Moral Values: 2008

Things only a MOTHER can teach!

⊆ 10:37 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION:

"Just wait until your father gets home."

My Mother taught me about RECEIVING:.

"You are going to get it when we get home!"

My Mother taught me to MEET A CHALLENGE:

"What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you... Don't talk back to me!"

My Mother taught me LOGIC:

"Because I said so, that's why."

"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."

My Mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE:

"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

My Mother taught me to THINK AHEAD:

"If you don't pass your spelling test, you'll never get a good job."

My Mother taught me ESP:

"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you're cold?"

My Mother taught me HUMOR:

"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT:

"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

My Mother taught me about SEX:

"How do you think you got here?"

My Mother taught me about GENETICS:

"You're just like your father."

My Mother taught me about my ROOTS:

"Do you think you were born in a barn?"

My Mother taught me about WISDOM OF AGE:

"When you get to be my age, you will understand."

My Mother taught me about JUSTICE:

"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you. Then you'll see what it's like."

My mother taught me RELIGION:

"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."

My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL:

"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"

My mother taught me FORESIGHT:

"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."

My mother taught me IRONY:

"Keep crying and I'll *give* you something to cry about."

My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS:

"Shut your mouth and eat your supper!"

My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM:

"Will you *look* at the dirt on the back of your neck!"

My mother taught me about STAMINA:

"You'll sit there until all that spinach is finished."

My mother taught me about WEATHER:

"It looks as if a tornado swept through your room."

My mother taught me how to solve PHYSICS PROBLEMS: "If I yelled because I saw a meteor coming toward you, would you listen then?"

My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY:

"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times: Don't Exaggerate!!!"

My mother taught me THE CIRCLE OF LIFE:

"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."

My mother taught me about BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION:

"Stop acting like your father!"

My mother taught me about ENVY:

"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do!"

Warren Buffet: The Second Richest Man in the World

⊆ 10:32 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

There was a one hour interview on CNBC with Warren Buffet, the second richest man who has donated $31 billion to charity. Here are some very interesting aspects of his life:

1. He bought his first share at age 11 and he now regrets that he started too late!

2. He bought a small farm at age 14 with savings from delivering newspapers.

3. He still lives in the same small 3-bedroom house in mid-town Omaha, which he bought after he got married 50 years ago. He says that he has everything he needs in that house. His house does not have a wall or a fence.

4. He drives his own car everywhere and does not have a driver or security people around him.

5. He never travels by private jet, although he owns the world's largest private jet company.

6. His company, Berkshire Hathaway, owns 63 companies. He writes only one letter each year to the CEOs of these companies, giving them goals for the year. He never holds meetings or calls them on a regular basis. He has given his CEO's only two rules.

> Rule number 1: do not lose any of your share holder's money.

> Rule number 2: Do not forget rule number 1.

7. He does not socialize with the high society crowd. His past time after he gets home is to make himself some pop corn and watch Television.

8. Bill Gates, the world's richest man met him for the first time only 5 years ago. Bill Gates did not think he had anything in common with Warren Buffet. So he had scheduled his meeting only for half hour. But when Gates met him, the meeting lasted for ten hours and Bill Gates became a devotee of Warren Buffet.

9. Warren Buffet does not carry a cell phone, nor has a computer on his desk.

His advice to young people: "Stay away from credit cards and invest in yourself and Remember:

A. Money doesn't create man but it is the man who created money.

B. Live your life as simple as you are.

C. Don't do what others say, just listen to them, but do what makes you feel good.

D. Don't go on brand name; just wear those things in which you feel comfortable.

E. Don't waste your money on unnecessary things; just spend on things that you really need.

F. After all it's your life, then why give others the chance to rule your life."

"No one can make you feel inferior without your permission, remember they are no better."

Character

⊆ 10:29 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

Abraham Lincoln was very concerned with character, but he was also aware of the importance of having a good reputation. He explained the difference this way: "Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing."

Put another way, your reputation is what people think of you. Your character is what you actually are.

In a world preoccupied with image, it's easy to worry too much about our reputation and too little about our character.

Building a reputation is largely a public-relations project; building character requires us to focus on our values and actions. Noble rhetoric and good intentions aren't enough.

