We feel that not only is this bad advice for the networker, one that seriously decreases the chance for quality connection (many “3-Footers” mysteriously find themselves unable to get within three feet of anyone in a very short period of time), but that it also creates a negative feeling to the whole concept of networking in the minds of others.

As a result, people begin to avoid any event or activity labeled “networking” because they neither wish to participate in this hard-sell technique, nor do they wish to be exposed to it, especially in a concentrated form, in doing so we all lose out on valuable opportunities for service, connection and growth.

So, in the true spirit of connection-based networking (adding value to interactions in order to create and strengthen our connections with others), we hereby present our own Three Foot Rule, and hope you’ll join us in finding ways to make it our mission for the future of networking:

“Every person within three feet of you is an opportunity to serve.”   Dr. Ivan R Misner

Hazel M Walker, owns three award winning franchise’s. She is a 10 year owner of two BNI Franchises where she teaches members how to leverage their time and network to build each others businesses. She is also a Referral Institute franchise owner and teaches Business Owners how to harness the Science of Referrals to develop Referrals for Life. Hazel is a published author in New York Times best sellers Masters of Networking and Masters of Sales. As a member of the National Speakers Association she travels the world speaking to businesses and women’s organizations on the topics of networking to create a life you love.

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The Three Foot Rule

I shot a segment today for Eyewitness News here in the NYC Area.  It will air this coming Monday, during the 5 PM news.   I won’t spoil the segment, but in doing a little research for the piece I found some rather amazing information.

In 2002 they did a study in England and Ireland where they asked women to walk up the stairs at work each day for 8 weeks.  They started with one flight of stairs and gradually worked up to walking 200 steps which took most people about 2 minutes.  They went up the stairs 6 x during the work day – for a total of 12 minutes of work.  Now mind you this wasn’t all at once, rather just 2 minutes at a pop.  The results?  In just 2 months these women increased their HDL (the good cholesterol) and improving the ratio of good cholesterol to bad.  They improved their work capacity (as measured by their “VO2 Max” and a decrease in the production of metabolic wastes during exercise).  Experts calculated that in just 8 weeks they had decreased their of having a heart attack by 33%!!   Working out just 12 minutes a day — and not changing their diet or anything else.

Then another study built on that and looked at a much larger group of individuals.  But in this study they only had them do only 100 steps/day for a total of 6 minutes of work spread out in their work day.  And guess what?!  These folks had similar benefits to the point that they decreased their risk for cardiovsacular disease by about 20%.  In just a few weeks with 6 minutes of exercise per day.

Now nobody is saying that these people became hard bodies from these workouts, but the fact is they had a tremendous impact on their health and their risk for having a heart attack.  That’s significant because every year 1.1 million people in the US have a heart attack and about 1/2 of those will be fatal.

This is really great news, because everyone has 6-12 minutes/day to exercise.  Best of all stairs are free and found everywhere…at home…at work…in the park…at the mall…you name it.  There is really no excuse! 
Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is an exercise physiologist, certified personal trainer, author of Fit + Female:  The Complete Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever, a comprehensive weight loss and wellness system just for women.  It’s a first of its kind program designed to fit into a busy women’s life.  Lose weight and look great — 90 Day Unconditional Money Back Guarantee!!

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Stairclimbing…A Little Dab Will Do Ya!

1. Grieving is a natural part of life – we grieve when we lose something we love.

• For some reason, in the West, we deal with grieving, death and dying, as unspeakable subjects.
• It is as though we think if we don’t talk about them, they will go away.
• But they don’t go away because they are inherent in life; the cycle of birth and death rages on.

1. There is no “normal” timeframe to stop grieving – the grieving stops when you are done mourning.

• If you surrender to the natural process of grieving, you will move through grieving and be done when you are done.
• Everything is moving and changing all the time.
• When you feel the passing of something, you need to allow yourself to grieve and give yourself permission to feel your sadness.

1. Do not pretend to be “happy” if you are not.

• Pretending is the opposite of authenticity.  To feel is to be authentic.
• Every death – the death of a loved one, the losing of a job, the ending of a relationship, even though it might have been dysfunctional, – summons up every other death. Judith Rossner says in her book August, “After the first death, there is no other.”
• Whether you are around friends, family, acquaintances, or strangers, understand that grieving is a natural and normal part of life. and you will feel sad when you lose someone you love.

1. Talk about the person you loved and lost … even if it makes others feel uncomfortable.

• You have a right to talk about things you want to talk about as much as the next person.
• It is not your job to make someone else feel comfortable.
• If you need professional help, get it.

1. You cannot think your way through grief – you must feel.

• I often say the only way to HEAL is to FEEL.
• Thinking keeps the “feelings” in the head, in a very intellectual way, never allowing them to come down and rest in the heart
• Until you are willing to feel your feelings of sadness, you can never move through the natural process of grieving.

In a national competition, Chandra Alexander, MSW, was selected by THE OPRAH MAGAZINE as the Life Coach to deliver a series of coaching sessions to the grand prize winner of their prestigious Toyota Moving Forward contest. She also spent five years on NBC/TV “DAYTIME” giving a weekly “Reality Check”. Chandra has been living and teaching authenticity for the last 30 years and is the founder of Coaching for Authenticity, a place to explore and discover the essence of who you really are.

