This article will discuss books on how to open up emotionally, which will help you immensely be more emotionally open with others and learn about yourself.
There are many books on this topic and, in fact, it’s hard to know where to start if you have a lot of catching up to do. First, remember, you will never be perfect, but this is a great start.
The Power Of Play by Andrea Arden
I actually had to go out and buy this book because I couldn’t get a library copy. The reason was, I was never really told about playing as a child, and I believe that it is a cornerstone of humanity if you allow it.
The author describes how kids are taught to listen, walk, talk, look at the sky, and even sleep, yet many people are not taught to play. And I don’t mean lying down on the floor game or watching TV for hours.
I mean actually doing something that is meaningful to them and that they feel the thrill of.
The Power Of Play explores this in very simplistic terms and gives simple guidelines for learning how to play. Most of us play so sporadically that we forget how to do it.
And we live with that lack. We have to start as soon as possible to save our lives as grown-ups.
The Power of Full Engagement by John C. Maxwell
“We can’t choose what we feel or think. But we can choose how we react to our feelings.
When we feel good about ourselves, we can have an attitude of gratitude. When we feel bad, we can have an attitude of acceptance.
When we’re engaged and happy, we can smile and laugh. When we’re engaged and angry, we can speak wisely and act thoughtfully.
When we’re engaged and confused, we can think wisely and act ignorantly.”
The author explains that many people are doing a great job on the outside when, on the inside, they feel insecure, inadequate, unhappy, and disconnected. He shares why it is important to feel good about yourself and what happens to people who do not feel good.
The power of full engagement is a simple formula that gives a well-ordered and practical approach to handling life’s ups and downs.
On Being There by Pema Chodron
“I’m asking the world for a little more room to be there instead of there in my face. A little less rushing to come in, take over, offer solutions, then go running away.
I’m asking the world to allow for a little more space to be there. The more space we have to be there, the more we can actually be there.”
I’m not a religious person, but I know that, in Buddhism, one of the tenets is not to lose the opportunity to be there for others. This book is a classic that I like to reread often because it always reinforces this idea.
If you cannot be present for someone, then be present for yourself. If you are not present for yourself, then you cannot be there for anyone else.
The Art Of Letting Go by Joseph Campbell
“It’s never too late to begin.”
In this book, Joseph Campbell recounts the most important teaching of life concisely and poetically. He talks about how life is a river that we must flow through.
But, we must not swim upstream against the current but follow it and do the things that flow with the current. We cannot run the river.
And, so many of us let go of things too soon and try to swim against them. It doesn’t work.
The trick is to let go, and then, before you know it, you are flowing with the current. The trick is not to run.
There are certain things in life that we must take care of ourselves before we can help others. But we can still be of help, with the right attitude, without acting on impulse and without being careless with people’s feelings.
The Penpal Project by Jodi House
“We can choose our most precious treasures—our friends, our family, our sense of humor. We can choose to keep our companionship alive even after they have passed.
We can choose to preserve love, not fade it out.”
This book is my spirit animal. I think it’s pretty much on a par with Dr. Seuss’s ABC and a few chapters from C.S. Lewis’s Voyage To the Pole.
This is a great read for anyone who is feeling lonely or has experienced the loss of someone fighting an addiction. It is filled with beautiful quotes, musings, and poetry that remind us that we are never alone and always connected to something bigger.
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
“I’m quite sure you can learn to be a good talker. But are you ready to learn to be a good listener? Will you ever know what you do not know?
Will you have the tenacity to stick to the facts when so much of the world seems to have gotten religion on you?
All the success in the world will not bring you true happiness unless you can make peace with yourself.”
This book is an easy read and has proven to be a compelling book. The only weakness is that it is a little too “old-school” for modern society, which often takes a different view.
As a writer, I often feel misunderstood, misunderstood, misunderstood! This book reminds us that everyone is on the same side.
Everyone is trying to accomplish the same goals. Everyone wants the same things.
