As always I start the new year with a list of the most popular posts of the year before. So here are the most popular articles of 2010.

Top 25 of 2010

1. Increase Your Mind Power – Use Mental Math Tricks
2. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes on Complaining
3. How to Stop Complaining
4. 7 Most Popular Mental Math and Speed Mathematics Books
5. How to Remember Names and Faces
6. Top EFT Sites
7. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes by Warren Buffett
8. 2010 Tapping World Summit – Free Online Event
9. Money Mastery and EFT with David Childerley
10. 7 Inspirational Movies and Documentaries
11. How to Improve Your Self-Esteem with EFT
12. Top 75 Inspirational and Motivational Quotes by Anthony Robbins
13. Increase Your Mind Power – Neurobics
14. 10 Ways to Prevent a Cold
15. Inspirational Quotes on Positive Thinking
16. 15 Ways to Increase Your Mind Power
17. Vegans Having a Dry Skin in Winter
18. What If Positive Thinking Does Not Work?
19. 10 Inspirational and Motivational Quotes About Happiness
20. Quotes by Jim Rohn on Financial Independence
21. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes by Jim Rohn
22. Speed Up Your Video Learning
23. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes on Public Speaking
24. Tapping for Abundance: The Secret of Intentional Wealth
25. 10 Inspirational and Motivational Quotes on Procrastination

What’s Coming Up?

What can you expect from me in 2011? A big change is that I will be focusing more on video. Some of my articles will be video oriented instead of text. Right now I’m learning how I can use this to add more value to you. Some of these videos will feature myself (I just bought a new camera – a Kodak Zi8). Other videos will be my voice over a PowerPoint presentation or a mind map. You will see some examples of this in a few weeks.

Let me know if there is anything you would like to see on this blog by commenting below. I’ve added Facebook comments now, so you can use that instead of the “old” comment section.

Have a great 2011!

Gerber

If you want to do the same on your WordPress blog, you can basically take the following steps:

1. Add the following plugin: Facebook Comments for WordPress.
2. After installing the plugin, activate it.
3. You will now need an application key – log in to Facebook and go to http://www.facebook.com/developers.
4. Set up a new application and go through the steps until you get the Application ID.
5. Insert the application ID into the WordPress plugin settings and you’re done!

It only took me a couple of minutes to do this. I am not going into much detail here, because E. Brian Rose has already done that in his excellent article Easily Add Facebook Viral Commenting to WordPress Blogs.

Try it out for yourself by placing a comment below. You can still use the WordPress comments. Maybe I will hide those comments in the future, but for now you can place comments the new and cool Facebook way or the old and familiar WordPress way.

Take care and have fun!

Gerber

@GerberDeLange
News about this blog (updates, maintenance) will be shared with you through @GerberDeLange. That account still is my main account. Here I also tweet about things like what books I have read or movies I have seen. Expect to see some personal development quotes from time to time. Some of them have already been posted here.

@GerberDeLangeNL
@GerberDeLangeNL will be used to interact with my Dutch personal friends and other Dutch speaking people in the field of personal development and life coaching. Als je Nederlands spreekt en actief bezig bent met persoonlijke ontwikkeling en life coaching, laat het me dan weten via een reactie op dit blog of via Twitter.

@LauraTejedor
Laura mostly tweets in the Dutch language. You can follow her at @LauraTejedor. The description of what she tweets about will now follow in Dutch: hoe het is om veganist te zijn (inclusief foto’s van wat wij samen zoal eten ), duurzaam leven, mindfulness, en nog veel meer.

Like I said in the previous post, I am working on a couple of new posts. I have been to busy with other things lately (see also one of the links below), but new updates are coming soon.

In the meantime you can check out the following sites:
– The Dark Side of Mineral Water by John Robbins – bottom line: it’s probably best not to rely on a soft drink company to provide you with a healthy beverage.
– Simpleology (no affiliate link) – here’s where I have been spending most of my free time the last few days. I bought just about all his courses and love every single one of them. You get Simpleology 101 for free. The rest you have to pay for, but believe me – it’s well worth the money. Mark Joyner has an amazing talent for describing complex material in easy to understand lessons.

Enjoy!

Gerber

As I’m in the process of moving this blog to another hosting provider, I’m not going to post much here. I’m working on a couple of articles and will post them when the blog is moved successfully. You’ll here from me again soon.

