We become like the people that we (choose to) expose ourselves to. It follows that you can accelerate your personal growth in whatever direction you desire by spending time with people who already are who you want to become. That will infect you with the behaviors and attitudes that helped them achieve their success, making it more likely that you will realize similar results in your life. So, ask yourself: Who do you spend the most time with? Who are the people you most admire? Are those two groups of people the same? Why not? When it comes to relationships, we are greatly influenced — whether we like it or not — by those closest to us. It affects our way of thinking, our self-esteem, and our decisions. Of course, everyone is their own person, but research has shown that we're more affected by our environment than we think.  While it's ideal to be closely surrounded by positive, supportive people who want you to succeed, it's also necessary to have your critics.  And the more successful you become, the more criticism you'll face.   DISCUSSION TIME!  1. How have your friends and enemies shaped who you are?   2. Think about your most supportive people v.s. Your most non-supporting people, how have they shaped you into who you are?   3. How have YOU shaped YOURSELF into who you are?  Answer in the comments :) --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

In this podcast, we go over truth-telling and lying. How does telling the truth make you feel? How does lying make you feel? What lies have you told that could've been avoided and in what situation is it acceptable to lie? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

In this podcast, we discuss the clash between personality and disability. The clash can happen when we decide we no longer want to be known for our disability and take the steps to overcome our disability label. You are you-not your disability. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

Abstract thinking is the ability to think about objects, principles, and ideas that are not physically present. It is related to symbolic thinking, which uses the substitution of a symbol for an object or idea. A variety of everyday behaviors constitute abstract thinking. These include:  -Using metaphors and analogies -Understanding relationships between verbal and nonverbal ideas -Spatial reasoning and mentally manipulating and rotating objects -Complex reasoning, such as using critical thinking, the scientific method, and other approaches to reasoning through problems -Abstract thinking makes it possible for people to exercise creativity.  Creativity, in turn, is a useful survival mechanism⁠—it allows us to develop tools and new ideas that improve the quality of human life.  Concrete thinking is the opposite of abstract thinking. While abstract thinking is centered around ideas, symbols, and the intangible, concrete thinking focuses on what can be perceived through the five senses: smell, sight, sound, taste, and touch. The vast majority of people use a combination of concrete and abstract thinking to function in daily life, although some people may favor one model over the other.  A study published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience found abstract thinking was tied to parts of the brain occupied with vision. Concrete thinking, on the other hand. activated parts of the brain that focus on actions taken to complete a goal.  Other research found that abstract thinkers are more likely than concrete thinkers to take risks. This may be partly due to the idea that concrete thinkers, more concerned with “how” to perform an action rather than “why,” might be dissuaded from starting a risky task because they’re more focused on the practical effort involved with the task, while the abstract thinker might be more occupied with considering the pros and cons of the risk.  Learning disabilities can inhibit the development of abstract reasoning skills.  People with severe intellectual disabilities may never develop abstract reasoning skills and may take abstract concepts such as metaphors and analogies literally. Since abstract reasoning is closely connected to the ability to solve problems, individuals with severely inhibited abstract thinking ability may need assistance with day-to-day life.  Some mental health conditions can negatively impact an individual’s ability to think abstractly. For example, schizophrenia has been found to impair abstract thinking ability in those it affects. Some other conditions that may impair abstract thinking include Autism Learning disabilities Dementia Traumatic brain injury (TBI) Some research has connected the ability to think abstractly with a stronger sense of self-control. This means that when people were given a reason to do or not to do something, it was easier for them to adhere to that rule than if they were simply told how to follow the rule.  In many cases, it is possible to improve your abstract reasoning skills. Working on your abstract reasoning skills may help you improve your ability to solve problems, understand and communicate complex ideas, and enjoy creative pursuits.   One way to exercise your abstract reasoning skills is to practice solving puzzles, optical illusions, and other “brain teasers.” These thinking exercises allow individuals to practice viewing information from different perspectives and angles. As they may help open a person’s mind to different possibilities through the problem-solving process, puzzles can be an engaging way for both young people and adults to get better at abstract thinking.  Strengthening improvisation skills may also help increase an individual’s creativity and abstract thinking skills. Tasks that require the person to rely mostly on their imagination may help strengthen their ability to think abstractly over time. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

Attachment theory is a psychological, evolutionary, and ethological theory concerning relationships between humans. The most important tenet is that young children need to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for normal social and emotional development. -Wikipedia  Secure attachment: refers to the ability to form secure, loving relationships with others. A securely attached person can trust others and be trusted, love and accept love, and get close to others with relative ease. They're not afraid of intimacy, nor do they feel panicked when their partners need time or space away from them. They're able to depend on others without becoming totally dependent. Anxious attachment is a form of insecure attachment style marked by a deep fear of abandonment. Anxiously attached people tend to be very insecure about their relationships, often worrying that their partner will leave them and thus are always hungry for validation. Anxious attachment is associated with "neediness" or clingy behavior, such as getting very anxious when your partner doesn't text back fast enough and constantly feeling like your partner doesn't care enough about you.  Avoidant attachment is a form of insecure attachment style marked by a fear of intimacy. People with avoidant attachment styles tend to have trouble getting close to others or trusting others in relationships. They typically maintain some distance from their partners or are largely emotionally unavailable in their relationships, preferring to be independent and rely on themselves.  Fearful-avoidant attachment: is a very rare attachment style. It is a combination of both the anxious and avoidant attachment styles. People with fearful-avoidant attachment both desperately crave affection and want to avoid it at all costs. They're reluctant to develop a close romantic relationship, yet at the same time, they have a dire need to feel loved by others. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

