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Personal challenges, do you set any?

6/2/2012

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We are now well removed from that obligatory practice of setting personal goals for ourselves just because the old year is out and the new year is in and the feeling is it is time for a change.  Well, we are now in the half year month, June, and now is as good a time as any for personal goal setting or facing personal challenges.  We have had the luxury of proceeding through a new year, sussing out how it is going for us, identifying any potential hurdles or rivers to cross and recognising opportunities as they come our way or as we go out to hunt them.  Now is the time to review and reflect some of the following:
  • Have we made the most of our life so far?
  • Do we have things to be done or said?
  • Is there a burning desire of something we always wanted to do but never had the time/money/inclination?
I have lived my life on setting personal challenges for myself.  I will spend a little time considering what it is I want, why I want it, how will it benefit me to have it, will there be any negative impact to others in me having it?  Once satisfied with my decision to go for it, if I can get a visual image of what I have set my goal on, I will obtain one and put it somewhere I can see it, feel it, absorb it; for me it is important to make the goal tangible as when it is then I know I can have it.  So, if it is a house then I will go out house viewing.  A car, I will test drive and also buy a miniture model of it.  A qualification, get the course prospectus; you get the picuture!  Little can replace that feeling of utopia when a personal challenge is achieved, won, resolved .....

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With all the influences that meet us daily, with all the natural life evolution we need to respond to, change with and deal with, it really is important for us to take a step back periodically in our lives to look back at the road we have just travelled, review where we are presently situated and take a look at the road and journey ahead of us and what options it presents to us.  We also need to remember that the power to create opportunities can lie with ourselves.  There is a power within the universe that we influence with our own personal energy.  Give out positive thoughts, feelings, vibes and you will be astounded with what comes right back at you.  Put out negativity and all you will attract is even more negativity, it's the way of the world and the universe that we live in and within.
Here is a challenge I put to you, remember my previous blog about the Bucket List?  It is still here, read it; my challenge to you is to set yourself 3 personal goals / challenges for the remainder of 2012 there needs to be one that is easy to achieve within a short time frame (say one month), the second within the next four months and the final within the next six months.  They can be whatever is important and relevant to you; it might be to take that photography course on digital cameras so you can go out and start using that expensive camera you bought for yourself two years ago.  It may be to write that letter to someone you care for but who you never seem to find it within yourself to thank them and tell them how special and important they are and have been in your life.  It may be to finally book yourself on that study course to finish off your degree or get you on track with your career change or refresher training so you can get yourself back on the job market or set up your own business that you always wanted to do.  Go on, see what you come up with and please, share your thoughts with me on this, tell me what has worked for you in the past, is working for you now

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Actions or Words, which has the greater impact?

6/1/2012

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This was the scene at Barcelona Airport this week.  The airport cleaners decided to strike and their choice of communication was in their actions.  They created bags and bags of torn newspapers to scatter all over the floor area of the terminals and they constantly sounded off those boom speakers whilst some just kept drumming and chanting.  On first entry into the airport, a part of me (pre socialist) was Viva!  Good for you to express yourselves to be heard!  It was an interesting scene to take in at first as the airport security and police were positioned in the background observing proceedings; passengers walked straight into the commotion and were uncertain of what was occurring.  Occasionally a group of the strikers would conduct a walk around the terminal (just to make sure everyone did not forget they were there and I am sure also to spread the noise and the waste).  After 30 mins or so this protest really started to grind, 1) for the constant noise level, it was easy to become intolerant and impatient because of the constant and aggressive high pitch tones.  2) the debilitating effect for the disabled in wheelchairs, the young in prams and for those with large cases or trolley having difficulty dragging wheeled mechanisms through piles of paper and 3) the serious damage to the business equipment, the escalators ceased up, the lifts were being blocked at the entrances, mechanisms all over the place were grounding to a halt. 4) the dust content in the air would make any asthmatic struggle with their airways, anyone with dust based allergies would have a problem.  Last but by no means least 4) the other staff who was not on strike but having to work through this constant noise barrier, dust and very difficult working conditions.  It begs the question of what can be most effective as a form of communication 1) Actions 2) Words?  Some may say both is the way as physical expression can breakdown any barriers that verbal expression may create.  Verbal delivery when tempers are high or people are in total disagreement can create intolerable situations and stalemate whereas the action of physical expression can be a more open and less threatening approach and the human mind has a great ability of dissemination of images, sounds and movement so this can be a distinct advantage.  So, looking back at the bedlam and chaos creating by the Catalan expression, the hostility generated, and no doubt divide within their colleagues and certainly for the customers and sponsors in the environment; I can only but challenge on whether such actions can ever be greater than words and negotiation?  In fact, one could argue that the blatant disregard for health & safety, personal and commercial property and breach of basic but fundamental contract terms and conditions  could justify such action being disbanded and prevented. 

