This self-designed upscale hotel was originally purchased in 2012, when it was only a run down 6 bedroom apartment covering an area of 600 square meters. It is located in the Art District of the colonial center of San Jose del Cabo, a luxurious resort city on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula. The remodeling project was completed in 2016. The result is a no frills accommodation option..
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The Mindset for Overcoming a Fear of Failure
Do you want to live your life to the fullest? If you do, then there is a big obstacle that you need to overcome. That obstacle is fear, and among the different kinds of fear, a major one is a fear of failure.
Imagine putting a lot of effort into something but it doesn’t work. What you get in return is nowhere near your expectations. It wouldn’t feel good, would it?
The problem is, the fear of scenario could prevent you from taking any action at all. And taking no action means making no progress. It means that your life will just stay the same. This, of course, is not the way to live your life to the fullest.
What should we do then? How can we overcome a fear of failure?
I found an answer when I read Originals by Adam Grant. The book is about people who dare to be different. There is a statement there that caught my attention:
“They know in their hearts that failing would yield less regret than failing to try.”
Failing would yield less regret than failing to try. You need to keep this in mind. The mindset that you need to have is this:
The regret of failing is less than the regret of not trying.
Yes, you might have regret when you fail. But guess what? The regret will be less than the regret of not trying!
When people are on their deathbeds, their regrets center around things that they didn’t do. They regret not taking risks. They regret not taking the actions to realize their dreams.
Don’t let this happen to you. Aim to have the least possible regret in your life. Yes, you might fail when you try. But the regret will be less than the regret of not trying.
Destroy the Comfort Zone: Insights From an Adventure of a Lifetime
You’re reading Destroy the Comfort Zone: Insights From an Adventure of a Lifetime, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
We delay making important choices when we’re on the edge of uncertainty. Whether it’s a last-minute trip, a move abroad, or a new job. Those who stand on the edge of that uncertain cliff, and take that leap of faith, are those whose lives are brimming with happiness.
They are staying true to their hearts, despite what they hear at the back of their minds.
There will always be doubts, but if it feels right, then we have to go for it — whatever it is. We don’t know what to expect when we visit a new country or take on a new opportunity. A few online searches don’t suffice — we don’t always find the longing of comfort we’re looking for.
Still, we have to take that leap.
After days of procrastination, I booked a flight for a twelve day trip to Bali. My itinerary was simple. Four peaceful days in Sanur, and eight exciting days with the TATWT 8 Days Bali Tour — hopping between Kuta, Ubud, and the Gili T Island.
This is my story of my time there.
The Beginning of my Adventure
After sunrise and barely any sleep, I made my way out of the hotel with nothing on me, excited and curious about exploring Bali. The moment I walked out, I felt alert and out of place. As I milled through the town, masseurs would try to invite me into their parlours. People offered me travel guides and activity brochures. Motorcycles whizzed past me, taxis wouldn’t stop beeping.
The energy here was different. People’s expressions were unlike those at home in London. The vibe was something like I’d never experienced — and I felt like a new person the moment I walked into it all. I was untethered from everything. Layers of my past and future disappeared into an abyss.
That felt so freeing.
To make the best use of my time here, I planned a range of activities on-the-go. The most notable experiences I had included Jet-skiing, Parasailing, visiting a Butterfly Park, and Quad-biking.
Besides that, I enjoyed reading, writing, and mingling with the locals. I’d be talking to strangers like I’d known them for ages, and that was so refreshing to experience. To sum things up, every day I was in Sanur, felt like a gift. I made the most of my days, alone on the other side of the planet, far from home.
When my time in the town approached its end, I knew there was, even more, to look forward to. After four days in Sanur, I arrived in Kuta to begin an eight-day Travel to Bali adventure tour. There I would meet twenty people I’d be sharing an experience with.
Travel to Bali Adventure Tour
When I reached Kuta, it was clear that it was the opposite of Sanur. Here there was an overflow of people and traffic. Everyone from the group tour met up at the accommodation that night, and from there we had a welcome dinner at the nearby restaurant. Slowly, we started to build the foundation for our adventure together.
