Getting ahead

Head start - An early start that confers an advantage.

How does one get a head start in life?

Putting / sticking your head above the parapet is to be brave enough to state an opinion that might upset people and stand by what you believe (especially when its not popular!)

I am very opinionated and as a result I often get myself into trouble for saying or doing unpopular things. I guess it all stems from the fact that everyone is different and therefore the way we view life is going to be different too.

There is a school of thought that, ‘If you keep your head down (that is below the parapet) and conform, maintaining the status quo and work hard, then you will eventually get ahead…maybe…maybe not!

There is another school of thought, that of ‘putting your head above the parapet’, maybe it will be blown off! Maybe you’ll get a head start!

I have spent most of my adult life working ‘within the system’. It didn’t really work well for me because if I saw something I didn’t think was right, I didn’t like or thought could be done better, I spoke up and 9 out of 10 times I got my head blown off!

So I started to ask myself, ‘is it me?’ You know, ‘if one person calls you a horse ignore it, if three do buy a saddle? Well I went all out got new horse shoes, bits, saddle, the works! But it didn’t change the fact that I saw things differently, all it did was label me different and state that different is wrong!   

Well, I have made a discovery! Different in the right setting is great! Thinking outside the box opens your mind to a whole new world of possibilities! And if you can come up with ‘different’ ways to do things in today’s fast passed, quickly changing world with a lust for the latest big thing; then you have a head start in your career!  And maybe you may find that the rat race is not for you and you could discover a whole new world where you can work for yourself, reinvent yourself, even find yourself…

So putting your head above the parapet may not be so bad after all (so long as you pick your battles well and have something good to say!)

Out of the box

I heard this somewhere (can't quite remember who said it) and it rang so true even of society today;  


'If Karl Benz (inventor of first patented fueled car) had asked people in his day what they wanted for improved travel, they would have probably asked for faster horses!' I'm so glad he didn't ask!  :-) 


Being successful is not easy in a world where so much change is happening and everyone is constantly looking for the next big thing. Therefore being successful calls for more than education or individuality, but for one to think completely out of the box of social and intellectual norms and actually come up with a new way of seeing...
Design thinking is a great example of this! Design thinking is a process for practical, creative resolution of problems or issues that looks for an improved future result.It is the essential ability to combine empathy, creativity and rationality to meet user needs and drive business success... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_thinking  


My friend PJ introduced me to this concept and after watching talks by a couple of subject experts online and researching, I really think they are onto something here! Its brilliant really because it is based in creative thought and seeks to resolve issues that arise from our 'box' mentality of how things should be / work.  One of the things the design thinkers do is try out new ideas with kids. They do this because a child's way of seeing is not conformed to social and intellectual norms so they freely think and feel and express themselves 'out of the box' which makes for boarder challenging and redefining many acceptable practices and ideas which bring forth the innovative originality required to have the edge... what could be more interesting...

Drama Queen

When I met this little lady (picture above) she took me waaaay back to a time when I too was a very terrible 2! (I know its hard to believe but I was :-)

I heard loads of stories about how I was a little, moody, foul mouthed monster!!! And when the cuteness wore off (around age 4) I reinvented myself as a brilliant story teller! If anyone crossed me by day when my parents were at work, I would burn the offense into my memory (having not as yet learnt the word 'forgiveness') and carry on happily with my day. The thing was, as soon as I heard my parents car pull up or even saw headlights at the gate, I would put on the greatest, most spectacular display of waterworks and wailing like somebody died! So by the time my parents entered the house I would be in a right state and the offender(s) would be in for certain discipline! :-) --This was very effective with a 100% success rate ;-)

As I have gotten older, the display is mostly dry and yet the drama is still second to none! :-)

I can tell a story like none other... the twists, the turns, the sudden death... my friends and family to this day call me the 'drama queen'. If there is a story to tell, that requires an audience to be gripped, hearts to skip beats and terror and cliff hangers to shock and awe... then I'm your story teller...and kinda proud of it! :-)

...still laughing out loud...

Laugh out loud

Laughter...

Wikipedia says that laughter is an audible expression or the appearance of happiness...

Jean Houston says that 'At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities.'

Henry Ward Beecher says that 'Mirth is God's medicine. Everybody ought to bathe in it!'

I am resolved to laugh out loud (and not just type lol) every day! It is indeed the best medicine for every situation, prescribed by the greatest physician and you do really feel better after a good old heart felt, belly twitching, eye watering, floor rolling laugh! :-)

This came to mind this morning when I received rather depressing mail in the post and I found myself at that all too familiar cross roads where the course of your life could be changed instantly forever by the decision you make to either cry (and let depression set in) or laugh (and give your cares to God). I decided that I am going to laugh my way through problems, trials, and sickness and laugh out loud! :-) That is how much power i am going to give to circumstances I cannot control - NONE!

The reality is that we would all be (and some of us secretly are) emotional basket cases if we allowed everything that happens to us and around us determine how we think and feel from day to day! Well I cant stop the mail coming and I cant control other people's actions and choices but I do have control over this one thing; do I laugh or cry through it? I choose the former and you know what? I'm, "taking back what they stole from me!" one outburst of laughter at a time :-)

www.christianaffair.co.uk/sermons/TakingBackWhatTheyStoleFromMe.html