How to Be Happier with What You Have

by ScottHYoung

“There are two ways to increase your wealth. Increase your means or decrease your wants. The best is to do both at the same time.” - Benjamin Franklin
Misery shouldn’t be the price for ambition. Somewhere I believe many people got the idea that to want more, you have to be dissatisfied with what you have now. Believing this, your choice is either to dampen your passions or become miserable with what you have.

I think this is a false dichotomy. You can be satisfied and ambitious. And while many self-help books have covered the topic of ambition, fewer cover the idea of becoming immensely satisfied with what you’ve already got.

Beyond affirmations and beliefs, I think there are some practical tips to do this. Engineering your daily life can be a great way to maximize your current fulfillment. Best of all, it isn’t incredibly difficult to do. Here are some tips I’ve found useful in becoming happier with where I am:1 - Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

Investors understand that diversification keeps one bad fall from ruining you financially. Keeping your interests diversified, ensures that one slip won’t make you miserable. Tying your entire life into only one area isn’t just obsessive, it’s dangerous.

Life balance has become a bit of a cliche. Balance implies a weak compromise where efforts are juggled. But the alternative to balance doesn’t need to be obsession. Having several areas of focus at a time will help smooth out the fluctuations in your experience. Pick 3-5 things that are critical for you and a dozen more you feel are important.2 - Engineer Your Day

Spend a bit of time reorganizing how you run your daily life. Looking over at the horizon it can be easy to miss what is under your feet. Focusing on improvements of your routines, habits and environment can make a huge impact in your current satisfaction. Even if they have little influence on your bank account or GPA.

Start by doing a run down of how you invest your time. Carry around a notepad with you for a day. Record every time you start or stop an activity. This will give you a detailed look at how you spend your time. It should also give you an idea of where you can make improvements.

The goal isn’t to have the most productive day possible or one that is devoid of all “bad” habits. Your objective is simply to experiment with changes that might make your day more interesting, fun or fulfilling.3 - Break Comparisons

If you are like most inhabitants of industrialized nations, you are richer than most medieval kings. You are free of most diseases that plagued our ancestors. You have far more human rights. And you are far less likely to die a violent death. By such a comparison, you should be overjoyed compared to your great-great-grandparents. Why doesn’t this feel like the case?

The answer is because most people base their satisfaction on comparing themselves with others. You may be fabulously wealthy compared to your forefathers, but you also have to compare your life to people who are far wealthier, healthier and more attractive than you.

Breaking comparisons with other people will make you happier, but it isn’t easy to do. There isn’t an OFF switch in your brain for competition. However, there are a few ways you can make adjustments to your life that help avoid the competitive misery:

Diversify your social life. If you only associate with people from one class, you will always struggle with comparison. My suggestion is to broaden the groups of people you associate with. Not just in terms of income, but age, experiences, culture and background. The more diversification, the more difficulty you have nitpicking.

Shut off the media. If information isn’t helping you make decisions and only makes you feel miserable, why are you consuming it? Surrounding yourself with celebrity magazines and television shows featuring spoiled rich kids can fuel that urge to compare.

Find your talents. Emphasize the things you are good at and make you unique. The more you cultivate a unique identity, the less chance you have of making linear comparisons between your life and your friends.

Cultivate abundance. Competition is largely based in zero-sum. The idea that someone else’s gain is my loss. Rarely is this the case. Focus on how the effects of another’s win can become your own gain. Emphasizing an abundance mindset can help you avoid the comparison that inevitably comes from thinking scarcity.

Focus internally. Perhaps the most important tip at all is to put less focus on external results. If you build a stable inner world, you can survive the storms of the outer world. Focusing on the intangibles of your passions, challenges, bonds and purpose will lead to a greater current satisfaction.

Wine Tips

By: Gary Vaynerchuk, Photographs by: Jonathan Kantor

Understanding wine is easy. It comes down to a few basic principles, which I've laid out here. So read on, drink up, and live long.

3 Moves Every Guy Must Master

1.Serving: Serve both red and white at room temperature. A chill can mask a wine's flaws and strengthen the astringent taste of the tannins. At room temperature, the wine's unique flavors -- fruit, oak, whatever -- are more obvious.

2. Decanting: Let wine breathe for 2 to 3 hours. Aeration speeds up the oxidation process that takes years to occur in a sealed bottle. This smooths out the taste and brings out complex flavors and aromas.

3. Tasting: First, give it a sniff, which primes your palate. Take a sip and let the wine hit every part of your mouth. You'll taste several flavors at once. The wine will evolve as you eat, as certain foods bring out different flavors.

How to Navigate a Wine Store

Treat it like a barbershop. Stay loyal to one store, and befriend a clerk who knows about the wines you like. Once he or she understands your tastes, your options will become endless. Here are a few other dos and don'ts.

Don't . . . Buy The label

There's a saying in the wine industry: "Put critters on the label, sell cases." Labels are designed by marketing companies who know how to trick you into buying juice that doesn't pack the thunder. Playful labels and cartoons are major warning signs. Be wary of red or yellow labels, which are designed to stand out.

Do . . . Double-check the ratings card

Often, wine shops post ratings for the wrong year. How much can the quality of wine vary from year to year? A ton. Most 2000 California cabernets are just average wines, for example, but the 2001 vintage is exceptional.

Don't . . . Choose from a display near the counter

Chances are, they're trying to unload wines that didn't sell as well as expected or are aging quickly. Either way, these won't be among the best bottles in the store.

Do . . . Pick up four new wines for every one of your old favorites

This is the key to expanding your palate--and be sure to keep good notes.

