Education With Success

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 11:29:00 -0700

MX7WUJHNMMP7

Managing Your Study Time

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:10:00 -0800

There are only so many hours in a day, a week, and a term. You cannot change the number of hours, but you can decide how to best use them. To be successful in school, you must carefully manage your study time. Here is a strategy for doing this.
Prepare a Term Calendar
At the beginning of a term, prepare a Term Calendar. Update it as the term goes on. Here is what to do to prepare a Term Calendar.
Record your school assignments with their due dates and your scheduled tests.Record your planned school activities.
Record your planned school activities.
Record your known out-of-school activities.
Prepare a Weekly Schedule
Each Sunday before a school week, prepare a Weekly Schedule. Update it as the week goes on. Here is what to do to prepare a Weekly Schedule.
Record your daily classes.
Enter things to be done for the coming week from your Term Calendar.
Review your class notes from the previous week to see if you need to add any school activities.
Add any out-of-school activities in which you will be involved during the week.
Be sure to include times for completing assignments, working on projects, and studying for tests. These times may be during the school day, right after school, evenings, and weekends.
Prepare a Daily Organizer
Each evening before a school day, prepare a Daily Organizer for the next day. Place a √ next to each thing to do as you accomplish it. Here is what to do to prepare a Daily Organizer.
Enter the things to do for the coming day from your Weekly Schedule.
Enter the things that still need to be accomplished from your Daily Organizer from the previous day.
Review your class notes for the day just completed to see if you need to add any school activities.
Add any out-of-school activities in which you will be involved the next day.
Your Weekly Schedule should have more detail than your Term Calendar. Your Daily Organizer should have more detail than your Weekly Schedule. Using a Term Calendar, a Weekly Schedule, and a Daily Organizer will help you make the best use of your time.

Improving Concentration

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:08:00 -0800

Many students have difficulty concentrating while studying. Being able to concentrate while you are studying is essential to doing well in class and on tests.
Here are 10 suggestions for improving your study concentration:
Study in a quiet place that is free from distractions and interruptions. Try to create a space designated solely for studying.
Make a study schedule that shows what tasks you need to accomplish and when you plan to accomplish each task. This will provide you with the structure you need for effective studying.
Try to study at the time of day you work best. Some people work well early in the morning, others late at night. You know what works best for you.
Make sure you are not tired and/or hungry when you study. Otherwise, you won't have the energy you need to concentrate. Also, maintain your physical fitness.
Don't try to do two tasks at the same time. You won't be able to concentrate on either one very well. Concentration means focusing on one thing to the exclusion of all else.
Break large tasks into series of smaller tasks that you can complete one at a time. If you try to complete a large task all at once, you may feel overwhelmed and will be unable to maintain your concentration.
Relax. It's hard to concentrate when you're tense. It's important to relax when working on a task that requires concentration. Meditation is helpful to many students.
Clear your mind of worrisome thoughts. Mental poise is important for concentration. You can get distracted by your own thoughts. Monitor your thoughts and prevent yourself from following any that take you off track. Don't daydream.
Develop an interest in what you are studying. Try to relate what you are studying to you own life to make it as meaningful as possible. This can motivate yourself to concentrate.
Take breaks whenever you feel fatigued. There is no set formula for when to take breaks. You will know when you need to take a break.
Studying without concentration is like trying to fill a bucket with water when the bucket has a hole in its bottom. It doesn't work.

How to succeed in examinations

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 03:17:00 -0700

[This page was produced by Jim Deacon]

The site provides guidance on examination technique - how to maximise your chances of success, so that you get the grades and the class of degree that you deserve.

I STRONGLY ADVISE YOU TO READ THIS PAGE, and especially the summary section:

Ten key steps to examination success.

Guidance

Who could be better to advise you than an examiner? - someone who has marked thousands and thousands of exam papers; someone who sets questions and therefore knows exactly what examiners look for in your answers; someone who has seen all the errors that students make, time and time again.

There is no secret in any of this. The key to success can be summarised in one word: method or (if you prefer) technique. If you adopt the right method - the right approach - it can make all the difference between a B or a C grade, etc. and ultimately a difference between a Class 2.I or a Class 2.II.

So, please read this guidance time and time again. And please follow it. We want you to do well, but YOU have to put the guidance into practice.

Ten key steps to examination success

Prepare for the examination. There is little time for formal revision at the end of teaching in Semester 1, so you must revise as you go along!
Look at past papers. This prepares you for the types of question you will be asked, and the time you will have to answer each question. If there has been any major change in the format of the examination, then you will have been told about this in the course literature.
Never try to 'spot' questions and never revise selectively. This is a recipe for disaster. Even if your predicted topics do come up in the exam, there is no guarantee that you will be able to answer the specific questions that were set on these topics. Instead, you should go into the exam with enough knowledge to answer questions on any of the major topics in a course.
During the examination, organise your time effectively. N.B. This is the single most common cause of under-achievement in exams.

For example, if you have a 3-hour exam in which you must answer 4 essay-style questions, then that means 45 minutes per question. BUT you should allow yourself 5 minutes at the start (to read the questions and decide on the ones you will attempt) AND 15 minutes at the end - see below. That leaves you 40 minutes per question.

Now start on the first question, but stop immediately when the 40 minutes has passed. Don't worry if you have not finished the question - you have left 15 minutes at the end, so you can come back to this question and any others that you need to finish off.

Tackle your second question, and again stop after 40 minutes, and similarly for the third and fourth questions.

If you always adhere rigidly to this approach you will maximise your chances of success. You will never run out of time for all the questions because you have kept some time in reserve. Equally important, you will have scored the highest overall mark that you possibly can get, because exam marks follow the rule of "diminishing returns" - you get most of the marks for a question early on (in the first 20-30 minutes), and after that you have to work harder and harder for the remaining marks. In fact, the last 10% of marks for a question is almost impossible to get - very few examiners will give a mark above 80 or 90%. [The reason is simple: however good your answer might be, it could always be better, so a marker is reluctant to give full marks. Perhaps it shouldn't be that way. But that's life.]
Always answer the full number of questions.

You would be surprised at the number of students who miss out questions and therefore fail an exam or obtain a lower degree class than they deserve. The reason is obvious - they cannot answer all the questions (usually because they didn't revise) and so they decide to spend all their time on the questions they can answer.

This is foolish. For example, if you can answer only 3 of the required 4 questions then you cannot possibly get more than 75% of the marks for the whole exam. But it even worse than that - even if you get three first-class marks (70%) for your three questions, this is still only 210 marks out of the possible 400. That's 53%, which is only just above the D/C borderline (or the third/ lower second class borderline).

