If we can not travel much let's make the home more colorful, right on time for Autumn! Creative thoughts happen in creative spaces after all. Etsy is a space like that. We like products that are handmade and only available there, sold directly by the creators. Check out this small selection of items you can find on their marketplace. We have dabbled in RESIN jewelry before too, sounds like another online store waiting to happen! 🤔 Could also be included in Miss Gatsby. We shall see. So many possibilities! Also check out Etsy for creative gift ideas. Surprisingly enough - Christmas is not that far away. How did this happen?! Now seriously, can we travel again.. Thank you for stopping by here today.
Ok, so on Sunday was Election Day in Germany! I know it is supposed to be a secret but my second vote went to the Animal Protection Party. I am glad it exists - so why not support it. This was a historical event!
Angela Merkel is leaving her role as the chancellor of Germany after more than 15 years. We think it is a big accomplishment to be in power that long and to assert oneself in the male dominated field of politics. It probably required a lot of personal sacrifice. Super powerful while remaining humble.
From East Germany (like me) and a Physicist (unlike me) Frau Merkel has earned respect over the years not only within Germany but also internationally. She fought for national interests and was a reliable partner to allies worldwide.
Overall, her governing style might be debatable but we must acknowledge, that she has led Germany through challenging ups and downs for more than a decade, without quitting, while being a stable, professional and knowledgable person.
Here is an illustration by Statista Research, which points out just how long Merkel's reign has lasted in comparison to leaders of other countries. It is pretty remarkable. It is a historical achievement.
Perspective: In my personal opinion, it is not just about keeping a ship on course within the way/route things have always been, but it is also imperative to adjust course, laws and systems to current times and developments.
May it be in education, the workplace or personal freedom. I think this is something the next administration has to put on their agenda ASAP. Many people with an entrepreneurial spirit are blocked by 467284945 laws, rules and regulations holding them back - and that must end if we want people to prosper.
Especially the young generation is eager to discover their skills and make a difference in the world. They should be encouraged and supported to get their start, build self-confidence, find their way and be enabled to follow through.
We say: Deutschland needs more supportive programs for the youth, catch up with digitalisation and waaaay less bureaucracy overall.
We do have these suggestions, if our input should ever be required but we don't want to be overly critical. This is because - we would not want to take on this role. So in that way, if we would not want to do it and offer ourselves up to criticism, we are just observers.
If we would have more insight maybe, but if we don't get into the ring ourselves, we can't be too hard on someone who has been in there for more than 15 years. Thank you Frau Merkel, we will probably see you around once in a while still. Alles Gute und Auf Wiedersehen. Danke! Goodbye and Thank You.
Hello everyone and members of the IBTN book club! It was almost predictable that this book would come up here sooner or later. We just had to know, how it all started for successful entrepreneur and visionary Elon Musk. He did not write this book and he initially was against it, being made..
But persistent journalist Ashlee Vance kept at it and even got Elon to be involved in the project eventually. He also interviewed several of his associates in the process of completing this book, to get their side of the story and their perspective on working with him in the past.
We find out a lot about Elon's humble beginnings in South Africa coming from an adventurous family, to his stop in Canada as an intern at a bank to his own entrepreneurial journey with several companies in the United States. I find it amazing, that this kind of information is available to us.
So if you are an aspiring founder/developer yourself or if you just want to see how challenging the road to success was/is, you can read this book too! It is our book of the month. We've listened to the audiobook which is more than 11 hours long. Yes, we have persistence too! 😃
Even though, it might not include ALL there is to the story, we consider this book to give a great insight to the inner workings of a unique, international success story (in the making). One thing for sure, he could have never made that happen in Germany. Let's be real.. 😊
Hello everybody and thank you for stopping by here today.
Yes it was and still is a challenging time for all of us, as we have to adapt to changes all around (the world).
As you might know, for more than 10 years now, I have been living and working abroad. Office Manager is my profession.
I like giving structure to a business, working with people and seeing them on a daily basis.
Returning to the office would be nice, but the pandemic has put a full stop to this. With advanced technology, like many others, I was able to do some home office work online.
