"When someone demands blind obedience, you'd be a fool not to peek." Jim Fiebig

This year has been off to a roaring start so much so that I haven't had a moment to analyze whether it's good or bad, or to even blog about it, so I think I'll do that now. When my work is slow, I get in a funk from which hardly anyone can pull me out. When I'm busy, I get a euphoric glaze about me that leaves my home disheveled, my boyfriend feeling neglected and my children eating quick-prep, or worse, fast food meals.  I think back to when I was able to become an at-home mom, both physically and financially, but recall the hours the kids spent at school causing an unrest in my soul. I'm not a tennis player, I'm not the type of girl to go treat myself to manicures or massages, so out of that boredom (for lack of a better term) I founded a non-profit corporation and rescued a few (hundred) dogs.

If there's something I recognize about myself it's that I have a passion for many things and I like to work.

I'm fascinated by human psychology and read often into the late hours of the night (or is it early hours of the morning?) about such topics.  How people tick, what moves them, and how our thoughts affect how we perceive and interact with others.


Top 10 Interesting Psychology Facts (from neurolove.me)

1. Cognitive Dissonance - the idea that when we hold two conflicting thoughts or beliefs, we unconsciously adjust to make one fit with the other.

I do this. I think we all do. I am adamant in my opinion that children need at least one at-home parent.  Being a single-parent of three I'm not going to say it's easy or that there aren't many sacrifices to be made but if I can design my life to be a present-parent on a daily basis, trust me, ANYone can.  Do I work a lot? Some days and my patience runs thin. I have guilt over not having the ability nor the desire, at times, to sit and "just watch a movie" with my children.  I have guilt over not preparing home-cooked meals every night and instead using our dining table as a catch-all, workspace or homework station.  I can't sit still. I can't.

2. Hallucinations are common - one third of people report experiencing hallucination at some point in time.

Mine are usually due to sleep deprivation... although I don't know if I actually DO this.  Maybe I'm part of the 2/3rds.

3. The Placebo effect - this is when you think that something like a drug has an effect on you when really it doesn’t. It’s your thoughts that actually resulted in you getting better.

Interesting point.  My depression doesn't come from lack of work, it comes from my attitude about lack of work. I have been doing what I do for four years now.  I make the choice to live very modestly, humbly if compared to my past, and downright poor in most peoples' eyes (as well as according to the median household income for America).  But when I am busy, despite not having a drastic increase in income, it gives me purpose, therefore I feel "high" when my situation hasn't really changed.

4. Obedience to Authority -authorities or people in power can really control our behaviors. In Stanley Milgram’s famous study, 63% of participants kept giving electric shock to another human being just because someone in authority was telling them to.

Fascinating study, which I've read about before but hmmm, ummm, errrr... I highly DOUBT I'd fall into the 63% *cough*

5. Choice Blindness - When we make a decision, even if the decision is not good, we tend to rationalize why decision is the best.

I suppose I do this. When I see my kids wanting more, just even to go to a simple film in the regular theater (not the discounted one with three month old flicks), I think "well if I got a job-job, we could go to the movies, buy a nicer car, maybe even move into a bigger place."  But is this Choice Blindness? Or my morals of wanting to be in my kids' lives on a daily basis?  Maybe I'm just being difficult again.

6. Fantasies reduce motivation - We might think that thinking about success makes us want it more, but it actually backfires.

This HAS been a problem for me in the not-so-distant past.  I dreamed of having my own consulting firm. Even toyed around with a website and Facebook fan page but didn't pursue it.  With my new plan of action though this fantasy WILL become reality this year.  I have taken a few risks and those have paid off.  With the industry research I've done, and the training and education of which I am in constant pursuit, I've built my confidence up enough to order business cards and prepare the paperwork to file for my DBA.  Hey, it's a start.

7. Brainstorming doesn’t work - thinking in groups actually reduces the power of brainstorming because in group people are more lazy and worry more about what other people think.

 Let's just leave it at that....

8. Don’t suppress - holding back your thoughts actually makes you think about it more.

Are you guys laughing? ha ha ha hahahaha

9. We can train to Multitask - Generally, multitasking reduces efficiency because we have to allocate different cognitive resources to different tasks, but studies show that you can learn to multitask.

Do I really have a choice?  Have you seen my kids' schedule? And who else is going to pay these bills?

I don't (accidentally) post my fan pages' posts to my own personal wall on Facebook. *cough*

10. It’s the little things that matter

Yes. Yes it is.

With this little analysis under my belt and pause in the load of my slightly overwhelming work schedule, I feel refreshed and excited about all that sits on my horizon; personally, romantically, work-wise and financially.  Things have been happening for us and I have to say that by stubbornly obeying my own rules set in place by my values, I'm starting to see a pay-off. 

"Say NO to the demands of the world. Say YES to the longings of your own heart."~ Jonathan Huie

I think 2013 is going to be my year. I just feel it.