GreenDrive

MAKING THE WORLD MORE OF A GREEN PLACE

GreenDrive is about taking care of the environment. Moreover, it’s about taking care of wildlife and the habitat that surrounds you, which provides a visual and audible splendour every day you step outside.

It does not matter where you live, house or flat, small or large garden, city or village, wildlife surrounds us and we can choose to either help it survive and prosper or dwindle and disappear. Most people do not even realise it is there, especially today with the busy lives we lead.

There is so much written about climate change – much of it controversial and sometimes contradictory. But there are some things that are pretty obvious, such as the need to recycle. As the world changes and the human population increases, there is a bigger demand to feed people and this intensive farming impacts on us and on the other animals we share the planet with..

Here are some initial thoughts about the environment. GO!

Here are some initial thoughts about greenness. GO!

See what’s happening with household waste. GO!

See what’s been happening with punishing poor recycling. GO!

See how much food we waste – it’s scary! GO!

We throw away and waste a lot of other stuff too… GO!

Why in the UK have we developed a throwaway culture? GO!

How long can we continue – let’s THINK about what we’re doing. GO!

See some facts from the BHF. GO!

See some of the effects our behaviour is having on our environment. GO!

See how we can start to make a difference ourselves. GO!

If you’re a visitor to our site you can join and download information, assess your own health and create your own action plans, and even contribute to our site.  GO!

We have a video and a testimonial. GO!

See what you can do next. GO!

We have some additional information on this subject. GO!

Some Initial Thoughts

Forest loss causes

Global - Forest Loss

Visual Capitalist provide infographics - this is sponsored by the Carbon Streaming Corporation..

They say: The world has lost one-third of its trees since the ice age, and today, approximately 15 billion trees are cut down annually.

Here are five reasons behind annual forest loss.

There is a difference between deforestation which means removal of trees for another use - in this case the forest cannot regrow, and forest degradation - where trees reduce in number but the forest can regrow.

The impact of forests on carbon dioxide levels is significant - on a net basis they take 7.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide, equating to 15% of global emmissions.

rubbish

Rubbish

Have you ever visited a council tip with rubbish and seen how much crap we actually produce and throw away? It’s vast and if we don’t stop it, we are in danger of destroying our planet for future generations.

Overall, in the UK 2021 The UK government are only recycling 45% of all household waste and this has roughly been the same for the last 5 years according to the most recent DEFRA Report.

Total UK Waste from Household generation was 26.4 million tonnes in 2019. This level of tonnes hasn’t changed much over the last few years. On top of these 3.8 million tonnes goes into landfill from unrecyclable packaging and 6.6 million tonnes of partly biodegradable waste and 5.2 million tonnes of construction and demolition waste. Total 42 million tonnes going into landfill.

But, imagine 42 million tonnes going into the ground across the UK ever year over your lifetime say 80 years. Imagine how can we explain this to future generations when we knew we were so wasteful and didn’t do enough to sort the problem.

We all can play our part but industry has to play its part as well. Manufacturing things that break after a short time with no regard for what we do with that item is corporate negligence.

We have one planet and we owe it to our grandchildren and those generations not born yet to do our bit to make it all sustainable.

Facts About Being Green

tonnes
0.1 million

of food is wasted by the food industry every year in the UK. (WRAP)

tonnes
1 ,000

of the food that goes to waste each year is still edible That’s enough for 650 million meals. (WRAP)

mattresses
0.1 million

go to landfill every year in the UK alone. That’s enough to completely fill Wembley Stadium five times over.

worth of food
£ 1 billion

is what British households throw away every year (WRAP)

household waste

Household waste and what happens to it

Let’s look at some simple small facts that added up can mean a lot, especially if there are 50 million of us doing it: Breaking a habit Is often hard or even impossible for some, as any smoker or heavy drinker.
• 1 recycled tin can would save enough energy to power a television for 3 hours.
• But if you recycled absolutely everything you could in your bin, you could power a TV for 5000 hours, plenty of time to get those boxsets in!
• 1 recycled glass bottle will save enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes.
• 1 recycled plastic bottle would save enough energy to power a light bulb for 3 hours.
• 70% less energy is needed to recycle paper as opposed to making it from raw materials.
• Researchers says that up to 80% of the things we throw away could be easily recycled
• We send over 20,000 tonnes of batteries to landfill each year, and it takes 50 times more energy to make a battery than you actually get from a battery.
Research from WRAP

penalty notice for recycling

What happens if we recycle wrongly?

