Strenghts Exercise

This past week I was able to take a VIA strengths test. What I discovered was pretty amazing to me. There were two that I for sure saw coming, but the third top strength that I had somewhat shocked me in a way. My first two strengths were Kindness and Generosity, the second strength that I had was Capacity to love and be loved, and the final top strength I has was Caution, Prudence, and discretion. As I began to think about these strengths I began to try and come up with a way to implement these. So this blog is about the journey of the past week that I was able to go on and how I was going to implement these strengths into my everyday life.

Strength #1

My first strength was kindness and generosity. I saw this coming because I have always seen myself as a person who just loves being kind and just wants to let others know that they are important. After reading this I was trying to postulate three different ways of adding these to my daily life, and here are the three I came up  with.
1.First I would try and compliment at least 3 people throughout my day the more the better.
2.Next I would hold the door open for at least 3 people throughout my day the more the better.
3.Finally I would tell at least 2 different member of my family something I loved about them each day (I stuck to the 2 on this one so I would have enough member of my family to talk to).

In doing this I found that it not only made the people around me more happy. For instance each time I held the door, complimented someone, or called one of my family member they all had a similar reactions. They all became a little happier. Some more than others, but it also put me in a better mood and allowed my day to start and finish in a better way.

Strength #2

My second strength was Capacity to Love and be Loved. This means that I value close relationships in which sharing and caring are reciprocated. This one was a little more difficult to make steps for implementing in my everyday life, but here is what I came up with.
1.First I would have at least one conversation with my girlfriend about something important to me or something important to her.
2.Next I would call at least one of my friends and tell them exactly what they mean to me so foster growth in our friendship.
3.Next I would talk to my roommate everyday to just catchup with him and see where he stood in his daily life.

I found that doing all of this would not only strengthen my friendships, and even my relationship with my girlfriend. With all of this it showed the people I interacted with that I truly cared for them, and not only that it built up the relationships I have.

Strength #3

The last of my top strengths was caution, prudence, and discretion. This is the one I really never saw coming. I always thought that it would be made leadership or something of that nature. However this was really interesting, and here are the three ways I implemented it into my life.
1.First off when I would make a purchase I would make a list of pros and cons before buying it. This helped because if it was not a good idea to purchase then I would not do it.
2.Next I would think thoroughly about the decision I would make each night. For instance whether it was smart to hang out with friends or do homework.
3.Lastly I would just try and be care of the things that I said to people and about people.

Each of these things made my day better because I was able to save money, I was able to get more done, and finally I was able to speak more carefully and cautiously which protected people from harsh things I may have spoken unintentionally.

I loved this experience so much. It was so enjoyable to be able to do things and implement certain things that not only made my day better, but also other people's days better too. So go out do a strengths test and integrate your results in you life so the can have a positive impact on you and others.

#CounselorsHelp

My sister is a counselor she went through the clinical counseling master's program at Harden Simmons University her name is Jayme Hayward. I myself have never seen or visited a counselor, but there is in fact amazing benefits to going and seeing one. The #CounselorsHelp is indeed one of truth, there are so many ways in which they can help.

Counselors do not get most of the credit in which they deserve, and this is because they are able to help so many people work through the tough issues that weigh in everyone's life.

I know that for my sister specifically she worked each summer at a camp known as White River youth camp. This is a camp that is for youth who have struggled with abuse and even addiction. There have been so many cases in which she has told us a few snippets of stories from this camp (she keeps them to her self except for some aspect she is able to talk about because of privacy issues). She has told many stories in which she helped many students work through the abuse and the addictions in which they struggled.

I am so thankful to have a sister who is so committed to helping and taking care of people who need help in the form of counseling. Not only does she work at the White River Youth camp she also travels around to different schools and works with the kids who need it most. She is so sweet and caring towards her clients. Her clients need her and with her job she changes lives. She has far more of an impact then she realizes.

Not only do I have a sister who is a clinical Counselor I have a friend who struggled with a depressive disorder and with an anxiety disorder. He had to go to much counseling and he was on some medication. Talking to him though he was able to over come most of these things through the counseling he under went. he was encouraged to do things he loved to over come and to continue going to counseling and now he is a place where he is able to succeed like he never has.

Going to counseling is not something that is only for the ones who are suffering with super sever hurt and injury, no it can be for the biggest of issues to the smallest of things. So if there is anything that someone is struggling with and you know them encourage them to go to counseling because they can help, and if you are struggling go and talk to someone because sometimes all it takes is just a simple conversation.

