GANBATTE!!! Do your best!

How can you do your best all the time? The Japanese expression "do your best" has been one major contributing factor towards success.

One of my best friends constantly tells me DO YOUR BEST whenever I encroach on a new journey. Just knowing that someone is looking out definitely makes all the difference.

Doing your best can be very difficult when things seem to constantly go wrong... When things are continuously not working out in your favor.

Try writing down all of the things that have gone correctly. It is surprising how looking at the good and keeping in your head to DO YOUR BEST can empower you immensely!

SICK OF CHANGE

[I chose to post these lyrics because I can easily relate the words of these artists to the way I feel about this blog ].

-THE INTRODUCTION- from the Sick of Change album "These Shattered Lives"

"The Introduction"

It all starts now...

These are opinions
These are beliefs
These are deepest thoughts

Can you read them?
Can you feel them?

For our darkness and injustice, we bring you light;
We've inflicted our hearts, and opened our scab healed wounds.

We've extracted the very things we have so long kept hidden,
Never realizing pain can bring such freedom...

No longer a prisoner in our own minds...

Still very ashamed, only when exposing them:

We fall like the stars
And live like the sun.
Impedance, forgiveness
We are blameworth so hold us to our wrongs.

But we are humans and cannot hold our lies against us.

Let our thoughts concede
(Let the music play)
Let our words touch lives
And these lives touch the world

Let the music play...
LET IT PLAY!

Writer's Block -____-

http://io9.com/5844988/the-10-types-of-writers-block-and-how-to-overcome-them

I must admit that it is getting harder for me to write.

I am constantly scratching my brain for interesting stuff that I come across.

And I regularly write about almost everything.

But it is hard to post stuff lately.

You probably notice a HUGE difference from the earlier stuff I posted...

Well that earlier stuff was stuff I wrote up to 2 years ago!!! But since I invited more people to read the blog I feel that I need to edit things out.

Basically, my process goes like this: I write down anything that I want to remember or any new idea or concept that I learn. I do this daily. I have been doing this since HIGH SCHOOL! I have tons of notebooks and journals. My notepad on my iPhone is filled with sketches of ideas. I journal about random stuff all the time. I can type quite quickly, so it is not an issue to write things down. Even editing is not so terrible, although I should apologize for some of the more sloppily edited posts.

This is how I have lived my life since 2002!!!

But my problem hit when I invited people to the blog.

(Mind you, it is my problem, and not your problem. But I have decided to share it because it might explain any noted disconnects).

I FIND THAT I NEED A "CIRCLES" OPTION ON THIS BLOG!!!!!

I am not an open book. And those who know me will quickly realize that I am not big into sharing. Not one bit! I am very selective. I know that most people don't get me. So it is easier to share certain things with certain people!

So there goes my dilemma! It obviously is not a big issue. But that's just how it is! I don't want to scare away non-religious folk by talking about Biblical ideas. And I don't want to water things down by not accrediting Biblical teachers for their thoughts.

WHAT TO DO...WHAT TO DO...

But it goes further than religion. There is also spirituality! A different thing all together. I draw spiritual ideas from almost anywhere. But the second I slap a name on the idea--- I already know what "biased" thinking looks like. And yes, my own opinions are also biased. This I know. But the second I say the name of Prophet X or Lama Z, one person may be completely turned off, which a different person may relate totally.

Family members like my mother may know a different side of me from people like professors! Maybe I like it that way! Maybe I would rather not know that certain people have read certain things. Some people are very conservative, which is fine! But I would not want to be trampling on people's beliefs by posting links to rated R movies, caffeinated beverages, alcohol, pork, shellfish, and jewelry. Part of me feels totally wrong about that.


How do you reach all people from all angles? And is this even possible?

I have friends from church, friends from my neighborhood, friends in other countries, friends of different religions, friends without a religion, friends with different lifestyles, friends with different paths, ages, advantages, disadvantages, sexual orientations YOU NAME IT! 

