Christmas Gift Suggestions

To an enemy - forgiveness

To an opponent - tolerance

To a friend - your heart

To a customer - service

To all - charity

To every child - love

To yourself - respect

Seasons Greetings and may 2010 bring you all you wish for...... maybe!

Sandra

THE THIRTY SECOND QUIZ

Don't bother getting a pen and paper... just read... if you can't

answer them, just keep going.

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America contest.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer prize.

5. Name the last five Academy Award winners for Best Actor and Actress.

How did you do?

The point is, none of us remembers the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate

achievers. They're the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements

are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Now here's another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. Name three teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who have taught you something worth while.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson?

The people who make a difference in your life aren't the ones with the most credentials, the

most money, or the most awards.

THEY`RE THE ONES WHO CARE..

TRAIN WITH US!!

"Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge" - Kahlil Gibran

Whether you choose one of our open courses or decide you would like us to work 'in house' with you - you will never get a bog-standard off the shelf course from us.

We work hard to provide training for you that is designed to 'stick'. Enabling you to gain skills, confidence and strategies to help you improve your results and take control of the decisions that will improve your working and personal life. And, once you have attended one of our courses, we won't close the door. We offer unlimited free email support and free resources - forever!

For more information, to find out more about our tailored in-house workshops, or to book a place on one of our popular in-house courses visit our web site at

www.accessdevelopmentservices.co.uk/index.php?content=training

STOP PRESS ! ! !

Book now to take advantage of our special limited offer

20% discount !!!

Who Are Your Best Customers?

Do you know who your best customers are? In most businesses, the 80/20 rule applies (to just about everything) and this is also the case with your customers. Yet some businesses don’t have any idea who contribute most to their bottom line!

Keep a list of those clients and make a special effort to sell to them. You know they already like what you do and they are likely to spend the most money with you in the future – but only if you make the effort. Give them more of what they like!

Market to them more frequently, and - more personally. They will love it. Guaranteed.

Do Individual People Matter In The Grand Scheme?

I was deeply saddened on hearing the news that Gary McKinnon was refused the right to appeal to the Supreme Court against the decision to extradite him to the US where he faces up to 60 years in maximum security prison for hacking into US military and NASA computers in 2001 and 2002.

Gary has a form of autism known as Asperger's Syndrome and claims he was looking for evidence of UFOs but the USA say he caused half a million pounds of damage and crippled vital security systems just after 9/11.

Gary is a very vulnerable young man who could easily fall victim to psychosis and suicidal tendencies if he is forced to stand trial in the States where he will have none of the support systems and familiarity he so desperately needs to be able to function, yet our government have agreed to hand Glasgow born Gary over.

Gary has not asked to be 'let off'. Simply to be tried in this country where he has his family and support systems around him that he needs to be able to get through each day. Yet a panel of judges has refused him the right to appeal to the new UK Supreme Court because his case does not raise "points of law of general importance". What is more important than this?

Gary's mum, Janis Sharp said after the hearing: "No other country in the world would so readily offer its citizens to the US as a sacrificial lamb to safeguard a 'special political relationship'. To use my desperately vulnerable son in this way is despicable, immoral and devoid of humanity."

Gary is simply one individual. One vulnerable young man. Are his rights being sacrificed for the greater good of the majority? Maybe. But how can we justify this? I cannot accept that the rights of the individual don't matter. If the rights of one don't count, then none of us count. I would argue that respecting, honouring and protecting the rights of the individual says "You matter" instead of "I matter" and in this way we connect,........ and ultimately "We all matter".

I hope that someone who can change this decision will decide that Gary matters.

Education Kills Creativity?

I have a particular soap box with regard to our education system. I believe it is fundamentally flawed and results in many of our children being forced into a system that is designed to fail them.

Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and profoundly moving case for creating an education system that nurtures rather than undermines creativity. Watch this, and see if you agree. (you may need to cut and paste into your browser)

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html

To Whom It May Concern

I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year old again. I want to to go McDonalds and think that it's a four star restaurant. I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make ripples with rocks. I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them. I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.

I want to return to a time when life was simple. When all you knew were colours, multiplication tables and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset. I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good. I want to believe that anything is possible. I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.

I want to live simple again. I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness and loss of loved ones. I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.

So.... here's my cheque book and my car keys, my credit card bills and my 401,000 statements. I am officially resigning from adulthood. And if you want to discuss this further, you'll have to catch me first, cause.....

"Tag - You're it!"

Facilitation

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end. Then stop" - The King (Alice in Wonderland)

We have lots of ways of facilitating your meetings and events – all designed to provide a clear framework for making sure that everyone gets the chance to participate, no single agenda dominates and you get a clearly defined outcome with improved relationships and ‘buy in’ from those involved.

Contact us to find out more about how we can help to improve your meetings, events and consultations - getting you great results!

info@accessdevelopmentservices.co.uk

Tel: 0794983995

To Advertise or Not to Advertise

I have been thinking about developing my business and what I should do about advertising. Most of my business tends to come from recommendation and all of my business has been as a result of personal contact. I believe that people buy people.