I have completed a few online programs and read a lot of articles about the 'return to the office' or companies which will let their employees work from home indefinitely.
Personally, I think the time spent together in an office to work as a team or strategize about the future of a company, can not be replaced by a few zoom meetings in the long run.
We as humans are social creatures. Isolation does not bring out the best performances because often times motivation is lacking and many of us thrive, working together IRL to achieve a mutual goal and catch up.
But I also had a lot of time, to think about a career change.
You know that feeling when you think you want to branch out into another direction entirely?
So I thought, an Alpaca Farm is a viable business idea in the meantime. Have Alpacas, offer tours and getaways. Sounds like a future and crisis proof business idea to me!
And if you open your own Alpaca Farm before I can open mine, I will never talk to you again. But maybe we can schedule some Alpaca playdates to get even more Alpacas. :)
Stay tuned for more ideas born out of uncertainty. Less technology - more Alpacas. I hope you are doing well, where you are.💚 Here a few Alpaca photos to make your day better:
One thing for sure, this is not a minimalistic headline at all.
We are about to dive into this book and will let you know later,
what exactly we have learned from it. Our 'Protect Your Brain' initiative is going into a similar direction, so everything that has to do with cutting out technology devices and apps to IMPROVE life, has got our attention.
Watch me getting rid of my phone so people actually have to come see me. How innovative. How groundbreaking. How original. It is the new wave. Back to what is real and the present moment. Check out a brief summary of the book below:
We just thought, this is something to think about. We advise you to be your lovable self and to be proud of the things you have achieved in your life. We applaud you for being diligent, for standing up for yourself and for making things happen through difficult times! Well done! Well done! Love is in the authenticity.
If your partner has their own skills and abilities, just imagine the possibilities.. They are literally endless.💕
Vishen Lakhiani - Founder of Mindvalley
Hello all! Here is some strong motivation on how to use your time most effectively in lockdown - you're welcome! :D What to do when you can not travel, you work from home, have lots of time to fill and want to do it in a productive way? Work on your brain! And if you ought to do it, why not do it with the help of the best of the best worldwide? I have known Mindvalley since several years now and I have seen a lot of their content on YouTube previously. Recently, they created a new way to join. Mindvalley All Access - allows you not only to take part in all quests, you also have mentoring sessions and occasional life calls/events included.
Lisa Nichols - Genius Motivational Speaker
So far I have already learned a lot of additional things about myself from the pros! For example that I fall into the category of 'Deep Thinker' - who would have known. Yeah I kind of knew that. 😊 That I love to work with my brain was confirmed, by the fact that on my day 1 I joined 10+ quests (this is the name they have for their programs/courses) It is an interactive learning experience with new classes and material every day, so you can step by step learn and grow. You are part of a group and there is a forum where you can discuss what is happening on the current day or your homework.
Marisa Peer - Britain's #1 Hypnotherapist
Robin Sharma - Leadership Expert
Jim Kwik - Accelerated Learning Coach
So far, I can truly say, that I am excited to be part of Mindvalley! It is really an eye-opening experience in some areas. While we go through life, our experiences shape us and have a defining impact on us. How we see the world often has to do with past incidences, our family, the place we grew up, the people we have met. We get stuck or stubborn in certain areas, don't want to allow new input, because we have made up our mind and don't want to give up our point of view. See - and THAT is WRONG. (Free knowledge I share with you) Some of this material, is giving you a different perspective, so you are able to re-consider certain view points.
The quality of the quests is very high and you can tell, that this is life changing material. So, what better thing to do in times like this? Feel free to join Mindvalley as well, if you want to go to the next level once this pandemic is over for good. Thank you for stopping by here to day! 🙂
Social Media is literally frying your brain. Your brain is a super sensitive organ. Protect it. And the 10+ nude ladies in your spam folder don't really want to meet up.
Social Media app notifications are bombarding your brain 24/7. Overwhelming it. Who cares if a stranger double tapped your photo after looking at it for 1 second. Enjoy the moment in real life - save it in your brain - live it.
