The winners code

I have not written anything in my blog for sometime now. Was just browsing through some articles when i came across this eloquently written piece. One of those i think everybody should abide by for the benefit of the greater good. This is definitely meant to be shared. Written by GEORGE CHINGARANDE

Here it goes, The Monitor :: The winners code


"The winners code


A new way of looking at life

Loren Eiseley was a renowned American sociologist who published extensively. In his book The Star Thrower he recounted an incident that happened one day at the beach. He is the old wise man in the story retold below.Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?" The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean.""I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realise that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"
At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish and threw it towards the ocean. When the starfish hit the water he said to the man, "It made a difference for that one."

Never underestimate the magnitude Of your small actions
In the grand scheme of things or the larger picture as contemporary scholars prefer to call it, the actions of the young man were in vain. As the old man correctly pointed out, there were miles and miles of sandy beach and millions upon millions of starfish. The young man could not possibly make a difference. Could it be that there is another way of looking at the situation? Yes, there is.

Let us imagine for a while what happened to the one starfish that was thrown into the ocean and survived.Suppose that it found a partner or even partners of the opposite sex and meted and produced offspring. These offspring also found their partners and meted and also produced their offspring. And as the act of procreation continued from one starfish that survived courtesy of the kindness of the young man millions of other starfish were born.

Therefore, in the grand scheme of things the young man made a big difference to the kingdom of the starfish.We must always remember that our actions go far beyond the four walls of our offices and beyond the mere lives of the people we touch directly. In every seed there is a potential tree, and in every tree there is a forest. However, it is only a discerning person who can realise that there is a forest in every seed. Similarly in every child there is a potential family and in that family there is a tribe or even a nation of people. An act of kindness, a word of encouragement or a helping hand given to the child is actually service rendered to a whole nation of people. In much the same way a brutalisation or shabby treatment of one child is also an act of injustice against a whole nation.
There are many needs and there are many needy people. Practically we cannot individually make a difference in all their lives. It is easy to get discouraged and be cynical. However, it is time to adopt a new perspective. We all need eyes that can see beyond the present, and therefore, spur us to act in a manner that makes a difference in one little life knowing that in the process we may be touching many more lives. We all have opportunities to do this with our customers, subordinates, superiors, friends and different other interlocutors.

Baby steps are the beginning of giant steps
The young man was faced by a colossal problem. In one way or another, at one time or another, all of us will find ourselves faced with mammoth challenges. The millions of starfish that needed help was a staggering challenge for the young man.
He could easily have been paralysed and demoralised if he had looked at the challenge at hand in its stark enormity. The young man saw that the big challenge was made up of numerous small challenges. He could be overwhelmed by the big challenge, but the smaller challenge of one starfish at a time was no match to him. By a mile a journey can be staggering, but by a centimetre and a cinch that same journey becomes manageable.

We all need this ability to chunk down our challenges. For most of us the problem is that we are chunking up our challenges thereby demoralising us and paralysing us into inaction. Challenges have a way of exaggerating themselves, but the young man teaches us that if treat every little chunk different and separately they are actually manageable. As long as we have opportunity, let us do something about our lives on a daily basis no matter how infinitesimally small those actions may appear to be in the eyes of our critics.

You will pass this way only once, if you have an opportunity to teach, then teach with grace. If you have an opportunity to help, then render help with humility. If you have an opportunity to do evil, then refrain from doing so because your act of self-restraint may turn out to be benevolence that saves a nation. In life there are no small actions, but there are many small-minded critics. Let them not deter you."GEORGE CHINGARAND

Out for a bit :)

Lessons from Kids

Hey once again! Been a while you and me had a small talk. I must say I have always had an admiration for kids, babies, children call them whatever but not adolescents. I have always been amazed by how they tend to live in the moment without worrying about the future or the past. Simply being. This something that is so hard to achieve for adults, from students to those working, the unemployed, everybody! I have just revisited one of my favorite pieces of writing by Anthony Fernando; it's called Dare to Dream Vol-1. Great motivational writer and speaker. Enough said! I will go on to highlight some of the differences he outlined between adults and kids which I think each and every one of us needs to acknowledge and think about. Someone once said people do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing. He talks of kids being one of the greatest coaches we will ever have. Take time to observe them. There is a lot to be learnt from these tiny coaches.

