You will be what you will to be.
Let failure find its false content
In that poor word “environment,”
But spirit scorns it, and is free.
It masters time, it conquers space,
It cows that boastful trickster, Chance,
And bids the tyrant Circumstance
Uncrown, and take a servant's place.
The human will, that force unseen,
The offspring of a deathless soul,
Can hew a way to any goal,
Though walls of granite intervene.
Be not impatient in delay,
But wait as one who understands;
When spirit rises and commands,
The gods are ready to obey.
Beautiful isn't it? What is your Will to be?
Friday, July 31, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
The Power of Love
The love of a father for his son.. While many of us can't even entertain the thoughts of running 5km, this 66 year old father has been carrying his son in running full marathons and triathlons. Truly inspiring and touching. As their messages say, 'Yes you can. You can do anything you wanted to. As long as you make up your mind. You can do it.' Enjoy ^_^
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Serenity Prayer
Serenity Prayer: Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference - Reinhold Niebuhr
Beautiful isn't it? A prayer which I want to adopt everyday in my life. Here's the opposite.
Stress Prayer: Grant me the stubbornness to struggle against things I cannot change; the inertia to avoid work on my own behaviors and attitudes which I can change; and the foolishness to ignore the differences between external events beyond my control and my own controllable reactions. But most of all, grant me a contempt for my own human imperfection and the limits of human control. - Neil Fiore from The Now Habit
Lol right on.... A prayer which I had been incorporating in my life for a long time. From my experience till now, it had brought me nothing but resentments to others and from others, assumptions of what was supposed to be done, expectations of the impossibilities, low self-esteem as I felt powerless to change everything and most of all, lots of unnecessary stress.
Many enlightened teachers have often taught, the root of unhappiness is due to how we want everything to go accordingly to what we expect and wanted. Little did we realized that many of them are actually beyond our control. For example, we can't control how the weather will be (I am guilty of being angry at the weather at times). We can't control how people will react to us and how they think of us. Unless you know how to do mind control.... As such, it is actually quite foolish to think that we can actually control the Everything in our life.
In reality, the only thing we can control is our reaction to events. Our thoughts of other people. Our own actions towards issues. In the nutshell, the only thing that we can actually change is ourselves. There is a proverb which says 'If you want to change the world, you have to start changing yourself first.' You will see that things aren't actually as bad as it seems once you realize that you actually have the power to change your reactions to it. Yesterday night when I was sleeping, the Niki's mum called home. As usual, I was irritated by ringing phone and started cursing and hogging the pillow over my head in my futile attempt to block the noise. It was at that time I remembered that I couldn't change the phone from ringing but I could choose to be less affected by it. It was an amazing experience when I realized that I have the power to choose my reaction. All my frustration and anger vanished immediately and I felt at peace. Instead, I felt grateful for the phone to ring for such short time. It could have been longer. ^_^
Are you accepting yourself as human? Being humans means that we will not be perfect in everything. Expecting perfection in yourself only means that you are unable to embrace you as human. A wonderful being. Live as the serenity prayer says and accept others imperfections. They are only humans like us. Change what we can and embrace what we can't. Accept ourselves as humans with imperfections. It is a great way to live a fulfilling and stress free life. Like my Secondary School Teacher Mr Chng who loves to say,'If it can be changed, why worry. If it cannot be changed, why worry?'
Till next time, do enjoy life. ^_^
Beautiful isn't it? A prayer which I want to adopt everyday in my life. Here's the opposite.
Stress Prayer: Grant me the stubbornness to struggle against things I cannot change; the inertia to avoid work on my own behaviors and attitudes which I can change; and the foolishness to ignore the differences between external events beyond my control and my own controllable reactions. But most of all, grant me a contempt for my own human imperfection and the limits of human control. - Neil Fiore from The Now Habit
Lol right on.... A prayer which I had been incorporating in my life for a long time. From my experience till now, it had brought me nothing but resentments to others and from others, assumptions of what was supposed to be done, expectations of the impossibilities, low self-esteem as I felt powerless to change everything and most of all, lots of unnecessary stress.
Many enlightened teachers have often taught, the root of unhappiness is due to how we want everything to go accordingly to what we expect and wanted. Little did we realized that many of them are actually beyond our control. For example, we can't control how the weather will be (I am guilty of being angry at the weather at times). We can't control how people will react to us and how they think of us. Unless you know how to do mind control.... As such, it is actually quite foolish to think that we can actually control the Everything in our life.
In reality, the only thing we can control is our reaction to events. Our thoughts of other people. Our own actions towards issues. In the nutshell, the only thing that we can actually change is ourselves. There is a proverb which says 'If you want to change the world, you have to start changing yourself first.' You will see that things aren't actually as bad as it seems once you realize that you actually have the power to change your reactions to it. Yesterday night when I was sleeping, the Niki's mum called home. As usual, I was irritated by ringing phone and started cursing and hogging the pillow over my head in my futile attempt to block the noise. It was at that time I remembered that I couldn't change the phone from ringing but I could choose to be less affected by it. It was an amazing experience when I realized that I have the power to choose my reaction. All my frustration and anger vanished immediately and I felt at peace. Instead, I felt grateful for the phone to ring for such short time. It could have been longer. ^_^
Are you accepting yourself as human? Being humans means that we will not be perfect in everything. Expecting perfection in yourself only means that you are unable to embrace you as human. A wonderful being. Live as the serenity prayer says and accept others imperfections. They are only humans like us. Change what we can and embrace what we can't. Accept ourselves as humans with imperfections. It is a great way to live a fulfilling and stress free life. Like my Secondary School Teacher Mr Chng who loves to say,'If it can be changed, why worry. If it cannot be changed, why worry?'
Till next time, do enjoy life. ^_^
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Less Frequent Updates
Hello all, as you notice I had been updating my blog less often recently.
Many reasons arised. For one, I have no more internet connection at home and intended to leave it that way.
Kinda fun to live without it. Having more time to do my other stuffs.
Also I had other things on my mind to do now ^_^
Most likely I will only be updating once per week when I am at Niki's place.
So take care folks!
Many reasons arised. For one, I have no more internet connection at home and intended to leave it that way.
Kinda fun to live without it. Having more time to do my other stuffs.
Also I had other things on my mind to do now ^_^
Most likely I will only be updating once per week when I am at Niki's place.
So take care folks!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
How to talk to girls tips from a 9 year old
Wow.... Can you imagine writing a book and get published at the age of 9?
Well he can. Actually he has three books published now. Wow..
Well he can. Actually he has three books published now. Wow..
Friday, July 17, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Ping pong Gods
If you want see what kind of incredible stunts which you can do with ping pong balls, check this out !
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1164841084809&ref=nf
The magic of hard work or may be lots of edition....
Either way still hard work
Enjoy!!
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1164841084809&ref=nf
The magic of hard work or may be lots of edition....
Either way still hard work
Enjoy!!
Gratitude
I am constantly amazed by how the things I have in life, come to me in ways that I often took it for granted as it looked effortless.
I had often neglected the amount of hard work and efforts which were put in by great people who made it possible.
The food I am eating now is brought to me by the efforts of people who grow them, people who collect them, people who transport them, people who packed them and many others who involved in one way or the other.
Not forgetting the ones who invented the planes, the trains, the rails, the ships and the ones who built them.
This is similar with the water which I drink in my cup, the clothes on my body, the flat I lived in, the paper I am using and every possession I have in my life.
Thank you for everything that is in my life as it has gone through the hard work of many men, dead and alive, to bring these to me.
Thank you to everything that I have taken from the world and I must do my best to give it back in return.
Thank you. 
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Procrastinator vs Do-er
How often do we procrastinate? How often do we drag the things we need to do and regretted it in the end? I am a pro procrastinator myself. Pushing off important things to a few days before the deadline is always my personal forte. Not that I am too proud of it through. Many times, I hate myself for it, often regretting why I didn’t do it earlier. Then I will blames myself for being so lazy that I have to face the consequences later.
Did you face similar inner dialogues before? Well… As you can see, you are not alone.
Such self reprimanding can be very bad for self-esteem. It came to a time that I would just avoid big and important projects totally to prevent myself from procrastinating again which obviously lead to no where. It seriously depleted my confidence in getting things done. It lowered my performance and how people perceive me too. Luckily and finally, I got fed up with the consequences and began my search on how to overcome procrastination. Luckily, there are great deals of information out there in both library and the Internet. Here is an interesting finding which I get out from the research.
Procrastinators are usually perfectionist. They prefer to finish everything at one go and in total perfection. However, this mindset also makes the task seems more difficult and daunting than it originally is. Therefore, many times they will just sit on the task, waiting for a good time until it becomes too late. With fire burning on their asses, it almost guaranteed a not so perfect outcome and then they will start hating themselves for it. As a result, it becomes natural for procrastinator to avoid big tasks as they afraid that they will fail again (to them, not perfect is equal to fail also). This is the way of thinking that is usually done subconsciously without them realizing their thinking process.
This study is a wake up call for me. Most of the time, I would want to finish everything at one go. Finish once and for all is the motto which I held for a long time in my life. It is undeniable that there are occasions which this mentality helped me in freeing up some of my time but usually, it left me drained due to the prolonged hours trying to get the task done at one go. I did it so frequently that eventually, I dreaded doing them anymore. Thinking about the after effect turned me off totally. I rather spent my time doing other ‘fun’ things or just relaxing. This is where the viscous cycle will occur. Procrastinate, regret, blame, motivate to do earlier, remember the tiredness and procrastinate again.
On the other hand, Do-ers are people who will get into actions regardless of how much can they complete. They will disseminate the task into small segments and keep doing them till completion. It is actually a better stress free method. Do-ers jump into tasks immediately starting with small steps. They adopt the essence of ‘The Great Wall of China was built, one brick at a time’.
Let's put the differences into a scenario. For instance, John will like to clear up his room which is in a total mess. He has a strong desire to clear it up as it is getting pretty unsightly. Therefore, he is all fired to get the room cleared ASAP.
Procrastinator’s thinking process
‘I am ready to clean up the room. Hmm.... It will require a lot of time and effort since there are so many things to clear. I shall do it when I have more hours on hand.’ The perfect timing never arrives as there always seemed to have other more important things to. By the time John is ready to do it; he often finds it too late and schedules the cleaning to another day. The same thought keeps recurring in his head, as the task is just to daunting and time consuming. John is always able to find reasons to do other more 'important' stuffs first.
