Let’s Spread the Good Vibes this 2013!

No year-end post last year. Epic fail.

Before going in-depth, I just want to greet a very Happy New Year to every one. Also, I want to greet a Happy Birthday to the late Executive Minister Bro. Eraño G. Manalo and I promised to live his advocacy and pass it to the next generation Church of Christ members.

Going back to the title, I encouraged every one to spread the good vibes this year especially to your friends and loved ones. In the past years, we’ve been tested in terms of finances and may be some of us would almost breakdown because of the severe pain that attacked our emotions. We even encountered news that killed innocent victims by mentally-challenged people which affects us so much though we don’t know them personally. We could even say at this point that it is very hard to win when nature takes its revenge. There are many establishments that shut down its operation while houses are devastated which leaves a hundred or may be thousands of families homeless. Though we wish that this won’t happen again, we all know that it will happen again. Earthquakes, typhoons, tsunamis and even death are unpredictable and cannot be controlled.

The best thing that we can do now is to be positive at all times and not be hard on ourselves or even to other people. Have an ocean of patience and understanding to make sure that we protect the relationship we have to the people we love.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” – I Cor, 13:4-7 NIV

In case that we reach the boiling point and we are about to burst out, the best thing to do is pray. As my dad said, “Pray to God to bless the people who hurt you.” We need to pray for them so they can benefit the beauty of life and enjoy happiness.

If the words will hurt the people you love, seal it. If it is necessary to say, never say it when you’re mad. The words will never be understood because the emotions are louder than your voice.

It’s nicer to be happy and kind, isn’t it?

Days away, 2013!

This year is about to close its doors and forgive me for not posting so often. But I hope you’ll accept my excuses as soon as I’m done with my final post for this year (honestly, I didn’t start anything yet… but I promise to do it). A spoiler – this year is the most special I’ve been so far. So many smizes!

Living a Life Against All Odds!

Successful people often say that they are contented in the life they chose. They are at peace and they feel so blessed that everything has gone into place.  They claim that they had chosen the right path. Some would relate their choice in Robert Frost’s poem, The Road Not Taken. It is true that decision making is one of the key factors to make life successful or to ruin it. Decisions we make today dictates what the future can bring us.

Now, what if you know exactly the life that you wanted but the people around you is not supportive about it? What are you going to do? Let’s take this scenario: You’re from a family of licensed professionals. Maybe one is a doctor, lawyer, accountant, dentist or a teacher and you find yourself loving the nature, loving the trees.  Yes! You want to be a farmer.  You want to be that someone they don’t expect you to be. Are you going to pursue it or just follow them blindly?

Well, should I say you’re so lucky? Very lucky, I mean. Not all people know what they want to be and where they want to go.  They don’t have any plans in life. They don’t have dreams. They never see the future. They do not know the importance of choosing a life that will lead to a happy life. They just go with the flow.

But the most unfortunate people are those who know what they want to do and know where they want to go. But they are just afraid!  They are hindered by their financial status in life (even the people over the poverty line thinks this way), by family and relatives that underestimate their choice or simply because they don’t have the courage to do it.

Sad to say, every one of us needs to make a decision. Everyone must choose and deciding is not easy at all. Check the points to ponder below then think things all over again.

1. Follow your heart. When confusion strikes following your heart is the best thing to do. This is where “the voice within” comes from and the place where you store your dreams and goals. If money profits because you risk it in business (not keeping it) the same thing goes with your dreams.  It’s fine to consider our family’s opinion because they remind us to check reality. If you think you can compromise your dream, stop reading this article!

2.  “Work like you don’t need the money.” It’s a cliché but it’s true. We don’t work to earn money, we work to provide service for the welfare of the needy. If the sole reason for working is all about money,  you’ll get tired too soon and stress will definitely hit your health badly. Most of the time stress replaces the valuable time to be happy. If the charitable people and philanthropists work for money, they will stop helping.

