“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” - Neale Donald Walsch

Beyond your comfort zone lies what you really want: to grow, change, and live your life with passion. The problem? Getting there requires you to break out of your comfort zone, and going outside your comfort zone is intimidating. As scary as it is, however, pushing through your fear and getting out of your comfort zone is essential for growth.

“Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.” – Brian Tracy

The below guide is a one-week action plan that you can use to break out of your comfort zone. Starting with these small steps will give you the confidence booster you need to eventually take bigger steps out of your comfort zone.

By experiencing success with these small action steps, you will rapidly develop the momentum needed to make a breakthrough.

Follow this action plan for the next 7 days and you will be excited to continue stepping out of your comfort zone!

1. Do a random act of kindness
Is there a better way to start your week by pushing out of your comfort zone to do something kind for a stranger? I think not! Random acts of kindness are awesome. They make another person’s day start off great (and honestly, who doesn’t need a mood booster on Monday morning?). There’s also a benefit to your life. By doing kind hearted things for others and expecting nothing in return (no thanks, no praise, just you quietly doing amazing stuff), you feel great. It’s Monday, grab your caffeine and get out of your bubble… it’s time to break out of your comfort zone and do something thoughtful for a stranger.

Monday’s Breakthrough Tip: Pay for a coffee for the person behind or beside you in line at the Cafe.

2. Startle your taste buds
Coming out of your comfort zone can start in your very own kitchen! You can begin by experimenting with a new spice. Gradually you can progress to trying entirely new foods and perhaps some totally exotic foods. Some you might love, and others not so much, and that’s okay. How will you ever know if you don’t try them? The key is to start playing with different flavors and expand your palate. Instead of mindlessly creating the same boring meals from recipes you’ve used repetitively for years, start experimenting. Try another veggie instead of spinach in your salad or African soup, mix a new refreshing drink or smoothie, or buy some cheese you’ve never heard of (black bomber, anyone?) haha.

Tuesday’s Breakthrough Tip: Use a new spice while cooking dinner.

3. Strike up a conversation
Strike up a conversation with someone you never talk to – either a stranger or an acquaintance. As always, be safe (avoid late-night conversations with strangers in dark alleys). Feeling awkward and not sure what to talk about? Pay them a compliment. Better yet, tell them they are beautiful and you just wanted to say that...AND mean it. Everyone likes that. You never know who you’ll meet; there are likely a lot of amazing people around you every day. Who knows, maybe the person who sits next to you in lecture halls every day will become your new friend.

Wednesday’s Breakthrough Tip: Compliment a stranger.

4. Say I love you
How often do we tell our friends and family members how much we love and appreciate them? I’ll give you the answer – not enough. Life is short, and too often it ends abruptly. Even if your family isn’t overly emotional and doesn’t talk about feelings, get out of your comfort zone and tell your loved ones how much you care about them. It doesn’t matter if your words are written in a letter, sent via Facebook message, Skype, Whatsapp, Snapchat, Or spoken over the phone, or shared in person. Just get your thoughts out of your head and share them with those who are dearest to you.Tell them how their influence in your life has made you who you are today.

Thursday’s Breakthrough Tip: Send a card to a relative stating why you’re thankful for them.

5. Take one baby step
According to author Joseph Epstein, “81 percent of Human beings feel that they have a book in them.” There are hundreds of millions of people who apparently aspire to write. If you’re one of them, start today by setting tiny goals. If you dream to write a book, write 2 sentences today. If you have different aspirations, take a baby step in a different direction. If you want to go back to school, sign up for one class this semester. If you want to eventually run a marathon, set an initial goal of walking 5 minutes. You just need to start putting one foot in front of the other. Looking ahead at your overall big dream may be overwhelming and far out of your comfort zone; breaking it down into small chunks will significantly decrease the intimidation factor.

Friday’s Breakthrough Tip: Consider a big dream you have that is out of your comfort zone. Break it down. Set a tiny starting goal you know you can accomplish and do it today. Repeat this daily.

