Monday, 28 March 2011
Thursday, 24 March 2011
Listening: The Foundation of Communication
Good speaking means good listening.
Listening is the #1 communication skill for leadership, selling, customer service, and even romance! The problem is, most of us don’t listen very well. We’re not trained to listen and we don’t even realize that listening is a skill. People have lost jobs, customers, employees, and relationships because of an inability to listen. How do you become a better listener?
Listening is the #1 communication skill for leadership, selling, customer service, and even romance! The problem is, most of us don’t listen very well. We’re not trained to listen and we don’t even realize that listening is a skill. People have lost jobs, customers, employees, and relationships because of an inability to listen. How do you become a better listener?
Listening Means Peace
Sheng jen is the Chinese word for wise person. It literally means “one who listens.”
Joanna Rogers Macy, a peace activist, said listening is “the most powerful tool in peacemaking and any other kind of social change work.” I wonder if parents and teachers had listened better, if the school shootings could have been averted.
Sheng jen is the Chinese word for wise person. It literally means “one who listens.”
Joanna Rogers Macy, a peace activist, said listening is “the most powerful tool in peacemaking and any other kind of social change work.” I wonder if parents and teachers had listened better, if the school shootings could have been averted.
Just Be
When I was a volunteer on a suicide crisis intervention line, we were taught to take all threats of suicide seriously. How often have we told young people, “You’re too young to be depressed.” Or “You’re just going through a phase.” Suicide is anger turned in against the self. How did we miss their anger? Why wasn’t it taken seriously? The mistake we make is to talk, advise, and debate instead of listening. We don’t need to have words of wisdom. We just have to lend an ear. Most times people can solve their own problems. They just want to be heard. Take the case of my friend. She had a problem she wanted to discuss. I listened as she thought through alternatives and how she felt. She came to a decision. She thanked me for helping her to decide. I never did anything. She did it all. I just listened. Sometimes all you have to do is be. Be there. Be present for another.
When I was a volunteer on a suicide crisis intervention line, we were taught to take all threats of suicide seriously. How often have we told young people, “You’re too young to be depressed.” Or “You’re just going through a phase.” Suicide is anger turned in against the self. How did we miss their anger? Why wasn’t it taken seriously? The mistake we make is to talk, advise, and debate instead of listening. We don’t need to have words of wisdom. We just have to lend an ear. Most times people can solve their own problems. They just want to be heard. Take the case of my friend. She had a problem she wanted to discuss. I listened as she thought through alternatives and how she felt. She came to a decision. She thanked me for helping her to decide. I never did anything. She did it all. I just listened. Sometimes all you have to do is be. Be there. Be present for another.
Soothing the Savage Beast
Did you know that talking actually reduces stress and anxiety? That’s right. Talking, confessing, getting it off your chest, will feel like a weight has been lifted. But if people are jumping in with their own opinions, the person never gets the opportunity to vent and the anxiety continues to build.
Let’s consider customers. Customers may be external people who pay us, or they may be people we serve internally— co-workers and other departments. When a customer is irate, why doesn’t the person immediately calm down when you present a solution? Because the customer is in an emotional state. Solutions or problem-solving are intellectual exercises. The person isn’t there yet. To calm the emotions, you must have a meeting of the minds. Acknowledge the feeling. “I can understand why you’re upset.” “Waiting on line for an hour must have been so frustrating.” Until you acknowledge the feeling, the conversation will go nowhere. People need to be heard. It’s a form of validation. Respecting the feeling doesn’t mean you agree with their opinion. It means you understand.
Did you know that talking actually reduces stress and anxiety? That’s right. Talking, confessing, getting it off your chest, will feel like a weight has been lifted. But if people are jumping in with their own opinions, the person never gets the opportunity to vent and the anxiety continues to build.
Let’s consider customers. Customers may be external people who pay us, or they may be people we serve internally— co-workers and other departments. When a customer is irate, why doesn’t the person immediately calm down when you present a solution? Because the customer is in an emotional state. Solutions or problem-solving are intellectual exercises. The person isn’t there yet. To calm the emotions, you must have a meeting of the minds. Acknowledge the feeling. “I can understand why you’re upset.” “Waiting on line for an hour must have been so frustrating.” Until you acknowledge the feeling, the conversation will go nowhere. People need to be heard. It’s a form of validation. Respecting the feeling doesn’t mean you agree with their opinion. It means you understand.
