#QuokkaSelfie - The Best Viral Photos This Week

My #1 reason for going to Australia:

I discovered the #quokkaselfie hashtag today and now nothing else matters.

A photo posted by laurascaz (@laurascaz) on Mar 1, 2015 at 8:21pm PST

Something Simple

My success: Teaching a successful, and hopefully fun, program for BNI members last night.

I appreciate: 1. My husband.  2. Small business owners crazy enough to run their own business. :)  3. My beautiful nieces. 4. Electricity. 5. A warm home.

I appreciate my willingness to continually improve myself.

I want more free time.

Largest ROI: 2 proposals.

I promise to finish those two proposals.

1% Shift: Time Tracking

For My Grandfather

An excerpt from my grandpa's dissertation on Folk Healing & Folklore in Iloilo.

The Fairy House

Manoling, a sixteen year old boy home from an exclusive boarding school in Manila once wandered into the vast orchard behind his parent’s mansion in Isabela, Negros Occidental. He saw a beautiful, colorful bird and followed it, hoping to find its nest somewhere.

He came upon a clearing where some children were playing in the yard of a neat looking cottage surrounded by magnificent blooms, the likes of which he had not seen in his mother’s garden. Being the quiet and shy type, he just watched the children from a distance, the search for the bird forgotten. But the noon day sun proved too hot for the boy and so after a few minutes, he decided to head for home.

 He found his agitated mother waiting for him, visibly irked over his delayed return. It was way past lunchtime and the food on the table had turned cold. While eating, he casually questioned his mom about the neat little cottage with magnificent blooms.

“It seems so strange, Mama. I’ve never been aware that there was a house in that area of our plantation. Was that recently built? Who are those people living there?”

Donya Cristina was astounded and for a while thought her son had simply lost his way in the hacienda. But Manoling was insistent on what he saw. It was only then that she noticed his bloodshot eyes. He did not look too well either and so his mother hastily herded him to his bedroom so he could change his clothes and lie down. By this time the young man was already delirious with fever.

 The hastily summoned family doctor diagnosed his affliction as a case of overexposure to the sun coupled with sore eyes. After three days of medication and bed rest, Manoling was as good as new. But the family driver who was also the neighborhood’s manogbulong(medicine man) cautioned him.

 “Unless they decide to show themselves, tamawos as a general rule dont like being seen by human beings. You could have gone blind  or you could have lost your way… people have been known to wander for days in their own backyard. Avoid returning to the same spot this summer.”

It also seems tamawos can  also possess people. It may enter into the body of  a victim and control his behavior, all his physical senses. The victim may even show extra strength, speak in tongues and show clairvoyancy and other manifestations of the occult. 

From a dissertation presented to the College of Arts and Sciences of UP Diliman, (1980) by Dr. Moises Ponteras.

I remember reading parts of it went to the Philippines. I was in awe that it was over 850 pages, hand-typed! Then the blend of herbal medicine, ghost photos, and witch doctor stories gelled in my imagination.

He'd tease me for knowing more about U.S. history than I did. He praised me when I finished every grain of rice on my plate. (Had to unlearn that lesson, Grandpa!)

I was in awe when he climbed a coconut tree with a machete in his teeth to chop down a fresh coconut.

In college I took a Philippine history course and I interviewed him for an assignment. He told me how when the Japanese invaded the Philippines during WWII, he and a friend sold black market food and supplies along the coast. If they were caught, they would have been killed.

When I married Cory, Grandpa would quiz me on Cory's beliefs. "Is Cory Christian?" I evaded the question with, "His parents went to the Unitarian church." "Well, you can pray for him." "Yes, Grandpa."

Grandpa astounded me again when he completed his goal of translating a book of American hymns to his native dialect.

After a few years of marriage, Grandpa asked me every time I saw him, "When are you having a baby?" and I'd have to wiggle out of that.

And then he stopped asking. Because he stopped remembering.

I am glad you're at peace now. I love you.

Legacy

Grandpa's in hospice. His kidneys have shut down and he has a few short days left.

I know he's lived a wonderful life. I'm reliving my memories of him: hiding from the Japanese and selling black market food to his neighbors from a canoe, getting his Master's degree when he was 40, climbing a coconut tree with a machete in his knife, praising me for finishing all the food on my plate (I know! Saving that for another blog.), teasing me for knowing more about U.S. history than I did (when I was 7).

