By: Danielle Dungca As time goes on, it becomes no secret that being the best version of yourself is one of the best feelings in the world. When a person is the best version of themselves, they begin their journey to self actualization. Self Actualization is defined as “the realization or fulfillment of one’s talents and potentialities. Achieving self actualization can be related to an overall boost in confidence as well as happiness. Who doesn’t want that? However, the real question is, how can this be done? What exactly can one do in order to achieve self actualization? Well, there is no real answer to this question. However, a good start is to create new, healthy habits by adding certain activities into your daily routine. Create a Sleep Schedule Sleep, it is an important and essential thing for everyone. It is recommended that a person strives to get anywhere between 7-9 hours of sleep everyday. But, why exactly is this? Sleep is directly linked to the functioning of the body. On an anatomical and biological level, the lack of sleep can leave people at a higher risk of health problems. Many studies have gone to show that sleep deprivation has been found to cause individuals to have a bigger appetite. With a bigger appetite comes a larger consumption of calories, and therefore a drastic increase in weight. In addition, sleep deprivation can affect blood sugar and insulin. With a higher blood sugar and a reduction of insulin, a person can be subject to type 2 diabetes, an incurable disease. In addition to the prevention of health problems, getting sleep has been proven to improve productivity and external functioning. When a person experiences fatigue, they are less productive throughout the day. They lack motivation to do even the most basic daily tasks and therefore fail to get certain tasks done to the full potential. By getting more sleep and becoming well rested, you will essentially get more stuff done. Now that the importance of sleep is established, one should recognize that it is also important to sleep at appropriate times. Eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner is beneficial in order to be healthy and function properly. Because of this, one should aim to fall asleep no earlier than 9pm and no later than 12am. Going off of the 7 to 9 hours of sleep rule, this would allow someone to wake up between the hours of 6am and 9am. Stay Clean and Organized Whether you are working in an office or staying in your room, it is important to keep your space clean and organized. Why exactly is this? With a clean and organized space comes an increase in productivity. By now, you may have noticed that the word “productivity” has been thrown around a lot when dealing with achieving self actualization. It’s true! A lot of activities and healthy habits all build a foundation that increases productivity. By staying clean and organized, you are able to gain a sense of control of the task you are accomplishing as well as reduce the amount of stress and head clutter. In addition, organization allows you to gain a sense of control of the task you are accomplishing as well as reduce the feeling of stress. With a lack of stress and sense of control, you are able to achieve more activities and complete more goals to your full potential. Organization also allows these things to be accomplished in less time, causing you to be more efficient. Write About Your Day At the end of the day, when it’s time to unwind, take some time to think about all that has happened throughout the day. To do this, find something to write on, preferably a notebook or journal; find a writing utensil, pen, pencil, marker, etc; and lastly find a space with as little distractions as possible. When all of the things have been collected, it is time to write. Write about everything that happened throughout the day, give detailed descriptions of your interactions with certain people, and highlight the most memorable moments. By writing about your day, you are able to really think about all of the good things that happened to you. You are able to notice that every cloud has a silver lining, no day is completely terrible. Your silver lining can range anywhere from waking up 10 minutes earlier and getting to workout to getting a promotion at your job. There is always something good that comes out of everyday, and often these things get overlooked. By reflecting on the little things, we are able to lift ourselves up and realize that things are not always as bad as they seem. When you become optimistic about your life, you become more confident and build more resilience. This in turn allows you to develop and get closer to your goal of achieving self actualization. Though the possibilities are endless, these are just 3 things that can make a huge difference in your life. Creating healthy habits is a great way to become a more evolved person and begin your journey to self actualization. In the end, the most important thing to do is to take care of yourself, both physically and mentally. Find what tactics and habits work best for you. Know that you can do anything you want if you put your mind to it. Self actualization is not dependent on anyone but you.
