Tag Archives: Inspiration

Just Smile and Tiny Tweaks….

Diets, Life Stressors, Management styles, positive thinking,

I am the first to say I don’t go for this type of thing, but honestly, this is so worth watching. Actually it gets off to a shaky start and Amy seems to be suffering from dry mouth( stress perhaps), which I found odd as the message was about confidence and how we communicate that to others. But stay with it.

Amy goes on to share a very personal experience, something I found very moving and I judged her to be completely sincere in everything she said. The audience believed her too and responded very positively to her generosity of spirit.

I have heard parts of this discussion before and agree that the act of smiling is one of the most simple and effective things we can do to relieve stress and lift our mood. And completely free! That’s the kind of therapy I like.

Be careful when you practice this though. I was in a real stinker of a mood one morning on my  way into work, getting worse by the minute as I sat, stuck in traffic. I remembered about the ” Just Smile” idea and wanted to shift my mood before affecting anyone else so, with a great deal of effort, I put on my favourite “happy” music and pulled my mouth up from my boots, into my biggest, bestest smile….. And scared seven shades of daylight out of the guy in the car beside me! I think he reckoned I had lost the plot and was about to carry out some kind of mayhem. Oh well, you can’t win them all.

Anyway, like I say, I really think this is worth your time and I would love to know if you agree.

The King is Dead, Long Live the King.

Our World, women, ,

I have been watching with interest the controversy over the response from the western world to the death of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The idea of Louise Mensch tweeting that Cameron should “Fuck off” initially made me laugh, but then rankled, going back again to the knee jerk reaction that benefits no-one and just gets people’s names in the headlines once more.

I agree Saudi Arabia has a very long way to go on equal rights for women, but 2015 is the first time women there will not only be able to vote, but to stand for election as well. It’s not everything, but it is a start. The recently deceased King Abdullah paved the way for this back in 2011.

Changing the ideology and way of life of centuries will not happen overnight in Saudi Arabia; any more than it did here. We are very quick to condemn the speed of change in other countries, but I would love to understand the reason behind the still howling gaps in career opportunities between men and women right here, right now.

In the past I have backed off from ever considering myself a “feminist”; being so sick of some of the nonsense associated with it. However I looked up the definition of the word earlier and realise it is a completely morally decent aspiration and one I am happy to identify with.

“Quel surprise” to all of you that know me! ( I don’t think).

Touching The Bottom….

Life Stressors, , ,

No, not that bottom!

A massively stress-inducing factor in life is uncertainty; of looking into that black pool and wondering where the bottom is.

Uncertainty seems to take away our options. We can’t do X because Y might happen.

So what, the worst happens! Now you know what you have to cope with, now you can make decisions, choose your course of action; in other words take control.

Yesterday I had a resolution to a long-running issue. It was not the resolution I had hoped for and yet, since that decision was made, I have felt so much lighter, so much more positive and in charge of my own destiny again. It’s as if others were pushing all the buttons, controlling way too many aspects of my life, for months.

And you know what, now that I’m back in the driving seat, I will enjoy the journey.