BodyTalk
Communication breaks down when people ignore what they see in favor of what they hear. The body doesn’t lie. Visual communication is more than half the message. When you hear a mixed message it’s because you are giving too much power to the spoken word. Watch the body language for the real message and tune into the tone of voice. People use words to conceal. What words conceal, the body will reveal. If a customer or co-worker says, “Sure, no problem” and doesn’t make eye contact, seems distracted and curt, don’t trust the message.
Listening is Spiritual
What are your fondest memories as a child? Is it the person who bought you expensive gifts or the person who told you stories? In our materialistic society, we think that providing for physical needs is the measure of success. We work two and three jobs to give children things “we never had.” In the frenzy, we may rob them of the riches we did have—time and attention. I’ve never heard anyone be accused of listening too much. When I was an adolescent, I could sound off on all sorts of topics to my Aunt Gloria and she would listen. We were never judged. So all the nieces and nephews confided in her.
Listening is a spiritual act. You must suspend you own ego in order to really listen to another. Listening is one of the greatest gifts we can give another. It lasts a lifetime in our hearts.
Communication breaks down when people ignore what they see in favor of what they hear. The body doesn’t lie. Visual communication is more than half the message. When you hear a mixed message it’s because you are giving too much power to the spoken word. Watch the body language for the real message and tune into the tone of voice. People use words to conceal. What words conceal, the body will reveal. If a customer or co-worker says, “Sure, no problem” and doesn’t make eye contact, seems distracted and curt, don’t trust the message.
Listening is Spiritual
What are your fondest memories as a child? Is it the person who bought you expensive gifts or the person who told you stories? In our materialistic society, we think that providing for physical needs is the measure of success. We work two and three jobs to give children things “we never had.” In the frenzy, we may rob them of the riches we did have—time and attention. I’ve never heard anyone be accused of listening too much. When I was an adolescent, I could sound off on all sorts of topics to my Aunt Gloria and she would listen. We were never judged. So all the nieces and nephews confided in her.
Listening is a spiritual act. You must suspend you own ego in order to really listen to another. Listening is one of the greatest gifts we can give another. It lasts a lifetime in our hearts.
Listening to Ourselves
While we’re busy trying to listen to others, how well do we listen to ourselves? How do we really feel about that customer, accepting that new job, going out with that friend? We don’t take enough time to listen to ourselves. What is your body telling you? According to Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life, the body gives off messages. Different parts of the body signify different issues that are going on in your life.
While we’re busy trying to listen to others, how well do we listen to ourselves? How do we really feel about that customer, accepting that new job, going out with that friend? We don’t take enough time to listen to ourselves. What is your body telling you? According to Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life, the body gives off messages. Different parts of the body signify different issues that are going on in your life.
Are you getting a lot of colds? You have too much going on. Slow down and smell the roses. Lower back pain? You may feel a lack of financial support. Money problems need to be addressed. To be a better listener of others, we need to listen to ourselves, our intuition. Meditation is a form of self-listening. Is your head cluttered with mind chatter? Is the TV going all the time? You can’t hear inner messages unless you have quiet time.
Tips for Better Listening
Tips for Better Listening
• Take all threats seriously. Listen when people speak about harming themselves or others.
• Be present. Let people talk. Talking relieves anxiety.
• Respect feelings. You may not agree but you can acknowledge their right to their feelings. Empathizing will calm an irate customer.
• Believe the visual message over the words. The great lie detector is the body. Tune into the non verbals and you will hear the real message.
• Trust your intuition. Take time to meditate. One day a week, sit under a tree during lunch, or go into a room by yourself and tune into your thoughts, and body. Quiet your mind. When you get a “gut feeling” don’t dismiss it.
• Listen to children. Spend time hearing their ideas, dreams, troubles, and success. They are our future.
Practice shen jen. Be a wise person. Listen.
• Be present. Let people talk. Talking relieves anxiety.
