Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Brain Booster!

Life is not all about studies. Go get a life! For a moment, you may think are you reading some health and fitness article? Don't worry, continue reading you will know what I mean. Being healthy, exercising will make you feel fit and when you are healthy you will be able to achieve much more things in life.

Do you remember after your run the last time, you feel great, you feel fresh? Why do we have these feel good feelings? Studies have shown that when you do aerobic exercises, you are getting more fresh air, oxygen into your brain. Your diaphragms open up, you breathe deeper, and you are getting more oxygen supply into your blood stream. All these makes you feel good. It will also help suppress stress.

Don't all these encourage you to go out and exercise? You need not necessary must go jogging, you can go swimming, cycling, working out in the gym, playing basketball, football, volleyball, tennis, brisk walk etc. Go sweat it out, you will feel good and your body will appreciate you for doing that too. In fact, according to brain expert John Medina, exercising two to three times a week, improves the brain power for problem solving. Exercising not only keeps you fit, makes your mind sharp, gives you more energy, it also prevents obesity which could lead to many potential illnesses.

Examination period is so stressful, some may say where got time to exercise. Wrong! I make it a point to jog at least twice a week during exam period. It relieves my stress and makes me feel good after the jog. It also keeps my body in top form so that I know I'm ready to face the brutal exams. And you might realise during exams period, a lot of students seem to fall sick easily. Tremendous period of stress, not having sufficient rest plus body not in good form, that's why students fall sick easily. If you have a healthy body with good immune system, you will not fall sick easily. Falling sick during exam period is really bad, you won't feel good and you cannot perform at your best. So take good care of your health and mental well-being.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Is Motivation a Scam?

Many people would love to be motivated every single day of their life and that includes me! However, the reality is that sad to say motivation doesn't last. There are so many products, books, courses on motivation out there and people are hoping to find the cure all magical stuff that could help them improve their lives.

I was a victim too trying to find out whatever I could so that I could be motivated to study and pursue my goals. After reading hundreds of books, wasted hours and hours in seminars and courses, I dare to say if you think motivation is the cure or solution to study well, pass exams and get good grades then you have been conned!

So there's no such thing as motivation? You see motivation is a feeling deep inside us. We want to feel good so that we will like to study. But if motivation is something not within our control, aren't we putting ourselves at risk? Imagine half the year you are not motivated, does it mean we will fail in our exams? Personally, I will not leave it to chance.

For example, when I asked students why they want to study, they would tell me because they know study is good for them and they want a bright future or their parents tell them study is good for them. These are common reasons we hear from time to time. But let me tell you this, if these are your reasons, I bet you are having difficulty finding 'motivation' to study day in day out. Isn't that true?

So how? Is there a better way? Of course! I tried to dig deeper into motivation and I realised having solid good enough compelling reasons is the key to sustain and have 'motivation'. With reference to the above example, one should think deeper why he/she wants to study well and not just coming up with superficial answers. Honestly, no one really likes to study. Everyone could have different reasons if they start thinking deeper. For me, the reasons are as follows.

* I want to take good care of my parents when they are old.

* I want my parents to enjoy life.

* I want to study well, have a good career and earn lots of money.

* I want to get a big beautiful house by the beach side.

* I want to go on exotic vacations frequently.

* I want to be able to donate to charity and help the poor.

* I want to have plenty of options in my life.

* I want to retire young and not get caught up in the rat race.

* I want to be successful and not a failure in life.

* And so on...

I find that when I could visualize the above, I have clarity and my reasons for doing well in studies suddenly become so compelling! I no longer need to be so called motivated to study. Whenever I think of the above reasons, it will just push me towards my goals because I know so clearly what I wanted. So don't depend on motivation to achieve your goals. Instead come up with solid compelling reasons why you must do so.

So don't waste time, take actions NOW! Go take a piece of blank paper, write down all your goals and give as many compelling reasons as possible why you must achieve them. And do take note, it's not just applicable for studies, you can do so for your other goals too.

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Photography Course

Photography can teach us quite a bit about leadership. Being extremely successful in photography requires passion, self-reflection, risk taking and respect among other traits. What makes a photographer successful will also make a leader successful. The best way to begin learning photography is simply to do it. As they say, practice makes perfect. Practice also causes you to think of new things to photograph, as well as questions and fun new photo ideas. In this Intro to Photography Assignments, you'll find several ideas to keep in mind when you head out with your camera. Doing one or more of the following photo assignments will get you going on your path toward becoming a master photographer. These assignments are designed to inspire you and help you improve as a photographer. Whether you get to that "master photographer" status, you'll find yourself having a lot of fun in the process.

It's craft and the more you practise it the better, it means a lot of work. It is a training of the eye, and no amount of technical training and information can make you 'see' things unless you have that inner ability. Equipment, training, are all secondary - some of the masters have worked with very simple equipment, though of course technology helps. But the basic prerequisite is an intelligent, curious and perceptive mind.

Photography is a wonderful choice when it comes to a career. Photography is a versatile path that allows you to specify within the degree, and move from different types of photography within your lifetime. From magazine covers to exotic locations to local newspapers, a career in photography will allow you to pick and choose exactly what you want to photograph. However, a career in photography doesn't happen with well wishes and hopes...you have to work to get there! So where do you begin in your search for photography schools? Right here!

Whether you are working in film or digital media, principles like composition and perspective still differentiate a successful image from an unsuccessful one. Knowing how to foreground your subject matter and make it stand out is crucial part of professional photography. Particularly in photojournalism, concern for and understanding of the accuracy and the context of what you are representing is required by the field. Immersing yourself in these standards helps you to understand the demands of a professional career. So, are you still thinking about photography? If yes, forget everything and make aica education your next photography course platform and see results coming your way.