381 lines
12 KiB
HTML
381 lines
12 KiB
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="solarized_light.css"> </head>
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<div>
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<h1>I take questions, or what I call "mini-interviews"
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</h1>
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<p>I hope that with the following question-and-answer(s), the reader may gain a better
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understanding of me. Dare I hope that the following may even be <i>useful</i> to
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the reader.
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</p>
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</div>
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<hr />
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<div>
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<h3>At a glance
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</h3>
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<ol>
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<li><a href="#lauryn">
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What does "taking care of mental health" mean to you,
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and how are you taking care of it?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#maia">
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Share your own reflections about Dharma phrases that
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give you a compass by which to navigate.
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#bianca">
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I'm trying to move towards a minimalist lifestyle, after
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reading an online article. Do you also find
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it hard to adjust after a lifetime of buying whatever you want,
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unless it was too expensive?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#joseph">
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What has been one project or assignment in which you broke the rules
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and had fun in the creative process?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#mp">
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Tell me what is your oops-boo-hoo moment this week, and what you learnt
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from it.
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#mp2">
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What other things are you doing to manage your mental health? Share
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your tips with us!
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#mark">
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What’s [been] a previous moment of disappointment turned success?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#cc">What’s the best gift you have ever received from a leader?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#andy">What new skills have you learnt later in life (and/or not related
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to your work line)?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#steven">What advice has stuck with you for a long time?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#jane">What do you do to stay on track with your goals?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#ratna">How are you coping with the tightening Covid-restrictions in Singapore?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#hannah">What does creativity mean to you?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#hannah2">What book has had the most significant impact on your life?
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</a>
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</li>
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<li><a href="#jeffro">What could you do to feel relaxed, calm and free, under 2 minutes?
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</a>
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</li>
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</ol>
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</div>
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<hr />
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<div>
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<div>
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<p id="lauryn">
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<b>
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What does "taking care of mental health" mean to you,
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and how are you taking care of it?
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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It means having the confidence to deal with anything that life can throw at me.
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</p>
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<p>
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To clarify - it is not about appearing "strong and invincible", but about having enough softness and adaptability, inside me, to deal with sudden changes in the outside world.
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</p>
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<p>
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The image is that of a bamboo plant that bends when it encounters a strong gust of wind - and it avoids being broken into two - as contrasted to a more rigid and stiffer plant.
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</p>
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<p>
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And it is about having the discernment to choose between a skillful and unskillful response to life.
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One would lead to my benefit, but the other to my detriment
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Am I wise enough to pick one and avoid the other? I have to ask myself that question many times, because a moment of carelessness can bring me disastrous consequences.
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</p>
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<p>
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And it is about living without any dread of the future, anguish about the past, and frustration with the present moment.
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That's not to say I don't feel any of those feelings - I'm human after all - but they should pose no long-term hindrance to my experience of happiness and contentment.
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</p>
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<p>
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In more concrete - or actionable - terms, it means surrounding myself with wise people and avoiding foolish people.
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</p>
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<p>
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I frequently check if my choices in life meet
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<a href="https://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/ethics_v.htm">
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the Buddha's eight conditions of prosperity and happiness
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</a>.
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</p>
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<p>
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- 9th of January, 2024
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</p>
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</div>
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<div>
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<p id="maia"><b>
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Share your own reflections about Dharma phrases that
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give you a compass by which to navigate. - <a href="https://www.buddhistdoor.net/features/dharma-guideposts/">Maia</a>
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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My seniors in my zendo like to say: "if you
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see the Buddha, kill the Buddha!"
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<br />
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And: "before enlightenment, chop wood, and carry water.
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After enlightenment, chop wood, and carry water."
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</p>
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<p>
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- 14th September, 2023 A.D.
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="bianca"><b>
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I'm trying to move towards a minimalist lifestyle, after
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reading an online article. Do you also find
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it hard to adjust after a lifetime of buying whatever you want,
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unless it was too expensive? - Bianca
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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I had a "rude awakening" after a series of incidents that involved expensive stuff I've bought. I either misplaced it, or someone else stole it. After experiencing that, I simply could not bear to see any more of my money fly away so suddenly. I became more determined to use more of free stuff (such as clothes and accessories) that other people are giving away (because they no longer want it.)
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</p>
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<p>
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- approximately 22nd July, 2023 A.D.
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="joseph"><b>
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What has been one project or assignment in which you broke the rules
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and had fun in the creative process? - Joseph
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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I once took an undergraduate-course on Composing Music in the Classical
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Style (for example, in the style of Mozart). For an assignment in that
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course, I wrote a musical work that appears to be thoroughly
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twentieth-century, instead of looking eighteenth-century. My
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course-instructor did not accept my work, but I still had fun.
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(I’ve realised the importance of surrounding myself with people who
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value creativity and innovation - which is not everyone, and I
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certainly don’t really appreciate flattery and/or smooth talk, either).
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 4th April, 2020
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="mp"><b>
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Tell me what is your oops-boo-hoo moment this week, and what you learnt
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from it. - M.P.
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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An “oops-boo-hoo” of mine, as you call it? I run a blog where I post
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photos from my trips to art-galleries in Sg. Art-hunting, if you will.
