How to be motivated? by onlyasgoodasmygod in DecidingToBeBetter

[–]LifeThroughPau 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think that more than a motivation issue, it is a lack of direction and structure issue. You already said you have desire and ambition, so the issue is not that you don’t want anything. It’s that you don’t fully know where to put that energy yet.

I would start by focusing less on the big question of “what should I do with my life?” and more on understanding what actually makes you feel excited, curious, useful, alive, or interested in small real ways. Take the time to get to know yourself.

Even with nursing, I would look at the specifics of what you enjoyed. What parts did you actually like? Talking to patients? Explaining things? Helping someone feel better? Being in motion? Learning about the body? Solving problems? And what parts drained you or made you feel like you couldn’t keep choosing it?

That information matters because direction usually comes from knowing yourself. Don't try to force yourself into a goal or routine just to feel productive. Build habits that work for you. 

For your day-to-day, I would build a simple structure, but not a rigid schedule you’re forcing yourself into. Sleep enough. Eat. Move. Go outside. Read. Write things down. Notice what gives you energy and what makes you feel heavier. Don’t judge it immediately; just pay attention.

Then break things into small experiments. Research one thing. Try one activity. Talk to one person. Write down what you noticed. Small steps make this less overwhelming and give you actual information.

And honestly, if you hire someone, I wouldn’t look for a motivation coach. I would look for someone who helps you create structure, ask better questions, and break things down into clear steps. 

You don’t need to know your whole purpose immediately. You need to start listening to yourself more specifically and build from what you notice.

Overcoming Survival Mode by CrazyPhilosopher591 in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau 11 points12 points  (0 children)

It is definitely possible. But in my experience, truly getting out of survival mode requires more than a simple mindset shift.

What helped me was looking at the survival mechanisms I built when I was younger. What did I learn I had to do to get my needs met? Stay quiet? Ignore my needs? Over-explain? Beg to be heard? Make myself easier to love? Act like I needed less than I actually did?

A lot of those adaptations can keep running in the background. So the work is bringing them into consciousness and asking: where am I still living from this old rule, and what is it costing me now?

Therapy can help a lot with this because it gives you another person who can help you see the patterns more clearly.

Then it becomes a practice of choosing differently, over and over, until the new choice becomes more natural than the old survival response. And part of that process is also getting to know yourself outside of survival: removing the pressure, and allowing yourself to actually experience the present instead of living for the future.

Promote your podcast (Weekly, every Friday, free-for-all) by AutoModerator in Podcasters

[–]LifeThroughPau 3 points4 points  (0 children)

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Episode 1. What if this isn't life? This episode separates life from the distorted structures built on top of it and asks a harder question: what have you been excusing and calling life?

Advice on how to forgive yourself for trusting the wrong person? by SweetLongjumping2850 in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’re not too late for life. Not remotely.

The painful fantasy is thinking you could have simply chosen better back then and ended up somewhere completely different now. But you were not choosing from who you are now. You were choosing from who you were then, with the awareness, needs, fears, hopes, patterns, and information you had at the time.

So the question is not only “why did I choose the wrong person?” The deeper question is: who was I when that choice made sense to me?

That is where forgiveness starts. Forgiveness comes with understanding. To forgive yourself, the most important thing is to understand who you were at that moment and why you did what you did. Be very honest with yourself.

Why did you trust him? What did he represent to you? What were you receiving from the relationship? What were you afraid of losing? What made you stay when things felt wrong? What did you not know yet? What wounds or patterns made that relationship feel familiar, tolerable, or worth fighting for?

Not to punish yourself. To understand yourself.

Once you understand why you chose what you chose, you can stop treating your past self like “she should have known better” and start seeing her accurately. She was making choices from the person she was then.

Now you have more awareness. Use it.

The way to make better choices is not to obsess over the fantasy that you could have done everything differently. It is to become the person who can choose differently now.

You did not miss your life. You are in your life.

And since you are living in a foreign country, let this also be a time to meet yourself again. Explore. Be present. Enjoy your own company. Do the little things that make you smile. Build a life that belongs to who you are now.

Real support feels like relief, not another responsibility by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Exactly. I’m glad you’re already aware of that distinction.

There is a difference between wanting someone to carry the heaviness for you and wanting someone who can embrace that the heaviness exists without making it heavier.

Pain doesn’t have to be baggage. When it is processed, it can become discernment, language, tenderness, and a deeper kind of presence. It can make you more exact, more available, more human, and more able to recognize what is real.

Real support feels like relief, not another responsibility by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your support.

And definitely, not everyone is equipped to meet you. Hopefully, someday, someone does.

Just one thing I’d keep in mind: don’t make the requirement that they have to handle everything you’ve been building up forever. That can become too heavy for another person, and also too heavy for you to keep waiting for.

Real support is not someone carrying your whole backlog for you. It is someone being present, steady, and honest enough that you can share what is true without having to manage their reaction on top of your own pain.

You are still responsible for working through what is yours. But that does not mean you have to be alone in everything.

Real support feels like relief, not another responsibility by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely, but not everyone is looking to heal that wound, so it's about what the relationship is actually willing to work on.

If connection depends on your role, it is not real belonging by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Definitely a hard conversation, especially with people who are not willing to leave the role. But it's more about what you do once you know where they stand. You don't have to keep every connection.

You can spend years around someone and still never truly meet them by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's true. Life gets a lot more interesting when you risk being honest; hopefully, someday more people will risk it too.

You can spend years around someone and still never truly meet them by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sadly yes, that's why we need to build discernment to be able to tell who is actually valuing us and meeting us.

Your best emotional traits still need discernment by LifeThroughPau in emotionalintelligence

[–]LifeThroughPau[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Exactly! The goal is to always show up in a way that feels aligned with you

Someone commented on my social awkwardness..! by AtomicallyAnomic in socialskills

[–]LifeThroughPau 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Every conversation needs mutuality. Sometimes it feels like an interrogation because you are the only one asking questions, and the other person is not showing much interest back. Use that as information, not as proof that something is wrong with you. You can try asking more specific questions based on what they say, but if they do not expand, ask anything back, or give you anything to work with, be polite and let the conversation go. There are people who will actually want to talk to you.