Councils have threatened people who put rubbish in the wrong bin on a repeated basis with fines of up to £100. BBC News on April 12 2018 said:

“Earlier this year Chichester councillors approved new fines for residents who repeatedly put the wrong items in their recycling bins..

Residents in Welsh local authority Rhondda Cynon Taf who mix recyclables in with their residual waste can also face a £100 on-the-spot fine.”

However, new government guidelines have aimed at a more measured and balanced approach.

Strangely councils are fining members of the public for not putting the right items in the right bins but we are not fining the councils or the government for only recycling 45% of overall waste.

Or Councils are not fining large manufacturers for packaging their products that cannot be recycled.
Or the government over that last 50 years have allowed MacDonalds, KFC, burger king, Costa to produce and sell cartons that are not recyclable think over the last 50 years how many billions of tons have ended in landfill and the councils/government did nothing.
Or supermarkets/retailers who produce plastic wraps and packaging over the last 50 years that is not recyclable.
IN 2019 MacDonalds/KFC claimed all there packaging was now 100% recyclable. Why now!! After 20 years of promoting waste management have MacDonalds decided to do this. My guess is it isn’t that they care it’s because they don’t want to lose market share or get a bad name because they have filled endless landfills with plastic that will take 400 years to break down.

It’s estimated that consumers who purchase fast-food for lunch generate about 11 billion items of packaging waste a year.

food waste by subsector

Food and Drink Waste Hard Facts

Over the last few decades, astonishingly production of food in developed countries has increasingly topped demand. Today, various reports suggest that between one third and one half of all food produced worldwide is wasted. In 2012, 5.8 million tons of food waste and 1.2 million tons of drink waste were produced. That same year, 1.6 million tons of fresh vegetables and salads were squandered in the United Kingdom, making it the most wasted food group, with the amount of avoidable fresh vegetable and salad waste reaching 810 thousand tons.

But where is this waste occurring? The chart shows a summary by subsector. You can see the whole infographic by clicking on the heading for the Infographic below.

pile of furniture for recycling

It's not just food - it's everything in our lives that we throw away - DEFRA REPORT

22 million pieces of furniture are discarded each year in the UK

- The UK recycling rate for Waste from Households (WfH; including Incinerator Bottom Ash metal (IBAm)) was 46.2% in 2019, increasing from 45.0% in 2018.
- The recycling rate for WfH increased in all UK countries in 2019. The recycling rate for England was 45.5%, compared with 50.6% in Northern Ireland, 44.9% in Scotland, and 56.4% in Wales.
- UK biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) sent to landfill has fallen from approximately 7.2 million tonnes in 2018 to around 6.6 million tonnes in 2019.
- Provisional figures for 2020 show that 67.2% of UK packaging waste was either recycled or recovered, the same as in 2019.
- 59% of all plastic bottles are collected for recycling - this includes all plastic bottles, such as shampoo and bleach bottles, etc. but Greenpeace say it is less than 10% of everyday plastic that is recycled.
- Total UK Waste from Household generation was 26.4 million tonnes in 2019

Of this alone, UK households are throwing away 155,000 tonnes of domestic electrical waste every year and we are hoarding 527 million small old electricals, weighing around 190,000 tonnes – nearly 20 items per household. “In addition, 145,000 tonnes of commercial and industrial waste is also being thrown away.”6 Jul 2020

throwaway culture

The UK throw away culture

For many years the UK consumers have gone crazy buying more and more tools and electrical appliances such as chain saws and electric screwdrivers and usually they are made in China. They tend to be cheap in comparison to other companies and don’t seem to last very long. When they break we merrily without thought take them to the council tip and dispose of them. Up until 2020 they went into landfill. The Government decided in 2020 that manufacturers need to adopt a repair policy instead of throw away policy, which is a good step forward. But think of all the children’s plastic toys we buy each year. Less than 10% are recyclable. 90% end up in landfills.

If your child hasn’t played with their new toy after a year, take it to a charity shop and give it to them to sell to someone else. You get a double whammy by giving them to someone else and the charity raises much needed funds.

Just take a look around you for a moment and think!!!

