tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64438145198584380332024-03-13T13:22:46.354-07:00Break your limitsDemarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-51251701368774662252011-06-17T12:57:00.000-07:002011-06-17T13:02:35.548-07:0020 Things Life Is Too Short To Tolerate<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 23px; " ><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; "><br /></p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; ">You don’t have to settle, it’s simply a choice you make every day. If you feel like you’re running in place there’s a good chance you’re tolerating things you shouldn’t be. It’s time to reclaim your life.</p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; ">Starting now, stop tolerating…</p><ol style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 40px; "><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">People who bring you down.</strong> – Relationships should help you, not hurt you. Spend time with nice people who are smart, driven and likeminded.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">A work environment or career field you hate.</strong> – Don’t settle on the first or second career field you dabble in. Keep searching. Eventually you will find work you love to do. If you catch yourself working hard and loving every minute of it, don’t stop. You’re on to something big. Because hard work ain’t hard when you concentrate on your passions.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Your own negativity.</strong> – Be aware of your mental self-talk. We all talk silently to ourselves in our heads, but we aren’t always conscious of what we’re saying or how it’s affecting us. Start listening to your thoughts. If you hear negative thoughts, stop and replace them with positive thoughts.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Unnecessary miscommunication.</strong> – Say what you mean. Mean what you say. Speak clearly. Ask questions. Clarify things until you understand them.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">A disorganized living and working space.</strong> – Clear the clutter. Get rid of stuff you don’t use. Read David Allen’s book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142000280/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=marandang-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=0142000280" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; text-decoration: none; ">Getting Things Done</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=marandang-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142000280&camp=217145&creative=399349" border="0" height="1" width="1" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px !important; border-top-width: medium !important; border-right-width: medium !important; border-bottom-width: medium !important; border-left-width: medium !important; border-top-style: none !important; border-right-style: none !important; border-bottom-style: none !important; border-left-style: none !important; border-color: initial !important; " />for some practical organizational guidance.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Your own tardiness.</strong> – Get up 30 minutes earlier so you don’t have to rush around like a mad man. That 30 minutes will help you avoid speeding tickets, tardiness and other unnecessary headaches.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Pressure to fit in with the crowd.</strong> – Oftentimes, the only reason others want you to fit in is that once you do they can ignore you and go about their business. Don’t conform. Be you, because that’s the only person you can be.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">An unhealthy body.</strong> – Your health is your life. Don’t let it go. Eat right, exercise and get an annual physical check-up. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/030746363X/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=marandang-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=030746363X" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; text-decoration: none; ">The 4-Hour Body</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=marandang-20&l=as2&o=1&a=030746363X&camp=217145&creative=399349" border="0" height="1" width="1" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px !important; border-top-width: medium !important; border-right-width: medium !important; border-bottom-width: medium !important; border-left-width: medium !important; border-top-style: none !important; border-right-style: none !important; border-bottom-style: none !important; border-left-style: none !important; border-color: initial !important; " /> is an insightful and entertaining read on this topic.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Fear of change.</strong> – Life is change. Every day is different. Every day is a new beginning and a new ending. Embrace it and make the best of it.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">All work and no play.</strong> – Enjoy yourself and have a little fun while you can. If you’re smiling, you’re doing something right.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">People or beauty ads that make you feel inadequate.</strong> – Good looks attracts the eyes. Personality attracts the heart. Be proud to be you. You are already beautiful.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Not getting enough sleep.</strong> – A tired mind is rarely productive.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Doing the same exact thing over and over again.</strong> – You are the sum of your life experiences. The more you experience, the more interesting your life story gets.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Personal greed.</strong> – Don’t let greed and deceit get the best of you. Greed will bury even the lucky eventually.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">A mounting pile of debt.</strong> – Always live well below your means. Don’t buy stuff you don’t need. Always sleep on big purchases. Create a budget and savings plan and stick to them. Read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0761147489/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=marandang-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=0761147489" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; text-decoration: none; ">I Will Teach You To Be Rich</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=marandang-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0761147489&camp=217145&creative=399349" border="0" height="1" width="1" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px !important; border-top-width: medium !important; border-right-width: medium !important; border-bottom-width: medium !important; border-left-width: medium !important; border-top-style: none !important; border-right-style: none !important; border-bottom-style: none !important; border-left-style: none !important; border-color: initial !important; " />.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Dishonesty.</strong> – Living a life of honesty creates peace of mind, and peace of mind is priceless. Period. Don’t be dishonest and don’t put up with people who are.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Infidelity.</strong> – Intimate relationships are a sacred bond – a circle of trust. If both parties aren’t 100% onboard the relationship isn’t worth fighting for.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">An unsafe home.</strong> – If you don’t feel safe at home you’ll never feel safe anywhere. Build a loving household in a safe area that you are proud to call ‘home.’</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Being unprepared.</strong> – Life is unpredictable. And there’s a big difference between being scared and being prepared. Always be prepared.</li><li style="padding-top: 3px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><strong style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Inaction.</strong> – Either you’re going to take action and seize new opportunities or someone else will. You can’t change anything or make any sort of progress by sitting back and thinking about it.</li></ol><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 0px; ">And remember, you only live once, but if you live it right once is enough.</p></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-66022389955625840742010-05-28T12:37:00.000-07:002010-05-28T12:40:41.411-07:00Self-Acceptance & Personal Growth<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuxPuVFU-Rsrm1lzK3OMtKSdxplLf20yDLow7fqIAD_bmR_pvsDhzUQqMJoLATny-fazOkXiXVKH9KoRsAtngH5C5pXpDLnTKX-2hBX739d5qCAz0Tv0umawPB0SSKNs5JRqw5aiSU4Jrs/s1600/28-petals-350.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 297px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuxPuVFU-Rsrm1lzK3OMtKSdxplLf20yDLow7fqIAD_bmR_pvsDhzUQqMJoLATny-fazOkXiXVKH9KoRsAtngH5C5pXpDLnTKX-2hBX739d5qCAz0Tv0umawPB0SSKNs5JRqw5aiSU4Jrs/s400/28-petals-350.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476408119597703906" border="0" /></a><br /><p>How do you balance self-acceptance vs. the drive to grow and improve yourself? On the one hand, it’s a good idea to accept yourself for who you are… faults and all, right? But on the other hand, isn’t it also a good idea to set goals and aim for something even better than what you already experience now? How do you resolve this conflict?</p><p><strong>Is compromise really the best solution?</strong></p><p>I believe most people simply compromise. They don’t fully accept themselves as they are, but nor are they fully comitted to lifelong growth. I think that’s a lame solution though. Why not have both? Why not fully accept yourself as you are and also be totally committed to lifelong growth? Can’t you enjoy both? Is there a way around this apparent conflict?</p><p>I often receive feedback, both publicly and privately, that suggests that because I’m so openly committed to personal growth (which should be obvious to anyone who spends more than a few minutes perusing this site), that therefore I must not like and accept who I am right now. It’s assumed that since I keep pushing myself to grow in new ways that I must be sacrificing the self-acceptance side.</p><p><strong>The linear mindset</strong></p><p>Why does there seem to be a conflict between self-acceptance and growth anyway? I think the conflict is actually a result of a particular mindset. I’ll refer to it as the <em>linear mindset</em>.</p><p>The linear mindset says that your life is like a point moving down a line segment. Your life is a journey through time. The end points represent your birth and death. The points behind you are your past. The points ahead of you are your future. And your present moment is a little dot on that timeline, slowly inching its way towards your death.</p><p>Every point on your life line can also be said to have a certain <em>quality</em>. You can look at any point on the line and measure your instantaneous state at that point. On any particular day of your life (past, present, or future), you can pose questions like: Where do I live? What’s my job? What’s my net worth? Who are my friends? What’s my relationship status? How much do I weigh?</p><p><strong>Self-acceptance vs. personal growth</strong></p><p>Within this paradigm it’s only natural that the conflict between self-acceptance and growth should arise. Once you start labeling some points of your life as being of “higher” or “lower” quality than others, then you have the means to compare any point to any other. How does your life today compare with your life five years ago? Are you richer? Happier? Healthier?</p><p>Now you have to decide how much you want to push things to improve in quality as you progress through life. You can accept your current position as adequate and opt to simply maintain it, or you can strive to achieve something greater. You can also adopt the belief that your life is largely out of your control, in which case your best bet would be to learn to accept whatever outcomes you experience, regardless of how you might rate their level of quality.</p><p>The more you accept where you are, the less motivation there is to grow. And the more you push yourself to grow, the less satisfaction you derive from your current position. You might end up oscillating back and forth along this spectrum, sometimes being very complacent and other times being very driven.</p><p><strong>Limitations of the linear mindset</strong></p><p>The linear mindset is very common, especially in the Western world. We love to measure things and assign them grades and ratings. Which car is the most fuel-efficient this year? Is company X more profitable than it was last year? How fit and healthy am I?</p><p>And that mindset certainly has value, especially in business. I’m not suggesting that it’s an inherently undesirable paradigm.</p><p>However, there are areas where this model works, and there are areas where it doesn’t. And one of those areas where it doesn’t work so well is your self-image.</p><p>Trying to apply the linear mindset to your self-image creates the conflict between self-acceptance and growth. Instead of merely measuring various aspects of your life and noting how they change over time, you identify with them. I <em>am</em> richer than I <em>was</em> last year. I <em>am</em> more depressed than I used to <em>be</em>. I went from <em>being</em> a telemarketer to <em>being</em> a sales manager.</p><p>When you <em>identify</em> with the positional aspects of your life, you pull your ego into the picture. Your sense of self then becomes dependent on your particular position.</p><p>If you primarily think about life in terms of hitting new highs, such as better health, greater net worth, or a more anal job title, then what happens when you experience a setback in your position, maybe even a big one like being charged with a felony?</p><p>We all experience setbacks. It’s only a matter of time. If your self-esteem is based on your position, then you’ll suffer greatly when your position declines. What would it do to your self-esteem if you lost all your money? What if you gained 50 lbs? What if your life mate dumped you? If you lose your position, will you lose your sense of self?</p><p>Even more problematic than a real loss is worrying about the possibility of a loss in advance. You may hold yourself back because you fear becoming too dependent on a certain position. If you stay low, you don’t have far to fall when things go bad. Gaining a few pounds over the holidays isn’t as painful when you’re already 50 lbs overweight. Going broke isn’t so terrible when you only have $1000 to your name vs. if you’re a multi-millionaire. And how much worse can your relationship situation get if it’s already lousy (or nonexistent)?</p><p>Perhaps by setting up camp in mediocre land and staying far away from super-achiever, you’re protecting your ego from inevitable setbacks. You know that even the most successful people in the world experience setbacks, so why would you risk subjecting yourself to such dramatic highs and lows? What goes up must come down, right?</p><p>The underlying problem is that by rooting your sense of self in something that will fluctuate, like the current position of any measurable part of your life, you’re going to suffer in one way or another. Either you’ll push yourself to achieve, achieve, achieve, and then suffer emotionally when things take a turn for the worse, or you’ll become attached to outcomes to an unhealthy degree, such that you may sacrifice your ethics to maintain your position. Or you’ll settle for much less than you’re capable of achieving and probably give yourself regular beatings for being too lazy and for over-procrastinating – you’ll always be haunted by the knowledge that you could be doing better. Or lastly you may decide to withdraw from society in order to escape/transcend this whole punishing process; but still your contribution is far below your potential.</p><p><strong>Beyond the linear mindset</strong></p><p>This whole situation is basically win-lose, isn’t it? You have to compromise somewhere. You can’t play the positional growth game full out and still accept and enjoy every moment along the way, right?</p><p>Or can you?</p><p>Let me suggest an alternative paradigm.</p><p>Instead of rooting your sense of self in your position, which is changeable, what would happen if you rooted your sense of self in something permanent and unchangeable? Stop identifying yourself with any form of positional status, and pick something invulnerable instead… like a pure concept that nothing in this world can touch. Examples include unconditional love, service to humanity, faith in a higher power, compassion, nonviolence, and so on.</p><p>I’m certainly not the first person to suggest something like this. Stephen Covey wrote about this in the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. He refers to it as <em>true north</em>.</p><p>When you root yourself in unchangeable ”true north” principles, you may still measure the various metrics of your life and notice how they change over time, but you won’t make them part of your identity. Hence, you keep your self-esteem separate from your particular circumstances.</p><p>This isn’t easy to do. Covey himself has admitted how difficult it is for him personally. But you don’t have to be perfect to get results from this paradigm. Even a small move in this direction will reduce the conflict between self-acceptance and growth. Essentially you’ll gain the best of both worlds. </p><p><strong>Separating position from identity</strong></p><p>By rooting yourself in the permanent, your position detaches from your identity. This makes it possible to unconditionally accept yourself as you are while still courageously playing the positional growth game, regardless of the outcome. Self-acceptance and growth are no longer in conflict because now they don’t apply to the same thing. You’ve separated your identity (self-acceptance) from your position (growth).</p><p>Covey’s true north principles are based on effectiveness. Mine are based on fulfillment, so they’re slightly different, but there’s certainly a lot of overlap between them. For example, one of my principles is service to the highest good of all. This is close to Covey’s principle of thinking win-win. Either version of this principle is independent of position. You can be homeless and forgotten, or you can be rich and famous, and you can still do your best to serve the highest good of all and to think win-win. These principles do not depend on circumstances; circumstances only affect the manner in which you’d apply them.</p><p><strong>Detaching ego from outcomes</strong></p><p>If I were to look at a snapshot of my life right now, I’d rate it as excellent in terms of its positional (i.e. growth-related) aspects. Last week three of my articles were featured on the popular list on del.icio.us (one of them in the #1 spot), two were picked up by reddit, two got digg‘d, one got fark‘d, one got furl‘d, and one got spurl‘d. I received 320,000 visitors and 664,000 page views that week, and I topped my one-day Adsense record too ($330.69 on April 12). On Thursday I did a magazine interview, on Friday I did a nationally syndicated radio interview, and on Saturday I joined the Las Vegas National Speakers Association and went to my first meeting (Lou Heckler was the guest speaker). Later today my family and I will enjoy an Easter picnic in the park with some friends, and I’ll spend the rest of the day having fun and relaxing. Positionally everything is wonderful. Lots of higher highs.</p><p>But if I let my self-esteem and my identity get too wrapped up in these external outcomes, I’ll be setting myself up for ultimate failure. When the pendulum swings the other way, and of course it eventually will, I’ll get frustrated with my less than stellar performance. And from there it’s a slippery slope into the realm of ego-driven attachment to outcomes. What will happen when my traffic or income takes a nosedive at some point? I’ll either resist accepting my present situation, or I’ll withdraw into a shell and settle for mediocrity for a while, or I’ll put on a fake front and pull an Enron. None of those are good solutions.</p><p>The solution is upstream… to keep identity and position as separate as possible. I find that a couple practices help a lot with this: journaling and meditation. I’ve been doing both for many years, and these practices help me keep my internal compass aligned with true north principles that aren’t going to change within my lifetime. I keep my sense of self rooted in permanent concepts like service, awareness, and peace. Those concepts don’t change, so my deepest sense of self remains fairly fixed. That makes it easier to fully accept who I am in every moment. But on the positional side, I’m still able to enjoy the pursuit of positional growth and play full out without settling for underachievement.</p><p>If I stray from these practices for too long (more than a few weeks), I gradually fall out of alignment with true north. I eventually get sucked back into the prevailing social climate that loves to identify people with their positions. For example, while I was doing my polyphasic sleep experiment, some people started identifying me with polyphasic sleep. And that’s OK until they start becoming too attached to that person-position pairing. Positions are always temporary, so it’s best not to become overly attached to them… whether in yourself or others. It would have been problematic if I fell into the trap of letting my ego become overly attached to my position as a polyphasic sleeper. The ego resists positional changes it perceives as negative — it doesn’t like to be wrong. So I might have clung to polyphasic sleep even when it didn’t serve me as well as monophasic sleep.</p><p>Have you fallen into any person-position pairing in your own life? Do you derive your sense of self from things that are changeable and vulnerable, such as your income, your job title, your relationships, or any other form of status? How much energy are you investing in defending those positions out of fear?</p><p>When you loosen your attachment to positions, you don’t have to defend them. I disliked when people started giving me labels like “the internet king of polyphasic sleep” (not my words)… because if you’re a king, then you’ve got a kingdom to defend. People like to attack kings simply because of their position as kings. I’d rather not be perceived as a king of anything positional, since I don’t want to spend my time defending temporary positions that are eventually going to crumble anyway. Trying to defend your position as if it were the real you is a losing battle. None of the positional aspects of your life are going to endure, so it’s best not to become too attached to them. Enjoy them while they last, but don’t seek your <em>self</em> in them.</p><p>When you root your self in something permanent, then your sense of self is effectively untouchable. Your position can be attacked, and you can still defend it if you like, but you won’t feel irrationally compelled to defend it out of fear. You won’t feel you’re being personally attacked when your position becomes vulnerable.</p><p><strong>Enjoying inner peace</strong></p><p>What I’m really getting at here is <em>inner peace</em>. When you keep your sense of self away from third-dimensional positions, your position can rollercoaster all over the place, and you can still be at peace on the inside no matter what happens. You don’t have to withdraw and be totally passive. You can enjoy being an ambitious overachiever and set and achieve goals like a maniac — and have a great time doing it. But meanwhile you don’t seek your identity in those fluctuating outcomes.