839489293 notifications about irrelevant stuff all day. Protect your brain and your personal life. I silenced my whole phone. All brains must be protected, especially the entrepreneurial brain. 'No brain left behind' as my coach says! :)
I see that these days, as a tool to promote a business it is in many cases necessary to involve social media channels to reach the masses that are already there.
But ones private life is too valuable and sacred to invite the whole world into it. This is where the meaning is. It needs to be protected.🙏
Also, the kids of most of the inventors/developers of these apps are NOT ALLOWED to use them. If this is not sending a clear signal, I don't know what is. WhatsApp used to be a PRIVATE messaging application for private conversations with people you know and family. Until Facebook bought it too. To get to even the last persons data. You need to comply, open up your phone to it or you can not use it. They are relentless. What was once started to 'connect people' is now mainly a money making data collecting and selling machine. Your feelings and psychological well being is irrelevant to these social media giants. They don't care if you waste your life-time staring at a screen.
Your gadgets can't hug you.
Get back to real life, put your phone down, achieve your goals. Live your life in the real world. You have only 1. PROTECT YOUR BRAIN!
An initiate by IBreakTheNews.com
Hello friends and readers of this blog!
Happy New Year to all of you. We somehow made it to 2021. How? I don't know either. I hope you are all doing good despite the current situation and get your 2021 goals outline ready. Personally, I feel a sense of relief but also based on all the things we had to go through lately and in 2020 - I feel like I need a hug.
Handmade pearl drop earrings 925 silver
If you know me at least a little bit and based on the posts on this blog you know by now, that I am a world traveler and someone who very much prefers to live and work abroad. Since this is not currently possible, I have used the home office time to execute 2 of my creative projects. 1 of them, I will introduce to you today.
I love hanging out in my fluffy teddy hoodies. I have watched several videos on how to be an elegant lady. They don't affect me. :D
MissGatsy.com is an online jewelry store. Only 100% authentic, real pearls and 925 silver are being used to create earrings, bridal gift sets and bracelets. We also offer custom made earrings and can put together pearls of different colors, shapes and sizes upon customer request. The result will be a unique pair of earrings, 1 of 1 in the world. Not available anywhere else. The perfect gift idea for a special occasion or for Mom on Mother's Day! 💐
What is clearly setting this store apart from others in the same field, is great and long lasting quality at reasonable prices. I like pearl jewelry myself a lot. It is an elegant addition to daily life. The stecker earrings are so simple they can be worn 24/7 at home or at work. And these pearls are real so they have that certain glow. I've had the idea for a store like this several years ago in London. Now, it is actually possible for me to operate this store and accept international orders.
When I think about my work career lately, I think about how amazing it would be to put my skills and experience behind a good and important cause. To make a difference. I don’t think we are here just to get by. I think we are here to figure out what our strengths are, honing these skills and then putting them to good use. I am about to figure out, how to combine this with the right location. But with remote work, it can be done from anywhere really. Even when I am not in a physical company office daily.
Miss Gatsby Blanc Stecker earrings
So that was a quick update from me. You can be very sure, that once traveling is possible again, I will be on my merry way! :D Until then, my creative projects will be executed some more. Also another update! If you still think all new technology and phone apps are good for you and your personal well being, get this: Someone in Germany invented an app where you can book somebody to go for a walk with you. Is this really what humanity has come to? In the meantime I am thinking about getting rid of my phone altogether.
This is the truth.