• Respect feelings. You may not agree but you can acknowledge their right to their feelings. Empathizing will calm an irate customer.
• Believe the visual message over the words. The great lie detector is the body. Tune into the non verbals and you will hear the real message.
• Trust your intuition. Take time to meditate. One day a week, sit under a tree during lunch, or go into a room by yourself and tune into your thoughts, and body. Quiet your mind. When you get a “gut feeling” don’t dismiss it.
• Listen to children. Spend time hearing their ideas, dreams, troubles, and success. They are our future.
Practice shen jen. Be a wise person. Listen.
Monday, 21 March 2011
10 Most Beautiful Caves Of the World
If we sit down to count the marvelous creations by God, humans would be the most prolific artifact originating from the supreme mind of the almighty. Why I say so is because designing every cell of our body to form a bigger organ and then coordination between each of them, the cycle of birth, growth and death, all come from the scientist sitting far away in the skies. And that’s not all, he is an architect of the most wonderful universe and the beauty that surrounds us in the form of sky,stars, the moon, high mountains, rivers, plants and so on. Amongst such amazing gifts of God are the deep dark and amazing caves, that have always fascinated the nature lovers with their unique splendor.
Harrison’s Cave:
There are some caves out there so breathtaking, so astounding in their wonder and their beauty that people take flights just to explore the natural architecture laid down for us to enjoy. So let me take you to a virtual tour of the most beautiful and astounding caves of the world who have existed since the dawn of civilization.
The Harrison’s cave are said to be one of the wonders of the world because of their magnificent beauty and amazingly formed unusual stalactites and stalagmites formations. Found in the Caribbean island Barbados, it’s the only cave in the world where running water is found along with color crystal-like formations. Formed by water erosion through the limestone rock, these caves are full of large chambers, lakes, streams and waterfalls. As you may see in the pictures, they are exquisite beyond imagination.
Phong Nha Cave:
Phong Nha Cave is the largest and most beautiful cave in Vietnam and is Unesco’s World Heritage site. The cave is 7729 m long, contains 14 grottos, with a 13,969 m-long Underground River filled with abundant stalactites and stalagmites. The river has widest and prettiest sand banks, containing many fascinating rock formations of the world.
Waitomo Glowworm Cave:
Located in North Island of New Zealand, the Waitomo Glowworm Cave owes its name partially to the vast population of glowworms, botanically called the Arachnocampa luminosa that are exclusively found in New Zealand, so definitely worth a visit if you’re ever on holiday there. Around the size of an average mosquito, the hanging larvas of these glowworms emit the bright light to attract pray towards themselves. What is interesting is that the hungry larvas are said to glow brighter than the one with stomach filled. The thousand glowing larvas give a panorama of heavens at night. The blue light is actually a chemical reaction that takes place inside a special capsule in its tail.The limestone formations in the caves are said to be formed when the region was still under the ocean about 30 million years ago.
Cave of the Crystals:
Cave of the Crystals is the home of the world’s largest known crystals in Chihuahua, Mexico. It is a horseshoe-shaped cavity in limestone rock which is 10 meters wide and 30 meters long and contains giant selenite crystals even 36 ft long, 4 m in diameter and 55 tons in weight. The Naica mountain was filled with high temperature anhydrite gypsum during the volcanic activity that took place million of years ago. The magma heated the underground water dissolving all minerals and on cooling down formed huge selanite gypsum crystals over years.
Ali Sadr Cave, Hamadan Iran:
Ali Sadr Cave is located about 100 kilometers north of Hamadan, western Iran and is one of the most beautiful caves on the world. The 70 million years old cave contains several large, deep lakes and the stalactites formations hanging from the roof of the cave in different colors doubles its beauty. Taking the shape of cauliflowers, needles and umbrellas, in vibrant colors of red, purple, brown, green and blue, these formations on the cave floor give an exotic view. It is said that Ali-Sadr is the only yachting cave with so clear water that we can see to a depth of 5 meters even in a dim light.
Eisriesenwelt Cave:
Eisriesenwelt is a natural limestone ice cave located in Werfen, Austria. Located within the Tennengebirga Mountains near Salzburg, the cave stretches over to 42 kms and is the largest ice cave in the world.
