Guest Blogs

Knowitall.ch often invites local experts in their field to contribute to their own blogs on our site. This means not only you will benefit from the useful recommendations that we make on our News pages, but you can also profit from some of the great advice and tips that these experts have to make on their favorite subjects. Whilst each of these bloggers has been recommended to us at some point during the evolution of Know-it-all passport and knowitall.ch, obviously we are not able to test out all the suggestions they make on their blogs, nor do we necessarily agree with all their opinions. So if you do find one of their tips useful (or not!), do let us know!

To make these blogs more accessible to you, we have now decided to group them altogether in one section, entitled Guest Blogs, accessible from our main menu bar. We will also post the most recent blogs on the home page of our site in the right hand column.

We are still building up this area of the site, and are looking for bloggers in a number of sections, including Your Home, Travel, and Leisure, so if you feel you have a useful contribution to make in either of these areas, and have the time to submit blog entries approximately every month, then please get in touch!

: Published: 21 September 2017

hiba blog rejection 2

By Hiba Samawi, Wiser Humans

Rejection hurts. Literally.

And like most human behavior, it makes sense.

It makes sense from an evolutionary perspective because back when we were cave men and women and we did something that was out of line with the social group, we were kicked out.

And being rejected meant social exile, which meant being left to fend for ourselves in the savanna.

And without the group, we wouldn’t have lasted very long on our own in the wild.

So the human brain became hardwired to be very sensitive to rejection.

To avoid doing anything risky which meant avoiding rejection which meant avoiding exile which meant avoiding death.

Or as a shortcut:

REJECTION = PAIN

And because we don’t especially enjoy pain, most of us learned ways of avoiding the possibility of rejection.

By not taking risks.
By avoiding social situations where we might not succeed or where others might be critical of us, like public speaking.
By comparing ourselves to others to make sure we are not doing anything ‘wrong’.
By avoiding situations where rejection is possible, like online dating.
By trying to behave flawlessly - to reach a state of perfection where we are beyond reproach.
By developing these amazing pro-social skills like empathy and compassion…for others - while simultaneously being really hard on ourselves. Because criticising ourselves before anyone else can is a sort of pre-rejection meant to help us avoid real rejection.

: Published: 18 September 2017

ceylan blog september2017 1

by Ceylan Ayik, www.ceylanayik.com/

We are almost approaching the end of September and most of us are very busy settling into the new school year and even busier work schedules.

September is a bit like new year to me! New decisions, resolutions, goals for a new season! Maybe that’s a way to cope to with the end-of-summer-syndrome!

Actually, autumn is a great season to embrace changes, get stronger and lighter as nature does every year.

Here are some suggestions and events that will help you to re-energize and continue stronger on your busy days. We all deserve these breaks and self-investments to continue with fresher minds and bodies!

Hiking season!

We are so lucky to live in this beautiful region with endless hiking opportunities! We always use the Swiss Hikes website to choose, and use its app when we go. Also check out the My Switzerland website for more.

Living in Geneva, we love the hiking trails in St.Cergue, Vevey, Montreux and Neuchatel.

The best part is usually the picnic time with the amazing view of Lac Leman and the Alps! As a healthy eating fan, I always pack some fruits-nuts and raw veggies and can find a salad in bakeries (yes there are salads in bakeries now!) while my family usually prefers the delicious sandwiches!

Start trying new classes!

You might be one of those many who came back from holidays and long summer days with some extra “luggage” and want to get back into shape as soon as possible, especially before the new year craziness start!

This month most of the fitness-gym-yoga-pilates-dance studios have open house trial days. Make use of these days and start or re-start a practice that you really enjoy doing and make it an important part of your life!

If you do not feel motivated enough to start exercising again, then listen to what Mel Robbins says about motivation.

You can also read my blog post on “How to get back on the Wellness Wagon” to get some quick tips to help you on this journey.

: Published: 12 September 2017

washer dryer 500

By Virginie Dor, Space of Mine

How would you describe an “organized space”?

Some of the answers I hear most often are: “uncluttered”, “neat”, “tidy”, “spare”, “minimalistic” or even “boring”.

Truth is, an organized space has nothing to do with these characteristics.

Some people’s home can on the surface appear straight out of a magazine with clear counters, neatly stacked magazines staged on the coffee table, and family pictures carefully displayed on the fireplace mantel; yet what you may find when opening their kitchen cabinets or hallway closets is no real system in place and out of control chaos.

While on the other hand, others live and work in complete physical clutter; and yet feel comfortable in their environment and are able to find anything in no time. Could they be considered “organized”? Absolutely!

Being organized has less to do with the way an environment looks than how it functions. If a person is able to find what it is they want when they need it, feel unencumbered in achieving their goals and is happy in their space; then that person is well organized.

: Published: 10 September 2017

By Jennie Delreeve, Peak of Wellbeing

Are you somebody who wakes up determined to be in a good mood, but somehow by midday, you are back to feeling grumpy and irritated again?

Do you find that you are often worried and anxious by seemingly small things?

When you look around, does everyone else seem to be happier and doing better than you?

If the answer is yes to one or more of these questions, read on, this article is for you.

What is happiness?

Should we feel happy all of the time? How do we achieve happiness? We have all asked these three questions at some point in our lives and maybe many of us are still searching for the answer.

: Published: 09 September 2017

Lcis mindfulness2

By Michela Mantani, La Côte International School

Across the globe, one of the hottest topics in education at the moment is whether we should be teaching our children how to manage their emotional state and be in charge of their own wellbeing. In Asia meditation classes are on the rise to help students cope with stress levels and develop emotional resilience, while in Great Britain recent statistics have shown that an average of 3 children per classroom have mental health issues ranging from anxiety to burn-out, which may lead to low-level disruption.

As our youngsters lead increasingly stressful, over-planned lives, screen time and excessive stimulation have also been linked to the rise of mental disorders in children. The burning question on every educator’s mind at the moment is, without a doubt: “What can our schools do to help students regulate their emotions and improve their daily interactions with others?”

In recent years, a growing number of scientific studies have underlined the benefits of mindfulness exercises for students, based on solid evidence relating to the impact of mindfulness on adults, as well as encouraging indications on the positive impact that a regular practice of meditation and breathing techniques can have on children and young people.