6. Look for Events
Look through the newspaper and your local community education flyer or scan facebook events. Are there any upcoming events or classes that piqued your interest? Taking a class, even if it’s just a couple hours, can be out of your comfort zone if it’s something completely new to you. By learning a new skill, you just might stumble upon your passion. A friend of mine stepped out of her comfort zone and signed up for a random music class a couple years ago, thinking it would be a fun way to kill a few hours. She absolutely loved it. So much, in fact, that she’s considering decreasing her hours in the healthcare field (she has a masters degree and an excellent career) to spend more time fine tuning her recently discovered musical skills. She started by returning to the studio to take more classes, then began uploading songs she created to family and friends, and now her music is being sold in iTunes.

Saturday’s Breakthrough Tip: Sign up for a school club to learn something new.

7. Unplug
In today’s always “on” society, where we have instant access to all kinds of information, and we’re constantly connected to social media, it can be uncomfortable to turn it off. Yet disconnecting from your phone and internet can spark true connection with others, and give you time to reflect. Many people have a continual “fear of missing out,” and are attached nonstop to electronic devices…but does it really matter if you turn off your social media for a day? Is it seriously important for you to know what your friend from 20 years ago had for breakfast? No, it’s not, but nevertheless, unplugging in today’s world can feel uncomfortable and out of your comfort zone. Developing a habit of unplugging one day per week, as difficult as it can be, can promote mindfulness and true connection with the people who matter most in your life – those that you actually spend time with in real life, not just online.

Sunday’s Breakthrough Tip: Place your phone in a basket on the kitchen counter, where it will stay all day, turned off. Then go out and spend the day doing something fun for a change. Actually talk to someone you haven't talked to in long while. Visit friends physically not through social media, and spend time having fun for the sake of having fun. Don’t take pictures with the intent of posting them on social media. Just be.

Congratulations!

You’ve done it! You’ve officially survived a full week of spending time out of your comfort zone every day. Way to go!

You will do great things if you continue to have the courage to take bigger and bigger steps out of your comfort zone!

*Written by K.U.S.H | c/o Life Hackers
 [Member, SGB Writers Club]

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Let’s talk a bit about Cyprus and all it’s weirdness (…or not). I’ll tell you something about them, nobody ever told them that staring is rude. When I was a kid, it was received wisdom that openly staring at odd balls, weirdoes, crazies, and sick people was a NO NO. It’s a fact of life that has allowed me to get as far as I have in modern society.

Cypriots are completely unaware of this simple rule. In fact, I suspect that young Cypriots are sent to special staring schools where they learn to gawp intently at anything out of the ordinary. If staring were an Olympic sport, the Cypriots would be legendary.

You’re catching on to my general point here. THEY LIKE TO STARE. Apparently shuffling down the road at a snail’s pace is well within the legitimate grounds for Cypriot-style staring. On every normal day, as I wend my way to the shops, you're bound to see people fetching chairs out from their flats and settling down to a protracted staring session.

I've noticed this predilection before, I must admit. When I first came to Cyprus, speaking English in public would cause people to fix their gaze on you as if they expected you to start eating your own leg at any moment. Recently, on the way to an event in a Cypriot village, one woman almost broke her neck in her efforts to stare into the car I was traveling in.

I swear, the other day I saw a blind girl who had been provided with a dog that was specially trained to do her staring for her. The hound fixed me with a beady gaze, its head tilted to one side, as its mistress casually wondered into the path of an oncoming pedestrian. Now, how fcuked up is that???

And if that’s not enough, I've got some real WEIRD neighbors. They moved in some few weeks back. Ok, in my building, there are six flats. I hardly know any of the people living here, I say “hi” when I pass them, but I wouldn't be able to pick them out of a line-up.

But the weirdest thing has just started occurring from my new neighbors. I don’t know who does it, but they ring the door bell before unlocking their own door. That’s right; they come home, ring the bell, with the key in hand, and unlock 10 seconds after ringing. And they seem to get out a lot because it’s almost a constant ringing and unlocking. It’s just weird.

On a another note, winter's upon us. The cold will become unbearable. I wish…I wish I were in some place cozy and warm...if I say that three times, will my wish come true?

-Written by Anonymous for Scanty Gela Blog 'MY STORY' Series...

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“…To be truly satisfied you have to do what you believe is great work and the only way to do what you believe is great work is to love what you do.” ~ Steve Jobs.

