Adam Shaw's portfolio

Motivation Crisis; Can You Even Be Bothered to Solve It? It is often difficult to see a motivation crisis coming, as most people become experts at ignoring the symptoms. Suddenly, one day the alarm clock goes off, or you wake up naturally, feeling no desire to get out of bed. The thought of facing the day appears as appealing as jumping in a pool full of piranhas. How is it possible that you suddenly feel this way? There are many possible symptoms that can lead to this increasingly common phenomenon. Maybe your job or relationship have lost their passion, possibly you have compromised yourself, in the belief that you are keeping others happy, to a point of apathy or even given up on any hope or dreams that you had. All of these fac...

Do you have harmonious relationships with all of your close family members and are you aware how this can affect your heart and energy on a daily basis?  People who I looked after that had close family relationships, laughing and joking with their loved ones in hospital would often be full of life and vitality just minutes before they went to bed for the last time, smiling and passing away in their sleep. This was incredible to witness and always gave me hope that death could be a potentially pleasant experience. After all, we all get to die one day - it is only a question of how.  One of the biggest issues that came up repeatedly during my time as a nurse that affected heart health and energy was unresolved family relationships.  ...

Heart Dis-ease – Are You At Risk? Having spent so many years working on Cardiac Care Units and lost close family members to sudden heart attacks, I know the devastating effects that a heart disease can lead to. So many lives are ripped apart each year through the failure to understand and diagnose the early warning signs. A heart attack is the result of your head not understanding the everyday messages of your heart. Your heart is not just the muscle that pumps blood around your body, keeping you alive, it is also the centre of your emotional intelligence. The energy of the heart manifests through your emotions (energy in motion). Allowing this energy to run and taking the time to feel what is going on in your body, without judgm...

Occasionally, life presents challenging circumstances that would test even the most spiritual of individuals. When my bag was stolen on Saturday night, along with my video camera, personal items, money and coat, I was tested. The day had started so well. I'd been to a wonderful event; Living a Charmed Life by Art Giser. I had needed my video camera to do some filming there. As I was in central London I did not have the chance to go home before meeting a few friends for a birthday celebration at a bar/restaurant, near Kings Cross. Being a trusting individual I put my bag, which was pretty bulky, very near to where I was standing and proceeded to enjoy a good evening out. A few hours later when I went to leave, my bag had disappeared...

Another Valentine's day has come and gone. Being single, it's always interesting to note what such a day brings up for me and my single friends. For many, they will get to consider whether they are the ugly duckling or a swan, just like in the story. Which are you? For me, it's a great way to work on the most important relationship in my life - the one with myself. This year I thought that I'd make a day of it and spoil myself! Step 1 - an extra half an hour in bed to read - and feeling good about it. Step 2 - off for breakfast and a note pad to write out my to do list, taking time to slow down and really taste my food. Step 3 - a walk in the park, on what was a lovely, sunny day for mid- February. Use this opportunity to phone...

Have you ever gone against the will of a group and stood by your beliefs, despite the pressure that is being put on you? My dad has just left after a relaxing afternoon of catching up and I'm left here to sit and reflect on what has just happened. Three and a half years ago my grandad, David Shaw, died, aged 94. Two years earlier I sat down and chatted with him about his life and recorded the conversations. For the first time since I have just sat down with my dad and listened to them again. It was as though he came down to join us one more time, bearing some powerful lessons. He lived in a different time, almost a different universe. With no money, he joined the RAF, in 1940. He had to go and train in the USA and then in Canada....

When I went into London today I picked up a copy of the Metro. I very rarely read anything other than the sports pages on any newspaper as it is usually bad news. Being a Liverpool fan means that even the sports section is bad news at the moment! Though the exit of Hicks and Gillette has provided at least a silver lining! Today I was intrigued to see on the top of the front cover: "Caught between a croc and a hard place. Astonishing revelation about plane crash that killed British pilot and 19 others.....flight was brought down by a crocodile." I was curious enough to read the story. It turns out that on a flight in the Democratic Republic of Congo one of the passengers had managed to smuggle a crocodile on board in a sports bag. Before ...

What are your biggest challenges? At least once or twice a year I put myself on a fasting detox as part of my health and fitness programme. It always provides me with many challenges but it has to be done. Yesterday I returned from one of the most fantastic weddings that I have ever been to. I met many good friends that I haven't seen for a while and many new friends. I went away a few days earlier and had a few days in Barcelona before driving over to France for the wedding with my dad and two friends, Mike and David. During this period I have had plenty of food and drink that would not be deemed entirely healthy from a purist perspective. However, I have laughed more in the past week than I have in a good while - and I laugh a lo...

Living and dying: Which do you prefer? Recently, I watched Inception. What a great film. It made me think about death and life. This was poignant as in the past month I have lost 2 friends and my cat, whom I was very close to. Death of others makes me question my own life. As a nurse it was part of a standard nursing assessment form to address living and dying with our patients. With little information on how to go about it, we were just supposed to address this aspect of a person’s health. The truth is that I never used to discuss it. I assumed that because someone was breathing that they must be living. How wrong could I have been? Part of my role as a nurse was to assess my patient’s potential for independence upon leaving...

Do you like to go it alone, or could you use a little help occasionally? Everyone needs a little help every now and again. I am certainly no exception to this. When I set out to create some new Mp3 downloadable products and write my book on the first 15 steps of the Walk Innovation process I needed help to find out if they hit the spot. I wrote to my database and asked for some volunteers to help me with product testing and proof reading. I have to say that I have been bowled over by the response. A number of people volunteered to give me feedback and it has been phenomenal. So many changes have been made in alignment with the feedback that I have received and I have a really good feeling about the book based on initial comme...