What we're looking for is moral strength based on ethical principles. Character is revealed by actions, not words, especially when there's a gap between what we want to do and what we should do and when doing the right thing costs more than we want to pay.

Our character is revealed by how we deal with pressures and temptations. But it's also disclosed by everyday actions, including what we say and do when we think no one is looking and we won't get caught.

The way we treat people we think can't help or hurt us (like housekeepers, waiters, and secretaries), tells more about our character than how we treat people we think are important.

People who are honest, kind, and fair only when there's something to gain shouldn't be confused with people of real character who demonstrate these qualities habitually, under all circumstances.

Character is not a fancy coat we put on for show.

Ladder of Achievement

⊆ 10:26 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

----------- 100% - I did.
---------- 90% - I will.
--------- 80% - I can.
-------- 70% - I think I can.
------- 60% - I might.
------ 50% - I think I might.
----- 40% - What is it?
---- 30% - I wish I could.
--- 20% - I don't know how.
-- 10% - I can't. - 0%
-I won't.

Six Rules for being more likeable Rule

⊆ 10:24 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

1: Become genuinely interested in other people.

Rule 2: Smile.

Rule 3: Remember that a person's name is to him or her, the sweetest and most important sound…

Rule 4: Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.

Rule 5: Talk in terms of the other person's interests.

Rule 6: Make the other person feel important—And do it sincerely.

A day in the life of Iranian President Ahmede Najad: Truly Inspirational {Source: Internet forward}

⊆ 10:16 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

The Fox New TV (US) asked the Iranian President Ahmede Najad; "When you look into the mirror in the morning what do you say to yourself"?

He answered: I see the person in the mirror and tells him "Remember, you are no more than a small servant, ahead of you today is the heavy responsibility, and that is to serve the Iranian nation". And this was how the broadcaster introduced him.

Ahmedi Nijad, the Iranian President who astonished many when he first reached to the office of the Presidency by donating all the high valued Iranian carpets to one of the mosques in Tehran by replacing them with the low cost ordinary carpets. He observed that there was a huge extravagant langue for receiving and welcoming the VIPies and he ordered it to be closed and asked the protocol office to arrange for an ordinary room instead with the wooden chairs, though more impressive in fact...!

On many instances he joins the cleaning staff of the municipality for cleaning the streets in the area where his home and the Presidency office locates. Under his authority whenever he appoints any minister to his post he gets a signed document from him with many points, particularly highlighting that he shall remain poor and that his personal and his relatives accounts will be watched and the day he leaves the ministry shall be with dignity, and therefore it is not lawful for him or his relatives to take any advantage of his office.

First of all he declared himself all the "Big" wealth and property he owned was a Peugeot 504 car, model 1977, an old small house inherited from his father forty years ago in one of the poorest zones in Tehran .

His accounts with a zero balance and the only money comes in to his a/c was from his salary from the university as a lecturer with an amount of US$ 250 only.

For your information the President still lives in that same house. This is all what he owns; the president of one of the world's important countries; strategically, economically, politically and with regard to its oil and defense.

He even doesn't take his personal salary with the argument that all the wealth belongs to the nation and he is the safeguard over it. One of the things that impressed the staff at the presidency is the bag the president brings with him every day, which contains his breakfast; some sandwiches or bread with olive oil and cheese prepared by his wife and eats and enjoys it with all happiness, While he stopped all the deliveries of the special food used to come for the president.

One of the other things he changed was his personal carrier "the presidents Aircraft" to a cargo aircraft in order to save the spending from the public treasury and he ordered that he will be flying with the ordinary airline in the economic class.

He organizes meetings every now and then with all the ministers to know their activities and efficiency and he closed down the office of the manager of the president and any minister can enter to his office with out any permission. He also stopped the welcome ceremonies like the red carpet, the photo session or any personal advertisement or respect of any kind while visiting any place in the country.

Whenever he has to stay in any of the hotels he asks them to make sure not to give him a room with any big bed because he doesn't like to sleep on beds but rather likes to sleep on the ground on a simple mattress with a blanket.

Does any of such manners and practices shows any disrespect for the high post of the president??? ??

Refer to some of the photographs (NOT ATTACHED TO THIS) which confirms the above. The Iranian president is sleeping in the guest room of his house after getting away from his special guards who follow him wherever he goes and photo is taken by his small brother according to the Wifaq Newspaper which published this photo and the next day the photo was published in most of the world's newspapers and magazines and particularly the Americans.

