Happy birthday, President Theodore Roosevelt! One of the most…

Happy birthday, President Theodore Roosevelt! One of the most influential figures in the history of American public lands, Roosevelt’s legacy is recognized at national parks, wildlife refuges, wilderness areas and national forests across the country. At Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota (seen here), visitors can learn more about this fascinating man, and see the land and wildlife he loved. Photo by Kim Wehner, National Park Service.

Starbucks holiday cups have undergone some major evolutions over…

Simple Yet Effective Tips To Win Online Slot Games

Who doesn’t like to win in an online casino game with a huge winning potential?

Everyone wants to do good with online slot games and earn the maximum while dreaming about what to spend their winnings on. Online slots are full of fun and excitement, even for those who are not interested in winning them. They’re one of the best pastimes and once you get on a winning streak, there’s no way you won’t develop a liking for them.

Let’s look at some of the simplest yet effective tips that can help you win big at top online casinos like EuroGrand Casino.

Understand the odds

It’s important to understand slots odds before strategizing to win. For instance, a 20-symbol 5-reel slot game has 1/3.2 million winning chance whereas a 20-symbol 3-reel slot game has 1/8,000 winning possibilities.

This is because a 5-reel slot game has comparatively more winning combinations than the 3-reel version. Hence, there’s a considerable difference in terms of odds in these types of online slot games.

Play only at reliable casinos

reliable online slot game casino

Though you may find various online casinos to play at, it’s important to sign up with a licensed one only. Look out for a casino that offers high-quality games. Make sure that you like its atmosphere and enjoy playing on its platform.

A good online casino should offer a wide range of slot games, should be fully licensed and should process withdrawals quickly. Furthermore, it should also offer other prominent online casino games, like poker, blackjack, roulette, craps, bingo and so on.

Money Management

It is very important to manage your money well while playing these online games. At times, people get so confident that they bet everything on a single spin; there’s no bigger folly than this. Please note that there is no guaranteed outcome in online slots or any other online casino games.

The game’s outcome can change anytime and cause you losses. That’s why you should always be prepared for the unexpected. Be cautious while placing your bets. Winning from a spin is just a possibility and there’s no certainty in it. There are various ways you can place your bets and use your money to play these games.

Before making any deposits, it’s important to know which would be the best currency to play online games.

See Also: Top 5 Strategies To Maximize Your Online Casino Profits

Have Fun

online slot games fun

 

You should play online slot games not just to win but to have some fun! Hence, it’s important to never take any losses to heart and stay relaxed while playing casino games. Although it’s important to pay extra attention while playing jackpots or tournaments where you’re expected to play quickly, you should never let it get to you.

Furthermore, never take your wins too seriously. These games are for your entertainment and enjoyment alone. The moment you start playing them for a livelihood, they lose their charm and lead to an unhealthy gambling behavior.

Conclusion

A lot of people play online slot games regularly. If you are one of these people, knowing and implementing the above-detailed tips can be immensely helpful in gaining an upper hand over the casinos.

The post Simple Yet Effective Tips To Win Online Slot Games appeared first on Dumb Little Man.

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Tips for writing tenders

You’re reading Tips for writing tenders, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.

 

Knowing how to prepare a convincing RFT or an RFP is a fundamental  for any business before they  develop a tender strategy to seek work. A request for tender (RFT) or request for proposal (RFP)  must be professionally prepared documents that consist in different measures of technical and  marketing content. The documents must be written in a highly professional manner that is convincing, easy to understand and complies with the tender request.

Businesses require many different skill-sets to win jobs however to write and present a successful tender needs the right tone, style, and language.  Here are nine tips to remember when writing a tender.

 

  • Be clear

Be clear with your thoughts and the points you are making. Precise, clear, simple, and to the point answers are always appreciated by the reader. Avoid using technical terms because using overly complicated language can lose the reader. Hence, applying the KISS strategy—Keep It Simple Stupid—with language and technical terms is always recommended.

