flokkaLife

It’s hard to believe, but the last month of this year is upon us. Time is always the same and still somehow I find the years seem to go by faster. I wonder if this is because we live such full lives or that energy is spinning faster.

According to Numerology we are all preparing for a new Personal Year and at the same time it’s also of great importance to look back on this year and reflect how far you have come.

Are you satisfied with your results and input of this year?

Have you spent your own time and energy well?

As I look back on my year I can say with all honesty, that I have experienced a wonderful year that has reflected my Personal Year well. I personally feel well prepared for my next busy Personal Year 8.

I would like to finish the year with giving you twelve gifts to think of and reflect upon.

Be optimistic and you will notice that life will turn out all right.

1. Be passionate and do what you love in life.

2. Take time to read a book, knowledge gets you far in life.

3. Be the master of your own time and energy.

4. Be action orientated, and results will follow.

5. Your thoughts create your life, change your thoughts and it will change your life.

6. Take risks, the greater the risk the greater your potential for success in life.

7. Love unconditional and love forever, but mostly love yourself.

8. Be healthy, nurture yourself from the inside out.

9. Play, laugh, have fun and enjoy yourself.

10. Family and friends, treasure special memories of the past and today.

11. Happiness you will find deep down within.

The greatest gift to yourself is to know yourself, to love yourself, to understand your purpose in this life, to have lots of fun.

We are always in charge of our lives, even if we think we aren’t. Everything has a reason.

We learn and we always have a choice to make it better.

We are not perfect human beings. We make many mistakes. I don’t know anybody, who isn’t flawed somewhere. We are all on a journey. Try to accept yourself as you are, be kind to yourself.

When you struggle with addictions of any kind, depression, being overweight or being unemployed. Find a way to accept yourself, to just love yourself with all the imperfections you know that are part of you.

This month be generous to yourself and you will find that the things you most desire just happen. Let the feeling go of you not being worthy of love, success, fun and abundance.

The reason why we find it difficult at times to go forward is our fear of being humiliated.

We all have been humiliated at times in our life. Often we remember these times vividly. We identify it as our worst nightmare and we all had to live through it and make it part of our experience. It helped us to grow and made us a human being. We all have a fear of failing. When we make use of our common sense and understanding of others, then we deal with these issues in our lives the best.

I suggest for the last month of the year to create some joy in your life and with that a plan of action.

Let Christmas be a happy time for you, irrelevant of your circumstances.

By Nanny van den Oever.

If you wish to be guided next year let Numerology help you. Contact Nanny at www.bestlife.co.nz for more information.

Also contact Nanny if you are interested in:

• a public speaker on Numerology and/or Self-Empowerment
• Numerology/Tarot parties for birthdays, hen parties etc.
• Numerology personal gifts laminated or framed
• Numerology workshops -
• private readings on the telephone.

I discovered - and loved - the quirky character Sophie awhile ago - but just recently I came across the full story about her creator and was inspired even more.

Three years ago Joanna Alberti left her job to focus full-time on her philoSophie art. PhiloSophie’s are sketches of the quirky character Sophie, with fun thoughts on life that have evolved into inspirations on friendship, love, and confidence and appear on greeting cards, stationery, invitations, clothes, tote bags, make-up bags and lots more.

I loved this quote from Joanna - “It’s easy to look lucky after you’ve worked really hard to make it look effortless.”

For the full interview and story of how Joanna started her business go here.

Entrepreneur.com include the philosophie blog here and visit here to receive a weekly email cartoon.

GUEST POST BY HAYLEY NICHOLLS

When the weather is cold and wet, and you leave for work in the dark and return home in the dark, winter can seem like a drag. Worse still, we can sink into a dark place within ourselves and feel down and grumpy. But it doesn’t need to be this way, so lets look at ways to stay upbeat through the winter months.

Stay active

Its no secret that exercise makes us feel good. Those endorphins released while exercising are our best friends in winter. Find ways to exercise that don’t depend on good weather. It’s a good time to join a gym or swim in an indoor pool. Yoga or pilates is great for stretching out cold muscles and for flexibility for those of us who spend too much time at the computer. Perhaps winter is your chance to put on those football boots and get out there. Whatever works for you, be active.

Get outdoors

The sun does still shine through the winter, even behind the clouds and we need that Vitamin D more than ever. So wrap up, put on a hat and get outdoors. Even the busiest of us can get out for a half hour walk at lunchtime and you’ll feel so much better for it. I love going to the beach in the winter. The wild wind and fresh air is so invigorating.

