I am sure that I am not alone in the fact that I have a large army of demons in my head. These demons are always talking to me and trying to advise me about how to react to different situations. For many years I listened and took their advice, these years were not exactly happy ones and I have now come to realize that these demons are not my friends but are actually my enemy.
I had many issues in my life that had a negative affect on my levels of self-esteem. The demons used these issues to get to me and to play their mind games. For this article, I am going to describe my stuttering demons and how I eventually destroyed them. The advice can be used for whatever type of demon you may have.
At the age of four, I developed a stutter which would continue to affect my speech for the next eighteen years of my life. I was aware of what I could and could not say and was also aware of the social situations in which I was more likely to stutter.
If I was asked a question by for example a friend, I would think of the answer but before I would have a chance to say it, a voice would appear. This voice or what I call my demons would advise me not to say that word and to substitute it for a different word.
If I was invited out to say a party, my demons would advise me not to go, as there would be a lot of people there that I did not know. They would remind me that I found it difficult talking to people which I did not know.
At one stage in my life, I decided that I wanted a career change as I was not happy in the role that I was in. My demons reminded me, that to find alternative employment meant going through the whole interview process again. They continued that I had always struggled to talk fluently at interviews, due to the pressure factor.
I would be able to speak quite well when I was drunk and this is when I would have the confidence to talk to the ladies. On several occasions a woman has given me their phone number and I would tell them that I would call them to arrange a night out. The next day though, when sober, the demons would remind me that making a phone call is what I find the hardest form of speech task and to simply not bother.
As previously stated, I used to listen to these demons and suffice it to say I did not go on my first date until I was eighteen years of age.
Things had to and were about to change. After reading many self-help books, I realised what I had been doing wrong. I should not be listening to these demons, in fact what I need to do is the opposite of what they tell me. Steve don't go to that party, OK then I will. Steve don't phone that lady up, OK I will, etc.
I am not trying to say that this is easy to do. I am happy to say that I have eradicated my speech demons and am now fluent, however I do still have demons in other areas of my life. There are not nearly as many as there have been in the past and I am slowly hopefully killing them all.
I treat it like a war. There are many battles and I have to say that I do not win them all. I talk to my demons all the time and especially when they win one of these type battles. I tell them that they may have won this particular battle but that I will win the overall war.
You may possibly think that I am a bit of a freak after reading this article. I frankly do not care, I am happier now than I have ever been.
Good luck in your quest to improve your own life.Article By
Stephen Hill
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I’ll admit that I’m a software developer and that I spend up to 9 hours a day in front of a computer terminal, but I don’t think that it necessarily precludes me from the arena of self improvement. In fact, I have been trying to find ways in helping me to attain my full potential for a while now. And I also use software development methodologies as an aid!
For millennia the human race has been striving to better itself. Individuals try to make sense of complex issues and try to figure out how to get to where they want to be. In order to truly be happy, we must take our fanciful notions and find the best way to implement steps to take these notions and turn them into a final end result. You need a structured approach or else your end results will remain a scattered collection of beautiful, but useless, dreams. For a rather short time in our history, individuals have been trying to write complex software programs; trying to keep the ‘end user’ happy by writing programs that will fulfil their dreams - at least for a little while. Whilst one of these efforts is profound and the other less so, they do share similar strategies.
Writing millions of lines that actually do anything can only be done by using a structured approach. One of the first steps is to break down the task into a series of manageable steps. In IT parlance, this is called modularization. Most things in life are not one solid entity, but rather a heterogeneous collection of parts. So, when we look at any task we can – and must – break it down into its constituent parts. If we fail to do this then the task at hand will be to big deal with as a whole. Programmers identify the modules and write functions; real people identify the areas they need to work on in their personal life and go about devising schemes to improve them, or eliminate them.
In recent years computer chips have become more and more powerful. These chips are the brain of any computer; it is inside these tiny components that all user instructions are processed. As these processors have become faster and cheaper - allowing computers to have more than one chip - programmers have made use of something called asynchronous processing. In ancient times (about 10 to 15 years ago) a computer program would have to execute (implement) each of its modules (little tasks) one by one. When it executed a function, the main program would have to wait until the function had finished its job, before the main program could call the next function and so on. This worked but the process was slow. Nowadays we don’t always have to do this. Instead we can call a function and not wait for it to finish before we call the next function. We call the function and let it do its business. We don’t sit around worrying about it. We let it get on with things; it will tell us if it has any problems. The main thing is we can get on to the next task and complete the whole process much quicker using asynchronous processing.
