06.02.10
Posted in Humor~Events, Humor~Health & Goals, Humor~In The News, www.yourshiningexample.com at 2:34 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
Think winning is all about being fierce, mean, overpowering, and ruthless?
Think again!
One of the students at my school just won the state javelin competition. That’s an astounding accomplishment in itself. But what was more intruguing is what he said about winning.
He didn’t expect to win. He only hoped for 8th or 9th place. He thought the current record holder would win anyway, so he just planned on having a good time and doing his best.
In such a relaxed mind-milieu he did his best. And set a new state record for the event!
This strategy completely flouts the positive-thinking, “I’m the best” advice we’ve been taught to embrace. Sure, that kind of thinking can boost your self-esteem. Until someone comes along who is better than you, faster, brighter, taller, prettier, or wealthier, or, etc. You get the idea.
It’s a very tenuous existence. Because we stop being OUR best, and we start being THEIR best.
And then we can’t get into the mind-set of the javelin champ.
What if we’d go into every situation aiming for 8th or 9th place.
The pressure’s off.
We can relax, maybe even have fun.
And maybe even win~
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06.01.10
Posted in Humor~Events, Humor~Health & Goals, Humor~In The News, Humor~Inspirational, Humor~Research at 10:54 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
Ready to supercharge your year? Yes, I realize we’re halfway into it already but it’s never too late to start. Or too late to laugh. Here’s part of my article for Dr. Nancy Mramor’s Happiness Project, Have the Happiest Year of Your Life. To read the rest of the article, just sign up for Dr. Nancy’s e-zine series. It’s that simple! Each month you’ll get a power-packed issue to keep you on track.
Here we go:
Change is Painful but Humor Can Help!
By Trina Hess, D.Ed. Author, Humorist Speaker
Everyone hates change. It’s painful, unpleasant and not much fun. But if we look at change through the lens of humor, we can transform it into something tremendous and terrific. We can feel more in control over our lives and what happens to us.
Humor, laughter, smiling - they all help improve our health and well-being. They can be equally useful and powerful when we’re going through transition situations like job changes, relationship changes, aging, and any surprise changes in our lives. The great news is that we can harness humor to heal our hurts, and make us a harbinger of a healthier harvest of happiness.
The benefits of humor aren’t just to make us happier, though. There are specific physical responses that happen when we laugh. Our blood pressure lowers. Our breathing improves (once we stop laughing and catch our breath). Our resting heart rate slows, and we get an increase in killer T-cells. There are even chemical reactions that occur in the brain when we see, hear, or even anticipate something funny.
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05.31.10
Posted in Comedy Around The World, Humor~Business, Humor~Events, Humor~Health & Goals, Humor~In The News, Humor~Inspirational, www.yourshiningexample.com at 4:14 am by Dr. Trina Hess
Today’s Comedy Around the World goes to Athens, Greece. Home of the first ever marathon race, 26.2 miles.
When I signed up to run the race with the Leukemia Society’s Team in Training marathon fund-raising program, I pictured a big party. After all, that year marked the 100th anniversary of the running from Marathon into Athens during the war. The runner died at the end, but that was beside the point. This would be a big party! Lots of excitement! History, athletics, fun!
Was I ever wrong.
That race taught me a lot. From that fiasco I got:
1. A crash-course in perceptions. What was marketed as a majestic event was in reality a tragic disaster. Note to self: The Greek people are not into fitness or—apparently history, either. At least not the kind of history that involves fitness activities. Another note to self: it’s very, very bad to run a marathon in 80+ degree (F) heat with little water, and completely on pavement. Especially when all your training was done on the soft, snow-packed roads of rural Western Pennsylvania.
2. A better way to train. The guest speaker for our pre-race workshop was Jeff Galloway. He gave us his training regimen. I followed it in the next marathon I ran, in Anchorage. It was my most enjoyable marathon ever. If indeed there can be such a thing as an enjoyable marathon.
3. To trust that people will pull together and create a fun or at least a manageable event, even in times of crisis. As those of us in the back-of-the-pack clamored for water in the sweltering heat, sometimes picking up discarded bottles along the road, a funny thing happened. People who had intact bottles of water were sharing it with strangers. Runners noticed the other runners who were distressed and shared their water from their backpacks. Everyone was in pain, but some still found the strength to care for the others left behind. It was an amazing thing to see and a scene I will always remember.