I refer to the statement above as the golden rule to going great work(s). The secret here is that once you are doing what you love, then you view it as something meaningful (a great work) and in turn you fill fulfilled, happy and you get to fall in love with life even more.

A two line statement just revealed the secret to doing great work, but most of us will spend our entire lifetime trying to decrypt it’s true meaning and application while it’s quite literal. The truth is that, it’s not easy heeding to the statement and our lack of self awareness, our self deceit and our unwillingness to escape our comfort zones makes it even more difficult.

We tend to always want to follow the trend of going through school, finishing a degree, obtaining a certificate, finding a white collar job, having a little bit of fun and then making our own family. We keep to these daily routines and try not to deviate from them, we want to stick to paths that have been tried and tested and keep up with a mundane schedule of the average human being, at least it’s safer that way, right?

Chukwuka Augustine
[Member, SGB Writers]

Afterwards, we feel empty and cheated, we fell like we haven’t done much, we feel like our life is a joke and time has elapsed so quickly before our eyes, we feel barren, desolate and unfulfilled. Well, how will you do much when you stick to what has been tried and tested, thread through the safe paths and do the regular thing every other person does?

Look at everybody you deem great, look at people you consider to have great careers, take a good look at your mentor(s) or people/persons you look up to. There are some qualities they have in common. They are not afraid to test the waters, they are never satisfied and they are very passionate about what they do and have an insatiable hunger to do more. Why is that?, you may ask. That’s because they love what they do and on a Monday morning, while you are being reluctant to start your day and eager to end it, they are very enthused to start the day with positive energy and also wanna be the  last to go to bed.

This is raw passion and it comes to you when you are doing what you really love.

“When you grow up you tend to get told that the world is the way it is and you're life is just to live your life inside the world. Try not to bash into the walls too much. Try to have a nice family life, have fun, save a little money. That's a very limited life. Life can be much broader once you discover one simple fact: Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you. And you can change it, you can influence it… Once you learn that, you'll never be the same again.”

Break out of the mediocre attitude and go soul searching. Find what you really love doing and start doing it. Your great work will move humanity forward and make the world a better place.

*Written by Chukwuka Chukwuka Augustine [chukscarson@gmail.com]

 [Member - Scanty Gela Blog Writers]

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Nigerian Student in EMU, Eric Raymond, music single "OTHER SIDE" [Watch VIDEO]
The song captures and draws you in  from the very beginning with a high techno beat and beautiful visuals. Shot in different locations in North Cyprus by Edge Productions, WATCH VIDEO Learn more »

According to UNFPA a critical step to achieving the desired gender parity is to empower adolescent girls to stay in school, know their rights and decide for themselves when, and to whom, they will get married.

As ambitious as the campaign may seem it is important to acknowledge that women’s minds are an abyss teeming with mystery and fantasy. The female half of our species is passionate, curious and more experimental than they care to admit in public. More than earning their own money and speaking their minds, women are becoming more confident and leaning away from judging themselves for either their thoughts or the subsequent actions they take to fulfill their desires. It is exciting to observe that a revolution is taking place against the negative connotations associated with the ‘independent woman’ phenomenon.

Women are imaginative beings

Contrary to common belief, women’s imaginations stretch beyond the dream of marrying a wealthy alpha male who will give them attractive children to groom into respectable adults. For some women marriage is not even on the cards and this has nothing to do with competing with men. As opposed to sixty years ago when most women’s ambitions were limited to having the prettiest house and garden, being the best cook or embodying the traditional standard of being approved of by everyone, women want to be recognised for their intellectual prowess and other qualities.

A significant number of females across the globe crave to be recognised as thinkers, inventors, scientists and contributors to politics and economics. The downside to this is that they are forced to work extra hard to be taken seriously or to prove themselves. A woman usually has to be endorsed by a male figure or cause a ruckus to be paid due audience otherwise she risks being received as ungovernable and wild. 

Public validation leads to unhappiness

Everyone wants to be happy, successful and free to do as they please, women included. When these desires are compromised people tend to resort to lying and misrepresenting themselves. A woman will lie about the number of men she has slept with, she will feign coyness when asked about her sexual fantasies and she would rather play ignorant than speak out on controversial topics. Put the same woman in an environment where she feels comfortable and free and prepare for some profound revelations. For example, most fierce boss-type women love a man they can submit to but only with the guarantee that he will continue to show her the utmost respect. Submission signals trust, not fuel for the male counterpart’s ego.

