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CONTENT
Editor’s Note
6 eYs SDGs World Council
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eYs Child Chloe
12 Kristina Apostoloska
eYs Youth
14 Law Society
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16 The Written Word
ENVIRONMENT
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OUR MISSION STATEMENT: eYs Magazine are a group of determined individuals, who are inspired and empowered to share kindness, through our positive vibes and support. We encourage, help and motivate others and support local communities and charities to prosper and grow. eYs Magazine is committed to our purpose and people-centred ethos, reinvesting back into our future generations and the opportunity of a global online platform connecting to experts from all walks of life. We support charity, community and organisations in their development as a publishing platform.
THE ARTS
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WORDS
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BUSINESS
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EMPOWER
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INSPIRE
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Thank you to Kristina Apostoloska our eYs Magazine Youth Ambassador for allowing eYs Magazine to publish the image used on the cover .
BOOKWORM
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FIND US ON
DECORATE
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OUR COVER:
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LIFE COACH
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Chief Executive Officer : Jasmina Siderovski Email: editor.eysmagazine@gmail.com
NEW ZEALAND
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PUBLISHER & CREATIVE eYs Magazine Pty Ltd Sydney, Australia
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EYS TEAM
DISCLAIMER
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Copyright © eYs Magazine Pty Ltd 2022 All Rights Reserved. eYs Magazine has made constant care to make sure that the content is accurate on the date of publication. The views expressed in the articles reflect the author(s) opinions and are not necessarily the views of the publisher and editor. The published material, advertisements, editorials and all other content is published in good faith. eYs Magazine cannot guarantee and accepts no liability for any loss or damage of any kind caused by this website, publication and errors or for the accuracy of claims made by the advertisers. All content in eYs Magazine may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of eYs Magazine. It’s contributors cannot accept any liability for reader discontent arising from the editorial features. eYs Magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any article or material supplied for publication or to edit this material before publishing. eYs Magazine cannot be held responsible for loss or damage to provided materials. We accept no liability for misprints or mistakes and no responsibility can be taken for the contents of these pages. In this publication, you might find links to websites, third-party content and advertising. By using our website, you acknowledge that and agree that eYs Magazine cannot be held responsible and shall not be liable for the content of other websites, advertisements and other resources. By using this site, you agree to all terms and conditions listed above. If you have any questions about this policy, you may contact us.
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EDITOR’S NOTE
WELCOME TO OUR 15TH EDITION OF EYS MAGAZINE!! We are back after a very encombosome and productive year at eYs Headquarters. We are excited to announce that we have expanded our company structure and delighted to launch, eYs Global - the parent consortium of eYs Magazine, eYs SDGs World Council and eYs Global Alliance! At eYs GLOBAL our aspirations, concerns, needs and values of citizens and communities are incorporated at all levels and in all sectors in policy development, planning, decision-making, service delivery and assessment; and governments, business and civil society organizations involving the citizens, our clients, communities and other stakeholders are our priority in the process. We take pride and a strategic approach to the relationships, communication, and interactions between the community members and an organization to influence outcomes for both. A huge part of our community engagement involves talking to people. But it’s not a one-way thing – it means having a conversation talking to the 4 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
community and listening to what they’re saying. Communication is often harder to facilitate and we aim to break down the communication barriers and look for ways to make us more reachable and accessible, offering a range of communication platforms and formats. Communicating wih our stakeholders is always worth it. It means we get more diverse perspectives and gather more information to better inform our decisions. Plus, share information that will better inform our community, so there’s a better understanding on both sides. Engaged people feel heard, understood, and connected with any organization and brand. So the connection is a natural side effect of successful community engagement. There are lots of reasons why connection matters. Connection and trust help communities become more open and receptive to discussing and understanding issues that, initially, they might feel opposed to. For example, your community might be against a development that’s needed for longterm sustainability, like a wider road or zoning changes to allow for more residential buildings. But if your community feels connected to your
organization, they’ll listen to your reasons behind the development and maybe even change their position. It all begins with a community engagement plan that helps you hone in on the stakeholders you need to communicate with, connect with, and get involved. Plus, the outcomes you want and the strategies and practices that will help you achieve them. Involvement is a powerful part of community engagement. It empowers the community and helps them feel like partners, not bystanders. As a result, they’ll be more engaged, more understanding and much more likely to be on board with your vision. So, how do we encourage community involvement? We show that we genuinely want their input. Create opportunities for the community to actively participate in what we do, whether it’s an event, workshop, forum or something else. Demonstrate the benefits to everyone when we all work together. The theme for National Volunteer Week 2022 is we are better together. Volunteering brings people together; it builds communities and creates a better society for everyone. National Volunteer Week is a chance for all of us to celebrate and recognise the vital work of volunteers and to say thank you.
In this edition we bring you exciting and inspiring stories of hope, faith and determination after the two year turmoil we experienced globally. The team have once again shined in this issue and created an informative publication for our readers to enjoy. On the cover is our very own eYs Youth Ambassador Kristina Apostoloska who shares the pain and suffering that she endured during a very difficult time in her life aligned with the atrocities of the war in Ukraine. For all the aspiring writers our best selling author, entrepreneur and Podcast Host Marsha Casper Cooks shares some fantastic tips how to publish the right way. Clare Erasmus takes us deep into the foundation for emotional intelligence and you will have the ooprtunity to meet Elisabeth Eyl a talented and respected artist who introduces us to her passion and her love for art. We wish all our readers a great season filled with kindness and opprtunity for all.
Jasmina Siderovski CEO and Editor-in-Chief eYs Magazine
- Celebrate and thank volunteers for the vital role they play in our lives. - Acknowledgewhat is important by giving our time to help others and ourselves. - We are better together how we support our volunteers and the communities they help. eYs Global thank each of our volunteers for their hard work and dedication. We appreciate the dedication of all our volunteers and the wonderful, caring way in which they generously provide their time. “Happy National Volunteer Week to all eYs volunteers. The Foundation would not be possible without the help of this amazing team of people.” Join us as we recognise, celebrate, and thank volunteers for the vital role they play in our lives.
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EYS SDGS WORLD COUNCIL eYs
SDGs Rising STARS
At, eYs Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) World Council, we are keen to hear from children around the world. We want to know what we can do from a child’s perspective about creating a better world. It is in this way that we are opening up to our younger community in 2022, to hear the voices from children aged 8 to 18. If you are passionate about one of the listed SDGs and have an insight, a story or some writing you would like to submit for consideration for publication in our digital magazine, then we want to hear from you! Educators, if you know of students who are excited about making a difference in the world and would love to be part of a global community with other children their age, please be in touch.
GOAL 5: Gender Equality
What are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?
expressions of interest.
GOAL 1: No Poverty GOAL 2: Zero Hunger GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-being GOAL 4: Quality Education
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GOAL 6: Clean Water and Sanitation GOAL 7: Affordable and Clean Energy GOAL 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality GOAL 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities GOAL 12: Responsible Consumption and Production GOAL 13: Climate Action GOAL 14: Life Below Water GOAL 15: Life on Land GOAL 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions GOAL 17: Partnerships to achieve the Goal Contact the eYs SGDs World Council for
Clare Erasmus: clare.eysglobal@gmail.com Jasmina Siderovski: info@eysmagazine.com.au
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eYs CHILD eYs
CHLOE ISABELLA RAMOS CILIA
Magazine Child Ambassador for the SDGs
O
ur eYs Child Ambassador, Chloe Isabella Ramos Cilia is raising awareness toward the United Nations 2030 17 Sustainable Development Goals ensuring that our planet leaves no one behind. eYs Magaiine proudly supports the Global Goals and is working to educate and support our younger generation on the importance of achieving the goals. The Global Goals are a blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet now and in the future. We can all help Chloe and our children achieve the mission by working together gloabally
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putting children at the centre of the Sustainable Development Goals. All countries agreed on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, yet five years later, 250 million children are still at risk of not meeting their development potential. Child well-being is both an indicator and a foundation of social and economic development, and children are at the heart of the concept of sustainability. Which is why it is pivotal we implement policies in place and put children at the heart of our efforts to achieve the SDGs.
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EYS YOUTH
WAR IS NEVER THE ANSWER By Kristina Apostoloska eYs Youth Ambassador
March 14, 2001 Tetovo, Republic of Macedonia I was in kindergarten, almost 5 years old. I played carefree with the other children like every other day. Carefree, up to a point. When it all started. That whole damn period. When he instilled fear in our bones It was 3pm, and all the parents had picked up their children from kindergarten, except only mine did not arrive. They were not allowed to pick me up from school because they were employed by the barracks (The Army). Every time the door opened, I hoped in vain that maybe it was my parents who came to pick me up. I was sitting on the bench in the hallway, my backpack in my arms and in anticipation ... Suddenly, my neighbour showed up. He said he came to pick me up because mum and dad were at work. I am eternally grateful to him. He took me and hid me under the seat, a compartment where he normally carried ice cream with his old and ruined “Lada”. Days had passed in fear. But also, in hope 10 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
that everything will end quickly. The days when I had the opportunity to see my parents were rare. Every night my brother and I fell asleep hugging and comforting each other under the bed listening to the explosions. An experience that will remain unforgettable. Every new day, a new hope. Who will make up for the lost time we never spent with our mother and father while everyone else, the whole world went on vacation, picnics, and walks? My parents were at risk every day, they both ‘lived’ in my father’s office, in the barracks. While some were on holiday in five-star hotels. We suffered a lot of pain and loss: our car was shelled, and the biggest damage was the trauma we all experienced. Who will compensate us? Who will give us back our time? Thank God that the damage was only materialistic and that my parents were safe and sound. We all know very well how many had lost their lives. How many families remained blackened, how many children did not welcome their father’s home from work. Many other things remained unsaid, there was chaos of emotions. Do not allow our suffering to be repeated. War is never the answer. Preserve and love your homeland!
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LAW SOCIETY
DUE DILIGENCE REPORT
BASIS AND REVIEW OF LEGAL DUE DILIGENCE BY BOJANA BOGOJEVIC
In the present moment when all economies are facing recovery triggered by Covid 19 pandemic I strongly believe a proper explanation of Legal Due Diligence and its necessity for establishing, governing and better understanding of term is highly important. Many of you will upgrade your existing knowledge while others will be newly introduced. We will begin with corporate governance and legal advising. Due diligence is a term used in the Anglo-Saxon dialect to be used for all types of in-depth analysis. Currently, it is mostly used for a comprehensive analysis of the company that is the subject of a particular transaction. It is characteristic that there is no generally accepted and standard legal definition of due diligence. Lawyers would most often define it as a process of examination 14 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
and research by a potential buyer which would confirm that the buyer is buying exactly what he thinks he is buying. There are different types of due diligence reports such as: - Legal Due Diligence. - Financial Due Diligence. - Technical Due Diligence. - Commercial Due Diligence. - Operational Due Diligence. - Tax Due Diligence. Current corporate practice suggests that Due Diligence is one of the most important steps taken in the sales transaction process of a company, which only evaluates the sales contract from a financial, legal, and technical point of view. Its implementation is important for the company because it represents a security process that avoids the possibility
of intentional or unintentional misinformation of investors. By preparing the Due Diligence report, it is possible to avoid possible future disputes that may arise during and after the sale of the company. This is possible precisely because Due Diligence allows us to perform a valid analysis of a law firm before, during and after a particular business transaction. If Due Diligence is not implemented, the risk of the sale itself increases, which means that approaching the purchase of a company without a prior procedure of collecting relevant information can result in significant financial losses of investors (investors). Precisely because of all the above, every transaction in the sphere of business requires complete due diligence, because the international and domestic capital markets emphasize the
importance of transparency of business activities. Participants in the development of a due diligence are usually the seller or owner of the company, the buyer (investor), a company whose value and potential is the subject of due diligence analysis and business advisors. Business practice indicates that the process of making due diligence varies from a few weeks to several months depending on the preparation of participants, experience and coordination of business advisors. The production process itself takes place in phases that must be well organized and coordinated. Legal due diligence analysis focuses on all possible legal issues, on the analysis of all seller’s contracts with stakeholders. Legal due diligence can also
- Possible Disputes of the Company. - Other. L egal due diligence is the basis of the sales contract. Precisely because of this, legal due diligence advisors need to determine whether the persons selling the company, or its shares are indeed the legal owners of the subject of sale. A good Due Diligence check list is needed to make sure you don’t overlook anything when acquiring a business. The current business practice shows us that the awareness of the importance of due diligence is extremely low. For those who are aware of the importance of this analysis, there is a dilemma whether to hire a certain agency or to select specific experts for certain phases of the procedure. As someone with experience in making legal due diligence, I always opt for the second option, ie to choose experts for certain phases, because technically you do not know how much and what kind of experience have people who are available in agencies or that if you do not have this option before hiring an agency, ask well about the experts who are engaged in it. At the end I provide you Sample Due Diligence Request Checklist: - Organization of the Company - Ownership and Control of the Company
include the analysis of the entire industry to which the company that is the subject of the analysis belongs, as well as potential legal and legal problems. The analysis examines all contractual relationships of the company under analysis with stakeholders, such as customers, suppliers, employees, because these contractual relationships pose a potential risk to all future operations.
