Category Archives: Happiness Index

by | October 9, 2017 · 9:42 am

Guarding the temple of your soul

A few days ago I saw a front page headline in our local newspaper: “Trump opposes gun control.” It got me thinking: If I was living in the United States, it would maybe have been of interest to me. In this case it was just another example of the media setting the agenda for the day’s mood.

Motivational Quote That Will Inspire You to Be Successful. Words that inspire your heart, motivate your mind in life, creating success, achieving your goals, and overcoming your fears.Don’t get me wrong. The mass shooting in Las Vegas was a terrible tragedy. But the event has absolutely no impact on the daily lives of people living some 9,000 kilometers away and doesn’t belong on the front page of  my local newspaper. The media is feeding us constantly with blood and gore and the shadow side of humanity, knowing that its human nature to look first at the negative before seeing the positive.

Its part of our reptilian brain, our instinctive behavior and survival instinct to stay alert in case a tiger comes crashing through the woods. But in today’s globalized world of mass media, the constant feeding of the subconscious mind with negativity has an extremely detrimental effect on our health.

Stress, triggered by negative news, negative emotions and toxic thoughts, affects your immune system. When you read negative news and your mind is occupied with negativity, you release a stress hormone called cortisol. Prolonged exposure to cortisol leads to damage to the hippocampus part of the brain, causing in extreme cases anxiety attacks, depression or other mental illness.

This is why its so important to stand guard at the gateway to your subconscious mind. What do you feed your mind with before you go to bed? The worst thing you can do is to watch a horror movie or the evening news. It will program the way you dream and in what mood you wake up the next morning. Reading a spiritual text or listening to soothing music will have the opposite effect.

It takes constant training to shield the mind from negativity. But the more aware you become through mindfulness training the more effective you will become in empowering that guard at your doorway. I’m practising all the time.  Its not easy. Being a former newsman myself, I have to be more circumspect than most others not to fall prey to the tentacles of the mass media.

You create your reality with your thoughts!

Reino Gevers – Mentor for Leaders and Achievers – Your Health Matters

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http://www.reinogevers.com

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Filed under cortisol, cortisol effects, energy, Happiness Index, longevity, psychology, raised consciousness, spirituality, Uncategorized

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by | January 2, 2017 · 8:40 am

2017: Is the world a better place?

dresden

Dresden by night at the close of the year 2016

On New Year’s Eve I passed through the beautiful city of Dresden along the Elbe river in Germany.

I remember well when I first visited the city during the communist East German era in the early 1980s . It was a drab, grey, colourless place with the ruins of the famous Frauenkirche standing out like a sore thumb as a sad testimony to the allied World War II  bombings.

Today the beautiful Barock city centre with the Frauenkirche as the focal point have been restored to their former glory. Dresden and most of the former communist East Bloc today are definitely better places to live today than 25 years ago.

At the end of every year we seem to look at the mostly negative events of the year hoping the new year will bring us a better world. We live in a world of polarity and whichever side you fall on will have a major impact on your consciousness and state of well-being.

Yes, there were terrible events in the world during 2016 from the catastrophe in Aleppo to the growth of extremism in many forms, intolerance, earthquakes, climate change and other natural catastrophes.

As humanity evolves to a higher consciousness we will be seeing the pendulum sometimes sway in the opposite direction, creating the impression that humanity is moving backward. Pundits are arguing that  we have learned nothing from the fanatacism and extremism in the 1920s that led to the growth of fascism and World War II and are heading for another dark age in history. And of course it is necessary to be wary and alert. Nothing is a given.

However, I would venture to say that there is a difference to the 1920s. Never before, thanks to modern technology, have ordinary people been put into the position to spread their views and more importantly to support civic action groups in favour of just causes.

Part of the raised consciousness is the empowerment of the citizen beyond the vote once every four years for government that inevitably backtracks on its promises. Government is no longer  a major  agent of change. The world is influenced by countless other factors.

