We are now on to Round 7 of the Personal Development Face-Off. It looks like this will be the last one for quite a while, or I may ‘refresh’ the idea with a bit of a twist but we’ll see about that. I want to thank everyone who has voted and taken part in order to make this a great series!
In this seventh round we have two of the nicest bloggers in the industry: Alex De Foe and Mary Jaksch.
Alex De Foe was one of the first people I connected with in this industry and runs Spiritual Blog. He also owns a Melbourne based business focused on NLP.
Mary Jaksch is without a doubt one of my favourite female bloggers. She runs the site ‘Goodlife Zen’ and regularly offers practical, life-changing advice.
Questions & Answers
| Alex De Foe |
Mary Jaksch |
| What is the key to living a happier life? | |
| Stop thinking about your happiness and start living it. Most of our unhappy thoughts derive from what happened “back then” and what might happen “if and when.” Rather than living through the past and the future find your moment Right Now and embrace it. You’ll discover a deeper level of happiness and more of it. | What makes life sizzle is when we find and pursue our passion. |
| To you, what is the meaning / purpose of life? | |
| To discover your own inner light and let it shine brightly. | The purpose of my life is to be insanely useful. I told my partner David and he says I already fulfill the first part. |
| What advice would you give someone who is depressed on turning their life around? | |
| There isn’t space to really go into this, but briefly: let go of your attachment to a negative self image, be aware of self-talk, let yourself feel what you are feeling, force yourself into drastically different social environments and life experiences, and attend counselling (preferably find a Solution Focused, CBT, or Time Line Therapist). Finally, I recommend getting your hands on “The Sedona Method” CDs, or learning at least 3 Meditation techniques. | I would encourage them to try three simple but potent strategies that can reverse depression: a)Â Practice upright posture; b) Go for a fast 10 minute walk each day; c) Start expressive writing (keep a journal). |
| Which is the most important aspect of our lives that we should work on? | |
| It’s often the aspect that brings you the greatest amount of self understanding that is the most important to focus on for you personally. Remember to take a break from treating your personal development as “work” and enjoy the unpredictability of the adventure once in a while. | What puts magic into life is tender regard. Try paying tender regard to each person before you. And to doorhandles, birdsong, the smell of fresh coffee, the ground beneath our feet, or the breath flowing in and out. |
| Are problems real or mind-made? Why? | |
| How we react to our problems makes all the difference. If you react by saying “that’s a problem, we’re stuffed” then you’re blocking off all potential solutions. But begin to see your problems as opportunities and you’ll notice that every shipwreck presents a chance to search for a treasure chest of gold. | It’s too easy to say that all problems are in the mind. Tell that to someone who’s just lost their job or been diagnosed with cancer! However, we have a choice about how we respond, and we can learn to move gracefully with life’s tide. |
| What is your best tip for staying motivated? | |
| Grab a pen and list your top five goals for the next 6 months with 200 words per goal on why you want to achieve it, what resources that goal will require, and what will happen once you’ve achieved it. It might sound silly, but just go with it, the more you talk about or write about your goals the more you’ll feel motivated to achieve them right now. | My strategy for staying motivated is to create rituals in order to support regular action. For example, I start my daily meditation by making a cup of tea and drinking it on my cushion. Similarly, I follow an exercise routine at the same time each day. |
| How can people reach a stage of feeling fulfilled? | |
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Instead of focusing on what you want tomorrow, why not shift your concentration towards appreciating all those wonderful things you already have in your life today?
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I used to think that achieving goals brings fulfillment. It’s really the opposite: we feel fulfilled when we continually pursue goals that resonate with our values. |
| If you could only give PluginID readers one sentence of wisdom, what would it be? | |
| Every single moment has the potential to be a totally clean slate, a surge of potential for anything and everything that you choose to come true, if you’ll let it. | Pursue your passion and dare to dream big, but don’t forget to practice kindness every day. |
Vote for Your Favourite
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Update from Glen: Comments may take a while to approve if you haven’t left one before as I’m at a funeral today.