Use The Force; Harnessing Change

This really just makes us sit back, and wonder if we're truly alone out here.

Sometimes Life grabs you by the feet and what happens? You trip over.

You look back to see what you've tripped upon, you see nothing and thus you move on with your life.

Or is it really how this works?

I guess the situation in our current context would differ vastly from that of mentioned above wouldn't it?

When Life grabs you by the feet and catches you off guard, causing you to trip and fall, will you, will anyone, "move on" just like that?

We cannot hide the fact that in Life, there are bumps, setbacks, problems and dilemmas around every corner, every phase. But let us take a step back and think, is there a greater reason elaborating on the reason for these "inconveniences" in the course of Life?

My last couple of weeks were spent, a huge delegation, to the priority of school work and worldly commitments. My only source of relaxation came from limited sources; music, friends and more importantly, family.

However, I've recently dug into the archives of my rather inadequate movie collection and revisited the epic saga also known as Star Wars.

Being one of my all time favorite production series as well as storyline (not forgetting the mouth watering technological marvels), a hint of nostalgia fitted knowingly into my mind, as I watched the entire series, over the course of weeks of course.

For some, Star Wars may just be another science fiction action series will an awesome (and elaborated) storyline with addictive content and indeed, I can be considered amongst "some". But personally, there is a deep underlying aspect behind this mammoth of a concept that George Lucas had put together.

Amidst a conversation a couple of hours back with my folks (who are, by the way, fans of the series too), this topic of Star Wars' content was brought up. It was mentioned that the storyline and themes of the series were based off those in the real world.

At first, I was skeptical about that claim; how can a movie with flying spaceships, alienated characters and men wielding laser swords replicate the real society? But thinking about it in retrospect, I found truth in that statement.

We cannot hide the fact that there is political tensions in the world we live in and that's the first replication to that of the series. There is an underlying message in the series as it revolves around the accent of politics in the background as a side plot to the main storyline. Manipulation is also evident as a fringe to the story line's themes.

"May the Force be with You"

I'm sure many have heard of this term at some point of their lives, whether its during a geeky online chat or even during your daily trip to the dentist, we cannot hide the influence this phrase has on society, though on a very subtle level.

The Force, however, does exist in real time context; let us view this with a little literal intent encrypted.

As mentioned at the start of this post; if Life grabs you by the legs and causes you to fall, what do you do?

Interestingly, I feel that this "Force" has its truths in this context.

There is no doubt that at some point in our lives, we have always felt like giving up, felt like not making the effort to recover from the fall caused by the bumpy road and as a result, we blame instead of rectify.

Is there a difference?

For sure, in my opinion. When we fall, what do we usually do on first reaction? We think and figure out how we fell. Next, we think about why we fell which will often encompass the negative, but natural, reaction of human beings; to blame.

Individualistically speaking, we react differently from different "falls". This is also dictated via the subject matter in question; "falling" out of love, for instance, will grant a different reaction from "failing" to close a business deal, so to speak.

I now question this intention; what is the purpose of blaming?

Till this day, I cannot safely accredit an answer for that lest the fact of venting frustrations. Naturally, human beings are highly emotive creatures and when we're at a loss, or in a situation of desperation, we automatically seek alternative forms of finding out the "right" solution.

Take this for example;

You enter this wonderful relationship with another individual and the both of you are happy, most of the time. Suddenly, there is a change in things and your partner has to move away, out of the country, thus signaling the end of the union.

You're at a lost, you will thus turn to blaming. Blaming the reality of distance and the fact that he or she has to leave because of that. But have you even thought that there might be another reason, aside from distance (for example), for the "fall"?

Certainly we don't see the un-obvious, for as the term suggests, is not obvious thus often overlooked, but what if there's a reason for everything that happens?

For many, a change in Life is often considered a good example of a "fall".

Like moving to another country for work purposes or as mentioned, getting hurt in a relationship; we often classify these as "falls" thus giving truth that little or no human is comfortable to change.

