Knowledge Adventure

If you want to increase your happiness, one way is through nurturing your character strengths. Positive psychology has identified 24 strengths which can be divided into 6 distinct virtues. All of these strengths can be developed. A great deal of research has gone into looking into these strengths and how they can benefit happiness and wellbeing. Carrying out tasks and activities that provide you with opportunities to exercise your strengths are sure to make you feel good and give you more flow experiences. Consciously using these strengths will move you away from engaging in passive activities so frequently (eg watching television).

In this article I will talk about the strengths which make up the virtue ‘wisdom and knowledge’: curiosity, love of learning, open-mindedness, creativity and perspective. Seligman suggests that for happiness we use those strengths which are our signature strengths. To discover your signature strengths, I suggest you visit the Authentic Happiness website and take the VIA survey. There is a feel good factor in working with our strengths. However you may have something you want to nurture. As such I offer a tip to enhance each strength.

Curiosity

Curiosity refers to having an interest in the world. Curious people are open to experience. They are flexible and take steps to actively engage in what is going on around them. Such people have been shown to be satisfied with life. If you are the sort of person that generally find yourself intrigued by the simplest of things and you have to do find out more, curiosity may be one of your strengths.

If you want to nurture your curiosity, try the following tip:

Each week take a new subject and learn and explore and find out as much as you can about it. It may set you off on a great adventure and you are sure to learn something about your own likes and dislikes.

Love of learning

People with a love of learning thrive on the learning experience. They are always eager to learn more and develop their skills set. Such people learn for the sake of it, not because they have to. Learning is not something that stops when we finish school. Research suggests that people with this strength have better physical and mental health later on in life. This may be one of your strengths if you are generally learning new things and often attend classes.

Tip: Become an expert in something that interests you. Read books, have discussions and visit websites.

Open-mindedness

An open-minded person is able to assess information objectively. They have good judgement and don’t give in to irrational thinking. Such people weigh up the alternatives and are able to consider all the evidence and not just that which supports their original beliefs. Such people are less open to manipulation, are more willing to change and give things a go. This may be your strength if when having discussions with friends you are able to see both sides of the argument without getting emotionally involved. Research has found that people who are open-minded do better on cognitive tests.

Tip: Read a newspaper that differs in its political beliefs to yours. Think about how some of their opinions may be valid, or at least why they hold such an opinion. Try to avoid being critical as this defeats the purpose of the activity!

Creativity

Creativity refers to coming up with novel ways of doing things. A person with this strength is able to think outside the box. Creativity is not just about being artist and can be displayed in many areas of life. This may be your strength if you are the type of person that frequently suggests a solution that others have not thought of. Research suggests that we can be at our most creative when in a happy mood. Yet another reason to be happy!

Tip: When working on a problem, spend time brainstorming possible solutions. Really go to town and don’t feel inhibited. Put pen to paper. An amazing solution can come from an unexpected avenue.

Perspective

Perspective is the closest strength to wisdom. A person with perspective draws on their knowledge and experience to assist other people. Such people are not all-knowing; rather they are ready to learn more and are open to the views and opinions of others. People will turn to them to get a better perspective on an issue. Research suggests that wisdom predicts a positive experience of ageing and may be more important than environment, financial security and physical health.

Tip: Keep learning and be open to the views of others. This will enable you to build up a body of knowledge that can be used for the good of others.

By: Julia Barnard

About the Author:

Kids typing games offer parents with assistance in leading their children to the right path. These games are fun to play and at the same time, they also teach children a much-needed skill when they grow up.

Computer nowadays is a tool of necessity. It is a necessary device for everyone whether it is someone in a big corporation or just in a simple household. Almost every job requires computer skills and with computer skills come typing skills. The faster a person types, the more work he/she will accomplish in a given time. To enhance a child’s typing skill, parents must start teaching their children while young. This simple act just signifies that the parents are securing their child’s future. It is not easy to teach kids anything because most of them cannot maintain a degree of focus for a long time. It has to be fun and interactive to allow more participation from them.

