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Are You Listening???

by Charlie ~

Rated: GC · Book · Emotional · #2181458

A journey of self-improvement - or not.

Sup? I'm Char.
You may know me from timeless classics such as

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#2030442 by Not Available.

and

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I blog for things like

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FORUM

30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS

(13+)
WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by FivetricksterTreats

FORUM

JAFBG

(XGC)
Because real life isn't always roses and sunshine...
#2094931 by Elisa, Stik-or-Treat

[Embed For Use By Upgraded+]
Believin' all the lies that they're tellin' ya
Buyin' all the products that they're sellin' ya
They say jump and ya say "how high?"
Ya braindead, ya got a fuckin' bullet in ya head

Show Recent Comments

10 Most Recent Blog Comments:

👀intu the Darkness

Jul 22, 2023 at 8:05am
In response to "Invalid Entry"

Hey Char, It's been a while since I've touched base with you. I'm so sorry for your loss. The last thing people should say is everyone loses their grandparents eventually, or it will get better with time. It's the last thing you want to hear when you're hurting. Death sucks, long-lasting illness sucks! Having to decide to let the person go to keep them from suffering REALLY SUCKS! I think the only ones who can understand truly just how much are those who have had to make that decision. My heart breaks for you.

I'm not religious, but I do have a strong faith in God. I call myself spiritual because I don't agree with all the rules and regulations of religion. I do know I will see my family and friends again, and this is a great comfort. I can only imagine how much more painful the death of loved ones is without this belief. But you're right, it can't be faked. But it is a beautiful thing.

Having mental health issues during times like this makes it even harder to go through. I know what you mean about seeing things that aren't there. I'd walk into a room, and say, "Where's Star?" and she would be sitting right in front of me. When I looked, I swear I saw an empty chair. The mind is crazy. It gives new meaning to a mind of its own

Some time has passed since you wrote this. I don't know when you'll see this but know that you are in my thoughts and prayers, and I'm sending good energy your way. I hope you're doing better. I look forward to hearing from you.

Aiva Raine

Mar 28, 2023 at 9:40pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I'm sorry for your loss. I know they are shitty sounding words that don't even attempt to fill or fix, but they're meant in sincerity.

Having lost several people the best advice I was ever given was when life gets too hard- take it at your own pace. If a day is too much- cope with an hour at a time. If that's too much, take it ten minutes at a time. If that's too much- then you deal with one minute at a time. Work through life and grief at your pace. And don't ever feel guilty because you feel sad. And if you can- find one positive in each chunk of time- even if it's something as little as the beauty of sunlight on a leaf or the softness of your shirt. And ask for help if you need it.

Elle

Mar 7, 2023 at 3:29pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

Aw, Charlie, I'm so sorry. It's a shit thing to go through whether it's sudden or not. And just because everyone goes through it, doesn't make it easier. It also doesn't take into account that you were closer to them than your parents. Nobody says 'Oh, everyone loses their parents eventually' do they? Surely not. And that's what's happened here really. I'm actually glad you've got an appointment with a professional tomorrow, because they might be able to help you with getting through that initial devastation.

When my dad lost his mother, he really struggled with his own lack of religion. As you say, there is some comfort in believing they've gone to a better place, been reunited with loved ones, that you'll see them again, and so on. For most of my life, Dad would say 'Religion is a crutch for the weak', but I definitely saw him struggle with the finality of it when he lost his mother, the person he was probably closest to.

My thoughts are with you.

1 Like

~Minja~

Mar 7, 2023 at 3:21pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

Crazy stuff, grief. If you want to talk about it, message me always.

1 Like

QPdoll

Mar 7, 2023 at 6:21am
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I understand what you mean about wanting to tell your grandmother something. I did the same thing after my grandmother passed. I was at home and the first thing I thought was to call grandma. I picked up the phone and realized that she wouldn't answer. It's so tough losing your grandparents, especially as close as you were. I don't have any magic words, but take care of yourself. It's what they would want.

1 Like

Waltz in the Lonesome October

Mar 6, 2023 at 10:31pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

Take care of yourself during this difficult time.

1 Like

Anni Pumpkin

Mar 6, 2023 at 9:06pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I know it doesn't help any, but I'm so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine much worse than losing a parent or parental figure. They represent stability and safety, you grew up with them, and you've relied on them for most, if not all, of your life. You're right, the initial devastation will fade and things won't feel so fresh. But, as you know, grief never really goes away. It just becomes a permanent part of you.

