Harga Sebuah Kesuksesan

Oleh :Andrew Ho

Harga Sebuah Kesuksesan
Dalam sebuah seminar, seorang motivator terkenal memulainya dengan mengeluarkan sehelai uang Rp.100.000,-. Ia mengangkat uang tersebut tinggi-tinggi, sambil mengajukan sebuah pertanyaan kepada lebih dari 2.000 peserta seminar. “Siapa yang menginginkan uang ini?”

Tak ayal sebagian besar peserta mengacungkan tangan.

Motivator tersebut melanjutkan kalimatnya, “Baik! Saya akan memberikan uang ini kepada salah satu diantara Anda. Tetapi sebelum itu saya akan melakukan sesuatu.”

Motivator tersebut menggulung uang kertas itu. Sekali lagi ia bertanya kepada hadirin, “Siapa yang masih menginginkan uang ini?” Tak berbeda dengan sebelumnya, hampir semua peserta seminar tersebut mengacungkan tangan, pertanda mereka masih menginginkan uang itu.

Melihat respon peserta yang tidak berubah, motivator tersebut kemudian menginjak-injak uang tersebut dengan kaki kanan lalu dengan kaki kiri. Setelah uang itu menjadi kotor dan lecek, ia kembali bertanya, “Apakah masih ada yang mengingkan uang ini?”

Masih sama dengan sebelumnya, hampir semua peserta mengacungkan tangan. Kemudian dia berkata, “Saudaraku sekalian, dari peragaan tadi saya hanya ingin menunjukkan bahwa siapun ingin memiliki uang itu. Bagaimanapun kondisi uang tersebut tidak akan menurunkan nilainya dari Rp. 100.000,-”

Pesan:

Kisah tersebut menerangkan sebuah kebenaran bahwa kehidupan ini memang sulit. Setiap hari kita menghadapi tantangan kecil, sedang, berat, hingga sangat berat. Tetapi pada dasarnya tantangan kehidupan tidak mengurangi nilai kita sebagai manusia. Sebaliknya tantangan kehidupan sangat diperlukan untuk meningkatkan nilai diri kita.

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. - Nilai seorang manusia tidak dapat diukur disaat ia berada di zona nyaman, melainkan bagaimana ia menghadapi tantangan dan kontrovesi,” kata Martin Luther King Jr.

Tetapi sangat banyak diantara kita yang hanya mengeluhkan kehidupan yang penuh dengan tantangan. Mereka lupa harus belajar sesuatu dari tantangan, rasa sakit dan perjuangan hidup. Karena jika segalanya di dunia ini sempurna, maka kita tidak akan dapat belajar hal baru atau mendapatkan semangat lebih besar untuk berbuat lebih baik dan meningkatkan nilai diri kita sebagai manusia.

How To Make Sure You Are Doing The Right Thing In Trying To Get Your Ex Back

By : Melisa Haworth

This life poses a lot of doubts and problems. In everything that we do, we are sure to encounter things or even people that will make us think twice about something we are doing or about to do. The same thing applies when you are trying to get your ex back. One or two of your friends may say that it's not worth to pursue your ex back. But what if the feeling's too strong to ignore? 

If there is something you need to know about acting on your hunches is that what your gut first tells you is usually the right thing to do. You should follow your gut. If you are trying to get your ex back, there's no reason to think twice and doubt your decision. 

Some would say that all of those who just came from a painful break up would want to get back with their ex because it's the normal reaction. Your mind and heart is still reeling from the experience so your mind will tell you that you need to have them back. 

But if days after the break up it is still what you're feeling, then, the probability that it is really what you want is very high. As mentioned earlier, your gut feeling is always right so you must act on it. 

If, in case, you are already working on trying to get your ex back and you encounter someone you know who discourages you from continuing, think carefully. Though their reasons may be valid and logical, nothing can alter fate. Yes, you'll never know if you will fail or succeed, but there's no way of knowing unless you try it. If the two of you are really meant to get back together, the elements will find a way to tell you. And most of the times, you get that realization from your gut feeling. 

Others would enumerate signs, steps, and even divine intervention just so you can determine if you are doing the right thing, but what I am sharing with you is just one thing-the most accurate thing, on my opinion, that will help you put those doubts to rest. 