There are hundreds of kids typing games that are available online. Just opening one website related to kiddie games will already yield dozens of these games. It is important for parents to carefully choose the right games for their kids because if there are numerous helpful games, there are also more materials that are psychologically harmful and inappropriate for minors.

Nimblefingers.com provides lessons regarding the proper way of typing. Children can learn what fingers to use to for what letters at an early age. Using all ten fingers for the keyboard yields quicker input. The activity starts from beginner keys and slowly progresses to advanced keys. In this way, you will be able to teach your child the basics in typing. Then once you think your child is ready, a game using virtual flash cards is readily available in the site.

LearningGamesForKids.com has a section specially dedicated to Keyboarding Games. This section has four different kinds of kids typing games which are fun and easy to learn. This is perfect for children who already have some typing experience since the games do not offer any skill progression or levelling up.

Kids.learn2type.com is fully equipped with tutorials and games that are designed for grade school students. Access to the site requires a username and a password. Once logged in, the site suggests the lessons to be taken first but you also have the option to access the games right away.

There are also stand-alone that can be bought and installed in your computer. Typing Instructor for Kids created by Individual Software and Jumpstart Typing by Knowledge Adventure offer tutorials on video and kids typing games. SpongeBob SquarePants Typing which is produced by Encore Software has a fun style of challenge levels which can be taken by progression. Almost all children love SpongeBob being one of the most identified cartoon characters on television right now so you are assured that your child will enjoy the game.

The websites and games mentioned above are the most highly recommended and suitable for children. For you to give an enjoyable but a learning experience to your kids, you can visit these websites or gather information about these kids typing games.

By: Ferdinand Legaspi

About the Author:

I want to begin by identifying the differences between the male & female brain and then capitalizing on them to build wealth thru better family communication. This is so critical because as a financial advisor I’ve seen a host of couples come to my office with disparate incomes, disparate spending habits, disparate risk tolerances, disparate inherited wealth and disparate everything, but I’ve never been in a situation where these differences can’t be forged, and any kinds of strife be conquered in terms of building greater wealth. I’ve often found that working with men and women, it’s a terrific 1+1 makes 3 opportunity in that men’s brains are hard wired in a very different way than are women’s.

We’ll talk about some behavior patterns and importance of good communication & goal setting so we can get down to very, very interesting and life fulfilling conversations that can enhance our wealth untold amounts. So we first need to understand the differences in the male brain & the female brain.
The brain is divided into two hemispheres the left & the right. Women’s brains tend to be more densely packed with neurons. Women use more parts of their brains to accomplish tasks. Men do their thinking in more focused parts of the brains no matter what the subjects, solving math problems, reading a book or feeling anger or sadness. Men are more left brain dominant.

Women have more connection between the two hemispheres, the left side talks and listens to the right. It is the main bridge between the left and the right hemispheres.

The Corpus Callosum is a bundle of nerve cells which is the main bridge between the left and right brain
hemispheres, and it is the key to intellectual development.

It happens that the women’s Corpus Callosum is 23% larger than men’s. However, a big corpus callosum does not make one smarter. Since men’s corpus callosum takes up less volume than women’s, the two hemispheres communicate less in a male than in a female.

Women are so much better at multi-tasking than men. Does that mean that women are of the better species? No it doesn’t. It just means that men tend to focus in on one hemisphere of the brain, in one area. They don’t go back and forth like women do. The neurons go back & forth in a woman’s brain, so she is able to do many things at one time, unlike the man who needs to think on one thing, focus on one thing, and then alternately move onto the next thing.

Women’s language abilities tend to be greater due to the fact that the left analytical part is enriched by the
emotional right part which goes back to my assertion that they can multitask….they can think and do, think and do because the neurons go back and forth over the corpus callosum.

What does that all mean? It means that it affects communication patterns – the man focuses on one subject, goes right to the problem solving, and goes right to the bottom line, whereas women want the details-c’mon…give me all the inside information. Women are not happy or satisfied with just here’s the issue, fix the problem. The right part of the brain is responsible for emotions where women tend to have more neurons, more activity. The left brain is more responsible for verbal abilities.

