IFX Group 2000 Web Log

2000 Blog Entries

1. Help for Asking. (January)
2. Perspective Dirt. (February)
3. Clearly Speaking. (March)
4. The Smile Sound. (April)
5. Loud Americans? (May)
6. Mission Impossible. (June)
7. Be yourself. (July)
8. Let it be. (August)
9. In the moment. (September)
10. Perspective. (October)
11. Writers Block. (November)
12. Common Cents. (December)

January, 2000 - Help for Asking.

There are times when everyone needs help. This is part of being human. Our need for help can show up in many different ways from help when our car breaks down or if we can't figure out our taxes to help figuring out the jumbled mess of feelings inside.

If this is such a basic and common human experience, why is it so much harder to ask for help than to offer it? It seems like fear is part of this blockage. Fear of imposition. Fear of embarrassment. Fear of appearing weak.

In reality this kind of fear is an illusion. Everyone needs help sometimes. Asking for help just proves that we are human and are willing to give others a chance to exercise their equally human right to help.

Never be afraid to ask for help. Never be afraid to help.

 

February, 2000 - Perspective Dirt.

There are people driven to own land. We call it Real Estate, but there is never a term called Fake Estate. Ultimately it comes down to dirt. When any sufficiently strong natural disaster hits, all human efforts to build lasting property will prove to be nearly as temporary as our own lives.

Who owns the dirt? There are many recorded land wars throughout history going back to the very beginning of human existence on this planet. And yet not one of those original land 'owners' is still here to make sure others don't steal their claim to the land.

The native Australian Aborigine people have an interesting saying. People fighting about ownership of land are like fleas fighting over who owns the dog.

 

March, 2000 - Clearly Speaking.

I recently came across an old Quaker saying Let your life speak, not your mouth. The value of a life is not its duration but its donation.

 

April, 2000 - The Smile Sound.

Smile when you talk on the phone. Sure it may seem a little strange, but there is science behind this one. The person at the other end of the phone can hear the difference. First, it makes it a little harder for you to be rude to the other person. Second, it makes them less likely to be rude to you. And most important, we need more smiles in the world. Share your smile with someone today.

 

May, 2000 - Loud Americans?

The traveling population of the USA has given the rest of the world an impression that everyone from this country is fat and loud. Why is that?

 

June, 2000 - Mission Impossible.

Everything is impossible when you try to spend someone else's personal time. Nothing is impossible if you make someone else happy enough or angry enough to take action.

 

July, 2000 - Be yourself.

Live life for what it is, not what you think it should be. Be yourself.

 

August, 2000 - Let it be.

Once you've made your point, don't try to sharpen it.

 

September, 2000 - In the moment.

Fears over tomorrow and regrets over yesterday are twin thieves that rob us of the moment. -Anonymous

 

October, 2000 - Perspective.

To the world you may be just somebody. But to somebody you may just be the world.

 

November, 2000 - Writers Block.

Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self. - Cyril Connolly

 

December, 2000 - Common Cents.

There is a currency phenomenon in the United States not found anywhere else in the world. Consider how much a penny is worth to you. Many people couldn't care less about simply tossing the smallest unit of hard currency on the ground and leaving it. After all, it is nearly worthless. Even the treasury department had to change the formula for the coin from pure copper to copper coated zinc because the raw copper was worth more than the face value of the coin itself.

The interesting part comes when a person notices a penny on the ground. Some apply superstitious rules and only touch the coin if it is face up. Others simply ignore the coin as if it were not worth the physical effort to pick it up. And yet there are those who consider found currency of any denomination to be a sign of good fortune.

This last group may actually have more of a grasp on reality than the rest of society. The best example of just how closely tied the lowly penny is to fortune is found in the penny jars of those who actively collect the stray money. This found fortune is true hidden wealth.