In your living room, in your car, shopping in the supermarket, in the office, outside walking. Just stop for a second and look at every item you can see. Ask yourself - what is it? What’s it made of? How long will it last? What will happen when it's no longer needed - where will it go? Can It be recycled?

We take things like this for granted. Back in 2017 news headlines came out saying your morning coffee bought at a fast food outlet, 100% is not recyclable. Most of us stopped and thought "Really!!" Then many people started to think, who would allow a corporate company making billions of profit manufacture something that takes 400 years to degrade when they aren’t even responsible for the waste. Most people would see that as dreadful. But it's been happening all over the world and governments have allowed it.

Just stop for a moment and challenge yourself to care. You will see how much we manufacture but when it's no longer needed it goes to the landfill.

British Heart Foundation logo

Survey by British Heart foundation who accepts charitable donations such as furniture Image:

Despite the war on waste, thousands of homeowners and renters are chucking good quality furniture or homeware.

• Just under a third of people (30%) have thrown away furniture, electrical items and homewares in good enough condition that they could have been re-used, sold or donated
• A fifth of 16-24 year olds (19%) ‘don’t know’ how to recycle or donate
• Over 55s were far less likely to get rid of items than those age 16-24 (21% vs 45%)
• Nearly half of Londoners (45%) have thrown away good quality furniture, electrical items and homewares that could have been resold.

change in habitat

Our habitat is changing

The most recent RSPB State of Nature report, which brings together findings from 50 organisations, suggests there has been a 59 per cent decline in insects in the UK since 1970.

This combined with the reduction in bees and butterflies in making the environmentalists concerned. Birds rely on insects as do other creatures such Hedgehogs.

The most recent RSPB State of Nature report, which brings together findings from 50 organisations, suggests there has been a 59 per cent decline in insects in the UK since 1970. This combined with the reduction in bees and butterflies is making the environmentalists concerned. Birds rely on insects as do other creatures such as hedgehogs.

You can make the world around you a natural haven for animals, you’re in control and in charge. If you plan your garden to be nature friendly you will be doing your bit for the environment and given yourself and your family some visual and audible pleasure.

If you’re in a city volunteer for the local park activities. Get your family involved and see how much fun it is. We cannot always save the whole world but if we all start to manage the environment around us and one, we can control then nature will return to a balance. After all we all part of the circle.

family planting vegetables

Can we make a real difference?

Yes we can, with even the smallest of things.
Make your garden an environmentally friendly place for all wildlife and make your contribution to protecting the environment around you.

• Don’t just buy flower plants, look to buy plants that attract different insects – in turn these attract different birds to visit your garden
• Creatures need 3 things to come and live in your garden: food, shelter and water.
• Buy different types of shrubs, some of which produce berries for the winter birds. Or buy prickly shrubs for nesting birds
• Avoid pesticides on your flowers. Read the label to see if they hurt other things in your garden
• Buy an insect house or make one
• An old dish, pot sink or even a large baking pan with a small stone in the centre will attract lots of birds. Even better try a large flat tray 3cm thick and watch the birds take a bath
• Have some nesting boxes but make sure they are hidden enough so birds will nest and predators don’t find them
• An old wooden box with a 4-inch square hole hidden under bushes with straw inside is a perfect place for a home for a hedgehog
• Buy mixed bird food and spread it around on different tables so that bigger birds don’t scoff the lot
• Don’t just bin unwanted fruit and veg or bread, just pop them out for the animal
• In winter feed more especially fat balls and protein. Periods of minus temperature kill small birds as they have no tolerance level

Regarding food and household things:
• Try to buy only recyclable items
• Buy loose fruit and veg
• Buy products with the least packaging
• Lobby your Member of Parliament to force councils and industry to do more to avoid waste
• Use charities for old furniture and mattresses
• Don’t be a snob mattress buyer. Buy second hand and put a good quality mattress protector over it. At the end of the day, you stay in hotels and sleep on their beds as do thousands.
• Recycle your old toys
• When emptying bereaved homes approach charities first rather than furniture clearance companies. They take the best stuff and tip the rest in the landfill.
• Recycle all your clothes and shoes

For visitors

Why don't you join us?

You can register to join us as a member, when you’ll be able to download our stuff and comment, or as a YouDriver when you’ll also be able to check your health and set up your own action plans to make some improvements.  If you’ve already registered, sign in below. Or let us know what you think.

