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Acceptance - Nerdful Mind #30

August 9, 2020 by Simon Mannes

Have you ever thought about what acceptance truly means? Acceptance is not passive resignation. It means to not fight with reality, but to recognize it and find ways to work with it.

Too often we feel angry or anxious because the world is not like we want it to be. Acceptance helps us to let go of these negative feelings. It's important to have desires, goals, and dreams. But there is no point in being angry over the world not bending to your will.

Accept the way it is. Find out where this feeling of tension comes from. Let it go. Identify what you can control and what you can't. And find a viable path towards your goals.

Happiness can exist only in acceptance. – George Orwell

Reading Recommendations

Resilience Through Focusing on What We Can Control | Psychology Today

Sometimes disability leaves no other option than letting go and shifting focus to what we can control.

Study sheds light on a classic visual illusion | MIT Newsnews.mit.edu

An MIT-led research team has discovered evidence that a classic visual illusion called simultaneous brightness contrast relies on brightness estimation that takes place in the retina, not the brain’s visual cortex.

Lean Testing or Why Unit Tests are Worse than You Think | by Eugen Kiss | Noteworthy - The Journal Blog

Testing is a controversial topic. People have strong convictions about testing approaches. Test Driven Development is the most prominent example. Clear empirical evidence is missing which invites…

Weekly Mindfulness Practice

Acceptance is easier when you are more grateful for what you already have.

Take 5 minutes today and write down as many things you are grateful for as possible. What do you appreciate?

If you do this for a few weeks, you'll notice patterns of what makes you grateful (and you'll be happier).

End Note

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Have a great week

Simon

PS: If you found an article you think others might like, and that fits this newsletter, I’d love it if you write me an email. Just reply!