Self Development on A.J. Elsinga

Best wishes for 2024 - New Years Resolutions

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 20:29:34 +0100

Best wishes for the new year, Happy New Year. You have undoubtedly heard and said it many times. When people wish you a happy new year, you often get the follow-up question: Do you also have any resolutions? Do you feel obliged to answer that? Do you, like many people, believe that you should have resolutions on January 1st? And that you should work hard on them?

Why, actually

Maybe it’s because we want to put an end to old habits and start new ones. We’re not entirely satisfied with the life we had or the things we’ve accomplished, so we’re going to do things completely differently now. Often it becomes a long list of things to improve ourselves.

Don't feel like running?

Mon, 11 Jan 2021 20:25:00 +0000

I had promised myself I would go running yesterday—but did I feel like it? Not really. The couch was just too comfortable all day.
I did not really want to run, but well… I had made a promise to myself.

A deal with myself

I had agreed with myself to actually go for a run, even if it was only a short stretch. Nothing was wrong all day, but after dinner I did feel some pressure to get out. As the evening wore on I felt more and more that I really had to head outside. In the end, around nine, I still got changed and sprinted out the door.

Choice stress? Or: A guide to making choices

Tue, 08 Aug 2017 07:00:02 +0000

It seems paradoxical. You have more to choose from, but you are less happy with what you have chosen. Nowadays we have much more choice, more than before. Yet we are not necessarily happier with all those choices. I too wasn’t very happy with all those choices when I picked out [my headphones]/sennheiser-momentum-m2-iei/. Even though I knew what I wanted, I wondered if I was making the right choice. It seems the more choices we have, the more unhappy we are. Is there nothing that can be done about this stress of choice?

TED: Dan Ariely - Are we in control of our own decisions?

Thu, 20 May 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Behavioral economist Dan Ariely, the author of Predictably Irrational, uses classic visual illusions and his own counterintuitive (and sometimes shocking) research findings to show how we’re not as rational as we think when we make decisions.

The video

Watch on YouTube

The paradox of choice

Wed, 05 May 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Here we go, all kinds of choices that customers can, or should, choose from. Because you have to put the customer first, right? But can you do that with this? See here: the paradox of choice(s)

The paradox of choice

You may not have heard of it before, but the paradox of choice is the phenomenon where an abundance of choices and options can cause us more stress, anxiety and uncertainty instead of giving us more freedom and happiness. This paradox can occur in various places in our daily lives, from choosing a meal at a restaurant to choosing a partner or a career.

TED: How great leaders inspire action

Mon, 03 May 2010 22:00:00 +0000

Simon Sinek gave a great presentation on why some businesses fail even though they have great products, or why some businesses do succeed.

It’s all about how great leaders inspire action.