Hallo liebe Leser,
Da ein Großteil unserer Leser aus Deutschland kommt, gibt es heute mal wieder einen deutschen Gruß. Ja es war ein schwieriges Jahr für uns alle. Jetzt um die Weihnachtszeit sind wir vor allem froh einander zu haben und die Geschenke sind zweitrangig. Solltet Ihr euch niedergeschlagen fühlen, denkt daran dass wir alle gemeinsam durch diese Zeit gehen. Es hilft mit anderen zu reden und auch mal zuzuhören und da zu sein. Bei uns ist Feuerwerk an Silvester verboten ich bin mir aber ziemlich sicher, dass irgendwo vielleicht etwas außerhalb der Stadt trotzdem der ein oder andere aktiv wird. Wir haben bisher zwei mal '3 Haselnüsse für Aschenbrödel' geschaut. Da heute erst der erste Weihnachtsfeiertag ist, war das bestimmt noch nicht alles und wir schauen es auch noch zum dritten mal an! 😊Also, wir senden Euch liebe Feiertagsgrüße und lasst den Kopf nicht hängen. Nach der Krise kommt der Neustart! 2021.✨
The statistics are shocking:
210 million people suffer from social media and internet addiction worldwide.
Social media disagreements cause one in three divorces.
91% of Gen Z’ers experienced emotional or physiological stress-related symptoms from social media. (from Marisa Peer Newsletter)
Social Media app founders/owners and big corporations don’t care about how you feel. In fact they want you to feel bad about yourself and life so you buy many things to try and improve it. They cash in.
We all want a loving partner and now this is the playground:
As a guy on Social Media, you are competing for attention with other guys, who are showing off and showcase their real? success and wealth often times with rented cars, houses and girls.
As a girl, you are not competing with other girls. You are competing with filters, photoshop and in many cases a team of plastic surgeons, hired PR companies and even porn stars showing OFF.
In both cases it is a battle that you can not win.
Let me repeat that: IT IS A BATTLE THAT YOU CAN NOT WIN. No matter how hard you try. No matter how rich or naked you get you will never be the best in this fake, parallel universe. It is a set-up. A facade. Eine Scheinwelt as we say in German.
Now you could say it is up to each person, if they want to take part in this or not. Considering especially young people, will fall into the peer pressure category.
They do what is ‘IN’ now. What the majority of their peers are doing.
There is no reality check police on social media. Everything and all goes and is published with the tab of a button. Just like there are no fact checkers for a big number of news outlets.
For many teenagers or people in general, this means: Whatever is being presented to them on Social Media, is real as far as they are concerned. They carry their phone around at all times.
Nothing else matters anymore. This is where ALL their attention is going. A like = a short feel good moment. And it is a trap. They are being deprived of real human connection.
No big social media app company wants to take responsibility (they only want to take your data) for screwing up these young lives but in my opinion (and this is an opinion piece), this is exactly what they are doing.
They keep us on these screens for the ad dollars.
There was an article about app developers that are being sent to seminars by their companies, teaching them how to manipulate people to keep their eyes on their phone for as many hours in a day as possible.
A girl checking her phone to see how many likes
she got for her latest selfie on instagram
Before the pandemic I have also noticed, so many people being on their phone during work in restaurants, at museums, the airport, the store. They did not pay attention to their job or duties. This addiction is a pandemic in itself.
We only have the timeframe that is given to us in our lifetime. Valuable time for real life experiences and the people around us, to connect and be there for each other. 5 senses have been given to us. We are social creatures.
On top of Social Media addiction which was already bad before, we are now isolated because of covid. A like gives you a dose of dopamine, a short moment of joy. You want more so you go back and stare at your phone.
We used to get tons of dopamine by interacting with other humans in real life.
Sorry guys it is nothing personal. Just an example.
Personally, I have quit my instagram at the end of 2018. If you check on my posts, for me it was like a photo diary of my Canada time and I wanted to document things I encountered and the good parts of it.
Also because I knew absolutely no one when I moved to Toronto in 2017. Maybe at that time it was a potential tool to connect. The officer at immigration said: 'So you are just going to wing it?' I was like: I guess so..
It is easy for some parents to give their kids a phone or tablet to keep them entertained for a while. But in the long-run at what cost? What is the psychological impact? Studies have not been concluded but the impact is obvious.
Young child observing popular people on instagram = role models
The problem is, there are not that many alternatives. Especially in 2020 when we were encouraged to not leave the house at all because of the pandemic. Eyes on the screen at all times.
Social Media seemed like a quick fix. A way to connect?
Even back in my teenage years there was not much to do in our small hometown. No places to meet, productive things to do. I think our cities and states are failing young people since decades.
