Thursday, March 26, 2009

Death Of An Old Friend

An Obituary printed in the London Times -

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults,
not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining
their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but need not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and
by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers:
I Know My Rights
I Want It Now
Someone Else Is To Blame
I'm A Victim

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Do Chemical Engineers Get Chemical-Engineering Block?

I love this talk by Elizabeth Gilbert on the subject of creativity.

EG is the author of Eat, Pray, Love.

I haven't read the book but I loved listening to her speak. She's so confident, articulate, funny and real.

Watch the video here.

Monday, March 02, 2009

The Work

I was introduced to the work of Byron Katie by life coach David Wood, whose coaching resources have helped me.

Byron Katie helps people end their suffering (her phrase, not mine) by asking three piercing questions when someone says they have a problem. It might be how they feel about themselves; money anxiety; pain of rejection; loss of a loved one.

E.g. "There's something wrong with me."

BK. "Is that true?"

BK. "How do you know it's true?"

BK. "Who would you be without that thought?"

Then she gets the person to do a "turnaround" by saying to themselves the reverse of the thought that's plaguing them.

In the above example, it would be "There's something right with me."

Then she asks you to prove it with examples of how you have done things right.

Maybe you have great friends.
Maybe you ARE a great friend.
You have the perfect body for you.
You have a great laugh.
You are a great teacher.

Check out some of the videos of interviews she has done with people.
Self
Money
Pressure
Fear of the future