Meet the UAE Astronauts

Meet the UAE astronauts

Learn how to pursue your dreams according to the UAE astronauts

Have you ever worked with any astronauts? Well, I haven’t and it was the first time I met an astronaut at this year’s Emirates Literature Festival. And what a session it was! So witty, so insightful and so inspiring.

Hazzaa AlMansoori was the first UAE astronaut who went into space in September 2019. During the mission, he spent eight days on the International Space Station (ISS). His backup, Sultan AlNeyadi, and Saeed Karmostaji, Manager at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, joined Hazzaa in the one-hour-long session. All three certainly know to dream big!

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Learn to say “NO” and when to say “YES”

Learn to say No and when to say YES

Learn to say “NO” and when to say “YES”

The end of the year can be a stressful time. Businesses are trying everything to make some extra sales. Employees are working on reaching their annual goals. Students are finishing their last exams. And then, of course, there are the Christmas preparations! Christmas parties with colleagues, friends before they’re heading home for the holidays, sports teams, you name it. It can be tough to say “no” and relax with your loved ones on the couch.

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Ramadan Kareem – Try something new

Ramadan Kareem Try New

Try these 3 activities this Ramadan

Ramadan, the Holy month for Muslim, has started today. During this month, local businesses reduce their working hours by 2 hours. It’s a wonderful chance to use the extra time and to try something new. If you are a non-Muslim, you may even see it as a part-time or mini-sabbatical without losing any income. Don’t miss out this great opportunity and try out these 3 activities!

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The benefits of (closed) Facebook groups

5 reasons to join a Facebook group

Are you on Facebook? We are and we dare to say it upfront: It’s not always a love affair. The days of spending hours on it, checking what friends living far away are doing, are over. We have less time – wait, we give other activities more time – to just scroll on it. Having said all this, we love the closed Facebook groups and think you might enjoy joining a group, too:

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Our gift for you: The be more organised calendar 2019

The be more organised calendar 2019

Achieve your dreams with our be more organised calendar 2019

As 2018 is coming to an end, many are reflecting on this year and are setting New Year’s resolutions. Being more organised is – as in previous years – one of the top resolutions. Does that surprise you? Not us. After all, being more organised reduces your stress, you waste less food, energy and money and you improve your relationships with your family, friends and at work.

To support you having your best year yet, we’ve created our gift for you:

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How you can prepare for an unplanned job move

How you can prepare for an unplanned job move

Are you ready for a job move without notice

Hands up if you know someone who’s lost their job. A number of our friends, former colleagues and clients have been told “there’s no need to come back!”

Last week, we received a rather upsetting email from a former client. They’ve been given the boot. It came out of nowhere. Perhaps this was the most shocking part, not seeing it coming. But that’s the unfortunate bit. Unless you know of your company’s financial situation, plans to restructure or industry-wide developments, a lay off may not be what you expect.

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August is for celebrations

August is for celebrations

We are ready for some celebrations!

What’s your favourite month? We love August! It’s the month for sunflowers, going on holidays, relaxing days on the beach, school’s still out, good times. And it’s my birthday! For us, that’s a reason to celebrate.

We’re not the only ones celebrating

One of our corporate clients is having a special birthday this month: The big 40! For him, it’s a bit of a bitter sweet birthday, yet, plenty of celebrations! He associates his thirties with fun, adventure and growth. Listening to his fabulous stories over a cup of coffee and it’s like he’s taking you into another world!

This birthday, he’s decided to go all out. He’s invited family and friends to a rented holiday home where he’ll get the caterers to bring out delicious foods. You can probably his excitement about his party. It’s not only a party. It’s spending time with his loved ones and treating them to something special.

Take stock August is for celebrations

Take some time to review the last year

Birthdays, or anniversaries for that matter, are a great time to reflect on the last year. If you are like me, life can be busy and we may not always recognise our progress and achievements. Special dates can give us that time to take stock. We can also give ourselves that pad on the back. Whether we’ve finally completed that qualification by long-distance learning, started working again after taking a longer break or jumped on the treadmill for the first time, acknowledge your progress. Maybe you even want to include it into your celebrations?

Here are some questions you can ask yourself:

  1. What were my proudest moments last year? And how do I define proud?
  2. What were the three biggest challenges I faced? How did I overcome them? What did l learn from them?
  3. For what or whom was I grateful last year?
  4. Who or what has influenced and impact me this last year?
  5. What did I learn about myself (my family, friends, work, hobbies, etc.) that surprised me?
  6. How have I changed as a person over the last year?
  7. Have my actions last year brought me closer to achieving my goals? Have they been in sync with my values?

Make the next year August is for celebrations

Create a year with meaning

Just as you look back, you can set your intentions for the next year. Intentions give you more purpose and are thought to be more effective then just goals alone. By giving your year ahead more aim, you can live a (more) fulfilled life.

Here are some questions that can help you prepare for the next year:

  1. What are my top three goals for the next year?
  2. What do I want to learn this year? How will I learn it (e.g. take a class, attend webinars, get a coach)?
  3. What do I want to give to my family, friends, work, hobbies and community (local and larger)?
  4. How will I look after myself? Physically, mentally?
  5. What pressure do I want to remove?
  6. What a word or phrase will I choose as your motto or mantra for the year ahead?
  7. How will my future year look like? Create a collage if you are a creative person or prefer this over expression yourself with words.

And then there are gifts

As with other celebrations, we seem to get so many presents. A few years ago, we’ve decided in our home to limit the amount spent on Christmas gifts. It’s EUR 30 (USD 35, AED 128). For some, this is a lot while many folks seem to spend more. We choose this to focus more on something meaningful without going into debt.

As for my birthday, there won’t be any gifts. I won’t, however, say no to birthdays. They give you an opportunity to write a personal message and wishes for the birthday kid. When was the last time you actually wrote something with a pen?

Give an experience August is for celebrations

Still going for an experience

Don’t run to the shops and buy a crappy last minute present. You can carefully check with the birthday child if they even want a present. The trend for experiences continues. And if you live in a transient place like we do, you never know when people move. Who wants to relocate all their junk? Nobody we know wants this. Here are some ideas for experiences:

  1. Ziplining session
  2. Cooking class for a cuisine they’ve been wanting to try out
  3. Spa treatment for while you’re watching her kids
  4. Walking photography tour around their city
  5. Support to write and publish their book

Donations are also high up there. For folks like us who have everything we need, let’s give something back. Whether it’s a donation to the Irish Cancer Society, a feline friends chapter or the local library, there are so many worthy causes out there.

We are getting ready for August and all the celebrations. What are you getting ready for?

Until next time,
Agni

5 small changes to a healthier you

5 small changes to a healthier you

Living a healthier life

A healthier you? Of course, you want this! After all, how often have you told yourself: “Today/this week/this month/this year, I will eat more vegetables, work out more often, look after myself.” And how often did you fall into your old habits? We encourage you to make small changes and become the healthier version of yourself.

Before you start, ask yourself how a healthier you looks like. By picturing and defining the future version of you,

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