Here are some easy wine tasting tips :

Difficulty: Easy

Time Required: 15 minutes

Here's How:

1. Look Pour a glass of wine into a suitable wine glass. Then take a good look at the wine. What color is it? Look beyond red, white or blush. If it's a red wine is the color maroon, purple, ruby, garnet, red or even brownish. If it's a white wine is it clear, straw-like, golden, light green, pale yellow or brown in appearance?
2. Still Looking. Move on to the wine's opacity. Is the wine clear, cloudy, transparent or opaque? Tilt your glass a bit, give it a little swirl - look again, you are looking at color, clarity, brilliance (sounds like you're finding the perfect diamond!) - is there sediment, bits of cork or any other floating bits? An older red wine will be more translucent than younger red wines.
3. Smell Our sense of smell is critical in properly analyzing a glass of wine. To get a good impression of your wine's aroma, gently swirl your glass (this will enhance the wine's natural aromas) and then take a quick whiff to gain a first impression.
4. Still Smelling. Now stick your nose down into the glass and take a deep inhale through your nose. What are your second impressions? Do you smell oak, berry, flowers, vanilla or citrus? A wine's aroma is an excellent indicator of its quality and unique characteristics. Gently swirl the wine and let the aromas mix and mingle, and sniff again.
5. Taste Finally, take a taste. Start with a small sip and let it roll around your tongue. There are three stages of taste:
6. Taste - After gathering your initial impression of the wine, allow a small breath of air in through your lips and allow the wine to mingle with the air (called swirling). This will allow you to taste flavors more fully (even if you look or sound a bit funny). What do you taste? Reds will often have berry, woody and bell pepper tastes. White wines will often have apple, floral or citrus flavors associtated with them.
7. Initial Taste - This is your first impression of the wine's components and flavors.
8. Finish - The wine's finish is how long the flavor lasts after it is swallowed. Did it last several seconds? Was it light-bodied (like water) or full-bodied (like the consistency of milk)?
9. After you have taken the time to taste your wine, you might record some of your impressions. Did you like the wine overall? Does it taste better with cheese, bread or a heavy meal? Will you buy it again? If so, jot the wine's name, producer and year down for future reference.

How to Read Like a Scholar

Most the time in school what you need to do is very simple:

Sit down with the book, a pen and paper, and perhaps a computer… And from that point, you read. That’s it. You go through and read the book, you underline important points and passages, pay special attention to introductions and conclusions, be sure to note special terminology, names and dates and that’s it. Maybe afterward take notes on the text.

There is a time for technology and clever tricks. There is also a time for elbow grease.

This is good advice, and yet it’s incomplete. Reading as an academic exercise involves not just gleaning the content form a book or essay but engaging with it. We read not just to learn some new set of facts but also to learn how facts are put together to form an argument, to learn what kinds of arguments are acceptable in our chosen disciplines, and to prompt us towards further research. Reading of this sort raises as many questions as it answers, or more.

While reading, we should keep the following questions in mind:

• What is the author trying to say? This seems obvious, but it seems to be a stumbling block for many students. I’m convinced that the failure to ask this simple question is what leads students to avoid reading, to feel that reading is a chore or, worse, busy-work. Remember, authors — academic or otherwise — aren’t in the business of writing just to bore students; there’s something important they want to communicate. Granted, not all writing communicates well, but regardless of the writer’s skill, if a professor assigned a reading, it’s because there’s something there worth knowing about.
• How does the author say what they’re trying to say? What evidence do they use? What style of argument are they making? How are they positioning themselves? You’d be surprised how many people read an essay about, say, infanticide (the killing of newborn children) and assume the author is advocating this practice instead of simply describing it. These readers totally misread the author’s position.
• Why is the author’s point important? If you can figure out why the author felt he or she needed to write the article or book in your hands, you’re a good way towards figuring out what they’re trying to say. What contribution does the work make to the author’s discipline, to our understanding of society or the world? What problems are they trying to solve?
• Do you agree or disagree with the author? Why? Just because something’s in print doesn’t make it right. As a student, it is essential that you read critically, with an eye towards inconsistencies in an author’s argument or evidence. Are there other explanations for the data they present? Is the author’s interpretation colored by his or her religion, professional background, political orientation, or social position? Note: far too many students seem to think that criticizing style is a good substitute for critiquing substance. It’s not. A lot of academic writing is stilted, difficult (sometimes deliberately so), or just plain bad; this does not mean that the ideas are not good.
• How does this work connect with other works? What’s new about it (or, if it’s an older work, what was new when it was published)? What disciplinary debates is the author engaging? How does this work build on, or refute, earlier works by other authors? How does it fit with the author’s other work? What other work is the one you’re reading like?
• What is the social context of the work? Always consider the historical moment in which a work was created. What kind of person wrote it, and for what kind of audience? What historical events shaped the author’s perceptions and ideas? How was their world different from yours, and how was it similar?

These questions should be on your mind even if you can’t read the whole book. It’s a sad fact of college life that not everything that is assigned can be given the same level of attention. In grad school, for instance, I was regularly charged with reading three (or more) hefty books a week, plus supporting essays and commentaries — while carrying out my own research at the same time. This is not humanly possible. You have to learn to prioritize reading, and to approach it systematically to make sure you get as much as possible out of whatever amount of reading you can manage.

Here’s how you do it:

1. Skim the book. Examine the table of contents to get a feeling for the structure and main points of the book. Flip through the chapters, skimming the first few paragraphs of each, and then the section headings. Check the index for any topics you feel are especially important. Then, if you have time;
2. Read the Introduction and conclusion. Most of the author’s theoretical position will be laid out in the introduction, along with at least a summary of the chapters and sections within. The conclusion revisits much of these points, and usually gives a good overview of the data or other evidence. Sometimes the conclusion is not marked as such; in this case, read the last chapter. Then, if you have time;
3. Dip in. Read the chapters that seem most relevant or interesting. Get a sense for what the author is trying to accomplish. Flip through the rest of the book and look more closely at anything that catches your eye. Then, if you have time;
4. Finish the book. Read the whole thing. If you know you’ll have time, skip 1 - 3 and just read, cover to cover.

