Telling stories to Learn

I enjoyed playing the game Articulate the second time. The first time I just could not articulate the word ;'writing'. Although simple and clear in my mind I struggled to describe it outloud. And I reflected on why I did so badly and it was because I wasn't confident with expressing things in their most simple and natural form- things had to be complicated to be right. And that proves to be wrong. Things should be said in simple terms and I think that this applys to writing and articulating your story.

I am very new to all this and you can tell. I change my stance during the post, I get confused then I pick up the courage to say something bold then I shy back in regret. But I have been trying to be bold lately because I still strive to create a post once in a while to help me tell a story. Everyone has a story to tell and we connect and learn through stories. 

So excuse me while I find my voice.
I'm just trying to articulate myself through writing because I believe it helps me to learn. Even though I stumble on my arguments sometimes I'll always build up the courage tell  my story.

Frugal not Minimalistic

When I was comfortably employed I neglected to notice the term 'frugal'. It sounds sort of weird too- 'FRU-GUL'.

Side note: The EmbedPlus site does the word justice. The site is stepping up from traditional dictionaries and providing a platform where the user searches a word, hears the pronunciation and then watch it in a real situation on youtube. A fantastic learning tool, and should get noticed as soon as possible.

Frugulity is defined as "the tendency to acquire goods and services in a restrained manner, and resourceful use of already owned economic goods and services, to achieve a longer term goal". Being frugal is simply making smart economical choices. Althought the term can intersect with minimalism, the words shouldnt be confused as being the same thing. Adopting a minimalistic lifestyle is require many changes, while being frugal is adopting a attitute change focuced on financial goals. I've adopted only 2 things to teach myself about frugality, and at the moment it is all I need to be in control of my financial circumstances.

In midst of self employment, I finally understand to appreciate being resourceful and economical. My financial insecurities were peeping their ugly head and without a plan there will be tears.
To stretch the dollar I tried the following things:

1. Got on Ebay.
The process of selling on Ebay was a great learning experience. You pay a small sellers fee, but the support is great. It teaches you to think about profit considering postage, how to write to create interest for your product, taking the right photo angles to make your shoes look the best they can. So far I have not made a sale but I'm optimistic- you gotta be in it to win it.
With reference to the quote above, selling things on eBay is 'resourceful use of already owned economic goods ..for long term goal'.

2. Be a Purposeful Buyer
There are two stages which I have been implementing recently and have learnt to do it reasonably well. At first  I asked myself the following questions:
Q1.'Do you really need it?' and
Q2. 'What can it do for me ?'.

Later on I refined the questions. These questions allow you to match your needs with the purpose of the product. No match, No buy. 
New Q1 :'Can i survive without this product?'
NewQ2 : What can it do for me today?' .

The difference in these questions really does make a huge difference. The first forces you to access your needs based on survival, and yes, most likely I will be fine without a new pair of shoes. I'll just end up selling them on Ebay in two weeks when I get desperate for more survival needs, such as food !
The second question forces you to consider immediate needs -addressing your needs today.

Minimalism  is a big merging trend at the moment and Leo Babauta creator of  Zenhabits, talks about 'finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives'. Zen habits talks about some big idea in uncomplicating your life, however I've noticed that doing so can be somewhat  boring. So currently I'm only being frugal as a solution to my financial situation- and not getting too involved with the mimimalism hype. I might take interest in it when im older, but now I'm embracing the whirlwinds of technology and the dramatically busy city life - I  may even be overwhelmed by it- but its too early for the minimalistic lifestyle.

How to make a lightbox

DIY projects are great because they allow you to be creative and resourceful. Doing things yourself will let you to make mistakes then solve them. If you have some spare time, take a look around to see if anything can be improved through DIY. Undertaking little projects always give me a real buzz and I am excited to be able to post, how to make a DIY lightbox.

Note: Especially in unsteady economical times, doing DIY projects saves money without compromising the results. This post is an addition to my notes on being frugal - introduces ways to be  resourceful and get around spending unnecessary expenses.

This light box can help you to take more professional looking photos of small objects, by providing the right amount of lighting to aid with focus as well as eliminating background light interference.

Gather the following tools:

• Stanley knife
• Scissors
• Glue stick
• Ruler
• Masking tape

To get started you will need the following materials:

3 pieces of A4 paper. Don't worry about getting a quality paper, it should be thin and opaque to filter the light.

3 pieces of A3 paper

A cardboard box approximately 30cm x 30cm x 35cm.

2 table lamps.

1 clip light

For the best results use light bulbs that imitate natural light. These are call 'full-spectrum' lights.

Instructions: 

1.  If the cardboard box has a lid, remove the lid with a standley knife. Position the box like the image above.

2. To cut out the openings, draw a guideline on the side of the box with the following measurement:

width: 20cm and height: 25m. Using a standley knife carefully follow the guide to cut of the cardboard.

3. Cut outs are done on the left, top and right sides of the box.

4. Place a sheet of A4 paper over the cut out openings and tape the paper in place with masking tape.

5. Line the bottom of the bottom and back of the box with A3 paper. Make sure you cover all gaps to avoid them showing in your photos.

