Summer time, nice weather, time to enjoy going for a walk, time to enjoy meeting people, time to get up early as the sun seems to wake you up early so you don´t waste the time you can be enjoying doing good things or creating good things.

SIMPLICITY (linked to wikipedia)

I like simple concepts, quotations, words... they attract meanings and evoke memories, emotions, energy...

And then... adding it as an adjective, make a noun very interesting:

Simple life, simple action, simple thought...

And simple can be related to "easy": "take it easy", easy life, easy jet... stress free.

Edward de Bono wrote a very interesting book about Simplicity explaining how important can be the time used to simplify what we do and how much time, energy, money can be saved by not repeating everyday actions that waste it.  So, it is very important to take time to think about how we should do the procedures that we use everyday, as that simplification will have a multiplying effect.

Thinking about creativity, one of my favourite books was published a long time ago (around 1960).  It is a very short and easy book to read and very useful.

Thinking about living a simple life, there are several books written by Elaine St. James, such as "Simplify your life", in which she suggests 100 ideas to simplify your life.

Thinking about teens, I would like to suggest two workbooks.  One is from Sean Covey "The 7 habits of Highly Effective Teens Workbook" and from Carol Topp "Starting a Micro Business"

To finish with books that can suggest "What can I simplify today?", I want to mention some books that I really enjoy, as they are very short and easy to read.  When I came from Spain, these were the type of books that I used to enjoy more..  The author isJohn Bird, founder of "The Big Issue"

I have to mentioned again a book I love from Leo Babauta, author of a famous blog about living with simplicity  http://zenhabits.net/archives/

To finish, some quotations about simplicity:

"That's been one of my mantras - focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains."
Steve Jobs

Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler.
Albert Einstein


If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.
Albert Einstein

There are several books that are very useful when thinking about job hunting, such as "What colour is your parachute?" (Richard N. Bolles) or "How to get a job you´ll love" (John Lees), "Cómo descubrir y explotar sus cualidades" (Pierre Lebel).  Richard N. Bolles has written very interesting books and workbooks, some of them addressed to teens.

I would like to add a link to Paul Parry´s blog, explaining how to find a job doing things different than others.

http://www.twotriangles.net/job-seekers/secret-job-hunting-tips/

I was thinking that it is interesting the meaning of the words attached to job, for example: "job hunting" or "looking for a job".

What type of things to you hunt?  Lions, tigers, elephants...?

What type of things do you look for? Keys, bank cards, papers, transport tickets...?

In my own case, I like calling it "Create and Sell".  I have learnt a lot of things in different type of studies, but at the end, what I am more interested are the things I create, because they contain not only my knowledge, but my experience and motivation.  Besides, I shape them in the way they are more interesting to me.  

For example, when I write a book, I write about something that I enjoy.  At the same time, I think it can fulfill two missions: on one side, it can be sold and I can obtain money for it.  The fact that the books I write are about my favourite topics, the ones I am passionate about, it is a pleasure for me to talk or to write about them, about their benefits (to sell them).  On the other side, whenever you create something, there is a tangible product or service you can show (for example, a book, etc.).  You can have certificates of studies you have done, references of jobs, etc.  but to me, a product you have developed carries your "signature", your personality, your motivation, your real identity and it is something you can show as an ingredient of your CV.

That is why, one interesting way to find information is to look in some websites such as www.amazon.co.uk search for a product that you are interested, for example a book about your favourite topic, identify the name of the author and then visit his/her website, where you can find more information included in the website, articles, blog posts, etc.

Thinking errors:  assumptions, jumping into conclusions, labeling, guessing the future, emotional thinking, self-blame, blame others, discount the positive, etc.

We base our thoughts in things such as knowledge and experience.  The information we use can be based on facts... but also on opinions... so it could be not very accurate to make decisions.