During the prayer you can see that he is not sitting in the first row!!!!

Learn and Earn

⊆ 9:49 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

Chuan and Jing joined a wholesale company together just after graduation. Both worked very hard.

After several years, the boss promoted Jing to sales executive but Chuan remained a sales rep. One day Chuan could not take it anymore, tender resignation to the boss and complained the boss did not value hard working staff, but only promoted those who flattered him.

The boss knew that Chuan worked very hard for the years, but in order to help Chuan realise the difference between him and Jing, the boss asked Chuan to do the following. Go and find out anyone selling water melon in the market? Chuan returned and said yes. The boss asked how much per kg? Chuan went back to the market to ask and returned to inform boss the $12 per kg.

Boss told Chuan, I will ask Jing the same question? Jing went, returned and said, boss, only one person selling water melon. $12 per kg, $100 for 10 kg, he has inventory of 340 melons. On the table 58 melons, every melon weighs about 15 kg, bought from the South two days ago, they are fresh and red, good quality.

Chuan was very impressed and realised the difference between himself and Jing. He decided not to resign but to learn from Jing.

My dear friends, a more successful person is more observant, think more and understand in depth. For the same matter, a more successful person sees several years ahead, while you see only tomorrow. The difference between a year and a day is 365 times, how could you win?

Think! how far have you seen ahead in your life? How thoughtful in depth are you?

WOW always works

⊆ 9:42 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

Last spring I was walking in a park. A short distance ahead of me was a mom and her three-year-old daughter. The little girl was holding on to a string that was attached to a helium balloon.

All of a sudden, a sharp gust of wind took the balloon from the little girl.. I braced myself for some screaming and crying.

But, no! As the little girl turned to watch her balloon go skyward, she gleefully shouted out, "Wow!"

I didn't realize it at that moment, but that little girl taught me something.

Later that day, I received a phone call from a person with news of an unexpected problem. I felt like responding with "Oh no, what should we do?" But remembering that little girl, I found myself saying, "Wow, that's interesting! How can I help you?"

One thing's for sure - life's always going to keep us off balance with its unexpected problems. That's a given. What's not preordained is our response. We can choose to be frustrated or fascinated.

No matter what the situation, a fascinated "Wow!" will always beat a frustrated "Oh, no."

So the next time you experience one of life's unexpected gusts, remember that little girl and make it a "Wow!" experience. The "Wow!" response always works .

Which is Easier? Create Wealth or remain poor?

⊆ 11:12 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

We have been led to believe it is much more difficult to obtain wealth than it is to remain poor. Common sense tells us this cannot be true.

The great majority of poor people will work hard their entire lives just to pay bills and purchase essential items such as food, clothing, shelter and utilities (not to mention taxes). There is little or no money left over for entertainment, recreation, travel or nice vacations. Poor people will in most cases be forced to work hard right up to the time they die.

On the other hand, most wealthy people also work hard for their money, but with a drastic difference. They are willing to work extremely hard for a shorter period of time in order to create wealth. In some cases, they simply work smarter instead of harder.

They perform at peak periods for a season and spend the rest of their lives enjoying the fruits of their labour.

They are willing to innovate and try new projects in order to create wealth.

They refuse to be limited by what others tell them they can or cannot do or what can or cannot be done.

They are willing to step outside of their comfort zones. I define these as those areas of your life where you have done the same things over and over again until they have become the only way you know to live. You have become so complacent and comfortable that unless something drastic happens you are not willing to step out of those areas. You are unwilling to leave the known for the unknown.

A great definition of insanity is to keep doing the same things over and over and expect different results. You have to change things to change results.

We can create great wealth in our lives. We have merely to be willing to step out of our comfort zones and reach for new and higher levels of achievement.

Don't believe me? Take a good look at all those who have either achieved great wealth or performed great feats in their lives.

Their education or lack of it, financial condition, health, background or environment made no difference. They became dissatisfied with their comfort zones and stepped out of them.

It is truthfully stated that five years from now you will be the same person you are today except for the books you read and the people with whom you associate.

