FAREWELL MADIBA

	FROM THE DESK OF SIPHO NKOSI FAREWELL MADIBA It is with great sadness that we have all learned that our beloved Madiba, former president, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, passed away last night. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and with all South Africans as we mourn the passing of this great statesman. We pray that the ideals that he strived for and the freedoms he won for the people of South Africa continue to be treasured long after this sad day.  He made such a difference to the lives of so many people…we were blessed to have him with us for so long. And we pray that he rests in peace after all the years that he devoted to the struggle for democracy in South Africa. He lived a remarkable life and has left behind a truly enormous heritage. My sorrow is lightened by the knowledge that he has left many lessons from his life that we can take with us into the future. For us as individuals, and perhaps as an organisation, one lesson I take from his life was that he was all about being pro-active. He didn’t wait for change to happen; he set out to make that change. Another lesson of his that is also close to my own heart is that of education and the development of young people. He said it best on many occasions: ·         “Young people must take it upon themselves to ensure that they receive the highest education possible so that they can represent us well in future as future leaders.” ·         “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” ·         “Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm workers can become the president of a great nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.” ·         “Our children are the rock on which our future will be built, our greatest asset as a nation. They will be the leaders of our country, the creators of our national wealth, those who care for and protect our people.” We at Exxaro will continue his commitment to the youth through our focus on education and the development of young people through our Saturday Schools curricular assistance scheme, our bursary scheme, our learnerships programme, our PIT programme and continuing development. The day Madiba was released from prison was a day of new possibilities for South Africa.  Possibilities that culminated in the formation of Exxaro itself. In his memory, we must continue to focus our efforts on powering new possibilities for this company and this nation. Rest in peace Madiba. We realise that this is a sad moment and time for grieving and therefore wish to remind and advise that grievance counsellors are available for all employees through the Careways employee assistance programme.  You can reach them on 0800 004 770.

My Confession

The Truth Shall Set us Free

MY CONFESSION

It says that “the truth shall set you free”

I would like to use my blog to convey my confession in regards to the failure of my marriage.

Marriage; the formal union of a man and a woman, typically as recognized by law, by which they become husband and wife.

What does it take to make a marriage fail?

Simple…….from my experience, it doesn’t take any effort; instead it’s owed to the lack of effort. 

Taking a few steps back and observing my own life, I recognise the lack of effort that was mending to be the glue keeping it as one.

We were married for 13 years, which the last 3 were the most unpleasant of all. We use to be that! Couple all were referring to as the honeymooners after 10 years of marriage. How does something so strong and stable fall apart so quickly? We use to be the best of friend, those that do not even have to speak to know that something was off beam; we were telepathy partners if you could call it that.  We went through bumpy times, from me sitting without work to the extent of working in an remote area in the middle of nowhere. From broke too wealthy and broke again. LMAO. So we have been from end to end and still we were the perfect couple. So??

The first question; what did my partner do wrong to allow the extend of digression? This forms part of the denial period………..I think.

Its only months later that one recognise all the mistakes made by oneself, and then the self blaming off course. It all depends on passion, perceptions and commitment focused on the correct areas. Dedication was there Oooo yes……only focused in the wrong directions.

The idea of this confession is to first recognise my mistakes and then to highlight them, I mean……after all we are just humans not programmed cyborg’s , we do make stupid decisions and do make mistakes throughout our existence.

My wrongdoings 

So where to start? Where did things start to deteriorate, It usually starts small and rocket to something hideous in due course. So what I am about to share is from my personal point of view and to the best of my memory. 

 ·   Sports:

For the first few years my wife and kids were everything to me, although I was more of the adrenalin junkie type, she filled that craving in some way, how I am not sure of. So where then the greater craving to extreme sports derived from is a good question.  My focus slightly shifted from being the perfect husband and friend to the seeker of something more heart thrashing. Instead of communicating in a proper way…….I decided to force my will onto my family no matter the consequences! Regardless of their needs, as long as I could get on the road and run.  I bed the word self-seeking is an understatement. So this lead to a more severe step;

·   Socialising:

The irregular drinking developed into more regular drinking and the want for socialism became a mania. The further the atmosphere grow to be agonizing (Due to my actions) the more the need to socialise, and the more single-minded I befall, not aware of the movements behind the curtains (My family crumbling as a result of my egoism)

·   Arrogance:

I think the word “REBEL” best describes my attitude throughout the last phase of my self-centredness.  No one could dare give me some advice on how to do what……..I know what was the best and the sad part is that I managed to believe the bullshit I fed myself. Pure human not so? We always know MOS the best. 

