Looking around me I often see people living their lives in a specific pattern, going to work, going home, falling asleep on the couch, repeat. These people get one vacation a year where they sleep on a beach somewhere and wish this was the way their life could always be. I think the Quarter-life crisis has stemmed from watching this part of American culture that appears to permeate many suburban towns. As I look around at my peers, I see how easy it is to fall into that pattern and to wake up in your mid-40s wondering where all your time has gone. Luckily for us, we now freak out in our 20s and the hope is that if we follow the below advice, that the mid-life crisis will be extinct when it comes time for our 45th birthdays. The advice that I have found to be the most helpful and that appears to be aiding Generation Y in creating a new world free from mid-life crises is:
1. Build your networks. Use linkedin, facebook, family, friends, parents friends, etc. Join groups (meetup.com, professional groups, womens groups, language groups, the list goes on).
2. Through these networks, enlist mentors to help you along your way.
3. Never stop the thought process on where you are going, where you want to be, and why you are doing what you are doing. If any of the answers to these questions are not what you envisioned for yourself, start looking for something that matches up with what you want.
4. Take risks. Don't just settle for something that is comfortable, especially when you have the luxury to take risks as someone without a mortgage and children. Even if you do have these things, it is still possible to take risks.
Most of all, I have found that the most dangerous state of mind to be avoided at all costs is COMPLACENCY. This word causes crisis whether it be 5 years after you have accepted your current state of being or 10, a midlife crisis, a quarter life crisis, it doesn't matter...crisis is still the word. Complacency stops innovation, it stops evolution, it stops change in its most heightened state. Complacency is a crime committed against yourself and against society for refusing to reach your full potential in favor of comfort. I recognize that I have now dramatized the word, but if that's what it takes to create MOTIVATION instead of automation then it is worth the drama.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Supporting "Beggers"?
Driving near South Station at rush hour is like trying to drive through the Running of the Bulls at Pamplona . As the driver, it is frightening to see how quickly people dash out into the road with no regard for passing vehicles. As a pedestrian who has already taken a turn as the driver, it makes one wait for the light to turn and still shocked at how concerned people seem to be about missing their train, so much so that they put their lives in the hands of impatient motorists. With all the hustle and bustle, one may not notice the man standing on the sidewalk near the entrance to the T. Dressed in a flannel shirt and jeans, holding a pile of newspapers in front of his chest, head held up, white hair under a cap, he yells “Spare Change.” People appear to pay little to no notice. When he catches your eye you see a glimmer of hope, one he probably does not see often if he stands on this median strip every day (I hope for his morale that he does not).
Spare Change is a newspaper based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that strives to empower the homeless by providing useful skills, the ability to make money, and moreover the ability to help themselves change their current state. Spare Change works with the Homeless Empowerment Project to promote all of the above. According to the Spare Change blog, the newspapers are “produced by volunteers and sold by homeless and formerly homeless vendors in need of extra cash” (www.sparechangenews.blogspot .com). While the reason I have most heard cited for not giving change to people begging on the sidewalk is that these people have the ability to work and are choosing not to, this reason is now debunked when a man is selling newspapers. He now has a product to sell and is not simply begging. So why would people choose to still ignore him?
Since consumers have the right to choose to purchase anything that for one they have the money to purchase and two that is in their legal right to purchase, it is important that we ask ourselves why a consumer chooses to or not to purchase a good. First of all, the people rushing past Mr. Spare Change as we will call him, were clear in their actions that they were busy, had little time to give, and really only wanted to get to their train or other form of transportation. Their sense of apathy about social issues may have been heightened by their need to return home after a full day of work. Or maybe the call out of “spare change” only made them think of the beggers that try to entice them to drop their hard earned money into a plastic cup daily, money that may then be used for any reason-alcohol or food or drugs or medicine, they will never know.
Without doing a full psychology/consumer behavior study on the behaviors of the people who chose to walk past instead of stop and purchase the newspaper or who bumped into the man without a glance back, the only thing that rings true is the feeling that a person gets when they take a moment to look at what occurs around them. To see the man standing in the mass of swarming people, holding what may be his only source of income, while apathetic, over-worked America ignores him or pushes into him is disconcerting. The picture had I been holding a camera, would have been worth more than anything I can say on the subject. It is clear in these moments how a person could feel a sense of hopelessness, when the community that should be supporting them, is taking the indifferent approach and carrying on seeking out what may be the survival of the fittest mentality, but definitely not a community-based approach. The lack of community in American cities and towns provides the ability for people to walk by a person truly trying to make a living and ignore them as if they were just a begger on the sidewalk. The point is that everyday when you are going about your daily routine you should take a moment to think about the actions that you take, and how they not only affect you and your family, but the community as a whole.