Just because women are better at speaking their thoughts and feelings, it doesn’t mean that men don’t have that capacity. They do, just that .they’re not as connected to the emotional aspect, which is more right brain. Men need to work at that aspect of development, and can often benefit by seeking out a qualified and licensed psychotherapists for valuable tools, because without professional help, it’s often a very steep and daunting learning curve.

Typically women use 20,000 words a day, while men use only 7,000 words a day, so clearly different types of communication are evident in heterosexual relationships–they are not the same certainly but it’s all communication. We need to understand when men say something, what they mean, and when women say something, what they mean. There’s a lot of validity in each approach, but they are different.

I can’t stress strongly enough the importance then, of seeking out a professional in communication, to help
couples through this very important difference. No amount of quality financial planning or asset management can happen without good communication. I often encounter couples not really understanding what the other really means because their ways of explaining themselves are different.

As a financial planner, I have to understand both how the man thinks and how the woman thinks in order to respond to both of them effectively. There’s a cerebral division of labor of sorts, for example. Men tend to do all cognitive processing in one region of the frontal lobe, while women’s processing tends to be that the brain fires all over, in other words that the neurons go back and forth allowing for more communication between the left and the right side.

We women haven’t received a lot of favorable money messages in our families or from our socialization over the years. I’m really hoping we can foster better communication by understanding these gender differences. It makes perfect sense to bring the whole discussion back to how the brain was created.

One of the ways this affects women is that they take longer to make a decision, trying to unite many goals. The woman does need time, and a man is often impatient with her need for detail but his impatience is ultimately not helpful.

So that’s why a woman will keep talking about circumstantial evidence and the man will just cut to the chase, steering more towards the facts, and the bottom line. The woman will steer more towards integrating the feelings with the facts, come up with something that will make sense to her. The facts are enough for many men; they don’t need the “superfluous” details.

Women are context thinkers, whereas Men are content thinkers. Men hone in on one aspect and seek to solve the problem women involve many aspects of the problem.

As a financial planner and wealth manager, I certainly do engage both parties in the conversation cause it’s really important to have that input for a financial plan to work. In order for a couple to retire successfully, I need to hear and tease out the goals of both the male and the female. They’ll communicate them differently, that’s my job to hear that, but it’s each of the males and females’ job to speak very openly about what it is that they are looking to achieve.

On average, as I ask Baby Boomers where they want to be during retirement; i.e., what are their hopes and fears for the future, the preponderance of them plan to create a whole new life stage. They want to live younger longer, aspire to a whole new work-leisure balance and yet they feel very financially inept to do that. They’re nervous that their finances aren’t yet positioned so that that can really happen. If fear is present in a couple’s relationship and they don’t talk about it, we’ve got a sure fire recipe for disaster. Unless women are encouraged to speak very clearly about their wants, there will likely be a lot of friction in the marriage, which is exactly what I’m trying to
circumvent, especially around money matters.

My therapist friends have taught me then to encourage the woman to speak from her feelings…to start
with the I word, I feel worried about this, and encourage the man then to listen, asking him if he’s heard her concern, and then it goes back and forth, with what he’s wanting her to understand, so it’s training, and it’s positive, and productive.

I like the confluence between the different ways males and females process then because it’s often very valuable for a woman in a trusting relationship clearly to see the man’s point of view, cause he might just cut right through some of the fluff to get to the focus point of the problem, so they can get to the next challenge. That can be very valuable, so long as there’s adequate interplay between entertaining all the fears first, because you simply don’t march through life, making decision after decision without having some miss-steps and needing to regroup. That’s where BOTH parties can come together, analyze what was done, and why, and then pool both their opinions in formulating the corrective step.

And that’s often what happens with investments, is that someone makes an investment that turns sour, or they deem it to turn sour, and then they blame the other or blame themselves, and get into a lot of guilt that really should be taken in stride, because one investment mistake is probably not going to derail the entire investment train.

