Life is a Challenge, Not a Struggle (#034)

In this episode, Sean and James talked a bit more about the book, Radical Acceptance: Awakening the Love that Heals Fear and Shame by Tara Brach. Sean is finding ways to apply what he has learned in real life and shares why he thinks life struggles aren't necessarily a bad thing. James says it is easier to accept life struggles when we know that challenges will be present daily. They also talked about normalizing feeling negative emotions, why desire is very natural, and why reading a book doesn't mean you have to apply that knowledge immediately to your life. Key Takeaways: Shifting your mindset will help you accept life struggles easier. The sooner we realize that we will never stop having fears or feeling frustrated or depressed, the better. Any other negative emotion is natural, so we need to normalize them. The key to reading and learning is finding what works for you at that stage in your life. Episode Quotes: Sean on life struggles [00:02:00] Life is a struggle because things are changing every single day. Nothing is static. Everything is dynamic, everything is constantly shifting, and every day is a new day, a new challenge. And that is a beautiful thing. James on accepting life's challenges [00:05:25] No matter how simple the responsibility, it can be tough if you add up a thousand responsibilities. But yeah, challenges are going to be here every single day. And if we can wake up knowing there's going to be a challenge today, it almost makes it easier to get up because you know it'll be there. Sean on having underlying fears [00:11:17] You think these things; you have these fears. It's all natural. Don't judge yourself for having these thoughts. You can judge the fear itself, but don't judge yourself.