Topher's Thoughts

Music as the rudder of your mood

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 19:27:00 +0000

For me, music is one of those few precious things that touches the very core of my being. So naturally when I want to feel understood, when I desperately need to know in my bones that someone truly understands me, I reach for a tune that deeply resonates with my current mood. I once tracked down a musician to let him know that he had truly reached me with a composition of his. He said he was glad and thanked me for contacting him. But here's the lesson I've learned -- instead of always letting my mood determine my music, I now purposely pick some music to steer my mood in a more positive direction. This works and I have found it to be a helpful insight. This is not to say that you should constantly be overriding your moods, it is just to say that you have a choice -- you can take the wheel of your moods. If you are constantly having to override your mood you will of course want to get at the root of the problem. I welcome your comments and feedback.

Launch and Showing

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 18:02:00 +0000

Sound the trumpets! Announcement time! OK, I just wanted to mention that my new company Universal Laughter has been launched and the website can be found here:

Universal-Laughter.com

I also want to mention that I am bringing the film Laughology to Vancouver. Here are the details:

Title: Laughology
Date: Dec 12, 2009
Time: Doors open at 2:30 pm and the fun starts at 2:40 with laughter warmup
Venue: Pacific Cinematheque (1131 Howe St)
Tickets: This is a non-ticketed event. You decide what you want to pay after the show. Partial proceeds to the Vancouver Laughter Yoga community.

Laughology, directed by Albert Nerenberg, is a hilarious ground breaking look at why laughter is contagious and the birth of the international laughter movement.

The National Post called Laughology "screamingly funny" and the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) called the film "revolutionary, highly recommended and a completely new way of looking at laughter."

Links:

Universal Laughter
Laughter Yoga in Vancouver
Laughology

Value Permanence

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:18:00 +0000

In childhood development, there is the stage of learning about Object Permanence. As humans there is another stage that we can pass though: Value Permanence. The idea here is that you are valuable, worthy, and lovable even when it might not appear to or feel so. To help us with moving this from head knowledge into body knowledge, there is a simple yet perhaps difficult exercise we can do. Please go get a piece of paper and a pen..... On the paper, write I AM _____ _____. So far so good. Now in the second blank, write WORTHY. Now comes what for me was the hard part. In the first blank, write ALWAYS. Breathe this truth in. Take your pen and underline the last two words. Repeat this as often as you need to in order to make this a part of your default world view.

Forgivness Research

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:07:00 +0000

Dr. Robert Enright from the University of Wisconsin�Madison founded the International Forgiveness Institute and is considered the initiator of forgiveness studies. He developed a 20-Step Process Model of Forgiveness. Recent work has focused on what kind of person is more likely to be forgiving. A longitudinal study showed that people who were generally more neurotic, angry and hostile in life were less likely to forgive another person even after a long time had passed. Specifically, these people were more likely to still avoid their transgressor and want to enact revenge upon them four and a half years after the transgression.

Studies show that people who forgive are happier and healthier than those who hold resentments. The first study to look at how forgiveness improves physical health discovered that when people think about forgiving an offender it leads to improved functioning in their cardiovascular and nervous systems. Another study at the University of Wisconsin found the more forgiving people were, the less they suffered from a wide range of illnesses. The less forgiving people reported a greater number of health problems.

The research of Dr. Fred Luskin of Stanford University shows that forgiveness can be learned. In three separate studies, including one with Catholics and Protestants from Northern Ireland whose family members were murdered in the political violence, he found that people who are taught how to forgive become less angry, feel less hurt, are more optimistic, become more forgiving in a variety of situations, and become more compassionate and self-confident. His studies show a reduction in experience of stress, physical manifestations of stress, and an increase in vitality.

One study has shown that the positive benefit of forgiveness is similar whether it was based upon religious or secular counseling as opposed to a control group that received no forgiveness counseling.

The above is from Wikipedia.

The pursuit of (individual) happiness...

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:47:00 +0000

It seems to me that it would be better to change the above to

The (regular) practice of group joy

I think this is a much better goal. And I also know it's possible. Three activities spring to mind:

What are some of your ideas to reach this goal?

World Laughter Tour

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:54:00 +0000

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius power and magic in it. ~ Goethe

Today I am sending out an intention to a world laughter tour! I am asking for your help and positive energy to make this a reality. I don't know the details or direction but am trusting the Universe to provide. If you are interested in being a part of this, please contact me at chris.pollitt@gmail.com - thanks!

A Daily Laugh for You on LaughterYoga.org

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:33:00 +0000

Thanks to my good friend and laughter leader Farah who suggested it, my youtube.com/adlfy videos are currently being featured on the Laughter Yoga International website. I truly hope this helps increase their reach to help people laugh more and try Laughter Yoga.

Find the story here.

Laughter Yoga University

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Thu, 14 May 2009 05:22:00 +0000

If the world can have a McDonald's University (sad but true) then why not a Laughter Yoga University? Indeed, why not? That's the dream of Dr. Kataria (the inventor of Laughter Yoga.) This dream is coming true:

What has been a dream for the last five years is very soon becoming a reality for Dr Madan and his wife, Madhuri Kataria. Before the year's end, they will throw open the gates to India's first Laughter Yoga University.