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Written by: Mohammed Ghattas
-- A week before the exam, you are girding yourself and mustering your forces for the final assessments. Dying of boredom and humdrum, you have perceived in a bolt from the blue manner that you are ruminating about such a ceaseless, perpetual burgeoning epoch where everything is being come along by leaps and bounds and advancement is taking the lion's share. For some time, cogitation has upset the apple cart, why should I study, what will be the motive, the impetus --studying possesses only Barmecide's feasts; it will not be efficacious in making me a celebrity or devise something that can change the world. It will be a wild goose chase in making me a venerate Crichton. A cornucopia of preponderant inventions and discoveries that are the breadwinner for life was as luck would have them. Copious scientists set the Thames on fire in an extemporaneous, extempore approach. Some luck of the draw discoveries: For instance, Microwave was invented by the luck of the draw; in 1945, microwaves were employed in radar. One day, an American engineer Percy Spencer, a navy's specialist in Raytheon, was beside a magnetron. The magnetron is a tube that elicits microwaves; Percy realized that the piece of chocolate inside his pocket melted, albeit the room's temperature was low. He was stuck dumb. On the contrary, he did not cease; he decided on executing an experiment to corroborate that microwaves can heat things. He has utilized some corn seeds; those seeds turned into popcorn when facing the microwaves. Henceforward, this notion proceeded to enhance until it became the inured-to Microwave. What is more, X-rays were discovered fortuitously; this discovery was denoted as a scientific medical miracle. On a languid day in his laboratory, the German scientist Wilhelm Rontgen was deploying a cathode-ray tube. Then he kept tabs on a shine, light from this tube; he covered it with a dim barrier. He leaped out of his skin by dint of the light's presence, After taking a shufti, he cast a look when this ray could penetrate the human tissues, but they did not manage to do so in bones or metals. Forthwith, he has called his wife over him. He told her to put her hand opposite to the ray; when his wife observed that, she was dazed uttering --I have seen my own death, since they could not glimpse skeletons for people except for the dead. Courtesy of that, Rontgen was the first one to award the Nobel prize for his marvelous discovery. Matches were discovered unintentionally! When stirring some chemicals with a piece of wood in 1826, the English chemist John Walker detected that a specific material was stuck in this piece of wood. On making friction, it has ignited. This was eminently vintage and towering then since it was a prolific alternative in lighting for electricity where there was a Hobson's choice for it. To be writ large, antibiotics were also arbitrarily found out. Alexander Fleming was not ardent of making his room tidy. In 1928, he traveled for three weeks, leaving manifold Petri dishes. When backing in harness, he stumbled upon a profusion of bacteria in the dishes. This was mundane; however, there was a dish where there was only fungus devoid of bacteria. He queried, endeavoring to tease an elucidation out. He became dubious about this fungus. He imputed that it killed the bacteria inside the dish. After examining the fungus, he lighted on penicillin, given off by the fungus. Henceforth, penicillin was the linchpin of the first antibiotic. All these are just several drops in the sea. There is a raft of other things that were ascertained by chance like plastics, anesthetics, super glue, Viagra, pacemaker, and sundry things. Those things put our fingers on myriad affairs for a better world. Something ran through your mind and sprang to mind; should I spend all the time studying, or go doing anything scraping through stumbling something upon and make a revolution in the world? Discovery is like the goal! It transpired in seconds. Proceeding to rack your brains and put your thinking cap on this conundrum spending time in torrents, you have realized that this predicament is well-known in scientific society. Its outset was by James March when he posted a paper whose title is "Exploration and Exploitation in organizational learning." Here are some examples. Exploitation without Exploration, or Exploration devoid of exploitation: There was a Swedish company called Facit; they were consummate in manufacturing mechanical calculators. Moreover, there was a Japanese company that makes electronic calculators. Facit made a blunder then, which is continuing to produce the mechanical ones. Owing to that, Facit has deteriorated. It was about to bankrupt. It is ironic since Facit engineers deployed electronic calculators to authenticate the results elicited by the mechanical. Attributable to flouting keeping pace with advancement and Exploration, Facit was over. That means that exploitation is abysmal --several primitive perceptions will rest upon so form this story. Here is another specimen. A Norwich expert talked about a company he worked for; he said that its name is