Trust me people, I have a LOT of ideas to share. But I think about each individual reader before sharing them. Hmmm...... (This is me "thinking out loud)...

I am not like Heshy Fried of www.FrumSatire.net. I am not writing satire about Jewish culture and traditions. I am not like Chris Pirillo of www.Chris.Pirillo.com. I am not writing and VLOGGING about geeky content like technology and the like. But I read these guys DAILY!

Maybe I care about offending people. But I also want to be real. Or else there is no point to posting stuff online if I just whittle away at the content until it is left with gaping holes and blank, incomplete ideas.

I will just have to figure out a way around this issue. (THESE ISSUES). What do you think? What would you do?

My Life Coach

http://www.lifecoaching.com/

A good friend recently sent me a link for a place where I could sign up for free life coaching. I took a couple days to read the website. I came across the initial assessment. Below I have decided to share the assessment for the life coaching as well as my own answers to the questions. (Just FYI, the link I posted with the uploaded picture is not from the site that I actually attended. The site I visited was www.newlifecoachinc.org).

I actually wrote these answers prior to posting. I was not thinking to post. But then I remembered that I had not posted yet today. So today's post will be just that.

Feel free to check out my answers to the questions, but also try to answer the questions for yourself as well. I actually learned a lot about myself from just doing this one questionnaire!

Job/Career
1. What are your key job/career goals? I like science because it changes with each project. I like the aspect of exploration that science provides, plus I enjoy thinking and using my brain. I like structure. But I also want the freedom to keep working on my music, art, writing, and creativity.
2. What skills or knowledge are you developing? I am already good with data, analyzing, and interpreting. I am working on developing better writing skills and a more varied and detailed knowledge of the theories in the field of Psychology as well as other areas of Social Science.

Personal
1. What accomplishments must, in your opinion, occur during your
lifetime so that you will consider your life to have been satisfying and
well lived- a life of few or no regrets? I believe that I need to be able to continually recreate my own ideas. I love to learn. I like to see results. I am not so much interested in money as I am in stability. Specifically, my short term goals are to finish this social science blog. I want to make a website and even eventually write a book or pamphlet for students. I want to create something helpful and informative, but readily accessible. I would also like to create a musical album and book about computer music instruments (mostly related to synthesizers and modulation). Mostly, I want the field of Auditory Perception to benefit from something I created, not just for scientists, but for the general and artistic publics as well.
2. If there was a secret passion in your life what would it be? I have recently been sharing my secret passion which is writing. But I also love visual art, and I rarely share that. And I also write music. But I share it selectively.
3. What do you consider your role to be in your family / in your
community? My family role is to be a dutiful daughter. As the eldest I am to be a role model. I am also to uphold the honor of my family's name through education and contributing and giving back to society. I believe that my community needs me as a positive voice. I think I have a slightly easy time reaching out to people in poorer areas because I have been on both sides of the fence.
4. If you could devote your life to serving others- and still have the
money and
life style you need--- what would you do? How would it look? I notice certain problems where I live such as homelessness and inequality in education availability. The city where I live spans EVERY area of the spectrum. There are severely homeless, ESL immigrants, non-English speaking immigrants, extremely wealthy, universities, private schools, public schools, charter schools etc. I would want to address mostly the inequality seen in public education. I think this is a large contributing factor to the problems I see. With public school education I would want to work to make it so that kids in the poorer areas of town could have the exact same advantages as kids in wealthier areas. While doing this I would also need to have a creative lifestyle. I would need the freedom and time to work on music and art. And I would also like to keep studying and broadening my intellect.
5. Do you believe in God or in the concept of a higher power? If so,
describe
the most useful and empowering aspect of your relationship with that
higher
power.
If not then what reference point do you use? I believe in a creator. I believe that I was created. I believe that there is a God. I believe in the Bible. I believe that people sometimes use the Bible to manipulate people into leading a lifestyle based on judgment and hatred. For me the most empowering aspect of my relationship with God is the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self control.
6. What activities have meaning and heart for you?
Being in nature, focusing on something difficult and solving it, and creating something out of basically nothing.

