Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett | The Writers Almanac with Garrison Keillor Wednesday May 30, 2012 Listen Download E-mail Share Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett Get some sleep. Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett, from How to be Perfect. © Coffee House Press, 2007. It was on this day in 1849 that Henry David Thoreau (books by this author) self-published A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, his first book. Thoreau had always been the introverted and studious one, while John was gregarious and fun-loving. Thoreau said: "To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts. And, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." It's the birthday of Harlem poet Countee Cullen (books by this author) , mostly likely born in New York City or Lexington, Kentucky, in 1903. Cullen was popular in the late '20s, and married the daughter of W.E.B.
The Mix: The Songs Of The Summer, 1962-2012 hide captionMariah Carey and Miguel's "#Beautiful" is one of the frontrunners for this year's Song of the Summer. Courtesy of the artist Mariah Carey and Miguel's "#Beautiful" is one of the frontrunners for this year's Song of the Summer. This audio is currently unavailable. People have funny ways of describing hit pop songs. NPR Music's Otis Hart breaks it down with All Things Considered host Audie Cornish. The songs that win the summer season spread so fast and far because they work. Billboard has compiled lists of the Top 10 charting Songs of the Summer since 1985, so figuring those was easy. While this mix will not play in chronological order, some interesting patterns pop up when you consider the songs listed below. Songs In This Mix:
Six Keys to Changing Almost Anything - Tony Schwartz by Tony Schwartz | 10:58 AM January 17, 2011 Change is hard. New Year’s resolutions almost always fail. But at The Energy Project, we have developed a way of making changes that has proved remarkably powerful and enduring, both in my own life and for the corporate clients to whom we teach it. Our method is grounded in the recognition that human being are creatures of habit. Fully 95 percent of our behaviors are habitual, or occur in response to a strong external stimulus. In 1911, the mathematician Alfred North Whitehead intuited what researchers would confirm nearly a century later. Most of us wildly overvalue our will and discipline. In order to make change that lasts, we must rely less on our prefrontal cortex, and more on co-opting the primitive parts of our brain in which habits are formed. Put simply, the more behaviors are ritualized and routinized — in the form of a deliberate practice — the less energy they require to launch, and the more they recur automatically 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Homemade Hair Treatments - At Home DIY Hair Treatments - Womans Day Eggs, yogurt and honey are, at first glance, all components of a tasty breakfast—but they also happen to be hair treatment ingredients, and affordable, all-natural ones at that. And they're not the only ones. Did you know, for instance, that the oils in avocados more closely resemble our own skin's oils than any product in the beauty aisle does? Or that the mild acidity in lemon is an effective—and gentler—alternative to chemical-laden products? Next time your locks need a lift, save money by using one of these kitchen fixes. For All Hair Types "The [raw] egg is really the best of all worlds," says Janice Cox, author of Natural Beauty at Home. To Use: For normal hair, use the entire egg to condition hair; use egg whites only to treat oily hair; use egg yolks only to moisturize dry, brittle hair, Cox says. Photo by Shutterstock. For Dull Hair To Use: Massage 1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt into damp hair and let sit for 20 minutes. For Itchy Scalp For Limp or Fine Hair For Frizzy Hair
11 Steps to Starting Over Today Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from Eric Pratum, the social marketing strategist at the nonprofit marketing agency, Grizzard Communications Group. Find him on his smart marketing blog or, even better, say hi on Twitter. Often, very often actually, I am asked how to find a new job, pick up a new skill, become location independent, or otherwise change a person’s life and lifestyle significantly. I’ve done it. Well, most of it, and no, I’m not a location independent travel blogger or some 20-something living on a shoestring budget. I have a nice “corporate” job that I love, helping clients that I really care about, working alongside people that have made an emotional and financial investment in me…and conversely I in them. To get here, I worked diligently to pick up new skills, meet people, and make it known to the world that I had something valuable to offer. For all of you that are looking for a change, here are 11 steps to starting over today: Resources Interested? Tweet Like
Mental Heuristics Page A heuristic is a "rule-of-thumb", advice that helps an AI program or human think and act more efficiently by directing thinking in an useful direction. Some of these heuristics are age-old wisdom, bordering on cliche, but most are actually helpful. If you want something done, do it yourself Comment: Obviously true, and doing it is usually very good for your self esteem. Never procrastinate anything you can do right now Comment: Very powerful. When you have several things you could be doing and don't know which to do: Just do any one of them! Comments: If you cannot decide between two or more possibilities, then there is a good chance that the differences don't matter. Always assume that you will succeed Comments: If you don't expect to succeed in an endeavor, then you will not do your best and will not notice possible solutions, while if you feel that you will eventually succeed you will concentrate all your power at the problem. If you can't find a solution, change the rules.
