I’ll put it bluntly: The second half of my third year in university was not a four-month period that saw my finest work.

With that off of my chest, it’s easier for me to say that it was, however, a time of growth and productivity in other areas of my life. In fact, I feel like four years have flown by since January and I’m now in 2016, wondering why I ever was the way I was, and wanted the things I used to want.

I should have learned a very important  lesson from all of this: That spreading yourself too thin is an inevitable consequence of an inability to say no.

But when it’s all said and done, I’d rather be plagued by an inability to say no, than a debilitating fear to say yes.

So as summer approaches, and the sun slowly works at melting away the stress still lingering from past deadlines and due dates, I’m looking forward to another “four years” of adventures between this semester, and the beginning of a new one next fall. (Which, by the way, marks the beginning of my fourth and final year in university.)

My goals for this next little while? My fabulous piano teacher always used to say: ‘If you don’t have your health, you have nothing.’ And after having had to take several mental health days this semester, I have finally realized that it’s time to accept this as a law of nature, and adopt his wise words as a rule by which to live my day-to-day life.

I’m looking to long and relaxing days spent at the beach, mornings started with pilates and yoga, and a lot of writing done because I actually want to write. I’m hoping to rediscover my former love of cooking, and to listen to more live music. Reading, lots and lots of reading, is on my page-long to-do list, which is, for once, filled with things I actually want to do.

Call it a summer of want, call it a summer of rehabilitation. But I’ve got a bucket list of things to see and do, and only so many weeks to do them. So I’m calling this, the summer of George Hayley.

It’s been a while since I’ve crossed anything off of my 10-year bucket list. We get so busy, caught up in working towards the big goals in our lives, that the little things seem to slip through the cracks of our day-to-day lives.

So Thursday, I smartened up, and crossed off one of those little things.

#66 Ride a motorcycle

It was a small ride, but a first ride. Armed with my more-fashionable-than-protective leather boots and jacket, a slightly oversized helmet, borrowed gloves, and a healthy dose of fear, a took a short ride in the afternoon sunshine.

And it was so much fun.

Harley rode a Harley, and now has 17 items down, with 84 left to go.

This post is a quick commemoration to follow up on a previous engagement.

Even the slightest change in frame of mind can have a massive impact on what you get out of your day. Call it psychology, the Secret, the laws of attraction, sociology, human nature, a placebo effect, or Karma. It’s an idea: That having a positive attitude can positively affect your life, change your luck, and bring more happiness.

Committing to an idea is the first step. And when it shows results, it is incredibly uplifting.

Carrying out your idea, however, is unbelievable.

After a networking training session on Friday, I was inspired – and committed – to work on making stronger and more positive connections, either with those around me, or people I would like to have around me. I was also determined to leave my reservations at the door, to let go of any misguided fears about letting someone in, and the “riskiness” of reaching out.

And what I learned a couple of days ago has finally clicked: Networking isn’t about a accrueing contacts. Rather, it’s about making real connections, and about communicating person-to-person, putting status, position, situation, and differences, aside. It isn’t so much about exchanging digits as it is about exchanging experiences, sharing memories, and relating on a very basic human level.

While on the topic of trying new things and overcoming fears: Today, I climbed the giant white rock on White Rock’s West Beach: A terrifying experience that had me paralyzed for fear of falling off an aptly balanced log, halfway up the side of the rock, for what felt like a good five minutes.

I was barely three feet off of the ground.

But I eventually made it to the top, and, after more acrobatics and downward-facing-dog-like moves, I made it back onto the shore. I’m still rocking my adrenaline rush, hence the two blog posts today.

And I feel great.

Is it as simple as maintaining eye contact, as having a firm handshake, or just listening to what someone has to say? In an age of digital communication, emoticons, and buttons to help us “like” and “share,” what is the real value of a face-to-face connection?

The arguments around whether digital discussion is as valuable and “real” as an in-person discussion go as follows: Either you state that because emotions and micro-expressions are lost in the typed word, digital “relationships” are somehow de-sensitized to the human condition, and less meaningful. Or, you believe that it is the quality of the relationship and the people involved that defines its value, regardless of the medium of the conversation.

I have always backed up the latter, arguing that it is possible to build and maintain a strong relationship with someone via social media or with the help of technology. For example, is your connection with an acquaintance more meaningful simply because you only ever communicate face-to-face, versus your relationship with a Tweep you interact with on an ongoing basis, with whom you discuss global trends, issues and conflicts?