Comfort food

Do you find it hard to eat a cold salad in the winter? That’s because you body needs warm foods to keep you firing. Comfort foods do not have to mean stodgy puddings or fatty fry ups. Nourish yourself with soups and slow cooked casseroles. Try warm foods for breakfast like porridge or hot milk on your cereals. It will set you up for the day and you’ll feel warm when you leave the house.

Be social

In this country our winters are not that severe that we need to be housebound yet people can tend to hibernate. We are social beings and even the most introverted need social contact. Replace the summer backyard BBQs with having friends over for dinner. If you love cooking that’s a great excuse to show off your skills. If you don’t, share a pizza. What matters is seeing your friends and family, having a few laughs and enjoying good company.

Take a mini break

The long stretch without public holidays can be a killer, so save some annual leave for a mid winter break. Escape to the Gold Coast or the pacific islands for some sunshine. If your budget won’t stretch to that, get away somewhere for a change of scenery and routine. There are great winter rates available on holiday homes which have all the comforts of home. Perhaps you have a friend or relative out of town you’ve been meaning to visit. Whatever you do, make the effort. We are creatures of habit but routine leads to boredom and occasionally we have to break out to feel alive.

Think positively

How we feel is a direct result of how we think. If you constantly grumble about what how much you hate winter and how bad the weather is, you will feel down in the dumps. Think of all the things you love about winter. Make a list to remind yourself and make sure you enjoy what it has to offer you. For me winter means a chance to get to the snow and ski. I love winter clothes and dressing in coats, hats and boots. I asked my family what they love. For my husband winter means the football season, that’s playing and watching. For Mum it’s a good book in front of a warm fire with the purring pet. For Dad it is growing winter veges and not having to mow the lawns every weekend!

Get creative

For many of us the creative part of our brain gets little exercise in our daily work. Winter is a great time to write, paint, play music, whatever is your thing. There’s no need to feel guilty about being inside in your free time in the winter. Take an evening class to learn something new like photography, languages, meditation, cooking, the possibilities are endless really. Dance and sing. What lifts your spirits and when was the last time you did it?

Winter certainly isn’t all doom and gloom. Make a commitment to yourself to get off the couch this winter and enjoy what is on offer. Share these tips with your family and start making plans.

Hayley Nicholls works with busy business owners who want to stress less, get more done and have more fun. She is a life coach, facilitator and public speaker and the owner of Energy Coaching based in Auckland, New Zealand. www.energycoach.co.nz

Scientific studies on what makes people truly and genuinely happy show the importance of three things; mental resilience, healthy relationships, and finding meaning in life.

The University of Auckland have created the CALM Website, (Computer Assisted Learning for the Mind) that features podcasts on all these topics to download or play.

Included are lots of practical techniques for managing stress and developing positive mind states through guided meditation - bliss! Sit back, close your eyes listen and relax!

More laughs with MaggieInc - about the life of a woman entrepreneur!

From the author Robert Loius Stevenson came the following ten tips for happiness.

1. Make up your mind to be happy.  Learn to find pleasure in simple things.

2. Make the best of your circumstances.  No one has everything and everyone has something of sorrow intermingled with the gladness of life. The trick is to make laughter out-weigh the tears.

3. Don’t take yourself to seriously.

4. You cant please everybody. Don’t let criticism hurt you.

5. Don’t let your neighbors set your standards. Be yourself.

6. Don’t borrow trouble.  Imaginary things are harder to bear than actual ones.

7. Since hate poisons the soul, do not cherish enmities or grudges.  Avoid people who make you unhappy.

8. Don’t spend your life brooding over sorrows or mistakes.  Don’t be one who never gets over things.

9. Do what you can for those less fortunate than yourself.

10. Keep busy at something. A busy person never has time to be unhappy. 

Originally published in Her Business magazine.
Copyright ©2008 flokka.com and ©2008 herbusiness.com. Article material on flokka.com is copyright. Reproduction in whole or in part without advance written permission is prohibited.

This is a moving story documenting a journey in southwestern China (near Tibet) to first find, then deliver a water buffalo to a poor family.  T2 shot and produced “4 Generations” in 2007 when Robert Thompson was living in China.

The video has reached millions, been front-paged on Digg, and was inspired and donated by author, educator, and founder of photo.net, Philip Greenspun.

The video is beautiful and touching and the comments on YouTube are worth a read as they point out “we (Westerners) should be paying attention to the global policies that keep these countries impoverished, and try to circumvent those. That would work a lot better than simply donating a bit of money to these people living in underdeveloped countries, after profiting off their work.”

You call working from home isolated??… the latest cartoon from MaggieInc.

 Maggie, Inc is the first cartoon strip to depict the joy, frustration, success and craziness of being a woman business owner. Meet Maggie and her cast …