Mark Dawes' Podcasts

We are living in a world where society has prioritised independence to such an extent that many people are now left on their own to manage lives that are increasingly out of control.

As young children, we were taught to be competitive, to be better, faster, stronger and more intelligent than our ‘competitors’ (others) if we were to ‘survive’ and thrive in our commerce-driven consumerist society.

When we become adults we have to ‘compete’ for jobs, be the ‘best’ and have ‘aggressive’ sales strategies to meet sales targets etc., so the language of our society is embedded with a narrative of competitive and (at times) hostile words that have become the norm in our daily communications.

But does being the ‘best’ or being more ‘successful’ than our neighbours make us happier? Does having more money, a bigger house and a fancy car make us happier?

This podcast looks at the issues of independence compared to interdependence and the benefits of interdependent relationships with others.

So in this podcast I am going to answer that question for you, including covering some of the major benefits of mindfulness meditation.

Over two-thousand years ago the Greek philosopher Epictetus said that "People are not disturbed by things, but by the views they take of them".

The Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius said that: “A Man’s life is what his thoughts make of it".

The Buddha stated: "We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves".

As you may know our body is made up of various organs, that are in turn made up of cells, that are in turn made up of atoms which, when looked at closely are 99.99999% empty space.

In fact if you took all of this empty space out of every atom in your body what would be left in terms of physical state would be nothing bigger than a grain of sand. And if you took all of the empty space out of every atom in every human being on the planet (all 8 billion of us) which would be left would be nothing bigger than something the size of a tennis ball or apple.

But this empty space is not actually empty. It is energy. 99.999999% of our physical state is made up of it.

Those of you who know me will know that I am very interested in the way we operate as human beings, especially in the area of how our thoughts and feelings affect our physical and mental well-being.

I have always had a desire to help people take more control of their lives and the reality they choose to experience as opposed to simply being a victim of circumstance and totally dependent on what happens to them.

So this article is about you and how, if you don't control your emotional state, you become addicted to it and it's all based on scientific fact.

BTEC Level 3 Restraint Trainer Award Course -https://nfps.info/physical-intervention-trainer-course/

BTEC Level 3 Self-Defence Instructor Award Course - https://nfps.info/self-defence-trainer-training-2022/

PS: The good news is you can learn how to reprogramme your thinking in a very short period of time so one of the above two courses may just change your life for the better!

As I recorded this podcast we are in the middle of a fuel situation in the UK which is resulting in a lot of people worrying about the future and looking back into their past to blame others for the situation that we find ourselves in at this present moment in time. By doing that they are not living in the present moment. In addition any hurt, frustration, anger, rage, jealousy or resentment they feel triggers a flood of approximately 1200 toxic chemicals into their own body, which isn't good for their health. Enjoy. 

A lot of people believe that to meditate you have to empty your mind but if you have ever tried to empty your mind during meditation you probably found that you can't do it? If that's you, then you are not alone.  This is one of most common questions people have. 

The problem is that the concept of 'emptiness' has been misinterpreted and in the podcast I aim to try and explain that more clearly for you.

I recently put out a blog post about the fact that I ran a session on meditation on our physical restraint instructor refresher courses, which was very well received. Since then I have had numerous emails, messages, texts and phone calls from people all asking me various questions about meditation, why I got started in it and what the benefits are. Therefore I thought I'd do this short podcast to answer some of those questions. 

Paul Keates is an individual who I have known for many years.

In recent years Paul suffered brain damage that some medical professional believed meant that he would never walk again. He climbed Snowdon and started doing triathlons to prove them wrong raising thousands of pounds for various charities. 

Recently Paul caught covid, was induced twice into a coma and was on intensive care having to breathe through a tube in his throat.

Then on top of all of that he recently lost his mum.

His goal now is to to the three-peak challenge in 2022/3. 

What makes Paul unique is his ability to take action when others in the same situation resign to do nothing. 

Paul's story is an inspirational and motivational one and Paul has now decided to become a Life Coach so that he can help others in achieve more than what they believe they are possibly capable of.

He will be one of the best Life Coaches in his field because he has lived it and is testimony to his own ability to help himself. Now he wants to help you.

So if you are interested in being coached by Paul let him know. He is only looking for a few clients at the moment so act now to avoid disappointment.

The problem for some people is that they live in a future based on bad things that have happened to them in the past that they can't let go of.

It may have been something someone did to them or a wrong decision they made that caused them a lot of pain and suffering.

As a result they never live in the moment choosing only to live in the past and focus on the very same thing that they wish had never happended so that their current life now would be better.

But doing the same thing expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.

Their judgement also becomes distorted because by focussing on a negative past event they become heavily focussed and polarised in their thinking which stops them being creative so they fail to find a positive solution by being able to think in a more constructive and positive way.

As Albert Einstein once said "we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them".

This negativity also affects those close to them and the dichotomy is that although they love them they harm them by exposing them to their negative energy.

Their pain and anger becomes an anchor that chains them to their past disabling their ability to move forward in life. The result, they live in the past because they choose to, which is like driving a car while only looking in the rear view mirror.

The fact is we all make mistakes and bad decisions. It’s part of being human.

The difference between living a happy, functional and productive life however is what you decide to do moving forward.

Wasting more time on time you have already wasted is a pointless exercise.

As a good Irish friend of mine says “There’s nothing new to be learned from a second kick of a donkey”.

But when we look at the bigger picture and all that life has to offer us we can put things into perspective.

Each new day is a gift. Use is well. Time is the only non-renewable thing we have. Don't waste it.