What I’ve found though is that men will focus on what they deem important…return/price, etc., and women also expect to know that, but they also do want the extra communication to understand how everything fits together, again, indicative of some typical gender differences. Of course, we’re speaking about stereotypical differences when we’re speaking about gender differences. There are certainly exceptions, and we’ve both met them, but a man will generally want to be in control of a situation and a woman will want to be understood. And that carries over into the couple’s communication styles.

The man will be fairly competitive in a situation & want their investments to win short term, and the woman will be actually supportive, wanting to draw the whole thing together, looking at the over arching plan and how their investment fit together. That may be a cause of her dismay, because she may look at the compilation of financial investments and be very confused about how it all fits together and in fact, they may not fit together and she’s right to question that. So with a proper respect for these differences, both of them can come to the table, and draw up a plan of attack and shore up what needs to be spun out of the portfolio and what can be retained.

And that is really critical to understand because there is what I think as a fine art of talking about money in
particular. So, if we’ve established that there are different conversational styles that stem from differences in how men and women are hard wired, when you introduce a topic like money–a subject that has massive import for the couple–I think that you load on an additional set of expectations and potential miscommunication.

So the reward for coordinating our investing with our values is a whole lot of freedom and a whole lot of choices, both now as we are planning our retirements and then as we are starting to live them.

What I am always wanting to ascertain is does a couple’s spending support their values and dreams. What are the couple’s goals about their next lifestyle and how it will compare to their current lifestyle? How is their savings and investment plan set up to achieve that? It is obviously really important for conversation styles to be recognized as very different and for there to be interplay between those two styles. Because as many people have admitted, there has not been a lot of teaching in the family (and specifically our previous generation) about money and investments.

Often money has been a hush hush topic, often we don’t talk about money–that is a dirty subject or something that never should be discussed. It is never something that the children should know about and so forth. So I just want to go over some money messages that tend to retard women’s growth and their exploration into the area of investing, in addition to society’s socialization:
o money buys you friends,
o the fool and his money are soon parted,
o money doesn’t make you a better person,
o we were poor but honest,
o we don’t talk about how much money we earn it’s rude,
o work hard for everything you have,
o you have to do work that is difficult and stay where you are for security,
o it is not yours unless you earn it yourself,
o Who did she sleep with to get where she is?

Wow! What negativity! The closed down, piggy bank mentality, the watch every nickel many women have been reared with is so limiting. A lot also depends on the messages that get conveyed by our parents. Most often men will handle money in a way that has been modeled after their fathers and women after their mothers. Statistically it does follow gender lines. When asked men and women suggest that there have been people in their family that they look up to regarding money but it hasn’t been an open conversation, per se.

Unfortunately I think that a lot of financial decisions occur without their having been a conversation preceding them, which would be a more typical male approach. A male hears a tip he takes a risk, he invests some money, he comes home, he may or may not even suggest that he has done that with his wife or partner.

The women on the other hand will maybe search out some investment options and start to gather her circle of evidence around her to determine if the investment is going to be profitable or not. Will that financial product fit & serve as a solution to their investment or financial problems?

If you don’t have that conversation to support why you are taking financial risk and why you are (or are not)making investments, there is a huge chance that misunderstanding will fester and will come out in probably very difficult ways to solve, if each partner is in fact left to their own devices.

While not as prevalent with today’s feminist women in their 40s and 30s and 20s, older women were socialized to expect the men to take care of them. Wait for your Prince Charming, it is not your world it is his, defer to him, etc.

This certainly did impose a ton of pressure on men, who may not have prepared to make singular money decisions that would impact the lifetime well being of 2 people! I empathize with men who confide in me that they’re no more prepared to deal with the money than their wives, but she is expecting them to do it, they don’t have time to seek out the best advice and they are doing the best that they can.