Even if you think you know nothing about a topic, you can always get a few marks by making some sensible comments, and that can make the difference of a grade.

The same advice applies to questions that require you to answer several parts - each part of a question has marks allocated to it, and if you miss out a part then you cannot get the marks for it.
Read the question carefully, underline all the relevant words, and stick rigidly to the question as set. Again this might seem obvious, but again many students fail to follow this advice. Remember that examiners think very carefully about the wording of every question, and expect your answer to be directly on that topic. No examiner asks you to "Write everything you know about a subject"!

For example, if you are asked to write about the wall structure of bacteria then you will get no marks at all for mentioning the other features of bacteria - the membrane, the genome, etc. You get marks only for the wall. The moment that you start to write about other things, the examiner will write "irrelevant" in the margin of your answer book, and will only start giving marks again when you get back onto the subject. In short, you are wasting your own valuable time, and getting no marks for it.
For every question, stop writing after the first few minutes and re-read the question, then stop again to recheck before your time is up. Be absolutely honest with yourself, and ask 'Have I drifted off the subject?' This is surprisingly easy to do, and if you don't stop to check periodically then you drift into "irrelevant".
Make rough notes at the start of a question, so as to organise your thoughts. Then start your proper answer.

You almost certainly will be told to cross out the rough notes. But my advice is NEVER CROSS THEM OUT. Remember that anything you cross out cannot be marked, but if you leave your rough notes then the examiner should look through them (if only briefly). Perhaps you made a point in your notes that you forgot to put into your proper answer. That can count in your favour.
Never answer more questions than required. You can only get marks for the required number of questions. Every marker sticks rigidly to this rule, because we have to be fair to all the candidates - including those who did exactly what was required.
Put yourself in an examiner's shoes and ask 'What impresses an examiner?'

Imagine that you are spending your evenings and weekends ploughing through 400 exam answers - because that's what examiners do!
- The examiner will get frustrated if he cannot read your writing. A badly written answer takes a long time to read, and by the time the examiner has ploughed through it he will have forgotten half of what you said. That's bad news for you! And don't try to obscure your lack of knowledge (e.g. a scientific name or a technical term) by illegible writing. We have seen this hundreds of times. If it cannot be read, it cannot get marks.
- Underline key words or phrases. After reading through the whole answer, an examiner looks back at the number of ticks he/she has made, or the number of key words or phrases that you have identified. If you highlight these then the impression is favourable - the main points covered, so you will get good marks.
- Never repeat things, even in a concluding paragraph. You can only get the marks once, no matter how many times you repeat the same point.
- Learn the Latin names of organisms and other technical terms. It might be a pain, but it impresses examiners and shows your competence. A chemist would not get marks for saying "some chemical (I forget the name) combines with some other chemical to produce a tetrazolium compound". So why should a biologist get marks for saying "some fungus (I think it begins with M) parasitises wheat plants by producing cellulase enzymes"? We read that sort of thing all the time. And it doesn't impress.

How to tackle different types of exam question

Essay-style questions

In a few Honours examinations you might be asked to write 'long essays' (time allocation of 1.5 hours or even 3 hours). However, this does not mean that you have to write for 1.5 or 3 hours. Instead, it means that you have enough time to assemble your thoughts and construct your answer carefully. The answer itself might not take more than 1 hour or 1.5 hours to write.

In all other examinations the essay-style questions are shorter. For example, you might be asked to answer four essay-style questions in a 3-hour exam (see the Microbiology 3m examination papers, for example). These essay-style questions require a large amount of relevant factual information, and understanding of the subject. However, you would not be expected to produce a polished and grammatically correct essay. The important thing is to write down as much relevant information as possible, while sticking rigidly to the question that was set.

Short-answer questions (SAQs)

SAQs typically have 8-10 minutes time allocation (but check this carefully, because the time allocation does vary). The best approach to these questions is to produce short notes, with as much relevant information as possible in the time allowed. If you really know the material you should get full marks for these questions.

Best Way to Study

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:59:00 -0700

by Clifford Morris

There is an ever-growing body of research suggesting that we do not study in precisely the same way. While this common sense approach towards studying represents a welcomed message for parents and students, many teachers still teach a large number of their pupils one way, more often than not, by using traditional teaching styles that might appear to be successful for the teacher but unsuccessful for a large majority of the youngsters seated in front of them. This is incorrect teaching -- proof that common sense continues to be not all that common within many of today's classrooms.

My following commentary attempts to address this key issue, while at the same time, to offer suggestions for possible classroom improvement. If teachers require their students to receive domain-specific information in a way that does not correspond with their dominant learning modalities, to perform under classroom conditions that interfere with their preferred learning, or to demonstrate learning in such a way that fails them to use their more dominant intelligences, then such teachers create within their students forms of artificial stress, reduced motivation, and repressed performance. Along this same line of thinking, there is a considerable body of research evidence suggesting that many special education students who have been formally categorized, for example, as learning disabled (LD) are, in fact, not LD students per se but assessed and taught incorrectly in terms of their dominant learning style. Perhaps a more positive way of describing their LD is that they simply learn differently!

And now, after painting a negative but realistic image of numerous contemporary classrooms ... the good news, and the good news is indeed promising! An efficient classroom teacher will tend to teach in many different ways in order to reach all of her/his students. Teaching something only one way (such as lecturing to one's auditory learning channel) will miss all the students who do not learn best in that manner. Simply put for this web comment, good teaching is teaching through a variety of learning channels. Most students can learn the same content. But how they best receive and then perceive that content is determined largely by their individual learning styles. Simply defined, a student's studying style is the way a student processes, concentrates, internalizes and retain novel and often difficult bits of domain specific content knowledge, usually for testing and examination purposes. And as is the case with how one best learns information, many of the same elements, emotional, environmental, biological, sociological, and physiological must also be taken into account when studying.

Studying Elements

Emotional
Emotional factors which may influence studying are: motivation, responsibility, and persistence. Through identification and modification, bad study habits can be replaced by more productive habits. Knowing your current levels of these emotional factors, and working to positively reshape them can not only enhance your studying potential but change your outlook toward challenging courses.

