How to Become Less Shy Lots of people ask me about getting over shyness, so I’ll tell you what I know. I’ll never be a center-of-attention type, but over the past decade I’ve gone from being too timid to even order food over the phone, to feeling like I’m the more assured one most of the time when I meet someone new. I believe this kind of transformation is possible for just about anyone. Being shy and being an introvert are often conflated, so we should clarify the difference. Shyness is a self-reinforcing nervousness around people, especially people you don’t know. Most people experience it to some extent, maybe only in certain situations. People you’ve already met introduce themselves to you multiple times. It is a life of deference and small acts of cowardice. As with every area of growth, progress for me happened in little breakthroughs. Quit denying the importance of small talk. A traditional safety-shield for the shy person is to dismiss small talk as insufferable or disingenuous. Stay at the party.

14 Inspiring Stories Of Karna You Should Read If You Think Life Has Been Un Had a bad day recently? You have that nagging feeling that fate has not been fair to you, and everything you do, however earnestly always fails. Before you give up and spend the days dejected, spend a few minutes reading about Karna and how life played a cruel game with him. Not because you take comfort in knowing that someone has had it much worse than you, but because someone had it much worse than you and he still had a respectable life. So respectable, that people still respect him today. Read on. 1. Kunti, the princess was given a boon by sage Durvasa that she could invoke a mantra and call any god and have a child. Kunti, was ashamed of this “bastard” and didn’t know how to explain the birth. 2. Karna was brought up by a charioteer, a class much lower than the mighty Kshatriyas. He went to Dronacharya to learn warfare, but Drona rejected his proposal, because he was not a Kshatriya. 3. He disguised himself as a brahmin to learn warfare from Parshurama. 4. And he still cursed Karna.

14 Effective Home & Self Defense Gadgets For Women Living Alone Advertisement Smart homes and smart living doesn’t just have to be about automated lights and intelligent kitchen appliances. Some home security devices and self defense gadgets can give you greater peace of mind by actively making you safer while you’re in your own home. 3 Weird and Unexpected Problems Automating a Lamp May Cause 3 Weird and Unexpected Problems Automating a Lamp May Cause Here are some of the more unexpected ways in which a smart lamp could cause you problems, potentially even putting you in more serious danger. This will undoubtedly appeal to women who live alone. Although the statistics show that men are slightly more at risk in terms of numbers, women are typically disadvantaged by the size and strength of the intruders. With that in mind, we take a look at smart devices and self defense gadgets which can help women who live alone tip the odds back in their favor. Driveway and Perimeter One of the best exterior devices you can install is a driveway alarm. Interior

Ever notice how some people come across as having their act together? They are able to get their work done on time, every time. They have the time and energy for 100 different things. Yet, they always seem non-frazzled, non-overwhelmed, and non-frantic. Do you console yourself with the thought that these are a special breed of people with a special DNA sequence? 1. One of the most frantic and chaotic times in most people’s day is the morning. 2.Your mouth as the gateway to productivity Believe it or not, what you put in your mouth can affect your productivity. 3. Eating healthy is not enough. 4. A good night’s sleep is key to not only our well-being but to our productivity as well. 5. Clutter and disorganized workspaces are time suckers and cause frustration, leading to decreased productivity. 6. Research has proven that multi-tasking causes a 40% drop in productivity levels. 7. Most workplaces use meetings to brings employees together for a certain purpose. 8. 9. And here’s a BONUS one.

(This is a note I sent to my team of Product Managers, Designers and Researchers at Intercom) Meetings can be fantastic or terrible. I’ve experienced some serious pros run meetings, and when they do, everyone feels great afterwards. Everyone feels like progress was made, that things are clearer than before, that there is continued momentum. Meetings are expensive. I consider any structured conversation between 2 or more people as a meeting. This is how we should be running meetings and you should hold your colleagues accountable to this standard: Meetings must have one owner. This person runs the meeting. They are responsible for the attendees staying on topic. They are responsible for ensuring the meeting starts on time. They are responsible for ensuring the meeting is on track, in the time remaining, to accomplish the goals set out at the start. If you walk into a meeting and it isn’t clear who the owner is, feel free to leave and go do something more valuable for the company.

Navy SEALs Have a '40 Percent Rule' and It's the Key to Overcoming Mental B Jesse Itzler: I first met "SEAL" at a 100-mile run in San Diego and I was running this race as part of a six-person relay team with friends and he was running the entire race by himself. And the run was unsupported so you have to bring your own supplies. So we had, you know, we overdid it a little bit. We had a tent and we had masseuses and food. The first day that "SEAL" came to live with me he asked me to do — he said how many pull-ups can you do? Wire Your Own Pendant Lighting - Cheap, Easy, & Fun! Bare bones pendant lighting - the vintage style with just a cord and bulb - is SUPER trendy right now. Use an Edison bulb, and it's steampunk. Use a fancy silvered bulb or globe and it's modern/industrial chic. Simple as these light are, though, they're still super pricey in stores. The more steampunky styles average over a hundred dollars each, which isn't too bad if you just want one, but what if you want several? Well, never fear, crafty decorators! So for our bedroom lights I was inspired by these beauties over on Etsy: Awww YEAH. Ok, so orange wasn't going to work in our room, but I love the colored fabric cord and shiny socket. Trouble was, I wanted a cluster of 3 pendants for each side of the bed, and 6 pendants would total over $450. So after a lot of research and some super simple assembly, I was able to make two pendant bunches like this for just $115: And that's with me splurging on the extra nice sockets, too. Here's what you need: COPPER!!! Ok, so you've got your materials.

THE SUBTLE ART OF NOT GIVING A FUCK Article by Mark Manson People often say the key to confidence and success in life is to simply “not give a fuck.” Indeed, we often refer to the strongest, most admirable people we know in terms of their lack of fucks given. Chances are you know somebody in your life who, at one time or another, did not give a fuck and went on to accomplish amazing feats. Everybody just wants to be liked and accepted. The point is, most of us struggle throughout our lives by giving too many fucks in situations where fucks do not deserve to be given. Fucks given everywhere. This is the problem, my friend. Because when we give too many fucks, when we choose to give a fuck about everything, then we feel as though we are perpetually entitled to feel comfortable and happy at all times, that’s when life fucks us. Indeed, the ability to reserve our fucks for only the most fuckworthy of situations would surely make life a hell of a lot easier. What we don’t realize is that there is a fine art of non-fuck-giving.