Do-er’s thinking process
There will be a significant difference in the thinking process. John will start dividing the whole room into segments to clean. For example, he will decide to do the drawer first for this week. He will not touch on anything else if he does not feel like it. Once he achieves his goal, he can choose to stop and not feel guilty for not finishing everything. He even starts seeing himself to be competent and finds that the work is not so hard after all. This will motivate him to do it again as he can see the difference in the room even if it is just a small area. In the progress, he becomes more and more motivated as he sees the room becomes neater and neater and realizes that the goal is attainable Few weeks later, we will find the do-er's room cleared and the procrastinator's room untouched (it may get more messy as he thinks he can afford to mess it up since he is going to clear sooner or later). We will find the do-er’s face grinning and feeling so proud of himself while the procrastinator grouching, claiming that he does not seem to be able to find time to do anything. He will then start blaming everyone and everything that seemingly appeared as a cause for his procrastination.
Personally now, I am applying more of a do-er mindset and it is amazing seeing how much things can be done within a short time. It is relatively easy because it is totally our personal choice to be a procrastinator or a do-er. No one is born a procrastinator or a do-er. We just have to be conscious about the different type of mindsets and apply the one which you preferred. It is a matter of getting something done even if it is just a small percentage. There is no need to have a perfect outcome. Ironically, by trying not to be so perfect will usually give you a nearly perfect result in the end. As you get more time to work on the project, you have less stress; allow more creativity and more time to revise your work.
Till next time
Did you face similar inner dialogues before? Well… As you can see, you are not alone.
Such self reprimanding can be very bad for self-esteem. It came to a time that I would just avoid big and important projects totally to prevent myself from procrastinating again which obviously lead to no where. It seriously depleted my confidence in getting things done. It lowered my performance and how people perceive me too. Luckily and finally, I got fed up with the consequences and began my search on how to overcome procrastination. Luckily, there are great deals of information out there in both library and the Internet. Here is an interesting finding which I get out from the research.
Procrastinators are usually perfectionist. They prefer to finish everything at one go and in total perfection. However, this mindset also makes the task seems more difficult and daunting than it originally is. Therefore, many times they will just sit on the task, waiting for a good time until it becomes too late. With fire burning on their asses, it almost guaranteed a not so perfect outcome and then they will start hating themselves for it. As a result, it becomes natural for procrastinator to avoid big tasks as they afraid that they will fail again (to them, not perfect is equal to fail also). This is the way of thinking that is usually done subconsciously without them realizing their thinking process.
This study is a wake up call for me. Most of the time, I would want to finish everything at one go. Finish once and for all is the motto which I held for a long time in my life. It is undeniable that there are occasions which this mentality helped me in freeing up some of my time but usually, it left me drained due to the prolonged hours trying to get the task done at one go. I did it so frequently that eventually, I dreaded doing them anymore. Thinking about the after effect turned me off totally. I rather spent my time doing other ‘fun’ things or just relaxing. This is where the viscous cycle will occur. Procrastinate, regret, blame, motivate to do earlier, remember the tiredness and procrastinate again.
On the other hand, Do-ers are people who will get into actions regardless of how much can they complete. They will disseminate the task into small segments and keep doing them till completion. It is actually a better stress free method. Do-ers jump into tasks immediately starting with small steps. They adopt the essence of ‘The Great Wall of China was built, one brick at a time’.
Let's put the differences into a scenario. For instance, John will like to clear up his room which is in a total mess. He has a strong desire to clear it up as it is getting pretty unsightly. Therefore, he is all fired to get the room cleared ASAP.
Procrastinator’s thinking process
‘I am ready to clean up the room. Hmm.... It will require a lot of time and effort since there are so many things to clear. I shall do it when I have more hours on hand.’ The perfect timing never arrives as there always seemed to have other more important things to. By the time John is ready to do it; he often finds it too late and schedules the cleaning to another day. The same thought keeps recurring in his head, as the task is just to daunting and time consuming. John is always able to find reasons to do other more 'important' stuffs first.
Do-er’s thinking process
There will be a significant difference in the thinking process. John will start dividing the whole room into segments to clean. For example, he will decide to do the drawer first for this week. He will not touch on anything else if he does not feel like it. Once he achieves his goal, he can choose to stop and not feel guilty for not finishing everything. He even starts seeing himself to be competent and finds that the work is not so hard after all. This will motivate him to do it again as he can see the difference in the room even if it is just a small area. In the progress, he becomes more and more motivated as he sees the room becomes neater and neater and realizes that the goal is attainable Few weeks later, we will find the do-er's room cleared and the procrastinator's room untouched (it may get more messy as he thinks he can afford to mess it up since he is going to clear sooner or later). We will find the do-er’s face grinning and feeling so proud of himself while the procrastinator grouching, claiming that he does not seem to be able to find time to do anything. He will then start blaming everyone and everything that seemingly appeared as a cause for his procrastination.
Personally now, I am applying more of a do-er mindset and it is amazing seeing how much things can be done within a short time. It is relatively easy because it is totally our personal choice to be a procrastinator or a do-er. No one is born a procrastinator or a do-er. We just have to be conscious about the different type of mindsets and apply the one which you preferred. It is a matter of getting something done even if it is just a small percentage. There is no need to have a perfect outcome. Ironically, by trying not to be so perfect will usually give you a nearly perfect result in the end. As you get more time to work on the project, you have less stress; allow more creativity and more time to revise your work.
Till next time
Thursday, July 9, 2009
It starts with me
Frequently, I would be questioned on why am I so environmental conscious? Why did I go into vegetarian dietary or even pick up the trashes on the floor as it is so dirty. It seems illogical for me to do it as if anything needs to be change, it has to be changed on the grand scale. I alone will not be able to make much of a difference. Even if I pick this trash up, there are bounded to be another litterer somewhere else. It is almost guaranteed that later someone is bound to litter here again. How many litters or bottles am I able to pick up? What if I keep seeing them down the path I walk? Do I pick them all up? As for my vegetarian dietary habit, they will argue that even if you don't eat, there are many others who are eating it. Animals are still going to get killed and demand is still going to be there. Even monks eat meat so why should I be different? What is the point of depriving myself of the luxury of eating since it is not going to make a difference?
Frankly speaking, I had similar mindset in the past. It looked pretty logical at that time. Why change when everyone else isn't doing anything? Why make the effort if it is going to get worst anyway? Statistically wise, it just ain't smart and depressing. Many times, we were told that there was nothing we could do about what's happening. The world can only be changed by a selected few movers such as Einstein, Ghandi, Bill Gates, Buddha, Jesus... So we should wait for them to appear while we just live on with our life. Those days, I just feel powerless to do anything about it. So why bother?
Today, it is interesting to see myself questioning that if I do not do it then who will? Why can't it begins with me? Great Walls of China is built by a brick at a time. It definitely feels more empowering in focusing on what I can do rather than what I cannot do. I cannot make others change their actions but I know I can make my hands pick up the rubbish or change my preference of food.. These days if people ask me why bother? I say I just do my best. If I can pick up one rubbish, one it shall be. If I can pick ten up, ten it shall be. Just do what I can do. There is no need to judge or be judged by anyone.
That day while I was at Punggol Beach, it was filled with litters. While I was loathing over the inconsiderate litterers, I came to realize that this was something I could not control. However, I could control how I feel about it and how I can deal with the issue. In the end, the simple walk at seaside became a huge manual work. Picking up plastic bags, Styrofoam boxes, plastic bottles, rubbers, batteries and all kind of rubbish. No doubt I could not pick up all of them, but it felt really good doing what I could.
It will also amaze you when you set yourself into action, people may get influenced by you. My personal experience shown that my parents were having more vegetables, friends were impressed and more open to vegetarian food and love ones become supportive in my actions. We can be of influence.
In the future, if you ever have doubt again whether it is all worth it, do think again. You may not see it immediately but time will eventually show you the contributions you have done to humans, our environment and most importantly Earth. Do it for yourself. Do it for the children. It has to start with someone. Why not you?
Frankly speaking, I had similar mindset in the past. It looked pretty logical at that time. Why change when everyone else isn't doing anything? Why make the effort if it is going to get worst anyway? Statistically wise, it just ain't smart and depressing. Many times, we were told that there was nothing we could do about what's happening. The world can only be changed by a selected few movers such as Einstein, Ghandi, Bill Gates, Buddha, Jesus... So we should wait for them to appear while we just live on with our life. Those days, I just feel powerless to do anything about it. So why bother?
Today, it is interesting to see myself questioning that if I do not do it then who will? Why can't it begins with me? Great Walls of China is built by a brick at a time. It definitely feels more empowering in focusing on what I can do rather than what I cannot do. I cannot make others change their actions but I know I can make my hands pick up the rubbish or change my preference of food.. These days if people ask me why bother? I say I just do my best. If I can pick up one rubbish, one it shall be. If I can pick ten up, ten it shall be. Just do what I can do. There is no need to judge or be judged by anyone.
That day while I was at Punggol Beach, it was filled with litters. While I was loathing over the inconsiderate litterers, I came to realize that this was something I could not control. However, I could control how I feel about it and how I can deal with the issue. In the end, the simple walk at seaside became a huge manual work. Picking up plastic bags, Styrofoam boxes, plastic bottles, rubbers, batteries and all kind of rubbish. No doubt I could not pick up all of them, but it felt really good doing what I could.
It will also amaze you when you set yourself into action, people may get influenced by you. My personal experience shown that my parents were having more vegetables, friends were impressed and more open to vegetarian food and love ones become supportive in my actions. We can be of influence.
In the future, if you ever have doubt again whether it is all worth it, do think again. You may not see it immediately but time will eventually show you the contributions you have done to humans, our environment and most importantly Earth. Do it for yourself. Do it for the children. It has to start with someone. Why not you?
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
The Genius - Leonardo Da Vinci
Went for the Leonardo Da Vinci exhibition at Science Center today. The organizer has really done a wonderful job. I was standing in awe of the presence of Leonardo's magnificent creations which lead me to contemplate on the capability of human's mind. It is fascinating that our brain has the ability to display such creativity. Walking around, looking at the arts and inventions which transcends time, filled my heart with gratitude for being given the chance to witness their beauty. He was truly a Genius.
Here are some of the lessons which I had learn from the Genius.
One can start from nothing to become a genius. Obstacles will form the greatest strength of a person. Leonardo was born an illegitimate. Being born as a bastard, he was not given any formal education at all. However, it was because of this deficiency, he studied English instead of Greek and French which were popular at that time. This was which started his interest to question conformities. It was also believe that it was the main reason why he wrote in opposite direction as he was not corrected by any educators.