So lets take some time and say thank you to all the counselors that we know, and lets take time to spread the word of counseling. Counseling can help and it does help so if you are struggling tell someone, and when you  over come tell your story. Share it on social media with the #CounselorsHelp. So lets spread the word and tell those who are in need so they can get help, and be better. share on social media

#PsychStory

Francis Chan, he is a Chinese Christian Pastor who is know of world wide. Chan, had to over come many things in order to get where he is today. Not only did he have to over come his hardships in his personal life in his family, but also in the fact that he had to over come some of the issues he faced with being  Chinese. His story is truly beautiful and awe inspiring. It truly is a story of over coming, and points straight to Jesus.

This is Francis Chan and his story all thanks to the website known as just stop and think.

"He [Francis Chan] was born in 1967. His mother died giving birth to him. After being raised by his Buddhist grandmother in Hong Kong, Francis came to America at the age of 5. His father remarried, and then his step mother died in a car accident when Francis was 9. Then his father died of cancer when he was 12 years old. The only close relatives he had were his aunt and uncle. But when he was in high school, his aunt and uncle got in a fight, and his uncle shot his wife then killed himself." (Juststopandthink.com).

The losses were profound. Chan says physical and verbal affection in his family, particularly from his father, was rare. His only memory of affection from his dad came when Chan and his father were on the way to his stepmother’s funeral, and his father put his arm around him for about 30 seconds.

Francis Chan has an older sister Grace, older brother Paul and much younger half-sister, Gloria. He had family support from his father’s younger sister and her husband, Marion and William Wong, along with a large extended family and church family. He did not get along well with his father growing up, but says that his fear of his father has helped him understand a level of fear of God. He also stated he didn’t understand the love of God well until he became a father himself. (Juststopandthink.com). 

Despite a childhood filled with death, Francis Chan did not doubt the love of God. He recalls a childhood filled with church and belief in God. And by junior high school he began to understand what it meant to have a personal relationship with God. In high school, he began living it. By God’s grace and mercy, Francis came to know the Lord in high school in Stockton, Ca. (Juststopandthink.com). 

Chan was active in Christian youth groups which helped develop his faith in Christianity and his interest in ministry. Chan joined his youth pastor in ministry to reach his friends who were still in school. It was during that time that Chan chose to become a pastor. He earned a BA in youth ministry from The Master’s College and a Master’s of Divinity from The Master’s Seminary. In 1992, he worked as a youth pastor for another church. Eventually, he and his wife Lisa decided to start their own church, Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, Ca. In 1994. Within ten years, the church had grown to over 3,000 regular attendees. Before becoming a senior pastor, Francis worked for a variety of employers including Taco Bell, Mic Pizza, Kirby Company, Ralphs Market, Broadway Men’s Clothing, hardwood flooring contractors, and the Acapulco restaurant. (Juststopandthink.com).

After five years of church as usual at Cornerstone, a missionary from Papua New Guinea challenged Chan’s self-centered theology. Just a few years later, Chan took a trip to Uganda that further altered his thinking and living. “It was there that I fell in love with orphans." (juststopandthink.com). 

Chan started Eternity Bible College in 2004 as a ministry of Cornerstone Community Church with 100 students. In 2008, Eternity launched an abroad program in Ecuador. [13]As of 2009, the college graduated 47 graduates serving in various parts of the world. In 2005, Francis was the featured speaker in a now international video called Stop And Think (Juststopandthink.com) which went viral, landing in every state and 30+ countries.

"He has inspired many people with his ‘crazy love’ message. His passion and clarity in sharing the gospel has inspired many to seek the Kingdom of God wholeheartedly, with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.
The pastor, speaker and best-selling author believes a life called by Jesus will be a transformed life. And he tries to live out that transformation in every aspect—his ministry, his family, his community, his finances and his publishing." (Juststopandthink.com). 

"On Sunday, April 18, 2010, Chan announced to his congregation that he felt called to resign at Cornerstone in Simi Valley to pursue what God had laid on his heart. As of April 2010 he stated he was not yet sure what city God had called him to,[11] but by June 2011 stated publicly he felt called to San Francisco, CA. He moved to Northern California, and as of 2013, Francis’s website said he was “working to start a church planting movement in the inner city of San Francisco and also working to launch a countrywide discipleship movement.” (Juststopandthink.com). 

"After a three-month leave from Cornerstone, Francis said he felt convicted to sacrifice more for God. Chan gives away about 90 percent of his income, doesn’t take a salary from his church, and has donated most of his book royalties, which have totaled about $2,000,000, to various charities. Much of it goes to organizations which rescue sex slaves in foreign countries. Furthermore, in 2008 it was reported that Cornerstone would give away 55% of its income to charitable causes." (Juststopandthink.com). 

