Tag: Daily Prompt

Big Picture

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Think of a topic or issue about which you’ve switched your opinion. Why the change?

I don’t tend to take stances about issues these days. I like to look at the big picture and take in all the information from both sides. I am flexible and always looking for new knowledge that may change the outlook. Most of the time any of these thoughts stay in my head and only come out if they are asked for. In my experience, some people when they ask for my opinion are surprised if I don’t happen to agree with them on the topic. This points to the fact that in fact they weren’t interested in my opinion but in gathering more evidence that they were right.

I don’t judge—people, places or things. I find it is best policy get to the bottom of where people’s thoughts come from and why they may have so much emotion attached to a topic. By asking a few more questions I can often make these connections which may have nothing to do with the original issue but open the door to understanding the person.

We are all individuals entitled to an opinion. The fact that we can express them freely is what makes it interesting.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/flip-flop/

Moving Forward

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When was the last time you did something completely new and out of your element? How was it? Will you do it again?

Moving Forward

I am regularly moving forward by stepping or often leaping out of my comfort zone to grow. Nothing exciting ever happens in our comfort zone. This time last year I was working my way up to begin blogging. And just to make it a harder I had decided to set my blog up on WordPress.org not WordPress.com. It took me weeks to get any views and after 2 months I had 34 views. I didn’t give up. I kept learning about the process, connecting with others and becoming more comfortable as a blogger. It feels natural now. I have had 12,250 views and am averaging about 50-70 views a day.

My latest journey out of my comfort zone is with Twitter. I don’t think I have any idea about its power but I am becoming more comfortable with it daily. Twitter for me is a double comfort zone as it has by name attached to it. Twitter is the next level of social media for me to connect with before I publish my book later this year. It feels a little more comfortable each day so I know I am moving forward in the direction of my dreams.

At the time I began writing my book my life was out of my comfort zone in many ways. I found Miley Cyrus’s The Climb extremely motivating and would play it loudly and regularly. This song describes the journey of moving forward and dealing with the difficulties faced during your climb to follow your dreams. It empowered me to do what I needed to do and see what happens. I am so glad I did. My life has changed for the better in so many ways and I am grateful I took the chances I did. Now when I need a shot of motivation I replay The Climb and re anchor the thought that I can do what ever I dream and that I don’t have to know how it will turn out first. I have learnt to trust the process.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/beyond-the-pale/

Y – Yangtze River

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What’s your travel style? Are you itinerary and schedule driven, needing to have every step mapped out in advance or are you content to arrive without a plan and let happenstance be your guide?

My husband and I like to mix it up a bit. We are solo travelers who like to have accommodation pre-booked and make other things up as we go. If necessary and possible from Australia I will also pre-book transportation between our destinations and some special activities we know we want to do. In Canada however I booked internal train and bus tickets when I arrived in the city involved. It work well as their was no shortage of trips—China however due to the language barrier and time of year was a different story. This travel was arranged with some difficulty from Australia but worked well.

As solo travelers one of the great things is deciding on the day what you feel like doing. There is no rush as we allow ourselves plenty of time to immerse ourselves in each city as we don’t like to be rushed. The more different the culture I think the more important this is. Because we are getting ourselves around in foreign cities it makes us more mindful of our surroundings as we have to get ourselves back home to our motel.

When we first found out we were going to Wuhu we were so excited because it was on the great Yangtze River. We could wait. The Yangtze is the longest river in Asia and the third longest river in the world.

  1. Nile
  2. Amazon
  3. Yangtze

The Yangtze is also the longest river flowing through a single country—China. It begins high in the mountains in Qinghai – Tibet Plateau and flows west to east into the East China Sea. We first saw the Yangtze from the 5th floor of our hotel. I couldn’t believe how wide and busy it was. So many boats and junks. A few days later we spent several pleasant hours walking along its foreshore—just the two of us and this majestic lifeblood river. On the bucket list now is to cruise the Yangtze—one day.

#A-Z Challenge

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/the-happy-wanderer/

S – Self-nurturing

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Who doesn’t love a list? So write one! Top five slices of pizza in your town, ten reasons disco will never die, the three secrets to happiness — go silly or go deep, just go list-y.