Although it is often presented as a weakness, women are naturally more sensitive and emotional than the average male. I choose to see these as admirable qualities because humans are so inclined to present falsified versions of their true selves. We hide real feelings to avoid being disapproved of or upsetting others, rather than deal with issues head on. We keep quiet and trap ourselves in a pool of hatred and animosity instead of working on love. A testimony to how deeply this runs is how we casually smile and share light conversations with people we have scores to settle with for the sake of keeping up appearances. We vent our true feelings privately (to the misfortune of those closest to us) to avoid external judgement. Doing this inevitably creates bitterness and vindictive people because we then judge ourselves for the things we were not courageous enough to say. In short, our failure to directly face and express emotions leads to a vicious cycle of negativity.

Those who have awoken to the reality that is ‘the 21st century woman’ reap the rewards daily. If the trend catches on I am optimistic enough to believe that our world will transform into a safer environment for all women and girls to flourish. To embrace the crazy idea that women are breaking out of age-old boxes and setting new cultural standards is synonymous with embracing change as an inevitable element of existence. It is certainly something for the brave, not conservatives who are set in their ways even when compelling evidence is presented before them. Women want to be themselves without a judgemental assault, both external and internal, on their choices and thoughts and I am glad authoritative institutions such as the United Nations recognise this. Those who are still opposed to empowering women will have no choice but to follow suit!

Credit: http://thisisafrica.me/ [Written by Lineo Segoete] Learn more »

Whenever you are thinking of trying something new, you step out of your comfort zone. You step into the unknown, with all the exciting and intimidating possibilities.

And immediately, your mind tries to protect you from this strange new place. Your mind responds with fear. Your mind thinks - "Ah, we've never been here before. We've never done this before. It's scary! Let us retreat back into the safety of what we've always known."

Fear is a perfectly normal response to anything different, new or strange. It shows up in many ways - anxiety about changing your career, doubts about taking a risk, or feeling nervous about giving a speech for the first time. But far too many of us allow that fear to stop us, cripple us, or slow us down and prevent us from doing what we really want to do.

*Let's look at some of the fears that may have been holding you back:

You're afraid you have no talent.
You're afraid you'll be rejected or criticised, or ridiculed or misunderstood, or worst of all - ignored.
You're afraid there's no market for your creativity, and therefore no point in pursuing it.
You're afraid somebody else already did it better.
You're afraid everybody else already did it better.
You're afraid somebody will steal your ideas, so it's safer to keep them hidden forever in the dark.
You're afraid you won't be taken seriously.
You're afraid your dreams are embarrassing.
You're afraid your work isn't politically, emotionally, or artistically important enough to change anyone's life.
You're afraid that someday you'll look back on your creative endeavours as having been a giant waste of time, effort and money.
You're afraid you don't have the right kind of discipline.
You're afraid you don't have the right kind of training or degree.
You're afraid of upsetting your family with what you may reveal.
You're afraid of what your peers and coworkers will say if you express your truth aloud.
You're afraid your best work is behind you.
You're afraid you never had any best work to begin with.
You're afraid you neglected your creativity for so long that now you can never get it back.
You're afraid you're too old to start.
You're afraid you're too young to start.
You're afraid of being a one-hit wonder.
You're afraid of being a no-hit wonder...
And so on.

Do any of these fears sound familiar? Yes?

Even though they may seem valid, and they may feel very real, don't let your fears stop you from going forward and doing what you really want. You'll often find that, the fear never really goes away, but if you challenge yourself and step out of your comfort zone, you'll look back one day and realise that taking action and going forward is always 100 times better than staying stuck in fear.


To your success,

Tolulope Popoola
Writing Coach and Publishing Consultant
Accomplish Press
www.accomplishpress.com

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The major question that most aspiring entrepreneurs and social contributors have is: How do I raise capital to finance the business idea, charity or community projects ?  This article reveals the methods accessible to all with noble intentions to be of greater impact in this session. The main focus will be crowdfunding sites and how to effectively benefit from services.