Lechuguilla Cave:
The fifth longest cave in the world, Lechuguilla Cave is located in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico. It is most famous for its unusual geology like the rare speleothems, rare formations with large amounts of gypsum and lemon-yellow sulfur deposits, and pristine condition. However access to the cave is limited only to the approved scientific researchers, survey and exploration teams rather than holiday makers!
Crystal Cave:
Sequoia National Park, in the U.S. state of California is home of 240 known caves. Crystal Cave is a marble cave which is park’s second-longest at over 3.4 miles. It is in the Giant Forest region, between the Ash Mountain entrance of the park and Giant Forest. The cave is a constant 9 °C (48 °F), and only accessible by guided tour.
Yellow Dragon Cave:
The Yellow Dragon Cave is situated on the rear hill of Xixialing in West Lake tourist zone in Hangzhou City.it is actually a yard with half-artificial and half natural scenes. It is simple but very elegant with different kinds of bamboo like the white bamboo, purple bamboo, green bamboo with golden dots, square bamboo and so on.
Velebit caves of Croatia:
The Velebit Mountain is the home of a number of caves named Lukina jama, Slovacka jama, Velebita and Meduza. Velebit caves have some of the world’s greatest subterranean spectacular vertical drops, sure to bring a shudder in the spine. At the foot of Lukina jama there are ponds and streams having the largest colonies of subterranean leeches.
Harrison’s Cave:
There are some caves out there so breathtaking, so astounding in their wonder and their beauty that people take flights just to explore the natural architecture laid down for us to enjoy. So let me take you to a virtual tour of the most beautiful and astounding caves of the world who have existed since the dawn of civilization.
The Harrison’s cave are said to be one of the wonders of the world because of their magnificent beauty and amazingly formed unusual stalactites and stalagmites formations. Found in the Caribbean island Barbados, it’s the only cave in the world where running water is found along with color crystal-like formations. Formed by water erosion through the limestone rock, these caves are full of large chambers, lakes, streams and waterfalls. As you may see in the pictures, they are exquisite beyond imagination.
Phong Nha Cave:
Phong Nha Cave is the largest and most beautiful cave in Vietnam and is Unesco’s World Heritage site. The cave is 7729 m long, contains 14 grottos, with a 13,969 m-long Underground River filled with abundant stalactites and stalagmites. The river has widest and prettiest sand banks, containing many fascinating rock formations of the world.
Waitomo Glowworm Cave:
Located in North Island of New Zealand, the Waitomo Glowworm Cave owes its name partially to the vast population of glowworms, botanically called the Arachnocampa luminosa that are exclusively found in New Zealand, so definitely worth a visit if you’re ever on holiday there. Around the size of an average mosquito, the hanging larvas of these glowworms emit the bright light to attract pray towards themselves. What is interesting is that the hungry larvas are said to glow brighter than the one with stomach filled. The thousand glowing larvas give a panorama of heavens at night. The blue light is actually a chemical reaction that takes place inside a special capsule in its tail.The limestone formations in the caves are said to be formed when the region was still under the ocean about 30 million years ago.
Cave of the Crystals:
Cave of the Crystals is the home of the world’s largest known crystals in Chihuahua, Mexico. It is a horseshoe-shaped cavity in limestone rock which is 10 meters wide and 30 meters long and contains giant selenite crystals even 36 ft long, 4 m in diameter and 55 tons in weight. The Naica mountain was filled with high temperature anhydrite gypsum during the volcanic activity that took place million of years ago. The magma heated the underground water dissolving all minerals and on cooling down formed huge selanite gypsum crystals over years.
Ali Sadr Cave, Hamadan Iran:
Ali Sadr Cave is located about 100 kilometers north of Hamadan, western Iran and is one of the most beautiful caves on the world. The 70 million years old cave contains several large, deep lakes and the stalactites formations hanging from the roof of the cave in different colors doubles its beauty. Taking the shape of cauliflowers, needles and umbrellas, in vibrant colors of red, purple, brown, green and blue, these formations on the cave floor give an exotic view. It is said that Ali-Sadr is the only yachting cave with so clear water that we can see to a depth of 5 meters even in a dim light.