One planet, One home, One chance

One planet, One home, One chance

SOME STARK IMAGES!!

This video from acleanpeace shows some very unsettling images – we hope you don’t find it too upsetting!

“I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things we could use.”
Mother Teresa
Nun, missionary

Next Steps

It doesn’t matter what stage  you’re at – it’s important to be the best you can be.  At the end of the day it’s about taking personal responsibility – You Drive!

It’s really your choice. You can find out more information about the subject, or see other institutions that can help by going to Support. There you will find organisations, training, coaching, self-help courses and other items to support your personal change. We have also started developing a panel of experts to provide info, advice, help and support. 

Get Support

There are times when you need some help to meet your aims –  a helping hand. That might be  an organisation that can provide you with some help,  some specialised information, a particular book or tool to help, or just getting some background reading material.

We have a lot of items which appear on our Drives and other pages, which you can go to by clicking on the picture or link.  Some contain affiliate links and we may receive a tiny commission for purchases made through these links.

If you know of anything which could help you or our other visitors then please click the button on the right, which will take you to a Contacts page where you contact us.

Experts

We are compiling a list of experts who can provide advice, help or specialised services.  You will be able to access these experts from anywhere on our site you see our ‘Experts’ symbol.  Click the green E to see what our Experts list will look like, with a couple of imaginary ‘experts’ added!

More Information

Scroll down to see more information on this Drive. 

If you register you can also download reports, white papers, quizzes and other collaterals.  We will never ask you for any financial information, and we’ll only send you the information you want. You can register for our site either above or in the footer below.  You can provide your own questions and experiences in order to help other members.  We only moderate for spam and inflammatory language – see our moderation policy.

If you’ve found this interesting, then please share it on social media.  Choose your network!

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More information

Recycling (Green Planet)

In Recycling, early fluent readers learn about how everyday products and packaging can be broken down and reconstructed into new items. Vibrant, full-color photos and carefully leveled text engage young readers as they learn about the science behind recycling.


Go to Amazon

Beyond Recycling

Paperback

Beyond Recycling critically explores unasked questions around recycling and its prominent position in contemporary thinking about sustainability. It examines and challenges assumptions about why we appear to have so wholeheartedly committed to recycling as a cultural project.


Go to Amazon

My Family and Other Animals

The Corfu Trilogy 1 Paperback

My Family and Other Animals is the bewitching account of a rare and magical childhood on the island of Corfu by treasured British conservationist Gerald Durrell.


Go to Amazon

Flower Bee Balls

Native Wildflower Seed Balls, Grow Beautiful Flowers in Your Garden to Help Bring Back The Bees, Perfect Eco-Gift for The Gardener in Your Life

SAVE THE BEES! – Do something incredible and help to provide an environment that is bee friendly.  These balls contain a stunning mix of UK Wildflower seeds that will grow into a beautiful wildflower patch


Go to Amazon

Friends of the Earth are a campaigning group with local groups all over the UK

The Woodlands Trust protect trees, woods and wildlife

Recyclingbins.co.uk have a lot of interesting facts about recycling

Stuff you might want on being green

Now you’ve read about greenness you might want to make a bit of a statement.  Have a look at some stuff below we think has some humour value!  We may make pennies on commission, but that’s not the point really.  Click on the image to see more details.

My Garden Rustic Wood Bird Hotel

Durable Bird Box and Garden Decoration – Weatherproof Wooden Bird Houses for Garden – Included Bird Spotting Chart

Hanging wooden bird nesting box measuring 16.5 W x 14 D x 16.5cm H; Wooden nesting box for wild birds and bird feeders station in one

Go to Amazon

bird hotel

Wildlife World Butterfly Barn Garden Habitat

Wooden House for Butterflies, Moths & Lacewings

Plastic door swivels, allowing access to the nesting compartment for cleaning and to carefully observe species during cooler weather.
Comes in an attractive gift box and is easy to put up and care for.
Go to Amazon

butterfly barn

Wild Bee Seeds 26 Different Wildflower Meadow Plants and Flowers

UK Native Seeds Only Perfect for Attracting Bees and Butterflies or Butterfly Species to Your Garden 2 Packs

Available in 1, 2, 3 or 4 packs
Go to Amazon

butterfly flowers

Beets, Roots and Leaves Gift Seed Kit

 A Riotous Rainbow of Colour to Tantalise Your Taste Buds

6 Delicious & Easy to Grow Seed Varieties For Sensational, Home Grown Salads
Go to Amazon

seed kit

All areas of health are interlinked

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Find your initial focus

You might think that physical, financial and mental health are quite separate, and for some people they are. However, often a problem in one area has a knock-on effect on others. Losing your job can lead to anxiety and depression, which can turn you to drink and impact your health.

