Where am I? Where am I Going? (full text below)

Where am I? Where am I Going?

The term “news” comes from the geographical
directions of North, East, West and South. It’s
shocking to me how little people know about
geography, and what’s East or West, or what’s
North or South.
Americans have let their geographical
knowledge fall so much that many don’t know
the difference between Paris, France and Paris
Hilton.
But Americans are not alone—lack of
knowledge is contagious and worldwide. Many
of my friends here in Asia have no idea exactly
where Bangkok or Seoul are situated—the best
they can do is get to the airport and go to the
correct gate, get on a plane, and end up wherever
they’re going. Being oriented locally, or
globally is low on the priority list, as long as you
can have someone else find your way.
So what’s wrong with that? Two things; one, in
life, you will get lost. You better be resourceful
enough to find your way home, or you could end
up broke, or worse, dead. Being directionally
ignorant is no joke. Two, knowledge is power.
In life, you need to know where you are to figure
out where you are going. (Or others will gladly
tell you where to go! I think you get the idea.)
Recently, a beauty contestant in America made
headlines for completely botching a question
about geography—she looked like an idiot. Do
you want to look like an idiot? If I asked you
“How do I get to from here to there?”, could you
tell me? Or would I get the ubiquitous “I don’t
know” response?

Key Words

Geography-n-the study of places, maps, locales.

Contagious-adj-something that is easily spread.

Situated-adj-the location of something, where it sits.

Oriented-adj-having knowledge and awareness of the location of places and things.

Resourceful-adj-able to use what is available and make the most of it.

Directionally-adv-the ability of knowing which way to go.

Botching-v-doing something very badly, poorly.

Ubiquitous-adj-everywhere, very common.

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Did I Say Yes? (click on for video, text below)

Did I Say Yes?

Did you ever say yes to someone, and then later regret it? I do it all the time. Yes, yes, yes, sure I’ll do that—and then ten minutes later I’m wondering to myself “Why did I say yes?”
We’ve all been there, on the receiving end of a request from someone;

“Can you do this work for me?”
“Will you come to the party?”
“I need you to spend three hours doing (something)”
“Would you like to go on a date Friday night?”
“The school project must be done by someone”

Before our brain has a chance to process this information, out from our mouths blurt the words “Okay”, “Yes”, “I’ll do it”. And a short time later you’re wondering “Why am I going out with that guy on Friday?” or “Why did I commit to that party?” or “I have so much work to do, how am I going to do this?”
Unfortunately, how we usually deal with this is to either wait until the last moment and back out of our commitment, or follow through on the commitment with resentment toward the other person or ourselves.
Why do we do this? Two reasons; one, many of us are people-pleasers, and don’t know how to say NO to people. Two, we’re unprepared.
The person who comes to you with a request, has mentally prepared themselves to ask you. This preparation may be a simple mental rehearsal, or an elaborate persuasive argument. As far as being a people-pleaser, this is based in our own insecurity—we fear losing that person as a friend if we say NO and disappoint them. So, we put the burden on ourselves for the sake of being likable.
What to do? Tell the person “Let me get back to you”, or “I need to check my schedule”. This will give you time to process the information and make the best decision possible for both of you.
In some situations we have to say yes immediately, such as at work, when the boss needs you to do something, or at school when the teacher needs our cooperation. But often we have the right to bargain for time to think things through.
Be a good steward of your time—it’s the most valuable resource you have.

Key Words

Regret-v-feeling bad about something we did or said.

Blurt-v-quickly said, a reaction.

Commitment-n-an agreement to do something.

Resentment-n-negative feelings about a person or thing.

People-pleaser-n-someone who does almost anything to make others happy.

Elaborate-adj-complicated, detailed, containing many facets (parts).

Persuasive-adj-convincing, able to get agreement.

Insecurity-n-lack of self-confidence, fear, doubt about oneself.

Burden-n-a heavy load.

Steward-n-a manager of things, a person responsible for taking care of something.

"I Hate My Job" (click on for video, full text below)

"I Hate My Job"