Eisriesenwelt Cave:
Eisriesenwelt is a natural limestone ice cave located in Werfen, Austria. Located within the Tennengebirga Mountains near Salzburg, the cave stretches over to 42 kms and is the largest ice cave in the world.
Lechuguilla Cave:
The fifth longest cave in the world, Lechuguilla Cave is located in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico. It is most famous for its unusual geology like the rare speleothems, rare formations with large amounts of gypsum and lemon-yellow sulfur deposits, and pristine condition. However access to the cave is limited only to the approved scientific researchers, survey and exploration teams rather than holiday makers!
Crystal Cave:
Sequoia National Park, in the U.S. state of California is home of 240 known caves. Crystal Cave is a marble cave which is park’s second-longest at over 3.4 miles. It is in the Giant Forest region, between the Ash Mountain entrance of the park and Giant Forest. The cave is a constant 9 °C (48 °F), and only accessible by guided tour.
Yellow Dragon Cave:
The Yellow Dragon Cave is situated on the rear hill of Xixialing in West Lake tourist zone in Hangzhou City.it is actually a yard with half-artificial and half natural scenes. It is simple but very elegant with different kinds of bamboo like the white bamboo, purple bamboo, green bamboo with golden dots, square bamboo and so on.
Velebit caves of Croatia:
The Velebit Mountain is the home of a number of caves named Lukina jama, Slovacka jama, Velebita and Meduza. Velebit caves have some of the world’s greatest subterranean spectacular vertical drops, sure to bring a shudder in the spine. At the foot of Lukina jama there are ponds and streams having the largest colonies of subterranean leeches.
Saturday, 19 March 2011
Signs of Spring in Southern California
A day before the Groundhog tells the world about the coming of Spring, February first in Southern California shows blossoms everywhere.
It appears that our recent El Nino storms nourished the flowers and helped the insect population.
This flowering tree was filled with blooms, and quite a swarm of happy bees, which are not picture here.
There will be more Southern California floral photos here. This tree was spectacular, and covered in pink blossoms.
Enjoy an early taste of Spring fever if you live in Southern California. I think were in for a showy floral season with the help of all of this rain.
GARDENING TIP: Now is a good time to use the weed and feed sold at your local nursery. It'll boost your grass and fight back the weeds and crab grass that could take hold if you don't catch it now.
It appears that our recent El Nino storms nourished the flowers and helped the insect population.
This flowering tree was filled with blooms, and quite a swarm of happy bees, which are not picture here.
There will be more Southern California floral photos here. This tree was spectacular, and covered in pink blossoms.
Enjoy an early taste of Spring fever if you live in Southern California. I think were in for a showy floral season with the help of all of this rain.
GARDENING TIP: Now is a good time to use the weed and feed sold at your local nursery. It'll boost your grass and fight back the weeds and crab grass that could take hold if you don't catch it now.
“A beautiful thing is never perfect.” ~ Proverb
I went to the flower fields in Carlsbad , CA with another photographer.
If you're visiting Southern California in April or May, this is a wonderful place to explore. They plant the fields in rainbow rows of ranunculus.
The last section, nearest the entrance blooms last, just in time for Mother's Day.
They are located directly behind the Carlsbad Outlet mall, and adds another fun dimension to your trip there if you want to stay more than one day.
If you're visiting Southern California in April or May, this is a wonderful place to explore. They plant the fields in rainbow rows of ranunculus.
The last section, nearest the entrance blooms last, just in time for Mother's Day.
They are located directly behind the Carlsbad Outlet mall, and adds another fun dimension to your trip there if you want to stay more than one day.
Friday, 18 March 2011
What is Entertainment?
In a world where we find ourselves ever more overwhelmed by—and drawn to—bright images and flashing screens, it is worth asking a few questions about that most important of consumer goods: entertainment. What makes entertainment entertaining? Why do we need it, or do we? What is entertainment, anyway?
