Blame it on Religion

Throughout the ages, religion has been used as an excuse to start wars, invade countries, shed blood and claim religious victories.

From the Mayan tradition of human sacrifice to please the Gods, to the Crusader wars and the most recent and most savage situation of terrorist groups using religion as a cover to the massacres and destruction to human soul and civilization that they commit every minute, religion has been misused, abused, and given a very misguiding label.

Exactly like the case of a scientist without any ethical knowledge, religion detached from its core of ethics and principles can become a very dangerous weapon especially when put in the hands of uneducated and uncivilized individuals.

I normally do not discuss or write about any religious issues, however, I believe it is very important that all of us remember what religion is all about; religion is not just the set of teaching, rules and laws written in a book; religion is how you act and behave, religion is how you live and how you reflect what’s on the inside to the whole world around you, religion is being human, religion is love.

This is just a humble reminder of the necessity of us, the human race, remembering who we all are and where we all come from, the necessity of realizing and remembering that no matter what race or color we born into, we all started as one and will always go back to the one at the end of our journey.

Before concluding this article, I would like to leave you all with two quotes to think about:

“Be kind to all creatures; this is the true religion”

~ The Buddha

“You will not enter paradise until you have faith. And you will not complete your faith until you love one another.”

 ~ Prophet Muhammad

"You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden”

~ Jesus Christ

Leadership Lessons to Learn From The Minions

Being a minion fan, and while watching the latest minion movie, it occurred to me that those little yellow creatures - funny, silly, adorable, and spontaneous as they are – do enjoy many of a leader’s characteristics that we can all benefit from.

If you are not familiar with who the minions are, then I would highly advise that you put all minion movies on your “movies to watch” list as I am sure you will enjoy each one of them. In this article I would like to highlight a number of leadership lessons that we can all learn from the minions. Below are a number of these lessons:

  

They never turn their back on a team member

No matter what the minions go through, they never leave a team member behind. It is very interesting how the whole team slows down so that the minion left behind is able to catch up. Successful teams are defined through the care and bonds among the team members and the minions sure do it very well.

  

    They are not afraid to take a chance

Taking a chance and taking risks when needed are major elements of success and progress. When you reach the edge of the cliff and the only way you can to progress is forward, you need to develop the habit of taking a leap of faith and jumping into the other side. Fear is the main reason behind most failures.

They know how to play

You have heard it said many times to “Work hard, play hard”. I am a firm believer that a healthy

lifestyle is based on balance; this is where play falls in the right place. Most of us get so consumed by their job and duties to the extent where we forget what it means to have some play time. Play time is as essential for adults as it is for children. Successful leaders make it a point to dedicate a portion of their day for play and leisure. This time slot should be the main slot on the schedule during the weekends.

Our minion friends are the experts at this as they know how to enjoy themselves and insert the element of play even when they are working. An old man once told me “in life, you have to get out and stop to smell the roses”. I wonder how many of us are enjoying their life the way they should.

                                                                                                                      

                                                     

They always see the positive side of things

Even when things look like they have hit a brick wall and can only get worse, the minions always see a positive way out in each challenging situation. It is very common for leaders to go through tough challenges that seem hopeless to resolve. These are the most critical of all times as all the team members will have their eyes and hopes on their leader for answers. Do not let how any situation look like fool you, think the minion way and look for the positives of each situation; there is always a way out.

They do not hold grudges

Even after the evil lady locked the minions up in a torture room after all the help they gave her, they met her with a big welcome and wide smile the next time they saw her!

Holding grudges and hard feelings towards the others can only act a blocking stone in the path to happy and successful life. Jealousy, hatred, and negative emotions that are directed towards us from people around us are all inevitable; however, it is always up to us how to choose how to react to such happenings. My advice to you is: never hold a grudge; assess the situation, choose your attitude and move on.  

They never give up

Any top leader will not think twice before telling one key principle they go by is “Giving up is not an option”. The minions have actually mastered the art of not giving up as they would always reach where they want and get what they want regardless of how many times or tries it takes. Leaders think in one direction only: win, win, win, win. How many times are you willing to try to make things happen for you? Your answer defines how much of a leader spirit you have in you.