It is interesting to think about the benefits of having access to libraries.  I have always been very fortunate to live close to a library, a place where I can walk around, browsing different topics by curiosity, looking for books to enjoy reading or looking for practical information.

When I used to be a teenager, books used to be my "friends" who used to give me different type of advice.  For many years, books have been a continuous source of ideas for personal and professional development.

What is the current role of the libraries?  Somebody could think that with all the information available in the internet, the libraries are not as necessary as before.  However, the libraries are re-inventing the  value they offer to society.  They provide services for all type of people in society, but not everybody has learnt how many benefits can be obtained from it.

The internet displays a wonderful amount of information available in a very convenient way, especially when you know what you are looking for.  However, a library can provide access to information that you were not even aware that it could exist.  

Today I had an appointment at the City Business Library with Sophie, one of the librarians who was going to show me the resources available at CBL.   

One of the added benefits of a library is that when walking around it, you can remember ideas and areas of interest that maybe were forgotten.  Talking to a librarian is a very interesting experience because when looking for information always there are different ways of approaching it.

Today, Sophie showed me in the City Business Library the different type of publications they have, such as magazines, books, reports, etc. and also the online databases and other information that multiplies the sources of practical information.  

I think it is very important the role of the librarians that make the library accessible to different type of people in society.  "Knowledge is power" and it could happen that the people in society that more could be benefited from the knowledge and services available in libraries are not even aware of them.   Many years ago I used to think that librarians were like people working in a warehouse, whose role was to manage the books and put them back in the shelves.  But when you start thinking about the benefits of the internet, the benefits of knowing how to find information, how to compare products and services, how to find advice, how to find free resources, the possibilities of online networking, etc. you realise the value of a librarian, and the benefits they can provide to society.

We can learn in different ways: courses, books, talking to people and sharing experiences...  One of the benefits of living in London is the many opportunities that exist to network and learn from others.  A librarian, the human face of a library, can contribute to increase the access to the library to the "hard to reach"  members of the public, to increase their motivation.  Training events like the ones organised by the City Business Library or the British Library are great opportunities to start learning about them.

I think it is a great idea for the City Business Library to have this initiative of showing the resources they have, as many people might not be aware of the availability of these resources and the benefits they can provide.

Link:
City Business Library

Today I was invited by David Goody, one of the facilitators in iLab Southend, University of Essex to see their facilities.

As soon as you enter in the iLab, you can feel the benefits of using its facilities:   the different rooms (some surrounded by walls where everything can be used as a whiteboard - including the tables, other with windows where you can see the sea, projectors, anonymous brainstorming software,  etc.).

There are many different activities that can be done, such as playing, building things, role play, music, sound.. and different type of techniques to stimulate creative thinking.

David explained to me the different ways in which businesses can use these facilities, as it is completely flexible, and he can build sessions according to the specific needs of the business and the individuals.

David showed me very good ideas about how to use the venue in Southend, such as for "away days", with the benefits of staff having not only a very innovative session, but also a nice day to enjoy going later for dinner around the beach.

I challenged him (just a bit  :-)) asking him about how they deal with "Groupthink" and the issues that usually occur among staff when doing activities such as brainstorming and I learnt how he deals with all these issues by doing a very good preparation, knowing about the group, their motivations, and choosing the activities that can be more engaging and appropriate.

David also explained to me that one of the benefits of these sessions is that all the ideas are recorded in different ways (depending if they come from the software or from the walls, etc.) and given to the company.

Among the benefits of using the anonymous brainstorming software is that staff can write ideas anonymously, read all the ideas, add other ideas and comments and vote them in many different ways.  David explained to me a very practical way in which ideas can be voted according to two criteria:  how easy to be implemented and how much impact can have.  Using green-amber-red colours ideas can be voted and shortlisted in such a way that it is easy to find out which are the ideas that can be implemented easily and have a high impact, so the benefits of the session can be very quickly obtained, as well as the other ideas that are very important to implement but might need more time and/or resources.

