The Apple device is not the only vehicle on the block and despite its superb styling, slim profile, sexy features and non scratch glass, it is not perfectly suited to everybody.

For the record, I happen to think that the Mini Cooper S is a very desirable car, just as I think the iPad is a very desirable tablet, but at this point in my life, neither are appropriate for my needs.

Being a self confessed computer geek, I read more gadget reviews than absolutely necessary and spend far too much time playing with Windows, Android and Apple based products; and yet I was still not convinced that any tablet was worth buying, due to the limits on practical every-day usage and the lack of simple-affordable expansion and connection capabilities.

Despite being a little ‘overweight’ and more focused on being sensible (think Toyota Camry) rather than sexy (think Mini Cooper S), the Toshiba Thrive has opened my eyes to the possibilities of owning and using such a device.

It is definitely not perfect, and at times I was underwhelmed with:
-the operating system (it works really well, I was just looking for some more wow factor)
-the trail of fingerprints on the glass (it did not affect usage, just looked a little messy)
-the camera quality (it takes great, but not stunning, photos and videos)

But to its credit, the Thrive did everything it was supposed to:
-the battery life is fantastic (it lasted more than two full days) and can be removed very easily, enabling you to carry a spare battery for times when you are in a remote location
-the full size expansion ports are wonderful (you can attach a standard keyboard, mouse, hard drive and external display)
-the screen clarity was great (even with the fingerprints) and the performance was more than enough to watch videos, play games, surf the internet and handle email.

I could imagine a student or business person carrying a Toshiba Thrive to lectures, meetings or conferences; taking notes, video and photos, then using the tablet over a coffee for Facebook, Google+ and email. Once back home, it would be simple to connect the tablet to a cheap keyboard, mouse (and even a hard drive for backup) using the full size USB port; or just pop out the standard SD memory card and update all of the days activities into an existing desktop system.

If you do not have already own a computer and you are looking for a cost effective way to ‘get connected’, plus have some flexibility and portability, then this tablet could quite easily become your technology centrepiece. The full sized ports on the Thrive allow you to shop around for low priced peripherals and storage devices, rather than being limited to a manufacturers brand.

Toshiba is an established name with a solid reputation for build quality and it seems to me that they have watched the tablet market, listened to the gnashing of teeth on the existing tablet forums, and decided to produce a reliable every-day four door family vehicle for people like me, rather than a two door sports car for usage only in the weekends or on special occasions.

Christchurch Mayor, Bob Parker is saying “There is a future here, there is great economy and a great way of life.”

The BBC’s Nick Bryant says the city’s quake-weary residents are at their wit’s end, and dozens more families have decided to leave for good.

So what should you do? … Here are a couple of suggestions:
1. Look before you leap

If you must go, then take a moment to stop and decide “why” and “where” you are going, before hastily packing a lunch bag and leaving. Life works best if you run towards a goal or a dream, rather than running away from a nightmare.

There are times when simply “running away” is extremely important, like when your building is shaking violently and collapsing around you during a 6.0 earthquake, but shortly afterwards you find yourself standing out in the street, feeling empty, tearful and confused.

Try and avoid “running away” from Christchurch in your immediate state of fear, only to discover you are alone, financially challenged and lost in a completely new environment, with no friends and family to support you.

Many of us “ran away from home” when we were young (or at least threatened to) without any direction or planned destination, and soon realised that the warmth, turmoil and unconditional love of our family was more important than our silent, stable, but slightly breezy tree hut.

How do you find the answer to this fishing puzzle?
We have all learnt to find the answer by beginning at the “fish” (i.e the solution, goal, desired result) and working towards the boat, rather than randomly diving into every possible answer and repeating the mistake over and over. Avoid “leaping off the boat”, set some goals and enjoy the journey of working towards them.

2. Limit your own internal aftershocks
Switch off the news occasionally and read a book, watch a DVD or visit a friend.

You would never consider eating fast food as your “only” food (could cause some severe bathroom aftershocks), yet in moments of crisis we often expose ourselves to a continuous stream of terror, conjecture, heartache and horror stories.

We have family and close friends in Christchurch, so we have good reason to keep a watchful eye on what is happening in Canterbury. It only takes a couple of minutes after an earthquake for the communication network to start buzzing. Text messages, Facebook, Youtube, Phone, Skype and Twitter suddenly become “hot” and images/videos of the aftershock begin to appear on internet channels almost immediately.

