Perfect Love

"The media is so keen to portray the concept of perfect love these days - today I would like to pay respect to the millions of examples of imperfect love that are evident everywhere. These are the myriad of small fires that when seen together represent a beautiful, powerful shining light."

Happiness by KD

It's easy to sometimes lose sight - thanks KD!

"Nothing is going to make you happy. Happiness is who we are already. Everything we need is inside our own being; inside our own hearts." KD

William Kamkwamba's Windmill

A constant search for things inspirational, revealed this incredible story of a Malawian boy's courage to dream and act in the face of poverty, famine and doubt.

Enjoy!

Thoughts From Within

Woody Harrelson's poem "Thoughts From Within"

Beautiful & thought provoking - enjoy!

Success is a continuous journey

Whatever the endeavor, success requires continual, focus, application and push – here is a great little clip from Richard St John on the Journey – equally applicable to emotional success as to tangible.

Constant focus and re-enforcement are critical.

Mercy & Loving Kindness

I am currently reading a book by Dr Wayne Dyer called Wisdom of the Ages. It's an incredible collection of 60, of what Dr Dyer feels are some of the most impactful quotes, poems or writings of all time, right back to Patanjali, Lao-tzu, St Francis of Assisi to modern day luminaries such as Rudyard Kipling and Mother Theresa.

The piece that I read recently, and I feel compelled to share here, is a brief piece by Shakespeare from the Merchant of Venice;

The quality of mercy is not strained;
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath; it is twice blest, -
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest, it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown:
His scepter shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherin doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway, -
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doeth then show likest God’s
When mercy seasons justice.

Dr Dyer urges us to practice mercy with ourselves first. He urges us to be compassionate and non-judgmental with ourselves when we make mistakes, or fail to live upto a presupposed standard. ‘Forgive yourself for being human’.

He goes on to say that if you are not compassionate with yourself, you will find it difficult to practice compassion with others, just as it is difficult to be generous with money, if you have none.

And he also mentions a quote by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj:

“The sinner and the saint are merely exchanging notes, the saint had sinned, the sinner will be sanctified.”

What these say to me is, if you are good to yourself, others begin to stand a chance. We tend to hurt people only when we are hurting ourselves – it starts with us.

N.

Life at 30,000 feet

Richard Branson's life at 30,000 feet and incredible interview with TED's Chris Anderson. Especially inspirational for anyone who found school difficult, great perspective.

What You've Got

A beautiful and poignant song by Eddi Reader, reminding us to use and be grateful for 'What You've Got".





All Love,

N.

WHAT YOU'VE GOT

Chorus:
It's not what you're born with
It's what you choose to bear
It's not how big your share is
It's how much you can share
It's not the fights you dreamed of
It's those you really fought
It's not what you're given
It's what you do with what you've got

You must know someone like him - tall and strong and lean
Body like a greyhound and a mind so dark and keen
His heart just like a laurel grew twisted round itself
Till almost everything he did brought pain to someone else

What's the use of two good legs if you only run away
What's the use of the finest voice if you've nothing good to say
What good is strength and muscle if you only push and shove
And what's the use of two good ears if you can't hear those you love

Between those who use their neighbours and those who use a cane
Between those in constant power and those in constant pain
Between those who run to evil and those who cannot run
Tell me which ones are the cripples and which ones touch the sun

Commencement Address by Paul Hawken

The Unforgettable Commencement Address by Paul Hawken to the Class of 2009, University of Portland, May 3, 2009


In Paul's own words “direct, naked, taut, honest, passionate, lean, shivering, startling, and graceful.” - enjoy and be inspired. A must see for anyone with kids, thinking about having kids or know of any kids


http://globalmindshift.wordpress.com/2009/05/21/the-unforgettable-commencement-address-by-paul-hawken-to-the-class-of-2009-university-of-portland-may-3-2009/

Don't eat the marshmallow yet!

This excellent talk is about the concept of delayed gratification and how essential it is to our success and happiness - Don't eat the marshmallow yet!

Have You Seen the Media Section

I have recently updated the Media Section of the Site with the interviews from 101.5 FM - Well worth listen to get more of a 'Feel' for the work we do here.

http://www.dontquiton.me/main/media.html

Whilst on the topic, an initial chat over coffee or the phone will cost you the princely sum of the phone call or the coffee - that's right, there is no charge for us to chat, to see if what we do can be of help to you - I do accept a cup of coffee though.

Also progress for the new book is strong, with 3 interviews this last 2 weeks, including Deva Premal & Miten last night. I will be sure to include snippets from this page as they are produced.

One Last thing, good friend Dave Stringer has released his long awaited live Album ‘Leela’ – and for now there is a free download of one of the tracks from Omstream. Sensational!
Take Good Care & Speak Soon.

http://omstream.com/pages/your-selection.php?album_id=643

Peace, Love & Prosperity,

Nick.

Sir Ken Robinson - Creativity

Sir Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity from TED.com - you decide.



Wow!
N.

Einstein on Success

"If A is a success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut."

Albert Einstein

Lokah Samasta

One of my favourite from Deva & Miten - Very Hypnotic & also very powerful for helping yourself and those around you restore balance, peace and happiness.