</p><p>If you find yourself succumbing to the ego-position trap, add some practices to your life like meditation, journaling, time with kids, time in nature, and so on. This will help you reconnect with what’s most sacred to you (your own version of true north principles) and keep your identity separate from your position. Then you can experience drive without attachment, ambition without ego, and peace without passivity. <img src="http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" /></p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-60246982947319268632010-05-28T12:29:00.000-07:002010-05-28T12:36:05.897-07:00Self Image, the fulcrum of Brain Power<a style="font-family: times new roman;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZHFUdxHyo_o33uZ9k2V-wmYOTFkU1xhtFgGVZNZHSutyeru3xQVR_ZunyJg0Vip_7NHI1leyLxNyufnR4_5huWcqdSTwC7jnW7tZJb-O09whvynUV6_YJuhQT4954gE07ih_OoHKzJ03/s1600/butterflys.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZHFUdxHyo_o33uZ9k2V-wmYOTFkU1xhtFgGVZNZHSutyeru3xQVR_ZunyJg0Vip_7NHI1leyLxNyufnR4_5huWcqdSTwC7jnW7tZJb-O09whvynUV6_YJuhQT4954gE07ih_OoHKzJ03/s400/butterflys.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476406422035056642" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="font-family: times new roman;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="knol-inline-editor knol-content-ltr"><h1 style="text-align: center;" id="knol-title" class="knol-title" title="Click on the "Edit this knol" button to switch to edit mode and change this field."><span style="font-size:180%;">Your Self Image Is The Fulcrum Of Your Brain Power.</span></h1><input class="" dir="" id="knol-title-input" style="display: none;" maxlength="250" type="text"></div><div style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-family: times new roman;" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="knol-inline-editor knol-content-ltr"><h2 id="knol-subtitle" class="knol-subtitle" title="Click on the "Edit this knol" button to switch to edit mode and change this field."><span style="font-size:130%;">It is your self image that determines your life's box of possibilities.</span></h2><input class="" dir="" id="knol-subtitle-input" style="display: none;" maxlength="250" type="text"></div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;" class="knol-clearer-div"> </div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;"> </div> <h2 id="knol-abstract" class="knol-abstract" title="Click on the "Edit this knol" button to switch to edit mode and change this field." style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The secret of the power of your brain is your self image, it is the fulcrum of your mind. At -2 brain level you have an abnormally self centered brain. Your brain's focus is centered on trying to look for signs and trying to become the only one that counts. Though you may know the importance of others you don't get it. The only thing you understand is your own extreme self importance. You are so self absorbed that when it comes to learning you are careless and don't pay much attention to the teacher as you already think you know more than her. Therefore you live by an impractical world view and are out of tune with actual reality. Your personal reality enables you to misread your life situations and as a result your are a complete failure. You become a total dependent on your family and society. Your self image forces you to either become a criminal, a psycotic, a murderer or one fit for the mental asylum. Your self image completely rules your mind. At -2 even your omnipresent fee.</span></h2><br /><div style="font-family: times new roman;">At -1 brain level you realize that you are one of many. At this level you have given up your feelings of being omnipresent. But your feelings of being extremely important; a diluted version of feelings of being omnipotent still linger. This gives you a self image of being extremely important. Sometimes you pay attention to your studies and sometimes you don't. You feel that you deserve the most of everything. And that your total dependence on your parents is only temporary and that your time will come soon. You have a privileged self image and the laws of the land you fear only for not getting caught and the shame of being known as a criminal. Your self image forces you to become a corrupt being. You know the laws of the land but you don't understand them. All you understand is your need to get ahead by hook or by crook. Your self image still rules your life.<br /><br />At +1 your self image is powered by the belief that you are the best. This self image is planted by your parents. They want to see their own dreams come true through your successes. So they push you to have an over confident self image which results in your having a trophy self image. So you spend your life trying to acquire bigger and bigger trophies in life. You seek your happiness in accumulating as much wealth as possible. Real time and real life is neglected. Your family is neglected. Your life's box is determined by your over confident trophy self image.<br />You get the importance of learning the ropes of life and the importance of education so you do focus on your studies and become highly educated. But your trophy self image dominates your life and gives you unhappiness and your material pleasures are somewhat phony and in spite of all your successes you are not fully happy.<br /><br />At +2 your self image and you are on the same page. Your pleasures, your life are all real. You know exactly your place in the world as one who is privileged to have a real life; and you know, understand and are your true self. You see everyone else as your own extended family. You have no greed or hunger for success for it's own sake. You focus on life at hand. So when you study you study with full focus. You know exactly that any amount of study is never enough. So you study and study and go on to researching the subject of your interest. You over prepare for life.<br /><br />So to improve your powers of life. To make your pleasures genuine create the best possible fulcrum of your mind. Create a +2 super mature fulcrum. Create your self image that is the real you; your self image is the key to wisdom, the key to your brain power. So learn to change your fulcrum, learn to change your self image. Please read the related knols.</div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;"> </div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;">At -2 it is all me, me, me. The -2 self image rules your life. As -2 brain is a complete disconnect from reality the result is a -2 life. At -1 life is -1. At +1 life is +1 and at +2 life is +2. So to have a +2 life make your self image +2. Create the best possible fulcrum for your life. have the power. </div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;"> </div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;">Even at -2 level there is always a very important silver lining. It is that the brain and mind struggle against each other to take control of the self image. As the brain is a mussel it exercises more and the % of the brain cells that are active are far more. So a -2 brain uses much more of the brain than a normal +1. The -2 self image is the exercise excuse for the brain. So the brain at -2 is the most powerful, though in a negative way. If this extra exercised brain is diverted towards the arts then sometimes the results are spectacular. Keep this in mind if you have a -2 person in your circle. Divert his attention to becoming an artist. Also introduce love into his brain by getting him a pet especially a dog. When families have dogs they tend to show that they all own the dog. This is OK if all the members are normal or super normal. If you have a -2 or -1 family member show that the dog/pet belongs to this person exclusively. Thus love will enter his brain with all its benefits.</div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;"> </div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;">A -1 brain has a similar struggle for the control of the self image on a lesser degree. This mind should be diverted in a similar fashion. And the pet too should belong to this person.</div> <div style="font-family: times new roman;"> </div><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> Even at +1 there is a lesser struggle. So the mind becomes even more powerful if you change your self image from +1 to +2.</span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-90650300480493839022010-03-04T10:24:00.000-08:002010-03-04T10:31:48.083-08:00Disc Decompression therpay<span style="font-size:100%;"><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-aDgB3Oj-k8&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> <ALIGN=CENTER> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-aDgB3Oj-k8&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"> </embed></object><br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;">Between the bones of the spine (vertebrae) there is soft tissue which acts like a shock absorber. Through injury or other causes, some patients have had this material compressed, distorting the shape of the disc and causing the material to create pressure on surrounding nerves (neural impingement). Several conditions may cause such neural impingement, including spinal stenosis, disc herniation, or, rarely, tumors. </span> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">Disc decompression is a surgical procedure performed to alleviate pain caused by <a href="http://www.neurosurgical.com/neuro_medical_info/pinched_nerves.htm">pinched nerves</a>. In this procedure, a small portion of the bone over the nerve root and/or disc material from under the nerve root is removed. This gives the nerve root more space and provide a better healing environment. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">There are two common types of decompression procedures: </span></p> <ul><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Microdiscectomy (or micro-decompression)</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Laminectomy (or open decompression)</span></li></ul> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">With modern spine surgery techniques, both procedures can usually be done with reduced post-operative discomfort and a high degree of success in alleviating low back pain and/or leg pain. </span></p> <h2><span style="font-size:100%;">The microdiscectomy procedure</span></h2> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">A small portion of the bone over the nerve and/or disc material from under the nerve root is removed to relieve neural impingement and provide room for the nerve to heal. A microdiscectomy is typically performed for <a href="http://www.neurosurgical.com/neuro_medical_info/spinal_anatomy.htm">lumbar</a> <a href="http://www.neurosurgical.com/neuro_medical_info/spinal_disc_disease.htm#herniated_disc">herniated disc</a>. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">A microdiscectomy surgery is more effective for treating leg pain than for lower back pain. The impingement on the nerve root can cause substantial leg pain, and while it may take weeks or months for the nerve root to fully heal and numbness or weakness get better, patients normally feel relief from leg pain almost immediately after a microdiscectomy surgery. Microdiscectomy surgery is typically recommended for patients who have experienced leg pain for at least six weeks and have not found sufficient pain relief with conservative treatment such as oral steroids, NSAID's, and physical therapy. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">Importantly, since almost all of the joints, ligaments and muscles are left intact, a microdiscectomy does not change the mechanical structure of the patient's lower spine (<a href="http://www.neurosurgical.com/neuro_medical_info/spinal_anatomy.htm">lumbar spine</a>). </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">Usually, a microdiscectomy procedure is performed on an outpatient basis or with one overnight stay in the hospital. Post-operatively, patients may return to a normal level of daily activity quickly.</span></p> <h2><span style="font-size:100%;">The laminectomy procedure</span></h2> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">A lumbar laminectomy is a surgical procedure that is performed to alleviate pain caused by neural impingement. The laminectomy surgery is designed to remove a small portion of the bone over the nerve root and/or disc material from under the nerve root to give the nerve root more space and a better healing environment. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">A laminectomy is effective in decreasing pain and improve functions for patients with lumbar spinal stenosis, a condition that primarily afflicts elderly patients and is caused by degenerative changes that result in enlargement of the facet joints. The enlarged joints then place pressure on the nerves. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">The surgical results for a laminectomy are much better for relief of leg pain caused by spinal stenosis, and not nearly as reliable for relief of lower back pain. Although removing the lamina and part of the facet joint can create more room for the nerve roots it does not eliminate the arthritis. Unfortunately, symptoms may recur after several years as the degenerative process that originally produced the spinal stenosis continues.</span></p> <h2><span style="font-size:100%;"> LASE</span></h2> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">LASE stands for "Laser Discectomy", a procedure where laser light is used to correct problems with discs in the spine. The procedure is common and less invasive than other alternatives.</span></p> <p> <span style="font-size:100%;"><img src="http://www.neurosurgical.com/Images/07_Med_Info/LASE.jpg" shapes="_x0000_s1025" width="262" align="left" border="0" height="262" />After sedation, a miniature endoscope with a laser fiber is carefully inserted into the disc while remaining outside the spinal canal. A laser is used to remove disc tissue near the herniated site in order to decompress the disc. The procedure takes approximately one hour. Success rates are seen in about 66 - 75% of all patients who have this procedure. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">The incision through the skin is less than 1/4 inch. The LASE endoscope allows your doctor to see the bulging disc tissue and remove it with the laser fiber. By removing some of the nucleus from the disc, the pressure on the nerve is reduced or eliminated along with the pain. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">LASE -bridges the gap between conservative therapy and surgery for the treatment of contained herniated discs. The LASE procedure is a cost-effective, minimally-invasive treatment for those patients who prefer to avoid conventional back surgery. LASE often provides relief from the pain and a fast return to routine activities. Because it is minimally-invasive, it is appropriate for many patients whose health or age may exclude them from more aggressive surgical intervention. </span></p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-67843067305130779182010-03-04T03:00:00.000-08:002010-03-04T03:10:26.308-08:00Want stand tall? Then sit straight!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhxU-eK5PsfmXu5gJL1XMTXrpbY57aCIem2uaozjArWBaUDx1LG3T-fyfts0_VgxOIR-YrKvkTl60V0490l_lgBmitNlzMA1HhVwS3NZu7oXbfaayq0I4dyENPpGcU0t76-vOkatlZpv-/s1600-h/sitting-straight.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 399px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhxU-eK5PsfmXu5gJL1XMTXrpbY57aCIem2uaozjArWBaUDx1LG3T-fyfts0_VgxOIR-YrKvkTl60V0490l_lgBmitNlzMA1HhVwS3NZu7oXbfaayq0I4dyENPpGcU0t76-vOkatlZpv-/s400/sitting-straight.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444733784183910034" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Fixing one's posture requires discipline and persistence. Mind Your Body lists some tips to help you along:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><b>1: Reverse your routine</b></span><br />If you slouch all the time, try sitting or standing up straight as long as you can and then slouch for short intervals to relax. <p>The more you practice, the easier it will be to maintain proper posture for longer periods, said physiotherapist Farzad Hafezi of Documentation Based Care Singapore.</p><span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 0);"><b><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">2: Work smart:</span><br /></b></span><p>Occupational therapist Chen Hui Wen from Changi General Hospital shares this advice:</p> <p>Adjust the height of the chair you use in the office so your table is at elbow level. This will help you avoid hunching at work.</p> <p>Keep your chair close to your desk to avoid having to lean over.</p> <p>Make sure your feet stay flat on the ground while you are seated. Use a foot rest for support if necessary.</p><p>Place a cushion in the small of your back if your chair does not have back support.</p> <p>Take frequent short breaks. No matter how ergonomically correct your work station is, the human body is not meant to stay in one position for too long.</p><p style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 0);"><b><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">3:</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Set yourself visual reminders:</span></b></span></p><p>Use small coloured stickers as visual reminders to sit or stand up straight.</p> <p>You can stick these on places like the corner of your laptop screen, on your watch or your mirrors at home, said Mr Farzad.</p><p style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 0);"><b><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">4: Stretch</span></b></span></p> <p>Rounded, or forward slouching, shoulders can result when one's tight chest muscles pull the weaker upper back muscles forward, said Mr Farzad.</p> <p>Stretch these muscles by pulling your shoulder blades back and holding them there for a few seconds. Repeat sets of this process throughout the day. More simple posture exercises can also be found at: www.wikihow.com/improve-your-posture</p> <p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 0);"><b><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">5: Tape your back</span></b></span></p> <p>Get into a proper posture position and stick an 'X' across your upper back using medical tape.</p> <p>This way, when you start to slouch or when your shoulders drop, the tug felt can serve as a reminder to straighten your back again, said Mr Farzad.</p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-26435400648250524802010-03-04T02:56:00.000-08:002010-03-04T03:00:16.961-08:00Sitting straight boosts your confidence!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSQRMbq2IP1QhfLKiEv1RuQ267G3x7kyy1Fdejg2Ud7KgiEfnrWkCKLTCLxjn4mzoTrpvSIhF9EEyzyhJ9Em4Y167I3Ss6bpAWPZuSXU4M3oR3NYfNdzIKhyULylgPAI4Er6zixTn0o6i4/s1600-h/Sit.jpg.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSQRMbq2IP1QhfLKiEv1RuQ267G3x7kyy1Fdejg2Ud7KgiEfnrWkCKLTCLxjn4mzoTrpvSIhF9EEyzyhJ9Em4Y167I3Ss6bpAWPZuSXU4M3oR3NYfNdzIKhyULylgPAI4Er6zixTn0o6i4/s400/Sit.jpg.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444731721309716434" border="0" /></a><br />Sitting up straight isn’t just good for your posture - it also gives you more confidence in your own thoughts, says a new study. <p><span id="more-13067"></span></p> <p>Researchers found that people who were told to sit up straight were more likely to believe thoughts they wrote down in that posture, regarding their fitness for a job. </p> <p>On the other hand, those who were slumped over their desks were less likely to accept these written-down feelings about their own qualifications. </p> <p>The results, based on a study of 71 students at Ohio State University (OSU), show how our body posture can affect not only what others think about us, but also how we think about ourselves, said Richard Petty, study co-author and OSU psychology professor.<br /></p><p>“Most of us were taught that sitting up straight gives a good impression to other people,” Petty said. </p> <p>“But it turns out that our posture can also affect how we think about ourselves. If you sit up straight, you end up convincing yourself by the posture you’re in,” Petty added. </p> <p>The research was published in the October issue of the European Journal of Social Psychology.</p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-46422425445630659702009-11-20T22:48:00.000-08:002009-11-20T23:00:22.509-08:00Control Your Pain<a style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZwm6CjCK2pL_hFMIS0Tp281S0BzwDdH4sAUoSAM-aVHtRRWUzYN4b-o-axKbJguQZcOj6ZXrIFr3VLzC6O80YERBEZNSjekr-wJO_wAyjBBvedpMHSbBnWiJZETyUfOcOB9oYZRJr0CSz/s1600/neck.pain.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZwm6CjCK2pL_hFMIS0Tp281S0BzwDdH4sAUoSAM-aVHtRRWUzYN4b-o-axKbJguQZcOj6ZXrIFr3VLzC6O80YERBEZNSjekr-wJO_wAyjBBvedpMHSbBnWiJZETyUfOcOB9oYZRJr0CSz/s400/neck.pain.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406447117930963650" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);" class="article_container"> <h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> What Is Pain? </h2> <p> Pain has been characterized in a variety of ways. There are physical definitions such as an unpleasant sensation; a warning that something is wrong; or the body's response to a thermal, chemical, or mechanical injury. There are also definitions that attempt to provide a meaning or explanation. For example, pain is a punishment; it lets the body know it is alive; it is a teacher helping to modify future behavior; or it is "all in one's head." </p> <p> Two definitions have become particularly influential among health care providers, educators, and researchers. The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) proposes that pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Margo McCaffery suggested as early as 1968 the widely accepted definition, "Pain is whatever the experiencing person says it is, existing whenever the experiencing person say it does" (McCaffery and Beebe 1989, p. 7). Both definitions point to the fact that pain is much more than tissue damage that triggers a response from the nervous system. The management of pain therefore involves more than treating the tissue injury. The individual's cultural background, present circumstances, and state of mind all require assessment and attention. It has become clear that cultural learning leads to differences in the way that people express pain. Furthermore, it is also becoming increasingly accepted among the medical community that, in contrast to previous medical beliefs, children feel pain even when they are too young to express it effectively. Elderly people may also have different, less obvious, ways of expressing pain, especially if affected by Alzheimer's disease. Health care providers are therefore improving their expertise in recognizing signs of pain across a broad span of patients. </p> </div><br /><h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> How Does Pain Work? </h2> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> Research about pain is still limited, but is going forward on many fronts. A major focus is the search for a molecular description of how a pain stimulus is signaled to the brain and how the brain signals its response. Until that process has been firmly identified, caregivers and researchers can utilize the following overview of pain pathways. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> Cell damage occurs. Proteins trigger specific channels that set off the pain signal. As chemicals are released the area becomes inflamed and swollen. Identification of the specific pain channels may lead to the development of highly selective local anesthetics with reduced side effects for the rest of the body.<br /></p><p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> When the tissue damage threshold is reached, nerve fibers in the area carry a message to the spinal column. There are three types of nerve fibers, each of which has a distinctive role in producing pain sensations. Small, myelinated fibers known as <i> A delta </i> carry localized and sharp thermal and mechanical impulses to the neospinothalamic tract. The small, unmyelinated <i> C fibers </i> carry aching, throbbing, burning, dull, unlocalized messages to the paleospinothalamic tract and on to the brain stem and thalamus. <i> A beta fibers, </i> which are large and myelinated, serve to inhibit impulses from the A delta and C fibers, thereby modulating the number and intensity of impulses sent up the spinal tracts. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> The physiologist Patrick Wall, one of the world's foremost authorities on pain, describes what happens in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord, "If the input message comes only from the large A beta fibers as a result of touch, the cell fires briefly and then is turned off. If, however, the input volley comes from tissue damage detection fibers, A delta and C, the cell fires more vigorously and exaggerates the output. During all this time, the brain is sending down control messages to amplify, diminish, or ignore the signal" (Wall 2000, p. 40). An example of this occurs when hitting one's shin on a sharp object. The immediate response is to reach down and rub the area. The rubbing message is carried by the A beta fibers closing the gate to messages from the A delta and C fibers.<br /></p><p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> Once in the spinal cord the messages cross to the opposite side of the spinal column. Next they travel upward through the spinothalamic tract, conveying information about the nature and location of the stimulus to the thalamus, cerebral cortex, and spinoreticular tract. This process activates autonomic and limbic (motivational-affective) responses in the brain stem and thalamus. Messages descend the spinal cord as a result of these responses. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> It is in the brain stem and the cerebral cortex that the pain messages are analyzed. Here the body meets the mind. While little research is available, there are theories and some pieces of the puzzle to suggest what is happening. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> <i> Endorphins. </i> Endorphins are important pieces of the puzzle. Scientists know something of the body's defenses against pain. Some neuropeptides, such as Substance P, appear to be pain specific transmitters. Other peptides, such as the endorphins and enkephalins, provide profound analgesic (pain-relieving) effects. Morphine and other opioid medications were in use long before the opioid receptor sites in neural tissue were discovered in the 1970s. The word <i> endorphin </i> was coined as a contraction to the terms <i> endogenous </i> (meaning "a natural property of the body") and <i> morphine. </i> Methods to turn on secretion of the endorphins have been studied. Massaging or moving a painful part may owe some of its effectiveness to stimulating endorphin production. The "runner's high," a good feeling as a result of exercise, has also been attributed to endorphin release. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> <i> Placebo response. </i> Less well explained is the "placebo effect." This occurs when a treatment produces an effect primarily because of its intent rather than its specific therapeutic physical or chemical properties (e.g., taking a pill that actually contains no medicine). People sometimes report that they feel better even though they have had only the expectation and appearance of a treatment. The double-blind research technique that pits a new drug against an inactive substance has been developed to offset the placebo effect. The placebo would be expected to produce no effects. In actuality, however, placebo users frequently report positive effects. An important aspect of the placebo effect seems to be that the person trusts the person administering the treatment and believes that the treatment will be effective. The placebo effect can be a useful supplement to therapeutic treatment but its effectiveness differs markedly from person to person and is not entirely reliable. </p> <p style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"> Both the presence of endorphins and the well-documented placebo response point to the power of the mind-body connection in pain management. </p><br /><div style="color: rgb(204, 204, 204);" class="article_container"> <h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> Use of Noninvasive Pain Control Measures </h2> <p> The first methods of pain control probably included stimulation of the skin with heat, cold, massage, and vibration, all of which have the ability to relieve pain without causing injury, at a low cost, and with little experience. Other types of stimulation of the skin include massage with mentholbased lotions, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (an electrical current administered through skin patches), and acupressure (gentle pressure applied to acupuncture points). </p> <p> Rubbing a bumped shin or applying a cool cloth to a forehead works to relieve discomfort. A parent's kiss to make everything "all better" helps a child through a painful experience. It reminds the individual that the presence of a loved one has a role in relieving pain. </p> <p> Assisting the patient to focus attention on stimuli other than pain is another effective noninvasive pain control measure. Because the pain stimulus does not go away, but instead becomes "more bearable," this strategy has the advantage of being under the patient's control. It is also inexpensive. Many patients use the distraction strategy without realizing it by watching television, reading, doing crossword puzzles, listening to music, or attending to the company of friends and relatives. Meditation and guided visual imagery are also in this group of therapies. A disadvantage is that the existence of the pain may be doubted by others if the patient can be distracted. Distraction requires concentration and may drain the energy resources of the patient, perhaps leading to increased fatigue and irritability. The method is particularly effective for brief painful episodes. </p> <p> Freedom from skeletal muscle tension and anxiety produces the relaxation response, characterized by specific physiological responses (decreased oxygen consumption, decreased respiratory rate, decreased heart rate, decreased muscle tension, normal blood pressure, and increased alpha brain waves) and a lowering of the subjective sense of distress. Conscious attempts can be made to interrupt the cycle of pain that leads to anxiety and muscle tension with increased pain as a result. The relaxation response requires active patient involvement. Many patients need specific instruction to invoke the relaxation response effectively. Some techniques include deep breathing exercises, jaw relaxation, review of peaceful past experiences, and a meditative or progressive relaxation script or tape. </p> <p> <i> Use of medication. </i> While the noninvasive therapies are useful for mild pain, they should be considered supplements to the effective management of moderate to severe pain. Moderate to severe pain are often treated with medication and invasive pain control measures. </p> <p> The World Health Organization developed the "analgesic ladder" to illustrate a systematic plan for the use of pain medication. Mild pain is treated with medications such as aspirin, acetominophen, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Maximum recommended doses of these drugs restrict amounts in order to prevent toxicity and damage to the liver and kidneys. As pain increases, opioids such as oxycodone may be used. Severe pain requires morphine or other long-acting opioids. The dose is matched to the pain level. Although there are side effects to these drugs, the amount of drug is not limited. If pain level increases, the route by which the medication is given may change from the slower acting oral route to a faster route, whether transdermal, transmucosal, or intravenous. It is important to avoid routes that actually cause pain, such as intramuscular injection. </p> <p> For continuous pain, medical practitioners often maintain that continuous pain medication should be available. This requires drugs that are long acting and given on a continuous schedule. The goal is to keep pain in check, rather than waiting until it is out of control before administering more medication. </p> <p> Side effects of the drugs should be anticipated and prevented. The most common and preventable side effect of the opioids is constipation. Prevention includes adequate fluid and fiber intake and the possible use of stool softeners and laxatives. </p> <p> It is important to remember that withstanding pain uses energy. When pain is first adequately relieved with medication, the patient may sleep for an extended period of time. This sleeping does not indicate that too much medication is being taken, it means that the person's body is recuperating and regaining energy. This sleepiness can lead family and caregivers to fear that the disease is progressing or that too much medication is being given. If the person arouses easily, then it is an indication that he or she is not taking too much medication. </p> </div><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; color: rgb(204, 204, 204); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div class="article_container"> <h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> Self-Management Concept </h2> <p> The fear of unrelieved pain raises anxiety for terminally ill patients and their families. Many caregivers remember instances when they felt helpless in the face of pain. Giving the patient information about pain leads to better pain control and lowered anxiety. The confidence that pain will remain in control and the continued presence of the health care provider can go a long way to assure that pain will not be an issue at the end of life. </p> <p> The patient plays a significant role in providing information about the pain and in selecting and using diverse pain control methods. The patient is the best judge of the adequacy of control. Caregivers may hear statements such as the following that express personal preference: </p> <ul><li> "It is okay if I only have pain when I move." </li><li> "I want to continue to be up and walking, so I will need more medication." </li><li> "A warm shower, meditation, and pain medication at bedtime helps me get a good night's sleep." </li><li> "I just want to have no pain. I don't care if all I do is sleep." </li></ul> <p> The adequacy of pain control can be judged by the patient's feeling of comfort and ability to participate in activities of daily living. The goal of complete freedom from pain may not be achievable. </p> <p> Fear of addiction is often an issue with pain control, especially when opioids are used. Psychological dependence is a pattern of compulsive drug use characterized by a continued craving for an opioid and the need to use the opioid for effects other than pain relief. Addiction resulting from medical treatment regimen is extremely rare. On the other hand, the need to increase doses over time is not uncommon because of tolerance for the drug or changes in the disease process. Other drugs may be added to the regime. Medical practitioners cite the importance of not abruptly stopping the medications. </p> <p> Health care providers themselves may be a barrier. It is important to seek out providers who believe the pain is real, who are willing to provide diverse approaches to the pain, and who plan for continued contact. Concerns about providing sufficient medication to relieve pain without precipitating the death of a terminally ill person should be discussed openly. If large doses of opioids are required, the physician may be hesitant to order them and nurses may be reluctant to administer the needed dose because the actions might be considered performing euthanasia or assisting suicide. The line between relieving pain and hastening death may not be clear. Patients can help with the ethical issues by making their wishes clear and by seeking the assistance of a like-minded counselor or medical professional in explaining their preferences. </p> </div><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><div class="article_container"> <h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> Pain Management: The Future </h2> <p> Research concerning the physiologic mechanisms of pain continues in the early twenty-first century. These research efforts will most likely reveal new, more specific pain control measures. In the meantime, the controversy between governmental control of opioids to prevent abuse and the need for opioid use for pain relief continues. Professional care providers need education and organizational support that establishes standards and accountability for pain management. A recent initiative to require that pain be assessed as often as the patient's temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure are taken provides a starting place for standards and accountability. Dissemination of information about pain-relieving drugs and other interventions remains crucial to quick, effective responses to pain. Access to analgesic medication and pain is crucial. Paying for the cost of health care should not become a barrier to pain management. Professionals must continue to advocate for patients in pain as American society struggles to afford health care for the entire population. </p> <p> The public should be appropriately educated about pain and pain relief if it is to advocate for the use of pain medications. Fears that medication will cause addiction and the inability to experience and control life decisions prevents use of some effective pain measures. Patients' fear of stigma if they offer complaints of pain can keep providers from understanding patients' extent of pain and thus appropriately treating it. </p> <p> Researchers and leading edge practitioners agree that people in pain can be empowered by knowing what to expect from health professionals in relation to pain management. Assessment of the pain and its causes is the first step. Professionals should seek a clear understanding of the meaning of the pain to the patient and family. Multiple approaches to the pain can be recommended. Concerns about addiction and other effects of the controls measure can be addressed through patient education and referral to pain specialists. The knowledge, skills, and tools exist to meet the goal that no one should die in pain. </p> </div><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br />Read more: <a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://www.deathreference.com/Nu-Pu/Pain-and-Pain-Management.html#ixzz0XTTh6SQt">http://www.deathreference.com/Nu-Pu/Pain-and-Pain-Management.html#ixzz0XTTh6SQt</a><br /></div></div></div>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-75540847282381491692009-11-04T10:45:00.000-08:002009-11-15T03:48:55.534-08:00How To Make a Speech<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.howtodothings.com/files/u10023/how-to-make-a-speech.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 200px;" src="http://www.howtodothings.com/files/u10023/how-to-make-a-speech.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><div class="KonaBody"><p>Some people would prefer to dive over a cliff than make a speech. They conjure up all kinds of nightmare scenarios: What if I freeze? What if the audience hates me on sight? What if no one laughs except in places they shouldn't? Will everyone remember the mistakes I make for the rest of my life? </p> <p>And yet, by learning a few techniques used by professional speakers -- who are very often the most scared of all -- you can not only conquer your nerves, you can also make a powerful impression and within seconds, actually start to enjoy the whole experience. Here's how.</p> <p>First, check how you look.<strong> </strong>Dress appropriately, and be well groomed, so you feel comfortable and smart.<strong> </strong>Dressing professionally also helps the audience feel you've taken trouble for them and that they are respected. But make sure you don't go too far and unintentionally distract them, for example, with a man's flashy tie or a woman's low neckline. </p> <ol><li><strong>Opening nerves</strong>. Here are some techniques that will help you feel more comfortable and relaxed when you start.<em><br /></em> <ul><li><em>Before you go on, chat to people</em> in your audience. It will help create a warmer, more friendly atmosphere.</li><li><em>As you're waiting to be announced, repeat your opening sentence</em> three or four times to distract you from your nervousness and to give you the confidence of a sure start.</li><li><em>To help relax from head to toe, take three deep slow breaths</em> - in through nose - out through mouth with your hand on your stomach as it expands and contracts.</li><li><em>When starting, </em><em>pause</em> for 1-2 seconds to establish yourself.</li><li><em>Stand upright and relaxed</em>.</li><li><em>Pleasantly acknowledge</em> a friendly face nearby.</li><li><em>Smile</em>.<em> </em>Smiling shows warmth for the audience and is rarely misinterpreted.</li></ul> </li><li><strong>Contact</strong>. <ul><li><em>Make eye contact with </em>the audience, momentarily from one to another as a way of showing interest in them.</li><li><em>Engage </em>with animated listeners - but not too much.</li><li><em>Scan the audience</em>, and don't miss anyone, anywhere, ever.</li><li><em>Occasionally start a sentence looking at one section </em>of the audience and finish looking at another section.</li><li><em>Too shy to look straight at individuals? </em>Until your confidence grows, try looking at the spaces between them.</li></ul> </li><li><strong>Speaking technique</strong><em>.</em> <ul><li><em>Recall how you talk </em>to your mother, girlfriend or boyfriend, chief financial officer or boss. It's usually different for each. So imagine that someone who loves and appreciates you is listening. Start out by imagining you're talking to them.</li><li><em>Successful speakers project energy and conviction. </em>They have to if they are to hold their audience from start to finish. They also know that if they stop concentrating on the words and the thread of their speech, so will the audience.</li><li><em>Believe what you say and deliver it with conviction and passion</em><strong>. </strong>The audience will sense if you're not sincere.</li></ul> </li><li><strong>Delivery</strong>. These suggestions may feel unnatural when you first try them, but you can see just how effective they are by listening to the phrasing of top presenters on TV and radio. Notice how they: <ul><li><em>Emphasize key words </em>in every sentence. So when you go through your speech, you will find it useful to underline a number of verbs and adjectives in each of your sentences to remind you to give them extra ‘punch.'<p></p> <ul><li><em>Don't drop </em>your head when reading speech (many speakers type their speech only on the top half of pages).</li><li><em>Don't turn </em>your back on audience. </li><li><em>Don't play </em>with a pen or pointer. </li><li><em>Don't grip </em>table or lectern. </li><li><em>Don't bend </em>towards microphone (adjust its height). </li><li><em>Don't lean </em>towards your notes. </li><li><em>Don't stare </em>fixedly at notes or visual aids. </li><li><em>Don't fidget</em>: Touch face, tie, lapel, etc.</li></ul> </li><li><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><p style="text-align: left;"><strong>And when it's all over . . .</strong><strong>smile</strong>.<strong> </strong><br /></p><object width="355" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/g_UfPtnQStM&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></object><div style="text-align: left;">(Unless the occasion's not appropriate....) It tells the audience that you've done your best, that you've enjoyed your talk and are confident they've enjoyed it too, that they're a great audience who've responded well. <strong>All that</strong> from just a smile? Sure, but it's what's behind the smile (learning and using the above) that's the real secret</div></li><li>http://www.howtodothings.com/business/how-to-make-a-speech<br /></li></ul></li></ol> </div>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-38386347088688665652009-10-09T05:02:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:49:07.078-08:00I am a Warrior<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=14666&thumb=1&d=1195700159"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 350px;" src="http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=14666&thumb=1&d=1195700159" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" >Within each one of us there is a warrior waiting to be unleashed, most of us get the same idea when we say the word warrior, it became a popular commodity representing famous action figures and wide screen heroes but, we never think about what that specific word means and the idea that could change our lives radically, the idea that we are all nothing less than warriors.<br />We grew up on tales of heroes and great leaders who gave every thing including their own lives for a great cause, some of us witnessed war, death, fear, courage and epics, some of us are heroes by the common meaning of the word, army men, police men, front line soldiers or extraordinary people who did magnificent deeds.<br />We all appreciate and admire those warriors who fought for what they believed in and didn't back up and never surrendered, the ones we hope our children would be as great or even close in a way or another but, that doesn't mean that a warrior's place can only be a warfare battlefield, in fact we are all warriors and we all have our battlefields, doctors and scientists fight diseases every single day, teachers and professors fight ignorance every single day and many examples that tends to infinity.<br />I believe that you don't have to be a soldier, a teacher, a doctor, or a politician to be a warrior, deep inside every one there is a warrior fighting every day, the battlefields may vary but, still they are all battlefields.<br />A warrior is the real definition of sacrifice and ever lasting immortality, a warrior is a creature defined by higher laws and codes, driven by his passion to a cause, distinguished among others by his devotion and loyalty to that cause and by his ability to go on and never give up.<br />Every one of us is a warrior as long as he believes in his cause, his sword is his devotion and commitment, his spear is his knowledge and wisdom, his armor is his hope and faith, his shield is his unbreakable determination and his cause is his home to die for, the one that he believes that struggling for is a great virtue, a virtue fit for saints and kings, a virtue worth fighting for.