- Assets and Operations
Legal due diligence is central to the entire due diligence program. It forms the basis for the sale and purchase agreement. The legal part of the due diligence analysis team draws up a contract of sale, merger, or acquisition. According to Peter Howson, when drafting legal due diligence, the following data are reviewed and examined:
- Significant Contracts and Commitments
- Company Data.
- Intellectual Property - Reports - Compliance with Laws - Environmental Matters - Litigation - Employees, Benefits and Contracts - Tax Matters - Miscellaneous Please do not forget that Due diligence checklists are usually arranged in a basic format. However, they can be changed to fit different industries.
- Financial Data. - Data on Employees. - Data on Tangible and Intangible Assets of the Company. - Contractual Obligations of the Seller.
**Some parts of this Professional article are published by the Bar Association of Serbia, Long Term Economy portal in Italy, and several media outlets in Serbia.
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THE WRITTEN WORD
THE ILLUSION of SOCIAL NETWORKS By Maja Damjanovska Momiroska
“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” - Albert Einstein
My favourite quote from Albert Einstein. The whole world’s reality and truth “lies” in this sentence. Will we talk about the truth/reality, or the illusion hidden in it? Reality is just a kind of perception of the contrast of the world. What do we choose to soak up daily, along with our morning coffee, our morning awakening ritual, and the process of guiding the consistency of our thoughts? Regardless of whether we clear our mind through meditation or ascend to ordinary surrounding sounds, we sip a little of the first thing we read in the morning. Do you dose yourself carefully with everything you see at the beginning of the day? Or do you enjoy diving into the ocean of uncertain situations and internet portions carelessly served behind your clicks? The illusion of social networks, whether we like it or not, is an integral part of our daily lives. Can we avoid consuming it? Or, to put it more precisely, do we want to avoid the daily dose of illusion? I firmly believe that we are the creators of our lives, and therefore we all live under different definitions of life. The universe sends us signals, in various contours, shapes and forms, helping us to stay on our course of life. The whole of our manifestation and life vibration is our choice. Do we transfer it in the internet vacuum as well? No matter what the answer to my last question, every consumer here experiences us differently. However, the (un)real image created between the truth and the intention for a dazzling filtered and dribbled display is our conscious image creation. That much is clear. But I am curious to fully uncover and explore the impulse that is created in those who consume our image in the Internet mirror. Do we observe our self-knowledge through the prism of the online character we represent, or do we have a deeply expressed self-awareness and know exactly what we are creating? Do we love ourselves enough without filters, without likes and virtual applause? Are we creating magic or a fib? How much time do we spend creating virtual happiness and do we forget to enjoy the real pleasures? It seems that lately, raising awareness about mental health is gaining momentum in the world of social 16 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
media. I applaud the courage to talk about the fall as much as the climb because that is the truth. And I love the truth. The conclusion I came to from my internet observation is that one person eexperiences the fall as something gut-wrenching, whereas another looks at it as if jumping on a trampoline. And the new fall is just a new state of facing the earth’s gravity before rising again. Still, the laws of nature are the same for all of us. It is only our vibration that is different. A look at someone’s profile by several people paints a different picture. In fact, we all witness different realities. According to the latest data from January this year published at Data Reportal of a survey conducted on the target group of 16 to 64 years of age, respondents stated that their main reason for using the Internet is finding information (61%). Education and studyrelated reasons are at the low 10th place on this list, with 42.3%. Staying in touch with friends and family ranks second (55.2%) on the list of the most common reasons for using the Internet. The needs, desires, and interests of respondents to this research who were 18 years old, are certainly significantly different from those who are, for example, 60 years old. That difference must be taken into account in any further analysis. But what confuses me is that the same research shows that the top types of websites visited, and apps used are chat and messages (95.6%) in the first place, followed by social networks (95.2%). Education is in the 16th place (only 26.5%) on this list. Whether we like to admit it or not, social media has risen to the grassroots level. It has become the core of communications, the core of information, the core of social connections, the core of illustrations and frustrations. Not to be misunderstood, I have nothing against this fact. I am just looking for a rational way to deal with my own thirst for consumption. A multitude of people are so engaged with social media that they do not even have time to think about the impact it has on them. Unfortunately, we are witnessing many unpleasant events related to the young population
and the negative impact of social networks. The number of likes as a determinant of success, filtered images of beautiful places as a model for comparison with peers, affected smiles instead of real feelings… give birth to challenges (it is a word I use to describe a problem, but I call it a challenge) such as addiction or lack of privacy.
all that is described above. Here I use “be careful” in the sense of a responsible vigilance towards our child. Because our mind is both our parent and our child. It leads us to the path of self-knowledge as a parent, but the food we provide for it (what we read/see/think/ experience) should be selected carefully, as we would for our child.
The awareness of the illusory reality is the first step towards the liberation we need. That’s the essence we need - awareness, avoiding comparison except with our version of yesterday. But at the same time, it’s nice to keep in touch, rejoice in shared successes, or receive a positive vibe. I believe that we can live perfectly in this unlimited space of social media and internet relations if we have the wisdom necessary to use them. Information can be poison or food; it is our choice. If we embrace the philosophy that we should be careful with what we feed our minds, then we come out of the impasse of
Is it may be possible that during your self-care, you will come across someone who will tell you that you are selfish? That you pay too much attention to yourself, that you think too much about what to soak up with your mind, that are you too self-focused on yourself? Great! Selfishness means vibratory harmony with oneself. To understand all this, we must know who we are. The famous motivational speaker Esther Hicks explains that “self” is a source, “self” is purified positive energy, “self” is worthy, “self” is clearminded, “self” is healthy, “self” is full of vitality, “self “is eager about
life. We need to be selfish enough to care about how we feel. That is why it is important to know how to recognize that illusory reality. To know how to jump like a little child in the rain while reading and watching, while posting and telling stories, while admiring or maybe envying. To know how to go around the puddle while it is raining, but also to resolutely jump in one while preserving only the positive that our “self” needs. No matter how curiously we seek new horizons, to live only in our illusory reality. And after a period of working on yourself, outside of the goal of globally liking at the “cloud” space and achieving true satisfaction, if someone says, “You have changed”, hug them as tightly as possible and say, “Thank you so much”. That is precisely the point - to change, to grow daily unburdened by likes and unrealistic images. Because today’s world needs us pure, real, and self-aware.
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ENVIRONMENT
The Eco-Social Marriage By Marco Piemonte
Founder of Greenden Ltd and Green Heart Dignity Movement
Imma Grimaldi is “Wedding Planner “and “Vice President of the Association - We Can A.P.S” Onlus for autistic children. For years Imma has been supporting an eco-social project linked to the activity of Wedding Planner. Her ethical values push her to become a promoter of initiatives that protect the environment by combining tradition, nationality, telling the story of each individual people. The eco-sustainable wedding is a ceremony within the ceremony that allows you to transmit an important message to safeguard the planet to the guests, fully understood in Italy as in the green trends of recent years. The awareness of spreading the word sustainability through this action, involving a growing number of people, Imma actually takes care of every detail that it concerns the entire organization of marriage. 18 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
The Slow Flowers is perfect for organizing weddings in a sustainable way, using for example flowers that they respect the earth’s biological gold, or opt of the Slow Food for catering on fair and natural production strictly at 0 km, no intensive farming production, no use of additives e pesticides. Respect for the environment also concerns the choice of wedding invitations that can be made with of the recycled paper, or special paper that contains plant seeds or unconventional digital wedding invitation, but certainly more ecological. For wedding favors, Imma strongly recommends giving as gifts aromatic seedlings to spread the green thumb of the world. Imma choose locations surrounded by greenery that create a totally natural setting and he illuminate the environment using candles so as not to use
fossil energy. The role of the Wedding Planner is also to provide psychological support to future married couples before and during the event, reassuring them in moments of anxiety and concern that may arise due to unexpected natural events such as an earthquake (very frequent lately in Naples) or as happened in recent years with the Covid-19 emergency. The agency’s approach to future spouses is to provide them with a sound sustainable doctrine. The event in addition to the theme of sustainability was born with the aim of bringing as many people as possible to the theme of disability and in particular to autism and serious mental disorders, one sign, of closeness and sharing through the wedding ceremony that manages to break down barriers and to make everyone the same by introducing autistic people into the restaurant world.
The sum raised, after deducting the costs for the organization of the event, is donated entirely to the families of autistic children, to offer financial support to families who sometimes find themselves paying large sums to ensure therapy for their children. Imma is also part of the International Organization Green Hearts Dignity (founded in Italy in 2019 by Marco Piemonte) and is also part of the staff that organizes the Italian event called “The Sustainability March”.
https://www.immagrimaldiwedding.it email: immawedding@libero.it
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THE ARTS
Elisabeth Eyl Presents “Candies” of Art Story by Maya Apostoloska
I am very excited and honoured to introduce to you Elisabeth Eyl, an art historian and art collector, researcher, adviser, writer, exhibitions organizer, mother of Noa and grandmother of Saul. Elisabeth Eyl was born in Amsterdam and currently lives and works in Heusden, North Brabant in The Netherlands. She has studied History of art at The University of Amsterdam and finished her studies in 1988. She has worked in libraries and organizations of education. She is very passioned about art and over the last fifteen years she collects very unique ceramic the Bauhaus related art pieces. Elisabeth Eyl, would you like please to introduce yourself? I love art in every shape and form. As I am an art historian, the visual arts is my area of study and research. But I also love music and other performing arts. Music goes fastest to your heart. My son is a violinist, how beautiful is that! I am judgement-free: everything I immerse myself in becomes interesting to me. During my studies, I always wanted to become something else, in the chronological order of the examination material. While learning about archaeology, I wanted to become an archaeologist. When the Middle Ages came on the programme, I wanted to become a medievalist. And so on. Modern art grabbed me. Here was something unprecedented.
Elisabeth Eyl with Villeroy & Boch sugar bowl and Carstens teapot ©photo Bob Bronshoff
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Before, art styles followed each other naturally, as it were, and adapted to history. Modern art, from the second half of the 19th century, broke with this tradition. The public and art no longer related in a natural way. Another aspect that interests me is applied art. And then I come to the matter of my collecting area. Art movements of the early 20th century incorporated the living environment. The Bauhaus artists, for example, designed utilitarian
objects. There begins what we now call Design. When did you realise that you love art? Does something particularly happen in your childhood? I already loved art as a child. I remember visiting antiquarian bookshops with my father at the weekend. He was always looking for literature and special editions. I went to the art corner.
