Have you woken up from the festive season yet?

Have you realised that this year will be shorter than last year – Yes it will…

Let me explain.

If you are 10 years old this year would present 10% of your life. If you are 20 years old, it only forms – Well see the graph below.

% Year Graph

Yup, as you grow older, the faster life gets…

So would you like this to be a good year?

Big Smile...

Big smile and some nodding please…

Would you like me to tell you a secret?

Secret...

Ok, if you insist…

IT IS UP TO…

YOU!!!

If you want to make 2012 a stunning, smashing, extraordinary, fabulous, amazing and simply breath-taking year…

Do this…

• Realise that YOU are probably the most limiting factor in your own life;
• Acknowledge that YOU can change this;
• Accept that you are capable of reaching for more and / or better things;
• Understand that only YOU can affect permanent changes by CHANGING what you-
  • Think,
  • Say,
  • Do
• You NEED to live in harmony (with yourself and others) therefore you need to consider the following aspects –
  • Financial,
  • Emotional,
  • Physical,
  • Spiritual,
  • Social,
  • Intellectual
• Only by determining a SOLID goal for each of these, will you change things for the better

Now for the difficult part.

Treat yourself to some

Honesty

If something is not working for you, admit it, change it and move along people…

This will allow you to gain self-

Respect

Remember,

Yes you are...

Love, light, abundance and overwhelming joy for the year to come…

Don’t be shy, share this with someone…

Obviously the opposite is true – People do things that melt you inside, make you warm and fuzzy and then there are the times when you have to fight the tears because you are overwhelmed by pride and joy…

Hurt

These are the emotional responses we have to specific events that occur.

Cute

They will do stuff that makes you go – aaaaaawwww!!!!

What???

They do stuff that makes you go – what the…..?

What did you say????

… and angry…

Oh.. I get it....

… and laugh…

Life lesson

People are not events, they are souls trapped inside bodies moving through our lives and will expose us to strings of multiple events.

Very Young

People are living, breathing and changing organisms that require more form us than the simple reaction to an event.

Still Young

They deserve to be separated from their acts…

Reflect

Just like your reflection in a mirror…

The reflection – it is who you are… but somehow not…

You are more than the reflection…

People are more than just the sum total of the emotions that you have of them…

This means that you can love someone without approving of what they do…

You can be disappointed…

Oh Really???

… in what the person did…

But NOT WHO THEY ARE!!

Oh hello....

Unconditional love is what people deserve…

As we move into the festive season, we will encounter a myriad of emotions, caused mostly by people…

I urge you to separate the person from the act…

Love the person; separated from their acts…

It is that simple…

Please share this, like it or spread it around… I do this from my heart to make a difference… If you can help me in this; don’t hesitate… YOU TOO CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE…

Please enjoy the festive season – If you are a Christian – Put the Christ back in Christmas – Be thankful – Always

The Source

Blessings, happiness, joy, love, abundance and the Grace of God are wished upon you and your loved ones.

Related articles

• To be Grateful (creativedragon.wordpress.com)
• Love for Humanity – the Powerful Emotion! (naveenkhan.wordpress.com)

I said something during the week without realising…

Stop trying / imagining / projecting / hoping and just be…

Create!!!

So just what should you do?

Probably the most important things that I can share with you are: (this will change you forever – if you could just really GET IT – and do it)

• TRUST – Yourself, others, your partner, your mother, your children…
• BELIEVE – You were created / born for a REASON, and so is everybody else…
• KNOW – who you are (warts and all, good, bad ugly), know what you want to be…
• PLAN – Set a goal… (expand this to include you spiritual, physical, emotional and other aspects of your life)
• MOVE – Get up and do SOMETHING about it…
• FAIL – Do this with so much passion that it is beautiful to behold…
• GET UP – Every time you get up, you WILL BE STRONGER than before you got knocked down…
• SUCCEED – Find (Actively search for the things you got right), “catch yourself” doing the right things, recognise progress…
• GLOAT – Feel the overwhelming satisfaction that comes after having DONE something…
• MEMORISE – Store the emotions (good ones) in some place where you can access them…
• GIVE THANKS – To God, the Universe, the Source, everybody that helped you, everybody that did not help you…
• LOOK UP – Be proud…
• GROW – Reset and re-evaluate… (Start from the top, it WILL be easier this time around)
• DO IT AGAIN – And again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again…

Be Yourself

When should you do this…

Now

Where should you do this…

Planet Earth

How should you do it?