The bunch of us all clicked. There were travellers from Brazil, France, Australia, England, Ireland, America, Norway, and India — so it was definitely a varied group. Even though we only spent seven days together, we got to know each pretty well. It was fun sharing stories, jokes, and picking up so much from everyone. The tour kept getting better and better, ending spectacularly on the Gili T Island. The level of positivity that I experienced was extraordinary.
How Travelling Improved my Perspective
One of the most important truths I learned was that you can learn something from everyone. With a lot of the conversations we had, I definitely felt like I gained new perspectives and gems of wisdom.
Everyone had something unique to share, and it wasn’t always beamed through with what they said. Sometimes, it was just through their attitude.
While no one may be perfect, there’s an inner-world to everyone, brimming with wonder. Sometimes there are so many layers, both in ourselves and in others, that it can be quite difficult to connect with new people. But I think as a group, many of us did.
The nature of our surroundings opened us up. In a city, people can be a little tenser and suspicious, which can be a contagious mentality. Here, happiness was everywhere. The people in Bali are some of the joyful people in the world.
We rode that same wave of happiness during our time there. An epiphany I had after returning was that we divert so much of our attention on the little stuff. We forget that: there are opportunities waiting for us, that have the potential to enrich us in ways we can’t see.
Realizations and Lessons
There was one day, where the heatwave hit me like a hammer to my head, and dropped me out for a full 24 hours. That made me realize that no matter where you are in the world, health comes before anything.
However trite that might sound, it was enlightening to experience. Other than that, most of the time, I was feeling grateful. Glad. Happy.
When we see the same people, speak to the same faces, follow a regular schedule — our reality can gradually become blander — unless we make a consistent effort to break out of our comfort zone.
But many of us don’t. Simply because we’re too attached to our way of living. That’s why breaking your routine every so often is vital. It breaks the cycle of monotony and you come back feeling restored, having learnt more about yourself and the world.
Take the Leap
Life is most certainly about new experiences, sharing, and learning. But it’s also about creating a life you don’t want to take a holiday from. We can travel wherever we want.
But I’ve realized that it should never be done to escape.
Otherwise, when you come back home, the holiday-blues will eventually start kicking in. Ideally, you want to be just as happy as you are at home, compared to when you’re on holiday. I hope, over time, that I will be.
Life is a slow journey, and the things that are meant to happen will take time and work.
While the adventure is over now, the experience has most certainly opened my eyes to travelling more often. To taking “leaps” as often as I can even in day to day life. If you go to Bali with the right frame of mind, you will have an experience worth treasuring. I hope this peace epitomized the essence of taking that leap of faith to travel somewhere new — and being open to discovering what awaits.
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You’ve read Destroy the Comfort Zone: Insights From an Adventure of a Lifetime, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
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The B&N Podcast: Claire Messud
Every author has a story beyond the one that they put down on paper. The Barnes & Noble Podcast goes between the lines with today’s most interesting writers, exploring what inspires them, what confounds them, and what they were thinking when they wrote the books we’re talking about.
Claire Messud may be best known to most readers as the author of the 2006 bestseller and Booker prize-nominated novel The Emperor’s Children, a diamond-sharp satire of wealth, privilege, power and self-deception set just before and after the events of September 11th, 2001. But her new novel The Burning Girl explores the haunted terrain of a lost childhood friendship with deep sensitivity, following two young women into a confrontation with adulthood fraught with perils both familiar and enigmatic. This week, Claire Messud joins Bill Tipper to talk about her new book, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to explain the inexplicable.
A bracing, hypnotic coming-of-age story about the bond of best friends, from the New York Times best-selling author of The Emperor’s Children. Julia and Cassie have been friends since nursery school. They have shared everything, including their desire to escape the stifling limitations of their birthplace, the quiet town of Royston, Massachusetts. But as the two girls enter adolescence, their paths diverge and Cassie sets out on a journey that will put her life in danger and shatter her oldest friendship. The Burning Girl is a complex examination of the stories we tell ourselves about youth and friendship, and straddles, expertly, childhood’s imaginary worlds and painful adult reality—crafting a true, immediate portrait of female adolescence.
Click here to see all books by Claire Messud.
Like this podcast? Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher to discover intriguing new conversations every week.
Author photo (c) Ulf Andersen
The post The B&N Podcast: Claire Messud appeared first on The Barnes & Noble Review.