3. Take small steps at a time. There are a lot of ways to reach your goal. If you are hesitant to get the bigger part of the pie then take the smaller one as long as it is the same pie. Don’t waste your time doing things that are not part of your goal. Your smaller steps will increase later on then you’ll become an expert. Experts earn more money!

4. Pray and Trust Him. Lord God gives us the best things in life. Nothing is impossible with Him. This must be the first and last step in everything you do. He removes our confusion and provides our needs when we can’t find it because success in life is spelled GOD.

How to Spend Your School Allowance Wisely

School is here again! Yes, vacation is over and you’re back once again with the routine you had last school year. Mom is yelling because you don’t like to rise from bed. You curse your professors because you don’t like them. But if you’re one of the few that wanted to move forward and be an achiever you’ll find some articles in the internet to make yourself better. Then you’ll find some readings that would discuss time management and better study habits. Thus, the bottom line here is changing that bad habits and attitude into good ones.

As a student, we rarely discuss money matters since most of us receive allowances and least of us are working students. Money is not our top priority but our studies. However, we must put in mind that our parents work hard for every penny that they give us. It’s the fruit of their labor and it should be spent wisely.

So, here are some tips on how to spend that allowance wisely:

1. Create a budget plan. This is a written plan where you can keep a record of the expected expenses for the day, week or month. This includes your food, fare, school projects and even cellphone load. In this way, you will be able to see if you have enough money for the coming days and you will be able to control your expenses so you will not fall short.

2. Save then spend. Always remember that aside from spending, money is also used for saving. After you identify your regular expenses it is also important that you save part of your allowance as your savings. You do not need to save a big amount because that small amount will increase and become bigger as time goes by. Once you’re done putting aside your regular expenses and you’re done saving it is the right time to spend anything that’s left from your allowance.

3. Be strict and stick to it. Controlling yourself on spending is the hardest part of this drill. Friends may invite you to try a new fast food chain, watch a movie or you may want to buy a new pair of shoes because you just feel like buying it. Whatever temptations there are, always remember, if you don’t need it don’t buy it.

4. Use your skills and get pay from it. There are times when you encounter unexpected expenses like group contributions or photocopy expenses that you experience a budget deficit no matter how you stretch your allowance. This is when your skills come into picture. Since you’re not staying in school 24/7 you can use your free time in tutorial services on the subjects you really excel. If you’re good in crafts like accessory-making you may sell the finished products through social networking sites for a bigger market.

5. Share it. After spending and saving, it’s time to share a portion of your allowance. A piece of lollipop or a cotton candy for younger siblings or a handkerchief for the older ones is sweet enough to tell them that they matter most. Giving your parents a pint of ice cream and a free hug from you will be remembered. As the song says, “it’s not about the money, money, money” because the cliché proves “it’s the thought that counts”.

These five easy tips serve as a guideline and you must not get frustrated if you are not able to follow it the first time. Taking baby steps will make it easier for you to adjust on the changes on your spending habits. Making this habit as part of your personality will help you in the future when you land your first job.

Preventing Leg Cramps

Leg cramps can be easily treated by using relieving creams or simply by pulling your toes upward towards your knee.  However, this treatment is helpful only if you experience cramps while playing your favorite sports or you change your shoes from high heeled to low heeled. But when it comes to swimming this is another story. Leg cramps will make your leg immobile and in most cases you may get drowned. To avoid muscle fatigue these tips will definitely help you.

Take your vitamins. Vitamin E does not only help your skin to glow radiantly but it also improves the circulation of the blood that transports oxygen to the body. During leg cramps, a build up of lactic acid happens due to the lack of oxygen. This build up will overwhelm the muscle resulting to cramps.

Another vitamins that can help alleviating the pain are calcium and magnesium. These vitamins confuses the muscle because of its push and pull effect. Calcium is responsible for contracting the muscle while magnesium relaxes it.

