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Random Acts of Kindness
On 1st September, New Zealand celebrates Random Acts of Kindness Day, a tradition started in 2005 by Josh de Jong and some friends. After witnessing a road rage incident, Josh thought how good it would be if people could be kind to strangers, even if only for one day of the year. The result was […]
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Encourage the Changes You’d Like to See
Puppy training courses emphasise the importance of rewarding the behaviours that you want your dog to do more of; a focus markedly more effective than simply punishing unwanted behaviours. Once the dog has learned what’s expected, it doesn’t need a ‘treat’ every time, but an approving nod or pat will let your pet know that […]
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A lovely library experience
Ute from Ngaruawahia sent in this gem: “With all the things computerised, I loved the personal attention I got from our lovely library ladies when I was looking for a special book. They made me feel like a person and we joked and chatted also about stuff that was not related to my search. It’s […]
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Workplace culture includes you!
What makes the difference between a job you love and one you hate? Research has shown that while low salary and poor working conditions can lower your job satisfaction, the things that make you feel good about work are not the material things but the human factors. Recognition, responsibility and believing that you are doing […]
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Happiness is a Serious Matter
“Too many people confuse being serious with being solemn.” These are the words of comedian John Cleese. He’s right; we tend to associate importance with solemnity and to assume that cheerfulness belongs only with amusing trivialities. I believe the reason comes down to our language, which conflates two different meanings in the word ‘serious.’ On […]
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Happiness in Your Workplace – A workshop for the whole team!
If you’d like to lift the mood in the place where you work, this half-day workshop is something you could suggest to your boss. After all, a happier workforce is a more productive workforce, not to mention the increases in co-operation and creativity. This workshop gives an overview of happiness research and why happiness is […]
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Crazy Happy: A film
Crazy Happy is a documentary filmed in Whangarei, following a group of people with mental health issues as they participate in a 100-day project to promote happiness. At the beginning of the project most of the participants suffered from depression, some to a debilitating degree. The idea was quite simple: each day the participants had […]
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When the good go bad…
How is it that so much harm is caused in the name of religion? How can people who do dreadful things look themselves in the mirror and think they are right? I believe it has something to do with language. Not just the way we use words to justify what we do, but the very […]
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The shortcomings of rational thinking
I was brought up to believe that ‘rational’ thinking was the best, if not the only, way to get to the truth. Later I came to see that rational thought cannot, by itself, bring new knowledge; it can only confirm what you already thought you knew. This is because you cannot begin reasoning without taking […]
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Trust and mistrust
If someone doesn’t trust you, chances are it hurts your pride. But when it comes to trust, I think people often get offended by the wrong things. I believe it is up to all of us, all the time, to prove ourselves trustworthy. Other people should never be expected to trust us without our having […]