Take care,
Gerber

1. Increase Your Mind Power – Use Mental Math Tricks – The most popular post of 2009 remains the most popular in the first half of 2010.
2. How to Stop Complaining – Number 3 of 2009. This is one of those articles you need to re-read from time to time to remind yourself of the message it contains.
3. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes on Complaining – Apparently, the subject of complaining (or ways of stopping it) is very popular here.
4. 7 Most Popular Mental Math and Speed Mathematic Books – I wrote this one, because Mental Math seems to be very high in demand here.
5. How to Remember Names and Faces – Another one from 2009 and still very popular.
6. 2010 Tapping World Summit – Free Online Event – This was the first of a series of blog posts I wrote about this amazing event. The event has ended, but you can still find plenty of free information at The Tapping Solution website. Just follow one of the links in the blog posts.
7. Top EFT Sites – Slightly less popular than last year, but still frequently viewed by visitors to this blog.
8. How to Improve Your Self-Esteem with EFT – Just as important now as when it was written a year ago.
9. Increase Your Mind Power – Neurobics – This reminds me to try some neurobic exercises this week.
10. 15 Ways to Increase Your Mind Power – Many people still find this article through one of the discussions on the Steve Pavlina forums.
11. Vegans Having a Dry Skin in Winter – Winter is over in this part of the world, but this post was again very popular during those winter months.
12. Inspirational Quotes on Positive Thinking – Laura’s post with quotes on positive thinking is always a joy to read.
13. 10 Inspirational and Motivational Quotes About Happiness – Inspired by some of these quotes, I have been doing some research on increasing your level of happiness. Expect more on this soon.
14. 2010 Tapping World Summit – Questions Answered – The second post in the series.
15. Quotes by Jim Rohn on Financial Independence – Jim Rohn passed away last year, but he will live on in the timeless advice he has given.

If you have any ideas for new blog posts, let us know.

Take care,

Gerber

Miracles

Last week I told you about my grandmother. She is home now and quickly reaching the end. My mother told me that she’s really calm and serene. It probably will not take long now for her to pass away. She has said goodbye to all her loved ones and seems to be at peace. One of the last things she talked about was about something she experienced while she was in the hospital. My grandmother is someone who is interested in esoteric and paranormal things, but normally things that those things happen to other people and certainly not to her. From her hospital room she could see trees full of black birds – crows I think. She really wished there would be a white bird amongst all those other black birds. And just then, a white bird appears and stays around for a while and spreads its wings – just as if to say “Here I am”. When she told the story to my mother, she was clearly moved. And then she quickly added that the white bird could just have passed by – that it could all be coincedence. Of course, that could be true. But sometimes it’s nice to the think miracles do happen.

Berlin

The last few days we were in Berlin. It’s a beautiful city with lots of history and plenty of things to see. With our Barcelona Encounter (Lonely Planet) as our guide we went on a quick sight seeing tour. Here are some tips for if you ever plan to visit Berlin.

1. Visit museums and more specifically, visit the right museums. The second day we visited the Pergamon museum. Certainly one of the best museums I’ve been too. Be sure to take the audio guide (included in the admission price). The museum features Greek and Babylonian artifacts and even whole gates have been reconstructed inside the museum. The next day it rained and that seemed like a good time to visit another museum. Berlin has about 175 museums, but it is best known for displaying the bust of Nefertiti. According to our edition of Barcelona Encounter (2007) it had been moved from the Egyptian museum in Charlottenburg to the Altes Museum on the Museum Insel (museum island). So we stood in line for that museum and only learned at the front of the line that the Egyptian collection had been moved to the Neues Museum… The good news is that you can buy tickets to the Neues Museum at the Altes Museum (and you can buy tickets that give you access to all the museums on the Museum Insel), the not so good news is that the Neues Museum is very popular and if you’re lucky you can get a timeslot ticket at the end of the afternoon. Be sure to inform yourself of what is displayed in what museum. After that you can find out which museum has the shortest queue waiting outside and there buy the tickets for the museum you would like to visit (I think this works for all the museums on the Museum Insel).
2. If you’re vegan like us, you can always visit one of the many Italian restaurants. Places like the 12 Apostel (close to Museum Insel) can make a delicious pizza without cheese (Pizza Tommaso ohne Mozzarella und Pepperoni – wir sind Veganer). Furthermore, there are plenty of Asian restaurants – it should not be hard to find vegan food at a Thai or Vietnamese restaurant.
3. Visit the Haus am Checkpoint Charlie Museum for a quick history lesson on Berlin and the wall, and some stories of herioc and really creative attempts to cross from East to West Berlin.
4. Buchhandlung Hugendubel has a corner in the mega department store KaDeWe (Europe’s second largest department store, right after Harrods), but that can’t compete with several floors of books and the opportunity to have some cake and a cup of tea at the Buchhandlung Hugendubel on the Tauentzienstrasse (near Kurfürstendamm). Here I bought my first Moleskine notebook. According to their own information these notebooks were also used by Vincent van Gogh, Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway. There are many notebooks to chose from – plain, sketchbook, ruled, squared. They even have journals to keep track of the movies you saw or the books you read. In the end I went for the Moleskine Squared Reporter Pocket. I also bought a short pen, so that I can take my notebook and pen everywhere I go. Most of the text from this blog post was based on notes I took in this journal.

