January seems to be the perfect time to try on some truth.  Buckle up and lean in because this work is not for the faint of heart.  In a world that is now socially “perfect” and celebrates a life like Marie Kondo’s organized perfection, it’s easier to avoid, overwork, indulge, spend, game, binge, neglect, OCD clean, micromanage everything else but you.  This side stepping can be easier than the necessary self-work of humaning.   Loving and embracing the average, dark and real is WORK. The un-insta worthy veil needs to be lifted now and again for a little peek.  Create brave and safe space for you to explore your perfect imperfection.  Promise… this time to invest in yourself, question, embrace those nagging truth-aches will be invaluable.  Sit with and allow discomfort, shame, vulnerability and evoke all the feels. Don’t leave this planet only using a few of the emotions… explore them all!!   Only the Brave attempt to do the necessary work of a human being.  TAKE A BREAK FROM  human doing.   We think Brene says its best…

Once you’ve danced to your song a time or two, you give permission to the world to do the same.  If you are curious and hungry for more… Brene has a host of gorgeous resources, and her podcasts are just brilliant.  She is a Brave Leader that promotes truth, rumbles with shame and harnesses a bright light for humans to invite courage thru the walls of vulnerability.  Take Good Self-Care Friends~

Would you have the ability to answer this?

Princeton and Area really shines in this department!!! But… Perhaps this will generate some good hearted conversations and thoughts on some New Years Goals!! Valuable contributions to your Communities have proven enormous benefits for the giver and the receiver.   Think about what you want to contribute to the world…Service by all means is the real work of humans. Evidence
suggests that volunteering has a positive effect on social psychological factors, such as one’s sense of
purpose. In turn, positive social psychological factors are correlated with lower risks of poor physical
health. Volunteering may enhance a person’s social networks to buffer stress and reduce risk of disease.
This connection between volunteering, social psychological factors, and social networks has been captured by what has been termed “social integration theory,” or “role theory,” which holds that an individual’s social connections, typically measured by the number of social roles that an individual has, can provide meaning and purpose to his or her life, while protecting him or her from isolation in difficult periods. However, research also suggests that volunteer activities offer those who serve more than just a social network to provide support and alleviate stress; volunteering also provides individuals with a sense of purpose and life satisfaction.

Here are a few great quotes on Service of others: (thank you Google)

1. “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
2. “The end of all knowledge should be service to others.” – Cesar Chavez
3. “Without service, we would not have a strong quality of life. It’s important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. It’s the way in which we ourselves grow and develop.” – Dorothy Height
4. “Everybody can be great because everybody can serve.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
5. “There are many wonderful things that will never be done if you don’t do them.” – Charles Gill
6. “Leadership is service, not position.” – Tim Fargo
7. “Help others and give something back. I guarantee you will discover that while public service improves the lives and the world around you, its greatest reward is the enrichment and new meaning it will bring your own life.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
8. “Being of service to others is what brings true happiness.” – Marie Osmond
9. “Give your hands to serve, and your hearts to love.” – Mother Teresa
10. “It’s easy to make a buck.  It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.” – Tom Brokaw
11. “The more we give away, the more is given to us.” – Wayne W Dyer
12. “The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.” – Albert Schweitzer
13. “As we lose ourselves in the service of others we discover our own lives and our own happiness.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf
14. “Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.” – Howard Zinn
15. “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.” – Muhammad Ali
16. “Everyone has a purpose in life and a unique talent to give to others. And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our spirit, which is the ultimate goal of all goals.” – Kallam Anji Reddy
17. “Always render more and better service than is expected of you, no matter what your task may be.” – Og Mandino
18. “Service doesn’t have to be big and grandiose to be meaningful and make a difference.” – Cheryl Esplin
19. “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
20. “There is nothing small in the service of God.” – St. Francis De Sales
21. “Earn your success based on service to others, not at the expense of others.” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.
22. “There is incredible value in being of service to others.” – Elizabeth Berg
23. “I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.” – Rabindranath Tagore
24. “You have two hands: One to help yourself, the second to help others.” – Audrey Hepburn
25. “Help the life of one person and you can help the community.” – Steven Sawalich
26. “Some of our finest work comes through service to others.” – Gordon Hinckley
27. “To give real service, you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money.” – Douglas Adams
28. “Love in action is service to the world.” – Lynne Namka
29. “Do some selfless service for people who are in need. Consider the whole picture, not just our little selves.” – Nina Hagen
30. “A life of significance is about serving those who need your gifts, your leadership, your purpose.” – Kevin Hall
31. “If you really want to receive joy and happiness, then serve others with all your heart. Lift their burden, and your own burden will be lighter.” – Ezra Taft Benson
32. “Our rewards in life will always be in direct ratio to our service.” – Earl Nightingale
33. “Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” – Desmond Tutu
34. “He profits most who serves best.” – Arthur F. Sheldon
35. “The thing that lies at the foundation of positive change, the way I see it, is service to a fellow human being.” – Lee Iacocca
36. “Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness – great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.” – Jim Rohn
37. “Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.” – Booker T. Washington
38. “Joy can only be real if people look upon their life as a service and have a definite object in life outside themselves and their personal happiness.” – Leo Tolstoy
39. “All other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy.” – Mahatma Gandhi
40. “You can start right where you stand and apply the habit of going the extra mile by rendering more service and better service than you are now being paid for.” – Napoleon Hill
41. “As far as service goes, it can take the form of a million things. To do service, you don’t have to be a doctor working in the slums for free, or become a social worker. Your position in life and what you do doesn’t matter as much as how you do what you do.” – Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
42. “Service brings satisfaction.” – James Cash Penney
43. “Don’t ever forget that you’re a citizen of this world, and there are things you can do to lift the human spirit – things that are easy, things that are free, things that you can do every day: Civility, respect, kindness, character.” – Aaron Sorkin
44. “Start where you are. Distant fields always look greener, but opportunity lies right where you are. Take advantage of every opportunity of service.” – Robert Collier
45. “It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little – do what you can.” – Sydney Smith
46. “Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you.” – Mother Teresa
47. “I am only one, but I am one.  I cannot do everything, but I can do something.  And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.” – Edward Everett Hale
48. “So long as we love we serve; so long as we are loved by others, I would almost say that we are indispensable; and no person is useless while he has a friend.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
49. “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”- Anne Frank
50.  PUT YOUR OWN QUOTE ON SERVICE HERE: “_______________________________”

