Author: Stephanie Hills

  • Real quotes from children

    “I’m not insulting you; I’m describing you.”  (Anonymous 6-year-old) “I love the sound of no-one talking.” (Anonymous 6-year-old) “Parmesan cheese is like glitter for your spaghetti.” (Callum, 4 years old) “I’ve been having a hard day for the last two years.” (Anonymous 4-year-old) “I can’t show you how much I missed you because my hands […]

  • Smile – and feel better

    Try holding a pencil between your teeth, in such a way that the pencil doesn’t touch your lips. This forces your face into something that looks like a smile. Years ago, experimenters found that people holding a pencil in this way rated cartoons as funnier than they did without the pencil. The conclusion was that […]

  • These puns are fully groan…

    I had my patience tested. I’m negative. The older I get, the earlier it gets late. I got a new drum kit today. It takes some beating. I went to the paint shop to get thinner. It didn’t work. I don’t want to get technical or anything, but according to chemistry, alcohol is a solution.

  • Help on the bridge

    A disabled lady in an electric wheelchair got stuck in a rut while crossing a narrow bridge. She could not go forwards or backwards.  A guy in a big car, possibly a Jaguar, stopped his car on the brow of the bridge and got out to help.  The stuck woman said afterwards, “No idea who […]

  • The many layers of forgiveness

    Forgiveness is considered an important ingredient for a happy life. It’s a saintly quality, which frees both perpetrator and victim from the effects of past cruel actions. But since most of us have not yet reached saint status, the whole concept of forgiveness can be fraught with confusion. Should I forgive someone who is still […]

  • Kindness at the Supermarket

    Recently I did my weekly grocery shop quite late on a Friday night. Many shoppers were going through the self-checkout area with just a few items, but for those of us with full trolleys, there was only one checkout open, and quite a queue. I noticed the woman in front of me was smiling despite […]

  • Some funny signs spotted

    On a maternity room door, “Push, Push, Push.” At an optometrist’s office, “If you don’t see what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place.” In the front yard of a funeral home, “Drive carefully, we’ll wait.” In a nonsmoking area, “If we see you smoking, we will assume you are on fire and […]

  • Maximise Your Chances in Life

    Online workshop. 6.30-9.00pm Monday 6 May 2024 NZ Time. NZ$65 Some people constantly experience good fortune; others don’t. Research shows that much of it comes down to the things people do that attract opportunities. In this online workshop, learn and practise the 12 habits that invite good fortune into your life. All proceeds to Relief […]

  • A brighter future for the world

    As it becomes increasingly clear that the ways we have organised ourselves in the industrialised world have been bad for us as humans, as well as destructive for the planet, more and more people are thinking for themselves about what is truly important. And now that the internet can connect people across the globe, individuals […]

  • The Values-Driven Organization                 

    The Values-Driven Organization. Cultural Health and Employee Wellbeing as a Pathway to Sustainable Performance. by Richard Barrett We’ve all worked in organisations where we wish that management would do a better job: treating workers fairly, appreciating us more and generally trusting us to do our job well. Even better is a workplace where we can […]