Day 362 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises STONE BUILDINGS I carry a little stone in my pocket. I picked it up on a beach in Ireland. Every day, it reminds me to build something, never to hurt anyone and be thankful for all that I have. My little stone will still be here long after I am gone, in everything I’ve created, So, I keep this little stone in my pocket, as a gift from the world to be given back to the world. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. What are your three daily reminders for yourself? 2. I use a little stone as a way of remembering these. What do you use? Day 361 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises INTERGENERATIONAL LEARNING Always speak well of older people for they have made a journey beyond all your understanding. And in due course, I hope, that you too, will come to see what they already know. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. How do you speak well of older people? 2. What is it that older people already know about the journey of life? 3. When will you sit down and ask them? Day 360 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises FUEL GUAGE They don’t tell you that every day is not the same. That we have good days, and not so good days. We are meant to work at full performance all the time, but life isn’t like that. They don’t tell you that there will be good times, and bad times. All times are not the same. We are meant to be at our best all the time, but life isn’t like that There are peaks and troughs, ups and downs, times when we work on full power, and times when our tank is nearly empty. So, remember, when you meet with others, that one of you might be low on fuel. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. What does your fuel gauge say at the moment? Are you looking after yourself? 2. What about others? Do you know anyone who needs some fuel? How can you help them? Day 359 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises COLLABORATIVE EDUCATION We have schools that are largely empty of students after 4pm each day. We have schools that are largely empty every Saturday, Sunday and school holidays. Surely, we can use these resources better to support the complete personal development of our young people? Collaborative education includes all aspect of personal development including individual creativity, sports, sustainability for our planet, healthy eating, wellbeing, income generation, relationship building, personal projects, music, gaming, interpersonal skills, starting a business, global events, personal care, volunteering, project management, confidence and public speaking, tackling poverty, arts, drama, team-working, kindness, local community initiatives, home finance, fair trade, leadership, website development, etc. There is a whole new fabric to be created here! So, can we encourage and help our young people to work together more, to take greater ownership of their future and become changemakers? Can we enable them to be the architects and partners of an education process that includes and promotes all students? All of us can support a Collaborative Education process in a direct hands-on way. We can share our ideas, workplaces, projects and experience with young people. This is about active engagement and participation by all of us and seeing young people as partners not subjects in this process. Individuals within Businesses, Community groups, Public Sector bodies, and Charities all have key roles to play here. Teachers and Parents can be the champions at the heart of this new collaboration and ensure we are meeting the needs of all children. Older people and recent graduates can share their wisdom and experience. They can help to explore areas of interest, crazy ideas and the dreams of youth. They can support those who are struggling. This is intergenerational learning with a local, national and international focus. It about our role in life and our place in the world. Our school-based education system needs to become a collaborative, joined-up, community-based, personal development and support framework for young people. We need to move from 19th century schoolrooms to 21st century engagement and empowerment. Collaborative Education is a process where everyone can participate, work in teams, contribute and share their skills, online and in person, to help our next generation. We have the buildings. We have the students. We have the expertise. We have the technology. We have the time. Collaborative Education brings it all, and all of us, together. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. What role will you play in Collaborative Education? 2. How can you begin to play your part from now? Day 358 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises THE GOOD NEWS The Good News is an understanding and an awareness of who we truly are. We are love and we are loved. This love can never die. Jesus overcame death by rising from the dead to show us this, so that we would believe in ourselves. So, the Good News is an ongoing call to believe in the goodness of yourself. It’s about you recognising that you are a loving person and a giver of love. You also make sacrifices for love and in turn, you too, will go beyond death and live forever. The Good News is the gift of eternal love that asks nothing of you but to believe in yourself. With this understanding and self awareness you can do amazing work in helping others and in creating a kinder world. These are the fruits of the Good News, the love that is each of us and the reason that we are here. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. How do you show love? List 5 examples 2. How do others show you love? List 5 examples 3. What could you do today to help others ? Day 357 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises WORKPIECES Over the last thirty years we have moved from Lifelong jobs to Portfolio working to Workpieces. Our Workpieces are the way that we use our time. We do freelancing, we sell online, we create and make, we have part-time jobs, and we do ad-hoc work. Some of our workpieces pay us money and some don’t - like minding our kids, home-schooling, helping others, or looking after an elderly relative. But everything that we do is a workpiece, including social media, watching sport or the latest box set! They are all the ways we use our time, at whatever age we are, and whatever our situation. Workpieces are proactive rather than just reactive. They call on us to unleash our skills, experience, knowledge and passions to explore and be more. To do what we really want to do. Homeworking has now taken us out of the office. Couples manage their workpieces and income based on their needs and plans. Individually and collectively, we are taking more control of all that we do. As our lives change and develop, we need to constantly re-evaluate and re-balance our workpieces as best we can, not just for income, but as the framework of our overall health, wellbeing and life development strategy. Our workpieces can help us to achieve and become all that is important to us. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. Write down all of your workpieces. 2. Which workpieces that you would like to see, are missing? 3. Which workpieces would you like to change? Day 356 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises DYNAMIC INTERPLAY We sometimes think of love as not the most practical of things. We see love as an emotional connection or something we need more of in the world. But love is real within each of us, in every moment, as our inspiration, our guide, our teacher, our helper, our personal assistant and our friend. Love sits within us and with us, as a dynamic interplay that gives us ideas and direction, comfort us and keeps us safe. It is a priceless resource that is available and working for us, in every moment of our lives Love is our personal group of experts, our own support network and our team of freelancers, all working tirelessly for us. But often they work in the dark, for we do not actively engage with all the resources and expertise at our disposal. And because love is given to us freely, it is easy for us not to value it, in the ordinary and mundane activities of life. Yet love is there, in our lives, our work, our relationships, our family and in all that we are. So, talk to your team every day. Listen to them. Tell them all that you need. They are excited to be working with you, in this ongoing dynamic interplay that is your amazing life. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. How can you develop your dynamic interplay with love? 2. When do you talk, listen and tell love what you need? Day 355 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises WITHIN AND WITHOUT There is something too deep for words that is part of us. There is something too deep for thoughts that is part of us. There is something too gentle for words that is all around us. There is something too gentle for thoughts that is all around us. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. What is too deep for words or thoughts that is part of you? 2. What is too gentle for words or thoughts that is all around you? Day 354 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises FACTORY RESET When we are born we consist only of love, goodness and trust. We give ourselves totally to those around us. For we have no choice. As we grow, we develop our own personality and ego. We make our own choices. We meet our own needs first, often forgetting those around us. We can however, press our factory reset button at any time. We can become love goodness and trust again. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. How can you become closer to your original self - full of love, goodness and trust? 2. What is it in life, that takes you away from what you want to be? Is there a way to reset who you are? Day 353 of Des McCabe's Personal Development Exercises WHAT IS ENOUGH? The greatest privilege is to be alive today. And that is enough. The greatest gift you will ever receive is today. And that is enough. The greatest that you will ever be is today. And that is more than enough. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT EXERCISE 1. What will you do with the wonderful gift that is today? 2. When will you say 'I have enough'? |
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June 2021
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