Tips To Be A Better Human Being

Instead of feeble resolutions you won't keep, here's a guide to improving your lot by looking within, changing your mindset, and effecting real change around you.

- David Fuhrmann-Lim, Hoe I Yune, Natasha Venner-Pack, Hayley Tai & Lee Zi Ying 

LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE

Yes, your comfort zone is cosy. But no, you shouldn’t wallow in it. Dealing with unfamiliar situations helps us develop self-awareness and new skills, and fuels our confidence. Want to live your best life? You have to venture into the unknown. Here’s how.

1. Focus on how your body is reacting

As soon as you feel nervous, rate the intensity from one to 10, says Singapore-based Energising Goals psychologist and life coach Beata Justkowiak (www. energisinggoals. com). If your voice is changing, rate it a three; if your heart is racing, give it a five; if your hands are shaking, that’s a seven. You’ll realise it’s different each time you experience discomfort. This normalises the discomfort and cultivates a lower emotional attachment to that panicky feeling.

2. Mentally repeat words of affirmation

It’s okay to feel stressed. Give yourself a pep talk by telling yourself that yes, you can do it, says Beata. “Then close your eyes and take two deep, slow breaths. After two seconds, open your eyes and smile.” This breaks the reaction pattern as you learn that the anxiety is temporary.

3. Prepare for daunting tasks

Think about the upside: Can it help your career? Find a compelling reason to do it, then prep for it. Ahead of leading a presentation to a client in a second language, interior designer Aria*, 27, asked if she could run through her lines with her supervisor. Practising made the task familiar, and once the real deal was over, Aria realised she was no longer afraid.

4. Embrace awkward conversations