Remember, if you are having second thoughts about trying to get your ex back, whether it is because of what other people tell you or simply because you are getting cold feet, always remember that your gut feeling will not fail you. It may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity you are letting slip by. 

Get Your Ex Back - A Crash Course On Healing A Broken Heart

By :Melisa Haworth

Going through a break up is always very difficult. This is the one point in our lives when we feel so terrible we don't want to do anything but cry. We don't function properly in work or school; our friends can't get us to go out with them to have a good time; and our families can't get us to go out of the room to join them at the dinner table or even talk to them even though they want to help us heal a broken heart. 

There are a lot of consequences a break up. Almost everything in our lives become affected by that one heart-breaking moment. We feel like the whole has suddenly come tumbling down and rolling on us. 

I feel what you are going through. I know the hurt and how hard it is to deal with the pain. That is why I will share with you the 5 most effective tips on how you can heal a broken heart and prepare you on how to get your ex back. 

Go to your friends and family for moral support. The only people who can help you go through any tough situations in life are those who are closest to you. They are your family and friends. You can always talk to them and tell them how you feel. Cry if you need to. Their love and support will be enough to help you forget the pain and get over the break up. 

Keep yourself busy with studies or work. One of the most effective ways to deal with a break up is to keep your mind busy with something relevant. And what better and more productive way than to focus on your work or studies? If you have been faltering in school or in the workplace because of your relationship before, now is the time to redeem yourself in the eyes of your professors and boss. Show them that you are capable of springing back and prove your self worthy of the position you have. Keep yourself busy with relevant stuff. In the end, not only will you be able to get over the pain, you may even end up with a higher grade or a raise. 

Try to learn something new. Everyday is a chance to learn something new and fruitful; and each happening in your life is an opportunity to develop and acquire a new skill. If you are too devastated by your break up, take up a new hobby. You can start collecting items that piques your interest. Similarly, you can learn how to craft things. There's a lot of stuff you can busy yourself with. Not only will these serve as a therapy, this can also be fruitful. 

Diversify your daily routine. For sure, your routine for the past how many months have included, if not revolved around, your ex. If this is the case, you need to make a different routine after the break up. This will help you from thinking about your ex in the unexpected moments. If you continue to do the things you used to do before, there is always the chance that you will remember the days spent with your ex doing those things. Making a change in how you live each day will help you forget your break up. 

Quit thinking about your ex. This is probably the most effective way of getting over a break up and healing your broken heart. Thinking about your ex will trigger the resurgence of memories- both happy and sad. And the longer time you spend thinking about your ex, the harder it will be to forget him or her. 

It's not easy to forget the pains of a break up and heal your broken heart. All it takes is a little faith, determination, and help from the people close to you. Remember, to get your ex back, you need to make sure that your heart has gotten over the pain and healed the wounds it suffered. 

The Significance of Search Engines

By :Terence Nason

It is the search engines that ultimately get your website to the notice of the potential clients. When a topic is typed for search, practically directly, the search engine will separate through the millions of pages it has indexed about and present you with ones that match your subject. The look for matches is also ranked, so that the most related ones come primary. 

Remember that a potential client will most likely simply look at the opening 2-3 listings in the search results. So it does matter where your website come out in the search engine position. 

Further, they all use one of the top 6-7 search engines and these search engines attract more visitors to websites than anything else. So finally it all depends on which search engines the customers use and how they rank your site. 

It is the Keywords that play an important role than any expensive online or offline advertising of your website. 

It is found by surveys that a when customers want to find a website for information or to buy a product or service, they find their site in one of the following ways: 

* The first option is they find their site through a search engine. 
* Secondly they find their site by clicking on a link from another website or page that relates to the topic in which they are interested. 
* Occasionally, they find a site by hearing about it from a friend or reading in an article. 

Thus it's obvious the most popular way to find a site, by search engine, represents more than 90 of the people looking for a website will use methods other than search engines. 

All search engines employ a ranking algorithm and one of the main rules in a ranking algorithm is to check the location and frequency of keywords on a web page. Don't forget that algorithms also give weightage to link population (number of web pages linking to your site). 

When performed by a qualified, experienced search engine optimization consultant, your site for high search engine rankings really does work, unless you have a lot of money and can afford to pay the expert. With better knowledge of search engines and how they work, you can also do it on your own. 

What do Subliminals Do for You?