Give this some thought. When you habitually associate with people who have nothing and want nothing, this becomes part of your mental attitude and outlook. On the other hand, associate with people who are excited about changing their lives for the better and creating great wealth. They will literally pull you with them.

Read books with no redeeming social, economic, motivational or educational value and you have only entertainment. Books and/or audio tapes which are educational and motivational will keep you going when all else tends to hold you back.

Many will say they work really hard and need to relax when they have finished their labours. The first inclination is to hit the couch or sofa and watch television. How many hours each week do you waste watching television? Could these hours be put to better use?

Rather than watch television, devote that time to reading or listening to educational and motivational materials. This can be more relaxing than watching television.

Study and if possible, associate with those who have accomplished what you wish to achieve. It is not really that difficult, for you will find those who are truly successful are enthusiastic about helping others. Please do not waste their time if you are not serious about what you wish to achieve. Let them give that time to others who will use it wisely.

Wealth and success are within the reach of every person on this planet. Decide today to get out of your comfort zone and accomplish more with your life.

It's Not Enough

⊆ 11:04 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

It's not enough to want better things for yourself. You must find ways to make things better.

It's not enough to say the world is in turmoil. You must find ways to bring peace into it.

It's not enough to point at someone else and blame them for what is wrong. You must welcome them in and ask how you can help them make it right.

It's not enough to say "Someone ought to do something about it!" You are someone, do it!

It's not enough to pray and ask for God's help. You must thank him for the challenge and the opportunity to learn from it.

It's not enough to tell a child what is right. You must be what is right so they learn from your example.

It's not enough to wish. You must work to make it so.

It's not enough to ask. You must give to earn the right.

The Barnyard Duck

⊆ 10:54 PM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

A flock of wild ducks were flying in formation, heading south for the winter. They formed a beautiful V in the sky, and were admired by everyone who saw them from below. One day, Wally, one of the wild ducks in the formation, spotted something on the ground that caught his eye. It was a barnyard with a flock of tame ducks who lived on the farm. They were waddling around on the ground, quacking merrily and eating corn that was thrown on the ground for them every day. Wally liked what he saw. “It sure would be nice to have some of that corn,” he thought to himself. “And all this flying is very tiring. I’d like to just waddle around for a while.”

So after thinking it over a while, Wally left the formation of wild ducks, made a sharp dive to the left, and headed for the barnyard. He landed among the tame ducks, and began to waddle around and quack merrily. He also started eating corn. The formation of wild ducks continued their journey South, but Wally didn’t care. “I’ll rejoin them when they come back North in a few months, he said to himself.

Several months went by and sure enough, Wally looked up and spotted the flock of wild ducks in formation, heading north. They looked beautiful up there. And Wally was tired of the barnyard. It was muddy and everywhere he waddled, nothing but duck doo. “It’s time to leave,” said Wally. So Wally flapped his wings furiously and tried to get airborne. But he had gained some weight from all his corn-eating, and he hadn’t exercised his wings much either. He finally got off the ground, but he was flying too low and slammed into the side of the barn. He fell to the ground with a thud and said to himself, “Oh, well, I’ll just wait until they fly south in a few months. Then I’ll rejoin them and become a wild duck again.”

But when the flock flew overhead once more, Wally again tried to lift himself out of the barnyard. He simply didn’t have the strength. Every winter and every spring, he saw his wild duck friends flying overhead, and they would call out to him. But his attempts to leave were all in vain. Eventually Wally no longer paid any attention to the wild ducks flying overhead. He hardly even noticed them. He had, after all, become a barnyard duck.

Look what happened to Wally. He thought he would just “check-it-out” for awhile and then leave when he wanted to. But he couldn’t do it.

Sin and bad habits are like that. It is a trap, and it has a way of changing us into people we don’t even want to become. Eventually we lose touch with who we really are . We become barnyard ducks.

The NEW Age

⊆ 1:06 AM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

A key component of the New Age which many people prescribe to is the belief that our planet and its population are literally moving into a New Age. This New Age is one of awakened consciousness where people give up their limited third-dimensional survival mode of existence and awaken to a higher, more enlightened world. This coming New Age is an era of harmony, progress, knowing, and enlightenment.

- Andrew Lutts

The New Age movement means different things to different people.