Coaching
1. What do you want to make sure you get from a coaching
relationship? From a coaching relationship I would want to get encouragement. A lot of times I have ideas to do things that I want to do, but people often discourage me from doing things because they feel that I can't do them.
2. How do you want me to be as your coach? Nice.
3. What can I say to you when you are most stuck that will return you to
action? Make me accountable and give me a reachable deadline.
4. If you trusted your coach enough to say how to manage you most
effectively, what tip would you give? When people are nice to me they manage me most effectively.
5. If you had a 5 –year goal and you had continuing service of a coach to
help
you make it happen (and money was not an issue) what would that goal be? I would want to have started and possibly completed a PhD program.
What difference would working with a coach make? Accountability. I work best when I know that someone else needs me to do a good job.
6. What else would you like for me, as your coach to know about you? I would want for my coach to know anything about me that they want to know. But I am not sure of exactly what. About my personality: Basically, I have a lot of mental energy. I am not the smartest person in the world, but when I focus I tend to surprise myself. I have a very studious and hard working side. And I also have a very calm side that likes to just relax and sit on the beach and go for walks. I also like to socialize sometimes. But I tend to enjoy my own company immensely. Sometimes I am very talkative. And other times I really would just rather listen and not contribute to a conversation. One of my favorite activities is learning. I am a simple person with simple interests.

Lick It

http://bagger-ce.blogspot.com/2011/05/steve-locke-tongue-paintings.html

"...if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every way."
-James, the brother of Jesus

People who know me well will realize that I possess a great ability
-to say stupid things.

I find that writing helps to keep my opinionated side at rest.

I can write what I think, and in all areas. And because I have written it once, I will not need to use unruly force in expressing an idea, ESPECIALLY when I disagree strongly with another person.

I can be harsh when I write. BUT I KNOW THAT I CAN ALSO FILTER MY WRITING MUCH BETTER THAN I CAN FILTER MY MOUTH!

Is it just me? I'm sure I'm not the only one. Right? Riiight???

In my mind, writing is similar to painting.
I can create a draft
and edit it in a few days
or weeks
or months...
until it becomes just right and contains no flaws.

But nope, I am not perfect. And I never will be.

In these modern days we have computers. They are fast. They help us get things done QUICKLY.
How easy is it to type unfiltered thoughts and send them out to HUNDREDS?
S-I-M-P-L-E!

It is a work in progress. I think most of us have let our tongues and/or speedily typing fingers get the
best of us.
GOOD THING WE HAVE A DELETE OPTION ONLINE!
But in the real time of reality we are not so lucky.

(Sorry, maybe this is not such a positive thought, but it is the darn tootin' truth).

RESPONSIBILITY... WHAT'S THAT???

NOPE!!! Not the MXPX lyrics! But check them out if you are curious. http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/mxpx/responsibility.html

What are we responsible for and what does responsibility mean?

...Cain asked "Am I my brother's keeper?"

...An expert in the law asked "Who is my neighbor?"

Ben Ralston speaks on a similar topic. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYeecnfRmuc&feature=plcp

It is important to be responsible now because everything we do will affect future generations and our descendants.

There is our earth.

There is our education.

There is our health.

There are our actions.

Think of all that is right in this world.

Think of all that is wrong in this world.

We may be responsible for it.

BUT SOME OF IT IS DUE TO THE ACTIONS OF THOSE BEFORE US.

The terrible events before my time:

slavery, holocaust, genocide, extermination

those were actions of those before us.

AND DON'T WE STILL SEE THE RESULTS VERY CLEARLY EVEN TODAY!

It may be 10s or 100s or close to 1000s of years ahead of us when something occurred and we can still observe the results around us presently.

The actions we do today, even what may seem small, will affect not only ourselves, but also somebody later on.

LE' GO MY E-G-O!!! (The Ego)

The Ego

Dr. Wayne Dyer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRAewRQl_ZY

speaks of the ego.

Let go of yourself.