Let us help you set the mood with one of our music channels and favorite fires on Youtube…

https://youtu.be/2Ieg3yFcaaw?t=12

Clearly The Princeton SKILLS Centre values

The Future of Jobs Report from the World Economic Forum:-)

WHY??? Well Princeton… it maps the jobs and skills of the future, tracking the pace of change. It aims to shed light on the pandemic-related disruptions in 2020, contextualized within a longer history of economic cycles and the expected outlook for technology adoption, jobs and skills in the next five years.  Below we have selected a few key slides to highlight Emerging Skills for Canada.  We welcome you to our centre to discuss how you may want to pivot or enhance your teams Career skill sets in this ever-changing and rapid-paced Labour Market. 

The entire report can be downloaded in the link at the bottom of our article. 

For the full report click the hyperlink below!

Future of Jobs Report 2020

Originally the word “chasm” was in the place of the word “opening”.  However the more this blog topic developed the realization that the “chasm” created an “opening” became more apparent.  An opening for change, or opening for growth, or opening for accomplishment, lies in that space in between.

Motivation is what causes us to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to reduce thirst or reading a book to gain knowledge or motivation to follow Provincial Health Guidelines to avoid spreading illness, motivation to go to work consistently to avoid discipline…to name a few.

There actually are differing types of motivation as well.  Well documented is motivation that is internally driven (the desire to be more healthy driving the motivation to exercise and eat well), or motivation that is externally driven (your boss telling you to improve your email communications, so you double check the spelling and grammar before hitting the send button).  There are also subsets of motivation:

• Rewards/Incentives – “I want to get (specific reward), so I’m going to do (action).”
• Fear of Consequences –“I want to avoid (bad thing), so I’m going to do (action).”
• Achievement – “I want to achieve (triumph, milestone, award, public recognition), so I’m going to do (action).”
• Growth – “I want to feel like I am continually improving, progressing, moving forward, so I’m going to do (action).”
• Power – “I want to feel strong, powerful and influential, so I’m going to do (action).
• Social factors – “I want to feel a sense of belonging, like I am part of a tribe, coven or community, so I’m going to do (action).”

Tapping into what motivates you can help you get through those things that “have to be done”, but they are less than thrilling to you or to accomplish those big things with big rewards.  Motivation is in play, in every moment, of every day.  It is the small things, and it is the great strides.  It is easy and undetectable, and it is difficult and stretches our character.  Employers discovering the motivations of its employees can aid in designing environments and experiences that will bring the best out of the workforce.  Some members of the workforce do it on their own in nearly all situations, others need the coaching and partnership of a supervisor.  This also will require Employer motivation to engage with and get to know the workforce.

Finding out what your motivators are and then changing the narrative on situations that require your engagement so they align with your motivators can go a long way to helping you achieve your goals.  For example, some people join an exercise class because of the social motivators.  They join and stay in the class, because they like the camaraderie, and that social connection fuels their motivation for the exercise.   What if some people are not motivated by the social connection, is there no motivation to join?  The motivation narrative is different, because they perhaps are motivated by the rewards of improved health, energy and feeling of strength.  Acknowledging the motivator can aid in staying the course.  When there is a temptation to quit, try to connect with the reasons for starting in the first place. 