However almost all New Age topics have one basic underlying theme: personal spiritual development. Every day there are thousands upon thousands of people around the world who are waking up to the knowledge, understanding and realization of who they really are, where they came from, and why they are here. This collective transformation of individuals can be described as the New Age movement. As a whole, the New Age movement is dynamic, rapidly-growing, and gaining momentum. The New Age movement provides the framework and the tools to assist people with their own personal growth and spiritual development.

The New Age movement itself is somewhat of a paradox, since to organize into some kind of "movement" could be considered to be contrary to the fundamentals of individual spiritual development. That is why there is some ambiguity to the meaning of the New Age, because it can mean different things to people. But that's okay. What is important is that each individual embarks on their own journey of learning, adventure, and discovery.

New Age and Metaphysics

The New Age is strongly related to some of the concepts defined in the branch of philosophy commonly referred to as metaphysics. Although the academic branch of metaphysics is most concerned about the nature of ultimate reality, popular metaphysical topics often include discussion and analysis of subjects beyond the physical third dimension. Some examples of metaphysical topics include: free energy, out of body experiences, UFOs, psychic phenomenon, alternative healing, and other topics that our conventional sciences find difficult to explain.

Here's an unofficial list of beliefs that some individuals in New Age may have in common:

Two stories one concept

⊆ 12:53 AM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

The Chicken

Once upon a time, there was a large mountainside, where an eagle's nest rested. The eagle's nest contained four large eagle eggs. One day an earthquake rocked the mountain causing one of the eggs to roll down the mountain, to a chicken farm, located in the valley below. The chickens knew that they must protect and care for the eagle's egg, so an old hen volunteered to nurture and raise the large egg.
One day, the egg hatched and a beautiful eagle was born. Sadly, however, the eagle was raised to be a chicken. Soon, the eagle believed he was nothing more than a chicken. The eagle loved his home and family, but his spirit cried out for more. While playing a game on the farm one day, the eagle looked to the skies above and noticed a group of mighty eagles soaring in the skies. "Oh," the eagle cried, "I wish I could soar like those birds." The chickens roared with laughter, "You cannot soar with those birds. You are a chicken and chickens do not soar."
The eagle continued staring, at his real family up above, dreaming that he could be with them. Each time the eagle would let his dreams be known, he was told it couldn't be done. That is what the eagle learned to believe. The eagle, after time, stopped dreaming and continued to live his life like a chicken. Finally, after a long life as a chicken, the eagle passed away.
The moral of the story: You become what you believe you are; so if you ever dream to become an eagle follow your dreams, not the words of a chicken.

The Mental Chain

Most people are like the circus elephant. Have you ever seen a giant elephant in an indoor arena tied to a little wooden stake. That huge creature can pick up two thousand pounds with its trunk, yet it calmly stays tied. Why?
When that elephant was just a baby, and not very strong, it was tied by a huge chain to an iron stake that could not be moved. Regardless of how hard it tried, it could not break the chain and run free. After it a while it just gave up. Later, when it is strong, it never attempts to break free. The "imprint" is permanent. "I can't! I can't!' it says.
There are millions of people who behave like this creature of the circus. They have been bound, tied and told "You'll never make it," so many times they finally call it quits. The may have dreams, but the "imprinting" keeps pulling them back.
Today, eliminate the source of your limitations. When you mentally break free, the boundaries will be removed from your future.

If We Can See The World is Full of Compassionate and Understanding People

⊆ 12:47 AM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

I found following story quite touching and full of inspiration so sharing with you all:

It had been a very disheartening day. The doctors had given us the worst of news. Our daughter, who had just completed her first brain surgery to remove a tumor and was going through radiation treatments, was now officially given a two percent chance of survival as this type of cancer had no cure.

My wife and I decided to take our daughter to lunch before continuing our afternoon conversations. We went to a local restaurant where we sat in silence waiting for the waitress. Our daughter Molly wouldn't hear of such sadness or silence so she played happily with crayons and paper while we sat and stared at the floor.

I noticed a very elderly couple sitting a few booths away, they too in silence never speaking a word. I couldn't help but wonder what challenges they had faced in their life and if they ever faced such terrible news about a child of theirs.

