Friday, October 31, 2014

Pablo Picasso Wasn't That Long Ago!

I learned a few days ago that Pablo Picasso died in 1973 at the age of 91 which took me by surprise. I used to think that he was a genius from the Renaissance but some of us have known, or have been alive, when he was alive.

Just a little fun fact to learn on Halloween!

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Save Money!



“Quick riches are more dangerous than poverty.” –Napoleon Hill


We've heard of the story of the person who won the lottery but was later bankrupted and in a worse situation than when he first started-Why is that? Those who don't know how to manage 30k a year won't know how to effectively manage 1 million a year.

We live in a society of "buy now pay later". We want to look as if we're well off even when we aren't. We drive cars we don't own, live in houses we don't own and use furniture that's not ours.

"Money in the bank gives you a very safe foundation of courage when bargaining for the sale of your services. Without money, you must take what you are offered, and be glad to get it." -Napoleon Hill

No debt, with money in the bank, gives a person courage. Bill Lewis, a Leader and founder of LIFE Leadership, said on a financial cd that you should always be saving 25% of your paycheck every month so that every 4 months, you have 1 month's worth of money in the bank. He also said that you shouldn't start doing this before you cleared off the credit card and car debt due to the interest rate being often too high. (Do note that even if you have a car loan with 0% interest rate, your car is worth less every minute you own it hence why it's a good idea to clear off that debt as well).

Let's stop spending our money on the latest/flashiest gadget and get some savings!

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Leadership Ability

"Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership."
-Colin Pow

A manager is someone who gives the answers away. A leader is someone who helps the person find the answers for themselves. Ideally, you want the people to still be productive on days when you're not accessible. It simply can't be done if you're the "answer" guy since you're teaching them to rely on you VS having them think for themselves.

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Revision Wednesday
Blog post originally created on August 6, 2008 and can be found here.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Universe Simulator!

Ever wanted to explore Deep Space? Now you can with the free Space Engine! This universe simulator is based on real data, when possible, making the experience as accurate as it can possibly be from a computer chair. If you can see it, you can go to it. PC owners ought to try this (did I mention it's free?).

Check the video here for a glimpse of the action:



Links:
Originally found here: http://sploid.gizmodo.com/
Can be downloaded here: en.spaceengine.org/

Monday, October 27, 2014

Want To Loose Weight?



If you want to loose weight know that it's 80% what you eat and 20% what you do at the gym which means that, given the choice, it's better for you to hire a nutritionist than to hire a trainer. Proper nutrition is required to loose (or gain) weight; you can't outwork a bad diet.

If you need to know the proper postures for each exercises, there are many videos on Youtube that teaches just that. Don't get me wrong, trainers do provide value. They can offer moral support, proper techniques and the like but if your goal is to loose weight - what you do outside of the gym matters more than what you do inside of it.

Remember, it's 80% what you eat and only 20% how you train. Plan your weight goals accordingly.

Friday, October 24, 2014

Water Tricks!

Science is awesome and some of these tricks, done with water, will blow your mind! They're easy enough to try at home - give it a go when you have a chance!



Thursday, October 23, 2014

The Benefit of Paid Membership

"Once people buy the membership, they feel like they have to get their money's worth. That keeps customers coming back, and is something that makes them stand out from other retailers." -Yarbrough

Isn't it true that when we buy something we want to get our money's worth with it? When I played World of Warcraft, the 15$ monthly fee is sometime all it took for me to play the game. I didn't feel like playing, at times, but did because I wanted my money's worth.

This thought goes through everyone's head when they have a membership or a monthly subscription to a service. Could a service like this be applied in your industry?

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

What's the difference between a genius and an idiot?

“A genius is someone who takes a complex thing and makes it look simple. An academic does the opposite.” ― Robert Fanney

If you want someone to take a decision, make the information easy to understand. If it's complicated, he will feel like it's a bigger decision to make. In sales, simplicity is key!

