Don't Forget to Write

The other day, I got a hand written note from an old friend. This hasn't happened in a very long time. Back in the day, when I moved from the East Coast to California, email was in its toddler-years. With my AOL account, I was able to stay in touch with friends close to home or across the world. Living and working in the digital world of Silicon Valley also moved me ever further from the written note. Once a prolific letter writer, my desire to do so quickly declined.

Usually, if I were writing a note, I'd find a way to slip in my email address or request someone else's in order to type rather than write in cursive. So, as I opened this letter, there was a flood of feelings, was it going to be good news, bad news or perhaps a request for something. Whatever the reason for the note, it seemed an auspicious occasion as it was ominous. With trepidation, I slowly read waiting to see words that spelled out a health scare, a secret unrequited love or perhaps a plea for some cash. But none of those appeared. Instead, my friend declared that he had made a New Year's resolution (unwritten and undeclared, until then) to write a hand written note to all of his friends that year. He called his move to paper and pen a desire for a simpler time. And he wanted in his very own way to deliver a punch to Facebook's digital chin.

That same day as I was still unpacking boxes from my cross-country move, I was sorting through a box of old notes and letters from the college years. Several sweet handwritten notes from a dear friend brought back a flood of memories. I think the poignant part of reading them was the act of actually holding those pieces of paper. Each had survived multiple moves and decades of time. More than that, each note still had the power of the heart-felt sentiment that it once had. I wondered whether it was the physical notepaper, the words, or the joyful heart behind the words that still resonated with me?

Today, we're in the age of quick type and send communications - 140 characters for Twitter and a bit more for texting. Add in the instantaneous feedback you receive on every status update whether Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+ and your expressions to friends and family are all digitized. I don't mind that and I think of myself as an early technology adopter and a definite devotee of all things digital. I even sometimes prefer to IM my mother, rather than pick up the phone and call.

My friend's handwritten letter, caused me to rethink things and I decided that I would try to do the same. I would write to friends to update them on the move to New York City and my new adventures as a New New Yorker. I would also let them know what I had experienced, what I was doing and what I hoped to be doing in the near future.

But, I needed a good pen and plenty of stationery. So, I've ordered, my stationary -- online, of course. Even with my steps back into the land of cursive, I'll keep all of my digital habits including typing status updates and quick texts. However, once the stationary arrives, I plan to slow down, open a bottle of beer and hand write some friends a long over due note. I'll miss using Spell Check and Auto-Correct. Thinking about it, maybe that's the true issue at hand. Taking a pen in your hand and writing down some thoughts on a piece of paper allows you to pour a bit of yourself into those very thoughts. The extra efforts of the pen strokes require more heart and soul placed into them. Those friends receiving the penned sentiments are likely very aware of my imperfections and still remain close and they'll stay close after the note is read, even with those misspelled words and ill-formed letters.

Kevin Feather

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6666326

Parents and Teachers Being Creative

We often hear that we become parents or teachers are creative. What is the real meaning of being a parent or teacher who is creative? Clearly, teachers and parents who are creative teachers and parents can help children or pupils learn to enjoy. The term actually enjoy are signs that the child was willing to learn with serious but happy. I heard on TV, a kids cooking contest participant (in Japan), said, "I can be serious if I cook in my happiness." So that meant enjoy the learning does not mean the kids laughing while learning, but they can be serious coupled with a sincere mood, the joy. Well, how so children enjoy the learning? Terms of children can enjoy the learning is when the child can utilize all the potential strength at the time he was studying. What are the potential power of the child? First, the potential motivation comes from within the child. The kid was hard to learn because it fueled by the motivation that comes from within himself rather than the motivation that comes from outside himself. Every child has a different motivation from within. To recognize this motivation from within, for example, can be known from the interests of children, the objects that became the center of attention of children, places like children, and so on. Second, the potential to absorb information, more specifically the potential to absorb the subject matter. Every child has different ways of absorbing the subject matter. Could be a very good child when absorbing the subject matter presented in the form of verbal (spoken words that teachers or parents). While other children can enjoy and easily absorb the subject matter when the child walks. Third, the potential in treating the subject matter that has been entered in the child's thoughts and feelings. Each child also has a different way of processing or understanding the subject matter that has been absorbed. There are children who cultivate the subject matter in a way that trace, detailed, logical, etc. .. There are also children how to process the subject matter it by jumping up and down, more focused on the big picture (rather than matters of detail), intuitive, etc. .. Fourth, the potential in revealing what he knows. Each child also has a different way when it reveals what is already known and understood. There is a very good boy reveals what he knows through writing, there is a through image, there is a through movement, there is through practice, there is through speech, etc. .. There are at least four types of potential that should be the duty of parents and teachers to recognize it. Once recognized, then the parents and teachers to use or using a variety of potential of the child to assist them in learning. This is perhaps the so-called teachers or parents are creative. So parents and teachers are creative are those who try hard to recognize what the potential power of the child, then take advantage of all the potential power of children to facilitate the learning process. Parents and teachers are creative also attempted to identify the weaknesses of children, but will not be focused to improve that weakness. But the weakness of the child, they view it as a complementary force. Weaknesses of children are not objects that can be eliminated and not the object which is used as the focus of improvement. Because parents and teachers of creative knowing that if they are constantly focused on the weakness of children, the children instead of adding good, but the child becomes moody, stressed, feeling down of selfconfidence, decreased creativity, optimism down, etc. ..