Environmental
Environmental factors such as sound, temperature, lighting, and physical arrangement can have a significant impact on your ability to study. Although some of us enjoy loud background music, many prefer a quiet place to study, clear of distractions. Some students crank up the heating system whereas others seem to prefer a cooler studying environment. Some children prefer a low lighting system around them, while others have all the lights in the house on. Others enjoy the traditional chair and desk study approach while still others seem to be able to study all curled up in the middle of a bed. In short, paying close attention to these environmental factors and establishing an environment conducive to studying can increase overall learning.

Biological
In the 1960s, Roger Sperry's Nobel prize winning work suggested that the right and left hand sides of the human brain possessed specialized and different functions: the left being clinical and analytical while the right influenced the more artistic and sensing side of our nature. That is, our left cerebral hemisphere handled, in the main, logical/linear functions and verbal/linguistic skills, and the right half of our brain developed a reputation as the artistic, imaginative, emotional, musical, and holistic side. Today, while that form of cerebral thinking is considered somewhat simplistic, it may have opened up additional avenues to greater exploration into the true nature of cognitive functioning and how all of us acquire, store and employ domain specific knowledge.

That split-brain hypothesis so prevalent at that time represented a challenge to the concept of intellectual quotient (IQ) which, in the main, purported to assess verbal/linguistic and logical/mathematical skills, skills that were once considered to be handled by the left half of the brain. Today, more advanced research suggests that IQ scores actually measure only some of our overall abilities. This fact is evidenced by the realization that good athletes, artists or musicians were once simply (supposedly) talented while those considered good in science and math were considered smart or intelligent. In today's 2009 world, all of them ought to be considered 'intelligent.'

Sociological
Most students are not aware of the sociological factors that positively affect their ability to study effectively. Some prefer studying alone, in pairs, or in teams with adults or any combination thereof. Similarly, some seem to learn best in bright lights while others prefer darker corners. And some seem to learn best while eating or drinking or with loud music on in the background. While it is difficult for a variety of these sociological patters to operate simultaneously within one classroom, their value for efficient learning, especially studying, is of note here. To sum, students benefit from utilizing a variety of different sociological settings, as some serve to enhance initial learning while others act as reinforcement for studying.

Physiological
Physical factors which influence your studying style are those that involve your senses: auditory (ears), visual (eyes), tactile (touch), kinaesthetic (motion), gustatory (taste), and olfactory (smell), the initial three being more predominant. Visual students study best by watching a process, or reading materials. Research suggests that most learning occurs here. Next comes the auditory channel. Here, students study best by listening in class, discussing information in groups, and reciting study notes. Tactile students study best by hands-on activities, manipulating objects or flash cards, working problems or re-typing notes. Kinaesthetic students study best by demonstrating movement in their work, exercising while reading, or walking while reciting their notes. Olfactory students involve their nose to distinguish specific elements. And finally, gustatory students study best by tasting the item under investigation. These latter two factors account for only a minor part of overall learning.

How more auditory learners study
Auditory students tend to learn mainly by hearing classroom information. They seem to learn best through their ears, especially via verbal lectures, discussions, talking things through and listening to the words of others. They interpret the underlying meanings of speech through listening to tone of voice, pitch, speed and other nuances. When they have pages to read for homework, they need to quietly say the words aloud in order to hear the words as they read. Often, written information has little meaning until it is heard. When they are learning concepts such as phonetic sounds, they need to hear the similarities. For example, they may not realize "ph" sounds just like "f" unless they say the sounds out loud. Reading aloud, going over class notes and talking to oneself about the relevant points is important. Before reading, set a purpose and verbalize it, after finished a task, be sure to summarize out loud what was just read.
These learners often benefit from reading text aloud and using a tape recorder. Taping lectures or notes and playing them back to learn the information can be quite an effective way for an auditory student to understand and remember the information. The speaking of ideas into a tape recorder is like having a conversation with someone. If possible, such learners should talk to their friends about the material. Because auditory learners sometimes encounter problems keeping columns aligned, math computations can be completed on graph paper. The extreme left-hand column in Table 1 below lists alternative strategies for the auditory learner.
How more visual learners study
Visual students learn mainly by 'seeing' the material to be learned, that is, when the material is presented graphically, as in charts, tables, illustrated text books, overhead transparencies, videos, flip charts, hand-outs, maps, etc. Such students often prefer sitting at the front of the classroom to avoid irrelevant visual obstructions. When in class, visual people should look at the teachers when they are speaking, participate in class discussions and take detailed notes during lectures. Visual learners enjoy watching the teacher's body language and facial expression. This enables them to better comprehend the content of the classroom subject under discussion. When studying, such students tend to study alone in a quiet place and try to transcribe their material on paper. When possible, make designs, drawings, graphs or tables of complex abstract ideas and work alone.
Students who learn visually often have trouble working while having a dialogue, even if the dialogue directly pertains to the subject matter. Any homework they can complete using diagrams, time lines, charts, or graphs will be better remembered. As they read pages for homework, they need to either take written notes or underline important facts and dates in colors. When they are learning such auditory concepts as phonetic sounds, they must see the letters to learn.
How more kinaesthetic-tactual learners study
Of all the types of classroom students, perhaps the kinaesthetic / tactual learners are the most maligned group; they learn best through a hands-on approach. In other words, these are your touchers and feelers; they like to be physically involved as they find it extremely difficult to sit still. They often get out of their desks, pace around the classroom, want to have music or television playing in the background. In short, they are almost constantly finding themselves distracted.
They need to learn keyboarding skills, because these types of learners work well on computers where they can touch the keys as they type. They learn well when they can do things, such as in a lab. They need to actually use their hands and bodies while learning. Kinaesthetic / tactual learners may need to walk around or pace or hop or whatever while reading. When studying for tests, they need to make flash cards to remember important dates and facts. Unfortunately, they often have a hard time in school because they have to sit still and listen to a teacher. They need to learn to take notes in class in order to have something for their hands to do. The two right-hand columns in Box 1 below contain additional alternative strategies for such learners.

Summary

Before asking you to identify your more dominant studying style, one comment. All of us use the three above studying modalities but often to different degrees. For instance, I seem to study best visually with a pen or highlighter in my hand, with a secondary studying style of kinaesthetic-tactual. If asked to listen to auditory directions, I may understand the first item or two, but then I am lost, in more ways than one. I have to either write down the directions as I hear them, or visualize the oral directions, often requiring the aid of a map. When listening to lectures, I seem to learn best by taking numerous notes and sketching diagrams depicting the content under investigation.