Cake platters from unknown factories, 1920-1930. Airbrush decorated with motifs of the type Kandinsky uses in his art. ©photos Elisabeth Eyl
I still have the little art books I picked out, about Picasso, Manet, Degas. My father would buy them for me. How did you fall in love with clay, and when did you start to collect art pieces? During a trip to the Bauhaus building in Dessau, designed by the founder of the Bauhaus, Walter Gropius, I noticed the ceramics of the Bauhaus. They are not very well known. We all know the architecture, the furniture, chairs, lamps of the typical Bauhaus design, but there is also Bauhaus ceramics. An interesting aspect of Bauhaus-related ceramics is that they are decorated. Therefore, for a long time it was not recognised as belonging to the Bauhaus. For the characteristics of the Bauhaus products are specifically that they are clean, without “unnecessary” decoration, the forms reduced to the essence. Ceramics turned out to be something of a niche, and that intrigued me. That is how I started collecting. I learn a lot by collecting. What is the most important to know about the Bauhaus movement? It is important to realise that Bauhaus was an educational institute. It was a school of crafts. There were workshops for wood, metal, textiles, and other materials as well as ceramic. Walter Gropius founded the Bauhaus in 1919. His manifesto states that the products of the Bauhaus should be of quality and available to everyone. That was one of the most innovative aspects of the Bauhaus, that everyone, rich and poor, was given access to modern design. The school was opened to women, which was very revolutionary at the time. Women from all over Europe came to the Bauhaus. They became leading designers in the fields of metal, textile, and ceramics. Why is Bauhaus revolutionary for the architecture and the fine art, especially for the ceramics? As far as the design itself is concerned, the revolution lies in the fact that the aim was to
Tea set by Zeller Manufaktur, Zell am Hamersbach, 1920-1930. Typical Bauhaus design. The teapot with flat top, decentralised lid and semi-circular ear is based on the prototype that Marianne Brandt designed in the Bauhaus metal workshop. Decorated with Airbrush. ©photo Bob Bronshoff
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develop totally new stylistic forms, which do not refer to anything that was already there. The pupils had to rediscover the materials, as it were, like a child, and from there discover how the materials can be applied. This is, for instance, how the idea of a tubular steel chair came about: unprecedented and totally new. The ceramic objects became earthy, the clay as a material was not ignored but elevated and the glazes allowed the clay to show through. The firing process was likewise allowed to leave traces on the final product. Something exciting happened to the Bauhaus related ceramics. To understand this, it is important to know that all Bauhaus students had to start the education with a propaedeutic year. The teachers included Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Johannes Itten, all artist painters. They taught painting and colour theory. They used new techniques, such as airbrush, in their artworks. This is precisely what we find on the ceramics of that time. Dozens of ceramics factories at the time set up workplaces for airbrush decoration. The paint was sprayed on the objects along templates. The elements of form are exactly like those in paintings by Kandinsky and Klee. Another decoration principle was the so-called dripping decor, a technique in which the glaze is allowed to drip. Through the use of airbrush and drip decorations, each object is unique. The cheerful tableware brought about a true revolution at the kitchen tables of the interbellum. Sadly, during the Nazi regime, all modern art was labelled Entartet, degenerate. This also applied to tableware. I discovered the shocking fact that the Nazi art laws penetrated into living rooms. The Bauhaus-related tableware had to be destroyed, expelled. Sometimes they went into hiding, in attics and cellars. So, it could happen that these forgotten crockery items, if they were not thrown away after the war, today end up on flea markets. Would you like please to describe us the Etalagemuseum project? Tea set by Margarete Heymann-Löbenstein. She was Bauhaus student, established her own ceramics factory the Haël-Werkstätten Geometric design, minimal decoration applied by airbrush, 1923-1933 ©photos Elisabeth Eyl
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During the first lockdown, related to the Corona pandemic, everything was closed, theatres, concert halls and museums. It gave a gloomy feeling. That’s when I got the idea to make a window museum in an empty corner shop. So, people could safely look at art from outside. The owner of the empty shop supported this idea and gave me the key. I filled the shop with ceramics from my collection
and placed signs with information. This was a great success! More shops wanted to participate. Thus, a Bauhaus Ceramics Route came into being in the small town of Heusden. The municipality gave me a little money to make a leaflet in which I described the route. Now, everybody in Heusden and surroundings knows about the Bauhaus ceramics! The owner of the bridal shop even designed a dress based on a cacao jug in my collection. Are there any other projects you have realised in the past? In 2019, the internationally celebrated Bauhaus year (one hundred years after the founding of the Bauhaus), I have organised a number of exhibitions with my ceramics. I also give lectures and publish on the subject. Why the Bauhaus pottery is like a “candy” to you?
Biscuit box from the factory Carstens Hirschau, 1932-1933. Airbrush design by Eva Zeisel. She was not a Bauhaus student, but the influence is unmistakable. ©photo Elisabeth Eyl
It makes me happy; I like the free shapes and colours. I love the art of the time. It breathes the spirit of freedom and innovation. Every time I discover an object, usually lonely displayed among a lot of trash on a flea market, I have the feeling that I must rescue it. In my collection, it will come out beautifully. I have found very interesting the online posts of you including cats. What the (black) cat means to you? The black cat has also become a “collector’s item” for me. It so happens that I always have had and still have a black cat as a pet. I enjoyed looking for images on which black cats are depicted. Well, that turned out to be an extensive project! The black cat takes me through art history. There is even a Bauhaus
One of the first acquisitions of Elisabeth Eyl, bowl by one of the Carstens factories, 1920-1930 ©photo Bob Bronshoff
Bowl by Marguerite Friedländer-Wildenhan. She was Bauhaus student and became leader of the ceramics workplace of the Bauhaus. In 1933 the Bauhaus was closed by order of the Nazis. Most artists (many of them jewish, as Marguerite Friedländer and her husband Franz Wildenhain) fled Germany. This bowl was made in Putten, the Netherlands, where she and her husband set up pottery Het Kruikje (The Jar), 1933-1940. Typical Bauhaus design, simple and with a leading role for the clay that shines through the glaze. For the contemporary viewer, this may seem very “ordinary”. But in those days it was revolutionary. ©photo Elisabeth Eyl
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Object in front is a powder box of Bavaria, 1920-1930. Decorated with Airbrush patterns. ©photo Bob Bronshoff Website: www.eylceramics.com Bauhaus en keramiek on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ bauhausenkeramiek
Part of the collection of Elisabeth Eyl ©photo Bob Bronshoff
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The Art Between the Words by Kez Wickham St George
It has often been a conundrum to me why some writers cannot feel the pulse of a poem or feel the passion when they read a book. It has puzzled me for many years, why folks just do not get that we began a sort of communication with cuneiform hundreds of years ago and look at us now. Of course there are many debates and opinions about the beginnings of humankind and his communication, So when I began to read than write as a child, I found myself dedicated to finding out the way humans have communicated over the years. I am an Author of many novels and a creative artist in different genres and have studied many modalities on these two skills. The English language for an example with so many meanings with using just one word, or why we have silent letters in the English language, totally fascinates me. As a tutor in ESOL (English as a second language) to many young impressionable Asian teenagers, they also found it difficult to wrap their minds let alone tongues around the English language, so to assist their understanding I bought art into the class, there was an immediate breakthrough in our communication. I then introduced mosaics which they enjoyed. Yet the lesson was to be mine, as these young ones taught me origami and paper cutting. We became united in teaching each other our countries different crafts, including cooking . From young faces that once expressed boredom we now had thirty or more students all willing to add their villages specialty of craft. The difficult part for me was the word Artisan or Artist? these young people certainly showed the us many skills. In later years I began tutoring the art of tourism to my clients, all artists in one way or another, the curriculum called for entrepreneurship. We reversed the learning, now the art or subject of art was written about to express and advertise what they were offering to the public and how to reach them or visit a studio to make sales. As I go deeper into Art therapy and Creative arts, I find myself agreeing with the professionals that Art can heal, there is an Art between our Words. Kez Wickham St George www.kezwickhamstgeorge.com
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BUSINESS
Helping Experts Monetise Their Experience Amit Sarawagi, Founder, AMOOLAYA Transformation Foundation, India. Experience counts; be it good or bad, planned or unplanned, transitory or enduring. When a person starts transforming experience into skills, it pays off. Often the most successful people in this world are the ones who know the art of sharing experiences at a lucrative price. Since the breakout of the pandemic in December 2019, most businesses around the world are experiencing a difficult time, but on the other hand, experts in various fields are enjoying great returns from their skills and experience. They are empowering businesses and individuals with niche expertise and enabling them to grow despite current challenges. How to weather the storm and how to convert challenges into opportunities are the top takeaways of the customised training programmes of popular thought leaders and influencers in the present time. A considerable amount of time in any field brings forth not just useful knowledge and learning but also equips the person with some unique expertise which inspires aspiring professionals, and they too show interest
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in acquiring them. As s/he has already overcome the challenges that others are still struggling with makes her/him a valuable source of learning and professional guidance. Today, social media is full of influencers and thought leaders who have a good fan following. And many such leaders are quite proactively promoting their skill enhancement courses and training programmes. Earlier, accessibility to accomplished trainers and thought leaders was restricted only to large businesses and people of the affluent class. With the onset of digital communication channels and the high penetration of smartphones, they can be accessed even by young jobseekers and students. On the other hand, the outreach of subject matter experts and industry leaders has increased by leaps and bounds after the mass popularity of digital communication platforms. Hence, even after offering services at a comparatively low price, their bottom-line growth is exponentially rising. Additionally, the following strategies are helping them grow further.
Choose the Right Medium The revenue of a training programme depends a lot on the reach of the experts. So s/ he should choose a medium of communication which allows high connectivity with the target audience. A less popular programme among the prospects does not ensure better returns. Ergo, all the topnotch mentors are switching to digital platforms and saving a huge amount of money. Moreover, their content is reaching to a larger audience and can be accessed multiple times. Affordable subscription fees, but the low delivery cost and a significantly large audience, enable experts to generate good revenue from the e-learning platforms.
Create a Niche As success is always linked to more competition, it is crucial for experts to reach and serve their audience, smartly and strategically. The better they analyse their expertise, the value of these expertises, potential learners, and market competition, the better they monetise their experience. People never hesitate to invest in learning which ensures
long-term growth. That’s why the course/training module should be very specific in purpose and must comprise solution-oriented lessons. Further, the trainer must focus on specific expertise to help people in a particular domain; a generic programme rarely entices the learners. Differentiate Yourself The coaching industry is flourishing like never before and the competition is getting tougher and fiercer every new day. In such a dynamic scenario only those experts who can position themselves differently are good at monetising their services. Like other businesses, experts should also have a strong unique selling proposition and special core competencies, and they must promote it strategically to keep them apart from others in the market.
Conclusion Although in many places’ technology is replacing manpower, the human contribution will always remain at the helm of organisation development. If humans are the customers of a business, a company’s priority should be its people. A workplace can be assumed without the workforce, but an organisation cannot be imagined without people, the precondition of a business. Professional development of employees, including up-skilling of the talent, is the dire need of every progressive business that wants to stay ahead of market competition. Amidst these circumstances, the role of experts increases manifold and that’s why coaching and thought leadership is emerging as one of the fastestgrowing industries across the globe.
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SPOTLIGHT
MARINA ANCEVSKA
Executive/Corporate Coach, NLP Master Trainer Award-Winning Business Entrepreneur, Master Trainer and Coach, Executive Coaching Programs for Leaders w. Holistic & Systemic approach, Corporate Team Coaching, Published Author, eYs-Magazine IWD Ambassador 2021
potential for achieving company goals better and for providing tangible improvements in individuals’ behavior, all based on long term experience both internationally and in Macedonia. Conference and Motivational speaker with distinct personality, one-of-a-kind aptitude to educate, inspire, enlighten and entertain audiences and apparent presence to authentically win the hearts & minds of people. TV and radio guest speaker and author of articles for magazines and national newspapers covering interesting topics about investing in personal and professional development.