Books

On the long train ride to and from Berlin I had plenty of time to read. The book I intended to read was Swan Song by Robert McCammon. I read about 150 pages (of the 950) and just couldn’t get into it. The book is bit like The Stand by Stephen King, which I loved. But this book just didn’t do it for me. It was not a bad read, but I found out that I wasn’t looking forward to reading the next page or the next chapter. Maybe I had enough of post-apocalyptic drama after reading The Road and this wasn’t the time to read this book. Nevertheless, reading should be fun and/or entertaining so I have decided to switch to another book – The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly. I have read three of his books so far, all featuring detective Harry Bosch – and all fun and entertaining to read.

Another book I have read, and not finished yet, is What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell. Last week I told you about Freakonomics and my interest for these kind of books. This a book that I will finish. It has you saying “Wow!” at about every page. Gladwell has the ability to make the most common and uninteresting topics really exciting. I didn’t know that I could read that reading about hair color or birth control could be that much fun. The title of the book is influenced by Cesar Millan, the host of National Geographic’s The Dog Whisperer. I’ve seen a few episodes of that series. It’s a real pleasure to watch Cesar work his magic with not only the dogs, but also the owners. Gladwell describes how he interacts with dogs and draws parallels to dancing and interacting with humans. Great book so far.

CDs

And one last note. In the Berlin Underground I saw an ad for the new Pain of Salvation CD, Road Salt One. It was the album of the week. I was really surprised to see this band on display like that. Not that I don’t think they deserve it. I’m a big Pain of Salvation fan and have been to the concert that has been filmed for the DVD Ending Themes: On the Two Deaths of Pain of Salvation (Paradiso, Amsterdam 2007). I just thought that not that many people were into this kind of music, but that seems to be changing. Give this band a listen if you like progressive rock with hints of metal, folk, and Arabian and Oriental influences. I like all their CDs, but my favorites remain The Perfect Element and Remedy Lane.

Here’s the official video for Linoleum, from Road Salt One.

Well, that’s it for another, not so quick, update. Maybe I should change the name of this weekly rundown… Any suggestions?

Take care,

Gerber

Tragic News

Let’s start with the tragic news this week. I visited my grandmother last night in the hospital. She was diagnosed with acute leukemia last summer and it’s a wonder she has held on for so long. But now it seems that it is coming to an end. She was getting new blood every 4 weeks, because there is too little oxygen in her own blood. Then it became every 2 weeks. Last week she got a new supply of blood, but only a few days later she was extremely tired again. They took her into the hospital and there it became clear that new blood will not help her anymore. Now we will just have to see how long she can go on without new blood. When I visited her last night, she was quite cheerful and talkative. This might have been the last time I have seen her. That makes me really sad. My grandmother is someone I almost take for granted. She has been a part of my life as long as I can remember and although I didn’t see her all that often, I knew she was there. But I’m glad I have seen her last night, while she is still the grandmother I know and love.

DVDs

Now for some other updates. I received a couple of new DVDs in the mail this week. Finally the Raw Food DVDs arrived. I’ve told you about Simply Raw before (click here for the blog post). Haven’t watched them yet, but will do so soon.

Another DVD that came in this week is Leap! The Movie. I heard about this one from Joe Vitale, who is in this movie/documentary. It’s in the same vein as The Secret and What the Bleep! and features experts and authors like Dan Millman, Joe Vitale and Gary Renard. The idea is that reality is just an illusion and if you can look beyond the illusion, you can make I giant leap forwards. I have watched the first hour or so and it’s full of great insights and inspiring quotes. I will write a separate blog post about my experience with this movie in a few weeks time. In the meantime you can watch the trailer below or, if you can’t wait for my full review, order the DVD here.