About Kids	About Adults
Kids can quickly change their emotions from sad to happy at an instant. They don't spend too much time worrying about the future or the past.	On the other hand adults carry a lot of emotional baggage from past experiences and fear for the future. No wonder we can't experience and enjoy life the way it is.
During kids’ classes or anything they have to learn, they acknowledge their mistakes, laugh at them and move on. They give themselves time to learn.	Adults get frustrated at every mistake they make and beat themselves down for it. Adults don't find valuable lessons in the mistakes they make. They just see imperfection in them.
Children believe in the beauty of their dreams naturally. This has always been a secret ingredient to success in life. It is their belief that makes them who they want to be.	As adults we grow and forget about the power and the beauty of our dreams. We have grown more faithless in our dreams therefore losing the most basic ingredient to success in life.
Laughing and giggling, I call it their specialty. They will stop to laugh at funny incidents life gives them.	As we grow old we get more serious and bury down the sense of fun while at it. Anthony says it's in the name of 'maturity'. I believe him.
I love you! The easiest phrase. They say this more times and with easy and trueness to the statement. They don't think about anything else, they just express that affection. Period!	Adults.... They deeply meditate on these words before they can express them out. They think about the consequences of saying so. Both past and future.
Kids are like us too. They get angry and said but that only lasts a moment. They forgive quickly and completely. They rarely carry grudges for a long time.	"I will forgive, but I may never forget". Typical of adults. They carry lifelong grudges that in turn become emotional baggage.
Sense of wonder. Kids curious little creatures that are always wondering about the things around them. They are amazed by nature and its mysteries. They ponder, they wonder. How, why, when, who. The answers always amaze them.	Adults have lost their sense of wander and amazement. An elephant at the zoo will usually just be an elephant to the adults. No wonder of nature's mysteries such as why it has a long nose or notice it has three toes (just guessing about the number of toes.

I have to end here. I hear some kids laughing out in the park. Think I will go and play invisible. Some valuable lessons to be learnt.

Catch ya later :)

Values

Values

We live in a very fast world. Everything has to be just in time. We want up to the minute updates about anything and everything. Our friends, this weekend happenings, family, academic and professional obligations. The need for us to constantly stay connected with the rest of the world. The need to be in many places at once. That’s just a lot sometimes. As a result we get 'lost' in the world and that which is important to make the better person we truly want to be. We lose sight our goals both long term and short term. This are eroded by the need for us to satisfy our short term pleasures with disregard to the future. This later hurts our long term goals.

I was feeling a little off and down before I revisited this excerpt from " Inspiration and Motivation to go" by David Leonhardt.

"A rooster was scratching the ground in search of some good grain to eat, when he happened upon a sparkling jewel. The jewel was a joy to behold, but the rooster was unsure what to do with it.

"What a beauty you are, and surely you are of great value," the rooster said to the jewel. "But I would happily opt for a single grain of delicious barley than all the jewels in the world."

This fable, adapted from Aesop, reminds us to place our own personal value on things. A high price tag does not bring happiness. A bright shine does not bring joy. Usefulness, sentiment, personal meanings are all more important.

Do the things that bring you happiness. Spend time with people who make you complete. Surround yourself with things that bring you comfort, and you will create daily happiness for yourself. " David Leonhardt,

Home Advantage

Home Advantage

"Courage is the power to let go of the familiar."
Raymond Lindquist”

Having been back home in the country for sometime now I started to observe or should I say notice the home advantage. Was with who I would like to call my uncles but are more like my friends now.. in the hood they are known as ‘marasta’ in the ‘kasi’. I have stayed in Asia for over 5 years now since I was in my early 20’s. Meaning I have developed most of my adult character outside my family. This has in turn made me a different person from the one I would be should I have grown with my family.

Home sometimes is does not refer to the physical structure itself but where the heart is. It refers to the people moistly your own blood and the surrounding you have grown around. These are all familiar territories and faces which I find enough to keep me distracted from all my worries if they are any. At that same time I noticed something has to bother me enough to act on it. However here at home my heart is all settled at home and I seem to worry less about all my responsibilities. I do think about the consequences of not meeting certain obligations while remembering that am at home and I have a place and someone to fall back on. Back to my boys..Just a thought, everybody is home which is good because I do miss the comfort myself. At that same time I came back to think about how lenient they were letting themselves be on their inner characters. I am not saying that they are not hard workers. They are my blood. Am just saying that being at home destroys the independent character inside of them that so wants to fly to new horizons. This ends up in people being less hard working and losing touch with their ambition to grow. Just as birds that have grown do not know that they can fly. They just fly out without fear. Which some would like to call the leap of faith. We are too comfortable enough to not want to think outside our realities and take the leap of faith.