Spare Change is a newspaper based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that strives to empower the homeless by providing useful skills, the ability to make money, and moreover the ability to help themselves change their current state. Spare Change works with the Homeless Empowerment Project to promote all of the above. According to the Spare Change blog, the newspapers are “produced by volunteers and sold by homeless and formerly homeless vendors in need of extra cash” (www.sparechangenews.blogspot .com). While the reason I have most heard cited for not giving change to people begging on the sidewalk is that these people have the ability to work and are choosing not to, this reason is now debunked when a man is selling newspapers. He now has a product to sell and is not simply begging. So why would people choose to still ignore him?
Since consumers have the right to choose to purchase anything that for one they have the money to purchase and two that is in their legal right to purchase, it is important that we ask ourselves why a consumer chooses to or not to purchase a good. First of all, the people rushing past Mr. Spare Change as we will call him, were clear in their actions that they were busy, had little time to give, and really only wanted to get to their train or other form of transportation. Their sense of apathy about social issues may have been heightened by their need to return home after a full day of work. Or maybe the call out of “spare change” only made them think of the beggers that try to entice them to drop their hard earned money into a plastic cup daily, money that may then be used for any reason-alcohol or food or drugs or medicine, they will never know.
Without doing a full psychology/consumer behavior study on the behaviors of the people who chose to walk past instead of stop and purchase the newspaper or who bumped into the man without a glance back, the only thing that rings true is the feeling that a person gets when they take a moment to look at what occurs around them. To see the man standing in the mass of swarming people, holding what may be his only source of income, while apathetic, over-worked America ignores him or pushes into him is disconcerting. The picture had I been holding a camera, would have been worth more than anything I can say on the subject. It is clear in these moments how a person could feel a sense of hopelessness, when the community that should be supporting them, is taking the indifferent approach and carrying on seeking out what may be the survival of the fittest mentality, but definitely not a community-based approach. The lack of community in American cities and towns provides the ability for people to walk by a person truly trying to make a living and ignore them as if they were just a begger on the sidewalk. The point is that everyday when you are going about your daily routine you should take a moment to think about the actions that you take, and how they not only affect you and your family, but the community as a whole.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Models and your self-esteem
Flipping through the pages of a magazine or turning on the television can do a measure to one’s self-esteem these days. The way-too tiny models that have existed since Twiggy took front and center stage in the 1970s are plentiful in runway shows, in the movies, on TV, and in magazine ads. In recent years, people have been shocked by the deaths of successful models due to eating disorders, and a skeleton-like model who upset the audience at a runway show, her prominent ribs sticking out for all to see. These incidents illustrated one of the problems that exists in the modeling world and in the rest of society as well. Unfortunately, despite the clear dangers of trying to stay so thin, this is not the message that gets through to most American women. Instead, the models who survive and carry on their jobs day after day have done a huge part in the creation of what most call an “Ugly” day. You know, those days when you feel like the fattest, most unattractive person on the planet?
Thankfully, there are steps being taken to at least reduce feelings of “Fatness” in comparison to the stick thin models, the majority of whom spend all their time just trying to stay that thin. Spain for one has introduced a rule on the runway in Madrid where all models must meet a certain Body Mass Index (BMI) requirement; no model may have a BMI of less than 18. The Body Mass Index is calculated with a formula using a person’s height and weight. To calculate your own BMI, you can visit the Department of Health and Human Services at http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/index.htm.
In the United States, plus-sized models have begun to take some major contracts. Crystal Renn, a size 12 model who made an appearance on Oprah November 7th, 2006, took a highly desired contract with Dolce & Gabbana and has been featured in Vogue multiple times. It is models like Crystal Renn that make the average American women, who we all can see is larger than a size 0, dream that they too could be on the front cover of a major fashion magazine. Her story brings hope as well, since she started modeling in her teens and went to drastic measures to stay thin. Once she changed her mind, and allowed her body to return to its natural state, she still managed to obtain modeling contracts.
A campaign run by Dove called Campaign for Real Beauty has also brought the idea of larger models to the forefront. With a website that offers a mother-daughter kit from improving self-esteem and a forum for people to discuss their problems with self-esteem and body image, Dove has shown itself as compassionate to the pressure put on women to look a certain way. The models in the Campaign for Real Beauty reflect the variety of body types that exist; short, tall, small hips, big hips, small chest, big chest, long legs, short legs, etc. You can visit Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty website at http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/.
