Worship Christ, the newborn King!

Saints before the altar bending,

    Watching long in hope and fear,

Suddenly the Lord, descending,

     In His temple shall appear:

Come and worship! Worship Christ, the newborn King!

                                 

                                       (James Montgomery, 1771-1854)

Teach more

I for one believe that a kid should learn at his own pace and learn well. Beyond the books, beyond the constrained syllabus.

Drop that apple

Organic gardening is a safe way to grow what you want. Be careful while buying vegetables and fruits. You never know what you are eating. 

Here is a beautiful article from http://www.treehugger.com/about the most toxic of fruits & vegetables and what you should be doing.

Dirty Dozen: The 12 to buy organic (in order of pesticide load, apples being the worst offenders).

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Sweet bell peppers
4. Peaches
5. Strawberries
6. Imported nectarines
7. Grapes
8. Spinach
9. Lettuce
10. Cucumbers
11. Domestic blueberries
12. Potatoes

How do we get out of this?

1. Opt for organic foods whenever possible
2. Have a small organic garden/hydrophonics in your balcony or terrace
3. Grow a community garden

Read the full article here: http://www.treehugger.com/green-food/top-12-toxic-fruits-and-vegetables.html

How to be productive

Click on the image to expand

Monday Blues: Have fun

Walt Disney said - It's kind of fun to do the impossible. Would you find anything better than that? Every time naysayers and pessimists say it is impossible, you must find it challenging and worth fighting for.

The truth always wins. Go set out your targets on the highest peak and you are sure to achieve the impossible. Have fun this Monday, by doing the impossible.

Monday Blues: Educate

Aristotle hits the spot when he says, Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.

This monday, read something new, learn something new and educate yourself. Make this a daily habit to find out something new to keep your memory fresh and charged.

"Good" Morning!

I love reading www.stanleyonbible.com and this is a beautiful post I couldn't ignore.

Everyday we pass through so many situations where we are lured to show our nasty side (trust me it is there in both you and me) and it hurts both the sender and receiver. Stanley spells out a solution from the Bible.

God does not ignore what we speak when we are agitated with anger and agonizing in anguish. Rather He takes a serious view of it. The Book of Job vividly illustrates this point. What God said at the end of the story is a sober truth. He told Eliphaz, "I am angry with you and with your two friends, for you have not been right in what you SAID about Me, as My servant was" (Job 42:7).

What lies beyond death and grave is the greatest strengthener of our feeble hands and weak knees. We have every reason to be agitated and lose patience in suffering if there is no life after death. How many long hours we sometimes wait in visa issuing offices to travel overseas! How much we rejoice when the visa is finally stamped on our passports! How much more patient should we be today for the glory land we would enter tomorrow! "What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory God will give us later" (Rom 8:18).

When we lose patience in any situation, virtues leave us one by one, and vices lift up their ugly heads. We suddenly realize that we have spoken detestable words which are too many to be taken back. If we are quiet and confident, we can declare, "God knows the way I take; when He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold" (Job 23:10).

Think of the words of impatience poured out of our mouths while suffering in the past. If God had reciprocated our anger and impatience, would He have delivered us from our problems? Waves are nothing to those who regularly bathe in the sea. Likewise let us get accustomed to live with sufferings. See what Paul has written in Romans 5:3-5: "We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us to learn patience. And patience develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us!"

The disease of Job was awful. He was dying daily without dying. But he knew that there was light after the tunnel, and life after death. This confidence gave birth to this song: "I know that my Redeemer lives... And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God!" (Job 19:25,26). This cannot be anything but the prophetic expectation of the glorified bodies which will be given to the children of God in the New Heaven and New Earth! Cheer up, dear Christian, your night will soon be over and there will be Dayspring!

Monday Blues: If only for a second, give some a chance to smile

Can you make someone smile today? How about giving them a chance to remember you? Carry a lot of positive energy with you and it will reflect in what you do and how you do.

People would remember you and your interactions than how or what you said to them. See this video I found online today. Isn't it wonderful to share your happiness? It reflects back to you.

Monday Blues: ACT

One of my favorite quotes from The Bible is in the book of Esther. 

