1 . Four Top Skills I’ve Learned From My Kids

In my journey as an entrepreneur (企业家), one of the best sources of leadership development is parenthood. There’s one thing that being a parent and being a business leader have in common.     1    . So what are some of the lessons that parenthood can teach us about business leadership?

As a parent, I’ve learned that there’s only so much control you can really have over your kids. They need to make their own decisions — and mistakes — and learn from them. You can try to control your kids when they are young.     2     .

    3     . You never know when someone might get hurt or sick and make troubles in your plans. Parenthood is a non-stop exercise in flexibility and adjusting to difficulties. The business world can be much the same way.

We all make mistakes, and it can be tempting to hide those mistakes, especially from people you want to look up to you. But since we teach our kids to admit when they’ve made a mistake and apologize if they hurt someone, it’s important that we do the same when we make a mistake that hurts them.

Emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills for effective leadership. And there’s nothing like being a parent to help you better understand people’s emotions and motivations.     5     . The empathy is a valuable skill for a business leader.

2 . How Helping Others Benefits You

Everyone wants to lead a happy and fulfilling life, so it’s natural to want to put yourself and your health first! However, helping other people can also directly help you at the same time.

Here are a few ways that helping others can benefit you：

·Attract more back to you.

When you give, you’re more likely to receive. You don’t necessarily need to keep the receiving in mind when you decide to give, but nature may just take its course.    1     Maybe you’ll come across some good fortune.

·Bring you a good feeling.

If you volunteer your time to help others, you’re sharing your blessings with those less fortunate, which is a wonderful gift to give! You’ll likely return home after volunteering with a smile on your face.    2    

·Heighten self-esteem.

When you help others, you may be helping yourself to a heightened self-esteem. A positive result for your good deeds enables you to feel pride in your accomplishments.    3    

·    4    

After you’ve done something nice, you may also find that your confidence increases. The fact that your helpful acts have turned out so positive might lead you to the confidence you need in your own life.

·Be more positive about your own situation.

Sometimes you’ll find that you’re your own worst critic. You might accept the faults of others, but you may be less likely to accept your own. Helping others can help you to accept your own situation and your own faults.    5    

Seek out opportunities, today, to help others. You’ll be glad you did!

3 . Do you know that you can instantly change your state of mind just by smiling? Science has shown that when we produce a smile, our brain releases feel-good hormones (荷尔蒙) that reduce stress. You’ve already experienced the effects of smiling and laughing with friends and family — it’s an instant, free and joyful action.     1    

In a study, scientists Tara Kraft and Sarah Pressman studied 170 participants who were taught to hold chopsticks in their mouths in three different ways, making them smile to various degrees, while performing a stressful task. The experiment revealed that subjects whose facial muscles were forced into the biggest smiles, due to the chopsticks, experienced a substantial reduction in their heart rate along with quicker stress recovery.

Have you ever smiled at someone and not received a smile back? It may have happened a handful of times, but it’s usually the exception, not the rule.     2    

If you were waiting in line for a coffee and you could choose between a smiling server and one with a neutral expression on their face, who would you pick to take your order?     3     For me, compared to someone who is displaying a neutral or bad expression, a smiling person is going to seem more trustworthy.

    4     My sincere intention is to give you a deeper understanding of the mind-body connection, and access to simple tools to make a positive change in your life.

Whenever you find yourself in a stressful situation, be sure to smile.     5    

Many of you may be familiar with the     1     that all of us are connected to everyone else by an average of about six people. It was first mentioned in the 1920s by a Hungarian author Frigyes Karinthy who discussed social     2     .

In 1967, an American sociologist called Stanley Milgram tried using a new method to test the theory, which he called the “small-world problem”. The experiment involved     3     of people who lived in America and giving them a parcel as well as the name, job and location of a stranger somewhere else in the country. The aim of the experiment was for the person to try to     4     to this stranger by sending it to someone they thought might know them. That person in turn did the same until the parcel reached the person it was supposed to.

Although hard to believe, it only took about five to seven people for the     5     to reach the person! The results were     6     and published by a magazine called Psychology Today and inspired the     7    , “Six Degrees of Separation”.

5 . For some people gratitude comes naturally; other people may have to actively think about being grateful for what they have. But it doesn’t matter how you get there as long as you do.     1     These are several benefits that it can bring you:

Being grateful for what you have could reduce social comparisons about money and success. These comparisons can lower self-esteem (自尊心).     2     It is likely that being grateful helps people focus on the positive things and puts them in a better condition of mind.

    3    . Expressing thankfulness to the people you are close to for the contributions they have made has been linked to happy relationships. In other people’s eyes, you are a kind person to get along with.