Absolutely not, I’ve said. And I’ve been adamant about this up until two days ago.

But the reality of it, is that when we’re online, it’s so easy to forget that we are interacting with other people. Instead of telling someone how we feel, emotions and all, we can type a carefully crafted Facebook message and send it off into space, knowing it will land, but not knowing the impact our landed words will have.

Truly, there’s a sense of comfort in the convulution of technology. We don’t have to be real, or wear our hearts on our sleeves. And the best part is, it’s not technically dishonesty, just technological detachment, and it provides such a great buffer from hurt and regret and vulnerability. It’s preferable, reassuring to know that we can retract words we don’t mean, or brush off words that mean a lot.

Now when we go to talk face-to-face, it’s easy to forget that our face will inevitably give us away, and that this time, there is someone there to watch it. We see how much of an impact our words can have, and what’s normally not a big deal – not getting an immediate response to a text – becomes a terrible feeling of unworthiness: Seeing that the person you are trying to engage just can’t be bothered to reciprocate.

There is great power and positivity that can come from meeting and greeting in the real world. You can leave a lasting impression, and have a personal impact on somebody else. You may even find how much of an impact others can have on you, if you let them. And if you’re open and willing to seek out the best in everybody, human nature’s capability for kindness and caring may reveal itself to you in a big way.

Embrace it.

We are told that we should constantly be learning, that we should overcome a fear every single day. We’re told that the secret to life is to constantly be growing and bettering ourselves as human beings, communitarians and global citizens.

It takes about 30 days to make or break a habit: The perfect amount of time to strive to be a better person, or to be better at cooking, or tennis, or being honest. So for the next 30 days, my goal is to be more connected to the people around me.

It’s an engagement to be engaged, to not be afraid of making a connection, and to maybe learn to be a little more human in the process.

Friday evening proved to be a huge success for the PAT: Our second annual fundraiser, held at Fraser Downs Racetrack and Casino, essentially tripled the total raised at last year’s event. Our toonie toss was a profit machine, our 50/50 raffle saw one lucky guest walk away with $928, and the all-you-can-eat buffet kept everyone happy and well-fed. Plus, our goodie bags were a hit, and the fast-paced horse-racing, and betting, kept everyone entertained.

Planning an event can be incredibly stressful, but when most of the problems you have to deal with are relatively positive, the only thing you can do is take a deep breath and smile: We ran out of seats because too many people wanted to attend, we barely had enough table space for our silent auction items because so many generous businesses supported our endeavour, and not every PAT member got the opportunity to participate as much as I’m sure they would have liked to, because the ones involved were just too good at what they were doing.

In the grand scheme of things, I’m walking away from the evening with a lot of pride for what we managed to pull off.

I’m also walking away having learned several life and event-planning lessons: Some I learned the hard way, but others I’ve discovered after having had some time to reflect on the whole process.

But at the end of the day, the purpose of the event was not only met, but exceeded. The PAT is now well over half-way to meeting their original $20,000 goal. So really, the fun is just beginning: A third annual event would definitely get us past that mark, and then we get to hand out scholarship money to another generation of students, and maybe even future PATs. For me, that’s the best part.

In the meantime, a shout-out to my irreplaceable current PATs, and wonderfully supportive friends and family. “The nice thing about teamwork is that you always have others on your side.” — Margaret Carty

We’re a quarter of the way through a year that has been so eventful that I’ve forgotten who I was and what I did back in 2011. A year that has made me realize, both directly and indirectly, that time is real, and is under direct orders to march forward, regardless of how many billions of people lag behind.

And it’s now, a quarter of the way through my year, that I’ve actually come face-to-face with my New Year Resolution: To be stronger, and in every sense of the word. Excellence is a habit, and we are each in control of how we let people treat us. We set the precedence for how we are perceived, how we are respected or feared. We may not be able to control what others direct toward us, but we definitely have some say in whether actions and words are repeated or not.

But it’s not personal, it’s just business, right?

Right. And I have taken excruciating steps to ensure that what’s personal to me, is never mixed with my business. But what no one ever says is that real business is built on what’s personal.

There are very few things I value. I wasn’t raised religiously, and I have no ethnicity, race, or culture I identify with. But I was raised on family. Not family values, but family in and of itself. It’s a system of unconditional support that isn’t defined by blood or ancestry, but by who has your back. And let me tell you, not all blood has your back.

