We have a general sense that bookshops are filled with deeply important things. It might seem like a big waste of time, but it is ultimately the greatest time-saver, for it gives us access to a range of events and emotions that will take years to try and experience directly.

Literature is a great time-saver

Literature is the greatest 'reality simulator'. <ul><li>You can safely experience what it's like to get a divorce or kill someone and feel remorseful.</li><li>It lets you speed up time. It gives you the keys to the palace so you can assess your life in relation to others.</li><li>It introduces you to fascinating people: a Roman general or an 11th-century French princess.</li><li>It takes you across continents and centuries.</li><li>It shows us what things look like from someone else's perspective.</li><li>It shows us the consequences of our actions on others.</li><li>It shows us examples of kind and generous people.</li></ul>

Benefits of literature

In books, writers open our hearts and minds. We find descriptions of who we are and what events are really like.  In the best of books, writers find the words to describe the fragile, weird, special experiences of our inner lives. They don't judge as harshly or as one-dimensionally as the media. They evoke pity for the hero and a new sense of how near we are to destroying our own lives.

Writers make us feel sympathetic to ideas and feelings

We tend to treat books as a distraction or entertainment. But it's far more than that. It's really therapy.  Literature is a tool to help us live with more wisdom, goodness and sanity. Therefore, we should prescribe books in response to various ailments and classify them according to the problems they might be best suited to address.

Books are not a distraction

Why should we spend our time reading novels and poems when, out there, big things are going on? Please help us to keep making films by pressing subscribe here:http://tinyurl.com/o28mut7 If you like our films take a look at our shop (we ship worldwide): http://www.theschooloflife.com/shop/all/ Brought to you by http://www.theschooloflife.com Produced in collaboration with Mad Adam http://www.madadamfilms.co.uk #TheSchoolOfLife

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Reading & Writing

books

Books

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Videos

Why should we spend our time reading novels and poems when, out there, big things are going on? Please help us to keep making films by pressing subscribe here:http://tinyurl.com/o28mut7
If you like our films take a look at our shop (we ship worldwide): http://www.theschooloflife.com/shop/all/

Brought to you by http://www.theschooloflife.com

Produced in collaboration with Mad Adam
http://www.madadamfilms.co.uk #TheSchoolOfLife

We're interested in self-understanding, calm and emotional maturity.

We have thousands of articles about emotional life for you on our website: www.theschooloflife.com

We offer online psychotherapy: www.theschooloflife.com/therapy

We publish one film a week, on Wednesdays at 14.00hrs GMT.

The School of Life

What is Literature for?

<ul><li>People are coping with collective grief and trauma on a global scale, which means leaders have to learn and exercise new skills</li><li>Foster healthy coping mechanisms and discourage unhealthy ones</li><li>Help ward off some of the typical mistakes that people make under pressure</li><li>Ensure you don't cause additional anxiety on top of what people are already dealing with</li><li>Be a Role Model: Self-care is not a luxury: It's essential.</li></ul>

Everyone is exhausted

<ul><li>In a time of crisis, there is a greater need for mental acuity as new information is constantly coming in and circumstances constantly changing. During stressful times, ask for input and admit what you don't know</li><li>Normalize and destigmatize admitting mistakes</li><li>Acknowledge conflicting impulses and values</li><li>Make it OK to change your mind when new information comes in</li></ul>

Mental flexibility

<ul><li>Acknowledge when you're having a hard time or are not at the top of your game</li><li>Team members can tell you when you are having a bad day - you may as well admit it so that they know you know, and everyone can make the appropriate adjustments</li></ul>

Emotional openness

<ul><li>Take care of yourself in all the simple, basic ways: sleep, exercise, nutrition, hydration, mental downtime</li><li>Ensure that your team has what they need to do these things for themselves</li><li>Make self-care a regular topic of conversation</li><li>Occasionally begin a meeting by asking everyone to state one good thing they've done for themselves</li></ul>

Healthy behaviors

<ul><li>Stress has a cumulative impact. For the body and brain, there is no difference between deadline pressure, an argument with one's spouse, financial worries, the dog that won't stop barking, and the computer that keeps crashing.</li><li>The patience, self-control, perspective, attentiveness, and wisdom to deal with these situations all come out of the same fund, psychologically.</li></ul>

Lighten the Load

<ul>
<li>Make a positive goal out of decreasing stress, across the board, for everyone</li>
<li>Don’t add to anxiety</li>
<li>Leaders can do a lot to ease or exacerbate anxieties</li>
<li>Let employees know that it is OK if their home office is messy on Zoom</li>
<li>In meetings, make it safe to ask questions that may seem stupid - or to simply not have any pertinent questions, or comments, or ideas to share</li>
</ul>