“If you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise from another place” (Es 4:14)

Whenever there is a need to act, people shy away and don't take initiative. It is impossible to take action as I have seen people complaining that it is not in my job description. Now what is your job description? The same people take initiative when asking for hikes, raises and demanding they deserve more. I am all for higher returns but there should be a balance between what you sow and what you are reaping. If you sow less, you are bound to reap low.

Now will the work get effected if you are not acting? No. Someone will come up and take up the responsibility. So the deliverance will come and it will arise. Will you the leader or not is the question.

This Monday, rise up and shoulder the responsibility. Do not be silent. ACT.

One day at a time

Let me live in your grace Lord, one day at a time.

Shine bright like a diamond

I am mesmerized with Rihanna's beautiful song.

A pause for Madiba

Madiba is no more.

I am deeply calm. I don't know this feeling or the lack of it. I don't know if I should be happy or sad.

Happy for being born into a nation where I am not a slave, I am free to wake up on my own time, eat, rest, work, learn and raise a family. Where I am glad to know that my kid has a future. Sad because the man who fought all his life, like the Mahatma, is a nation where he was jailed but loved is no more.

And then I am super happy that his struggle is over and he emerged a winner. I am erupting with a joyous emotion of achievement where the world is not looking down on people anymore, the leaders need not be celebrated men of great valour, lineage but the common man like you and me.

This is a time of joy for one of the greatest sons of the soil went home to meet his father, to a place where there is no partiality, no injustice and absolute equality.

Rest in peace Madiba. You have fought well and won.

Pic is from here.

The unfair treatment experiment

How about treating with fairness? Well. Everyone seems to be doing that, so let us see how unfair treatment motivates and initiates action in your team/employees. The chimps don't know how to inhibit but the reaction is the same with humans too.

10 Current Psychology Studies Every Parent Should Know

Jeremy Dean is a psychologist and the author of PsyBlog and this is a gem of an article you must read.

1. Parents are happier than non-parents

2. Putting your child first is worth it

3. Helicopter parenting may be depressing

4. Avoid strict discipline

5. Regular bedtimes

6. Do the chores together

7. Limit infant TV viewing

8. Exercise boosts kids’ school performance

9. Dangers of intense mothering

10. Why siblings are so different

Same view, different glasses

Found this post in a friend - Himanshu's blog.

Moods of Ghalib, Iqbal and Faraz

 ज़हिद शराब पीने दे मस्जिद में बैठ कर,
या वो जगह बता जहाँ खुदा नहीं.

Zahid sharab peene de masjid mein beth kar,
Yaa woh jagah bata jahan Khuda nahin..

- Mirza Ghalib
------------------
मस्जिद खुदा का घर है, पीने की जगह नहीं,
काफिर के दिल में जा, वहाँ खुदा नहीं.

Masjid khuda ka ghar hai, peeney ki jagha nahin,
Kaafir ke dil mein ja, Wahan khudaa nahin..

- Allama Iqbal
------------------
काफिर के दिल से आया हूँ मैं ये देखकर,
खुदा मौजूद है वहाँ, पर उसे पता नहीं.

Kaafir ke dil se aya hon mein yeh dekh kar,
Khuda maujood hai wahan, Par usey pata nahin..

- Ahmad Faraz
------------------

Monday Blues: Measure and motivate

One of the frequently bypassed or rather ignored factors is measuring. Measuring usage, productivity, value creation, contribution and risk. Most managers feel it is not important to measure as it only works int he negative. 

Ranking system is under fire these days as people feel discrimination should be minimized. But let me tell you, measuring is important. Measuring allows growth, correction, change and most important of all, it allows motivation. 

This Monday, spend time in measuring your team/individual contribution and ensure motivation stays high. After all it is a 80-20 principle. Ain't it?

Measure yourself, your contribution. Are you the best in what you do? If yes, take the bar higher. If not, time to start working.

Art is by Hugh MacLeod.

And the boss split

There are splits and then there are epic splits and then there is thailaivar. Eat that Van Damme and Volvo.