Oncho search, a European biotech enterprise. There was a discovery every day in this company. It was expected that these discoveries, if utilized, would be able to diagnose and surmount heinous diseases like blood cancer. However, this company spends its money on Exploration without focusing on any number of these innovations. On account of that, its destiny was not different from Facit. Prosperous companies: You are in a cleft stick, between the devil and the sea, Scylla, and Charybdis; on the other hand, you got the solution --making a poise amid Exploration and exploitation; getting to know how to spend your resources in each one. This may occasion mentioning one of the most famous companies in history, Nokia! Is this deriding? No, it is not. By the end of the 1980s, they decided on the telecommunication business as their field. They came along themselves until Nokia became the pioneer of erecting mobile phones in the world in 1998. It was eminently stupendous that it was paying the third of Finland's taxes. However, deterioration was set in train since 2007 with the appearance of Apple products. In 2014, Nokia's mobile business was sold to Microsoft. This will be the end of Nokia, which is unassailable. On the contrary, they put their resources in high-end networking gear. Furthermore, it has sold a plethora of software to communication companies. It was able to earn 14 billion dollars by virtue of that in 2015. Here is Microsoft; its most famous product is windows. However, it brings just 9 percent of its profits. What about the others? Twenty-two percent of its earnings are from azure, its cloud computing services --a brand-new thing that Microsoft is not inured to. Moving to amazon, its earning does not come only from E-commerce; it makes the services of cloud computing and deals with individuals, organizations, and governments. One of its clients is Netflix, which is a competitor to amazon prime. This media investment is a utility in 18 percent of its income. Laconically, the en passant noted companies --Nokia, Microsoft, and Amazon are capable of accustomed to this era, exploit their merits and develop them. Meanwhile, they managed to vie to catch up with this epoch of renaissance and prosperity and be part and parcel in the world's changes. This poise amongst this business in innovative approaches, and what they are expert in is what makes them prosperous, triumphant, and thriving, along with augmenting their ability to invest in them again. Wittily, it is indispensable to exploit your erudition to survive. At the same time, you ought to explore new things to maintain survival. Indubitably, the child only explores in his life's inception, and when he grows up and has knowledge he focuses on a specific major, ergo exploitation mounts and Exploration diminishes, he must be in a crusade for searching for new things like companies, no less! -- Links: Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning. (1991). Organization Science, 2(1), 71–87. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2.1.71 History of Radiography. (n.d.). Retrieved July 27, 2020, from https://www.nde-ed.org/EducationResources/CommunityCollege/Radiography/Introduction/history.htm Pollock, R., Brown, T., & Rubin, D. (2015). “Phossy Jaw” and “Bis-phossy Jaw” of the 19th and the 21st Centuries: The Diuturnity of John Walker and the Friction Match. 08(03), 262–270. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0035-1558452 By: Hannah Graham Most people associate crying with sadness since that is usually the main reason for tears but most strong emotions can also bring a tear to the eye like anger or happiness. When you laugh so hard you cry or you get so angry they water. Crying is a way of coping with many instances, but it is also a mechanism that can help the chemicals in our brain balance. Strong emotions usually cause a slight imbalance in our brain. Crying releases natural chemicals like oxytocin and endorphins; my family calls it the happy drugs. These chemicals ease physical and emotional pain. It is basically a self-soothing option. It was also found that crying can activate the PNS which is what helps people relax. Don’t have any shame in crying. It helps your body and brain to feel better. Holding back tears would have a worse effect than letting them go. So just cry. By: Kirti Moteka When you think of journaling, you might think of a mom with a cute pastel book from a quaint stationery shop. But that’s not true - journaling is for everyone, and it doesn’t mean you have to scribble out your deepest, darkest feelings on paper. Journaling can be whatever you want it to be, and help you in any way you choose. And now more than ever, in the midst of a collapsing world, journaling might just be the thing that keeps you together. Journaling is a habit every student should do, and the list of reasons as to why is just too long to fit into a single article. However, I’ve complied a list of the ten reasons as to why every student should journal:
Even if these reasons haven’t convinced you yet, I encourage you to try journaling once - I promise you will experience these benefits once you journal regularly. By: Ashley Rosser Mental health has and always will be something many people struggle with. Having mental health struggles of my own and knowing several people who struggle as well, has given me a list of 27 things to make you happy. It's something to look at any time you're having a bad day. --
By: Praguni Kumar 1 in 5 people suffer from a mental condition in their lives and yet being depressed is said to "just be in your mind." 1 in 5 people suffer from a mental condition and yet we are too shy to speak about your mental health publicly 1 in 5 people suffer from a mental condition and yet society frowns upon those who suffer from it. The world faces an epidemic of mental health problems that cuts across borders, economies, and cultures and carries a stigma that leaves people suffering alone, living in a void. We live in a world where:
So for how long are we going to let individuals suffer from serious mental health issues when they actually have the greatest need of care? For how long are we going to push away mental health issues by saying it gets better ? Even today, the underlying mechanisms behind some of the most powerful and effective psychiatric treatments are still poorly understood. The stigma will end only when we consider mental health to be as essential to us as physical health. By: Pauline Francez Gordula Dear rising high school juniors, We will be entering the most tumultuous year of high school virtually (for some of us, at least). It’s not the most ideal picture, but it is, without a doubt, the safest option. Most of us may be anticipating how this bumpy school year will look like: how are we going to effectively learn class material virtually for an entire year when we have been conditioned to learn in-person? I can’t imagine taking a hefty load of AP/IB and honors classes virtually. Classes that demand such rigor are better off to be taught in person. I also can’t imagine not being able to participate in extracurricular activities. Isn’t that the point of extracurricular activities -- to foster learning through physical interaction? I hear and acknowledge our plights. Trust me, I am not the biggest fan of remote learning either. However, as I attended more and more classes virtually, my eyes opened to its unsung beauty. Remote learning is fantastic because of its flexibility. I can do my work at my own pace and I can easily retrieve relevant resources regarding a certain homework assignment at the tip of my fingers. While in “class”, I can also multitask without worrying about my teachers’ watchful gaze (lol). Over the span of four months, I’ve also found a vast network of youth-led organizations and opportunities that cater to almost all educational interests. In short, remote learning lets you enter multiple academic dimensions at once. However, one of my top concerns is standardized testing. Recently, the College Board and ACT have released testing dates for the upcoming school year. Although this is a good move to appease our worries for the future of standardized testing, I think it’s counterproductive. Not everyone has the money to pay for this test -- especially during such an unprecedented time when millions have filed for unemployment. Not everyone can also access their test centers without fear of contracting the virus. Ultimately, it is unsafe and nerve wracking to gather students into a room for three hours for one test amidst a pandemic. Millions of students have prepared for this test, but if their health is at stake, what is the point? Our generation is known to be tech savvy. Without the pressure of standardized testing, we can seize numerous opportunities online that can help us cultivate our skills within the safety of our rooms. We can learn something, we can create something, we can join something -- just through a single search on the world wide web. We are now transitioning to a world where we have to solely rely on the technology for learning, and I encourage all of us to take advantage of it. We don’t know how long the pandemic will exist, but let us not be swayed from achieving what we can. Though at the expense of all our efforts, our overall health shouldn’t be neglected. We are a driven and resourceful generation, but living in such time can cause us to overwork ourselves. Every time you feel burnt out, take a step back and breathe. You are an intelligent and driven young person, but at the end of the day, your health matters the most. Sincerely, A concerned rising junior By: Kayla Pinkerman Recently, I have almost completely eliminated the thing that has integrated itself into almost all of our daily lives. Social media. The only apps I have left are Pinterest, which I use to help me find healthy recipes and Facebook, which I use to keep up with potential jobs. I’ve found that many people my age find that these apps are a necessity to their daily life. I have a friend who actually said to me “You can’t just delete Instagram.” When I asked her why. Her response shocked me. She said, “You need it.” So to that, I responded, “It’s not a necessity, there are other ways to communicate.” We would normally message on Instagram because it was convenient. It was my most used app. I used to average at