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Revision Wednesday
Blog post originally created on June 24, 2008 and can be found here.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Adobe Creative Suite - Free Or Cheap Alternative

If you use a computer to create/edit images or videos then you probably already know about Adobe. Did you know that most of what you can do with Adobe Creative Suite can now be done with other, free or cheaper, software? Granted, they don't work as good but they're definitely a good choice for people on a budget. Check them out on LifeHacker!

Link:
http://lifehacker.com/5976725/build-your-own-adobe-creative-suite-with-free-and-cheap-software

Monday, October 20, 2014

People Skills Are Important!



"The importance of a pleasing personality has been stressed because it enables one to provide service in the proper spirit. If one has a personality which pleases and serves in a spirit of harmony, these assets often make up for deficiencies in both the quality and quantity of service one gives. Nothing, however, can be successfully substituted for pleasing conduct." -Napoleon Hill

I know a technological genius. He KNEW everything there's to know about computers, programming or pretty much anything related to the IT world. In the rare cases that he didn't know, he would research it and soon become the "go to" person whenever others had questions.
To my surprise, the company he worked for let him go. Soon after, I got in contact with the person responsible for the decision in an attempt to know the other side of the story. After roughly an hour with this guy, I learned that while my friend had impressive technological prowess he had little to no social skills hence why he was let go.

Let me write this again "my friend had impressive technological prowess he had little to no social skills hence why he was let go." Which means that people skills are more important than technical skills!

My friend was a nice guy once you put in the effort to get to know him but he wasn't easily approachable and many people, in the corporate world, don't put any effort to know anybody. Many companies offer technical training to their employees but no people skill training; and then let people go when they don't have people skills. How many good employees were let go because of this?

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Is The Short Term Muscle Gain Worth The Long Term Lost of Health?

To myself and the aspiring bodybuilders out there, be careful what you put in your body as it may be destructive in the long run. This former Mr. New Zealand (Justin Rys) shows the side effects of steroids and HGH (and other things i'm sure) on the body and it's not pretty. He can barely speak, can't walk straight and his heart is failing him.

Is the short term muslce gain worth the long term lost of health?



Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Life Is An Experience, Experience It.

Life is about experience, through experience you learn and when you learn; you grow. A question I asked to hundreds of people is "What's the most important thing for you in a relationship?".

Most said trust, some said honesty or respect. When I asked them a little bit about their previous relationships, I realized that the reason why they came up with those conclusions was because they felt pain when their mate were dishonest, disrespectful or cheated on them...

Benjamin Franklin once said “Those things that hurt, instruct” and I found it to be true in these cases. People said "I want respect" when they were disrespected or "I want trust/honesty" when they were cheated on or were the victim of dishonesty. It does make sense that their answers match their experiences.

What would your answer be?

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Revision Wednesday
Blog post originally created on June 4, 2008 and can be found here.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Revision Wednesdays

I've been writing for a couple of years now and gotten better at it. With that being said, some of my old stuff could use some tweaking.

Drew Karpyshyn, the writer behind the mass effect video games and book series, said that to be a good writer you constantly have to write and rewrite your work to make it the best it can be.

Starting tomorrow, every Wednesday will be the day I revisit/update/re-post old work to keep it up to date. The old version will still be accessible if you're curious to know about what changed.

Cheers! :)

Monday, October 13, 2014

You Need Money To Make Money - Really?

“Some people foolishly believe that only money can make money. This is not true! Desire, transmuted into its monetary equivalent through the principles laid down here [“Think And Grow Rich” book], is the agency through which money is “made.” Money, of itself, is nothing but inert matter. It cannot move, think, or talk, but it can “hear” when one who desires it calls it to come!” -Napoleon Hill

We've all heard the phrases "The Rich get Richer" or "It takes money to make money" but that simply isn't true. The rich won't get richer unless they have the desire to do so nor will the poor who lacks the desire. The old saying "When there's a will there's a way" applies here.

While it may be easier for the rich to make more money, since they've learned from acquiring their fortune, it is certainly not out of reach of the poor. The "money" excuses is just that - an excuse. We can all be rich if we want to be, we just have to learn how.