In September 2014, Chan joined the board of elders of Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Mountain View, California.
Currently, Francis is planting churches in the San Francisco area and recently launched a countrywide discipleship movement called Multiply with David Platt. Together, Francis and his wife Lisa raise their seven children in Northern California." (Juststopandthink.com).

Francis Chan has a story of true redemption and it is just so amazing to get to read and just see all the crazy ways that the Lord has used Francis Chan and the amazing ways in which he will continue to use him. Francis Chan is an amazing representation of what over coming truly looks like. Here is a video of Francis sharring parts of his testimony in a sermon https://www.bing.com/videos/searchq=fraancis+chan+testimony&view=detail&mid=9ED86DA74DD4C42D45B19ED86DA74DD4C42D45B1&FORM=VIRE

Not everyone has the same story, there is encouraging parts and difficult things in everyones story. So lets all keep the ball rolling and begin to tell all our stories and the stories of others. I hope y'all can read this and be encouraged.
 #PsychStory

Sources:

http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/faithfamilyamerica/pages/16350/meta_images/original/201602-Francis-Chan.jpg?1499269654

http://faithlifewomen.com/files/2012/10/Chan-Family5-630x320.png

https://www.juststopandthink.com/francis-chan-bio/

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=fraancis+chan+testimony&view=detail&mid=9ED86DA74DD4C42D45B19ED86DA74DD4C42D45B1&FORM=VIRE

Memory

Memory:
Memory, it is one of the most functions of the human brain. It is where information is stored and later recalled. Memory is categorized in two different category. These category being short term and long term memory. Short term memory is is where information that is just learned is stored. This information that is stored here tends to be less relevant, and is only information that is needed to be remembered for a short span of time. Long term memory, however is the opposite of this. Long term memory is the storing up of information that is the information needed for longer periods of time, and in many cases this memory can be relatively permanent. This is so this information can be recalled from longer time periods.

Despite memory being so important to the human being as a whole, there are many diseases and other ways in which memory and the capability to remember and recall information. A few of these ways Alzheimers's disease and even strokes, as well as meany others.

Alzheimers:
Alzheimers is a disease which entail memory loss, known as dementia. Alzheimers is a degenerative disease in which the symptoms worsen with time. Alzheimers make it difficult for the afflicted party. The symptoms include the robbing of some long term memories, and the difficulty of recalling memories that have been stored in the brain for many many years. Alzheimers make it even more difficult to to recall information that was just learned. So information that is learned recently is most likely not able to be recalled. The reason in which Alzheimers is so destructive is that it attacks and destroys the structure of the brain, which leads to memory loss. The effects of Alzheimers is so dangerous though because it is not just in one local part of the brain it is something that spreads to all aspects/parts of the brain destroying it as it goes along. It causes all the structure of the brain to be destroyed eventually leading to total brain shut down and then the death of the one effect with the terrible disease.

Real World Application:
There are many reasons to understand what Alzheimers is and why it is such a big deal is because it affects so many people in the world. If one understands what it truly is then one can better handle the effects, and understand what all is in store for the afflicted party.

Personal:
Writing this blog had a few ties to my family. My great grandfather on my mother's side suffered with this, and eventually passed from the disease. I did not know him very closely, but writing this it made me realize how close to home this disease can hit. It is such a dangerous disease that affects so many people so it is so important that people understand and know what it is.

Sources:
https://www.brightstarcare.com/chattanooga/files/2013/11/alzheimers-scan.jpg
https://dailyhealthpost.com/wp-content/uploads/mem.jpg
http://www.learner.org/series/discoveringpsychology/09/e09expand.html
https://www.alz.org/braintour/alzheimers_changes.asp
file:///C:/Users/Daniel%20Beal/AppData/Local/Packages/Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe/TempState/Downloads/Week%208_Chapter_Memory.pdf

Behavior Modification

In all our lives there are some behaviors that i know we would change if we had the power. Well I decided that I did have the power to change it so I did. I set out to see if I was able to change my behaviors in favor of more desired ones. In this blog we will discuss my findings and what led me to discover them.

Each day starting from day one to day seven there seemed to be a steady and consistent increase. From day one to day two my studying increased by a factor of one. i study one more time that day and received the reward one more time as well. From days two to day three my studying increased from two times to three times in which I earned my reward three times each one of these days. From days four to day seven my studying also increased where I earned my reward four times each of those days. This style of behavior modification is Operant conditioning, and there are many ways in which these behaviors can change. One way is through positive rewarding and negative punishment. The method I used was the positive rewarding. Every time I did the desired behavior then i would reward myself with the reeses candy. This creates the environment of doing the positive behavioral change. This was such a fun activity, and it caused me to see some things in which I could develop an environment for positive change. This is so practical and it can be used with the easiest of behaviors so if there is something you want to change then do it change it, and see how far you can go.

