Kiaran Finn on Life Matters!

Fighting words! Our choice of words can define our perceptions of what's possible.  A circumstance is merely a label we use to describe an experience that we have already filtered through our senses. Usually  there's a sub text: 'give me  break - what with the weather, the kids, the economy, my mother in law - under the circumstances.....' The sub text is: 'I have an excuse to procrastinate, and I can sleep easy by justifying my lack of activity due to those damn circumstances.' Do you want to drop 10 Kilo's or earn an extra $25k or learn Spanish, attain a black belt in a martial art, learn a musical instrument, write a book, travel to Brazil or any number of goals that at first sight seem daunting? Beware those circumstances that your imagination has conjured up, just to keep you warm in the comfort zone of the ordinary. Dream BIG - and to hell with the circumstances - You live once - live it LARGE!! connect @ FACEBOOK

There's an apt saying: "Lead , follow or get out of the way." Indecision breeds confusion and disaster. Leaders are not necessarily smarter than you or I, or indeed more worthy of following - how many leaders have led their followers towards oblivion? What leaders do however is get things done. They share their vision, attract an audience and dictate the direction of the activity. Opportunities abound but so few grasp the thorns, fearful of the illusion of failure and their perceived vulnerability to criticism and ridicule. The pity is that concepts such as right or wrong are just that. All great achievements are preceded by hitherto perceptions of failure. Whether or not the world agrees with your proposition that the earth is flat or that evolution is a myth, or any number of beliefs you hold, the opinion of the masses need not impact you expressing your own genius. leaders make things happen and get things done. They make mistakes and adjust their cours...

If you actually set specific and measurable goals - then a big congratulations, because this puts you in fairly rarefied space. Most people have an innate sense of ambition. At its extreme it's manifested in the alpha male and female equivalent, whereby this sub species competes to the death with everyone for attention. Whether it's The Great Gatsby, or  the loud mouthed parent attempting to subvert all around them, this is not a healthy form of ambition. The other end of the spectrum is inhabited by those listless, uninspired, and often sad individuals, who invariably finds themselves marginalised by society at large. This post relates to what students of the mind might describe as self - actualised. Those who consciously make a decision to design their own destiny. Talent rises to its peak within the right environment, however the most genetically gifted swimmer on the planet may never attain any success in the realm of where their talent lies if fate doesn't put ...

Yet another disturbing article, this time in todays Sunday newspaper, regarding youth alienation and feelings of self loathing. We live in a culture that reflects a distorted view of 'reality'. Why the parenthesis? Reality is as intangible as a fleeting thought. Everything we percieve is filtered through a context lens. Alas we are mostly unaware that someone else is manipulating our filter. Our Facebook 'selfie' illicited no Likes and yet that vacuuous blonde bimbo gets an avalanche of positive and gushing comments with every uploaded pouting pic. This Social Media popularity contest really sucks. Of course I'm being facetious, but with positive intent. Cleverly merchanised personal branding is nevertheless just that, merchandised packaging. it really is OK to be you. Seeking the approval of a tribe that is self obsessed is a fools gold. Authenticity takes longer to crystallise but the pay off can last a lifetime. Authentic behaviour requires no pr...

After an unintended hiatus the Life Matters Blog returns! Of course the author was on hiatus, the absense of any Blogging, the 'bleeding obvious' consequence. Glad that's been cleared up! The last 12 months of yours truly's life journey has been formative and enlightening. Let me explain. In the pursuit of life balance I've taken many a detour around potential hindrances to this desired state. Along the way the goal was to avoid stress, conflict, any hint of a 9-5 existence, whilst living a happy, meaningfully fulfilled LIFE. This might be defined as "Getting a Life!" It occurred to me however that my strategy of moving away from what I despised was not moving me towards this image I had of Life Balance. My definition of Life Balance needs to be elaborated. Ultimately it relates to a sense of daily wellbeing. A heightened awareness and sense that life is awesome. This requires a balance inclusive of awesome relationships with lover and fami...

To wax lyrical on the relative awesomeness of yesteryear whilst decrying all that is modern is a popular pastime for the silver haired folk who hark back to these halcyon times albeit through a clouded lens that hardly bears up to scrutiny. Indeed it is unlikely that the word awesome is found in their vocabulary! It’s an Urban Myth.  The idyllic past inhabited by genial souls behind pristine picket fences who collectively interact in a pre Facebook form of connectivity is the stuff of romantic novelists. Child labour, civil rights abuse, cultural insensitivity, profound poverty and an expectation that an attack on your tribe should earn you a conscription to bear arms-axe, bayonet or something equally blood curling, as you defend your own in face to face mortal combat –all seem less appetizing in hindsight! Which brings me to a topic that seems rather trivial in comparison. Despite the aforementioned Urban Myth – I would suggest that some of the glue t...

Festive excess traditionally induces post hangover guilt and thoughts of new beginnings. The guilt creeps up slowly. Anticipation of party time frolicking with the requisite alcoholic gay abandon of youth abounds…. alas the capacity of youth to recover over a grease laden fry up of black pudding and anything else in the vicinity within 3 months of the used by date, diminish alarmingly post 30’s! Hope kicks in first. Hope that the hangover will be gentle. Hope that the scales will somehow deny the visual evidence around the gut. Hope that this year things will be better. Hope however rarely provides the appetite to actually take action, beyond perhaps the purchase of a Lotto ticket! Aspiration has a little more depth. It suggests a vague sense of commitment to a cause if perhaps lacking in a plan. Occasionally the post hangover conviction produces a tsunami of emotional triggers, ranging from disgust at what the mirror reveals, self loathing as the memories o...