The media quickly picks up the story and soon your living room is filled with scenes of mass destruction, tearful people, floating vehicles, destroyed homes and endless interviews with seismologists, celebrities, victims and theorists.

Your television is a powerful tool in any emergency, providing important information, allowing you to see the situation first hand and keeping you abreast of any major changes. Your television can also produce some potentially dangerous side effects if you allow it to be the “only” food you swallow throughout the day.

Everyone is predicting more physical aftershocks and that is something you cannot control, no matter how often you hear them repeat the message on the media, but you can control some of your own internal aftershocks.

A couple of ideas to help with your emotional aftershocks:
1. Reach out to a friend or neighbour, offer encouragement and support.
(one of the most effective ways of “helping yourself”, is to take your focus off yourself, and this technique carries the double blessing of providing assistance to other people)
2. Limit your dose of “bad news” and only watch a couple of news broadcasts each day.
(grab a coffee and watch some of your favourite movies instead)
3. Help your children by limiting their earthquake exposure on the media, play games, read stories, watch uplifting DVDs.
(we are God-Parents to a fabulous little girl, who unfortunately witnessed so much of the February 22 earthquake on television, that she became extremely frightened (she does not even live in Christchurch) and very disturbed re “the earthquake”))
4. Start to plan and set goals; “Where do you see yourself in five years?” and then begin to take steps towards those goals.
(people often make life changing decisions during moments of crisis that can lead to a better long term future)
5. Find a good book and “lose yourself” in the pages, let your imagination take you to fabulous destinations and on exciting adventures.
(you can also find lots of great books on goal setting, motivation and relationships in your local bookstore or library)

I believe Mayor Bob Parker is right … Christchurch will re build and the people will stay.
I also believe the BBC is right … some people will leave.

Christchurch is beautiful, not just because of the architecture, the climate and the location. Christchurch is beautiful because of its people, and it is these people who will re build the city, house by house, street by street … not because they have nowhere else to go … but because they know where they want to be.

“For many of us, our lives, the story of our families and the hopes of our future are invested in this place and we are not going to be rushing away. Most people here in Christchurch don’t want to go anywhere else, they want to solve this and work our way through it and that’s what will happen and history will show that.”

Christchurch Mayor: Bob Parker

On February 22^nd 2011 the residents of Christchurch literally ran for their lives.

Unfortunately some people could not escape the incredible destruction and their name will become an everlasting memory, etched into marble and into the minds and hearts of those left behind.

Even before the dust settled the media was broadcasting unbelievable images of bravery, tragedy and near misses. Individuals armed with pocket sized technology managed to capture frightening scenes via their cell phones and hundreds of digital images began to appear on Facebook, Google, websites, blogs and email attachments.

The world became immediately connected to the disaster, the armed forces stepped in to help, extra police were brought into the city, international search and rescue teams arrived to assist with the recovery process, temporary food and accommodation shelters materialised, the television news allocated non stop programming to the earthquake to ensure people were kept up to date … and for a few days/weeks, the city of Christchurch “stopped”.

It is almost three weeks since the event and people are now forced to “pick up the pieces” and begin the process of re building their business, their career, their home, their faith and their finances. Limited water, outside shared toilets, temporary housing, damaged roads, restricted public transport and continuous aftershocks can result in an understandable tendency for uncertainty and the likelihood of shattered nerves.

The media has “moved on” and soon the international experts will depart, leaving a crushed city centre, surrounded by broken homes, many unidentified bodies, torn water mains, interim electricity connections and “out of business” businesses. This is the time where “the rubber meets the road”, where each person will begin to re evaluate their life, and the lives of those closest to them (emotional closest=family and friends, physical closest=neighbours in need of some company and re assurance).

Bob Parker has shown his true colours throughout the civil emergency, his media broadcasts are powerful and uplifting, yet always empathetic. He has lead “his people” through the crisis and he will continue to motivate, inspire and push on every available resource to ensure that Christchurch re emerges, stronger and better prepared than ever.

