Learning by H.E.A.R.T.: Self Realization of Selfies

Learning Challenge I couldn't get the original picture to upload onto my blog, but you can go check it out at this link! It's crazy to look at this picture and think, "Wow, this has become commonplace in our society." I am proud of the girls, in the top left and bottom right corners. At least they are able to enjoy their food without the selfie aspect. Who knows, they may have already "IG'd" the food (made up verb usage for Instagram).

Wikimedia Commons

I would love to be able to say that these girls are out of the ordinary these days, but I think I'd be lying to myself. It's definitely not just girls either. I see guys taking selfies all of the time too. This just reminds me of how insidious social media has become. That is probably too harsh of a word because I do think there are a lot of benefits that come from the instant communication, but dependence on technology can definitely be a problem. When I think about what it would be like to go somewhere without my phone, computer, or other technological communication, I can't imagine what it would be like. Hopefully I, and many others, can lower my dependence on technology overtime. That goal seems out of reach with how much I need it in everyday life, but maybe I can do a growth mindset challenge to use my phone less. I definitely need to limit myself at night.

Learning Challenge: Happiness Meme

(Cheezeburger)

I chose to do the learning challenge about health and happiness this week in the Learning by H.E.A.R.T. section. I thought it would be funny to create a meme out of this picture because I see this pair a lot on Sunday's when I watch NFL football. They are always in the broadcast booth together and make a pretty good team. My main motivation behind this would be that I know having a really close person in your life (i.e. family member, friend, partner, etc.) can really brighten your experiences. My roommate is one of those people for me who I can hangout with and we always have the same sense of humor (which is good because most people would probably just think I'm weird). Having a person like that in your life is really healthy and makes me a lot happier, so I just wanted to share this with everyone who runs across my blog. Enjoy!

Learning Challenge: Letting Go

Wikimedia Commons

This week's H.E.A.R.T. challenge lead me to the meme of "Letting Go". I really enjoyed this meme because I thought it was so true and something I definitely have had problems with. You don't want to dwell on things in the past, present, or future that you cannot change. My biggest issue with this would have to be letting go of things in the past. Whether it's something with grades or everyday actions, if I do something wrong I tend to let it effect me for awhile afterwards. Not that I shouldn't try to improve from these mistakes by brushing them off completely, but I need to be more able to accept and learn from the mistakes. Letting something I can't change bother me leads to more ineffectiveness than what may have already occurred. Although it wont't be easy, I am going to continue to try and improve in this area. This meme was a great reminder of something I can do to better myself overall.

Learning Challenge: Reading Out Loud

(Reading.  --  Nahh)
Source: Flickr

This week I chose to do the Learning by H.E.A.R.T. reading out loud challenge. I definitely never read out loud (I only recently started in my posts to help proofread), so it made me interested to see how it actually could affect my reading.

At first, it seemed really weird hearing myself talk constantly for the duration of my reading, but then I adapted. That was when I started to tell a difference in the reading experience. I'm not going to lie and say it was a 180 degree switch from my usual reading, but I did notice minute details that seemed to benefit my learning. When reading my own material aloud, I picked up on more errors that I wouldn't have known existed, if not for hearing it out loud. Also, it seemed as though I retained more information when reading other material aloud. That may be due to the fact that I normally only think about the words, but when reading out loud, I hear the words while I also think about what is happening. It isn't completely different, but I do enjoy doing it when I can. I won't be able to do it often (due to library/roommate etiquette), but I do think it benefits me when I seize the opportunities as they arise.

Learning Challenge: Gratitude

(Gratitude  --  klhug)
Source: Flickr

I watched the video The Amazing Effects of Gratitude. As said in the video, gratitude can be defined as "The quality or condition of being thankful; the appreciation of an inclination to return kindness." I was surprised by all of the studies involved with gratitude and gratefulness in the video. Before, I thought of gratitude as a simple feeling of happiness when someone did something nice for me. In a way that's what it is, but it's also a lot more complicated than that. I couldn't believe the study about keeping a gratefulness journal and how it correlates with an increase in happiness (it even helped people with heart disease). I am going to try out the grateful technique for the next week to see if it works for me!