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Are You Grieving?

Background

As a refresher, traditional IRAs are funded with pre-tax dollars and defer taxes on investment gains until the day you withdraw the funds. When funds are withdrawn from the traditional IRA, they are taxed as ordinary income (your highest tax bracket). Conversely, Roth IRAs, are funded with post-tax dollars but all of the investment earnings grow tax free and avoid taxes when they are withdrawn (assuming it’s a qualified distribution).  Roth IRAs can’t be opened by taxpayers
making more than $176,000 (joint returns) and $120,000 for single taxpayers. Furthermore, conversions of traditional retirement funds into Roth IRAs have not been permitted for households with annual incomes above $100,000.

The Conversion Process

A Roth Conversion is a distribution of assets out of a tax-deferred IRA, such as a Traditional or Rollover IRA, which is transferred into a Roth IRA.  If the converted assets are held in the Roth for the five-year holding period, qualified withdrawals are tax-free. The conversion from the traditional IRA into the Roth IRA is considered a taxable event, and the account holder will generally owe taxes on the distribution in the current year. However, in 2010 only, IRA account holders have the option of applying 50% of the conversion amount to the 2011 tax year and 50% to the 2012 tax year, or applying 100% of the conversion amount to the 2010 tax year. Steep investment losses in many retirement accounts may make that tax hit easier to take, and will guarantee that any market rebound in investment values will never be taxed if funds are switched into a Roth account. Finally, conversions must be fully completed by December 31st to qualify for current year
tax treatment.

Why Bother?

So, what makes a Roth IRA so great?  If you believe that your tax rates will be higher in retirement than they are now, Roth IRA’s can save you loads of future taxes—that can translate into greater wealth for you.  
Let’s use the following example.  You are age 40 and have a $200,000 traditional IRA.  Your plan is to retire at 65.  Your current tax bracket is 25% and you anticipate that you will be in (at least) a 30% tax bracket upon retirement.  We suppose that the tax due upon the Roth conversion is $50,000, is paid with funds available outside of the IRA being converted. Let us also assume an investment tax rate of 15% capital gains rate now and in the future.  Using an 8% expected return on your investments, the after tax net return from your Traditional IRA (with tax savings) would be worth $1,186,411, while the after tax net return from your Roth IRA would be $1,369,695.  That’s a difference of $183,284 by converting to the Roth.

Other Considerations
       
It is always wise to check with your tax or financial advisor before making a conversion.  This is particularly true because executing a conversion may actually bump you into a higher tax bracket.  Because converted assets will be considered taxable income, perhaps a partial conversion may be the answer. Converting only a portion of the assets may allow you to stay in a lower tax bracket, allowing you the flexibility to convert additional assets in future years. Ideally, individuals considering a Roth conversion should have the cash on hand to pay the income tax on converted assets. A partial conversion could help limit the conversion taxes to an amount your client can pay without dipping into IRA assets.
      
Does a Conversion Make Sense for You?

Clearly, everyone’s circumstances are unique and there is no one-size-fits-all answer here.  After all, the decision to convert to a Roth can be influenced by a number of factors including:

•        Your age and longevity
•        Your income tax bracket now and in the future
•        Your expected rate of return
•        Your investment tax rate (ie. capital gains rate)

The decision to convert can be complicated.  If you want to learn more, Morningstar, has written an informative overview of the conversion decision, and also provides a useful conversion calculator to help determine if conversion makes sense.   For many, there is no better moment to consider this.  The time is right for a Roth conversion.  

Cathy Pareto, MBA, CFP®, AIF® is the Founder and President of Cathy Pareto & Associates, Inc. For over twelve years, Cathy has been helping financial consumers and professionals understand the world of investments and finance with a sound, but down to earth money management approach. For over a decade Cathy was a Senior Financial Advisor for another Miami based investment advisory firm, where she managed over $200 million in assets for high net worth clients and retirement plans. She has extensive experience in retirement issues, asset allocation, investment selection, investment management, education planning, estate planning coordination, and asset protection strategies. Additionally, she was an Adjunct Professor and Faculty Coordinator for the CFP® Program at Florida International University’s College of Business.

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There May Never Be a Better Time for a Roth Conversion

Several of my entrepreneurial friends and coaching clients feel extra stress as they move through seasonal transitions.  The slower paced days of summer kick in to the high paced energy of Autumn immediately after Labor Day weekend. The abrupt change, no matter how well planned for,  can be stressful.

Stress is defined as a state of mental or emotional strain resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances. Science has proved that stress damages our DNA and can shorten our lifespan.

Have you ever been so stressed out that you notice a change in your complexion, body weight, or sleep patterns?

Getting control of stress is paramount to living a healthy lifestyle.

If you are experiencing a lot of stress, act now to eliminate as much anxiety as possible. I’ve found the best way to handle stress is to learn to relax your body with stress management techniques. Regular exercise, yoga, soothing music, meditation and breathing exercises can be very helpful in relaxing your body, mind and soul.

Lower transitional stress levels by implementing some of these stress busting ideas today.

Seasonal Stress Reduction Action Plan:

1. Create a Joy or Gratitude Journal

Observe and record ten things that bring you joy or that you are thankful for every day.

