Everyone goes through tough times. What makes those times tougher is when we withdraw from others, bottle up how we're feeling and are not willing to talk about it.
One of the best pieces of advice I've ever read, in Stephen Covey's First Things First, is how important it is to remember that while we cannot control everything that happens to us, we can always control how we respond.
If you feel things are not going well and you feel yourself spiralling, you'll be amazed how much better it feels to just talk to someone about it, get it off your chest.
Often, it is not until you get your feelings, your struggles, out in the open that you can start to see solutions. The person you open up to might even have some great advice.
It is up to all of us to be ready and willing to listen as well. It does not take much to provide a judgment-free environment and talk it out.
There is a bit of an old-school inclination in New Zealand, particularly among men, to hide our feelings, afraid of being considered weak.
My plea is that, while Movember has concluded, we all make an effort to talk about how we feel and ask each other how we are feeling.
Humans are designed to work with others, we are social beings, so make the most of it.
