Spirited Woman Blogger Team

Intimate Learning with Technology Fires the Imagination and Expands the Mind

You may think it is an oxymoron to be able to have an intimate learning experience when technology, videos, the internet... are involved. But you can. I remember when I took my training for being a certified business and life coach. The curriculum was intense and extensive - all done virtually. Hundreds of hours of study done over a telephone bridgeline with students from all over the world in class at the same time.

That was back in 2000, and the first thing that struck me was that it was such an intimate way to learn and to really connect with people and get to know them. I remember thinking this kind of learning should be mandatory in every learning establishment at every level for at least a few classes. Why? Because the class setting removed judgement and distractions often present in "regular" classroom settings. It was also possible to go back and experience the material on my own time at my own pace and I could dive into the other materials provided from anywhere with access to the internet.

I realize now what I experienced, though it was very powerful and effective, was in the "stone age" compared to all the new things technology is unfolding each day. One example of intimate learning and technology is Khan Academy started by Salman Khan who was trying to be a good cousin and help his younger cousins with their homework. Today it is an amazing virtual academy with over 2,100 videos and more than 2 million people engaged with all the things to learn and explore. Sal is the only person who "works" at the academy. The technology allows people to learn and explore things in their own way and pace and it fires the imagination and sparks the light of learning with others.

In Praise of the Phone Call

 A friendship can weather most things and thrive in thin soil; but it needs a little mulch of letters and phone calls and small, silly presents every so often -- Pam Brown, Australian author

I'm always super-delighted to get a phone call from my longtime friend Carol in Massachusetts, since we only see each other in-person every few years. It's great to get caught up on all our news, reminisce about things we've shared in the past, and giggle about what adventures we might have in the future.

When my husband and I schedule a phone call on a Sunday morning with my husband's sister, who lives in Australia, I really look forward to learning about her very different life "down under." It's interesting that she has developed an Aussie accent after living there for decades, and it's good to have a lively back-and-forth conversation with her. The reception is so clear, it sounds as if she's right here in our living room.

Occasionally my stepson gives us a surprise call from Miami, often on his cell phone, with the noise of the football game he's attending in the background. That's fine -- I love the spontaneity of the experience, and the fact that he's interested in actually talking with us, rather than just texting or e-mailing.

How glad I am to make and receive phone calls, in addition to the ubiquitous e-mail and text messaging, and communicating through all the new social media. Sure, you can indicate that you are laughing or smiling by inserting a yellow smiley-face icon in your e-mail, but to me, hearing a friend's familiar laugh is far more satisfying.

If your friend is going through a tough time, calling her to convey your concern, and then being there, on the other end of the line, to comfort her if she starts to cry is proof positive of your tender friendship.

Yesterday I had the most pleasant hour-and-a-half interlude in my workday. A business colleague who is also rapidly becoming a good friend called to discuss various subjects. We ended up having a great time, in addition to sharing information. Vive la phone call!

Linda Jay Geldens, www.LindaJayGeldens.com
Click here for more of Linda's posts.

Pink - The New Color To Say "Yes, I Am Powerful, Chic & Giving"

Pink seems to be popping up all over the place these days. Have you noticed? Apart from black it may possibly be the most prominent color out there at the moment and I have to admit I kind of like it. I have some theories about pink which may or may not be correct but I thought I would share my ideas and then you can let me know what you think.

I believe that pink has hit its stride because it has always been the classic color to represent the feminine sex. From the time a baby girl comes into the world the typical color to celebrate her arrival is, yes, obviously pink. For a while though while women were coming into their place of equality in the western world, in the beginning days of the feminist movement, pink seemed to be shunned. It was as if women felt they had to strip away their femininity in order to play on the male playing field. 40 years later, times have changed and women are finally embracing their hard earned equality and mixing it with their gentler feminine side.