Need Motivation? Find Your Why

Princeton… Imagine it;  a winter wonderland full of promise, joy and energy?  We know winter can be hard enough on our energy and this year its even more challenging with this Pandemic.  Our area has had an early start to winter- and here’s hoping we can “weather” this winter well.  Think with the end in mind… who do you want to be in a few months?   Coping strategies early can help us after the “magic” of Christmas fades.  Good self-care; nutrition, juicing, blending, sleep, exercise, and laughter are on the top our “favorite things” to gift ourselves as we look Winter straight into her cold eyes.  We agree with Sue Nador, as she writes about the advantage of Light being “life-changing” and we couldn’t agree more Sue!  We are big fans of Light Boxes at the Skills Centre. Sue gives us a few hacks to beat the winter blues and we thought we’d share them with you below. 

Lori Dudley remembers thinking: “I just want to leave on a one-way ticket somewhere and not come back.” At the time, the 53-year-old Ottawa-area resident was experiencing severe fatigue, moodiness and a lack of motivation. The normally driven and energetic healthcare executive eventually recognized a pattern to these symptoms. They would hit her like a ton of bricks in November and abate in the spring. 

Dudley is one of the approximately 20 percent of Canadians dealing with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a form of depression. Makoto Trotter, a naturopathic doctor in Toronto, says SAD occurs on a spectrum. “There’s a lot of people who just feel a little bit blah,” he says. But, like other forms of depression, symptoms can also be much worse.

The good news, as Dudley discovered, is that there are better options than a one-way ticket to nowhere to thrive during the dark days of winter.

1. Light is life-changing

Light therapy, in the form of light boxes and lamps, substantially benefits most users. Trotter explains that these products produce light in the same spectrum as the sun, but without ultraviolet (UV) radiation: “For some people it can be life-changing.” Dudley swears by the HappyLight she uses for 20 minutes a day, placing it at arm’s length on an angle (so she’s not staring into the light) while enjoying a book: “You start feeling lighter. No pun intended.” 

2. Wake-up call

Other light products include dawn-simulator alarm clocks (also known as sunrise alarms or wake-up lights). Rather than being woken by the shrill sound of an alarm on a dark winter morning, these products rouse users gently with light that gets brighter gradually. Research shows our circadian system (the body’s internal clock) responds best to subtle light changes when we’re still asleep, stimulating an anti-depressant response.

3. Your doctor can help

There are also pharmaceutical solutions, such as anti-depressants. Some people try mood-altering natural products, like St. John’s Wort. Trotter cautions that these shouldn’t be taken without medical advice as they can interact with other medications. For one, it can interfere with SSRI antidepressants, such as Prozac.

4. A dose of vitamin D

Lack of sunlight robs us of vitamin D. Trotter says that prolonged deprivation affects bone density and our mood, and increases our risk for autoimmune disease. Canadians can be deficient in vitamin D as a consequence of living in a northern country.

5. Is your lifestyle making you listless? 

Good lifestyle hygiene – diet, exercise, sleep – can also work wonders. Shots of caffeine in the morning because we feel sluggish, and alcohol at night to help us sleep, are not the answer. Trotter advises: “Limit refined carbohydrates and make sure you’re getting lots of protein.” 

6. Tone down the technology

While we may stay under the covers longer when it’s dark outside, it’s important those extra minutes are good-quality sleep. Studies show that using light-emitting devices such as smartphones or tablets in bed suppresses melatonin production, robbing our brains of an important cue to sleep. (Melatonin is a hormone typically produced at night, causing drowsiness and lethargy.)

7. Release the endorphins

Dudley has embraced exercise, breaking the vicious cycle of not exercising because she lacked energy – only to feel even more tired. Now, she walks several kilometres a day with her husband, combining health benefits with quality time. “You feel better about yourself,” she says. It’s no wonder. Trotter says exercise releases endorphins, “the feel-good hormones.”

8. Get ready now

The best way to avoid SAD is to be proactive. Trotter suggests having a plan ready to go by early fall. “Don’t wait too long, because then it can be difficult to get out from under that dark cloud.” Who knows – with the right planning, we may all start to wish those dark winter months were even longer. 

Thanks Sue! 

***Here are few more incredible resources to support your self care: Just click on the links below:

https://www.healthline.com/health/self-care-tips-for-fall-in-quarantine#takeaway

University of Washington’s: Right as Rain

Game Changing Performance- Dark Days of Winter

With the exception of in person “socializing” for now— try to connect via, telephone, email, or video chat 🙂