Studying Styles Inventory

Name: ____________________________________ Date: ______________________

Instructions:

Print out and read over the following three (3) lists of statements. Using a highlighter or pen, circle or/and note the numeral to the left of every statement that you feel that best applies to you, at this point in time of your busy life. As we all differ so markedly in how we acquire and retain knowledge and especially, for this note, how we best study, there are no right or wrong statements, only non applicable comments. You may have as much time as you need to complete the three sections, so read over each studying characteristic carefully and, if it applies to you, note it in your own way before you complete the two remaining sections.

Auditory studying style

1. If I hear someone's name, I remember it easily.
2. Rather than reading a book, I prefer to listen to a tape or someone read the book to me.
3. I can pay attention and remember easier when others read out loud to me.
4. I find that songs and jingles help me to remember things.
5. I use oral explanations and ask students to repeat or paraphrase.
6. I use audio recordings whenever possible.
7. I give oral instructions most of the time.
8. I explore and develop information through class discussions.
9. I remember songs after hearing them only a couple of times.
10. I often read and study by repeating information aloud to myself.
11. When taking a class test or term exam, I am easily distracted by background noise.
12. I like to study for tests by having someone quiz me aloud.
13. I like to talk and listen.
14. I work out my math story problems by talking through them aloud.
15. I participate in class discussions/debates.
16. I make speeches and presentations.
17. I use a tape recorder during lectures instead of taking notes.
18. I read text out aloud.
19. I create musical jingles to aid memorization
20. I create mnemonics to aid memorization
21. I discuss my ideas verbally.
22. I dictate to someone while they write down my thoughts.
23. I use verbal analogies, and story telling to demonstrate my point

Visual studying style

1. I prefer to have a clear view of my subject teachers when they are speaking. In this way, I can see their body language and facial expression.
2. I use color to highlight important points in a textbook or in a handout.
3. I take notes and I ask my teachers to provide handouts.
4. I illustrate my ideas as a picture or brainstorming bubble before writing them down.
5. I write a story and illustrate it.
6. I use multi-media (e.g., computers, videos, and filmstrips).
7. I study in a quiet place away from verbal disturbances.
8. I prefer to read illustrated books.
9. I visualize information as a picture to aid memorization.
10. To see if I have spelled a word correctly, I write it out to see if it looks right.
11. I can remember names if I see them written on name tags.
12. I enjoy reading books, looking at the pictures and using visual materials such as pictures, charts, maps, graphs, etc.
13. Before doing a project, I prefer to read the instructions or look at the illustrations.
14. I take down class notes to help me to remember what the teacher says.
15. I usually write down my assignments to help me to remember its contents.
16. I like to use flash cards to practice vocabulary words.
17. My desk and locker is neatly organized.
18. I am able to sit and watch TV or work on the computer / internet for a long time.
19. I understand things better when I read them than when I listen to them.
20. I prefer being given a list of duties to complete rather than being told.
21. I seem to be able to picture things in my mind easily.
22. I learn best via visual aids (e.g., chalkboard notes, visual illustrations, charts, graphs, concept maps, outlines, graphic organizers).
23. I seem to understand knowledge best via video recordings.

Kinaesthetic-tactual studying style

1. I take frequent study breaks.
2. I move around to learn new things (e.g., read while on an exercise bike, mould a piece of clay to learn a new concept).
3. I enjoy working in a standing position.
4. I chew gum while studying.
5. I use bright colors to highlight reading material.
6. I dress up my work space with posters.
7. I listen to music while I study.
8. I skim through reading material to get a rough idea what it is about before settling down to read it in detail.
9. I emphasize and clarify ideas through gesture, facial expression and dramatization.
10. I enjoy active learning and direct experience and experimentation.
11. I prefer completing tasks which imply physical movement.
12. I prefer doing class assignments that involve project work.
13. It is hard for me to pay attention when I must sit still for the entire class period.
14. I enjoy sports and being active.
15. I count on my fingers or with other objects to do math problems.
16. My favourite classes are those where I can move around a lot.
17. I choose to play outside rather than sit inside and read a book or listen to tapes.
18. I have a hard time staying neat and organized.
19. I am good at skills that require precise movements, for example, walking on a balance beam, serving a volleyball, or playing ping-pong.
20. I prefer to learn a new activity by being shown how to do it rather than by reading about it or listening to a tape about it.
21. I would like to act out stories rather than talk about them.
22. I have a good sense of balance and rhythm.

Summary Instructions

Your three above totals may suggest your possible dominant studying style. That is, if your highest total is visual, you likely study best by SEEING, that is, you tend to remember best by using your eyes for studying. If your highest total is auditory, you likely study best by HEARING. In other words, you remember best by using your ears to study. And, if your highest total is kinaesthetic-tactual, you probably study best by DOING things, that is, you remember best by movement or physical activities that involve many parts of your body, in particular, your hands and feet. Box 1 immediately below outlines just some of the many alternative ways of studying.

**Box 1: Some Alternative Ways for Students to Study**
Some Auditory Alternatives	Some Visual Alternatives	Some Kinaesthetic Alternatives	Some Tactual Alternatives

tape / CD / DVD recordings	advertisements	newspapers	learning circles
speeches	journals / diaries	mock TV shows	crossword puzzles
debates	plays	radio broadcasts	pictures / posters
panel discussions	scripts	videos / DVD's	murals
commentaries	poems	demonstrations	maps / visualizations
discussions	songs	dramatizations	costume making
interviews	stories	role playing	charts / schematas
lectures	letters / reviews	pantomimes	graphs / models
.	editorials	reader theatres	dioramas / games
	news stories	field trips	cartoons / puppetry
	reports	.	box movies / masks
	internet files		coding puzzles
	.		photographs / slides
	.		mobiles paper items
	.		word puzzles
	.

B.A. Part I

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:54:00 -0700

Urdu (اردو)

B.Com. Part II

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:53:00 -0700

Management

B.Com. Part I

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:52:00 -0700

Notes Class XII

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:45:00 -0700

NotesClass XI

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:44:00 -0700

NotesClass X

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:43:00 -0700

Notes Class IX

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:39:00 -0700

Tips for improving your handwriting

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:12:00 -0700

You’ve decided you want to improve your handwriting and you’re probably hoping a fountain pen will do the trick -- maybe a friend told you it would. Maybe you’re just adventurous and you want to try your hand at calligraphy (or you might, once your handwriting improves). Good for you!

A fountain pen may make your writing look a bit better, but if your writing looks as if frenzied chickens got loose on the page, chances are this won’t be enough. Most likely, you’ll need to retrain your arm and hand.