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A Carnival of Desecration
Donald Trump has the most recognizable profile of any American president since Richard Nixon. Yet, as a cartoonist of my acquaintance has complained, artists are having a hard time caricaturing Trump, mostly likely because he already is a caricature—one reflected in mass culture’s fun-house mirror for close to forty years. We’re sick of Trump and we’re sick of being sick of him. Well-populated by images of the president, Peter Saul’s new show “Fake News” is hardly a palliative, but it does illustrate the crass absurdity of the current moment.
How to Get Hermes Birkins (My Experiences on Buying 5 Birkins In 3 Years)
Like many girls, I have a passion for beautiful things and that includes luxury bags, especially the holy grail of handbags, the Birkin. I am neither a VIP at Hermes nor celebrity but I have brought back a total of five Birkin bags from the Hermes boutiques (New York and Paris) within three years. Some were obtained as a walk-in while others required certain purchase history.
With this, many people have asked me to share my experiences and tips on how to get a Birkin.
Here goes:
Try your luck as a walk-in at Hermes boutiques
It is rare to get a Birkin as a walk-in, but it doesn’t hurt to try your luck. I have successfully obtained two Birkins as a walk-in.
In my experience, dressing up nicely or wearing Hermes products do not guarantee you get offered a Birkin. Dressing up casually or not wearing Hermes products do not lower your chance of getting offered one, either. How you ask and when to ask for it matters.
Tips:
- Do not ask for a Birkin right away but show your knowledge of their products and slowly bring up the idea that you’re looking for a Birkin.
My first Birkin was bamboo 35 in palladium hardware (as shown below) and I obtained it from a Hermes boutique near my home as a walk-in in 2014. I remember wearing casual clothes and carrying a non-designer bag when I walked into the store.
The store wasn’t crowded that afternoon. I just walked into a friendly sales associate and told her that I wanted to buy a bag but not sure what to get. Then, I looked at the garden bags and commented that the colors and leathers seemed nice but it would be nicer if they were Birkins or Kellys. That sales associate responded that she knew what I meant but they didn’t have any.
After chatting more about the new colors and designs they had for the season, she eventually opened up and asked me to wait. Then, she came back with a big orange box. She took me to a private room and showed me a 35 Birkin in bamboo color. It was an amazing feeling to get an offer and I happily bought it. Of course, I was extremely lucky then.
- Ask your husband/boyfriend to get it for you.
I have seen well-dressed men taken into private rooms and came out with big orange boxes. I know what those boxes have!
Sales associates know that men who walk into the store are ready to spend $$$. This means you’ll have a higher chance of getting one when your husband/boyfriend buys them as special gifts for you.
My husband walked into the same boutique that offered me the bamboo Birkin and told a lovely SA that he wanted to get something special for my birthday. That SA just walked back to the stockroom and returned with a beautiful blue electric Birkin in size 30 (as shown below).
- Try your luck at the mothership store in Paris.
The mothership store in Paris located on 24 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré definitely has the widest inventory of the bags. There, you have a higher chance of getting a bag without previous purchase history.
Of course, it depends on the SA, the timing, the manager who will approve the bags and how open-minded you are with the colors/leathers/hardware. It seems that bright colors and seasonal colors are offered more often to tourists.
- Shop on weekdays and avoid the month of August
Based on most people’s experiences, boutiques receive shipments mostly during the weekdays and rarely on Saturdays. Also, the artisans like to take vacations in the summer, especially the month of August. Thus, the inventory is the lowest then.
Build up purchase history at boutiques
In general, Hermes likes to offer bags to customers who enjoy all products of the brand and not just their bags. Buying other non-Birkin/Kelly items is a way to show them that. However, what you buy and who you buy it from matters.
Tips:
- Stick to the same sales associate in one store.
If you have multiple purchases from different stores, you need to spend a lot more from both stores to get offered a bag. Also, you need to build up a relationship with the sales associate in a store if you want to get a Birkin.
After getting one bag, it is important to maintain good relationships with the SA. You can try bringing some desserts during holidays or introducing your friends to the same sales associate.
- Build up purchase history by making small purchases over a long period of time.
If you only buy non-Birkin/Kelly items, it may take you longer to get a bag offer, especially as a new client. An SA has many clients and it is hard for her/him to remember each one’s spending and wishlist. You can visit the store often so your SA will remember you. You do not need to make purchases each time.
