A Walk in the Parnell Village | Auckland Travel Blog

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 11

Parnell is an upscale suburb or village in Auckland, known for being one of the New Zealand’s most affluent neighborhoods. Parnell is Auckland’s oldest neighborhood and has lots of specialty and antique shops, pubs, cafes, and restaurants.

If you walk down further south, you will hit the eternally-bursting New Market, which is a suburb known as the fashion and trend capital of New Zealand.

I was walking along Parnell roads and grabbed a coffee and a cake. I saw also lots of galleries, souvenir shops, chocolate boutique shops, restaurants, and small cafes as well. Walking down the road also gives you a nice view of the ocean.

Parnell village looked to me like an English country town straight from a history book, albeit with a modern touch. There are lots of side lanes that can be explored and it has lots of stores, each with its own charm.

After Parnell village, I boarded the tour bus and our next destination was the Auckland War Memorial Museum in Auckland Domain. However, we would only pass by the Museum and no sightseeing was on our itinerary.

The Auckland War Memorial Museum showcases New Zealand’s natural and military history, especially the history of the Auckland region. The building itself is also very historic. It is one of the most iconic buildings in Auckland, constructed in the neo-classical style in 1852 and built on the remains of a dormant volcano.

My next destination would be the Cruise around Waitemata Harbour with a short stop at Rangitoto Island from Auckland harbour.

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 1

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 2

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 3

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 4

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 5

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 6

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 7

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 8

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 9

New Zealand Travel Blog: Part 10

How to Empty Your Mind

How to Clear Your Mind

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Simplepersonaldevelopment.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to Ahmed Dawn Dot Com This article originally published on the above website on Aug 24, 2011

Have you noticed what happens when you don’t clear your closet, cabinet, fridge, or anything regularly? Unwanted things start piling up and soon it becomes unmanageable. Our brain is no different than the above situation. In a world of high-stress, work overload, and infinite demands and responsibilities, our mind gets tangled, over-loaded and messy. That’s why we need to untangle and unwind to empty and clear our mind, so it can refocus and work at its fullest potential. Today, I am going to talk about some simple things you can do to empty your mind.

Take Deep Breaths – This is quick technique to clear your mind. Deep breathing puts more oxygen in your body, and your mind benefits from increased level of oxygen. For the same reason, aerobic exercises can clear your mind as well.

Write It Down – Whether on a piece of paper, in a notebook, on a laptop, or on your smart phone, writing down what’s bothering you can clear your mind from clutter. It is a good practise to keep a handy notebook or an online space to write down your thoughts – whether it’s something you want to vent about or it’s something pleasant. If you can’t do it daily, try to do it whenever you can. When you start writing down without worrying about anything else, your mind get rids of its unconscious clutter and makes more room for conscious thoughts.

Talk A Pleasant Walk – A pleasant, unhurried walk around the block, or in the park can empty your mind from accumulated stress and negative thoughts. While walking, try to feel and sense all the bits and pieces of your surroundings. For example, try to smell the air, feel the humidity or moisture in the air, pay attention to the various noises around you, notice anything unusual, and enjoy a beautiful garden, a mild breeze, or a beautiful sunset.

Talk to A Good Friend – Everyone should have reliable friends to whom they can talk without fear or worry of criticism. Share your concerns and thoughts with your friends and you will feel a lighter state of mind than before.

Listen To Light Music – This is one of my favourites. When I feel too burdened, I play some instruments or new age music, lie down or sit relaxed, close my mind, and concentrate on music. Doing this just for a half an hour can clear out my mind a lot and I feel totally invigorated and energized after that.

Enjoy A Great View From A High-Rise Building – As a skyscraper fanatic, I like living in tall buildings. One of the many benefits of living in a skyscraper is that you can enjoy great views from your balcony or through your glass wall bedroom or den (home office). When I feel my mind can’t bear it anymore, I just stay in the balcony or sit in front of my condo glass wall on a relaxing chair to enjoy outside views for some time. This works out perfectly for me to empty out my mind.

These are some tips that work for me. Try some of these to see if it works out for you or not. The art is the find those that work out best for you and apply them to empty your mind for a better yourself.

China – THE Superpower of the Future?