When you have a child who has just recently been diagnosed with a disability such as autism, ADHD, depression or even physical disabilities such as cerebral palsy, epilepsy, narcolepsy, it’s going to shock you. It’s gonna make you think,  oh why did this happen? Where did I go wrong? Where did this go wrong? The thing is you can’t be thinking about it that way. Your child that just got diagnosed with these disabilities or disorders is still your child. They are going to grow up with an amazing life if you give that to them. They are going to be capable of love and understanding and they have feelings too.   Now when it comes to schooling this is one thing that my buddy Alex and I want to make known is, who has the rights to the child in the IEP and the way that their schooling is going. Surely not the school, no it’s you as a parent. I can sympathize with this because I have a disability, I had an IEP and my mom struggled to get the teachers to treat me right. I have a learning disorder as well where I had to have someone else take notes for me because I couldn’t pay attention to the verbal lesson while also trying to rush and get the notes taken down. Some teachers, especially my American history teacher would say you know, we’re not gonna be providing those notes. My mom had a lot of battles getting me the schooling that I need. And I love her so much for that. But when it comes to the rights to get your child the programming that they need in school, that’s on you. The school should not be making decisions for your child. You are the one to control that.   You alone know how your child behaves or acts, you know how they cope in learning situations. You know your child better than anyone out there. Are you going to give a public school system that is not specialized in disabilities, control of your child?   You need to fight for their rights, and you need to fight for your rights as a parent. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

What is the most important thing we can do to help our bodies cope with everyday stress? Exercise! Exercise helps your body sleep, get energy, calm your emotions down, help with mental stress and physical stress, and functionality. Functionality is a big thing that we’re going to be talking about today. When you go to exercise, what is it you’re looking to do? Are you looking to lose weight because the media or your friends and family told you that you’re too fat? Like mine did? Are you working out to make yourself look sexier? Basically what I am asking is are you doing it based on looks or are you trying to perform to the best you can perform. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

When you go to work, what do you wear? What do you like to act as? What are your values? We know we have separate things going on in our life whether that be to work at our job, go to the gym, go to the book club, or even when we’re at home. We have developed what is called a persona. So when you go to work you have this persona of being professional, wearing a suit and tie, or if you work at a job that requires a uniform, wearing that uniform. We also have the attitude of a professional. We strive to help people, we do our factory work, or whatever your job is, you have a persona of professionalism. It is the same thing as working out at the gym. When we work out at the gym our persona is that of someone who is strong-willed. We go to exercise and to work out. We wear gym clothes or workout clothes, and we sweat. We have the mental persona of a hard-working athlete rather than someone who slouches at home every day. When we go to our book clubs we have the persona of again a professional. We read different books and we go over the material. When we are at home we get into our comfy clothes to relax and watch TV, do what we need to do instead of just a professional appearance. When we are home we can strip that persona and truly be ourselves. But to be honest, when you have that persona you’re not just being yourself you’re adding more to your own personality. You’re not creating someone who is different from your personality, no. You are still being yourself but with the added area of expertise and punctuality. And the thing about day-to-day life, is we need those personas. We need that ability to transform our personality into someone that the public needs. So persona is very easy to understand. You’re putting on a professional persona plus you’re using your own personality. Adding work clothes to your outfit, being professional. It’s still you, but more aesthetically pleasing to the eyes when you’re out in public. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

Today we will be talking about the many interests that grip people and how social influence has the power to change how we view things. Social ecosystems are the groups that we surround ourselves with based on our interests. Social influence has its role in this appearance of success in the way we as a society judge each other. Within that ecosystem is social influence. The groups outside these subjects of knowledge, see something completely different than those inside the social ecosystem because society has trained us to see things the way they do. Within each social ecosystem, there is a social influence which in turn creates the foundation in which people perceive success. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support

People see freedom without discipline as unruly, chaotic, disastrous, and to be honest it is. The definition of discipline is: to train or develop by instruction and exercise, especially in self-control. Without discipline, how would we learn the skills we have to live life as a society? How would we learn to follow rules and laws? How would we be able to make healthy and reasonable decisions that are going to benefit us and the people around us? The answer is simple: we wouldn't know how to. Freedom without discipline is like writing a story with no sentence structure. It doesn't add up, it doesn't compute. There would be chaos on the streets, no laws (or laws broken), and no one to enforce the laws. Our society would crumble. Freedom requires discipline! With discipline, our society thrives. With discipline, we learn and we grow not just as a community but as our individual selves. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sarah-c-cox/support