female education

Chocolate week

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We are frequently being told that a certain day or week is for celebrating or increasing awareness for one charity or cause…this week I am informed it is Chocolate Week.

I am personally aware how good chocolate is good in terms of feeling good but as a wise woman once told me ‘all things in moderation’.

However, I know when i was very ill many years ago a hospital ‘expert’ told me chocolate was good for me…I knew that! Joking aside we know that it is a mood enhancer and a quick energy boost but ensure the cocoa content is high and the fat low!

Enjoy the indulgence but balance it out with a bit of exercise…maybe a walk to the sweet shop.

 

Family love

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Nothing stronger than the bonds of a parent and a child and in our family that extends to aunties too. We are a spiritual lot in our family and when one of my nieces was  in labour a few years back I spent a rather unsettled morning and felt very in tune with said expectant mother…we joked about this today with her reminding me she had it far worse.

Seriously though we had another arrival this week, on Thursday evening around eleven I was tired and took myself off to bed but just couldn’t get settled and ended up coming down stairs, making tea and mooching around watching bad TV until nearly five.  What I didn’t know is my sister was also doing exactly the same at the same time.

What you may ask curiously was causing this sleepless agitated night in the family…My Nephew and Godson’s wife went into labour at eleven and our latest arrival put in an appearance Friday morning.

We are all thrilled to welcome another dolly into the family…the next generation and I wish my great niece a long, healthy and exciting life which I will enjoy observing.

Thanks to those angels who watched over our lovely new mum giving a safe delivery and a beautiful daughter.

Breast Cancer awareness

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October is Breast Cancer awareness month and I am certain my followers examine themselves on a regular basis and those of us with daughters must encourage them to do so too from an early age.

Having lost two family members to breast cancer we are very aware in our family but I always remind female friends and relatives that if they find something it doesn’t always mean it’s cancerous but the sooner it is checked out the better. Peace of mind is a wonderful thing.

As usual there are lots of fundraising events and merchandising to purchase in support of the cancer support and research charities.

So get examining yourself and donating.

A Father’s Love

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I am having my screen break today and listening to a beautiful CD ‘A Father’s Love‘ a wonderful surprise gift today which arrived in the lunchtime post.

Close friends and followers know I have been working on a my own book:

‘Dancing in my dreams’ for many years about the love and loss of my own father and the words to the tracks on this album are so poignant to me.

Oddly enough only last night I was discussing the subject of not having a father with a friend and how Father-daughter relationships (or lack of them)  affects many girls relationships throughout their life.

I think Fathers often under-estimate the impact their relationship has on their children, Mothers may keep the home and wipe away the tears more often than not but children need their Fathers input and love too. This cannot be measured in time spent but the quality of that time and the intensity of that love and as we know some men are better at demonstrating that love than others.

I only had seven years with my own Father, who died from a massive stroke hence my on-going campaign to support stroke charities and increase awareness. My memories are few but treasured oh so dearly.

Thank you that man for the random act of kindness.

 

 

Weighing up options

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When I worked within a legal environment we would call ‘weighing up’ the balance of convenience. Throughout business and personal lives we are often faced with challenges and choices to make and weighing up the pros and cons can be difficult.

Aside of being feared of change, the word compromise can be just as frightening. Not everyone has the personal attitude towards their life to see an experience may be a good one, albeit a second choice and perhaps not quite what you had in mind as the next best move.

If the life of a freelancer has taught me one thing its that life throws all sorts of curved balls for one to juggle and/or bat away. We think our skills and qualifications are taking us towards a definite route but along the way we may be distracted by something which we made need to reach that final goal…and perhaps didn’t realise until now!

Today I am doing just that weighing up and reflecting on what to do the coming months, or longer…watch this space.

 

Finding what works

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In whatever our chosen career may be we are never too old to benefit from the advice of others. What is great, don’t you agree, is when we take time to research a subject and find out ways we can improve our own delivery of what we do…and find out it works!