Recognize and Support for Your Child's "Passion"

Every child born has a particular talent, without exception, your child also. Your child may be gifted in some kind of sport, or a talented artist who likes to draw cartoon characters. Your child may also have a special ear so it is mudh memorize the songs or music. Your child may like to talk, likes to tell, or like helping others. Whatever your child's talents, is to be your job as parents to help him realize that in have advantages in certain respects, then helped him continue to hone its potential. The best way to find out what talent your child is to observe as long as he plays. When your child is doing something and he has the desire ("passion"), he was in the zone with no concept of time, he may even forget to eat. Maybe your daughter is so excited to sing their favorite songs in his room. It seemed he was in a place so enjoying. In most cases, a child-adolescent apparent loss of "passion" to do the things he loves. We as parents need to ask ourselves what can we do to keep the passion burning in the hearts and minds of our children. According to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi no direct link between "passion" and true happiness. Your child will probably have a better chance and I feel happy if he can find and actualize his talent. It also can be a starting point for future careers. A child-teens who already have direction, know what it does well, and continues to hone its potential will be smaller involved in drugs or alcohol or associating with the wrong crowd. Try to find talent since the age of your child as young as possible. Pay attention to your child when he plays. See what the interest and make him happy. Perhaps children fickle interest. Why not, continue to follow. At some point, will be found that the activity in which children always want to repeat it. Perhaps bored for a while, then he came back to enjoy the activity. Try capacity to actualize their talents in a way to work, create something. Try to get your child to see and enjoy a variety of different objects. Maybe get your child in the centers of craft industry, or in museums, or in centers aktivits arts, sports, etc. .. Perhaps from a variety of these objects there is an interesting "passion" of your child. Do not compare one child with another child. Because each child is unique. Let the kids who are interested in a particular activity, another child interested in other activities. After identifying and helping children to actualize their talents, there's one more thing you are a very important task. What is it? You instill the characteristics of success for your child, which helped him set small goals, and always maintain confidence in everyday life. In order for your child succeed in life, we must help him to find out exactly what his purpose that he's doing something. This is the first secret key and the key to success of your child. Finally, it is very important not to impose your own dreams on your children, because it is a way to turn off the "passion" young kid.

Creativity - The Art of Life

The most important content of advertising is C.R.E.A.T.I.V.I.T.Y.!

Creativity is related to the brand as inseparable as a business from customers. As soon as we take up a project [client] at our agency, then our complete team i.e. from copywriter to visualizer, to graphic designer and all other various departments work as a unit and contribute our creative ideas that can best suit that brand's positioning in to the market and the ways to organize a budgetary controlled publicity mechanism!
After-all, whatever lies in our agency is a creation through our heart n' soul!!

Once while pursuing my education, seeing my acute passion for the creative ideas and suggestions/reforms for advertising industry, my IMC professor had told me that- 'an Advertising professional doesn't have to be any IAS, but she/he has to be really aware of everything under the sun'. Since then, learning seems to be larger than life. Advertising is just a form of showing Creativity through various modes and methods. It really matters here that how originally and differently can you write even a single letter 'A'. Your imagination has to be endless and there should a never ending innovation with every single design and idea. As a kid I used to wonder that can it be ever possible that people will find themselves incapable of writing the 'Hindi movie songs', how do they just manage to write so many songs on the same counted themes in so many ways. I was very sure that as I will grow up there will be movies without songs because it's the law of science that every 'formation reaches saturation'. But now I just smile over myself and really like the ever new music. I have realized the creative strength.

Creativity offers endless opportunities. Wherever you raise your eyes to look upon, there you will see the creative edge of the creator. Remember the concepts of permutation and combination in maths? We can find out as many ways to write a general 3-4 letter word. How the seven colors of a spectrum can be sufficient enough to enlighten the whole world!

We are advertising people, and all of us try to achieve a new landmark by putting forth our best efforts by suggesting 'new and amended' ways to establish our clients' requirements. That's why an ad agency can never be run single-handed by one person or group- wherever you restrict to people, you are restricting growth. So, we welcome ideas, and try to work upon a 100 things to reach out that one final pick. As soon as a client appreciates our work, then its not the happiness of generating business that matters, what matters is that our brain child is finally going to be nourished in the best of its ways.