And the biggest mistake of them all;

·   Dialogue:

Yes I was that person that discuss my issues with people and through my actions placing others in a awful light. Discussing people and making them bad is not the solution, believe me. This caused severe consequences for I ended up feeling like a big ass. And the best is……..my intention was never to cause harm to any person.  

Eventually it ended up in a big bang and the decided was made.

There is always a price to pay……sooner or later.

I cannot justify my wrongs and there is no explanation for what I have done, also the punishment will appear with its own measurement.  There is a saying “one should never live with any regrets”, the only way this is achievable, is by learning from ones mistakes and unlimited self forgiveness.  

I have hurt countless people through my actions, and a number of them may be scarred for time without end.

Forgive me Father, for the harm I caused them

My desire is that those people could forgive me for the harm I caused them.

Lessons learned;

·   Always think before you act, If you can’t say something good about someone….rather say nothing.

·   Care for those you love.

·   Love is caring more about someone else’s happiness than your own.

·   Prosper in the wellbeing of others and endeavour to bring happiness to those who call for it. 

·   Whatever the circumstances, the counteraction derives from the inner you.

I do not judge myself as a bad person, maybe a bit 

misunderstood or astray. 

I forgive myself

Conclusion;

Make every effort to keep my positive outlook and to cause an addiction to those in lack of enthusiasm. Trust must be owned and once somebody loses trust in you, it takes a lot of effort to recover that trust.    

Sorry for breaking your trust

One day at a time, living it to the fullest for we are blessed beyond measure. Life does not come to a stillstand and therefore, life's too short to hold grudges............forgive, bury the hatchet and live in abundance. 

We all make mistakes, that makes us human, as long as you acknowledge it, ask forgiveness from the hart and learn from it. 

And most important......!

Yours in shame

Pierre Venter

PierrePressure Survey

2013/11/27

Please participate in this survey to assist the PierrePressure team to improve and achieve their objectives.

"https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2KPDND8"

MORAL OF THE STORY

Dad, there is Jesus

A father was reading his favourite magazine and his little daughter every now and then distracted him. Trying to keep her daughter busy, he tore out one page on which was printed the map of the world. He then tore the page into pieces and asked her to go to her room and put them together to make the map again.

Having done this, the father was now convinced he would read his magazine without any disturbance and also that it would take her daughter the whole day to get it done.But the little one came back within mnts with the perfect map.

*The curious and confused father asked her daughter how she could do it so quickly.*...

She giggled and said:“Oh…Dad, there is Jesus' face on the other side of the paper, I made His face perfect to get the map right.”

*Satisfied with her answer,she

ran outside to play leaving the

father surprised.*

‪#‎MORAL OF THE STORY: In life there is always the other side to whatever you experience.When ever we come across a challenge or puzzling situation, look at the other side, you will be surprised to see an easy way to tackle the problem...#She giggled and said:“Oh…Dad, there is Jesus' face on the other side of the paper, I made His face perfect to get the map right.”

*Satisfied with her answer,she
ran outside to play leaving the
father surprised.*

‪#‎MORAL OF THE STORY: In life there is always the other side to whatever you experience.When ever we come across a challenge or puzzling situation, look at the other side, you will be surprised to see an easy way to tackle the problem...#

10 Wise Choices to Skyrocket Your Happiness

I came across this article wrote by "Gail Brenner" and I thought I want to share it with you, this is phenomenal and a good foundation.

Skyrocket Your Happiness

Photo by Casey David

By Gail Brenner

“The amount of happiness that you have depends on the amount of freedom you have in your heart.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Who doesn't want to be happy? Just take a look at any moment of your life, any choice you make. Isn't your intention to be happy?

By happiness, I don’t necessarily mean the pollyanna, silly-smile-on-your-face kind. What I mean is a deep sense of contentment, the capability of being peaceful and at ease no matter what, an inner knowing that things are just fine.

Somehow true happiness eludes us, and here’s why. Even though we long for it more than anything, we make choices that derail us. We choose stressful behaviors, distorted beliefs through which we view the world, and emotional chaos. And in doing so, we interfere with our potential to be happy.

