Your life and actions, an inspiration for many
Happy happy holidays everybody!
One of the best part of the holiday period is spending time with the special people in your life.
Whatever keep us in touch with each other, is stronger and powerful than what keeps us apart.
We are social animals, we are human beings, and it is inherent to our species to be together. Nowadays, because of the excess use of technologies, we neglect being together and we prefer to find our affirmation in selfish behaviours and devices, where we feel we can deny our being humans.
And this is not only valid for young people but applies to all of us.
We are living in a period of time were everything is volatile, uncertain, complex ambiguous and fast.
I’m not asking you deny the future this will not be possible and even envisioned. We are going into this future, we are already different and we cannot give up on our tools.
Instead, I’m asking you to dedicate a part of your time to look inside of you and use your devices wisely. Reflect:
This is a society that has confused the purpose, ECONOMY, with the MEAN, human beings.
Scientifically proven, if any proof is needed, through consumerism and excessive use of devices and apps, this society is bringing the rise of depression and solitude pathologies, leading to different form of madness, separatism and fanaticism.
Nowadays we experience a form of “intellectual terrorism”, the one of a unique thought, the one of globalisation, often exerted and practiced on our individual souls.
One of the most trivial example, the Airports lounges all over the world which are presenting us with the same brands and items no matter where we go. Or Google itself, which is showing you the most common results the world is aware of, when you are searching on its engine. Tell me, did you ever scrolled down more than 2 pages of search results?
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We should then all act to bring back reflection, pauses and Humanity in our lives, in our work, in our organisations, in the world.
Obviously, THESE ARE BEAUTIFUL WORDS BUT they will not change and bring back humanity just in saying them…
So what are the steps we should all be going through to get back our abilities to reflect and being reflective humans how to bring back humanity?
First of all I think we have to work on ourselves and start learning again to reflect
We have to start to do something concrete to make it happen.
What is Reflection? Something that reflects comes back to you. If you look in a mirror, you will see your reflected image. If you reflect on your past experiences, you look at them once again thoughtfully.
But if you are not used to reflect, you have to learn how to do it: so, what do you need to make it happen? You need FIRST OF ALL, your will.
The main thing is to stop for a few minutes each day and look back at your life
Think about
- Memorableexperiences, or encounters—what stood out in your mind, or how you felt about an experience. Is there something you can use in the future?
- Challengingissues that came up and whether you dealt with them, or are still trying to figure them out.
- Successand achievements that may go unnoticed if you don’t write them down.
Spend 30 seconds after an experience, to write down what stood out for you. Your mind can be, surprisely, the best tool you have.
Another fundamental subject and the key to happiness is real communication
A supportive comment or chat on our Social Media is much more valuable than a one-click-feedback in the shape of a like.
But more than that, I suggest you to go out, walk, cycle, meet, and share, tell a story to your friends, and learn to ask questions.
Generate true connection to the people you care about. Mere likes alone won’t make us happy. And least of all during depressive periods.
READ, get lost in a good book. Time and again reading has been shown to make us healthier, smarter and more emphatic.
Why the Youth is not reading anymore? Mostly, because we are too fast and we are not able to have a span of attention. Nowadays our span of attention is lower than the one of a goldfish, one second less.
Flipping real pages can help you understand what you’re reading instead of just scrolling on your devices
Reading puts your brain to work, and that’s a very good thing. Those who engage their brains through activities such as reading, chess, or puzzles could be 2.5 less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those who spend their down time on less stimulating activities.
“It really doesn’t matter what book you read, but be sure, by losing yourself in a good book you can escape from the worries and stresses of the everyday world , exercise your fantasy and generate connections among the 2 hemispheres of your brain . These are the words of the cognitive neuropsychologist David Lewis
Scanning headlines and retweeting quips is easier and instantly rewarding releasing dopamine but is not going to make much cognitive difference. If anything, such sweet nothings are dangerous, the literary equivalent of sugar addiction. Information gathering in under 140 characters is lazy. The benefits of contemplation through narrative offer another story.
Research showsthat trough reading you make smarter decisions about yourself and those around you.
So
do not delegate to machines because of laziness,
do not forget in your daily life, that machines are a Program: and the programs are useful for the Projects.
You are the Projects.
Make your life be the best project. Ever. Make this gift of life, meaningful for the whole world (not only for Humans but for the entire environment and for the planet).
Our lives are a never-ending quest to share our best work with the rest of the world. You are responsible for that change. You need to define yourself, plan your change, and make it happen.
Be an optimist. And make an impact in your own small way possible.