After coaching handwriting and teaching calligraphy over the years, I’ve learned to see the characteristics of those who’ll be able to pick up the necessary motions quickly from those who’ll have to work a bit harder.

Crampy, uneven letters are often the result of drawing the letters with the fingers rather than using the whole arm to write.

People who inevitably have trouble with handwriting and calligraphy write with their fingers. They "draw" the letters. A finger-writer puts the full weight of his/her hand on the paper, his fingers form the letters, and he picks his hand up repeatedly to move it across the paper as he writes.

If you use the right muscle groups, your writing will have a smooth, easy flow and not look tortured.

People for whom writing comes more easily may rest their hands fairly heavily on the paper, but their forearms and shoulders move as they write. Their writing has a cadence that shows they’re using at least some of the right muscle groups. They don’t draw the letters with their fingers; the fingers serve more as guides.

This exercise may help you determine which category is yours: Sit down and write a paragraph. Doesn’t matter what. Pay attention to the muscles you use to form your letters. Do you draw each letter with your fingers? Pick your hand up repeatedly to move it? Have an unrecognizable scrawl? Does your forearm move? Chances are, if you learned to write after 1955-60 (depending on where you went to grade school), you write with your fingers.

My goal isn’t to make you into a model Palmer-method writer or a 14th Century scribe. If you can compromise between the "right" methods and the way you write now and improve your handwriting so you’re happier with it, then I’m happy, too.

A few people hold the pen between first and middle fingers, which feels really awkward to me, but I’ve seen it work.

It will take time to re-train muscles and learn new habits. Finger-writing isn’t fatal, but it is slow and often painful (if you have to write much). The first thing you must have (beg, buy, borrow or steal it) is patience and gentleness with yourself. The second requirement is determination.

If you finger-write, that is the first, most important thing you must un-learn: Do not draw your letters! Do not write with your fingers! Put up signs everywhere to remind you. Write it in the butter, on the shaving mirror, stick notes in the cereal boxes. But learn it!

I hesitate to include this, because it sounds much more difficult than it is . . . but . . . let’s look at the most basic things: holding the pen and positioning the hand.

Fig. 1. This is the most common pen-holding position, with pen between first and middle fingers, held in place by the thumb.

Most of us hold the pen between the thumb and index finger, resting the barrel on the middle finger (fig. 1). This works better than holding it between the thumb and the index and middle fingers, with the whole assembly resting on the ring finger (fig. 2). If you do it the first way, you’re off to a good start. If the second, you’ll be okay. In both, the remaining fingers are curled under the hand.

Fig. 2. The two-fingers-on-top method for holding the pen while writing.

Pick up your pen and look at your hand. You’ll have better control and a better writing angle if your pen rests over or just forward of the bottom knuckle on your index finger, not between thumb and index finger (see fig. 3). (I hold my fountain pens in the latter position, but when I pick up a calligraphy pen, it drops obediently right over that big knuckle--go figure!)

Fig. 3. Note that with this position, usually used for calligraphy (or among really disciplined writers), causes the pen to rest atop the knuckle of the forefinger.

For handwriting, the pen position is less important than for calligraphy. I recommend working in your familiar position unless it’s really bad. What’s essential is that you be comfortable, the pen feel balanced and you have no tension in your hand. Rest the heel of your hand and the angle of your curled-up little finger on the paper.

Hold the pen lightly; don’t squeeze it. Pretend the barrel is soft rubber and squeezing will get you a big, fat blot. (If you were using a quill, you’d hold it so lightly that the actual act of drawing the quill along the paper would create the proper contact.)

Many books recommend you write with your table at a 45-degree angle, but that’s impractical for most of us. If you can prop up a board or write with one on your lap, that’s a good place to start, but a flat surface is fine. Once you try an angled surface, you’re likely not to want to quit, so be careful-- here goes a whole new budget’s worth of art supplies!

Sit up straight, but not stiffly; don’t sit hunched over or slumped. Don’t worry too much about this position stuff; the important thing is what makes you feel relaxed and comfortable. Your writing arm needs to be free to move, so squished into the La-Z-Boy probably won’t be productive.

Hold your fingers fairly straight and write slightly above and just between your thumb and index finger, right where you’re holding the pen. Don’t curl your hand over and write to the left of your palm; that’s a crampy, miserable position. More lefties do this than righties.

Commonly called the "hook" position, this is often seen in left-handers. It makes it harder, but not impossible, for them to use a fountain pen, because their hands tend to drag over the wet ink.

When you’re practicing and you reach the level on the paper at which it becomes uncomfortable to continue to move your hand down the paper to write, move the paper up. Once you recognize your "writing level," the paper should move up at that spot rather than your hand moving down the paper. (This isn’t critical. If you notice it and it bothers you, that’s what you do about it. If it doesn’t bother you, skip it.)

I’ve found only one reference to using the right muscle groups to write, and this is critical. I can’t be the only person who knows this; I’m neither that smart nor that good. Calligraphy instruction books address hand position, desk position, lighting, paper, you name it--but for some reason, not using the right muscles.

As you’ve probably surmised, the "right muscles" are not those in the fingers. You must use the shoulder-girdle and forearm muscles. This muscle group is capable of much more intricate action than you think and tires much less easily than fingers, besides giving a smooth, clean, sweeping look to the finished writing. Though it seems paradoxical, since we’re accustomed to thinking of small muscles having better control, the shoulder-girdle group, once trained, does the job better.

To get a feel for the proper muscles (and start training them correctly), hold your arm out in front of you, elbow bent, and write in the air. Write big. Use your arm and shoulder to shape letters; hold your forearm, wrist and fingers stationary and in writing position. You’ll feel your shoulder, arm, chest and some back muscles doing most of the work. That’s good. That’s what they’re supposed to do. Try to duplicate it each time you practice.

People always look puzzled when I mention the shoulder girdle. If you raise your hand in the air and make large circles, note the muscles you use in doing so (here, shown in darker pink). That’s the shoulder girdle.

Write in the air until it becomes as natural as breathing. It’ll be awkward and feel silly at first. If you have a little kid around, get him/her to do it with you. You’ll both have fun, you won’t feel so alone, and it’ll be good for the child’s handwriting, too. If you don’t have a kid, tell your co-workers you’re improving your financial karma or hexing your boss.

As you become comfortable, reduce the size of the air-letters you make. If you have access to a chalkboard or a stick and a fence (or even a finger and a wall), write on them. They’ll give you a feel for the muscles you need to use and writing on a vertical surface makes it virtually impossible to finger-write. (If you’re one of the people who can’t write on a blackboard because you keep wanting to shrink the writing down so your fingers can do it, this is really important for you.) If you keep wanting to hunch up close and put your hand on the chalkboard or wall to write, resist the urge! You’ll be indulging those dratted fingers.