Fusing both blame and change, we then get this elaborated vicious cycle that limits and weakens the progress of humans individually as well as collectively.

I brought the issue of Star Wars up because I found that aside from the factors mentioned about the emulation of real life aspects, the issue of change and blame is very evident, and in fact, the root of all evil.

Allow me to elaborate.

Remember this little character called Anakin Skywalker? Oh, maybe the name "Darth Vader" would clear off some confused faces (if you don't know the plot, you might want to consider watching the series and/or reading up for a tint of the plot).

In a way, this entire storyline focuses on him; his founding, his development, his manifestation as well as ultimately, his end. A particular quote from the film that I found really insightful;

"Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering..."

Indeed, for the root of all evils starts from a change, which induces fear into him. This then paves the way for blame to step in as Anakin along the plot, starts blaming for the things around him and his situation, instead of his own wrong doings which is evident in the final climatic scene in Episode III, Revenge of the Sith, where an exasperated Obi-Wan says:

"You (Anakin) were the Chosen One! It was said that you would, destroy the Sith, not join them. It was you who would bring balance to the Force, not leave it in Darkness"

All of this with ultimately led to Anakin's suffering, as he ventures towards the dark side of the Force.

Which brings me to the next point of this topic.

I would largely like to believe that the "Force" does exist in Life, though not in the dramatic form you see in the movie. Everyone has this Force from within themselves, just that few can understand and truly master its potential.

The Force to me, is simply a way of thinking. It can be considered, to a certain extent, the very thing that drives you, the very thing that you live by and the very thing that you believe in.

Very so often during the various movies of Star Wars, we see the Jedi Knights in terrible situations, in need of their lightsaber. Which is when they call upon the Force to psychically summon the lightsaber.

Though this makes a good effect in the movie and fantasy world, I believe that there are real connotations to that subject matter.

Think of your lightsaber as something you need very badly. Something that, in the given situation, you require urgently and the Force as your mind.

Say for example, you really need a car for that Saturday night date you've been planning since first grade. That becomes your "lightsaber".

What do you do?

By using the Force to reach for the "lightsaber", which may result you in getting a part time job to raise the funds, or any action taken to obtain that "lightsaber".

Indeed we can classify the Force as a way of thinking but then again, I feel that subjectivity plays a part in this argument as everyone has different interpretations of the Force.

The constant fear of change, viewed in another perspective is just a way of moving another step up the stairway of life.

With the problem (fear of change) as well as the solution (using the Force) presented, it is now down to the matter of applying the solution to the problem.

Many a time, we are faced with the prospect of change and as mention, are naturally not acceptable to them. So what do we do?

Its all in the mind, I usually assure myself. Even if my "lightsaber" is something deemed too radical or hard to achieve, I'd still use the Force.

In a way, I feel that Life is, blatantly put, Change. Which makes perfect sense as Life encompasses a myriad of problems, big and small. Thus we must be susceptible to change and this can be achieved via the harnessing of the Force, in doing so bridging the gap between problem and solution.

An old quote from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho states (and I'm sure I've mentioned it previously);

"If you want something bad enough, the entire universe will conspire for you to get it"

That, I feel, relates strongly to this "Force", when viewed from a certain aspect. Harness the change, eradicate fears and use the Force to achieve the seemingly impossible.

So the next time Life grabs you by the feet and you fall, learn from that experience and move on with the Force and your "lightsaber" set in your mind. Only then, will you propel up the endless steps of improvement set along the stairway of Life.


*The owner of this blog and author of this does NOT own any of the images you see in this particular post. Any related references made to "Star Wars" is purely nonprofitable and credit is reserved for the creator of the content as mentioned. The author and owner for this post, along with its management team, does not have any affiliations to the company behind "Star Wars".

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Now playing: Cute Is What We Aim For - Lyrical Lies
via FoxyTunes

Entrusting Responsibilities

Look who's here.

Its been a hectic week on the books as the term starts (it actually started last week, but I guess it kicked into a higher gear this week).