 

Brave your Anu aunty

Varun Agarwal is a celebrity and has been a wonderful motivator to the millions of young minds both by the example of his life and his cheeky book: How I braved Anu aunty and co-founded a million dollar company.

Here is he on stage after a couple of years. Work now, put in all the hours you need to and the stage will follow. For the book review: click here.

Internet moms or normal moms: Moms are smarter than you

Handling pressures of this world on a daily basis is not easy. But handling pressures and you is not easy at all. However for thousands of years, parents, especially moms have successfully handled all the pressure and yet never complained.

Google depicts a wonderful story with its new ad and thus reaches my core. Loved the ad.

 

Talk to yourself: Negative to positive

Negative thoughts can make us more anxious as athletes and studies have shown that they can have a negative impact on performance. But how do these negative thoughts arise?

Undue pressure in many circumstances can give rise to negative thoughts such as, “She’s faster than me” or “I can’t throw that far.” These are the thoughts we need to be aware of when we’re feeling anxious about performing. We need to mentally register these thoughts and perhaps even write them in a diary.

Now that we’ve managed to acknowledge these thoughts, how do we overcome them to enhance self-belief and relieve this pressure? We do something called ‘cognitive restructuring’. This is much simpler than it sounds. Self-talk is all about using basic techniques to look at the world from different perspectives and this in turn changes the way that you think. It’s basically taking a more positive perspective on things. But it can be difficult to do this if we’re really anxious about a situation.

There are four basic techniques used in self-talk: thought stopping; changing negative thoughts into positive thoughts; countering and reframing. These techniques can be used to overcome negative thoughts and use positive thoughts to energise and motivate you into action. So let’s see how this is done!

Read more on countering negative thoughts and changing them to positive energy here.

Perks from weight loss

What would you gain from losing weight?

Apart from looking good, here are the advantages:

• Weight loss of 0.5-0.9 kg associated with 53% reduction in cancer-deaths
• 44% reduction in diabetes-associated mortality and 20% reduction in total mortality
• Survival increased 3-4 months for every kilogram of weight loss
• Reduced hyperlipidemia, hypertension and insulin resistance
• Improvement in severity of diseases
• Can reverse or prevent diabetes
• Lower blood pressure
• Lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels
• Improves sleep apnea and other sleep problems
• Person feels ‘fit’ and mentally more active

En-courage

Found this beautiful gem online. Couldn't resist sharing. 

"A word of encouragement during a failure is worth more than an hour of praise after success."

An Anonymous Author

Have a great day.

The working triangle

While most of the designs in the kitchen should be done to accommodate the tastes and work-style of the lady of the house, the working triangle remains the same. 

There should be easy access to the stove, refrigerator and the sink. It would be an added advantage if you have a counter away from the stove, near the refrigerator. 

 Ensure enough natural light and ventilation comes to the kitchen or have adequate lighting. 

Safety and ease of use are the primary guidelines.

Monday blues: Ignore and soar

This monday, ignore and soar.

“I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar."

Wash, Serenity

Monday blues: Stay legendary

Legendary is the love that withstands rejection. It will be free of anger and ego.

Legendary is the commitment that withstands humiliation. It will be one-pointed and will reach the goal.

Legendary is the wisdom that withstands turbulence. It will be integrated in life.

Legendary is the faith that withstands a million chances of doubt. It will bring perfection.

Legendary are the events that withstand time. They will become morals for millions.

Usha Uthup: Skyfall in a sari

One of the few people I admire. Tonight & every night Usha! No cover charge. Case closed.

Change your limitations to your strengths. Sometimes ignore the marketing mumbo jumbo and be real, be true. Connect with the rest of the world and be yourself.

Wow your customers

What is the best way to build loyalty? Delivering promises that you have made is the first step.

Whether this is your business or personal (relationships), it is important to deliver what you have promised. But after a while it becomes expected and then the real problem starts. Countless disappointments are due to failing to live up to one's expectations and this can be resolved by simple over delivering or delivering more.

A simple extra gesture, care or personal touch to the regular thing that you are expected to do might play the trick. What else! This is a two sided game. You get the satisfaction of meeting the expectations and exceeding them. What do you think you should be doing?