Remember: Your fingers should move very little and your wrist even less. Your forearm does most of the guiding, while your shoulder provides the power.

At some point, you’ll want to try this with a pen. Hold it gently. Place it on the paper in an ordinary lined spiral notebook (the lines act as ready-made guidelines for size and spacing). If you can get hold of a first-grader’s Big Chief tablet, which offers big lines with a dotted line between two bold lines, use it. There’s a reason children start out writing big and the letters get smaller as they get older and more skilled—-that’s the easiest way to learn.

Start making Xs and ///s and \\\s and OOOOs and overlapped OOOs and spirals and |||||s. Do not draw these strokes and figures! Use the same shoulder-forearm muscles you’ve been practicing with. Make your lines, loops, circles and spirals freely. Work into a rhythm and make it a habit.

When you start making slashes and circles, they’ll be uneven. With practice, they’ll become more uniform, and uniformity is your objective.

Your goal is smooth, uniform, evenly spaced lines, loops, circles and spirals, without drawing them.

This is where you’re most likely to get discouraged. If you use a spiral notebook for practice, you can leaf back and see your progress. At first, your strokes and lines will be bad—over-running and under-running the lines, too small, too big, crooked, uneven, just ugly. Check your position; check your muscle groups; and try again. And again.

Concentrate on keeping wrist-hand-fingers largely stationary and in proper alignment. Let the big muscles do the work. It will be more tiring at first, because you’re using muscles that aren’t accustomed to that kind of work. It’ll be hard and frustrating, ’cause your body will want to do it the way it’s done it since first grade… even though that way is wrong. It may help to concentrate less on the accuracy of the shapes you’re making than on the muscles making them. Retraining your arm is the goal, not making pretty little circles and lines first time out.

Uniformity and consistency are your aim in all the exercises, whether loopy or slashy. Though it seems uncomfortable, these exercises will make a huge difference in your control and smoothness.

When you start putting the strokes and lines on paper, start out big. Three, four, even more lines in your notebook. (Big Chiefs are handy for this.) This helps ensure that you continue to use the shoulder girdle. Don’t try to make pretty letters at this stage. Do the exercises as much as you can—-shoot for every day. Ten or fifteen minutes a day should show results in a few weeks for most people. And note that both air-writing and paper exercises can be doodledduring meetings and while on holdwaiting for somebody!

Concentrate on that shoulder girdle. Let it do the work. Write big. Write words and sentences at the same time you’re doing strokes and exercises. You need both working together to succeed.

Gradually, as your control increases, make your strokes and letters smaller until they’re the size you normally write. You’ll know when you get there. By this time, you probably won’t have to make extra effort to incorporate this stuff into your writing; it’ll be automatic. And your writing should look much better (and be easier and feel better, to boot).

Online English Grammar

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:55:00 -0700

ADJECTIVES

ADVERBS

DETERMINERS

DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH

-ING FORM

NOUNS

PASSIVE

POSSESSIVE WITH 'S AND '

possessive

RELATIVE CLAUSES

THE INFINITIVE

TO GET

VERBS AND VERB TENSES

English Learning Course

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:25:00 -0700

Course 1 - Starter

Unit 1 - Present Simple "to be" - Subject Pronouns

Unit 2 - Present Simple "to be": Negatives and Questions

Unit 3 - Present Simple

Unit 4 - Present Simple: Negatives and Questions

Unit 5 - Contractions

Unit 6 - Prepositions of Place

Unit 7 - Question Words

Unit 8 - Object Pronouns

Unit 9 - Countable / Uncountable Nouns

Unit 10 - Articles

Unit 11 - Plural Nouns

Unit 12 - Demonstratives - this / that / these / those

Course 2 - Elementary

Unit 13 - Quantifiers: Some / Any

Unit 14 - Quantifiers: Much / Many / A Lot of

Unit 15 - Quantifiers: A Few / A Little

Unit 16 - Possessives

Unit 17 - There is / There are

Unit 18 - Modal Verbs - Can / Can't

Unit 19 - Have / Have got

Unit 20 - Conjunctions

Unit 21 - Imperatives

Unit 22 - Present Continuous

Unit 23 - Adverbs of Frequency

Unit 24 - Prepositions of Time
Unit 25 - Comparatives / Superlatives

The units below are grammar only - we're working on exercises now.

Level 3 - Pre-Intermediate

Unit 26 - Past Simple - Verb "to be"

Unit 27 - Past Simple

Unit 28 - Past Continuous

Unit 29 - Future - Will / Shall

Unit 30 - Future - Going to

Unit 31 - Future - Present Simple / Present Continuous

Unit 32 - Adjectives and Adverbs

Unit 33 - Adjectives: -ed/-ing forms

Unit 34 - Adjective Order

Unit 35 - Comparatives - as...as

Unit 36 - Comparatives - Quantity

Unit 37 - Gerunds and Infinitives - Verb + Gerund / Verb + Infinitive

Unit 38 - Gerunds and Infinitives - Verb + Gerund or Infinitive 1

Unit 39 - Gerunds and Infinitives - Verb + Gerund or Infinitive 2

Unit 40 - Conditionals - Zero

Unit 41 - Conditionals - One

Unit 42 - Indefinite Pronouns

Unit 43 - Modal Verbs - Must / Have to

Unit 44 - Modal Verbs - Should / Ought to

Unit 45 - Modal Verbs - Would 1

Unit 46 - Modal Verbs - Would 2

Unit 47 - Preposition and Conjunctions of Time - for / during / while / when

Course 4 - Upper Intermediate

Unit 48 - Preposition and Conjunctions of Time - by / from / until

Unit 49 - Preposition and Conjunctions of Time 2- before / after / as / as soon as

Unit 50 - Adverbs of Degree - enough / too / very

Unit 51 - Present Perfect 1 - Form and Usage

Unit 52 - Present Perfect 2 - Have you ever...? / ever / never

Unit 53 - Present Perfect 3 - for / since

Unit 54 - Present Perfect 4 - Past Simple or Present Perfect?

