This site is the website of motivational speaker Craig Harper. A constantly updated, one-stop information, inspiration, education and motivation station. Unlike many similar sites, it is a totally free resource for anyone who is serious about moving from mediocre to amazing in any area of their personal or professional life. With hundreds of articles covering a wide range of subject matter, great interviews with cool people and inspirational video posts, there's more than enough brain-food to keep you busy for hours. Okay, days!! Enjoy.
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Fattitude
- Craig Harper
While many books focus on food,
Craig teaches that creating life-long change is more about the
dieter, than the actual diet. This book is perfect for people who have a
history of 'almost' getting in shape.
DVD
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notion of Renovating Your Body - once and for all. Many of us have a curious
ability to be able to get in shape for events (weddings, parties, reunions
and birthdays), if only we'd get in shape for life.
Craig Harper is Australia's leading
motivational speaker
and educator (according to Google Australia). He is a highly
sought-after corporate coach and is considered to be
a leader and pioneer in the areas of personal and
professional development.
Working with hundreds of
teams, companies and a wide variety of organisations
on numerous continents over the last twenty years
has given Craig a unique insight into, and
understanding of, human performance and all its
variables. Craig has an ability to educate, inspire,
challenge and make people laugh all at the same
time!
Perception is an interesting thing. For the most part, it's our reality. How we see things... is how it is. In our world anyway. And as I've said many times before, we exist and operate in a physical, three-dimensional world, but where we do most of our living, is in our head. We create our own reality (thinking, beliefs, values, fears, expectations, attitudes, standards, habits, behaviours) and we reside there for a lifetime. Sadly, some of us suffer there for a lifetime.
A Collision
Doing what I do for a living (okay, it's a passion), I'm always interested to see how people respond to various situations, circumstances, events and challenges. Watching their perception (their version of reality) collide with a practical, day-to-day existence in the physical world is always enlightening. Observing how they interpret and react to different conversations. How they perceive and interact with other people. While one person interprets a particular situation as a disaster, another will see the same thing as an exciting opportunity. Someone else will see it as a lesson. And yet another will sleep through it. It's also interesting when their reality (in relation to potential, change, possibilities, beliefs and ideologies) collides with mine.
Why all the Different Responses?
Because it's not about the situation, the circumstance or the event, it's about the person in it. It's about what they believe is happening. What that experience represents to them - keeping in mind that things only have the meaning we give them. What will amuse one person (the rubber snake in the toilet perhaps) will terrify another because their reality is subjective; the same event isn't the same at all. One will laugh, the other will cry. And not only will there be a different emotional and psychological response, but there will be a different physiological reaction also. Depending on what the event (in this case the snake) represents to the individual (their reality), their body will produce happy hormones or stress-response hormones. Yep, in some situations, how we see things actually determines what our endocrine system does; what kind of hormones it produces. Just thinking about something scary can produce metabolic, hormonal, cardio-vascular and respiratory changes in our body. Now that is freaky. Powerful thing the human mind. If only we knew how to drive it properly!!
That's so Not Fair
Have you ever been through the experience of being wrongly judged or labelled by someone? Perhaps they thought you were aloof or arrogant, when in fact you were shy? Maybe someone considered you to be a complete snob because you didn't acknowledge them, when in fact, you didn't even see them. Perhaps someone assumed you were stupid, when you were actually nervous or intimidated. Maybe someone assessed you as flirtatious because you smiled (it happens). Or perhaps someone assumed weakness when you were simply being kind and accommodating? In my work I am constantly being assessed. I get emails every day from people giving me feedback about my performance; what I do, write and say and how they perceive me. While most of it is positive, it ain't always. I have had feedback from different people in the same workshop on the same day ranging from "you're a dickhead" to "that's the best workshop I've ever attended."
"We don't see things as they are, we see things as we are" Anais Nin
How does that happen? Because we all see, hear and experience different things - even in the same place at the same time. We create our own reality. We all interpret a different message. That's why it's possible for me to motivate one person and intimidate another at the same time with the same words!! Because it's not about the message I'm intending to convey, it's about what they believe I'm saying; how they are receiving it. Their reality. Their perception.
Assessing and Being Assessed
Like it or hate it, people see you (interpret your behaviour, your habits, your communication, your appearance) in a certain way. They will form an opinion of who you are, how you are and why you are. Without even knowing you. We all do it every day. From the moment you meet someone new, they are assessing you and you are assessing them. That's how it works. That's how we work. Everything you have experienced thus far in your life has taught you how the world works and how people are wired. And those lessons have given you an instinctive and unconscious ability to be able to assess situations and people quickly. Often with a high level of accuracy. But not always.
Perception Central
In the course of my work I do a lot of flying. Sure, my arms get tired. If only I had more feathers. Sorry, couldn't help myself. Juvenile. Moron. Anyway... planes are kinda cool places because they are a microcosm of humanity. Being the geek and student of life that I am, I love to guess about my fellow sardines. Er, passengers. You'll never find an environment where more assuming, judging, hypothesizing and labelling takes place than inside a plane. It's like Perception Central. From the moment you hand over your boarding pass you're being judged and you're judging others. Our perception tells us that we should avoid eye contact with the big, scary-looking, tattooed bloke who's making his way down the aisle (naturally, he's going to kill us), and the same perception tells us that it's not only okay to make eye contact with the cute four year-old boy, but that we should probably pat him on the head as he passes by. Until of course, he bites our index finger off with his cute four year-old teeth. Little treasure.
Are you a Policeman?
When I talk to people on planes they invariably ask me what I do for a living. Instead of answering them, I say "what do you think I do?" I have done this many (many) times and mostly the response I get is "you're either a policeman or you're in the military." At least six or seven out of every ten people have a similar perception based entirely on my appearance; shaved head and beef-cake-ness. Clearly I don't look or sound like a neuro-surgeon, an astronaut, a cabaret singer or a pastry chef. That's it, I'm growing a pony-tail.
Beware the 1978 Volvo
Let's say you're in a hurry to get somewhere in your car and you're approaching a set of traffic lights. There are two lanes for you to choose as you approach the intersection. In one lane there's a 1978 beige Volvo Station Wagon, in the other there's a new Red Porsche. Without thinking you pull in behind the Porsche because clearly the chances of you being delayed are significantly less behind a Porsche. You make that judgement in milliseconds because of your perception of (1) what kind of driver might be behind the wheel of each car (2) the likely acceleration of each car (3) how the respective drivers of those cars might typically pull away from a set of traffic lights and (4) we all know that red cars are fast!! The Porsche roars off, you experience minimal delay and your perception has served you well. But then again, the whole 'choosing lanes thing' might just be a boy thing. Or maybe a me thing.
So how do people perceive you?
Do we really want to know how others see us? Yes we do. And if you don't, you should. For a range of reasons. On Monday I'm going to tell you why not knowing how others perceive you puts you at a disadvantage both professionally and personally. In life, in love and in business. And no, I'm definitely not saying that we should be obsessed with, or worried about how people see us. What I am saying is that most of us could do with a little more awareness and a little more understanding of how those around us see the world and everything in it. Including us.
Feel free to share a story of where you've judged or been judged. Or just say hi and share your thoughts.
We don’t know why, but people go crazy for these shirts. Perhaps it’s because they allow us to tell people what we really think without wasting our breath! Order your shirt here.
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