Friday, October 10, 2014

Practice And Have A Better Time



I love climbing mountains but I didn't have a great time the last time I climbed Mt. Carleton and here's why - I didn't train for it. It was the first time that I wasn't physically prepared for a 6 hour walk up & down of the highest peak in New-Brunswick and I took notice. While we did get to the top, I could feel the burn and aches throughout my body and my enjoyment of the experience was hindered in the process.

Anybody can climb a mountain but the person who trained for it will enjoy it more since his body won't be in the way of the enjoyment.

This is true in any endeavors. The person who practice prior to the experience will be more relaxed and enjoy it more than the person who hasn't.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Toyota HiLux Unbreakable Drivers

Toyota has released a new line of advertisement for their vehicles and they're hilarious! The below is what it takes to own a Toyota pickup truck and is, so far, the favorite of the bunch. Check it out!



Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Cheap Food

“Don’t ask why healthy food is so expensive. Ask why junk food is so cheap.”
-NutritionSnob


In life, you get what you pay for. Cheap cars are bound to have more problems than the more expensive ones, cheap electronics don't usually last as long etc...

The same principle applies to food - you get what you pay for! Processed food may be cheaper but there's usually no health benefit to them, no matter how low the sodium is and even if it's gluten/fat/sugar/trans fat free. Good food is more expensive but gives the body what it needs; cheap food doesn't and can reduce the life expectancy of the body. In other words, it's cheaper to die faster!

Your body is your vehicle, treat it right!

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

If There Is Life On Mars

"If there is life on Mars that had developed separately form Earth, then that means the big barrier to becoming an interstellar species isn't the life-creating part, but the surviving this technological adolescence part without destroying ourselves." -Yahoo

It's no secret that we want to find life on Mars. There are thousands of sci-fi stories talking about it and we are sending satellites/robots to the red planet to search for it. What if we do find not only traces of bacteria but also remnants of mammals or civilizations?

The next logical questions would be "What happened?" and "Is this what will happen to us if we keep our current destructive nature?" As far as we know, an Earth like planet is rare and to have 2 in the same solar system would mean that we were very fortunate.To have one that developed intelligent life is even rarer.
Perhaps planets, like everything else, are meant to die and the intelligent species on it are supposed to explore space in an attempt to find a new home.

What ever the case may be, it's easy to ponder on the question and be inspired by it. We might never know the answers in our lifetime but future generations likely will. This universe, after all, is there for us to explore. Whether it's to search for a new home or only for knowledge purposes; space travel is our destiny.

Monday, October 6, 2014

Courage In Calm Seas

It's easy to appear fearless in calm seas but it's only during a storm that our courage is truly tested.
Storms are the only way to expose the charlatans from the courageous.

Has your courage ever been tested? If not, then how would you know if you truly are courageous?

Friday, October 3, 2014

The Needy Type

Being too interested in someone will make them loose interest in you. It comes off as being emotionally needy; like a kid wanting the attention of his parents.
We're often blinded to this until someone is being needy towards us. Only then do we usually ever see the errors in our ways.

A person who's comfortable with himself doesn't need to seek the interest of anybody for relationship purposes. He's comfortable alone and can be comfortable with someone else - but he doesn't need it.

If you're looking to win the heart of someone you've already appear needy to, know that first impressions are hard to break but time apart may help restore that impression to its normal setting and give you that second chance. However, it might be best to learn from it and move on.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

I Can't Function Properly Without It

I am amazed at how easily it is to come up with ideas, for anything, when I have an hour or so of workout in me every day compared to when I don't.
If I don't have a good night sleep, if I didn't exercise or ate right - I can't function properly.

There are people out there who doesn't do any of those things and seem to be unaffected by it. Does the body eventually adapt to a unhealthy lifestyle? Or maybe those people don't know the difference a healthy lifestyle can make in their lives.

Whatever the case may be, I am pretty much stuck in the healthy lifestyle cycle since I can't function well without it's benefits.

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