I hate my job! No, not me—I love my job with Studio Classroom—really! Best job I’ve ever had. But I constantly hear people say that they hate their job. It’s amazing—sometimes I wonder if anybody is happy at work. If you love your job, then consider yourself lucky;
you’re part of a small percentage of people on earth who actually enjoy waking up in the morning. At most, 10% of the workforce loves their jobs. Then there are people who merely tolerate their work. After that, the majority of folks would like to change their job.
I hear it all the time—I hate my job, I hate my boss, I hate my company, I hate everything! My wife, my husband, my cat, my neighbor! Ai-you! Why do people hate their jobs? There are many reasons, but I’ll give you a few of the most prevalent ones;
1. You are only doing it for money. It doesn’t matter if you make a lot, or make a little, if you only do a job for money, eventually you will hate it. Why? Money is not a sustainable motivator over the long run. And then what happens is you get trapped by your obligations. Figure out exactly what you need—not what you think you need (which is inflated). Remember, you can't take it with you.
2. You have no sense of purpose in your work. You’ve never sat down and figured out what you really want to do with your life. Most people simply bounce from job to job with no thought of the long-run view of their life. What you need to do today is take a big-picture view of your life, and write things down.
3. You’re pleasing someone else. Parents, spouses, friends, family, culture—all have a powerful impact upon our choices. Often, we let these outside forces influence our work choices. Bad idea! Nobody is more interested in your well-being and satisfaction in life than you—only you can figure it out. You’re the one who has to get up every morning and live it, so why let someone else choose it?
Certainly, other reasons exist for job dissatisfaction, but my experience shows these are the most common. People hate their work, and then bounce from one job to the next, thinking that another place will make them happy. It doesn’t work. I got news for you--wherever you go, there you are. So instead of just saying “I hate my job”, then switching companies, figure out what the problem really is—most likely it’s misguided expectations, lack of planning, or submission to someone else’s desires rather than your own.

Key Words

Tolerate-v-to put up with something, such as mild pain, suffering or discomfort.

Prevalent-adj-widespread, most common.

Sustainable-adj-ongoing, can be continued on an ongoing basis.

Motivator-n-a reason to do something, a reward or incentive.

You can’t take it with you-cliché-when we die, all of our possessions stay on earth, we give them up.

Big-picture view-idiom-looking at things over the long-run, or looking at your life as if it were a movie, seeing trends, important events, and their connection.

Wherever you go, there you are-cliché-you are the same person whether you move or change jobs, with the same good and bad habits.

Submission-n-giving in to another person’s wishes or desires.

New Assistant Not Much Help, Just Wants To Play

Stop and Smell the Roses (click on for video, text below)

Stop and Smell the Roses

There’s an interesting story about this big Ferris
Wheel behind me. Ethan White, who use to be
on the Advanced team, came here with his
family one day for a ride on the Ferris Wheel,
which rises to nearly 400 feet at it’s apex.
Joining Ethan’s family on this adventure was a
blind man. Think about that—a blind man went
for a ride on this giant Ferris Wheel. He was
unable to see the great view at the top—why did
he go?
He wanted to experience the feeling. He did
something that many people would have trouble
understanding, let alone doing on their own.
I’ll give you another example. A good friend of
mine was driving her car down the street and
saw a new bus that was unlike any other bus she
had seen before. What did she do? She went
ahead of the bus, parked her car, and got on the
bus!
When’s the last time you did something totally
illogical simply for the experience? What’s
holding you back? Moments come and go in life,
and we always think there will be other
opportunities to do things. Remember, nothing
is guaranteed, not even tomorrow. I once pulled
off the highway in the state of Wyoming and
drove twenty miles just to see a landmark for ten
minutes—that was eleven years ago, and in all
likelihood, I will never be there again. Would
you do the same?
Are you open to smelling the roses, or limited by
your imaginary constraints?

Key Words

Stop and smell the roses-v.phr.-to take time and enjoy moments, and simple things, don’t rush through life.

Ferris Wheel-n-a large wheel-like ride that carries passengers.

Illogical-adj-does not make sense, seems incorrect.

In all likelihood-idiom-very likely to happen.

Imaginary-adj-not real, something in the mind.

Constraints-n-limits, barriers that are in place to restrict movement, growth.

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"More Money" (click on for video, full text below)

More Money

Every one wants more money. "If only I had more money, then my problems would be solved". I often hear that.

There's an old saying I once heard--"Money makes you more of what you are." What does that mean? Well, think about what you are like. Are you a happy person? An honest person? Kind? Compassionate? Hard working? Generous? Or are you miserable? Mean? Lazy? Cheap? Whatever you are, money will make you more of that. Money won't make you happy unless you are a happy person without it.

Money won't bring you love unless you give love, with or without money. And money won't make you healthy if you don't live a healthy lifestyle.

Pursuing money is fine--it's not evil. But too often the pursuit of money causes us to compromise our principles, and it clouds our judgement about what makes us happy or unhappy.

A purposeful life, rewarding work and meaningful relationships--things that take work and effort, make us happy. If you have those, then money will be the icing on the cake. If you don't, then money will simply be a distraction that seperates you from the beauty of a life well-lived.

Key Words

Compassionate-adj-kind and caring toward others.

Generous-adj-willing to give your resources to others.

Miserable-adj-unhappy with many things.

Cheap-unwilling to give your resources to others.

Compromise our principles-v.phrase-not doing the right thing in order to achieve a goal.

Clouds our judgement-idiom-something that prevents us from clearly seeing a problem.

Icing on the cake-idiom-an unexpected benefit, an additional good thing.

Give People a Chance (click on for video, text below)