We eventually ordered our lunch and still sitting in silence we ate what we could. At some point I became intrigued by the old couple and I watched them more intently with each passing minute. I thought to myself that they hadn't yet spoken to each other and I wondered if it was the peace they were enjoying or the food or maybe both. However, at some point I lost interest and put my focus back on my lunch.

Molly was still talking away and enjoying her meal and her mom and I both listened and tried to be happy in her presence but it wasn't going very well. All of a sudden I saw this hand come out of nowhere. It was huge and I could tell that it had been afflicted with arthritis. The knuckles were swollen and the fingers were crooked and off center. I couldn't take my eyes of that hand. The hand drifted down and landed on my daughter's tiny six year old hand and as it did I looked up; it was the old woman who had been sitting with the old man in silence eating their lunch.

I looked into her eyes and she spoke, but not to me. She looked at my daughter and simply whispered, "If I could do more for you I would." And then she smiled and moved away to join her husband who had moved towards the door.

I heard a "Hey look, a whole dollar." Molly spoke with excitement as she discovered that the old lady had placed a crumpled one dollar bill on the back of her hand. I looked down and saw the dollar bill and quickly realized that it had been left behind by the old lady. I looked up to thank her, but she was gone. I sat stunned, not sure what had just happened and then I looked over at my wife. In almost unison, we broke out into a smile. The sadness of the day had been wiped out by the crippled hand and generous touch of an old lady.

The dollar, although exciting to Molly, was not what made us smile or begin to feel differently, it was the offer from an old lady who felt our hurt and our suffering. The crippled hand symbolized a healing touch and made us realize that we did not have to fight this battle alone; that others cared and wanted to help. We felt up-lifted and soon our day filled with more happy thoughts as we spent the rest of our lunch planning the next day at home with fun filled activities for everyone.

I will never forget that crippled arthritic hand that taught us such an important lesson. One does not have to go through life facing hardships all alone; the world is full of compassionate and understanding people. Even those that are suffering from their own afflictions have much to give to each other.

The hand that covered Molly's on that day still covers it. And although Molly is no longer with me, I can see her holding hands with that old lady now, both hands perfect and both faces filled with smiles and laughter. And though Heaven has these two perfect angels now, the lessons that they both taught me will remain forever in my heart.

The Nine Biggest Myths of the Workplace

⊆ 12:31 AM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

You'll be happier if you have a job you like.

The correlation between your happiness and your job is overrated. The most important factors, by far, are your optimism levels and your personal relationships. If you are a pessimist, a great job can't overcome that. (Think of the jerks at the top.) And if you have great friends and family, you can probably be happy even if you hate your job (imagine a garbage collector who's in love).

Job-hopping will hurt you.

Job hopping is one of the best ways to maintain passion and personal growth in your careers. And here's some good news for hoppers: Most people will have eight jobs between the time they are eighteen and thirty. This means most young workers are job hopping. So hiring managers have no choice but to hire job hoppers. Ride this wave and try a lot of jobs out yourself.

The glass ceilingThe-New-Road-to-the-Top still exists.

The glass ceiling is over, not because people crashed through, but because people are not looking up. Life above the glass ceiling is 100-hour weeks, working for someone else, and no time for friends and family. And it's not only women who are saying no to the ladder up: Men are as well. People want to customize success for themselves, not climb someone else rungs. So if no one is climbing to the top, the glass ceiling isn't keeping anyone down.

Office politics is about backstabbing.

The people who are most effective at office politics are people who are genuinely nice. Office politics is about helping people to get what they want. This means you have to take the time to figure out what someone cares about, and then think about how you can help him or her to get it. You need to always have your ears open for when you can help. If you do this, you don't have to strong arm people or manipulate them. Your authentic caring will inspire people to help you when you need it.

Do good work, and you'll do fine.

For one thing, no one knows what the heck you're doing in your cube if you're not telling them. So when you do good work, let people know. It is not crazy to toot your own horn--it's crazy to think someone will do it for you. Also, if you do good work but you're a jerk, people will judge your work to be sub par. So you could say that good work really only matters if your co-workers enjoy hearing about it from you.

You need a good resume.

Only ten percent of jobs come from sending a blind resume. Most people get jobs by leveraging their network. Once you have a connection, the person looks at your resume to make sure there are no red flags. So you need a competent resume and an excellent network. This means you should stop stressing about which verb to use on the second line of your third job. Go talk to someone instead.