It's horrible that you only got a couple days worth of bereavement! That's not even long enough for the shock to wear off enough to START grieving. I hope you have the support of someone else in your life to help you through this dark time. Take it easy on yourself in the mean time, that's all you really can do. Taking care of your physical self, eating and sleeping, is critical. Sleep deprivation and hunger will make things feel a million times worse than they actually are (which, for the record, is already pretty bad).

1 Like

Cinn

Feb 20, 2023 at 9:34pm
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I actually pretty much love this one. Nice, man...

Cinn

Feb 19, 2023 at 11:07am
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I'd say that more freedom for participants would attract more people. One obvious example that I've never understood is fiction vs poetry. If it's an activity, not a contest, why not allow people to explore whatever the theme of your activity is with whatever type of writing that want to do?

I've actually written for countless contests/activities over the years but never entered... because they inspired me, but I don't fit within the guidelines. Max rating too low, items required (book entries only over here), no poetry accepted, etc.

I know well why people restrict writers' freedom, but they're also restricting the number of participants they'll get. I still just take the inspiration where I can get it.

Elisa, Stik-or-Treat

Feb 19, 2023 at 10:26am
In response to "Invalid Entry"

I've had decent participation with Journalistic Intentions (even though I know my prompts are sometimes considered "difficult"). I do think that there's been a bit of a shift in regards to contests and activities, where people have been more open to admitting they find some setups too restricting or that they feel intimidated by contests. I would love to be in discussions to address those issues, but so far I haven't been invited.

May 13, 2019 at 12:10am

#958846

Motivation Station

Artist: The Shins
Song: Saint Simon
[Embed For Use By Upgraded+]

Prompt via "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" :
Discuss the “Goldilocks Rule of Motivation” as described on the website below. “Human beings love challenges, but only if they are within the optimal zone of difficulty. Tasks that are significantly below your current abilities are boring. Tasks that are significantly beyond your current abilities are discouraging. But tasks that are right on the border of success and failure are incredibly motivating to our human brains.”

Ahh, I love this one. Maybe because I've learned about this in business school in 4 different classes.

In human resources, you want tasks to be two things: challenging and specific

If you don't have those two things, you won't motivate your employees in the long-term. A task that is too easy isn't rewarding. People will put it off because it's so easy to quickly finish anyway. Plus, they'll be bored out of their mind on autopilot while doing it. If a task is too vague, it has that discouraging effect. If someone says to you, "Do your best, I know you'll do great" or "I trust you to do a good job with this" it's legit the most frustrating thing.

It's like, can I get some actual guidance? What outcomes are we looking for? What are the parameters of the project? I need something to go off of that is more specific than, "You're awesome! You're gonna do a great job!"

All of this matters because of retention. In order to retain an employee, you have to motivate them. The cost of replacing employees is ridiculously high, so the longer you can retain them, the better.

But let me move away from a business perspective.

On the personal side, I've found the Goldilocks Rule of Motivation to be so true. I get super easily discouraged if something is too difficult. Even on the site, sometimes I'll see a challenge that looks really fun, and then I'm like... wait, this runs for the entire year?? NOPE.

It's just too much commitment, which makes it too difficult for me and I'll get instantly discouraged from signing up. I don't know what I'm gonna be doing next week, let alone 8 months from now.

At the same time though, I do want writing challenges that are specific and, ya know, challenging. Some of the prompts in "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS"

can be pretty challenging. I mean, I can write on any prompt, but naturally you're not going to be feeling every single prompt. You're going to have days where it's challenging to write something that you're satisfied with because you don't click with the prompt. To me, that's super fun. You get to explore topics that you never would have thought about or written about.

If 30DBC was like, "Hey, you guys just write one blog entry a day for the entire month. No prompts. Just off the dome. I know you're gonna do great!!

" I don't think it would be as successful as it is. For some people, that would be pretty challenging, but it's not specific, and it's therefore discouraging.

In "real life" (not work, school, or WDC), I really enjoy a good challenge. I feel like I do well with my back against a wall (

). I get bored extremely easily and I'll make my own excitement if things get too tedious for me. People tell me that I’m difficult sometimes, but “difficult” has such a bad connotation. I’d rather be around someone who’s a bit challenging than someone who’s overly boring.

The caveat is that I have to actually like the person. If I like you and you’re challenging, cool, let’s go. If I don’t like you and you’re challenging, you can piss right off.

I know I’m not the only one who’s like this.

I don’t mind situations that cause a bit of unrest. I’m comfortable with complex situations that make me feel 10 different emotions simultaneously. But if it gets difficult to the point where it feels impossible or I’m completely depleted of all energy, yeah, I’ll demotivate very quickly.

After all these implements and texts designed by intellects
So vexed to find, evidently there's still so much that hides

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