Owner and CEO of the Center for Business Psychology, Systemic & NLP, South Eastern Europe The first NLP Master Trainer in the South East European region certified by America’s most renowned NLP University, directly from its founders, Robert Dilts and Judith DeLozier. Internationally recognized NLP Master Trainer with a unique style of training, inspiring and encouraging professional change people and personal life. Business and Personal Coach offering a sole combination of methods and techniques for energizing potential and engaging people to enhance performance, for learning and growth to achieve challenging personal development goals and business agendas, for targeting individuals’
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Creator of specific personal and professional programs – the Hero’s Journey® and the Energy Management® Writer, influencer and life changing coach to many individuals in their personal and professional life. In 2017 published the first book for personal development in Macedonia, written by a Macedonian author – the book entitled “Simply me”. Established an international platform for trainings and trainers – www.trainings4all. com. Established an international Youtube channel for Mindful Leadership – https://www.youtube. com/channel/UCev5iwhhRgEni-Ota1xnlRA.
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INSPIRE
THE WORLD REVOLVES AROUND YOU By Cosette Awad “Why am I different?” And I recall being told, “If there is a garden full of flowers and one flower stands out, which one would you choose?” I told her it’s the one that stands out the most. But now I understand more that some people may choose the ones that are identical, while others would prefer the one that stands out.
Everyone has an opinion, but that doesn’t mean they have the right to impose it on what we like, what we do, and what we want to accomplish in life. We live in a cruel society where people write hurtful comments on other people’s social media accounts, even if they have the option to skip if they don’t like it, but NO, people want to destroy others, which is sad, especially for individuals who really are exceptional and want to make the world better. We should do what we love if it doesn’t harm anyone else and brings us joy. You see, the world as we know it now is unhappy, and we are entitled to whatever happiness we can find. There’s nothing wrong with following trends, and there’s also nothing wrong with standing out. There is no such thing as wrong or right in this situation. People have been bullied for defying gender stereotypes, listening to K-pop, following trends, or simply being authentic among other things. There really is nothing wrong with coloring outside the lines or choosing to be like everyone else; but, there is something wrong with condemning others for being who they want to be. It’s unfair to live your life your way while dictating how others should live theirs. When I was a teenager, I recall asking my mother, 30 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
We grow and evolve, but I wish there were things we could teach children right now about embracing what makes them unique, and even teaching parents that if their kids are different to accept them the way they are. Because it would save so many of them from attempting suicide or sitting in a corner waiting for life to pass them by because they couldn’t stop themselves from being different. I wish we could teach those teenagers how to speak up for themselves.
Amin Jurdi (Mental Health Advocate) No, don’t do it, here it comes, verbal diarrhea also known as unwarranted opinions. Disgusting to be compared to, I know, but think about it, it is uncontrollable, it is sickening, and nobody asked for it. I suffered more times than I would like to admit from spilling my unwanted opinions, the cure for me was therapy. Pre therapy, I was opinionated and gulp did I stink (pun intended). My opinions mattered because I was the center of the universe, I had to share them because people need to know what I had to say, and it barely mattered the feelings I hurt because I was doing them a favor. BOO, I STINK. It all came from one ideology, perfectionism. I aspired to be perfect, so everything I thought and said was at that standard. During therapy, I went to perfection rehab, and came out as a reformed good enough-ist. My opinions still mattered, but everything revolving
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Abdallah El Sayegh
“Normality is a paved road: it’s comfortable to walk but no flowers grow.” – Vincent van Gogh. However, it’s hard to find another road when your nonconformity is considered a crime, taboo, or shameful, especially when you are also convinced of it and start to feel guilty about it! There is no doubt that I have always felt somewhat different from the rest of those around me in the family, school, or society, whether in the way of thinking or my aspirations and inspirations... But the turning point was when I was able to change my mindset from desperately trying to be like everyone else in order to be in a group so that I wouldn’t feel like an outcast, which could be a horrible feeling, to how I value myself as an individual and embrace my “uniqueness”.
around the formation and sharing of it changed. If I have nothing good to say, I remain silent. I am not the center of the universe, so I see the world in the eyes of others. Yes, that means that my opinion is not the only valid choice. If sharing my raw opinion is going to cause hurt, I stick to the truth behind it (no one wants pretty lies or ugly truths), but word the shit out of it, consideration and empathy are marvels to master. Finally and most simply, if they did not ask for my opinion, then who am I to impose it on them? Asking for someone’s opinion comes from the need to be justified or the need for validation, we almost always want what matches our own. I am happy to share that there is a cure in case you get verbal diarrhea, no it is not a pill, it is almost impossible action of remaining silent. Trust me, silence most times is the best answer.
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Since everyone has her or his own different problems and circumstances I’m not going to talk about the process based on what I had been through, but I can surely say that it was very long and tiresome ...That’s why I’m going to only share the outcomes of this experience... The journey definitely has no end, particularly when you rely on the people around you to feel that you’re “unique” and accepted at the same time, so it’s very important to be aware of your psychological abilities as a human being in a world where everyone is trying to impress everyone , and since bullying with destructive criticism are considered a tool to impress for some people, you should know that once you decide you want to be different a lot of people are going to try and destroy your authentic self, and why not? Even prophets had their enemies, right?
And Nietzsche once said:” Those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” So be insane my dear friend... I’ve personally found my way to create my own reality, only the words I choose can affect me, and I rely on no one to feel my value at all because I know that the moons, the planets, and the whole world revolve around the stars, and scientifically I’m made of stars, hence the world was, is and will always be revolving around ME...
Instagram accounts of: Omar Adawieh (Photographer) https://www.instagram.com/ adawieh_photography/ Violeta Gomez (Model) https://www.instagram.com/ vaiolet_gomez/
Amin Jurdi (Mental Advocate) https://www.instagram.com/amin. jurdi/ Abdallah El Sayegh: https://www.instagram.com/ abdallah.elsayegh/ Lilianny Oliveira Hamad https://www.instagram.com/lily_ oliveira_hamad/
Lilianny Oliveira Hamad Embrace the diversity...Will not harm you! This is what I carry on my mind since I started to have my own way of thinking. I can’t understand why is so hard for people to look beyond their own bubble. So we are meant to act and think the same way? Ridiculous, no way! The beauty of it rely exactly in this concept of billions of beautiful minds coming across each other and living a trail of knowledge, inspiration and motivation. But as humans, what we prefer to do instead is just to let go of this premise and ignore or reject anything that is not comfortable to us and see it as “abnormal” or labeled as “weird”. Yes, this is what the so called “rational animals” prefer to do. I will not dare to say that education starts from home and teaching tolerance is a big step for changing of mentalities. End of bullying is far from finished. The road is being paved the wrong way. We can’t go wrong if we just accept and respect even if we don’t agree. Go breathe outside, you might be surprised. Be yourself but let others also be themselves. 33 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
BOOKWORM
Independently Publishing The Right Way By Marsha Casper Cook If’ve been an advocate for independently published authors for years. However, only if you take the time to do it right. There are several steps that are required, but the most important is the story has to be good. Take time to write the story you want to tell, and don’t cut corners to save time. Take as much time as you need, and promise yourself you will not rush through your writing. Some authors are faster than others in getting out their stories, but this is your story, no one else’s. I have asked three extremely competent women to answer some of the questions that make Independent Publishing easier, Fran Lewis,Robin Surface and Melissa Smith.
Robin Surface is the
President/Owner of Fideli Publishing, Inc. She has a BA in Journalism, with a minor in creative writing. She has worked in various jobs in the printing/ publishing industry since 1985, including typographer, production manager for a national trade magazine, news reporter, weekend magazine editor, graphic artist, and book production/printing coordinator. Her specialties are book covers and text design. 34 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
Robin has helped hundreds of writers start their career the right way. Her knowledge about publishing is an author’s greatest tool. Her thoughtfulness and caring demeanor are an author’s greatest ally.
Why did you decide to become an independent publisher? And is there a difference between the term self-publishing and independently publishing? I originally worked for another publisher, but that turned out to be a scam business. Once I realized what was going on, one of the other women in my department and I decided we could do it better and in a legitimate way. So, we worked on a business plan, decided on a name, and created a logo, then talked her husband into renting one of his buildings to us at a reduced rate. Several of the other people we worked with at the
other place joined us. Self-publishing, to me, means the author is doing everything to get their book published themselves. Independently publishing, my definition again, is the author keeps control of every aspect of the process, but pays professionals to help out with things like editing, cover creation, text formatting, and even setting up accounts with IngramSpark, Amazon, etc. This is what Fideli does. We provide the services, and oftentimes the guidance,
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authors need to get their books done professionally and made available to the public.
Before an author decides to independently publish their book, what steps should they take before they come to you to make their experience easier for both of you? At minimum, the author has completed the manuscript and is done making changes. At that point, I recommend an editor. The author could also find their own editor and come to me once the editing process is complete. Authors should never submit files they are not finished with. This creates confusion and can result in the wrong file being used when the book is formatted. We don’t need to see the manuscript before it’s finished.
If they don’t follow your advice and try to cut corners, what might make them less successful? Authors who use friends (non-professionals) as editors usually end up with a book that isn’t all it could be. Professional editors are just that - professionals. They do this for a living and are good at their jobs (they wouldn’t stay in business long if they weren’t). Nancy from down the street is not qualified to edit your book, even if she’s an English teacher. Yes, editing is relatively expensive - but it’s worth it! The same goes for cover creation. Your book’s cover is its first impression. You don’t want that impression to be a bad one. Illustrators and graphic artists are also professionals, and what they can do for your book is so far above and beyond what friends, relatives, and people with no experience creating book covers can do for you. It’s the difference between your book looking like a high school English report and looking like a best-selling book.
What’s your advice on choosing a cover for their book as well as a description and tag words? Book covers are important. Your cover should be appropriate for its genre. Readers expect a 36 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
certain look, and you need to be sure you deliver. For example, I have an author who writes action/ adventure books. He insisted that a crayon drawing be the cover for his first book because it had sentimental value for him. It was a terrible idea, as far as attracting reader attention. Action/ adventure readers expect to see action hero-types, guns, planes, etc. on the covers of the books they choose. Eventually, when he saw that sales were non-existent, he relented and allowed me to make an appropriate cover for him. His sales picked up immediately - even though nothing else about the book had changed. The description is the second thing potential readers see. That description needs to be dynamite! It needs to be the best salesperson it can be for your book. It’s a good idea to have a tagline (like you see for blockbuster movies), then a short paragraph that hits on all the high points of the story. Shoppers will most likely make through both of those things before moving on, so they need to be spot-on. Most authors I work with complain that writing these two things is harder than writing the book! Once you’ve done that, you can use additional paragraphs to expand on what you said in the first. Just remember that most people won’t read more than about 3 paragraphs, and you don’t want to retell the book - you want to tease the reader and make them want to know more.
Tag words are not just single words. (I had an author who insisted that you could only use one word.) Think of this more as key phrases containing keywords. You want to think about what phrases you would use to search for a book like yours when shopping for something new to read. You can also research the words used by other books that are similar to yours by exploring on Amazon. These are important because Amazon gives you more “points” when people reach your book’s page using a keyword/ phrase you’ve listed in your dashboard, and this helps your Amazon ranking.
Do you advise them what to do as far as marketing when their book is finally ready to publish? Marketing is a tricky thing. There are so many companies out there offering to make your book a bestseller. The rule of thumb I follow is, if it sounds too good to be true - it almost always is! There is no one thing you can do to make your book a bestseller, unless you suddenly become a national celebrity. There is a huge amount of behind-the-scenes work required to drive people to your book’s product pages. Marketing can be overwhelming, so I recommend starting at the local level. Make sure your local newspaper, magazine, TV and radio stations all know you’ve written a book and are available for interviews. Offer to speak at club meetings, the chamber of commerce, schools, etc. Basically, you need to get out there and create buzz regarding your book. Once you’ve mastered the local level of things, then you’ll be better prepared to enlarge the circle of
influence. Just keep doing that and building on what you’ve done, and eventually you’ll have a nice network built up.