Fortunately, there is at least a shred of hope for our “ugly” days to come to an official end. In the meantime, when you are feeling substandard, close the fashion and celebrity magazines, shut off the celebrity news channel. Sometimes a good book or coffee and conversation with friends or even a good night out dancing is all we need to feel our best.
Thankfully, there are steps being taken to at least reduce feelings of “Fatness” in comparison to the stick thin models, the majority of whom spend all their time just trying to stay that thin. Spain for one has introduced a rule on the runway in Madrid where all models must meet a certain Body Mass Index (BMI) requirement; no model may have a BMI of less than 18. The Body Mass Index is calculated with a formula using a person’s height and weight. To calculate your own BMI, you can visit the Department of Health and Human Services at http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/index.htm.
In the United States, plus-sized models have begun to take some major contracts. Crystal Renn, a size 12 model who made an appearance on Oprah November 7th, 2006, took a highly desired contract with Dolce & Gabbana and has been featured in Vogue multiple times. It is models like Crystal Renn that make the average American women, who we all can see is larger than a size 0, dream that they too could be on the front cover of a major fashion magazine. Her story brings hope as well, since she started modeling in her teens and went to drastic measures to stay thin. Once she changed her mind, and allowed her body to return to its natural state, she still managed to obtain modeling contracts.
A campaign run by Dove called Campaign for Real Beauty has also brought the idea of larger models to the forefront. With a website that offers a mother-daughter kit from improving self-esteem and a forum for people to discuss their problems with self-esteem and body image, Dove has shown itself as compassionate to the pressure put on women to look a certain way. The models in the Campaign for Real Beauty reflect the variety of body types that exist; short, tall, small hips, big hips, small chest, big chest, long legs, short legs, etc. You can visit Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty website at http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/.
Fortunately, there is at least a shred of hope for our “ugly” days to come to an official end. In the meantime, when you are feeling substandard, close the fashion and celebrity magazines, shut off the celebrity news channel. Sometimes a good book or coffee and conversation with friends or even a good night out dancing is all we need to feel our best.
A Call To Action
NOTE: Below is an article I wrote in December 2006. Although the world has changed a bit, I feel that this information is still pertinent to a large part of the populous. The article titled Green Rumors is a recent addition to the state of the country and world's reaction to the environmental issues of today.
Of the many things in this world that disgust me, there is one that looms larger than life prepared to run me over….Hummers….the army utility vehicles that somehow made their way from Desert Storm into being the status symbol of the 21st century. MTV music videos show rappers cruising around carrying skinny girls and with bling dripping from their wrists and lobes. Hummers have slowly moved into big cities besides the glamorous L.A. and are now seen regularly in DC, Boston, and NYC. Even some of us country bumpkins own the oversized pieces of metal! Why you might ask? Or maybe you do not think to ask why anyone would want something of that imposing nature---and that, my friends, is exactly the problem.
It is not only Hummers that pose a problem to our earth, but many other human practices that are slowly tearing away at our environment. The modern conveniences that we treasure and the culture that has come to embrace driving Hummers and making money at any cost are actually exactly the things that are hurting the one element that we actually need to survive! Without large SUVs, humans will still be here. There is nothing in mother-nature that says we need these things to survive. But with a planet that was first slowly and now quickly succumbing to human-induced climate change, the human race will not survive unless we choose to change.
Human-induced climate change consists of the effects on the environment caused by our daily carbon emissions and the emissions of other harmful greenhouse gases. These carbon emissions come from the cars we drive, the air conditioning we use in our homes, the dishwasher, the stove, and practically every modern appliance we can think of that uses electricity. This is because the electricity is generated from the nuclear power plants that run Massachusetts. Tom Brokaw recently did an interesting documentary on global warming that aired on the Discovery Channel and was targeted at the average American. Titled “Global Warming: What You Need To Know,” it is a frightening look into what could happen if people do not awaken to our current environmental problems and realize that we are all a part of reversing the effects of humans on the earth. Al Gore also released a documentary and book this past summer, both titled An Inconvenient Truth. The movie is eye-opening and something that all should see regardless of one’s opinion on Al Gore, the politician. According to Al Gore in a recent interview on Oprah, most scientists say there is approximately 10 years for humans to change the way we treat our environment, and then after that there will be far less hope of reversing or stifling the damage done to our planet. This means that the world could look very different in the lifetimes of our children and our children’s children. Al Gore points to Hurricane Katrina, the decline in polar bear populations, and more convincing evidence to prove that global warming is occurring. An Inconvenient Truth is now available on video in stores around the country and is a film worth seeing.