Home being home this is where I have to drop the pen. It’s been a while.

Mother Nature is Inviting

“The sound of nature is very real. It surrounds you….You can feel it”

-Ted Trueblood

Just started my holiday and I must say am starting to feel the holiday blues kick in. Spending all day lying on your back, music blaring on repeat on your pc. Hours pass by and trust me there seem to be plenty of hours to even worry about each passing hour. Being the not “so wise student”, money not well spent is usually hard to come by and well yeah, that’s how my holiday is going to be. But hey…wait a minute, let me walk you through this short path here. At times I recommend you ask yourself the “what if” questions. What if I did this, what if I didn’t do that? Why should you do something? Especially the obvious. Try the “why not” and seem what kind of assumptions you can come up with.

It was almost dawn and the story begins…

I know how it feels, he he... Like am talking to myself here. Ok I was spending most of my days indoors, idling around in the house and my body felt so heavy like it was not even mine. Well, when you think about a refreshing shower and how an easy late afternoon walk would do you some good, you actually feel it’s the right thing to do. But you are so demoralized and demotivated so much that you just fall back on the couch and you are back to day dreaming or whatever it is you like. You are just so consumed in your own world, busy with not usually actually work and of course too much thinking you are oblivious to the flowers blooming at your feet. Stop and smell the roses! You can’t even imagine for a minute how the weather may feel like outside. At times it is really great. Take a peek outside your window. Back to the matter at hand…I forcefully and unwillingly dragged my lazy body into the shower. Yep, that must have been one of the coldest showers I had taken in a long time (not by choice). I hadn’t fully immersed myself but stuck out my hand to feel the water temperature and I could help it but a thought hit my mind: “maybe it’s a little too early to take a shower”. But is it? Is it ever too early?

It is only with a calm mind that your thoughts are clear and undistorted. It is only with a clear mind that your senses can perceive how the environment around you can be awesome and full of the wonders of nature for all to enjoy.

For example on certain days I find myself missing the smell of rain after prolonged periods of dry season. This happens all the time and when it finally rains we don’t enjoy that feeling we have been yearning for. The noise of rainfall beating down on the ground before disappearing into the soil and bringing with it signs of new life. Isn’t spring just beautiful? But If only I could learn how to shut down all the thoughts and noises in my head and just be. Open to the mysteries of nature around me.

Sometimes when we are driving on the open road, I mean who doesn’t love the open roads? Almost everybody I know does. Isn’t the atmosphere just different? How about driving in the country side with the windows open? How about an evening cruise in the quieter uncongested suburbs? These are all totally refreshing and there is something about nature that is so beautiful it cannot be seen by the naked eye, but it can be experienced in different ways. Let’s imagine you are taking a walk along the beach around evening time when the temperatures are much cooler. I really enjoy feeling of fine sand in my toes, the cooling and calming of the ocean waves as they rhythmically sway back and forth up the beach. I’m sure you can smell the moist ocean breeze by now. Aren’t you missing out? The free luxuries that Mother Nature is inviting us to enjoy.

I’m quite sure everybody has a park somewhere in the neighborhood. A tree with a cool shade somewhere in the yard. How often do you take time out to just sit there and do absolutely nothing? Ever noticed how your senses are so sharp to the stimuli around you. Crackling sound of wood, chirping insects, leaves ruffling behind you. All this sounds have been proven to have a calming and soothing effect on your overall being. Not exactly crackling wood and leaves ruffling behind you…but we can think about the singing birds. This might not work for some people but it works for most. You can find whatever it is that really gets you calm about nature and try to enjoy it every now and then. At least everybody I know does enjoy sitting under a cool shady on an easy Saturday afternoon.

Oh, I almost forgot, between my neighborhood and my university there is a small forest that I have to go through on this path. I used this path everyday but then at most of times I will be so late for class that my mind is so far ahead of me thinking about what I maybe me missing out while I’m away. I always can’t help but notice how the air is so cool and fresh. It’s really quite at 0730 in the morning. It’s far away from all the sounds of industrialization and the sounds of nature are so outstanding my friend. It’s very real and wonderfully recharges you. At the same time am thinking why not wake up early even on free days to do some early morning activities. How about exercise? Jogging maybe? It can get a little bit tough getting out of your bed in the morning especially after those long nights of fun with the buddies. Well that’s the price to pay but believe me that’s as far as it goes. Once you have gotten past leaving your bed. Everything is a slide. Remember… Early to bed, early to rise.