Trust your judgement rather than following traditions or what others said. If Leonardo had followed the traditions of using egg yolk (a tradition for painting at that time) and not risked using oil paint, his angel in Baptism of Christ would not have surpassed his teacher nor left such a legacy.
You can still create great value to people no matter how messed up you may be. Like everyone else, Leonardo had his own fair share of contradicting values. He hated killing but created plans for war machines of mass destruction. He was also human. You need not be perfect to be genius.
Great work take time to complete. His greatest arts all took time to create. If he had rushed, I am sure that it would not have been such beauty. Details are all that matters.
There is no such things as learning too much things. Jack of all trades is a myth. I believe that Leonardo's involvement in several fields was what constituted hugely to his intelligence and creativity. He was able to see connections and stuffs where others weren't able to see.
Just being creative is not good enough. Delivery is just as important. I realized that even though he was great in creating value, his delivery really sucked. He served a lord whom did not appreciate his talents nor did he know how to bring his creations to serve the masses. As a result, he lived most of his life fairly broke and his creations were only treasured few hundred years later (most creations were lost in between). One has to know how to deliver the values he/she create to the masses. Or else, it will be useless.
Only actions can bring result. If he had procrastinated to do any of his work, we will not see any of them today. As he commented in his notebook “I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do”.
Thank you Leonardo 
Monday, July 6, 2009
Top 30 benefits for becoming a Baldy
Discourage gambling in your presence (Chinese belief of 输光光)
Brings laughter to your close one and yourself. Always great to have more laugther.
Always a place ready for you in monastery if you ever need a place to sleep.
Promote intimacy as many will love to touch your head (Niki can't get her hands off it)
Reduce shyness for people with cancer and hair loss as you show them that there is nothing to be embarrassed about.
Save money on cutting hair regularly
Reduce time preparing hair (no hair to begin with)
Your head becomes infinitely grateful to you as you save it from all the detergents which you wash your hair with.
Save the electricity needed to blow dry your hair
Non-stop interviews on why you shaved your head
Increase self esteem as you did it for a cause
People think that you are courageous even if you have not done anything which you thought was courageous before
You become a good scratch reliever with your head for your close ones
You gain a weapon to ward off enemies by intimating them with your pointy shaved head.
Possibility of getting donations from people on the street for mistaken identity. (I promise I will donate it out if I get any)
Becomes too cute to handle
Invite opportunity to pass your smile around from occasional stares. Makes the world a better place
You gain new experience and sensation from your head that you never had
You feels good for looking so good
You acquire a Zen look
You lose weight from the loss of hair
Get free food in Thailand? (Not sure about this... haven't tried)
You gain immediate membership to the League of Bald-headed people which its members include Steve Ballmer, Michael Jordan, Randy Gange, Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek), Bruce Willis, Olympic swimmer Michael Klim and many other similar ones who have styles
You obtains a new identity - Bald Man!
You look smarter since your forehead looks wider
You gain new perspective on baldness (never try never know)
You gain empathy and respect for bald people
You gain exclusive privilege to spend the awareness around
You are granted exemption from bad hair day
Troublemakers want to avoid you as they wonder whether you are from Shaolin Temple.
So are you excited to become a baldy now? It will be fun.
Watch The Meatrix
An award-winning flash animation and a real eye opener. Please watch it.
It is cute and informative.
http://www.themeatrix1.com/
It is cute and informative.
http://www.themeatrix1.com/
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Get discount for bringing your own bags!
Went to Serangoon NTUC with Niki to buy groceries today. When we were making our payment, we were given a discount of $0.10 for bringing our own bags! (Niki has a habit of bring one reusable bag everywhere she goes) I couldn't tell you how delighted we were.
I remembered just a few days ago Niki told me that supermarkets in USA actually give discount if you bring your own bags. At that time I commented that Singapore should adopt the same thing. I believe it could have promoted bag using. And now, we have it!
Bring you own bags! Not only you do something for Earth and you get discount for it! Getting $0.10 for not using a few pieces of plastic bags is definitely good deal for me.
I remembered just a few days ago Niki told me that supermarkets in USA actually give discount if you bring your own bags. At that time I commented that Singapore should adopt the same thing. I believe it could have promoted bag using. And now, we have it!
Bring you own bags! Not only you do something for Earth and you get discount for it! Getting $0.10 for not using a few pieces of plastic bags is definitely good deal for me.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Hair for Hope
Went to shave my hair yesterday to support the Children Cancer Foundation 'Hair for Hope' event. Even though the event is supposed to be held today at Velocity, i went to cut my hair at my neighbourhood in attempt to avoid the crowd.
Why do I shave my hair? Mainly for the aims of the event:
1. Create awareness of childhood cancer in Singapore
2..Show to children with cancer and their families that they are not alone in their fight against cancer.
3. Boost the self-esteem of children undergoing chemotherapy by sending the message that that there is nothing wrong in losing their hair or being bald.
4. Raise funds to help children with cancer and their families
5. Build a community of support for children with cancer and their families.
Frankly speaking, there were a lot of fears when I first decided to have my head shaved. "How will other people look at me? Will I get stares? What if I look ugly? Is the event even meaningful? Will there be long queue? Is it worth the wait? Since it is free there, why should I spend money cutting at other places...
Finally, after some thoughts and support by my lovely girlfriend, I went to the barber to have my hair shaved. I also decided that since it is a symbolic gesture I did not have to confine myself to shave at Velocity.
When I first told the barber that I wanted to have my head shaved, he was shocked. That look on his face was priceless. He must have thought that I was crazy. After my explanation, it turned out that his son had recently just recovered from thyroid cancer too. What a coincidence! He shared with us on his view in life that no matter what happened, we should live our life to the fullest. We should be thankful for every single living moment we have now. Such a great way to live. Don't you agree?
In the midst of my shaving, I had to admit that when the hair from my right head was gone, I felt certain tingles of sadness. It was like something that I had held deeply to have disappeared. Something that I had used to identify myself with for a long time. It was interesting to realize that how often that we had identified ourselves with our hair. How often did we determine a person's character by his/her hair. Neat hair style equal to decent. Short equal to sporty. Funky hair equal to rebellious character. No hair equal to baldness, cancer or weirdo. I still remember the days where I spent hours in the front of the mirror trying to get the perfect hair style just to give the right impression.
When I was out of the barber shop, I actually felt lighter. It was as if I had left that identity behind. It was like I am peeling though the layers of my identifications and slowly getting to my core self. I know I know... It may just due to the reduce of weight on my head .
There was a good boost to my self-esteem too, knowing that I had done it for a cause. I guess it also helped that I think I looked real good in bald! ^o^ During my walk home, I realized that there are no stares from strangers which reminded me of a phrase I read before, 'When we know how little people think of us, we will think less of what people think about us.'
Great to be a baldy.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Imperfection is perfection itself
While pondering over our obsession with perfectionism. I came up with these. It is my first time writing in this style. But then again. What the heck. Always nice to try something new. So please enjoy and let me know what needs improvement. ^_^
Imperfection is Perfection itself.
Without it, we will not wonder what perfection is.
A world with everything being perfect,
You will see that it eventually turn defect.
Imperfection is Perfection itself.
As a perfect world will be a world of complacency.
It is a world which lacks the joy of the Aha moments.
It is a world which lacks the breath taking moments.
In a perfect world which lacked imperfections.
One will not know what to do everyday as there is nothing to work on.
One will move through life aimlessly wondering about their uniqueness.
In a perfect world which lacked imperfections,
There will be no joy of giving since everyone has everything.
There will be no joy of learning since nothing needs to be learn.
There will be no joy of improving since nothing needs to be improve
There will be no joy of teaching since nothing is left to be taught.
Imperfection is perfection itself.
It is through its presence that we realize we are just as perfect as anyone else.
We can choose to improve or just stay the same which are both perfectly good.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them which we see what we wish to work on.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them that we learn acceptance and forgiveness.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them that we learn how to love unconditionally.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is these imperfect things about your love ones which you will miss when they are gone.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is in them that we appreciate the perfect moments.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is then you will find that every moment is perfect.
Embrace imperfections.
As you will come to know, there is no such thing as perfect.
Things are just perfect the way it is.
Love yourself and others for the imperfectness as they are already perfect.
'With the absence of what is not, what is, is not' – Neale Donald Walsch.
Imperfection is Perfection itself.
Without it, we will not wonder what perfection is.
A world with everything being perfect,
You will see that it eventually turn defect.
Imperfection is Perfection itself.
As a perfect world will be a world of complacency.
It is a world which lacks the joy of the Aha moments.
It is a world which lacks the breath taking moments.
In a perfect world which lacked imperfections.
One will not know what to do everyday as there is nothing to work on.
One will move through life aimlessly wondering about their uniqueness.
In a perfect world which lacked imperfections,
There will be no joy of giving since everyone has everything.
There will be no joy of learning since nothing needs to be learn.
There will be no joy of improving since nothing needs to be improve
There will be no joy of teaching since nothing is left to be taught.
Imperfection is perfection itself.
It is through its presence that we realize we are just as perfect as anyone else.
We can choose to improve or just stay the same which are both perfectly good.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them which we see what we wish to work on.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them that we learn acceptance and forgiveness.
Embrace imperfections.
It is through them that we learn how to love unconditionally.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is these imperfect things about your love ones which you will miss when they are gone.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is in them that we appreciate the perfect moments.
Embrace imperfections.
As it is then you will find that every moment is perfect.
Embrace imperfections.
As you will come to know, there is no such thing as perfect.
Things are just perfect the way it is.
Love yourself and others for the imperfectness as they are already perfect.
'With the absence of what is not, what is, is not' – Neale Donald Walsch.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Sense of Self-worth
How do you determine your self worth? What do you attach your self-worth to? To the amount of money you make? To the amount of savings you have? To your profession? To your parents' profession? To how far have you climbed the corporate ladder? To your looks? To the looks of your spouse or lover? To your weight? To their weight? To your education? To your IQ ? To how informed you are about news of the world? To the kind car you are driving? To the branded stuffs you are owning? To how well you perform in sports? To your marital status? To the type of house you live in? To the opinions of your bosses on you or to what people think of you? Or do you have additional things to add?
Let's stand back and look at these. Have they ever really make you felt fulfilled in the long run?
