It’s that time of year, new beginnings, new objectives…what are you planning to do to start off 2014? We propose the following and we think they are quite easy to maintain. Do you have any you want to add to the list? Happy 2014!

How do you plan to start your day? Would you start any of the routines above in 2014?

And it’s here! Our favourite links to look back at 2013.

Merry Christmas!

Link List:

–The Evolution of Santa Claus

–The Things We Talked about in 2013

–The Best Photos of 2013 According to Reuter’s

–Literary Jukebox – (a quote, a book and a song) daily updates. A great new habit for the New Year!

–A new perspective on the stress in our lives

– Christmas Comparisons – Which do you prefer? Compare two very different versions of the Christmas Classic, ‘Carol of the Bells’

A robot chior:http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/james-houston-carol-of-the-bells 

The traditional version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oos7tkWrKyY

As the holidays quickly approach and we start preparing to end another full year, I am sure we all begin using our hindsight (an understanding of a past situation or event) to put the year 2013 into perspective and to prepare ourselves for a busy holiday season and 2014. No, this is not to stress you out more. On the contrary, this is to give you some tips (helpful hint or piece of information) on how you can begin the New Year successfully.

In this very interesting video by Amy Cuddy, Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are, we get some wonderful advice on how to face (confront) your fears and how to ace (do fantastically well) on that next interview or presentation you might have to do. It all begins with how you feel in the inside and how you use the information you have and know to arrive to your objective. Yes, there will be some challenges, but all it takes is a little practicing and a lot of confidence to say you DID

So what do you think? Will you start practicing “open posture” and facing your challenges?

http://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are.html

Stay tuned for our Presentation Workshops in 2014!

This week, we are discussing with some students whether they feel learning English has become a race to the finish line (something urgent).

Here are two very interesting debates on whether English should become “The World Language”. Lately, this seems to be quite a debate. English is contagious and everyone around the world is trying to learn English. Did you know about 2 billion people are studying English as we speak?

Take a look at these stats (statistics):

http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-faq-the-english-language.htm

Some think that this is an opportunity for the world to communicate and do business. Others argue we are losing many minority languages. What do you think? Watch these two videos and see if you have a stance (position) on this important debate…after all, it is affecting you too:

Pro-Global English: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-world-s-english-mania-jay-walker

Against Global English: http://www.ted.com/talks/patricia_ryan_ideas_in_all_languages_not_just_english.html

Photo Source: Just Write Steve McCurry

And like the song says, Baby it’s Cold Outside! I don’t know about you, but winter is one of my favourite seasons to heat up a warm drink, stretch out on the couch (sofa), wiggle your toes (move from side to side) and grab a good book.

Luckily, with today’s e-books, amazon and the internet, it is not difficult to find great reading material. There is something for everyone and maybe all you need is a good book to help you travel somewhere far, motivate you and help you see the world differently. And so I urge (recommend) you to find a book, poem, magazine, blog, anything that you really like and read!

Here are some ideas:

NPR’s Book List:

http://apps.npr.org/best-books-2013/

A Collection of Newspapers: http://en.kiosko.net/

One of my Favorite Magazines: http://www.newyorker.com/

And English Book Stores in BCN!

Come In

Hibernian Books

BCN Books

Photo Source: Saul Leiter