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14 January
No Fear: A Journey Towards Learning And Happiness
What Can We Do Differently in 2011?
by
SoftwareGuru
I ended our last blog post by referencing the poem and movie
Invictus, saying that if Nelson Mandela could replace
fear with inspiration in South Africa, we should all aim to
do the same.
You'd be surprised how big a role fear can play in limiting our
ability to learn.
Anyone who's ever bought Microsoft Office and opened OneNote,
enthusiastic at the idea of having a digital notebook, only to
discover that it isn't like Word at all and within minutes
closes the program because they don't know how to use it
instantly - well, this illustrates how fear of the unknown can
shape our daily choices.
Why would we expect OneNote to be exactly the same as Microsoft
Word?
If it was the same, we wouldn't need it as a separate program!
And yet it is this lack of familiarity that puts many people off
using it.
People take comfort in familiarity. It doesn't matter whether
it's a computer program, a comfortable pair of old shoes or an
old flame, it's always easier to stick than to twist.
It's the same reason why some people who shop online will
continue to buy from a huge brand store like Amazon. It may be
more expensive but hey, it's familiar.
Why are we so afraid?
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Choice
Ask most people if they'd like to learn another language and
chances are they'll say yes.
Like many things we keep meaning to do, we tell ourselves we
would do it if we were not so busy.
Which is really an convenient excuse for not facing up to the
idea that we might be rubbish at something to begin with.
Our society of instant gratification and impatience is really
holding us back in terms of our appetite to learn things we are
interested in but know little or nothing about.
But what about when it's a life choice?
In the movie Fight Club, there's a scene where Brad Pitt's
character is holding a gun to a guy's head and asks him what he
wanted to be when he was younger.
The guy replies that he wanted to be a veterinarian. Brad Pitt's
character lets him go on the condition that the guy starts
studying immediately to become a vet.
Or as George Clooney put it in the movie "Up In The Air",
how much money did they offer you to give up on your dreams?
Admittedly, the Fight Club scene is an extreme and unlikely
example. However, you have admit the sentiment is spot on.
The point is that from tiny decisions as to which online store
you buy from to massive decisions such as staying in a
relationship you're not happy with - every day we allow fear to
shape our thoughts and our decisions.
The idea of having a New Year's Resolution may be clichéd but
anything that makes us take stock of our choices has to be a
good thing.
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Fly Me To The Moon
Disagree that fear plays a large role in your life? OK, let's put
it to the test.
Cast your eye over the Software4Students product catalogue and
see what thoughts go through your mind.
Do you wonder if Microsoft Office 2010 would be harder to learn
to use than your existing Office software?
Do you think Kaspersky Antivirus looks useful but you like the
familiarity of your existing antivirus program?
Do you think voice to text software such as Dragon Naturally
Speaking sounds amazing but wonder if you'd be able to get to
grips with it?
Perhaps you'd like to buy the new
Expression Studio 4 Ultimate package and finally learn how
to build a website...
If you tell yourself you can't do something, that negative
thought will strangle your natural human instinct to learn more.
Curiosity is in our nature. It's why we looked up at the moon
and decided we should take a look at it in person.
If we made decisions based on fear, perhaps we'd have decided
that it was safer just to keep our feet on the ground.
Every journey starts with a first step.
As an official Microsoft partner, take a leap of faith and don't
be afraid to place your first order with Software4Students
Ireland.
Once you reach the moon, you realise there's a big universe out
there to explore.
Figuring out how to use OneNote 2010 is just the beginning.
NEW: Design websites with new software
Expression Web 4 or get the whole package including image
editing software with Expression Studio 4 Ultimate!
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Posted by
admin
at
09:31
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No Fear: A Journey Towards Learning And Happiness