We tend to walk around with shields and masks and costumes. It's like a real live Halloween or costume party.

A costume is fake. It may represent another person, being, or thing.

But the costume is not truly us.

We are something different.

We are someone different.

There is a person inside of the shell. And this person was created in the image of God.

When I was a kid I learned of Paul's letter to the people of Galatia. As my own path was forming itself I learned to test all things by the following rules to see if I should partake of events or leave them alone: 

LOVE JOY PEACE PATIENCE KINDNESS GOODNESS GENTLENESS FAITHFULNESS AND SELF CONTROL. 

And to the people of Corinth Paul wrote:

...BUT THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE.

I find it very interesting how much love is mentioned as the theme of a good and prosperous life. But we will save the rest of that for some other days.

Using these items above as if they were a wire sieve, if we try to poor the "juice" from what we observe and experiment through such concepts as if they were a binded filter:

What would come out on the other side? 

Would a good fruit be produced? 

These concepts assume that a good fruit will be produced if what we are testing is TRUTH. If something is FALSE, then the result at the other end of the sieve will not be a good fruit. Basically, what we take in is what we put out.

So, what are the things that we can put through a filter that will result in FALSEHOOD?

Well, which things are the opposite of

LOVE JOY PEACE PATIENCE KINDNESS GOODNESS GENTLENESS AND SELF CONTROL?

HATE SORROW WAR IMPATIENCE MEANNESS BADNESS ROUGHNESS AND IMPULSIVITY.

IF YOU ASK ME, THESE OPPOSITES SURE SOUND LIKE AN EGO, RIGHT?

These are the shells, or forms of the shells, that we all choose to wear from time to time.

We keep our guards up.

Why? We are trying to protect ourselves,

the ones inside of the costumes,

from the other shells. From the other masks. 

These other shells are also covering another person inside of them.

This kind of does not make any sense

that we are in a shell and others are in a shell and our real selves need protection from everyone else's shells.

Maybe if we were all just being the person instead of the costume

LOVE JOY PEACE PATIENCE KINDNESS GOODNESS GENTLENESS AND SELF CONTROL

maybe we could all live outside of our shells.

HATE SORROW WAR IMPATIENCE MEANNESS BADNESS ROUGHNESS IMPULSIVITY.

Love is all you need.

King Solomon the wise the son of King David who was loved by the people and also recognized for his faults of having the husband of a woman he lusted after killed.

He wrote the book of Ecclesiastes; he noted that of all life's toils and celebrations the only ultimate truth is love.

Right Here! Right Now!

Situations almost always seem unique but when closely examined there is nothing new under the sun.

Your current situation is just that! ... A CURRENT SITUATION.

It does not have to be permanent.

Where you are now is due to millions of tiny events all syncing to your current situation.

Although it may end, don't forget the details and don't ignore what seems irrelevant:

You just may come across someone who needs you to relate to them. So savor both the good and the bad.

iHOP (International House of PRAYER)

Check out this LIVE STREAM:
http://www.ihopkc.org/prayerroom/

NOTE TO ANY READERS

FEEL FREE TO CHECK OUT SOME OF THE LINKS THAT ARE POSTED WITH THE PICTURES! Sometimes they do not fit the main topic, but other times they are right on point. So if a topic is of interest to you
YOU JUST MIGHT ENJOY THE POSTED LINKS EVEN MORE!

Meeting People Where They Are

Bob wanted to talk to Jane. Jane was cool. And nice. And smart. Bob and Jane met online. Bob wanted to actually see Jane in person. Bob hated driving. Jane loved driving. But the problem was 

JANE DID NOT OWN A CAR WHILE BOB DID!

Suppose Bob and Jane never meet, who's fault would this be? Maybe Jane could take a taxi, train, bus or plane...

BUT MAYBE JANE IS BROKE.

Maybe Bob could just drive his car without complaints. Maybe they could somehow meet half way.

BUT WHY IS IT THAT BOB HATES DRIVING? DID SOMETHING HAPPEN? 
OR IS HE JUST LAZY? 