In my view, the dictionary should include a synonym for the word 'new' as 'creative' because nothing in the world is un-happened yet and still something 'NEW is CREATED' everyday. It's out of those non-ending possibilities of the various 'creative' minds who master the skills of making it look 'new'.

And if you also really want to define the new dimensions of creativity, I would invite you to make us hear you once, twice and many a times. May be every time we try it in a different way, we be able to carve out something really new and creative!!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anjana_Dalal

Finding Your Creativity and Your Joy

We are all creative. Alright who said "Ha!"? I can relate because I used to be one of those people. I couldn't paint. I did not know how to sculpt. I was not made to do calligraphy. I so admired people who could do that. Those were the creative people. All those thoughts (and yes, that is all they were) disappeared when I started working for a couple based on creativity and talented people These creative people showed me that I do was creative.

It was a slow process at first but I could feel the draw towards it and the underlying joy within it and I wanted some of that! First up came the winter holidays. I was told most people made things for the other people in the department. Yikes, I thought I was going to have to quit. Then I thought about it and thought about it.

What do I like to do? I love being on a computer and working with software... nothing creative about that. I really enjoyed taking pictures. Anyone can do that. So not creative... well maybe it was. So I took some of the hundreds of pictures I had taken of flowers and beaches, and I took my skills in Word and combined it and made individual calendars for each person. All fifteen of them. And I got praise for my creativity. And I loved this feeling of joy.

Next I tried crocheting, I couldn't do it. I tried knitting. Bingo, I could do it and love it. I created scarves and hats and neck warmers for family and charities. And again I found happiness in my creativity. I learned to add bling to frames, to create shrinky dink picture magnets, to make jewelry, add splash and flair to everything from house plants to my home office. I started finding I was creative in many different ways. And I loved it! I was happy, having fun and sharing things with others and getting praise. And it was all good.

But then the day came when I truly realized everyone has creativity. Everyone! I took a class with my fellow co-workers; serious business people who knew they had a job to do and did it. The class was a creativity class. The instructor had us draw pictures. Us, most of who had not drawn or colored since we were five years old. Then she made us hang up our drawings. Scary right?! Yes, but what came out of it was incredible.

We all walked by each of the pictures and gave the picture a name based on what we saw. Then we had to tell each person what we called their picture. And each of us had to write down all the names that were given to our picture. And last and incredibly, we had to take the names and create a poem out of it. Again we had to put the fear aside since most of us had never written poems, and just do it. It was if angels sang and glitter fell from the sky. It was amazing to listen to all the poems that came out of that exercise. Many were absolutely breathtaking. And now I know and will always know and want YOU to know, we are all creative!

Laura started her first business teaching people self-esteem and motivation. She always enjoyed public speaking and writing. Most recently she has had her story published in Zig Ziglar's book "Embrace the Struggle". She now does Virtual Assisting, Organizing, and Tutoring. You can find out how she can make your life easier at http://www.wix.com/vatutor/vatutor or email her at vatutor@live.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laura_Reichert_Johnson

Discover Your Passion

Many people hate Mondays. Reluctantly depart the move. Work just run a mere obligation. No passion, or if anything, his passion is very low. Her life as a zombie (undead) or maybe like a robot, only the routine work according to job description assigned to him. If you experience symptoms like this, probably because you work does not match your passion.

What is passion? I think passion is when your thoughts and feelings together in a passionate desire when on the move where you really enjoy it and be satisfied when the activity can do well. In addition, you are willing to do the job well past office hours and even at times you do not get paid to do it willingly. You also willing to continuously learn and continuously improve knowledge and skills in that field, even using your own money.

Or when simplified, passion is a blend of talents, hobbies, interests, passions of an activity. When this passion coupled with action then it will produce 4 item (the treasure, throne, said, love) is continuously increasing. Why? Since the person doing that activity with a passion, love and incredible enthusiasm. He will work harder than others. He will learn more excited than others. He was willing to sacrifice time, effort, money and sometimes their lives to do something that fits the passion.

Action based on the passion will make your life more happy. You will be getting carried away with the job. You'll enjoy the job. Your life is not just survive. But your life is constantly growing. Congratulations to you that the action was in accordance with your passion.

For that action was not in line with passionnya, immediately set a time that is most comfortable, sit down for a moment: think of interesting things about your past think about what you really are interested in, what is your hobby and pleasure, and what makes you right really excited, the future like what you really dream of. Find a common thread among the answers to those questions. The common thread that will be your guide your passion ...