Obviously it’s best to read the whole book; you’ll miss a lot reading anything less. But given the choice between not reading at all and skimming to at least get a taste of what you’re missing, I say, go for skimming. And try to keep yourself better organized in the future so that you don’t shortchange your entire education.

How to hug a baby.

G-Rated

Attention all dogs! The following are important instructions for every dog to know.

Instructions for properly hugging a baby:

1.First, spy a baby:

2. Second, be sure that the object you spied was indeed a baby, by employing classic sniffing techniques. If you smell baby powder and the wonderful aroma of wet diapers, this is, indeed, a baby.

3. Next you will need to flatten the baby before actually beginning the hugging process. **Note: The added slobber should help in future steps by making the "paw slide" easier.

4. The "paw slide" - Simply slide paws around baby and prepare for possible close-up.

5. Finally, if a camera is present, you will need to execute the difficult and patented "hug, smile, and lean" so as to achieve the best photo quality.

Dogs, if this is properly done, it will secure you a warm, dry, climate-controlled environment for the rest of your life.

Good luck to all of you!

Thai Insurance - Someone to take care

Life can be simple . With the one you love.

The videos are touching..dont cry though.. but I did.





Daddy



Marry Me



Father & Son



My Girl



Grandma



Grandpa



Do you tell someone you really care how you love them?

D & G Fall and Winter MILAN MEN COLLECTION 06/07

What is D&G and Macross do in common?


and


Find out here.

I like fashion ,in general .

Let' s look at this year Fall and Winter Men's fashion trend.






















Girls will love these guys BUT I know who else is TRULY in love with this series.

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Sailor moon !!!




Website of D & G

感人+ 搞笑 = 爱情故事

一个用搞笑的方式，夸张的手法，来叫你怎么追女子。。。我还蛮喜欢这个短短的喜剧，拍得不错哦！~~;)
use a very funny style, a way which is a bit over, teach you how to court a girl...i like this short comedy, not bad!~~ ;)

Men's Health

Men's Health conducted an international survey to find the world's healthiest men, based on five categories: nutrition, fitness, stress, health, and sex. Here's what you can learn from the winners.

Nutrition:
What went into the scores:

We looked at each country's per capita consumption of fish, vegetables, fruit, breakfast, tea, sweets, and take-out and fast food.

Comment:

In Malaysia, we got a lot of fresh seafoods, vege, fruits...drink a lot of tea (chinese tea after dinner)...and the food is nice!~~~:P

But in Germany, there are so little seafoods (expensive but not fresh)... vege and fruits are even more expensive than meat (chicken leg 2 euro per kg, at the same time eggplant/ aubergine/ brinjal, which i like to eat, is also the same price!!~~)...a lot of fast food, Döner, pizza, you can buy them even in supermarket which are frozen...

Fitness:
What went into the scores:

We crunched obesity rates, strength (from situps and pushups), time spent exercising each week, and six-pack prevalence.

Comment:

The sport facilities in germany is really good... exspecially for student, we can use the facilities for free!!!(it's under the university and quite well-equiped.)...My senior, Eric brought me to gym and all those six-pack muscular men are there!~~~

I seldom do sports in malaysia....maybe i'm the one who pull down the marks :$...normally the sport facilities cost money, beside basketball court in the playground which has many holes :P...

Stress:
What went into the scores:

We surveyed workweek hours, vacation time, happiness, commutes, spending on leisure, and whether men check work e-mail at home.

Comment:

As i know, European's working life is quite relaxing and they have a couple of long holiday for vacation...maybe because they are in developed country and high standard lifestyle....

Normal Malaysians work from day to night and seldom have holidays, exspecially for those who run their own business....have to go back to office to check e-mails and fax in public holidays...

Health:
What went into the scores:

We considered death rates for heart disease, cancer, and stroke; the prevalence of diabetes and smoking; and data on life expectancy, cholesterol, blood pressure, sleep, and alcohol.

Comment:

How come? As i know, German smokes a lot and sometimes you can see even 16-year-old girls smoking on the street....and drink a lot of alcohol (beer)....drink a little bit of alcohol is good for health though...



Sex:
What went into the scores:

We analyzed marriage rates, divorced population, sex partners and frequency, masturbation habits, number of friends, sexual satisfaction, and affairs.

Comment:

Muslims are allowed to marry 4 wives if they have the "ability"...:P maybe this makes an Asian country, Malaysia unexpected high...

Michael Schumachers driving style

Michael Schumacher

In German , we Pronounce it as ( like mee-sha-el schu -ma -her)

born January 3, 1969, in Hürth Hermülheim, Germany) is a former Formula One driver, and seven-time world champion. According to the official Formula One website, he is "statistically the greatest driver the sport has ever seen".^[2] He is the first German to win the Formula One World championship^[3] and is credited with popularising Formula One in Germany.^[4] In a 2006 FIA survey, Michael Schumacher was voted the most popular driver among Formula One fans. Read more here



Learn about the legendary driver style from other drivers and experts

62nd International Motor Show (IAA) Cars ,Frankfurt, Germany

Flower power, hemp, and space technology serve as swift guides to the future:

German Hip-Hop Artist Smudo to Present BioConcept Car at the IAA

Frankfurt am Main, September 10, 2007.

Smudo, the singer of the German hip-hop band “Die Fantastischen Vier”, will be taking part in the 62nd International Motor Show (IAA) Cars to promote clean technology. Besides being a hip-hopper, Smudo is an amateur racecar driver, which is why he will be attending the world’s largest mobility show to present his favorite vehicle, the BioConcept Car. Smudo is using the vehicle to show how driving enjoyment and responsibility can both cross the finish line in an original way.