A study found that grateful people are more likely to say that they are in good physical health. The researchers found people who express gratitude are more likely to take part in healthy activities and ask for medical help when they need it.     4    

Gratitude is a good act. It can make you a more empathetic person.     5     For example, to get students to better understand others’ feelings, a Canadian education project brings babies into the classroom to teach the students to care for others.

Humour has been an essential part of human behaviour and can not only entertain but     1     throw new light on sensitive or emotive issues. Mark Twain is remembered for his ability     2     (combine) humour with more serious messages. Twain’s particular style of writing is     3     (fun) and often mischievous. For example, in his classic novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, he famously says, “Writing is easy. All you have to do is     4     (cross) out the wrong words.”

Lin,     5     became famous for his unique brand of humour, brought the concept of humour to modern Chinese literature. In 1924, he     6     (creative) borrowed “youmo” from Ancient Chinese as the translation for the English word “humour”. “Youmo”     7     (use) still in this way today.

Humour isn’t just about laughter,     8     is a way of life and a tool that can be used to illuminate the world. Lin even created an equation     9     (explain) this concept: Reality + Dreams + Humour = Wisdom. Living and working with others can sometimes be complicated, and humour makes this easier.     10     (share) jokes and laughing together can bring individuals and even communities together. Mark Twain says, “Humor is mankind’s greatest blessing”.

7 . Body language is an essential part of how we communicate with others, and in some situations, it can be even more important than our words. It can either build trust and improve your relationships or do the exact opposite.     1    

Most body language problems result from one basic issue: incongruity（不一致）. When your body language doesn’t correspond with what you’re saying, it sends mixed messages about your genuine feeling, according to body language expert Carol.     2     Some experts share the most common body language mistakes they see and how to fix them.

Standing with rounded shoulders, contracting（收缩）your chest, and keeping your elbows close to your side may be your effort to look smaller or less intimidating. However, the way you stands makes you look weak, Goman says. How can you fix this?     3     “Keeping your posture straight, your shoulders back, and your head held high makes you look confident and powerful,” she explains.

Casting your eyes up and to the loft when you are recalling a story or an event is a common body language “telling” that you might be lying, says body language and relationship expert Nicole Moore     4     “Make sure you look people in the eye, and try not to roll your eyes back into your head,” Moore says.

    5     But some people go too far in the other direction and try to stay perfectly quiet while others arc talking. However, natural listeners will make some gestures and noises to show they are paying attention, LeClair says. Nodding, smiling, leaning in, and making small verbal responses （“Mmm-hmm” or “Oh, I see”） all show genuine interest and enhance the connection with the person you’ re speaking with, she adds.

8 . “People have been 53 there and standing there and taking pictures of each other，” Ro says. “The town square was totally full ...”

How to quickly integrate (融入) into the new community after moving into a new home? Here’s some advice. When you move into neighborhood or into an apartment building, it is    1     (absolute) all right to introduce yourself to your new neighbors. You can send them notes about who you are and invite them to    2     informal housewarming party. However, activities    3     (hold) to celebrate this day don’thave to be grandiose (浮夸的).

When you move to a new neighborhood, find your way around    4     (use) a map of the area if necessary. Try to make friends with the clerks at the local stores, restaurants and banks. By doing so,it is possible that they’ll go out of their way    5     (help) you when you need special support.

All neighborhoods have community activities. If you have school­age children, you should try to become    6     (act) in school­related activities. Local clubs and community discussions are regarded as important    7     (method) for community involvement. One of them is Speech Club,     8     exists in many communities and    9     (give) people the opportunity to speak in public. You’ll be welcome to attend a meeting    10     a guest.

10 . Several studies suggest there are some very good reasons to think about ways to be kind and friendly plan out that type of behavior.     1     Researchers also say kindness played an important part in how humans developed. In other words, they say scientific evidence suggests that we are designed to be kind.

Oliver Curry is the research director at Kindlab, a non-profit organization.     2     Curry claims that “kindness is much older than religion.” “The basic reason why people are kind is that we are social animals.” he explained.

    3     University of London psychologist Anat Bardi studies value systems in people. In one study, researchers gave people a list of values - such as kindness, creativity, ambition, tradition, security, and seeking social justice. When asked to pick the most important, kindness won.

But research shows that our bodies can also reward us for being kind. University of California Riverside psychology professor Sonja has tested this idea in many experiments over the past 20 years. In one experiment, she asked people to perform three acts of kindness for other individuals each week. She asked a different group to do three acts of self-kindness.     4     The people who were kind toothers reported feeling happier and more connected to the world.

    5     Sonja studied a group of people with the disease multiple sclerosis (多发性硬化). She found that they felt better physically when helping others. Her research also showed that people who performed more acts of kindness had less inflammation (发炎) in their bodies.