2. Be Quiet

Schedule 15 minutes every day to get centered and attract the feeling of peacefulness.

3. Move your Body

Schedule time for some sort of body movement every day.

If you don’t like to exercise, consider these options: Dance to your favorite song, walk on a woodland path, stroll on the beach, ride your bike. Just get moving.

4. Listen to Music

When you are feeling overwhelmed, listen to your favorite music to lift your spirits. Soothing music is a universal stress buster.

5. Make Time For Extreme Self-Care

Plan a minimum of 30 minutes every day to do something just for YOU.

6. Add More Healthy Foods to Your Diet

Make sure you are drinking plenty of water, eating leafy green vegetables and
snacking on lots of of fruit every day.

When you start to live a lower stress lifestyle, you will be amazed by how much better you feel. Your friends and colleagues will notice your transformation and you will be walking on the path of true balance.

You deserve to take better care of YOU.

Shann Vander Leek is the Founder of True Balance Life Coaching and Co-founder of Seize True Success. She is a Coach Training Alliance certified professional coach, and certified yoga instructor. Shann is a prolific blogger, published writer and co-author of the Best Selling Book – Wake Up Women BE Happy Healthy & Wealthy. Shann’s personal style and direct approach have guided and inspired many in overcoming personal and professional challenges. Her background in sales, marketing and client development, along with leading a talented sales force for many years prepared her for the business of professional coaching. Shann inspires women in transition to create balance in their lives through personal coaching, yoga and creative expression. Telephone and email consultations make her accessible to clients all over the world. To find out about her Coaching Programs for Women, call Shann at 231.668.111 or visit www.truebalancelifecoaching.com

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Stress Busters

Now most of us in the fitness world don’t think too much about fascia.  We think more about muscles — which is ironic since fascia is a critical component of muscle.  It’s not surprising then that most lay people don’t think about fascia.  In fact, most people don’t even know what it is – unless they’ve been told that they have ”plantar fasciitis”. 

But fascia isn’t just on the bottom of the foot — it is virtually everywhere in the body.   Muscle fibers are covered by it, bunches of muscle fibers (known as fascicles) are covered by it, the entire muscle is covered by it, it continues on past the muscle to create the tendon — and it attaches the tendon to the muscles at the periosteum (which is fascia covering bone).

According to Myers (author of Anatomy Trains and leading fascia expert) there are 7 layers of different types of fascia on average in most parts of the body.  Some areas have as many as 20 layers.  In fact, there is a layer of connective tissue like a pair of panty hose pulled up over the entire body to the top of the head (called the fascia profundis).

Why should we care?  Well…

• Muscles can’t develop properly when fascia is knotted up
• Fascia can dramatically alter our posture
• Imbalances in the fascial lines of pull can contribute to over use injuries, pain and dysfunction
• Problems in fascia in one part of the body can cause pain somewhere else — sometimes a part of the body far from the site causing the pain
• Fascia actually contracts (thanks to recently discovered contractile cells called myofibroblasts) - helping the muscles contract, providing the body with better strength and protecting the lower back from injury
• Once you stretch fascia, it stays stretched…although your central nervous system might move you back into familiar/habitual postures.

Some things that we do to improve the health of our fascia:

• Get regular massages from a qualified bodyworker/LMT (if at all possible).  It’s not just an indulgence, it can help improve the health of muscles and many bodily systems. (Tom was a student of Ida Rolf’s but is the creator of a unique type of bodywork known as KMI Structural Integration. There 12 session work addresses each of the fascial planes)
• Use foam rollers, balls, massage sticks, your hands (or a friend’s) to work out knots.  Roll or knead them over your body until you find a tender spot.  Then try to roll over the spot until the knot yields.  You can do this before or after you workout — or on off-days as part of your recovery.
• Make sure you warm-up before you workout.  Fascia’s contractile properties don’t kick in until at least 15 (probably closer to 20 min) after you start working out.  This includes getting warm and stretching.  Static stretching can be particularly effective for this.

Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is an exercise physiologist, certified personal trainer, author of Fit + Female:  The Complete Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever, a comprehensive weight loss and wellness system just for women.  It’s a first of its kind program designed to fit into a busy women’s life.  Lose weight and look great — 90 Day Unconditional Money Back Guarantee!!

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Facts About Fascia

Lately the current of my mind has been terribly engaged. The feeling is like being pulled under and dragged out to sea in a riptide of psychological activity. I seem to be rolling with big ideas, spilling over with tiny tasks and overflowing with unfocused creativity.

All of this mental activity leads to feeling scattered. The gears in my brain spin and then lock up.  The more I check in with how I am feeling and what I need, the more I realize the lack of focus has everything to to do with the Autumnal transition and my new, not yet comfortable routine for Fall.

It’s time to get clear, get focused and re energize. It time to swim away from the tumultuous surface current that has a hold of me.

The plan is to revise my daily schedule. The trick to living a balanced life is understanding we are always in a state of change. Recalibrating daily habits and swimming away from the rip current will help me slow down, focus my energy and get back to shore.

