Has a text message ever ruined your day?

Have you ever been at work and received a text from a friend or partner that derailed you for the rest of your work day?

Chances are, it’s not a huge conflict.

Maybe you’re just feeling a little disconnected – from your partner, or your mom, or your housemate – and you find yourself worrying about what might be the cause.

All day in your mind, you’re flipping back and forth between thinking it’s their fault, and then that it’s your fault, or maybe that it’s both of your faults.

According to one of my favorite teachers, Daniel Seigel, the founder of interpersonal neurobiology and author of “The Developing Mind”:

“Our relational connections shape our neural connections.”

In other words, what’s happening in YOUR mind and brain is a direct result of the relationships you have with other people.

So, by learning better ways of relating to others, you can change your brain for the better.

And get a lot more of the things that matter to you done. Like exercising, eating well, contributing at work, and finding your highest expression of purpose during this time of increasing instability in the world.

There are lots of ways to cultivate relational skills, but the best approaches are those that you find fun, because then you’ll do them!