So, what’s asynchronous processing got to do with real life? Everything. Too many of us spend too much energy on things we shouldn’t. If you’ve read anything on time-management, leadership or why successful people are successful, you’ll have come across the word ‘delegation’. Successful people are the planners, not the implementers. They have the big picture inside their head and they don’t risk getting sidetracked. They delegate the smaller tasks to others. They delegate to someone (or something) and move on to the next task (which they will also probably delegate). They don’t stop and wait for the task to be complete; they’re too busy getting to where they want to be. Successful people run asynchronous systems.
The biggest step in software writing is probably ‘reiterative development methodology’. In the bad old days there was (and still is) a methodology called SSADM. I won’t bore you with the details, sufficed to say that this approach called for meticulous planning before any line of code was ever written. This approach can be successful but in too many cases it was a total disaster. Too much time was spent planning and not implementing. By the time the ‘plan’ was finalised, the goal posts had usually moved, so that by the time the coding was started the project was already hopelessly out-of-date. Aspirations as to what the software should do had changed. As a programmer, there is nothing more frustrating than to finish writing software that no likes or wants.
The reiterative approach allows software programmers to write a small, scaled down prototype. The ‘end user’ can take a look at it and make suggestion as to how it should be changed. The programmer then changes the application to what the user suggests and adds a ‘little more meat’ to the application. The ‘end user’ takes another look and makes more suggestions and the programmer makes the changes and adds yet more meat to the application. This cycle continues until the end user is happy with the application. The advantage with this approach is that the end user can constantly test out the application and if he doesn’t like where it’s going he can request that the application changes direction. Goal posts change so software needs to be flexible to accommodate this.
We all should use this reiterative approach: make changes to our lives, and then re-evaluate. Then make some more small changes and then re-evaluate. It can be a big mistake to invest all our energies into the ‘big plan’. If the big plan doesn’t get us to where we thought we wanted to be, we may not have the energy to make another ‘big plan’. Life and dreams are fluid and so should our approach be.Article By
Robin OBrien
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Be all you can be, but it's not always in the Army. I often see myself as somewhat contented with my life the way things are, but of course it's hard to think of anything else when where are real issues to be discussed.
Still I aspire for something deeper and more meaningful.
So we're all pelted with problems. Honestly it shouldn't even bother or even hinder us to becoming all we ought to be. Aspirations as kids should continue to live within us, even though it would be short-lived or as long as we could hold on to the dream. They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks… or can they?
1. What do I really want?
The question of the ages. So many things you want to do with your life and so little time to even go about during the day.
Find something that you are good at can help realize that small step towards improvement. Diligence is the key to know that it is worth it.
2. Should I really change?
Today's generation has taken another level of redefining 'self', or at least that's what the kids are saying. Having an army of teenage nieces and nephews has taught me that there are far worse things that they could have had than acne or maybe even promiscuity. So how does that fit into your lifestyle?
If history has taught us one thing, it's the life that we have gone through. Try to see if partying Seventies style wouldn't appeal to the younger generation, but dancing is part of partying. Watch them applaud after showing them how to really dance than break their bones in break-dancing.
3. What's the bright side in all of this?
With so much is happening around us there seem to be no room for even considering that light at the end of the tunnel. We can still see it as something positive without undergoing so much scrutiny. And if it's a train at the end of the tunnel, take it for a ride and see what makes the world go round!
4. Am I comfortable with what I'm doing?
There's always the easy way and the right way when it comes to deciding what goes with which shoes, or purse, shirt and whatnot. It doesn't take a genius to see yourself as someone unique, or else we'll all be equally the same in everything we do. Variety brings in very interesting and exciting questions to be experimented.
5. Have I done enough for myself?
Have you, or is there something more you want to do? Discontentment in every aspect can be dangerous in large doses, but in small amounts you'll be able to see and do stuff you could never imagine doing.
6. Am I happy at where I am today?
It's an unfair question so let it be an answer! You love being a good and loving mom or dad to your kids, then take it up a notch! Your kids will love you forever. The same goes with everyday life!
7. Am I appealing to the opposite sex?
So maybe I don't have an answer to that, but that doesn't mean I can't try it, though. Whether you shape-up, change the way you wear your clothes or hair, or even your attitude towards people, you should always remember it will always be for your own benefit.
8. How much could I have?
I suppose in this case there is no such things on having things too much or too little, but it's more on how badly you really need it. I'd like to have lots of money, no denying that, but the question is that how much are you willing to work for it?
9. What motivates me?
What motivates you? It's an answer you have to find out for yourself. There are so many things that can make everyone happy, but to choose one of the may be the hardest part. It's not like you can't have one serving of your favorite food in a buffet and that's it. Just try it piece by piece.