Happiness is absolutely within your reach. In fact, it closer than close – the essence of you. How to discover happiness? Make a study of your thoughts and emotions. See what makes you unhappy, then plant your feet firmly in the land of happiness. Make these ten wise choices, and the deepest happiness imaginable will be revealed.

1. Take responsibility. Don't blame others, turn yourself into a victim, or wait for someone to come and save you. If you want to be happy, take the bull by the horns. Be willing to figure out how you stand in the way of your happiness.
2. Embody enthusiasm. Be willing, open, courageous, and humble. Admit what isn't working and be available to the possibility of real inner change. Keep your quest alive.
3. Drop your old baggage. Nothing kills happiness more quickly than old hurts, resentments, and grudges. If you are spending your precious time stuck in a sad story from the past, realize that you are being affected way more than anyone else. Wrap all of that pain in a vast cocoon of love, then move on with clarity and grace.
4. Become intensely interested in your inner life. The cause of unhappiness is the playing out of conditioned habits that don’t serve you. Find out what they are and use a laser focus to see how they work. With your new-found awareness, make healthy, life-affirming choices.
5. Question your beliefs. We unknowingly build our lives around distorted beliefs and expectations. Put every thought under the microscope for examination to see if it is actually true. You will undoubtedly find that you are living through a veil of confusion and limitation. Be willing to step away from these familiar and cherished beliefs and see everything with fresh eyes.
6. Appreciate presence. Happiness is found here, in the eternal now – not in the past or future. Relax. Let all efforting fall away, and receive everything just as it is. Luxuriate in the wonder of your senses as you go about your daily life.
7. Study your emotions. Life becomes heavy and burdensome when we are ruled by difficult emotions. The medicine for this emotional pain is interest and attention. Stop telling yourself stories that fuel your emotions. Rather, welcome the direct experience of the feelings and the sensations in your body. Let them be without needing to get rid of them. Over time, they will lose their power over you, and you will be at peace. The clouds will lift, revealing the happiness you have been searching for all along.
8. Live from your heart. Shed every thought, emotion, and habit that no longer serves you. What is left? Love. Let love permeate your conversations, activities, and the way you treat yourself. In any moment, ask, “What would love do?” then do it. Savor the deliciousness of a full and open heart.
9. Choose freedom over fear. Fear is another happiness-killer. Know when fear is driving your choices, and choose otherwise. Meet fear with love, then have the courage to act on what you really want.
10. Let happiness pervade your life. Every moment presents the opportunity to be happy. If you doubt me, just take a look at your own experience. When you break it down to its bare essence in the moment, you will realize that a choice is always possible. Nag or be silent, self-criticize or self-love, sustain stress or take a deep breath, perpetuate a habit or unravel it until you just can’t keep it going anymore.

When we are at peace with our own experience, we can’t help but be happy. Nothing is in the way. We see through the fog of faulty beliefs and dramatic stories, leaving us available to consciously choose happiness – now, and now, and now. It’s right here, can you feel it?

Happiness is no longer a mystery. Make these 10 wise choices, and the endless well of happiness will be revealed to you.


Are you happy? What interferes with your happiness? I’d love to hear…

Perseverance

Perseverance

 

Perseverance

Perseverance – persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.

What is perseverance?

Perseverance is commitment, hard work, patience, endurance.

Perseverance is being able to bear difficulties calmly and without complaint.

Perseverance is trying again and again.

How do we not lose our way in this difficult time?

How do we maintain our clarity, stamina and faith as we experience disruptions, set-backs and obstacles?

How do we persevere on behalf of the people, places and causes we love?

Like it or not, there will be difficult times in our lives, whatever it is, it’s essential that you don’t lose hope. You must have hope that you will go through it. If you don’t, you will only drag yourself down. You will enter a vicious cycle where your negative attitude makes the situation worse, which makes you even more negative.

To not lose hope you must have faith. In my case, I believe that God is in control of my life and has a good plan for me. No matter how bad the situation looks, I’ve learned to trust Him, even if I don’t understand how things will work. Time and again, things turn out to be good, often in a way that I couldn’t understand earlier. Going through difficult times is hard, but going through them alone is even harder. You need a group of positive people who can support you. You should become a part of a community that cares and encourages one another. If you don’t, my suggestion is to start looking for one. Don’t wait until you need it, because by then it will be too late. You need the community before difficult times come.

