Job Interview? Remember The Bus Stop Quiz

You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus:

1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
2. An old friend who once saved your life.
3. The perfect partner you have been dreaming about and haven't seen for years.

Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing that there could only be one passenger in your car? Think before you continue reading.

This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of a job application.. You could pick up the old lady, because she is going to die, and thus you should save her first.. Or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and this would be the perfect chance to pay him back. However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.

YOU WON'T BELIEVE THIS.....................

The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble coming up with his answer. He simply answered: 'I would give the car keys to my old friend and let him take the lady to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the partner of my dreams.'

Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our stubborn thought limitations. Never forget to “Think Outside of the Box.”

New Routine : Be More with Less

Deeper Week 3

Ever wonder why Less is More?

Everyone should consider to remain flexible with social media. What works three months ago, may not work today. What works today, may not work three weeks from now. And I am almost on my final week away from Facebook.

I believe this principle can be applied to blogging ... traffic and frequency are directly correlated.

The more you post, the greater your traffic.
The more you practice, the better you get at it.

This is true when you are relatively new blogger like me, seeing my traffic grow in 2011 was self-rewarding, however I started questioning the content, time, purpose and preparation ... I didn't want to be posting too much, get burnout or become too noisy.

I have to agree (with Michael Hyatt, Jeff Goins, Ali Luke & Darren Rowse) that if I could get the same amount of traffic with half the posts, I could probably gain several hours each week that could be invested in other activities. I could read more, research and choose which quality knowledge to share.

My friends are busy everyday. Doesn't mean they don't enjoy spending time reading my post, they just don't have the time to keep up. Others might need some time between post to process the data and apply it. We all have different skills, personalities, and constraints on our time and energy.

My plan is to keep my post short and simple (to the point). Planning ahead will probably help me avoid posting sub-standard content when I am in a rush.

Routines play a very important role, because they make room for other things. I have established a weekly routine, it gets me going in the right direction, stay focus, otherwise I spend a lot of time playing catch up. The feeling of being left behind is indeed stressful. But always remember to make your own, simply copying with someone else’s routine probably won’t work.

Honestly, I only write when I feel inspired, writing to a weekly set schedule doesn't work for me. Why? It is not fun, I used all my creative juices and imagination at work. Therefore blogging shouldn’t be a chore, I figure if posting frequently isn’t working out for me, it’s probably not working well for my readers either.

I particularly like what Seth Godin said when Brian Clark asked him how he wrote every day. Seth refused to answer, and then he said "There is this feeling that if we ate the same breakfast cereal Stephen King ate, then we’d be able to write like Stephen King writes."

Seriously, Why Bother?

Deeper Week 2

I came across a very interesting article by Gill Matthewson, as she reflects on the continuing disappearance of women from architecture and why we should care.

In 2002 Paula Whitman indicated that women comprised 43% of architecture students in Australia. Their representation in the profession varied from state to state: 11.6% of registered architects in Queensland, 15% in New South Wales. Victoria has the highest proportion of women registered at 18.2% (I probably contributed 0.001%)

Despite near gender parity at architecture schools and in graduation numbers, women still constitute just 20% of registered architects in Australia in 2012 ... and women earn less that men. (absolutely shocking)

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) surveys states that about 86% of architects practice in small offices (which means less than 5 people), the average income for architects is less than the award for carpenters/ draft person (this is true) and many architects practice part time (often ‘moonlighting’ between employee architects and private commission).

The world is simply not constructed in a way that allows everyone to “just get on and do what they want to do”. Gender is, of course, inevitable – it’s a critical part of our identities. As soon as we meet someone we make assumptions about who they are and how we might want or need to interact with them; however assumptions do make social life manageable.

We base these assumptions on everything from what people look like (including their gender, what they wear, what they carry, their age, ethnicity, height, etc.) to what they sound like (accent, type of words and other noises they use, etc.). But gender carries a lot of weight and who can disagree?

Where things come unstuck is when simplistic stereotypes kick in and we get gender judgement: because I am a woman, or a man, I will ‘naturally’ act, react, think, work, play, design, live, desire, etc. in a particular way. These valuing systems are at times really obvious and at other times very subtle. And because gender is a basic building block of how a society operates therefore judgement are based on gender ripples through everything from the small to large scale.

