How to thrive as a highly sensitive person
In this noisy world, being highly sensitive is a challenge. But learn to manage overwhelm and you can reap the upsides too
by Jadzia Jagiellowicz
Ideas
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Guides
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How to alter the passage of time to feel fast or slow
Knowing the psychology behind why moments drag or whizz by can give you a degree of control over your experience of time
by Martin Wiener
How to anticipate and cope with mania
If you have bipolar disorder, you can learn to play an active role in managing your symptoms and live a fulfilling life
by Kim Pape & Sheri Johnson
Life stories
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Editor’s picks
Why some of the smartest people can be so very stupid
Struggling to understand is perfectly honourable. Being wilfully stupid is something else and we should strive to fix it
by Sacha Golob
What we gain by recognising the role of chance in life
Appreciating the world is random can foster perseverance, gratitude for our own luck and empathy for the plight of others
by Mark R Rank
Latest videos
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Cults needn’t fit stereotypes to be dangerous. Here’s how to identify a controlling social group
Video by BBC Ideas
Why the mental health awareness movement needs more precision and fewer vibes
In an elegy for his childhood home, a filmmaker constructs a lyrical collage of memory
There’s joy in doing a job right. Just ask this artisanal pencil-sharpener
There’s a nourishing calm in quietly wandering, far from goals and distractions
‘You are me; I am you’ – a trans poet’s evocative message to her former self
High in the Alps, Kathleen takes extraordinary steps to keep a pet safe through the winter
Notes to self
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Popular
What the marshmallow test got wrong about child psychology
Self-control, grit, growth mindset – trendy skills won’t transform children’s lives, but more meaningful interventions can
by Tyler W Watts
How to alter the passage of time to feel fast or slow
Knowing the psychology behind why moments drag or whizz by can give you a degree of control over your experience of time
by Martin Wiener
Why we choose to avoid information that’s right in front of us
Knowing the reasons people opt not to know – and the consequences of that choice – could help us see when it’s problematic
by Jeremy L Foust
Self-hatred feeds on inner shame. Here’s how to break the cycle
Shame swamps any redeeming traits you might have thought you had. Slow down to interrupt the loops that cause self-hatred
by Troy Seagraves
A little Japanese trick for saying ‘no’
If an outright refusal feels rude but you don’t want to have to explain, here’s how to say ‘no’ the Japanese way
by Richard Fisher
What if animals find beauty in the world, just like we do?
Chimpanzees favour the colour red. Junglefowl prefer symmetry. Our shared capacity for aesthetic pleasure is cause for wonder
by Brandon Keim
We’re learning just how early in life empathy starts to move us
What contagious crying, comforting hugs and other cute behaviour in infants tells us about the roots of emotional connection
by Zanna Clay & Carlo Vreden
They keep the Hindu funeral pyres burning, but at what cost?
For the men and boys of the Dom community in Varanasi, sacred cremations demand a lifetime of exhausting, dangerous labour
by Radhika Iyengar