Day by day, work is evident in the lives of students and I guess we're by far, no exception as media students. But since its the end of the week, I've decided to do a little update. I apologize for the inactivity in terms of updates and articles due to obvious reasons as such.

For some reason, this week seemed to creep pass noticeably slower as compared to previous weeks, though it may not necessarily be a bad thing. I can confidently say that I've acquired new information and knowledge about the media industry as well as management, throughout the week and in substantial amounts too.

Really awesome stuff, I must say.

Management might come as instinctive to some but in actual fact, there are logical explanations to different levels, roles and methods of management. I shan't drone on about the details about the topic (largely due to the specific but lengthy specifics) but I'm really sure that the knowledge and skills acquired will be useful for a media practitioner.

Life is about improvement and changes. And this is something that I adhere and believe with details that will only make sense to me.

My recent Wednesdays and Thursdays afternoons were spent in the library, partly to pass time (before procceding for my tuition classes) and my casual browsing drew my attention to another book by Paulo Coelho.

Well as I've mentioned in my previous entries, articles with reference and responses, Paulo Coelho was the author behind the magic of the inspirational novel, "The Alchemist". Its a book that I highly suggest and recommend reading.

The new entity that I found was entitled "The Fifth Mountain".

Details are sparse for now (as I've borrowed the book for about 3 days and have not completed it as yet) but "The Fifth Mountain" has relations and links drawn with key concepts mentioned in "The Alchemist", which revolved around the concept of achieving one's personal legend.

So far, it has been a promising read and I'll try to talk about the aspects and my personal insights in entries to come so check back for more detail on that.

I've been also thinking about ways to amplify my teaching and communication methods towards the two students which I'm currently tutoring, in various subjects. Though people would typically subject younger kids to be "easier to teach" I feel the contrary to an extent.

In tutoring children, especially younger ones, I personally feel that communication is vital for comprehension as well as conversation. Talking to the kid may well be more effective then doing boring worksheets on the black and white simply due to the short attention span of such individuals, but again, this is viewed with much subjectivity.

Roughly 4 weeks ago, I decided to test out a technique in hopes of rectifying and improvement of communication between my student and I. And also in doing so, fully maximizing the time spend during class and discussions.

Due to his active persona and mischievous outlook, I made a deal with him; behave well during class as well as doing his homework properly and he'll be rewarded at the end of 3 weeks.

Though control in him was rather excruciating at times (getting him to stop jumping all around the place and such), I managed to induce an improvement in terms of homework submission and in-class behavior.

Thus, giving credit to the statement that "Humans are motivated through rewards".

This week, I rewarded him for his efforts. There weren't any sweet or chocolate wrappers in my bag that day as I lugged my way to my destination. I had bought something so simple yet powerful and was really eager to give it to him.

"What do you think I got for you?"

"I don't know? *inserts random naughty laughter here*"

A ruffle of shopping bags later, a pen lay neatly on the table. I decided to reward him with the powerful gift of responsibility.

Many people are afraid to entrust their children with responsibilities at an early age, and understandably so due to the immaturity of such individuals. But I feel that this should be reconsidered and reaccessed. We shouldn't let the fear elude our purposes.

"By giving you this pen, I want you to use it to do your assignments, neatly."

From a human behavioral perspective, we are weird creatures as we'll always be responsible for things people trust us with. Which was substantiated by my student's handwriting at the end of the lesson; he made it an effort to write neatly with his new "responsibility".

Personally, I was really satisfied by my student's reaction and performance. But more importantly, I would like to hear from you guys, my readers and thus I post this question to all of you;

"Do you think it is appropriate to entrust responsibilities in order for change and improvement to eventuate?"

Really looking forward to all of your responses and comments. I could use a couple of suggestions on handling and teaching young kids too so keep those comments coming.

Be sure to check back for updates and article posts though the frequency may come a wee bit slower; I apologize for that.