We take mother nature for granted so much that it is only when we have been deprived of her that we miss the rain soaking into our clothes after a hot day, or the sunning hitting and warming up your face during a cold winter morning. Ever noticed how fresh the air just outside the train is all of a sudden the best thing that can happen to you when you are cramped in an overcrowded train car like sardines when you are travelling at peak hours? When the train doors slides open you step out and it feels like you are finally home where human beings breathe easy.

Well then I have to stop here. It has finally stopped raining. Is it time for some “hand-to-hand” with someone in the park?? Sounds good!

See you on the other side!

Gaining Back The Momentum

Start it now or a year later on this day you will be regretting and wondering why the h*%l you never did.’ Unknown Author

Hey buddy! I guess by now you must be wondering why all no posts all this time. Let’s just say I caught the bug. The “life is a drag bug.”

There I was again. It was one of those hopeless Saturday afternoon. Yup, my mid-month crisis couldn’t get any worse than that besides the ever echoing, unpleasant and unmet responsibilities which have now turned into what I would refer to as stress. Stress my friend, well that’s how I describe it in the simplest terms I can come up with. Here it goes; stress is the result of not meeting responsibilities or obligations which you at an earlier time promised yourself you were going to take care of. To add salt to the injury you can’t stop thinking of the consequences of doing nothing about them. Ok, back to the story now, life seemed a drag and time was moving really slow. Not that I wanted it to move any faster. I was anxious, a little beaten down, at unease, procrastinating on everything so much that I procrastinate on having some fun for myself. Going out to hang out with some buddies, playing some team sports or anything social was not appealing at all. This is where some of the best juices in life are found.

It’s at times like this when it feels as if nothing matters besides that voice that keeps nagging me to do something with my time. But I can’t seem to get exactly what it is and why should I be doing it. I can’t seem to get anywhere. I do not have any scientific explanation to what am about to share with you besides that the world has its ways of turning things around. Of course with human input required too. At times you don’t really have to start planning and mapping things out in your head before you start to undertake each task or whatever it is that you want to do to get the ball moving. I’m going to give you an example by referring to your first driving experience as a leaner that is. How did u get that car moving? Was there any major mental preparation?? No!! What exactly would you visualise if you have never been in the driver’s seat? It was just a matter of getting yourself together and there you were in the driving the driver seat having trouble in getting all systems to run in unison. Changing gears, clutch, brakes, keeping your eyes on the road and such. All that trouble every learner goes through. It’s only until the point where you get in the car seat that the learning process begins. You know what happens when you floor the gas, jam the breaks and so forth. In no time wala! You my friends are a driver. Imagine you waited until you thought you were ready for the thrill and scare.

So as the hours dragged on, I remembered I had promised some old friends I would pay them a friendly visit at the basketball court. Fitness freaks! At the basketball court, everybody was running about chasing the rubber ball and throwing it around like they were still in primary school. The weather was perfect. A cool evening breeze was blowing the trees back and forth and in no time I found myself walking about bouncing the ball with one hand. Took one shot at the hoop and in no time I found myself having some serious fun scoring myself some hoops. I just couldn’t stop myself after that.

Came back home and wow! What a feeling! That’s a good feeling, one down, more to go. I think I just did my exercise and I was feeling a little more refreshed and energetic. All systems running smoothly. This was the feeling. A feeling of having done something that felt even more rewarding and motivating me to do even some more.

Soon I was off the shower and miraculously back on my guitar practice session with so much enthusiasm. Good begets good. And therefore good actions beget more good actions and of course the rewards soon follow. At 1200 am the guitar didn’t seem like the best thing to work on considering there was my favourite sitcom on TV and the bed looked even more attractive than ever. However this time around I picked up the guitar like a real inspired learner and practice was in session. I was even happier at myself for having ruled the practice out of my to-do list for the day. As late as it was I still felt like more could be extracted from me and so I penned this piece writing down as time was just perfect. The world dead asleep.

Well my friend, all am saying is every now and then we will always have different kinds of obstacles thrown our way. At times these obstacles make it seem impossible to move towards achieving our goals. You try your best hard but you don’t seem to be making any progress, slowed down, circumstances getting the best of you and of course being able to come up with some really creative excuses of why we can’t achieve anything. This is a very common practice amongst a lot of us. Let’s kick the habit. Well, I will tell you this GO OUT! Go out there, DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT! Try a new sport, make some new friends and engage yourself in activities that you usually don’t do. That should recharge your batteries with some new life ready to once again tackle anything that comes your way.