The unique BioConcept racecar is great at accelerating and runs solely on biofuels. What’s more, researchers and developers are working on further improving its aerodynamic body, which is made of innovative organic composites. This vehicle obviously belongs at the 62nd IAA in Frankfurt, which, in line with its slogan of “See what’s driving the future”, will be displaying the whole range of ingenious and effective ideas for ensuring sustainable mobility in the future. On Thursday, September 20, Smudo will present the one-of-a-kind eco-racecar at the Four Motors racing team stand in the F3 outdoor area, across from the BioFuelBar. The presentation will begin at 2:00 p.m. At the stand, visitors will also be able to try out the new racing game Juiced2 from the BioConcept partner THQ. Smudo, whose passion for racing simulations eventually took him behind the wheel of a real racecar, is represented in the game, as is his BioConcept Car.

At first glance, the real-life BioConcept Mustang GT RTD looks like a typical muscle car. In fact, the car generates around 280 hp underneath its natural fiber hood. However, in rather untypical fashion, this performance is achieved with pure “flower power,” meaning it runs on conventional biodiesel. Smudo’s Four Motors racing team was assisted in the development of the innovative four-cylinder diesel by the Union for the Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants (UFOP). The unique natural fiber body components are based on those used for the Mustang. Production of these components was made possible through the collaboration with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and supported by the Agency of Renewable Raw Materials (FNR) with funding from the German Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture.

The result of these efforts is a competitive, environmentally sustainable racing vehicle, which is driven by Smudo in the BFGoodrich long-distance championships and the International 24h races at the Nürburgring.

Four Motors is a prominent racing team that specializes in motor sports using renewable sources of energy. Four Motors developed the BioConcept Mustang GT RTD under the direction of former DTM driver Thomas von Löwis of Menar, and is today working on using second generation biofuels.

Be a Better Kisser

from Men's Health

Think you're a good kisser? Read this before you answer -- we asked women (and a scientist) what works

Want to see her again? Leave her with a kiss she'll remember.

Good kissing technique can pave the way to a long-term relationship -- and the sex that comes with it -- or leave you spending the night alone.

And when you're in a committed relationship, your girlfriend or wife still judges you by your kisses.

Those are the conclusions from a new study of kissing.

Whether it's your first kiss or your fiftieth, "women, more so than men, use kissing as an assessment device," says Susan M. Hughes, Ph.D. "Men, however, would forgo kissing as long as they can have sex."

Hughes led the study at the University of Albany, which found that men and women not only kiss for different reasons, they also prefer different types of kissing.

And a good kiss can lead to many more.

"The first kiss is a deal-breaker in terms of determining how the relationship will play out. A woman feels a kiss can predict how good of a lover a guy will be. A bad kiss will deter her from getting involved with him," Hughes says.

Jen, a 27-year-old from New York City, says she'd start a relationship with a guy based on his kissing.

"If a man is conscientious and intuitive enough to kiss me in a way that makes me feel special and cared about, then that tells me he's the kind of man I'd like to be in a relationship with," she says.

The First Kiss

What's your best kissing strategy?

First, always carry a mint. Women evaluate you by the way your breath smells and mouth tastes.

Hughes says kissing provides information about potential health problems; your hygiene is important.

"An immediate turn-off would be bad breath," says Kristina, 22, from San Diego.

Lips are important too.

"Kissing requires good breath and moist, non-crusty or chapped lips," says Whitney, 27, of Philadelphia. "These things show a guy takes care of himself, a crucial sign he can care for others. Good breath and moist lips may also indicate that he was considerate enough to freshen up after the garlic-bread appetizer."

And take it easy on your first kiss -- the study found that men prefer wetter kisses and more tongue action than women.

"I like when the man initiates the kiss without being forceful or pushy," Jen says. "When I first met my boyfriend, I broke a strict personal rule and kissed him on the middle of a dance floor. It was a really perfect moment. We were both sweaty, wasted, and really digging each other -- and he just looked down at me and laid one on. His taking that initiative led to a 2-year relationship that's still going strong."

Kristina says overeager kisses are always bad. "Sometimes it seems like he's eating your face off. A good kiss would be relaxed and natural," she says.

Does that mean no tongue on a first kiss? Not always.

"If it's the first one, a willingness to explore with pressure, tongue, and body positioning is good," Whitney says. "A gentle but firm and controlled touch on my face or back is great; covering my lips and chin with his mouth is not."

"A good kiss combines spontaneity, tongue but not too much force, light nibbling to my lower lip, and using your hands to touch other parts of my body," says Kristy, 24, of New York. "That combo equals euphoria for me."

Kissing and Sex

Don't think that a kiss guarantees you'll go back to her place.

"Men were much more likely to have sex with a bad kisser than women," Hughes says. "As long as males get sexual access, then kissing is rather irrelevant. For females, that's not the case."

"I try to stay away from guys who are sleazy, and if the guy only wants sex, that's super sleazy," Whitney says. "Why consider bringing yourself to his level by kissing him even after realizing that he only wants sex?

"Even if the physical attraction has a greater pull than the world's strongest magnet, at the end of the day, you'll wonder why you laid down your hand so willingly."

If you're in a relationship, you should know there's no sex without kissing.

"Kissing and making out are the ultimate foreplay -- how can you get in the mood without testing the waters first?" Jen says.

"Kissing is the starting line for sex," says Whitney. "It heightens my senses and sends me into overdrive. Kissing brings you face to face and forces you to look into the eyes of the person with whom you're about to share this incredible experience."

Women in the study said kissing was important before, during, and after sex -- and we're talking about her mouth here.

"Kissing helps get your partner aroused for sex," Hughes says. "And, afterward, women want more kissing because it creates more of a bond."

So if you want to keep her happy, kiss and cuddle after sex.

Many Kisses Later

The first smooch may score you a second date, but for women, kisses are important throughout a relationship.

"Once the initial excitement of a new relationship settles, kissing is sometimes the first thing that becomes routine -- if you let it," Kristy says. "If you don't, though, then a great kiss can let me know how much you love me even if I'm not wearing make up and I have old sweatpants on and my hair is frizzy."