People with good networks are good at networking.

Just be nice, take genuine interest in the people you meet, and keep in touch with people you like. This will create a group of people who are invested in helping you because they know you and appreciate you. Use LinkedIn to leverage those peoples' networks, and you just got yourself a very strong network by simply hanging out with the people you like.

Work hard and good things will come.

Everyone can put in a seventy-hour week. It doesn't mean you're doing good work. So here's an idea: Make sure you're not the hardest worker. Take a long lunch. Get all your work done early. Grand thinking requires space, flexibility and time. So let people see you staring at the wall. They'll know you're a person with big ideas and taking time to think makes you more valuable.

Create the shiny brand of you!

There is no magic formula to having a great career except to be you. Really you. Know who you are and have the humility to understand that self-knowledge is a never-ending journey. Figure out how to do what you love, and you'll be great at it. Offer your true, good-natured self to other people and you'll have a great network. Those who stand out as leaders have a notable authenticity that enables them to make genuinely meaningful connections with a wide range of people. Authenticity is a tool for changing the world by doing good.

Nine Ways Humor Can Heal

⊆ 12:03 AM by Prabodh Vinayak Ashtikar | ˜ 0 comments »

When life has you feeling weighed down, laugh a little and feel your heart lighten.

Of all my tools to combat stress-especially the stress of dealing with my illness or someone else's--humor is by far the most fun. And just like mastering the craft of writing, I'm finding that the longer I practice laughing at life (especially at its frustrations) the better I become at it, and the more situations and conversations and complications I can place into that category named "silly."

G. K. Chesterton once wrote: "Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly." And Proverbs 17:22 says that "a happy heart is good medicine." I'd add that human beings and their caretakers can heal and find joy again if they learn how to laugh. Here are just a few ways a dose of humor might transform something ugly and stressful to slightly entertaining, and, well, a tad less catastrophic.

1. Humor Combats Fear

I know this first hand, having sat in the community room of a psych ward watching a video of a comedian poking fun at depression. Like everyone else in that room, I was scared to death of many things: that I would never smile again, or love again, or even WANT to love again. I was fearful of life.

That panic didn't instantly transform into a hearty chuckle once the psych nurse popped in the funny video. But the climate of the room was noticeably different. Patients began to open up more, to share some of the details they had left out in the prior group therapy session.

Humor disengages fear because it changes your perspective both on the past and the present. A traumatic childhood episode loses its tight grip on your heart if you can place it into the "ridiculous" category of other stories from the past. With a playful perspective, you can remove yourself from a marital problem that has you debilitated with anxiety. Laughter forces a few steps--some much-needed distance-- between a situation and our reaction. We all would do well to follow the advice of Leo Buscaglia: "When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. And swing!"

2. Humor Comforts

Charlie Chaplin once said, "To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain and play with it." I suppose that's why some of the funniest people out there-Stephen Colbert, Robin Williams, Ben Stiller, Art Buchwald-have journeyed through periods of torment.

There is an unspoken message hidden within a chuckle that says this: "I promise, you'll get through this." Just like the comforting hug of your mom when you were three. In fact, New York City's Big Apple Circus has used humor to console sick children since 1986, when they started sending teams of clowns into hospital rooms with "rubber chicken soup" and other fun surprises. "Its for the children, yes," explains Jane Englebardt, deputy director of the circus, in an "American Fitness" article. "But it's also for the parents who, when they hear their children laugh for the first time in days or weeks, know everything's going to be O.K."

3. Humor Relaxes

Like any exercise, laughing relaxes you and works against the chronic stress that most Americans wear on their shoulders. Mehmet C. Oz, M.D., a heart surgeon at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, explains why this is so in a 2005 "Reader's Digest" article:

"When you push any engine, including your body, to its maximum, every once in a while it slips a gear. The ways

the body manifests that are: irregular heartbeats, high blood pressure, and increased sensitivity to pain. When people use humor, the autonomic nervous system just tones down a bit to take it off high gear, and that allows the heart to relax."

