I hope those of you in America had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday, were able to reflect on your gratitude for all that you have to be thankful for, and remembered that love for your family and friends is more important than arguing over any petty differences. And for you non-Americans, I hope that you have a delightful ordinary non-holiday weekend.
With Thanksgiving wrapping up, let’s talk about the opposite of thankfulness: Complaining.
When we were babies, complaining was one of the few methods we had for exercising influence over the world. If we were tired, or hungry, or wanted a toy, or had a poopy diaper, we would cry about it until a grown-up solved the problem for us.
As we became older children, with control over our own bodies and growing mental faculties, we had enough self-efficacy to handle some small issues, such as using the bathroom on our own or making a bowl of cereal when we were hungry.… Read more