Know When to Hit the Delete Button

Being a fan and a user of modern technology, my Dad has always had a certain attraction for tablets, smartphones, and computers of all sorts. What is interesting though, is that the first question my dad always asks when dealing with any new device is: “Where is the delete button?”

I always found that rather strange and off course, however, my dad always insist on learning how to delete software, e-mails, messages, applications, etc. It is like he has a passion for deleting things out of his devices. We have even created a family inside joke where each time my dad touches a new device we ask “Where is the delete button?”

At one point I couldn’t help but ask my dad why it was important for him to know how to delete things. My dad’s answer was: “Anything that is needless or useless only becomes an extra burden on the device, when more and more useless things accumulate, the device will slow down and eventually start malfunctioning”, then he added “Son, you need to do the same with life matters if you want to live happily”.

My dad’s words got engraved in my mind and for a long time I gave this some serious thinking; it is normally not easy for us to let go of things or people. We tend to hold on to memories of all sorts, dwell on annoying and negative matters and get emotionally attached places, belongings, and individuals, even if we know that this attachment is not a healthy one. Successful people know the trick to avoiding and getting read of such an overload of negative, useless factors, be it emotions, material things, or even people in our lives; they know when to press the Delete button.

 Below are what I call the I.F.D steps to identifying, filtering and deleting all the daily stress causers and negativity magnets that if undetected, will pile up in our subconscious and cause us to malfunction:

1.    Identify

Many times we feel annoyed, upset, or nervous but we can’t really put our fingers on the reason behind this feeling. All we know is that we are in a “Don’t touch” mode and are ready to backfire at anyone who talks to us.

It is extremely important that we isolate ourselves when such feelings are taking over and turn our identification meter on to verify the reason(s) behind this feeling. We can simply go over the events that happened with us for the day or earlier than that when needed and scan every moment until we identify the real reasons that caused us to feel this way.

2.    Filter

Now that you have put your fingers on a reason or a list of reasons that are causing the stress or the negative feeling, it is time to ask yourself and answer a set of questions that will help you filter and narrow down that list to the minimum that you need to focus on. I always find the following questions to be useful in guiding me to what I need to filter out:

·       Is this issue / person in the circle of control or no control?

·       Did I understand the issue / person correctly?

·       Is there anything that I can do now to change this situation?

·       Is this issue / person of any value or meaning to me?

·       Is this issue / person standing in the way of my growth and progress?

3.    Delete

Once you have answered the questions mentioned earlier you will be able to better decide what issues you can simply delete and not occupy yourself with.

My advice to you is not to sweat the small things. Life is wonderful and it gets even better when we know when to use the delete button.

Thank you dad for teaching me how and when to delete what I don’t need.

8 Ways to Unclog Your Brain

Our “modern” lifestyle of technology and state of the art communication tools and techniques comes with a hefty price that each one of us pays. Using the internet, cellphones, tablets, smart TVs, smart watches, etc. to get our day to day needs and businesses done has become an unquestionable part of the day to day life.

Recent studies show that the average person receives the data equivalent of 174 newspapers on daily basis. It is no wonder then that the majority of people suffer from data overload which leads to a syndrome that I like to call a Brain Clog.   A mental or brain clog can lead to very unhealthy outcomes that will reflect negatively on our lives. I would like to share with you 8 ways that can help you unclog your brain and reset it back to a fresh start.

1. Spend some time alone

Spending time alone can be of great health advantage when practiced moderately and appropriately. We all need a healthy dose of “me time” where we get to think clearly and away from any external distractions. Once we isolate all external data, take a few steps back and focus on the voice inside, we get to see the full picture in a clearer way.

          2.   Get on a speech fast

Yes, you read that right; a speech fast. All doctors recommend a food fast for a healthy body cleanse and a good detox process. What is interesting is that several studies in recent years have proven that staying silent for a period of time has beneficial effects on the human thinking ability and decision making process. Do not hesitate to do a speech fast for 24 hours and see how you will feel the day after.