It Is Expected That By 2050 China
Will Have The Highest GDP On The Planet

First Published Date : July 28, 2009 ADawnJournal.com

The four separate and disparate countries which make up the grouping known as BRIC have taken up a lot of newsprint in recent times, often with an alarmist tone. The old order certainly seems to be being shaken up a little, if not completely overturned, and it is the identity of the countries doing it which is surprising most people. Although the countries themselves are not tied by anything concrete beyond some early multilateral trade talks Brazil, Russia, India and China do all have something in common. They are all in the top ten nations of the world in terms of

population. Between them these four countries have a combined population of more than two and a half billion. In terms of percentage they are home to more than forty percent of the people in the world.

Although sizeable in terms of geographical mass and population, however, these countries with the possible exception of Russia had not, until recently, been seriously grouped in the “superpower” category by the generality of analysts. Decentralised populations, poor communications linkups and government policy were among the reasons for these countries being associated more than anything with political stricture and

grinding poverty. And while it would be hopelessly naïve to say that poverty was a thing of the past in any of the above nations, there is no denying that they have each somewhat overturned their reputations and are on target to be the most important economies in the world within a generation.

China, for its part, spent much of the 20th century with a reputation for insularity, government repression of subjects and human rights abuses.

While the country still has work to do to shake off the reputation, it is certainly opening up in comparison with the past. This is expected to continue, and may need to if China is to meet the expectation that by 2050 it will have the highest GDP on the planet, increasing from its most recent annual GDP of US$4.4million to a number higher than seventy million, twice the forecasted GDP for the expected nearest competitor, the US. What this confers on China, its government and its industries is a great deal of bargaining power. International summits without China are increasingly going to be seen as largely irrelevant, because even if a powerful group of countries wish to move the world in one direction its richest, and most populous, nation exercises powerful veto muscles.

There is no doubt that the way China moves in the coming years will have a major influence on the way the world will move. There is some question over how this will change China as a country. Money at the moment is not as evenly distributed and like India, China has a significant proportion of its population living beneath the poverty line. If its greater financial muscle results in more of the Chinese population sharing in a greater level of its wealth, then it is inevitable that China’s cultural reach will increase. Having hosted the Olympic Games in 2008, it is thought

that China will next bid to host the soccer World Cup – and with that comes greater scrutiny. Financial change is coming to China, now how will that change be reflected in the rest of it?

How to Use Visualization Properly to Achieve Goals and Success

Proper Visualization Techniques to Attract What You Want

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Simplepersonaldevelopment.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to Ahmed Dawn Dot Com. This article originally published on the above website on July 31, 2011

Visualization is nothing but using our imagination to make dreams or what we want come true. Our mind is behind every success in our life and proper visualization unlocks mind to work to its fullest potential. Visualization is not a new concept. Since the beginning of mankind, we have been using visualization – either with or without our knowing in our subconscious mind. In prehistoric times, hunters and gatherers used to draw their vivid hunting scenes on the cave wall. Fighters were also seen to draw their fights on the ground or on a wall. Both of these visualizations would become reality in later times. Today, I will discuss how to use visualization the right way to achieve what you want and attract success and prosperity.

Visualization is simply a technique for imagining or creating a mental image of something we want to obtain in the future. Yes, it’s just like daydreaming and daydreaming can make your dreams reality. However, you need to use visualization techniques properly. When you envision something you would like to achieve a goal or anything in the future, don’t concentrate on only the outcome or end results. Instead, focus on both the actual process the makes the outcome possible and the outcome itself. Your visualization should be a balanced combination of both process and results. Don’t focus on any one of these too much or too little, leaving the other one.

Let me give you an example to clear up what I mean by a balanced combination. Currently I am working on my second book “Save Now.” So, seeing “Save Now” published is my goal. How do I use visualization the right way to make this happen? I am creating a mental picture of the whole thing. When envisioning the process of writing this book, I am seeing myself going to a coffee shop and working a few hours to write this book. I am seeing myself working even harder during my vacation as I have a full-time regular job. I am seeing myself going to an isolated location and stay in a hotel for a week or two to work on my book without any interruptions. There are many other details – but these are the main elements of my mental visualization of the process part. How do I envision the outcome or result part? I imagine that “Save Now” has been published and make its place to Chapter’s bookshelves (just like “Invest Now”). I also imagine that A Dawn Journal readers across the globe are reading and discussing about “Save Now” … and much more like these.