Crowdfunding  is the practice of funding ideas and causes through collective contributions by large number of people. The internet has transformed crowdfunding and brought incredible growth to this alternative source of funding. The impact of social media has resulted in friends,  family and well wishers to be able to contribute money from all over the world.

Gofundme (which had traffic of 470 million in 2004) and Kickstarter (which had 444 million in the same year) plus other similar companies create platforms that work as meeting point between the person seeking funding and the people willing to invest.  These companies enjoy the large volumes of traffic and also collect a commission of averagely 5% the total amount raised in exchange of exposure and helping transfers of money.

The benefits are largely for the visionary and the community. The visionary has the opportunity of having his or her ideas exposed to the world and can appeal to the niche concerned about the values and beliefs that the visionary upholds. These companies have access to mainstream media and have the brand equity that people are willing to commit to financially.

 The community gets to be involved in ideas that transform the community, shaping and re shaping the identities of that community. They also benefit from getting exclusive products and having shares in brilliant start ups.

They are 4 main types of Crowfunding, these are: Receiving , Equity, Donation  and Lending Based.

The Receiving based is when people invest in the company and get the product as a thank you. For example if you are selling designer T shirts you will send the investors a T shirt as a thank you note.

Equity based Crowdfunding started only in 2012 because of the JOB Act in the USA. This type of crowdfunding involves  financing in return for shares. This differs with country’s company act. So research the number of investors allowed in your country for the type of registration that you have is required. For example most  African limited companies have up to 50 shareholders. This is similar to IPOs method of fund raising, take Disney for example it has a million shareholders. What these platforms  have done is to allowed smaller companies to access to public funds.

Donation based- This is donation for a cause that people identify with,or products and services  that have manage to amaze people can be very successful in through this platform.

Lending Based- The investor will be returned the money after a certain period. Some incentive is also given to the investor in the form of social currency or interest on the amount borrowed.

How do i get people to support my cause?

Be Original- The success stories reveal that people support ideas and causes that are original . If you have an invention that will make people’s lives easier, solve a common threat or just wow them, than it is likely to be supported. If your are offering help to a group of people or animals usually neglected like elderly or Lions in same remote part of Africa in an original way this will get people funding you. What is critical to understand is that even if your request is common like lacking school fees, it can be put across in an original way.

Stories-  If your story is compelling and can resonate with the people it will be supported. Honesty and evidence of this honesty will get you bonus points. As people we relate to ideas more than abstract facts. If you can mold your ideas to be more understandable to the target audience your likely to get support.

Have someone tell your story- the psychologist have proven that a person representing himself in court increases your chances of being convicted even if your innocent. The fact that someone can collaborate your story makes it more valid. This is not a law you can successfully convey your idea without someone speaking for you, it is however beneficial to have someone or a group of people supporting  you. These will leave positive comments or share on social platforms and this goes a long way in generating the traffic to your post.

Tip: Have someone posting the campaign on your behalf.

Communication- Ensure that your methods of communication are clear for example ,ensure that if it is a video it has clear image and audible sound. If it is picture it should be relevant to the message and has good resolution. Correct spelling and grammar for all written text.  In cases where you can not provide the above give reasons why, that will not make people  overlook it but shows your aware of the chain of communication.

Platforms- Because of cyber crime it would be wise to use platforms that people are already familiar with. Also identify platforms that attract the target audience that will be interested in your story. Tip: identify the crowdfunding service that is most appropriate for the business model or the organisation goals you represent.

In the year 2013 over 5.1 Billion by 2015 over 34 Billion was raised all over the World. If your idea or cause can help effectively communicated to the global community and follows appropriate procedure you will certainly be funded.

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Contributor : Sean Emmanuel Nota is an author of the Book Opulance: Developing Character that creates and sustains wealth. 

After interviewing over 500 successful in business, entertainment, sporting and politics he identified the 5 steps towards Opulence and the character that is needed to step up into each stage. To get accurate interpretations and face to face interviews he traveled to Asia, Europe and Africa compelling data and analysing it. The book is to be released in end February 2016. Reviewers and collectors edition will be available end  January 2016. 

Besides writing he does talks on matters relating with personal development and marketing . Sean is a student of Political Science and International Relations.