Did you feel ever for once felt something is missing/wrong when you are attaching yourself to these stuffs? Have you ever heard some ornery voices telling you that this is not what you want even though you had acquired them? Did you ever felt a sense of emptiness which needs to be filled up frequently by another form of acquisition or addiction? If you do hear them before or now, please don't dismiss them as imaginary or unnecessary. Those are the voices from our heart. They are always doing their best to let you hear what you desire deep within. Many chose to ignore it by convincing themselves that they need that thing to be self worthy. Or by convincing themselves since everyone else is going for similar stuffs, then it must be right.
Today, our media is able to convince many of us that only people who are slim, rich, powerful, highly intelligent and outstanding sportsmen are desirable and worthy. There are so many shows which indicate that not being married at a certain age meant that the person is worthless (especially for woman). In many others, fat people are stigmatized as lazy, brainless and thick-skinned. Tall, rich, slimy and good-looking stars are celebrated everyday glamorously indicating that we will only become worthy if we mimic them. Then we have our parents who were convinced by theirs parents teaching us the same messages. No wonder we think that we need those things.
It is the value association system which most of us have been brought up in. It is a model which offers us a false calculation of our self-worth in terms of the value we have acquired. However, when you look deeper, it is all about acquiring and seeking things outside ourselves. A mentality derived from consumerism and capitalism.
Looking at my life, I have attached my state of self-worth to many of them. In my days of attachment with money, I did several professions which can get me fast money. I was involved in network marketing, working in sales (advertising and recruitment) and computer networking shift jobs (higher pay due to shifts). In the end, I had not worked in any of them for more than a year. At first, I blamed myself to be a quitter, unable to stay on to a company and unable to stand up to challenge. However, something was telling me there were more to it. It took me sometime to finally realize that money itself does not motivate me at all. It was most vivid at the times when I was able to bring more money but I did not experienced much joy. In fact, it did not gave me satisfaction in achieving it. I felt that something was missing in the services that I was providing.
At other times, I was attached to my level of education. While I was still a diploma holder, most of my friends were degree holders. I was very low in self-worth academically and I even avoided contacting my best friends for years. During the period, I was constantly reminded by people around me that it is important to have a education as it determines how far you can climb in the corporate ladder. As you can see, I even had my self-worth determined by how the corporate world values me. I would worth $1600 for being a diploma and $2300 as a degree holder. I had defined myself according to the monetary value which they had decided on me without even knowing who I am within. Eventually, I went forward to get a diploma and even a degree which I may never use in my life. At that time however, I did not see it as a method to raise my self-worth. I conceived it as a plausible reason that to get on in life, I needed a degree. I would never acknowledge that I am low in my self-worth.
There was even a time when I had a criteria that my partner had to be slim and pretty so that people can be envious of me. Only to find out that superficial beauty will eventually erode while internal beauty shines more brightly as one ages.
Having low self-worth is detrimental for one's life as many times you just don't think you deserve good things. Many times, I am stuck in my tracks thinking that I will not be able to do anything great. Keep safe, Andrewson. Keep safe...
I am glad that I feel differently nowadays. There are still many attachment that I am learning to let go and many things to improve. But it does not matter if I am a degree holder, an O'level holder or a drop-out any more. It does not matter on how much money I am earning (though it is wonderful to have plenty) as it does not ascertain my self-worth and who am I as a person.
What makes the change? It is from the realization that no matter who I am in terms of education, intelligence, attractiveness, power and resources. There is always something I can contribute to humanity, to animals, to environment and to the world. All it takes is the willingness, the actions and the purpose. I am just who I am. We are all spiritual beings having a physical experience. I realized that self-worth is never about acquiring. It is about giving. How much love am I giving to myself and what are we contributing.
What we are giving that we think can help? To what extend is the contribution going to be timeless. How long will it benefit the others? Will it benefit our future generations? Knowing that I can do all these in my own ways raises my self-worth tremendously. My sense of worth no longer depends on physical acquisition which will disintegrate and perish in time. It no longer depends on things which I will not bring with me when I die. It depends on the values which I can contribute to the world that will impact and stays on even in tiny factors when I am no longer around. Self-worth also depends on our courage to live our dreams. The courage to take the actions when everyone else doesn't.
How much are you contributing to the world or are you just making the shareholders of the company that you are working in fat rich? How much are you doing for the environment or are you doing things which encourage organizations to pollute and destroy Earth further? Are you living a life which inspire people or a life which discourages people to go for what they want? Are you planting seeds of love around the world or you just leaving weeds in the mind of our children? Choose consciously as every choice we make has a butterfly effect. No matter how small, it will impact the whole world.
Do something for the world. Do something for Earth. Do something to improve the life of sentinel beings around you. Do it in your own ways. You do not have to make it big. A thousand steps starts with just one tiny step. Experience the wonder of giving and you will find joy in increasing your self-worth. Enjoy it and you will feel your self-worth soaring. The more you show love, the better the world becomes. We all need some love here and there.
So till next time and have fun
.
'We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.' - Winston Churchill
Let's stand back and look at these. Have they ever really make you felt fulfilled in the long run?
Did you feel ever for once felt something is missing/wrong when you are attaching yourself to these stuffs? Have you ever heard some ornery voices telling you that this is not what you want even though you had acquired them? Did you ever felt a sense of emptiness which needs to be filled up frequently by another form of acquisition or addiction? If you do hear them before or now, please don't dismiss them as imaginary or unnecessary. Those are the voices from our heart. They are always doing their best to let you hear what you desire deep within. Many chose to ignore it by convincing themselves that they need that thing to be self worthy. Or by convincing themselves since everyone else is going for similar stuffs, then it must be right.
Today, our media is able to convince many of us that only people who are slim, rich, powerful, highly intelligent and outstanding sportsmen are desirable and worthy. There are so many shows which indicate that not being married at a certain age meant that the person is worthless (especially for woman). In many others, fat people are stigmatized as lazy, brainless and thick-skinned. Tall, rich, slimy and good-looking stars are celebrated everyday glamorously indicating that we will only become worthy if we mimic them. Then we have our parents who were convinced by theirs parents teaching us the same messages. No wonder we think that we need those things.
It is the value association system which most of us have been brought up in. It is a model which offers us a false calculation of our self-worth in terms of the value we have acquired. However, when you look deeper, it is all about acquiring and seeking things outside ourselves. A mentality derived from consumerism and capitalism.
Looking at my life, I have attached my state of self-worth to many of them. In my days of attachment with money, I did several professions which can get me fast money. I was involved in network marketing, working in sales (advertising and recruitment) and computer networking shift jobs (higher pay due to shifts). In the end, I had not worked in any of them for more than a year. At first, I blamed myself to be a quitter, unable to stay on to a company and unable to stand up to challenge. However, something was telling me there were more to it. It took me sometime to finally realize that money itself does not motivate me at all. It was most vivid at the times when I was able to bring more money but I did not experienced much joy. In fact, it did not gave me satisfaction in achieving it. I felt that something was missing in the services that I was providing.
At other times, I was attached to my level of education. While I was still a diploma holder, most of my friends were degree holders. I was very low in self-worth academically and I even avoided contacting my best friends for years. During the period, I was constantly reminded by people around me that it is important to have a education as it determines how far you can climb in the corporate ladder. As you can see, I even had my self-worth determined by how the corporate world values me. I would worth $1600 for being a diploma and $2300 as a degree holder. I had defined myself according to the monetary value which they had decided on me without even knowing who I am within. Eventually, I went forward to get a diploma and even a degree which I may never use in my life. At that time however, I did not see it as a method to raise my self-worth. I conceived it as a plausible reason that to get on in life, I needed a degree. I would never acknowledge that I am low in my self-worth.
There was even a time when I had a criteria that my partner had to be slim and pretty so that people can be envious of me. Only to find out that superficial beauty will eventually erode while internal beauty shines more brightly as one ages.
Having low self-worth is detrimental for one's life as many times you just don't think you deserve good things. Many times, I am stuck in my tracks thinking that I will not be able to do anything great. Keep safe, Andrewson. Keep safe...
I am glad that I feel differently nowadays. There are still many attachment that I am learning to let go and many things to improve. But it does not matter if I am a degree holder, an O'level holder or a drop-out any more. It does not matter on how much money I am earning (though it is wonderful to have plenty) as it does not ascertain my self-worth and who am I as a person.
What makes the change? It is from the realization that no matter who I am in terms of education, intelligence, attractiveness, power and resources. There is always something I can contribute to humanity, to animals, to environment and to the world. All it takes is the willingness, the actions and the purpose. I am just who I am. We are all spiritual beings having a physical experience. I realized that self-worth is never about acquiring. It is about giving. How much love am I giving to myself and what are we contributing.
What we are giving that we think can help? To what extend is the contribution going to be timeless. How long will it benefit the others? Will it benefit our future generations? Knowing that I can do all these in my own ways raises my self-worth tremendously. My sense of worth no longer depends on physical acquisition which will disintegrate and perish in time. It no longer depends on things which I will not bring with me when I die. It depends on the values which I can contribute to the world that will impact and stays on even in tiny factors when I am no longer around. Self-worth also depends on our courage to live our dreams. The courage to take the actions when everyone else doesn't.
How much are you contributing to the world or are you just making the shareholders of the company that you are working in fat rich? How much are you doing for the environment or are you doing things which encourage organizations to pollute and destroy Earth further? Are you living a life which inspire people or a life which discourages people to go for what they want? Are you planting seeds of love around the world or you just leaving weeds in the mind of our children? Choose consciously as every choice we make has a butterfly effect. No matter how small, it will impact the whole world.
Do something for the world. Do something for Earth. Do something to improve the life of sentinel beings around you. Do it in your own ways. You do not have to make it big. A thousand steps starts with just one tiny step. Experience the wonder of giving and you will find joy in increasing your self-worth. Enjoy it and you will feel your self-worth soaring. The more you show love, the better the world becomes. We all need some love here and there.
So till next time and have fun
.'We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.' - Winston Churchill
Monday, June 29, 2009
Quote from Calvin Coolidge
Nothing in this world can
take the place of persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common
than unsuccessful people with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius
is almost a proverb.
Education will not;
the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination
alone are omnipotent.
- Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)
take the place of persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common
than unsuccessful people with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius
is almost a proverb.
Education will not;
the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination
alone are omnipotent.
- Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)
Saturday, June 27, 2009
If he can do this... What is impossible?