4. What works for one sector, faction, or business may not work for yours. Like I mentioned in 1., the Greek people weren’t all that excited about this race. At least not by the time my fragmented body wandered into the finish area in downtown Athens, which was—ironically enough—in the Olympic stadium. I realized I may have been reliving the death scene that occurred at the end of the original marathon. There was no parade hailing me to the finish line. Instead, I had to wend my way around rush-hour traffic that had smog that was unbearable. I didn’t know which was more dangerous, breathing the smog or holding my breath.
5. Look at all the aspects, all sides of the issue. If I would have done my research, I could have known that Athens would be quiet that day. That I would have to motivate myself, rather than rely on the kindness of Greek strangers. I would have found out the race course, and that it included absolutely no grass or snow or other soft surfaces. I would have known that the water was only rationed according to your own tour group. There’s nothing like seeing an oasis of water bottles and dragging yourself there only to find out that it’s for another charity group, not yours. Had that group been less rigid and inflexible, they would have saved several of us runners from heat exhaustion.
Your “100th Anniversary” celebration is your way of creating a humorous atmosphere. Make sure the celebration that others join is the same one you’ve envisioned. And bring enough water for everyone! to others as you;re picturing it for yourself?
Inflexibility, inefficient facts,
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05.04.10
Posted in Humor~Events, Humor~Health & Goals, Humor~In The News, Humor~Inspirational at 1:38 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
Today marks the 40th annivarsary of the shootings at Kent State. That defining event showed has risky it can be to speak your mind. And how dangerous a misunderstanding can be.
When I was about ten years old, I rode with my family to Kent, Ohio. We picked up my grandma’s cousin who lived near Kent and she gave us the official tour. Pointed out where the shootings occurred. I didn’t understand what she was talking about. I hadn’t paid attention to the news. But now I realize that just like humor can occur anywhere, so can events like the Kent State Massacre.
There was likely no humor on May 4th, 1970. Nothing to laugh about. But humor could have prevented disaster, altered history, and brought more of a win-win resolution.
The lack of humor in the Kent State Massacre showed us some things:
How to Not Express Your Opinions The demonstrators were overtaken by emotion. So were the National Guardsmen. Both lost.
How to Not Take Yourself (or Your Side) So Seriously Emotions drove actions, to the detriment of both sides. Seriousness prevented either side from even considering another side’s point of view. Both lost.
How to Never Achieve a Win-Win The heaviness of both sides’ views weighted them to their respective sides. There may have been little they had in common. But without advancing toward the other’s perspective, no progress was made. Both lost.
Having a sense of humor isn’t a panacea. Times of distress, danger and destruction make humor especially hard to find. But it’s exactly humor that can whip us into attention and broaden our range of actions.
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04.05.10
Posted in Comedy Around The World, Humor~In The News at 4:00 am by Dr. Trina Hess
This week’s Comedy Around the World goes to Germany for their Carneval festival. I just read about a controversy involving this festive and joke-filled holiday. “Parody and mockery are part of its tradition,” said Matthias von der Bank, a historian from Cologne’s Carnival Museum, “but it wasn’t satire like we have today. In the Middle Ages, carnival was a festival of reverse worlds and a playful expression of this,” von der Bank said. “So Christian symbols, for example, were turned upside down.”
The recent controversy stems from jokes that were made about certain religious leaders in the German culture.
Some people defended the humor, saying that is the purpose of the Carneval–to allow freedom of expression, and a chance to air one’s truth. One person said, “People have to be able to handle satire. This satire can and should also be directed against the church or political topics. In the case of cabaret or satire, people have to be able to take it. It is part of our culture.”
Others, though, said that the jokes went too far. That religious leaders and ideals, especially, were immune to any sort of humor-mongering. “Our philosophy is that Carnival should be fun and friendly,” said Sigrid Krebs, spokeswoman for the city’s carnival committee.
What do YOU say? How far IS too far? How do we honor our humorous nature while still residing in a sometimes non-humorous world?
Share your opinions here on the blog or on my Facebook Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/trinacomedy
or at trina@yourshiningexample.com
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03.31.10
Posted in Humor~Business, Humor~Health & Goals, Humor~In The News, Humor~Social Media at 6:36 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
“You have to write an e-book!” That’s what most everyone has told me. But there is someone who thinks differently about this: Eoin Purcell, of the blog PublishingPerspectives.
http://publishingperspectives.com/?p=13674
He writes that it doesn’t matter which form of media you use. E-books are good, they are popular. But they–like all great ideas–will become obsolete.