<br />I encourage every one to awake the warrior within, you are already in the fight, so get up and <a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 102);" href="http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/2009/09/discover-your-true-strengths-and-know.html">make your stand</a>, be noticed, be recognized, be remembered and be for ever alive in the eyes of those who witnessed your fight, be for all times the true figure of a warrior.<br />Fight for what is right, for what is beautiful, for what is great and for what is important, fight for yourself and for your loved ones, fight your bad habits, fight smoking, fight your <a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 102);" href="http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-to-gain-contro-over-alcohol.html">addiction</a>, fight your greed, fight your dark side and let your inner light prevail, help yourself and others who need help, break your limits, fight for the weak and the needy as certainly some day others will fight for you.<br />So that you can say " I am a warrior"<br />This is how I see it, this is my cause.<br />Demarco,<br />This article is from: <a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 102);" href="http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/">http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/</a><br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-53291214691627332192009-10-08T17:43:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:49:25.446-08:00Know What's Important<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.ora.ucr.edu/images/pictures/centers/FamilyStudies.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 300px;" src="http://www.ora.ucr.edu/images/pictures/centers/FamilyStudies.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="font-weight: bold;"><br />We all have eyes, we all can see but can we really see through? Can we penetrate the walls of deception?<br />Every day we blindfold ourselves, we become unable to see what's really important and what's not, most of us became shallow and inconsiderate.<br /><br />We keep ourselves from loved ones, the most important people in our lives, family and friends, brothers and sisters, wives and daughters, the ones that really matter. We blindfold ourselves with formality and keeping all the time busy trying to succeed, demonstrating the true essence of selfishness and being the center of the world.<br /><br />Some people think that career comes before family, I say who gave you the right to think that way? If it weren't for your family, you wouldn't have had a career, you wouldn't even be there, a man without a family, is a plant without roots, easy to be broken, nothing to support it.<br />We were created on Earth as successors of God, to spread his word and multiply, to fill the land with goodness and prosperity. That's our role in our lives, to be a family.<br /><br />So, take a moment and think, when was the last time you saw your parents? When was the last time you checked on your daughter? Did you even attend your son's birthday? Did you even see your grandson?<br /><br />All of those and many more questions which I ask to children, parents and grandparents.<br />Can you really handle being alone? A question for the son who never calls his old man, can you handle being neglected by your children; because believe me, you will get old and tired and you might end up all alone just like your old man, as they say "What goes around comes around."<br /><br />On the other hand, I am dying to know why would a parent abandon his child? I mean what did that weak creature do to deserve this? Why were you threaten by his presence?<br />How could a human be that selfish?<br />Humans are distinguished among other creatures by on thing; humanity!<br />If we don't take care of our own, then we become animals and savage, living for the purpose of surviving.<br /><br />Is it so hard to pick up the phone and say hi to your son? You will never experience the pleasure of living unless you have lived for a purpose, so why can't this purpose be your family?<br />we all know that every one is a king in his house, a Sheppard responsible for his followers, for his family, so you must be up to the task and support your family by all means, besides it's so fulfilling and comfortable to go to bed knowing that your family are safe and sound because you did your contribution even if it was very small, it might not be that small in the eyes of your loved ones.<br /><br />Take care of your own, watch each others' backs, feel the warmth of a family, your family.<br />Demarco<br /><br /><br /></div>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-45874348848040501542009-09-28T14:55:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:49:51.359-08:00Start Making a Difference<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.smileinternational.org/photos/UGH2080-WR.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 353px; height: 285px;" src="http://www.smileinternational.org/photos/UGH2080-WR.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>
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Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >In our lives we witness sorrow and joy sadness and depression ups and downs, we witness a new tragedy </span><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >unfold in front of our eyes every single moment, but what do we do? How would we act? <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Is it so hard to take a stand and do your part? I don't think so. In fact there are a lot of people who gave their lives helping the needy, the poor and the sick, man or woman, elder or infant. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Some how there always seem to be a way out, like it was already written and meant to be. Some how God created those people to be the saviors of those who need to be saved, never the less that will never be enough, those who need your help can't depend on the very few that made their stand.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >All of us need to speak to ourselves to the inner good that we were basically born with, the kind of instincts that drives us towards doing what we were meant to do, our purpose in life which is:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >"Standing up for each other"<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >We can take it step by step until we can do our part, until each and every one of us can get the satisfaction of sleeping at night knowing that he did something good, that he supplied a need or even drew a smile on a child's face.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Step 1:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >The first thing you need to do is to look at the mirror thoroughly and think: "What do I have that I can give up? When can I spare some time for the cause? Am I really committed of it's just a fling?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >You will have to <a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 102);" href="http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/">break your limits</a> and get out of your shell.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Step 2:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Ask your questions, get your answers and switch from looking at yourself to looking around you, see things with new eyes, look deep into your surroundings, I assure you that you will definitely find someone who needs your help, the old neighbor, the little kid, the homeless guy or even your own family a near or distant relative.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Step 3:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Choose the best way you can be of help depending on your expertise and skills and give it your best shot. Start with something small, something you can commit to and perform on regular bases, but nothing big for starters.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Step 4: <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Like we mentioned before the key word to this thing is commitment, you don't want to fail someone depending on you, so I say hold your horses and don't involve yourself in something you can't handle as <span style=""> </span>it is a huge responsibility, now hold on I didn't mean to scare you away, on the contrary I am warning you because I know the overwhelming warm satisfying feelings you will get after doing your first good deed, the feelings that will drive you to make others an others and that's in fact the goal we seek to achieve, but it must be taken step by step; for you not lose your commitment.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Step 5:<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Now that you took your stand and made it clear that every body must do his part, you need to ask other people to join your case and you need to spread the word, the life style we seek and our own utopia that many have dreamed of over the ages, the one we have a chance to create and live in.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >We need to be their for each other, so start doing it<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >This article is from: <a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 102);" href="http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/">http://breakyourlimits-demarco.blogspot.com/</a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Thank you,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; font-weight: bold;"><span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:100%;" >Demarco<o:p></o:p></span></p> Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-9195908027668219372009-09-25T16:07:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:50:15.677-08:00Boundaries of Mind<div style="text-align: left; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: courier new;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.wickedreport.com/images/Extremist-Persons08.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 365px;" src="http://www.wickedreport.com/images/Extremist-Persons08.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>
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class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">People are faced with decisions all the time, in work, in home, during meals or between them, what to wear, what to do etc.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">Most of life’s greatest challenges are in fact our own creation, we often set the shape of our limits and live by the line we drew according to our custom laws of I can and I can’t.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">We differ a lot from each other, in so many ways even identical twins have different habits, ideas, life styles and the way they see things and how they act upon it so, we also differ in limits some people just can’t do some things while others can easily do them without even thinking.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">If I told you that I have a wooden bar 2 feet wide and 100 feet long and I had this bar safely fixed along a corridor at a height of 2 feet and I asked from any one to run along that bar for a 100$ How many of you would do it?!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">I would for a 100$ I’d do it with one leg.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">What if I move the same bar and put it between two skyscrapers?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">Will you do it then?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">But why? Why won’t you do it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">Your mind put too many boundaries for you, to stop you from doing it.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;"><b><span style="font-size:12;">You fear of falling, getting hurt or maybe dying, but fear isn’t the only Line you need to skip, some times being intelligent can make you very confused and hesitated. In our case you can think of the wind, the gravity, the stability of the bar and its ability to break, some of us may think about the sum of money before all of that.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left; line-height: normal; direction: ltr; unicode-bidi: embed;"><b><span style=";font-family:";font-size:12;color:black;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);font-family:lucida grande;" >The bottom line is all of us have doubts about many things in our lives, but we can’t keep putting boundaries to our abilities thins are more complicated as they are so, no need for hesitation we have to know who we are and what we can do.</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" dir="rtl"><span dir="ltr" style=""><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <span style="line-height: 115%;font-size:14;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:100%;" ></span><o:p></o:p></span> Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-49508187879596048792009-09-14T13:59:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:50:28.374-08:00How to Break Credit Card Addiction<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/5334227/creditcardWC-main_Thumb.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 166px; height: 124px;" src="http://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/5334227/creditcardWC-main_Thumb.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" >Credit card addiction is no laughing matter. Retail therapy is used jokingly in our society, yet there is a dark side to spending money. A compulsive shopper may have one or more reasons for their behavior.<br />A shopping addict cannot just stop cold turkey. The most obvious side effect of credit card addiction is <a href="http://demarco-googleaffiliate.blogspot.com/">the financial distress</a> one causes themselves and their family, “but that is not the only negative effect of the addiction,” says April Benson, a compulsive shopping researcher.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" ><br />Other effects of the shopping addiction include relationships with other people, family and friends. You can be affected professionally if you are shopping online at work or get yourself in such financial distress that it affects your credit rating. Shopping additions, including credit card addiction is a very real addiction and needs to be dealt with accordingly.<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YiOVNWoWTAU&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YiOVNWoWTAU&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /></span> <span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" >Credit card addiction is almost always coupled with poor money management. Often people will blame the credit card itself for their debt and problems.<br />You may be tempted to go cold turkey and cut up all of your plastic, but we live in a society where credit and debit cards are a necessity of life.<br />Tackling a credit card addiction today is not an easy task however, you can get control.<br /><br /></span></span><div style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-weight: bold;font-family:verdana;" class="Heading3a"><span style="font-size:180%;">Instructions</span></div> <ol id="intelliTxt"><li> <div style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">1</span></div> <p>To begin with, limit yourself to two or three credit cards. Use one that is a low interest rate, preferably with your bank. You can also use a gas company credit card, if it gets you a better price on gas. Consider finding a credit card that offers some kind of point or mileage system so you can benefit from your monthly charges.</p> </li><li> <div style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">2</span></div> <p>Record every charge you make in a memo book or ledger. It is easy to just keep spending with a credit card. Without being able to check the internet, it is difficult to keep a running balance on your credit card. Use the internet statements to back yourself up and a memo pad to physically write down everything you are spending money on.</p> </li><li> <div style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">3</span></div> <p>Put a limit on your spending. Do not use the limits that the credit card companies have set for you. They will continue to increase your limits as time goes on, do not let them dictate how you will live your life. High credit card limits can also affect your credit rating. If the credit card company automatically raises your limits without your consent, politely ask them to lower the limit back down to what your spending limits you have set for yourself are.</p> </li><li> <div style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">4</span></div> <p>Do not spend more than 20% of your monthly budget on consumer debt. This is your monthly payments and includes car loans, credit card debt and other consumer debt loans. If you are paying more than 20% of your disposable income on monthly payments to consumer debt, you need to take steps to reduce or eliminate your debt.</p> </li><li> <div style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">5</span></div> <p>Pay with cash! Using credit cards for convenience or to earn rewards is fine, but your goal should be to pay them off at the end of the month or the beginning of the next month. Your goal should be to pay for what you can afford. Save for big purchases, save the credit card for emergencies if you don’t have an emergency savings account (which you should have).</p> </li><li> <div style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="stepBg"><span style="font-size:130%;">Step </span><span style="font-size:130%;">6</span></div> <p>Don’t try to keep up with your neighbors! Know your own and your family’s goals and plan and budget for those goals. Don’t let your neighbors and friends decide what you are going to spend your money on.</p> </li></ol><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" >http://www.ehow.com/how_5334227_break-credit-card-addiction.html - Demarco<br /></span></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-88395933566437095602009-09-14T12:43:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:50:42.915-08:00How to prepare for Interviews<span style="font-weight: bold;">You just received a phone call for a job interview and are ecstatic. An interview! Then reality sets in. What if you are terrible and freeze in the middle of a question? Do not worry. A little preparation and practice will ensure that you are able to walk into the interview with confidence and leave feeling like you aced it.<br /><br />Those are some </span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" >Interview Preparation Tips:<br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">First let's watch that video:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cCQdloL8HV0&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cCQdloL8HV0&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /></span></span><ol id="intelliTxt"><h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="Heading3a">Research the Company</h2><li> After you find you have secured an interview with a company or business, do some research through the internet or the library. Find your potential employer's mission statement and learn what the company feels is important, both as business practices and also in their employees. If you have a job interview with a small- or family-owned business, ask people you know around town for their view on what the business believes is important. The research goal is to feel secure in knowing both the background of the company as well as the specific job duties you will be expected to perform. </li><h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="Heading3a">Anticipate Questions</h2><li> Read over the job description of the position you've applied for. Be sure you note all the key phrases placed within the text like "attention to detail" or "strong analytical skills." Then, anticipate the types of questions that would come from those phrases. Plan on speaking about both prior work experience as well as any other outside experience or certifications that would make you a prime candidate for the position. If it helps, write out the questions and answers for quick reference in the days leading up to the interview. </li></ol><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" ><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YLp_txfM-DA&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YLp_txfM-DA&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /></span></span><ol id="intelliTxt"><h2 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" class="Heading3a">Practice</h2><li> Once you have done all the background work, practice speaking on the questions you came up with from the job description. Run through an entire mock interview with a friend or family member to polish your presentation. Also, come up with your own questions to ask, as knowledge in the business or company shows initiative and interest on your part. http://www.ehow.com - Demarco<br /></li></ol>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-43815358847324734642009-09-11T14:55:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:51:06.788-08:00How To Build Confidence<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__iafyo1_9jo/STUrnBq-3_I/AAAAAAAAABo/lQA0Myd3a1g/s320/confidence.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 281px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__iafyo1_9jo/STUrnBq-3_I/AAAAAAAAABo/lQA0Myd3a1g/s320/confidence.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Usually when someone is referred to as 'confident' they are referring to self-confidence. One who is self-confident is not necessarily loud, brash, or reckless. Self-confidence is faith in one's own abilities.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">Definition:</span><br />Confidence as a psychological quality is related to, but distinct from, self esteem. Confidence may be considered to be made up of a number of components.<br /><br />Self-confidence is having confidence in oneself when considering a capability. Confidence is generally described as a state of being certain, either that a hypothesis or prediction is correct, or that a chosen course of action is the best or most effective given the circumstances. Confidence can be described as a subjective, emotional state of mind, but is also represented statistically as a confidence level within which one may be certain that a hypothesis will either be rejected or deemed plausible. Overconfidence is having unmerited confidence--believing something or someone is capable when they are not. Scientifically, a situation can only be judged after the aim has been achieved or not. Confidence can be a self-fulfilling prophecy, as those without it may fail or not try because they lack it, and those with it may succeed because they have it, rather than because of an innate ability.<br /><br />The socio-psychological concept of self-confidence relates to self-assuredness in one's personal judgment, ability, power, etc., sometimes manifested excessively.<br /><br />Lack of self-confidence is called timidness or timidity. Being afraid of failure is a sign of this.<br /><br />Choking refers to losing confidence, especially self-confidence, just at the moment when it is needed most and doing poorly as a result e.g. in sports. This is found as a common plot device in literature and film, and is usually devised to result in a total alteration of a character's life.