Wow.... I am totally blown of by this video... It really reminds me of human's potential. Nothing is impossible in this world. It inspires me to live like him. Fearless. 
Friday, June 26, 2009
Video on how to reduce your carbon footprints
Came across a wonderful home-based website which is dedicated to help Singapore in reducing her carbon emission. While surfing through the site, I came across this helpful video.
So please enjoy
. Hope you find it helpful.
So please enjoy
. Hope you find it helpful.Necker Cube
The Necker Cube. Something which I learned in my Ethics class. Are you able to see two different views of the cube? This is a simple illustration of how we can perceive the same thing differently. It is an important lesson as what we perceived as right may not be right to other people. It is just like making another person agreeing to your view of the cube when obviously he can only see the other side of the view.
Therefore for a quality conversation to happen, we need to understand our view on the cube and also their view of it. This is because they are right too! Each of us is right in our model of the world. Convincing does not work. Understanding does.
Since then, I have been trying to apply the lesson to my life and it worked wonderfully. Every time when I am triggered to judge whether a person is right or wrong, I become aware that it is my perspective. How about theirs? Why do they feel that way? It had successfully reduced unnecessary arguments and prevented misunderstandings.
Try it out and see if it works for you. If it doesn't, you can always dump it. If it does, you be going for a new ride in life. Till next time
Thursday, June 25, 2009
30 little things we can do to help Earth today
Why help Earth? Err.... Because we are living in it. Because our children are also living in it. Because our future generations are going to live in it. No Earth = No humans. While Mother Earth has always been unconditionally giving us, we did little to give back. Capitalism has always been about take, take, take, take and more taking. Ever wonder why that we are called consumers? It is because we are literally consuming Earth away. It is time that we try to give back and by just doing a little on our part.
I have created a list 30 things below. Yeah I know, it looks overwhelming. However, we do not need to do all of them. Just doing one item will have a profound effect on the well-being of Earth. It is the accumulative factor. Imagine if just one person recycles one plastic bottle per day. Given just 1% of the world population (total 6.7 billion people) does such thing. We would have recycled 24.455 billions of plastics bottle per year. That is a pretty nice figure if you ask me. So come on ^_^. Let's do something for Mother Earth. If we don’t do something ourselves, who will?
Here the list goes.
1)Switch off the lights when not used. Why you need them on anyway..
2)Drink treated used water (such as Newater). The taste is purely conceived by imagination ^o^
3)Use cloth bags rather than paper or plastic bags. Plastic takes more than 400 years to decompose.. How much waste do we want to leave for our future generations?
4)Turn off the running water when you are doing other activities. Why let it run when not using??
5)Use cups when brushing your teeth. You be amazed by how much water you can save..
6)Pickup plastic bottles, papers and metals into the recycle bins when you see them. When your hands get dirty, it can be washed. But if those things get dumped.. Earth suffers.
7)Use less paper.. Try to go paperless. 28 hectares of trees are being cut down every minute just for our need of papers.
8)Turn off your computer when not using. Are there so many things you need to download? Are they even legal?
9)Eat less meat or become a vegetarian. Meat eating is detrimental to our planet. By eating meat, we are basically eating our planet away.
10)Recycle your papers. Use both sides of it.
11)Use recycled papers. The papers may feel thin but why do you need them to be so thick for? Is it more important than our planet?
12)Set up recycle bins in your home and your office.
13)Convince your boss to go paperless. Be creative! Use your charm~ *wink
14)Stop buying newspapers. Today's newspapers today are filled with mostly negative things which isn’t healthy for our well-being anyway. If you really have to... Go to the library...
15)Use power efficient/saving appliances. They cost less actually in long run. Think about the bills you are going to save and the things you are doing for Earth.
16)Share with your friends and families on helping our planet
17)Donate or volunteer to organizations that are trying to help Earth
18)Recycle your electronics. They can be recycled. China is earning tons from it.
19)Eat organic food. Organic farming doesn't use pesticide or fertilizers which also means no pollution to the land or water around. I know… they are more expensive but much healthier and yummy too.
20)Use public transport. Less emission of gases.
21)Change the belief that we are better than nature. The fact is, we can’t survive without nature.
22)Give or sell away your old books. Save trees~
23)Reuse the water when you wash your clothes. Fill it up in pails to flush the toilets or to wash clothes next time.
24)Buy a bigger washing machine to reduce the frequency of washing. It saves electricity, saves water and also saves your time and energy.
25)Raise your awareness on what is happening to Earth. Read up or subscribe to newsletters such as VSS (Vegetarian Society Singapore) and goVeg.
26)Do not litter in nature as they crop up the whole Eco-system. For example, animals are dying due to suffocation from plastic bags.
27)Cook at home as it reduces the use plastic bags, plastics utensils and Styrofoam boxes. If you don't or unable to cook, at least eat out rather than packing it home.
28)Short showers... you be just as clean even after 5 minutes of showering..
29)Use the fans instead of air-conditioners. It is a paradox. Usage of air-conditioners increases global warming and global warming makes people become more dependent on air-conditioners. It is a vicious cycle. Why continue it?
30)Lastly, send this article to everyone you know ^_^.
So what can you do today? Ohh come on, I sure you can do something. ^o^
Until next time, live consciously.
I have created a list 30 things below. Yeah I know, it looks overwhelming. However, we do not need to do all of them. Just doing one item will have a profound effect on the well-being of Earth. It is the accumulative factor. Imagine if just one person recycles one plastic bottle per day. Given just 1% of the world population (total 6.7 billion people) does such thing. We would have recycled 24.455 billions of plastics bottle per year. That is a pretty nice figure if you ask me. So come on ^_^. Let's do something for Mother Earth. If we don’t do something ourselves, who will?
Here the list goes.
1)Switch off the lights when not used. Why you need them on anyway..
2)Drink treated used water (such as Newater). The taste is purely conceived by imagination ^o^
3)Use cloth bags rather than paper or plastic bags. Plastic takes more than 400 years to decompose.. How much waste do we want to leave for our future generations?
4)Turn off the running water when you are doing other activities. Why let it run when not using??
5)Use cups when brushing your teeth. You be amazed by how much water you can save..
6)Pickup plastic bottles, papers and metals into the recycle bins when you see them. When your hands get dirty, it can be washed. But if those things get dumped.. Earth suffers.
7)Use less paper.. Try to go paperless. 28 hectares of trees are being cut down every minute just for our need of papers.
8)Turn off your computer when not using. Are there so many things you need to download? Are they even legal?
9)Eat less meat or become a vegetarian. Meat eating is detrimental to our planet. By eating meat, we are basically eating our planet away.
10)Recycle your papers. Use both sides of it.
11)Use recycled papers. The papers may feel thin but why do you need them to be so thick for? Is it more important than our planet?
12)Set up recycle bins in your home and your office.
13)Convince your boss to go paperless. Be creative! Use your charm~ *wink
14)Stop buying newspapers. Today's newspapers today are filled with mostly negative things which isn’t healthy for our well-being anyway. If you really have to... Go to the library...
15)Use power efficient/saving appliances. They cost less actually in long run. Think about the bills you are going to save and the things you are doing for Earth.
16)Share with your friends and families on helping our planet
17)Donate or volunteer to organizations that are trying to help Earth
18)Recycle your electronics. They can be recycled. China is earning tons from it.
19)Eat organic food. Organic farming doesn't use pesticide or fertilizers which also means no pollution to the land or water around. I know… they are more expensive but much healthier and yummy too.
20)Use public transport. Less emission of gases.
21)Change the belief that we are better than nature. The fact is, we can’t survive without nature.
22)Give or sell away your old books. Save trees~
23)Reuse the water when you wash your clothes. Fill it up in pails to flush the toilets or to wash clothes next time.
24)Buy a bigger washing machine to reduce the frequency of washing. It saves electricity, saves water and also saves your time and energy.
25)Raise your awareness on what is happening to Earth. Read up or subscribe to newsletters such as VSS (Vegetarian Society Singapore) and goVeg.
26)Do not litter in nature as they crop up the whole Eco-system. For example, animals are dying due to suffocation from plastic bags.
27)Cook at home as it reduces the use plastic bags, plastics utensils and Styrofoam boxes. If you don't or unable to cook, at least eat out rather than packing it home.
28)Short showers... you be just as clean even after 5 minutes of showering..
29)Use the fans instead of air-conditioners. It is a paradox. Usage of air-conditioners increases global warming and global warming makes people become more dependent on air-conditioners. It is a vicious cycle. Why continue it?
30)Lastly, send this article to everyone you know ^_^.
So what can you do today? Ohh come on, I sure you can do something. ^o^
Until next time, live consciously.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Update - 30 days trial of waking up at 4.30am
Today is the 5th day of my trial. Currently, I am still sticking well to it ^_^. Most of the nights I will sleep around 10pm except for last Sunday which I slept at 12.30am. However, I was still able to wake up at 4.30am due to the tactics I shared the other time.
So far, I loved the idea of waking up at 4.30am as the air is cooler and it is quieter. I am able to have more time too! More reading, more writing, more web surfing, more time to do the things I wanted. What else can I ask for ^_^.
Health wise, I am visiting the toilet more often than before. As compared to the past, now I am going to the toilet at least 2 times daily. It feels great to be able to remove impurities from my body more frequently now.
Its been fun ^_^
So far, I loved the idea of waking up at 4.30am as the air is cooler and it is quieter. I am able to have more time too! More reading, more writing, more web surfing, more time to do the things I wanted. What else can I ask for ^_^.
Health wise, I am visiting the toilet more often than before. As compared to the past, now I am going to the toilet at least 2 times daily. It feels great to be able to remove impurities from my body more frequently now.
Its been fun ^_^
Quote from comic - Eye Shield 21
无论怎样平凡的雄兽都有其无法剥夺的权利
那就是
挑战族群的首领。
这个权利你是使用呢？
还是放弃？
是你做的决定。
Translation:
No matter how ordinary a male animal is,
He has a right which no one can deny it of.
That is..
The rights to challenge the leader of the pack.
Will you use this rights?
Or will you forsake it?
You will have to make the choice.
Challenge yourself. Challenge the best in the field. We all have the rights to do it.
那就是
挑战族群的首领。
这个权利你是使用呢？
还是放弃？
是你做的决定。
Translation:
No matter how ordinary a male animal is,
He has a right which no one can deny it of.
That is..
The rights to challenge the leader of the pack.
Will you use this rights?
Or will you forsake it?
You will have to make the choice.