“In the next article will offer examples of success stories and steps to launching your first campaign.” Sean.E.Nota

Resources:

Crowdfunding Success Stories: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232234
Best Crowdfunding websites:  http://www.forbes.com/sites/chancebarnett/2013/05/08/top-10-crowdfunding-sites-for-fundraising/
Basic Information Crowdfunding:  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crowdfunding

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As Summer Sanders said, 'To be a champion, You have to see the big picture. It's not about winning and losing; it's about every day hard work and about thriving on a challenge. It's about embracing the pain that you'll experience at the end of a race and not being afraid. I think people think too hard and get afraid of a certain challenge'

It was a beautiful day rightly spent with beautiful people as winners of the first ever Scanty Gela Blog Anniversary Giveaway claimed their prizes of assorted goods, cash money and the rest.

*To see the list of winners, click here

Find below some pictures of the winners.

Once again, thank you awesome people for making the blog #1 in Cyprus and beyond. You'all are beautifully AWESOME.

Best regards,

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There are times in life when you don’t even know what you are doing anymore, when the burden becomes heavier than the desire to live and deliver, when the day becomes gloomy and the nights empty, those moments when it seems like you have been handed a tougher test than you could ever handle.

One of the many remedies comes from the words of individuals that have been through similar situations before. Here are 20 quotes from individuals that have played the game of life and won (or are still winning). Their words are worth heeding to and their life stories are worth learning from.

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If you want to produce unreasonable results in your life, like living your dream and taking charge of your destiny, you’ve got to be an reasonable person. ~ Les Brown

We are all self made but only the successful will admit it. ~

When you grow up, you tend to get told that the world is the way it is, your life is just to live your life inside the world, try not to bash into walls too much, try to have a nice family, have fun, save a little money. That’s a very limited life, life can be much broader once you discover one simple fact. Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you, once you learnt that, you will never be the same again. ~ Steve Jobs

Be careful who you pretend to be; you might forget who you are. ~ Dale partridge

Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to d o what you believe is great work, and the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. ~ Steve 

Most people die at 25 and aren’t buried until they are 75. ~ Benjamin Franklin. This quote is trying to explain that most people aren’t really living, they are merely existing. They spend their lives merely existing until they are old and worn out and stop breathing.

Chukwuka Augustine
[Member, SGB Writers]

Formal education will make you a living, self education will make you a fortune. ~

The only disability in life is a bad attitude. ~ Scott Hamilton

Small minds discuss people; average minds discuss events; great minds discuss ideas. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

You’ve got to find what you love, and that is the same for work as it is for your lovers - Steve Jobs

The version you are today is good but it ain’t great and it definitely ain’t phenomenal, but if your ready to make some adjustments, there is nothing you can’t have ~ Eric Thomas.

Many people die with their music still in them. Why is this so? too often it’s because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Not only is it possible for you to have your dream, but it’s necessary, it’s necessary that you go for what is yours in the universe. ~ Les Brown

You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. ~ Mae West

Beware of false knowledge, it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~ George Bernard 

When it’s obvious that goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps. ~ Confucius

Every man dies, not every man really live. ~ William Wallace

If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; If in terms of 10 years, plant a tree; If in terms of 100 years, teach the people. ~ Confucius

When you feel like quitting, think of  why you started. ~ Dale Partridge

Don’t go through life, Grow through life. ~ Eric Butterworth

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*Compiled by Chukwuka Augustine [chukscarson@gmail.com]
 [Member - Scanty Gela Blog Writers/SGB Writers]

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NOTE: To become a writer for  SGB, simply send an email to scantygela@gmail.com stating what, why and how you want to write and stand a chance to make some cool money [Terms and Conditions apply] 

Learn more about Scanty Gela Blog Writers Club

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Men and women are not equal . The biggest disservice we do to women is telling them that they are equal to men. We fail to prepare them for their reality and, by doing so, we set them up for a lifetime of struggle, disappointment and misery.

Men and women are not equal -- they are different. Like apples and oranges. We're all fruits, yes, and only one of us will make a decent apple pie.

This whole bringing-up-your-daughters-the-way-you'd-bring-up-your-sons business is nonsense. When did we decide that there is an ideal human being prototype and it's male? Why is no one bringing up their sons like they'd bring up their daughters?