It can be hard to meet people where they are.

If you are a BOB, you may seem like you have the means to reach out, but something is holding you back.

If you are a JANE, you may seem like you don't have the means to reach out, but who knows. In the Jane situation people don't know much about her position.

In the Bob situation, people know some things, but they still don't know the entire story.

AGAIN, SUPPOSE THE TWO NEVER MEET... WHO'S FAULT IS IT?

SOMETIMES MEETING PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE MAY SEEM LIKE JUDGEMENT IS NEEDED. WE MAY THINK WE NEED TO MAKE STATEMENTS AND CALL OUT PEOPLE WHEN IN FACT WE MIGHT NOT KNOW THE ENTIRE SITUATION AT ALL.

The best way to connect with someone is to actually know them.

The best way to share is to know what a person loves and hates.

If a person is trying to tell you about their favorite cheeseburger, and why you should eat it

but you are a lifelong vegan

how on earth are you going to understand them? Maybe if the meat eater tries some vegan food, then he will notice a way to relate to you as a vegan.

We are all super different. 

It is very common that people often approach one another this way. But we do it about topics far more important than cheeseburgers!

We try to tell people in need of good teachings about some good values that may help them. They ask us! 

And we respond as if we were telling a vegan to

JUST GO AND EAT A CHEESEBURGER AND YOU WILL UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH.

There are many people who just need good teachings that they can apply in their family lives. In their homes. In their workplaces. Together with their friends.

Some people are seeking lifestyle changes.

And some people have answers that may help.

Some people were never taught what is good and what is right.

Suppose we have an answer of what works for us. We don't need to judge them. They don't need judgment. They need truth. They need answers. They ASK US. They see that we might know. They catch that there is something that we have that they don't have. And we may answer them in babble. Of course they don't understand. So then what do they do?

It's All About Your (_____)

I recently wrote some article for a website about all kinds of plastic surgery.

One of the many headings read:

It's all about your (fill in the name of the body part here).
The titles suggested that the different body parts were the most important thing about a person and that these parts ultimately determined how happy of a future the client would likely have if JUST THAT ONE AREA WAS PERFECT.

What do you think is the most important aspect of YOURSELF?

Is it something physical?

Is it something that changes over time? Or is it constant?

Do others feel that this is important about you as well? Or is it something that others don't even know about?

Is it something that you want to CHANGE? Or is it something that you feel is already PERFECT and you want to leave it alone?

DO YOU KNOW WHAT "IT'S ALL ABOUT" FOR YOU? OR HAVE YOU NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT IT BEFORE?

Maybe there are multiple things...

Is it something that promotes your confidence?

Or is it something that is holding you back?

Or maybe it's a mixture from time to time...

Is it a hobby? Or a lifestyle choice? Or a genetic situation? Or a location? Or an item on the shelf that only comes out once a year during the right season? 

OR IS IT IN A DUSTY BOX IN THE BACK RIGHT CORNER OF A STORAGE GARAGE, ROTTING? 

Is it a gift? Or a curse?

Hit or Miss

http://psychologicalscience.com/maclino/?p=1119

VISIT http://www.risenchurch.com/media.php?pageID=5

AND HEAR TREVOR DEBENNING'S TALKED TITLED "STOP, HARVEST TIME" dated 4/29/12.

 

In the field of psychology in which I chose to indulge (Cognitive Science)

there is a concept called HIT OR MISS. This comes from the SIGNAL DETECTION THEORY. Basically, a signal (any stimulus, anything you can see, touch, taste, touch, or smell) is presented and you give a response (on paper or some visible way of answering according to the directions for the trial).

There may be a certain task. Let's call the task to 

raise your hand when you see a red dot appear on a screen.  

YOU WOULD THINK THIS IS EASY!!!

There are 4 possibilities to describe the response you make:

A HIT: the red dot appeared, you raised your hand

MISS: you got the answer wrong.

THERE ARE 2 TYPES OF MISSES:

1) the red dot appears, you do not raise your hand

2) the red dot does not appear, you do raise your hand (FALSE ALARM).

