Month: March 2019

Positivity and the Potential of Giving

Posted on by Doctoral College

A woman holding a boxed gift | Give

‘Give’ is the final Five Weeks of Wellbeing theme — a chance to give yourself a break (more on that below), but also to reflect on ways you can express your gratitude and share your time. Carlos Gracida Juarez, a PGR in the School of Biological Sciences, shares some personal thoughts why we should give giving a chance.

In Western culture, materialism plays a significant role. We are used to collecting new items and accumulating material stuff — we confound being with having. Many of us have been taught that more money and amassing wealth is the real meaning of success. Being successful takes you to live the “good life”; and not being successful will make you struggle to survive, always chasing the money. At a certain point, it makes sense, but there are many more things that can give you a sense of realisation in life.

One thing that is probably underrated in our society is “the potential of giving”. Giving adds meaning to our life, filling it with love and compassion. By giving we are creating a positive impact on the person or group, and ideally improving our world at the same time.

Giving has a double function: it helps someone in need and makes yourself feel better at the same time. That’s why giving can be a tool for improving our lives in a connected approach.

But sometimes and for different reasons, it can be difficult to give. When we care for others they can take advantage or misinterpret our intentions. Or we are afraid that if we provide, we will end having less. Or maybe we have judgements about what people in need will do with what we give them. It’s OK to have these thoughts, but they’re not always are correct.

Not giving can result in the worst outcome of all, because we are solving nothing and we are losing the chance of improving our and others lives. Instead of simply not giving, we can learn to give wisely. We can instead learn how to give helpfully and how giving can cause a positive impact. Even if giving turns out to have been the wrong approach, at least we gave it a try and we learned.

We also might think that we need to have more in order to give, but this is not always true. Regarding money, you can give even if you don’t have much. You can provide some change to the homeless, give to a charity (some charities would really appreciate your £8 per month funding) or support some causes by buying related products.

Besides money, you are capable of giving time and energy as well. For example, a way to increase your positivity, you can brighten enough someone’s day by saying a kind word, smiling or help them out in a small task.

When you give, you open a channel to an abundance mindset. If you feel blocked in a specific area of your life, then give. Need more love? Give love. Need more attention? Pay attention to the others. Need more joy? Spread joy.

How does it make sense? When you give, it makes the impression that you have what you want to give. You are not in a state of shortage. You start to get used to this feeling, and in some way, you attract it back. If you give love and spread positivity you get used to this and people will start to react this way around you. If you offer free services to people, some will want to thank you by paying, and maybe you will come up with new ways to earn money.

Remember that true giving comes from the heart without expecting anything in return, but for sure it will.

When we give, we do it with affection. It may be hard at the beginning and may feel forced, but after you practice you start giving with love.

So what to do now? We can practise doing small things while we get used to the act of giving. Picking trash from public places, being kind and smiling to others, volunteering in local charities among many other options. (The Bristol Conservation Society and Helpful Peeps have made of an art of giving.)

Of course, you can take a few steps further and make something more significant. But remember that every action has an impact. Give wisely, and expect smiles back in your life.

Ready for the Five Weeks of Wellbeing finale? Here’s what’s happening this week in the PGR Hub.

  • Coffee and Cake Hour — Tuesday 12 March, 11am
  • Movie Night — Tuesday 12 March, 6pm,
  • Board Game Café — Thursday 14 March, 1pm,
  • Clothes Swap — Friday 15 March, 1pm.

And if that’s not enough, don’t forget that you still have a chance to win a £100 wellbeing hamper in our Five Weeks of Wellbeing competition.

To take part, just hand in your stamped ‘5wow’ card to the BDC office in the PGR Hub. Wondering how you can get a card? Just pick up a free zine from the Hub’s collaborative space and read to the end.

What I’ve learned about learning

Posted on by Doctoral College

Cartoon woman with a download cloud above her head | 'Keep Learning'

Week four of our Five Weeks of Wellbeing has focused on learning. Jacks Bennett, a Bristol PhD researcher looking at mental health and wellbeing in students, shares her reflections on why maintaining curiosity matters.

I love learning new things. Things about things (information), how to do things (skills), why things happen (knowledge), and what things say about other things (meaning). I’ve always been curious. As a child, I sat in the shed at the bottom of our garden, the walls newspapered with articles and the shelves littered with potions I’d made from fallen rose petals. From my musty office, I declared myself both writer and scientist.

More than four decades later — I have become, circuitously and arguably, both. At university first time around, I explored French, pretty fruitlessly I might add — c’est la vie. I then learned to write, research, and report at the BBC — where discovering new ‘things’ (in short bursts) became a way of life. More recently, I came back to university as a psychology undergraduate and now PhD researcher looking at student mental health — in at the deep end again. It’s become my raison d’être: get stuck in, ask questions. My family and friends variously call it: ‘enthusiastic’, ‘overthinking’, ‘nosy’, ‘earnest’. I prefer to think of it as meaningful engagement with my one short life.

My learning curves have come in all shapes and shades. I’ve learned how to interview prime ministers, how to make cheese, what to do in a police raid, and how not to be sick during a Hercules take-off. I’ve also learned that I’m not good with pregnancy, vodka, or arrogant people, and that I’m often riddled with self-doubt. But I’m also tenacious, great in a crisis, impossibly fond of communicating, and I can parachute out of a plane. The list isn’t exhaustive and doesn’t include life’s bigger challenges like learning to be: mother, daughter, wife, friend, employer, employee, student, citizen. I’ve also had to learn how to do all those things. I’ve sometimes learned the hard way and I’ve always had to work at it. I still do.

Learning the basics of who you are, what you like, what you need, and what you’re capable of — is all a journey. For me, that’s been critical for my wellbeing and equilibrium. I felt for years that I ‘should’ love to cook — mainly because cooking is wholesome, other people seem to enjoy it, and it helps with the whole feeding the family thing. Actually, I really hate cooking. But I do love to clean or tidy. Bad day at work? Imposter syndrome kicking in? My floors sparkle and my paperwork gets done. I feel better. A light-hearted example — but you get my drift?

It’s not just about self-awareness, there’s also learning for learning’s sake. I’ve made several sea changes over the years; and when I’ve been stuck in my head or in a job that doesn’t fit – I’ve usually signed up for a writing course, some voluntary work or a half marathon. I realise most of us don’t always have the capacity or resources to shake things up dramatically, but you can always do something. Walk a different route to work, strike up a conversation with the person next to you on the bus, head to the museum at lunchtime and temporarily lose yourself. You never know what may happen. Every time I look outward, my world becomes just a little bit more colourful.

Taking on a doctorate is my current curve ball. Commissioned by the University, the research feels pertinent and timely — ‘What type of support improves mental health and wellbeing in university students?’ Bristol aims to be part of an evidence-based solution to growing concern about young people’s mental health, and our students are sharing their experience in an annual survey, forming the spine of my project. I’m lucky to be involved — another steep learning curve. Those curves just keep coming.

What have I learned about learning (so far)? It matters that you try and work out who you are and how you tick. Align that with your goals and take some risks. Learn from your mistakes: outcomes can be good and bad — and believe me, I’ve experienced the latter — but every experience has shaped me. When life is good — savour it, and when things get tough — push through. Our time here is short and precious, and the world is endlessly interesting. Fill your toolbox with curiosity, kindness and respect, and then grab life by the scruff of the neck and shake out every last meaningful experience.

Want to get involved in our Five Weeks of Wellbeing? There are still plenty of events ahead, including a PGR Movie Night, a Board Game Cafe and a Clothes Swap. Read the full programme.