Reduce stressors

<ul>
<li>Grief, trauma, anxiety all can lead to losing time, focus, and endless pairs of reading glasses.</li>
</ul>
Mitigate mistakes
<ul>
<li>Acknowledge the mental burden that people are under</li>
<li>Create checklists, cross-check protocols, backup plans, whatever is appropriate to your particular business, to prevent serious errors</li>
<li>Double down on corporate culture and values to strengthen the sense of who “we” are, what we stand for, and what we do</li>
</ul>

Create a cognitive safety net

<ul><li>Focus on all aspects of the situation being examined by using role-play and other mental exercises</li><li>Bring up hypothetical points of view</li><li>People do better on creativity tests if they are simply asked to do things like a creative person would</li><li>Ask "What questions would someone who really doesn't understand this issue have?"</li></ul>

Reduce tunnel vision

Teams that destigmatize failure do a better job of both learning from past mistakes and experimenting with new ways of solving problems.Don’t make employees afraid to admit mistakes. analyze failures together with your teams, and figure out ways to improve.

Learn from failure

<ul><li>Encourage team members to engage in meaningful activities inside and outside of work</li><li>Foster on-the-job friendships and chances to connect</li><li>Talk about what you find meaningful in life and how you ensure you have the time and energy for these things.</li><li>Non-work activities and identities matter to your team</li></ul>

Make It Meaningful

Make sure you aren’t causing unnecessary anxiety on top of what people are already dealing with.

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Corporate Culture

mentalhealth

Mental Health

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

Leading an Exhausted Workforce

You don't necessarily hate your job, but you’re kind of bored. Your day-to-day responsibilities have become second nature, and you no longer feel like you’re being challenged.
Then an idea smacks you in the face. Someone on the sales team is working on a new assignment you’d love to get your hands on. Or, you’ve been dying to start a company blog and no one’s taken the initiative. 
Surely your boss would let you take on an outside project if it was for the good of the company? Here’s what you need to know to get them to say yes.

Working On Another Project

Make the connection for your boss not just to how this project aligns with team or company goals, but how it’ll make you a more valuable employee. What skills will you develop? What relationships will you build? What discoveries could you make? See if anyone else can advocate for you, someone who needs the new project done on time!

Making A Convincing Case

If you can show it’ll be good for them (and not just good for yourself), you’re more likely to get their stamp of approval. An email can do the initial trick. Prepare for and address any concerns they may have. What are the counterarguments to getting this project up? How will you defend yourself when they say they’re worried about it taking up too much of your time? Or, conflicting with your other responsibilities? Or, requiring them to manage you more?

Approaching Your Boss

There is no guarantee your manager will say yes—even if you did all your homework, even if you made a solid case, even if other people back you up. Your boss has the final say on what you work on, and it’s possible this project would conflict with their expectations for the future.If you get a no, staying positive and professional may convince your boss to reconsider your request down the road. Here are some phrases to try: <ul><li>“I understand why you disagree with this and appreciate you explaining further.”</li><li>“I wasn’t aware of those changes and am glad you brought them to my attention.”</li></ul>

Understand That You Might Get a No (for Now)

Just because you can’t work on something under your boss’ eye doesn’t mean your growth has to stagnate.Maybe you can’t start a blog, but you can assist your team in writing copy for your company newsletter. Or, instead of being able to help out your colleague on the sales team, you grab a coffee to learn more about the work they’re doing. Or, maybe you take your passions outside your office—signing up for an online class or taking on a side gig.

Make the Most of Your Current Situation

Want to do something new and exciting at the office but confused on how to approach your Boss?

You don’t hate your job necessarily, but you’re bored. Your day-to-day responsibilities have become second nature. Surely your boss would let you take on another team's project if it was for the good of the company? Here’s what you need to know to get them to say yes, plus an email template to make…

productivity

Productivity

career

Career

communication

Communication

How to Ask to Work on Another Team's Project

Most of us, especially teachers, often assume that when students from low-income communities go to school, study well, and graduate, they’re likely to be on the road to economic mobility. That’s not always true. We don’t account for behind-the-scenes coaching and development opportunities that young people from high-income families get. This looks like the dinner table conversations with parents, a career coach to figure out what college to apply to, or a family friend who can connect you with the right people for your first internship.

The social contacts that matter

Building social capital is critical for college students, especially first-generation students from low-income families. To be fair, though, this is a hard one. A lot of these college students feel awkward and unsure about networking or reaching out to strangers. There’s a myth that reaching out to others can be perceived as disrespectful or intrusive. However, this is far from the truth. We live in a world that runs on relationship-building — and networking is a skill that can make all the difference.