By :Shane Butler

What is "Subliminal"? 

A subliminal message is a signal or message embedded in another medium, designed to pass below the normal limits of the human mind's perception. Like someone talking very quietly while you are listening to music or other sounds, or written words super-quickly flashing on a screen while you are watching something. These messages are unrecognizable by the conscious mind, but in certain situations can affect the subconscious mind and can negatively or positively influence subsequent later thoughts, behaviors, actions, attitudes, belief systems and value systems. 

Do subliminal messages really work? 

This has been debated for a long time. One of the early studies conducted by James Vicary in 1957 that demonstrated that consumers would buy more cola and popcorn by using subliminals in movies was later found to be fraudulent. Many opponents to the effectiveness of subliminals claimed this was evidence that they do not work. 

Since then further studies have been conducted which have proven that subliminal images can indeed influence the choice of a consumer, or the emotional state of an observer. 

Perhaps the most extreme example of the power of subliminal influence can be found in the work of Darren Brown, the famous English mind magician. In one show he demonstrated how with the correct use of emotional anchoring and subliminal triggering he was able to get some normal people to rob an armored van. 

Volume 29 of The Journal of Counseling Psychology, reports a study by Dr. Kenneth Parker, a psychologist at Queens College, New York. His study demonstrated the effectiveness of subliminals in an academic environment. He was able to have a test group achieve a significant improvement in academic performance and information retention against a control group with the use of subliminals before class started. 

From a more therapy based perspective Dr. Lloyd H. Silverman, a research psychologist from New York, has carried out extensive studies into subliminal effects in different therapeutic applications. These included improving or aggravating symptoms in schizophrenics as well as improving the success rates in those quitting smoking. 

In March of 2007 BBC News reported on the work of a London team of researchers at the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience who had identified, through brain scans, that the brain does indeed respond to subliminal influences. 

Speaking on behalf of the team, Dr Bahador Bahrami said: "What's interesting here is that your brain does log things that you aren't even aware of and can't ever become aware of. The brain is open to what's around it. So if there is 'spare capacity', in terms of attention, the brain will allocate that resource to subliminal activity." 

On their own, subliminal messages can have little or no effect unless there is a natural desire in the person receiving them to be influenced by them. Much the same as hypnosis by itself can't get someone to do what they really don't want to do. 

However, when used by a person with a desire for change, and when used in combination with other techniques as part of a complete program for change, subliminals can play an important role. 

What is the difference between subliminals and semi-subliminals? 

A true subliminal message is not registered by the conscious mind, even if it tries. A semi-subliminal message can be seen or heard by the conscious mind if it consciously tries to look at, or listen to it. 

Semi-subliminal learning can be very powerful. Speed readers have found that with proper training they are able to retain 80-90% comprehension of written material with little more than a brief glance at a page. 

Are subliminal's safe to use? 

Yes. In a review of the studies that have been conducted so far there has not been a report of negative side effects (with the exception of the deliberate aggravation of symptoms in Schizophrenics by Dr. Silverman). So long as the images and words you use are all positive there will be no unwanted results. 

How can I use subliminals for my own benefit? 

Choosing messages that are positive and have personal meaning to you may provide great results in improving behaviors and attitudes making it simpler to achieve your desires. Subliminals are used frequently around the world to assist people with a wide range of complaints and issues. 

The personal development guru, Anthony Robbins, has been a long time supporter of subliminal techniques, as well as NLP and Power Questions. 

Tiger Woods and Ruben Gonzalez (three time Olympian) are just two of many professional athletes that openly use subliminals to enhance their game. 

Many highly successful businessmen and women also use subliminals to give them an edge in business. 

And, as mentioned above, research has demonstrated the ability of subliminal messages and images to alter health related symptoms and emotional states. 

There are many companies and programs that provide subliminal audios and/or programs to help you make your own subliminals. The most comprehensive program available at this time is "My Desktop Therapist". You can download it for free at www.myDesktopTherapist.info . You can use this computer program to play semi-subliminal audios of your own voice (or another person), brainwave technology sounds, and/or music. You can program yourself with semi-subliminal messages (text) and semi-subliminal images which is great for doing a vision board. The innovative software can also do Hypnosis and EFT (Emotional Freedom Therapy) sessions. Then there's what some consider the greatest feature, the ability to play videos, including the "Mind Movies" that have been created and used by thousands. 

