You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December 2012.
It’s been another exciting year for the Better Life Coaching Blog, with traffic and subscriber numbers continuing to increase from month to month.
This blog has been going for almost three years now and has over 700 posts published, with a new post being added every weeknight (Australian time).
As we launch into another exciting year, here are the posts that have been viewed the most in 2012. Read the rest of this entry »
There’s an old proverb that says, “It takes one tree to make a thousand matchsticks, but it only takes one matchstick to burn down a thousand trees.”
This saying reminds me of the power of our words.
Encouraging and inspiring words can convince and empower people to do remarkable deeds.
And it’s easy to destroy people’s hopes and dreams with some poorly chosen (or in some cases maliciously chosen) words.
I have a couple of questions for you today:
I love Christmas!
It’s a wonderful time of year and as I reflect on the year that’s just about to end, there are lots of things that I’m extremely grateful for.
I am also very aware that Christmas isn’t always a joyous event for everyone, but I hope that by remembering the aspects of life that we’re grateful for, we can change our perspective and make it a happier and more rewarding time.
To get us started, here are 10 things that I’m grateful for this Christmas: Read the rest of this entry »
The Magi Journeying (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Two wise men, Melchior and Balthazar were about to leave for a long trip to Bethlehem (something about following a big star to the birthplace of the son of God).
As it was going to be such a long trip, they decided to add a third wise man to their group. After all, the extra camel could be handy for carrying their supplies.
There were two candidates, Caspar and Nino.
They were equally matched in every way, so Melchior and Balthazar came up with a test to see which one was the wisest.
Caspar and Nino were to travel down a remote road and when they came to a fork in the way, the one who chose the best road would win the contest and become the third wise man.
Caspar and Nino saddled up their camels and started on their journey.
When they got to the fork in the road, they stopped for a moment.
Nino sat down to consider his options, carefully analysing the pros and cons of each path, while Caspar decided to go down the road that veered to the left.
Logan, Madison and Hayden with Santa
I love Christmas and always appreciate receiving cards and letters at this time of the year that contain updates from friends and family regarding the year that’s just passed.
2012 has been another big year in our household, so here’s our own family update.
Futurist and author Alvin Toffler says, “The new illiterate will not be the person who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”
I suspect that in an era of such constant and prolific change, he’s right.
I’ve come across a lot of people over the years who can read and write perfectly well and have other skills that 20 years ago were in demand, but because of their inability to adapt to new technologies or maintain an open mind about change and a negative and dour attitude about the future have virtually rendered themselves unemployable and irrelevant.
Here are a couple of points that I think could be helpful in ensuring that we don’t fall into that trap ourselves:
A bat searching for a moth. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I was watching David Attenborough’s Life of Mammals with my oldest son Hayden over the weekend.
This particular episode showed some amazing footage of bats catching moths.
First, we saw bats using sonar to catch their prey.
Then Attenborough showed moths who had the ability to detect the bats’ sonar and could avoid capture.
Then there was a species of bat that didn’t rely on sonar. They had the extraordinary ability to hear when a moth moves its wings.
Even in an environment where there was the sound of rivers running and wind moving through the trees, they could detect even the smallest movement.
Hayden turned to me and asked with incredulity, “How can you hear a moth’s wings flapping?”
My response was, “You listen for them very carefully.”
