What is Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?

Most people have heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy. It has less to do with knowing the future and more to do with shaping your future. Basically, when you believe something about yourself so fervently, it ends up becoming true. It may not have been true before, but because you thought it to be, it ended up being true.

In the world of dating and being a pick-up artist, these self-fulfilling prophecies are also known as self-limiting beliefs. They are the negative thoughts we have about ourselves, often about our insecurities and fears. For example, you think that no one understands your sense of humor. Maybe this belief came about through some experience, but the more you believe it, the less you try making jokes. Before you know it, people generally regard you as someone who isn't funny when the truth is that someone out there would probably laugh really hard at what you have to say.

These self-limiting beliefs affect the way you play the dating game. When you begin to believe that no one will appreciate a certain aspect of you or that you will never score a date with a certain woman because of some attribute, what you are doing is creating a mental barrier. You think that you can't hit on this woman, but the barriers you see are all in your head. So in the end, you can't hit on the woman, or if you try, you fail.

Now, the great thing about self-fulfilling prophecies and self-limiting beliefs is that they work both ways. They can be negative or positive. It's just that most people think negatively and so it often works in a negative way. So you know what that means, right? You can turn things around by thinking positively, and get it to work in a positive way! Easier said than done, I know, but you can get started now.

Start by writing down all your insecurities and fears, everything that stops you from having the confidence you need to approach a woman. Be honest with yourself and accept that these are the things you think. Now, look at your list. Can you change anything? Let's say you think you're very hairy. Is there anything you can do about it? Are you willing to do that? If the answer is yes, then do it! That's one belief killed.

For the ones you can't change, just accept them because you know what? If you ignore them, nobody is going to realize they exist! Or if they do see it, they're going to see that you don't care, and they won't give it importance either!

So get started on that list now! Take the first step to changing your self-limiting beliefs and make sure all your self-fulfilling prophecies yield positive results.

Read More

How Music Promotes Learning

Music is powerful. It can play a significant part in our lives contributing to positive academic, social, and emotional achievements. Using music in and outside of the classroom has been shown to positively influence children's abilities to process literature and mathematical concepts when used appropriately. Use music as a supplement to instruction, but do not rely on it for the purpose of boosting intelligence. Integrating musical experiences can create excitement for learning with the added bonus of supporting the advancement of developmental milestones.

Math Skills
Children who take piano lessons have been found to display a strong grasp on concepts involving fractional numbers, ratios, proportions, and problem solving. Piano training has also been linked to the improved ability to identify patterns in mathematical equations and when using math manipulatives to express calculations.

The number of beats that each individual note receives requires using proportional thinking. This thought process is a significant milestone in a child's development and is a critical component for reaching proficiency in mathematics. Proportional thinking involves comparing numbers and manipulating variables to gain a specific outcome.

Incorporating rhythm activities in the regular classroom supports learning the essentials of math. Fractions and multiplication skills are important foundations for more complex calculations. Understanding and applying note values contributes to learning how to correctly compute fractional numbers.

Spatial Reasoning
Spatial intelligence involves the ability to transform mental images into a concrete idea. Children who continually work to improve their musical skills have proven that they possess advanced spatial reasoning. These kids are able to visualize information and put meaning behind concepts that are more abstract. Students with strong spatial abilities identify similarities and differences in physical and intangible objects.

Social Skills
Being a part of a musical group supports the development of age-appropriate social skills. Kids learn to work cooperatively and communicate effectively with each other and their instructor. Constructive feedback is essential when perfecting musical performances. The ability to process positive and negative feedback supports kids to gain confidence and determination. Children also thrive when a musical presentation is performed well with encouraging responses.

Music Lessons
Supporting kids to learn how to play a musical instrument or in taking voice lessons has a positive effect on their academic work. Children who take music lessons have been found to grasp mathematical and sciences concepts with more ease than students who are not involved in advancing their musical talents. Learning to play the piano supports improved physical coordination and mental focus. Problem solving skills are increased. Children with developing musical skills tend to have stronger abstract thinking skills. Abstract thinking is the most complex form of thought that is required for drawing conclusions and adapting to situations.

Children who take voice lessons develop excellent pitch discrimination. This, in turn, has been found to support children in cultivating phonemic awareness. There is a clear connection between identifying musical sounds and applying letter sounds correctly while reading.

Background Music
Reliable research-based information is not totally conclusive about using background music in the classroom to enhance learning. However, using music during instruction could be used more as a classroom management tool. Differentiating instruction keeps students engaged; thereby reducing the amount of time the instructor spends on discipline. People traditionally think that a classroom needs to be quiet for the most efficient learning to take place. In some cases, the quiet is actually distracting. Students may be drawn to other actions or sound in the classroom if everything is quiet. Some soothing background noise can help cover environmental noise that causes distractions.

Popular music tends to be more distracting while instruction is taking place. Research has confirmed that loud and harsh tones interfere with concentration and comprehension of material. Some students are affected more so by background sound than others. Slow instrumental music without percussion is generally the best background music for learning situations.

