Stop Making Plans: How Goal-Setting Limits Rather Than Begets Our Happiness and Success by Maria Popova “Uncertainty is where things happen. It is where the opportunities — for success, for happiness, for really living — are waiting.” “The job — as well as the plight, and the unexpected joy — of the artist is to embrace uncertainty, to be sharpened and honed by it,” Dani Shapiro wrote in her beautiful meditation on the perils of plans. There is hardly a better time than a month into a new year to behold the disconnect between our plans and our reality as even our most vigorously intended New Year’s resolutions crumble, despite all that we know about the psychology of self-control and the science of forming new habits. The solution, however, might not be to further tighten the grip with which we cling to our plans — rather, it’s to let go of plans altogether. What motivates our investment in goals and planning for the future, much of the time, isn’t any sober recognition of the virtues of preparation and looking ahead. Uncertainty is where things happen. Donating = Loving
Beating Creative Block: 10 Ways to Bring Back Creativity Articles, Resources April 17, 2013 As creative people, there are those days that our brain seems dead. No ideas coming in, run out of creative fuel while thinking of the deadliest deadlines of projects on going. Commonly known as creative block, many are faced with this kind of situation either caused by personal problems, mental block, emotional barrier, communication breakdown, etc. All people in the creative industry is experiencing it. If you are feeling stuck and doesn’t know where to start and what ideas to pitch in, then you are experiencing a creative block. Here are ten of the most common and effective ways of beating creative block (based from my personal experiences) to help you guys bring back that little spark of creativity you need! Before going to any other actions, try to assess yourself. - Why am I not motivated? - What is blocking my way to pitch in the idea I need? - I am missing something, what is it? Other (unecessary) questions that might arise: Nay! Get some sleep.
This isn’t a Bucket List; it’s a F**k-it List Life can end in an unpredictable instant. The degree of separation between people is estimated to be around 4.74. This is why we’ve all heard about the friend of a friend who was murdered, the local car accident with multiple fatalities or the fire which ended the lives of several we knew in our community. Most of us too have had something unexpectedly terrible happen to a loved one which resulted in their death. For example, there are terminal illnesses which spontaneously occur at many different ages and not just once a person has lived a full life, as well as accidents, rare diseases etc. It also feels all too common that we hear about a father who died whilst saving his son from drowning or an adult member of the public who perished whilst attempting to rescue another person from some life or death situation. These are both tragic and triumphant stories of human affairs. This article isn’t about fear or tragedy, but self-empowerment. Humans are naturally communal animals.
Books That Predicted The Future - Books George Orwell's famous 1984 described an all-seeing state capable of watching our every move - of course, this would be some far-off dystopian vision of the future, right? Well, old George's prediction is very much in evidence now, with security cameras, internet tracking and the like - and a surprising amount of other writers have been able to predict the future with unerring accuracy. This brilliant infographic, made by printerinks.com, shows various fictional predictions that ended up coming true, and the time that lapsed between forecast and reality - click on it to see a bigger version. Having said all this - if they were that good at predicting the future, they could have made a fortune on the football pools, so maybe they were using their talents in the wrong area. (Image: printerinks.com)
TicTrac is a Great Personal Data Aggregation Dashboard and Reporting Service The idea of aggregating data from disparate sources is a common issue on the internet and the search for doing this with social services was the impetus for this blog. I started to see this phenomenon become an issue for the quantified self community as more devices and services for tracking became available. I’ve seen several services come online to tackle the issue of aggregating quantified self related data over the last few years and list them here. One of the primary reasons for aggregating multiple sources of activity data is to provide a single view to more easily glean insights. A simple method to visualize this is by seeing multiple bar graphs plotted together based on these distinct data points. I’ve been searching for a personal dashboard that would allow me to import my personal data from both hardware devices and web services that I use. In my above dashboard you can see I have a variety of widgets showing various metrics.
30 trucs fascinants que j’ai appris en glandant sur le Net Quand j’étais petit, j’étais fan des « Le saviez-vous ? » dans le journal. On les trouvait souvent entre l’éphéméride et les mots croisés, placés là pour combler un trou dans la mise en page. On apprenait quelque chose et on était content. Puis Internet est arrivé, et les possibilités de découvrir des trucs fascinants se sont démultipliées. Aujourd’hui, la curiosité des internautes est constamment entretenue par des passionnés qui fouillent dans les notes de bas de page des notices Wikipedia, les forums de spécialistes ou encore les archives des journaux et institutions
13 techniques pour ne jamais abandonner La principale raison qui fait que les gens n’obtiennent pas ce qu’ils veulent, c’est qu’ils abandonnent trop tôt. Ca peut être n’importe quoi, mais souvent le schéma est le même : vous n’avez pas obtenu ce que vous vouliez alors vous avez abandonné. Arrêtez d’abandonner ! La persévérance est de ces qualités qui font la différence dans une vie. Une qualité, ce n’est pas de l’inné. Voilà quelques techniques pour apprendre à être persévérant et vous aider à ne pas baisser les bras à la prochaine difficulté. 1- Faites du sport Ca peut paraître surprenant comme premier conseil pour ne pas abandonner. Vous pouvez aussi faire une séance de musculation en salle. Vous avez là l’occasion de découvrir des limites physiques, de persévérer quand ça devient difficile. Qu’est-ce que vous attendez pour faire du sport ? 2- Inspirez-vous des exploits des autres Qu’est-ce que vous êtes capable de faire ? Vous êtes une personne parmi tant d’autres. Regardez quelqu’un faire quelque chose qui semble impossible.
Zoë Ryan's Book List As the field of design becomes ever more complex, reaching into increasingly diverse areas of practice, designers are arming themselves with an expanded toolbox of methodologies and approaches in an effort to create projects that defy traditional disciplinary boundaries and more effectively speak to contemporary modes of practice and ways of living. . . . View the complete text As the field of design becomes ever more complex, reaching into increasingly diverse areas of practice, designers are arming themselves with an expanded toolbox of methodologies and approaches in an effort to create projects that defy traditional disciplinary boundaries and more effectively speak to contemporary modes of practice and ways of living. Throughout my career, I have cast a wide net drawing on a range of experts, as well as insightful individuals and groups from a diversity of interrelated disciplines, in order to navigate and steer an evocative direction for exhibitions and publications.
Help Remedies: simple healthcare products for headaches, bodyaches, allergies, sleep issues, cuts and blisters 201 Ways to Arouse Your Creativity Arouse your creativity Electric flesh-arrows … traversing the body. A rainbow of color strikes the eyelids. A foam of music falls over the ears. Creativity is like sex. I know, I know. The people I speak of are writers. Below, I’ve exposed some of their secret tips, methods, and techniques. Now, lie back, relax and take pleasure in these 201 provocative ways to arouse your creativity. Great hacks from Merlin Mann of 43 Folders