BRAINTENANCE: What Would You Call This Type Of Wordplay?

BRAINTENANCE: What Would You Call This Type Of Wordplay?

Dear Thinkers and Occasional Sufferers Living The 'Examined Life'" :

There are all types of wordplay...Palindromes, Tom Swifties, Hyperbole, Rhymes, Oxymorons, Paradoxes (which are cousins of the oxymorons, by the way) and a veritable panoply of poetic devices that we suffered through in junior high school. Synecdoche, anyone? (Def: A figure of speech in which a part is substituted for the whole. An example: "Lend me a hand.").

Visit: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072405228/student_view0/poetic_glossary.html
But please come back afterwards.

Here are two questions:

1.     What is the appropriate term for an expression used to denote a grouping of animals of the same species? For example: school of fish; pride of lions, pod of whales, gaggle of geese, murder of crows, pack of wolves...

2.     What would you call this type of wordplay?

"There are two types of people in this world. There's the type who divide the world up into two types of people and the type who don't."

I'll have to get back to you. I am working hard at being lazy and trying to accelerate my command of procrastination.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. One of my daughters asked me when she was quite young, "Dad, if you find the right term for something, how come that isn't called 'termination'?" When I replied, "It's usually called something else, like classification or categorization," she retorted, "That makes no sense. classification would be if you found your class and categorization would be if your found your cat."

p.p.s. One of my friend Stu's favorite lyrics was from a 1960's song performed by the Byrds. As I recall: "I was so much older then/ I'm younger than that now."

A curious optical illusion follows, sent to me by friend and colleague, Rick Itzkowich (a writer for THE NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter). I have titled it "The Fallacy Of Classical Architecture"



Thank you, Rick. Perception, unchecked, is subjective reality. I simply see a row of wrenches, or perhaps tomahawks.



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THE 1 PERCENT RULE: DRAW THE LINE - DARE TO DEFINE

Are you one of the 1%, or one of the 99%? DRAW THE LINE - DARE TO DEFINE. http://twitlik.com/TheOnePercent  #douglascastle #TNNW_Buzzworks []


THE 1 PERCENT RULE: DRAW THE LINE - DARE TO DEFINE

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle


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Fear Versus the Positive Incentive - What moves us?

Fear versus Positive Motivation - What moves us?

Dear Thinkers, Ponderers and Students of Life:

It is sad, but true. Human beings are much more readily motivated to action by the threat of pain or loss (i.e.,by fear) than by the opportunity to gain, socially, professionally or financially, with some curious high-risk exceptions where it comes to instant gratification. Of course in these latter exceptions, the risk usually involves getting caught (and it is perceived as unlikely) while the reward is pleasure (which is perceived as very likely).

Fear overcomes inertia or creates inertia, while the positive incentive...the opportunity to gain tends to be far less of a driver. Again, there is another exception here where the potential perceived gain is enormous with respect to the amount of risk or work entailed in the process. People tend toward indolence.

Viewing this situation, why do you suppose our minds and our resultant behavior tend to operate in this fashion?

Here are some possibilities:

1.     Because we visualize threats more powerfully, and more sensorially;
2.     Because we feel that the likelihood of loss is always more probable than the likelihood of gain;
3.     Because we are more emotionally invested in maintaining the "status quo" than we are in getting ahead -- we are only motivated when we feel what little we have, or what little we believe that we deserve;
4.     Because we perceive that an adversary's ability and willingness to carry out a threat is far greater than our ability and willingness to make something positive happen through our efforts;
5.     Because we feel, in the deepest reaches of our subconscious, that we are more deserving of punishment than reward (through feelings of low self-esteem, guilt, and the like) and that it is more likely that harm will come to us than happiness;
6.     Because it is, in fact and perception, easier to run away from something than to run toward something;
7.     Because we feel that we are weaker than those around us.

I would like to know your thoughts, as would Christine West, a colleague and a featured columnist for The National Networker Newsletter. Please either respond by posting directly to this this article in the "comment" section below, or by writing directly to Christine West, noted expert on facing down and overcoming fear, at info@TheBusinessMD.net . If you write to Christine directly, please write "Braintenance and Fear" in the subject line of your email.

You can visit Christine West's website (a beautifully designed one, too) at http://www.thebusinessmd.net/ .

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

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BRAINTENANCE: TM (Transcendental Meditation) Revisited.

TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION REVISITED

Dear Thinkers:

I have done a fair amount of training in NLP, Hypnotherapy, positive visualization, brainwave entrainment, martial arts and numerous other self-growth modalities and techniques to improve my personal and professional life. In fact, they have been so powerfully helpful at enhancing my ability to be positively creative and productive, that I joined forces with Martial Arts Master Joseph Droual some years ago to create and refine the INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS System of learning and entrainment.