If we were amazed at the courage and fortitude of the Cantabrians during the actual disaster, I believe we are about to be truly astonished over the coming weeks/months/years. The residents of Christchurch are a proud and resilient bunch of people, and they love their city. I am reminded of the classic hit song “You ain’t seen nothing yet!” and mark my words, we have not!

Special thanks to Nic Jones for the excellent photos.

There is no doubt that this disaster is “a disaster” and our prayers and thoughts go out to everyone in the Canterbury region. We are deeply concerned for people, for businesses and for the heart of the region.

People all over the city are “mucking in” to help those in need and those outside the city are leaving their homes to travel into the region and provide whatever assistance is required. This is a time when individuals and communities are reaching out to neighbours, family, friends and to their faith.

Despite this clearly obvious show of camaraderie and fortitude, news broadcasters are repeatedly using words like “this is end of Christchurch” and “the Cathedral has collapsed and so has the heart of Christchurch”.

It is very important to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation and to not hide behind a Pollyanna attitude of “everything will be alright”, because for many people, “it will not be alright”, especially if they have lost a loved one.

I believe it is equally important to include a few positive words of hope for the future and was delighted to hear John Key point out that “other cities around the world have suffered serious disasters and they have successfully re built themselves, and although Christchurch will be a very-different city when re built, he is confident that it will recover and prosper”.

The people of Canterbury have suffered badly and I suspect it is not over. They are essentially at war with nature and just like every war time scenario they need someone in authority to stand up and give them courage, faith, hope and a vision for the future.

New Zealanders are re renowned for their courage, their compassion, their fortitude and their commitment to one another.

We are a nation of winners and I believe the residents of Canterbury will once again show the world that we can recover from any situation and that we will rise above the ashes of the present disaster, stronger and better equipped physically, mentally and spiritually to deal with any future challenges.

Mothers are extremely influential people. Their words and their actions establish an initial foundation of belief, self esteem, direction, dreams and enthusiasm in a child.

Happiness and success can be sought and found at any age, it just might take a little more effort compared to people who received early words of encouragement from their mother (and father).

A child’s viewpoint of the world (i.e. the programming of their brain/hard-drive) is heavily influenced by the words and actions of their primary care giver, often the mother.

There are numerous examples including:
-Abraham Lincoln said “All I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.”
-Napoleon Hill, creator of “Think and grow rich” and numerous other self empowerment books, was edified and encouraged by his step mother to become a writer.
-Ben Carson, one of the world’s greatest bran surgeons, remembers his mother’s words; “‘Give your best, Ben Carson. Settle for nothing less than doing your best for yourself and others.”
-Albert Einstein’s mother removed him from school when they suggested he was difficult to teach and provided home schooling to develop his unique gifts.
-S B Fuller, born into poverty, was told by his mother “The only reason we are not wealthy is because your father has not developed the desire to be wealthy.”

Although we remember and celebrate the success of key individuals like Abraham Lincoln, we also need to honour the people who have achieved success in areas of life that we do not typically hear about; i.e. in their family, their community, their church, their personal life or in their business.

Do not underestimate the power of a mother’s words!

My mother’s last sentence change the course of my life and the journey to fulfil her last request continues to this day.

NOTE:
The influence of the “primary care giver” (in this case the Nanny) can be experienced first hand in the recent release of “The King’s Speech”, starring Colin Firth as firstly as the Duke of York, then as King George VI.

It is beautifully crafted film that touches the hearts and fears of us all as we watch the Duke of York struggling to overcome a lifetime of speech impediment, primarily caused by events that occurred in his early childhood.

With the advent of radio, public speaking became a key role in the life of a King and his fear of public speaking, caused by his stammer, almost cost him his crown and the respect of the empire.

Take a moment to think about the things you are afraid of:

Spiders, Public Speaking, Divorce, Fire, Losing Your Job, Being Lonely, Poor Health, The Dark, Intimacy, Failure, Rejection, Taxes, Closed Spaces, Open Spaces, Dogs, Thunder, Mice, Snakes, Doctors …

It seems we now have a “phobia” to cover almost every situation. We have Aeronausiphobia (Air Sickness), Myrmecophobia (Ants), Motorphobia (Automobiles), Ballistophobia (Missiles), Cancerphobia (Cancer), Emetophibia (Vomiting), Xerophobia (Dryness) and Chionophobia (Snow) to name but a few.