I am a great believer in being informed to help make a better decision and/or give me that edge or some may say the confidence to go that extra mile to please my clients. I am mindful that people often put their faith in us and our abilities so continual professional development is vital.

There is nothing better than receiving feedback that how you handled a situation was really appreciated by those concerned. It never hurts to say thank you, though in some areas of my work I can tell if the client has enjoyed and benefited from my help.

It’s a good feeling to be helping those that need encouragement and engagement and it may be far simpler than those around may fear. Don’t be afraid to ask for help for yourself or your loved ones as the right assistance may be easier than you imagine and make such a difference.

Communication continues to be the key to success.

 

Finding time

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I am surrounded by dynamic friends who squeeze so much into their lives and still find time to help their community,be supportive of their own inner circle of friends and family. Maybe mostly as I choose to play with positive people.

Seriously though, as my own mentor and life coach (Mother) always used to say; one always finds time to do the things one wants to and what really matters.

However, I also know many people who are not happy with their life and the lack of challenges or opportunities that come their way…but are for whatever reason unable to make the effort to do something about it.

To make changes in our life we have to do just that – maybe a small step at a time. I find taking up a new hobby or studying/adding to the CV helps tremendously with the latter opening up personal and job opportunities and increasing self-worth.

There are many great organisations that offer distance learning and online courses which can fit around your work and family commitments. i.e. BSY Group and Oplex Careers.

Remember we are never too old to learn new skills.

Technical fears

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I suspect like a lot of people I hardly scratch the surface of the packages lurking on my laptop. Without any formal training I do the best I can with now and then asking a male colleague with more IT knowledge. I confess I hate asking for help but realistically we can’t all be experts in everything.

I remember my mother’s words where technology and indeed men were concerned:-

‘Don’t be beaten by man nor machine.’

Sound advice, sometimes I confess it can be a generation thing, whereas our teenage children just explore without fear, but in my own defense the fear is losing perhaps stored valuable material. But today that fear has been replaced by discovering new aspects of my word package previously unknown to me sadly.

The past couple of days I have spent downloading material and visuals from my website in fear of the host company losing it all for me. Not amusing when ambiguous emails are received, requests to help desk go unanswered and phone lines constantly busy.

Things I have learnt from this exercise:

a) make sure you save info you may have uploaded directed to website somewhere else.

b) get to know the packages you bought more         and

c) stop for coffee and choccy biscuits girl…you deserve it!

When is the right time?

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I had to confess to a close friend that i was having studying withdrawal symptoms…how sad am I? Seriously, I had given myself a little break from my list of courses to do. I had decided not to start up again until my daughter went back to university. Then today I found myself seeking out one of my proposed courses and starting to read my first lesson…

If I am honest I was concerned the longer I put off starting the worse it would be to get back into my routine. As any fellow mature students will realise one has to be really committed, self-disciplined and motivated to return to studying.

I have to say the past few years I have found gaining various qualifications a positive move and I have really enjoyed the reflective reading and evolving as an individual. Finding the right position to make ultimate use of said qualifications has been harder than I envisaged but I know the right role is out there.

For me of course it was a two prong plan as my counselling qualifications have also given me credence to my serious writing projects, currently with my publisher. One has to be patient as some dreams take longer to chase, catch and become a reality.

Q: So when is the right time? A:Now!!

Remember we are never too old to learn new skills.

 

Women moving forward

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Last week at the Global Woman’s Summit the delegates were privileged to hear many inspirational women give their stories.

During the event we had a live link to Barbara Marx Hubbard in the USA. Barbara spoke about  a  new family on earth and the evolution of women:

‘ Impulse of creativity and love. Each full of potential – a new family of humanity.’

Her tips for the audience included how we should –

‘Catch a vision of a world equal to our potential’.

and…how in life we should all: –

‘Ignore the breaking down but look at what is breaking through.’

Closing with a brilliantly positive statement:-

‘Life’s purpose each of us is more.’