 

  • Write for the audience

Write for your audience. For example, when a doctor speaks with another doctor, they converse in technical language expecting the other to understand the complex terminology but this is a dangerous assumption when tender writing.  When you are writing a document it will not necessarily be read by a technical person, that  will fully understand what you are writing—the final read may be done by a person with a commercial background who might not understand the technical terms your using. Always avoid overly complex words and explain the meaning of every technical term you use.

 

  • Do not be passive!

Do not be passive! It is important to understand that the passive voice is less engaging and convincing than the active voice. The document should engage the writer and identify the reader. Use active voice where you mention yourself as ‘I’, and the reader as ‘you’.

 

  • Beware of overusing acronyms!

Acronyms should be used only where the reader is familiar with the reference.  Avoid using short forms in your document, this confuses the reader and . If you use an acronym in the document ensure you explain the term in full when you first use it, for example “request for tender (RFT)”.

 

  • Show motivation in your sentences!

Use passion, emotion, and motivation to enhance your proposal. While most people write straightforward and formal content, it helps to use some emotion and to emphasise  the organisation’s culture—it can help you achieve a better outcome.

 

  • Don’t use ‘if’, ‘might’, ‘may’!

‘Ifs’, ‘mays’, ‘mights’, and ‘buts’ are a sign of a lack of confidence or lack of capability. If you are using such phrases in the tender, you will look less than competent. The person who reads it, will  get the impression that you are not confident on the project criteria. Instead, try using words like ‘will, ‘can’, ‘when’—this is the language of confidence.  

 

  • Structure appropriately!

The entire document should be structured properly. The document should be clear to the reader. The document must have chapters, sections, subsections, and paragraphs that fit together logically and create a cohesive narrative. Paragraphs should be written clearly and follow a consistent structure.

 

  • Do not capitalise words unnecessarily!

 

Do not use excessive capitalisation. There is a tendency to copy legal documents and to capitalise “Important Terms” to identify them as contractual items, this is bad grammar, unnecessary and looks amateurish. A common noun is not capitalised—for instance, the contract, the client—only proper nouns should be capitalised, for instance the name of a report or document, The Supply Contract, etc.

 

  • Headings help the readers to follow the document

Headings are a great help for the reader to understand what the content is about. Every section of the document should have a heading that summarises its intent and is easy to read and understand.

Final note:

If you  are looking closely at selecting an agency to help you with your proposals there are very few communication consultancies that are offering such an impressive range of e-tendering services and content development.  Should you wish to achieve a better success rate Madrigal Communications stands out from its competitors by having a quality service that gives you exceptional value for money and return on investment.

You’ve read Tips for writing tenders, 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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Life isn’t fair.

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8 Good Reasons Why Change Is Hard

Change is hard. In fact, it is one of the hardest things one has to go through in life.

They say the secret of life is to grow. And growth needs constant changes and improvements.

People constantly struggle with changing their habits and making their lives better. Take, for example, the norm of life.

The norm is where you go to work or school, spend around 8 hours there, go back home and repeat the process the next day. These things don’t reflect your purpose or even change.

I have lived life as I saw fit and that was not enough. I traveled the world before I was 25 and finished university at 22 with great grades.

Ultimately, I accomplished what the society demanded and I even worked as a professor at the university that I graduated from and at other consulting offices. I did my masters at 24 and explored Europe, Africa, and Asia.

The more I did these things, the more I felt that I’m still far from what I really want to achieve. I wanted to become great.

My perfectionist mind constantly tweaks and criticizes my accomplishments. It tells me that I am not there yet and I accepted it. I wanted to change because I felt my life was ordinary.

Honestly, I was not the perfect image of myself back then. Motivated, I devised ways to change. But, even after several months, I still find myself drowning in the same life- planning and wishing to change.

Then, I discovered why we are not firm with our plans and why we struggle in changing our habits and lives.

Below, I will share with you 8 of the reasons why change is hard.

You base your plans to change on “motivation”

I know lots of people who become runners on athletics season. Unfortunately, only a few of them continue until the end of the season. Lack of follow-through is usually one of the reasons why.