Social capital

It starts with their immediate, personal network. This could include their peers, friends, professors, alumni, or an employer (if they’re working part-time or doing an internship). They should take a hard look at this network and see if someone they know can help them with what they need.Next, they should think about all the people this person in their network might know.

How do students identify and cultivate their network? 

A quality job is a job that puts a young professional entering the workforce on the path to economic mobility and helps them grow and advance in their career.There are four dimensions to identifying a quality job.<ul><li>It must align with your interests.</li><li>It must provide scope for learning and development. </li><li>It must pave pathways to promotion.</li><li>It must help you earn the full dollar. </li></ul>

A quality job

For students from low-income backgrounds, this is especially important.

education

Learning & Education

How to Find a Strong First Job After College

<ul><li>From the book: The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders</li><li>Written by: William Defoe</li></ul>Moll Flanders is a beautiful woman who has the determination to succeed because of her greed and discontentment from being a servant. She went on to marry many men, some wealthy, some not, and she continued to live many lives -- as a thief, a wife, an escort, and so much more.

Moll Flanders

<ul><li>From the book: The Awakening</li><li>Written by: Kate Chopin</li></ul>Edna Pontellier is a respectable woman who knows herself. She knows what she wants and she acts upon them, however, due to the limitations placed by society on her, she struggles to find her independence.

Edna Pontellier

<ul><li>From the book: Madame Bovary</li><li>Written by: Gustave Flaubert</li></ul>Emma Bovary is stuck in a bleak marriage. She thought of marriage as an adventure however the outcome of her own caused her great discontentment and feelings of unfulfilment.

Emma Bovary

<ul><li>From the book: Anna Karenina</li><li>Written by: Leo Tolstoy</li></ul>Anna Karenina is one of the greatest tragedies of all time. It is a story about a young married woman who goes on to have an affair and then throws herself under a train to commit suicide.

Anna Karenina

<ul><li>From the book: Pride and Prejudice</li><li>Written by: Jane Austen</li></ul>The book explores human nature throught the Bennet Family, but mainly on Elizabeth Bennet's turbulent relationship with an aristocrat.

Elizabeth Bennet

<ul><li>From the book: Jane Eyre</li><li>Written by: Charlotte Bronte</li></ul>The novel ensues the story of a young and simple girl going through life's struggles. We follow her experiences from falling in love to becoming a governess, and more.

Jane Eyre

<ul><li>From the book: Little Women</li><li>Written by: Louisa May Alcott</li></ul>Jo March is one of the most memorable heroines in literary history because through this book we see the dreams and aspirations, and her antics.

Josephine (Jo) March

<ul><li>From the book: The Scarlet Letter</li><li>Written by: Nathaniel Hawthorne</li></ul>In this novel, Hester was forced to wear a scarlet letter to atone for her sin of adultery.

Hester Prynne

<ul><li>From the book: The House of Mirth</li><li>Written by: Edith Wharton</li></ul>This novel follows the story of a beautiful and charming young woman who is on the hunt for a husband.

Lily Bart

<ul><li>From the book: Daisy Miller</li><li>Written by: Henry James</li></ul>We unfold the story of a simple American girl who experiences an innocent flirtation towards a young Italian that causes unfortunate consequences.

Daisy Miller

The following list includes 10 famous fictional heroines to help you with your studies of classic novels or just to give you a better point of reference.

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Personal Development

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

problemsolving

Problem Solving

Top 10 Famous Fictional Heriones

This internationally known tennis championship is held in late June or early July. It is one of the four annual Grand Slam tennis events along with the Australian, French, and U.S. Opens. It is the only one still played on natural grass.

Wimbledon championships 

The first Wimbledon championship was held in 1877 on one of the croquet lawns of the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club. In 1884 a women's championship was introduced at Wimbledon. Mixed doubles and women's doubles started in 1913. The championships were originally played by amateurs but opened to professional players in 1968. The current championships, in addition to men's and women's singles, doubles and mixed doubles, include junior boys and girls events.

Wimbledon championship history

sports

Sports

Wimbledon Championships

People are socially influenced by others, and change their behaviours in order to get along or fit in with the people around them. This involves agreeing with the majority, acting like everyone in a group, or behaving in a certain way to appear normal or ‘with it’ by the peers.
Conformity is basically yielding to group pressure, like when you go to watch a movie with office colleagues and do not like it at all, but may conform to the group by pretending to like it.

Social Psychology: Conformity

Most of us conform to the expectations of the group to avoid being the ‘odd one out’ or just to not appear foolish. 
In many cases we don’t even know what the expectation is, so conforming to what everyone else is doing appears a safe bet.

