On maximizing our potential by seeking out meaning. — Whenever I look for a new adventure, I always follow one basic principle to judge whether something is right. I ask myself, ‘will this help me grow as a person?’ I’ve always been scared of wasting my potential. Contrary to how I perceive myself, I’ve been called the “smart one”…

Ancient lessons on finding love and meaning. — Humans are fundamentally driven to seek out others. We crave companionship, and the relationships we form drastically impact our quality of life. They provide someone to laugh and share our experiences with, or a shoulder to cry on when things get tough. But how exactly do we find friendship? With…

Using songs as a reminder of who you are. — When we’re surrounded by a train full of people, our headphones can take us to a different place and time. And when we’re in a busy coffee shop, songs can help us focus and be productive. We all have our own private collection of songs that we default to in…

And being authentically you. — Who are you? What are you like? The answer to these questions depends on your self-identity. What do you think of yourself? Are you defined by how others perceive you? For political philosopher Hannah Arendt, it’s only through public actions that our identity is formed; the person we are is…

On boosting your likeability. — We are hard-wired to want to be liked. In a world where the majority of friendships are artificially created online, most of us are looking for something real — so we crave social interaction and surround ourselves with as many people as possible. Because modern technology has increased the pool…

On finding literature that’s right for you. — It’s 2020, the peak of my philosophy degree. It’s make-or-break time and I have a week to get through five books. I don’t have time to get through all of them, but I try anyway. I pick up the first on the pile and lock myself away for hours. I…

Sleep longer to refine your cognitive abilities. — If you oversleep, you’re lazy. That’s what we’re told as teenagers. As we grow up, we learn to treat sleep as dispensable. Under the stress of looming deadlines, we’ve all pulled an all-nighter in the hope it will make us more productive. But we have it backward. Feeling tired might…

Learning from painful feedback. — We’ve all been told we’re not good enough. When that happens, and our self-confidence is shattered, we question our abilities. We ask ourselves: “Am I an imposter whose past successes are the result of luck?” Thanks to social media, our whole lives are open to feedback. Whether your critic is…

Quick-fire yourself back to your best. — Life’s a rollercoaster and when you’re at your lowest, it’s easy to feel powerless. In this downward spiral, your rock bottom causes a self-fulfilling prophecy — of letting your emotions get the better of you and giving up entirely. With your emotions in the driving seat, it can be hard…