Do you think authors believe that just by publishing a book they automatically should be having sales or do they need help to get there?
know your book exists when it’s buried in those other million books published this year? That’s what marketing does, and it’s a constant thing. You can’t just do one thing and expect that momentum
There are millions of books out there and that number grows by about a million each year. The act of “publishing” your book, i.e., making it available for sale online and elsewhere, does not mean you will have sales. How would anyone even 37 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
BOOKWORM
, but you also can’t be obnoxious about it. Just
screaming, “Buy my book!” isn’t effective. You have to provide people with interesting/useful information (when posting on social media, etc.) or give them a glimpse into what it’s like being an author (interviews, etc.). If you’re not willing to put in that work and keep at it, then you’re not going to have big (or possibly any) sales numbers.
Can a new author have a good career in writing if they choose to go the independent route? There are independent authors who have made careers from their writing, but they have worked darned hard to make that happen. While it may have looked easy from the outside, most independent author success stories involve a lot of rejection, hard work, ingenuity, and even more hard work. If you want to make a career of writing, you need to approach it like a business. Create a business and marketing plan, and make it extremely detailed so that you have a step-by-step guide for what you need to do to make your dream a reality - then 38 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
change things as you go when you find out that some of the things don’t work well for you. The plan should be fluid enough to change when needed. Research everything. Learn how the publishing industry works, learn how marketing works, gain an intimate knowledge of social media and keep up with the trends there. Don’t make assumptions about anything - you’ll just end up being frustrated when things don’t work the way you thought they did. Writing the book is just the first step, so be prepared to work hard to achieve your dream.
Melissa Smith is an editor who is dedicated
to helping new authors, especially Independently Published authors. She is also a new author who
likes to write steamy romances and strange sci-fi. Her writing interests are almost as diverse as her reading interests. She currently writes Contemporary Romance, Sci-fi Romance, and YA Sci-fi. Her YA Sci-fi series was written for her younger sister, but she’s enjoying writing those stories just as much as her others. Melissa has recently included helping authors increase their sales with excellent suggestions to help them market more efficiently. She also understands that new authors need help, and that’s exactly what she does in a very kind, unassuming way. As authors create their media packages, what Melissa teaches them is how to brand themselves in a very competitive marketplace. Her patience and understanding is just what new authors need. She also has clients that are established authors who also need a marketing plan. When she’s not editing, writing, or proofreading for others, she’s reading fiction books, whether it’s romance, paranormal, suspense, or sci-fi.
When a new author comes to you for help as to where they begin, what advice do you give them? It
all depends on where they’re
at in their author journey. Starting out is hard, no matter how far you are, so if this is their first book and they’re trying to establish a social media presence, you can never start too early. Start advertising any teasers you can, talk about your writing process, join reader groups, start your own, and even
join parties if you can. If you can make some bookmarks or even offer ebooks in giveaways to entice readers to stay and support, use it. Find other authors who write similar genres and see what sorts of things they’re doing and if you can use any of their techniques to help you grow. Don’t ever be ashamed of asking for help. This process is hard, time consuming, and costly, and if you can get some help from friends at no cost, take it! We’re all in this together and want to help each other succeed. I’ve been working closely with some authors who have multiple books published but little to no social media presence. They don’t know what to do or how to get readers. So far, Facebook Groups seem to be where people are and that’s been what works for me and my friends, so I recommend starting a group, making weekly interaction posts that you can schedule ahead of time, and if possible, try joining in on parties and hops because readers love freebies and games! Yes, it can take a lot of work to plan all that and manage it, but it’s worth it when you start to build a following and have faithful readers who can then join your beta and ARC
teams to help you grow.
How important is good editing? In this day, I’d say it’s pretty important. Now, this depends on who you ask as well. Personally, I don’t care if a book has errors, I read for the story, not the perfection. I have, however, seen readers and reviewers dock stars, complain, or even bash authors for errors in their books. And it’s not easy to find good editing when the English language constantly changes, so many things are up to the authors discretion too, and it can be hard to be 100% accurate. Should you find someone or multiple people to help you edit, if you can, yes. Definitely, because the cleaner and more professional your book seems, the better it tends to do. You also want help editing for your flow and word choices. You want the book to flow naturally, the story to feel comfortable and not forced. If your writing is too choppy and awkward, it could deter people, so having someone to point out those issues and help you find a better way to reword things can 39 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
I also recommend sharing about the book. If you start sharing teasers, cover reveals, and even setting the date of release can be a huge push for some people to get that book done. If other people know that it’s in the works and are talking about it, begging for it, it can push you to keep going for them. It can also make it feel more real. Sometimes, when you’re writing a book, if you’re the only one who knows it’s in the works, it can make you feel as if you can pretend it isn’t there, so if you slack off, who cares, right? If you announce it, share it with people, then you have that push, those reminders that you’re working on something that the people want to see.
How important is a marketing plan, especially when the author is on a very tight budget?
be extremely helpful. Writing a book is tough because you don’t want to be too smart and use too many big words and overly complicated phrasing, but you don’t want to write too simply or use small sentences and make the readers feel dumb. There’s a middle ground that you have to find and stick with, so having editors or even beta readers to help you establish your voice is incredibly helpful.
When an author is not ready to publish, what kind of help can you give them so they finish their book? I’m always happy to help my clients with plotting, bouncing ideas, or anything else they may need to get through. Sometimes they simply need someone to message them regularly and ask how it’s going. Sometimes they need to bounce ideas and get opinions or suggestions. Sometimes they just want someone to read what they have and make sure it’s flowing because they’re feeling a little unsure. A little encouragement and cooperation can go a really long way. Having a friend or colleague to bounce ideas off of or get opinions from can be a huge help, I know it is for me.
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So, I’m kind of an oddball in the sense that I have no plan, I just do what I can. I have a very tight budget and will utilize any options that I can for free to get by because starting out, you make so little. Having a plan is probably very beneficial for those who like to be planners. For me, the most planning I do is a week at a time and when to post certain things. I write down when I will share what teaser, which review post, advertise for another author, and so on. I tend to watch the other authors around me to see what they are posting and how I can use their ideas for myself, if at all possible. Being proactive and making an effort to put yourself out there makes all the difference, but with the way things change so rapidly on social media, it can be impossible to plan more than a week at a time. Even this morning on TikTok, the song I was going to use for a video left the trending list within minutes of me making my video and was no longer there. You have to be willing to be adaptable and change your plan and try new things to stay visible to your readers. If you aren’t willing to change your ways and try something new once in a while, you’ll fade to the background and never make it. It’s the awful reality of this business. That being said, try to plan what you can, but leave wiggle room for adaptability and prepare to toss old ideas and create new ones regularly. Be willing to make new graphics, change up your image, refresh your posting
style now and then to be eye-catching. Just don’t lose yourself in the trends and forget what you’re really about.
down by reviews that they feel like failures. Just because I struggled with the book doesn’t mean others will too. Some people may absolutely love the books I struggle with.
A new author may be very sensitive to criticism. What advice do you give them to encourage them? I struggle with this myself, so the best advice I’ve been given and continue to share is to take what you can from it. Learn what you can and grow, but don’t wallow in the negatives. Sometimes you’ll get negative reviews or a reader comes after you for something, but you have to take a second, analyze the issue, and discern what you can learn from it and do different next time. You can’t please everyone, so don’t even try. If you aren’t willing to at least try to learn and grow, you’ll struggle, as an author, as a person. Everything changes, so must you. If someone advises you to add more dialogue, add more description, tone it down a bit, whatever, take that openly. Take some time to soak it in and think about what changes you might be able to make, then take a look at your work and try to see what they mean, see if you can adjust to fix said issues. If you really just can’t, get help from someone who is willing to teach you and work with you. Sometimes, even ranting to a fellow author or friend who understands can help you get out the frustration over a criticism before you handle it. I’ve done it before myself, ranted to my PA and best friend about reviews and talked it through with her before
deciding whether or not it’s a critique worth utilizing or ignoring. Not all criticisms are worth your time, some of them you will ignore and move on, and that’s okay too. You have to do what is best for you and your books.
I also prefer not to recap the book. The book has a description to tell the readers what it’s about, so I feel my review should highlight the good things about the book without recapping. I try to point out the things I loved, like how it made me feel everything, the characters are relatable and worth falling for, or the plot is unpredictable and makes you devour the story. I don’t want a recap when reading reviews, I want to know what you genuinely thought.
Fran Lewis is an avid reader
and an accomplished book reviewer. She worked in the NYC Public Schools as the Reading and Writing Staff Developer for over I’m a very open reader. I like most 36 years, and has three master’s genres and writing styles, I’m not degrees, and a PD in Supervision picky or overly analytical, so for and Administration. Currently, me, it’s easy to rate a book 5 stars. she is a member of Who’s Who If the book made me feel, sucked of America’s Teachers and Who’s me in and made me keep reading, Who of America’s Executives from I genuinely enjoyed it and did Cambridge. Her talents didn’t not struggle to keep reading, it’s stop there because she also was definitely worth 5 stars. If I was that the musical director for shows in into the book, the author clearly her school, and ran the school’s worked hard to make sure we newspaper. would devour it, and that’s worth it.
In reviewing books, what is the criteria you use in your review process?
If the book has an abundance of story inconsistencies, is difficult for me to read, or I struggle to follow the story, I may take a star or two off, but I will always write something positive with my critique. “This book was a little slow, difficult for me to get into, but the romance is sweet and heartwarming.” Something like that. I don’t want authors to get so beat
Fran has authored 14 books and is the editor of a very successful publication, MJ Magazine. Fran named the magazine in honor of her late sister, and she also has published several books about Alzheimer’s in honor of her late mother. Fran has her own Podcast on Blog Talk Radio, as well as a well-known 41 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
What are the most important criteria, in In todays’ market, should an author your opinion, for you to give a positive pay for a review? review? I will not charge an author for a review. I enjoy In order to create a positive review, I need to read the author’s novel with a critical eye, focusing on the characters, and if they are believable, provide substance to the general plot, and if the plot flows in a way that allows readers to easily understand the storyline. If it’s a murder mystery, the author has to have knowledge of how these cases are processed by law enforcement, and the events related have to be credible and correct. The plot has to flow, and the twists and turns have to add to an ending that will make the reader want more of the main character and the author’s work.
How does an author choose a reviewer? I receive requests for most of my reviews from the publisher or publicist that is promoting this author’s title. At times, an author that has requested a review in the past will ask for another one for a new title. It also depends on the genres the reviewer will review.
reading different types of books and helping to promote their work. I don’t feel I want to charge for my opinion.
If you feel the author isn’t up to par for a good review, what do you do to help them? If I don’t think the book yields a positive review, I won’t review the book. I will not plan an author’s work, but I will, if asked, give them some reasons why the plot needs more action, the main character needs to be more credible, and the book might need better editing or content editing. When all is said and done, I hope you come away with the feeling you can do it, because you can. Writing isn’t easy, but it can and should be fun. The reader wants a good story, so give them what they want and they will come back for more.
How important is a book review? A book review that presents a positive or even at times some positive criticism can help an author understand what readers want and what they think this author offers in his/her work. Negative reviews that boast an opinion should be ignored.
If an author gets an unfavorable review from another reviewer, what is your advice to them so they don’t take it to heart and stop writing? For the most part, reviewers tend to be fair, but an author should stand by his/work and not let a negative review tarnish your ability to keep writing.