Here is my plan for nourishing my hijacked spirit whilst participating in the new pace of my life.  I hope you can use this life ring of ideas to quiet your mind and rescue you from your own undercurrent of unfocused madness.  : -)

Getting Quiet

Making time to sit quietly each morning is lovely way to begin each day. Even 5 minutes will make a difference.  Enjoying a fresh cup of coffee in silence or creating time to sit and reflect. Writing your thoughts in a journal may be your choice for quiet time.  I like to mix things up.  How about you?  What do you do to get quiet?

Sharing time with positive people

Sharing time with positive uplifting people is key to increasing your energy and lifting your spirit. Anybody who brings you down is not part of the solution. Take inventory of the people and personalities in your life.  Your energy will mirror the people you surround yourself with.

Infuse your life with nature

As I write this I am looking out the window at a huge maple tree just beginning to share her new fall colors with me. I have a pickle jar filled with Petoskey stones on my desk and small red and yellow sunflower that is on the ready to retire.  I bring the natural world into my environment to keep me grounded.

As important as it is to bring nature inside, it’s also a good idea to get out in the natural world. Walk along a woodland path, skip some flat stones across the lake, tack a sack lunch to a nearby park and breathe in the beauty of nature.  How do you infuse your life with nature?

Daily yoga practice

As a student of yoga and yoga instructor I realize the importance of honoring my body with a regular yoga practice. When I became a teacher I stopped being a student. It’s time to balance my love for yoga by making room in my life to be a yoga student.  Do you have a daily yoga practice?  Do you want to learn more about what that might look like?

Cultivating mindfulness

Unconscious behavior is easy to step back into when you feel overwhelmed and out of sorts. Practicing mindfulness will improve your outlook on life and teach you a lot about the way you are, the way you roll.  What does it mean to be mindful?  To me it is thoughtful consideration as well as witnessing your own behavior.  Minfulness is a  gift that can be internally mined at any time.  How do you cultivate mindfulness?

“Happiness is not a matter of events; it depends upon the tides of the mind”

- Alice Meynell

Shann Vander Leek is the Founder of True Balance Life Coaching and Co-founder of Seize True Success. She is a Coach Training Alliance certified professional coach, and certified yoga instructor. Shann is a prolific blogger, published writer and co-author of the Best Selling Book – Wake Up Women BE Happy Healthy & Wealthy. Shann’s personal style and direct approach have guided and inspired many in overcoming personal and professional challenges. Her background in sales, marketing and client development, along with leading a talented sales force for many years prepared her for the business of professional coaching. Shann inspires women in transition to create balance in their lives through personal coaching, yoga and creative expression. Telephone and email consultations make her accessible to clients all over the world. To find out about her Coaching Programs for Women, call Shann at 231.668.111 or visit www.truebalancelifecoaching.com

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Feeling Scattered? Focus Already!

The other day I was listening to Gray Cook on one of the StrengthCoachPodcasts (which for anyone who doesn’t know about it — is an amazing free educational resource that every fitness pro should be listening to) .  Anyway, Gray (who does a regular segment on the podcast) was talking about his friend Jon Torrine’s “StrawberryPop-Tart” approach to nutrition.  

Jon Torrine, is a brilliant guy who is the Strength and Conditioning Coach for The Colts.  He told Gray about how he gets his players who don’t like to eat breakfast to start.  Rather than telling them he wants them to have a tofu-veggie scramble for breakfast…he starts with something he thinks he can get buy-in on.  “Could you eat a Strawberry Pop Tart?”.  Talk about getting your foot in the door.  Brilliant, I mean…come on…who doesn’t love a Pop Tart?!   That white frosting made of…well okay…not quite sure what…but something deliciously sugary and inside that yummy…”real” fruit filling!

Now I know that a lot of purists would poo poo this kind of approach saying something like, “OMG those are terrible for you!” or “they are filled with chemicals and preservatives” or “don’t you know they are loaded with empty calories?”…blah, blah, blah.  Meanwhile, the bottom line is – these guys aren’t eating ANY breakfast.  

Objectively speaking, from the standpoint of nothing in your system after fasting for 8 hours vs. a  Pop Tart…guess what?   A Strawberry Pop Tart is better.  It’s a “breakfast”.  And that reality of the situation is that the tofu scramble (at this point in time for these particular folks) is just not happening. 

Then once they get comfortable with that they might want to take it to the next level…maybe next it will be white toast with jam…then maybe they’ll move on to multi-grain toast with all-fruit spread…you get the idea.  Before you know it they could turn into one of the healthiest eaters on the planet.  The point is we need people to start somewhere. 

What WILL people do vs. what SHOULD they do?  Take a walk for 30 minutes vs. — they SHOULD do 15 minutes of warm-up, then 30 minutes of resistance, then 30 minutes of energy system development (cardio)…come on!  Most people aren’t doing anything!   So a 30 minute (even a 15 min) walk is quite literally – a  HUGE step in the right direction. 
Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is an exercise physiologist, certified personal trainer, author of Fit + Female:  The Complete Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever, a comprehensive weight loss and wellness system just for women.  It’s a first of its kind program designed to fit into a busy women’s life.  Lose weight and look great — 90 Day Unconditional Money Back Guarantee!!