Again, I don't feel like doing this, but I'll journal anyway because I always feel more centered when I do.

My successes: 
Following up on a lot of tasks on Saturday.  Spending time with my nieces.  Buying the Crayola "make your own paint" set for my niece (and also for me).  Only 1 day left of the 21-Day Primal Challenge.  Great team meeting Monday morning.

Gratitude:

1. My family.
2. Flexibility in my schedule.
3. An incredible team in my business.
4. The 81% increase in revenues this past year.
5. Trust in the process.

First time at a craft store. So much to choose from!

A photo posted by Gail Nott (@gailnott) on Nov 11, 2014 at 1:46pm PST

Gratitude for my Husband:

For being there even when I'm not fully here.

Gratitude for Me:

Always moving forward, even if it's an itsy bitsy, flat on my belly, crawl.

Investment:

Listening to Chris Hardwick's book, The Nerdist Way.  Already got these gems:

• Results include getting paid & getting laid.  Who doesn't want that? :)
• Knowledge is useless if it isn't shared.

Learning & Applying:

Choose a goal & focus on it.  Even if I don't feel like it, still going through my goals & journaling.

Integrity:

Complete ads and plan for clients. Visit Grandpa.

1% Shift:

A little bit at a time.

Snow Break

I started another post, but I'm not ready to publish that one.  I'll try again on that post tomorrow.

For my daily journaling:

Successes

1. Networked with other BNI Directors and a graphic and brand designer.
2. Last-minute promotion and reminders for a client's event.
3. Decided on a niche!  More to come on this one on my business blog.
4. Marketing work for my husband's business, Referral Institute Oakland.
5. Recorded videos to help with team delegation.
6. A fun break at the mall with my sister and her family.

Post by Gail Nott.

Gratitude

1. This weird thing called life.
2. The capabilities to ponder this life.
3. The flexibility to go play in the middle of my day.
4. Meeting nice, fun, inspiring people every day.
5. Time to get stuff done.

Gratitude for My Husband

• His humor, the delicious dinners he makes for me, and just being there for me.

Gratitude for Myself

• Giving myself time to process emotion and life purpose.

Investment

• Record videos for team delegation.

Integrity

• Focus on client projects today.

1% Shift

• Realizing I don't work well shifting from one computer project to another.  Instead I'll stick with personal projects in between computer tasks to give myself a break from the computer.

I Don't Feel Like It

I don't feel like journaling today.  It's Monday, late morning, and I don't think I have any successes to celebrate yet.

I'm disappointed that we had to reschedule our camping trip.  I'm pissed that we didn't plan properly and our tax bill was higher than expected.   And I don't  think I did anything fun yesterday.

Ok, that's off my chest. Enough of the one-person pity party.

Successes:

1. I didn't spend money on something I wanted, but didn't need.
2. Organized my sales pipeline.
3. Organized my desk inbox.
4. Prepared a thorough team agenda & I feel good about empowering my team to take care of the day-to-day operations.
5. Went for a walk with Cory & the pets yesterday.  It's been a while since Cory & I've walked together.

I flipped a file box on a side & turned into a monitor stand/daily inbox.

Gratitude:

1. I get to cancel AT&T. Yay!
2. A tip from my friend Sheila Best, a financial coach, has made it easy to save money for fun.
3. The freedom to set my own schedule.
4. Delicious wine to choose from.
5. Fun clients with interesting businesses that we get to help grow.

Gratitude for my husband:

• Cleaning, organizing & cooking this weekend.

Gratitude for me:

• My focus in improving my business, which in turns grows my clients' businesses.

Investment:

• Watch 2 videos for the Advanced Power Editor (Facebook) class.

Integrity:

• I promise to create the team delegation project.

1% Shift:

• Stick to my planned schedule for today.

The 1% Shift

I came across this article yesterday on habits and improving your life, This Coach Improved Every Tiny Thing by 1 Percent and Here’s What Happened by James Clear.

It reminded me of what I heard in marketing seminar once:  changing the direction of your ship by one percent can bring you to a different continent.

In my daily journal, I'll start tracking that 1% Shift to reach my goals.