Welcome to my blog
| About me - Si Ekin |
| Cape Town |
I hope you enjoy some of my thoughts around goal setting, courage and story-telling.
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Posted by Si Ekin on Friday, January 20, 2012 In : 365 talks in 2012
Date: 19 January, 2012 Talk number: 23 Pax: 12 Location: Cavendish Title: It is ALL about connection.
I was just on my way home and on “high alert” for doing a talk when I heard noise coming from next door – an IT company - through the thin walls. I had thought about them before, but just got stuck in perfection and fear (“I will wait for the right time…”)
Paul the MD said it was fine and in I went. A few minutes later I was ushered along a narrow corridor to a room of about 12 waitin... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Wednesday, December 7, 2011 In : Flying Free
We are such a “more” society. More money, more success, more recognition, more possessions… more, more, more. When do we ever get to “enough”? I truly believe that the motivation behind everything that we do in life boils down to one of the two fundamental human emotions: love or fear. Taking action to achieve our goals is great, but there is a fine line between focused action and obsessive zeal. When we pursue our goals relentlessly, to the detriment of our emotional, physical and so... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Sunday, December 4, 2011 In : Flying Free
What happens when you achieve your goals? Do you stop and celebrate the achievement, savouring the feeling of having done what you set out to do? Or do you quickly move on to the next pursuit? The chase is very addictive, and when we’re on a roll we become energized by it. But it’s important to stop and celebrate our achievements. For one thing, it gives us a chance to take stock, to see how far we’ve come and to enjoy the fruits of our labour. It also allows us to take a break from chas...
Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Thursday, December 1, 2011 In : Breakdowns and Breakthroughs
What is your relationship to trust? Do you check, double check, and then check again? Are you prone to micro-managing and trying to control every outcome?
Trust is tough for most of us. We’ve been taught that if we control, manipulate and engineer enough, we can determine everything that happens in our lives. And if all else fails, we can always beat it into submission!
Trust is integral to any breakthrough happening. Sure, you’ve got to put the work in. But when you’ve taken the necessar... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Wednesday, November 23, 2011 In : Breakdowns and Breakthroughs
Do you remember that science experiment at school where you stand outside in the sunshine, hold a magnifying glass in front of a piece of paper and set the paper alight? When you first get started nothing happens, and a part of you wonders whether anything ever will. But then slowly a dark patch appears, and it quickly grows bigger until, as if by magic, you suddenly have fire!
That’s a lot like how breakthroughs happen. For a long time it may seem like you’re not getting anywhere with you... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Sunday, November 13, 2011 In : Breakdowns and Breakthroughs
Take Heart
Often when we are in breakdown, we look at successful people and wonder how they did it.
The truth is, many successful people took a long time to get there, and not without their fair share of failure along the way. Consider the following examples:
• Henry Ford’s early businesses failed and left him broke five times before he founded the Ford Motor Company. • When Jerry Seinfeld first walked on stage at a comedy club he was jeered and booed off. • Before JK Rowling became the ph... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Friday, November 4, 2011 In : Breakdowns and Breakthroughs
This month we’re going to talk about Breakdowns and Breakthroughs, so let’s get started.
Don’t you just hate it when you’re merrily going about the business of achieving your goals and some inconvenient obstacle gets in your way?
Sometimes these obstacles can be relatively minor, just small setbacks that are easily overcome. But what happens when an obstacle appears to be insurmountable, when it looks like you’re just not going to be able to get past it? When this happens, you’re in... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Tuesday, October 25, 2011 In : Goal Maintenance
On 1st May 2011 I started a 90 day challenge to speak to complete strangers about taking courageous action. I had thought of doing this for a long time, and I finally plucked up the courage in May.
At first going out there was a challenge. My heart would race, my palms would sweat, and it took every ounce of courage in my body to approach complete strangers and start talking. I’d never done anything even remotely more terrifying in my life.
By day 30 I was a pro. Don’t get me wrong, I still... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Tuesday, October 25, 2011 In : Goal Maintenance
If you think it, ink it.
Many of us put far too much faith in our memories. We like to “make a mental note” of things, as if our brains are a static notepad that we can just refer to as and when we need to.
The bottom line is, with the kind of lives that we lead today and the thousands of demands that are placed on our attention, it’s just wishful to expect that we’ll remember every mental note.
If you want to keep your goals alive, write them down.
And I don’t mean write them in a note... Continue reading...
Posted by Si Ekin on Monday, October 10, 2011 In : Goal Maintenance
This may seem like an odd question, but the answer is an interesting one.
Have you ever noticed how, as soon as you buy a new car, you tend to see the exact same car everywhere you look? It’s not that loads of people have suddenly gone out and bought a similar car. Your brain has just “tuned into” that particular car, and you notice it more than you would have previously.
Let me explain. Our brains are bombarded by all types of inputs all the time. Everything that we see, hear, touch, tas... Continue reading...
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Current Projects: 1st May - 30 July - 90 Talks In 90 Days Between 1st May and 30th July I embarked on a project: 90 talks in 90 days. I systematically confronted and shattered my deepest fears of rejection, failure and judgement in the hope of inspiring others to do the same. I blogged about it every day and had a crew film it once per week. It was a remarkable, delightful, challenging and absurd journey.
Why 90 Talks In 90 Days? Some years ago I got on a bus in Brixton, London and my life changed forever. I confronted my deepest fear: conquering my fear of rejection by making a speech to passengers on a packed number 59. I was stunned by the power I had within me and my ability to transform a group of complete, disparate strangers. Before, the crowd was positively funereal, after they were more like a rowdy wedding reception. On my way out, I was confronted by an extremely fearful individual and had an experience that makes me smile to this day. I learned that if you confront your fears (illusions) with courage, anything is possible. My life became about helping people to be courageous in pursuit of what is important to them. Here I am, above, doing the talk one morning on a bus at the airport here in Cape Town. Stand by - it might make your toes curl! For videos from the 90 days, look below. |
