Jozua van Otterloo's Blog, page 2
October 27, 2019
Battling Anxiety: How to Fight Back – 1
Heart rate raised, muscles tightening, head aches increase, can’t sleep… Anxiety, it comes with many symptoms like these, and more. It affects the way you think, it affects the way you approach the world.
Everything’s a threat; everyone’s out to get you. The burden is too great; it will certainly crush you. You can’t cope, you can’t work your way out. It’s overwhelming, it takes over your life.
Totally irrational, but also real? Flight or fight? But where’s the tiger, the lion, the wolf? ...
March 17, 2019
Einstein was right! Atomic clocks and space-time symmetry
Einstein was right, that is what two research groups concluded based on their collaborative work with atomic clocks. Well, to be precise, he is at least right to the degree of 10^-21 (which is 0.000000000000000000001, so super accurate). What was he right about? He was right about that the speed of light is exactly the same regardless of the direction it would travel.
Who cares that the speed of light is the same in any direction? Well, Einstein’s theory of general relativity actually hinges ...
March 15, 2019
Mentors Wanted: How to Be a Great Mentor
So you want to turn the tide and be a mentor? How would you go about that? Will you tell people what to do and how to do it? Of course not! As a mentor you’re not their boss, but a person who comes alongside and guides. But how do you do that? Great that you asked, I’ve written all about it here.
Being a mentor is more than being a person who encourages others, you are like a guide to them. I’ve had the pleasure of mentoring quite a number of people both pastorally and academically. In all in...
Blessed Beyond Measure: Tribute to my Grandmother
Oma Hendrikse I got to know well already at a young age. Not just because for a part of my childhood Opa and Oma lived right around the corner, but also because I used to see them every week in church. Oh, and yes, she also was my grandmother.
Often, we came to visit Opa and Oma and then of course we wouldn’t leave on an empty stomach. A plate of green beans I can remember vividly, or the delicious rice boiled in milk. I also liked to help Oma in the kitchen, especially with whipping the cre...
December 17, 2018
Mentors Wanted: the Importance of Role Models
We all want to grow. We all want to reach our full potential in life. We grow through experience, gaining knowledge and learning how to apply these in the future. We go to school, learn a trade, or attend the knowledge centers of our society: universities. After all, the piece of paper we receive shows what we’re capable of. Is it really? There is a more important key ingredient to anyone’s growth. However, this aspect is severely overlooked in our day and age: mentors.
Mentors are role models. ...
Mentors Wanted: How Did We Lose Them in the First Place?
Mentors, they are invaluable. Without them, we are bound to fend for ourselves and rediscover the wheel time and time again. The collective memory makes us progress in how we work and live. This collective memory is passed on and expanded by mentors. However, younger generations receive less and less mentoring, as education systems and workplaces become increasingly impersonal and professionalized.
Throughout human history, people learned and grew in their capabilities by means of mentoring. A m...
October 28, 2018
How to Be an Encourager: The Power of Support
Life is full of challenges, troubles and times of adversity. Sometimes the weight of it all wears you out, or it pushes you down. It would be good if in those moments, someone could help us push back, help us carry the weight. It would be great if someone could come alongside us and support us.
Support in times of hardship is incredibly powerful. Its power couldn’t be overestimated. It could literally save lives, or make a difference between success and failure. We all need support from time to ...