At the times that you feel at your best it’s important to reflect on your long term goals to keep you in check and align your activities towards reaching your ultimate goal. Thinking of your goals will remind you of what you should do with your time to get closer to your dreams. If this doesn’t work you can simply switch to focusing on those smaller tasks that can be achieved at ease. It is achieving these smaller tasks that you realise how closer you could actually get in realising your dreams. It is also in doing these smaller tasks that you get to evaluate your progress, identify weaknesses and strength and be in a better position to make informed decisions on constant improvement.

Well then, what are you waiting for? Go and do what you have to do in order to be what you want to be!

See you on the other side.

The Value of Friendship

“A cheerful friend is like a sunny day.” Unknown Author

My mind must have been going crazy as I was laid back on the couch watching the fan spinning lazily to the summer heat. So many things were going through my mind all at once. Bills that have to be paid, exams that are closing in daily as if they were a few hours left. Yet it was a weekend. A time to relax and reflect back on past week enjoying the feeling of having accomplished work. This was not the case with me on this particular day. Who would have guessed an Impromptu dance might just be in the making. That must have been one of the worst dance moves I have seen in all my years. You could imagine Rambo or that good machine from Terminator, Judgment day the movie dancing to some soul jams. Hilarious right? A good friend of mine during one of my weekend visits just started dancing around the room to some Anthony Hamilton in the background. That must have been the most annoying thing besides that it didn’t qualify to be called a dance. “Dude what the hell was that all about?” Nevertheless I found myself back in the high school spirits laughing and cheering on like I still lived under my parents’ roof. The atmosphere was much lighter and cheerful. Pheeeeew!! This temporary escapade took my mind off things for a while. They have not been solved people, they are still there. Just that this time I tackle them on a positive notes and in good spirits. My face still has traces of a fully blown laugh and my eyes are still teary as I couldn’t get myself to stop. I mean wow! I definitely don’t feel like this an hour earlier. I’m a new man. I got friends to cheer me up when am feeling down. Always do likewise yourself.

At certain times you feel so alone. So by yourself. Nothing like lonely though. You are surrounded by people and yet you still feel like an alien in your own world. Despite this you find it better to keep it that way because there could be some things that are bothering you or just not in the mood for stuff. Most of the time you tend to let you and your friends drift away from each other. You prefer to be alone as it feels like nobody really understands and therefore they do not care. If they do not understand does it mean they don’t care?? Do you really think this qualifies to actually ask yourselves questions about the loyalty of your relationship over the years? My guess is they actually do care. They have been with you through these years. Think about all the times you have heard with your mates doing nothing serious besides engaging yourselves into some serious “joke and laugh”. Nothing else matters at those times. It’s only when you are part of a happy team that you can sense your purpose in life and be in a position to do some good moves with your life. It doesn’t have to be serious all the time. Try team activities.

One of those afternoons whilst having lunch I got a call and the details, spare me, am not even in the mood to discuss that yet... But who would have guessed that I would meet one of my friends who doesn’t talk so much as compared to how much I talk. At first I thought, “This really is bad news. I need some quite. I need to go somewhere far from anybody and everything. Go to a place I don’t care.” After the usual protocols of “hi, how are you thing”, we got to some “so what’s the plan thing.” It all started with “Oh man, this must be the worst day of my life….” I went on and on about what the matter and I couldn’t get myself to stop. I noticed I was saying an awful lot of things in such a short time. At the same time I was wondering why does this person have to be hearing all this which doesn’t concern them and what exactly can they do about it? I was wrong, he is my friend and he deserves the verbal abuse. What a relief! My problem has not been solved but a burden feels like it has been taken from me. Everything went on that day like there had never been a problem. A good friend brings back the laughter in you. They irritate you so much at times you don’t have time to worry about your little problems. They add salt to the injury until there’s no point in whining about it. It’s at times that they are away that we miss those little things and how much they were a part of our lives.

Sometimes there is not really much to do but you can just sit there and talk about everything and anything. Disguise what really bothering you into funny little remarks and comments every now and then. Whichever way it is as relieving as letting it out as it is. Point is you need a friend.

Once again its time i leave you to ponder on that!

Catch you on the other side!