Continue to ask questions until you really find the answer. Do not underestimate this, because if you go through life without passion assure you get older your life will be more barren and empty.
By Jamil Azziani. ( translated by Ani )

Curhat Satrio Wibowo terhadap Sistem Pendidikan

http://edukasi.kompasiana.com/2011/03/20/curhat-satrio-wibowo-terhadap-sistem-pendidikan/



Surat ini dibuat putra saya Satrio Wibowo ( Bowo ) di usia 13 yang kecewa saat berulangkali hampir tidak naik kelas karena prestasi akademisnya rendah dan selalu diragukan kecerdasannya oleh pihak sekolah. Surat ini tidak pernah dikirimkannya kepada siapapun karena Ia tidak tahu harus mengadu kepada siapa. Ia telah menulis novel fantasi dalam bahasa Inggris ‘ Willy Flarkies ‘ yang mengisahkan tentang kehidupan di dunia paralel dengan teknologi futuristik. Saat ini Ia home schooler setingkat SLA. Ia bermimpi mendapatkan beasiswa ke luar negeri demi meraih cita-citanya sebagai kreator tingkat dunia. Sebagai ibunya, saya selalu berdoa agar cita-citanya diridhoi Allah SWT …Amin.



MY DESTINY By : Satrio Wibowo

Hey….everyone, my name is Satrio Wibowo but everyone used to call me Bowo, 13years old. I lived in Bogor-Indonesia and for the past few years I had my days miserable. Why? Because I’m the only one who always got the lowest rank in my class. Everyone is smart, even my best friends has better grade than me. My teachers always tell me like that.

Back to my profile, all my days are miserable and no one even care about my skills. I have created a novel fantasy ‘ Willy Flarkies ‘ 450 pages in English when 12 years, but it had been rejeckted by Indonesian’s Publishers cause they only interested to publish books in Indonesian language, not foreign language as a market reason. I also like painting but when I offered to The Galleries they tell me too young and rejected my creation. Huuuuhhh…Indonesia only cares about purely academic matter, they don’t respect someone like me because they just want all Indonesian schools now and further there will be SBI (International School) until the students have to get a higest ranking without creativity and they think it’s super while I think it’s a super idiot.

At school, everything sucks! My school just like other schools around the world, restricted rules, restricted uniform and same brain washing thing . All the teachers are all vicious except a few teachers I knew them as ally. Every day I have to go to school and suck math or science but I think their teaching system is the wrong thing. It’s the 21th century now and everything should change not always have to be like this. One day I want to make a school with 25% theory and 75% practice because when it comes to theory, it gets really sleepy; when it comes to practice, will gets boundless creativity. This is the essentials of science to makes better civilization.

You know what? The world is in a really big crisis right now but no one even realize that. What our primary mission? To fix things that has been contaminated by wrong future. But for us the mission is not easy cause our life gets miserable and that’s the first test we must take from God. I had all my days full of problems but that doesn’t stop me from continuing my mission. Like Einstein said “It’s not that I’m genius, but I stay with problems longer.” His words was really spinning in my brain cause I think he’s a genius.

Everyone said that the gifted children had more potential to create unlimited imagination and that’s true, since I have that category, I do have unlimited imagination that no normal person can get. I have mastered drawing, writing, English language without even have to learn them. Those are my special skills while I’m really suck with theory. Many people think smart people such as scientists can make a different to the world and bring good future to the world. Well, I disagree with that cause Einstein said “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” And that is what happen to our world.

Let’s start from Thomas A. Edison, everyone thinks he is a genius because of school while the truth refers to the negative side. Thomas was actually a kid with so many problems and by that he got kicked out from his school, and that’s why his mother losing hope of what he going to be in the future. But Thomas & Mom never give up, maybe he suck with school but his brain can take more than school to make his action a complete change for the world. And now ask yourself how can Edison invent lamp or light and change the world slightly.

I surely guess that Edison is a genius child but nobody knows, its just a guess. My favorite inventor right now is Bill Gates cause he’s the guy who make slight different same as Edison. Bill is a genius from the start; he even gets to study in Harvard University. In his life Bill always wants everyone in the world can have their own personal computer and that’s why he invents Microsoft. But because he’s too excited with his invention, he’s been expelled from Harvard and he didn’t even get any certificate from school. From there he learn his fault and giving advice to all over the world about his mistakes.

Everyone think Bill Gates has fault with that, but I don’t think he’s wrong. I’m going to make a question “What if Bill didn’t invent Microsoft and he focus on his scholarship?” let me tell you all the people, if he did, then the world won’t change and the world won’t have a Personal Computer all over houses around the blocks. What he did is the right thing, better do it now than never. If we want to be a success we must sacrifice something cause successful won’t come like a miracle.

So my life is really miserable, I tried to fix the world but nobody is on my side, I’ve been pushed around by teachers, adults, or even people who didn’t care about me. They deem me as a ridiculousness person, mocking me as a trouble maker and a jerk.
Maybe my body is a kid but my soul is older than adults. I always think why have I become like this, they don’t care, they just don’t care, all they want is just knowledge not my right brain, they are blinded and thinks won’t get better until they see who I am.