Ccaps Blog

Do you want to win? So do I! But we know that in order to do so, it is not enough to want to, we also have to have knowledge, willingness, attitude and persistency to achieve results. We have to have motivation, an inner impulse that leads us to action.

That is right; motivation is a process that happens from inside out. It depends on what each one wants, what motivates you to buy, work better, sell, and so forth. Motivating is a way of changing a person’s attitude through stimulus. In order for such change to happen, you need to know your ideals, life plans, and strategies.

This is a very serious and controversial topic, full of theories, which requires a lot of observation, thought and courage. People usually confuse motivation with benefits and compensation. These aspects represent an important portion of the equation, but they are not the only ones.

Executive Carlos Ghosn, global CEO of Renault, said the following: “The only thing that makes a difference is motivation. If you lose motivation, you gradually lose everything.” Martin Luther King, on the other hand, said that “even the starless nights can herald the dawn of a great achievement.”

Therefore, when you place important reasons into several contexts of your life, only then will the opportunities to create motivation become greater. Many human behavior experts have emphasized that an external stimulus will have an effect on mood and well-being, but it doesn’t mean it will motivate someone.

As described by Ian McDermott and Joseph O’Connor in the book Practical NLP for Managers, extrinsic motivation can buy behavior, but not motivation. Motivation is an inner process lasting much longer than a simple state of mind.

How many people do you know who get support, stimuli, rewards, but do not move? There are people who have many needs and desires such as a better salary, better education, a better life, and so forth, but they spend a great deal of their time without doing anything to get what they want. They expect satisfaction to come from the external world and do not realize that the quest for satisfaction is what generates motivation. Being motivated is never giving up to get what you want.

Don’t wait for external conditions to become favorable to start acting and become more successful in your personal and professional life.

With the start of every new year, almost everyone makes a list of things they would like to do, things they want to buy and actions that they want to take during the New Year.

I’m going to give you some tips on how to improve your personality, which you should also add to your list of resolutions.

1. Develop an interest in people

Try to find out what people need. Learn about their likes and dislikes, interests and beliefs. By doing that, you’ll be known as someone with an attractive and likable personality.

2. Admit your weaknesses.

Do not consider yourself to be perfect. Just as people have their strong points, they also have their weaknesses. In order to improve your personality, you must admit your flaws.

3. Admire your friends.

Pay them compliments. Let them know how important they are to you.

4. Try to stay close to successful and happy people.

Seek the company of people who can reveal new perspectives, renewed hopes and a purpose for life.

5. Don’t be ashamed to demand or ask.

Ask for advice and direction. Your friends can provide you with valuable information about life experience. You can learn from their knowledge and apply it to improve your personality.

What’s more, you can also develop new abilities, such as public speaking, negotiating and understanding people’s attitudes and beliefs.

Improving your personality involves hard work and dedication. Even though it demands great effort, it can be interesting and fun because you are focusing your attention in order to  have a better rapport with others and make yourself a better person.

Happy New Year!!!

As I was born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, today’s post is about the greatest touristic attraction that begins a New Year in my beloved city: the Copacabana New Year’s Eve Celebration.

Thousands of people gather together every year on December 31 on Copacabana Beach – most of them dressed up in white – waiting to greet the New Year. The highlight of the party is an intense and memorable firework display set at midnight sharp that lasts around 20 minutes! A unique spectacle!

Along with the New Year’s celebrations, mystical and religious aspects take place since  lots of Brazilians worship Iemanjá, and this celebration also happens on the turn-of-the-year. Loads of candlelight offerings are delivered into the waves in honor of the “Queen of the Sea.” Whenever you come to spend New Year’s in Rio, don’t be scared if you come across tons of candles spread all over the sand and the beach quite dirty. =)

Every hotel gets ready for the big party by preparing sophisticated meals and providing the tourist with the best in hospitality. The local people go out to celebrate and enjoy the fireworks by the Copacabana Sea.

The party goes through the night and the same festive atmosphere that started at midnight is over only on the morning of January 1.

Let the New Year begin!

Last year, we prepared a special gift for you: Andressa, a lovely Brazilian girl to whom we sent monthly donations in an attempt to make her life and that of her family a little better.

She was sweet enough to answer the letters we forwarded from those Ccaps friends who wrote to her and recently we received the 2011 Progress Report from the institution that acts as an intermediary. In the report, Andressa tells us that she is now 7 years old, is healthy and was approved for her next year in elementary school. The projects managed by the organization to which she is affiliated help Andressa and her family strengthen interpersonal connections and create an environment favorable for the full development of the child.

In the letters we received throughout this year, Andressa and her family members told us that she is a joyful, spontaneous, charismatic, responsible and happy child, who loves to learn and play. They thank all Ccaps friends for the help we have been sending them and wishes success to all of us in our lives. In the last letter, Andressa herself (who until then seemed a little shy and had her sister or cousin write on her behalf) wishes us health, peace and tranquility.

Here are Andressa’s letters for your enjoyment:

(Click to enlarge)

If you feel like saying hello to this adorable kid and show your affection, just send an email to andressa@ccaps.net and we will have your message translated and forwarded to her.

I have no doubt that knowing that there are people from all over the world who know about her existence and care about her will bring yet another smile to this cute little face.

Thank you for your support and Happy Holidays!

Click below to watch the video we prepared for you.

- Vanusa is Black. Adriana is Catholic. Luana is African.
- Is she really?
- Renata is from the Northeast of Brazil.
- I thought you said Midwest!
- Wandrianne is Argentinean.
- No wait, Iván is Argentinean!
- Billy is Brazilian…
- With such a strong accent?
- Shannon is transgender and mulatto.
- Of course she is not!
- Bruno is a Kardecist Jew.
- How come?
- Claudia is gay and Fabiano is a lesbian.
- Yeah, right!
- Danielle is Evangelical.
- But she adores Yemanja!
- Renata is a German Muslim born in Brazil.
- That doesn’t make any sense…
- Silvia is an Italo-American man.
- She is the mother of two!
- Iván is a Buddhist.
- What is that rosary doing on his chest then?
- Marcelo is Jewish, Caucasian and Cuban.
- Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

Any or all of that might be right. But who cares?! We certainly don’t.

Come along with us into the beautiful future that unfolds with 2012. Together we can bring in the new dawn where no one would know the meaning of discrimination, intolerance and bigotry. Just share the message!

Definitions don’t matter any more. Nationality, social class, color, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or else shall be as insignificant as the shape of our earrings or the design of our tattoos. Because, eventually, we all have just the same curve for our smiles.

We’re individuals who are members of a greater community. If globalization doesn’t have all the answers, let’s try Universalization. Embrace the diversity of the 7 billion beautiful people that can turn this planet into an even better place for future generations.

Life is short and fragile. Labels don’t hold. Just… Viva la vida!