"Long-term relationships need lots of rekindling on a regular basis, and a simple kiss is a great way to do this," Jen explains. "A kiss can mean anything from, 'I know you're working hard on a big project right now, but I want to remind you I love and support you' to 'Turn off the TV and come to bed with me.'"

Rebecca, 25, from Baltimore, agrees that kissing is really important and can help bring her out of a bad mood.

"A kiss can be anything from foreplay to a reminder that I've been missed all day," she says. "Sometimes when I'm upset, angry, or distracted, a kiss full on the lips can bring me out of a funk in a second."

The frequency and quality of kisses can also be a sign of potential problems, Hughes says. "Women use kisses to gauge how the relationship is going and to create a bond. If you kissed a lot in the beginning of your relationship, but you don't now, she may become concerned."

But don't try to kiss your way out of a fight.

"Men feel this can be a reconciliation gesture to recreate the bond," Hughes says. "They use kissing to make sure the status of the relationship is back to where it was before the fight."

And this attempt rarely works.

"If the fight is about anything more serious than a misplaced sock, it's insulting he would try to pacify me over an issue presumably important enough to fight about by using what's supposed to be a romantic gesture," Whitney says.

Kristina agrees: "What a cop-out that would be. I can't be won over by just a kiss. He needs to do better than that."

But some women have been known to give in to a well-executed, heartfelt smooch.

"It depends on what the fight was about," Rebecca says. "If I'm in the middle of a belligerent exclamation, kissing me is only going to make me more angry. But if he catches me in between, grabs my shoulders, looks me in the eyes, and kisses me like he means it, I've been known to discontinue the fight. It's much easier to have a level conversation after we're both sexually sated anyway."

Successful People Build Their Confidence

It's never too late to get the confidence you desire in any area of your life. People talk about confidence as if it is something you either do or do not have. This is not the case! Confidence is specific to particular situations and can both increase or decrease over time. You may be confident at networking and building relationships but you may tremble at the thought of public speaking; lacking any confidence at all.

When faced with something new, even the most confident of us all get pangs of self-doubt. At that moment we all have a choice: give in to the fear and remain where we are or face the fear head on and master the confidence.

In order to gain confidence, you have to do the very thing you are unconfident about. The fabulous thing is that with a few tools up your sleeve, you can make the process a little easier and master the confidence at just about anything.

How to Develop Confidence:

Choose a specific area that you want to achieve greater confidence.

Create a vision of what it will look and feel like when you have confidence in this specific area. Make the vision as detailed and vivid as possible. Focus on all your senses: what you see, hear, feel, smell, and taste.

Practice focusing on this vision every morning and every evening before going to bed. Also focus on this vision immediately prior to any situation where you want to draw on this confidence.

Model people who are already confident in this area. What do they do that makes them appear, behave and feel confident? Start doing those same things!

Form a 'hierarchy of tasks' you can face in order to build your confidence in this area. Start with tasks that are easiest and work your way through to more difficult tasks. Remember 'large doors swing on small hinges'.

For example, one of my clients, Claire, used this exercise to overcome her lack of confidence to network effectively. She set the big goal to walk away from every networking event with 3 new contacts. Claire made the following hierarchy of tasks that would lead to the development of her big networking goal:

- Attend a networking event alone
- Talk to one person I have never met before
- Get contact details of one person I have never met before
- Send a follow up email to one person I met at a networking event
- Make a follow up phone call to one person I met at a networking event
- Talk to two people at a networking event that I have never met and get their contact details
- Follow up two people with phone calls and organise to meet
- Talk to three people I have never met, get their contact details, follow up with a phone call and organise a meeting.

She steadily progressed through each task, moving onto the next level only once she had mastered the level she was on. By the end of three months, Claire had gone from detesting networking events to using networking as her main marketing tool. She now enjoys walking away with three contacts every event. She is more confident than most other people at any networking event and now focuses on helping other people feel at ease at these events by approaching them herself!

Decide to never again run away from something because you lack the confidence! Face it head on. You may just find it's the most liberating thing you have ever done.

The New iPod Touch

A jeans-clad Steve Jobs unveiled iPod Touch, the sixth generation of Apple’s iconic music player this week. As expected, it boasts much of the technology that made people go "oooh" at the iPhone - and powered it into position as the world’s quickest selling smart-phone.

Touch-screen music and video navigation aside, wi-fi connectivity is an excellent addition. As well as web-browsing capabilities and YouTube time-wasting, users can access the entire iTunes music library on the move, frittering away the pennies with a grandé mochacino at participating Starbucks (the cafe chain's customers will be able to download music playing in outlets). But enough of us: check out the super-detailed presentation above for the full low-down on Apple’s new baby.

Two more additions to the iPod family were also unveiled this week. The iPod Classic (a tweaked version of the 5th gen model, with a bigger hard drive, slimmer design and revamped interface) and the new iPod Nano, which boasts video capabilities

Top 9 Fitness Myths

Think you know the facts about getting fit? You may be surprised to learn how many are really fiction.

By Colette Bouchez
WebMD Weight Loss Clinic-Feature

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

It's easy to fall into the trap: A workout buddy passes along an exercise tip, and then you pass it on to several folks you know. One day, you're at the gym, and sure enough, you hear the same tip repeated, so you figure it must be true. But experts say that in the world of fitness, myths and half-truths abound – and some of them may be keeping you from getting the workout you need.

"Some myths are just harmless half-truths, but many others can actually be harmful," says professional triathlete and personal coach Eric Harr, author of The Portable Personal Trainer. "They can cause frustration in working out and sometimes even lead to injury," he notes.

One reason myths get started, says Harr, is that we all react to exercise a little differently. So what's true for one person may not be true for another.

"In this sense you sometimes have to find your own 'exercise truths' – the things that are true for you," says Harr.

That said, experts say there are also some fitness myths that just need busting, and the sooner the better!