Challenge yourself. Challenge the best in the field. We all have the rights to do it.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
More treats for animal lovers (Pipi)
Isn't he cute? Can you feel the love he is exhibiting? Here is a plead to my readers. Only get a pet if you are sure that you have time for them. They need love, care and attention just as any humans need. They will not be able to survive if one day you feel that you have no time for it and decided to abandon it. It feels exactly the same as parents abandoning their child. They will be heartbroken and die sadly knowing that their owners do not want them. Please love your pets as they loved you deeply too.
How I became a Vegetarian (Shorter Version)
There are still some friends of mine who wondered why I became a vegetarian. I guess the last post of my explanation was just to long to induce interest -_-. This is the short version which I posted to Vegetarian Society (Singapore). VSS is a website which provides huge amount of supports to vegetarians or vegetarians wannabe. They provide locations of local vegetarian food stalls, recipes, nutrition advices and almost everything related to vegetarianism.
Anyway, here's my story
I have been a vegetarian since 5/01/09. My shift towards vegetarianism started when I read 'Food for Thought', by Singapore’s own Adam Moledina, about the horrendous treatment of the non-human animals whom we eat. I learned more and found that livestock’s food is not regulated, including the amount of chemical pesticides and fertilizers used in growing their food. I saw how our fellow animals are treated as profit making machines, how they are mutilated and confined with almost no space to move and how some go insane due to the unnatural and cruel conditions. This got me wondering how we are able to inflict so much pain on other species just for our personal gain.
I also learned more about the many ways that meat production wastes food and other resources and how this damages our planet. For instance, many hectares of forests are cut down to provide space for animal herding, and animal faeces pollute seas and rivers. The seas also suffer as marine species are decimated by overfishing. Our Earth is dying at our hands.
Frankly speaking, I knew these reasons for sometime before I eventually switched to vegetarian. Why did I take so long to switch? No matter how compelling the reasons were, I had been brought up thinking of other animals as food rather than as fellow beings who can feel pain and love and can even think. Refraining from meat also seemed too limiting and too difficult a lifestyle to follow, especially when everyone around me was a non-vegetarian. Despite these obstacles, on that fateful day last January, I decided to do a 30-day vegetarian trial.
When the 30 days ended in February, I decided to keep going, and I am still happily a vegetarian. It has not been as hard as I thought it would be, and I can see all the benefits that it has brought to my life. For instance, my family members are now taking more vegetables. I also feel a self-esteem boost knowing that I am doing something good for the Earth and the other animals every time I choose not to eat meat. Currently, I’m moving toward a vegan diet.
I Love Vegetarianism!
Anyway, here's my story
I have been a vegetarian since 5/01/09. My shift towards vegetarianism started when I read 'Food for Thought', by Singapore’s own Adam Moledina, about the horrendous treatment of the non-human animals whom we eat. I learned more and found that livestock’s food is not regulated, including the amount of chemical pesticides and fertilizers used in growing their food. I saw how our fellow animals are treated as profit making machines, how they are mutilated and confined with almost no space to move and how some go insane due to the unnatural and cruel conditions. This got me wondering how we are able to inflict so much pain on other species just for our personal gain.
I also learned more about the many ways that meat production wastes food and other resources and how this damages our planet. For instance, many hectares of forests are cut down to provide space for animal herding, and animal faeces pollute seas and rivers. The seas also suffer as marine species are decimated by overfishing. Our Earth is dying at our hands.
Frankly speaking, I knew these reasons for sometime before I eventually switched to vegetarian. Why did I take so long to switch? No matter how compelling the reasons were, I had been brought up thinking of other animals as food rather than as fellow beings who can feel pain and love and can even think. Refraining from meat also seemed too limiting and too difficult a lifestyle to follow, especially when everyone around me was a non-vegetarian. Despite these obstacles, on that fateful day last January, I decided to do a 30-day vegetarian trial.
When the 30 days ended in February, I decided to keep going, and I am still happily a vegetarian. It has not been as hard as I thought it would be, and I can see all the benefits that it has brought to my life. For instance, my family members are now taking more vegetables. I also feel a self-esteem boost knowing that I am doing something good for the Earth and the other animals every time I choose not to eat meat. Currently, I’m moving toward a vegan diet.
I Love Vegetarianism!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Life After Death
What is your thought on Life After Death? Some believe that we either go into Heaven or Hell depending on the sins we do. Some believe that we will reincarnate till we experience all sort of life. Some believe we will born into animals, trees or men depending on our karma. Some say there is no life after death. We just vanish out of existence after we die.
Heaven and Hell
What do you think? I personally had been through several different belief transition myself. When I was a child, I grew up believing everything my parents told me. The belief which they taught me was that we go to hell after we die. There are several levels of it depending on the sins which I have committed. The deeper the sins, the deeper the level. In there, we will experience the same torture over and over again till we are cleansed and then we ascend a level till we are eventually cleanse of everything and become living things again.
I was living in constant fear in those years. In fear of spiritual beings, wondering when will I offend them. In fear of gods' wrath (there are so many of them), constantly avoid doing things that may make them unhappy. In fear of not listening to parents, since they seemed to know all the rules and one of the rules is to listen to your parents' command. I am also in constant feeling of guilt and fear if I did anything wrong according to the commandments.
Don't get me wrong. They are wonderful parents who I am grateful to be born into as their child. They taught all they knew which they had learn from their parents whom most probably learn the same thing from their own parents..
As I grew up, through the exposure of with other religions, I started to find the belief absurd as it seems that every religion has a different version of hell. Many of them claimed that they are the only truth and if you believe in another you are condoned to hell. It makes me wonder that what kind of hell do I have to serve eventually if I switched to another religion. Which one has the power to decide? How is it decided on which version of hell that I will serve? Chronological? The one that I make the most sins? The religion which I hold on my deathbed or each of them will have a piece of me to torture with.
Even their versions of heaven varies. Some are on clouds, some do not. Some have a bureaucracy up there, whereas some have a omni-being with children. It is just too complicated. I also started to question if there is God, why do he/she demands our love and compliance if he/she is so omnipotent. Why do disasters happened? Why do good people die and bad one lives on? Do they enjoy watching this?
Atheist
Leaving all those beliefs behind, I became a atheist. Strangely, it became more powering. I am no longer trapped by rules that makes no senses at all. Life became a relief. Contrary to beliefs, I do not need commandments to be a good person. As I know that when we pick up one end of the stick, the other end get picked up too. That is natural law – consequences.
I also started to adopt the model that when people die, they go to a 3rd dimension. The only reason why we can't see them is because of the different frequency which we are using. Like a radio, we can only pickup a channel at the correct frequency. That is why animals and some people are able to see spirits. In that world, we just live like what we are doing now.
This model worked for me for a while until I wonder whether if I still exist in any form in that world. Do I continue doing what I am doing now? What about the physically possession I have now? Do I have to gather them again over there? What about my friends and family? Do they automatically appear in front of me when I die or do they have to travel to find me? I realized that this model was built upon the my atheist model in which things stay the same even after death. Atheism can't explains the miracles which happens in real life and also lacked the peace and love where some spiritual people naturally exhibit.
Becoming Light
Eventually, I adopted the idea of going back to the source after we die. Becoming what we are formed in the first place – Light. We become the wonderful light and experience immense love again in the kingdom of heaven regardless of what we have done in our life. As God created us to experience life. Life is just an expression of experiences.
However, this again does not explains fully what is my purpose of being here. Why am I born into this being called Andrewson and not any others? Why in this particular identity? It does not explains also why do we have cases of phenomenon where we have strong negative forces (ghosts) lurking around. If we are go back to become light, why they stayed? What makes them stay?
Soul purpose
Other ideas such as Soul Purpose comes along. It attempted to explain the reason why we are born to a particular family is to fulfill our soul purpose. This is good too, however being a left brained person, it does not give me clear steps on how to discover my soul purpose.
What if I am unable to define it or mistaken it? Do I have to review my life sadly when I die because I did not attain my soul purpose? Do I have to redo it all over again until I fulfill it? Is all soul purposes predetermined? Why can't I determine my own one? It just seems to lack freedom if everything is predestined and seems too risky.
Now
Finally, from an Ah Ha experience yesterday, I realized my answer. I was jogging and listening to Steve Pavlina's pod cast on Life, The Universe and Everything. From the pod cast, Steve got me to ponder on what are the things that we can bring with us when we die. We are definitely not going to be able to bring any physical acquisition we have. Such as money, house, clothes, businesses, titles...... Come to think about it, ain't it sad if we spend all our life trying to own these things and ultimately let go of all when we die. Don't get me wrong, its nice to have or acquire them while you are alive. But using all of the my life to acquire them doesn't seem so right now since we will lose them anyway.
So what can we bring over? The only possible one is consciousness. The level of consciousness which we are experiencing at the time we die. Everything is perceived in our level of consciousness. Our eyes get the information.. But it is our consciousness that tell us we see that thing. Everything and anything exist is subjected to our consciousness. Currently, I am unable to prove that anything exists without my consciousness. Please let me know if you do as I will be glad to find out.
With the physical form gone, we are left with nothing but our consciousness. Imagine such a life. It will be exciting! We can go to any place we want just at a blink of thought, we can travel through time, materialize any thoughts and all the possibilities!!! However, this comes with a catch too. In our consciousness, we bring along with us our limiting beliefs and fears. How can this be? Limiting beliefs are much more powerful than we thought them to be. In our real life, how many of us had not been doing what we really wanted just because of some limiting beliefs. We may say that well..... it will be different if we know everything is possible... But the fact is, in reality, everything is already possible. If we believe wholeheartedly that we are made in the image of the Creator/God, we are able to create anything we want in life! Let me share with you my personal experience I had with limiting beliefs even though I know everything is possible.
A week ago, I had my first lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming is about having a dream where you are conscious enough to know that it is a dream. Once you are conscious, you can do anything you want in it. Even though I knew that it was a dream and anything is possible, I did not fly but floated because I did not believe I can. At one point, I even self sabotaged and lost my consciousness in the dream due to my doubts in my creativity to make the dream more fun. How sad and disappointing is that. When I imagine my Life After Death to that way.... I can't help feeling constraint and sad for my soul when I supposed to be creative.
That is the reason why we have souls that are trapped in their own hell due to their level of consciousness. That is why we have negative energies lurking in ghost houses unable to let go of their beliefs that they have to be trapped there forever.
