Hand in hand

I'm not an astrology believer, but the other day I found myself sitting in the car listening to an astrologer making predictions for 2013. He was trying to explain that he's only the bearer of news and it's not really his fault the theme of 2012 was, has been, recession. And then he stressed the key term of 2013: collaboration.

He said something along the lines of Marin Luther King Jr.:

 We must all learn to live together as brothers or we will all perish together as fools. We are tied together in the single garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. And whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. And you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be.

Or John Donne:

No man is an island entire of itself.

Or Cloud Atlas:

Our lives are not our own. We are bound to others. Past and present. And by each crime; and every kindness we birth our future.

So here, to close 2012, is one of the best Prezis of past year to start the new one. A Curriculum for Future Minds (a.k.a what the next generations seriously need to know) by Sunni Brown as seen by Amber Lewis

Happy New Year to All!!

Lots of love, health and happiness!!

Over&out,

Dora

Naming

When a baby comes to this world, they need someone to contain their feelings and name their needs so that they could, in time, do it for themselves. I don't really know at which point we're supposed to be fully equipped to name and identify everything we feel and need, but it happens for some sooner and for some later. And the truth is that for mountain chains of natural and human phenomena most adults have no idea what they really are and how to define them. Maybe the problem isn't solely in misunderstanding, but in the mode of expression as well: Some things cannot be said. Suzanne LaBarre, a senior editor at Co.Design, at the beginning of her article on philographics says:

It takes the Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 28,250 words to explain the woolly concept of relativism. It takes Genis Carreras 32 words and a single image.

So hereby I present to you Philographics and Philographics 2 by Genis Carreras. Maybe they'll make this world a little bit clearer before we embark on the journey called 2013. Clicking on the images below will take you to larger images on Carreras' website.

Love to all near and far,

Dora

Smart mice

Sometimes things look impossible. Like there's no way out, no possibility of change, no sliver lining. And the worst possible thing you could hear is "It'll get better", because deep down you somehow know it won't.

Getting stuck in a downward spiral is easy and the only way out is using your will power to try and see something good and attainable and go for it.

If what you're doing isn't working, try something else.

And if what you're telling yourself you'd never tolerate from a friend, stop saying it. Be a smart mouse and give yourself a treat.

 

Love to all (far and near),
Do

Pay it forward

I want to keep things light this Christmas - sometimes a little bit of kitsch is good for the soul, and there's plenty of it during the holidays season.

What I especially like about this time of the year is people coming together and being kind to each other (provided they actually get the point of it all).

So this Christmas do something nice for someone. And don't expect things in return. Tell them to pay it forward.

May these days pass in peace.
Love to all, no matter how far your are...
Be safe, healthy and happy!
Over&out
Dora

 

A way of looking up :)

This is just playing around. It made me happy.



Love to all,
Dora

How does putting a ding in the universe sound?

Money makes the world go round is a famous cliché, but is it true? Are sticks and carrots really the key to motivation?

There are people around this world coming home from their paid jobs who continue working in their free time. This work can constitute volunteering of any kind, programming of any kind, design, music, writing, teaching, coaching, searching for ideas and solutions. I'm obviously one of them. Last night, after an exhausting day I sat down and started blogging. Two of my friends asked me WHY?! with a mixture of why don't you just go to sleep? and laughter (they know me too well). I didn't tell them but I asked myself the same thing. And this morning, an answer came:


 

Remember - autonomy, mastery, purpose.

Have a happy International Volunteering Day 2012!

Click on the picture for a bit of inspiration! 

Now go and put a ding in the universe! ;)

All my love,
Dora

Episode Three: Dissemination strikes back

My two latest Prezis - created for my primary school colleagues. They're both in Croatian. The second one is nothing new, just a little bit different. But I've never made a Prezi on Comenius before.

Comenius/Canterbury/Brajda - uvod u Comenius on Prezi

Comenius/Canterbury/Brajda - Škola kao sigurna baza on Prezi

If you're one of the people I spoke to today - thank you for taking the time to find my work. I hope you'll find it useful.

If you're one of the people helping me through all of my ventures - You are precious and I love you to bits.

Over&out,
Dora

Stage fright and other ghouls

Have you ever found yourself asking: "How and why did I get myself into it in the first place?" about an hour before having to step out in front of a group of people? Public speaking is a tricky thing and the trick about it is to make it look easy, appealing even - which makes the pressure even higher, if you're one to feel it. But the hardest bit is stage fright. Or to put it in the words of FDR (inaugural speech, March 1933):

So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is...fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.

and Sir Francis Bacon (De Augmentis Scientiarum, Book II, Fortitudo (1623).):

Nothing is terrible except fear itself.

I don't think fear is necessarily something bad - if observed and learnt from it can be precious (not to mention it saved a lot of our ancestors from hungry bears and angry crowds). Sometimes there are things to be afraid of.

The point is for it not to stop us in growing and changing things for the better.

There is a potential to go on a downward spiral before having to give a presentation, but once you did get yourself into public speaking, there's no point in analyzing how, but (as always) focus on what you can control:

1. Make sure you're comfortable and comfortably acquainted with the subject matter of your talk.
2. Preparation, preparation, preparation - but be kind to your voice and tailor the preparation to yourself: some people need to go through all the details, some do the work in a very short time and without saying a word.
3. Find three points in the audience to look at - you won't be able to look at everyone if there are a lot of people there. Kind faces help the situation. 
4. Have some water available.
5. Take your time before the event. Do whatever you feel is good for you. 
6. Try to be aware of your body language.
7. Breathe.
8. Speak.

Everything in life is taking a chance: sometimes smaller, sometimes greater. No gain is certain only if no chance is taken. 

All my love, 

Dora