Alright but before I go, I'd like to share a song with all of you, my valued readers:

"Dear God- Avenged Sevenfold"

Yea, I don't really do this often but in light of the band, Avenged Sevenfold's local gig here in Singapore, I thought it would be nice to feature this personal favorite of mine. The lyrical content was one of the highlights of the song that really drew me in. (You might have to click on the picture to view it in a higher resolution, I apologize about the size and all)

Alright, I'll end here for, its late and time for a little snooze. Hope you guys enjoyed this little update and till then.

Cya'll later.

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Now playing: Avenged Sevenfold - Dear God
via FoxyTunes

The Rite of Life.

Okay, for a little something different this time, I will be chronicling the day's events (something which I have never really articulated on this page).

I've always stood in favour for class bonding events, such as the "soccer" session we had today; it was really awesome and I'm pretty sure most if not everyone enjoyed themselves. Its good to see you guys in sporting outfits once in awhile for a change.

We should really do this often.

Along my bus ride back from my (second) class with my tuition student, I've come to realise a couple of things that has often puzzle and befuddled me previously. This aspect of which, will be featured in my upcoming article, so turn on your feeds and check back when the post is done!

I also realised that once in awhile, its really really nice to give yourself a good treat. Reward yourself for a particular well done job or even a good deed done; so as long as it remains a privilege, not an entitlement.

Self rewards are only effective if only reserved and saved for deserving moments or milestones in one's rite of life.

And for me, it was a good foot long Parmesan, Cold Cut Trio with no chili and pickles and plenty of sweet onion sauce to top it off. Mmm...

Life is really unexpected and justifiable, and thats what makes it exciting all the more. When life comes round and punches you right smack on the face, clean up the mess, stand right up and stand tall.

And this is why I always tell people to live life to the fullest, for you'll have no idea when you'll disappear. Second chances are few; third tries are scarse. Thus, always make sure to revolve your life around purpose and values.

Having said so much, I think I'd better continue with my narrative as seen in the previous post, call it a followup if you may...


"
The man stands very still now, not knowing exactly what to do.

Thoughts and recollections of the past memories he had with the oasis suddenly exploded in his mind and this was also why the sand around him saw drops of water.

The man dropped to the ground on all fours. More drops of water appeared and the man was not at all surprised for the tears that welled up in his eyes flooded his soul too.

He wasn't sad.

But of those were tears of confusion and indecision. The man felt helpless and desolated.

Perhaps this is the end, he thought to himself and pounded the sand with his fist, letting out a cry of agony in doing so, not being able to mask it anymore.

Was this the end for the man? Has the oasis and the desert given up on him?

Dusk soon settled around the man, who lay broken both mentally and physically, in a pathetic heap on the massive sand dune in which the man climbed the earlier day.

The desert was no place to be at night and the man knows that, having survived being in the desert for what seemed like years to him now. He soon regained his composure and got to this feet.

As he rose, the man saw and took note of the massive sand dune he scaled that very afternoon; that massive sand dune which he stood on and broke down on.

The person I am now wasn't the one who scaled this sand dune, he reflected.

It all suddenly fell into place and the truth hit him like a truck. The man knew what he had to do and as if to reaffirm this, something made him look to the sky.

He saw it and took it as a sign. Desolated and agonized emotions that took their place on his face were replaced by a firm and renergised expression.

It was at this point that he knew exactly what to do for he regained his determination.

He dusked away the remainding sand that settled upon his hair and ragged attire and began his pace. He knows this is the right way to go for the sign has convinced him and one day, maybe one day, he'll realise this reinvigorated goal of his.

The winds blew and the sands shifted, covering the footprints left behind by the man as if to guide him along his way.

Move on, they urge.

And thats exactly what the man does...
"

There is subjectivity in this narrative and I hope you guys will read and understand this both on a literal and metaphoric level. There is no definate answer for it leaves to your perception to decide the flow and the content of the narrative.

I would like to hear about your reactions from you guys, my readers, on the narrative and the whole concept of it.

A little food for thought again then. Remember to check back for updates and articles.

Till then.

Cya'll later.

Random Thought, Vol. 6

Alrighty, time for another instalment of random thoughts but first up, a little update.

