but instead we are doing ourselves a favor. This will echo over and over again over the course of us practicing the act of forgiveness. Hence, knowing that early in the process will shape a strong foundation of willingness, which will help you withstand every step and efforts in habituating forgiveness. And then, after we have had a robust awareness of doing ourselves some good, there are three practical tips that we can do to practice forgiveness, and helping ourselves in getting accustomed to it.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How can I know if I’m wasting my time?” We all have 24 hours, spend it wisely. That is the popular saying which I believe we have heard at least a couple of times. It is true, though. No one has a special privilege when it comes to time. We all have the same amount and it is up to us how to spend it. That is why I think this episode's question might be one of the ultimate life questions, because what we choose will determine our path in life. And what's interesting is how this particular topic is fundamentally talking about decision making, because how we spend our time is entirely up to the choices we decide. So, how do we decide to do or not do something? How do we eliminate the things that are only wasting our time and doing us any good in life. To me, there are two main indicators that can come to the rescue.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "What kind of friends should I keep in my life?” If you remember, last year I once discussed the amount of friends we should have, which includes taking the approach of identifying the types of friends you need to have in your life. I’d like to see this episode as a continuation of the latter. Last time, mostly we talked about the types of friends. This time, I would like to be more generic and focus on what are the general characteristics of friends that you should be keeping in your life. After all, people come and go, and you will never know who will come next to your life. So, better be prepared and have some filters ready, so you can be prepared to choose the ones that you want to keep in your life.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How to enjoy the routinity?” Whether you are working in an office, doing freelance work, or starting your own business, there are times when you will be facing something that is called routinity. Ugh, who else just got nauseous hearing this word? Me too. But, routinity is a constant in life, it will always be a part of our life one way or another. Don’t get me wrong, routines are not a bad thing and I’m not against it. In fact, research has consistently shown that routines can play an important role in mental health. One study even found that routines could help people better manage stress and anxiety. Therefore, having a routine is fundamentally good, and there is no need to change that as long as it doesn’t bring any negative impact towards you and what you do. But yes, I do agree that at some point routinity can really kill our spirit, and it’s hard to stay motivated when this happens. When this happens, then that routinity is already on its way to bringing some negative impacts towards you. Hence, it is time to put in some work on coping with it.

The question I would like to discuss with you today is "How can I better understand people?” Humans are smart creatures, do you agree with me? Our brain capacity is massive and we are blessed to be better equipped than most animals. We created civilizations, infrastructures, and orders in life such as law, ethics, culture, etc. Though we seem to have a lot of advantages on our side, everything always has its own disadvantages. Humans are increasingly becoming more and more complex, that it sparks a question of identity. Our freewill makes it easier for us to choose what kind of person we want to be, just through our choices and desires. Hence, there comes the popular saying of "everybody wears a mask", because indeed, we do. And it specifically presents a challenge in our social life, since it is hard to really understand a person for who they really are. So, is it a lost cause? Or is there still something we can do to truly understand people? Well, there are certainly some things that we can do.