Unit 55 - Adverbs of Time - already / just / yet / still / ago / anymore

Unit 56 - Determiners: each / every

Unit 57 - Questions Tags

Unit 58 - Passive Voice

Unit 59 - Reported Speech 1

Unit 60 - Used to

Unit 61 - Get / Be used to

Unit 62 - Wish

Unit 63 - Preposition and Conjunctions - like / as

Unit 64 - Adverbs - Comparative

Unit 65 - Relative Clauses 1

Unit 66 - Indirect Questions

Unit 67 - Past Perfect

Unit 68 - Future Continuous

Unit 69 - Future Perfect

Unit 70 - Causative Verbs - get / have / let / make

The 10 Secrets to Speaking English

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:23:00 -0700

The most common question we get is "How Can I speak or improve my English ?" What can I do to improve ? Here are some rules for any language. This article was recently published in over 300 Ezines and has become very popular. Feel free to share or post this.

Just Speak – and Don’t worry about your mistakes
The biggest problem most people face in learning a new language is their own fear. They worry that they won’t say things correctly or that they will look stupid so they don’t talk at all. Don’t do this. The fastest way to learn anything is to do it – again and again until you get it right. Like anything, learning English requires practice. Don’t let a little fear stop you from getting what you want.

Read Read Read
It is essential that you spend as much time as you can building your vocabulary. Even if your grammar is off speech requires words, and the more words you know the better ! Studying vocabulary lists may be a bit painful so the best way to learn and become accustomed to the usage of words is by seeing them in Action. So spend time reading.

Surround Yourself with English
The absolute best way to learn English is to surround yourself with it. Take notes in English, put English books around your room, listen to English language radio broadcasts, watch English news, movies and television. Speak English with your friends whenever you can. The more English material that you have around you, the faster you will learn and the more likely it is that you will begin “thinking in English.”

Use all Resources
Even if you study English at a language school it doesn’t mean you can’t learn outside of class. Using as many different sources, people, methods and tools as possible, will allow you to learn faster. There are many different ways you can improve your English, so don’t limit yourself to only one or two. The internet is a fantastic resource for virtually anything, but for the language learner it's perfect.

Watch English Films and Television
This is not only a fun way to learn but it is also very effective. By watching English films (especially those with English subtitles) you can expand your vocabulary and hear the flow of speech from the actors. If you listen to the news you can also hear different accents.

Listen to English Music
Music can be a very effective method of learning English. In fact, it is often used as a way of improving comprehension. The best way to learn though, is to get the lyrics (words) to the songs you are listening to and try to read them as the artist sings. There are several good internet sites where one can find the words for most songs. This way you can practice your listening and reading at the same time. And if you like to sing all the better.

Listen to Native Speakers as Much as Possible
Half the battle at the beginning is catching all the sounds and pronunciation correctly. Native speakers have the correct natural flow to their speech that students of English should try to imitate. The closer ESL / EFL students can get to this rhythm or flow, the more convincing and comfortable they will become.

Test yourself and challenge yourself
Many people think that exercises and tests aren't much fun. However, by completing exercises and taking tests you can really improve your English. One of the best reasons for doing lots of exercises and tests is that they give you a benchmark to compare your future results with. Often, it is by comparing your score on a test you took yesterday with one you took a month or six months ago that you realize just how much you have learned. If you never test yourself, you will never know how much you are progressing. Start now by doing some of the many exercises and tests on this site, and return in a few days to see what you've learned. Keep doing this and you really will make some progress with English.

Record Yourself
Nobody likes to hear their own voice recorded but like tests, however it is good to compare your recordings from time to time. You may be so impressed with the progress you are making that you may not mind the sound of your voice as much.

Finally
Be a bit patient with yourself ! Learning takes time. Don't beat yourself up because you made some mistakes. Just keep working at it each day bit by bit. One day you will find old mistakes are gone, and things you couldn't do, or didn't get are no longer issues. Success takes time so just keep at it.

------------------------------------
Mike, is A recognized ESL expert and has been helping students all over the world for 20 years to learn and master English. To learn more you can visit his free English Learners website www.EnglishInNY.com.

Free Online Dictionary

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:41:00 -0700

Free Online Dictionary'

Click here To get Online dictionary

Universities In Islamabad

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:34:00 -0700

Islamabad

Allama Iqbal Open University, Islamabad

Bahria University, Islamabad

Center for Advanced Studies in Engineering, Islamabad

COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Islamabad

Federal Urdu University of Arts, Sciences and Technology, Islamabad

Foundation University, Islamabad

Institute of Space Technology (IST), Islamabad

International Islamic University, Islamabad

National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Islamabad

National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad

Pakistan Institute of Engineering Applied Sciences, Islamabad

Pakistan Institute of Development Economics

Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad

Riphah International University, Islamabad

National University of Science and Technology, Rawalpindi

Virtual university of Pakistan, Lahore

National Defence University, Islamabad

Universities Of The Punjab

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:34:00 -0700

Universities In Sindh

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:32:00 -0700

Agha Khan University, Karachi

Baqai Medical University, Karachi

Commecs Institute of Business & Emerging Sciences, Karachi

Dadabhoy Institute of Higher Education, Karachi

Dawood College of Engineering & Technology, Karachi

DHA Suffa University, Karachi

Dow University of Health Sciences Karachi

Greenwich University, Karachi

Hamdard University, Karachi

Indus Institute of Higher Education, Karachi

Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi

Institute of Business & Technology BIZTEK, Karachi

Institute of Business Administration, Karachi

Institute of Business Management, Karachi

Iqra University, Karachi

Isra University, Hyderabad

Jinnah University for Women, Karachi

Karachi Institute of Economics & Technology, Karachi

KASB (Khadim Ali Shah Bukhari) Institute of Technology, Karachi

Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoro Sindh

Mehran University of Eng. & Technology, Jamshoro

Mohammad Ali Jinnah University, Karachi

Nazeer Hussain University, Karachi

NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi

Newports Institute of Communications and Economics, Karachi

Pakistan Naval Academy, Karachi

Preston Institute of Management Sciences and Technology, Karachi

Preston University, Karachi

Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science & Technology, Nawabshah

Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur

Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science & Technology, Karachi

Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam

Sir Syed University of Engg. & Technology, Karachi

Sukkur Institute of Business Administration, Sukkur

Textile Institute of Pakistan, Karachi

University of East, Hyderabad

University of Karachi, Karachi

University of Sindh, Jamshoro

Ziauddin Medical University, Karachi

Universities In BALOCHISTAN

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:31:00 -0700

BALOCHISTAN

Balochistan University of Engineering and Technology, Khuzdar

Balochistan University of Information Technology and Management Sciences, Quetta

Iqra University, Quetta

Lasbelaa University of Agriculture, Water & Marine Science, Othal

Sardar Bahadur Khan Women University, Quetta

University of Balochistan, Quetta

Universities In NORTHERN AREAS

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:30:00 -0700

Karakurum International University,Gilgit

Universities In NWFP

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:18:00 -0700

NWFP

Abasyn University, Peshawar

Frontier Women University, Peshawar

CECOS University of Information Technology and Emerging Sciences, Peshawar

City University of Science & Information Technology, Peshawar

Gandhara University, Peshawar

Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences & Technology, Swabi

Gomal University, D.I. Khan

Hazara University, Dodhial, Mansehra

Institute of Management Sciences (IMSciences), Peshawar

Kohat University of Science & Technology, Kohat

Northern University, Nowshera Cantonment

NWFP Agriculture University, Peshawar

NWFP University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar

Pakistan Military Academy, Abbottabad

Preston University, Kohat

Qurtaba University of Science & Information Technology, D. I. Khan

Sarhad University of Science & Information Technology, Peshawar

University of Malakand, Chakdara, Dir. Malakand

University of Peshawar, Peshawar

University of Science & Technology, Bannu

How to Feel Happier - 10 Ways to Feel Less Stressed in Under 10 Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:16:00 -0700

By:Clare Josa

These days feeling stressed almost seems to be a way of life.

In fact, meeting someone who isn't stressed is now a surprise. These underlying stress levels are playing havoc with our health, careers and even our closest relationships.

The good news is that there are 10 things you can do right now to feel less stressed.

Write it down One of the challenges with feeling stressed is that our problems keep going round and round in our minds. It's almost like there's a stressed-out cheerleader, keeping us on the super-stress merrygoround. It's important to write down your answers, because this helps stop the mental chatter and slows you down, reducing your stress levels. Ask yourself, "What specifically is the problem?" This helps you get out of the drama and be clear about the issue. Then ask yourself, "What do I want instead?". This helps you see that there might just possibly be a light at the end of the tunnel. Finally, answer the question, "Which single, baby step could I take, right now, to move towards what I want instead?" By breaking it down into tiny chunks, you'll see the overwhelm start to disappear.
Go for a walk in nature Going for a walk outside gives you a change of scenery and some fresh air. It gets you breathing more deeply and helps relax your mind. It only need be 5 minutes, but if you can manage longer, that's great. If possible, go somewhere with trees or grass. If not, even walking down the street will help.
Avoid caffeine Caffeine (found in coffee, tea, chocolate and many soft drinks) will rev you up. If you're already stressed, that's the last thing you want. It stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the adrenalin-filled fight or flight response. Drink some water instead and you'll feel better.
Blow a raspberry No, I'm not kidding here. Pucker up those lips and blow a big fat raspberry! Blowing a raspberry relaxes your facial muscles, especially those of the cheeks and jaw, where we store a surprising amount of tension. If you're stressed out, this one will help you smile and relax, which might be all you need to see the solution to your problem.
Nurture yourself In this world of 24-7 everything, it can be hard to take time out to nurture ourselves. Yet even 5 minutes can make a massive difference. Perhaps you'd like to take a relaxing warm bath? (Not too hot or that sympathetic nervous system gets going again...) Or maybe your thing is going for a massage? Or even just time to yourself to read a book? These are all good stress-busters.
Deep breathing Breathing deeply and slowly is an instant way to relax and destress. Sit up straight and breath into the area just below your ribcage - your diaphragm. Allow your chest to expand while you breathe in (yeah, forget holding in your tummy muscles for a few minutes!). Then allow it to gently sink as you breathe out. If you can do this through your nose, it's even more effective.
Laugh your head off There's good reason why they say "laughter is the best medicine". Watching a funny film or TV show - or listening to one on the radio - is a great way of releasing endorphins, which are nature's way of making us happy. You don't even have to commit to watching the whole show - just 10 minutes of laughter is enough to transform your day.
Get creative Classic distraction therapy, but it works well for those who like to get active and stay busy. Go and make something. Whether it's painting a picture, knitting and sewing, making cards or even woodwork, letting out your inner creativity helps you focus on something positive, which will reduce your stress levels.
Learn relaxation techniques There are so many ways to learn how to relax. And the more you practise, the easier it gets. You can learn at home, with books or DVDs, or join a class. Maybe you'd like to try yoga or meditation? Or perhaps Pilates? Or even martial arts? Any hobby that trains you to focus and quieten your mind will make a massive difference to your stess levels.
Ask For Help If feeling stressed out is a regular event for you, you'd be wise to ask for help. That might be help with the tasks that have overwhelmed you, or even asking for professional help, if things have got more serious. Asking for help is something we often find difficult, but those who care about you are probably longing for you to let them offer their support. There are no prizes for being a stress-hero. In fact, the winners are those who ask for help early on.

Applying any of these stress-busting techniques will help you relax and feel happier fast.

If you'd like to find out more about how to feel happier, then I invite you to I invite you to check out http://www.howtofeelhappier.com/blog to claim your in-depth guide "5 Ways To Feel Happier Now".

Are you ready to feel happier now?

From Clare Josa, author, seminar leader, expert coach and Chief Happiness Experimenter at How To Feel Happier.

Simple Ways to Get Into a Good Mood

noreply@blogger.com (NAZIM) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 00:10:00 -0700

By:Rick D. Lee

There are a couple of things that might cause you to have a bad mood early in the day. You could wake up in the morning already in a bad mood, or you could have things go wrong for you early in the day. Whatever the causes of your bad mood, you need to do something to change it quickly or you'll end up having a bad day. Here are 5 simple tips you can use to get into a good mood quickly:

1. Remember your favorite past events. Think back to a time when you're absolutely happy in your life, and then just spend a few moments to immerse yourself in this memory. It'll quickly put a smile in your face.

2. Laugh. Laughing is a great way for you to get into a better mood quickly. Watch a funny movie or a stand-up comedy show. Once you start laughing, you'll feel better immediately.

3. Listen to upbeat music. Play your favorite music that has a happy and upbeat mood to it. You'll feel a lot better once the positive emotions created by the music get into your mind and body. Don't play sad or depressing songs even though they're your favorites or you'll end up in a worse mood.

4. Talk to your fun friend. Everybody has a friend who is always fun and happy. Call this friend and just have a fun and pleasant conversation with him. You don't need to pour your gut out to him. Just listen to him talk and laugh at his funny stories.

5. Move your body. Do a little exercising or dance to your favorite songs. Getting your body moving and active will put you into a good mood quickly.