Regular training and exercise. If you are an athlete, train regulary. A trained muscle makes the lactic acid build up longer meaning a more improved circulation through out the body.  However if you are a beginner, do not overdo it. You take your time and  listen to your body. When you feel tired don’t be shy to get a break.

Drink water. Dehydration is one of the reason of leg cramps so it’s better to drink water, plenty of it.

Stretch that muscles. Stretching is not only required in exercise. Everytime you use your muscle it is prone to cramps. In order to avoid this, stretching is an option.

Difference and Comparison of Commonly Used Words

Have you ever encountered someone asking you the difference between two commonly used words and get frustrated or confused because you don’t know the answer? Well, there are words that seemed to be synonymous but not at all. Let’s check some words and compare it.

Assertive and Aggressive

Assertive – claiming a right, being firm, but polite

Aggressive – claiming a right, being firm, but impolite

Effective and Efficient

Effective – accomplish task according to the desired result, disregarding time and effort

Efficient – accomplish task according to the desired result, faster and with less effort

Empathy and Sympathy

Empathy – feeling with the person, sharing one’s feeling and understanding it

Sympathy – feeling for the person, recognizing one’s feeling and agree with it

If you were able to observe the words above it does not only teach you its difference but the traits that a person should have. You must be assertive, efficient and empathic to build a stronger relationship with the people around you and for you to value more of your time and effort.

Getting organized the Japanese way-5s

5s is the Japanese systematized way of maintaining a neat and clean workplace. It serves as a housekeeping technique in eliminating clutter. It does not only apply in your workplace but it can be used in your own house. Before we discuss thoroughly, let us discuss first the idea behind it. 5s was designed  for a more productive working environment and to attain a high quality of work. It aims the consistency of the process among the workers.

As the name implies, it has 5 techniques using Japanese words that begin with letter S. The principles are Seiri (Organisation/Sort out), Seiton (Orderliness/Systemize), Seiso (Cleaning and Shining), Seiketsu (Standardize) and Shitsuke (Sustain/Discipline).

Seiri – This is the phase where you will decide the  things you need and how often you use it. Let’s take the first item, deciding whether you store or throw away your stuff. If you are still undecided whether to throw your things or not you can use the “Red Tag” technique. All the things that you think should be thrown away must be tagged using a red sticker or anything red that sticks. Next, you put all the reg tag items in a box and check it the next day or the day after the next. Then, you  reevaluate it. Keep the things that you still need then throw everything that’s left in the box. You may also reevaluate a month after, three months and so on if you can’t still decide whether to throw it or not.

For the second item, all you need to do is to identify the priority of use. Is it low priority (frequency of use is once per year), average priority ( frequency of use is once per month or week)  or high priority (frequency of use is once per day)? Low priority follows the red tag technique while the average priority needs to be stored. Everything that falls under high priority must be seen in the workplace.

Seiton – This is where the workplace are systemize. There is a designated place for everything and it has its own label. You may also apply this in your house or bedroom. Once you group your things according to its frequency of use you may keep it altogether in a drawer. There may be a drawer for toiletries, school supplies or even electronic gadgets.

Seiso – Workplace or even houses must be clean always. Sweeping, dusting and polishing are the easiest and best way to do it. So it is necessary that you always have cleaning materials to ensure that everything is clean and no clutter at all.

Standardise – Since its not only you that stays in your house you must strictly observe the first three S. In order to do this you must be able to create a process that everyone will follow.  You may use checklists if everything is done  properly and if it is maintained clean. You may use the general rule of putting back the things in its proper place after being used.

Shitsuke-Removing clutter and maintaining a clean workplace requires a commitment. It means that the principles stated must now be a part of your life. It must be done not only for years but ideally for a lifetime.

To test yourself if you were able to do the principles correctly you can follow the 30 second rule. You will be able to locate an item within 30 seconds if it is followed properly.