    3.   Talk to yourself

No, talking to yourself is not a sign of insanity as many people may joke about it. When we speak our thoughts out loud we come to a better sense of the pattern of our thinking and a better understanding of our emotions. This might even – in many cases – help us find solutions for the different day to day challenges.

4.   Enjoy some silence

Silence reinstalls the state of balance in us, be it mentally, spiritually or physically. In addition, silence allows the different thoughts that are buried in the subconscious to surface and be released. With such a busy lifestyle we all need a moment of silence and peace to regroup and get back on track. Make a habit of setting a minimum of 10 – 15 minutes a day for a session of silence and peace and you will notice the difference for yourself.

5.   Rewind your day

After a long busy day it is very helpful to mentally go over the events of the day you just had and evaluate each part of it. Rewinding the day in our minds can also help us discover and / or remember certain details that we did not pay attention at the moment they happened.

6.   Perform a Mental Dump

This is one of my favorite and most helpful habits that I have developed along the years. With so much data input coming to us on constant basis, there are so many appointments, reminders, to do tasks, phone calls, choirs, etc. to remember on daily basis. Leaving the office with such amounts of data overload on your mind can result into a restless rest of the day.  Before you leave the office dump all of this data on a piece of paper in the form of organized points and leave your mind stress free for you will still keep track of all you needed to remember the day after. I do my mental dumps on daily basis to the extent where it has become a second nature for me to do them.

 7.   Take a mental break

Just like any other muscle or organ in our body, our brain needs rest as well. Daily short mental breaks can be of great benefits to the overall capacity and performance power of our brain. Find a few minutes every day we you simply sit by yourself and switch off. Try for a few minutes tp clear your thoughts and simply think of nothing. This can be practiced by imagining a cloudy sky clearing of clouds little by little until the sky becomes clear blue with bright sunshine. While practicing this short session of meditation, make sure that you take deep inhales and exhales.

  8.   Treat yourself

You have heard it said: “In life, you have to stop and smell the roses”, and I’m here to urge you to make a practice of it. Life is not all about e-mails, schedules, deadlines and other commitments. Treating yourself to a vacation or to something that you like or have been wanting, pays off. Our brains and bodies enjoy treats and reset themselves to fresh start after a good break or treat.

Beat the BOT

In our days of quick everything, time has never been more precious and priceless. We work hard and push ourselves to the limit to always be on time not be behind. Meeting deadlines is one of the main reasons of pressure that we face on daily basis when trying to deliver any kind of work.

I am a firm believer that if you want to succeed at something , you should not just settle for average or have a “go with the flow” mentality. In order to really succeed you need to beat the Be On Time lifestyle and find ways of how to be ahead of time instead.  

Often times I hear people complain that they do not have enough time to get things done: I couldn’t disagree more. Below are a few tips that could save us a reasonable amount of time and hopefully help us be ahead of time instead of just on time.

·       Get Organized

It is estimated that the average human being spend the total of one year of his lifetime looking for lost possessions. Surprising, right?

Being an organized individual is a main factor in saving time as you will not need to waste that much time looking for lost belongings or misplaced items here and there.

·       Stay Focused

A large percentage of people have not trained themselves to stay focused on the task at hand. Losing focus is a definite time waster and much time can be gained by developing the habit of focus.

·       Time your tasks

Setting yourself a challenge to accomplish any given task in a reasonable amount of time can create pressure; a well needed pressure indeed. A moderate amount of healthy pressure can get us to finish any task or job in a shorter time than we would while doing the same task in a deadline free condition. Get into the habit of setting deadlines for any task or project that you work on in order to manage and perhaps even save time.

·       Plan Ahead

Planning any project or task ahead of time can be a huge time saver when done properly. A plan is your best map to the destination using the shortest, yet most effective route. People who work without planning end up wasting a considerable amount of time on things that could have been avoided. Successful leaders and individuals will never go without a plan.

·       Hang out with the right crowd

As harsh as it may seem, letting go of useless company is also a time saver. Emotions aside, try to take a look at your friends and run them through a filter; how many of them actually share same interests as you do? How many of them spend most of their time whining and complaining about how unfair life is and about all the negative things that happen to them? And how many of them actually speak positivity into your life, motivate you and are always there whenever you need them? Making a choice when it comes to the people you spend time with makes a lot of difference in the quality of your life.