It makes me empathic with both genders. I definitely want the woman to be involved and to speak her mind about her own ignorance as well as own their pockets of knowledge and I want the man to say the same thing. Then they can make mutual decisions rather than having the traditional man continue to run the money, on really “a wing and a prayer”. It’s FAR too late in the day for that. Our investments must solve the boomer conundrums–longer life, (especially for women), women probably having assumed care giving (which may have reduced their earnings or savings) and the need to have the money last as long as they do.

SO I just want to itemize a few potential instances or situations (or stereotypes) that may in fact hit a little close to home in terms of how many men maperceive their handling of their investments as compared to how their female partners might feel. This is NOT unique, of course to heterosexual couples, as any partnership may fit into these slots. Now, don’t get your back up about these statements. If they don’t apply to you, thank God and move on!

MEN might bristle at some women wanting to have a say in what money gets contributed where indicating that they earn the money if in fact they do and often time they do out earn their spouses.

WOMEN might feel that they don’t have a right to speak, often deferring to their spouses. Women might not feel important enough to fight for their expenditures; in fact they might hide their purchases for fear of reprisal because they don’t feel that they have any power.

Studies show that the highest earning partner dictates what expenses are fixed and what expenses are tertiary. I think that may end up being a cause for people to seek out tools to enhance or repair their communication, perhaps through working with a psycho therapist.

There always seems to be a little tussle among couples about saving and spending. Invariably one is always more of a spender and one is always more of a saver.

MEN might feel that their buddy or their golfing partner or their college roommate is best qualified to invest their money.

WOMEN may want to have a say and a choice of selecting a financial advisor, one whom will listen to them and answer their questions.

MEN may presume because they have always been the ones to do so that they should be the ones to make the unilateral decisions, after all, it’s just simpler that way.

WOMEN may presume that they can’t break into the decision making process because they don’t have the same knowledge base that they perceive their husbands to have.

MEN may be too embarrassed to admit that they don’t have the knowledge to make the decisions either and yet they go ahead and assume the role since they think that they should.

WOMEN may blindly delegate the financial decisions in the house because that is how their parents did it.

MEN may not be following a particular plan of action for their finances out of fear that they can’t do it right, or that they will never be able to retire so why even look at it. This could also partially explain why some men don’t ask for directions because of divulging the fear of not knowing something.

WOMEN may wonder what plan is in place but be too timid to ask.

MEN might abandon the plan of buy and hold, and quickly sell if the market drops precipitously, thinking their quick exit will protect the family. Conversely if they hear a tip they may buy hoping they can feel like a hero if it earns a lot of money-preferably quick money.

WOMEN might want to stick to the plan, the original plan, having more patience.

MEN may want to trade stocks more often feeling that to take some action is actually responsible.

WOMEN may be fine to monitor the plan without making trades if all is well.

This points us to an interesting statistic from a Barbara ODean study out of the University of California in 1999 that showed because men trade more than women; women actually make better investors than men.

Men actually traded 77% of their portfolio each and every year versus women trading 53% of their portfolio annually. Single men traded 67% more than single women. All that excess trading resulted in men’s returns coming in .94% less than that of women, (almost a full percent less than women) and the single men’s returns are almost 1.5–actually 1.44% less than single women’s.

This kind of precipitous action that the male brain prompts men to take is quite expensive, especially when you consider compounding, whereas women will be much more intent on finding some substantive evidence as to why they should make those investments and they will generally hang on to their investments longer so as a rule. If we can harness the power of the male and female brains so that 1 + 1 =3, we’ll make FAR more money, and live happier, healthier lives. What’s the alternative, you ask?

Premature death notwithstanding, 51% of American marriages end in divorce and according to the Journal of Sociology’s Marriage and Divorces Impact on Wealth Study, both parties suffer a net worth drop of 77% on average.

67% of 2nd marriages end in divorce, the statistic is higher because it is about blended families it’s about mixing money, it’s about children of two different marriages, it’s about loyalty and commitment. Often blended families do not work; they need a lot of help in getting over these hurdles.

