Have the courage to say Hello (Part 1)

IMG_20140617_125449Have you  crossed paths with someone and instantly you think you connect? But then the next day you see this person he/she completely ignores you as though you have never met before. I don’t know if it’s just me or if it’s my generation, but I noticed that some people have simply neglected courtesy. And worse still, even when you make an effort to be courteous, it is so difficult for some people to respond.

A few months ago, I was assigned to a student for a project. For the purpose of this post, I’ll name her “Marie.” Believe me we connected so well that I already started making future plans about having her as my teammate for another project. After we completed the project, we had lunch that day and things went very well ( or so I thought). The following day, I saw “Marie” and feeling so excited I approached her smiling. But she completely ignored me!!! I stopped dead in my tracks and I immediately returned to my seat.

 If you are just like me and get frustrated about when people act like “Marie” part 2 of this post will help you reduce some of the frustration you feel when familiar people ignore you.

Before I share my tips on how to deal with this slight frustration , I figured it is important to understand why people act like “Marie.”

Technology: I believe technology has to take some of the blame.  There is no doubt that technology is “one of the best things since sliced bread.” However it has also reduced human interaction to a level that one could not have imagined 100 years ago. Again I don’t know if this is just how my generation has chosen to live, but these days most people would rather message you on Facebook or Twitter rather than speak with you in person.

Imagine this scenario: You just saw someone in class or work or *insert wherever* and they ignore you but then you get home and there is a message on Facebook or a tweet waiting for you from that same person. Weird isn’t it? Why didn’t you just tell me what you had to say when you saw me earlier?

Ego: This one is one major issue. As a human being you should have self-respect, because if you don’t respect yourself, no one else will. However, some people mistake self-respect with arrogance and they allow their ego suppress their courtesy. I am not exactly sure where people got the idea that not saying hello to someone makes you a better person. Let me quickly add that if you are reading this post and you are one of them, please stop that behavior.

Go out today and learn to say hello to others. It’s free and simple. Remember to check out for part 2 of this article.

As always, thanks for reading and remember to share it with your friends. You make my day.

Love,

Ewon

How to start your day right

20140609_135540Do you ever wake up and feel negative, sad or depressed? As though you are carrying the entire world’s problems on your shoulders?

While some people feel confident about starting their day right, a lot of people still struggle with developing the right attitude to begin their day, and they eventually give up.

What if it is possible to develop the right frame of mind? This post will help you learn how to get it right this time.

Be positive: Don’t be a debbie downer. Please don’t wake up in the morning and the first thing you say is ” I hate today” OR “Today is going to be shitty” OR “insert your negative quote here.” It is very important to start your day with the right words and even if your day naturally starts off “negative, ” learn to spin it around by speaking positive words. It is important to remember that life and death are in the power of the tongue.

Believe : This might sound cliche but it is true, If you don’t believe in something you will fall for anything. Everyday I like to believe that my day will go right, I mean why won’t it? Do you struggle with your beliefs about yourself? Check out my post about believing in yourself.

Be a doer and not a dreamer: If all you do every time you wake up is only to dream, it is time to STOP dreaming and start DOING. Since yesterday, all kinds of social media outlets have been buzzing after Shonda Rhimes (creator of Scandal) gave one of the best commencement speech at Dartmouth university (If by this time you haven’t seen it , go to youtube and watch it after reading this post).

Rhimes encourages dreamers to be doers and nailed it by saying “I think a lot of people dream and while they are busy dreaming, the really happy people, the really successful people, the really engaged, powerful people, are busy doing.” Her statement shouldn’t be misunderstood for not dreaming, while  It is great to dream, it is greater and more fulfilling to do.

Faith: Every time you do what you are meant to do, give your 100% and leave the rest to faith. Some people like to give less than, refuse to be like those people, give your 100%.

So go out today, and start your day right.

As always, thanks for reading and sharing. You make my day 🙂

Ewon

 

 

 

5 Reasons Why You Should Ask For Help

20140601_104619Sometimes, human beings are uncomfortable asking for help. I remember one incident from my childhood: I was in the passenger seat of my father’s car and my father was driving. We got to an unfamiliar location and we missed our direction, Rather than relying upon the GPS or stopping the vehicle to ask a passerby for directions, my father decided to take a guess and drive ahead, in an attempt to locate the right direction to our destination. As  result, we ended up arriving very late to our destination.
It is important to understand that when you ask for help, you exhibit very important human traits: humility, strength and confidence. It shows that you are humble enough to admit that you do not know everything. More so, you exhibit strength by showing that you are not afraid to show your vulnerability. And finally, you display confidence by having the assurance to approach anyone (friends or strangers) to  ask for assistance. I have put together 5 reasons why you should ask for help.
Reasons why you should feel comfortable to ask another for help:
1. Asking another for help saves you time:  As we all know, time is the enemy and it is very precious. When you lose it, be rest assured that you will never get it back. Thus, rather than waste something so precious, why not simply ask for help and save time?
2. Asking for help makes you more productive.
3. Asking for help can improve your knowledge: When you don’t know something, and you ask, guess what ? Now you know and that increases your knowledge.
4. Asking for help promotes friendship: Strangers can eventually become your best friend. The person you ask for help might turn out to be friendly and you may have met your best friend.
5. Asking for help allows you to be in control: You probably have heard this cliche, “when you ask for help you it means you are not in charge,” Well, that’s not true. It actually is the opposite. You get to be in control.
So, go out there and feel free to ask another for help, but also make sure you offer your help to others! Thank you for reading and I hope you have a pleasant weekend.
Ewon.