Everybody Starts at the Beginning

Once you realise and accept that every fear or phobia you and I have (aside from the two “born fears”) is a result of “learned behaviour”, you can also deduce that it must be possible to “unlearn” a particular phobia.

Just because someone looks comfortable on stage, does not mean they were born with a gift of speaking or singing, or that they have always been at ease in front of people. You may be terrified at the thought of speaking in public (currently ranked as the number one fear in the world, second is “death by fire”) and so was I.

We do not like to think of ourselves as judgemental, yet everybody forms an opinion of someone when we are first introduced, on stage or face-to-face. Our first impression is hard to change once formed (and it is formed in the first few seconds) and is typically based on how a person looks (clothes, smile, clean, tidy appearance), on how they project themselves (body language, attitude, confidence), on what they say (word structure, vocabulary, topic) and how they say it (voice inflection, passion, enthusiasm).

There is an old saying “you never get a second chance to make a good first impression” and it is equally true today as it was when first spoken. To succeed in business and personal relationships you need to examine “how people see you” (confidence, personality profile, level of enthusiasm) and take steps to give yourself the best possible chance of making a good first impression.

For those of you interesting in improving your public speaking ability, here are a few basic tips to get you started.

One of the most important steps is to decide “who you are”.

The more I train people, listen to speakers, attend social functions and observe audience reactions, the more I realise the huge importance of “being yourself”.

If you are the kind of person that people consider to be quick witted and generally funny; then you should include some humour in your talk, otherwise be very careful!

The internet, speech writing books and well meaning friends will often advise you to tell jokes to win the audience over. On many occasions I have cringed in my seat as joke after joke falls flat on a very embarrassed group of people.

Let’s face it, some people are really good at impromptu humour and joke telling, and some are not!

Just be genuine, be yourself. Let people see “you”; it is great to “step it up a little” and press the boundaries of your comfort level, but at least try to stay within your spirit.

Additional Information:
Video assistance re public speaking: 

If you are unable to view this video, please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtL8gTEuwvU

Part 2 of this discussion re “Overcome your fear of speaking in public” will be continued in the next blog update and will include a “basic speech writing framework” to help you get started.

Text is original and is extracted from chapters in “Thank God it’s Friday”.

*All normal, healthy babies exhibit reflexes, i.e. an automatic response to an outside stimulus. These reflexes are important and are needed for survival.

If you touch or stroke the palm of a babies hand he/she will clench a fist in an attempt to grasp you and this is recognised as an inbuilt protection against falling. This action has been named the Darwinian or Grasping reflex.

Most parents will quickly notice the Moro (or Startle) reflex in their new baby. A sharp loud noise, or sudden loss of support for the child will cause the baby to fling his/her arms out and then quickly draw them back towards the chest, then they will cry.

The question as to whether these involuntary reactions should be labelled as fear’s is still in discussion amongst psychologists. There does seem to be a consensus that even though these reflex actions may be unconscious to begin with, they do connect to conscious fears as the infant matures.

This stunning image of me conducting a symphony of seagulls looks like “the impossible photo” and I am sure many people will think it was tampered with after the initial capture.

Nature's 3D Technology

Technology is attempting to replicate this three dimensional view of the world with new 3D technology, glasses, televisions, computer games and interactive sports equipment. Sony is telling us that their new product “combines the realism of HD with the magic of 3D for an immersive sensory feast” and Sharp have decided to add another colour pixel (Yellow) to add to the traditional RGB spectrum.

It is worth remembering that “marketing terminology” is exactly that … marketing terminology. Recently we bought a new DVD and before the movie began, we were subjected to a short and very powerful multi media advertisement, clearly showing us the enhanced clarity of Blue Ray technology.

Stop and think about that for a moment! I am watching a commercial on my existing DVD player that is demonstrating how much improvement in image quality and sound is available from a Blue Ray player. Hello?

We all have a choice how to choose to experience and interpret the world around us.

It’s easy to float through the river of life, carried along by the swirling current of economic affairs, weather predictions and career commitments. Every day begins to blend into the next day, weekends come and go, birthdays arrive without our invitation and weekends become 3D television retreats designed to rejuvenate and repair.

Decide to do something different, begin the process of swimming upstream towards your dreams and your destination, step out of your home and “experience life in 3D”.