You might have a severe issue in one area but that can lead to problems in other areas, and the people treating you for the first problem won’t be equipped to deal with these linked issues.

For example, doctors and nurses can treat you for a physical problem but can’t advise you about your job or finances.  Nor for the anxiety that comes with it, apart from prescribing some drugs, which might or might not be the best solution.

We encourage you to take a holistic view – we look at all areas and offer support across the whole spectrum.

health areas interlinked

Even this view of health is simplistic, as you’ll discover later if you go down that route.  You might want to consider overall health, or wellness or wellbeing, which include additional types of health, such as occupational health (how you are in your job).   Then there’s happiness and quality of life – how do these fit?

If you’re interested in that, click the link here to see more information.

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Flower Bee Balls

Native Wildflower Bee Balls Seed Bombs in Floral Sack Handmade with Clay & Seeds to Save The Bees

Handmade Bee Balls
From a British company fully registered with DEFRA
Save the Bees
10 Large Bee Balls in Each Pouch

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bee balls

My Family and Other Animals

The Corfu Trilogy 1 Paperback

My Family and Other Animals is the bewitching account of a rare and magical childhood on the island of Corfu by treasured British conservationist Gerald Durrell.

Go to Amazon

animals

Beyond Recycling

Paperback

Beyond Recycling critically explores unasked questions around recycling and its prominent position in contemporary thinking about sustainability. It examines and challenges assumptions about why we appear to have so wholeheartedly committed to recycling as a cultural project.


Go to Amazon

beyond recycling

Recycling (Green Planet)

In Recycling, early fluent readers learn about how everyday products and packaging can be broken down and reconstructed into new items. Vibrant, full-color photos and carefully leveled text engage young readers as they learn about the science behind recycling.

Go to Amazon

recycling

Health Areas in Domains

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Domains

We break down the overall concept of health or wellness into ‘bite-sized chunks’ that we can actually do something about.  The first level we call health domains. 

We like the Life of Wellness site and we have chosen the following domains.

1. Emotional Wellness: Awareness and acceptance of feelings
2. Spiritual Wellness: A search for meaning and purpose
3. Intellectual Wellness: Recognition of your creativity, knowledge and skills
4. Physical Wellness: Need for physical activity and balanced nutrition
5. Environmental Wellness: Positive awareness and impact on your environment
6. Financial Wellness: Debt reduction, cash flow balance or financial future planning
7. Occupational Wellness: Personal achievement and enrichment from your career
8. Social Wellness: Contribution to your community

Health Areas

Within each domain, we have included a number of health areas. These are specific issues that you can tackle.  Within each health area, e.g. Depression, we have built additional information and exercises which you can do to help in the area. You can create your own Action Plan to address this area, and see

Emotional: Anxiety, Compassion Fatigue, Depression, Gambling, Laughter, Narcissistic, Personality Disorder, Sleep, Stress

Environmental: Environmental Issues, Greenness

Financial: Debt, Family Finance, Financial Planning, Financial Wellness

Intellectual: IQ, Personality, Procrastination

Occupational: Jobs for Different Personality Types, Retirement Income, Work Life Balance

Physical: Alcohol, Disabilities, Dizziness, Drugs, Fitness, Food Preferences, General Health, Healthy Ageing, Illness, Nutrition, Sleep Apnea, Smoking

Social: Communication Skills, Communication Styles, Domestic Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Love Partnerships, Mental Abuse, Parenting Styles, Sexual Addiction

Spiritual: Are You Sensitive, Mystical Guidance, Spirituality

Each health area has supporting information and its own questionnaire.

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Understand Health

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Physical, financial and mental health

One definition of health is:

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. 

The NHS define health as: ‘We use a broad definition of health that encompasses both physical and mental health, as well as wellbeing. This means we are not only interested in whether or not people are ill or have a health condition, but also in how healthy and well they are.’

