10 Things to Remember about Conflict Resolution, brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

Anger management and conflict resolution are a big part of the innovative WORK IN PROGRESS  series.  This series, like all the ARISE lessons, are interactive, dynamic and anything but boring! Work in Progress also features lessons on: drug prevention, peer pressure, alcohol abuse, gun safety, violence and domestic abuse and sexual abuse

Without further ado: 10 Things to Remember About Conflict Resolution.

If you keep doing what you’ve always done…

You’ll keep getting what you’ve always gotten.

ARISE Foundation Life Skills Training courses are dynamic, interactive, complete lessons that teach vital life skills. Over 1.5 million at-risk people have benefited from our unique curriculum over our 20 year history. Some of the programs we offer:

• How to manage anger & stress at work and in the home
• How to make a choice to let go of anger & stress
• How to avoid gangs, drugs, guns, violence and teen pregnancy
• How to maintain a healthy body
• Environmental Stewardship & Awareness
• AND MUCH MORE!

visit the website for more information: http://www.ariselife-skills.org or visit us on Facebook.

Life Skills Are Not Hereditary; They Must Be Taught

Ever struggle with anger or stress? Wish you could manage your finances more effectively or build stronger, more lasting relationships? Life Skills are the pieces of knowledge that get us through each day. They are taught to us by our parents, teachers and friends.

But what if they aren’t taught?

How do you teach Life Skills? Brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

At-risk youth have it tough. Many come from crumbling neighborhoods and broken homes. Some have had to endure abuse, both physical and verbal, violence, drug use and horrific neglect. That lack of guidance-of a strong adult role model-is part of what landed most of them into the juvenile justice system.

“At risk” means these kids and teens are in danger of becoming another statistic: another inmate in the crowded prison system…

Let Go and Forgive, Brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

A few weeks ago, ARISE founder Edmund Benson came across a fantastic article entitled “How To Let Go and Forgive” by Leo Babauta. The concepts in the article are so crucial to happiness, yet so difficult for most people to grasp. We have all been hurt by someone at some point in our lives. Everyone experiences pain; not everyone deals with it in the same way. Certain people make a conscious CHOICE to let go and forgive. It’s not easy, but the results can be liberating.

In his article, Mr. Babauta explained the following important points about holding onto anger and resentment:

1. You must commit to letting go.  It is a constant, conscious process.
2. Think of the problems that arise from holding pain inside you. Then think of how good it would feel to not have those problems any longer.
3. Realize that you have a CHOICE. No one is forcing you to harbor negative feelings. You can control your actions AND your thoughts. Remember that.
4. Put yourself in the other person’s shoes. Try to understand and empathize.
5. Try to understand your own responsibility for the situation. Could you have prevented it from happening?
6. Focus on the present. There is an old chinese proverb that says “the past is gone, the future is uncertain…but the present is a gift.” When you start dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, stop yourself and live in the moment. Find the joy in life NOW.
7. Breathe. Think of each breath as a vessel, moving positive energy in and negative energy out.
8. Feel compassion. Realize that by forgiving and moving on, you are allowing yourself happiness. This is not easy, especially when you harbor so much anger towards the person. Take the high road and wish happiness on the other person. Realize that when you hold anger inside, you are only hurting yourself.

ARISE understands the power of forgiveness, positive thought and making a choice to dump negativity. In fact, we created a training workshop called Drop it at the Door just for this purpose.  Drop it at the Door is a two-day workshop with the power to change your entire life. It was designed to help juvenile justice employees and those that work with at-risk and troubled youth, but it can work for anyone. If you find yourself bringing workplace frustration and anger home to your family, or dragging financial or relationship stress to work, CHOICES can help you. Learn how to manage your stress and anger, control your thoughts and make a choice to live a happy, healthy, positive lifestyle.

To learn more about the Drop it at the Door Training, visit the ARISE website.

25 Tips for controlling stress, brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

It’s a stressful world out there. Work, family relationships, traffic, economic worries, environmental concerns… it all adds up to life in a pressure cooker. What can you do when your heart is racing and you feel close to losing control?

Relax. ARISE to the rescue! Here are 25 helpful tips to bring a little peace to your life and help you handle the strains of everyday life.

If you like what you see, please visit the online store at http://www.ariselife-skills.org for more of our fantastic life skills materials.

25 TIPS TO CONTROL STRESS:

1. Confront problems, don’t ignore them.
2. Don’t be stressed when others tease or criticize you; they may just be envious of you.
3. Identify stressful situations in advance and keep a positive outlook.
4. Reach out to a new person in the neighborhood. Be aware of his feelings and invite him to join in the activities.
5. Ask others for support and guidance when faced with stressful situations.
6. Choose your own behavior. You CAN make a difference.
7. “There are thousands of causes for stress. One antidote to stress is self expression. That’s what happens to me every day. My thoughts get off my chest, down my sleeves and onto my pad.” – Elia Kazan
8. Don’t get stressed out over things that are out of your control. Life is too short to worry about things you can’t change.
9. Take deep breaths.
10. Work to eliminate the problems that you CAN change.

