Conscious Approach

Start Thinking. Start Conversing.

You are here: Home / Blog

Naomi Osaka, Mental Health, and Getting the Dirt Off Your Shoulder

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Elise Amendola, AP

For the high achievers in the world, here are things to think about when trying to navigate naysayers on social media and maintain positive mental health.

Naomi Osaka has been a central figure in the ongoing conversation surrounding mental health. After her U.S. Open third round loss to Leylah Fernandez, Osaka broke down into tears, stating that she would be taking a break from tennis and thus reigniting the mental health debate and the merits of it. Mental health management is a real thing, and for Osaka and others who sacrifice to achieve at the height of industry, I have some advice on how to navigate toxic social media flames that get thrown your way.

[Read more…]

Why Bol Bol’s Break-Up from Gold Digger IG Model GF is a Blip and not a Trend

by Leave a Comment

Bol Bol

Instagram

Bol Bol may have gotten some sense, but too many men haven’t, and until more of them do, expect the sexual marketplace imbalance to continue.

Denver Nuggets player Bol Bol has apparently ended his relationship with Instagram and Onlyfans model Mulan Hernandez, and the speculation is that he ended the relationship after she participated in a Tik Tok trend in which women admit to being gold diggers for life. Bol Bol may have gotten some sense, but until more men do, occurrences like this will be rare and the imbalance in dating and relationships will continue.

[Read more…]

Why the Onlyfans Sexually Explicit Content Ban Changes Nothing

by Leave a Comment

onlyfans

Photo: Instagram/Ansley Pacheco

As long as there is a market, the service providers will remain.

Beginning in October, Onlyfans will ban sexually explicit content – content that it has become most famous for – in an attempt to de-stigmatize itself as an amateur porn site and become a more mainstream premium content creator space. While some people think this is a win for the good guys, it actually changes nothing because as long as today’s man is willing to line the pockets of women for virtual love, the market will dictate a steady demand for the service. If Onlyfans bows out of the sex trade, another platform will step in to fill the void. As I’ve always said, if you want Onlyfans and social media models to be taken down a peg, men need to stop creating the demand for the marketplace.

[Read more…]

What Men Need to Learn from PJ Washington and Brittany Renner

by Leave a Comment

PJ Washington

Instagram

Once again, we have another cautionary tale as to why men need to make better decisions when it comes to correcting the current state of dating.

Charlotte Hornets forward PJ Washington is staring down the barrel of relationship disfunction and child support hell after the ending of his relationship with social media star and Instagram model, Brittany Renner. While everyone is entitled to be with who they want to be with, it is nevertheless reasonable to question the judgment of a man who willfully enters into a relationship with a woman who wrote a book detailing her sexual relationships with men in the sports and entertainment industries. I keep saying that the current chaotic state of dating and relationships is mostly the result of men’s poor decision-making habits. If we want it to change, men are going to have to make better choices.

[Read more…]

Deandre Hopkins’ Anti-Vaccine Comments and the Problem with Living in Fear

by Leave a Comment

Deandre Hopkins

Getty Images

Are you living a fear-based reality?

Star NFL wide receiver Deandre Hopkins is not down with the COVID-19 vaccine, and has gone so far as to question his NFL future in light of his unwillingness to take it. While whether to take the vaccine is a matter of personal choice, your issues with it may reveal the fact that you live a fear-based reality. Living in a constant state of fear is problematic for anyone with goals and ambitions, and if you continue to do so, you’ll never be great.

[Read more…]

Why Robert Griffin, III Getting Backlash for Appreciating His White Wife on Instagram is Foolish

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Robert Griffin, III’s Instagram

Why are we still talking about the problems with interracial relationships?

When NFL quarterback Robert Griffin, III posted a video on Instagram showing appreciation to his white wife, people naturally went off the handle and resumed the discussion on why it is bad for black men to date interracially. This is a discussion that is getting old by the minute for two reasons. First, as society changes and black people continue to climb the socioeconomic ladder, their dating preferences will evolve along with them. Second, and most important, if black women want to see black men “stay home”, all they have to do is listen to what black men say they want and provide that!

[Read more…]

College Football Playoff Expansion: It’s Time to Pony Up and Pay College Players

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Don Juan Moore, Getty Images

Pay College Athletes Their Worth!!

With the recent development that the College Football Playoff committee is considering expanding the number of teams that make the playoff from 4 to 12, the business that is college football could go from an annual revenue of $4 billion to some insane amount beyond that. The only problem is that the labor force that is most responsible for the success of the sport – the players – don’t see a piece of that revenue pie. It is way past time for college players to be paid what is commensurate with their contributions to this enterprise, and people need to stop being hypocrites and wake up and realize that.

[Read more…]

How Race IS A FACTOR in the NBA Fan and Player Interactions

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Elise Amendola, AP

Are fans who show disrespect toward NBA players motivated by race?

During the first round of the 2021 NBA playoffs, several negative interactions between fans and players took place involving spit, alleged racial language, water bottles and popcorn. Because the optics are white fans and black players, the conversation immediately jumped to whether race has anything to do with the incidences. While race does play a role in these situations, the question as to whether the fans are racially motivated in their behavior is a different issue entirely. Race does have something to do with this, and it involves an understanding of the current – and historically ongoing – economic climate of America.

[Read more…]

J. Cole Haters Should Take a Chill Pill and LIVE ABUNDANTLY!

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Kevin Mazur, Getty Images

Approaching life with the abundance mentality is the key to meaningful relationships and success.

When speaking with ESPN, Basketball Africa League player Terrell Stoglin provided his thoughts on J. Cole receiving the opportunity to play for the league’s Rwanda Patriots, suggesting that Cole took an opportunity away from other, more deserving players. Furthermore, he believes that given Cole’s privileged position as a hip-hop star, he doesn’t need the opportunity, and that his spot should have gone to other players who work hard to obtain a roster spot. This mentality is emblematic of our approach to life through the scarcity paradigm. If we want to be successful and live fulfilling lives, we have to stop thinking that one’s opportunity represents something being taken away from us. Success is contingent on approaching life through the abundance paradigm and seeking to establish meaningful relationships that can help to facilitate our own success.

[Read more…]

Kyrie Irving is Making a Mistake By Not Talking Basketball to the Media

by Leave a Comment

Photo: Michael Conroy, Associated Press

When keeping it smart goes wrong.

During a Brooklyn Nets postgame press conference, NBA star Kyrie Irving declared to the media that he would no longer be answering questions about basketball – something he is contractually obligated to do – because basketball isn’t the most important thing to him and he only wants to talk about societal issues that he is impassioned about. This is a mistake. Kyrie is painting himself as a social elitist who is smarter than everyone else, all the while undermining awareness of his causes and alienating potential allies. People should not replicate this strategy. This is what happens when keeping it smart goes wrong.

[Read more…]