How does an author know that the reviewer actually read their book? When a reviewer sends you a review that includes plot points, character actions, and important elements in the novel, you know they read it. They also include the messages you are trying to convey. But if a reviewer quotes the back cover or says the book is awful, I never should have read it, or even, it’s a good book but the review has no substance, they never read it. You can also tell if they copied another person’s thoughts.
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Interview by Marsha Casper Cook
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DECORATE
RENEW
By Pamela Dalseno LOU LOU LIVING
Here we are in the New Year 2022 still working our way through the forever changing new normal of the Pandemic Covid-19 and variants. Our year here in Australia also has begun with the tragic devastating floods of our southern states with the hardship ahead to begin all over again for so many. The news of war erupting with Russia invading Ukraine has found us feeling anxious of what is ahead, the news shared has been sadness felt by all as we perhaps feel like the world is spinning out of control. I just can’t imagine the terror to be in such a position and my heart feels overwhelming sadness. To hear and view all of these tragic events has impacted and makes us feel grateful for our own goodness and survival. Time is really our gift and we must continue to be mindful to live each day to our full ability. It appears as we move forward into 2022 renewal, that it is not only a thought forward in our life with the changes to us personally as we leave the past behind and step bravely forward to what may be, but also this can incorporate our own lifestyle (our home accommodation, our haven to find our own peace) of which can be adjusted to a new styling from a previously tired decorating scheme and to give us pleasure once again. It gives a whole new meaning of forward by creating a new surrounding which can simply and perfectly make 44 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
a space become alive with Renewal. Surely that can bring newfound happiness. RENEW can give such positivity as we all wish to step onwards, just to have love, smiles, kindness and comfort in our ever changing surroundings? The difference can so clearly bring happiness and pleasure to you and your home. It’s a thought ahead perhaps, even if it is small changes. No matter what happens in our life, if we are fortunate enough to have a home base where we feel protected and can find peace we are surely blessed. This year 2022, Lou Lou Living was approached by a lovely married couple Judith and Kevin Jacobsen who live in Townsville, North Queensland, Australia asking if Lou Lou Living would provide some changes with their much loved furniture pieces to help them achieve the change of surrounds envisaged in their home. They were ready for change and new vision ahead, to RENEW some of their surrounds. Lou Lou Living Introduces to you Judith and Kevin. The first that was noticed about this couple was the energy and love that they wished to further build into their home. There was a desire for a fresh new styling where it could be enjoyed by them both and their extended family. Lou Lou Living could easily see that family is important to them and
we had met previously through one of their daughters who also had discovered Lou Lou Living for Upstyles. It is perhaps when the seed of changing their own loved furniture pieces or when the thought did happen to eventually make this change.
Lou Lou Living introduces to you Judith and Kevin Jacobsen. Did you feel anxious with entrusting your own furniture into the care of changes with Lou Lou Living? Pam and Richard from Lou Lou Living were very welcoming and made both of us feel comfortable right from the very first point of contact. You could tell both were a very special couple who enjoy their hobby of upstyling and have years of experience with quality results with their own flair and
craftsmanship. We weren’t anxious or concerned at all with leaving our furniture with Lou Lou Living as I knew it would be well cared for and was in capable hands. We and our daughter have bought a few pieces of upstyled furniture from Lou Lou Living so we knew the craftsmanship would be excellent. You could tell that a lot of care and love were put into creating a new look to these pieces that had been upstyled. We are continually browsing their Facebook page looking at what new creations Lou Lou Living have created in the hope that something in particular catches our eye that will fit that place in our homes to showcase in a suitable space. We have other furniture which we would love to transform as well and have no qualms with asking Pam and Richard if they could upstyle for us.
Before any preparation, Lou Lou Living like to discuss and impart our own knowledge of Upstyling, so did you feel confident about that so the changes would be met with your approval? Pam discussed the different types of upstyling both she and Richard do and gave me the option of which style and which tone of white that we wanted as we learnt that there are many whites and it is important to choose the tone of white that will best suit in your home. We were also invited to their home to view different styles they had previously created so we could see the different finishes that could be created to give our furniture a whole fresh appearance in our home. Just by viewing other upstyled furniture and the quality of work we knew we had made the right decision coming to this lovely couple. We had a specific idea in mind
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At first (myself Judith) wasn’t sure that Kevin would agree with these changes as he can be a little old fashioned perhaps more traditional and set in his ways at times. So, when I approached him and told him that I wanted to have these pieces of furniture upstyled I was surprised and thrilled that he agreed with me. We discussed what changes we wanted and what look we envisaged ahead. We had a vision to lift and lighten up our kitchen, dining and family room area which all flowed in together. As our kitchen is quite large and is constructed of New Guinea Rosewood, we previously had the timber look everywhere to blend in with our kitchen. We wanted something that would still blend in but make the other areas look fresh and bright, and to allow a fresh new energy into the rooms and blend with our interior furnishings. We watched the room transform with each piece of furniture as they were completed and bought home was an amazing experience. Right from when we bought the very first completed piece home we knew immediately we had made the right decision and the end result would totally transform our house into a more modern contemporary fresh styling. As each piece was dropped off and collected from Lou Lou Living, we grew more and more excited watching the changes. We have had nothing but positive comments from both family and friends on how good it looks and how it has totally transformed our home and what a fantastic and amazing job this lovely couple have done to our furniture. 46 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
lovely couple have done to our furniture. We are now in the process of redecorating the walls with freshly styled family photos and pictures to complete the fresh new look that’s been achieved. Having this transformation has really bought the excitement of decorating back again.
Mum and Dad, we would have a cup of tea at the dining table then sometimes sit in the lounge to chat about family and other topics. Mum and Dad loved hearing what my family had been doing as there was never a dull moment and bought many laughs to them. Where I
Pam and Richard knew this We thank you Pam and Richard, for all your hard work, love and care which has been created into transforming our furniture into the styled look that we wanted. We are over the moon with the new look and could not have wished for a better outcome.
Lou Lou Living is aware that one piece of furniture has a special place in your heart. Please could you share that and what it means to you? I (Judith) recently lost both of my parents. My Mother passed away first and then 10 months later I lost my Father. When we lost Mum, I spent a lot of time taking care of Dad and when I previously sat and talked to Dad in his lounge room he always spoke to me that when he goes he wished me to inherit Mum’s China Cabinet.
new styled look. Even though it may be different now, it is still the same piece of furniture that was loved by my Mother and I knew if we went and bought all new furniture, we would not be able to find furniture that would match her cabinet and I could not part with it so this was an easy choice to transform it instead of selling or giving it to a complete stranger.
Lou Lou Living. In conclusion it’s been wonderful to be trusted and an honour to create the changes for Judith and Kevin. This may be a hobby for us but we do take it very seriously and provide the best possible result as if each piece belonged and was treasured by us. I hope that both of you, Judith and Kevin have enjoyment with these loved pieces of furniture ahead and the space now created in your home by the changes of RENEW.
sat, I was facing this cabinet and remember always looking at it thinking it was such a lovely piece of Thank you for allowing Lou Lou furniture and looked lovely with their Living to be involved with creating loved collectables proudly displayed that in your home and to approve there.
This is a special piece of furniture to me as my Mother loved this cabinet and proudly displayed her and her late Mother’s (my Grandmother’s) precious crockery and crystal in there as well as the special pieces collected that meant the world to her.
When Dad passed, I took the cabinet as per both their wishes and bought it home with me. I now have this cabinet where I still am able to look at it every day and remember all the wonderful special memories and times that I shared with my parents.
In the past when we visited
love how it has transformed into this
of this publication.
To Jasmina, our Team and readers of this fabulous magazine, Lou Lou Living looks forward to our next submission further in 2022. Till then, keep well, happy and safe. Remember it’s important to create and have purpose with your happy place and safe haven, especially I was a little concerned at first about during this tumultuous time we are changing the look of this cabinet but presently living through.
Pam x 47 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
CREATE
AUTUMN in TOOWOOMBA By Anita Rachelle Roe is created in the Rachelle Roe Studio as I am in the midst of planning my next portraiture and jewellery shoot as we speak. I have decorated my studio with bright flowers and put up my sheer curtains for soft, natural light. Having my own studio means that I have a permanent setup, ready to go whenever I wish to utilise my beautiful space. My studio has a peaceful aura and I often find myself poking my head in the door just to enjoy the vision of what I have personally created.
Welcome to another edition of EYS Magazine and a new season. I absolutely love Autumn in Toowoomba. The garden city is striking green after all the rain and the falling of the Autumn leaves and camelia petals are a spectacular display in our parks and gardens. Our new home bursts into song thanks to an array of native birds in our bushy backyard. Nestled in our yard is also my beautiful photography studio which I can’t wait to bring to life. The studio was an added bonus and is absolutely perfect in every creative sense. We recently experienced very heavy rainfall and flooding in the region and I was very relieved to find my studio is water tight and remained high and dry. You won’t have to wait long before you see what 48 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
With the new season comes some new designs, I have taken to the canvas and created some acrylic artwork which I transform into wearable art jewellery the biggest reward. As Samantha Wills wrote only yesterday “as brand founders, we need to be seeking the outcome of authenticity, not perfection as it cannot be tangibly quantified”. These words rang true to me in every sense. Working with the acrylic artwork honours my values of providing my clients with a piece of my heart and soul in every jewellery design. I am excitedly working on my “Jewellery Box Collection”, which are sets of mix and match jewellery, including rings, bracelets, necklaces and various styles of earrings in the same colour palette. These sets are becoming quite popular. When the fashion news broke that 2022 is the year of statement jewellery, my heart skipped a beat and I literally jumped for joy. My beaded tassel pieces fit the brief perfectly and all my bright and beautiful beads can be layered to achieve the latest looks. Layering jewellery is an art in itself and I marvel at the combinations
I see on the catwalk and covers of the fashion magazines. My style of jewellery designing has certainly changed over the last nineteen years, however I am still often drawn towards some of my earlier pieces, with a modern twist. All in all, it seems to work and I am blessed to have a strong cluster of returning clients. There is nothing more rewarding than receiving a message within minutes of posting a new design online, to hear that it has found a new home. The time and energy it takes to create a piece of jewellery is rewarded tenfold when I see my clients happy with their Rachelle Roe jewellery designs. I am blessed to have been born with creative flair in my blood, which I believe is from my Mother’s ancestors. Photography, sewing, art and cooking have been embraced over many centuries and I enjoy hearing such stories from my family. We are all born with a purpose and a talent, and there is honestly no better feeling than unleashing that passion creatively. Working part-time has allowed me to honour my passion and provides me with the necessary time to plan ahead and design unrushed. I hope you have enjoyed learning a little more about my creative side and what drives me to design my unique jewellery. Wearable art, from my heart. Until next time, take care, and should there be thoughts and dreams fluttering about your heart, don’t waste a minute longer and bring them to life.
