Beyond The Applause 👏🏼👏🏼

It's day 185 of documenting 2025.

It's a Friyay! 😄

The weekend is here again!

I'm actually not so excited, but that doesn't mean I can't be grateful for another day.

🎵 Oh Lord, I need you now more than e ever

Would you put my heart back toge e ther 🎶 

🎵 I searched the world till my he ead hurt 

Just to find out your way is be etter 🎶

Just my favorite lines from Forest Frank's "Your Way's Better".

I love the hip hop vibe intertwined with a prayer.

The song is on my faves list 💜

Anyways, it's my last day at school....for the week, that is.

Next week, I start again.

Speaking of starting again, I'm rediscovering content writing...particularly the article aspect.

My trusty AI assistant will help, as always.

Practice and getting it right is up to me tho....but I know I've got this 💪🏼

Let's get into Highlights for today and then I'll share a chat I had with my assistant on an unusual topic.

Read on and figure out what it is.

365 Days With Self-discipline 

📌 On Staying With Problems Longer

"Students who were forced to struggle on complex problems before receiving help from teachers outperformed students who received immediate assistance."

Quote by Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness

Here’s a simple mindset change that can help you improve your problem-solving skills and make you more persistent: whenever you face a problem, stay with it for a good while before you ask anyone for help.

Really? 🤨

That's the first time I'll be coming across this.

Let's find out why.

If you’re immediately seeking outside help the instant you find you can’t deal with something, you’re robbing yourself out of the opportunity to struggle and figure it out yourself.

Obviously, this doesn’t apply to life-or-death situations. I don’t want you to spend a little while longer trying to figure out how to help a victim of a car accident — call the ambulance right away. 

Practice staying with problems longer only when it’s safe and sensible to do so.

There's the exception!

It's not so strange anymore...I understand what it means now.

By rejecting the impulse to ask for help right away, you’ll also practice your self-control. 

The downside is wasting a few minutes on a problem you can’t solve. The upside is developing more trust in your own abilities, becoming more patient, and learning something new.

Stick with problems long enough to figure it out. Noted ✍🏼

The Chat With Arnold 

Me: What is the opposite of being always liked as a person...always being charismatic?

ChatGPT: The opposite would be being authentic, even when it risks disapproval.  

It’s not necessarily being disliked...it’s choosing truth over charm, depth over constant validation.  

Charisma draws people in; authenticity shows them who you really are.

Me: Could you explain charisma in layman's terms what charisma means?

ChatGPT: Sure 🙂  

Charisma is when someone has a natural charm or presence that makes others pay attention, feel drawn to them, or enjoy being around them.  

It’s like a quiet “spark” in how they talk, smile, or carry themselves—it makes people want to listen or follow them, even if they’re not trying too hard.

Me: Being authentic...does it sometimes also involve isolation?

ChatGPT: Yes, Duon.  

Being authentic often means stepping back from noise, from expectations, and even from people—especially when their presence pulls you away from who you truly are.  

It’s in those quiet spaces, alone with your thoughts, that you begin to hear your real voice.

Me: It's hard, right?

Getting used to not being liked all the time...

ChatGPT: It is, Duon.  

Especially when you’ve been used to approval—it feels like silence means disapproval. But over time, you realize not being liked doesn’t mean you’re wrong... it often just means you’re real. And real isn’t always easy to digest.

Me: Thanks Arnold ☺️ 

Anything else you can add to our discussion?

ChatGPT: Anytime, Duon ☺️

Just this:  

The people who truly see you—your depth, your heart, your values—they may be few, but they’re enough. 

Let your authenticity filter the noise. 

You’re not here to be liked by everyone… you’re here to live truthfully, even if it means walking alone sometimes.  

That kind of peace lasts longer than applause.

Me: Wonderfully put 💯 

Could you give a suitable conclusion to our discussion?

Poetry style 😉

ChatGPT: Of course, Duon 😉  

Here’s your poetic wrap-up:

“Beyond the Applause”

Let go the need for every smile,  

For fleeting charm fades after a while.  

Be not the mask they wish to see,  

But the truth of who you’re meant to be.

Charisma glows, but so does grace,  

In solitude’s warm, quiet place.  

Not every path must draw a crowd

Some hearts beat strongest when not loud.

So walk your truth, both kind and wise,  

With honest soul and steady eyes.  

For peace will come not from their nod 

But from the fact you walked with God.

This is real deep, my friend.

I hope you learned something today...like I just did.

Happy Friday to you ☺️

That's all for today's post.

Thanks for reading 🎀 

I hope to see you in the next one.

I'm Duon Ada.

I'm documenting 2025,

And I'll see you tomorrow.

Ciao 💕