10. What Really Makes You Tick?
So? What really makes you tick? You can be just about anything you always wanted to be, but to realize that attaining something that may seem very difficult is already giving up before you even start that journey. Always remember, that self-improvement is not just about the physical or philosophical change you have to undergo, but it's something that you really want.Article By
Ted Cedar
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Safety and health constitute the essential requirements of an individual. Actually, many individuals agree that satisfying our safety and health requirements occur automatically to humans. With the help of leadership development programs on safety and health, we can make it possible to improve these inherent abilities and make use of them to provide us an added edge in life. By cultivating our intrinsic talents, we can develop into a more proficient person.
Instinct is akin to untamed strength. It is physically powerful but uncontrolled. Nevertheless, by channelizing the power we can employ it for a premeditated intention. This is the objective of the leadership training on safety and health. It gives teeth to a blunted weapon. Training helps to make a useful instrument become competent.
Leadership development programs on safety and health assist you in developing in many ways. Leadership development programs on safety and health make available more than just teaching you how to bind bandages correctly.
At first, leadership-training programs on safety and health instruct you to think by yourself. You require taking initiative to develop into a great leader. By means of leadership training programs on safety and health, you will enhance your abilities to take control where the rest of the others cannot. It will inculcate in you the potential to devise strategic plans even though nothing looks possible, since this is what constitutes initiative.
Leadership development programs on safety and health will in addition provide you with shrewdness to identify the strong points and shortcomings of a person. You will absorb information about the different wounds that people put up with day after day and this tends to make you conscious as to how lucky you actually are. You will be taught how one solitary slip up can cause a small injury to turn into a life and death question and this will illustrate to you just how tenuous our condition is. You will discover just to what extent a person can endure pain, but continue to survive through sheer determination.
Leadership development programs on safety and health introduces to you the qualities required to be a good leader. It discloses to you the significance of respect, particularly when another person’s life rests in your hand. In addition, it reveals to you the significance of cultivating good interpersonal relations, as you require another’s assistance when facing a crisis. This helps you to view individuals in a wholly new perspective.
A leadership development program on safety and health also assists you to discharge your responsibilities. It trains you on the possible ways of coping with stressful situations and prepares you to function under dangerous circumstances. In the end there is nothing far more nerve-racking than providing assistance to someone who is a casualty of an accident.
By means of programs on safety and health, you will become aware of the things needed to become an excellent leader. Besides, you will be capable of comprehending the ways in which to organize people in order to tend to another individual and will appreciate the value of life to people who may not survive longer.
Article By Abhishek Agarwal
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Would you like to pop in a CD and have a better quality of life, and even self improvement? There are three ways you can use music to accomplish this.
Music For Motivation
Put on energetic music, and even doing housework seems less like work. Using music to motivate yourself or change your mood is an area where you can trust your experience and experimentation. When you find the music that energizes you, relaxes you, or makes you happy, keep it ready for when you need it.
Music For Intelligence
Music creates neural pathways in your brain that stimulate creativity. Studies show that music trains the brain for higher forms of thinking. In one study, three-year-olds were split into two groups. The first had no special training in, or exposure to music. The second group studied piano and sang daily in chorus.
Eight months later the musical three-year-olds were much better at solving puzzles. They also scored 80% higher in spatial intelligence than the other group. There's also anectdotal evidence that listening to music, especially from Mozart's era, can help you study and learn better.
Hopefully there will be more research. In the meantime there's no reason not to do your own experimentation. I've heard that Stephen King writes with loud rock music playing, so the benefits of music may be according to your own tastes or brain-organization.
Music For Brainwave Entrainment
Want to listen to some music, and get smarter, or have instant easy meditation? There are products now that "entrain" your brainwaves, in order to put you in a meditative state. Music is embedded with beats and pulses that entrain your brain waves to a specific frequency. Put in the right CD or MP3 for your activity, and you get better brain function. Science? Partly.
Brain wave frequencies vary with mental state. Daydreaming and light meditation take place in the "Alpha" range of frequencies, for example. So if you listen to music containing beats at a frequency of 10 Hz you will generate more brainwaves at a 10 Hz frequency and enter a relaxed Alpha mental state. Do these things really work?
Yes. I've found two products that put me in a peaceful state unlike any other music or meditative practice. Studies will prove the effects (some have already), and disprove the wilder claims. Given my results, however, I wouldn't wait for more research. Many things work long before the scientific proof arrives.
If you are skeptical, you can wait for more evidence of the benefits of brainwave entrainment. Meanwhile, why not try classical music when you study, just to see if it helps? Experiment with music - Mozart isn't dangerous.
Article By Steve Gillman
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