25 Great Motivational Quotes You've Never Heard Of inShare66 63Probably my most read post ever was the 20 Greatest Motivational Quotes of All Time. So much so that I expanded the post and wrote a book with the 50 greatest quotes in that is now sent free to my new newsletter subscribers. Sign up in the box on the left if you want a copy. As I was trawling some quotes the other day it struck me how many amazing ones there were that I’d never heard before and I thought it would be cool to collate the best for your perusal. Now of course I realize that you may well have heard of one or two, but I genuinely hadn’t (except one), so please don’t give me a hard time or point out that you knew 18 out of 20 and thus I’m a philistine and deserve a damn good thrashing. 1. Too many people when coming under attack crumble when instead they could view that attack/criticism as a way to grow and mature and come back stronger. 2. You know that, right? 3. This may almost seem anti-motivational, but it really isn’t. 3b. Yes, yes and thrice I say yes. 4. 5. 6.
The ten habits of remarkably charismatic people Some people instantly make us feel important. Some people instantly make us feel special. Some people light up a room just by walking in. We can't always define it, but some people have it: They're naturally charismatic. Unfortunately, natural charisma quickly loses its impact. Familiarity breeds, well, familiarity. But some people are remarkably charismatic: They build and maintain great relationships, consistently influence (in a good way) the people around them, consistently make people feel better about themselves--they're the kind of people everyone wants to be around...and wants to be. Fortunately we can, because being remarkably charismatic isn't about our level of success or our presentation skills or how we dress or the image we project--it's about what we do. Here are the 10 habits of remarkably charismatic people:1. Ask questions. That's all it takes to show the other person they're important. Then when you do speak, don't offer advice unless you're asked. Don't believe me? 2. 3.
16 Things I Wish They Had Taught Me in School I am 28 now. I don’t think about the past or regret things much these days. But sometimes I wish that I had known some of things I have learned over the last few years a bit earlier. That perhaps there had been a self-improvement class in school. And in some ways there probably was. Because some of these 16 things in this article a teacher probably spoke about in class. Some of it would probably not have stuck in my mind anyway. But I still think that taking a few hours from all those German language classes and use them for some personal development classes would have been a good idea. So here are 16 things I wish they had taught me in school (or I just would like to have known about earlier). 1. This is one of the best ways to make better use of your time. So a lot of what you do is probably not as useful or even necessary to do as you may think. You can just drop – or vastly decrease the time you spend on – a whole bunch of things. 2. You can do things quicker than you think. 3. 4. 5.
Flaxseeds - 20 Surprising Foods that Slow Down Your Workout While they are great for your body (and weight loss), flaxseeds are full of fiber, which could impede your workout efforts by causing gas and/or bloating, says Stella Metsovas, a clinical nutritionist and diet expert in Los Angeles, Calif. "You definitely want to limit the amount of fiber you take in 2 hours before and after exercising. In addition to flaxseeds, stay away from fiber supplements, bran, and high-fiber breads and opt for a mixture of protein and carbohydrates instead right before your workout." You can use your keyboard to see the next slide ( ← previous, → next) Could you be sabotaging your fitness success by eating any of these? Promo Subtitle Image Alt Text Title Text 20 Foods that Can Ruin Your Workout Media Root By Jessica Smith