Books

My favorite books have already been listed in the following blogs posts: my favorite personal development books and fiction. But I still keep on reading new books of course. In these weekly updates I want to share with you the books I’m reading (fiction and personal development). Here are the books I’ve been reading this week:

• The Road by Cormac McCarthy – this post-apocalyptic novel by the author of No Country for Old Men is probably the most depressing book I’ve read, ever. But it was a great read nonetheless. The book has now been turned into a movie, starring Viggo Mortensen (IMDb). I will probably watch it a few months or years from now. In my experience the movie doesn’t get better if you watch it just after you’ve read the book. The book is too fresh in your memory and you are only spotting differences between the book and the movie script.
• Long Lost by Harlan Coben – this was yet again a book by Coben that I could not put away. A real pageturner with the familiar characters Myron Bolitar and Win.
• Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner  - somewhat similar to the books by Malcolm Gladwell, so full of interesting facts and constantly questioning conventional wisdom. Always fun to read. I’m looking for similar books and will probably write a blog post with a list of these books.
• Healthy at 100 by John Robbins – haven’t finished this book yet, but the first chapters look really promising. This book by the author of The Food Revolution is not only about reaching the age of 100, but also being healthy when you reach that age.

Berlin

In the introduction of this blog post I already mentioned that I will not have much time to blog the following weeks. One of the reasons is that on Thursday (Ascension Day) we will be taking the train to Berlin for a short 4-day vacation. I have never been to Berlin before, but several friends have told me how great this city is. Laura had already looked for vegan restaurants in Berlin and found a YouTube video from PETA.

This ends the, maybe not so quick, update for this week. You will hear from me again in about a week. If you want to keep up to date, you can follow me on Twitter.

Take care,

Gerber

I have tried to categorize the books, but some books are not that easily labeled. If you would like to read more about the books, just follow the links to Amazon.com.

• Douglas Adams – The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy [science fiction / comedy]- Great fun, even when you are not into Science Fiction.
• Dan Brown – Angels and Demons [thriller] – This was the first Dan Brown book I’ve read. A real page turner.
• Steven Brust – The Book of Jhereg [fantasy] – My introduction to the world of Vlad Taltos. This collection includes the first three published books.Another great book by Steven Brust is To Reign in Hell, about the struggle between God and Satan prior to the creation of Earth.
• Jim Butcher – Storm Front [fantasy/detective] – The Harry Dresden books are detective stories with fantasy elements. Fun to read.
• Jonathan Carroll – White Apples [fantasy] – One of my favorite writers, so it is hard to pick one book. All of his books are well worth reading. This is not fantasy as in dragons, medieval settings, et cetera. Most of his books are about ordinary characters experiencing weird things. Highly recommended!
• Harlan Coben – Gone For Good [thriller] – A twist at the end of every chapter, this is the ultimate page turner. Harlan Coben’s series about Myron Bolitar are also great to read – good stories with great humor. Start with the first book in the series – Deal Breaker.
• Michael Connelly – The Black Echo [thriller] – I read this book at a time when I thought that reading police thrillers was not something I was interested in anymore. This book changed my mind. The Black Echo is the first book in the Harry Bosch series.
• John Connolly – Every Dead Thing [thriller] – His books about Charlie “Bird” Parker are not always easy to read, but are most rewarding. The mood is dark and that is how I like it.
• David Czuchlewski – The Muse Asylum [literature] – Like Jonathan Carroll this author can change your view on how you look at the world.
• Umberto Eco – Foucault’s Pendulum [literature] – One of my favorite books. This book references about anything esoteric, gnostic and occult you can think of.
• Raymond E. Feist – Magician [fantasy] – Classic fantasy. This book is sometimes published as two parts: Magician: Apprentice and Magician: Master.
• Neil Gaiman – American Gods [fantasy] – What would happen if the old gods of European mythology were still alive and living in America? This great book won several awards. Neverwhere is also highly recommended.
• Terry Goodkind – Wizard’s First Rule [fantasy] – This is the first book in the classic series The Sword of Truth. The TV series Legend of the Seeker is loosely based upon this series.
• John Grisham – The Rainmaker [thriller] – There was I time when I read just about everything John Grisham wrote. This was by far my favorite book.
• Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time [literature] – The world seen through eyes of an autistic child. Highly recommended.
• Daniel Hecht – Skull Session [thriller] – Like John Connolly his books are not always that easy to read, but very rewarding. This is one of my favorite books.
• Tami Hoag – Ashes to Ashes [thriller] – Real page turner. If you like this one, you can also read the next book in this series – Dust to Dust.
• Robin Hobb – Assassin’s Apprentice [fantasy] – The first book in one of my favorite fantasy series. This is one of the books I always recommend when people ask me for fantasy book tips.
• Stephen King – The Stand [fantasy] – This is by far the best book I have read by Stephen King. Make sure you read the extended version.
• Dean Koontz – Odd Thomas [fantasy] – The first book in the series about Odd Thomas and also the best in the series. Horror, fantasy and great humor.
• Stieg Larsson – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo [thriller] – The first book in the Millennium trilogy. I will not tell you to also read the other two books. When you have finished this book, you will immediately go out and get The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest.
• Sergei Lukyanenko – The Night Watch [fantasy] – This great book (the first in a series of books) by this Russian author has also been made into a great movie.
• Mankell, Henning – Faceless Killers [thriller] – The first book in the series about Kurt Wallander. Recommended if you like police/detective stories.
• George R.R. Martin – A Game of Thrones [fantasy] – My favorite fantasy series. This is epic fantasy at the highest quality.
• James Patterson – Kiss the Girls [thriller] – A real page turner. The book has more twists than the movie.
• Terry Pratchett – Small Gods [fantasy] – All books in the Discworld series are recommended. This is one of my favorites. Great combination of fine storytelling, fantasy and a lot of humor.
• Preston & Child – Brimstone [thriller] – All Preston & Child books are recommended, but my favorites are the ones with Special Agent Pendergast. This book is my favorite, but you might like to start with the first book in the series – Relic.
• Philip Pullman – His Dark Materials [fantasy] – The first book in this series has been made into a movie – The Golden Compass. The books have so much more to offer compared to the movie. Highly recommended.
• Anne Rice – Interview With the Vampire [fantasy] – I read this book after I watched the movie. From then on I read most of the other books in this series. If you don’t mind some controversial reading, try out Memnoch the Devil where the vampire Lestat meets Jesus and the Devil.
• Patrick Rothfuss – The Name of the Wind [fantasy] – Probably my favorite book of the last few years. Too bad the second book in this series has not yet been published.
• J.K. Rowling – Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire [fantasy] – The Harry Potter books are not just for children and young adults. This series has now been completed so you can find out what happens to Harry without having to wait until the last movie has been made.
• Donna Tartt – The Secret History [thriller] – One of my favorite books of all time.
• J.R.R. Tolkien – The Lord of the Rings [fantasy] – No introduction needed, I think. Classic fantasy and highly recommended.
• Carlos Ruiz Zafón – The Shadow of the Wind [literature] – One of the best books of the last ten years. I have not read The Angel’s Game yet, but that one is on my wish list.

