It is Chinese New Year again and this time the year of the Tiger has started. Tonight I attended celebrations in Parramatta, a suburb of Sydney and saw some great fruit and vegetable carvings. Have a look yourself an take particular note of the pumpkin buddha. Enjoy!
It is February 2010 and I am guessing that by now some of your New Year’s resolutions are already starting to look shaky. We had a most interesting guest on our blog talk radio show last week, her name is Doris Helge, nicknamed the “Joy Coach”. She gave us some great insights about New Year’s resolutions. Here they are:
the word “resolution” implies that there is a problem
in an attempt to solve the problem we focus on the problem
intention and focus are pure power
what we focus on we perceive
by focusing on the problem we magnify it
we attract more of what we focus on – in this case more of the problem
The answer to this dilemma is NOT to just give up. Instead of looking for a “resolution” the way to go is to set a positive intention. One example might be the positive intention of getting fitter. Then start asking yourself a number of questions:
How can I have fun accomplishing this goal?
How can I enjoy getting to where I want to be?
How can I enjoy doing what I do?
Is this a stepping stone? (useful question when problems arise of obstacles start to appear)
What is the smallest step I can take right now to improve my situation and lead me to my goal?
What is the tiniest thing I can do to turn this around?
Say to yourself: I am starting right now to….and take some action, however tiny it might be
The questions above might seem really simple or even trivial, but they will lead to some great insights and solutions. The power is (as always) in applying this knowledge and taking action. It is fun to look at the theory but only by doing can we grow, learn and gain experience. The key is to take tiny steps, not to set so huge a goal that you are doomed to fail before you even start.
If you want more guidance from Doris, go and download her free ebooks from:
Doris’ own supply of joy springs from her own personal growth, so she’s a natural at assisting her clients as they transform emotional pain into peace and personal power. They discover happiness at work and relish the rich rewarding relationships they’ve been craving. They learn how to use chaos, uncertainty and “mistakes” to their advantage. Doris also provides unique Mastermind Groups that empower her clients
When I first came across the word “techno stress” during our conversation with Doris Helge my mind conjured up images of tight bodies, sore necks and shoulders, overload from loud music and simply having too much stimulation and being inundated by technology in general.
I also thought about the frustration that a non-tech person experiences when technical matters go wrong, the computer plays up and the feeling of powerlessness that goes with that experience.
After our discussion with Doris I came to see ”Techno Stress” in quite a different light. See for yourself whether you fit into some of the categories! Has your behaviour changed from being exposed to too much technology?
Watch out for:
being a personality type that is ambitious, high achieving, competitive
taking on far too much responsibility because that is just the way you are
mental fatigue
eyestrain, neck pain, shoulder pains, wrist problems, back problems
always expecting “yes-no” responses from people
becoming impatient when people elaborate or weigh up different points of view
becoming intolerant to long winded information or even stories
expecting everything to be instant
expecting others to perform on command (like a computer)
forgetting that others can see things that we can’t see and that reality is not black and white
expecting everyone to perform like a computer (usually without you even realising it)
I am sure the list could go on. One of the big “aha” moments for me was that technology and computers affect our behaviours and the way we interact with each other.
I suspect in the future, as more people spend more and more time staring at computer screens and interacting with them all day long, some of these behaviours might become acceptable or “mainstream”. I already can see the beginning of a chasm opening up between people who live in the cyberworld most of the time and those who don’t….
I have friends who are 6-15 years older than I am and all this technology is just too much for them. They have no computer and no internet and the only way we can communicate is by phone or meeting up in person. A phone call takes a lot longer than sending an email and so I am guilty of putting these phone calls off for a long time….
How to stay happy and joyful despite spending a lot of time in the cyberworld? How can you combat “Techno Stress”?
Consider the following points and take action!
nurture your inner needs
when irritated and abrupt create a buffer between computer time and interacting with a human “Mirror” (remember – what we dislike in others is something we need to work on ourselves within our own personality)
bond with others
look after your “real life” friends
spend quality time with others
take real breaks from the “screen” – even it is only 30 seconds at a time
limit the total time you spend with your computer
stretch and yawn
get out into nature
Make a start and implement at least one idea. Do you want to know more and get some of Doris’ free ebooks? Please go to:
We all know how important it is to take long, slow deep breaths. The mental and physical benefits are great and yet most of us get so caught up in our everyday life, the stress and busy-ness of it all, that our breathing becomes shallow and much more rapid than is good for us.