We believe we also have to consider financial health, as this can easily impact physical and mental health. Click the button to see an example of how these are connected.

 It gets more complicated…

What is Health? How about Wellness, Wellbeing or Happiness?

The Active Wellbeing Society (TAWS) define Health as a state of the overall mental and physical state of a person; the absence of disease. They define Wellbeing or wellness as a way of life that aims to enhance well-being and refers to a more holistic whole-of-life experience which also includes emotional and spiritual aspects of life.  We expand on this definition of health to include financial health and mental health, to make it synonymous with wellbeing or wellness.  

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Health domains

You need to scroll down to see all the info in this popup – sorry for going on so much!

We break down the overall concept of health or wellness into ‘bite-sized chunks’ that we can actually do something about.  The first level we call health domains.

We like the Life of Wellness site and we have chosen the following domains.

1. Emotional Wellness: Awareness and acceptance of feelings
2. Spiritual Wellness: A search for meaning and purpose
3. Intellectual Wellness: Recognition of your creativity, knowledge and skills
4. Physical Wellness: Need for physical activity and balanced nutrition
5. Environmental Wellness: Positive awareness and impact on your environment
6. Financial Wellness: Debt reduction, cash flow balance or financial future planning
7. Occupational Wellness: Personal achievement and enrichment from your career
8. Social Wellness: Contribution to your community

wellness wheel

Health Areas

Within each domain, we have included a number of health areas. These are specific issues that you can tackle.  Within each health area, e.g. Depression, once you have subscribed we have built additional information and exercises which you can do to help in the area.

To close this box and go back click the X at the top or just click outside the box

See which domains you should address

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Having established that we use 8 domains, you need to understand which you should concentrate on.

The 8 are:

  • Emotional
  • Environmental
  • Financial
  • Intellectual
  • Occupational
  • Physical
  • Social
  • Spiritual

 

You can take a questionnaire, which scores you in each domain.  You can decide which domains you are strong in, and which you need to improve.

Another analysis shows which domains you should look at, but also which domains you want to look at.

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Locus of Control

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  • We want to help people in all aspects of their health  – physical, financial and mental. We also provide detailed explanations of how overall health (or well-being) is measured.
  • We believe these things are often linked, so we try and address health holistically. We are building templates, questionnaires and exercises to help you identify what’s important to you.
  • We think people should try and take responsibility for  of their own health as much as they can.  See below for what that means.

People look at things differently.  Some people believe things happen to them, while others believe they can influence what happens to them. Technically this is called the ‘locus of control’.  People can have an Internal or external Locus of Control

So how do you see things?

Psychology Today have a 15 minute test which gives you a summary of your position you can buy the detailed results if you want to.

My Personality Test have a 10 minute test which gives you a summary.

People tend to take more responsibility (locus gets more internal) as they get older.  However, external isn’t always bad – for example if you are physically unable to do some things you can accept it and focus on the things you can do.  This American video explains the concept and gives examples of how this can affect relationships.

locus of control

Internal

  • More likely to take responsibility for actions
  • Tend to be less influenced by others

External

  • Blame outside forces for what happens
  • Don’t believe they can change their situation themselves

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Add your attitude to change - see how you view changes in your life

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Do you need to change?

No matter how healthy you are at the moment, the chances are that there are some areas you could improve. It may be that you have a real problem in one or more areas, and you would like to make some improvements.

At YouDrive we accept that there are many different degrees of ‘not wellness’ in a large number of different health areas, ranging from physical illness such as covid-19 through mental illness such as anxiety through to financial problems like debt.  We try and help where the problem ranges from ‘slight’ to quite bad’ – after this expert help and intervention may be needed.

However, especially in these times, we have to try and make these changes ourselves, possibly with some help from others, whether remotely or face to face.

The thing is, to make an improvement we have to change some things.

This involves changing our behaviour in some respects, and that’s not always easy.

Henry Ford, the creator of the assembly line, is quoted as saying “if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got”.  

henry ford

Another way of looking at this: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” – attributed to Albert Einstein.

Consequently we need to make some changes.  The problem is that we have already developed a lot of habits, some of which we need to break and replace by better ones.  Some of our bad habits have become entrenched, and the bad results they create in turn engender further bad habits to develop – in effect the bad habits can feed on themselves.