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But I got a little lost; something didn’t feel right (about such
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blogging) anymore. I asked the person known, on LinkedIn, as Alin
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Sneha Abraham, for her perspective on the matter; I said I wasn’t sure
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if my blogging was adding value to the world. Alin said something to
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the effect that it is more important that I enjoy myself; that way, at
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least one person benefits. So my oops-boo-hoo was to overlook my own
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enjoyment of the activity in question. I concluded that I liked
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visiting galleries, but posting photos on social media? Not so much.
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 4th April, 2020
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="mp2"><b>
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What other things are you doing to manage your mental health? Share
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your tips with us! - M.P.
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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Oh, it's you again, M.P. (Hi again!) I try to have some fun with the ground that is
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given me. Like, I try to appreciate the ground I have - yes, the
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ground. Like, it’s so stable. And I can have access to it. Ms. Vaishali,
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who seems to teach yoga, elaborates the idea, in the following
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blog-post:
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<a href="https://thestillspace.org/2020/03/22/ode-to-the-ground/">
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https://thestillspace.org/2020/03/22/ode-to-the-ground/
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</a>
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 7th April, 2020.
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="mark">
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<b>What’s [been] a previous moment of disappointment turned success?
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- Mark
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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In my early twenties, I volunteered to facilitate a week-long camping
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activity, during which I got very little sleep. I would evaluate my own
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performance, during that camp, as poor - I just wasn’t getting enough
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sleep.
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</p>
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<p>
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Fast forward about a decade, now I value my sleeping hours. I avoid
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taking on overnight jobs, because I know I won’t be at my best. I’ve
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learnt to manage myself a little, I guess - and that counts as a
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success to me!
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 3rd May, 2020
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div id="cc">
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<p><b>What’s the best gift you have ever received from a leader? - C.C.
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>Difficult to say which has been the best for me, since there are a
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few good ones I can identify (which I am thankful for, of course). I
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would highlight, as my response to your post, opportunities that a
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teacher gave me, when I was 10 years old (approximately). I had
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interest in making flashy animation with the software Macromedia Flash
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(which is now apparently obsolete). I guess that teacher liked what I
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was doing with Flash, because the next thing I knew, I was given the
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opportunity to produce animation, for showcase at a major school event
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(the anniversary of my Primary School, or something like that). I
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didn’t end up feeling proud of the animation that I would eventually
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make, but even till today, I am still pleased and flattered that I got
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“talent-spotted”, in a way.
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 28th May, 2020
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="andy"><b>What new skills have you learnt later in life (and/or not related
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to your work line)? - Andy
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>Comedy (as well as a sense of humour, if I may say so myself). My research includes
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watching episodes of Seinfeld, and reading manga. I hope their comedic effects are something I can absorb.
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 2nd June, 2020
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="steven"><b>What advice has stuck with you for a
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long time? - Steven
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>I get reminders to avoid becoming arrogant, when I read the Bible.
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One passage reads: "if anyone thinks himself wise in this age, let him
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become a fool, so that he may gain wisdom." So, I'm quite happy to
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think of myself as a fool, if only so that I can seek wisdom.
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</p>
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<p>- Approximately 3rd April, 2021
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div>
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<p id="jane"><b>
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What do you do to stay on track with your goals? - Jane
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>To stay on track with my goals, I learnt to say No to a lot of things, so
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that I can say Yes to the things I care about.
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<a href="https://sive.rs/hellyeah">As Derek Sivers put it
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</a>: "We’re all busy. We’ve all taken on too much. Saying yes to less is the way out."
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</p>
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<p>- 20th May 2021
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</p>
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</div>
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<br />
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<div id="ratna">
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<p><b>How are you coping with the tightening Covid-restrictions in Singapore? - Ratna
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>
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Every day I write down three things I'm grateful for. And on days
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when I feel down, I look back at all the pages of gratitude I've written.
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It helps me feel better. (Right now I'm grateful for shelter from the rain).
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</p>
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<p>- 21st May 2021
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</p>
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<br />
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</div>
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<div id="hannah">
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<p><b>
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What does creativity mean to you? - Hannah
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>The artist Sophie Kao once said to me, "Even if you can
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make your artwork look like a famous artist's artwork,
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what is the point of that? Art is about opening a door inside yourself, seeing
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things in a new way."
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<p>- 26th May 2021
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</p>
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<br />
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</div>
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<div id="hannah2">
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<p><b>What book has had the most significant impact on your life? - Hannah
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</b>
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</p>
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<p>The Bible is important to me. (I read it every day.) I've
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found the Biblical book of Proverbs helpful, and so are the Psalms and the (Biblical) book of
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Ecclesiastes.
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As for more secular stuff, I've felt encouraged by Robert Frost's poem, titled "The road not taken".
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I've also benefited from a book titled "Not Knowing: The Art of Turning Uncertainty Into Opportunity", by Diana Renner and Steven D'Souza.
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</p>
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<p>- 27th May 2021
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</p>
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<br />
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</div>
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<div id="jeffro">
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<p><b>
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What could you do to feel relaxed, calm and free, under 2 minutes?
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I head outdoors and gaze at the clouds! - Jeffro
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</b></p>
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<p>Yoga is helpful for me. I may not be the best at it,
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but I feel better after certain poses. You could try looking up "parasympathetic yoga" on the Internet for some ideas.
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</p>
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<p>- 14th June 2021
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</p>
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<br />
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</div>
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</div>
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</html>
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