·       Do not waste time trying to make everyone happy

Making everyone around us happy can be a real challenge, however, the good news is: you don’t really have to worry about making everyone happy. The truth is: if anyone is not happy with you, it is their problem not yours, so stop wasting time trying to figure out how to make everyone happy and focus on what makes you happy.

A Rule of Growth.....No Pain...No Gain

    Being a former amateur body builder and still a big fan and practitioner of the sport, I am sure that almost all those who are into the world of body building take the former pro-bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenneger as their idol. I can write pages upon pages from lessons that we can learn from the former Mr. Olympia, Hollywood Star, and former governor, however, I am writing this article because of a basic rule that Arnold set in order for anyone to have their muscles grow using effective exercise. It is the nature of the human muscle to feel exhaustion and pain after a few repetitions of weight lifting, Arnold rule says that the muscle grows when we still do a few more reps after feeling that discomfort, soreness and pain in the muscle.

The concept of how to get a human muscle to grow attracted my attention to a great extent. Giving this method some deep thought we will come to realize that this is a rule that applies not only to muscle growth, but to growth in different aspects of our lives. Oftentimes we complain about the weights in our lives, we seek to unload all the heavy weights and life troubles off our backs. Pain is usually a sign of discomfort and unrest. However, through it all there is always a light at the end of the tunnel should we choose to change our perspective of things; at the end of the day, our life is the consequence of the choices we make and we always have a choice.

Allow me to challenge you today for a mental and spiritual workout; are you going to give up, put the weights down and walk away, or are you going to push a few more reps through the pain and the heavy weights to grow more and more? The same thing that we normally try to avoid and runaway from can be the exact same reason behind our gains and growth.      

May your life workouts be full of growth

Ask and It Will Be Given To You

In recent years the topic of the law of attraction (you attract what you think about) has become a major topic of interest by many people. Books were published, documentaries were filmed, and different testimonials from all around the world started going viral all over the internet.

 I am a firm believer of the power of belief and the law of attraction. The concept is very simple, yet very powerful if implemented correctly; you receive what you believe. Most people however, wonder whether this is really true and if it really works. More importantly, if it is really works then how come most people do not get what they want in life?

The answer is all people want things in life but very few are those who believe they will get them. What matters most is not what you want, what really matters is whether you believe you will receive it or not. The magic of the power of belief and the power of attraction is not a new born concept of this century; it has been there since the creation of the human race. We can trace this back to thousands of years ago. Jesus Christ said: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you”. Jesus has communicated this great secret with us thousands of years ago but very few really believed and understood.

The first thing to ask yourself when you want something is: how bad do I really want this? The intensity of the desire generated once you answer this question will be your guide and indicator to how much you should see what you want happening for you. The steps to having anything you want can be summarized in four easy stages:

 1.   Initiate the thought of what you desire

Everything in this life becomes with a thought. The thought becomes a dream, a desire, which then and by time gets materialized and becomes a reality.

2.  Ask

Once you have decided what it is that you desire, then all you have to do is ask. Ask who? , you may wonder. This is always a personal choice; some people ask the universe, others ask the higher power, and most would ask the creator…God. What matters most is that you believe in a higher power. Everything in existence – including our thoughts - is made of energy and energy attracts the like, so be careful what you think of for you get what you ask for.

3.  Visualize

Visualization is an extremely important aspect of receiving what you want. Most people think that meditation and visualization is a complicated process that only a few can master; I am here today to tell you that this is far from the truth. All you need is 5 minutes a day to sit alone, close your eyes and imagine everything you asked for happening to you, feel it, live it, and see it as if it is really happening to you. At the end of your 5 minutes visualization, thank for what you will receive and repeat the phrase: “I want… and it is done. Thank you”.

 4.  Wait

Once you have asked and believed that it will happen, all you have to do is wait and keep believing and asking. No matter how you really wait for, be sure that it will happen to you. The power of belief works every single time.