If you give them places to meet, things to do in a group, activities or creative projects, they will not only learn, they will also bond with people and connect in real life.
Where is all that tax payer money they collect and why is it not being spent on improving the lives of young people? They need options! They need a chance. A way to discover their interests, talents and abilities.
And yes, in the beginning (10 years ago?) Social Media was this exciting new thing. It was fun to see where your friends are, what they are doing in that moment or discover new people. But what has it become?
Just another advertising platform, sprinkling in some photoshopped images of success and perfection to make you feel inadequate. Bombarding you with fakery - and all the things you are NOT - all day long.
To make you feel so bad so you buy all the stuff they suggest to make you feel better. That is the concept. And IT PAYS. BIG TIME. They are thriving based on our suffering.
Especially in a time like this, when we are looking for true meaning and connection, Social Media is not where we will find it.
Or when one of your favorite actors passed away and the only option to react is to 'like' or with a heart LOVE IT. No I don't like that nor do I love it. I feel sad about it. Where is that button?
Or another example, if people do not show up at your birthday party because they already LIKED the fact that it is your birthday online. And that's done. Don't you feel so loved? (talking about pre-covid times)
Sorry but you can't outsource human contact. A phone notification is not a substitute for a hug or kiss.
Or as Brightside.me put it: 'Psychotherapists are convinced that people create emotional bonds with their devices, which is unhealthy and leads to various problems in relationships. If you want to have a healthy relationship, keep in mind that hugs, kisses, touches and presents can not be replaced with digital communication.'
👿
Spending your life on a screen is like living in theory. Not actually living.
As you can see, instagram has now become something like a public version of Tinder. With thousands of people staring blankly into nothing. Documenting their own loneliness.
Until a certain point, I was no exception until I realized, where this is going. That this is harmful to me, my well being and my psychology. I took back my life to where it belongs, privacy. Occasional travel post on this Blog! :)
Trends are as old as time itself. Everyone wants to have the latest gadget, wants to take part in the new thing that everyone else is doing. What if it is our only option to connect at all in covid times..
Well you still have whatsapp to keep in touch with people. To me this one is not a social media app. Even though Facebook bought it, like everything else - to find out what YOU are up to!
But can we for a moment, just stop, take a step back and ask ourselves if Social Media apps and spies like Alexa are improving our lives or if they are actually making things worse by isolating = hurting us?
It is on ourselves to create a different lifestyle. To put the phone and tablet down. Despite of what the masses are doing. So what if I am not cool, if I don't use them. I'd rather be uncool and have a better life quality instead.
Marisa Peer on 'How to break your Social Media addiction'
Thanks to these apps, we now have the attention span of a hamster. We get unregulated news and falsified images around the clock. We can not focus and are easily distracted. What was I saying..
This is how clearly I see it in my age range. Now imagine what this time that we are currently living in, feels like for a teenager who is just starting to navigate life. It is not an easy task.
You decide how you spend your (life)time
Yes go ahead and share this anti-social media post on social media, using these buttons that just showed up now and can not be removed.
Hello dear readers! Welcome back. This adorable little saw-whet baby owl, was found in the Norwegian spruce that was chopped down in upstate NYC to become this years Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. The baby owl reportedly traveled to the city center inside the tree for 2 days and a total of about 170 miles. After it was found by the tree workers, it was taken in by nonprofit rescue Ravensbeard Wildlife Center, where it received food and fluids to recover. Once at the new place, the cute little fellow (plot twist: turns out it is a girl!) received the name 'Rockefeller' and will be released back into the wild shortly, after being checked out by a vet.
In other news: After the unveiling of this years Christmas decoration highlight in the city center of NYC, people already joked about it on Twitter, saying this tree represents 2020 perfectly. Just because the tree looked 'a little exhausted'.. But the tree did not want to take that lying down, defending itself via the Rockefeller Center Twitter account saying: 'Wow, you all must look great right after a two-day drive, huh? Just wait until I get my lights on! See you on December 2nd.' Ok, we will have a look. 🎄