Pink therefore, has now become the color to say, yes I am powerful, motivated and successful but I am also mothering, giving and loving and I can combine it all to be one amazingly Spirited Woman. It is no wonder that you now find laptops, cell phones, briefcases and suitcases in varying shades of pink these days. Women have finally come into their own and are darn proud of it. It is also not surprising that the magazine dedicated to professional women chose the oh so lovely color for its name: Pink Magazine.

With this in mind, I thought it would be fun to highlight a few fashionable and stylish yet practical items in pink that you just might want to pick up to show your powerfully feminine side. Can you get any more girly than the Dell pink laptop? Not only is it pretty but just by the nature of what it is (a portable computer) it seems to say 'hey, I am smart and good looking too'. Have an iPhone or Blackberry? Who says you have to keep it black? There are now plenty of options to feminize your phone including handy silicon covers in pink. I recently changed my iPhone cover from black to pink and I have to say it makes using my phone even more fun. And how about capping off your perfectly put together look with a pair of pink heels? The right model can take you from a day in office to an evening on the town and always keep you pretty in pink.

HP Mini 110, "Footloose" and Cape Cod.... Can it Get Any Better?

I am not a big "techie" but I know what I like and what I like is the wireless internet! I am on vacation in Cape Cod and as relaxing as it is, the internet access is spotty at best... arrrgh! What did we do before wireless? I remember running to the local library to wait in line to use their computer. I don't think that would go over too big these days since it takes me more than an hour to write my blogs. Which leads me to my next topic.... the HP Mini 110!

I just bought the cutest little laptop mini. It's the HP Mini 110. I researched it and drove the guys at Best Buy crazy because I kept going in to test out the keyboard but then I finally broke down and got one. It is small, a little tricky to get used to the mouse but very convenient. Right now I am sitting by the pool at the condo, listening to free music on Yahoo Music and doing work. Is it perfect? No, but it sure beats my large laptop that after three years only holds a charge for 15 minutes. Now if I could just get this timeshare company to put wireless routers in each condo then I would really be all set.

The great thing about this vacation is the free movies we check out from the condo office. I have managed to re-watch all of the movies I loved as a teen. It's like a little time machine and surprisingly many of the 80's movies have stood the test of time. Better Off Dead is still very funny, Breakfast Club still relevant and Footloose still WONDERFUL. It is no secret that Footloose is so good that there is a re-make in the works. Zac Efron was going to revise the lead role of Ren McCormack that (still hunky) Kevin Bacon played in the 1984 version. Zac had my vote but due to scheduling conflicts he dropped out and has been replaced by Chance Crawford (from Gossip Girl). Another great choice. Now, Julianne Hough (from Dancing With The Stars) has also signed on to play the female lead role of Ariel Moore. It's set to come out in 2010 but I can't wait... "Let's hear it for the boy"!

So what is your newest summer gadget that makes your life easier? What movie do you love that you would like to see re-made? Or what movie do you think fell short of a remake? I would love to know!

Happy Summer!

- Kristin Flannery
Click here for more of Kristin's posts.

Manifesting Tornados With Mother Nature for New Insights

I don't watch much TV, but I do like to watch The Weather Channel.

When I tuned in last week instead of getting an update on my local weather. I watched the most amazing manifesting dance between mother nature and  people passionate about weather... The Vortex2 team was doing a live report on what they thought would be a supper funnel thunderstorm coming into being.

The Weather Channel had been featuring segments on scientific research studying tornados. The aim was to gather more information and data on how tornados form so that people could be better warned of their development or approach. The data sets would also provide insights into ways to build structures to have a safe spot for inhabitants when a tornado was upon a structure...

I think the Vortex2 team consists of over 50 members from many universities and weather researchers with the intention to manifest a super cell tornado so they could study it and capture it on video. There were comments from their Twitter followers that wanting to, hoping to... have a huge tornado manifest was not the best thing to hope for.

As I watched the conversation between The Weather Channel's Dr Forbes in the studio and Mike Bettes with a live report from Wyoming, I watched a powerful example of intentional manifesting between the Vortex2 team and nature. The sky was dark with large clouds in the distance and discussion of why they thought this might be a good storm for them. I had eight minutes so I thought I would watch...

