Tag: Daily Prompt

My Places

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Beach, mountain, forest, or somewhere else entirely?

To me connecting with nature is healing. I attempt to do it everyday even if only for 5 minutes. It clears my head. Any form of nature will do—smelling a flower on a short walk or a day trip to the beach or mountains. I love them all. As a child I spent many hours at the beach as well as walking in the bush so both have pleasant memories attach.

The higher my intensity of stress the more I will ensure that I take time out of my day to walk barefoot on the grass for 5 minutes. My other easy to go to places  are the river, Sydney harbour, local parks or wetlands—all are close to my work or home.  Half an hour in the silence does the trick of dealing with my stress nicely.

Last Christmas we wanted to experience nature in a different way and left sunny Australia for the cold winters of Canada. While we enjoyed our time there, it was only our last week that allowed us to experience the force of nature in this way—snow and ice. The first 5 weeks were above average temperatures and it was the first green Christmas in over a quarter century. Our proof that mother nature is to be enjoyed not controlled—she will always win.

 

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

Love

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We each have many types of love relationships — parents, children, spouses, friends. And they’re not always with people; you may love an animal, or a place. Is there a single idea or definition that runs through all the varieties of “love”?

Love is the feeling that connects us to others. It gives us reasons to do things. It supports us in difficult times and makes memories complete. Adding love and caring to any situation makes it shared. My other ideas on love can be found in this acrostic poem.

Love is letting other people or things into your life and caring about them—at times putting their needs above your own.   

Obvious in your face—it makes you smile and warms you from the inside.

Valuable—without love and letting others get close—you are alone.

Every feeling the other person feels you share—if they are happy or sad—you feel their joy or sadness.

Love is...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/i-want-to-know-what-love-is/

Necessary

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There are 26 letters in the English language, and we need every single one of them. Want proof? Choose a letter and write a blog post without using it. (Feeling really brave? Make it a vowel!)

Today I have written my first concrete poem. It was a challenge to get started but worked in the end. I think the title of the poem speaks for itself. Without the letter the title of this blog is Inspriring Ax—to easy to be wrongly used and interpreted.

 

One day                                                   there was a

letter of the                                         alphabet that

could not be                                  spoken. She was

special. Living                                     in the centre.

Lots of                       words                               were

never                           able                                to be

re                                  cog                                nised

with                                                                       out

her.                                                                     After

all                                                                       adult

lady                                                                   of the

group                                                             doesn’t

sound                                                                 okay.

 

 https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/twenty-five/

Life In The Villages

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If you were asked to spend a year living in a different location, where would you choose and why?

Back in the late 1980’s I had had enough of life in Australia. I wanted a change. The answer—I booked a flight to London and planned to work in mental health in England for at least 12 months. I needed something new in my life and I was going to get it. No staying in a rut for me. Then it happened. One night when I least expected it—I met my now husband and everything changed. After careful consideration I cancelled my trip and decided we would do it together some day—his job wasn’t as easy to come and go from as mine. Nursing is versatile.

This year we are coming up to our 25th wedding anniversary and are starting to dream of retirement. Besides living in St John’s, Newfoundland see Pacific to Atlantic post here, my husband and I would still like to live in the villages and more remote parts of England, Scotland and Wales.  The types of places where everyone knows everyone and life involves the town—similar to the television shows of Heartbeat and Hamish Macbeth. This would greatly contrast with our life in Sydney Australia and teach us a lot about our ancestors ways of life.

 

https://youtu.be/v9zWX43pFdI

Sometimes dreams do need to be put on hold.  However, I believe it is never to late to get back to them. This goal may be a long way off but you’re never to old to try something new, enjoy different experiences and change your life.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/study-abroad/

Pick Your Battles

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Think of a time you let something slide, only for it to eat away at you later. Tell us how you’d fix it today.

Working in mental health I see daily the impact of letting something slide and not dealing with it. The reason are many, varied and often come from a place of wanting the hurt to stop. When feelings aren’t dealt with in a healthy way—even the really difficult ones—they will become a bigger and more powerful problem.

For me—I pick my battles. I make a quick assessment in my mind how I think the issue is going to impact on me. If I can’t get the issue out of my head, I make a mental plan to discuss it with the other person involved at the next convenient time. I make a time with them and tell them how I felt about the situation that developed. They are my feelings—no one can argue with them. I explain what I heard from what they said, usually ending of with the statement “I don’t think that is how you meant it to come across.” I find that this gives the other person an opportunity to re-frame the situation from their point of view and we can usually find the middle ground.

If the situation came and they stated that they did mean to come across how I interpreted it—I would ask why and work on moving forward from there. Communicating is the quickest way to end problems as it allows us to get to the core of the issue. Without addressing the conflict or concern we can jump to many conclusions but they may not be right ones and often only complicate the situation. From my perspective addressing issues when they arise helps develop trust as the other person realises that I want to work with them and we can form a united front. They don’t have to worry about upsetting me as they realise I will let them know if I am upset so we can fix the problem.

There are some battles that I decide when making my mental plan aren’t worth spending oxygen on. Yes, they upset me briefly for petty reasons so I decided to deal with it myself and move on using distraction techniques—doing something I enjoy to get my mind off it. At home I find a simple “stop” to the other person is enough to change the behaviour. I am also happy to debrief a situation with my colleagues and gain support when necessary. Prioritise yourself and seek professional help if necessary. Nothing is too big to be addressed. You just do it like you would eat an elephant—”bite by bite.”