To help put you on the path to a healthier, safer, and more enjoyable workout, WebMD got the lowdown from several top experts on what's true and what's not when it comes to exercise tips.

Fitness Myth No. 1: Running on a treadmill puts less stress on your knees than running on asphalt or pavement.

"Running is a great workout, but it can impact the knees -- and since it's the force of your body weight on your joints that causes the stress, it's the same whether you're on a treadmill or on asphalt," says Todd Schlifstein, DO, a clinical instructor at New York University Medical Center's Rusk Institute.

The best way to reduce knee impact, says Schlifstein, is to vary your workout.

"If you mix running with other cardio activities, like an elliptical machine, or you ride a stationary bike, you will reduce impact on your knees so you'll be able to run for many more years," says Schlifstein.

Fitness Myth No. 2: Doing crunches or working on an "ab machine" will get rid of belly fat.

Don't believe everything you hear on those late-night infomercials! Harr says that while an ab-crunching device might "help strengthen the muscles around your midsection and improve your posture," being able to "see" your abdominal muscles has to do with your overall percentage of body fat. If you don't lose the belly fat, he says, you won't see the ab muscles.

But can doing ab crunches help you to lose that belly fat? Experts say no.

"You can’t pick and choose areas where you’d like to burn fat," says Phil Tyne, director of the fitness center at the Baylor Tom Landry Health & Wellness Center in Dallas. So crunches aren't going to target weight loss in that area.

"In order to burn fat, you should create a workout that includes both cardiovascular and strength-training elements. This will decrease your overall body fat content," including the area around your midsection, he says.

Fitness Myth No. 3: An aerobic workout will boost your metabolism for hours after you stop working out.

This statement is actually true -- but the calorie burn is probably not nearly as much as you think!

Harr says that while your metabolism will continue to burn at a slightly higher rate after you finish an aerobic workout, the amount is not statistically significant. In fact, it allows you to burn only about 20 extra calories for the day. While there's a little bit more of a metabolic boost after strength training, he says, it's still marginal.

"It doesn't really count towards your caloric burn," he says.

Fitness Myth No. 4: Swimming is a great weight loss activity.

While swimming is great for increasing lung capacity, toning muscles, and even helping to burn off excess tension, Harr says the surprising truth is that unless you are swimming for hours a day, it may not help you lose much weight.

"Because the buoyancy of the water is supporting your body, you're not working as hard as it would if, say, you were moving on your own steam -- like you do when you run," says Harr.

Further, he says, it's not uncommon to feel ravenous when you come out of the water.

"It may actually cause you to eat more than you normally would, so it can make it harder to stay with an eating plan," he says.

Fitness Myth No. 5: Yoga can help with all sorts of back pain.

The truth is that yoga can help with back pain, but it's not equally good for all types.

"If your back pain is muscle-related, then yes, the yoga stretches and some of the positions can help. It can also help build a stronger core, which for many people is the answer to lower back pain," says Schlifstein.

But if your back problems are related other problems (such as a ruptured disc) yoga is not likely to help, he says. What's more, it could actually irritate the injury and cause you more pain.

If you do have back pain, get your doctor's OK before starting any type of exercise program.

Fitness Myth No. 6: If you're not working up a sweat, you're not working hard enough.

"Sweating is not necessarily an indicator of exertion," says Tyne. "Sweating is your body’s way of cooling itself."

It's possible to burn a significant number of calories without breaking a sweat: Try taking a walk or doing some light weight training.

Fitness Myth No. 7: As long as you feel OK when you're working out, you're probably not overdoing it.

One of the biggest mistakes people tend to make when starting or returning to an exercise program is doing too much too soon. The reason we do that, says Schlifstein, is because we feel OK while we are working out.

"You don't really feel the overdoing it part until a day or two later," he says.

No matter how good you feel when you return to an activity after an absence, Schlifstein says you should never try to duplicate how much or how hard you worked in the past. Even if you don't feel it at the moment, you'll feel it in time, he says -- and it could take you back out of the game again.

Fitness Myth No. 8: Machines are a safer way to exercise because you're doing it right every time.

Although it may seem as if an exercise machine automatically puts your body in the right position and helps you do all the movements correctly, that's only true if the machine is properly adjusted for your weight and height, experts say.

"Unless you have a coach or a trainer or someone figure out what is the right setting for you, you can make just as many mistakes in form and function, and have just as high a risk of injury, on a machine as if you work out with free weights or do any other type of nonmachine workout," says Schlifstein.

Fitness Myth No. 9: When it comes to working out, you've got to feel some pain if you're going to gain any benefits.

Of all the fitness rumors ever to have surfaced, experts agree that the "no pain-no gain" holds the most potential for harm.

While you should expect to have some degree of soreness a day or two after working out, Schlifstein says, that's very different from feeling pain while you are working out.

"A fitness activity should not hurt while you are doing it, and if it does, then either you are doing it wrong, or you already have an injury," he says.

As for "working through the pain," experts don't advise it. They say that if it hurts, stop, rest, and see if the pain goes away. If it doesn't go away, or if it begins again or increases after you start to work out, Schlifstein says, see a doctor.

About car doors opening techniques

Is so cool to have this type of cars with the below door mechanism.

It will definitely be head -turner every time when you open your car door


Lamborghini


Mercedes side gull wing


Side slide door


Renault



DMC


Mercedes old timer


You thin that is cool enough huh.

Wait till you see this .

6 Secret Ways to Turn Her On

By: Sarah Miller

Rest assured, every woman wants to be seduced.

We just don't like guys who go for the seduction jugular: the champagne, the Barry White, the walk on the beach. A man who has tried one of these, or, God forbid, all of them at once, is a man who knows well the face of humiliation and failure.

No, the key to putting a woman in the mood for sex is not to advertise how much you want her, but, rather, to quietly make clear why she should want you. When it comes to sex, in other words, you don't need a billboard--you need sneaky subliminal messages.