Located at Ramnagar, about 50 kilometers outside Bangalore, laughter enthusiasts from across the world will have access to the specially designed courses which cover everything right from the basics of laughter yoga, to teachers training courses, stress management techniques and even applied courses in Ayurveda and Naturopathy.

But that's not even the best part. At the very end of the article an awesome vision is revealed:

Besides the Bangalore university, Madan is also planning the country's first 'Laughter City' -- a township that encourages people from around the world to come together and form a community based on the essence of Laughter Yoga -- singing, dancing, playing and laughter.

My bags are so packed! See here for the full article.

A Daily Laugh for You

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Fri, 01 May 2009 05:52:00 +0000

This is my newest project: record and post a daily video of me (and possibly others) laughing. Please spread the word and also subscribe to help cheer your day.

Enjoy!

Raising the Dead in the Corporate World

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 17:15:00 +0000

So I'm beginning to catch the vision of what my new career will be. Do these comics speak to you? In my previous job, there were the things that I got paid to do and there were the activities that I led on my own time. While I appreciate the opportunities I was given in the paid part of my job and genuinely did enjoy some aspects of them, that work did not truly fire my soul. It was the unpaid activities that gave me real joy. These things stretched people and gave them happiness. Life is too short to be the living dead at work. Now of course I realize that not everyone feels like that all the time (I know I didn't) but I think that many in the corporate world do -- and I want to help change that. I was doing that to some degree at my former work and now I have the chance to do that at many work places. What are your thoughts? What do you think I could do? If something I have done has helped you, please let me know -- I'm looking for a few good quotes that I can use to help promote my services in my new role. Doing my best to make this world a better place with the gifts I have. Thanks!

Success

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:48:00 +0000

The other day I had two thoughts about reaching my goals:

Things take work (I have to put effort into things if I ever hope to see them happen.)
Not everything works (Just because I put effort into something doesn't mean it will succeed.)

Now of course these are obvious facts but it was a bit of a revelation or epiphany to me. I am very lazy and so I tend to get stuck at number 1. I am also easily discouraged and so I get hung up at number 2 as well. I still have dreams and goals like everybody but so many of them have remained eternally frustrate because of these two facts. I figure I need to believe in myself and that will hopefully lead to others believing in me which will then propel me to sustained action. I really do believe some of my dreams are awesome. I just want more of them to see the light of day.

How to become an optimist

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 13:11:00 +0000

Research shows that life goes better for optimists. I used to be very pessimistic. I am changing. Here's my plan:

Limit your exposure to negative things. Seek out positive things.
Cultivate optimistic friends.
Be thankful. Write down one thing a day in a notebook by your bed.
Exercise. Get some fresh air.
Persevere. Don't give up. Try a new way. Let go.
Help others. Encourage them. Compliment them - genuinely.
Listen to "positive" music. Dance. Sing.
Laugh! Practice makes perfect.

For me the last item is key and I do this by participating in an awesome weekly Laughter Club. What are some of your ideas?

The gift of a healing touch

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 03:41:00 +0000

We just spent three days at a wonderful spa retreat centre in Mission. While there, I was given a few massage / acupressure treatments by a highly skilled and gifted practitioner. The first session in particular was amazing; I could actually feel the energy rebalance in my body. I've never felt anything quite like it.

I've been reflecting on this experience, and I realize that we don't touch one another enough. Fear of physical contact - that it be misconstrued as sexual or that we don't want to "invade" another person's space - means we hardly touch others at all. Because of these past three days however, I have more of an appreciation for the power of touch to connect us with others and to connect our minds to our bodies. And to heal us.

I am changing. We are changing...

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:39:00 +0000

Hello friends, family, and the Internet,

I have heard from many friends that November was a hard month. Very Hard. And I personally have been through a lot in the last 4 weeks or so. I have also learned (or relearned?) a lot about myself and life. And I am changing. And growing. And it has been hard. And it continues to be hard. There have been a few key things that have made it possible for me to make it this far. Music. Sunshine and fireplaces. Laughter Yoga. And most importantly, friends. I think that is the major thing I am learning is that friendship is crucial. Family too. I am learning that I need to do things for my own self care and growth. Not an unhealthy selfish but instead a healthy selfish.

I am growing to have a more optimistic life outlook too. I think being in a weekly Laughter Yoga group is a large part of that. And having optimistic friends helps too. I am learning that the key to health is a positive environment. Both external (people) and internal (thoughts). It is certainly good to be grounded but it is equally important to believe the best. We all need that spark of hope that the future will not be as dark as some say, now more than ever. Yes, things do look challenging. Very challenging. And even if the long term might be better than today (although very different) getting there will take every ounce of optimism we have.

I need to rediscover what my desires are and pursue them with passion. When I am healthy and happy, that lifts others. Life is short and unpredictable. We need to seize opportunities when they happen. Take risks. And try to have as few regrets as possible. What have your experiences been recently?