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/set-it-to-rights/

Pacific to Atlantic

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Tell us about something you would attempt if you were guaranteed not to fail (and tell us why you haven’t tried it yet).

My next medium term goal is to spend six months living in St John’s Newfoundland—Canada’s 10th province. I plan spend my days writing my second and traveling to explore the surrounding unique parts of Canada. My husband and I visited the city for  8 glorious days last November. During my stay I decided I would love to live there and become more intimate the city, its people and its British history. As an Australian who never studied history, I knew nothing about this side of British history and found it fascinating.

St John’s is a welcoming city and whilst there we participated in their screeching-in ceremony so I am already an honorary Newfoundlander—see post here. I would love to live through the changes in scenery and dramatic weather and how life adapts to what nature provides. I would also like to understand the differences between living on the Atlantic rather than Pacific Ocean.

Interestingly, last weekend I began exploring my dream and realised it is doable. A month’s rent in St John’s is equal to a weeks in Sydney—approximately $800. I can stay for 182 days without a visa and this can be extended during my stay if I wish. However, before any of this becomes a reality I must publish my first book. This will allow me to be in a situation to either be able to leave work or take 6 months leave and focus on my writing in a foreign country. At present I am unsure of the type of book I want to write when I am living in St John’s—I’m thinking novel but time will tell. As much as I would like it to be—this dream cannot be rushed—but one day I will make it happen in time to see the floating icebergs.

163- The 'Narrows' - the entrance to Newfoundland Harbour

The Narrows – the entrance to St John’s Harbour

 

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/too-big-to-fail/

Great Teachers

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What makes a teacher great?

For my purpose in this post I am describing a teacher as anyone imparting learning to others as well as formally trained teacher. Teaching is a skill we can all use. It is about imparting knowledge we hold to another person. We all know things that others can learn but what is the difference between someone who does this well compared to someone who just tells you the information.

  • Show passion or the topic
  • Listening skills
  • More detail
  • Give reasons
  • Approachable
  • Individualize the information
  • Explain in simple language—even technical detail.
  • Smile
  • Make people feel like they want to be teaching them the information
  • Set boundaries on unacceptable behaviours
  • Repeat the information 3 times
  • Check understanding of the student before moving on to new information
  • Have fun while learning
  • Teach why the learning is necessary and how it will benefit the student
  • Be transparent to all students
  • Be consistent
  • Be equal
  • Believe the student can learn
  • Be creative
  • Be honest
  • Patience
  • Use different learning styles to keep it interesting and to suit the individual needs of the student

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/we-can-be-taught-2/

Networking

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Are you good at what you do? What would you like to be better at?

I am good at what I do because I work hard at it. I am always looking for new ways to improve myself—both at work and in my personal life. My theory is when you stop growing—you stop living. So what is next you ask? As I hope to publish my book by the end of this year—2015 is about improving my networking skills—self-promotion. I have learnt that networking no longer means talking to everyone in the room—this makes it easier. Please enjoy my networking plan in a poem.

New experience to gather knowledge

Express interest in the other person

Time to bond with others

Working the room—who are you drawn to

Opportunity to ask questions

Relax and smile

Know your purpose and don’t be distracted

Include your elevator pitch

Note areas for later follow-up

Greet all with enthusiasm

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/i-have-confidence-in-me/

Circle of Five

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A writer once said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” If this is true, which five people would you like to spend your time with?

I think motivational speaker Jim Rohn is correct with this quote. Actually, I believe it so much that I have used it in my book on eating disorder recover. For this reason I maintain my distance from people, places and things that are destructive or will sabotage my goals and plans.

This year my focus is mostly on finishing my book and handing it over to Balboa Press to complete the self-publishing process. It has been a long journey for me about believing in and backing myself. Starting this blog was part of this plan, as my voice had never been heard online before. Each day I become more comfortable with marketing my brand.

To support this part of my life, the five people I will spend time with are:

  1. Louise Hay – founder of Hay House and author of “You Can Heal Your Life”
  2. Jack Canfield  – author of “The Success Principles and Chicken Soup for the Soul series”
  3. Janet Evanowich – my favourite fiction novelist
  4. Dale Carnegie – author of “How To Win Friends and Influence People”
  5. My husband – my supporter, friend and first editor

Who do you need to spend your time with to meet your goals. Although I may never be able to meet these people in real life and I can always reacquaint myself with them by reading their books and stories again—taking note of the points that are speaking to me.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/circle-of-five/

Boundaries

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What question do you hate to be asked? Why?

I don’t mind what questions people ask me. I have strong boundaries so if I don’t think the person has a right or reason to know the answer I will tell them I am not answering. If I think it is appropriate I will give them a reason but most of the time I don’t. My boundaries—my decisions. No correspondence will be entered into.

Our boundaries are imaginary lines that tell others what behaviours, attitudes and values are acceptable and not acceptable to us. They tell others how close they can come. Think of your boundaries as the fences to your life. Fences have gates that allow certain people to pass and stop others.They ensure your safety because you choose who gets close and whom you keep at a distance.

You get to choose your own boundaries—for your behaviour as well as others. If you don’t like someone’s behaviours—you get to choose your response to their behaviours. Your response can be very effective in changing or stopping the other person’s behaviours.

Healthy boundaries are important for healthy relationships. People not taught effective boundaries—live their lives in chaos—with regular unwanted invasions from others. Learn to work with your personal boundaries as they can help you mange uncomfortable situations and tricky questions.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/plead-the-fifth/