Psychology

We tend to think that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But, as a study suggests, this isn’t necessarily true. In fact, the truth is somewhere in the middle. Standards of attractiveness are, indeed, broadly shared, however, our personal preferences play quite a big role too.

There are many signs that can indicate a person has issues with self-esteem. Many of them have already been discussed by psychologists and are still being examined carefully. However, those not connected with science also have their own understanding of self-esteem and the signs that show a person should reconsider the way they behave.

Up to 80% of the information we receive from a person in conversation is transmitted non-verbally. A lot of the time though, we don’t understand precisely what feelings they’re trying to express through their body.

To figure out how a person feels about you, you don’t have to be straightforward and ask them right away. It’s enough to pay closer attention to the body language of this person. Their gestures can reveal a lot about them.

Double standards mean applying the same rule or situation differently to one group of people than to another. Perhaps the most wide-spread double standards can be seen in gender-related matters but are also there in every other sphere of our lives. The most surprising thing is that oftentimes we ourselves apply those standards to the people surrounding us and don’t even notice it.

There are 7 basic personality traits of difficult people. They include grandiosity, aggressiveness, callousness, suspiciousness, manipulation, risk-taking, and domineering. And while there’s nothing we can do to make these people more easygoing, we can help ourselves by being prepared for the next time we face an argument with this kind of person.

For many years, our parents and grandparents have lived by a set of rules that were considered normal. “Get married when you’re 20 years old,” “That’s not for men,” “Boys don’t cry” — how many times have we heard something like this? But life goes on, the times are changing, and now we see many things from a different angle.

We’ve all had moments where we wished we could read what others were thinking, pretending we were superheroes that could read minds. But what if we told you that you can actually read people just by observing their body language?Despite the power of words, sometimes they can be translated differently with the wrong body movements or gestures. Yet, most of our body language is connected to our subconscious mind, and we find ourselves doing things that come out so naturally, we only realize it after doing it.

Scientists say that smart people don’t pay much attention to other people’s advice. Moreover, people, in general, tend to rely on their own opinion more. However, we keep hearing some phrases so often that it seems they have been recorded in our brains, from “be smart,” to “don’t react,” to “follow your dreams.”

Some people, consciously or subconsciously, often have attitudes that can be hurtful to others. These can range from derogatory gestures and constant criticism to ironic comments, name-calling, and disapproval. These are all forms of behavior that don’t really have a positive impact on our well-being. However, while we can’t prevent others from acting this way, the way we react when these things happen can make a difference.

The demand for the services of psychotherapists keeps growing every year. Alas, not each person is lucky enough to be born with parents who resemble the characters of a book about a happy family. Sometimes mothers and fathers criticize and mock their children, ignore them, or compare them with other siblings.

Your life may turn into a prison if your parents constantly say you’re not good enough. This affects one’s adult life greatly, leaving you without self-confidence, opinions, and a critical voice inside you. Healing doesn’t come in a strike of willpower, but with the right advice, it may turn into a journey you need and can endure.

Bright Side took the liberty to draw funny and honest comics about the differences between men and women. And yes, we’ve got our peculiarities, but remember, the main thing is that even though we’re different, we just can’t live without one another.

The difference between men and women does exist but it’s not as big as it’s believed to be. And, of course, these differences are no reason to say that one of the sexes is better than the other. In most cases, gender prejudice is related to women, but men also suffer from discrimination. Saying that “boys don’t cry” is just one example of toxic masculinity — a set of rules for men that continually prevents them from living life to the fullest.

Even though we know that a lot of problems come from our childhood, we still rarely talk about the relationships between parents and children. We say things like, “Well, she’s my mom,” “They’ve done everything for me — I should be thankful.” We don’t often talk about negative feelings toward our parents. However, the things they sometimes do may make some people feel really anxious, even when they grow up.

There are some phrases that people use as guidelines in their lives. But very often, our experience tells us that they are not really true. Of course, phrases like, “Looks don’t matter,” or “If you tell me the truth you won’t get into trouble,” are partially true, but there are a lot of nuances.

Childhood, a time when we’re taken care of as fragile and vulnerable people is quite different than adulthood. As adults, we begin to follow a new set of rules and understand over time that we’re interesting to ourselves only. There’s no one to push us toward success, give us their shoulder to cry on, or praise us when we’ve done something good. And ultimately, there are always going to be people who are smarter, better, and more attractive than us.

Let’s face it, no one knows every little detail when getting hired for a new job. There isn’t a global rule book that tells you what to do and what to avoid doing. These are things that come with experience and after making quite a few mistakes first. Yes, you know the basics like being civil and polite, but you still need to learn what to say when your boss asks you something tricky.

A person’s mind is as full of surprises as the depths of the ocean. Scientists are constantly studying the brain and learning more about new patterns of behavior. And the number of surprises is growing! For example, did you know that the smarter a person is, the fewer friends they have? Well, we didn’t. So now you can easily detect a genius among your friends.

Even if we’re lying convincingly, our body tells it all. And this is usually because body language is simply ignored by a liar, who instead, puts all their focus on their words and facial expressions just like any other person. Psychologists believe that the key to detecting lies is revealed in body language for this reason, and if we shift our attention to it, we can catch just about any fib.

We all have something we’d like to accomplish. For some, it might be learning how to cook, for others, it might be building a home business. All equally valid and, for many of us, all equally hard. Especially when we have other things that occupy our days. And truth be told, habits that are settled are so hard to change.

Parents wish their children only the best but sometimes, they unintentionally hurt them with their love and overprotection. They might send mixed signals, ignore their children’s opinions, or break the rules they’ve set themselves. And even if the adults mean well, such actions can make kids feel confused and unsure of how they should act in the world.

The human brain can act really weird sometimes! It makes us behave irrationally, believe in total nonsense, and can even change our memories. However, every decision we make is made for a reason. So what exactly is it that determines the choices you make?

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we can barely control our actions. In this case, it doesn’t refer to emotional outbursts but rather situations where someone tries to intrude in your mind and change things there. Bright Side describes powerful tricks of psychological influence that will help you recognize situations where someone is trying to manipulate or trick you. Now that you know them, you’ll be able to avoid any mind trap.