Let me know what your favorite books are.

Gerber

Just like last year, we begin by sharing with you the most popular posts of last year.

1. Increase Your Mind Power – Use Mental Math Tricks. The most popular article on this blog. Recently we added a follow-up article with the a list of the 7 most popular mental math and speed mathematics books.
2. Top EFT Sites. This directory of EFT sites remains to be quite popular. If you know of any EFT sites not on this list, leave a comment with the site name and URL in the comments.
3. How to Stop Complaining. It helps to occassionally read this article again. We are not complaining about the popularity of this article though.
4. How to Remember Names and Faces. Remembering names and faces is a certainly a useful skill.
5. Increase Your Mind Power – Neurobics. Another Mind Power article. This one is about using your senses in new ways.
6. 15 Ways to Increase Your Mind Power. Maybe it is time for some more Mind Power articles. They seem to do quite well here.
7. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes on Complaining. Some great quotes in this post – “Realize that if you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo.
8. How to Improve Your Self-Esteem with EFT. Raising your own self-esteem level could have the most impact on your life and that of those around you. This article shows you how you can do that.
9. 7 Ways to Wake Up With Lots of Energy. Everybody has some of those days where you don’t want to get out of bed. This post gives some simple tips on how to wake up more refreshed.
10. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes by Jim Rohn. One of the first posts on this blog back in 2008. It is full of great quotes by America’s leading business philosopher – “It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go.”
11. 10 Inspirational and Motivational Quotes about Choice. Another post full of great quotes – “Everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedom – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” – Viktor E. Frankl
12. How to Get Started with EFT. If you have no experience with EFT, then this is the place to start.
13. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes by Warren Buffett. And another post of quotes, this time by investor, businessman and philanthropist Warren Buffett  – “If you don’t know jewelry, know the jeweler.”
14. 10 Ways to Prevent a Cold. This one was followed up with Myths about the Common Cold and How to Prevent a Cold.
15. 7 Benefits of Sleep. Another post from 2008. Ties in well with the before mentioned 7 Ways to Wake Up With Lots of Energy and 10 Ways to Get a Good Night’s Sleep.

2010
What can you expect from us? Here is a small selection of what is coming up:

• The last Brian Tracy articles on Sales Success.
• More articles on EFT and energy healing.
• Articles about Face Reading and Body Language.
• More articles about increasing your mind power.
• More free classic books on personal development (if you subscribe to our newsletter).
• And much more…

Let us know what you would like to see on this blog.

Have a wonderful and life-changing 2010!

Laura & Gerber