What an inspiring thing to see - the creation of a super cell tornado, its formation, its growth with all the changes in weather... and a live play by play of everything that we could clearly see as dark clouds turned into a huge wedge shaped tornado and a super cell, one of the most awesome weather occurrences in nature. We were even treated to a camera view of the inside of the tornado. It really was a beautiful unfolding of what people had wanted to manifest. And they brought it to the world live - in the middle of no where with no destruction.

This Spirited Woman Has Flipped for The Flip

Last month I posted about my wonderful new toy the iPhone. I am still thrilled with it but now I am chomping at the bit to buy my next play thing: a Flip video camera. Sadly, though I can create great photos with my iPhone, there is no video function yet. I imagine Steve Jobs won't let that improvement slip past for very long.   

So, the Flip it will be. Sure a lot of people argue that a digital camera can do the same thing as a Flip, but for me quick, easy and stylish are three strong reasons why the Flip is a winner. If you haven't seen a Flip in action yet, you will be surprised by how incredibly simple it is to use. I was in a presentation training recently and we used the Flip to record each participant's talk. We were then able to critique each presentation immediately afterwards thanks to the Flip's built in USB connection. 

The idea of being able to capture a special moment in full moving color fascinates me. I came to Paris to study photography so I will always have a special place in my heart for the magical instant a snap shot captures. Video though allows you to capture friends and loved ones in action. You can record their movement, their laughter, their voices and they will be with you whenever and wherever you want. 

Here is the part that I really love about the Flip though: You can design your own! Just upload any image you choose onto the Flip website and they will put it onto your uniquely personalized Flip Mino. Now that is not only fun it is smart. 

If you too are now dreaming of a Flip, surf on over to Daily Candy to participate in their contest (taking place right now) to win a free Flip Ultra HD.

Are you a Flip owner?  Would you like to share some thoughts on what you think of this incredibly popular but sometime criticized video camera? Help your fellow Spirited Woman readers out by giving your input.

To your Spirited Style,

- Dawn Z Bournand  www.fabulouslysuccessful.com
Click here to read more of Dawn's posts.    

"Linda Has Incredible Mouse Control"

Even a few years ago, I could never have predicted
- That one of my longterm authors would live in Buenos Aires, and that she would send me chapters of her novel over the Internet to edit.
- That an author from Santa Monica would send me vacation greetings online from an Internet cafe in Hong Kong.
- That I would be chatting in real-time with a friend who lives in Rome.

All this is possible because of the World Wide Web, which was invented in 1989 by English computer scientist and MIT professor Tim Berners-Lee.

To former technophobes like me, communicating over the Internet is truly a "miracle." I am someone who was so terrified of anything remotely technical in nature, I could not even entertain the possibility that within a few years, virtually all my work would come to me over the Internet.

To get to the point of accepting a computer into my work life, it was necessary for me to first confront a computer, in all its mystery. This I did during the two-and-a-half years I lived in Athens, Georgia. I schlepped in to Atlanta once a week for several weeks and took a course in Mac Basics -- everyone at the time had Macs.

First, I was delighted to learn that my worst fear would not be realized -- maybe you saw this scenario in a New Yorker cartoon. I honestly thought that if I got too close to the computer screen, a hand would pull me inside, and that would be the end of Linda.

Second, I was astounded when the computer teacher announced one day to the class, "Linda has excellent mouse control."  With my somewhat warped sense of humor, I replied, "That's a good thing; right?" Mouse, mice, mousse -- this sounded like a Brave New World, one that I was going to have to master, and fast, if I was going to survive.

Now, I work on a PC (more businesses use PCs than Macs), and except for the occasional technical problem that my husband has to solve for me, I do very well on the computer. In fact, I'm probably "on the computer" six or seven hours a day. Long live the Internet!

