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The object you select should be one which is easy for your attention to rest upon, which brings pleasant emotions without too much excitement or boredom. If you select an object which has meaning for you, try not to allow its associations to distract you. The goal is to focus on the object itself. Choosing an object of the senses is an ancient meditation technique. Some traditions encourage meditation upon the elements (earth, air, fire, water). Others focus on sacred places within the body, or chakras. There are literally thousands of possible objects from which to choose. Popular choices include: the flame of a candle, a sacred symbol or object from the religious tradition meaningful to you, a word or short phrase that is sacred to you. Remember, it is the training of the mind, not the object, that is the goal of concentration meditation. A skilled practitioner might focus on a box of tissues with equal success. Focusing your attention on the flame of a candle is called Tatrek meditation. Position your body far enough away from the candle so that you can easily focus your gaze upon it. Make sure that your candle is placed in a quiet, draft-free area. A flame that dances in the breeze will create worry that its flame will be extinguished. Select an unscented candle for optimal concentration. A scented candle may distract from your meditation. In some traditions, this type of meditation is known as Lectio Divinio, or "divine reading." Read slowly. A certain word or phrase may draw your attention. When it does, allow your attention to remain upon this word or phrase for your meditation practice. You may memorize the word or phrase, or you may keep the pages of your text open before you, reading them again as needed. The words of the text may become abstract, losing their former meaning. This is fine. The words themselves are not important. They are just a pathway towards the meditative practice. For concentration meditation, close the mouth and breathe through the nose, unless the nose is occluded. Breathing through the nose allows a greater range of sensation. The concentration on breathing meditation is called Zazen meditation. This form of meditation encourages the practitioner to focus on the fact of the breath. Counting each breath, starting at 1 and continuing through 10, is a form of Zazen practice. Concentration on the physical sensations of breathing is called Vipassana meditation. These sensations may be outer, such as the feeling of breath against one's upper lip, or inner, such as the awareness of breath flowing into the upper, middle, and lower lung area. It may also incorporate the awareness of breath flowing to particular regions of the body known as chakras.

summary: Choose an object for your concentration meditation. Light a candle. Read a short passage from a sacred text. Choose the breath.

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It will be easier to help co-workers understand gay and lesbian issues if you get to know them first and they view you as a colleague and friend. Give yourself some time to get to know co-workers before bringing up issues in conversation. Co-workers will be less receptive to learning about gay and lesbian issues if they don't know or trust you. It's important to conduct yourself professionally and responsibly when educating co-workers about gay and lesbian issues. It's admirable to be an advocate for the gay community, but letting it distract you from your duties could get you in trouble. Remember that not everyone will want your insights into the issues faced by gay and lesbian people. This could be because they don't agree with it or just because they don't feel the workplace is the right place to discuss it. Respect the wishes of individuals that don't want to discuss gay and lesbian issues at work. Bring up topics related to the gay and lesbian community casually to begin the discussion. Relate them to something already being discussed. Co-workers will likely be more receptive to discussing issues if you reference current news items or events that are related than if you just bring it up suddenly. Bringing in an expert on diversity can be very helpful for any company and its employees. Diversity training gives workers the tools they need to be sensitive to the differences among their fellow employees, as well as the differences among the people they come into contact with as a part of their job. Offer co-workers resources for further information if they want to know more than time in the workplace permits. Suggest articles or websites that will further educate them and help them understand the process of coming out, the meaning of pride activities, and current issues in the gay and lesbian community. If you are gay or lesbian, you can educate co-workers by just being your normal self while out. Be honest about your sexuality and try to represent the gay or lesbian community in the best way possible. Remember that co-workers that know you're gay may view you as a representative or advocate of the gay lifestyle. If you are interested in educating them, be kind and willing to teach them about your life and the struggles you face due to being a gay or lesbian person in a homophobic society.

summary: Get to know your coworkers. Maintain professionalism. Respect boundaries. Start a dialogue. Have professional diversity training. Recommend resources. Be out at work.

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A mandolin is traditionally tuned G-D-A-E, from low to high, with each pair of strings tuned to the same tone. In other words, the instrument is tuned G-G-D-D-A-A-E-E, taking into consideration each individual string. When you're holding the mandolin correctly, the highest string pair (E) should be the closest to the floor. If you play guitar, it can also be helpful to think of it as the lowest four guitar strings (E-A-D-G), but in reverse. That can also help you get familiar with the fingerings when you're first getting started on the instrument. On most mandolins, the tuners for both G strings and both D strings will be on the side of the headstock closest to you, while the tuners for both A strings and E strings will be on the side of the headstock closest to the floor, in order. As you tune, you generally want to tune in that clockwise pattern on the tuners, around the headstock, working your way down the instrument and higher in pitch. What makes tuning a mandolin more difficult than tuning a violin, of course, is that there are 8 strings instead of 4, meaning that you have to be precise or the instrument will be out of tune. It can be difficult to know which string is out of tune when you're striking them both in unison. Use "rest strokes" (in which you dampen each string with the pick after playing) to isolate each note individually as you're tuning. This will get a clearer tone on the electronic tuner, or whatever other tuning method you're using. As with any stringed instrument, you generally want to tune from flat to sharp, tuning the string up in pitch, rather than down from a higher note to the correct tone. This is because you want to settle the tension in the string toward the gear, not away from it. When you tune down, you risk letting the tension slip on the tuning gear as you play, making the string will go flat. This is especially true with new strings. Worn out or rusty strings will go out of the tune more easily and bedevil your fingers as you're learning. Make sure you change your strings out regularly to keep your instrument in tune. You don't need to change them every night unless you're Tim O'Brien, but consider changing them every 4-6 weeks of moderate to heavy usage. It can be frustrating to tune immediately after putting new strings on the mandolin, because it'll slip out after only a few minutes. After putting new strings on, each string puts lots of pounds per square inch of tension on the neck, and the wood will flex slightly. You need to account for this by getting the strings close and then letting the instrument rest for a second before fine-tuning. You'll get it in tune more quickly and more accurately this way.
summary: Tune it like a violin. Locate the correct tuners for each string. Tune each string individually and both strings together. Tune up, don't tune down. Use fresh strings. Get the tuning in the ballpark, and then fine-tune it.