What separates success and failure is one thing. That is perseverance.

Identify your goal. Your goal may be to climb Mount Everest, to stop smoking, to get a better job, to lose weight, to gain more self control, to get yourself out of harmful habitual habits, or anything you can think of and desire to achieve. Educate yourself about your goal and develop a plan to achieve your goal. Realize that if your goal is very lofty that you will likely face multiple challenges and failures along the way. It is important to spiritually, and mentally, prepare yourself for these failures.

Nobody ever succeeded by not trying. Many people procrastinate in taking the first step because they fear failure. Failure is guaranteed when the first step is not taken. If you fail, realize what it is that caused you to fail and get back up. Keep on trying. If you stupidly make the same mistakes over and over you must not get depressed. Take a new approach to the situation or purpose in yourself to try harder.

Remember “Winners never quit and quitters never win”

Do not keep trying things that will damage you unless you have a clear path to improvement.

Perseverance is about pursuing a higher goal and developing an ability to deal with setbacks and failure on the way. Persevering is a combination of mindset and habit. Automatically it’s about having the stamina to actually keep going and doing the right things. Mentally it’s about knowing where to go and how to deal with setbacks in the right way. Perseverance alone will not make you successful, but without it you will never get anywhere, and with it you can go further than most people.

Never ever, ever give up and never; ever keep on to elements draining you from live.

Love, Living, Live. 

Intimidation

Intimidation

Intimidation

Intimidation – the act of intimidating a weaker person to make them do something.

Why do we intimidate others?

People try to intimidate others for many reasons. One of the biggest reasons people choose to intimidate others is for dominance. They want to show others that they are more powerful.

Why do we allow ourselves to be intimidated?

It could be due to one of the following factors; status, low self esteem, perception or depression.

Conclusion; Not comfortable with one’s self.

I used to be intimidated by good looking, clever or high ranked people until I changed my view, which is that we as humans are all meant to shine with what we have been given. Good looking, clever or high ranked people work just as hard as others. We have to realize, as average people that we are the ones that put these people on a pedestal, and rank ourselves as lower level. Change that by being self confident and comfortable in your own shoes. I AM THE MOST! AMAZING PERSON I KNOW!!

We here at PierrePressure strive to intimidate the “Peer” in a positive way by means of,  guidance through  our challenges, and examples set by the PierrePressure readers. 

Although intimidation will always be part of our lives, it’s still in our discretion to be influenced in a negative manner. No matter who or what you are, YOU were created by God as a human being to rule over His creation. RULE does not mean to intimidate those who are weaker in spirit and mental capacity. “RULE - control of or dominion over an area or people” and this is where you as an individual must set the example and not succumb to intimidation.  Its your duty and most of all........your right!

“There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.” ― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

In life we will often face difficult challenges and intimidating circumstances.

I offer you the advice a friend gave me.

We can't control the actions of others but you can control how you react to them. An action can only be intimidating when you choose to be intimidated.

PierrePressure Dare you to stand against intimidation and lead by example.  Do what the “Peer” fail to do. 

Stand against intimidation

Set the Example

Set The Example

Set the Example

John 13:15

'I have set you an example so that you should do as I have done for you.'

- The Lord has set an example for us as to how we should live our lives.
- The life you live should be a demonstration of your faith in God.
- Our lives are a book that others can read.
- In the end, the example we exhibit can touch the lives of others.

LORD, help me to follow the example You have set for me and cause my life to touch the lives of others as a result. Amen.

There are many people one influences. The influence can be good or it can be bad.

If one conducts his life to keep these recommendations, one is setting a good example.

Others around one cannot help but be influenced by this, no matter what they say.

Anyone trying to discourage you is trying to do so because they factually mean you harm or are seeking to serve their own ends. Down deep, they will respect you.

Your own survival chances will be bettered in the long run since others, influenced, will become less of a threat. There are other benefits.

Don’t discount the effect you can achieve on others simply by mentioning these things and setting a good example in your own right.

The way to happiness

requires that one set a good

example for others.

Be conscious for people who call themselves your friends with phony intentions. 