We need to understand how we can make changes and stick to them, and that’s what this part of your health profile is about.

It will involve some learning, through reading, some videos and some additional information and also seeing how you react to change currently.

It will also ask you to consider whether you feel you are in charge of your future, or whether you feel it’s all fate.

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Assess your overall health using a health questionnaire

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At YouDrive we try and help people improve their health. We use ‘health’ but we understand there are other terms such as wellbeing or even happiness that reflect how we are doing in our lives – if you’re interested in the different definitions and ideas see our page on the subject.

We want to help whether you have a particular problem – physical, financial or mental – or if you just want to improve some specific part of your life or just make some improvements overall.

You’d be surprised, but there has been a serious amount of scientific work done in this area over the last twenty years.

So first we allow you to assess your current health (or wellbeing, or happiness).  We do this by questionnaire.  Which one is determined by the type of person you are:

  1. You understand yourself well and want a quick overview of your health and wellness, and will drill down in any areas needing work
  2. You want to do a more detailed assessment and then focus on areas you’re already aware of
  3. You want to look at the whole situation in more detail across all the health domains.

By the way, we take your privacy seriously – we collect information that you choose to provide but we de-identify it as much as possible and will never share it with anyone without your explicit consent.

You can then drill down into some specific areas and there are more questionnaires to see your situation in these particular areas.  We provide you with specific information and refer you to other potential aspects of help. Our next step is to build a personalised action plan – for now we will make a suggestion for you to develop your own plan and then after a time you can see whether this has had a positive impact by retaking the test.

In future we will be engaging with medical and behavioural specialists to devise action plans for individual people with specific situations.

We have an overall questionnaire which you can complete which will assess your current state.

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Values, Attitudes and Beliefs

You need to scroll down to see all the info in this popup – sorry for going on so much!

We all have our beliefs, attitudes and values – these have developed throughout our life based on who we are and what we have done. Let’s look at what these are.

The University of Reading explain: “People’s values, beliefs and attitudes are formed and bonded over time through the influences of family, friends, society and life experiences. So, by the time you’re an adult, you can hold very definite views on just about everything with a sense of “no one is going to change my mind”.

The combination of your personal values, beliefs and attitudes are your moral principles that guide you in life and affect your behaviour. However, your views can wildly differ to others and in an institution such as a school, these beliefs may be counter to the values of the school, child development or indeed the law.” 

Let’s look more closely at the differences between beliefs, attitudes and values.

Beliefs

These come from real experiences – we think our beliefs are based on reality, but in fact our beliefs colour our experiences; also, an original experience e.g. when we were a child is not the same as what’s happening now. Beliefs can be moral, religious or cultural and reflect who we are. They can be rational (‘it gets colder in winter’) or irrational (‘I am never going to make something of myself’).

Attitudes

This is an immediate belief or disposition about something specific. It is a recurring group of beliefs and behaviours aimed at specific groups, people, ideas or objects. They will normally be positive or negative and we will always behave that way to the target group. Examples of attitudes include confidence (I can or can’t do something), grateful (I an entitled to / grateful for XXX) and cheerful (I am generally happy / miserable).

Values

These are things (principles or qualities) that we hold in high regard or consider to be worthwhile or right / wrong. They are formed by a belief related to the worth of something – an idea or behaviour. Some values are common (e.g. family comes first, the value of friendship) or cultural (which the whole community have – see video at Study.com here)

The theory

Links to Wikipedia

Expectancy Value Theory suggests you balance your beliefs about something with the value you attach to it. The Theory of Reasoned Action suggests that beliefs and evaluation about behavioural outcomes determine attitudes, and intentions lead directly to behaviour.

Beliefs

Expressions of confidence – can change over time

Attitudes

Learned predispositions to something – are subject to change

Values

Ideals that guide our behaviour – Generally long lasting and often need life changing experience to change

Iceberg demonstrating implicit and explicit bias – from Owlcation

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A Butterfly Life: 4 Keys to More Happiness, Better Health and Letting Your True Self Shine

Times of change can be a challenge, no doubt! Whether it’s a relationship breakup, job loss, or being diagnosed with a serious health issue. Or you may WANT things to be different, but it feels a little scary or overwhelming. The butterfly reminds us change can be beautiful, even necessary, in order to realize our full potential and live our best life.