The one method which I have yet to dedicate myself to is Transcendental Meditation. I remember as being a sort of fad in the 1970s, but its long-standing adherents seem to been profoundly benefitted by it in terms of stress reduction, blood pressure reduction, increased perspective and focus, mental clarity, improved resting pulse rate, and re-energization. It is my intention to explore it. And while I do not offer medical or health advice, it might be worth looking into for your own benefit. An excerpted clip from a TM seminar announcement follows for your information. I hope that you find it edifying and enjoyable.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

One of the most valuable benefits of the Transcendental Meditation technique is becoming more creative—becoming more innovative and adaptable in the midst of life’s pressures and challenges.

Award winning filmmaker David Lynch recently toured U.S. college campuses with world-renowned quantum physicist John Hagelin and brain researcher Fred Travis to present how the TM technique promotes extraordinary creativity and total brain functioning—higher states of consciousness.

You can view their compelling presentation at:

http://www.uwtv.org/programs/displayevent.aspx?rID=4169

Better than watching their talks, however, is improving your own brain’s orderly functioning by practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Terms and labels: Articles by Douglas Castle, Braintenance, entrainment, Internal Energy Plus, Joseph Droual, stress reduction, TM, TNNW, transcendental meditation, EMDR, hypnotherapy, NLP, neurolinguistic programming, positive visualization, creativity, meditative exercises, cognitive enhancement, mental focus, clarity, laser vision, mind-control, self-growth


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Whatever It Takes

WHATEVER IT TAKES

by Douglas Castle for http://aboutDouglasCastle.blogspot.com and for THE NATIONAL NETWORKER COMPANIES. Subscribe to TNNW by clicking on http://twitlik.com/OK .

How much do you want it? - Whatever it is - Again: How much do you truly desire it? It "it" a pressing need? A driving hunger? An unrealized dream?

If your heartfelt, lump-in-the-throat, wild-eyed answer is a raspy "I have to have it," then be prepared:

1. To pull out all of the stops and pull in all of the markers;

2. To accept that you are on a mission...or perhaps a quest;

3. To vow to yourself that you will absolutely not be stopped and will not quit until you've gotten it;

4. To put all other things second;

5. To find your allies and identify your enemies, but to understand that you are ultimately alone with your choice and your fate. But take comfort in that your fate is largely what you choose to make it.


Do whatever it takes. Do not leave this life with your book unwritten and your song unsung. Do not let anyone else discourage you, or deflate you or scorn you for wanting it (whatever it is) so much that you seem obsessed; or perhaps even possessed. You must defy inertia, other people's negativity, and your own fear to get what you desire. The only way to repay the vast indebtedness that your life owes your heart is by finishing, or by dying in the process of getting there.

Champions are not made by accident. Champions are made by fulfilling a pledge to themselves.

If you want it badly enough, you will do WHATEVER IT TAKES. If you deny yourself, the whole world loses.

Damn it all. Do it.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

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Labels and Terms, This Article: motivation, momentum, desire, dedication, loyalty to the mission, your life's journey, controlling your fate, fortitude, loneliness, personal growth, living meaningfully, Articles by Douglas Castle, Internal Energy Plus, The National Networker Companies, Braintenance, goals, focus, self-mastery, getting there...

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BRAINTENANCE: Read This Because I Said So.

Dear Cerebral Centurions:

Here is something borrowed from another blog (at tremendous risk and expense) which those of you who are interested in the art of pursuasion will find a bit funny, but quite thought-provoking. I am fascinated with the workings of the Human mind, the ways in which it is manipulated, and the use of language in achieving this manipulation. From a practical standpoint, this represents an interesting twist on the traditional methodology of endorsement advertising for credibility.

I am reminded of an issue of THE NATIONAL LAMPOON from many years ago, which sported a bleak cover with a picture of a sorry-looking mutt with a gun up against the side of its head. The cover title was "BUY THIS MAGAZINE OR WE'LL SHOOT THIS DOG." Tasteless? Yes. Offensive? Yes. Did I buy it? You bet I did!

--DC

http://twitlik.com/Endorsements

I have come up with an excellent way to use a "counter-endorsement" (a LINGOVATION!) instead of an endorsement. A counter-endosement can be every bit as powerful as an endosement.

Here's an example (come up close and form a semi-circle everyone):

O.J. Simpson does not read The NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter. He'd never click on http://twitlik.com/OK for his free subscription.

Or perhaps this one:

Would you rather get a free subscription to The NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter at http://twitlik.com/, or go hunting with Dick Cheney?

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

A NOTE ABOUT HYPERLINKS:
In some of the short newsfeed postings (in particular, those from http://htxt.it/), the hyperlinks are not live. They are not dead -- no, they are merely sleeping. To awaken them, just copy them (Ctrl+C) and paste them (Ctrl+V) into your browser and press the "go" button...the sleeping link will immediately come to life and you'll be directed to the proper page so that you can read the referenced article or posting.




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BRAINTENANCE: Definitions - It's Great to Know What We're Talking About.