Dropped by one of the nearby libraries earlier today (or yesterday for that matter, Thursday) to pick up another one of Paulo's books.

This time it was "The Zahir". And I'm hoping (though I'm pretty sure) that it'll be a good read. Might do a review after I'm done with it.

Dropped by the book store after, to see "The Witch Of Portobello" on its shelves. Though (or so I think) has been released for quite sometime, I've yet to get my hands on a copy. Hmm...

I realise that "The Alchemist" is one of those books that you'll have to buy and actually keep, not borrow from the library for a month or so and return it; lets just call it an investment.

And Mr Paulo, if you're reading this, Keep writing those magnificient and inspirational stories!

So thats that, time for a couple of random thoughts...

1) Don't you just hate it after it rains and it gets stuffy?
2) Theres work to be done
3) I wanna read my new book
4) Baby Blue comics are actually really awesome
5) The internet lags
6) I should really get some sleep
7) Hunger's creeping up
8) Its just one of those nights where you feel like running out in the cold screaming out loud at everyone sleeping
9) I'm largely satisfied at my current state of planning
10) I don't know if I can work with kids
11) I need more contacts
12) "If you want something bad enough, the entire universe will conspire"
13) Lets not get emotional
14) The night is still young
15) Tomorrow will be a better day

Hmm. Since that's settled, I guess its time to dive headfirst back into work. Remember to check back for more updates and articles.

PS. I'll update my Bucket List really soon. Promise. and I might get started on some of the tasks... mmm...

Cya'll later.

The Receding Hairline and Frayed Inspirations; What is your Personal Legend?

Quite recently, I read a book, a rather inspirational and captivating one at that, I might add (readers might take a hint from the title of this post). Needless to say, I was heavily drawn into the values and beliefs put out by the author through this masterpiece; it was peculiarly similar to the very values I live by.

To regurgitate every single piece of information and key point in the book would be an infringement of copyright and what’s more, it would be painstakingly long for both the writer (me) and the readers (you) to clearly illiterate the entire story.

But to put it simply, the book teaches people to be conscious of their life and how they live it which then branches out into many different aspects in itself.

Venturing out of your safety zones, becoming what you were meant to be, not afraid to lose it all for your dreams, empowering them and having an open eye are just a sample of what the book brought into me.

Clearly, the book left an impact on me as my way of thinking is galvanized further in terms of my personal beliefs and my goal setting.

So what is this “Personal Legend” as put out in the book itself?

I found the concept of destiny rather amusing and absurd in the past for I personally believe that destiny is in the eye of the user; the people himself shapes his destiny.

Yes, if so I may say, destiny is intertwined with this “Personal Legend” as your personal legend is what you were meant to do when you were first given life. It is what grants you your full purpose of existence and what that will make you satisfied before the day comes (refer to article, Satisfaction; the Delighted Mother and the Inquisitive Child).

There is however, a stark difference my interpretation of the term “destiny” (refer to article, Tales of the Past III; what is Destiny?) as compared to this Personal Legend concept.

You see, to me, destiny is defined as an allocation, a fixed mould in the pattern of life, for what your life would be no matter what you do. Which also means that even if the person doesn’t work towards his goal, he will still get it cause it is after all, what he was meant to be.

Your Personal Legend on the other hand, is vastly different.

I believe that everyone in existence has a purpose that was allocated to him or her when he or she was given life. Uncanny resemblance with what was mentioned about destiny? Unfortunately this is where the similarities end.

Unlike destiny, your personal legend does not provide a smooth sailing path for the person while in pursuit of his or her goals. One of the many significant quotes from the book certainly tugged at my consciousness; “Every search begins with beginner’s luck and every search ends with the victor being severely tested” (Paulo Coelho, 1988, The Alchemist).

The term “beginner’s luck” is often heard in high class hotel casinos or even shady underground gambling dens but in this case, one will not get thrown out or mugged for winning. Beginner’s luck does exist, but is often overlooked and ignored by many.
It is a sign which indicates that one is on the right track to their personal legend as it is the creator’s way of signalling to you and encouraging you by giving you a little bit of leeway.