They used to use tricks like these to sell more Coke at the movies. Now you can use them to get more women.

1. Ditch the cell.

(Wait. You'd better not be wearing one, because if you are, you're a walking seduction-free zone. This includes beepers.) First of all, women are very serious about our schedules, and if we've set aside time to spend with you, we're not keen on sharing it with your free minutes. Second, when chatting on the phone, you can't help but reveal some of the ins and outs of your work or private life, and that kind of openness is girly, creepy, and not sexy.

But here's the biggest problem: Any guy who can't go 2 hours without checking in with his friends, his job, his family, comes across as desperately insecure. Go ahead and actually turn it off in front of her. She will recognize you as the man who is comfortable and at peace with what's in front of him, and thank her stars you're not the guy who's always wondering what and who is next.

Watch out: Putting your phone on vibrate and repeatedly checking to see who's calling without answering not only is not seductive, but also shows you're kind of an arrogant jerk.

2. Fix something.

Men fixing broken things--light switches, toasters, clogged toilets--is a tradition that dates back to, well, a time when men did things besides nod, point, and hand other men their debit cards. We know that you probably can't gap your points or replace the alternator in your Hyundai. But with a little practice, and some very basic, moron-friendly manuals, you can do plenty of other tasks that would establish you as a Competent Male. If you're going to do this, though, try to do it in her presence. And it's okay, even advisable, to swear if you can't find the right tools, as long as you don't complain.

Danger zone: Don't get dirt on your face unless you're doing something fairly complicated. There's a fine line between looking manly and looking like a doofus with dirt on his face.

3. Read a book.

Allow me to interrupt that thrilling game of Ghost Recon to pose the following question: Do you have any idea of the mass quantity of ass you could get just by reading one book? Women read a lot, and, like pretty much everything else we do, we like to talk about it. Only we can rarely talk about it with guys, because, well, many of you (although not necessarily you personally) are Neanderthals growing slowly illiterate in front of an Xbox. But imagine yourself talking to a pretty woman, and she mentions that she's reading a book, and you've actually read it, too! So if this pretty woman thought you were cute, now she thinks you're smart, too.

Also: Reading in public is a great way to give women an excuse to talk to you.

4. Replace the bottles on the office watercooler.

Modern life, what with its dearth of catapults, marauding wolves, and barn raisings, doesn't provide men with many opportunities to show off their brute strength. It's a very lucky accident that in the midst of all this ease-making progress, we've managed to poison our drinking-water supply.

And since somebody has to replace those unwieldy 5-gallon plastic containers on the office cooler, it might as well be you. It's such a quick, easy way to make the chicks in the office sit up and take notice of your athletic prowess. You know those bottles aren't that heavy, but who cares, because women think they are, Hercules.

Alternative: If you don't have a watercooler in your office, be the first to offer your man power when a stalled or stuck-in-the-snow car needs a push. You want to make your point and then get back to work. There's a reason they call it "the strong, silent type."

5. Write e-mails that are more than five syllables long.

If you're dating a woman, really like her, and yet insist on writing her e-mails that read "ok cu later," you are such an idiot that I don't even know why I'm trying to help you. Men are all about keeping things short and to the point. And when it comes to business correspondence or letting your friends know where you're watching the Dolphins game, that's fine. But short and to the point, in chick world, translates into BORING and UNIMAGINATIVE and--the worst sin of all--UNINTERESTED.

You don't have to get all Cyrano de Bergerac on her ass. But an interesting sentence or two, please, is so easy and so, so point scoring. Examples? She writes, "How was your night?" DO NOT write back, "It was okay." Even if all you did was drink two beers and watch CSI, have something to say. Like, "Do you think real female forensic investigators all wear those low-cut pants?" Just some evidence, please, that you are a living, breathing, thinking human being who doesn't spend all his time away from her staring at a wall. Because that's the image "It was okay" evokes.

Oh, and: "It was okay, how was yours?" is not an improvement over "It was okay." Cop-out is written all over it.

6. Disagree with her.

I have a friend, Nancy, who is extremely beautiful. She is the sort of woman for whom men will do just about anything. She sort of knows this, so she has a tendency to test the limits of their patience and generosity. One day, she was going on and on to her boyfriend about something he had done wrong. He apologized. He apologized twice. And she still went on and on. Finally, he looked right at her, at her perfect arms crossed self-righteously across her perfect breasts as her perfect mouth issued forth criticism after criticism, and said, "Would you please shut the fu-- up?"

She made passionate love to him thereafter and, basically, hasn't stopped since. We're not saying you should shoot down all our complaints by dropping f-bombs, but appeasement isn't always your best move, especially when we've gotten out of hand.

Moral: We're pathetic this way, but you're at your most attractive when you're just totally over us.

Young Engineers

This is so hilarious! Hope that that are really our future engineers!!

If you can't view the video, please double click it to its source.

Train Stunt
Uploaded by traianbasescu

Is a commercial by Hydro

Tips on pick up lines that works!

Men have a hard time knowing how women respond to different pickup lines. That's according to a recent study from the University of Edinburgh.

In particular, the study said men can't guess how well humor and sexual innuendo will go over with women.

'The best pickup lines are the ones that are just so stupid you have to laugh, and that laughing will hopefully turn into an actual conversation," says Raechelle, 22

Sexual talk, on the other hand, doesn't work -- though many men continue to think so.

Here's a short summary, through the prism of Lisa Daily, a dating expert and author of Stop Getting Dumped! Being funny "gives" women something (a laugh), while sexual innuendo implies you want to "get" something from women (sex).

Here's how the study worked: Men and women were shown 40 situations in which a man tried to start a conversation with a woman. The men and women rated each situation on how likely they thought the woman would be to continue the interaction.

