Communication is what makes us human: More tips for thinking, writing and speaking in a world of quicksand communications

41. Photos speak louder than words.	A photo can stir emotions quickly. Framing an image carefully helps you to connect with your audience. Looking at your viewfinder or screen, make it a habit to divide your image into three vertical rows. Place your focal point to the left or right of the center row to create greater interest in the eye of the viewer.
42. The magical properties of light.	What colors are there in a room that is so dark you cannot see an inch in front of you? None. Color exists only with the presence of light. Experiment with degrees of light and shadow to see how many moods you can create in a photo.
43. Horizontal is preferred.	For phone viewing of images you shoot, horizontal or square are preferred over vertical orientation. Maybe the horizontal view more closely mimics the way we see using our eyes.
44. More is better.	Take time to prepare a shot whenever possible, frame your subject using the principle of thirds, study how best to use the light available and take more shots than you need to. There are surprises that delight among the extras.
45. Smartphones make you smarter!	Dictate into Notes or voice recording apps your lists, ideas, questions, even conversations with others. We need to “offload” the minutia of our daily lives onto assisting tech whenever we can. Our own gray matter needs space to be creative and to hear the doorbell when inspiration stops in for a visit.
46. Journal to manage and direct your mind.	It’s an exciting world, with distractions and possibilities that boggle the mind. Julia Cameron’s The Artist's Way offers many strategies to help coax your creativity in positive directions. Journaling for no one’s eyes is one trick that helps to take the trash out and clear out mental real estate for what you really want your brain to work on. On a computer or using a pen and paper, write what’s on the surface of your thoughts. Any complaints, regrets or struggles can find their way to the printed page and thus leave more space for the less noisy but usually more important. When you are finished with a page or two, hit “delete” or crumple your pages into the trash. You’ll feel the difference in your thinking after a few days of this practice.
47. Communicate kindness.	What does a kilo of kindness cost? I have no idea, but I know what it pays. We learn and live better when we are relaxed and accepted. Kindness is a tool as important as fire or technology to moving ourselves forward with awareness, from literally learning to walk with baby steps to analytical decisions.
48. Bark for you boundaries.	Puppies push each other in play to learn their place in the pack. In a conversation with another or in a group, notice when a boundary has been reached. It’s a fleeting feeling that someone’s entered uninvited and that someone may be you. Pause the conversation to redirect with firm kindness. You own your privacy and are in your right to say to someone, “Step back, I’m uncomfortable with this line of talking at this time.” No further explanation is required. Move on. We are puppies of a large, hairless variety.
49. Who elected you God?	I love to teach using cooperative or collaborative methods because students are forced into facing each other and interactions where they learn instead of zoning out into a screen. They rotate leadership roles and inevitably there is a person who feels their leadership is more important than that of others. It’s a chance for someone to learn to step up and say, “Wait. It’s my turn,” or to shrink back and let the natural leader take over. These interactions are as important as the content in a class. It’s how we learn leadership.
50. You are what you listen to.	I remember I learned a friend had died and I was so sad, all I could think to do was lower the top on the convertible I had and drive on the open highway listening to the Rolling Stones. It only helped a little, but I was grateful for the wind and the sounds that drowned out my sorrow even for a minute. Your diet of media feeds your moods and beliefs. Comedy may be what you need more than a police procedural. Metal or Mendelssohn might be what helps your brain feel centered. Learn to select to address your current feelings. Think as carefully about what you want to serve the needs of your spirit and soul as you do your physical body.

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