Young people have developed a whole new abbreviated text language (coupled with RSI speed thumbs) and prefer to send strings of often misunderstood half duplex messages describing tiny happenings in their day/night.

I have to confess that if I receive a text message from a less-than-my-age person (which now includes most of New Zealand), by the time I’ve read the message and begun the typing process, I’ve often received another text message from the same person saying “Hello?”

Technology continues to accelerate and change our lives, sometimes subtly, sometimes very blatantly. Most people have forgotten that the LCD they sit 40cm from is larger than the initial family sized televisions in this country. When the iPad was released I visited a dealer, picked up the iPad and said to myself “wow, this is quite heavy!” then laughed as I realised… “compared to what; an IBM 370 Mainframe?”

There was a time when we used to actually visit our local bank (provided we could make it before it closed mid-afternoon); we used to go and see the second hand cars for sale instead of firing up Trademe on our Android phone; we used to take photos and develop them a year later (only when we had used the whole film, of course) and then discover that many of the images were blurred or out of focus (but we kept them anyway because we’d paid for them).

As technology advances, so does our concept of time. If the microwave is taking two minutes to heat our meal, we strum our fingers on the counter and sigh (conveniently forgetting that this cooking process used to take our parents a couple of hours); if we can’t find what we’re looking for on the internet immediately (or if the internet is running “slow”), we shake our heads in frustration and wonder why we even came to work that day.

Imagine saying to your great grandparents that one day you’ll able to “carry” a single very-small device, that plays movies, talks to a satellite and tells you where you are; sends and receives written messages, photos and videos through the air; has your diary inside; enables you to read and buy books without going to a library or a book store; takes high quality photos and videos; enables you to write a book anywhere any time; allows you to video chat to your family thousands of miles away; pays for goods without money; carries your ID for boarding an aircraft; allows you to draw and paint without ink, canvas or pencils; can recognise your voice; can read a book to you; stores thousands of songs and hundreds of movies; enables you to watch TV anytime anywhere and acts as a remote for electronic devices in your home or office. Wow!

Oh, I almost forgot, it also allows you to “talk to people”… if you really want to.

Photo:
Collage shows author crawling on the grass using Android mobile phone as camera, typical meeting room with technology strewn across the table, beautiful 1947 Morris Eight, a “proper” telephone, advertisement for an ICT 1301 mainframe computer and a photo captured with the mobile phone (quality of capture is better than most dedicated digital cameras a couple of years ago).

Who would you contact to get some media and political attention?
How would you get them to pay attention?

Anyone who knows me also knows that I receive/think of hundreds of ideas a year.

Some have been successfully implemented, some have been deleted and some are still in the slow cooker gathering flavour and substance.

In many instances, if I leave the idea long enough (i.e. it looks too big for me to sensibly consider), another person or organisation will “pop up” with the same answer and release a product or service that we can all enjoy.

I am still not sure how this transference of ideas takes place and it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that real-world solutions continue to be conceived and developed to help us all with our health, productivity, peace of mind, finance and relationships.

The initial concept arrived in my brain late last year, has been peculating ever since, has been refined, discussed with close friends, tweaked, documented and carefully considered.

Knowing this is a “big idea”, I decided to wait for someone else to think of a similar solution and start making some serious noise. However, nobody else seems to be “receiving this particular idea” and in the meantime sending text messages while driving is causing injuries and deaths every day.

Before you leap into me for not taking action, please take a look at what I have done so far:
ACTION: Written to Oprah Winfrey on three separate occasions

REASON: Oprah is actively promoting her “don’t text and drive ” pledge. Oprah is also talking on various television networks about the “no phone zone”
OUTCOME: No response

ACTION: Written to TheMotherhood
REASON: They are concerned mums and are actively discussing this problem
OUTCOME: No response

ACTION: Written to kypost
REASON: They have been featuring stories on texting while driving
OUTCOME: No response

ACTION: Written to Peggy Conlon, CEO, Ad Council
REASON: The Ad Council is actively campaigning against reckless driving
OUTCOME: No response

ACTION: Written to Maggie Rodriguez and Harry Smith on CBS Early Show
REASON: They have been discussing the “no phone zone: with Oprah Winfrey
OUTCOME: No response

What is the purpose of this blog?