Looking at it, the only asset which we will ever and only own is our consciousness. Everything else faces extinction. Therefore, the best thing we can do for ourselves and others is to raise the level of consciousness we are having. Overcoming the fears and fully experience life in whatever way we will like to experience is the best way to live. It is too sad to deny our own wants and needs just because of our limiting beliefs. We are created here as human beings to experience and to raise our level of consciousness. The level of consciousness will be the level of experience we going to have in our life after death.
It is my purpose in life now to overcome my fears that are unnecessary. It is my purpose now to raise my level of consciousness and the experience everything that life has in place for me. It is also my purpose now to serve others in raising their level of consciousness and their ability to enjoy life. Tiny steps at a time can make a big difference in life. Join me on the journey to a Life of Courage. From what I see, there seems no better ways to live one. Come on, lets have fun with life ^o^
Heaven and Hell
What do you think? I personally had been through several different belief transition myself. When I was a child, I grew up believing everything my parents told me. The belief which they taught me was that we go to hell after we die. There are several levels of it depending on the sins which I have committed. The deeper the sins, the deeper the level. In there, we will experience the same torture over and over again till we are cleansed and then we ascend a level till we are eventually cleanse of everything and become living things again.
I was living in constant fear in those years. In fear of spiritual beings, wondering when will I offend them. In fear of gods' wrath (there are so many of them), constantly avoid doing things that may make them unhappy. In fear of not listening to parents, since they seemed to know all the rules and one of the rules is to listen to your parents' command. I am also in constant feeling of guilt and fear if I did anything wrong according to the commandments.
Don't get me wrong. They are wonderful parents who I am grateful to be born into as their child. They taught all they knew which they had learn from their parents whom most probably learn the same thing from their own parents..
As I grew up, through the exposure of with other religions, I started to find the belief absurd as it seems that every religion has a different version of hell. Many of them claimed that they are the only truth and if you believe in another you are condoned to hell. It makes me wonder that what kind of hell do I have to serve eventually if I switched to another religion. Which one has the power to decide? How is it decided on which version of hell that I will serve? Chronological? The one that I make the most sins? The religion which I hold on my deathbed or each of them will have a piece of me to torture with.
Even their versions of heaven varies. Some are on clouds, some do not. Some have a bureaucracy up there, whereas some have a omni-being with children. It is just too complicated. I also started to question if there is God, why do he/she demands our love and compliance if he/she is so omnipotent. Why do disasters happened? Why do good people die and bad one lives on? Do they enjoy watching this?
Atheist
Leaving all those beliefs behind, I became a atheist. Strangely, it became more powering. I am no longer trapped by rules that makes no senses at all. Life became a relief. Contrary to beliefs, I do not need commandments to be a good person. As I know that when we pick up one end of the stick, the other end get picked up too. That is natural law – consequences.
I also started to adopt the model that when people die, they go to a 3rd dimension. The only reason why we can't see them is because of the different frequency which we are using. Like a radio, we can only pickup a channel at the correct frequency. That is why animals and some people are able to see spirits. In that world, we just live like what we are doing now.
This model worked for me for a while until I wonder whether if I still exist in any form in that world. Do I continue doing what I am doing now? What about the physically possession I have now? Do I have to gather them again over there? What about my friends and family? Do they automatically appear in front of me when I die or do they have to travel to find me? I realized that this model was built upon the my atheist model in which things stay the same even after death. Atheism can't explains the miracles which happens in real life and also lacked the peace and love where some spiritual people naturally exhibit.
Becoming Light
Eventually, I adopted the idea of going back to the source after we die. Becoming what we are formed in the first place – Light. We become the wonderful light and experience immense love again in the kingdom of heaven regardless of what we have done in our life. As God created us to experience life. Life is just an expression of experiences.
However, this again does not explains fully what is my purpose of being here. Why am I born into this being called Andrewson and not any others? Why in this particular identity? It does not explains also why do we have cases of phenomenon where we have strong negative forces (ghosts) lurking around. If we are go back to become light, why they stayed? What makes them stay?
Soul purpose
Other ideas such as Soul Purpose comes along. It attempted to explain the reason why we are born to a particular family is to fulfill our soul purpose. This is good too, however being a left brained person, it does not give me clear steps on how to discover my soul purpose.
What if I am unable to define it or mistaken it? Do I have to review my life sadly when I die because I did not attain my soul purpose? Do I have to redo it all over again until I fulfill it? Is all soul purposes predetermined? Why can't I determine my own one? It just seems to lack freedom if everything is predestined and seems too risky.
Now
Finally, from an Ah Ha experience yesterday, I realized my answer. I was jogging and listening to Steve Pavlina's pod cast on Life, The Universe and Everything. From the pod cast, Steve got me to ponder on what are the things that we can bring with us when we die. We are definitely not going to be able to bring any physical acquisition we have. Such as money, house, clothes, businesses, titles...... Come to think about it, ain't it sad if we spend all our life trying to own these things and ultimately let go of all when we die. Don't get me wrong, its nice to have or acquire them while you are alive. But using all of the my life to acquire them doesn't seem so right now since we will lose them anyway.
So what can we bring over? The only possible one is consciousness. The level of consciousness which we are experiencing at the time we die. Everything is perceived in our level of consciousness. Our eyes get the information.. But it is our consciousness that tell us we see that thing. Everything and anything exist is subjected to our consciousness. Currently, I am unable to prove that anything exists without my consciousness. Please let me know if you do as I will be glad to find out.
With the physical form gone, we are left with nothing but our consciousness. Imagine such a life. It will be exciting! We can go to any place we want just at a blink of thought, we can travel through time, materialize any thoughts and all the possibilities!!! However, this comes with a catch too. In our consciousness, we bring along with us our limiting beliefs and fears. How can this be? Limiting beliefs are much more powerful than we thought them to be. In our real life, how many of us had not been doing what we really wanted just because of some limiting beliefs. We may say that well..... it will be different if we know everything is possible... But the fact is, in reality, everything is already possible. If we believe wholeheartedly that we are made in the image of the Creator/God, we are able to create anything we want in life! Let me share with you my personal experience I had with limiting beliefs even though I know everything is possible.
A week ago, I had my first lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming is about having a dream where you are conscious enough to know that it is a dream. Once you are conscious, you can do anything you want in it. Even though I knew that it was a dream and anything is possible, I did not fly but floated because I did not believe I can. At one point, I even self sabotaged and lost my consciousness in the dream due to my doubts in my creativity to make the dream more fun. How sad and disappointing is that. When I imagine my Life After Death to that way.... I can't help feeling constraint and sad for my soul when I supposed to be creative.
That is the reason why we have souls that are trapped in their own hell due to their level of consciousness. That is why we have negative energies lurking in ghost houses unable to let go of their beliefs that they have to be trapped there forever.
Looking at it, the only asset which we will ever and only own is our consciousness. Everything else faces extinction. Therefore, the best thing we can do for ourselves and others is to raise the level of consciousness we are having. Overcoming the fears and fully experience life in whatever way we will like to experience is the best way to live. It is too sad to deny our own wants and needs just because of our limiting beliefs. We are created here as human beings to experience and to raise our level of consciousness. The level of consciousness will be the level of experience we going to have in our life after death.
It is my purpose in life now to overcome my fears that are unnecessary. It is my purpose now to raise my level of consciousness and the experience everything that life has in place for me. It is also my purpose now to serve others in raising their level of consciousness and their ability to enjoy life. Tiny steps at a time can make a big difference in life. Join me on the journey to a Life of Courage. From what I see, there seems no better ways to live one. Come on, lets have fun with life ^o^
30 days trial of Waking up at 4.30am
Today I had began a 30 days trial of waking up at 4.30am instead of my usual 5.30am.
Why? Wanted to have more time to do my stuff even though I already have the whole day since I am not working lol. It just don't seems to be enough.
In addition, some health experts say that 4plus am is the time which our body does its cleansing. Seems kind of true as personally I went to the toilet 2 times in total in the morning. One immediately after I woke up. In the past, I usually had only once in the morning.
The last reason was to experience the life which Steve Pavlina, Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer and Eckhart Tolle have. They all wake up at such hours. There must be a reason for it. ^_^
Good luck to me.
Why? Wanted to have more time to do my stuff even though I already have the whole day since I am not working lol. It just don't seems to be enough.
In addition, some health experts say that 4plus am is the time which our body does its cleansing. Seems kind of true as personally I went to the toilet 2 times in total in the morning. One immediately after I woke up. In the past, I usually had only once in the morning.
The last reason was to experience the life which Steve Pavlina, Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer and Eckhart Tolle have. They all wake up at such hours. There must be a reason for it. ^_^
Good luck to me.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
100 things to do before you die
Came across this when I was reading Good Paper. It is a fun exercise which makes you think about what you really want to do so you won't be regretting badly at your deathbed. Ohh come on... All of us will die anyway....Since we are all dying might as well have fun during our time here.
So enjoy the game ^_^
Tips for playing the game: It is easier when you do it with the mindset "What will you do if you know nothing will fail".
Here are my personal 30 just not to bore you to death and give you an idea.
1) Bungee Jump
2) Visit the seven wonders
3) Plant a forest
4) Run a full marathon
5) Write & Publish a book
6) Impact a million people's life positively
7) Black belt in Akido
8) Write my own songs
9) Sponsor a kid in 3rd world country
10) Do public speaking
11) Able to speak and write 5 languages
12) Have a house by the sea
13) Become a Millionaire
14) Trek Africa's nature reserve
15) Participate in disaster relief
16) Be a guest in Wwoofer program
17) Skydiving
18) Travel around Europe for 6 months
19) Win a dance competition
20) Write my own vegan cookbook
21) Become psychic
22) Do rock climbing
23) Meet Steve and Erin Pavlina
24) Build a blog that has million readership monthly
25) Swim with dolphins
26) See a wild whale
27) Fly a plane
28) Become raw foodist
29) Find a cure for color blind
30) Trek deep caves
So enjoy the game ^_^
Tips for playing the game: It is easier when you do it with the mindset "What will you do if you know nothing will fail".
Here are my personal 30 just not to bore you to death and give you an idea.