almost 9 hours of screen time that’s way above the recommended amount. Now I average between three and five hours. All I’ve done is deleted 3 or 4 apps. Many people will say, “I’m going off the grid for a bit- if you need anything, text me.” However, in my experience, that’s not the way to go about it. If you really want some time to yourself, you shouldn’t post anything. You should already have the people you care about in your contacts or maybe even have their number written down. If you want that time away from the drama, without everyone messaging you asking where you are or why you left, delete it. Delete the app(s) that people can message you on or the ones that you get twenty million notifications for. I decided to delete my most used social media apps. They were Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and Tumblr. If you have an iPhone you can go into settings and see how much time your spending your phone, each app, and how many notifications your getting. Write down your weekly average on the day you delete the apps then wait at least a week, see how your feeling, and check it again. I guarantee you’ll see a difference in your screen time, productivity level, and mood. Now I will say that if you’re like me and have been using social media for years, it is an addiction. So you will notice withdrawal. It sounds weird to say, “I’m going through social media withdrawal.” It’s real though, I experienced it. If you do this, I can almost guarantee you will experience it too. At first, you’ll be constantly checking your phone, feeling like something’s missing. Then after a day or two of that, you’ll start wanting to re-download the apps. If you can make it past those two and find something to keep you busy in the meantime, you should be good to go. I think I made it two weeks before re-downloading one of the four apps that I deleted. I re-installed Instagram so I can keep up some advocacy things as well as post about my new dog. It was hard not to be able to share things with everyone at one time. However, it felt nice to get away from the “noise” for a bit and I’m proud of long I was able to go without it. It definitely wasn’t easy, but it was definitely worth it. By: Grace Zhang Coffee has become a staple in our society today, some stating that it’s their ride or die and that they can’t function without it. The average person’s morning routine probably has them making a cup of coffee first thing after they wake up. However, for such a highly consumed drink, many myths and uncertainties are surrounding its effects on the body, or more specifically the effects of its most vital ingredient: caffeine. Caffeine is a natural stimulant found in a wide variety of common drinks; tea, coffee, energy drinks, etc. It stimulates certain areas of the brain and central nervous system as well as raising your heart rate and pressure, increasing energy levels. This allows the consumer to feel less tired and power through their busy schedules. Many students rely on caffeine for all-nighters and cramming in studying before an exam, but is the consumption of caffeine all beneficial? The recommended amount of caffeine to consume per day is 400 mg, with more potentially leading to increased headaches and high blood pressure. Pregnant women should be even more careful, too much caffeine can lead to higher chances of miscarriage or low birth weight. Consistently having caffeine every day can also lead to caffeine addiction. Similar to any addiction, your body becomes dependent on caffeine and when you stop in taking it, you descend into withdrawal. As caffeine is a stimulant, over consumption will lead to your body depending on the stimulation it provides. Examples of symptoms that those addicted to caffeine will feel are restlessness, muscle twitching, difficulty sleeping and much more. Withdrawal from caffeine will entail intense headaches, extreme fatigue, irritability, etc. On the other hand, caffeine is not all bad as it does have its benefits. Some studies have shown that it can increase your metabolism and fat burning abilities in small amounts over some time. It may also increase the usage of fat as the power source during exercise. Caffeine consumed in safe amounts can provide benefits, while too much will result in negative effects. I drink coffee quite regularly and could not imagine never drinking it again, and a lot of people feel the same. The fact that caffeine has negative effects should not deter you from drinking it, but remind you to be conscious of what you're putting in your body. Like everything else, caffeine should be taken with moderation. By: Kiana Maria 2020 came with no warning. Between the ongoing pandemic and protests going on all around the world, Gen Z has made it clear to everyone that we are not going down without a fight. Gen Z has contributed to protests, zoom calls, and conversations. However, how can we do more? First off, we can educate more of the youth by showing them that there are great books that educate on the issues black Americans face in this country. If a book isn’t your thing, consider watching movies that are done by African American directors and/or films that are about African