How?

So NOW

Be cool

Each of us has these elements in our past. There are no exceptions… Everyone… Everywhere…

Looking at the Past

So what do we do about this?

Do we allow our past to shape our future?

Some may say that we have no choice – in part that is true…

If you have to live with the consequences of wrongdoing, mistakes, minor and major glitches, it, may seem like you cannot escape your past.

Regret

Regret is something we all have…

Here is the good news…

Our future is not determined by what we did, but by what we do…. NOW!!!

Forgive YOURSELF

We are pretty adept at forgiving others…

If we can do the same while looking in the mirror… (Insert ah-ha here…)

Our future is determined by how we react to our circumstances…

Joy and happiness

Lesson…

Being Thankful

Thankfulness is the most important element in determining your future…

Your future is shaped by what you focus on… How you CHOOSE to see things… How you react to the various things that happened to you, are still happening, and may continue to happen to you…

This is what defines YOU…

Your character…

Your identity…

Feeling "average"?

You are reading this post because you are
already part of a privileged group. (Only 20% of individuals in the developing world are online) [I recommend you follow this link later – really interesting.] You hail from the USA because this post is written in English. (Top 10 countries by Internet use) If you are indeed an US citizen you are probably in the 90,2% of people that are still employed. (Decade of unemployment or Unemployment, 2004 to present)

Am I clairvoyant – nooooo….

I simply researched the information that is publically available on the internet.

Here is some more interesting info:

• Salary that you should expect matched against your educational level.
• How does your household income compare on a national base?
• What are you spending that household income on?
• What does it cost to raise a child?
• If you are not in a formal what is the highest paying work from home jobs?

If you look at all the information contained within these info graphics, you may not feel blessed, special, privileged or even find a reason to be happy.

Now compare our current economic crisis with the Great Depression.

You should now look like this

Give it a second and allow the thought to settle…

Step 1 – Realize

• You are in control of your life…
• You control your future…
• You can make this one of the best times of your life…

Step 2 – Thankful and Gratitude

• Find the many things that you have to be grateful for.
• Give thanks to God, the Universe, your mother… (It does not matter to whom)
• Appreciate the not so obvious gifts (loving partner, parents, children…)

Step 3 – Breathe

Step 4 – Realise that you will be able to overcome the challenges you face.

Step 5 – Allow a deep calm to permeate your soul.

Step 6 – See the future.

Step 7 – Keep the good things, select the things you want to change, find a way to do it slowly…

• Look after yourself
• Look after your loved-ones
• Look after your possessions
• Look after your business / job / income stream

You have time… (It is right now)

Your future can look like this

If you need more inspiration:

“Never, never, never give up!” ~ Winston Churchill

“A champion is someone who gets up, even when he can’t.” ~ Jack Dempsey

“Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity ” ~ Louis Pasteur

“I think and think for months and years. Ninety-nine times, the conclusion is false. The hundredth time I am right.” ~ Albert Einstein

“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” ~ Dale Carnegie

Love and Light….

(We were discussing an upcoming event Owning & Transcending FEAR in Execution of Our Leadership and Professional Mandate – which he is helping to promote)

The basis of all this fear and foreboding lives in a singular question…

What are leaders doing today?

It is fascinating to see how we are transfixed by exemplary leaders like Steve Jobs, David Packard, Richard Branson, and Nelson Mandela.

They are allowed to be human, have awkward personality traits, make mistakes and just be human.

So what makes them so different? What do they have? What is the magic?

Examples:

Steve Jobs “The only way to do great work is to love what you do… Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.”

1949 – David Packard “A company has a greater responsibility than making money for its stockholders. We have a responsibility to our employees to recognize their dignity as human beings.”

Richard Branson “The balloons only have one life and the only way of finding out whether they work is to attempt to fly around the world.”

Nelson Mandela “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”

Ok so this is four really carefully selected quotes; it does not mean a thing…

Scared? Why not?