Look at this video. The girl expected one musician but the experience would be there with her forever. Are your customers feeling the same? If yes, you are on the right track. If you cannot wow your customers, what is your point?

Lessons in parenting

The most important contribution you can do to your family is being there. Find a home closer to your workplace/school and skip time wasted in travelling. Found this wonderful image from Alison Astair.

No one bothers if you earned a lot while missing your family. Unless you are Sachin who can spend more time with his family now, you should prioritize. You can't

Spin it off

Either you create n awesome commercial/content or do a mocking version of it. Here is a spin-off of the Volvo ad.

Balanced ad by Volvo

Volvo comes out with an iconic ad to show off their stability and I love it. It is simple, path breaking and easy to understand while stressing on its principles - life is full pf potholes, ditches and problems but you can build up a body to perfection and then win over all the obstacles.

Life is more valuable when you are passing through troubles as you build the most important element  then - character. Van Damme just blends in. Good job Volvo!

25 of the most ridiculous client comments according to creatives

Most of the things I have said, heard and this is just fabulous!

Sometimes clients can be a real nightmare, no matter which your occupation is, you are probably struggling everyday against the obtuseness of some clients.

However, the kind of professions that historically catalyze the biggest number of incredibly stubborn and unreasonable clients are the creative ones. In particular we should give credit to graphic designers and art directors for their legendary patience.

For this reason Irish graphic designers Mark Shanley and Paddy Treacy created Sharp Suits, a website that features the worst comments made by creatives’ clients and showcases them into graphically appealing posters. The creators of this website teamed up with other creatives and turned their frustration into these hilarious yet beautiful artworks.

The posters featured on Sharp Suits were also exhibited in The Little Green Cafe Bar and Gallery last year, and the customers were allowed to purchase an A3 copy of their favorite artwork. The earnings were donated to the Temple Street Child Hospital.

You can admire below our 25 favorite picks. Don’t forget to take a look at sharpsuits.net to watch all the posters of the series.

Monday Blues: Transform yourself, others...

This monday, transform yourself, transform other, change your present lifestyle to better. Take up that old guitar, pick up the weights, go for that walk, change and do whatever you wanted to but couldn't find time/motivation. Come on, change is good, change is better. change is everything.

The following video, produced by Rob Bliss Creative, was made for Dégagé Ministries, an association that takes care of homeless and disadvantaged people. It’s the time-lapse transformation of Jim Wolf, homeless US Army veteran. The aim of this transformation is to sensitize public opinion about the importance of helping people that have lost everything in their life.

According to Dégagé Ministries, this video must both represent a new start for Jim, as they are working hard to help him walk down his new path, and be a reminder of the potential that even our most down and out citizens will always carry with them.

In case you’re wondering, Jim is now scheduled to have his new housing and is attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings for the first time ever.

One coin = all your cards

So you have a problem forgetting cards when you go out to dine, shop and travel? Wouldn't it be great if you have a reminder that your card is with you?

So here is the solution from the One Coin team. the video is self explanatory and I think this will revolutionaize the cards business and drastically and positively reduce the lost cards, fraud and both head and heart aches!

15 cynical minimalistic illustrations that reflect our times

Eduardo Salles is a brilliant designer born in Mexico City in 1987. He is also an advertiser, designer, illustrator, writer and professor at the Miami Ad School. As advertiser he won numerous awards, including the prestigious Cannes Lion. He runs a website called Cinismo Ilustrado, where he regularly publish clever and hilarious illustrations garnished with a tip of cynicism.

Not only these pieces are utterly brilliant, they are also wonderfully designed with a nice minimalistic style.
The illustrations featured in this post are the ones that caught our attention the most, as they are related to the times in which we live. We bet you’ll recognize yourself in more than one of them.

Make sure to take a look at Eduardo’s website if you’d like to see more of his clever artworks.

If you enjoyed this post, don’t be selfish, share it with your friends via Facebook or Twitter. Sharing is caring.

Life today

Modern love

2000′s cinderella

Like me

Inner child

Freedom of speech

Phone pride

Icons that screw up our day

Hopeless

Life biggest disappointments

Unequal

Moon

Stereotypes

Credit card

What music does to your brain

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