<br /><br />People may have confidence in other people or forces beyond their control. For instance, one might have confidence in the police to protect them, or may have confidence that a sports team will win a game. Faith and Trust are synonyms of confidence when used in this sense.<br /><br />True self confidence comes from an attitude where you "promise yourself, no matter how difficult the problem life throws at you, that you will try as hard as you can to help yourself. You acknowledge that sometimes your efforts to help yourself may not result in success, as often being properly rewarded is not in your control.<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4P_gr__B2Ew&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4P_gr__B2Ew&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0); font-weight: bold;">Tips To Build Self Confidence</span><br /><br /><br />Be thankful for what you have. A lot of the times, at the root of insecurity and lack of confidence is a feeling of not having enough of something, whether it's emotional validation, good luck, money, etc. By acknowledging and appreciating what you do have, you can combat the feeling of being incomplete and unsatisfied. Finding that inner peace will do wonders for your confidence.<br /><br /><br />Be Positive, even if you don't feel positive. Avoid self-pity, or the pity and sympathy of others. Never allow others to make you feel inferior--they can only do so if you let them. If you continue to loathe and belittle yourself, others are going to do and believe likewise. Instead, speak positively about yourself, about your future, and about your progress. Do not be afraid to project your strengths and qualities to others. By doing so, you reinforce those ideas in your mind and encourage your growth in a positive direction.<br /><br /><br />Look in the mirror and smile. Studies surrounding what's called the "facial feedback theory" suggest that the expressions on your face can actually encourage your brain to register certain emotions. So by looking in the mirror and smiling every day, you might feel happier with yourself and more confident in the long run. I am gorgeous, huh?<br /><br /><br />Fake it. Along the same lines of smiling to make yourself feel happy, acting confident might actually make you believe it. Pretend you're a completely confident version of you; go through the motions and see how you feel<br /><br /><br />Stick to your principles. It might be tough, but if you don't have something you can believe in, you don't have anything. If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything. No matter what's happened in your life, you can always lay claim to the fact that from this day forward, you've followed your principles to the best of your ability.<br /><br /><br />Help others. When you know you're kind to the people around you, and are making a positive difference in other people's lives (even if it's just being kinder to the person who serves you coffee in the morning), you'll know that you are a positive force in the world--which will boost your self confidence. Go volunteer twice a month at an elementary school. Bake something for your neighbor for no reason. Confidence that you have earned is the most long-lasting.<br /><br /><br />Stop worrying. What worries you today will be forgotten by you and people around you tomorrow. Can you remember what you were so worried about the same day the same time last week? If not, then you should not worry right now. You will not worry about it even one week from now.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">WATCH FOLLOWING VIDEO THAT HELP YOU MORE!<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><br /></span><br /><br />http://build-confidence.blogspot.com/ - Demarco<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/r-vlf-qgEbA&rel=0&color1=0x6699&color2=0x54abd6&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/r-vlf-qgEbA&rel=0&color1=0x6699&color2=0x54abd6&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-81017600491461961762009-09-10T06:48:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:51:20.028-08:00How to improve your memoryImproving your memory is not supernatural or magic but it's a very easy process using very easy steps to improve your capability to remember.<br />This a very helpful video that I stumbled upon.<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PGz3ChZJKa4&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PGz3ChZJKa4&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />So, follow those steps and i promise you will get a result very soon really I tried it myself,<br />enjoy,<br />DemarcoDemarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-8538684102258979112009-09-10T06:40:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:51:33.344-08:00The Revolutionary Pleasure of Thinking for Yourself<img src="http://deoxy.org/gif/wildride.gif" alt="Image by Pete Von Sholly" width="400" border="0" height="265" /> <p> </p><h1><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></span><br /></h1> <p style="font-weight: bold;"><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">1</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>hose who assume (often unconsciously) that it is impossible to achieve their life's desires-and, thus, that it is futile to fight for <em>themselves</em>--usually end up fighting for an ideal or cause instead. They may <em>appear</em> to engage in self-directed activity, but in reality they have accepted alienation from their desires as a way of life. All subjugations of personal desires to the dictates of a cause or ideology are reactionary no matter how "revolutionary" the actions arising from such subjugations may appear. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Yet, one of the great secrets of our miserable, yet potentially marvelous time, is that thinking can be a pleasure. Despite the suffocating effect of the dominant religious and political ideologies, many individuals <em>do</em> learn to think for themselves; and by doing so--by actively, critically thinking for themselves, rather than by passively accepting pre-digested opinions--they reclaim their minds as their own. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> This is a manual for those who wish to think for themselves, a manual for creation of a personally (rather than ideologically) constructed body of critical thought for your own use, a body of thought which will help you to understand why your life is the way it is and why the world is the way it is. More importantly, as you construct your own theory, you will also develop a <em>practice:</em> a method to get what you want for your own life. Theory, then, must be either practical--a guide to action--or it will be nothing, nothing but an aquarium of ideas, a contemplative interpretation of the world. The realm of ideas divorced from actions is the eternal waiting room of unrealized desires. Forming your own practical theory, what could be called "self-theory," is intimately connected to achieving the realization of your desires. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/R3Niq91bXqs&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/R3Niq91bXqs&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;">Therefore, constructing your self-theory is a revolutionary pleasure. It is both a destructive and constructive pleasure, because you are creating a practical theory--one tied to action--for the destruction and reconstruction of this society. It is a theory of adventure, because it is based on what you want from life and on devising the means necessary to achieve it. It is as erotic and humorous as an authentic revolution. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">2</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>A</strong>ny system of ideas with an abstraction at its center--an abstraction which assigns you a role or duties--is an ideology. An ideology provides those who accept it with a false consciousness, a necessary component of which is other-directedness. This leads those who accept the ideology to behave as "objects" rather than "subjects," to allow themselves to be used rather than to act to attain their <em>own</em> desires. The various ideologies are all structured around different abstractions, yet all serve the interests of a dominant (or aspiring dominant) class by giving individuals (though the term hardly seems appropriate--"members of the herd" is perhaps more accurate) a sense of purpose in sacrifice, suffering, and submission. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Religious ideology is the oldest example: the fantastic projection called "God" is the Supreme Subject of the cosmos, acting on every human being as "His" object. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> In the "scientific" and "democratic" ideologies of "free enterprise," capital investment is the "productive" subject directing world history--the "invisible hand" guiding human development. In order to prosper, the early capitalists had to attack and weaken the power that religious ideology once held. They exposed the mystification of the religious world and replaced it with the mystification of technology and commodity capitalism, wherein Profit becomes the Supreme Subject of the cosmos. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The 57 varieties of leninism are "revolutionary" ideologies in which the Party is the rightful subject entitled to dictate world history by leading its object--you, the proletariat--to the promised land through replacement of the corporate-capitalist "free enterprise" apparatus with a state-capitalist leninist apparatus. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The many other varieties of dominant ideologies can be seen daily. The new forms of religious mysticism help to preserve the status quo in a round about way. They provide a cheap and tidy way to obscure the vacuousness of daily life and, like drugs, make it easier to live, or rather exist, with this emptiness--and so prevent us from recognizing our real roles in the functioning of the socio-economic system. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> All of these ideologies differ in the specific sacrifices they demand of you, the object, but all are <em>structured</em> in the same way. All demand an inversion of subject and object; things, abstractions, take on the human attributes of power and will, while human beings become things, tools to be used in the service of these abstractions (God, the dictatorship of the proletariat, the fatherland, etc., etc.). Ideology is upside down self-theory. It fosters acceptance of the separation of our narrow, daily lives from a world that appears totally beyond our control. Ideology offers us only a voyeur's relationship with the life of the world. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> All abstraction-based ideologies demand duty, sacrifice for the cause; and every such ideology serves to protect the dominant social order. Authorities whose power depends upon docility must deny us our subjectivity, our conscious will to act for our <em>own</em> desires. Such denial comes in the form of demands for sacrifices for "the common good," "the national interest," "the war effort," "the revolution,"..... </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">3</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>W</strong>e rid ourselves of the blinders of ideology by constantly asking ourselves: How do I feel? How's my life? What do I want? Am I getting what I want? If not, why not? This is being conscious of the commonplace, being aware of your everyday routine. That real life exists--life in which you are active, a subject acting to achieve your desires--is a public secret that becomes less secret every day, as the breakdown of daily life constructed around abstraction-based ideologies becomes more and more obvious. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">4</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>he creation of self-theory is based on thinking for yourself, on being fully conscious of your desires and of their validity. Authentic "consciousness raising" can only be the "raising" of people's thinking to the level of positive (non-guilty) self-consciousness, free of imposed morality in all its forms. This type of consciousness can be termed "radical subjectivity." </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Conversely, what many leftists, therapy mongers, racism awareness trainers, and sisterizers term "consciousness raising" is the practice of beating people into unconsciousness with guilt-inducing, ideological billyclubs. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The path from self-negation to self-affirmation passes through point zero, the capital city of nihilism. This is the windswept still point in social space and time, the social limbo in which one recognizes that there is no real life in one's daily existence. A nihilist knows the difference between surviving and living. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Nihilists reverse their perspectives on their lives and the world. Nothing is true for them but their desires, their will to be. They reject all ideology in their hatred for the miserable social relations in modern society. From this reversed perspective they clearly see the upside-down world of commodity capitalism in which subject and object are inverted, and people and abstract concepts are converted into things, commodities to be sold. They see daily life as a theatrical landscape in which "everyone has their price," God (via televangelism) and happiness (smile buttons) become commodities, radio stations say they love you, and detergents have compassion for your hands. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Daily conversation offers sedatives such as, "You can't always get what you want," "Life has its ups and downs," and other cliches of the secular religion of survival. "Common sense" is just the non-sense of common alienation. Every day people are denied (and deny themselves) an authentic life and are sold back its representation. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Nihilists constantly feel the urge to destroy the system which destroys them. They cannot go on living as they are. Soon, most realize that they must devise a coherent set of tactics in order to transform the world. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> But if a nihilist does not recognize the possibility for the transformation of the world, his or her subjective rage will ossify into a role: the suicide, the solitary murderer, the street hoodlum-vandal, the neo-dadaist, the professional mental patient... all seeking compensation for a life of dead time. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The nihilists' mistake is that they do not realize that there are other nihilists with whom they can work. Consequently, they assume that participation in a collective project of self-realization is impossible. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">5</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>his project of collective self-realization, the changing of life itself through the transformation of social relations, can properly be termed "politics." Politics, however, also signifies a mystified, separate category of human activity, an isolated interest with its own specialists--politicians, political consultants, etc. It is possible to be interested (or not) in this type of politics just as it is possible to be interested (or not) in football, stamp collecting, music, or fashion. What people see as "politics" today is the social falsification of the project of collective self-realization; it has become a spectacle and a parody. And that suits those in power just fine. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <em>Authentic</em> collective self-realization is <em>the</em> revolutionary project. It is the collective transformation of social relations and the natural world according to the desires of all participants. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Similarly, "therapy" at present usually refers to attempts to "help" individuals "adjust" to their restrictive social roles and to the banality of daily life. <em>Authentic</em> therapy involves changing one's own life by changing the nature of social life. Therapy must be social if it is to be of any real consequence. Social therapy (the healing of society) and individual therapy (the healing of the individual) are linked together: each requires the other, each is a necessary part of the other. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> For example, in present day society we are expected to repress our real feelings and play a <em>role.</em> This is called "playing a part in society" (how revealing that phrase is). Individuals put on "character armor" --a steel-like suit comprised of role playing, posing, and concealing one's desires as a defense against other individuals. Transforming social relations and surpassing the role-playing game requires the conscious decision of most if not all individuals to shed these roles and truly communicate; therefore, the end of individual role playing is directly related to the end of social role playing. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">6</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>o think actively, critically, is to make your life--as it is now, and as you want it to be--the center of your thinking. This positive self-centering is accomplished by a continuous assault on externals, on the false issues ("support our troops"), false conflicts (e.g., those arising from notions of racial "superiority"), false identities ("American," "patriot," "Catholic," "white Christian"), and false dichotomies ("economic survival" versus "a clean environment") which permeate social life. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> People are kept from analyzing the basic nature, the totality, of everyday life by the media focus--including "consumer" surveys and public opinion polls--on mere details: the spectacular trifles, the phony controversies, and ridiculous scandals. Are you for or against trade unions, cruise missiles, identity cards? What's your opinion of soft drugs, jogging, UFOs, progressive taxation, Michael Jackson's latest nose job, the royal family's sexual relations? </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> These are diversions, false issues. The only issue for us is how we live. There's an old Jewish saying, "If you have only two alternatives, then choose the third." It impels people to search for new perspectives. We can see the artificiality of false dichotomies by searching for that "third choice." </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Being conscious that there is a third choice allows us to refuse to choose between two supposedly opposite, but equally repulsive, possibilities which are presented to us as the <em>only</em> possible choices. In its simplest form, this "third choice" consciousness is expressed by the person brought to trial for armed robbery and asked, "Do you plead guilty or not guilty?" "I'm hungry and unemployed," she replies. A more theoretical, but equally classic, illustration of this consciousness is the refusal to choose between the corporate-capitalist ruling classes of the West and the state-capitalist ruling classes of what's left of the Eastern bloc. All we need to do is to look at the basic social relations of production in the USA and Europe on the one hand, and China, North Korea, and Cuba on the other, to see that they are essentially the same: over there, as here, the vast majority work for a wage or salary in exchange for giving up control over their life's work, control over both what they produce and how they produce it. And, of course, what they produce in both East and West is then sold back to them as commodities. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> In the West, the surplus value, or the value produced over and above the value of the workers' wages, is the property of the corporate management and stockholders, who keep up a show of domestic competition. In the East, the surplus value is the property of the state bureaucracy, which does not permit domestic competition. Big difference. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Like the false issues and false conflicts cited above, false questions are used to distract us from living in the present, from seeing the totality of existence. One example is the stupid conversational question, "What's your philosophy of life?" It poses an abstract concept of "life" that has nothing to do with real life because it ignores the fact that "living" is exactly what we are doing at the present moment, and our "philosophy of life" is clearly revealed by our actions. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> False identities are perhaps an even more potent form of mystification. In the absence of real community, people cling to all kinds of phony social identities--they contemplate and attempt to emulate a huge variety of roles presented to them in school, church, and, especially, the "entertainment" media. These social identities can be ethnic ("Italian- American"), residential ("New Yorker"), nationalistic ("patriot"), sexual ("gay"), cultural ("Giants fan"), and so on; but all are rooted in a common desire for affiliation, for belonging. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Obviously being "black" is a much more real identification than being a "Giants fan," but beyond a certain point, such an identification only serves to mask one's real position in society; and in order to recognize that real position, you have to reject the false identities, false conflicts, and false dichotomies, and begin with yourself as the center. From there you can examine the material basis of your life, stripped of mystification. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> An example: Suppose that you want a cup of coffee from the vending machine at work. First, there is the cup of coffee itself: that involves the workers on the coffee plantation, the ones on the sugar plantation and in the refineries, the ones in the paper mill, and so on. Then you have the workers who made the different parts of the vending machine and the ones who assembled it. Then the ones who extracted the iron ore and bauxite, smelted the steel, and work for the electric utility which supplies power to the machine. Then all the workers who transported the coffee, cups, and machine. Then the clerks, typists, and communication workers who coordinated the production and transportation. Finally, you have all the workers who produced all the other things necessary for the other ones to survive. That gives you a direct material relationship to several million people, in fact, to the immense majority of the world's population. They produce your life, and you help to produce theirs. In this light, all artificial group identities and special group interests fade into insignificance. Imagine the potential enrichment of your life that at present is locked up in the frustrated creativity of these millions of workers, held back by obsolete and exhausting methods of production, strangled by lack of control over their own productivity, warped by the insane rationale of capital-accumulation which pits one against all and makes life a mad scramble for economic survival. Here we begin to discover a real social identity--in people all over the world who are fighting to win control over their own lives we find ourselves. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Those who have a vested interested in the political and economic status quo continually present us with false choices, that is, with choices which preserve their power ("Vote Democratic!"