U ~ understanding
R ~ reflect & react
A ~ acknowledgement
AURA ~ its an acrostic ... a tool, designed to teach us how to play well with the others. Its something I made up. Apparently I had to visit the hell of insanity and burn-out to get wise to what life and living takes. Here's what I think, anyway ... take from it what you will.
Awareness ...
(1) ... of your level of awareness and how it affects your perception of events/situation
(2) ... of Ego, and the way in which it diminishes awareness
~ its desire to be served ~ "its all about me" ...
~ its frailty ~ r/t perceived needs, expectations ...
~ its intensity ~ r/t its constant expressive state
~ its universality ~ r/t the fact that everyone has an ego
(3) ... of the fact that almost two-thirds of the information you gather through communicating with humans resides in the non-verbal realm ~ i.e. what the person has failed to say in words. this means body language, gesturing ... but also ... also refers to the words which the person did not choose, as opposed to the ones they did choose.
(4) ... of the reality that #3 also applies in reverse ~ you communicate far more than you realize through the non-verbal realm ~ check yourself, once in awhile, to ensure the congruency of your non-verbal and verbal messages
Understanding
(1) ... of the fact that a person represents more that just an energy cell trapped inside a physical shell. each person represents a unique perspective, one which influences our interactions with others.
(2) ... of why? why did that person say or do what s/he did? what's behind the action, response, behaviour?
(3) ... of the fact that awareness and understanding will not necessarily give you the power to change anything ... that perhaps, they will just enable tolerance to take root more easily.
Reflect & React
(1) ... why? what's behind my feelings ... or my initial thoughts on how I should respond to this situation? What could be the possible outcome of following that course? damage the relationship? further the antagonism?
(2) ... can I recognize my ego? and can I swallow it? cut it down to size? so it doesn't get in the way of what I need to do ... in order to remain effective and tolerant ~ in order to maintain collaborative connections?
(3) ... contemplate the alternatives ... react based on what your reflection indicates as a best choice to achieve desired outcome
(4) ... remember desired outcomes for the situation do not necessarily equal desired outcomes for your ego
Acknowledge
(1) ... people inherently need to feel valued
(2) ... recognizing others goes a long way toward fostering the relationship/connnection
(3) ... we begin to lose interest when we feel undervalued
(4) ... we won't always agree with others. still, we can function effectively among others who share another view by agreeing to disagree ~ i.e. respect
This means challenging my self to compassionate, encouraging, genuine and hostile-free exchanges. It also means contemplating my reaction to the thoughts, feelings and expressions of others, prior to acting upon them. 