The lines that the men tried fell into four categories: sexual, humorous, complimentary, or something that indicated he was a "good mate" -- such as discussing a painting at an art gallery or asking a female jogger who tripped if she was okay.

Turns out that -- surprise, surprise -- men and women rated the scenarios differently.

What Doesn't Work

Most sexual pickup lines don't work because they indicate you only want one thing -- and that's not what women are looking for, says Susan Rabin, director of schoolofflirting.com and author of 101 Ways to Flirt.

"Women don't like to be sex objects," she says. "Men are very visual, and they see sex when they see a woman. It may be on your mind, but keep it off your mouth."

Being overly confident that a woman wants to sleep with you is a turn-off, says Daily. "With most women, sexually explicit pickup lines have the opposite effect of what you're hoping for -- they repel women. Tone down the sex talk and you're likely to get more action.

"Women also tend to think that men who use these types of pickup lines have no depth. They're just a penis looking for a place to land," she says.

What Might Work

Sometimes a compliment is the best way to approach a woman. But not something cheesy, such as "Your eyes are blue, like the ocean. And baby, I'm lost at sea."

Be sincere and specific, and avoid commenting on physical attributes, Daily says. "Compliments work if they are honest, relatively unique to us, and not sexually charged. In other words, compliment her shoes, her wit, or her knowledge of kickboxing or the stock market. Not her fantastic lips or her fabulous body. Save those for when you know us better -- a lot better."

If you begin a conversation by complimenting a woman's appearance, she may think you're only out for one thing, says Caroline Tiger, author of How to Behave: Dating and Sex.

And don't go overboard.

"Calling us beautiful is not bad," says Trina, 26, of Syracuse, New York. "Calling us the most beautiful girl you have ever seen is terrible. We are not in denial. We check out other women. No matter how good a girl looks or thinks she looks, she knows that there are hotter, more beautiful chicks around. Don't lie to us!"

What Usually Works

Instead, be honest and be yourself.

"Sincerity is what really gets a girl's attention. Simple conversation is great," says Sara, 23, of Chicago.

Women in the study rated pickup lines in which the man revealed something about his character, personality, or interests higher than men thought they would. Using this approach gives the woman an idea of how you'll treat her if you start dating.

"In relationships, all women want a guy who cares about their well-being," Daily says. "If our first experience with him shows he is a nice, considerate guy, we don't feel like we have to keep our guard up around him. Which means it's easier for a guy to get to know us and progress the relationship.

"No woman ever wants to feel like she is simply a target for sex," Daily adds. "Most women want to be with a nice guy -- if you give us a glimpse of this in the beginning, you'll have us hooked.

"It's far more intriguing to discover the sexy side of a nice guy than it is to learn that the all-about-sex guy has a 'nice' side."

You can show off your "good mate" qualities by taking interest in whatever she's doing. In the study, asking a women at a bookstore about the paperback she was looking at and talking to a woman at an art museum about the painting she was admiring were both scored favorably by women.

This doesn't mean you have to start reading Shakespeare or studying Monet to attract a woman. In fact, namedropping in the wrong situation -- such as quoting Byron in a bar -- will most likely make you appear pompous instead of intellectual.

However, you can use the "what are you reading?" strategy in places outside of the library. Just ask her a question or make a comment about whatever she's doing, whether it's the lecture you're attending or what she's drinking, Rabin says.

What Always Works

Don't underestimate the power of humor. Women in the study rated funny pickup lines more favorably than men did. Using the right kind of humor can be a great conversation starter.

"People want to be with somebody who makes them laugh," Tiger says. "It's easier for somebody to accept you or to continue the conversation when you initiate it with a laugh."

Rabin suggests saying something funny that's relevant to where you are and what you're doing. But avoid sarcasm because it can put people off.

A light joke also shows you put some thought into your approach.

"One reason the 'humorous pickup' is successful is because you are giving us something -- a laugh -- rather than trying to get something from us -- sex -- in the first few minutes you meet us. If you're trying to make us laugh, you're making an effort, which can be immensely appealing," Daily says.

She has one warning, though: "Don't try this approach if you're not funny. If you're not getting real laughs, or if you find yourself saying 'Get it?' even once, it's time to switch strategies. Remember: Funny is sexy. Not funny is annoying."

The Best Strategy: No Pickup Lines

What other approaches do women prefer?

"Conversation, conversation, conversation. It actually makes us girls think you are interested, so get good at acting interested. We like to talk," says Trina. "Let her hear you tell your friends you think she is hot. I am telling you, this works like a charm.

"Girls love to think that guys are talking about them. When they overhear you talking about them, it is a huge turn-on -- just don't make it too obvious."

Tiger also says approaching her friends first is a good idea. "You'll be less nervous about starting that conversation and may be more natural. And talk like she's a real person, not an object of your sex admiration."

If you're nervous or believe you're a less-than-stellar conversationalist, recruit a friend to help start the discussion -- and to make you look good, Tiger says.

Also watch her body language for clues to tell if she's interested in your or if she wishes you'd go away. Eye contact and turning her body toward you are good signs. Appearing distracted or angling herself toward her group of friends? Not so good.

"Do a little long-distance flirting first, to see if she might be interested. If she smiles, holds eye contact for more than 3 seconds, flips her hair, or exposes her neck, she probably has at least some interest," Daily says.

"Then move about half the distance between you and see if the flirting continues. If she looks longer or smiles more, make the move to approach her. Pay attention to her body language. If she's shutting you down, you might want to move on."

"A modest smile and acknowledging tilt of the head works for me," says Kathleen, 22, of Shillington, Pa. "If I reciprocate, a respectful approach and down-to-earth, fun conversation and flirting from there on out."

Of course, you can never guess what approach each woman prefers, but a smile is always good.

"If you're Brad Pitt, anything you say would work. But most average men have to be careful with what you say," Rabin says. "A smile is always a great approach. It's the universal flirting skill, and it diffuses negativity."

By: Brittany Risher