20 Tips for Managing Anger Brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

As the world gets more crowded, technology becomes more invasive and people become more stressed, anger management becomes a life-saving skill to master. Handling anger is a learned skill. It’s not easy. It takes time to reverse old habits and try on peace and forgiveness to see how it feels. Anger management is one of the cornerstones of ARISE Life Skills Training. For more information, please visit the website at http://www.ariselife-skills.org.

And now, 20 Tips for Managing Anger, as found in the GET SMART series:

ARISE Life Skills Training: What exactly does that mean?

Since 1986 ARISE Foundation has provided evidence based life skills training opportunities to organizations working with at-risk populations. Over the years, ARISE has been proven to make fundamental changes in the lives of troubled youth by increasing peacemaking skills such as conflict resolution, problem solving and self control.

Here is a breakdown of the kinds of training opportunities that ARISE offers:

ARISE 2-Day Life Skills Instructor Training (READ MORE)

–The 2-day life skills training course certifies participants on how to be ARISE Life Skills Instructors. This workshop is perfect for those with little to no teaching experience. ARISE Life Skills lessons are easy to understand, fun to teach and amazingly empowering for all involved. All ARISE lessons work for those with learning disabilities. The ARISE curricula adds structure to any program. It is non-sequential, meaning an instructor can open up a book and start anywhere. The lessons do not build upon each other, freeing the instructor to use whatever lessons they wish, whenever they wish.

The 5-Day Master Train The Trainer Course (READ MORE)

–This intensive 5-day workshop allows an individual to take the ARISE curricula and teach others at their organization how to effectively teach ARISE life skills to the youth in their care. The 5-day Train the Trainer course certifies participants as ARISE Life Skills Instructors, even if they have no formal teaching experience. Over the five days, attendees will learn how to comfortably conduct positive, interactive and engaging life skills workshops with the staff of their organization.

Drop It At The Door, 2-Day Training (READ MORE)

–The cornerstone of the ARISE Foundation’s Life Skills curricula is dealing with anger management. ARISE has many curricula for people on dealing with anger and conflict. ARISE developed the Drop It At The Door workshop for staff working with difficult  populations. Drop It At The Door training relieves stress and conflict in the workplace and reduces staff turnover. The focus is on interpersonal communication techniques, designed to effectively defuse conflicts before they become violent.Stress management and positivity makes this program vital for anyone who works in a stressful environment.

–Drop It At The Door helps people deal with the economic nightmare we are all experiencing: budgets being squeezed, sky-high weekly grocery bills, gas costs, credit card debt, foreclosures and unemployment.  The training solves the boomerang effect caused by stress and anger carried back and forth from work to home and vice versa. Drop It At The Door is perfect for people who work in high-stress occupations like police, corrections and probation officers.

To sign up for a training course, browse the hundreds of books in the ARISE Curricula or learn more about ARISE, visit the ARISE website or call Toll free 1 (888) 680-6100

10 Enlightening Quotes About Money and the Economy, Brought to you by ARISE Life Skills & Training

Bailouts, foreclosures and job losses, oh my! Each day seems to bring more bad news about the economy. Reading the newspaper or watching the news is enough to make anyone anxious about the future and the state of their finances. As we go through this trying time, remember that the country has been through this before and emerged stronger.  Here are some quotes about money and the economy from some of history’s greatest minds. Read them over, think about them and try to breath. Everything will work itself out. It always does.

1. You have not lived a perfect day, even though you have earned your money, unless you have done something for someone who will never be able to repay you. – Ruth Smeltzer
2. Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. The more a man has, the more he wants. Instead of filling a vacuum, it makes one. – Benjamin Franklin
3. So often we rob tomorrow’s memories by today’s economies. – John Mason Brown
4. Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks. – Warren Buffett
5. Anyone who thinks there is safety in numbers hasn’t looked at the stock market pages.  – Irene Peter
6. Men make counterfeit money. In many cases, money makes counterfeit men.  – Sydney J. Harris
7. It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it’s a depression when you lose yours. – Harry Truman
8. We must beware of trying to build a society in which nobody counts for anything except a politician or an official; a society where enterprise gains no reward and thrift no privileges. – Winston Churchill
9. Be fearful when others are greedy and be greedy only when others are fearful. – Warren Buffett
10. I never attempt to make money on the stock market. I buy on the assumption that they could close the market the next day and not reopen it for five years.  – Warren Buffett

Looking for more advice on how to manage your money, manage anger and handle stress? Visit the ARISE website and click on online store.

Life Skills Lesson of the Day: 20 Tips for Dealing with Depression

The first and best way to handle depression is to see a doctor. If you feel like you have a serious problem, do not hesitate to contact a mental health professional. Don’t be afraid to seek help.

Here are 20 Tips for Dealing with Depression, brought to you by the ARISE Foundation’s team of Life Skills Training experts:

1. Have a good cry and release the tension buildup.
2. Recognize that stress is a normal part of life. Everyone feels bummed at one time or another.