Wanderlust: Exploring the Mysterious Value of the First Year by Karen Armstrong
“You are not dead, nor do you have to settle for being in the same place you were yesterday. You have not reached the end of your journey.
You have not died. And yet, you are not at peace. That’s how it goes for all of us.”
This book describes the entire first year of life and, by the end, I felt so much more connected to my journey. It doesn’t matter where you are; you must not settle, but carry on, keep your eyes focused on the horizon and not forget that this place is not the end.
My wife told me once that it helps her to read a book like this at the beginning of a year because it reminds her that everything she does—from where she eats a meal to what she watches on television—has meaning, and all it takes is the right attitude and mindset.
Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk
“One idea dominates the world; only one idea; the belief that there is no other idea than your idea, that it is an absolute truth, that there is no chance for an alternative.”
This book came out 20 years ago, and it could not be more relevant. Its book-length story tells the story of a group of characters who get together to try to turn an abandoned English estate into something resembling a community with a cooperative economy and free public services.
Here are a few tools that you can use to develop emotional intelligence and open up emotionally. These tools are designed to help you move beyond being conditioned to being emotionally connected.
Affirmations
This is a potent tool for connecting with your emotions. When you’re open emotionally, you will notice that you are less reactive.
You will notice that your reactions are less drastic.
It takes practice to develop the ability to accept your emotions and accept what other people are feeling.
One of the benefits of affirmations is that they can strengthen your ability to accept your emotions because when you affirm what you’re feeling, you become aware of it.
Instead of being objective and detached from your emotions, affirmations will help you accept your emotions and understand your emotions. When you affirm your emotions, you become aware of them, and you begin to notice what’s happening in your mind and body when you feel a certain way.
One way to affirm yourself is to repeat to yourself what you want. For example, if you want to be aware of your emotions, you could say: “I am aware of my emotions.”
Or, if you want to connect to others, you could say, “I feel connected to my emotional connections.”
A more practical way to affirm yourself is to say affirmations that are to do with positive feelings. For example, you could say, “I am grateful for my body.”
You could also say, “I feel safe.”
Affirmations are potent because they are precise. For example, you can say something like, “I am grateful for all of my positive feelings.”
This is specific. If you were to repeat this to yourself every day, you would begin to really notice the emotional energy.
You will begin to feel it. You will begin to feel the positivity that you are feeling.
But you could also be more general with your affirmations. One way to be more general with your affirmations is to try saying affirmations about gratitude.
You could say things like, “I feel grateful for my physical health.” “I feel grateful for my emotional health.” “I feel grateful for my financial health.”
By saying affirmations about gratitude, you’re becoming more aware of your positivity and your compassion, and you’re acknowledging it. This is saying to yourself, “You’re grateful for what I’m feeling in this moment.”
Exercise
Exercise is known to improve our physical and mental well-being. Exercise has also been shown to improve our emotional well-being.
When we exercise, we activate the stress-busting chemicals in our brain that relieve our brain’s pressure from stress.
If you do some exercise and feel your heart rate increasing, you will feel it in your body. You’ll feel like it’s there.
Exercise is known to provide a sensation of pleasure in our body and the feeling of having more energy and feeling refreshed.
It’s the same when we open up emotionally. When we’re more emotionally connected, we have more energy.
We’re more mentally and emotionally stimulated. Our heart rate increases more.
Our blood flows more. This helps us to make wiser choices.
This helps us to be happier and to live more fully.
Yoga
Yoga has been shown to improve our emotional and mental well-being. We know that yoga makes us happier.
It reduces depression. It helps us to feel more calm and relaxed.
When we practice yoga, we naturally feel our minds’ presence, and we begin to be more aware of what’s happening within our bodies.
Meditation
Some people have said that meditation is helpful because it increases our awareness and our sense of compassion. The feeling of compassion is a feeling of caring and concern for other people and the animals and plants around us.
As we become more compassionate, we become more connected to each other and our surroundings. We become less stressed, and we experience a sense of serenity.