How to Start Introducing Music into Your Classroom
Instrumental music appears to have the most relaxing effects and motivates both the left and right brain to work simultaneously. Learning and retention increase when both sides of the brain work at the same time. Music can be attributed to recalling specific events from our past. Try teaching targeted concepts while playing a specific piece of music that could be easily recalled. Engaging and simple classroom decorations and furniture, coupled with calming Baroque-era music, can support students to focus attentively and retain information more efficiently.

Experiment with background music in the classroom by starting out with Baroque-era pieces. Composers such as Bach, Pachelbel, Mozart, and Vivaldi are perfect to start. Choose pieces with a tempo of about 60 beats per minute and a moderately complex melody. Keep in mind that songs with constant repetition and an overly simple melody tend to be more distracting during learning.

Music can support students to work more productively. Songs with a faster tempo can increase energy and alertness. Experiment with different types of music with similar tempos. One study has shown that the ability to visually recognize images is increased with classical music playing in the background. Use this to your benefit when teaching letters, numbers, or anything that requires visual learning.

Try teaching your students musical notation and fingerings using a recorder. This simple and inexpensive instrument can be included in school supply lists for each child. Kids will quickly be intrigued and eager to perform basic melodies individually and as a class. Use this opportunity to build confidence in your students and enhance their academic skills simultaneously.

Read More

20 Things You Must Know About Kissing

1 Only you: Human lips are different from those of all other animals because they are everted, meaning that they purse outward.

2 But we are not the only species to engage in kissing-like behaviors. Great apes press their lips together to express excitement, affection, or reconciliation.

3 Scientists are not sure why humans kiss, but some think the answer lies in early feeding experiences. Through nursing and (in some cultures) receiving pre-chewed food from a parent's mouth, infants may learn to associate lip pressure with a loving act.

4 Another possibility: Smelling a loved one's cheek has long served as a means of recognition in cultures around the world. Over time, a brush of the lips may have become a traditional accompaniment.

5 And yet kissing is not universal, leading some experts, like anthropologist Vaughn Bryant of Texas A&M, to think it might actually be a learned behavior.

6 The Roman military introduced kissing to many non-kissing cultures; later it was European explorers who carried the torch.

7 Being close enough to kiss helps our noses assess compatibility. In a landmark study, evolutionary biologist Claus Wedekind of the University of Lausanne in Switzerland reported that women prefer the scents of men whose immunity-coding genes are different from their own. Mixing genes that way may produce offspring with a stronger immune system.

8 Wedekind's experiment, widely known as the sweaty T-shirt study, involved very little sweat. Male participants were asked to shower beforehand so their scent would be faint.

9 The earliest literary evidence for kissing comes from northern Indias Vedic Sanskrit texts, written 1,000 to 2,000 years ago. A portion of the Satapatha Brahmana mentions lovers setting mouth to mouth.

10 Love Is the Drug: Dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with feelings of desire and reward, spikes in response to novel experiences, which explains why a kiss with someone new can feel so special.

11 In some people, a jolt of dopamine can cause a loss of appetite and an inability to sleep, symptoms commonly associated with falling in love.

12 Can't Get Enough of Your Love: Dopamine is produced in the ventral tegmental area of the brain, the same region affected by addictive drugs like cocaine.

13 In men, a passionate kiss can also promote the hormone oxytocin (video), which fosters bonding and attachment, according to behavioral neuroscientist Wendy Hill of Lafayette College in Pennsylhovania.

14 Holding hands and kissing reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol, thereby lowering blood pressure and optimizing immune response.

15 And a passionate kiss has the same effect as belladonna in making our pupils dilate.

16 Prelude to a Kiss: Two-thirds of all people turn their head to the right when kissing, according to psychologist Onur Gntrkn of Ruhr-University Bochum in Germany. This behavior may mirror the head-turning preference observed in babies and even in fetuses.

17 Evolutionary psychologists have discovered that men are far more likely to prefer sloppy tongue kisses than women.

18 The exchange of saliva could provide a reproductive advantage for males. During an open-mouthed kiss, a man passes a bit of testosterone to his partner. Over weeks and months, repeated kissing could enhance a female's libido, making her more receptive to sex.

19 Always brush and floss, boys. Evolutionary psychologist Gordon Gallup of the State University of New York at Albany found that when deciding whether to kiss someone, women pay much closer attention than men do to the breath and teeth of their partner.

20 You Give Love a Bad Name: One milliliter of saliva contains about 100,000,000 bacteria.

Tags:
Human lips, nursing, learned behavior, offspring, immune system, female's libido, cortisol, belladonna, oxytocin, ventral tegmental area of the brain, falling in love, sweaty T-shirt study

Read More

A passionate kiss can promote the hormone Oxytocin which fosters bonding and attachment

Tags:
Human lips, nursing, learned behavior, offspring, immune system, female's libido, cortisol, belladonna, oxytocin, ventral tegmental area of the brain, falling in love, sweaty T-shirt study

Read More