It seems to me that these facilities are a great opportunity for businesses and that they can be used for strategic thinking as well as to ensure innovation, by having periodical sessions in which new products, services, marketing ideas, business models can be generated.


For more information:

http://www.essex.ac.uk/business/facilities/ilab/default.aspx

City Gateway is a charity dedicated to bringing hope to the local communities of Tower Hamlets that haven't benefited from the area’s wider economic development.

Yesterday I attended an event in its Head Office and I was very impressed with the work they are doing.  It is difficult to express how good I felt when listening presentations from  its CEO, Eddie Stride and other members of this FAMILY, expressing the importance of its ethos and its values (Innovation, Ambition and Excellence) in the work they are doing.  Also I had the opportunity to talk to some young people that are benefiting from this projects.

Besides the approachable and friendly style, it was very inspiring to learn about the different projects they do with young people and women and how they are expanding.

I felt attracted by the way the services are built upon its values, such as:

"INNOVATION IN FINDING FRESH, HIGH IMPACT SOLUTIONS"

www.citygateway.org.uk

If tomorrow Christ, will knock at your door,

will you recognise Him?

He will like He was once upon a time,

a poor man, certainly a lonely man.

If tomorrow Christ, will knock at your door,

will you recognise Him?

He will have a worn look,

tired,

crushed as He is

as He must carry

all the sadness of the earth ...



If tomorrow Christ, will knock at your door,

will you recognise Him?

So he will go away,

even more worn, even more crushed,

with peace in His bare hands.

Raoul Follereau



http://english.aifo.it/gen/raoul_follereau/Book_of_love_final_web2013.pdf

http://english.aifo.it/gen/raoul_follereau/atom_bomb_charity.pdf

http://english.aifo.it/gen/raoul_follereau/biography.htm

SI CRISTO, MAÑANA, LLAMASE A TU PUERTA...
Por Raoul Follerau

Si Cristo, mañana, llamase a tu puerta, 
¿lo reconocerías?
Será, como entonces, un hombre pobre, 
ciertamente un hombre solo.
Será, sin duda, un obrero, 
quizá un parado, 
o, incluso, si la huelga es justa, un huelguista.
O tal vez irá ofreciendo pólizas de seguros o aspiradoras...

Subirá escaleras y más escaleras, 
se detendrá sin fin piso tras piso, 
con una sonrisa maravillosa 
en su rostro triste...
Pero tu puerta es tan sombría... 
Además, nadie descubre la sonrisa de las personas
que no quiere recibir. 
“No me interesa”, dirás 
antes de escucharle. 
O bien la criada repetirá como una lección: 
“La señora tiene sus pobres”, 
y de golpe cerrará la puerta 
ante el semblante del Pobre, 
que es el Salvador.

Será, quizá, un prófugo, 
uno de los quince millones de prófugos 
con pasaporte de la 0NU;
uno de esos que a nadie interesan 
y que van errantes, 
errantes por este desierto del mundo; 
uno de esos que deben morir, 
“porque, a fin de cuentas, no se sabe de dónde vienen
las personas de tal calaña...”
O quizá también, en América, 
un negro, 
un triste negro, 
cansado de mendigar un hueco 
en los hoteles de Nueva York,
como entonces, en Belén, 
la Virgen Nuestra Señora....

Si Cristo, mañana, llamase a tu puerta, 
¿lo reconocerías?
Tendrá un aire abatido, 
extenuado.
agobiado como está 
porque debe tomar sobre sí 
todos los dolores de la tierra... 
Y, si le preguntan: 
“¿Qué sabes hacer?”,
Él no puede decir: “Todo”.
“¿De dónde vienes?”, 
no puede responder: “De todas partes”.
“¿Qué pretendes ganar?”,
no puede responder: “A ti”.
Entonces se alejará,
más extenuado, más agobiado, 
con la Paz en sus manos desnudas...