If we focus too intensely on the vehicle, we won’t know when it’s time to get on the road. So to speak.
Instead, he advises that we focus not on all the thousands of devices and new technologies that are birthed every day. No—we only need to do 2 things. Focus on the message and on the relationships.
That’s it. Those are the only universal constants in this sea of techno-change that we are swimming, floundering, or drowning in.
This is great news! Because I missed the whole blue-ray DVD genre. I can’t even tell you who won the formatting wars. And all I know about my computer is that it is beige.
But it doesn’t matter. We don’t need to be cutting-edge in order to succeed in this world. We just need to be willing to do these few things:
1. Learn
2. Share
3. Connect
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03.24.10
Posted in Humor~In The News, Humor~Inspirational at 12:19 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
Facebook Fan Page readers: To read the ‘rest of the story’, please click this link: http://yourshiningexample.com/wp-blog
Pelosi think’s it’s a brilliant idea! Many people think it’s a horrendous idea! The Palestinians want their land back! Schools need more money! Taxes are too high! Municipalities need more money!
Everyone has their angle. They know what they need. And they are solidly on
their side.
We make a mistake when we think that by talking louder and getting angrier, we can change people’s minds. Make them think rationally. Break through their denial and join our side. Then things will be easier.
We do this when we “add” humor, too. Much like “adding” women to studies conducted on men, this strategy doesn’t work. It doesn’t allow us to see the whole picture. We can’t see what’s really going on in the minds and intentions of our adversaries (or those we want to persuade).
But when we really see their needs, intentions, problems, and concerns–then we can start speaking their language. We will know what kinds of topics we can safely joke about. We’ll know their sore spots, the places where they will not budge.
And the paradox is that when we respect the other person’s viewpoint, then they are much more amenable to hearing our side.
What will
you laugh about today?
Whose side have you investigated?
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03.09.10
Posted in Humor~Events, Humor~In The News at 2:42 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
One of the best things I like about being a movie extra is meeting fascinating people. Not only celebrities like Eric Roberts, Donnie Wahlberg, and others. But the every-day people who choose to work 16-hour days for the love of the art.
One of my new friends is William Kania, who I met on the set of the SPIKE TV series, The Kill Point.
This month, he’ll be in the Pittsburgh Opera’s presentation of Carmen. “I would absolutely love it for you all to come and see this show I am in. I am in the entire first act and fourth act as well. It is music that you will all be familiar with. I have a good amount of time on stage, Benedum Center, so if you can spare the time–enjoy an evening out.”
I especially like Bill because he’s the one who took all the pictures of me with Eric Roberts on the set of Shannon’s Rainbow!! :)
http://www.yourshiningexample.com/photo_gallery_1.htm
Here is the link so you can see the times & days of the show.
Welcome to Pittsburgh Opera
http://www.pittsburghopera.org/shows/view/13
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03.08.10
Posted in Humor~Business, Humor~In The News at 1:51 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
http://yourshiningexample.com/wp-blog
“What we’re hearing from employers is that they need a work force that’s broadly prepared, that adapts to changing circumstances, that knows how to work in groups and in teams, that can communicate well, and that has problem solving ability.”
That’s what Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts’ President Mary K. Grant said in an interview with The Berkshire Eagle. Teaching and learning are also being turned upside-down. Grant continues: “It is more about students being able to absorb information, analyze the information, and use it again in different situations.”
Adaptability is the key. The key to conforming to, and then transforming, the current technological climate.
How can humor help us in this goal? Well, with a humorous mindset, we can more easily
*adapt
*problem-solve
*work in teams
*communicate well (a.k.a. The S.H.I.N.E. System of Communication!)
How can I help you reach your work goals? Ask me today!
http://www.fastweb.com/student-news/articles/2119-in-an-evolving-workplace-21st–century-skills-are-paramount?page=1&utm_content=fw_c1_20100302_&utm_source=nlet
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03.02.10
Posted in Humor~Events, Humor~In The News at 8:00 pm by Dr. Trina Hess
http://www.seussville.com/lb/bio.html
Click on the link above to find out more info on Dr. Seuss, whose birthday is today! To honor him and his humorous hi-jinks in the field of literacy and education visit the site. Play some games in the playground. Browse through his many books. And remember him fondly. And thank Dr. Seuss if you can read this all by yourself.
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