Self-Nurturing, by definition, is taking care of yourself and doing things to improve your wellbeing. This is a skill often omitted or lost when we get busy with life and needs to be replaced to help manage our stress. Self-nurturing goals need to be simple and daily.

If necessary— plan your self-nurturing activities. Aim to practise two to three activities a day depending on what they are. Bigger goals require more effort so fewer are needed each week. Create your list of things you enjoy and that work for you. Some examples include:

  • Alone Time
  • Blogging
  • Drawing
  • Going for a walk
  • Having a facial
  • Having a foot rub
  • Having a massage
  • Having a shower or bath
  • Listening to music
  • Make a phone call to a friend
  • Meditating and relaxing
  • Painting your finger and toe nails
  • Playing games
  • Playing with children or a pet
  • Putting on makeup
  • Reading
  • Sitting by the beach/lake and watching the water
  • Smelling or picking some flowers
  • Socialising with friends
  • Swimming
  • Treat your to a manicure or pedicure
  • Using moisturiser
  • Visiting the library, art gallery or museum
  • Walking barefoot on the sand
  • Watching a comedy show or movie
  • Writing

Of the above list I think my favourite is walking barefoot on the beach and smelling flowers. They use more than one sense so to me this feels more intense. What is your favourite way to self-nurture?

012 - birthday girl getting wet feet

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/the-satisfaction-of-a-list/

P – Pretty # A -Z Challenge

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Write about anything you’d like, but make sure that all seven colors of the rainbow — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet — make an appearance in the post, either through word or image.

In New Zealand I found some bright and surprising sights that covered all the colours of the rainbow. They all brought a smile to my face.

#A-Z Challenge

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/roy-g-biv/

Don’t Stop Believing

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What’s the one piece of advice you wish someone had given you a year (or five, or ten…) ago?

I have an innate ability to know who to trust. It’s an instant ability I  have to be able to read people. When I interview for new staff I make it clear the person I choose will be the best fit for the team not necessarily the person with the highest scores on graduation. So far my trust has been rewarded by my choices being recognised as great team members by patients as well as other staff.

During the last 5 years however there was one occasion where my trust in a colleague was severely breached. I had to learn quickly not to doubt myself. I was right to originally trust this person however they broke that trust by their actions. I quickly recognised the problem—there was a crocodile in the pond, the pond itself although shaken was solid and full of life.

This realisation during an extremely difficult time helped me to continue believe in myself, build resilience in all concerned and continue to trust others.

Remember, sometimes when things are out of our control it’s not our fault, however we need to do what is necessary to take back control.

Self Belief

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/powerful-suggestion/

Dealing With Anger

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Tell us about a time when you flew into a rage. What is it that made you so incredibly angry?

I don’t fly into rages. Yes I get angry—but I deal with it quickly stopping it developing further along its continuum and having a greater impact on my life.

The anger continuum has 3 points:

Anger_________Rage_________Fury

I put out spot fires of anger, stopping them becoming bush fires of rage or mega wild fires of fury. The further down the continuum you go, the more out of control the emotion and the more damage you are likely to do to yourself or others.

Anger is a valid, strong emotion. It comes about when we feel personally wronged or attacked. By acknowledging what I am angry about, I can decide what I need to do about it. My response usually comes in one of the following ways:

  • Acknowledging that I have a right to be angry about it and that I was hurt—no further action required.
  • Taking some deep breath, listening to my favourite loud music and just chilling for a moment. Pink’s music works well here.
  • Ventilating my anger in a healthy way e.g kick a ball around, journal my feelings or  just yell for a minute of too.
  •  Responding to my anger and speaking to the person involved. To do this I would make a time to discuss the matter with the person I am angry with.  I let them know why I am angry using ‘I’ statements. I am entitled to be angry and they don’t get to tell me I shouldn’t be angry—they also cannot take my feeling away. However, by talking about it with the person concerned, together we open the lines of communication and make a plan to get to the bottom of the issue. Being heard by the other person helps me feel validated and allows me to let it go.
  • My last option is to discuss it with a friend/mental health work colleague. This gives  me closure and helps me see the situation through the other persons eyes. Many people may use therapy to help with this stage.