Many women of my generation were "brought up like sons". We went to the best schools and colleges our parents could afford. Ambition was not just encouraged but insisted upon. We were asked to dream and we dreamt big. We were told we could do anything a man can and for the longest time we believed that. We got good grades, we made it to big jobs and did well. We married men we chose and they "allowed" us wings our mothers couldn't have dreamt of in their marriages.

And then we had babies.

Having a child is the single-more gender-defining thing a woman can do -- and cute as they may be, babies take every notion you may have had of man-woman equality and smack you in the face with it till it's all but beaten out of you and you're the exact same bag of motherhood hormones as countless women before you have been. Except now it's a lot worse.

To read more on this, Click here

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When we speak global warming, most people think it’s something that’s for the future, that it’s an event that will still take like a thousand years to come into effect. The existing ignorance and the inability of man to care for things that really matter is appalling. For example, we can spend our time all day long doing things that harm us on a daily basis and not even flinch.

For many of us, there are these glorious well-mapped-out experiences we will love to have, there are so many things we wanna do while we are still among the living on planet earth, but keeping planet earth safe isn’t one of them.

When we hear the word ‘doom’s day’, we gaze into the future and our imaginations mislead us into extrapolating fictional, cataclysmic and unforgiving events. We associate these ‘impressive’ events with doom’s day, while, a ‘less impressive’ event like global warming could easily be the doom’s day event.

Chukwuka Augustine
[Member, SGB Writers]

We think that doom’s day will come when there is a solar flare outrage or when a major asteroid hits the earth or when for one reason or another the earth stops rotating or even when an alien attack happens.

While the events above might fit into the criteria of a doom’s day event, I would love to bring it to your notice that doom’s day is already upon us and the leading most likely event to bring suffering to mankind is global warming.

Global warming is man’s doing and it’s disappointing that we still engage in major activities and do several forbidden things like deforestation to exacerbate global warming.

One trait that is consistent in the Homo sapiens species is selfishness. We Homo sapiens are just selfish and all we think about is ourselves, always us first before we consider any other species, the environment and planet earth. Well, one thing is certain, If we don’t start putting planet earth first then we will loose her.

There are two major events of heat waves going on in the world today, one in India and the other in Pakistan. The first was the Indian heat waves which claimed more than 2,500 lives, than came the Pakistan heat wave which has already claimed more than a thousand life. In Karachi, Pakistan, it so bad that a worker at the grave yard couldn’t find space to dig new graves for the dead, the death rate exceeded the cemetery capacity and he now even has to dig up old graves to bury people in them. Also, more than one body has to be buried in one grave. Now that’s what you call doom’s day.

Let me bring in a comparison. The middle east respiratory syndrome (MERS) in South Korea has claimed only 31 lives in total since it started. MERS is a virus. This shows that the global warming can be far more devastating than an infectious disease spread.

The polar ice caps are melting, the sea level is rising leading to major flooding events, heat waves are taking place. These all point fingers to global warming. It is also worth noting that in the last quarter of last year, the mean temperature recorded on earth was the highest ever recorded in history and it didn’t take time for that record to be broken. In the first quarter of this year, the mean temperature recorded became the highest ever in history.

You can act like these gruesome events haven’t affected you yet. Well, it’s just a matter of time before other places heat up to the extent that they start dropping humans like flies.

We haven’t done enough to ensure the safety of our planet, but we’ve exploited her in every possible way and there must be consequences.

We are citizens of earth and earth is our home, it would only be reasonable if we start taking measures to combat global warming and keep our home (earth) safe. Think green!

Go green!.

*Written by Chukwuka Augustine [chukscarson@gmail.com]
 [Member - Scanty Gela Blog Writers/SGB Writers]

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NOTE: To become a writer for  SGB, simply send an email to writers@scantygela.com stating what, why and how you want to write and stand a chance to make some cool money [Terms and Conditions apply] Learn more »

Since 1980 Greece has received EU funds under various programs to the tune of €200 Billion equivalent to 100 percent of its GDP in 2013.

For that year total net spending in Greece financed via the EU spending [Regional Fund, Social fund and similar funds] was just above 3 percent of GDP.

Greece’s traditional rival in the region and in the Balkans is Turkey; its EU membership was used to put obstacles in the way of the endeavors to move Turkey closer to the EU even dangling the prospect of full membership as a reward for reforms.

