The Bra Street Rambler

The universe is not a Walmart for you to ask the things you want of it, it is an Ikea where assembly is required. What I mean by this is, if there is something you want in this world, you have to be willing to work for it. You have to be willing to fight for it. It is all too easy to create excuses as to why we cannot do something, but when we want something, we have to be willing to set those reasons aside and ask why not? There are many problems that will arise, that will get in the way of your goals, but if you are willing to work for what you want, you will find just as many solutions. Of course, committing yourself to a task, truly going for it, can be scary. After all, what if you give it all that you've got and all of your efforts are not enough? Well, here's where I quote yet another movie, albeit a cheesy chic flic "Never let the fear of striking out stop you from playing the game." I loved this line from Cinderella Story but die hard basebal...

“It's only by saying “no” that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.” -Steve Jobs. Only two letters, only one syllable, one clear meaning, and yet often difficult to say despite how much the word may be needed. No. Simple enough concept, yes? Ha! Easier said than done. If you're like me, you despise feeling like you have let anyone down, no matter how much you may have on your own plate. Now, I'm not talking about saying no to that friend who just got dumped last night and needs a sympathetic ear... unless that friend goes through a breakup every month. I'm referring to all of the little things that build up. Can you do this for me? Can you take up this extra shift? Can you come to this thing with me that costs money you don't have? Those little things that pile up, take up your time, money, and sanity when you need nothing more than to focus on your own things or even just take a personal break.  It has taken me a long time to c...

In the words of the Joss Whedon Zombie, “Grrrr Arghhhh” If you can't rely on them now, you won't be able to rely on them then. Can you trust that your friends will be there for you when the going gets tough and the tough starts trying to eat your brains? Here are a few guidelines to determine whether or not you should trust them, or abandon them as cannon fodder. Are they constantly breaking promises to you? If so, chances are you probably can't trust them come Z-Day.  Do they regularly take you for granted? If so, they'd probably just use you to protect themselves come Z-Day.  Do they constantly leave you behind and forget to invite you to their jolly reindeer games? If so, sorry Rudolf, you had better believe they are probably going to forget all about you at the first sign of trouble.  Do they ever take your suggestions and input into consideration when making plans? If not, they are not likely to listen to your exit strategies come Z-Day. If you don...

“A problem well stated is a problem half-solved.” - Charles Kettering Okay, so you've prepared yourself for the day and something still happens that you hadn't foreseen. What do you do? Simple. Stop what you are doing. It takes a lot less time and effort to think things through before acting than to aimlessly try a bunch of things only to have to redo them or keep falling short. Analyze the situation. Consider the problem, consider what resources are available to you, consider how best to apply those resources. You may still have to do a bit of trial and error but I can assure you it will be a lot less if you have taken the time to try and understand the problem. Does the problem seem complicated? Break it down into stages. What needs to be done? What needs to be accomplished in order to get to that stage? Work backwards.  Decide what kind of problem you are facing. Are you facing an information based problem requiring you to research something? What type of inf...