I believe in loyalty, because in a world of subjectivity and relativity, if there has to be some sort of a higher calling, it’s going to be a faith in other human beings, and a faith that is one step removed from rash actions and heated words.

I believe in freedom and justice; that we are all entitled to do as we wish, as long as we don’t directly harm others, and as long as we are prepared to undeniably accept the consequences of the actions we choose.

Finally, I believe in respect: Respect for the fact that we are all going to act as we wish, respect for different beliefs, ideas, religions, cultures. Respect for individuality. And respect for the fact that respect does not mean agreement, but rather an acknowledgment that the beauty of freedom is the ability to have some say in who we are, in what we like, in what we trust.

I’m young, too young to be dealing with discriminatory disrespect, and yet simultaneously too old to only be realizing its presence now.

The politics of how to live are getting in the way of my living. Spring stands for new beginnings, and I’m taking a stand for a fresh start, and for the birth of a stronger, better, me. For I’d rather have people hate me, because then I’ll know that at some point in my life, I have stood for something.

I hadn’t heard many of the names that made the list, and it’s a shame that I hadn’t: I was astounded to see what they had accomplished as individuals and as journalists. It’s always reassuring to see proof that there is great journalism happening out in the world, as well as great journalism by female reporters, photographers and writers.

There were only 20 highlighted, and there are no doubt more than 20 “inspirational women journalists” who deserve the title but didn’t make the cut. That being said, these really do seem like the cream of the crop.

Collectively, these women have reported from Iraq, Tunisia, Egypt, Lybia, America, Ireland, Russia, Syria, Sri Lanka, China, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, North Korea, Afghanistan, Serbia, South Africa, and Somalia, not to mention a 72-day trip around the world. Recognitions awarded include CNN’s MultiChoice African Journalist, the Martha Gellhorn Prize, and an Emmy, to name a few.

Their work ranges from photographing Marilyn Monroe, to faking insanity and being committed to a “mad-house,” to reporting from Belgrade when NATO bombed Serbia, to covering Tiananmen Square.

Here is the full list, complete with ultra-short bios.

And here are the names in order:

Marie Colvin, Anna Politkovskaya, Veronica Guerin, Ida B. Wells, Martha Gellhorn, Lyse Doucet, Hala Jaber, Kate Adie, Caroline Wyatt, Rachel Carson, Eve Arnold, Nellie Bly, Alex Crawford, Lindsey Hilsum, Sue Lloyd-Roberts, Clare Sambrook, Frances Harrison, Mary Stott, Ida Tarbell, and Fatuma Noor.

Happy International Women’s Day.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be an emperor. That’s not my business. I don’t want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone, if possible, Jew, gentile, black man, white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other’s happiness – not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another.

In this world there is room for everyone. And the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way. Greed has poisoned men’s souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical. Our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.

The aeroplane and the radio have brought us closer together. The very nature of these inventions cries out for the goodness in men, cries out for universal brotherhood, for the unity of us all. Even now my voice is reaching millions throughout the world – millions of despairing men, women and little children – victims of a system that makes men torture and imprison innocent people.

To those who can hear me, I say – do not despair. The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed – the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people and so long as men die, liberty will never perish.

Soldiers! Don’t give yourselves to brutes – men who despise you – enslave you – who regiment your lives – tell you what to do – what to think or what to feel! Who drill you, diet you, treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder. Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men – machine men with machine minds and machine hearts! You are not machines! You are not cattle! You are men! You have the love of humanity in your hearts. You don’t hate! Only the unloved hate – the unloved and the unnatural!

Soldiers! Don’t fight for slavery! Fight for liberty! In the 17th Chapter of St. Luke it is written: “the Kingdom of God is within man” – not one man nor a group of men, but in all men! In you! You, the people have the power – the power to create machines. The power to create happiness! You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure.

Then, in the name of democracy, let us use that power! Let us all unite! Let us fight for a new world, a decent world that will give men a chance to work, that will give youth the future and old age a security. By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power, but they lie! They do not fulfill their promise; they never will. Dictators free themselves, but they enslave the people! Now, let us fight to fulfill that promise! Let us fight to free the world, to do away with national barriers, to do away with greed, with hate and intolerance. Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness.

Soldiers! In the name of democracy, let us all unite!”

It happened overnight. Or so it seemed. A viral outburst of tweets and Facebook shares linking to a 30-minute documentary video of one man’s goal to make Joseph Kony a household name.