Some people choose not to change their daily lifestyle even slightly and to not be conscious of the environmental problems that are occurring globally and locally. Some do not understand what they can do to help; others see it as too big of a problem and do not believe they will be able to create change; others think global warming is a hoax; and still others are just too complacent to act. If you are reading this, then you can no longer be satisfied to ignore the effects of humans on our environment. Anyone can participate in improving the environment whether it is downgrading your SUV to an economically and environmentally smart car such as a hybrid or simply a sedan with better gas mileage, joining a group that promotes awareness of environmental issues such as the Sierra Club, or even changing the light bulbs in your house to energy save bulbs. Did you know that changing to energy saving light bulbs will reduce your electric bill by approximately $44 over the course of the life of the bulb and significantly reduces carbon emissions? This is your call to action. Visit http://ecofoot.org/ to find out how large your footprint is on Earth. For more ways to change the size of your impact on earth visit the U.S. Department of Energy website at http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/.
Of the many things in this world that disgust me, there is one that looms larger than life prepared to run me over….Hummers….the army utility vehicles that somehow made their way from Desert Storm into being the status symbol of the 21st century. MTV music videos show rappers cruising around carrying skinny girls and with bling dripping from their wrists and lobes. Hummers have slowly moved into big cities besides the glamorous L.A. and are now seen regularly in DC, Boston, and NYC. Even some of us country bumpkins own the oversized pieces of metal! Why you might ask? Or maybe you do not think to ask why anyone would want something of that imposing nature---and that, my friends, is exactly the problem.
It is not only Hummers that pose a problem to our earth, but many other human practices that are slowly tearing away at our environment. The modern conveniences that we treasure and the culture that has come to embrace driving Hummers and making money at any cost are actually exactly the things that are hurting the one element that we actually need to survive! Without large SUVs, humans will still be here. There is nothing in mother-nature that says we need these things to survive. But with a planet that was first slowly and now quickly succumbing to human-induced climate change, the human race will not survive unless we choose to change.
Human-induced climate change consists of the effects on the environment caused by our daily carbon emissions and the emissions of other harmful greenhouse gases. These carbon emissions come from the cars we drive, the air conditioning we use in our homes, the dishwasher, the stove, and practically every modern appliance we can think of that uses electricity. This is because the electricity is generated from the nuclear power plants that run Massachusetts. Tom Brokaw recently did an interesting documentary on global warming that aired on the Discovery Channel and was targeted at the average American. Titled “Global Warming: What You Need To Know,” it is a frightening look into what could happen if people do not awaken to our current environmental problems and realize that we are all a part of reversing the effects of humans on the earth. Al Gore also released a documentary and book this past summer, both titled An Inconvenient Truth. The movie is eye-opening and something that all should see regardless of one’s opinion on Al Gore, the politician. According to Al Gore in a recent interview on Oprah, most scientists say there is approximately 10 years for humans to change the way we treat our environment, and then after that there will be far less hope of reversing or stifling the damage done to our planet. This means that the world could look very different in the lifetimes of our children and our children’s children. Al Gore points to Hurricane Katrina, the decline in polar bear populations, and more convincing evidence to prove that global warming is occurring. An Inconvenient Truth is now available on video in stores around the country and is a film worth seeing.
Some people choose not to change their daily lifestyle even slightly and to not be conscious of the environmental problems that are occurring globally and locally. Some do not understand what they can do to help; others see it as too big of a problem and do not believe they will be able to create change; others think global warming is a hoax; and still others are just too complacent to act. If you are reading this, then you can no longer be satisfied to ignore the effects of humans on our environment. Anyone can participate in improving the environment whether it is downgrading your SUV to an economically and environmentally smart car such as a hybrid or simply a sedan with better gas mileage, joining a group that promotes awareness of environmental issues such as the Sierra Club, or even changing the light bulbs in your house to energy save bulbs. Did you know that changing to energy saving light bulbs will reduce your electric bill by approximately $44 over the course of the life of the bulb and significantly reduces carbon emissions? This is your call to action. Visit http://ecofoot.org/ to find out how large your footprint is on Earth. For more ways to change the size of your impact on earth visit the U.S. Department of Energy website at http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/.
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