Life Ponderings

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Don't fear the fear

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Just think for a second...what is actually stopping you doing the things you want to do? Is it the little voice in the back of your head saying...you can't, you aren't ready, you shouldn't, you aren't qualified, what will the neighbours say etc etc. Well that is a primordial brain response that is telling you that you are fearful.But why? Well it is your brain telling you that you shouldn't do something just in case you get laughed at, or mocked, or fail....and that is it.....the thing that may be stopping you really living your life, doing what you always wanted is a little niggling brain response. But if you are doing what you want, enjoying every second, feeling fulfilled...who cares if someone is laughing at you (because no matter what you do, someone will always try and put you down)....because ultimately you are having the last laugh!Silence the fear, but just doing it!Peace

It only takes a second....

....to change your life!I guess that sounds like an outlandish statement.....and also something you would read in one of those glossy self help books, that ultimately doesn't help. But if you think about it....for a second (no pun intended), it actually does only take a second, and that is the second when you decide that you actually want to change your life, and the next second when you decide that you are going to change your life....once the seed is planted, then you really can do it.Ofcourse the action of actual change will take much longer...weeks, months, or even years, but the decision to do it....take a second.Are you going to change your life this second?Peace

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2010 evaluation

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So, we are more than half was through the year!How is it going for you? Have you managed to stick to your resolutions? Well if it is any consolation, for those of you that haven't, I haven't really either.I decided to have a half year re-evaluation of the year, and to be honest 2010 has been pretty good so far, as I mentioned, I have slipped up on a few of the resolutions, so now it is time refocus and try and achieve them before the end of the year!I don't think that resolutions should always have to start and end on 1st of January, any time is good! The best thing about having a mid year re-evaluation is that you can focus in on what is important to you now at this minute. Things are also different in August than they are in December, so it gives you a fresh perspective from a different year point. For example, the weather is different, so this may have an impact on what you want now.I would suggest that you take some time, go sit in your favourite place to think and re-evaluate your year, I am sure it will do wonders for you!Peace

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Playing for change

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Sometimes you come across things which just make you smile and feel so much better about life in general, as well as just making you feel warm inside for the rest of the day. It just shows the power of music! I came across this quite a while ago and have been meaning to spread the word for some time...so here it is! I hope it brings a smile to your day....

Sometimes you come across things which just make you smile and feel so much better about life in general, as well as just making you feel warm inside for the rest of the day. It just shows the power of music! I came across this quite a while ago and have been meaning to spread the word for some time...so here it is! I hope it brings a smile to your day....Sometimes there just is so much more 2 this!!Peace

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Career Advice? What is the motivation behind it?

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Do you find that everyone else is the expert on your career and what you should do?When you ask the careers advisor, and they tell you...well you have done x and y, so you should do z. It would seem that careers advisors are great at putting people in boxes, but not at helping them, break free of the box.When you ask your friends do they say...how can give up on that great job, how can you leave the secuirty (not that there is much secuirty in any job these days!), the money, the prestige?When I talk about careers as well, I am not talking about work, or being work shy. I expect most of you reading this are similar to me, you wantto work, your really want to work, but you want to feel fullfiled, you want to jump out of bed in the morning and feel like you have a purpose, and when you finish at the end of the day that something has been achieved.But how does this fit into a traditional career pattern? Maybe you are one of the lucky ones who loves their job and is content, and that is great. But for me, I feel that the tradional career path is stiffling. I only have one life, why should I just do one thing, because that is what is expected of me? I want to try many things, I want to engage with the world.....and sitting in an office writing reports is certainly not that!!So how do you get advice, when the usual methods tend to point you into the pre boxed solution? Well, I think the answer is in you, you know the answer!! The tough part is deciding to do something about it, to say that you think there is more 2 life than the career slog, to let go of the branch in the river and be swept along and see what wonderful things happen. It is not easy, you need to consider a lot of things, you can't be reckless, but you should believe that it is very very possible!!So motivate yourself, advise yourself, don't box yourself in. Easier said then done? Perhaps, but you can always make a start, try something at the weekend that you think you might like to do, or try spending an hour a week doing something you have always wanted to try, get talking to people who are doing it, you will hopefully find it inspiring....and who knows what might happen!!Peace