Self Love

Self Love

Self Love

Why do I need to fit in, be part of a group or the need to draw attraction?

Every human has the need to belong, to be appreciated and the most important.........to be loved. If that need is not filled or approached at the wrong time with the wrong influences, it will suck it up like water in a sponge just to fill that need.

   

Love

Love is the substitute for every one of these desires. And the greater love of all is the love for one self.  When you change the way you think about yourself, your life will change. Yung people who feel good about themselves are more likely to fall between the cracks in society and are more resilient in creating positive futures for them. 

Promote

The question though is how to promote self love in the younger generation? Self love is like a child's shield against the challenges of the world. Kids who know their strengths and weaknesses and feel good about themselves seem to have an easier time handling conflicts and resisting negative pressures. They tend to smile more readily and enjoy life. These kids are realistic and generally optimistic.

We all have a mental picture of who we are and how we look. We develop this picture over time, starting when we're very young. The term self-image is used to refer to a person's mental picture of himself or herself. A lot of our self-image is based on interactions we have with other people and our life experiences. This mental picture (our self-image) contributes to our Self Love. 

The best practical way to promote Self Love is to make one person feel valued, loved, accepted, and thought well of by others. 

Valued - “held in great esteem for admirable qualities especially of an intrinsic nature”

Promote the good quality in your child; make sure that he/she knows what that quality is and that they are appreciated for it. 

Loved – “A deep, tender, ineffable feeling of affection and solicitude toward a person, such as that arising from kinship, recognition of attractive qualities, or a sense of underlying oneness”

Show them that you really care, build on that relationship as a fortress for safety. 

Self Love

Accepted – “generally approved; widely regarded as normal, right, etc”

Let them know that they are approved and regarded as normal although they make mistakes. And that you set the standard of approval, not their friends. 

Thought well of by others

By creating and fostering the tree elements above, the “Thought well of by others” will take place spontaneously.  And thus will then by its turn promote Self Love and nurture all the feelings to fulfilment. 

Self Love

Conclusion

No matter who you are, or where you’re from, or how you look, YOU ARE! Entitled to be Valued, Loved, Accepted and Thought well of by others. Do not belief that you need to participate in under duress events just to be accepted. Love yourself for what you are and build on your good qualities, change the concept of “Simply because everyone else is doing it” to........everyone else is doing because I am doing it. 

You are awesome for GOD don’t make no junk.   

ps: YOU!! must be the most amazing person you know.              

Tenacity

Tenacity means to stick with something even when the going gets tough. Never give up. Never surrender! Tenacity all so means the quality or state of being.

2013/10/14

PEER PRESSURE
Definition

Social pressure by members of one's peer group to take a certain action, adopt certain values, or otherwise conform in order to be accepted.

Peer pressure is a social influence exerted by others on an individual. The pressure is exerted in order to get someone to act or believe in a similar way. The peer pressure is acted out by a peer group against others, often be in an “everybody’s doing it” kind of way.

Reverse of Peer Pressure

Independence, self-will, self-dependence, self-reliance. In short it’s called PIERRE PRESSURE

SO WHAT IS MY BLOG "PIERREPRESSURE" ALL ABOUT?

Objective:

To guarantee a sense of security against being the outcast for not participating in under duress events. 

To change the element of “Peer Pressure” to “My Pressure” by giving one the ability to influence the “Peer” in a positive sense. Activating the need for Independence, self-will, self-dependence and self-reliance.

Target:

To illustrate the opposite of “Peer Pressure” by doing amazing things and influencing the “Peer” to a positive extend thru my actions.  

Pierre Pressure

My hope is that this Blog will change the concept of “Simply because everyone else is doing it” to........everyone else is doing because I am doing it.

IT'S ALL ABOUT MAKING THE RIGHT DECISIONS!

                                                                                                                               2013/10/14

Every day we are faced with risks, whether they are small or large we will encounter them.  The key to being successful is taking those risks that may seem scary, however once you run with a risk it could end up being the best decision you have ever made.  Rockefeller was a master at taking risks, he did not believe in the concept of fear.  Instead when he was faced with a risk or a decision he tackled it head on and that is how he became the vicious business man that each student learns about in his/her history class.  Take a risk every day.  By doing this, you will get more comfortable taking bigger and bigger risks.  Start out small.  Thinking about it will not get you anywhere, go do it!