Filtered by Category: Current Affairs

Monday, Monday

Poor Monday.   It’s the least liked day of the week.  So many people dread Monday mornings.  The start of a new work week.  The beginning of another cycle of the “daily grind”.  A new countdown until the next weekend.  Are you one of the millions of people who are “working for the weekend”?

It’s time to re-think Mondays.  I like Monday and actually look forward to it.  People ask me how that’s possible.  A friend of mine once asked me “so you’ve never had a Sunday night where you weren’t looking forward to going to work the next day?”, and I said “sure”.   Then came the next question “how did you get over that?”  My answer: “I left”

My point here is that the dreaded feeling has less to do with Monday and more to do with your situation.  Change the situation and your perspective will change with it.   Easier said than done?  Yes.  But not impossible.   You control your outcomes by the choices you make.   Choose to be in control of the situation.  Choose to make a change.  Choose to start over.  Choose to leave.  Whatever your choice – the important thing is that you take action.  As the famous Nike tagline says, JUST DO IT.

 

 

Musical Time Travel

You know that feeling you get when you hear a song that reminds you of a special time or a particular person from your past?  This happened to me yesterday as I was driving in my car.  I was listening to Sirius XM’s “80s on 8” and Billy Idol’s “Eyes Without a Face” came on the radio.  Immediately I was taken back to the summer of 1984 and a club in Italy called Rainbow, where I spent many a Saturday night that summer.   “Eyes Without a Face” was always the first song the DJ started his set with.   Lots of laughs and good times were had in that club. Those summers I spent in Italy were some of the best years of my young adult life.  I made many friends, and connections that still endure some three decades later.   Every time I hear this song it’s as if I’m back at that club. 

It makes me smile every time.

How is it possible for a song to open floodgates of emotion and memories (both happy and sad)?   Is it random, or is there a science behind it? 

You’ll be happy to know it’s not random and there is actually a science to it – neuroscience.  

A study conducted in 2009 from the University of California, Davis mapped the brain while subjects listened to music.  What the study found was that specific brain regions linked to autobiographical memories (memories of specific personal events) and emotions are activated by familiar music. The UC Davis study titled, "The Neural Architecture of Music-Evoked Autobiographical Memories," was published in the journal Cerebral Cortex.

A Finnish study conducted in 2011 actually used MRI technology to observe the brain’s functions while participants listened to music.  What the study revealed was that music stimulates the areas of the brain that are associated with motor functions, emotions and creativity.

In December of 2013, the journal Neuropsychological Rehabilitation published a study conducted by Amee Baird and Séverine Samson, from the University of Newcastle in Australia.  Baird and Samson used popular music to help patients who had suffered severe brain injuries to recall personal memories. 

Music can help with memory recall, it can evoke strong emotions and can stimulate our creativity. In short, music is powerful.

For more on the studies mentioned here and other fascinating facts about the effects of music on the brain, click here.

In the meantime, here’s Billy and “Eyes Without a Face”.

Keep smiling and remember:

La vita e’ bella!

Life is beautiful!

Slacker

Hey everyone,

I'll admit it.  I've been slacking with my blog posts.  Being totally lazy.

You know when you have one of those days, and then one of those days turns into one of many days... and then it turns into a week... and then....   You get the picture.  

No excuse.  I promised I'd be back last week and I didn't follow through.   I'll own up to it.  

Here's the thing though - it's good to slack off every once in a while.  By that I mean take the time to recharge.  Find something that you love to do and go do that.   If that something is doing absolutely nothing, then do that.  My point is, whatever works for you is good.  

In the meantime, here's some slacker reading material to inspire you (or justify your laziness):

The Secret World of Doing Nothing

The Art of Doing Nothing: Simple Ways to Make Time for Yourself

Autopilot: The Art and Science of Doing Nothing

So don't punish yourself for slacking off every now and then.  You're allowed.  As for me, I have lots of blog posts to write.

Keep smiling and remember...

La vita e' bella! 
Life is beautiful!

Time Away

Hello to all my followers.

I've been away for a bit but will resume blogging next week.  In the meantime, I hope that you are all having a wonderful weekend.  

Sometimes we need to take a step back and recharge our batteries.   That is exactly what I have been doing.  I will share with you all what I've learned during this time in posts next week.  

Enjoy the day and remember.... 

La vita e' bella!

Life is beautiful!

All Hands On Deck

Last Friday I attended a non-profit luncheon to accept a Corporate Leadership award on behalf of my company.  While I was there, I heard several of the speakers talk about the challenges that non-profits face with regard to staffing.  Government cuts in funding often leave these wonderful organizations with no choice but to cut their staff in order to be able to fund their programs.  The issue with this, is that while reducing headcount may save dollars for programs, the programs are often not able to move forward because there are not enough people to run them.  

Listening to these stories drove home for me the importance of volunteering.   More than ever, non-profits are facing the very real possibility of closing their operations or suspending, even eliminating, some services that they provide due to lack of staffing.  Skilled volunteers are as important as ever in their ability to provide the assistance to those they serve.    So today, take a moment to think about your talents and how you can donate your time and expertise to helping your local non-profits.   Reach out to some organizations in your community and ask how you or your employees can help.   Volunteering is a key component of giving.  I guarantee based on what I heard on Friday, that will not be turned away.

Happy Sunday!