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My career Vs My expected career

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I had this thought a while ago....am I doing the career that I choose...or...am I doing the career that was expected of me?Well, for a large proportion of my life, I was doing the one that was expected of me. Now...this does not neseccarily relate to the 'job' itself,but to the career expectation, that of....good job, good pay, nice house, nice car, nice tv.....nice things...you know how it goes. But, wheredid this expectation come from? It would seem that it is something that is drilled into us at school and from our peers, from TV shows and films.It is an easy was to control us, give us rigid pathways of what is expected from us. If you don't follow they path, then you aren't as good as  someone else who did. But where does this path take us? From School, to University, to a graduate position, to an office job, to 2 weeks holiday, to 40 years crawling up the ladder, a bigger house, car etc, then retirement, then death. But is this right, shouldn't we allow people to excel at what they are good at, let them be creative, explore different avenues, try things out. How do you know at 15 if you want to be a brain surgeon? and conversely what is wrong with being 35 and saying, actually I don't want to be a brain surgeon any more?So was I happy? Fulfilling my expectation....sitting in my nice house, with my nice things....well....no! In fact, I was very unhappy, I worked and worked and worked, doing something that I didn't really enjoy, and as a result, I went out and brought 'things' to make me happy to take away from the unhappiness of the work I was doing, which meant that I had to work more, to pay for the things that I brought....a classical catch 22 situation. But as I tried answering the questions, such as, what woulkd you like to do, what is your perfect day? I was kind of stuck, I didn't know, I want to do many things, and please don't get me wrong, I do want to work, I do want to contribute, I don't want to sit on my backside watching TV, I want to do things that fill me with purpose, something which an office job never could.So then I took the step away, I stopped worrying about what other people thought of what I was doing, and just started doing stuff that appealled to me. It has taken a long time, and it has been very hard (I won't lie about that), and I have (and still do) find myself having to dipping in to things which I don't like, but I am much clearer and happier, I don't have so many 'nice' things, but I have important things. I don't have loads of free time, but time filled with doing things I enjoy.It is real difficult to give an answer to the question 'So what do you do?', as I do so many things now. It would seem like we are conditioned to give an simple answer, e.g. lawyer, doctor etc and then people can put us in a box based on their expectations. How do you deal with someone, who one day is making films, another volunteering, running their own little buisness? It is hard, but I know who I would rather talk to!So, how do you break away? Well it isn't easy, it takes time, it takes thought, it takes courage, but you can do it. Taking baby steps is the way to start living the life that you deserve!Peace

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Jobs before computers...what happened?

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Following up from the previous post "How did ‘work’ work in the days before computers?", I am still struck as to what is going on in offices and what happened circa the mid 1990's when a computer on every desktop became prevalent. Now we all are sat here, everyone of us with a computer, typing away all day long....but why? Part of me feels that it is to prove that we are doing something, even if there is nothing really to do...it means the creation of new tasks and jobs, just for the sake of doing something at a machine.But this is also counter productive it would seem and also means that office workers seem to generally procrastinate more and feel more unhappy. But these days, the computer has also moved outside of the 'office', it is ubiquitous throughout  most industry now, drones of people staring blankly at handheld devices, computers to track movement of food, controls of robots. But this is all new, it has all taken place in the last 20 years, and all I keep thinking is, what was it like before.....what did I do? Was I happier?And to be honest, part of my thinks I was, but maybe in a different way. I mean, as I mentioned before, I am not knocking the computer, I am not being ironic given that I am currently writing this on a computer, but I just know I used to do more things. At work, I would talk more, go for more walks around the office without feeling tied to my machine. At home, I would read, see friends more, and just hangout, but now I feel tied more to checking things online. My purchasing decisions are based on the testimony of strangers on forums, of whom I have no idea of their credentials when giving advice. I spent ages pondering over two options, knowing full well which one I want, but feeling that I have to have my thoughts justified by someone else.I digress, so Jobs Before Computers, we did have them, they involved working differently...perhaps even harder, more physical, more in touch, more dangerously.....we are sold on the idea that a computer makes things easier, faster, with more information feedback, but do we need all of that to know we have done a good job?I would like you hear your feedback, when are you most happiest at work? When typing away at a keyboard or some other time....let me knowPeaceN