4. Humor Reduces Pain

Apparently the psych nurses at Laurel Regional Hospital weren't the only ones gathering patients around the TV to watch funny flicks or videos. Dr. Elias Shaya, chief of psychiatry at Good Samaritan Hospital in Baltimore also tries to instill the importance of laughter in his patients. Says Dr. Shaya: "I advocate finding ways to laugh by watching comedy or engaging in looking up jokes and sharing them."

"Humor rooms," which encourage people to use humor in their recovery from any kind of illness, are now available in some hospitals. And science backs these efforts. In a study published in the Journal of Holistic Nursing, humor very definitely seemed to diminish pain. Says Dave Traynor, M.Ed, director of health education at Natchaug Hospital in Mansfield Center, Connecticut in "American Fitness": "After surgery, patients were told one-liners prior to administration of potentially painful medication. The patients exposed to humor perceived less pain as compared to patients who didn't receive humor stimuli."

5. Humor Boosts the Immune System

Whenever I prick myself accidentally, I tell a joke, and my finger doesn't bleed! Well, not exactly. But if you are laid up in bed with a terrible strain of the flu that your four-year-old brought home from her play date yesterday, try to find an itsy-bitsy thread of humor in your situation, and you'll be back to work in no time. Or, better yet, dwell in the misery and stay away from the cubicle longer.

In 2006 researchers led by Lee Berk and Stanley A. Tan at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, California, found that two hormones-beta-endorphins (which alleviate depression) and human growth hormone (HGH, which helps with immunity) increased by 27 and 87 percent respectively when volunteers anticipated watching a

humorous video. Simply anticipating laughter boosted ealth-protecting hormones and chemicals.

In his "American Fitness" article, Dave Traynor explains a separate study at Arkansas Tech University, in which concentrations of immunoglobulin A were increased after 21 fifth graders participated in a humor program. (I'm nervous to hear about the details of that fifth-grade humor program, because my kids roar whenever you throw out a bathroom term.) Laughter was once again found to increase the ability to fight viruses and foreign cells.

6. Humor Reduces Stress

The same research team in Loma Linda, California, conducted a similar study recently to see if the anticipation of laughter that was shown to boost immune systems could also reduce the levels of three stress hormones: cortisol ("the stress hormone"), epinephrine (adrenaline), and dopac, a dopamine catabolite (brain chemical which helps produce epinephrine).

They studied 16 fasting males, who were assigned to either the control group or the experiment group (those anticipating a humorous event). Blood levels showed that the stress hormones were reduced 39, 70, and 38 percent respectively. Therefore, researchers suggest that anticipating a positive event can reduce detrimental stress hormones.

7. Humor Spreads Happiness

I remember playing the game of "Ha" as a young girl at my third-grade slumber party. I would lay my head of my friend's tummy, and she would lay her head on another friend's tummy, and so on. The first person would start the chain of laughs with a simple, "Ha!" The second person, "Ha Ha!" The third, "Ha Ha Ha," at which point everyone would break into hysterics. About absolutely nothing. The way a person's abdomen tightens and moves when she says "ha" makes you want to giggle.

My point: laughter is contagious. That's why there are 5,000 laughter clubs around the world-where people laugh for no reason at all. Say what? According to Dr. Shaya of Good Samaritan Hospital, "These clubs have exercises that teach how to move your face, how to laugh more intensely to involve the shoulders, then the belly." Laughing yoga classes are also popular today.

8. Humor Cultivates Optimism

Humor is like gratitude in that it nurtures optimism, and Dan Baker writes this in "What Happy People Know":"[Appreciation] is the first and most fundamental happiness tool...Research now shows it is physiologically impossible to be in a state of appreciation and a state of fear at the same time. Thus, appreciation is the antidote to fear."

So if humor can change a perspective on a painful memory of the past or a gnawing issue of the present into opportunities to laugh at the inherent craziness of life at times, then a person can better facilitate his own healing.

9. Humor Helps Communication

This is good marriage advice for anyone. But especially for the person prone to anxiety and depression. Most of Eric's and my fights end with one of us making a sarcastic remark that is met with a snicker, and then a yuk, and then a roar. Voila! The quarrel is magically resolved! Sort of.

Humor is a way to articulate those truths that are so difficult to express otherwise.

It's handy language for someone like myself that doesn't like to use big words, who is still fretting about her low verbal SAT scores because the college administrators didn't think they were funny. If only they had read this article!

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