NEW YEAR, NEW ME BLOG
NEW YEAR, NEW ME BLOG
January 19, 2023 In Uncategorized No Comment

January is named for Janus, the Roman god with two heads – one looking forward into the new year ahead and the other looking back, at the year gone by.

I like to think of myself in the same way, standing atop a mountain with the old year behind me and the new year ahead. Looking back at the year gone by, I am reminded how I struggled to progress in what I sought to achieve. I got lost in a jungle of obstacles, nearly drowned in a river of overwhelm, and lost my way in the fields of struggle. The result was that, despite all my efforts, I ended the year in a thoroughly negative state of mind. Perhaps you can relate to this?

Moving forward into 2023, I am committed to leaving this mindset behind. I must use my willpower to celebrate the new opportunities opening up to me in the year ahead. Indeed, for my New Year’s resolution I’ve decided to rededicate myself to seeing the future in a more optimistic light. The jungle ahead is filled with beauty, the rivers below me can be crossed, and the fields traversed with a light heart.

Finding (and maintaining) optimism isn’t always easy – 2022 has certainly taught me this. I believe the trick is to always seek out the silver linings in hardships and to keep learning. If you can turn a failure into a lesson, you’re well on your path to success

Since we are what we think, we can use the mind’s limitless power of thought to become a new person, viewing life through fresh eyes.

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HOW TO GET OUT OF BED IN THE MORNING 
HOW TO GET OUT OF BED IN THE MORNING 
June 30, 2022 In Uncategorized No Comment

If you spring out of bed on waking, all fizzy and bright-eyed, this blog is not for you. But if, like me, you feel super-glued to your bed, blissfully yawning and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g between cool sheets, then I’ll happily tell you how,  after much experimenting,  I’ve cracked the problem – at least for myself. It took some doing, believe me, as I love my bed.   

On first waking an hour or so before I’m due to get up, I set the alarm for another forty minutes– and promptly go back to sleep! On being woken a second time, I do my hip and spine-stretching exercises as I listen to the radio. That done, I switch off the radio and think of five positive things to which I’m looking forward later that day.  

Once in this positive state of mind, I re-set the alarm for another five minutes and promise myself that I’ll throw off the duvet and get up the minute it rings. Once up, I’m in the kitchen, brewing my morning coffee and wiping sleep’s gunge from my eyes.  

It’s illogical to feel tired after a proper night’s sleep, but many of us tell ourselves that we can’t start the day without a good cup of coffee. Because I attribute this ritual more to the mind than the body, I reduce the amount t of coffee I drink and probably feel the better for it. As the jug kettle duly boils, I put the radio back on and finally feel ready to face the new day.  

What a meal I made of this, you say. Why don’t I just get up without the need for all this preparation? The short answer is that I can’t. Trust me, I’ve tried doing that umpteen times and have failed miserably as my need to go back to sleep has overridden everything else. Mind you, if the house were on fire or I saw a snake circling the room, I’d be out of bed like a shot, but you don’t encounter snakes and fires every night, do you? 

No, I’m glad to say that my well-honed morning routine has finally paid off and I’m now up every morning at the appointed time, with a positive attitude to whatever the new day may bring. If you find it hard to get up in the morning, you’ll devise your own solution. Suffice it to say that my routine works for me. If it’s of any use to you, feel free to help yourself… 

© Robert Eddison 2022 

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HOW TO EXPAND YOUR CREATIVITY  
HOW TO EXPAND YOUR CREATIVITY  
June 23, 2022 In Uncategorized No Comment

As the internet proves, many of us are far more creative than we realise. Targeted creativity is hugely enjoyable and transformative.   

Just imagine the world without electricity, ships, aircraft, trains, cars, telescopes or great Art. Without creative geniuses like Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Edison and Newton, the world would be a barren, cold and soulless place.   

Aside from playwriting and journalism, my own creativity is currently focused on originating one-liners like: ‘Leaves are blown away by the wind; men, by ideas‘ or: ‘Life is a blank cheque, made out to ourselves‘.   

I get enormous pleasure from condensing an often complex thought into a single pithy and witty line. If I get a Eureka moment from every line I write, the novelist probably has to write a whole paragraph or page to get the same gust of pleasure.  I’ve so honed my craft over the past twenty years that I can almost date an aphorism by its quality; if the early ones need a lot of work, most of the later ones just need the odd tweak.  

Creativity is best nurtured by starting small and building to greater things, often by arguing the toss with similarly creative friends. Writers and artists have an intriguing relationship with time. Some journalists, for instance, find deadlines a real spur to their work, and can’t get anything written without a deadline. Yet others like to take their eye off the clock and simply go with the flow. This helps them minimise stress – the main cause of writer’s block. Either way, we all need to be the master of time and not let it master us. 

To produce our best work, we must learn to further reduce stress by taking tea with our subconscious. Like gold, it’s hard to access, but brings huge rewards when found.  The more we utilise its riches, the more we reduce writer’s block and the more productive we become. 

May you further expand your creativity and have fun along the way. Enjoy!   

© Robert Eddison 2022 

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