Henriette Nolte – Writer, Meditator

Education and Money

Posted on July 4, 2026 by Henriette

It is often the case that parents that spend a lot of money on their child’s education put less responsibility on the child to make it all work. There’s an internal argument that goes like this: Because I’m spending a lot, I deserve better educational outcomes for my child.

But more expensive doesn’t mean better—especially in education. In fact, taking into regard what I said in a previous post, less intervention from teachers might be better if the student can learn to apply buttocks to seat and work.

I saw two tendencies from parents who paid exorbitant amounts for their children’s education:

Education | Letting students think for themselves

Posted on July 3, 2026 by Henriette

In mathematics students have to grapple with problems to understand it. It’s only when they go through the effort of investigating a problem on a deep level that they understand it.

Solving for x doesn’t mean much when all the steps are written down in advance. Just copying answers is useless. But mentally grappling with the problem—that’s where the gold lies.

Education and IQ | Why struggle is beneficial

Posted on July 2, 2026July 3, 2026 by Henriette

The idea that we are either smart or dumb is enormously destructive. Many people have written books on how cognitive skills can improve with effort and time. (One, Two, Three, Four.)

That said, this mainstream idea that our mental capacity is fixed is an idea that I’ve been trying to debunk for years.

Gratitude

Posted on June 9, 2026 by Henriette

Gratitude correlates with presence. When we’re grateful, we’re present. And if you’re regularly grateful, you might also assume that you are more present than most.

Jobs | An Article for South Africans

Posted on June 1, 2026June 1, 2026 by Henriette

Joblessness is off the charts in Pretoria and Johannesburg. So much so that people have asked me for job opportunities. This is because I make videos. But my videos make zero money. It just helps with web traffic at this point.

But you don’t need to make videos to know that there’s a serious unemployment issue in these cities. Just drive around and look.

Kitchen Nightmares

Posted on May 14, 2026May 14, 2026 by Henriette

Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares is an entertaining show—but also kind of uncomfortable to watch. From an emotional awareness perspective certain ingredients are always present in these episodes.

It is nearly always the case that a restaurant owner (or chef) will say that he would love to have input from someone like Gordon Ramsay. That is, until he actually gets it. Before Gordon arrives, people are excited about his visit. This excitement only lasts until Gordon tastes the food.

In Only A Few Minutes A Day

Posted on May 12, 2026May 12, 2026 by Henriette

If you watch YouTube a lot, you might have seen adverts that promise huge transformations in just a few minutes a day.

That Little Voice

Posted on May 11, 2026May 12, 2026 by Henriette

Never ignore the little voice in your head. I’m not talking about that incessant monkey mind that worries about everything. And I’m not talking about the big bombastic voice that’s always critical. I’m talking about that subtle, intuitive voice that occasionally warns us that something is just not right.

That voice isn’t fear-based and it doesn’t shout instructions. It’s often a soft nudge that makes you notice something strange. Or it’s a feeling that asks, What feels wrong here? Or it can be a voice of clarity that says, You know, you really shouldn’t sign that contract. Whatever the case, we’ve all ignored that little voice at times.

But if we can learn to be attuned to that voice, if we can learn to stop and pay attention when it speaks, we might be able to navigate difficulties better. In some cases, we might even be able to prevent catastrophes.

Here are a few key reasons why we sometimes fail to listen:

Emotional Work: Jealousy

Posted on April 20, 2026 by Henriette

Of all emotions, jealousy is one that can be the most destructive.

When this emotion gets out of hand one might become wholly destabilised and utterly destructive. Feelings of inadequacy is often at the root of jealousy. And this feeling can be quite unbearable. Sometimes, complete destruction (or self-sabotage) is favoured over turning inward to face the jealousy.

What is emotional integration? (Extended Version)

Posted on April 13, 2026April 13, 2026 by Henriette

In very simple terms, emotional integration is when the internal charge of an uncomfortable emotion dissolves.

The tricky thing is this: We are often unaware of stuffed down emotions. We might not be aware of every single thing that we felt during a traumatic event. Some things stay buried for very long.

On one level, we know that we’ve integrated a trauma when we no longer feel charged emotion when we think about the associated event. But that is not to say that there isn’t still some stuff beneath the surface of our awareness.

I’ve often been baffled by how many layers of emotion a traumatic event can contain. When the charge of a specific situation doesn’t dissolve quickly or instantly, we might need to re-investigate what’s going on inside.

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