Reasons We Conform To A Group

<ul>
<li>Informational influence is when we are unsure of a correct response, and look to imitate others who we presume are better informed</li>
<li>Normative Influence is when we avoid a penalty or look for a reward by behaving in a certain way or agreeing to the rules of a group.</li>
<li>Identification conformity is when we behave in a certain way due to our social or professional identity.</li>
<li>Compliance conformity happens when we change our behaviour externally while internally disagreeing with our peers.</li>
<li>Internalization conformity is when we imitate a person because we want to be like them.</li>
</ul>

Types Of Conformity

Many group experiments highlight that simple questions involving dots and lines are answered correctly when asked individually, but when asked in a group, the answer moves towards a median, as many people simply conform to the answer of other people (who may be wrong).

Experiments In Conformity

Many factors influence conformity in individuals, like the difficulty of a certain task, the motivation to achieve or the size of a group.
<ul>
<li>People who have strong leadership abilities do not conform easily.</li>
<li>People are more likely to conform where the response they should take is vague. </li>
<li>People from the same culture are highly likely to conform to each other.</li>
</ul>

Factors Influencing Conformity

Conformity is a powerful social force that can influence our behavior for good and sometimes bad. Learn more about the psychology of conformity.

Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology

teamwork

Teamwork

Why Do We Try so Hard to Be Like Other People and Conform?

Landing your dream job can come with downsides, especially if your passions involve jobs with routine day-to-day tasks that you are less passionate about. 
For example, you may expect to create fascinating algorithms in artificial intelligence jobs that will solve big problems but end up doing routine data collection and cleaning tasks.

Romanticising your dream job

A recent study named the gap between expectations and the day-to-day reality of jobs as "glossy work." The glossy work dissonance can cause employees to change jobs. Another problem is how to present the work and themselves to other people.
<ul>
<li>For example, when talking to outsiders, they may focus on the more glamorous aspects of journalism.</li>
<li>When speaking to high-status writers, they focus on their own expertise.</li>
<li>To an insider, they present a more complete view.</li>
</ul>
This can cause prospective employees to end up with false expectations.

The "glossy work" phenomenon

"Glossy work" comes at a cost to employers as they have to manage discontent and staff turnover.
How employers can stop the "glossy work" cycle:
<ul>
<li>Showing a fair balance of the exciting and mundane aspects of the job.</li>
<li>Assembling tasks so that the less pleasant tasks are spread across employees and jobs.</li>
<li>Openness to employee efforts to tweak their jobs.</li>
<li>Taking caution when listing passion as a job requirement, then providing work that doesn't fit that passion.</li>
</ul>

Stop the "glossy work" cycle: What employers can do

So you snagged your dream job. And it quickly became the stuff of nightmares, filled with mundane tasks and drudgery. What can employees and employers do?

When your dream job is a nightmare

“If you are insecure, guess what? The rest of the world is, too. Do not overestimate the competition and underestimate yourself. You are better than you think.”

“Role models who push us to exceed our limits, physical training that removes our spare tires, and risks that expand our sphere of comfortable action are all examples of eustress — stress that is healthful and the stimulus for growth.”

“Excitement is the more practical synonym for happiness, and it is precisely what you should strive to chase. It is the cure-all.”

“It isn’t enough to think outside the box. Thinking is passive. Get used to acting outside of the box”

“Don’t follow a model that doesn’t work. If the recipe sucks, it doesn’t matter how good a cook you are.”

Tim Ferriss is one of Fast Company's "Most Innovative Business People" and one of Forbes's "Names You Need to Know." He is an early-stage tech investor/advisor (Uber, Facebook, Alibaba, etc) and the author of The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, The 4-Hour Chef, and Tools of Titans.

timemanagement

Time Management

Tim Ferriss Quotes to SPARK Action Today

Our feelings are hard at work. In 1983, Arlie Russel Hochschild defined labour as requiring one to "induce or suppress feeling in order to sustain the outward countenance that produces the proper state of mind in others."
Clear examples of emotional labourer are therapists and other healthcare professionals, communications professionals, and educators. But we all do emotional labour when we empathise with our customers or plan a project at work.

The term "emotional labour"

Emotional labour needs resources. Failing to account for it means that you'll be in short supply and may risk exhausting your and your team's energy reserves, as your team will have to step up and handle it.
On a personal level, if you ignore the emotional labour you're doing, you risk burnout. You need to be aware of how much energy you have to give.

Why emotional labour matters

We can "feel" better by respecting the resources that go into emotional labour. Being aware of your emotional labour means you can better recognise it, talk about it and list it as a priority.
When your manager coaches you through a difficult problem, they're doing emotional labour. When a loved one helps you with your needs, they're doing emotional labour. When you recognise this, you can be more intentional with your requests.

How to feel better

We can do this by tracking our mood over time with tools such as emoji check-ins.
Another way can be with goal-setting. Make it a habit to review your goals. By repeatedly doing it, you start to automate the way you think.