Disagreements about money are really a very very big part of what is usually at the core of couples’ problems. However, as any psychotherapist knows, money is just the holding point because it is usually about communication and money then becomes the vehicle with which they disagree. It doesn’t mean that they don’t have money issues but if they have good communication about the myriad of other issues and an effective way to talk to each other, then it will follow that their money issues will be able to be negotiated and mitigated.

Let’s be about empowerment then. Let’s understand and work with gender differences as boomers. Let’s be as creative in solving these conundrums as we are about all other aspects of our lives-we who are living longer, and living younger. Let’s keep love in our lives, and that will pay huge dividends in our compounding wealth!

By: Debra Morrison

About the Author:

Summer is a wonderful time for teens as this is when they have their vacations. And to keep teens busy and entertained during the vacations, there are many teen tours and teen travel adventures being organized by travel companies. These trips are usually organized by established touring companies that give your children a safe and supervised trip to either domestic or international locations. There are different types of companies offering different types of adventurous teen tours. The highlights of these tours are usually kayaking, high ropes and rock climbing.

Though most teens like these tours, some people may prefer a trip to Europe or perhaps a South American tour. Tour companies mix adventure with travel to make the trip more interesting. The tour may include 5 star hotels and resorts or stay in the college dormitory; it depends on your budget of the tour. The length of these tours can be anywhere between 21 to 45 days.

Comparison shop and ask for references

It is not advisable to choose the first tour company you come across; make comparisons amongst different tour companies to find the perfect adventure tour for your teen. Asking friends, family members, other parents and associates is the best way of getting ideas of the best tour company and tour for your teen.

However if there is no one you know who has gone on such trips, then it is better to search online. You will find numerous directories which you have to search by state and by referrals for the best companies in your area. Most of the touring companies have their own websites on the internet, so visit them through the leads you find in the directories.

Choose the tour company that has clear terms, dates and arrangements regarding travel and accommodation of the teen tour. So keep your budget in mind when looking for the right tour company. Also book your tour well in advance so that you have sufficient money to pay for the tour and to do all the activities during the teen travel adventure.

Teen tours on a budget

Remember that adventure travel vacations are usually more expensive than traditional vacations; it is only by planning ahead will one enjoy the vacation. There is no point in venturing on the first travel adventure you come across. If you hate bugs, a long trip in the rainforest is not your cup of tea. Choose the trip based on your interests, dislikes and preferences; though teen travel adventure trips provide an adrenalin rush to most thrill seekers, not everyone will like this.

The location of the trip is also important when making a choice for your teen travel adventure. The destination you choose should be a fulfilling one depending on your interests like scuba diving, nature or skiing. There is no point in going on a scuba diving trip if you are afraid of sea animals or swimming. So, all these points have to be taken into consideration when choosing the perfect teen tour that will keep you or your teen busy in the next vacation.

By: Michael Chase

About the Author:

Today, the enhanced technology of Internet has brought us to a borderless world where we can learn anything and gain any knowledge without the consideration of geography factors. Online education is the best media for us to improve our knowledge at a click away from our computer.

Many online schools offer online courses that cover from hobby-related fields to medicals, laws and politics. Basically, you are able to find one that meets your interest if you intend to sharpen your knowledge through online education channel. For example, you can learn a better gardening technique through online courses, become a better home cook through online cooking program, learn how to take care of early child education with specialization in early child education& etc.

Although many people earn a degree or certificate for the purpose of career enhancement or career switch, nobody will stop you from attending them just for in depth your knowledge with no relation with your career. But, there are some factors that you might want to consider before you sign up for any online course.

1. Accreditation versus Non-Accreditation



Accreditation is a way to measure the competency of an online school and it courses. Employers will also use this indicator when review their job candidates’ certificates. Although your intention of attending online courses is for your knowledge improvement, but you might have chances in the future to apply what you learn to your career. For example you are attending online cooking classes just to improve your cooking knowledge, but one day, you may be interested to switch your career to food industry especially in restaurant management, your certificate or degree in cooking may become an important reference document that will help you to get the job.

