Blog
Do Manners Still Matter Today?
Recently a man in his twenties asked me how he could improve his social skills. He was poorly dressed, quite abrupt and didn’t thank me for my advice about practising his conversational skills and taking an interest in other people. After speaking to him it dawned on me that he needed to improve his manners
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How to Maintain Work-Life Balance
How to Maintain Work-Life Balance Australians overall are working less hours than ever before but that is not because they have achieved work-life balance. It is only because more and more people are working part-time not full time. Last year workers averaged 34 hours and 40 minutes a week. Today around one in three employees
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How to Enjoy Your Work Life
Having worked as a youth counsellor, pastor and motivational speaker I’ve gotten to know a lot of people over the years and I’ve heard a great deal about people’s experiences at work. I’m friends with a woman in her early fifties who has worked in a number of jobs. She will tell you that she
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Is self-discipline out of fashion?
We humans are terribly good at making excuses, aren’t we? I didn’t get to the gym, I got caught at work. I shouldn’t have had two slices of cake, but it tasted too good to resist. I shouldn’t have lost my patience with you but I’m tired. When it comes to succeeding in life there
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How to Curb Emotional Shopping
It is often fondly referred to as ‘retail therapy’ and for most people it is a harmless activity. You are feeling a little flat so you head out to the shops and buy yourself lots of lovely things, and you return feeling cheered up. Maybe it’s prompted by a tough day in the office, or
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Does mind mapping work for you?
Have you ever explored mind mapping? Mind mapping is essentially a visual way to organise your thoughts and ideas. A mind map is drawn around a central idea with arrows radiating out leading to branch off ideas. They almost look like a spider’s web or a bursting sun. A mindmap charts connections to new ideas
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The Importance of Forgiving Yourself
I read an excellent article recently on the US Psychology Today website by Dr Alex Lickerman about when to admit you are wrong. Dr Lickerman wrote about the importance of delivering a real and sincere apology after you have wronged someone. He wrote: “An apology is the simplest of acts: the speaking of words of
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Is it Possible to Resist Temptations?
Regardless of whether or not you are religious, we all hope that we are not led into temptation – in the Lord’s prayer we explicitly ask, ‘Lead us not into temptation’. It’s better not to be tempted than to struggle against an urge to do the wrong thing. A temptation is basically a desire to
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Dealing With the Silent Treatment
Do you know someone who resorts to the silent treatment whenever they are upset? They refuse to discuss what is troubling them, but instead they glower in silence and hang over you like a grey raincloud. There is an old saying, ‘If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all,’ but it is
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What are you addicted to?
I have to admit I have a soft spot for the American actress Jamie Lee Curtis, who has appeared in films like a Fish Called Wanda and True Lies. Despite her stellar film career I recently heard Jamie Lee Curtis say that her greatest life achievement has been overcoming an addiction to alcohol and opiates.
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Supporting Someone With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
In my life as a youth counsellor and later pastor I’ve met many people with obsessive compulsive disorder and many people trying to support family and friends with the disorder. I remember a woman who was a compulsive washer of her hands and even clothes. Daily she washed every single piece of clothing in her
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How to Teach Yourself to Embrace New Technologies
I have a confession to make. I am slow to embrace new technologies, including new software. I see them as necessary evils. I just can’t get excited about Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter and LinkedIn. I’m not even that into online shopping. I prefer to go to a shop and actually try things on! Crazy,
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