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Start With A Strawberry Pop Tart

1. If you feel this is a problem, it is. Ignoring it makes it worse.

• This problem does not go away, not matter what excuses you make or how much you want it to disappear.
• Actually, over time, it gets worse.
• Neither chemistry nor compatibility is able to hold the relationship alone

1. You are not being selfish to want both.  You deserve it.

• Ask yourself:  Do I deserve to have both a best friend and a lover in the same person?
• And mostly, do you deserve love?
• You need to answer yes to this question.

1. You cannot talk yourself into chemistry or compatibility.

• There is only one thing sadder than two people who have good sexual chemistry yet can’t seem to be good friends, and that is best friends who just don’t have that sexual chemistry.
• Oftentimes, best friends stay together and deny their sexual nature.
• Resentment usually builds over time.

1. When you have both, the relationship grows in a healthy way.

• All healthy relationships have both chemistry and friendship; this is what allows the partnership to grow and flourish.
• The only way to make-up is with friendship and chemistry.
• Chemistry draws us back to other person even when we are angry and friendship makes us glad we got over our differences.

    5.  This is the cycle and both are needed to complete the circle.

• We are hard-wired for chemistry and your hard-wiring is connected to another’s hard-wiring.
• Respect creates compatibility and sustains it.  Without respect, compatibility goes.
• Compatibility nourishes chemistry and chemistry enlivens compatibility. 

In a national competition, Chandra Alexander, MSW, was selected by THE OPRAH MAGAZINE as the Life Coach to deliver a series of coaching sessions to the grand prize winner of their prestigious Toyota Moving Forward contest. She also spent five years on NBC/TV “DAYTIME” giving a weekly “Reality Check”. Chandra has been living and teaching authenticity for the last 30 years and is the founder of Coaching for Authenticity, a place to explore and discover the essence of who you really are.

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Chemistry and Compatibility

Unfortunately, I think you could tweak this statement to something (less pithy but equally true) such as, “No one will ever go broke betting on the worsening health habits of the American public”.   

Now I don’t know much about finance (and I’d like to think of myself as an optimist), but judging from what I see whenever I travel around the country — I don’t think the current trends in America’s poor health are likely to change.  That said all this obesity, hypertension, type II diabetes and more will make for some secure long-term investments in the following industries. 

Pharmaceuticals - Folks are going to need “meds” (and lots of them) to stay alive and live as they always did – without the annoyance of good nutrition and exercise.  Most Americans will end up taking prescriptions for: hypertension, Type II diabetes, heart disease and joint aches and pains from being overweight and out of shape.  

Knee, Hip and Shoulder Replacement Technologies – Americans aren’t taking care of their joints.  Between not exercising, not stretching and gaining tons of weight we are banking on installing a few replacement parts to get us through our Golden Years.

Those Motorized Wheel Chairs – These won’t be reserved for those with legitimate health problems.  With obesity in epidemic proportions more and more folks aren’t going to be able to walk around — even after their joint replacements.  Maybe the movie, Wall-E wasn’t so far off.

Any Food Chain Which Has A Lot Of Menu Items Which Are Deep Fried and/or Covered in Cheese (Preferable BOTH) -  I ate at an Applebee’s recently and the waitress asked if I’d like to “start” with a ” Kahlua mudslide” and maybe a nice plate of fried mozzarella sticks.  Downing about 2,000 calories before lunch?  Yep…sure sounds like a good plan to me. 

Diet Programs- In a world where you’re eating 2000 kcals before lunch you’re going to need a whole lot of these. 
Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is an exercise physiologist, certified personal trainer, author of Fit + Female:  The Complete Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever, a comprehensive weight loss and wellness system just for women.  It’s a first of its kind program designed to fit into a busy women’s life.  Lose weight and look great — 90 Day Unconditional Money Back Guarantee!!

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The Smart Money’s On America’s Unhealthy Ways

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Marketing is not an art project

I coach creative people who are interested in discovering their true passions in life.  What I’ve found in the process is creative people are often filled with enormous amounts of curiosity and can easily get side tracked and lose their focus.  It’s an honor to inspire creatives to define their passion and live a full life.

5 Steps to uncover your passion:

1. Awareness

Make time to take inventory of what you love about your life. What Are you involved with that feels right.  What crazy-making areas of your life can you let go of? Stop bumping around and start paying attention to your daily actions. When you’re aware of your actions,  you can make mindful choices leading to a future filled with purpose and passion.

2. Positivity

Begin to train your brain to become more positive. Begin now.  Our thoughts can often take off like a runaway train ending up in a pile of debris – should we choose to let our negative thoughts and emotions get away from us.

If what you are doing now is stale and uncomfortable, try focusing on the parts of your job that you love.  How can you look at your current job with fresh eyes? Many of us have to take “combat pay” for a period of time in a position that no longer suit us.  If you are in this situation, do what you can to improve your current reality by exploring your options outside of you current job. Sometimes the exploration process will balance out your discomfort. You may even uncover opportunities within your environment that seemed hidden before your introspection.

3. Reality

If you are working for people who are disrespectful and your daily life is a living hell, it is time to move on.  Your life is more important than you can imagine. Years ago some of my peers thought I was straight-crazy to want to leave my cushy job. What they didn’t understand is that no amount of cushion can absolve an abuse of power. Sometimes you have to save your own life and move on.