People get extremely motivated after watching TV shows they like or after listening to an inspiring story. However, they get back to their normal selves as soon as the excitement wears off.

Motivations are great. Declaring “I am great, I can do it” could make one inspired to do something worthwhile. The problem with motivation is that it’s only an emotion. It can inspire one for a short time but it will soon be forgotten.

This is because motivations are not drawn in terms of purpose. They lack vision and don’t provide the energy and the tool for change. Mel Robbins, one of the top-selling authors, says “motivation is garbage.” She argues that our brains are not designed to do even the smallest things in life that could change us for good.

A simple motivation doesn’t change the way the mind is hard-wired. The brain is designed to keep us away from a problem.

Instead, she advises using the technique she calls the three-second rule. The rule is to decide within three seconds.

If you plan to get up in the morning and you hesitate, take your hand round your head and count 1-2-3 and jump out of bed. The technique teaches you to snap out of it in three seconds and force your mind to do what you need it to do.

3 second rule

See Also: Time to Break the Cocoon! 5 Great Tips For Finding Motivation

You don’t have something else to replace the previous habits

When you decide never to repeat your tasks, you should see in detail what you should do instead. For the drunk to never drink, he should plan to do something else on specific times that he feels the need to drink. He can go see a friend or go out with someone.

If you don’t plan on what to do instead, you will surely find yourself in the same position you were yesterday.

Your mind is wired to keep you from wasting energy and to avoid danger. The way it does that is by blocking you and discouraging you from taking risks.

I once found a guy who hated to see his girlfriend who was abusive to him. Each night, he would meet her only to get verbally abused and criticized. His addiction of seeing her could not let him break up with her even though he wanted to change. The only advice I could give him was to learn to replace what he does each night with looking at the large scratches on the left side of his face. And I didn’t realize my simple advice would impact him.

Weeks later, he came back a new man. He smiled at me and nervously shouted “It worked!”. He started taking cooking classes in the evening, which soon helped him forget visiting the girl. She obviously didn’t call him so he was free at last.

Replace your bad habits with a good habit. Don’t just run away from them.

See Also: Spiritual Pointers for Quitting a Bad Habit

You don’t use punishment and reward system

Schools and parents teach children about what is good and what is bad by associating them with punishments and reward systems. “Good deeds” are rewarded while “bad deeds” are punished.

As adults, we learn to associate what we like with what we want to do and what we hate with what we should avoid. We perform certain tasks and we avoid others. This is due to these positive and negative associations where the mind regrets, catches in flight or enjoys the process.

When you overeat, you feel bad. Why?

Because the marketing, culture, and image of being fat punishes you and make you feel guilty. Even though the food you ate does not have much effect on your weight, you still feel sorry for yourself.

Another reason why people struggle to change habits is that of the absence of gratification. To change yourself faster, learn to associate what you want to do with reward. Make your brain believe that eating within your calorie limit is good and that the reward is that perfect body you dream of. This means that instead of associating overeating with punishment, associate eating responsibly with the prize.

You don’t break your life pattern

“Breaking the pattern” is a technique that I used a while ago. I was not satisfied with the life I was living. I tried to change but I could not.

One day, I accidentally followed my guts and wrote a fiction-like character based on my ideal life. I followed it for a month. I changed where I stay, with whom I stay with, and even where I sleep. Also, I refused to eat where I ate the day before and learned to wake up at 5.

It was hard but my subconscious picked it. All of a sudden, I found myself waking up at 5, writing for an hour, reading for another hour, exercising, eating breakfast, and leaving the house before 7. I go to bed at 10 and close all my laptops and phone at 9. The more I do them in a certain pattern, the more they became automatic.

The whole idea of breaking a pattern is to identify and change your routine until you forget your current life. You can take a month-long vacation somewhere without your computer or other means of communication. You can meditate there to find your real self and emotions or you can explore new places there. Rewrite your perfect day and live it for at least a month.

breaking the pattern

You get despaired easily

“Life is a progress”, some say. It is being better than yesterday.