The second one is that Greece has for decades deliberately pursued an unsustainable economy with perennial overspending compared to revenue hidden by diligent efforts to cook the books helped by some private global financial institutions; this deception of its allies, partner, and creditors was unmasked by the financial crisis.

The third one is that the main problem is not about the debt level, but turning the Greek economy into a viable and sustainable economy able to function without constant blood transfusion.

Diagnosing the economy it is not difficult to understand why Greece has never managed to build a productive base for the economy.

The geopolitical situation in the Eastern Mediterranean has changed over the last one to two years and fundamentally so to the disadvantage of Greece.

In view of the above, maybe it is in the best interest of Greece to default, thereby paving way for a more sustainable future.

*Originally written by Inez McMullan for Top Tidings Learn more »

In this article, I explore real life facts why one should consider forfeiting his or her meat diet and replacing them with a more natural plant diet.

The first reason why should no longer be a meat eater is because the environment needs you not to be a meat eater. Think of it, eating a plant based meal for lunch instead of a burger saves 2.5 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions which is a huge contributor to global warming, 133 gallons of water and 24 square feet of land. Imagine that 25 gallons are needed to produce 1 pound of wheat and around 2,500 gallons is needed to produce 1 pound of meat. You see these facts and these figures? they just show how thankful the environment will be when you become a veggie/vegan.

If we are to go by how going veggie/vegan influences your sex life, then you should probably start picking up the habit of eating plant based meals. A recent study argues that people who eat tofu and other plant-based foods have a better sex life than meat eater. It claims that certain plants influence levels of sexual activities. So, come on! help your libido.

You will be doing your cardiovascular system a huge favour. Namely, you will reduce your risks of having high blood pressure, stroke, atherosclerosis and the cardiovascular diseases. Cardiovascular diseases are a huge contributor to sudden deaths. Plants have more of the type of cholesterol you wanna be putting into your body (I mean the good cholesterol, high density lipoproteins). While a meat eater has about 50% chance of suffering from heart diseases, vegetarians have 14% chance and vegans have only 4% chance which is far more impressive. So, choose he this day where you wanna belong.

Chukwuka Augustine
[Member, SGB Writers]

You will also be impressed to know that your risks of getting cancer will also be reduced more if you are a vegetarian/vegan as red meats have even be linked to causing some types of cancer. Studies show that eating a lot of fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of developing certain cancers. Hopefully, you are among the group of people that wanna have their cancer risks as minimal as possible.

For the sake of the animals. I would love to summarise a quote I got elsewhere in this article. It goes thus, if all animals and plants were to go extinct, in the next 50 years, humanity will suffer and the environment will also suffer, but if all the humans were to go extinct, in the next 50 years, the earth will flourish. It basically explains how we are the primary problems and we don’t seem to give a damn about other species. more than 500,000 animals are killed in the U.S every hour and 2.5 million are killed in the U.K everyday. Needless to say, we know how not cool that is.

Going veggie might be the solution to those people that have been struggling to loose some body fats, like people that wanna get into the skinny jeans or stay in their skinny jeans. And I don’t mean when you’ve gone veggie then you consume all the cheese and nuts on earth. You’ve still got to do it right and eat healthy though, but going veggie/vegan will surely help you drop some pounds.

Another good reason is that you will get to replace your meat diet with super foods. Isn’t that cool?, when you eat super foods, then you become a super- human or maybe that’s what I think, but to be serious though you will be taking the super foods which doesn’t include meat because meat isn’t a super food and then you will get to live a healthier lifestyle.

This one right here is pretty cool. By turning veggie, you get to increase your life expectancy. You get to live longer than the average meat eater because you have saved yourself from all those troubles that comes with meat eating. Simply reducing your amount of meat intake significantly raises your life expectancy by 3.6 years, so imagine how many years you can be adding to your life if you go veggie/vegan.

*Written by Chukwuka Chukwuka Augustine [chukscarson@gmail.com]

 [Member - Scanty Gela Blog Writers/SGB Writers]

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 NOTE: To become a writer for  SGB, simply send an email to writers@scantygela.com stating what, why and how you want to write and stand a chance to make some cool money [Terms and Conditions apply]

Learn more »