It is complicated ...

Light vs Darkness (spiritual struggles)

A Hero is Born, not made ...

... this morning I decided to sleep in and I felt great staying in bed ... until my new house mate G came back from her overseas trip, I knew her through my ex house mate and current landlord J. The moment she step in the front door, she woke everyone up in the house. Drag myself out of bed, had my white coffee and breakfast, then started cleaning and unpacking together. By mid day the place looked a lot more organise, the place was a lot more tidy before I went back home one and a half weeks ago. The rest of the day continued with a nap, dinner and Wrath of the Titans. In the late hours or early morning ... around 2am I had the urge to start typing again ...

... every day, somewhere, a hero is born. He or she comes into the world with a destiny, to share her wisdom or to proclaim his message. Basically to make a difference because some words and actions have the power to move and motivate others, to shake the earth and rattles the heaven (influenced by watching too much Perseus tonight) ... if only they will share them. Sharing is a choice. One that belongs to you and me. Yes we all have a choice every single day (as long as we continue breathing). And I choose to share my deepest thoughts here, hoping to inspire strangers out there to kick start their own dreams. The world is full with people who hates their job or rather likes it (like me) but somehow longs to have a new job that feels different (eg closet artist, aspiring author or dancer ... people longing to do meaningful work that inspires) check all the amazing individuals on The Dance Lifestyle Channel

Sometimes I wonder if my parents listened, my sister answered, my friends heard or the person I love understood. But whether or not the world read my story, whether I left the impact I was born to make ... it is really entirely up to me ... come to think of it (at this hour) it is pretty scary (and freezing cold).

The only problem: Many of us are not doing it ... procrastinating, waiting, worrying ... thousands of people out there who won't make that choice. They'll fail to be who they are and live up to their calling. We will forever miss their talents and this is tragic. (okay I think I am being a bit overly dramatic here ... must be the influence from the musical)

Many of us worry too much about our lives, whether or not we'll make an impact or the right choice. So have you ever wonder what you'll be remembered for, what your legacy will be? I caught up with K briefly, who were desperately reaching out and trying to make it through another week, however I notice another friend finds himself succeeding in the wrong things, as a end result ... despair and frustration.

Before I comment on my own personal struggles, let me share my opinion on how we can struggle with despair. Despair is when you have a utter lost of hope. There is a sense of hopelessness whether you are young or old (it doesn't matter) when all HOPE in life is GONE, a person is left totally devastated and empty which leads us to two category of people, the ones who are overwhelmed by heavy despair or the ones that overcome despair by having great hope and dreams for their future. I think Ephesian 2:12 is a powerful verse that can wake us all up appropriately. It simply trying to tell us that when we are without Christ, we are without God and when we are without God we are without Hope but if we have Christ, we have God, which leads us to Hope, Future and Dreams (for better things to come).

Make no mistake, at some point in my life, I feel the same way too. Honestly, my own personal darkness symbolise many things, and I would like to highlight on disappointment. In the Bible, Job 30:26 "When I looked for good, then evil came to me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness." I get disappointed when I feel let down, betrayed or do not get what I want ... hoping to get the good things but for some strange reason I keep getting the evil instead. Sometimes I do questions if what I am doing really matters in my spiritual journey. The answer .... always keep me wondering and waiting. All this while, deep inside my heart, something stirs, I guess something I am still afraid to admit.

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned. Isaiah 9:2

People often think that when I become a Christian I will never experience times of darkness. This is not true. There are times in my life that felt extremely DARK (almost to the point I was suffering from depression and I had to pull myself out of that state). The difference is that I have access to the Light. I no longer have to fear the dark as I know God is always there for me and will give me the Light that I need at the time.

In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:4-5 

Remember to become who you are. It only happens once in a lifetime.
Look towards the Light and shine it out to others who are in darkness.

Pray that when the sun rises in the morning, every darkness has to go (anger, bitterness, lust, fear, addiction).