1) Bungee Jump
2) Visit the seven wonders
3) Plant a forest
4) Run a full marathon
5) Write & Publish a book
6) Impact a million people's life positively
7) Black belt in Akido
8) Write my own songs
9) Sponsor a kid in 3rd world country
10) Do public speaking
11) Able to speak and write 5 languages
12) Have a house by the sea
13) Become a Millionaire
14) Trek Africa's nature reserve
15) Participate in disaster relief
16) Be a guest in Wwoofer program
17) Skydiving
18) Travel around Europe for 6 months
19) Win a dance competition
20) Write my own vegan cookbook
21) Become psychic
22) Do rock climbing
23) Meet Steve and Erin Pavlina
24) Build a blog that has million readership monthly
25) Swim with dolphins
26) See a wild whale
27) Fly a plane
28) Become raw foodist
29) Find a cure for color blind
30) Trek deep caves
Habits
Humans are creatures of habits. Everything we do are an offset of our habits. How we think, what we choose to do first, how we react, are terrifyingly identical day to day. Do you frequently push important tasks such as assignments until the last minute? Do you choose to have fun first before doing anything else? Do you sleep late at night everyday and having difficulties waking up the next morning?
Habits are what distinct a successful person and a mediocre. Successful person always have time to complete what seemingly impossible tasks. They always seems so full of energy to jump on the next tasks. Why so? Because they have effective habits.
I have a huge dosage of ineffective habits myself. Like sitting on assignments till deadline and frantically struggled through the last two days to complete it which caused lots of unnecessary stress on myself and people around me. Like playing games or do any other things first rather than hitting on what is needed to be done. Like spending hours and hours of my life on games and porn. Like lazing in my comfort zone... Hmm tons of them.
I had learn about that to replace the old habits, we have to induce new ones. I had learn about the science behind it and the benefits from it. Then.... Nothing happened for months! There is no motivation to do such changes. Why no motivation? Lack of clarity of what I want, lack of reason to really do it... Looking back now, I realized why many people can't seem to change their old destructive habits. Its not because they are lazy or lack of willpower (maybe some are :oP). They just don't know how to or they lacked the means to.
Fast forward to now. Personally I have adopted the following set of new habits. Wake up at 5.30am, exercise everyday (swimming on odd and jogging on even days), looking for ways to contribute everyday, collecting trash papers to recycle, picking up used plastics bottles to recycle when i see them, writing journal, writing dream journal, 25 minutes of vision training daily, meditation for 15 mins every night, reciting of affirmations twice a day. Then I have removed the following old ones. Playing of computer games, surfing of porn, masturbation, sleeping more than 8 hours, sleeping late.
Whew.... It is an amazing experience. The new habits automatically replaces the old ones as they filled in the time I emptied from old ineffective habits. By waking up at 5.30am, I feel that I have a head start in the day earlier and is able to get much more things accomplished than I originally would. I am able to channel the time and energy I originally spent in games and porn to write articles, making self improvement, readings and thinking of ways to contribute to the society.
Here's how I did it.
1) Have a strong WHY that I want a new habit. This is crucial as it is what which sustains us. When we lack a big enough why, we fail. Simple as that. No need to beat yourself over it if you can't follow through a habit.
2) Made a decision to do it. I have to decide a date to start. If I didn't, i would have kept procrastinating and maybe other days I will do it. It is most effective if I do it immediately. That will get my engine and motion into action.
3) Do a 30 day trial. It is important to be consistent during these 30 days. One must do the intended habit consecutively for these 30 days without fail. It is a easier process too as it is only 30 days. If I find it too difficult to keep it up after this 30 days, I can give it up and still feel I have accomplished something ^_^. In this 30 days you will find creative ways to fit in this habit and experience the changes needed in your lifestyle for this habit to happen. So to me 30 days is just nice.
4) Keep to one habit at a time. Give ourselves a sack. Many failed due to trying to accomplish too many at one go. Over-burn in the process. Imagine if you adopt just one new habit every month. you get 12 new ones in a year! That is a impressive life changing experience if you ask me.
5) Give myself a pat every time when I keep to my habit. Thank myself. It is sad that many time we forgot to thank ourselves. Your soul is crying for it! So say thank you to yourself for being so disciplined! Thank you to yourself for being so wonderful! Trust me. It works. If it don't, it feels good. ^0^
So have fun with creating new habits. You will see amazing changes in your life. When you find that you feel uncomfortable not doing it, you have gained yourself a new habit. Are you ready for a wild of a ride? I hope you do. Good luck ^o^
Habits are what distinct a successful person and a mediocre. Successful person always have time to complete what seemingly impossible tasks. They always seems so full of energy to jump on the next tasks. Why so? Because they have effective habits.
I have a huge dosage of ineffective habits myself. Like sitting on assignments till deadline and frantically struggled through the last two days to complete it which caused lots of unnecessary stress on myself and people around me. Like playing games or do any other things first rather than hitting on what is needed to be done. Like spending hours and hours of my life on games and porn. Like lazing in my comfort zone... Hmm tons of them.
I had learn about that to replace the old habits, we have to induce new ones. I had learn about the science behind it and the benefits from it. Then.... Nothing happened for months! There is no motivation to do such changes. Why no motivation? Lack of clarity of what I want, lack of reason to really do it... Looking back now, I realized why many people can't seem to change their old destructive habits. Its not because they are lazy or lack of willpower (maybe some are :oP). They just don't know how to or they lacked the means to.
Fast forward to now. Personally I have adopted the following set of new habits. Wake up at 5.30am, exercise everyday (swimming on odd and jogging on even days), looking for ways to contribute everyday, collecting trash papers to recycle, picking up used plastics bottles to recycle when i see them, writing journal, writing dream journal, 25 minutes of vision training daily, meditation for 15 mins every night, reciting of affirmations twice a day. Then I have removed the following old ones. Playing of computer games, surfing of porn, masturbation, sleeping more than 8 hours, sleeping late.
Whew.... It is an amazing experience. The new habits automatically replaces the old ones as they filled in the time I emptied from old ineffective habits. By waking up at 5.30am, I feel that I have a head start in the day earlier and is able to get much more things accomplished than I originally would. I am able to channel the time and energy I originally spent in games and porn to write articles, making self improvement, readings and thinking of ways to contribute to the society.
Here's how I did it.
1) Have a strong WHY that I want a new habit. This is crucial as it is what which sustains us. When we lack a big enough why, we fail. Simple as that. No need to beat yourself over it if you can't follow through a habit.
2) Made a decision to do it. I have to decide a date to start. If I didn't, i would have kept procrastinating and maybe other days I will do it. It is most effective if I do it immediately. That will get my engine and motion into action.
3) Do a 30 day trial. It is important to be consistent during these 30 days. One must do the intended habit consecutively for these 30 days without fail. It is a easier process too as it is only 30 days. If I find it too difficult to keep it up after this 30 days, I can give it up and still feel I have accomplished something ^_^. In this 30 days you will find creative ways to fit in this habit and experience the changes needed in your lifestyle for this habit to happen. So to me 30 days is just nice.
4) Keep to one habit at a time. Give ourselves a sack. Many failed due to trying to accomplish too many at one go. Over-burn in the process. Imagine if you adopt just one new habit every month. you get 12 new ones in a year! That is a impressive life changing experience if you ask me.
5) Give myself a pat every time when I keep to my habit. Thank myself. It is sad that many time we forgot to thank ourselves. Your soul is crying for it! So say thank you to yourself for being so disciplined! Thank you to yourself for being so wonderful! Trust me. It works. If it don't, it feels good. ^0^
So have fun with creating new habits. You will see amazing changes in your life. When you find that you feel uncomfortable not doing it, you have gained yourself a new habit. Are you ready for a wild of a ride? I hope you do. Good luck ^o^
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The Invitation - Oriah Mountain Dreamer
I want to share this beautiful article which I get from Good Paper. Good Paper is a bi-monthly, bi-lingual newspaper devoted to only the positve side of news. The founder Ling Seow has a personal vision to bring good news. News that will inspire, motivate and encourage.
Enjoy.
The Invitation
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or have become shriveled and closed
from fear of further pain
I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it
I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers
and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
"Yes."
It doesn't interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.
It doesn't interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moment
Enjoy.
The Invitation
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life's betrayals
or have become shriveled and closed
from fear of further pain
I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it
I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers
and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
"Yes."
It doesn't interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.
It doesn't interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the center of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moment
Law of Attraction - Revisited
It is hard for some people to see that everything that came to their life were attracted by their thoughts. Thoughts are creative energy. When enough is concentrated, it will manifest into being. That is the reason why most thoughts don't manifest immediately. They need time to conceptualize. It is also Universe/God's way of seeing whether that we really want that thought. As a matter of fact, we are blessed that we can't manifest everything immediately... Imagine a world where people just manifesting everything they want. Looking at the level of our consciousness now the sequence of events are likely to happen. First it will be chaos as people are creating anything they want. Then humanity will be destroyed as some tried to overpower the other and created a massive weapon that ultimately destroys Earth. In the past, I had secretly intended many times for bad things to happen to some people which I am glad it didn't.
Recently in my life, I can see duration of the time I set my intention to the manifestation shorten. Many times, when I set an intention for a clarification or an idea, it will be in some article or mp3 which I listen to. If I want thinking of ways to contribute, channels will appear in my email or other aspects of my life. Let me share with you one particular event that happened about 1 week ago.
I am currently into vision training therefore I had set an intention to get hold of as many information I can on them. One day, I was walking home from grocery shopping when I came across a stack of papers lying all around the lane. In the past, I would have just ignored it. But this time, I bent down to collect them as I intended to put them into the recycle bin. I recognized it to be some sort of lecture notes and out of curiosity I wanted to find out what it was. It turned out to be lecture notes about light and the one facing me was on the topic of Optical. What is the odds of this happening???
So have fun with Law of Attraction. It is fun and entertaining if you use it positively. And it definitely exists. Good luck ^_^
Recently in my life, I can see duration of the time I set my intention to the manifestation shorten. Many times, when I set an intention for a clarification or an idea, it will be in some article or mp3 which I listen to. If I want thinking of ways to contribute, channels will appear in my email or other aspects of my life. Let me share with you one particular event that happened about 1 week ago.
I am currently into vision training therefore I had set an intention to get hold of as many information I can on them. One day, I was walking home from grocery shopping when I came across a stack of papers lying all around the lane. In the past, I would have just ignored it. But this time, I bent down to collect them as I intended to put them into the recycle bin. I recognized it to be some sort of lecture notes and out of curiosity I wanted to find out what it was. It turned out to be lecture notes about light and the one facing me was on the topic of Optical. What is the odds of this happening???
So have fun with Law of Attraction. It is fun and entertaining if you use it positively. And it definitely exists. Good luck ^_^
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