Sincere wishes from the desk of the Rachelle Roe Studio. https://rachelleroe.com.au 49 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
SO TELL ME … Founder of Sunrise Well Ruth Kent By Natalie O’Connor
I had the privilege to sit down with Ruth Kent recently. She created Sunrise Well, a wellness company focused on supporting individuals and corporations to assist in the promotion of health and personal development. Throughout our discussion Ruth’s passion for what she does, her wealth of knowledge and her drive to assist others shines through. I found it fascinating seeing how her journey through study, life and developing a strong sense of herself led her to dedicate her life through her business Sunrise Well. Hi Ruth. Thank you so much for being here. You are the owner of Sunrise Well, a wellness company focusing on health and wellbeing for individuals as well as for corporations. You are a coach, meditation and a yoga teacher. You however started off studying a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, and Art History. How did you get from there to Sunrise Well? Yeah, wow. That’s a big question, isn’t it? Yeah, but a great question though. It’s a really good question. Let me think back, I guess I always had an interest in what motivates people, what makes them tick. Prior to my studies, I learned to meditate when I
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was 15, it was just sort of a combination of events that led me to be in the right place to learn meditation at a time that it wasn’t popular or even common for people to really do so. From 15 until now, I’ve taken that skill with me basically my whole life. I think that also inspired me to start looking at the way people live and understanding that there’s a lot more below the surface than what you see when you meet people. I guess I always had that natural curiosity around what makes people tick. So that kind of led me down the path of psychology. I also had this interest in art from high school and I also have a really creative side. So, I was interested to see what the great painters and the great artists did through history. I think it wasn’t until the end of my degree that I really got a sense of what I wanted to do with my life and that it was around health and wellbeing and bringing in that whole aspect of looking deeper. So, the psychology really helped with that because it helped me to understand what was underneath a little more and that we all have these motivations behind what we are doing. Towards the end of my first degree, I started doing study around health, sociology and population health behavior and then I decided to go into public health. I went into post-graduate public health studies and I just really got into more of the population behavior,
the cultural understandings of why certain groups of people will choose some things over other things, and why certain people won’t do certain things and what the motivations are there and how we can shape our policies and design of the world to encourage people to do the right thing for their health and improving their health behaviors. I went into education from there. I was always interested in helping people learn or to grow or develop in some way. Having said that, through my 20s, I didn’t have the confidence to do anything other than sort of work for other people and it took a long time for me to build up my confidence and hone in on what I felt my passions were. I don’t think they were entirely evident to me in my younger years and so it was really my 30s that I started to think about my development and I think I really had to develop myself first before I could consider creating anything like Sunrise Well.
long after that event my husband had to undergo open heart surgery for a congenital heart defect. So it was a really big year for me. That’s where the idea that with each day there is a new possibility, a new chance, it’s a new sunrise and we have these precious lives to live and today is the day. It’s not going to be tomorrow because we don’t know what’s happening tomorrow, so let’s take it now and build on what we have where we are. So yeah, that’s where it all started. I can see that taking that time and the journey you did take was important as there was nothing like what you are doing now back then. There was no such thing as “positive psychology”. Back then, there was not this space
that there is now, so I can see that sort of interweaving all the art, the history, public health, yoga and meditation to find your way to where we are now. Yeah. Exactly. When I was moving through the degree in Psychology, I kind of moved along in there and I thought, hang on, I don’t think I have the right personality for this, it doesn’t suit me because the way I saw it going forward, I didn’t see myself being able to fit in to being able to sit with people who are not well and really need that support. Years later coaching psychology came along and also positive psychology and I thought, okay, so this is where I could see myself fitting in, getting those old pieces of psychology and bringing them back in. It was really inspiring, really cool.
In my 30s was when I really dove into yoga and meditation a lot more and started exploring and self-coaching, going through some coaching with other people and being coached myself to see my own possibilities and what I might be able to do and what my actual authentic truths are within myself. From there Sunrise Well was created. Then in 2013, I had a couple of events that really kind of gave me that push. I had a couple of big life moments that made me realize that if I don’t start doing something, it’s just not going to happen. In that year I lost a few important people in my life, and also actually performed CPR on a man who had had a heart attack in the street. Not
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Yeah, so true and I love the quote I saw on your website which is, “positive wellbeing and good health are more than just the absence of disease”. That was fantastic. Yeah, and I think that it’s a bit of a paradigm shift, the way that we are looking at wellness now and that it’s not just enough to be functioning, it is possible to be thriving, and that doesn’t mean you’re walking around with a big smile on your face all the time. It just kind of means that you can enhance what you already have. It’s an interesting way that we’re looking at things now. You are a mum of two young kids. How do you manage your day to day, with stresses and things that are thrown at you, - crying in the middle of the night, tantrums etc. and running your own business? How do you cope or thrive day to day? Honestly, I’m not always thriving. Sometimes I am coping because we have to accept that, I guess when you take some of that Buddhist philosophy on that there’s constant change and we are in constant change as well, we are not always going to be the same every day so that’s one thing to remember. I think that’s a lot of what I apply to my day to day life; that I sort of try to accept that it isn’t always going to be a uniform day. There are going to be those miracle days where everybody’s performing wonderfully and we can get out of the house in record time and everyone’s clothed properly and they’ve brushed their teeth and everything. But most of the time, I try to remind myself that there’s going to be those ebbs and flows and go with it. In terms of my personal practices, I’ve really made the 52 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
mindfulness a strong part that I hold onto. So I let go of some of the other things that I would have done before children, but just hold onto even a couple of minutes a day of practicing some breathing and mindfulness to anchor me in the mornings. For me, it’s essential to start the morning like that, which is why I have Sunrise Well, because for me it’s all about how you start the day. If I can sort of anchor myself even with a couple of minutes that, obviously with two kids involves chatting with my partner, making sure that he’s got them even for two, three minutes, just so I can get my breath, center myself, remind myself that I’m here and that my feet are on the ground, I think that helps a lot. Mindfulness meditation has built up a muscle. I’ve been able to draw on that muscle even if I’m not using it as much in my day to day practice, even if I’m not practicing meditation deeply, the muscle is still pretty strong. The other thing I do is drop into mindfulness during the day when I can, and I don’t know about you, but for most people, I think when you drop into mindfulness or start being mindful, your body releases a lot of tension, you sort of take a deeper breath and there’s just more of a sense of calm that comes over you when you really are feeling fully present. If I can just do that a couple of times during the day, it really helps a lot as well. The other thing that I really try to do is practice a lot of self-compassion because that peace, I think if you don’t have that, you can get to the end of the day and think, ‘Oh, well, like what did I say?’ ‘What kind of mum am I?’ Or being really, negative or hurting yourself, which has no benefit for anybody. Just trying to put it into a bigger picture so just spending some time,
bringing some self-compassion and understanding that I’m a human, my children are human, we’re all human. I love what you are saying about self-compassion because as mums and as humans, we get tested a lot every day. I think that compassion goes a long way. In terms of learning, you’ve got a lot of offerings. You’ve got a lot of online offerings, one to one offerings and you also have a lot of free offerings which is amazing, especially during these crazy and challenging times that we seem to be in right now. Can you just talk a little bit about that? Yeah. So, I do have a lot of different kinds of offerings and my main interest is people obviously, I do mindful wellness coaching and some classes, meditation classes, but I also work directly with businesses to help their people improve their wellbeing. Obviously for them, the business will benefit because it’s going to help their people be happier, healthier, more productive. But my aim, my core passion is really knowing that maybe making a shift during their work day helps these people to go home in a better mood or feeling and having a better relationship at home. So, it’s more holistic, I want to be able to affect someone, not just at work, but in their home life and their daily life. I think with the pandemic, it made me really concerned. From a public health point of view, I was absolutely supportive of the need to work from home, that was the best way forward and people really needed to do that in order to prevent the spread of the illness. My concern though was really what was going to happen to people when they are at home, are they going to maintain their health habits? Are they going to have issues in transitioning? So often that transition from work to home or home to work was a decompressing kind of time for them just to zone out from work a little bit, or listen to music or do some exercise and with that taken away that transition time was a little concerning. Even for my husband, he was stepping from the office two or three meters into the screaming chaos of two young kids and not having that time. So I was really concerned about what was going to happen to the people who were working from home and trying to support them in that way. So, I created a few different things that I thought might help. Tools for burnout, trying to help people to understand a little more around burnout, guides about keeping mindfulness in the workplace. This is in the workplace, like a physical place, but also for themselves at home and just doing a lot of online support like workshops and classes in health and well-being. So me as a business, I’ve been able to talk to people around the
world, I’ve done presentations nationally and they’ve gone across Oceania for various companies doing different kinds of topics that hopefully inspire people to make some changes or improve some aspects of their life. Wonderful to hear. So, would your Sunrise Well website be the best place to see what you do and your offerings? Yeah, absolutely. You can contact me via the contact forms on Sunrise Well (https://www.sunrisewell. com.au/book-with-me) if you think you’d like to bring mindful wellness into your workplace with a consultation or workshops, and there are some things to download on there like a free ‘Mindfulness in the Workplace’ guide (https://www.sunrisewell. com.au). And you can also have a listen to some free guided meditations (https://insighttimer.com/ sunrisewell) on Insight Timer. Fantastic Ruth, is there anything else that you’d like to mention or say to the readers or listeners? Yeah, just to repeat that whole ethos, that idea that we really do have this one precious life and do what you can to make any small changes that make you feel better about living your precious life. I really love that. Also, I love what you said about not beating yourself up about things and to take those mindful moments throughout the day. I think they’re very wise words to live by. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Well thank you so much for your time Ruth. We really appreciate that. Thank you. To contact Ruth or discover more about what she does and her offerings, please go to: https://www.sunrisewell.com.au/ 53 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
LIFE COACH
THE ART OF BEING ‘NOT’ BUSY By Debbie Kemp
Recently a friend playfully teased me, sarcastically saying “Oh because you’re SO busy”. They were referencing the fact that I’m six months on from selling a business that kept me very busy, and that I haven’t done anything glaringly obvious since then to fill my time. Filling time has become quite the societal trend, right? But why choose that? For the first time in a long time, I am very intentionally being NOT busy, NOT rushed, and NOT overwhelmed. It feels so good! My nervous system feels calm and regulated and my health feels so easy to maintain, despite living in current times and amongst so much collective fear. That’s what slowing down gifts us. That’s what honouring self does for us. It hasn’t been smooth sailing and it definitely wasn’t an overnight process.
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Stay with me and I’ll share the ride with you. My business was a childcare centre. It was open from 7am until 6pm every day, and whilst I wasn’t there every day, the calls came at all times of the day. My husband also runs a business, in the construction industry, and often works quite long hours. We have two very active children, and our family life felt like it was in a very constant and very busy juggle. Not unusual, I know. But we decided that something had to give. It was time for me to be more present with our family and to bring more calm to our home. When I first sold my business, some other things kept me busy. I schooled the kids during our covid lockdown and then I managed some other family related projects. As soon as they were complete, some sort of nervous energy kicked in. “What will I do with myself now?” I asked myself, feeling very uncomfortable with being NOT
busy. It felt like I needed a project, or a job, to fill my days and to make me feel… like I was contributing? Like I was being productive ‘enough’?
It’s challenging to describe the level of restlessness I felt in that time. They say change isn’t easy! Surely taking a lot of work off my plate should’ve been, but there was so much discomfort. This change was stripping away so many layers of who I’d become over the years. I’d stopped doing something that I was really good at, stopped bringing in an income, and stopped regularly interacting with the team of staff that had become my work family. It was a lot. The easiest thing for me to do, emotionally, was to find a job. Believe me, I looked. Whilst some jobs looked appealing, there was consistently something that didn’t work for me… the money, the location, the hours, sometimes all of the above.