So why do we ignore such telltale signs?
Many people overlook the fact and existence of their personal legend, in the process numbing themselves to what they were meant to be and thus also restricting themselves to being something they are not.

Most of them give up without even trying while others give up after failures. Only a handful persist through all the challenges and emerge something more; a better, more complete person. Those who give up without trying is oblivious to even the existences of personal legends while those who give up in the process lack willpower and drive to see it till the end.

But who can we blame for such alterations?

The way the society works is similar to that of a dictatorship’s rule and I’m referring that in a metaphorical sense. The society shapes its people’s minds and more rather, sets down rules and stereotypes in certain contexts.

In a way, “protection” may seem the word here, but this also restricts people’s advances on their personal legend in a way. They might not want to venture out into the wilderness and out of their safety zones and fear is an integral part that constitutes to people not fulfilling their personal legends.

I’ve always enjoyed conversing with people, especially with elders. But sometimes I can’t help but wonder if they’ve heard of or even thought about issues like personal legends or destiny.

I sense that the society’s grip on people, especially the elders is strong, partly due to the fact that they’ve been raised that way, and partly because of their mindsets. Yes, many of them have inspirations since young but only a handful of them successfully see them through.

Again, this is a prime example of the case mentioned earlier where people either give up without trying or give up while trying. They are discouraged at the seemingly adamant feasibility of realising their personal legends as they usually find it “impractical”.

But what defines it as impractical?

Impracticality largely depends on the user; if that individual feels its impractical, it is. This is also where belief and motivation comes in. More rather, I find that these individuals give up due to the lack of motivation, the sole principle of working towards a goal or an aim (refer to article, Screaming Fans; The Motivational Force and Ambition) and as their hairline recedes, so does that drive
and inspiration.

I find it sad that people give up or don’t know about the concept of personal legends. I find it sad that we let the environment around us dictate how we should live and what we should or shouldn’t do. But I find it especially sad when people give up hope or on their lives.

“Its the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting” (Paulo Coelho, 1988, The Alchemist). Many a time, I’ve come across people who come and tell me that life is “boring” and that they don’t see the joy in living.

By relishing your personal legend also means making a dream come true. And to those people, who tell me life is boring, I tell them to keep holding on and they’ll find what they’ll need and work towards their personal legends.

As for myself?

I daresay that I’ve found the path to my personal legend and that is the media. Due to its highly personal details however, I will not reveal certain details but I truly believe that this is what I was meant to be doing.

Though it may seem like a bold claim, the feeling speaks for itself. Many challenges are thrown at me, which I hope will make me stronger in the end.
There were times, awhile back, when I wasn’t sure of my personal legend or didn’t know that such a thing existed.

I felt lost, unsure and insecure. I didn’t know what I wanted nor had a clear precise goal in mind. I would give up on things or a particular aim due to distractions for clearly, my drive wasn’t there; I aim not to repeat what I’ve been through.

Yes, sometimes when challenges are thrown at you, headfirst and you can’t handle them, it may seem as if all hope is lost and failure presumes which naturally, isn’t the case here.

Challenges to me are tests. Tests that will make you stronger as it is the creator’s way or ensuring only the finest and strongest succeed in achieving their personal legend. Pass this test and another one takes its place and another and another, until the “victor is severely tested”.

Sure its no walk in the park but when you’ve finally found your “pot of treasure”, satisfaction grips you like a vice and you’ve made it for sure.

So have you found your personal legend? No matter what it is, how harsh the conditions or how impossible the odds are, hope is important for it is what keeps the engine up there going.

Thus let us empower our lives and find our respective personal legends and claim our justly deserved “pot of treasure”


*The above insight contains a only selected number of themes mentioned from the book itself. All references made belongs to the author and its contents*

The Human Behaviour (II); The Change

My pervious instalment of The Human Behaviour covered the aspect of the reaction and feelings of people in particular social settings. Issues covered included the general outline of human behaviour, their distinct roles in a group social setting, humans being emotive creatures, the issue of fears in a social setting and many more.