/"Vote Republican! "--"But Vote!"). We are constantly being asked to choose sides in false conflicts. Governments, corporations, political parties, and propagandists of all kinds constantly present us with "choices" that are no choice at all. We are given the illusion of choice, but as long as those in power control what our "choices" will be ("choices" which we perceive as the only alternatives available to us), they will also control the outcome of our "decisions." </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The new moralists love to tell those of us in the rich West how we will "have to make sacrifices," how we "exploit the starving children of the Third World." The choice we are given is between sacrificial altruism or narrow individualism. (Charities cash in on the resulting guilt.) Yes, by living in the rich, wasteful West we do exploit the poor of the Third World--but not personally, not deliberately. We can make some changes in our lives, boycott, make sacrifices, but the effects are marginal. We become aware of the false conflict with which we've been presented when we realize that under the global socio-economic system we, as individuals, are locked into our roles as "exploiters" just as others are locked into their global roles as the exploited. We have a role, but little power to change it--at least individually. Therefore, we reject the false choice of "sacrifice or selfishness" by calling for the destruction of the global social system whose existence forces that decision upon us. Tinkering with the system, or offering token sacrifices, or calling for "a little less selfishness," simply won't do. Charities and reformers never go beyond such false choices as "sacrifice" or "selfishness"--but if any true social progress is to be made, the rest of us must do so. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Those in power continually use such falsifications to divert and disempower us. By spreading myths like, "If we shared it all there wouldn't be enough to go around," they attempt to deny the existence of any real choices and to hide from us the fact that <em>the material preconditions for social revolution already exist.</em> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">7</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>A</strong>ny journey toward self-demystification must avoid the twin quagmires of absolutism and cynicism. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Absolutism is the total acceptance or rejection of all components of particular ideologies, or indeed, of any set of ideas or concepts. An absolutist cannot see any choice other than complete acceptance or complete rejection; s/he sees things purely as good or bad, black or white. The absolutist wanders along the shelves of the ideological supermarket looking for the ideal commodity, and then buys it lock, stock and barrel. But the ideological supermarket--like any supermarket--is fit only for looting. It is of more practical use to us to move along the shelves, rip open the packets, take out what looks authentic and useful, and dump the rest. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Cynicism is a reaction to a world dominated by ideology and "morality." Faced with conflicting ideologies, the cynic says, "A plague on both your houses." The cynic is as much a consumer as the absolutist, but one who has given up hope of finding the ideal commodity. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">8</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>he process of constructive thinking is a process of continually adding to and modifying one's current body of self-theory as well as resolving contradictions between one's new thoughts and perceptions and one's previous beliefs. The resulting synthesis is thus more than the sum of its parts. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> This synthetic method of constructing a theory is counter to the eclectic method in which one collects a rag bag of favorite bits from favorite ideologies without ever confronting the resulting contradictions. Modern examples include "anarcho-capitalism," "christian marxism," and liberalism in general. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> If we are continually conscious of how we want to live, we can critically appropriate from <em>anything:</em> ideologies, culture critics, technoratic experts, sociological studies, even mystics (though the pickings will probably be slim). All the rubbish of the old world can be scavenged for useful material by those who want to reconstruct it. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">9</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>T</strong>he nature of modern society, unified globally through its capitalist economic system, makes necessary a self-theory which criticizes all areas in which socio-economic domination exists (i.e., both the corporate capitalism of the "free" world and the state capitalism of the "communist" world) as well as all forms of alienation (sexual poverty, enforced participation in the rat race for survival, etc.). In other words, we need a critique of the totality of daily existence from the perspective of the totality of our desires. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Opposed to this project are all the politicians and bureaucrats, preachers and gurus, city planners and policemen, reformers and leninists, central committees and censors, corporate managers and union honchos, male supremacists and feminist ideologues, landlords and eco-capitalists who work to subordinate individual desires to that hideous abstraction, "the common good," of which they are the supposed guardians. They are all forces of the old world-bosses, priests, and other creeps who have something to lose if people extend the game of seizing back their minds into seizing back their lives. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Revolutionary theory and abstraction-based ideologies are enemies, and every politically conscious person knows it. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">10</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>B</strong>y now it should be obvious that self-demystification and the creation of our own revolutionary theory do not eradicate our alienation; "the world," with its capitalist economic relations permeating every aspect of life, goes on and is reproduced every day with the acquiescence and assistance of billions of people. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Although this text has the creation of self-theory as its focus, we do not mean to imply that revolutionary theory can exist separately from revolutionary practice. In order to be consequential, to effectively reconstruct the world, practice must be based in theory, and theory must be realized in practice. The revolutionary project of ending alienation and transforming social relations requires that one's theory be nothing other than a theory of practice, realized in what we do and how we live. Otherwise theory will degenerate into an impotent contemplation of the world, and ultimately into a survival mechanism--an intellectual armor that acts as a buffer between the daily world and oneself. And if revolutionary practice is not the practice of revolutionary theory, it degenerates into, at best, altruistic militantism--"revolutionary" activity as one's social duty or role. At worst, it degenerates into pure gangsterism. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> We don't strive for a coherent theory purely as an end in itself. For us, the value of coherency is that it makes it easier to think critically and effectively. For example, it's easier to understand future developments in social control if you have a coherent understanding of present-day social control ideologies and techniques. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Having a coherent theory makes it easier to put into practice your strategy for realizing your desires. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td><span style="font-size:180%;">11</span></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <strong>I</strong>n the process of constructing self-theory, the last theories that must be dealt with (one hesitates to call them "ideologies," as they are not based in abstractions with their accompanying "shoulds" and "duties") are the ones that have the most resemblance to revolutionary self-theory. These are situationism and syndicalism. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The Situationist International (1958-1971) was an organization of theoretically oriented, ultra-left, European (especially French) marxists. Many believe, as did the original author(s) of this essay, that the situationists "made an immense contribution to revolutionary theory." That evaluation is, however, overly generous. Virtually all of the key insights attributed to situationist writers can be found in the works of earlier anarchists, social democrats, and philosphers such as Alexander Berkman, Emma Goldman, Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, Wilhelm Reich and Friedrich Nietzsche (though the insights in question were scattered and often were not developed with the rigor found in the better situationist texts). The primary reason that this is not widely recognized is that most of the early situationists and their followers came from marxist backgrounds and were simply not familiar with the vast body of non-marxist progressive writings produced in prior decades; and the younger situationist followers often have had very little in the way of political experience and are as unfamiliar with early progressive literature as were their marxist predecessors. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> A secondary reason for the overestimation of the importance of the situationists is that situationism is a French ideology utilizing an arcane marxist-derived jargon ('poverty of...,' 'society of the spectacle,' 'reification,' 'dialectical,' etc., etc.); as well, virtually all situationist texts are written in a very difficult to follow, jargon-ridden, muddy style--which makes them inaccessible to most people. Thus, situationism has a great deal of snob appeal for those with intellectual pretensions. Once you've mastered the jargon and read (or claim to have read) the key (one is tempted to say "sacred") texts, you certainly at least appear to be an intellectual. Thus it's not surprising that "situationist" poseurs, 1atched as they are to their "situationist" roles and "intellectual" pretensions, often have little regard for truth and regard decent human behavior as "bourgeois"; it follows, then, that in political controversies they often resort to deliberate distortions, fabrications, and ad hominem attacks upon those who have the temerity to criticize their ideas. (Some, incredibly, have even used the slogan, 'the personal is political,' as an excuse for scurrilous personal attacks.) The destructive-and ultimately self~defeating~effects of these vicious tactics are so obvious as to need no further comment. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> But perhaps the most critical~weakness of situationism is that it offers no coherent method for "getting from here to there," that is, from "the society of the spectacle" to the free society. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Having said this, it should be added that the great virtue of the situationist writers was that they presented their insights in a more or less coherent manner and expounded upon them at length. (The qualifer "more or less" is used due to the very low quality, stylistically, of almost all situationist texts.) At its best, situationist theory offered a critique of "spectacular" society, that is, society in which people are reduced to the level of passive observers and consumers rather than active participants. It made an extensive critique of how both ideology and commodification turn people into passive, alienated observers of their own lives. Thus, situationist theory is a body of critical thought which can be incorporated into one's own self-theory--but nothing more. Anything more--the unquestioning acceptance of situationist theories and the identification of oneself with those theories--is the ideological misappropriation known as situationism. Situationism can be quite the complete survival ideology, a defense against the wear and tear of daily life. And included in the ideology is the spectacular role of being a "situationist," that is, a radical jade and ardent esoteric. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The other body of ideas which bears a great deal of resemblance to revolutionary self-theory is, to use the term broadly, syndicalism. Variants include anarcho-syndicalism, revolutionary syndicalism, and council communism, with anarcho-syndicalism being the most important of the three. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Real self-management is the direct management (without any separate leadership) of social production, distribution, and communication by workers and their communities. The movement for self-management has appeared again and again all over the world in the course of social revolution: Russia in 1905 and 1917-1921; Spain in 1936-1939; Hungary in 1956; Algeria in 1960; Chile in 1972; and Portugal in 1975. The form of organization most often created in the practice of self-management has been workers' councils: sovereign assemblies of producers and neighbors that elect delegates to coordinate their activities. The delegates are not representatives, but carry out decisions already made by their assemblies. Delegates can be recalled at any time should the general assembly feel that its decisions are not being rigorously carried out. Partisans of all of the above-mentioned forms of syndicalism advocate such practices. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The great virtues of syndicalism are, first, that it seeks to destroy all coercive authority as well as the commodity (i.e., capitalist) economy. Second, it does provide a practical means of "getting from here to there." And third, it recognizes that the one essential function of social organization is to provide the economic base-production and distribution of goods and services-upon which all else rests. Syndicalism recognizes that this is the one area in which extensive organization (of the libertarian type described above) is needed, and that it's best to leave all other areas of life as free as possible from organizational influence. Virtually all critics of syndicalism, including the original author(s) of this pamphiet, miss this essential point. (It's certainly true that a thorough critique of all types of domination and mystification is necessary to social transformation, but one need only glance at the better syndicalist publications to see that at least some syndicalists are making such a critique.) Given the destruction of coercive authority (one of syndicalism's central goals) and adequate advance preparation (i.e., demystification), it would be absurd not to expect an explosion of creativity in all areas of life-- art, music, writing, architecture, family relations, sexual relations, community structure, etc., etc. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> There are, however, two great dangers in syndicalism. The first is that many syndicalists develop tunnel vision: they become so obsessed with labor struggles and self-managed economic schemes that they not only fail to analyze non-workplace-related forms of domination and mystification, but they often act as if such problems do not even exist. Thus, if this syndicalist tendency would succeed in its aims, it could well help to produce a self-managed society in which other-than-economic forms of domination and mystification still exert their baleful influences--for example, it's easy to envisage a worker-controlled economic system which coexists with religious mystification, homophobia, and sexism. This would be contrary to anarchist principles, but many syndicalists are syndicalists first and anarchists (or "antiauthoritarians") second, which is more than a bit like the tail wagging the dog. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> The second danger is related to the first: syndicalists sometimes forget that syndicalist organizations are just a means to an end. They sometimes develop a bad case of organizational fetishism; this can be termed "organizationitis"--an intellectual hallucination in which means and ends are reversed, in which the syndicalist organization is perceived as an end in itself, as being more important than its goal (the free society). Sadly, in some cases that goal seems to be entirely forgotten. And, even more sadly, "organizationitis" sometimes--but not inevitably-- leads to an even worse disease, bureaucratization. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> But these are not condemnations of syndicalist theory; they simply show that even the best theory is, in itself, no guarantee that its holders will always act in accord with its principles or will develop insights which go beyond those contained in the theory. This isn't terribly surprising. We all live in the world of commodity capitalism, and it would be shocking if we weren't burdened to a greater or lesser degree with the character traits such a life engenders; and it would be equally shocking if these character traits didn't cause problems in syndicalist organizations --indeed, in organizations of any type, including the most informal. <table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="12" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td> <table bgcolor="#c0c0d0" border="0" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td> <a href="http://deoxy.org/rela.htm"><img src="http://deoxy.org/gif/relativity.gif" alt="Relativity by M.C. Escher" width="298" border="0" height="287" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> Still, the situation is far from hopeless. A high degree of personal awareness among participants can reduce the dangers of organizationitis and bureaucratization. As well, there are many procedural devices which are very effective at reducing such problems; these include decentralization, mandatory rotation of offices, term limitations, strict delimitation of responsibilities, and immediate recallability. With such safeguards, participation in common projects of self-liberation is more than feasible; it's desirable. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> <span style="font-size:85%;"> The world can only be turned right side up by the conscious collective activity of those who construct a theory of why it is upside down. Spontaneous rebellion alone is not sufficient. Without adequate advance preparation, the old world will simply reappear after any rebellion, embedded as it is in the psyches of the fabled "people." An authentic revolution can only occur if there is a coherent and practical mass movement of self-conscious individuals in which all of the mystifications of the past are being consciously swept away.</span> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></p><h2 style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Notes</span></h2> <strong style="font-weight: bold;">T</strong><span style="font-weight: bold;">his essay was originally published in the United States in 1975 by </span><em style="font-weight: bold;">The Spectacle</em><span style="font-weight: bold;"> under the title </span><i style="font-weight: bold;">"Self-Theory: the pleasure of thinking for yourself."</i><span style="font-weight: bold;"> An extensively revised edition was published in London in 1985 by </span><em style="font-weight: bold;">Spectacular Times</em><span style="font-weight: bold;"> under the title </span><i style="font-weight: bold;">"Revolutionary self-help: a beginner's manual,"</i><span style="font-weight: bold;"> and it has appeared twice since then in American periodicals under the title </span><i style="font-weight: bold;">"Revolutionary Self-Theory";</i><span style="font-weight: bold;"> in 1989 it was published in a slightly revised edition by OVO, and in 1992 in a further revised edition by </span><em style="font-weight: bold;">No Longer Silent</em><span style="font-weight: bold;"> (NLS). This edition is an extensively rewritten and somewhat expanded version of the text which appeared in NLS. </span><p style="font-weight: bold;"> As the editor of <em>No Longer Silent</em> commented, "...at this point it's fair to say that 'RST' has been penned by multiple authors, which is as it should be. Hopefully this trend will continue as future editions of this text appear. After all, the propaganda, literature, and so forth that we produce should not be considered as immutable tomes, determining the language and boundaries within which we are expected to interpret our experiences, but rather as fluid and alterable, reflecting our experience of reality <em>as we are."</em> </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> This is entirely in keeping with the sentiments of the previous authors/editors who stated, "...the ideological supermarket--like any supermarket--is fit only for looting. It is more productive for us if we move along the shelves, rip open the packets, take out what looks authentic and useful, and dump the rest." </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> In fact, that is exactly the approach which I've taken while editing this text: I've retained those portions which were useful and insightful, but I've also jettisoned a lot of waste material, including almost all of the marxist/situationist jargon plus a number of statements (particularly in the concluding section) which were factually incorrect or simply missed the point; as well, I've cleaned up the text by eliminating a number of non sequiturs and hopelessly fuzzy statements and by using terms (e.g., "ideology") in a more precise manner than in the previous editions of this work. What I've done, essentially, is to take a situationist tract and translate it into plain English. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> I've also introduced a certain amount of new material which contradicts some of what I've deleted. Thus, it's quite possible-in fact quite probable-that the authors/editors of the previous versions of this essay would take strong exception to some of the changes I've made. While I regret that my alterations and additions may upset the original author(s), the point of this pamphlet is to get people to think for themselves; and I believe that the changes I've made increase the effectiveness of the pamphlet in that regard. </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> But despite the changes in this edition, the central thesis of this essay remains unchanged: that all genuine revolutionary impulses and activities stem directly from the desires of individuals, <em>not</em> from any ideologically imposed sense of "duty" with its attendant guilt, self-sacrifice, and self-deadening "shoulds." </p><p style="font-weight: bold;"> As the previous authors/editors of this pamphlet have chosen to remain anonymous (or pseudonymous), the editor of this edition shall likewise remain so. </p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-32688736043836933802009-09-10T05:53:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:51:47.171-08:00The Wisdom of Community<p>It’s one of the most important concepts on the web today—perhaps the <em>most</em> important for social media—but it’s one of the least understood. When James Surowiecki wrote <cite>The Wisdom of Crowds</cite> in 2004, he explored the stock market and other classic social psychology examples, but “web 2.0” was still nascent. It’s time to connect his ideas to the social web, where they can reach their full potential.