ABCD Part2

Well done Joan and MK! Joan you get the main point of it, but as you know the "Ang Mo" they always know how to name it. MK, you get half of it, good try. The answer is "Beliefs". Under beliefs not only irrational belief and there have rational beliefs as well. Why is beliefs and not expectation? According to this guys, Albert Ellis, "belief's" included a person's attitudes, expectations and personal rules.


Ok, then what is rational beliefs and what is irrational belief? Just a simple question, if some one say: " I must have my dinner 7pm tonight." Do you think this is rational or irrational? The answer is irrational. Why? The problem is the word "MUST". Who can be so sure that we can have our dinner in a exact time or place? There are so many unforeseen things around, like traffic or when you want to have you dinner and somebody come and visit you..... This is just a small issue in our life, how about if you say "I must earn my 1st million before 45 years old." This sound familiar right? What happen is we can do it? We will feel sad, disappointed etc... all kind of negative emotion will come up. So if that is the case, is that mean that we better don't have any goal in our life?

No, have a goal or target to achieve is very important. The only thing we need to do is change our irrational thinking to rational thinking. Say it or think it in a preference way. For example, we can just say "I will like to have my dinner 7pm tonight if i can." "I will try my best to earn my 1st million before 45." What do you think? Doesn't this sound much unstress?

Of cause we need to work hard to achieve some thing, but how is the result turn out, we need to accept it at a right/positive attitude. I like a chinese saying 只问耕耘，不问收获. Just work hard and the rewards will come by its own.

The ABCD I am sharing here actually is a councilling approach name RATIONAL- EMOTIVE & COGNITIVE- BEHAVIOR THERAPY. For those who are interested can visit this website http://www.rebt.org/ to read more about it. :)