Accreditation may not be important if you just want to enhance your knowledge in certain field. But, it’s good to sign up with an online education program from an accredited online school to ensure the credential of the courses. There are many online schools that offer the same course of you interest, some are accredited and other may yet to be accredited. Unless you really can’t find one accredited online education program that meet your interest of knowledge enhancement, accreditation courses still the priority.

2. Learning Schedule

Although most online classes give you the flexibility to plan your own study time, there are some online courses that required you to logon with a certain number of hours per week. If you have a very busy working schedule which you can’t really plan for certain commitment of study time, then you should consider online classes that fully let you plan your own study time at your own pace.

3. Practical Work

Many online education programs have included some practical works especially those program in technical fields. If there is a requirement of credit hours for practical works or lab assignments, then you should consider whether the online school has the facility for you to perform those lab works at the place close to your home or within your convenient distance. .

Summary

Online education has provided an easy channel for anyone who likes to enhance their knowledge in any field. It covers almost any course without the limitation of geography border. What you need to do is select a program that fit your interest and start the online courses just with a click away from your computer.

By: Amelia Turner

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You can go surfing anywhere in the world. You can go climbing anywhere in the world. How about sailing? Thanks to sailing charters and schools, you can learn to sail and place your own sailing escapade anywhere in the world as well. Here is why sailing lessons are a great adventure…

1. Fresh knowledge, new skill. Learning how to sail is a refreshing new found knowledge that has been waiting for you to learn. There is so much useful information that you can tack onto everyday life, and things that you honestly never knew. The skills that will be taught and left for you to develop are amazing. Tasks that you never even thought you would bring yourself on. The skills learnt in sailing lessons will be part of your personal achievements as you advance and develop them.

2. A new environment. Have a whole new perspective of learning as you have the water as your campus and your boat as your classroom. A significant amount of learning will be done on dry land but the majority of the time you will be in the open waters to directly apply all the skills and theories you have received.

3. Physical challenge. Sailing is a physical activity and you may be overwhelmed during your first few days of learning. Even keeping your balance on a buoyant vessel can be physically challenging let alone sailing it while keeping your balance.

4. Intellectual challenge. The adventure of learning how to sail does not end with the physical tasks that you will face, knowing when and how to use the elements of nature for a satisfying sailing activity is as demanding as pulling the anchor as you get ready to set sail. Discernment and judgment are commonly used in sailing and it plays a very significant role in determining sailing success and safety.

5. Working with nature’s powers and elements. During your sailing lessons you will be taught how to work with the wind, weather, water and what lies beneath. In a way, respect for nature and what it brings you will be primarily emphasized; not taking each element for granted will also be appreciated. Using nature to your advantage and knowing when not to also plays an important role in your future sailing adventures.

6. New friends and trusting them. An adventure has an element of doing something that you will not normally do on any given day. Apart from the adventure of learning something new and doing something unfamiliar, you will meet new people particularly your skipper, instructor and classmates. You will have to trust them during the learning process. It would be easy to do on dry land, but once you get out into the water and all your fears set in, this act will be quite difficult. Trusting a stranger with your life under vulnerable circumstances is an adventure in itself. This is the part where you will have to rely on the safety skills taught on dry land and that primal research that you did on the school and instructors credibility before signing up.

7. The greatest escape. Sailing lessons are as refreshing and relaxing as sailing on your own. You get to intently focus on learning this new skill that you totally detach from that deadline you have to meet, that leaking faucet which is due for repair, that new route you need to take to get to work and all of life’s burdens. As you get deeper into sailing you will discover that it is a great way to clear your mind and frankly speaking take a break from it all.

As far as adventures are concerned, ones that entail sailing are the most remembered and often times passed from generation to generation as a bed time story or that of encouragement. Sailing has come a long way from the early times when people used the activity mainly for survival. Nowadays, it is more of a recreational activity that is truly fun and interesting to learn. Take it easy and acquire some sailing skills and look forward to another new and unforgettable adventure.

By: Steven Washington

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