</p> <p>The Wisdom of Crowds (WOC) theory does not mean that people are smart in groups—they’re not. Anyone who’s seen an angry mob knows it. But crowds, presented with the right challenge and the right interface, can be wise. When it works, the crowd is wiser, in fact, than any single participant.</p> <p>The standard example is this: Imagine you have a jar of pennies. Ask a few hundred people how many there are inside. When you tally the results, chances are, all the guesses will be wrong. But if you average all the answers, the result will be almost perfect, almost all the time.</p> <p>The web, with its low barrier to entry and permeable social boundaries, is the ultimate medium through which to explore the finer points of the wisdom of crowds. You’re surrounded by online examples: Google’s search results. BitTorrent. The “Most E-mailed” stories on your favorite news site. Each is powered by wisdom gleaned from crowds online.</p> <p>You need a few things to enable online crowds to be wise.</p> <h2>Simplicity</h2> <p>In the penny jar example, you ask each participant for a number. Google didn’t ask anyone anything to create their search results, though they just intuited the importance of every page in their index by considering how often it was linked to.</p> <p>Note that in each case mentioned above—Google, BitTorrent, “Most E-mailed” lists, and the penny jar—the inputs are not conversational. Conversational inputs are too complex for Wisdom of Crowds systems. Online discussion systems do not lead to wisdom on their own.</p> <p>The simplicity of the individual task is also important. Systems based on the Wisdom of Crowds can tackle surprisingly complicated projects, but each project must first be broken down to its simplest possible components.</p> <h2>Interface</h2> <p>Complicated interfaces can be great for complicated tasks, but not for WOC systems. The more complicated the interface is, the less participation you can expect, and the more muddled that participation will be. Soliciting WOC feedback is about tapping the zeitgeist. Don’t make participants think too much.</p> <p>WOC interfaces are often voting mechanisms that use a spectrum or a thumbs up/down system, but they could just as easily involve selecting a point on a map or drawing a shape.</p> <h2>Aggregation</h2> <p>One of the reasons discussions do not lead to wise results is that there’s no aggregation—the conversation just happens. But WOC systems are there to produce a result. This requires an aggregator (like you) and an algorithm.</p> <p>In the penny jar example, the aggregator is the person tallying the guesses, and the algorithm is a simple median. With Google’s search results, Google is the aggregator, their algorithm is called PageRank, and it’s a constantly evolving, closely guarded secret.</p> <h2>Participation</h2> <p>A defining element of any WOC system is that the more participants it has, the better it gets. Discussion systems and chat rooms fall apart when too many voices get involved. If your community feature gets worse the more people use it, it’s not a WOC system.</p> <p>For a crowd to truly be wise, it also has to be diverse. The Wisdom of Crowds works because the people on the edges balance each other out. Recruit too many people on one side of any spectrum and your results will suffer.</p> <h2>Selfishness</h2> <p>It’s counter-intuitive, but the wisest crowds are the ones made up of individuals who are thinking about their own needs, not the needs of the group. In the stock market, the participants are all motivated to buy low and sell high. Yet the markets are usually wise about finding the value of a company. Each person is thinking about their bottom line, not the health of the company or the market, but it works.</p> <p>Similarly, website creators were not consciously voting for certain sites to be highly ranked, but the collective linking decisions did produce wise results. Nowadays, link spammers do try to manipulate Google’s results, which is akin to stock manipulation. Both practices are fought by the institutions that depend on unmanipulated results.</p> <p>Selfishness also fights a larger problem. Group-think is when the members of a group put the group’s needs above their own. As soon as this happens, the group is in danger. The stock market collapse, the NASA Challenger disaster, and many other examples can be attributed to group-think.</p> <p>In the penny jar example, participants were told that the correct guesser would win all the money. Their participation was entirely selfish — they wanted to win the money. The fact that their participation could be averaged to create an answer is just a fortunate byproduct.</p> <p>Designing for selfishness does not necessarily mean paying cash prizes. A news site with a Most E-mailed Stories box that displays the stories that have been e-mailed to people doesn’t have to pay anyone to pick their favorite stories—the information is easily gleaned from server logs. The key factor is the user’s motivation for participating: They’re doing it for their own personal reasons (“Heather would love this story!”). They’re not consciously voting for the story—the vote is a byproduct.</p> <p>This method should be contrasted with news voting sites like Digg, where users do explicitly vote for top stories. As a result, these sites face a constant battle against people trying to game the system. Indeed whole businesses have sprung up in order to place a link on the highly trafficked Digg homepage.</p> <h2>Scores</h2> <p>Keeping score is part of any game, and any website with community input is going to be used as a game. So think very carefully before assigning your participants a score for their participation.</p> <p>For example, Slashdot had an internal “karma” score that it assigned to every member based on their participation. The system then used that score to determine certain features (like the ability to moderate other users’ comments and their default comment score).</p> <p>That’s all fine. But then they disclosed the user’s score to them. The moment they did that, they invented “karma whores”—users who post comments they know will be rated highly by the community, creating a unique kind of group-think.</p> <p>Games are fine, so long as the goal of the gamer benefits the site. But Slashdot’s games either promoted group-think (by agreeing) or trolling (by disagreeing). Both probably existed before the scores, but disclosing the scores certainly fueled them.</p> <h2>Leaderboards</h2> <p>Leaderboards create a problem for Wisdom of Crowds systems. On the one hand, a well-tuned WOC system can create an excellent leaderboard. Feedback from users is collected, the algorithm scores the content, and the result is a list of items in a fairly accurate good-to-bad order (think Google results).</p> <p>And there’s the rub: Disclosing the ranked list to the community amplifies group-think. The highly rated items get even more highly rated, the low rated items fall off the radar. Showing the list destroys its accuracy.</p> <p>So what to do? Here are a few suggestions:</p> <ul><li>Go in phases. Allow voting for a set period of time. When that time is up, close voting and display results. Threadless does this for its design submissions.</li><li> Mix it up. Instead of showing a ranked list (aka leaderboard), show a selection that includes highly rated items in a random order. This is what Flickr does with it’s “interestingness” view.</li><li>Make users earn disclosure. Show the voice of the community only after your vote has been cast. This is what many online polling systems do to avoid letting the current tally influence the voters.</li><li>Use an algorithm. When you have to show a current, or a ranked list, use a recipe that takes lots of data into account, in addition to votes. This is what Google does with its search results. It’s also why they have to constantly tweak the results in an ongoing arms race with people who try to figure out their system.</li></ul> <p>How you display the wisdom of your crowd can be as important as how you ask for it in the first place. It can be tempting to just put up a ranked list, but in most cases doing so will harm the very wisdom you’re trying to glean.</p> <h2>Explicit vs. implicit feedback</h2> <p>In many of the examples I’ve used, wisdom is gleaned from user behavior. In these cases, the feedback is implicit. In other cases we ask users outright for feedback, as in voting systems. That’s explicit. Whether you use explicit or implicit feedback, or some combination of the two, is an important decision in designing any WOC system.</p> <p>In working on your own WOC systems, pay attention to when you can glean implicit feedback without having to ask for it directly. Implicit feedback is usually more honest and less prone to gaming. There are also ways to mix the two, for example, asking for explicit voting, but comparing it to implicit data (such as page views, comments, or other recordable user actions).</p> <h2>Voting</h2> <p>This sounds undemocratic, but voting does not have to rule all in WOC systems. In many cases, it shouldn’t.</p> <p>Just because you’re collecting votes doesn’t mean you have to crown the item with the most votes the winner. You could just as easily look for items that are controversial (high percentage of both good and bad votes) or are undiscovered (low number of total votes).</p> <p>And remember that not all votes have to be equal. Votes from “good” members (however you determine good) can have a higher impact.</p> <p>Studies show that when rating a series of items, users are more likely to vote bad in succession. In other words, once you start voting bad, you’re more likely to keep voting bad. So it would be fair to count a bad vote less if it comes after another bad vote by that user. Or just keep the length of time in that voting session as a variable, and see what happens when you alter how you weigh early votes vs late ones. If someone’s been voting for an hour, does that make them more valuable or less? Experiment to find out.</p> <h2>Wiser together than we would be alone</h2> <p>These aspects of the Wisdom of Crowds are just the start — there’s a lot more to learn. Be sure to pick up Surowiecki’s book. And remember, WOC systems must evolve: you’re never done. But done right, they can change the way we live online, and maybe make us all a little wiser. <img src="http://www.alistapart.com/pix/eoai.gif" alt="" id="eoai" /></p> <div id="credits"> <ul><li>Illustration by <a href="http://www.alistapart.com/authors/c/kevincornell">Kevin Cornell</a></li><li>http://www.alistapart.com/articles/the-wisdom-of-community/<br /></li></ul> </div>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-23426699940924661522009-09-10T05:44:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:52:13.404-08:00Staying Motivated<span style="font-weight: bold;">Maintaining Motivation</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Whether your chosen medium is pictures or language, food or formulas, everyone has the capacity to be creative in their work. But we can often lose our motivation to create, making it difficult to stay focused and excited on a project. So how does one keep their creative well from drying up?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Maintaining your motivation to create is actually a long-term endeavor. Starting out can be tough, but with discipline and consistency you will eventually reach a point where staying motivated only requires minimal daily maintenance—a simple matter of learning to make the right choices at the right time.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Of course, everyone is different, and each person will have their own unique formula to propel themselves into a creative frenzy. So while this article offers some possible solutions, it is up to you to make the right choices to keep yourself motivated. Maintaining motivation requires paying attention to your behavior, listening to your instincts, and learning how to encourage, bargain, and even trick yourself into being creative.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Phase I: starting out</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">As I’ve mentioned, starting from scratch is the hardest part, and rewards don’t come quick. But if you want to reach a point where all you need to do is give your motivation occasional maintenance, you have to start somewhere.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Here’s a few tips to help you when you’re starting out:</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Set goals</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It’s a lot easier to stay motivated when you feel like you’ve accomplished something, but how can you know when you succeed if you never set a goal? Give yourself something to achieve.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stack the deck</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Keeping interested and motivated is directly related to those successfully met goals. Set yourself up for more success than failure by being realistic in your goal setting. Small, bite-sized tasks at first. As you get more and more successes under your belt, make your goals more ambitious.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Build a creative den</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Whether it’s your desk area, a dark cave, a hotel room, or a home office, you need a place specifically set aside to be creative in. Once you’ve decided on that place, use it like the dickens. Each creative success you have in that location will train your mind to be creative within its boundaries. When I set foot inside my office, something clicks on in my brain, and I’m ready to work. Sure, it took about six months to turn into a den—but trust me, it’s time and effort well spent.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Retreat, but don’t surrender</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Never give up on projects or problems. Put them aside for a while, but always come back to solve them (even if it’s only developing a theory for solving them). Solving these problems will build your confidence, your knowledge, and (hopefully) your portfolio.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Find your cycle</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Just as your body has optimal times for sleeping and eating, there’s also an optimal time when your body is at its most creative (and, unfortunately, least creative). For me, that super-creative time is in the morning. I know many other people find that they’re most creative late at night. Find out when you’re at your creative best, and start using that time to your advantage; save your least creative time to do the mundane administrative aspects of your job.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The right tools</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Being creative is difficult enough; don’t make it harder for yourself by using inferior (or just plain wrong) tools. Explore your options and find the tools that allow you to create what you want to create, and get the best ones you can afford.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Follow your progress</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Seeing just how far you’ve come can be an excellent motivational tool. If you don’t stop every so often to see where you were a couple months ago, and where you are now, do it—you might surprise yourself with how much you’ve gotten done, or how much you’ve creatively grown. Or perhaps you’ll feel you didn’t get enough done, and it will strengthen your resolve to work harder. Whatever the case, it’s worth it to check every once in a while.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Phase II: maintenance</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Applying the tips from above, you’ll hopefully reach a point where you’re consistently motivated. Yet even when you’ve reached this plateau, you will occasionally hit points where that fervor wanes. It’s in those instances when you’ll need to try something new or different, set obstacles, or even take a step backwards in order to get your motivation back.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Here’s some things to try when you feel like you’ve hit a rut:</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don’t set any goals</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In the early stages of an idea, or if you’ve stumbled upon a creative endeavor you wish to experiment with, setting goals may destroy some of the spontaneity that makes experimentation so fulfilling. Let things play out naturally, and when you’re ready you’ll know if it’s time to duct tape that idea to a timeline.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Make the goals unrealistic</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I believe in certain instances that biting off more than I could chew worked out to my advantage. It helped me focus on the project, and push myself farther than I would normally. Unfortunately, you run the risk of failing to complete those goals, or completing them and completely burning out.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Get out of the house</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">While a creative den can often get the juices flowing, sometimes it helps to go somewhere different to work. It may not be as familiar and comfortable as your creative den, but it can provide different stimuli that can positively influence your ideas, and eventually your work.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Study your peers</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It can be helpful to see what others in your industry are doing. It may provide inspiration, and at the very least will give you an idea of what the standards are for excellence in your particular industry (which can help you figure out what to expect of yourself).</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ignore your peers</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">While it has its benefits, studying your peers too much can often cause you to focus only on their achievements, and lose focus on your own goals. What’s worse, it can often cause you to doubt your own work if it’s too different from the industry standard. When in fact you might be working on something just so different and fresh that it’s what the industry needs. Have a care, and don’t lose focus on your own work.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Seek external stimulation</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">We’re absolutely surrounded by the creative output of both human beings and nature. Taking a closer look at everything around you can spark new ideas, and give you insight into how to solve some of your own creative problems. Whether it’s a museum, the center of town, or the biggest damn waterfall you’ve ever seen, there might be something out there to push you back into a creative mode.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Seek internal stimulation</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">While surrounding yourself with stimuli can be helpful, it’s often just as helpful to remove all external stimuli, and let your brain stimulate itself. For example, I often go running to help give me ideas. Not because I like running, but because it’s possibly the most boring activity in the world. It’s often easier for me to mull over creative problems when there’s nothing for my brain to do.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Keep a sketchbook or notebook</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">I can’t emphasize this one enough. Ideas—good or bad—need to be recorded. No one can remember them all. Writing down an idea for long-term storage might just free up some room in your brain to tackle new problems. What’s more, you now have a library of ideas to lend a hand when a deadline is looming and you’re not feeling your most creative.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Work through it</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">While it may seem counterintuitive to force yourself to be creative, often it can work out for the best. It might feel difficult and clumsy at the start, but as you gain momentum you’ll almost always find your motivation has returned. And if it hasn’t, then take comfort in this—sometimes you may feel the work you’re producing is the most horrid abomination the world has seen, you may be producing good work after all. You’re just in the wrong state of mind to tell. Get through things as best as you can—you won’t know whether it’s good or bad until later on.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Give yourself obstacles</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Set a time limit, refuse to use a certain tool, make yourself take a more difficult direction—often these obstacles lead to some pretty exciting results.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Remove unnecessary obstacles</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">We sometimes set unnecessary limits on a project, which hinder our ability to solve the most important problem. If you feel you’re too restricted while trying to solve a creative problem, it can often help to reevaluate the restrictions, and see if some of the unimportant ones can’t be stripped away.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Get on your horse</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">So there you go. Hopefully, some of these suggestions can help you get on the right path to long-term motivation, or help you jumpstart your slightly-waning creative enthusiasm. As I mentioned above, these are by no means the only solutions. Only you can decide what direction is appropriate when. But with a little luck, experimentation, patience, and persistence, you’ll find the right regimen for keeping your motivation and creativity ever flowing.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> * Illustration by Kevin Cornell<br />http://www.alistapart.com/articles/stayingmotivated/<br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-80336356990172681112009-09-06T08:02:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:52:24.439-08:005 Easy Steps to Staying Motivated<p>Motivating yourself to excel at your job or to be an example to your employees, should not be something you do only when the spirit moves you. It’s an ongoing process that should include every facet of your business life. This means your mental attitude, physical well-being and appearance, work atmosphere, your interaction with others (clients and employees alike), and your off-the-job environment.</p> <p>Motivational experts get paid big bucks to tell professionals, striving for success, that they must constantly examine these factors. How do you do that? Follow the 5 tips that follow, and watch the changes.</p> <p>1. Maintain a Positive Attitude – Let’s realize that life is only 10% of what happens to us and 90% how we react to it. We’re responsible for our own actions and attitudes, and changing them when appropriate. When you’re around people/things that are uplifting and positive, you feel that way. You have more confidence in yourself, and know you can change whatever needs changing. If you can make your workplace such a place you’ll find happier workers and higher production. You might even find your employees look forward to coming to work!