- Buy big-ticket items that have high sales commissions.
My third Birkin was purchased in 2016. It was a 35 black birkin in gold hardware (as shown below). That was offered by the same sales associate who sold me the bamboo Birkin a few years back. I waited for two months for that.
During these two months, I made few purchases of non-Birkin/Kelly items, such as cashmere shawls, silk scarves and fashion jewelries before I was finally offered a black Birkin in gold hardware. This one took a long time because the items I bought were popular Hermes products that had lower sales commissions. It would have been much quicker if I bought less popular products that had higher commissions, such as fine jewelry, clothing, and home products.
While different stores have different requirements, the current general standard in the States is:
- Spending $4,000 to $8,000 on non-Birkin/Kelly items to receive an offer for a basic leather Birkin/Kelly.
- Spending over $20,000 on non-bags to get offered a special order (where you can design your own bag).
- Spend a lot more and become a big client for an offer for a crocodile or ostrich Birkin/Kelly/Constance.
Whichever you prefer, you can buy many smaller items at different times (which will take longer) or buy one big item to get offered a bag relatively faster.
Paris FSH Store Experiences/Tips
I had great experiences shopping at this mothership store in Paris. As many of you are aware, this store requires an appointment to see a leather sales specialist. I have been to this store twice and received an offer for Birkin bag each time.
This is how I did it:
Day 1
The first time I went to FSH store was last Thanksgiving. My friend and I didn’t line up outside in the morning the first day. We arrived at the store around 5 pm when the store was about to close.
There, I went directly to the second floor to check out fine pieces of jewelry. I bought a gold ring and the jewelry SA immediately brought an SA from the leather department to help me with the bags. I wanted a neutral colored Birkin, but they only had bright colors left for the day. So, they asked me to come back the next day.
Day 2
I lined up outside of the store around 8:30 am and got an appointment to see a leather specialist at 11:30 am. During the wait time, I checked out the different departments of the store and bought a few belts and scarves.
Around 11:25 am, I went to see the jewelry SA who helped me the day before and he brought the assigned leather specialist to meet me at the fine jewelry area. The leather specialist asked me about my wishlist and went to check her inventory. She came back and told me that she had bright colors, but no neutral colors. She then asked me to come back the next day and directly ask for her.
Day 3
I lined up outside again around 8:30 am. I asked for an appointment specifically with the leather specialist who helped me on Day 2. This time, my appointment moved up very quickly and I met with her around 10:15 am. Again, no new shipments yet and she asked me to try again in the afternoon (no need for an appointment). I came back in the afternoon and directly went to see her in the leather department. Still, no shipments.
But, this time, she felt really bad and offered me a special order. I was able to select the exterior/interior leather/colors, the stitching and hardware. All the pain I suffered was totally worth it! Here is a picture of my SO.
The second time I went to FSH store was this summer. My mom and I arrived Paris in the morning and went to FSH around 11:30 am. The store was not full that time as most Parisians went to the south for vacation. The store has fewer visitors because the stocks were low, too.
We didn’t have to line up outside to get an appointment. The greeting team just assigned one leather specialist to see us immediately. We met with the leather specialist in the leather department. We chatted a little bit. I told him that it was a trip for my mom’s birthday and it would be lovely if I could get her a gift (a Birkin or garden party).
He took down our wishlist and my passport and came back with a big orange box! It was a black Birkin in size 35! We knew that stock was really low and we were so happy to get an offer.
I don’t know if my strategies will work again under FSH store’s new appointment system, but they are definitely worth trying. Here are some tips:
- Try to buy fine jewelry, clothing or home products and have the sales associate in these departments to introduce you a leather specialist without an appointment.
- Show up later in the day and see if there is one leather specialist available to help you without an appointment.
- If you have an appointment with one leather specialist in the morning, ask her/him if you can come back to see her/him again in the afternoon.
- Utilize all of your networks and get to know Michael Coste. He is the head of client relations at Hermes and works in the FSH store. He spends a lot of time with celebrities and important people and has the best bags to offer. You will be in good hands if you get into his circle :).
Good luck on your first Birkin. I hope you find these tips helpful.
The post How to Get Hermes Birkins (My Experiences on Buying 5 Birkins In 3 Years) appeared first on Dumb Little Man.
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