And almost as immediately as #StopKony and #Kony2012 went viral, resistance to the idea and to the video and to the initiative popped up, also in the form of tweets and Facebook shares linking to blog posts.

It’s the nature of the beast: How the Internet works, how a democracy works, how freedom of speech works.

And there is no disagreement that Joseph Kony is a terrible, terrible beast. You would have to be to abduct children, indoctrinate them as child soldiers and force them to mutilate other human beings.

So of course, “I signed the pledge to help bring Kony to justice in 2012,” as many others have. I signed because he deserves to be brought to justice, and nobody with a pulse should be able to argue with that. (How he is brought to justice may be debatable, but even then, I’m not sure it could really be argued with any authority, nor can I see it garnering much support or sympathy.)

I watched the movie this morning, and saw this site this afternoon, which – in a nutshell – questions the authenticity and “ethics” of the #Kony2012 movement.

This is missing the point.

Take Joseph Kony out of the equation, and replace him with any war criminal. Take out the fact that money was spent to make the documentary. And take out the fact that there are other atrocities occurring in our world, and that those may be atrocities that you feel are worth spending money to fight, or warrant being put in the spotlight, but are invisible.

The message of this experiment is not that everyone should feel bad and donate because Joseph Kony is the most terrible person on the planet. The message is that there are people in our world like Kony, and that as citizens of the world, we should not only be aware of this fact, but we should realize that as citizens of the world, we have a human and moral obligation to do something about it: Borders, names, bureaucracy, geography, political affiliation and cultural, religious or ethnic differences aside. It is a much greater cause, and the initiative serves a much greater purpose.

What hit home for me, is the fact that one human being making a promise to another human being has turned into a massively influential grassroots movement that – regardless of what eventually comes of it – has touched so many lives by waking people up to one example of what is going on in the world.

To paraphrase a clip in the video, we shouldn’t be asking ‘who are we’ to take a stand, or question an authority, or fight for what we think is right or just: The question we need to ask is ‘who are we not to?’

#StopKony and #Kony2012 have managed to unite the world with a global discussion about something other than soccer or celebrity, and that is the most powerful thing of all: The idea of an awakened, aware and united global population challenging the way things are, and taking it upon themselves to better the world for the sake of humanity.

Since announcing my intentions, two major things have happened. The first, is the overwhelming support I’ve gotten from friends and family, members of the local community and the province’s ambassador community. The second, is the blunt realization that I have no idea how to start a non-profit, let alone run one successfully.

It’s been a process full of surprises. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Via LinkedIn, I read an article from Forbes headlined: “10 Ways to Build a Business Culture Like Apple.”

It’s a list of 10 “culture building principles” derived from a 10 year study of the world’s 50 best businesses. While I’m currently reading a book that refutes the possibility of there being a set of “ways” to success (“regression to the mean” argues that being a stand-out success one year is largely based on luck), I’ve decided to take the essence of the 10 principles and shape them so they are applicable to starting up a non-profit.

1. Find your purpose. Figure out what you are really trying to achieve; the core ideals behind your work. This makes decision-making much easier when everything you say and do is geared towards achieving a specific higher purpose.

2. When you decide what you stand for, communicate those values, principles and priorities clearly, and stick to them. People follow what you do, and don’t often do what you say.

3. Figure out a plan, and follow it. Your plan should be designed so that it encompasses the organization’s goals, but also maps out how to go about achieving them.

4. “Get your team right and do it quickly:” This one is straight from the article, and is probably one of the most important principles. You need people on your team who support your vision, but who can also bring unique personal experiences and different perspectives to the table.

5. And while you don’t want a team made up of half a dozen leaders, you do want people who can make suggestions, and offer constructive criticism. You need to find the balance between encouraging creativity and maintaining a sense of control.

6. Demand excellence, and set high standards for yourself, your team and your work. W. Clement Stone said: “Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star.”

7. Learn what works best and stick with it. Change what isn’t working and grow.

8. Motivate yourself, and always aim for your goals.

9. Be brave. Sometimes it’s better to make a decision and just move forward, rather than to be stuck in one place, grappling with making the “right” decision. Mistakes are inevitable, and risks can pay off.

10. “Live your desired legacy.” This one is a basic distillation of all 10 principles: Decide what you want to create, go forth and create it.

The original article can be found here. Happy “starting.”