Since I am always open to having my beliefs challenged I have decided to try advertising - first on a small scale. So, I have contacted a business directory which has offered a free listing and will see what results from this.

UK Small Business Directory

Marbles

I was wondering what to write here today and then I received this story.

"You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years.
Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3,900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part.
It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail," he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1,000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear.
Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life.
There's nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.
Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time.
It was nice to meet you Tom. I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 year old man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!"
You could have heard a pin drop on the band when this fellow signed off. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. I had planned to work on the antenna that morning, and then I was going to meet up with a few hams to work on the next club newsletter.
Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. "C'mon honey, I'm taking you and the kids to breakfast."

"What brought this on?" she asked with a smile.
"Oh, nothing special, it's just been a long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. And hey, can we stop at a toy store while we're out? I need to buy some marbles."

Special Offer

Hurry! - 20% off all Training Course Places!!!

We know that times are tough and budgets are getting tighter - so we have decided to tighten our own belts and offer a 20% discount on our training course places

BE QUICK! - We don't know how long we can do this for, so visit our web site and take a look at our popular open courses - or contact us for more information about bespoke training. http://www.accessdevelopmentservices.co.uk/index.php?content=training

Don't miss out on this special offer - places are limited

To take advantage of this great opportunity, quote reference: ADS/BL09

Sailing Solo

Out of all the billions and billions of people that live or have lived, more people have gone into space than have sailed alone around the world…. And less than a handful have done it under the age of 20.

So - What makes these young people so determined to succeed in something so awesomely difficult and challenging?

David Dicks Nov 1996
17
Australian
First teenager to sail solo around the world.

“I started sailing with Jon (Sanders - the first single-handed sailor to remain continuously at sea twice around the world) when I was about 12 or 13, and going on long deliveries with him across the Bight and thinking, "This is just great, you know. I wanna do something like what Jon's done. And that's when I used to say, ‘I'll beat your record, you know.’”

Jesse Martin 31.10.99
18
Australian
Youngest person to sail solo around the world with no help

“There are many people out there dreaming of great things, and it’s a good chance that your son, daughter, brother, sister or friend is one of them. Believe and encourage them so they won’t lose one of humanity’s most prized assets - the ability to dream.”
And he tells us that
“Dreaming is my drug. It’s what I use to get me through the hard times.”
“After the solo trip, I felt like I could do anything and the thing at the top of my list was to sail around the world again, but this time stop at all the places I’d passed by and do it with friends.”

Zac Sunderland 16.07.09
17
American

Zac told the BBC that the experience had been tough but he had never thought of giving up.

“After more than a year alone at sea, I'm struck by how much people my age can actually achieve, if only they have the passion and ability to think beyond what society tells them is possible," he said.

He added that he was already planning his next challenge.
"I'm hoping to set off on my next adventure soon - Mount Everest or down to the Arctic Circle,"

Mike Perham 27.08.09
17
British
Aged 14 – youngest person to sail across the Atlantic single handed (record still unbeaten) and aged 17 youngest person to sail solo around the world with assistance

Mike said: "I've made it, I've made my dream come true and it feels amazing. A BIG BIG thanks to my Dad, Mum, all the sponsors and every one who has helped me along the way.


So... Who next?

Laura Decker
13
Netherlands
Wants to become the youngest ever person to sail solo around the world – her parents are supportive, but the authorities may not allow her to sail as they consider her to be too young.

Laura told a Children’s T.V. show
"My parents always knew it was a dream of mine to do this. And I want to do it while I'm still young, so I can break the record."


When you read the stories of these amazing young people, you find they all had some things in common.

• A dream. A specific, compelling goal in mind
• Determination. They worked at it. Themselves. One step at a time, not letting anything stand in their way.
• Belief. Belief in their own ability, belief that it could be done, and belief that nothing was going to stop them. And, importantly, the belief of others that they could do this – particularly that of their parents.
• Support. Sponsors, friends, strangers, parents, friends, family.
• A flexible plan. Although the journey was meticulously planned, they had to cope with setbacks that were out of their control; the weather; repairs to the boat and equipment. They and their plans needed to be adaptable.
• Drive and ambition. As soon as the journey was over, they all had plans for what they wanted to do next. The trip was not an end in itself, but part of a continuing journey of adventure and achievement

If nothing else, they have shown us that life is about moving forward, against all odds and succeeding.

What can you learn from their attitude, beliefs and achievements that will help you move forward and succeed in your life?

Take care

Sandra

New Web Site

Well - here it is! Our new web site is now up and running. We would love you to use this section to post questions or start discussions or to let us know what you would like to see on our site.

It is hoped that you will also use this to challenge, question and debate with us and each other.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Sandra

Sandra Hughes

Access Development Services

Web Site

Hi - Our new web site is launching on 1st June www.accessdevelopmentservices.co.uk - would love to find out what people think of it.

Sandra