4. Clarity

What do you want for your life?  Have you taken any time to dig deep and answer this question? What are good at? What do you enjoy doing? What would you learn If you were to ask your closest family and friends what they see you strengths are.  How can you use your strengths to answer the first question.  Get Clear. I recommend reading the book Callings by Greggory Levoy. You are also welcome to contact me anytime for a complimentary life coaching session.

5.  Creativity

Have fun diving in and exploring your options by playing with a creative process like mind mapping (visual brain storming) to uncover your career options. Keep the activity light and fun. There is no room for judgment here. Just let your ideas flow and get them down on paper.  After this process is completed you can begin researching your options.

Discovering your path with passion includes awareness of what you love as well as what you can release, cultivating a positive attitude, being realistic about your current situation, allowing for time to get clear about what you want for your life,  and creatively exploring your options.

Discovering your groove and creating a luscious life is all about allowing for grace through your next transition.

Shann Vander Leek is the Founder of True Balance Life Coaching and Co-founder of Seize True Success. She is a Coach Training Alliance certified professional coach, and certified yoga instructor. Shann is a prolific blogger, published writer and co-author of the Best Selling Book – Wake Up Women BE Happy Healthy & Wealthy. Shann’s personal style and direct approach have guided and inspired many in overcoming personal and professional challenges. Her background in sales, marketing and client development, along with leading a talented sales force for many years prepared her for the business of professional coaching. Shann inspires women in transition to create balance in their lives through personal coaching, yoga and creative expression. Telephone and email consultations make her accessible to clients all over the world. To find out about her Coaching Programs for Women, call Shann at 231.668.111 or visit www.truebalancelifecoaching.com

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5 Steps to Discovering Your Passion Path

I read a lot. I like to synthesize information together, saturate my brain synapses, make connections, and curate the exact pieces that will fit my life. Knowledge is my thing.

But it doesn’t matter how much I read, or attend lectures, or watch TED talks, or troll Twitter for the next most interesting blog post. Most of that learning stuff is useless; there’s no better way to learn than to just do.

Become an expert {Phase 1}
Action is the first step. That’s why I encourage job-hopping. Most people don’t know what they like or what they’re good at. Like you could really want to be a CEO, yearn for it with all the matter in your body and brain, and then regrettably discover that you suck as a CEO.

Or maybe you’re really fabulous. A veritable genius! The point is, without working it out for yourself, you’re stuck on the path that others have already laid out. And yeah, that’s a safe plan, I don’t blame you. Our education system is certainly not set up to handle exploration or deviation from a set course. And entering the real world closes the door all together.

In school and at the workplace we’re told exactly how to do tasks, without learning the full explanation behind it. In his book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell tells the story of a young woman who is trying to solve a mathematical problem. She’s not told the way others have solved the problem, but instead is problem-solving on her own.

Gladwell recounts that when she figures it out, her face lights up: “Ohhh. Okay. Now I see. The slope of a vertical line is undefined. That means something now. I won’t forget that!”

The young woman is working with a professor who encourages his students to unlearn the mathematical habits they picked up on the way to university. Because it’s not about memorizing the right way to do something, but your ability to try that determines your success.

“Success is a function of persistence and doggedness and the willingness to work hard for twenty-two minutes to make sense of something that most people would give up on after thirty seconds,” Gladwell reports.

In order to drive innovation, we need time and space to explore, not regurgitate. To become the master of a topic, you need to understand its underbelly, where it came from, where it’s going, not just the flashy exterior.

Become an expert {Phase 2 – quickly}
Most people are stuck in the land of daydreams and don’t actually reach action, so if you’ve mastered that, pat yourself on the back. I just gave myself a little pat. Go on, you too. Now we’re moving into advanced world domination.

Exploring a topic from top to bottom is all good and well, but what if you don’t have 10,000 hours to devote? What if there was a short-cut? A way that actually helped you make more fiery synapses connections?

I realize I’m starting to sound like an infomercial here, so stay with me.

First, let me preface by saying there’s no substitute for action. And what I’m about to propose isn’t something you should do in lieu of cooking every night if you want to be a chef, but it is the way to super-size what you learn from cooking every night. In an Einstein sort of way, not Mickey D’s.

So tell me, how well can you explain what you do? How well do you understand your passion? Could you teach someone else to do it?

When you do something like send a pitch, for example, you’re learning. You’re testing your ideas and theories through the reaction you receive, the resulting outcome. In this paradigm, it’s okay to fail, you discover through trial and error, and through persistence and hard work, you win.

But there’s an entire level of awesomeness missing. And you can only ascend to the next level by then teaching someone what you have learned. Because then you’re testing your values, ideas and theories with another person’s values, ideas and theories. You understand the underlying challenge more by defining it for another. Teaching – good teaching – requires you to exchange knowledge, not simply impart it. Learning is individual. Teaching is collaborative.

“Nobel laureate physicists such as Enrico Fermi and Leon Lederman took pride in teaching bright undergraduates,” reports Michael Schrage in Harvard Business, “because it forced them to keep in touch with the fundamentals of their field and express themselves simply and clearly.”

I had no idea how to write a stellar cover letter and resume until I started teaching others to do theirs. Groups comprised of individuals in different skill sets – say, marketing, design and finance – thrive when they teach each other. Life-coaches may be so prevalent right now because the coaches help themselves as much as they help clients.