Proper breathing utilising all our lung capacity
Our performance gets optimised – be it while doing yoga poses or something else
Deep breathing energises us
Body control comes from breath control
Breath control comes from mind control
Mind control helps us in many different ways
When teaching my classes I find that a lot of my students have difficulties taking a full breath in and exhaling slowly and in a controlled manner. Often I observe people pulling their shoulders up to their neck when trying to use their lungs fully. Tension and tightness prevents the chest and ribs from moving the way they were intended to.
Jim Efthimiou has invented a very handy little gadget called the “breatheaeror” which takes the guess work out of learning to breathe deeply, effectively and to our full capacity. In case you are looking at the picture: it is the little gadget around his neck, not the large Olympic torch he is holding! Have a look at www.breatheaeror.com
We interviewed Jim on our blogtalk radio show – listen to the whole show to find out more. Jim has also made a very special offer for our listeners, if you buy one of the Breatheaerors together with his book entitled the “Energy Airflow Training Manual” you will get a free training T-shirt. Mention the code “symab” to get this special offer.
Listen to the show by clicking on the player below:
Jim used a great example in our talk – scuba diving. The more excited you are during your dive, the faster you breathe while under water and the quicker your tank empties and you have to come to the surface.
Now just for a moment imagine that the tank of oxygen is the life energy you have been given for your life here on earth – the faster you breathe the quicker it will be empty….
Slow your breath down and you will benefit in many different ways.
It takes a vision, lots of determination, energy, courage and hard work to start you very own magazine. It is not for the faint hearted but once you got your own publication up and running there are numerous rewards.
One person who took the plunge is Sirrka Wolke, founder and editor of “Tribe Magazine”. You can find it at www.tribemagazine.com.au
Sirrka says: ”I love success and abundance, I just didn’t want to sell-out to get it. There is no point following a path to riches if you are not able to enjoy the riches when you get there. Or the journey itself. Life doesn’t start when… It is now. So I figured I had better be doing something I love today! ”
Sounds like good, yogic advice to follow. We all should take note and take action and live accordingly!
Tribe Magazine is available for free online and offline. To find out more and to get past and current editions, go to: www.tribemagazine.com.au
Here are some of the rewards you get when you have your very own publication:
you control the content
you can state your own opinion, use your own ideas, nobody tells you what you can and can’t write
you don’t need to alter or “water down” your content to please anybody else
you can counter all the fear mongering and gloom and doom of the main stream press
you can educate your readers so they gain knowledge to make informed decisions
you are in a unique position to empower people
you control the advertising that appears in your magazine, especially on the children’s pages
you can get your own and other children/teenagers involved in writing and contributing and teach them valuable skills
you can get direct feedback from you readers and interact with them
you can build a community around your magazine
you can grow your content according to what your readers want and the feedback you receive
These are some of the points we covered in our interview today, if you would like to hear more, listen to the show here:
Sirrka has made a special offer to our listeners: You get 20% off your first lot of advertising in Tribe Magazine when you mention that you found Tribe Magazine through our show.
She has also a passion for children being involved in creating the magazine, so there is a special section devoted to children. Contact:
junioreditor (at) tribemagazine.com.au to find out more. (Replace (at) with @ and leave no spaces).
Tribe Magazine has a distribution of 30,000 copies and is distributed around Sydney and the Southern Highlands. It will keep growing and hopefully will go national in the not too distant future. Have a look at the online version I think you will find it interesting.
Sirrka is a woman of many talents and has also written a book “FitKid7 – 7 Simple Steps for a Fit and Healthy Child”. She also created a Cd for Children so they can go to sleep easily. (Adults love it too!). You can find both of them here: www.fitkid7.com
She also started a little service where she sends you an uplifting and motivating SMS daily. You can find more information at the Tribe Magazine website www.tribemagazine.com.au
Jim Efthimiou has invented a very handy little gadget called the “breatheaeror” which takes the guess work out of learning to breathe deeply, effectively and to our full capacity. In case you are looking at the picture: it is the little gadget around his neck, not the large Olympic torch he is holding! Have a look at 
It takes a vision, lots of determination, energy, courage and hard work to start you very own magazine. It is not for the faint hearted but once you got your own publication up and running there are numerous rewards.
