Week 7 Reflections: People — Taste, lifestyle, and time management — Health

People Reflections

[REDACTED] I’d say that after an hour of gathering, people interactions triggered powerful reflections on the “vibes” of people- personalities, way of thought and speech, and the comfort/discomfort and space they radiate in interactions. Genuineness, seriousness, laid-back-ness, extent of opening up, and active listening are all important pillars that stage interactions. Adjusting to different situations and atmospheres, whether it’s an office space, a friends reunion, family gathering requires us to put different ways of speech in play, yet your personal values and genuineness should never change.

One of the great articles I read on HBR is that triggering stories of great conviction requires courage to identify your flaws and being not afraid to share. Identifying stories from when people were on a similar journey, encountering roadblocks, and emerged transformed is a reminder that we are all human. I do realize that people can all be on guard with unfamiliar group gatherings, tossing “formal” and “trivial” conversations over the table without making real connections. Yet, as long as you take the initiative to share a bit more, connections can be formed and the ice between broken.

Taste, lifestyle, and Time management

「安排好自己的生活，把時間管理做好，事情做到位，這就是生活的品味」Staging moments of bliss requires nothing other than being in tune with your pace of life-from being and early riser and planning ahead, enjoying the creative pursuits of life–reading, music, cuisine, outdoor activities, nature excursions, or exercises you enjoy, and fine-tuning your pace with gaps in between to slow down and reflect. This requires good time management-planning head, familiarizing with your execution efficiency, and realizing that life is not all about surging ahead–sometimes healthy gaps in between takes you towards the longer journey.

Health

I still remember being a few days into the job– surprised by how people survive by a simple salad or cold wrap as lunch, sustaining their energy until the evening with a few nibbles of office snack (for some). In the second week I understood the science behind, as the sedentary lifestyle of sitting behind the monitor or in the meeting room required a lot of brain power but little physical movement. You’re easily drowsy if too much starch is consumed during lunch time, and little physical activity meant that food intake can be minimized anyways.

So, I joined the ride. I brought lunch for a few days during the week, so hot lunch became salad mixes–I tried a variety of beautiful mixes: chickpeas, kidney beans, tuna-avocado, broccoli, beets, chicken-waldorf, fruit mixes; all varieties never made before. And I enjoyed eating light and feeling right, I was able to concentrate better in the afternoons, and this lifestyle sustained me for a while.

And then I had a miserable morning staged by stomachache, and upon further research I found that the combination of caffeine (coffee and tea), cold food, food linked with intestinal gas (broccoli, sprouts, cauliflower, beans, onions, pears), and lactose from milk stimulates an upset stomach. Looking back, I did had a bit of caffeine intake combined with cold food in the past few weeks, and I guess aggravating that with a drastic change of diet does need some time for adaptation. Moderation is key, and I guess not going across the fine line and fine-tuning my diet-finding that fine line and what suits me best is key. Enjoying comfort food for an upset stomach-papaya, bananas, yoghurt, and steamed veggies is a simple joy, but I won’t want to go through the valuable lesson taught be an upset stomach again haha, yet glad I learned it sooner rather than later :)

Discovery Bay

Discovery Bay is a 25-minute ferry trip away from Central, yet the community vibes, car-prohibited transport, residential density, and island ambience magically turns it into Hong Kong island’s adjacent escape. Walking along the shaded sidewalks, nicely manicured lawns, and spread out sidewalks, my heart sings along as I amble across its only big street. I was transmitted to an exotic residential district where golf cars were the main means of transportation, 50% of the population were foreigners, and the vacation mood was in the air with the seafront lined with 3-floor apartments. The slow vibes, panoramic view, spread out space, and sparsely populated open space made Discovery Bay radiate its charm like no other island in Hong Kong. I guess its partially due to the high ferry fare that segmented the tourists–a round way ferry trip cost 90 HKD, while other islands don’t cost half the price with more vendors and equally accessible beaches. Yet I guess it’s all part of city planning–high living standards are combined high entry costs and restrictions, making discovery bay a once in a while beautiful pursuit of mine :)