This observational series is one that requires time and much observation in order to be acute in its reports.

I’m however, tackling the approach via a means of my personal perspective and thus, certain claims and observations might be subjective to the individual.

The ambiguity of a topic as such is evident.

As mentioned in the previous instalment (refer to article, The Human Behaviour (I); The Social Setting), the human mind is subjective and complex in its own nature. The mind of a person, being the core constitution of a person’s behaviour, decides the person’s behaviour and the way he or she acts, which might shed some light on the ambiguity of the behaviour of humans; we rarely behave similarly.

“the action or reaction under specified circumstances” (as cited from dictionary.com) fully defines the term, behaviour and naturally, as proof to my pervious claim about behaviour being subjective, “action” and “reaction” are rarely carbon copies from one human being to another.

Human behaviour therefore, is a very vast and diverse topic.

Moving on to my substantive for this instalment.

The society around us changes and shapes the very tomorrow for the lives of those living in it. For example, the government might ban education tomorrow and that will surely affect the people in the particular country (with expected mixed reactions, of course).

It is no denying the fact that changes are evident in our everyday lives, and whether if its a good or bad thing, depends purely on the mindset of a person, which often follows in a series of differentiated human behaviour.

But the question remains; how will change ultimately affect the human behaviour? Are we so superficial as to the fact that changes can alter our mindset, in doing so, our behaviour?

There is truth to that statement.

In a sense, changes fosters a different mindset due to the core dependency that humans respond to stimuli. I feel that change itself is a stimuli and thus, we, as living organisms, would and should respond to the changes around us, in terms of either refining, adapting or even totally revamping our mindset.

Though it may seem unrealistic or even nonsensical, humans undergo a series of “revamps” which also can be termed changes, in their mindset and human behaviour. Its amazing that the behaviour of humans can change drastically throughout one’s life, as I’ve found out during my observational period.

Observing changes often takes up a bunk of time and effort, mainly because changes are sometimes uncalled for and highly situational. Knowing this, I knew it was really hard for me to actually observe changes and how those changes affect human behaviour.

Thus I came up with a little something called Contrasting. It may seem complex but in fact, it is much easier to contrast rather than sit and wait for a change to actually happen; some of which can take years to cultivate a significant change in a human’s behaviour.

The concept of Contrasting is a fairly simple one. Basically, when I observed something significant in the field of human behaviour, I would compare the behaviour with the former self. This was, a comparison is created and one would be able to analyse the differences in human behaviour before and after these changes without actually witnessing them.

However, not that Contrasting may work only for certain observational types and the results are more rather, fluid and subjective and observations can only be treated as a generalization.

A good example where I used Contrasting, in a general viewpoint, is in the change of age and its effect on the human behaviour.

The change of age is an aspect that affects the one’s behaviour, in drastic fashion at that, I feel. This can be due to a number of both scientific and psychological aspects that leads to this change.

On a scientific basis, Senescence, which is the big word used to describe the process of aging, often spurs different types of “social, psychological and physical changes” (as cited from Wikipedia.com).

These psychological changes that people undergo during aging hints at the change in behaviour too, in drastic differences and fashion. The change in behaviour for the aspect of age often varies from one end of the spectrum to the other.

You would normally envision old people to be quiet, soft spoken and always keeping to themselves, which is only half correct. Age does make a person keep their problems to themselves as they gain a higher sense of maturity and wisdom; they do not want the people around them to worry. And in this sense, their behaviour will obviously change as they will become less idealistic and more down to earth, accepting things for what they are and as mentioned, keeping their thoughts to themselves in order for the society to not worry for them.

However, this is only one side of the spectrum that I’ve mentioned.

The other half of the spectrum is vocalised (pun intended) by those who develop their sense of right to speak up or being more sociable.

Though the majority lies with the former group, there are exceptions.

My daily bus rides to school granted me this insight for I observed a particularly contentions elderly man; he was voicing his opinions loudly on the bus. Though I enjoyed his rapid comments about various social issues, I pondered on the change that age has taken on him.