"May all beings be happy, and may my thoughts, words and deeds contribute in some way to the happiness of all beings!"

- by Deva Premal & Miten, with Manose
Live in Concert - Slovenia, June 2008
www.DevaPremalMiten.com
www.ManoseMusic.com

All Love,
Nick :)

My Song - Rabindranath Tagore

My Song

This song of mine
Will wind its music around you
Like the fond arms of love

This song of mine
Will touch your lips
Like a kiss of blessing

When you are alone
It will sit by your side
And whisper in your ears

When you are in a crowd
It will protect you
With it’s strength

My song will be
Like a pair of wings to your dreams
It will fly your heart
To the edge of the unknown

It will be like a faithful star
In the dark of night

My song will sit
In the depths of your soul

And will cary you
Into the heart of things
And when my voice is silent
My song will speak
In your loving heart

I awoke to this on my iPod this morning and it spoke to me of purpose, when we carry our song in our hearts, the world conspires to help us to realise it - but first we have to uncover the song.

Warmth & Love,

Nick.

From a Gift of Love II - Oceans of Ecstasy
Deepak Chopra and friends present a musical Valentine to Tagore

The Moment I Cease to Hate

“At certain moments, always unforseen, I become happy

I look at the strangers near as if I had known them all my life

Everything fills me with affection

It may be an hour before the mood passes, but lately

I seem to understand that I enter upon it .... the moment I cease to hate”

William Butler Yeats

Seth Godin

It’s so hard to move away from video and especially from the sensational content at TED.com, when you resonate with it so strongly.

Seth Godin’s book Tribes is also available as an audio book from iTunes. Also worthy of note is an outstanding book called The Slight Edge - about the incremental change that’s required to first lead yourself,from where you are to where you want to be. If you would like more details shoot me an e-mail via the ‘Say Hi’ page and I’ll remember & locate the author and other details.







‘Hanging on the wire, I'm waiting for the change...’
Take Care,

N.

Dance to Inspire, Inspire to Dance

Speaks for itself :)





Eddie’s Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Eddie-Uehara/57132199582

Protect your Dreams

A beautiful reminder, from a great film, to be diligent and attentive with our choice of words, especially concerning our dreams and the dreams of others (especially children).






‘Faith is the song that the blackbird sings before the dawn.’
Protect Your Dreams & Joy!
Nick.

Classical music with shining eyes

In the previously mentioned interview with Dave Stringer, Dave talks about music being a very essential aspect of our being human, and how it increases our ability to cooperate and think together. This presentation by Benjamin Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic, and a speaker on leadership, testifies to this and really has to be seen to be fully appreciated.

Talk from ted.com, Benjamin’s web page; benjaminzander.com



Peace & Shining Eyes
Nick.

Secrets of success in 8 words, 3 minutes

Today I watched an incredible summation on the elements of success by Richard St. John, on TED.com. Richard spent more than a decade interviewing 500 people he defines as successful and distilled the findings into 8 words, 3 minutes - Hope you enjoy! N.

Dave Stringer on Happiness

The full interview may be appearing in a magazine soon. When it does I will be sure to update you on the details. One of the comments that Dave made during the interview, on happiness as a practice is below. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.


“What I have found is that ecstasy, bliss, whatever word you want to use for it, happiness, is really kind of a decision that you make, and it is something that is really practiced. It takes time, but the more you practice it, the easier it becomes. As with anything that you do, say you decide that you are going to start running. At first your muscles aren’t really up to the task, but the more you do it, the more practiced you become, and something that was difficult before, becomes effortless. So I have found by effectively practicing the state of ecstasy through singing, it has become more of an enduring state for me.”

Peace,

Nick.

Einstein on Decision

I was watching a discussion between Dr Wayne Dyer & Dr Bruce Lipton and two of the most empowering and insightful comments or quotes were made. The first was by Bruce:

“The function of the mind is to create coherence between your beliefs and the reality that you experience.”

And the next was by Wayne and was a quote from Albert Einstein

“The most important decision we make is whether we believe we live in a friendly or hostile universe.”

Maybe take just 5 minutes over a coffee and a couple of deep breaths, to gently examine the beliefs that you have running through you head at present. Remember the key here is gently, it’s important not to beat yourself up, just notice - be the witness.

Once this is done, have a think about Einstein’s quote in this context, and entertain the possibility of how it might feel to believe, that everyone and everything, is here to help you. It may not feel like it at times, because we can only see things from our perspective. But imagine if that were the case - feel like breathing a little deeper? I’m off to practice it now, have a beautiful day!

Peace,

Nick.

i @ dont quit on .me - Library Display

Just a quick note to let you know that, for the rest of April 2009, there is a display in the foyer at North Lakes Library. This display combines some of the messages I talk about in the Emotional Wellness talks I give, with some inspirational quotes set to the fantastic photography of Duane Hart. Duane recently won Sports Photographer of the year 2008 in the International Aperture Awards. (http://www.duanehart.net/ )

If your in the North Lakes area please drop by and have a look and let me know what you think. If you feel like it, you can leave comments on the website below, on the 'Say Hi' page. For those of you too far away to experience the ambience of North Lakes, Queensland, there is a slide show on the main page of the website.    www.dontquiton.me  .

Peace,

Nick.