Americans. Secondly, research certain ideas/topics you may not understand that are being talked about when it comes to racial injustice. When it comes to the ongoing pandemic, it is important that as Gen Z we show every generation that we take this seriously. Therefore, having a mask and continually practicing social distancing is something we need to be doing more of. Lastly, the number one thing that this year has taught us so far is to have compassion. In understanding how to have compassion for others, we as Gen Z can take steps towards the right path. Angie Thomas is an author who wrote The Hate U Give, On The Come Up, andConcrete Rose, her newest book which is based on The Hate U Give that will be released next year. Each book exemplifies the struggle and hardship of living in a town, Garden Heights, that is overruled by violence. The Hate U Give even became a film two years ago. The novel describes the life of a young black female named Starr Carter. She loses her best friend Khalil Harris when he is shot by a police officer. Not only does he get shot, but Starr is the sole witness. She is faced with the uncertainty of being able to speak up. It truly is a great read on how we can learn to bring light and justice to people in this country who sadly face brutality like Khalil. Another read that plays into the teachings of why police brutality needs to end is a book called Dear Martin. It was written by Nic Stone who has written 10 other novels. The book is about a young man named Justyce McCallister and how he witnesses the death of his friend Manny Rivers. Throughout the book, he seeks advice from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He writes letters in his journal asking him for advice and to seek what he would have done. One of her other novels is the sequel to Dear Martin titled Dear Justyce in which Quan, an old friend of Justyce’s, ends up in the juvenile justice system for the murder of a police officer. In this, Quan’s story unfolds and he starts to send letters to Justyce similar to how Justyce would “send” letters to Dr. Martin Luther King. Both Dear Martin and Dear Justyce will tear at your heartstrings while educating you on a thing or two. Black culture is one of beauty and storytelling, yet there seems to be a delay in the film industry. Despite that, there are still a few films that portray the culture and people in a beautiful form. Some of these films can be Hidden Figures (2016), Queen of Katwe (2016), Black Panther (2018), and The Hate U Give (2018). These are just some of my personal favorites because of the way they are told with such empowerment and inspiration. Hidden Figures shows the story of three young African American women trying to pursue their careers at NASA in the 1960s. The movie is based on true events. Katherine Goble Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson push through the obstacles of being talented, women of color mathematicians and scientists in a field of predominantly white males. I first watched Hidden Figures at home, and there has never been a time where I felt so empowered to follow a career in STEM. It is a shame that these three bright, young, and influential women didn’t get their stories told until many years later; however, watching this movie truly does captivate you and depict their journey well. During this pandemic, we have learned in the hardest way possible what it is to lose something we thought we’d always have or at least have for a longer amount of time. People all over the world have lost family members, colleagues, friends, and loved ones. The Class of 2020 didn’t get to have the usual celebrations like prom, class trips, or a graduation ceremony. To stop this monstrous disease, we need to be taking precautions, as well as teaching others that masks are necessary and staying home is the safest route. There has been a huge debate on whether a mask helps or not. In reality, there should not be a debate on the safety and health of the people. According to Wire, “COVID-19 is highly contagious and doctors say it can travel through droplets when you cough, sneeze or just talk to someone who’s next to you. Now they want to show you what they mean. Video shows neon specks — that’s spit. There’s a big difference between when someone is wearing a mask and isn’t.” The article goes on to tell the reader that wearing a mask does save you from catching it in many ways, however, you should be careful that you aren’t fidgeting around the mask and continuing to touch it. You should wear a mask not only to protect yourself, but to protect others. Finally, compassion is key when it comes to understanding. 2020 has both kept us apart and brought us together in ways that future generations will learn from. Educating ourselves on how we can do better and learn is the first step in how we can better our environment. Being a part of Gen Z, it is important to be a part of the conversation. It is our time to shine, educate, and do better! Sources:
Wire, Nexstar Media. “Video Demonstrates Potential Dangers of Not Wearing a Mask.” 8News, 8News, 23 Apr. 2020, www.wric.com/health/coronavirus/video-demonstrates-potential-dangers-of-not-wearing-a-mask/. |