In addition to that, My Desktop Therapist does this on your screen, at whatever strength you choose, while you go about doing your other tasks on the computer so you can benefit from it all day. If you don't want to add any subliminals yourself you can use the complimentary improvement program that comes with it, or better yet, purchase the optional "Transformations" program that MDT offers after you download My Desktop Therapist. 

Subliminals can be very beneficial and fun. Go try some today and see more of the results you want as you continue to use them. 

Facebook Tutorial: How to Create a Facebook Profile

You probably know a lot of people on Facebook already, and they are probably wondering why your not on it yet. Facebook is one largest social networking sites on the web and it’s a great way to keep in touch with your friends. As more and more people join Facebook is becoming an important tool in helping people stay connected. It’s also free so there no real reason not to join!

The first step in joining Facebook is creating your account. On the Facebook homepage you’ll see a large blue box in the lower right hand corner of the page. Here is where you sign up for Facebook.You’ll need to type in you name. This is the name you’ll want to appear on your profile and the name by which people can search for you within Facebook. You’ll also have to add your email address and a password. This is how you will login to Facebook. Facebook will also ask you to add your gender and your birth date at this time.

Once you click the green ‘Sign Up’ button you’ll be taken to email confirmation page. Facebook will have sent you an email to confirm that you are creating an account. Just click on the link in the email and you’ll have a Facebook account.

First, Facebook will prompt you to several ways you can find your friends on Facebook such as through searching your e-mail and your school/company networks. Skip these pages for now; we’ll come back to them another time.

Facebook will then ask you to join a regional network. If you choose you can join a network that represents where you live. Just start typing in the city or region in which you live and Facebook will present you several options. Just choose the closest fit.

Now you’re ready to create your profile page. You’ll first be taken to the Facebook homepage. To get to your profile page click on your name on the banner on the top of the page. You can also reach your page by clicking on ‘Profile’ on the banner.

This is your Facebook profile page. Here you can add information about yourself to share with friends. To add information click on the info tab underneath your name and Facebook will guide you through a few different pages. You can pick and choose what information you want to share on your profile. There are also several privacy options you can choose from if you want to restrict who can see certain parts of your profile.

The first section Facebook will guide you to the page for your ‘Basic Information.’ Here you will see the information you added when you signed up, including your birth date information. You can choose how people see your birthday in your profile by clicking on the dropdown list. You can also add your hometown, relationship status and your political and religious views on this page. Any field you choose to leave blank will simply not appear on your profile. Once your finished click on ‘Save Changes’ at the bottom of the page and you’ll be taken to the next section.

This section is for your ‘Personal Information.’ In this section you can pretty much put any information about yourself that you want to. There is a section for activities, interests, music, movies, books, your favorite quotes, and an ‘About Me’ section where you can write about yourself. You’ll notice when you start typing in a field Facebook will prompt you with several popular choices but you can add whatever information you choose. Once your done save your changes and move on to the next page.

This section is for your ‘Contact Information.’ Here you can add your various ways people can get in touch with you. Again, if there’s any information you do not wish to share leave the field blank and it won’t appear. Here you can add your IM screen names (up to five), any phone numbers, your address, and a website if you have one.

If you want to add this information but want to restrict who can see it you can click on the lock to the right of the information you want to restrict. A window will appear with a pull down list. The list will give you several options to control who can see the information including your networks (the region) you joined, friends of friends, only friends, or you can customize to make your privacy options even more specific. Once you choose the privacy settings you want you can save the changes and move on to the next page.

This page is for your ‘Education and Work’ information. Here you can add information about the colleges you’ve attended, including the year you graduated, your majors/minors, and whether you attended for college or graduate school. You can add up to five colleges. You can also add up to two high schools you attended. There is also a section for job information. If you want to share where you work you can add this information in this section including a description of your job, how long you worked there, or if you currently work there. You can add up to 15 jobs. Once you your done adding information, save your changes and you are now done editing your profile.

Once you finish editing you’ll see how all the information you just added looks on your info tab. Now you can add your profile picture.

Click ‘upload’ link under the silhouette. If you have a picture in mind (it must be a jpg. gif., or a png.) just click on ‘browse’ in the window it will open your files. Find the picture you want and open it. Facebook will upload it onto your page.

