The Nice Guys Guide to Standing Up For Yourself
Photo courtesy of Esper.Art.Br
This Post by Justin Dixon
All through history there are examples of powerful beings pushing around less powerful beings. This happens for many reasons, sometimes the aggressor doesn’t realize what they are doing, sometimes they don’t know who they are, sometimes they are testing the waters, sometimes they are only doing what they know, and sometimes they do it because they believe no one can stop them. No matter what the reason we have to deal with them, and for those of us who are trying our hardest to be nice this can be problematic. How do we stand up for ourselves without becoming aggressors ourselves? When should we stand up for ourselves? These questions are at the heart of every recorded warrior code, and all of the answers for these questions start with knowing three things, yourself, others and, the nature of rights. (more…)
2 comments July 18, 2010
8 Books That Impacted My Life
Photo Courtesy of Joel Bedford
This Post by Justin Dixon
“If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.”~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Books and knowledge alone may not make a man but neither hurt either. Below are a list of books that have had an impact on me, and I would love to hear which books have had an impact on you. (Please note there are affiliate links in this post. I put up any free source I could find for a book.)
The Samurai Code: a Modern Translation of the Bushido Shoshinsu (translated by Thomas Cleary)
This has been one of the most influential books on my life as it was the first book that I completely respected but found a point that I strongly disagreed in. At first (more…)
4 comments July 14, 2010
6 Ideas for Building a Real Community
Photo Courtesy of mckaysavage
This Post by Justin Dixon
Every major problem that we face can be reduced (if not eliminated) by one very powerful thing, a real community. The problem is that in our modern world it seems that while we have more ways than ever to connect with several communities, we have forgotten how to connect with our neighbors. So what do I mean by real community?
A real community is (more…)
10 comments May 3, 2010
Life Doesn’t Come in Easy: Why That’s a Good Thing
Photo Courtesy of Gilesclement
This Post by Justin Dixon
The first of the Four Noble Truth‘s in Buddhism states that life is suffering. But if that is the case, why do Buddhist leaders such as the Dalai Lama seem to have so much joy everywhere they go? Wouldn’t they be sad if they knew that there whole life was going to be difficult? Not necessarily. (more…)
6 comments April 23, 2010
How to Make Time for Self-Improvement with a Hectic Schedule
Photo Courtesy of Joshuahoffmanphoto
This Post by Justin Dixon
One of the key points of AlittleBetter.net is that good habits, and personal development don’t happen all at once. These things need time that we are willing and able to invest in. Unfortunately this can be on short order sometimes. What if you are working two jobs, and just hoping that will be enough to make ends meat? Its tough and these types of things do happen even to the best of us, but what about that time we need? We have to move forward so that we can be in better solutions, but we have to have time to do this. What options are there? (more…)
6 comments April 15, 2010
The Art of Letting Go
Photo Courtesy of aussiegall
This Post by Justin Dixon
Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.
(The Serenity Prayer)
When I look for the one thing that causes more stress and trouble in the world than any other single factor I come to one conclusion: holding on to things that we need to let go of. When you focus on these things you are actively redirecting your own strength from the greatness you could complete to the small things that are not yours to move in the first place. This creates frustration in our minds, conflict with others. There is not a war or political disagreement in history that can not be traced back to not being able to let go in some form or another. There is a solution though we have to relearn the art of letting go. So how can we become better at this peace bringing practice in our own lives? (more…)
8 comments April 6, 2010