These are a few of the questions I set out to answer in a class I taught a year or so ago: Entertainment in America. And while we couldn’t quite come up with satisfactory answers, even after a semester of reading and discussion, I’d like to try to set down a few of the thoughts that came out of that course here. But I don’t want to shove the partial answers I’ve come to down your throat—that’s no fun for anybody. Rather, what I’ll do in the following is offer a list of questions that you might ask yourself, along with a few resources that might be worth looking at as you search for your own answers to these increasingly crucial questions. I’ll also note, from time to time, the conclusions I have tentatively reached regarding these questions.
Are you ready? Here goes…
What is entertainment? (Too obvious, but we’ll come back to it. If you keep this question in mind as you go down the list, you may find a definition beginning to come together. Try it out.) Even if you know it when you see it, does it bother you if you can’t come up with a good definition of what it actually is?
Is there such a thing as "only entertainment"?
Only Entertainment—Bad Religion
That’s Entertainment—The Jam
That’s Entertainment—Judy Garland
When you read the lyrics of The Jam’s and Bad Religion’s songs, and read about the history of the Judy Garland highlights film, what is your sense of the kind of material that makes for entertainment?
Who needs entertainment? What for? When you are entertained, what are you feeling? Read a Dilbert or Doonesbury comic strip, and try to record what happened inside of you while you were looking at the comic. Did you feel happier? A sense of release? The resolving of tension? Was that entertainment? Would you say that reading the comic strip was the same kind of experience as watching a television show? How? How not?
Are some kinds of entertainment better for you than others? Which kinds? Is it better to play internet poker or to watch a video? Try doing each for a little while and record your feelings. Was one more entertaining than the other? How? Why? Did one make you more aggressive? Less likely to do something productive in the world around you? Did either change the way you felt about yourself? How?
One of the things I was struck by while teaching this course was the way entertainment can work as a substitute for action. If I can identify with a character on TV—on a soap opera, for instance—then I get to feel all the feelings that character feels, without having to do the actions that result in those feelings. I get to feel jealous without having a cheating spouse, excited by the intrigue of adultery without being an adulterer, and intimate without ever actually talking to a living human being. In short, I get to feel. Some researchers believe that feelings are the way we human beings experience our world most fully, but is there a price to pay when we feel our emotions in a way that’s disconnected from the physical world around us?
That is, if we get to feel feelings without taking risks, do we start to lose our ability to risk emotion in the "real world"? I don’t have a definite answer to that for you, but I do have one for me. I’ve come to the conclusion that entertainment is—while maybe necessary for emotional and psychological health—definitely a dangerous substance. Like fire. So, for my part, I’ll still watch a film now and then. But I’ll also think afterwards about how watching that film, getting that emotional satisfaction, affects my ability to act in the real world. You might consider doing the same; it actually turns out to be pretty entertaining.
Monday, 14 March 2011
The Bleeding Tree (Dragon's Blood Tree)
The Dragon’s Blood tree (Dracaena Cinnabari) is a rare type of tree originating in Socotra archipelago, a small group of four islands in the Indian Ocean. Also known as the “Galápagos of the Indian Ocean,” the group of islands is host to a number of fascinating species.
Found in many surrounding areas, including mainland Yemen, the tree contains a marvelously red resin called Dragon’s Blood, which has been used for a variety of purposes throughout history. Starting in the first century AD, Dragon’s Blood was used as a dye and medicine to treat respiratory and gastrointestinal problems.
Later uses include a blood coagulant and treatments for diarrhea, fever, dysentery, ulcers in the mouth, throat, intestines and stomach, as well as an antiviral for respiratory viruses.
Dragon’s Blood also has a history in ritual magic and alchemy. Apparently Dragon’s Blood can increase the potency of neopagan witchcraft spells for protection, love, banishing, and sexuality.
Often touted as “red rock opium,” the resin is often sold as a narcotic, although its effects are mild at best when smoked.
Creative Ideas
Even during the breakfast, and while getting ready for work, and while nibble our favorites crackers and read a book, we can be very creative.Their creative ideas showed us the artist Kevin van AelstMatthew Albanese. Print fingers, spirals and the golden ratio, improvised antenna, crackers clocks … Life is full of improvisation!
The Most Dangerous Roads in the World
These are some of the most dangerous and breath taking roads of the world. Enjoy the pictures. I wish to travel on these roads.
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