If we look, we will find that they all shared a few things:

• They took the longer view
• Believed in a better tomorrow
• They planted things that they will not see bear fruit
• Acted on principle
• The saw themselves as valuable
• They saw value in other people
• Believed in other people’s ability to be good
• They were patient

If this is all true, then we should all be able to simply step up and deliver…

YOU ARE IMPORTANT TO ME

If we can only imagine everybody we encounter has such a sign around their neck; how would that change our behaviour?

So I would like to conclude with….

Don’t go for the:

• Quick wins…
• Low hanging fruit…
• Quarterly profit…
• Spectacular turnaround…
• Short term save…

Treat your life, your business, country, family and anything / anybody else with the respect they or it deserve.

Thanks

Related articles

• What makes an entrepreneur? Richard Branson on Steve Jobs (elizabethmccaffrey.wordpress.com)
• Richard Branson: “Steve Jobs Is The Entrepreneur I Most Admired” (businessinsider.com)

In my post – Who can change the world? – I tried to highlight some of the good that we can learn from really special individuals.

This week I would like you to honour the people that are still living…

Recognise their absolute influence and allow you to communicate this to them while they can still appreciate it…

Call them TODAY…

Tell them…

I would like you to learn from someone special just how to do that – Anita van Zyl – My mother.

Short Bio:

• Cancer survivor (To which I am eternally grateful)
• International athlete (RSA National team Blind Bowls)
• Consummate mother (She leads by example – and it is a GOOD one)
• Humanitarian (Most of my friends like her more than they like me)
• Spiritual rock (Most people do not know what she believes but envy how she lives that belief)
• Safe harbour (To the lost, lonely, downtrodden and everybody that needs help and encouragement)
• Intellectual (Never in your face, always humble deep-seated and tested knowledge)
• Social dynamo (She is always in the middle of any interaction without catching the limelight – awesome)

I fully acknowledge that I am tainted and bias in this view of my mother, because I deeply love and respect her…

Here are some quotes that is ABSOLUTELY true of my mother:

• I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life. ~Abraham Lincoln
• If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not already been. ~Robert Brault
• The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness. ~Honoré de Balzac
• Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible. ~Marion C. Garretty
• I love my mother as the trees love water and sunshine – she helps me grow, prosper, and reach great heights. ~Terri Guillemets
• Mother’s love is peace. It need not be acquired, it need not be deserved. ~Erich Fromm
• Mother is a verb, not a noun. ~Proverb
• Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children. ~William Makepeace Thackeray
• My mother had a slender, small body, but a large heart – a heart so large that everybody’s joys found welcome in it, and hospitable accommodation. ~Mark Twain
• All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother. ~Abraham Lincoln
• God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers. ~Jewish Proverb
• Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother. ~Oprah Winfrey

A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. ~Washington Irving

Because I feel that in the heavens above

The angels, whispering one to another,

Can find among their burning tears of love,

None so devotional as that of “Mother,”

Therefore, by that dear name I have long called you,

You who are more than mother unto me.

~Edgar Allan Poe

You mean the world to me…

I love you without constraint or boundary…

Thank you so much for the life you have given and the example provided…

Love you....

Life Lesson:

To achieve astonishing success in everything you do; do everything, every day in keeping with what would make your mother proud – antonvandenberg

I am personally overwhelmed by the news…

It is not often that we encounter someone as dedicated and real as Steve. He was first of all human, with flaws and interesting personality traits. This he never even attempted to hide or obscure.

He was good to and for Apple, and there were times that he was not. I can still recall him stepping back for the good of the company and then returning when they needed him.

Open honesty and humility is not something we ever thought we would have as the lasting and enduring qualities that Steve both advocated and lived by example.

We as a human race have lost someone that was shaped by our times, but he somehow retained the essence of being himself, and he showed each of us the value of being good at what you do, good in how you treat others – simply be good.

I honestly hope that my children will have people to look up to of this quality…

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” – Steve Jobs

An emotional response about someone we all thought we knew; but then we all did somehow…

So what did Steve teach us about life?