Teaching is sharing knowledge, sharing empathy, sharing ideas. It’s pushing you to understand with entirely different lenses. Just like your body needs both cardio and strength training, your mind needs both learning and teaching.

Teaching is the definitive learning experience. And it’s the quickest way to expertise.

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Become an expert quickly

I was half awake, playing Scrabble on the iPhone (kinda geeky, I know) waiting to hear when we were going to be able to board the plane — when I looked up and saw an elderly lady lying flat on her back, motionless.  I was pretty sure she was dead.  I heard someone that saw this scream “help, help…somebody help” and I looked to see if any one in airport security (or from the airline) was going to come running.  But nobody seemed to be moving.

In a daze, I stood up and yelled at the security guard “unconscious woman, call 911″.  He stared at me for a second and then started moving.  I ran over to this woman, hoping someone was going to run over with me — but for a while nobody did.   It didn’t look like she was breathing, I was just about to “look, listen and feel for breath” when she opened her eyes.

Then security came over and just sort of stood there looking at her.  At one point they asked if she felt well enough to stand up.  I yelled at them and said she wasn’t standing up, she was staying where she was and we were going to elevate her feet.  I could barely get a pulse.  Then a nurse who was in the waiting area came over and she could barely get one either. 

Finally (after what seemed like forever, but was probably less than 10 min) EMS came.  They didn’t like her vitals and they wheeled her out on a gurney.

The point of the story is that most of us think that someone else is going to be able to respond in an emergency situation and many times that is not the case.  I honestly don’t think those security guys had ANY first aid training…ditto the airport personnel.  Kind of frightening when you think that hypothetically an airport could be the scene of a number of different disasters.  Who are the first responders?  EMS?  It took them quite a while to get there.

The answer is YOU…You and I are the first responders.  Whoever is there is the first responder. 

I was so terrified that I was going to have to do full out CPR or use an AED on that lady, but the fact is that I think if I had to I could do it.  I don’t know how good I would be, but I sure would try.  I’m just so thankful that it didn’t come to that.  And I hope she ended up being okay.

How ready are you for an emergency?  If a love one choked on something?  If someone fainted?  Had a heart attack?  Stroke?  Not to be morbid but stuff happens…

This site has some great links with basic first aid info.  http://www.healthy.net/scr/MainLinks.asp?Id=170

You may want to book mark it or print out the pages.  If you aren’t certified in CPR/AED, please consider doing so — you can contact The American Red Cross or The American Heart Association to sign up for a course near you.  You could help save a life on any given day without planning on it.  Be prepared!
Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is an exercise physiologist, certified personal trainer, author of Fit + Female:  The Complete Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever, a comprehensive weight loss and wellness system just for women.  It’s a first of its kind program designed to fit into a busy women’s life.  Lose weight and look great — 90 Day Unconditional Money Back Guarantee!!

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Emergency Preparedness?

Bluefly.com 

For those of you who are feeling a nip in the air and are wearing UGGs to stay warm today, though, why not buy some new sweaters? Sweaters are so exciting! They can dress up or dress down an outfit in a snap.  One sweater that does that is this Magaschoni flint cashmere ruffle front cardigan from Bluefly.com.

Pair it with some dress pants, some dangly earrings and some funky heels for a day at the office look or some fun skinny biker jeans with some ridding boots for the weekend. This is a winner of a sweater.  The sweater is $239.

Ashley Shute spends eight hours a day working as a blue jean and t-shirt wearing community organizer in San Antonio. The other 16 hours are dedicated to dreaming about and shopping for the latest luxury fashions. Her style icon is Jacqueline Kennedy; classic, clean, and always professional. You will never find a fake bag in her closet and she wants a collection of Manolo Blahnik shoes before she turns 30.

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Magaschoni Cashmere Ruffle Cardigan

“Americans may be feeling a lack of control over their retirement which has led to inaction, when in fact this is an ideal time to act,” said Mark Jamison, vice president at Charles Schwab. “Now is the time to reevaluate your financial circumstances. Whether that means delaying retirement or adjusting how much you save for retirement, making changes now can lead to a significant difference in the future.”

Survey respondents estimate they will need just over $1.2 million to comfortably retire, yet those currently saving for retirement have put away an average of $194,000. Despite this awareness, 41 percent of Americans feel positively about their retirement preparedness and another 22 percent feel indifferent.

For More Information

Do you know if you are on track for retirement? Are you aware of how expensive funding your retirement can actually be? To learn more, click on this recent article on our website.

Cathy Pareto, MBA, CFP®, AIF® is the Founder and President of Cathy Pareto & Associates, Inc. For over twelve years, Cathy has been helping financial consumers and professionals understand the world of investments and finance with a sound, but down to earth money management approach. For over a decade Cathy was a Senior Financial Advisor for another Miami based investment advisory firm, where she managed over $200 million in assets for high net worth clients and retirement plans. She has extensive experience in retirement issues, asset allocation, investment selection, investment management, education planning, estate planning coordination, and asset protection strategies. Additionally, she was an Adjunct Professor and Faculty Coordinator for the CFP® Program at Florida International University’s College of Business.

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Are You Financially and Emotionally Prepared for Retirement?

It makes me wonder what Gen Y public relations interns think about this. Feel free to comment anonymously if you’d like, but I’m really curious. Do you think it is OK? Or, is it unfair?