- Linda Jay Geldens, www.LindaJayGeldens.com
Click here for more of Linda's posts.

Spirited Women Know How to Stay In Touch In-Style

For a long time I resisted the cell phone revolution. I had a cell phone but rarely carried it around and when I did half the time it was turned off and the other half the battery was empty. I rebelled against the idea of being reachable at every moment of the day. Yes, it was silly and not very safe but I resisted nonetheless. 

Times change and so did I. The incredible phones available were finally too tempting to resist. It took quite a while but I finally caved in. I began checking out the local mobile phone stores: comparing the brands, talking to the salespeople and reading up on the latest technologies. In the end, it came down to two of the biggest names on the market:  the Blackberry and the iPhone. Both very stylish and each with numerous positive points.

A couple of friends were former iPhone owners but had switched to the Blackberry simply for the practical reason that the international phone plan was better with the Blackberry. I don't usually work with practical though and every time I spoke to these same friends about their former iPhone their eyes lit up and they often seemed to secretly regret their change. The day finally came to make up my mind...

I went with FUN and I am oh so glad that I did. I love my iPhone. It does everything: shows me where I am at, what temperature it is today tomorrow and the next day, hooks me up to the net in a flash, stores my favorite music, podcasts and photos, and gives me access to thousands and thousands of customized applications. What is not to love?!?

YouTube Symphony Orchestra Premieres April 15 - Global Talent Unites

Our world is getting smaller all the time. We are becoming a global village connecting in new ways every day. People are thinking of how to collaborate and how to create together expanding their inspirational canvas and painting new worlds and communities as the world shifts and the outdated ways of doing and being fall away.

One new inspirational expansion is the YouTube Symphony orchestra. A ground breaking way to gather professionals and amateurs from around every corner of the earth who have music in their souls, exquisite playing ability in their hands and lips and inspiration to change the global community to a richer experience in their hearts.

These artist used the medium of the internet and streaming video to enter a competition to be part of this history making symphony orchestra event. The finalists will play together in Carnegie Hall on April 15th, 2009, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas. Each artist submitted a video performance of a new piece written for the occasion by the renowned Chinese composer Tan Dun.

Finalists were selected by a judging panel of the world's most renowned musicians and the winners invited to travel to New York for the performance at Carnegie Hall. All the Tan Dun submissions will be compiled into a master video which will be premiered on YouTube Symphony Channel on April 15th for the global community to enjoy.

Watch the 6-minute video to meet the finalists from every corner of our global village and see how professional and amateur musicians are coming together to create something new in the world of classical music.

- BZ Riger www.artofallowingmindset.com, www.readingthewatersofchange.com
Click here for more of BZ's posts.

Teri's Observations On Energy Independence and Internet Scams

As someone who generally assumes the best of human nature, I nevertheless maintain a healthy skepticism of most internet stories, postings, diet ads and get-rich-quick schemes. I never forward any email that urgently asks me to pass it on to everyone I know, refuse to send money orders for online merchandise and Snopes is on my Bookmarks list. Several weeks ago, however, I was taken advantage of by an online scammer on Craigslist.

The job posting and its follow-through emails seemed perfectly legitimate and well prepared. In the end, all I lost was my creative effort and a day and a half of my time, but I felt violated by misplacing my trust in someone who masterfully manipulated me and others. I have no idea what the originator of this scheme was hoping to accomplish, other than to collect hundreds of free essays about "America's Pursuit For Energy Independence." (Guess the use of "For" rather than "Of" should have tipped me off, but the rest of the communication was quite professional.) He (or she) borrowed the identity of an authentic non-profit organization to gather essays on this topic from job-hunters and, from what I understand, schoolkids as well, through a different posting.

Someone later came back to post a warning about this fraud on Craigslist, which is how I discovered I'd been had. I'd like to protect other spirited women from going through a similar experience, so please err on the side of caution when responding to online job ads if you don't know the source; the criminals are getting more and more sophisticated. And for God's sake, don't send in free work like I did.