This was my intuition, keeping me on track. I didn’t sell my business just to get busy doing something else. I sold it to create some change for our family. It was time to upgrade my focus. It was time to stop the discomfort and the distractions. This realisation came just before Christmas, and since I was no longer running a business, I enjoyed holidaying with family for 5 weeks. I’d always used January as a chance to complete renovations and upgrades in my business, and to plan and deliver staff training, so it was bliss to properly switch off for an extended period of time. That holiday was probably the reset I needed, because I came home without any of the restlessness I’d been previously feeling. Sure, there are still come slightly uncomfortable moments, like when people ask me what I do for work. I’m not actually doing nothing, I have a couple of financial projects on the go and I’m doing some admin for my husband’s business, but my answer to that question seems to sound something like “Not much”, and that feels strange after spending a decade as the Owner Director of my own business, and a decade before that managing businesses, programs and staff. Despite it feeling strange, I wouldn’t change this choice. I’ve been present with my children every morning, and I’ve had the time to pause for any conversations they need to have. Our mornings have been much less rushed and stressful, and this has made for a relaxed mum rather than a cranky one. I’ve made it to every school pick up without stressing about whether I’ll be on time, because someone wanted a conversation with me as I was leaving the workplace. And I’ve enjoyed the kids after school activities without work conversations on the sidelines. When I ran a business, I rarely found time for myself and I often felt like I wasn’t on top of much at home. Now I have some time for myself before the children wake up and after I drop them to school. I have time during their school day for some exercise, some work, and some chores or errands. Outside of their school day, I now have time to be present with them and with my husband. ‘Society’ might have me take on a few extra commitments, because I’m not overly busy right now. But busy is NOT
what I choose to be any more. I often hear people chatting about work, asking “How’s work?” and responding “Busy”. “Oh, that’s good” people often respond. And yes, busy can feel good, when we allow it to be our driver. However I assert that whilst ‘busy’ might be great for a business, that should not be confused with how it affects a person. Maybe our response should be “Oh that’s great for business, how are you going finding more people to share the extra workload?” And maybe, busy should stop being our go to word for “I’ve had a fairly full schedule”. I certainly plan to stop using that word mindlessly, because our words do create our reality. Personally I’m going to refer to my week, or my schedule, as being full, NOT busy. Full has such a better feel, doesn’t it? It has a sense of ‘fulfilled’, and to me it feels like I’m saying I’ve had a fulfilling week. Ahhh that certainly feels better than telling myself that I’ve been busy! I think it would be remiss of me to finish this article without acknowledging that some people may read it and think “Nice story, and good for you, but some of us have to work”. I understand this and relate. My husband and I have spent many years bettering our financial situation and we may not have been able to make this exact choice before now. We’ve worked hard and run businesses and invested our money, and we’re feeling free of financial stress. Recently, I’ve shifted my financial focus from business management to investment management, and I’ve found new ways to generate money. There are many options available these days and I’m noticing this even more so now that I have the time available to explore them! I share this part of my story simply to shine a light on the societal construct that is busy-ness. I share it to shine a light on the people who have already chosen to be NOT busy, despite the way it can feel valued in our society. I share to shine a light on the benefits of being NOT busy, and the fact that it’s available to anyone who chooses it. It takes change. It can feel uncomfortable and vulnerable. But there’s a lot of relief in letting go of overwhelm and a lot of magic in being more present with yourself and your family.
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NEW ZEALAND
Cultivating Emotional Intelligence By Clare Erasmus “It is very important to understand that Emotional Intelligence is not the opposite of intelligence, it is not the triumph of heart over head - it is the unique intersection of both.” - David Caruso Students are at the core of educational institutions. They spend much of their time learning and growing, while being educated, from the early years through to the young adult years at universities and colleges. It is no surprise that the face of education over the past few decades has transformed and so has the role of educators. Educators now find themselves extending their professional development into growing their knowledge and skills in a variety of directions. Central to being able to adapt to these changes, while simultaneously being a part of the transformation for both students and educators, is emotional Intelligence. Some educational institutions are at the front line of implementing well-thought-out initiatives, programmes and approaches that promote, educate and facilitate Emotional Intelligence. Historically, Intelligence Quotient (IQ) was attributed to being the single factor in determining life success, however this is long a measure of the past. In fact, 56 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
IQ is now considered a far more narrow measure because it does not account for the range of other human intelligences. On the other hand, greater significance is being placed on Emotional Intelligence (EI).
What is Emotional Intelligence? Emotional Intelligence can be best understood as a person’s ability to perceive, control, evaluate and express emotions. The term ‘Emotional Intelligence’ was coined by Peter Salovey and John Mayer in 1990. It was later popularised by Daniel Goleman (1996) in his book, ‘Emotional
Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More than IQ’
• Improved friendships • Academic success • Positive interactions
“Emotional Intelligence includes the ability to engage in sophisticated information processing about one’s own and others’ emotions and the ability to use this information as a guide to thinking and behaviour. That is, individuals high in Emotional Intelligence pay attention to, use, understand, and manage emotions, and these skills serve adaptive functions that potentially benefit themselves and others”. (In “Emotional Intelligence: New Ability or Eclectic Traits?” John D. Mayer, Peter Salovey and David R. Caruso. American Psychologist, September 2008, Vol. 63, No. 6, pages 503 - 517.) As noted, schools and educators are beginning to acknowledge the importance of Emotional Intelligence and there is a drive to integrate the teaching of Emotional Intelligence in day-today teaching. Iqbal et al (2022) highlights the recommendation that universities take specific measures to strengthen students’ Emotional Intelligence. Researcher, Littlejohn (2012), suggested Emotional Intelligence is the ‘missing link’ in driving success. Others have argued that it provides students with a critical edge (MacCann, 2020). Emotional Intelligence has gained momentum not only in educational institutions but in the greater workforce, too, for it is considered to be the gateway to enhancing life in diverse ways. A review of the literature suggests that this gateway may lead to:• Better learning
• Solving challenges • Key to high performance at all levels • Improved study habits
How are some educational institutions approaching this? Jenelle Hoosen, the school counsellor of Medbury School in Christchurch, a leading Australasian private preparatory school for the education of boys from Years 1 to 8, was thrilled to be a part of the initiatives being implemented. “I am very excited that Emotional Intelligence (EI) is a key part of learning at Medbury School. Developing one’s emotional intelligence is so important for young people; it helps students to understand and manage their feelings, develops a positive sense of self and helps them to interact successfully with others. Medbury School utilises Swinburne’s Aristotle-EI programme, which approaches emotional intelligence through four branches: Emotional Awareness and Expression, Understanding the Emotions of Others, Emotional Reasoning, and Emotional Management and Control. What I really appreciate about the Aristotle programme is that it delivers ready to use lessons for busy teachers but also encourages teachers to adapt these lessons so that they are appropriate for the values and context of Medbury School. The programme content utilises books, online videos
and resources and comes with posters that reinforce the key messages and language around EI. The hope is that as Medbury School continues to deliver this programme across all levels, a common language relating to EI will develop. Professional Development time has been provided through sessions with Swinburne University, both in delivering the content but also interpreting the annual data which is gathered from students in our senior school” Jenelle Hoosen. In her role as a counsellor, Jenelle notices now how the students are able to articulate and manifest their emotional understanding and tools to support themselves and others. “From a counselling position, I have been delighted to notice the increasing number of students who refer to what they are doing in class to support their emotional wellbeing, such as mindfulness, breathing tasks, developing empathy for others, talking about respecting differences in friendships, problem solving and viewing failure as part of learning. Through delivering the EI Aristotle programme, alongside many other initiatives at Medbury School, students are not only being supported through their primary school years but also into their secondary school years and beyond. Students of all ages are starting to understand that EI is something that is important to their overall functioning and success at school but also in life in general” Jenelle Hoosen (School Counsellor at Medbury School, Christchurch).
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Caroline Black, the Director of Wellbeing Education at Christ’s College, one of New Zealand’s leading independent high schools for boys Year 9 to 13, is passionate about wellbeing and she shared some valuable insight into how Christ’s College was preparing for and developing students’ Emotional Intelligence. “Emotional Intelligence is fundamental to experiencing all the “good” stuff in life. For me, Emotional Intelligence (EI) is our ability to recognise, understand and regulate our emotions as well as appreciate the emotions of others. It means being aware that our emotions can be drivers of our behaviour and have the ability to impact on people both positively and negatively. The capacity to express emotions is integral in developing relationships alongside our ability to regulate, interpret and respond to the emotions of others,” Caroline Black, Director of Wellbeing Education at Christ’s College). Caroline expressed the importance of the normalisation of emotions and the significance of being able to recognise them and respond. “Being able to develop EI in teens is pivotal and is a fundamental part of our MINDfit and MANifesto curriculums at school. Giving our students the language to explore and express their emotions has been key to normalising the fact that we all experience a vast array of emotions in our lives. It also helps reinforce that all emotions are okay, however, not all behaviours are okay and that is the crux of where the learning begins. That pivotal moment when we recognise we are feeling something and being able to acknowledge it, pause and think: how will I respond? Dan Siegel has a great strategy for this and it is easily accessible for young 58 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2022
people and adults! Siegel coined the phrase, ‘name it to tame it’” Caroline Black. Understanding young people so well, Caroline also highlighted, “It’s also important to highlight brain development with young people so they are aware that their thinking brain (frontal lobe) is still developing and will do so until their late twenties. This is by no means a ‘hall pass’ for unregulated emotional responses but what it does is allows our young people a greater insight into how their brains function. By developing their skills in emotional recognition and regulation they can be more attuned to how they are feeling and have a greater awareness of their impact on others.” There is no denying that developing these ‘emotional navigating’ skills the in formative years can lead to better habits later in life. How children identify, understand and manage emotions can have a vast impact on a child’s life from their relationships with family and friends, how they perform in educational settings and workplaces.
Emotional students:-
intelligence
help
• Better manage themselves • Relate positively to others • To solve social challenges • Create an understanding of others - empathy • To guide better decision making
• Develop prosocial behaviour • Enable efficient and effective communication. • Encourage ‘thinking before acting’ • Improve self-motivation • To self-regulate • Improved academic performance
Caroline Black from Christ’s College acknowledged this. “There is also growing evidence to show the correlation between Emotional Intelligence and academic growth and performance as well as the significant impact on students’ interpersonal, stress management and adaptability skills. By building our students’ interpersonal and emotional regulation skills we hope that this enables them to better handle the challenging aspects of secondary school life. As educators we know that school life comes with pressures and challenges - for example, giving and receiving feedback, meeting deadlines, dealing with friendships and relationships, navigating change (Covid has been change-central for our students), not making a team or working through setbacks and failures. Teens with a higher degree of Emotional Intelligence are better able to control their emotions and behaviour when things don’t turn out the way they expected. This in turn can make them happier, more selfconfident, and more respectful of others. It can also be really empowering for young people as they have a greater sense of agency and self-efficacy.” With our ever changing world, it is vital Emotional Intelligence is cultivated. As Caroline Black notes, “Emotional Intelligence is the fundamental skills that enable us to look after ourselves, relate well to others and not let internal experiences prevent us from being the best versions of ourselves so we can move towards living our values and that is something every young person deserves to learn at school. Ultimately, if we can support our young people to lean into their emotions, understand their emotions and regulate their emotions, to see their emotions
rather than be them, they will be in a better place to cope and thrive in this ever changing world.”
into words: affect labeling disrupts amygdala activity in response to affective stimuli. Psychol Sci. 2007 May;18(5):421-8
It is an exciting time in education, with schools beginning to acknowledge, embrace and implement strategies and learning opportunities for children to gain and develop their Emotional Intelligence. Schools and universities, along with parents, are partnering to offer their children great futures.
Littlejohn P. The missing link: using emotional intelligence to reduce workplace stress and workplace violence in our nursing and other health care professions. J Prof Nurs. 2012 Nov-Dec;28(6):360-8. doi: 10.1016/j.profnurs.2012.04.006. PMID: 23158199.
‘Educating the mind without educating the heart is not educating at all.” - Aristotle.
MacCann, C., Jiang, Y., Brown, L. E., Double, K. S., Bucich, M., & Minbashian, A. (2020). Emotional intelligence predicts academic performance: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 146(2), 150.
References John D. Mayer, Peter Salovey and David R. Caruso. American Psychologist, September 2008, Vol. 63, No. 6, pages 503 - 517 Iqbal, J.; Asghar, M.Z.; Ashraf, M.A.; Yi, X. The Impacts of Emotional Intelligence on Students’ Study Habits in Blended Learning Environments: The Mediating Role of Cognitive Engagement during COVID-19. Behav. Sci. 2022, 12, 14
Lieberman MD, Eisenberger NI, Crockett MJ, Tom SM, Pfeifer JH, Way BM. Putting feelings
About the Author: Clare is an author and educator, living locally in Christchurch. She has written books for both educators and children. She has a Bachelor of Arts (Sociology and Legal Studies), Bachelor of Arts Honours (Sociology), Masters of Social Science, Bachelor of Education, Certificates in both TEFL and TESOL and is currently undertaking her PhD in Education
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