12 Things to change your life in 2016

1. In times of misfortune and stress, foster a calm head. 

When irritated it is easy to react, saying something in an instant can take a years of regret. Swearing, losing your calm or being violent also takes away your control of the situation.  This is a difficult thing to do, but the more often practised the better self control gets. It is necessary to accept within yourself how you feel about a situation, to dwell on it and think about it. However it does not good venting anger, let yourself go outside of the incident which takes place.  Not in it.

2. Think things could be worse.
This is a matter of changing mindset and again moving away from the negative thoughts life should of treated you better. Consider you are not living in a country or culture where laws are strictly adhered to with considerable force. Or worse capital punishment for merely stating an opinion. This point is also about counting good things and attenuating the negative things in your life.

3. Harbour a sense of humour.
When growing up I thought fun and laughter were limited commodities.  Anything can be fun, everything is a matter of personal attitude and laughter is a good way of of relieving awkward moments and stress. It can create bonds quickly and break down defences, sometimes it may mean showing your vulnerable side. It is always healthy to see things in a different way but it's even better to have a laugh over it.

4. Enjoy a moment of peace and quiet.
In the hectic life of today it is important to find time for yourself.  This is necessary more so for those individuals who consider themselves to be introverts.  A break in a quiet place may either be short or long, sometimes it is frequency which matters.  If you are in a loud environment take a break outside of this environment.  Make a cup of tea, go to the toilet do anything which gives a momentary break from that loud place.

5.  Play a musical instrument
I began to play the ukulele about three years ago and am one of those people who has never in their life played an instrument. I practice as often as I can and even try singing along. It has been great fun and will continue to be both a learning and relaxing experience. I heard it is even good to sing because singing strengthens your voice.

6. Exercise
This single word in itself can be akin to holding garlic in the face of a vampire. The human body is not a machine but rather the human is an animal. Animals need food water and exercise, to name but a few items.  Exercise does not have to be crazy it can be gentle, many programs recommend exercising to the point there is a slight strain on breathing. Others indicate the heart rate should be raised for at least ten minutes at a high and uncomfortable level.  What matters though is just getting out and doing some exercise.

7. Talk to a stranger
This is for those who find they speak to the same people everyday and don't get to meet and talk to someone they don't know.  Someone not part of the family or the workplace. There are places everywhere this can happen.  On the train, the bus or in a shop, at the pub anywhere you might visit is a potential place to speak to someone you don't know. Then try and learn something about them, something unusual. Favourite food for example.

8. Diet and be healthy
The statistics suggest getting fat is now rife in the western world. With it brings illnesses which could of been avoided, such as the ubiquitous diabetes. Carbohydrates are a cause for concern methinks. Especially the white ones with a high glycemic index. I don't know what it is, but the more white starch I eat then the more white starch I want to eat. It must be doing something to my brain, kicking in some kind of eating switch. When I was a teenager it didn't matter what I ate but now in my 50s every single calorie is being notched up on my belt. And the belt gets bigger as well.

9. Keep an eye on finance
Here I have been hitting two birds with one stone. There are days in the week I will either walk to work which is just over two miles or walk home. It takes about an hour depending on how fast my little legs move. So exercising and saving the fare of riding a bus. Which has gone up yet again. In addition to this I have made a conscious effort to try and save a few pennies every week which go into a savings account and are not touched. Economists say your savings account should have 8 times your monthly earnings.  This is in case of both an unforeseen emergency and in the event of losing your job. I so wish my savings were this high, but I will keep squirrelling away.

10. Read and learn
Always be reading and learning. The two go hand in hand. Have a book about a subject which interests you and at the same time is educational. At present I have a simple book about economics and the development of humanity.  There are points which are raised I have not considered before and may well be generalisable to other areas, be it work or personal life.

11. Learn to do something difficult
As a kid if something was difficult I would not want to do it. Such as math and I will admit to being not great at maths even though I managed to get an A'level in pure math and a A'level in statistics. I've forgotten most of what I was taught and wish I could still remember it. Being an adult now I appreciate the skill and effort which goes into doing difficult things. Such as playing the ukulele. The first year of playing I practised every single evening. I am learning music, chords, musical registers, a very little bit of musical theory, rhythm and how to sing a song.  It is funny how family think when you pick up an instrument you will be belting out a tune in a fortnight. You may well be but it will probably be not very good.