I have mixed feelings about it. As an intern, I expect to get less-than-glorious work on occassion. I don’t show up at an internship expecting to be counseling clients and pitching to CNN. Have I been asked to get coffee (or something similar)? Certainly.

But, in both cases the person asking me was nice and respectful about it. They didn’t act like it was my responsibility because I was the intern. In one case, it was lunch needed for a client meeting. In another case, it was for the students helping out with an outdoor commercial on a very chilly day. I didn’t mind at all.

But, I’m not sure how I would feel about being asked to fetch coffee daily because I was the intern. I don’t even drink coffee, so I don’t understand why people will wait in long lines to buy an overpriced coffee from Starbucks (just my opinion on Starbucks).

For me, it would depend on the internship experience. If I am learning a lot and growing my skills, I don’t think I would mind. If you are busy working most of the day, it’s kind of nice to step out of the office for a few.

But, if I were only given assignments such as fetching coffee, sorting mail and making copies, I might be disappointed in the internship experience.

What do you think as a Gen Y intern/employee? Or, what do you think as someone who manages Gen Y interns/employees?

Rachel M. Esterline works as an account executive for Central Michigan Life, the nationally award-winning school newspaper at Central Michigan University. She is as an account executive for PR Central, CMU’s student-run public relations firm and as a public relations executive with the Student Government Association. Additionally, Rachel serves on the executive board of the Public Relations Student Society of America at CMU and has completed a seven-month internship with her university’s public relations and marketing department. Rachel will graduate in May 2010 with a degree in public relations with minors in journalism and communication.

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Should interns be required to fetch coffee?

ShopBop 

They are pull on suede boots with an asymmetrical top. They have a three and a quarter inch heel. They are $250.  They are right on the money for this Fall season, purple, very high and very very over the knee. Here’s hoping my wish for a never ending closet comes true soon!

Ashley Shute spends eight hours a day working as a blue jean and t-shirt wearing community organizer in San Antonio. The other 16 hours are dedicated to dreaming about and shopping for the latest luxury fashions. Her style icon is Jacqueline Kennedy; classic, clean, and always professional. You will never find a fake bag in her closet and she wants a collection of Manolo Blahnik shoes before she turns 30.

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Purple Suede Over the Knee Boots

Why does The Career Key offer the best way to choose a college major or post secondary program? Unlike other approaches it:

1. Uses a scientifically valid career test to match your interests and personality with majors and training programs;
2. Offers you the most education choices (all of the 1,400+ college majors and training programs listed by the U.S. and Canadian governments);
3. Shows you careers related to educational programs that match your personality;
4. Shows you accurate, comprehensive, up to date information about each career;
5. Organizes all the programs and careers in a unique way developed by recognized vocational expert Dr. Lawrence K. Jones that is easy to explore; and
6. Links you to a description of each major and program that interests you.
7. All this information only costs $14.50 when you purchase the eBook, The Education Key: Choosing the Right College Major, Training, or Instructional Program, and The Career Key test together. And we offer a special, affordable group discount for both.

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The Best Way to Choose a College Major or Training Program

The Ladies:

A bunny boiler: A woman who gets crazed, obsessive and is scary. From Fatal Attraction, the famous scene of the pot on the stove, boiling-?

To glomp: Similar to a bunny boiler, but less drastic- a little desperate. Usage is:  Is she glomping you? I think she was glomping me.

Guyatus: When a girl or woman takes time off of dating anyone, usually after a bad experience. She’s ’suffering from guyatus.’

Guys:

A paternity fest: The celebration that a guy has when he finds out he isn’t the father of someone’s child.

A management ring: The promise or engagement ring a man gives his girl, to stop her from complaining (without any plans of getting married).

A manicorn: The sensitive, soulful man-friend who in reality is an imaginary creature (man + unicorn).

General Slang:

A non: The worst description you could give someone- a non is so unimportant it’s a non-issue. They don’t exist or aren’t attractive.

An umfriend: The friend (or more) that you introduce awkwardly. “This is Bob.  He’s my…um…friend?”

To be butter: Someone with a nice body but the face is less than attractive.

Arm candy: A date you are only out with as ‘decoration’ for your arm, attractive but not much else.

The slow fade/to pull a Houdini: When you want to stop dating someone, and instead of telling them you just… gradually… poof! Disappear.

To cupcake: Spending quality time with your partner, typically at home, instead of going out.

A starter marriage: The first marriage, usually very short and sweet, that paves the way to the ‘real marriage.’

A shackpack: The bag you take with you that has a toothbrush, some clean clothes, etc.- because you hope to stay the night with a romance.

Book: Cool. Stemming from T-9 mistakes from trying to write cool, it’s now unbook to use cool.

To bookmark someone: To make a mental note to get back to a person for a more in-depth conversation/meeting/date.

Jawn: A person, place or thing. “That jawn was hot, did you see her?” Mainly Philly area.

Sexting: Two meanings:

a:) to send sexy texts to a partner in a flirtatious way and

b:) sending actual naked photos via phone.

This lingo is not a full list, by any means- and the year is still far from over. At least you’re geared up for the dating world with 2009 lingo. Very, very book.

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The Latest Dating Slang of 2009