Where am I going with this, well it all comes down to our (people) will to communicate but in doing so to consider and judge the most effective forms of communication which often comes with the power to persuade, influence, encourage, reassure, and compromise for the greater good.  We are living in a world these days where communication is so instant and so disposable.  Messages only have validity of seconds and then we move on.  To be heard is becoming something than can be processed and delivered.  In fact, do we really need to raise out of our beds to conduct a day of work anymore due to the advancements of technology?  My fear is our gradual loss of the ability and the power of communication, social skills in observing and interpreting body language, speech tones, mis-interpretation of information? Maybe also a case of 'choose battles wisely?'  Viva or tsch! remains a matter of opinion.......

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A 'life' bucket list - do you have one?

4/5/2012

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If you do a web search for the origins of this, you will find many references and several contradictions to a range of views on the origin of this phase and to its exacting meaning.  However, the general consensus falls within the view of referring to ‘a list of things one intends to do before dying’.  This implies consideration and thought has gone into the list and from the research I have conducted so far makes little reference to things like ‘tasks’ to be done.  No, most references are of a ‘wish list’ of things to do before dying.  Now that makes things much more interesting doesn’t it?  Now, depending on your age, background, financial situation, adaptability and flexibility; this will dictate the scope of the list that may be created.  Someone can be very young but still have a very focused and limited list and that could be due to the times we live and in developed cultures quite a few have already travelled fairly extensive with their parents, educational trips, gap years etc.  So, for them, an expectation of achieving certain things to do with travel is within their life expectancies.  Whereas, compare this to someone quite older, say in their 50's, 60’s plus, you may find their list is loaded with travel, because they did not have as many opportunities to do so throughout their lives due to technology, social norms, income and other grounding factors.

Thinking of this subject brings my mind to a fairly recent film The Bucket List is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Rob Reiner, written by Justin Zackham, and starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.  The main plot follows two terminally ill men (portrayed by Nicholson and Freeman) on their road trip with a wish list of things to do before they “kick the bucket”   (source Wikipedia). 

To kick the bucket is an English idiom that is defined as “to die” in the Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1785).  It is considered a euphemistic, informal, or slang term.  Its origin remains unclear, though there have been several theories.  (source Wikipedia)  

This brings me to a few questions

“Do you have a bucket list?”

“Have you completed your bucket list?”

“Have you put an end date to achieving your bucket list? I do not mean the end date of ‘death’”

“Can you give any examples of things on your bucket list?”

“If you do not have a bucket list, what is the reason?”

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Life Road Map - directions and choices

4/3/2012

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For many of us we are on the journey of life through different road networks.  Some joined on super highways, some on dirt tracks and some on 'B' roads.  At different stages of our lives some have been great navigators and map readers and found routes that created some 'short cuts' whereas some have lost their way and ended up taking a much longer and more complicated journey route.

How has your life journey been?  Are you on the road you need to be for the journey you need to make?  Are you finding yourself on an 'A' road, when you need to be on the Autobahn? 

What is your life road map looking like for you, have you been travelling on the 'Chris Rea - Road to Hell' or the Clapton 'Highway to Heaven'?
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To love and to lose

4/2/2012

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This weekend I had the honour of accompany one of my most loved friends to pay tribute to her father in his recent passing and to provide her with support throughout the experience.  Having lost my own father in 2007, the memory of the passing is still pretty prominent to me and this experience brought that home.  So, this poised a few questions. 

We are all guaranteed death, that makes some people quite practical in their approach to death and some families are quite proactive in their planning and view in future arrangements.  What is your view and thoughts?

1.  Do you consider the passing of a loved one as total sadness, devastation and distraught or an occasion to acknowledge, pay tribute and celebrate the life?
2.  Have you made any plans for your own passing?  Would your family know your wishes (funeral or cremation, type of service, type of coffin etc.)?
3.  Have you made provision for the finances of your passing?  Do you know how much an average service and arrangements costs?
4.  Have you made a will?
5.  Have you a point of reference for your savings, policies, documents etc. for people to locate and sort through your estate at your time of passing?

Have you had an experience of death that made you respond or react in a way that surprised you?

What is your view to death and is this a subject that is discussed openly within your family or friend group?



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Fitness, how important is it to you?

3/29/2012

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Well, do you consider yourself to be a couch potato or a stamina junky? 

What's your view and approach to fitness? 

For some, born anytime up to early or mid-70's enjoyed very active lives, from home life, school life and social life; most incorporated a considerable amount of exercise in some form or other.  The times were such that the majority of children walked or cycled to school, at worst, caught the school bus.  At school there was an active and very competitive sports curriculum which included local and national schools competitions, conducted annually.  At school you were actively encouraged to participate in the school activities, with little tolerance if you did not.  Sports within the educational setting also delivered a sense of pride and belonging with the accolades one would gain in their sporting achievements, all in displays for all to view.  If one was not academically thriving at least there was the opportunity of achievement through sporting activities and the sporting achievers usually also held a respected and high profile within their peer groups. 

Thinking back now, about eating; it was something you had to do when you were hungry and quite often to break away for lunch, dinner or tea was more of an inconvenience than anything else.  I remember always being busy so the thought of food really did not factor high in my agenda throughout my childhood and adolescence.  Well, that is how it was in my household and peer group.  Sport and activity was part of our daily existence and a quick visual scan in any social setting would view people in the weight range of underweight or idea the everyday obesity sightings of today was simple not on our landscape and in all honesty social tolerance was a very unforgiving one when confronted with people in the overweight category. 