Start Reading and start writing. Love, love people, animals, things, and then help others to love. Do something good and ask others to pass it on. Be profound. Find focus in a world without it.
Become minimalist in a world of complexity. Reach out to those who are frustrated, depressed, angry, confused, sad, hurt. Be the voice for those without one. Learn, do, and then teach. Teach people to get passionate about something.
Dare to be wrong. Help others achieve their dreams. Put a smile on someone’s face, every day. Start an open-source project. Make a podcast. Start a movement. Be brave. Be honest. Be hilarious. Get really, really good at something. Practice a lot. A lot. Start now. Try.
If you’re willing to take the risk of sharing yourself and your ideas with the world, you can create value you will be proud of.
Do not care about judgements and people against you. History is the witness that mass movements were always lowering, depressing and flattening the different ones.
Our world needs the best project you can be
Our world needs Models for the Youth but also for the adults
Our world needs the best project you can be
The word MODEL comes from Latin, MODULUS, which means Measure.
When you have a Model it means that you have a measure to make, to understand the difference between your measure and the other measures.
Now, a Model have not to be a teacher but have to be people incarnating LIFE.
Try to live as a model, thinking that everybody is looking at you, to look as exactly the same, to act in the same way, speak the same.
The difference, among you all, will be between the ones that will like to give it a try, and the ones that will say this is not for me.
Stay open, critic, sceptic, vigilant on all matters, particularly science and politics.
So, read the mysteries,
Do not stop at the obvious
Strive your ability to associate one idea with another
by reading books
In a massified world full of superficial information,
piece together like in a puzzle
Revolutionize your believes, attitudes and values
Challenge yourself constantly
Go beyond the Media, they have a will to cover all and keep you depressed trough bad news and superficial ones
Remember that nature function on cooperation not on competition, so each day try to exert your power to bring back connections among humans, their ideas and their values.
Many of you are part of our network Y4PT and you have dedicated many years of your lives to better your communities, friends, family lives and entire cities , and have gone a long way internationally to bring a different lifestyle to the doors of decision makers and actors of your daily lives.
Please, continue to act as the wonderful models you are, the world deserve your presence and earn an immense value. Continue not to listen to the call of mermaids out there and proceed on your beautiful enlightened path that are your lives.
The dots you are connecting will bring this world a step forward towards a more interesting, unflatten, cultured new generation.
Again, with all my love, happy holidays to all!
Alessandra
Some beautiful readings, videos and apps, yes apps, but clever ones!
Readings:
Alessandro D’Avenia here is a short biography
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5310935.Alessandro_D_Avenia
columns https://www.corriere.it/alessandro-davenia-letti-da-rifare/
narrative https://www.mondadoristore.it/libri/Alessandro-D-Avenia/aut00530176/
Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izHbS7rETVg English subtitles – A MUST SEE
Alessandro Baricco
“ The Game “
here is short biography https://www.foyles.co.uk/Alessandro-Baricco
Silicon Valley and the time spent from kids on screens
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/groundbreaking-study-examines-effects-of-screen-time-on-kids-60-minutes/
Bernard Georges:
on Empathy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNhrbZlcGDA
Margaret Burden:
Book “AI its nature and future “ ( 2016)
Max Tegmark
Video https://www.ted.com/talks/max_tegmark_how_to_get_empowered_not_overpowered_by_ai?language=en
Some apps to keep you intellectually alive!
Duolingo: A game that teaches you languages. It is the perfect thing to do when you’re bored and on your phone. While everyone else is scrolling Instagram and melting their brain, you are learning a second language.
ProgrammingHub: ProgrammingHub is similar to Duolingo, except instead of being a game that teaches you a second language, it teaches you code.
VocabularyBuilder: VocabularyBuilder by Magoosh is ostensibly a study app for the GRE, but I’ve found it to be a great way to expand my English vocabulary for fun.
Magnus Trainer: A game that teaches you chess. It breaks down chess into component parts and has mini-games to help you master various aspects of chess. Switching out toxic apps for Magnus will give you the skills you need to slay at board game night. Plus, being good at chess makes you feel really smart.
Elevate: Elevate is an app with mini-games to sharpen your brain. Unlike Luminosity or other ‘brain game’ apps, Elevate’s mini-games teach you real-world skills. Mental math, vocabulary and reading comprehension can all go up!
Brilliant: Unfortunately very pricey at $119/year, Brilliant is an app that teaches you mathematics and science. If you are not a nerd, this is perfect for you: it makes these topics which seemed so unapproachable in high school suddenly fun to learn, and in bite-sized pieces too.
Tags: ACTION, FACTS, motivation, motivational, sustainability, Y4PT, YOUTH