Just visualizing what you want will not do anything unless you take action. Use visualization with hard work and positive mental attitude to reach your goals. Visualization can be a powerful tool to help our mind to go beyond its limited circle, to change our limited thoughts are beliefs, and to create necessary behavioural change to work towards achieving our dreams.

How John Chow Used Google Ban To Flourish His Brand Name And Dot Com Lifestyle

Who Is John Chow

First Published: August 4, 2009 ADawnJournal.com

Also In This Post – John Chow Gives Practical Tips Based On His Google Ban Experience + His Tips for Blogging In General

If you don’t know John Chow, he is like the Donald Trump of the Internet. This self-proclaimed Dot Com Mogul has made the Dot Com Lifestyle world famous. Internet Entrepreneur John Chow makes roughly $40K per month from his blog John Chow Dot Com. Besides his blog, he has other Internet activities and it is likely that he makes money from those as well.

John Chow and A Dawn Journal (ADJ)

John Chow has been a friend of ADJ since its beginning. He has directly and indirectly contributed to make ADJ a success. Read my article on John Chow’s site outlining our first meetup – An Entrepreneur’s Journey Towards The Dot Com Lifestyle. I have known other celebrity bloggers, but John Chow is John Chow.  He is very honest, friendly, and willing to go the extra mile for you – if you are able to make an impression on him.

Why Google Banned John Chow

In December 2006, to make his site more visible for “make money online” search results, John Chow started a link back campaign. He would give you a link from his site if you would link him with Anchor Text “make money online.” This campaign proved to be successful, as John’s income skyrocketed from $2800 to $12,500 in six months.

So far so good, right? Not so fast! You see, this type of linking campaign goes against Google’s policy. As a result, to make an example out of him, Google completely banned John Chow from its index. As a result of this ban, “John Chow” and “make money online” search results dropped from appearing on the first page and his PageRank dropped significantly as well.

How Google Ban Helped John Chow to Flourish His Brand Name and Dot Com Lifestyle

Any regular site would go extinct once Google implements its ban from its index. But this is John Chow we are talking about, and he is like no regular entrepreneur we come across daily. He was able to take advantage of Google ban to create a heavy Internet buzz – which gave him the Extra Push he needed to become a Dot Com Mogul super fast. There are many factors that made John Chow famous, but I think these are the main which skyrocketed his popularity:

·    

o  He did what no one else would dare think about – he endeavoured to survive online without Google and worked towards achieving it

o  One single person, a solo entrepreneur, showed the courage to defy a giant like Google and still kept going on (his site only grew since the ban started) – this caught everyone’s attention

o  He was able to turn adversity into advantage. In order to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to use something negative to your advantage – what better example could there be than John Chow vs. Google?

o  What he did was very different than anything else that ever happened in the Internet world

What Made Google Lift the Ban and Got John Chow Back in Google Pavilion

You see, it’s all about relevancy. Google is all about relative search results – what people are looking for. Visitors kept searching for “John Chow” and getting scam and junk sites on the top search results – which meant that Google was not providing people with what they were looking for. On the other hand, John Chow was losing all the good traffic from Google – it’s not a situation they want to be in.

How John Chow Got Back in Google

Internet Entrepreneur Neil Patel facilitated an ice breaking between John Chow and Google. As a result, John Chow started to communicate with Matt Cuff, head of Google Webspam  Team – which put John Chow back in Google.

Lessons to Take Home – John Chow Gives Practical Tips Based On His Google Ban Experience

I asked John Chow if he could provide us with some tips for this whole Google thing. Here is what he provided:

·   Work on your brand

·   Use other methods of traffic

·   Don’t let any one traffic source account for more than 25% of your traffic; or even 20%. Too many people just have Google as their main traffic source. If they get slapped with the ban, they’re toasted.

John Chow’s General Blog Tips

John Chow was also kind enough to give these general blog tips:

·   Pick a topic you’re passionate about

·   Pick a posting rate and stick to it no matter what

·   Find solutions to your readers’ problems

·   Capture the lead. Get the email of all your readers.

·   It’s all about building relationships

Final Word

It will be really tough, if not almost impossible, for average site owners to succeed without Google’s blessings. John Chow shares the same view. If you are an Internet Entrepreneur, and would like your path to be a smooth, successful one, make Google your friend. It’s a lot easier journey when you have Google on your side.