It’s difficult to find life’s calm
balance where you feel in control and at peace with the world. As you get older
and take on more responsibility getting this calm balance is even more
challenging. I don’t know about you but I am expert at not taking enough time
out to ‘smell the roses’. I haven’t quite figured it out though because when I
do take the time, damn those roses smell good. But would they smell so good if
I was out there smelling them all the time! Getting the right ‘life balance’ equilibrium
is one of life’s mysteries to me but I do see its immense value and importance.
For this reason, I believe this concept needs to be fostered in schools. In
that way I know all learning would be enhanced and the world would be a better
place. I also believe that if this teaching took place in schools, combined
with an enlightened and aspirational learning culture, a number of society’s
problems would be reduced---simplistic maybe, but a goal worth pursuing.
From time to time I receive email from
friends, colleagues or parents from our school community recommending I read
some book or article. Often in life’s rush I don’t have time to follow up but
mostly when I do find the time, it is worth the effort .
This was the case with a recent email
from a parent who has an interest in ‘mindfulness’. She alerted me to Arianna
Huffington’s book ‘Thrive’ and gave me a few links and background to Arianna (which
I shamelessly share with you below) who is the President and
Editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group, Arianna is a nationally syndicated
columnist, and author of fourteen books. Since her 2005 launch of The
Huffington Post, it has become one of the most widely-read, linked to, and
cited media brands online. In 2012, the site won a Pulitzer Prize for
national reporting, and Arianna has been named on Time Magazine’s list
of the world’s 100 most influential people and the Forbes Most
Powerful Women list. In Thrive, Arianna Huffington makes an impassioned
and compelling case for the need to redefine what it means to be successful in
today's world.
According
to Arianna ‘as more and more
people are coming to realize, there is far more to living a truly successful
life than just earning a bigger salary and capturing a corner office. Our
relentless pursuit of the two traditional metrics of success -- money and power
-- has led to an epidemic of burnout and stress-related illnesses, and an
erosion in the quality of our relationships, family life, and, ironically, our
careers. In being connected to the world 24/7, we're losing our connection to
what truly matters. Our current definition of success is, as Thrive shows, literally killing us. We
need a new way forward. ‘
In a commencement address Arianna gave at Smith College in the spring of 2013, she likened our drive for money and power to two legs of a three-legged stool. They may hold us up temporarily, but sooner or later we're going to topple over. We need a third leg -- a third metric for defining success -- to truly thrive. That third metric, she writes in Thrive, includes our well-being, our ability to draw on our intuition and inner wisdom, our sense of wonder, and our capacity for compassion and giving. As Arianna points out, our eulogies celebrate our lives very differently from the way society defines success. They don't commemorate our long hours in the office, our promotions, or our sterling PowerPoint presentations as we relentlessly raced to climb up the career ladder. They are not about our resumes -- they are about cherished memories, shared adventures, small kindnesses and acts of generosity, lifelong passions, and the things that made us laugh.
From (http://www.amazon.com/Thrive-Redefining-Success-Creating-Well-Being/dp/0804140847)
In a commencement address Arianna gave at Smith College in the spring of 2013, she likened our drive for money and power to two legs of a three-legged stool. They may hold us up temporarily, but sooner or later we're going to topple over. We need a third leg -- a third metric for defining success -- to truly thrive. That third metric, she writes in Thrive, includes our well-being, our ability to draw on our intuition and inner wisdom, our sense of wonder, and our capacity for compassion and giving. As Arianna points out, our eulogies celebrate our lives very differently from the way society defines success. They don't commemorate our long hours in the office, our promotions, or our sterling PowerPoint presentations as we relentlessly raced to climb up the career ladder. They are not about our resumes -- they are about cherished memories, shared adventures, small kindnesses and acts of generosity, lifelong passions, and the things that made us laugh.
From (http://www.amazon.com/Thrive-Redefining-Success-Creating-Well-Being/dp/0804140847)
In Gordon Ching’s blog (Chief Digital Officer of AIESEC International) he quotes the fundamental
lessons From Arianna Huffington's Thrive.
"Life is shaped from the inside
out not the outside in." -- Arianna Huffington
Here are ten practical ways to bring
more well-being to your life:
1.
Finish things: Reduce your baggage and the
mental weight you carry. Arianna: "Did you know you can
complete a project by dropping it?"
2.
Experience wonder: We
grew up loving moments of magic and wonder, the magic of exploration and
discovery -- bring it back to your life by enabling yourself to discover and
dream.
3.
Remove poison If there is somebody toxic in
your life, kindly remove them from your life. Don't ever hold grudges. "Resentment is like drinking poison, waiting for the other
person to die." -- Carrie Fisher
4.
Natural hours of sleep: Try
sleeping for eight hours at minimum as a start. You'll soon find what your
natural sleeping hours are and soon begin to wake up naturally and feel
refreshed.
5.
Practice mindfulness: Start
taking breaks out of your day where you just become mindful. To feel your
hands, your feet, to pay attention to your breathing -- just be 100 percent
present.
6.
Digital disconnect: Experience
digital-free hours to see things differently and experience deeper connections
with people. You'll notice and realize things you didn't before because you
were too busy starring at that screen. The world is full of wonders, you just
have to look up.
7.
Meditate: Meditation isn't just for old
people. Try a deep breathing exercise right before you sleep or the next time
you're stressed. Start with a minute and eventually dedicate 15-20 minutes to
meditate and be at peace.
8.
Give: Generosity is huge to unlocking
happiness. How great does it feel when you help or give to others, asking for
nothing back? Do something nice for somebody every day -- whether it is a
compliment or a small gift.
9.
Learn to say no: Saying yes to anybody means
saying no to everybody. Ask yourself, "Is it that important that you need
to do that?" Don't overwhelm yourself with responsibilities that you
cannot meet.
10.
Personal time: Devote time to yourself. A time
of sanctuary where you can rediscover and recharge at your own pace. Take a
warm bath, practice deep breathing, banish LCD screens temporarily, take the
longer walk and just be in the comfortable in your own skin. Many of life's
wonders are discovered when we are alone.
When you don't sleep enough, you bring
out the worst version of yourself to the world. In
my experience you: become more impulsive and make horrible decisions, feel more
lonely than usual, have heightened impatience, get frustrated and upset more
easily and have lower control of emotions and self-esteem.
Eight sleep tips from Thrive:
1.
Get a new pillow and a new pillowcase
2.
Make your bedroom darker and keep it cool
3.
Practice deep breathing before bed
4.
Take a warm bath before bed
5.
Exercise or at least walk every day
6.
Banish all LCD screens at night
7.
Cut down on coffee after 2 p.m and avoid alcohol
right before bedtime to give the body time to metabolize it
8.
Prevent stress from building up throughout the day
-- it makes it harder to fall asleep -- every few hours take 60 seconds of
recovery time -- simply stop what you are doing and bring awareness to the
palms of your hands and soles of your feet, or both.
In the age of hyper-connectivity, we need to know
how to disconnect and reconnect with ourselves. Because if we are looking to
improve and change this world--we need to be functioning at our best to lead
the change we wish to see and thrive.
Don't just go out there and climb the ladder of
success. Instead, redefine success. Because the world desperately needs it. --
Arianna Huffington
SuccessMindfullnessArianna
Huffington ThriveThe
Third MetricWell
BeingMillennialsMeditationThrivingRedefining
SuccessArianna
HuffingtonSleepScreen
Sense
Sound like a Tui ad on one hand (YEAH
RIGHT) but even if we took some of the advice and became more conscious about
the core themes of Arianna we would be all better off.
I think I might go out and buy
‘Thrive’!
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