A lot can happen in 18 months. Some highlights from my life in the past year and a half include starting a new job, getting promoted, blogging for the World Advertising Research Centre, publishing my first paper, setting up shop on Elance, joining Toastmasters, and beginning my studies with the UK Writers Bureau.

Throughout all that and a whole lot more, Varsity Blah has been on my mind. Writing on this website was an amazing experience and it’s clear many of you felt the same way:

“Your consistency and passion for the site is awesome and I quite enjoy the intellectual and thoughtful spin you put on things that all of us are encountering all of the time.”

“I have really enjoyed reading your blog entries. I feel a strong personal connection to the message.”

“It’s refreshing to read the work of someone who transfers their views so effectively.”

“You write very well and I definitely appreciate the things you speak about here.”

“It’s quite amazing that you write so well. I’m impressed. It’s quite inspiring.”

“I really feel you have set a standard that will inspire other writers.”

“Your blog keeps getting better and better!”

“I really like your line of thought. Keep positive!”

“You’re doing good things. Good things will happen for you.”

With support like this, it’s no wonder I couldn’t help myself. What am I talking about? My brand new blog! Over at www.eugeneyiga.com, I’ll be publishing personal development book summaries and reviews every week. So make sure you subscribe to free alerts or follow me on Twitter to be notified when I do. Are you ready? Then let’s begin!

“The skill of writing is to create a context in which other people can think.” – Edwin Schlossberg

I’ve been blogging for just over two years and have had an amazing time doing so. Not only has it opened up a lot of doors for my freelancing, but it’s also been so much fun! Sadly, after over a hundred posts, it’s time I said goodbye. Yup, it’s the end of Varsity Blah.

But not to worry. I’ve added a new page with all the posts I’ve written nicely categorised for you to remember or discover for the first time. I’m also working on some exciting new projects and will let all of you know as soon as they’re ready to launch.

Otherwise, I wish you all well. Take care and I’ll talk to you soon!

“Writing is the only profession where no one considers you ridiculous if you earn no money.” – Jules Renard

(To download your completely free copy of the South African or International edition of Work in Progress, right-click and save the relevant link. Then open, enjoy, and repeat as needed.)

There’s nothing like snuggling up indoors with a good book while the rain falls gently outside. It turns out such idyllic images actually exist. While experiencing that joy recently, I got to thinking about how much we can learn from nature.

Seasons

It’s amazing how many aspects of nature work in cycles. After night comes day. After winter comes spring. Even though we should understand this, we still have a tendency to freak out over things like a recession, even though they’ve happened before and will happen again. Accept the darkness because without it there would be no light.

Harvest

Nothing in life happens instantly. It’s like Stephen Covey often jokes about how you can’t neglect sowing wheat all summer and then “hit it hard” in the fall. You’ve got to put in early and consistent effort if you want to reap the rewards. You’ve got to stock up for the winter if you want to see yourself through hard times.

Roots

Living with no sense of grounding is like being a leaf completely subject to whatever the random winds are blowing about. Instead, we should strive to be more like trees. After taking a trip back to the house where I grew up, I was amazed to see a tree my dad planted over twenty years ago still standing firm. Even though so much around it had changed, it was still there.

(To download your completely free copy of the South African or International edition of Work in Progress, right-click and save the relevant link. Then open, enjoy, and repeat as needed.)