If you have a webcam you can add a picture that way. Click on the ‘Take a webcam picture’ under the silhouette and it will open your webcam.

Once you have added a picture you can update your Facebook status. Fill in the bar that asks you ‘what are you doing right now?’ you can answer the question, add how you’re feeling or any update about yourself that you want your friends to know. You can update this as frequently as you want. Once you filled in the bar click post.

Once you refresh the page you’ll see how your completed Facebook profile page appears. You can change any aspect of your profile page, including the privacy settings, at anytime.

On your profile page you’ll see that everything you have just done appears on your mini-feed. Every time you do something on Facebook it will appear in your mini-feed. People can also comment on the stories that appear in your mini- feed.

You can change the comment settings by clicking on ‘settings’ above the mini-feed. If you uncheck the box comments on your mini-feed stories will not appear on your profile.

You can also remove stories from your mini-feed by scrolling your mouse over the information you want to remove and to the right an ‘edit’ button will appear. When you click on it, the option to delete the particular mini-feed story will appear.

Now you have completed setting up your Facebook profile page. In the next tutorial we will look at how to find your friends on Facebook.

Would You Pay To Use Facebook?

Although Facebook user numbers are continuing to increase, European users by over 300% alone, people are still asking the question of how Facebook can truly monetise it’s service. 

The cost of running such a service must be massive, and although Facebook haven’t released figures, the $1million+ they spend on electricity each month goes some way to detailing their outgoings. 

Microsoft acquired a $240million stake in Facebook in late 2007, that stake valued the company at approximately $15billion. However after trouble finding ways to make money through the service, chief executive and creator of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg has found the valuation of the company declining alarmingly. It’s reported that Zuckerberg recently turned down funding which valued the company at $4billion, and that a possible new investor has gone in at an even lower $2billion valuation. 

This is worrying for Facebook, and potentially it’s users as Facebook look for new ways to make money through it’s service and attract new investors. It already has a comprehensive ad placement structure in place but it seems that with so many new users flocking to Facebook every day, that the ad structure is buckling under the shear weight of new and existing users. 

Perhaps the most obvious way of making money through the service would be to charge users a fee for using the service, with over 100million active users using Facebook this could mean a hefty chunk of ‘additonal’ income for the company and ease the worries of declining valuations. 

While the thought of paying for a once free service will inevitably irk some (or more than likely most, if not all) users, there are some interesting approaches to a paid Facebook service, most notably a tiered access system. Facebook would then consist of tiers allowing several levels of restrictions i.e. the free basic level would allow for up to 200 friends, one status update a day and a very small message capacity. For $5 a month those limits would be lifted meaning that many occasional users would be unaffected. 

Of those 100million active users, if even 80% were to leave the service or at least keep using the basic service that would still leave approximately 20million people paying $60 a year, meaning an additional $1.2billion in possible revenue. However a reduction in the number of users to Facebook, even with the introduction of paid members, could see a decrease in advertising revenue with potential advertisers concerned at the reduction of those potential customers. 

Facebook have denied this at every opportunity and has shown no signs of implementing any kind of paid service, however what is clear is that the service is beginning to stagnate and much like Twitter, is struggling to make money through their massive user bases. 

So we ask, how much would you pay to use Facebook? 

Here are some opinions from the Union Room and Projector team… 

Paul Arnold: I personally wouldn’t pay a penny to use Facebook. They get enough finance from me in the form of advertising revenue, forcing me to pay a subscription would turn me away. I’d use the cut down free service or move onto another site altogether. 

Jon Park: I probably wouldn’t. I might keep the free one just to keep in touch with other people on there but, being in the industry, build my own homepage and use that instead. I’m on the verge of doing just that simply because I don’t really use Facebook any more, but that’s another issue. 

James Machin: Personally I wouldn’t pay for Facebook - I don’t find it that useful other than catching up with what friends are up to! 

Phil Lowery: I would pay to keep my membership if everyone I knew did so too. 

If I could have an ‘inner-circle’ of 200 friends then it would be fine for me as I don’t have over that now. And, I’d certainly not need to update my status anymore than that so it’s hard for me to say how much I’d pay - but if there was no inner circle and I had to pay a subscription to join then I think about £30 a year - no more. 

Author :Jordan Hall