Improving The Quality Of Your Life

Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, philosopher, poet, and leader of the transcendentalist movement in the early 19th century. He didn’t have a blog or any idea what one might be, but he is able to tell us why blogging is valuable.

The good of publishing one’s thoughts is that of hooking to you like-minded men, and of giving to men whom you value… one hour of stimulated thought.
— From The Heart of Emerson’s Journals, ed. Bliss Perry, p. 94. Entry of 20 June 1835 (Emerson was 32 years old).

“We live in a country that seems to be in this massive state of delusion, where the idea of what you are is more important than you actually being that. And it actually works just as long as everybody’s winking at the same time. Then, if one person stops winking, you just beat the crap out of that person, and they either starting winking or go somewhere else.”
– Branford Marsalis

The students that get the opportunity to work with this man are some of the best and brightest students America has to offer. They also have to be distinguished in the field of music. And yet, Marsalis insists that these students are immensely flawed, that they demonstrate an unwillingness to really work and instead prefer to have the idea of being something instead of actually working on being that something. Read the rest of this post »

Most of us spend significant amounts of time sitting at a desk. And while you may have an ergonomic chair or desk or whatever, your posture can still be sloppy. And you wouldn’t want to experience the “benefits” of a sloppy posture. Some of those are a stiff neck, hunched shoulders, weak back muscles and restricted breathing. Not good for you.

It is said that strength training and stretching are important for a good posture. And they are. But how do you know what a good posture is? How does a good posture feel? How to actively correct the sloppy posture after being used to it for so long? Read the rest of this post »

“Great acts are made up of small deeds.”
— Lao Tzu

Do 5 good deeds each day. Anything from holding a door open for someone to buying and passing hamburgers to impoverished street people works. Or, if you spend most of your time online, you can help other people by answering their questions in a field in which you are good.

Doing so is guaranteed to make you feel better about yourself. It might even boost your productivity along with your mood!

I think everyone agrees that Obama has great oratory, communication and people skills. And he also seems to be a great father. The letter he wrote to his two daughters is sign of that.

Write your children a letter

It doesn’t matter if you see each other every day. It doesn’t matter if you talk each day. You can write a letter to your children and get great results from it.

There are two main reasons why writing a letter to your children is a really good idea. First, there is the fact that a letter will give you the chance to write  about things you often had never took the time to say. It might make you realize you haven’t fully analyzed some situations — you gain new insights and perspectives by writing down your thoughts. So your children will be able to read about a number of things they never talked about with you. And you might be more understanding about some things. Read the rest of this post »