-Chris

The super hero meme

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:41:00 +0000

One of the big problems with our (and other) cultures, in my opinion, is the deeply ingrained "super hero" mythos / meme. We can see this exemplified in the huge popularity of super hero films (Batman, Spiderman, Superman) and in certain religious figures (Krishna, Jesus, Muhammad). Now I'm not going to delve into whether or not these latter "heroes" were all they are purported to be. My point is that the mindset of "some champion is going to come and save us all from the mess we've made for ourselves" is fundamentally an unhelpful one. When you look at Nature, what do you see? How does change come about? For example, (with the very rare exception) the mountains are not worn down by one big event (i.e. a volcano blowing its top) but by multitudinous individual drops of rain. The message here is that power comes from many acting together, rather than a single super-one acting alone. If we are ever going to dig ourselves out of the hole we're in (pick your favourite current crisis) we will need to do so together.

Probability Travel

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:02:00 +0000

So never mind space or even time travel, what I want is probability travel. We all know what space travel is. Surely by now almost everyone has at least heard of time travel. However almost nobody has heard or even conceived of probability travel. The basic premise is that from any point in time there are not just one but many (infinite?) possible ways the future might unfold. There is a movie that explores this called Sliding Doors. Now wouldn't it be great to be able to surf between different outcomes and see what different realities are like? For a short video describing the theory of higher order dimensions, please follow this link. As always, I welcome your comments.

We are all actors

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:46:00 +0000

So here is my latest idea: We are all actors. What do I mean by this? Well think about it, what defines who you are:

Your name
Your gender
Your race
Your generation (year of birth)
Your home town (where you were born and raised)
Your family (parents and siblings)
Your culture
Your genetics (hair colour, eye colour, skin colour, height, personality)

How many of these did you pick? Exactly. So this must mean that we are all just playing a role as defined by the above. Further, once you have made a few decisions in life, other things fall outside of your control:

Your children's personality and friends
Your spouse's / partner's friends and family
Your co-workers
Your church / club members

As a final thought, on most people's grave stone you will find:

The person's name
The person's date of birth
The person's date of death

For the majority of people, none of these are self determined. Something to think about.

My theory on how life works

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 20:57:00 +0000

So there are many different analogies for life. One of my favourites is the game of Plinko as seen on The Price is Right. Let's watch a game and then I'll give my commentary.

As I see things, these are the parallels to life that can be gleaned from this simple game:

Life is a series of choices
Chance plays a large part in these decisions (more than you might think)
As life progresses, the number of possibilities decreases
You may get stuck and need some help
You may not always like the rules
The distance between success and failure may be very small
Who knows, maybe you get a few tries at life

Let me know what you think. Are there other things you see? Is there another analogy to life that you like better?

New Urbanism

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 02:15:00 +0000

There is a website dedicated to the idea of a new kind of urbanism. From the site:

Giving people many choices for living in more sustainable, convenient and comfortable places, while providing the solutions to global warming, climate change, and peak oil

NewUrbanism.org was started in 1998, and has since grown to become a leading and well respected informational website promoting walkable urbanism, transit oriented development, trains and sustainability.

See here for the website.

Our Society is Making us Crazy

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 08:46:00 +0000

The Story of Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 06:57:00 +0000

For the full story, please see here.

Free Will Anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 04:13:00 +0000

Two birds with one stone

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 03:28:00 +0000

Two of the main afflictions of modern society are widespread depression and environmental breakdown. A family in New York City does an experiment in simplified living and finds that both are conquered with one lifestyle change.

[W]ithout all the mod[ern] con[venience]s to distract us, we spend more time with each other, our friends and our neighbors and actually feel happier.

So what if, as a society, we worried less about a booming economy which drains the planet of its resources? If, as the positive psychologists suggest, having more stuff isn�t going to make us happier, shouldn�t we worry more about things like building a culture that emphasizes personal connection and community?

If the results of [my] experiment are anything to go by, not only is that an approach that would help cure our environmental crisis, but it would also help cure our unhappiness.

Here's the story.

Going Car-Free

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 04:55:00 +0000

For a while now we've been toying with the idea of going car-free. Since we both take public transit to work, we only use our car on the weekends. Today I read an inspiring story of a family who did it and are much better off both financially and physically. From the article:

Within two months they paid off two credit cards. No car meant no car bills. It also meant no quick trips to Taco Bell. No morning jolt of Starbucks. No impulse buys of jeans or toys at Target.

Shopping on a bike, says Erick, prompts the question: "Do we really need an extra box of Crunch 'n Munch?"

One day Jess had a strange complaint: too much money in her wallet and no place to put it. Erick figured out they were recouping more than a third of their income.

"It's as if your boss came in," he says, "and asked if you wanted a 35 percent raise."

See here for the full article.

We are waves, not particles

noreply@blogger.com (Topher) — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 08:01:00 +0000

Richard Dawkins quoting Steve Grand "Matter flows from place to place and momentarily comes together to be you. Whatever you are, therefore, you are not the stuff of which you are made."