I grew up with and still where possible follow the biblical quote on this topic— Ephesians 4:26 “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger”— as failing to do so has a great impact on one’s mental health.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/mad-as-a-hatter/

If I Had A Hammer

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If you could learn a trade — say carpentry, electrical work, roofing, landscaping, plumbing, flooring, drywall — you name it — what skill(s) would you love to have in your back pocket?

Like father, like daughter.

If I had a hammer I would develop my creative streak in woodwork. My father used to teach woodwork at high school and I loved it on rainy weekend days when we could go to the school with him and create something.

I enjoyed it so much that when it came time to select subjects for 2nd form—I wanted to choose woodwork. Unfortunately, it was the mid 1970’s and I was not allowed. Dad’s friend who would have taught me had he been allowed understood my desire and previous experience but it didn’t help. Girls did cooking and sewing. Boys did woodwork and metal work. Both could do art. I don’t know when this changed in Australian schools but I am very pleased it has.

When I was younger and living alone—under dad’s guidance I did several jobs around my home and even had my own tool kit. Not something at the time many of my female friends could say or were interested in. When I retire and have time on my hands I would love to learn how to turn wood and create fancy items. Today my spare time is taken up with writing and blogging but one day my dream will come. For me there is a sense of pride in putting my feet up and admiring something that not only have I made but also planned and designed. I love originals and have been given many presents by dad made and designed from wood for me. They are my treasured possessions and always bring a smile to my face—thanks Dad.

It is nice to know that Peter, Paul and Mary song that I loved so much as a child has brought a hammer of justice to girls and boys learning any subject they choose at school. Who knows had I been allowed to study woodwork in high school my life may have been very different.

https://youtu.be/VaWl2lA7968

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/hammer/

F – Fantastic News

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You get some incredibly, amazingly, wonderfully fantastic news. What’s the first thing you do?

I am assuming from this prompt that the incredibly, amazingly, wonderful fantastic news is mine to tell—if not I would keep their secret.

If it is mine, initially I would say thank you to my angels and spend some time enjoying the moment—connecting with everything I was feeling in my body and head. The more exciting my news—the more I would plan my sharing. Super exciting news requires time for self rejoicing, planning, dreaming and working out what it means before sharing my news with the world including my immediate family.

Once I had worked through my news, I would plan a special dinner that evening for the family and share my news with them in person. I love to see the responses on their faces particularly if the news related to something I know they thought I truly was dreaming about. I tend to be the believer in the power of positive thinking and the law of attraction and not everyone shares my thoughts. I love examples of it working in my life.

Once we had celebrated—with a fancy champagne—my husband and I would work out a plan to share my news with the rest of the family—parents and siblings. This would mostly involve ringing them individually or sending a text if time poor although sometimes a road trip may be in order to tell them personally.

Only after all of these options had been completed and if I decided my news was suitable for a public billboard would I post a status update to Facebook. My personal boundaries stop me announcing anything and everything to the world without careful consideration.

Through blogging I have become more comfortable with my online presence however I don’t want any surprises. If appropriate, to complete my celebrations and take it to a new level I would write a blog post and see where that takes me.The advantage of celebrating through a blog post is that you get to celebrate many times over as people read the blog posts in their own time.

Bring on the fantastic news—I  love to celebrate.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/supercalifragilisticexpialidocious/

#A-Z Challenge

Mistakes

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Write an entire post without using three-letter words.

Everyone makes mistakes. These mistakes teach us lessons about ourselves that allow us to grow.  Think of these lessons as gifts from life. Some people find keeping a list of lessons learnt helpful. They’re a visible reminder that helps keep us focused on moving forward to reach goals.

Edison failed 10,000 times before he invented a light globe. He doesn’t describe these attempts as failures however as 10,000 ways they don’t work.

By re-framing your words, it is possible to change your thinking. Life is full of lessons—we choose at what speed we acknowledge them. Remember they help us to develop personally as well as professionally.

Do not be afraid to take a risk. Take on challenges, learn by your mistakes adding to your repertoire of things known.

***

I found this challenge tricky. I noticed that it changed my voice considerably because my style is made up of small words—mainly with three letters. It certainly made me think which took me from my comfort zone—teaching me some lessons as I went.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/three-letter-words/