Does an active sporting life when you are young, influence your view on fitness and health as you grow into adulthood and maturity?  Maybe not for all?  For me, most definitely yes!  Some consider a person has an additional edge to them from the familiarity of achieving - more focused and driven in many ways.  However, not for all, some people are totally driven in their own embedded sense of the need to achieve without being motivated through sport or fitness.

For me personally, the times when I have allowed myself to relax on my personal drive to achieve and my fitness drive, is when hitting life low points, losing self-motivation and purpose; so fitness, be it physical, mental, or spiritual is part of a daily lifestyle routine that I embrace and engage in.  It is easy for me to recall instantly the amazing sense of value and fulfilment when hitting that new school record in a field event, or won that netball game or topped the league in the hockey finals.  As an adult, the same jubilation applies when achieving the first 5k run, 10k run then 21k run - it's a feeling that is hard to beat and the impact on one’s mind afterwards can stay with them for a good while after.  Thinking on it now in writing this and in reflection, a trend unfolds, as the impact of achievement of a single activity wears down, a new challenge is found for renewed focus and the uplift that delivers to the high zones of adrenaline, new focus and new sense of achievement.  This has transferred itself into real life actions.  The need for new projects, new goals to set, new places to travel, new causes to help; it can be an integral part of one’s personal make-up and one that can be formed from one’s early years of achieving through activities that were within their control and abilities.

What is it for you? 

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How does great weather influence the way you work?

3/29/2012

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Having just enjoyed some gloriously warm days for this time of year, especially being up in Scotland where this time last year was still white from the snow.  One has to notice just how different everyone is when the sun is shining.  So, when the sun is shining and giving you a beautiful day do you (2) leap out of bed full of hope and energy and raring to go; go to work with a skip in your step; face the days challenges with optimism; have a smile on your face that is difficult to take off?  (2) do you call into work and take an impromptu day off to spend the time enjoying the weather; or with your family; or just do something outside because you can?  (3) go into work with dragging feet as you would prefer to be outside enjoying the lovely weather.  Do you make your work day miserable as you lean your face to the window and look at the lovely blue skies frowning?
We would be interested to hear how you are regarding work, when the weather around you is glorious.

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Tiny Sunbirds Far Away by Christie Watson

3/24/2012

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Well, what a lovely surprise this book turned out to be for me.  The book introduction starts off with "Lagos, Nigeria.  Blessing's Mama found Father lying on top of another woman.  It's bad enough when her father abandons them.  But when her mother loses her job, they have to leave home and move into her grandfather's compound.  Living with a poor countryside family is a shock beyond measure.
The challenges and discover this broken family find makes a wonderful story of adventure, discovery, self-adjustment and self-learning.  The dynamics of the family and the community they have to survive in provide a realistic and special insight into an improverish African community that is very well described in this book.  The unique African descriptions of a situation or feeling is really the most special components of this book.  The oil and politics situation in Nigeria, whilst is by no means the focus of this book, but the way it has been entwinged is significant of the way the communities lives continue but how the oil and politics continue to interrupt and disrupt their way of living and life as they know it! A lot of laughing, a few tears in reading this book.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and most definately recommend this.
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The gift of reading

3/16/2012

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Having seen the hype on the film release of 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' I felt compelled to buy and read the book, before watching the film as the storyline is just perfect for a book read.  I must say, the first chapter is proving that I will not be disappointed.  Here is the introductory paragraph:
Enticed by advertisements for a newly restored palatial hotel and filled with visions of a life of leisure, good weather and mango juice in their gin, a group of very different pensioners leave England to begin a new life in India.  On arrival they are dismayed to find the palace is a shell of its former self, the staff more than a little eccentric, and the days of the Raj long gone.  But, as they soon discover, life and love can begin again, even in the most unexpected circumstances.
Deborah Moggach is the author and I am liking her writing style.

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Have you ever taken that leap?

3/15/2012

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We live in interesting times; the advancement of technology provides so many opportunities and has impacted significantly in life as we know it.  I am left to ponder and wonder with curiosity at these times of global recession, worldwide travel and accessibility, entrepreneurship and creativity are so many skilled and talented people so afraid of making the change from employee to own business?  In most situations in our life we make our own decisions, and more often than not, we are the drivers of influence and change even if we do not fully realise that.  My question is this:  Would you ever consider making a life change from the type of work/profession you are presently in to something based on a natural talent or skill that you have or to something you have just always wanted to do?
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    Maxine Smith
    ​I am a family focused practising Christian. I am entrepreneurial by nature with a few business interests, ventures and projects.  Having spent many years in business, international development and third sector communities, I spend as much time as I can catching up with the more creative side of life.   I enjoy spending time reading the scriptures, cooking, gardening and travelling.  I am also a gadget nerd! I love growing my mind and challenging my perceptions.   I keep an open mind and prefer to work with strengths in people and situations.


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