Dear Friends:

You might wish to give some thought (with some investigation in the lexicography and etymology departments, both of which are open late for the holidays) to the commonly perceived meanings of these terms:

ASSET

LIABILITY

DESPISE

COMMUNISM

DEMOCRACY

CORRUPTION

NOTORITY

OPULENT

RESPONSIBILITY

GOD

UNITY

BI-PARTESAN

PARTISAN

NATURAL

RACISM

RESPECT

Happy hunting. I'll be upstairs in the library. You can use a dictionary for this. It's not (ahem) "rocket surgery".

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle






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Braintenance: Critical Mass, Momentum and Learning...Learning About Learning

Critical Mass, Momentum and Learning
Written by Douglas Castle and originally published at http://aboutDouglasCastle.blogspot.com. I am delighted (although I always grumble and whine about it) to be a Featured Columnist in THE NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter. You can enjoy the latest issue by clicking on http://www.TheNationalNetworker.com, and you can obtain a free subscription at http://twitlik.com/OK.

Dear Readers:

I have always been a champion of executing a plan in increments -- a step at a time in a deliberate direction, with certain refinements along the way as warranted in the circumstances. I am still a proponent of this plan and execute strategy, but there is a consideration that I would like to introduce. It has to do with the paradoxical way in which we learn, versus the way in which we act.

We learn in chunks. We advance (in our knowledge and command of skills) in quantum leaps. We grow in sudden spurts, each a seeming epiphany or satori experience. Yet in order to get to the chunk , the leap or the epiphany, we must dedicate a certain critical minimum amount of time to doing an exercise, working at a job, mindfully meditating or watching a presentation in order to "build up" to these breakthroughs. It is as if we had to build up to a particular state in order to have this magic happen.

By way of example, I cannot increase my efficiency at working with a particular computer protocol unless I spend an hour or two immersed in it. If I just dabble at for fifteen minutes every day, or at sporadic intervals, I do not achieve the critical mass or momentum to make the jump. Once I've made the jump, I can sit down at the computer and execute the protocol more efficiently. Other examples abound...

If I run on the treadmill for fifteen minutes, I will neither break a sweat, nor find my stride. Even if I do this three times daily five day per week, I will still not stress my heart sufficiently to give me a significant cardiovascular benefit. It is this way with swimming, sparring, writing and so many other things in nature and in life.

Fond of metaphors, I have often used the example of driving up a mountain and taking one's foot off of the accelerator to demonstrate what happens (at worst case when momentum is lost). I have used the example of fissionable fuel being scattered all over the globe versus having it concentrated in sufficient mass in one place to illustrate critical mass. If you practice at your sport or your musical instrument too briefly each day, you will likely fail to "catch on" and advance in your playing ability. We need both mass and momentum to sharpen any of our physical and intellectual abilities. The interesting thing that does begin to happen with each hard-won advance ir that the one to follow it comes more rapidly and more easily - at least until the point of virtuousity, or to the point of physical or physiological limitation. It is absolutely true that one breakthrough leads to the next, but it is just as true that without the first hard-won breakthrough the subsequent ones may be eternally elusive.

Steps or increments provide a means to work toward a strategic goal (provided that the skills required to properly execute each step are already acquired), but learning requires critical mass and momentum. The picture that comes to mind is that of the stereotypical "larger-than-life" hero jumping from the roof of one building to the roof of another -- he requires a solid running start if he is to accumulate sufficient speed to scale the distance between the buildings. Failure to reach the ramp-up speed in time to make the jump will result in our hero looking like a cross between (why isn't that damned Spellcheck available on this Blogger Platform???) a Jackson Pollack painting and a hastily drawn Rorschach test pattern on the sidewalk many stories below.

Ironically, the much sought-after (this is an example of hyper-hyphenation) "Aha!" moment -- is not truly spontaneous; it is earned.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle
p.s. I am also going to be writing about the very controversial topic of procrastination as soon as I can find the time.

Labels and Terms: critical mass, momentum, accelerated learning, breakthrough learning, epiphanies, the process of growth, the science of learning, learning how to learn, Articles by Douglas Castle,


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BRAINTENANCE: Winning.

Dear Readers:

Yes. This is indeed another in a series of departures from the traditional Braintenance format. I am fully responsible. I think that you'll enjoy a recent post which I announced (bullhorn in hand) on Twitter, the World's Most Cerebral News Medium (kidding!):

You'll be surprised by the characteristics that are shared by America's billionare tycoons. http://twitlik.com/AmericasMostSuccessful  #TNNW

Faithfully,


Douglas Castle

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BRAINTENANCE: Looking Forward...

Dear Brainercizers:

The imagination is made to be used. It is the wellspring from which all innovations, advances and Human destiny is drawn. Here is something to ponder.

Think: 10 years from today. Who will be slaves? Who will be masters? http://twitlik.com/TC1

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. Are science fiction writers entertainers or oracles?

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