• This is your life – Take it by the horns and DO something AMAZING
• NEVER settle – Only the best is good enough
• Expect Miracles – If ever a life was defined by miracles…
• People are Precious – If you allow them, people will rise to the occasion, step up to the plate, exceed what they believe is possible.
• Believe in YOURSELF – Even when everybody else has already given up…
• Do things right the first time – Second time around does NOT count.
• Excellence, Brilliance, Exceptional – Are all words that live in each of us.
• ACT – Do things without getting permission.
• Take Chances – Life is a RISK… Play the odds, you only live once…
• Don’t listen to critics – What can they know? Have they tried it?

There is probably a lot more we can say, I personally think that we as a species is poorer at the loss of this man.

Now something else…

Steve died of CANCER!!!

ACS

You all know that this is one of my personal crusades…

Fund Pancreatic Cancer Research

Please people can we raise awareness? Can we do something?

This is the moment where we should look at Steve’s life and accept the challenge raised by CANCER!

Breast Cancer Awareness

So the call to duty is:

• Raise awareness – tell people about its (what it is, what it does, how you can check yourself)
• Learn more – What types of cancer exist?
• Get tested – I don’t get a kick-back from your doctor, clinic or hospital, but I can tell you the best way to survive it is – EARLY DIAGNOSIS.
• Prevention – What can we all do?
• Join forces – There are movements, foundations, associations, societies, walks, campaigns…
• Donate – Time, money, effort… Whatever you have…
• Treatment – People need to know where to go in YOUR area…

Please join me in celebrating the life that Steve Jobs lived by following his example.

More on Steve.

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/10/steve_jobs_legacy_design_your.html

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220196

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/technology-blog/8-things-didn-t-know-life-steve-jobs-172130955.html

Let’s do this right!!!

Social Media Map

Interactive map available at Overdrive Interactive.

I asked myself the simple question – Why do we do it?

Why do we expend high levels of energy and devout vast quantities of time to this endeavour?

I mean, just like mobile phones, the world turned just fine without it?

The more I thought about this the more a pattern started to emerge.

Humans are social animals… The advent of computing and mobile devices has to some degree isolated us from each other. We still need the interaction, and social media provides us with the “vehicle” to build and maintain contact in a “safe” way. (For more on social psychology)

WARNING!!! WARNING!!

The net is filled with all kinds of “interesting people” that have no scruples, morals or even good judgement.

So I don’t want to get all serious and academic here but this is a simple concept to grasp and apply in your online endeavours.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

When you interact with anybody, you can determine just where they are within Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Your comments and other interactions can be “shaped” to address your target audience without too much effort.

Once you are aware of this, you will almost sub-consciously use suitable vocabulary, images and content.

OR

There is one other way to ward off the “unwanted”

Change your avatar to:

Hotty Too Much

Just saying…

Have a fantastic day…

So if our lives are like rollercoasters (earlier post) then how do we know we are blessed?

Definition- blessed

• consecrated; sacred; holy; sanctified: the Blessed Sacrament.
• worthy of adoration, reverence, or worship: the Blessed Trinity.
• divinely or supremely favored; fortunate: to be blessed with a strong, healthy body; blessed with an ability to find friends.
• blissfully happy or contented.

If we concede that we are not God Almighty, then we start looking at the last two meanings contained in the definition above.

Is this You?

So are we blessed if we are:

• Alive
• Healthy
• Rich
• Successful
• Loved
• Admired
• Popular
• Have food in your fridge
• Have a fridge
• Have parents, children, loved one?

OR

Do we simply have to be grateful?

Read it

I can tell you from personal experience that one simply has to focus on the absolute and overwhelming amount of good each of us has surrounding us, to experience one of the most rewarding emotions on earth

GRATEFULNESS

So today, right here and now, I would like to thank you, my reader, my friend, my follower and that casual observer over there…

With all my heart

For being part of my life… For making me able to claim the knowledge that I too am BLESSED.

And now I encourage you to follow my lead…

Yes you can...

Tell someone that you appreciate him/her, that you love them, that you miss them and above all…

Look up…

THANK YOU

Irrespective of your faith or religion – thank THE ORIGIN of everything you have…

Should you require something more tangible – Iamgr8tfulforyou gift book by my friend Kim Serafini

I would like to thank you already for sharing this…