The Japanese have a culture of not examining kids at the beginning of elementary school. Instead, they evaluate the performance of the students based on their progress. Well, that is different from the west and the rest of the world where getting the top spot is always the requirement.

The world is much more associated and information is available than what it used to be 10 years before. The world today gives us much more choice. We can easily get answers to any question we have.

Listen:

We are people of dreams and enemies of progress. We change jobs as frequently as we can and we change decisions fast.

The reality is life is a progress. It demands constant change and tweaking of what exists. There is no perfection. What exists is change and change needs time. So, be patient.

You solve the problem without a different perspective

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”
-Einstein

To solve a problem, you should see it in a different perspective than how you see it now.

For the depressed, it is hard to solve their problem and for the poor, getting rich is hard. This is similar to being an addict. The addict vows every morning not to drink anymore. However, every night, he still goes out for one drink only to find himself regretting it the next morning. He wants to change but never does.

For change to come, you should be willing to change your current position in life. Change starts with your mind.

You should have a stronger character that believes that solution is possible. Teach your mind that you are greater than what you are.

Your debt, for example, does not define your capability or potential. It only shows your current position in life. And that could change only if you believe that you are better than the situation you are in.

You don’t have purpose

Your mind follows a certain purpose and that is to survive.

If you base your actions on a certain purpose, the friction of doing and not doing becomes easier. Without purpose, your efforts won’t be successful since success is measured based on what you achieve.

Finding your purpose is a tough task. It is a lifetime job. There is no ultimate answer for what your purpose is because it grows with age and maturity.

Finding your purpose is your personal responsibility.

People usually wait forever just to find their purpose. But, if you figure out what you like and what you want to do the rest of your life, change will be easy.

You don’t have goals

You need a goal or set of goals to achieve your dream.

Your dream could be changing your life or being great at one thing. To achieve your dream, you need to set small goals. They don’t necessarily have to be grand but they must be something that’s easy to achieve and realistic.

Only wanting and deciding to change your life won’t do anything. You should be able to understand these things, so you can turn your life around.

For example, your general problem is that you need to stop drinking. You won’t achieve that just by promising yourself or by telling people that you plan to stop drinking.

Instead, you should realize that stopping or changing needs constant work. You need to set certain goals.

Days before, I met a woman whose problem was her body image. She was somewhat overweight. She told me she wanted to change her body since she was 20 and she couldn’t. The thing I asked her was about her goals.

She was surprised.

“What goals? To be thinner?”, she said.

After a few more minutes of discussion, we set her daily calorie intake and gym schedule. She was surprised.

Conclusion

Change is hard but it’s necessary.

You often fail because you’re not fully aware of how you should change. Another reason is your own mind, change’s worst enemy. Learning those tips above and applying them in your life can help you change faster than you can imagine.

The post 8 Good Reasons Why Change Is Hard appeared first on Dumb Little Man.

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I’m suffering from DTSD (Donald Trump Stress Disorder); you may be, too

https://scholarsandrogues.com/2017/07/11/im-suffering-from-dtsd-donald-trump-stress-disorder-you-may-be-too/

The Layered Magic of New Zealand’s “Pancake Rocks”

In Punakaiki, New Zealand, blogger Ann-Christine captures the otherworldly beauty of the iconic Pancake Rocks, composed of layers-upon-layers of limestone and sandstone.

via The Layered Magic of New Zealand’s “Pancake Rocks” — Discover

Look deeper than white supremacy — to terrors of human supremacy — Wisconsin Wildlife Ethic-Vote Our Wildlife

“Bears are made of the same dust as we, and breathe the same winds and drink of the same waters. A bear’s days are warmed by the same sun, his dwellings are overdomed by the same blue sky, and his life turns and ebbs with heart-pulsings like ours.” — John Muir During five weeks from […]

via Patricia Randolph’s Madravenspeak: Look deeper than white supremacy — to terrors of human supremacy — Wisconsin Wildlife Ethic-Vote Our Wildlife