Maybe someone who reads it, knows someone, who knows someone (six degrees of separation), who knows someone who can genuinely help.

Throughout history we have thrown away or ignored simple/wonderful ideas that could have saved thousands of lives while we argued about their validity. The search for Longitude (solved by John Harrison with a simple clock) and the cure for Scurvy (solved by James Lind with Lemon Juice) are prime examples.

Maybe I just needed to “get it off my chest” and see what happens.

I will keep you all posted re progress.

FAQs
1. Why don’t you just release the answer publicly to the world?

Everybody has an opinion, some valid, some just to be negative (naysayers), some completely uninformed, and I want to present the idea to an informed party for qualified analysis and consideration before we all start to argue on website forums whether or not it will work.

Plus, we all have inner fears re “maybe this is a great idea, or maybe it is not”, despite how much we believe in ourselves and our wonderful ideas and I wish to avoid answering hundreds of emails re “how does it actually work?” and “have you thought about this method?” until I know it actually stands a chance.

When I recently released my new book “Thank God It’s Friday“, I wondered what the world would think about my ramblings, and I have been humbled and blessed by the positive feedback and reader testimonials.

2. What makes you think that your solution will work?

It is simple, effective, powerful, universal and fool proof.

The people I have discussed this with (close friends) are intelligent people (business owners, IT gurus, senior executives) and they also believe the idea will work.

3. Why don’t you just implement the idea yourself?

Temporary lack of funds and time for the development, marketing and distribution.

4. Why are you writing to Oprah Winfrey and the international media?

For a solution of this magnitude (it could eventually affect every driver on earth) to be considered, fought for (against those who believe they have the right to text and drive), discussed, developed and released, it will need some serious muscle to begin the process and to maintain momentum.

5. How will you benefit from the idea?

Obviously it would be great to make some money from the solution. Exactly how that could occur is not obvious at the moment.

The torturous and expensive path of international patent rights does not seem very attractive and the notion of forming a separate business enterprise and to develop the solution is also not currently viable.

I am more interested in “saving lives”, in putting a stop to the pain and suffering of families who have lost children to the technology and in furthering my quest and my purpose to reach out and serve others.

It turned out that only “one” of my UK born and London based colleagues had actually been to the Tower, it was just too convenient and too familiar to bother, and there was always more important things to do in the weekend (garden, DIY, kids, work).

As Southlanders it is easy to ignore one of the world’s most beautiful resources, located only a few kilometres away. Yet thousands of tourists travel halfway around the world to experience and photograph our rugged coastline, our extraordinary sunsets, our native birds and other unique wildlife.

Even the often-maligned seagull looks majestic in its natural environment, compared to being covered in city smog and hovering over our barbecue, scrapping for any leftovers we throw their way.

The highlight of our *Catlins adventure came when we discovered two huge Sea Lions involved in a playful mating ritual. Fortunately we remembered and adhered to the warning notice “always stay at least twenty metres from Sea Lions” and stood in awe as the only witnesses to such a unique event. They tolerated our presence for quite a while, but when mummy-lion decided it was time for us to leave, and headed in our direction, we ran away like frightened children.

After a day at the Catlins, the drive home seemed quicker, the world seemed a little more peaceful and the car was definitely in need of a serious sand-vacuum. We smiled and chatted about our day, and we laughed at how quickly we scampered away. The DIY chores were still there when we arrived home, but perhaps those particular Sea Lions will never visit the Catlins again.

There will always be “things you should do around your house/business” and “programs you really want to watch on television”. The Catlins provides you with no shopping malls, no cell phone coverage and a rare opportunity for you to switch-off for one day, to slow the pace down a little and to explore one of the world’s most beautiful locations, just a few minutes from your home.

*The Catlins (sometimes referred to as The Catlins Coast) comprises an area in the south eastern corner of the South Island of New Zealand. The area lies between Balclutha and Invercargill, straddling the boundary between the Otago and Southland regions. It includes the South Island’s southernmost point, Slope Point.

The Catlins, a rugged, sparsely populated area, features a scenic coastal landscape and dense temperate rainforest, both of which harbour many endangered species of birds. Its exposed location leads to its frequently wild weather and heavy ocean swells, which are an attraction to big-wave surfers.  Source Wikipedia