12. Improve your memory
This is probably one of those age related problems, but the older you get the easier it is to forget everything. However, forgetting things is just as important as remembering them, otherwise your brain would be cluttered up.  Yet when you need to remember something this is when it does become a problem. Looking into the subject of mnemonics, it will amaze you how easy it can be to remember stuff, any stuff at all. The problem with this is your memory is like a muscle and using mnemonic methods requires active practice.

Happy 2016 - It's all about work

Well 2016 is now here, the urge to write 2015 has nearly been stifled and as always complaints abound about how quickly another year has passed are common. It's strange returning to work because of how calmed and relaxed people feel after having a break from the frantic stress and strains of the pre holiday pressures.  Further everyone from work had the opportunity to chill out so it's not just the odd individual who has a more laid back attitude.  For the life of those who are working in pressurised environments this is a common feeling.

Those at the bell end of an organization who have swanky titles and earn big bucks are usually well out of touch with what happens at the lower end.  It is a perpetual situation. It is clichéd to constantly hear the phrase "more for less" but this is a never ending blind comment frequently banded around by individuals who don't get their hands dirty and actually examine the systems in place.  When I say examine I am not stating a cursory look over a hierarchy chart or a meeting in which one manager speaks to another. Getting hands dirty means getting on down with the real people and working with them and talking to them, this is where real understanding takes place.  An additional reality here is workplaces are not ran by systems, they are ran by people who run the systems and some people choose to ignore those systems as well as run their sections in the way their personality fits the situation which may well not be to the advantages of the organization and may well be down right malicious. There most certainly are many managers like this.

But it is odd, because I find myself with an optimism I can't shake off. Like it has glued itself to me. Yes I understand things are worse than they every have been, the country is going down the pan, personal debt increases, available jobs are all zero hours and minimum pay yet I am lucky. I am fortunate because I have a job I like. Yes my employer is restructuring the Fish Factory by doing the most ludicrous of things possible and offering enhanced redundancy and retirement packages to those over 55 years of age, on management grade and with 15 years service.  They expected a 100 percent take up and nearly got it.  The ludicrous thing about this was offer was it did not allow for a planned restructure of departments, it assumed a cut in employees who cost the most would benefit the factory.  Now in a department which has 11 managers there are 5 who have accepted the package. With a management structure which has dwindled down and down over the years this means those who are left will have to cover the work of two people.  I don't know why but I keep thinking there is opportunity here.  My workload is so high now there has not been a time in the last 4 years where I have actually been up to date with it.  I have felt stressed and unable to cope with the amount of work I have but am doing my best to harvest an attitude of it is not the work but how I view my workload which stresses me.  Yes there are always many pressing priorities which can have severe outcomes if they are not dealt with and I can not keep up with them, yes the open plan office is a disaster area for concentration, but I feel optimistic and hopeful.  I am in a job and this job will always have plenty of work for me to do.

The good fortune of those who have been selected to take leave of the Fish Factory can give a bitter taste to those who are left behind and have to cope without them. I am so very aware how my workload will increase and how I will not be able to cope with it.  It stands to reason being behind on my current work and being given more isn't going to mean I will miraculously be fantastically productive. However, I will say there is a little sweet pill of happiness because my boss is leaving.  It isn't because she is an ogre I am happy, it is because I have disagreed with her views  Often she has failed to listen to what I've expressed and not understood, she has made demands but not understood the demands of my job mean she is making it even more difficult to do.  Further she has made disastrous decisions, ones which neither I or the entire team of people I manage have agreed.  This means we have not committed to her decisions and been motivated to make them work, after a few months those stupid decisions are then swept under the carpet and ignored.  No further response is heard.  Put it this way, intelligent people will find a way not to do what stupid people ask especially when they ask them to do something stupid as well.

It is all about work, if you have work and your work is respectfully awarded in pay and recognition everything else falls into place in a happy and contented manner. If you are poorly paid and work is like cleaning out the toilets of hell then all would not be well with the world. It is indeed all about work.