Responsibility lies with each one of us. It is precisely the crisis events of the past year that have triggered people into action. After the terrorist attack on a Christmas market in Berlin last month that claimed the lives of 12 people, Jews, Moslems, Christians and people from other faiths gathered in the nearby Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche together praying for peace and reconciliation – an event that received little attention from mainstream media. The focus was all on the tragedy itself.

In South Africa we are seeing a growing number of ordinary people from all races beginning to stand up against the corruption and nepotism of their government but the main focus is again on the negative and not on the many positive things happening in country undergoing major change.

In the Himalayan mountains ordinary village people are planting thousands of trees to counteract the effects of climate change.

Media tends to focus on the negative, creating the impression that the world is going from bad to worse. Its not: If we take a larger perspective over a period of say 200-300 years humanity has in fact made huge strides forward. We have a much higher life expectancy, less disease and malnutrition, a much higher standard of living and a higher rate of literacy..

An Oxford University researcher Max Roser has collected a wealth of data on our changing world, proving with hard facts that our world is in fact getting to be a better place.  Since 1900 the global average life expectancy has more than doubled and is now approaching 70 years. No country in the world today has a lower life expectancy than the the countries with the highest life expectancy in 1800.

But in our focus and emphasis on the negative we ourselves become negative and this paradoxically results in less positive change. Lets move forward in 2017 with a positive outlook. What we perceive on the global political arena is a reflection of our mindset.

Reino Gevers – Mentor for Leaders and Achievers – Your Health Matters

http://www.reinogevers.com

 

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Filed under Happiness Index, happiness research, humanity, life expectancy, mass media, mental-health, Uncategorized

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by | November 4, 2016 · 11:46 am

Kick-starting from the down cycle

licht_schattenBy Reino Gevers

What makes some people happier, more successful and healthier than others? Although research pinpoints some heriditary factors the real clue that makes those rare individuals stand out from the rest of the crowd, is how they deal with the natural up-and-down cycles of life.

The common denominator of highly successful people such as Nelson Mandela, talk show host Oprah Winfrey, businessman Richard Branson or writer  J.K. Rowling is that they all learned ways of kickstarting themselves out of terrible down cycles, that would have destroyed most other people.

The natural reaction to a major setback in life is a type of “shock-freeze paralysis.” The kick-starters however, have adopted habits of how to get out of the down cycle as soon as possible. Lets face it life is not all sunshine and glory. We have bad days and they can sure knock us out of all that we trust and believe in. The loss of a loved one, a life-threatening disease, job-loss, bankruptcy, divorce, and an unforeseen accident. Life is full of unforseen circumstances.

While we can’t control external events we sure have control of how we react to them. So how do you get out of the down-cycle? For me walking the Camino in Spain has been a test of up-and-down cycles every time, a real analogy of life. Going on a pilgrimage, or taking a complete time-out for reorientation, has for me been a major help, like leaving a dysfunctional marriage and a well-paid job that was fast pulling me into a burnout. Simply being in a completely different setting with no electronic distractions and having alone time is really important in stimulating creativity  – and more importantly – learning the lesson from the down cycle. People with a generally high energy level and thus physical and mental resilience, will also find it easier to get out of the down cycle. So if you are in a dark spot, here are some tips:

  • Get moving with physical exercise to get those happy hormones going and start boosting the body’s immune system with nutrients from power foods.
  • Find room for alone time,  prayer, meditation or any other ritual that gives you energy.
  • Meet with friends, family, or any other people that you know will lift you up with positive vibes and to strengthen your feeling that you are part of a community.
  • Create a mental picture or vision board where you want to be in six months, three years, five years.
  • Givers Gain: Are there any ways of where you can give to others in serving the community and making a positive contribution to society? It helps get you out of the rut of endless negative self-reflection.

Reino Gevers – Mentoring for Leaders and Achievers

http://www.reinogevers.com

 

 

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