A positive reaction

Yesterday, in the underground, I noticed an amazing thing. I noticed that a good percent of the passengers are following the rules of getting on and off from specific doors in each carriage and some were even talking about how civil it is to have such attitude. I didn't imagine that my article would have such great effect :) though it is probably this silly lady who keeps repeating the rules that should she followed as well as the consequences of not following them, over and over, that the passengers thought of acting this way on the hope that she'd shut up!

Here I'm starting: Positivity

I believe that many of our problems, here in Egypt, will be solved if we just adopt a more positive attitude. I usually regard myself as a positive person but sometimes I know that I’m not and that in these times I act negatively though I know that being positive will make a difference. Take for example, when I find someone smoking next to me in a transport, meeting room or wherever. In the transports, I rarely ask the person to put out his cigarette because I’m simply afraid of the consequences (I don’t like to be insulted in the bus). In the meeting room, I don’t do so because I may not want people to get upset and think of me as a silly person (though they’re the one who are being silly). Another example is the terrible problem of taking on and off the underground on rush hours. There are supposed to be gates for getting on and others for getting out. I’ve not once seen anyone following this and the view of people crashing into each other while struggling to get in or out is really sad. I usually get on from the right gate because there are marks on the ground but while getting down I simply forget. I call this a semi-positive attitude because the really positive one would be to tell people about the rule and try to organize them, at least when the carriage isn’t overcrowded and there is a chance to do so. I know that many of you would be now saying that, “we’ve tried this once and people quarreled with us and accused us of getting their way”. Actually this is the core of the problem. It’s difficult to be positive because this requires changing people’s attitude and people always resist change, whether for the better or worse. It is something in our human nature. Anyhow, we should be optimistic :) If we started with the solo positive actions and expanded them whenever there is a good chance (for example when dealing with people with an obvious tendency to change), till this positivity becomes more like a habit and an everyday activity, change will eventually comes.

We can always share experiences about the situations we face daily and how we deal with them to encourage each other as well as to find new and may be better ways to be positive.

Big thoughts and small actions make a difference.

Things to think about (and do) this year

I lately read an article about a “Project” whose idea has really impressed me.

The idea of the project started this way:

Seth Godin, the innovator, writer, and blogger extraordinaire, persuaded 70 other innovators, writers, and bloggers to participate in a project he calls What Matters Now. The idea is simple: Each of us suggests one word -- literally one word -- that all of us should think about in 2010, and then takes one page to explain why and how that word matters. The result is an intriguing, inspiring, and at times downright moving collection of unconventional wisdom that is available free to everyone.

The whole project reminded me of what they do at ElSawy Culture Wheel by choosing an idea or target to focus on every year through their different activities. I remember the year of “Arabic Language” and the year of “Dignity”. Anyway, I thought that we can add to this project by coming up with new words or even handling the same words from a different perspective. I believe that it would be a good brain activity and at the same time a good way of communication between us.

You can use the link below to download the results of this work to enjoy them as well as getting some ideas.

(http://blogs.hbr.org/taylor/2009/12/70_words_of_unconventional.html?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a38:g26:r11:c0.087339:b29466088:z6)

Start posting now :)

P.S. Feel free to post your thoughts in Arabic, English or even German and French, it would make this experience even richer.

A step on the way

Yesterday, I had to ride the underground twice, once from Mohamed Nageeb station to Dokki and then from Gamal Abd ElNasser to ElSayeda Zeinab. And before you imagine the worst, this is not a bad story about things that happen in the underground, on the contrary it is a positive one :). I noticed that in the first three stations, a part of the ground near the tickets windows was surrounded by a low fence, supplied with carpets, and used as a praying area. I liked the action very much because whenever I've a long day and had to do all my prayers out I always find so much trouble with that, because I may not find a near by mosque and if I went to a far one I'll miss my appointment etc. Of course this positive solution hasn't solved by problem because there isn't a closed area for ladies, but who knows may be it is a step on the way. I just hope that they, latter on, won't find it an uncivilized view and disassemble it.