He was so sociable that he even spoke to another elderly man who boarded the bus about highly personal topics such as their children.

There was no clear indication that both of them knew each other but the sociable elderly started conversing in fluent dialect, as if they were long time friends. He even helped the other elderly man down the bus as he had difficulty walking.

Indeed that was an act of kindness. But I began to reason, in my head, about the behaviour of the sociable old man. Clearly the change of age has taken him (he was 65) and now has a sociable, and open mindset; lets face it, how many times have you seen younger adults being so open to people they don’t know?

Take note here that I’m not trying to criticise this type of behaviour but more rather, point it out, as people nowadays are somewhat ignorant of such subtle aspects of life.

I feel that another subtle detail that people fail to take observation and notice, in our society is all around us; our environment.

A new sign board, a different coat of paint, a new building built; these are all but a small part of our environment. I’m not trying to be over critical here but one of the main influences of the changes in behaviour is the environment around us.

When one is thrown into a new environment, one often feels lost, disorientated and insecure. Without a doubt, the human behaviour of the particular person will change accordingly. This is why people tend to be more introverted and inward when first introduced to a new environment.

The feeling of disorientation and insecurity makes a person less adventurous as they are afraid to move out of their safety zones and will also result in people putting on “false fronts” either to deceive or simply due to their fears (refer to article, The Human Behaviour (I); The Social Setting).

This however, is more often, a temporary issue as the insecurity of a new environment will fade as soon as that person gets familiar with the surroundings. Again, this is an issue of speed and subjectivity as certain people can adapt almost on the spot while other takes weeks or even months; its that diverse.

People thus undergo a duration of altered behaviour when they’re introduced to a new environment that they’re not used or comfortable with.

Most change aspects are on a long term basis but the change in environment is one of the few aspects that yields temporary change in behaviour.
As mentioned earlier in the article (and the previous instalment), the human mind and human behaviour is closely intertwined together, which means that this serves that another platform for the basis of the change of behaviour; the change in one’s mindset.

Though it may not be easy to change and, with reference to the earlier mention, revamp your mind, it can and has been done, though many people don’t notice this due to its understated observation and notice.

Very so often or another, we’ll come across that one inspirational book that will change your perspective about something. Mind, it need not be a book but can be anything, anything that inspires you to think, reflect and change your behaviour.
The change of mindset is one that not many people are willing to make nor will they notice that they have done so.

A simple quote like “every blessing ignored becomes a curse” (from The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho, 1988) for instance, can change a person’s mindset and behaviour for they are then inspired.

This little motivation (refer to article, Screaming Fans; The Motivational Force and Ambition) leads to a change in behaviour as the person is influenced and motivated to lead a different life, for example and this constitutes to a change.

The change of influence is also based on the mind as the mind perceives, get influenced and acts based on the combination. I find the basis of influence extremely strong and evident amongst teenagers.

Perhaps at a young age, people are more easily influenced due to premature thoughts and unfiltered mindsets. Bad influences can thus pervade these vulnerable minds, corrupting them and tainting them with negative imagery.

I’m sure there are cases of teenagers attempting to emulate their so called “role models” by copying their actions or even mimicking them word for word, stride by stride. Let us question these influences; are they positive or negative?
It is again, subjective. Like a coin having two different sides, it is not exception here.

I feel that altering one’s behaviour based on influences is rather “self-zombifying”. The main reason being that I feel each and every single individual should be distinct and prominent; no two people are the same entirely.

Instead of subjecting to influence and mimicking due to that influence, why not change and create your own influence?

Changes are very diverse in the field of human behaviour, as with the entire aspect of it on the whole. There are many factors that contribute to the change in human behaviour of which I’ve only touched on a few.

The human behaviour is a complex issue which isn’t easy to unravel.

For my coming edition, I’ll be concluding about my observations regarding human behaviour and giving my final analysis of the psychological side of expression.

*The above references made to various authors are in no way used for the reason of blog promotion.