6. To set up the light box, place the box in an area that has moderate amount of natural light.

Here I have used a scent holder to position the clip lamp - be resourceful to find a way that works for you.

7. Place the box between the two table lamps, directing the light to shine through the A4 paper area. The A4 paper will filter this light to diffuse it and prevent shadows and reflection.

8. Position the clip lamp above the box, directing the light to shine through the A4 paper area.

9. Place a small object inside the box, and shoot from the front with your flash off. 

10. For the best results adjust the position of the lamps depending on the amount of light required. 

Do this by playing around with the lighting according to your environment. If you are shooting where that is limited natural light, place the lamps closer to the paper to increase the light that filters through.

Here are some shots that I captured inside my light box. I was extremely pleased with the clarity and sharpness of these photos. For the shoot I used the Nikon D3100 camera. Which I might add is a gem, perfect for entry level shooting.

Hope this post is helpful.

Instant gratification from Multitasking

I was talking with friends about the capabilities of their mobile phones and was asked:
Does your phone multitask? Can you read your emails while making a tweet?


Some people are very passionate about this, they stress that  its very important  for a phone to multitask so it does not lag when you open another app while waiting for another to load. With technology at our dispense, we are able to do more things at the same time to gain instant results. This is known as instant gratification- the inability to delay the pleasure from what he or she wants. With the powerful pull from social media platforms,instant gratification has affected us all. It influences us to instantly act on the urges to be involved in celebrity drama and be well connected on Facebook. 
Example sayings from someone with poor impulse control or high need of instant gratification are;
I want the information now!
I can't wait 4 seconds, this website has lost my business.
I'll multitask and open another 2 tabs to Google the weather and find out what Kim kardashian is doing. 


"Instant gratification is not soon enough" - Meryl Streep 
Not soon enough leads to us doing more things at the same time to save time. This has lead us to being a generation of multitaskers. Multitasking was once seen a valuable skill, but science is merging to prove the brain struggles to multitask. In his book Brain Rules, molecular scientist Dr John Medina states that 'the brain can not multitask'. This raises some social concerns about the culture of instant gratification. 

This culture influences the workplace and education systems to adopt multitasking, and even hails it as a solution to a time poor situations. However, there should be consideration of the science that is proving multitasking to be ineffective and even damaging to the brain. Todd Oppenheimer a journalist and the author of The Flickering Mind, talks about how the Multitasking Mentality  can impair the brain to ' superficially process' tasks. This means that while you are constantly task switching, you do them mindlessly without focus or a directed result.  


Multitasking = more time.

To be exact,.Dr John Medina confirms that it takes four times longer to complete a task when it is interrupted. 

When I look at my little Huewai IDEOS (cheapest android phone on the market) Im glad that it can't handle rigorous multitasking. This curbs my urges for a media fix, and teaches me appreciate the benefits of delayed gratification - also known as patience and self control. This unlike mindless multitasking can also be adopted into how I complete tasks at work.


While writing this blog post, I observed the way I work and  notice that I am a flustered mulitasker, who is easily distracted.  This blog post took me 2 weeks to finish because I was overwhelming myself by opening 8 tabs in the browser every time I got started.


So next time when you catch googling, facebooking and chatting while in a lecture - cut down on your tasks and save time and your brain. Seriously  your mental health depends on it.

Bomb Dives

It took 4 days after new years day for me to sit down, clear my desk and start writing. Having the initiative to do something for the first time is always truly the hardest. It's hard because you dipping you toes into cold water, unknown of it's depth and whether you will like the feeling. You assess your surroundings to see if its safe, appropriate and worthwhile.

I have been thinking long and hard about taking my first step into web freelancing. Before jumping in I took notes and researched associated risks:

Will I be safe? 
Mostly likely I will not kill myself whilst undertaking projects. However there is consideration of stress on the mind, body and bank account.

The web freelancing industry is definitely growing , with graduates breaking away from traditional employment  while others join as web companies down-size staff. This observation shows a fair deal of competition that can affect financial stability. However the challenges of a competitive market, forces for new strategies and innovation. Im hoping to reduce stress by focusing on business and marketing efforts- especially in the social media arena and networking for win-win business relationships with bigger web companies.

Appropriate?
Yes. Considering the amount of accumulated HECS fees, it is very appropriate to launch into something that I have dedicated so much time and money for. Doing web design caters to my strengths that I have been honing through gaining my pieces of paper.

Worthwhile?
Worth a great deal because the lifestyle of a  freelancer offers me the freedom and independence that I crave. This may prove to be a naive plan,  but the appeal of self employment always manages to creep back and tempts me with all its risk taking and challenges. Watching myself adapt to these changes (and taking notes of how I stay afloat and survive in the business) is worthwhile.

My conclusion is to do a massive bomb dive into this pool, make the biggest splash I can. Why? because its 2012, its summer and the sooner the start-up the more time I have to fail, get myself up and try again.