Classical Conditioning

Learning

Classical Conditioning

There are many different styles of learning. Each aspect of learning can have different effects on each person individually. They can range things such as discriminative listening, comprehension listening, and there are other kinds of listening that can all correlate and culminate in the eventual learning http://changingminds.org/techniques/listening/types_listening.htm However the type and instance of learning that is going to be focused on in this blog is the way of learning called classical conditioning.

What is it?

The idea of classical conditioning was discovered by a Russian medical researcher know as Ivan Pavlov. He was studying the digestive systems of dogs. This led him to study the salivating glands in dogs. He determined that when the dogs received the food they would salivate, however as the experiment continued on he was shocked to see the dogs salivating before the food even made it to the mouth of dog. He discovered that the footsteps of the one feeding the dogs or even the door opening would lead to the dog salivating. He determined that the form of learning that these dogs underwent was what he called classical conditioning. Classical Conditioning: A form of learning in which animals or people make a connection between two stimuli that have occurred together, such that one predicts the other. There are many aspects on this idea of classical conditioning one is the neutral stimulus, which is a stimulus that causes no response. So this would be someone saying a word or making a noise, or in the case of Ivan ringing a bell and having no response. Another aspect is the unconditioned stimulus which is a stimulus that causes a response without any need for learning. In this case for Ivan it would have been the food given to the dogs. An unconditioned response is the automatic response to a stimulus. These were all the initial reaction of the dogs in Pavlov’s experiments to the bell ringing and the food. Over time however, the neutral stimuli transformed into a conditioned stimuli which caused a response in the animal. The reason this took place was that a conditioned response took place this is a response acquired through learning. As Ivan Pavlov began to ring the bell before each feeding of the dogs they learned that the bell meant food, and began to salivate without food. Therefore Pavlov learned that you can condition animals and thus humans to have certain responses to certain stimuli. file:///C:/Users/Daniel%20Beal/AppData/Local/Packages/Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe/TempState/Downloads/Week%207_Chapter_Pomerantz1e_Learning.pdf

 

Personal Learning:

When reading about this way in which learning takes place was the fact that people and animals can be trained do respond certain ways to certain stimuli. This idea of learning is one of the ways in which many people train animals in order to receive the response that they desire.

Real-World Application:

There are many ways in which this way of learning is used in the real world today. However, one of the biggest users of this in today’s world is the advertisement industry. One of the main reasons that the industry uses these techniques is because they want to train the viewer to have a positive response to the product that they are intending to sell. Of course one of the best examples of this is McDonalds. After showing any of their commercials they play the jingle “I’m lovin it” they do this in order to get people to think about their food anytime that is played even without viewing the food. This can cause the response of craving the food that has been advertised.

 

Sources:

file:///C:/Users/Daniel%20Beal/AppData/Local/Packages/Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe/TempState/Downloads/Week%207_Chapter_Pomerantz1e_Learning.pdf

http://changingminds.org/techniques/listening/types_listening.htm

https://chinaipr2.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/mcdonalds.jpg

https://smilingculture.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/pavlov.jpg

https://monicaj7.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/pavlov-dogs.jpg

My Personality Task

Upon examining my life and determining what affected me and shaped me and my personality i realized that there has been many different thing that have made me who i am. However, I realized that the thing that shaped and molded my personality was my relationship with Jesus. Freshman year to senior year when i had a major shift in my personality it was because of Jesus and the work that he was doing in my life that turned me from being a bitter person to being a joyful and joy filled person. I also realized that the thing in my life that has been the most consistent, and will ream the most consistent in my life is my relationship with God and my faith in him. Another thing that i discovered was that the love and the nurture of my family and the others around me has shaped me and my personality mostly for the better. This caused me to remember some of the times in my best and i was able to recall them and basically relive the moments of my life. Also the morals and the personality that has developed in my over time has shaped what i am going to want in life, and want in the future. I want to be a family man first and foremost who is always there for his friends. I also realized that as I have aged I have become less and less socially inclined. I am still super social, but as I have aged i realized that i tend to be less social until i trust the ones around me. Ultimately this also showed me that it truly hope that I am not done growing yet, the only thing that I want to stop growing is my stomach outwardly. This has truly allowed me to see that in life there are a lot of things that determine what I was, what I am, and what I will be.