</p> <p>2. Leave Personal Troubles Home - Everyone has problems, but they don’t belong at work. Turn your attention and energy entirely to your on-the-job tasks. This will actually be good for you because you’ll get a mental break from your troubles.</p> <p>3. Create Positive Affirmations - The reason for writing goals for your business is the same as creating positive affirmations on paper. What your eyes see and ears hear, your mind will believe. Try it! After you’ve written them down, read them aloud to yourself – and do it every morning when you get into work. You’ll be amazed at what happens. Come up with a set of new ones every month. Statements such as, “I’m an important and valuable person,” or “I know I’ll make good use of my time today.” Repeating them out loud everyday at a set time will help reinforce positive actions.</p> <p>4. Make Sure Break Times Are Really Break Times - This is an area where most bosses/entrepreneurs fall down. You become so intense about the project or situation you’re working on that you don’t ease up. Thinking that it’ll be solved in the next few seconds, and then you’ll get a cup of coffee can lead you right up to quitting time. Regularly adhering to a specified break schedule, even if you’re the boss, releases the tension. If you work on a computer this is even a greater problem because before you realize it – you’ve been working in that same position for hours. The best answer to this is to set yourself a reminder on your appointment calendar for every 2 hours, and let the computer reminder chime send you the alert to move around.</p> <p>5. Exercise, Exercise, Exercise - I know that lately it seems that “exercise” is the cure-all to every physical ailment or your love life, but despite that there is some truth to that ugly word. By “exercise” I don’t mean that you should go out and join a gym and spend your lunch-time, 3-days-a-week there working out. What is really beneficial and workable is that at those chiming alerts from your computer, get up and walk around your desk or room. Maybe go outside and get the mail and enjoy the sunlight (if you’re an entrepreneur that has a home office), or just Concentrated, tense thinking – typing - plotting plans - or whatever your work, makes all those muscles tighten up and knot up. Then when we move we “ooh” and “ouch” because we’ve knotted up into a ball of tension. Periodic stretching, even at our desk, or just getting up and walking over to the window and getting a different view can help get up and do a few stretches.</p><p>One of the greatest disservice modern business décor has done to us, is making our offices pristine, sleek, unencumbered spaces. There is nothing more relaxing than getting up from your desk and walking over to a peaceful, serene, seascape or pastoral painting and just drinking it in visually. Momentarily transporting your mind out of work and into that place does wonders. A few good paintings and less shiny chrome in offices would<br />benefit us all. It only takes a little concentrated effort on our part to keep motivated and productive, which leads to success. I know you’re going to hate hearing this, but it’s true anyway – and that is, “WHEN LIFE GIVES YOUR LEMONS – MAKE LEMONADE!".</p><p>http://www.articles888.com/articles/14082/1/5-Easy-Steps-to-Staying-Motivated/Page1.html<br /></p><p><br /></p>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-88615222082568033862009-09-06T07:55:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:52:43.347-08:00The Law of Attraction & the Science of Getting Rich<p style="font-weight: bold;">What are you thinking about right now? The Law of Attraction states that "whatever we think about, we bring about". This law may initially seem like new age fluff but believe it or not, there are scientific merits to this proposition. The top quantum physicists of our time have discovered that our universe and our reality is very much directed by the "observer". </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">When studying quantum particles (the smallest observable unit of matter), these scientists discovered that such particles behave in accordance with the person conducting the experiment. It the scientists "predict" that quantum particles behave in a certain way, they do. And yet, if the scientists "predict" that quantum particles behave in another way, they do. It is the "observer" that dictates the outcome of the experiment! </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">What does all this mean for us normal people? Well actually, these scientific experiments has far reaching implications for us as our world is made up of these same quantum particles! In this case, we are the "observer" the director and hence the creator of our reality, our world and our experience. </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">So, be careful of what you think about! for example, have you thoughts ever begun with the following phrases: </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I don’t understand </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I don't want... </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I’m frustrated that </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I hate my </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I can’t figure out </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I’m stressed about </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I’m worried that </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">- I should be able to but I can’t </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">Why am I having so much trouble? </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">The Law of Attraction indifferent to the words preceding your thought. Whatever you think about you will attract into your life. When you think "I don't understand why bad things always happen to me?", you are "attracting" bad things into your life. When you think "I want to get out of debt", you are attracting more debt into your life. When you think "I'm worried I will get sick", you are attracting sickness into your life! The Law of Attraction brings about what you focus on even if it is not what you want. Get it? </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">If you understand this principle, here are some examples of how to make the law of attraction work to support you rather than to act against you.</p><p style="font-weight: bold;">Try observing your thoughts and changing your thinking in the following way:<br /></p><span style="font-weight: bold;">"I want to get out of debt" to "I want to earn amazing riches"</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> "I hate my boss" to "I look forward to owning my own business</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">"I don't understand why he is so lazy" to "I love it when he helps out around the house"</span><br /><p style="font-weight: bold;"> "I'm stressed about this project" to "I always create amazing results in my projects" </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;"> "I'm worried about getting sick" to "I experience vibrant health daily" </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">Now that we have a better understanding of the Law of Attraction, it is no surprise why so many people struggle with regards to money. It is been said that "the rich get richer while the poor get poorer". This is actually the Law of Attraction in action. Because the wealthy have money, they often think about how to best use their money and hence they attract more money. The poor on the other hand often think about their present lack of money and unfortunately, that also attracts lack into their lives. Currently, 96% of the world's wealth is being earned by just 1% of the population! </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">To address this issue, the main teachers behind the movie is launching a program is called "The Science of Getting Rich" and it is based on employing the law of attraction to create wealth. This amazing program is based on the principles and philosophies outlined in a book of the same title written in 1910 by Wallace D Wattles. This is the same book that inspired the movie. </p> <span style="font-weight: bold;">What is the Science of Getting Rich about? Well in the words of Wallace D. Wattles, "The ownership of money and property comes as a result of doing things in a certain way. Those who do things in this certain way, whether on purpose or accidentally, get rich. Those who do not do things in this certain way, no matter how hard they work or how able they are, remain poor. It is a natural law that like causes always produce like effects. Therefore, any man or woman who learns to do things in this certain way will infallibly get rich." The Science of Getting Rich Seminar is all about teaching how to do things in this "certain" way to create wealth.<br />http://www.articles888.com/articles/14083/1/The-Law-of-Attraction--the-Science-of-Getting-Rich/Page1.html<br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-83161744508824335512009-09-06T07:45:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:52:53.004-08:00Important Skills to Achieve Great Success<span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" >Everyone wants to achieve great success in life, but they do not know how to achieve. In this article, I have focused on some important skills which lead your life towards great success. Vocational training and life skills play an important role to accomplish job tasks. These skills constitute a variety of knowledge and aptitudes that are necessary for a person to function without any help and to avoid breaks of the employment experience. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" > Job skills are very important and it needs to be increased day by day by vocational training program. Other skills like dressing sense, communication skills, presentation skills, body language, time management skills, smile and sense of humor are as important as job skills. All these skills can be polished by daily practice. These skills are responsible for your overall personality. If you are good in these skills you will be successful person in any field. If you are lacking in any one of these skills, start practicing from today to enrich your personality. You can join some training institute or practice by yourself. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" > Most of the time person identifies and understand their negatives, but fail to convert those negatives in positives. If you are facing same type of situation, be ready to adopt some changes in your daily life activities. You can take help from your spouse or close friends to identify your negatives and discuss how to convert them in positives. If you used to reach late in your office, it will ruin your impression no matter how good you are in job. To solve this problem you can start your day half an hour early, if you reach office half an hour late. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" > Communication skill can be improved by joining business communication classes. If you improve your communication skills, it will help in improving presentation skills. Dressing sense can also be improved by watching and adopting successful person’s dressing sense. If you are in the office, wear formal dress only. Keep harmonious relation with your colleagues and boss by enhancing your interpersonal skills. Be ready to give supports to your colleague when they required. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" > Apart from all these job skills, your other skills are also important. You should not postpone any work and try to complete it on or before time. If it is not possible, discuss with your boss before the deadline. Your boss may put some other person along with you to complete job at given time. </span><br />By: Nick Mutt<br /> http://www.articlefeeder.com/Self_Help_and_Motivational/Important_Skills_to_Achieve_Great_Success.html<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:courier new;" > </span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-32631853211671474642009-09-06T07:43:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:53:06.774-08:00How To Get The Most Out Of Your Working Day<span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" >Whether you are an employee or self-employed if you learn to how to get the most out of your work day and then apply that learning you can considerably increase your annual income.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > Not only will your income increase but your job satisfaction will increase as well. It is so much more satisfying to be able to look at your work day and to say with total conviction that your time was well spent.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > In order to understand how to get the most out of your day let's look at the three types of workers.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > The first type of worker is time focused. He rates his contribution in the amount of hours he spends at work. You will often hear people speaking in this fashion describing how dedicated they are because they work 60 hours per week.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > The question the time focused worker needs to ask is what exactly are they doing with that time. Studies have shown that most workers are only effective for about 20% of their working time. The other 80% includes things such as coffee breaks, conversation, browsing the internet, talking on the telephone, preparing to start, preparing to finish and all the other things that keep a person busy but aren't really productive.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > The second type of worker is activity focused. They realize that they aren't being paid just to put in the hours. They will think about what tasks they are being paid to perform and they will judge their value as a worker in terms of what they actually do in the organization. When you hear this type of worker describe how hard they work they will give you a list of all the things they do in a typical day.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > The question that the activity focused worker needs to ask is what outcomes are they getting from the activity. You could be the hardest worker in your organization but all the work you do may not contribute a single dollar to the bottom line profit.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > Many self employed people and many managers fall into this category of worker. They genuinely believe that they are the backbone of the company because they work so hard but in fact if they resigned very little would change.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > The third type of worker is the results focused worker. This worker realizes that no-one really gets paid to put in hours or even to keep busy. People get paid to produce a result. Whether you are an employee or self employed it is the results that you produce that will ultimately determine your value to the organization and therefore, sooner or later, your income level.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > If you want to get the most out of your work day ask yourself what results you are being paid for. Once you are clear on your results objective then periodically throughout the day ask yourself if what you are doing at that moment is producing the results that you are paid to produce.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > If the answer is "no" then stop doing that and start doing something that will produce the appropriate results.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:times new roman;" > Once you become consistently results focused the next step is to ask yourself how you can improve on the results that you have been getting. There is always room for improvement no matter how good your results are. If you develop that combination of results focus and constant improvement then you will soon discover that you are enjoying your work a lot more and that your income is going up as well.<br /><br />http://www.articlefeeder.com/Self_Help_and_Motivational/How_To_Get_The_Most_Out_Of_Your_Working_Day.html<br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-84886965909688216432009-09-06T07:39:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:53:21.967-08:00Are you a Pathological lair?<span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" >Pathological liars are people who can’t help but make up stories all the time. Unlike regular liars, they don’t have any real reason to fib. They’re not being deceptive to avoid being scolded, nor do they lie to keep someone else out of trouble. </span> <br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Pathological liars just lie. As troublesome as this condition is, there is a way to cure it. Pathological liar treatments are available for those who need it. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Not all experts consider pathological lying to be a disorder, but there are those who do. The following forms of pathological liar treatment have been known to help in a lot of cases. However, keep in mind that there is no absolute cure agreed upon by doctors yet. </span><br /><br /><b style="font-family: lucida grande; font-weight: bold;">Pathological Liar Treatment # 1: Long-Term Psychotherapy Session</b><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Most people with this condition undergo long-term psychotherapy sessions. These enable the psychotherapist to talk to the patient and find out just where this behavior is coming from. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Since pathological lying can also be linked to other mental disorders, psychotherapy sessions with a good therapist might also help bring these other issues to light. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Unfortunately, this therapy can also pose as a double-edged sword. The patient might spend all of their sessions making up stories and backing them up with false memories. </span><br /><br /><b style="font-family: lucida grande; font-weight: bold;">Pathological Liar Treatment # 2: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy</b><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > This treatment is slightly different from the usual therapy session. Instead of letting the patients talk about their problems all the time, they are also involved in other activities. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Patients are given take-home assignments to work on. One of the most common activities under cognitive behavioral treatment is the keeping of a diary. This diary will most likely record significant events that happened to the patient, and all the thoughts and actions that come with them. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > Patients are also taught relaxation and distraction techniques in the process. A lot of people seem to favor this treatment more.</span><br /><br /><b style="font-family: lucida grande; font-weight: bold;">Pathological Liar Treatment # 3: Support of Family and Friends</b><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > This is not at all scientific, nor is it a form of therapy. However, it is just as important as any of the above mentioned suggestions. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > The truth is, no amount of treatment will work on a pathological liar unless they are actually willing to make a change. When alone, that person might not be able to stay committed. However, with the support of family and friends, they will undoubtedly have an easier time adjusting to everything.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:lucida grande;" > These are some of the pathological liar treatments available. However, it is always best to consult with a doctor before deciding on what course of action to take.<br /><br />http://www.articlefeeder.com/Self_Help_and_Motivational<br />/Pathological_Liar_Treatment____Helpful_Ways_To_Treat_The_Pathological_Liar.html<br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6443814519858438033.post-40072734950587152412009-09-06T07:35:00.000-07:002009-11-15T03:48:36.847-08:00How to gain control over Alcohol<span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >The foremost rationale for you or a dear one to enter any of the alcohol treatment centers out there cannot be overemphasized. This is because it is often not easy for somebody to break a addiction, particularly a miserable addiction like drinking alcohol. When you enroll into any of the centers, their main duty is to assist you conquer your addiction difficulty. I want you to trust me, you will never be the same after going through their plan. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" > There are a lot of individuals like you who can not have power over their urge for alcohol. They may have attempted it on their own without success, but when you get the assistance that is accessible in an alcohol treatment center, you will be shown the best way to deal with the trouble. Contrary to what you or several other people out there often imagine, it is not reformatory. You need to grasp that there are human beings like you there getting treatment. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" > When seeking for the correct alcohol treatment center, there is need for you to consider the length of stay. The length of stay is very important if you ever want to get off alcohol addiction. I beg you to try and run away centers that swear to get you off within days or weeks. This is impossible. This is the chief reason why scores of people always go back to their previous manner of living. To put in another way, they did not spend enough time in the center. It is highly recommended that you think about longer length of stay in the course of your quest. A longer period will help you realize two main objectives. You will be able to get off. Besides, you will be able to adjust to your new life under the management of the experts in the center. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" > You will need three things so as to be successful in your struggle against booze. And these are all accessible in an alcohol treatment center. One, you will require medical attention. You will need the help of a qualified physician to assist your body amend to a lifestyle of non-dependence on alcohol. The second thing you need is the help of a physical therapist who will also assist your body get back its physical fitness. The third thing is the assistance of a psychologist who will assist you alter your way of thinking and help you reason confidently. These three critical things are deficient when individuals seek to surmount the problem of alcohol addiction without help from anybody. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" > While it is correct that some alcohol treatment centers are very overpriced, you must not permit that to dampen you. There are several other centers out there that offer quality service at an affordable rate. It is not wise of you to spend all your hard earned money getting off alcohol addiction. You will want the money after treating the difficulty. Simply search for a good and affordable center without ignoring quality.<br /><br />http://www.articlefeeder.com/Health_and_Fitness/Alcohol_Treatment_Centers.html<br /></span>Demarcohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17644407344753408280noreply@blogger.com0