There is also another type of HIT called the CORRECT REJECTION. This means that you got it right. The red dot did not appear so you did not raise your hand.

Very simple science. Yes. No. What does yes mean? And what does no mean? End of experiment!

If a person keeps on getting them right then we ASSUME that they are not guessing and they can actually see the red dot. And if a person keeps on getting them all wrong then this must mean that they cannot see the red dot... of course this is not always the case, unfortunately for the researcher, you have to come up with some sort of an explanation. Then it gets hard.

We now know all about RED DOTS. But what about PEOPLE?

When we stay connected and focused we will not miss the PEOPLE we need to help. They can be right under our noses. Sometimes we ask and plead and pray to get more fulfillment. To find more people to help.

PLEASE LET ME MEET SOMEONE RANDOMLY THAT I CAN HELP. PLEASE LET THIS PERSON COME TO ME. PLEASE LET ME HAVE A SIGN. PLEASE LEAD ME DIRECTLY TO THE CORRECT DOORSTEP.

All this time we had the person's number, FaceBook account, YouTube Channel, Twitter, email, house address...

WE WANDERED RIGHT PAST THEM. WE MISSED AND KEPT ON LOOKING AND SEARCHING FOR THAT RIGHT PERSON THAT WE PRAYED WOULD COME OUR WAY.

The right person was in direct contact with us. They waited by their phone. They saw us online but we never dropped them a line. We never invited them to any outings. We just kept on searching for the RIGHT AND CORRECT answer. The red dot kept on flashing. We never saw it. Or maybe we saw it and we didn't RAISE OUR HAND. We acted like the dot never appeared. 

OR

when there may seem to be nothing, we have a FALSE ALARM situation and we focus on the wrong thing when there was nothing there at all. There was nothing to focus on. That screen was completely blank. And we kept staring at the blankness, LOOKING FOR THE RED DOT TO APPEAR.

What Came First? The Chicken? Or the Egg?

http://www.disputeabout.eu/clanek/how-to-gain-more-points

Trust me, I already know! The nature versus nurture debate is so soooo ZZZZZ Zzzz z z z zzz...

ACTUALLY, IT'S QUITE INTERESTING.

I don't want to call it mental illness. So let's call it mental distress instead...

We have all heard of the tragedies of people who "go mad."

Let's take it down a notch and talk about milder situations and not so much "strong" disease.

Some have a genetic predisposition toward mental distress.

These people have something that they were born with. They never showed any symptoms. And then something in the environment triggers this distress and suddenly they are meeting the criteria for some type of a problem: anxiety, depression, mania, etc.

THAT IS, NATURE WAS THE UNDERLYING BASE, BUT NURTURE PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN BRINGING OUT THIS DISTRESS.

Others have nothing in their genes. Not initially anyway. And they live their life and eventually SOMETHING in their surroundings allows their neurological faculties begin to create chemical reactions that cause this person to show symptoms of distress. 

THIS BRAIN WAS HEALTHY. AND THEN SOMETHING THE PERSON WAS PRESENTED WITH CHANGED THE PHYSICAL MAKEUP OF THEIR BRAIN AND AND ITS FUNCTIONS.

THEIR BRAIN CHANGED.

AND NOW THEY EXPERIENCE DISTRESS.

Sometimes we may notice that we experience distress in certain situations. Sometimes it is a new situation that causes the problems. Other times it is an old situation that is from 20 years ago, or from when we were babies, and it is the SAME SITUATION BUT WITH A DIFFERENT COATING. And we react to it the same, but with different actions.

Our problems generally seem to stay the same. Our responses seem to stay the same also. If we can find the root of the problem, we can better work on our responses. And this can change the patterns of distress. The tough part is locating the root.

IS IT HOW WE ARE BORN THAT IS RESULTING IN WHAT WE EXPERIENCE? OR IS IT OUR EXPERIENCE THAT IS CHANGING OUR BRAIN? OR IS IT BOTH?