A Simple, Powerful Question That Could Change Your Life By Nikkea B. Devida

Without my mentors, my path to heal, discover, and build a business that’s an expression of my purpose would have been a LOT harder, slower, and less enjoyable. There’s no question in my mind that my mentors have accelerated the process and made the journey a lot easier. And frankly, not all mentors are created equal. Having a mentor is a very special relationship that goes beyond that of a coach. In my opinion, a mentor is someone you want to learn from their expertise and model how they achieved their success. While I’m fortunate to have selected some great mentors to guide me in different things over the years, I now ask myself the following questions to help me make the best choice:

1. Does the mentor have expertise and success in the specific area that I’m seeking assistance with?

2. Do I want to model my mentor and how they achieved their success? Do we share compatible values?

3. Do they have a proven, specific, duplicable, process or system for transferring their knowledge and expertise?

4. Do I respect and trust my mentor? Do I value their opinion?

5. Do I personally like my mentor?

6. Would I be willing to do and follow through with what they guide me to do?

Frankly, I think that criteria #1-5 are all a lead in to the most important question, #6.

Because lately, I’ve noticed that the most profound shifts and breakthroughs I’ve made have not occurred from anything particularly complicated, new, special or magical. That’s both the good news and the bad news. The good news is, getting massive breakthrough results is actually more simple than you think. The bad news is, sometimes doing what’s “simple” isn’t always “easy”. Plus, sometimes we get seduced into thinking that something that’s complicated, mysterious, or elusive is somehow more powerful than something that’s simple, obvious, or common sense. Personally, I haven’t found that to be true.

I think Einstein had it right: “Keep it simple”.

When things are clear, simple and straightforward, they tend to work. When they get complex, complicated, mysterious, or beyond common sense, they often lose effectiveness.

We’re sometimes led to believe that if we just have a “magic pill”, potion, formula, system, or secret, then we’ll have everything we ever wanted in our lives.

The problem is, even when people invest in that “thing”, they still don’t get the results…even when the information actually works! Why? Because they don’t follow through with it!

One of several things often happens. They either:

1. Don’t start

2. Stop in the middle of starting

3. Get stopped vs. course correct

4. Stop before they complete or finish

And yes, let’s temporarily set aside that there’s often so much conflicting information, approaches, points of view, systems, and formulas, it’s hard to discern what works. Or I should say, what will specifically work for you! That’s why it’s important to choose the right mentor to listen to using all of the above criteria.

I recently started a new relationship with a business mentor I greatly respect and admire. On our very first call, I was willing to surrender to her process to be open and willing to see things differently and have a life changing session. In fact, I intended and expected it. I also took responsibility and clearly communicated the outcome I wanted from the session to set us both up for success.

She asked me a very simple, but powerful question that changed my life…and it’s about to change the course of my business.

She asked me: “What do I go on a rant about”?

Meaning, what “ruffles my feathers” and pushes my buttons so much that if someone got me going on the subject, I’d passionately go “off” about it? That question actually stopped me in my tracks for a minute. As I formulated my answer, I actually started my “rant”.

So, what did I rant about? And why is that important to you?

I’ll answer the second question first. Finding your “rant” is important because it illuminates your values, what you’re passionate about, what’s important to you, and what you’re willing to take a stand about.

What did I rant about? Well, long story short (after all, this is my rant!), I ranted about how frustrated I am to see people invest good money with mentors and systems that they don’t follow through with. That they don’t take the actions necessary to implement what they’ve learned and how they need more support with putting the learning into action. That I thought it was tragic for people to give up on themselves, their dreams, and their purpose by not following through, especially because I see that they’re so close. That to me, not following through is akin to not keeping your word…to yourself or others. That they’re letting people down who desperately need their gifts and expertise. That following through on what you say you’ll do is a matter of integrity and honor. That if people would actually follow through with almost any one individual approach, they probably would get better, faster results. That people often don’t “follow through with the start”.

I think you get the idea. What wasn’t obvious to me, but was completely obvious to her (I could feel her smiling on the other end of the phone!) was that all of my life’s experiences led me to be an expert in “follow through”.

That hadn’t occurred to me before, but it made perfect sense. And it was such a big change from how I saw myself, my business, and how I’d positioned myself that I had to “try it on” for a while to see how it “fit”. And within a short time, I knew it was right, and that I could and would follow through with it to make the adjustments necessary to reposition and rebrand myself as “the follow through mentor”.

So, what do YOU rant about? This one question could change your life, too…but only if you’re willing to follow through.

©2011 Peregrine InSight Group, LLC

Nikkea B. Devida is “The Follow Through Mentor”. Get her FREE SPECIAL REPORT, “Stop Trying Harder: How To Get Unstuck Without Coming Unglued” and also receive special offers, hot tips and occasional gifts at http://www.FastResultsFormula.com.

Want to use this article for your own ezine? You’re welcome to “reprint” this article as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the copyright and contact information at the end), and you send me a copy or link to your reprint at support@fastresultsformula.com. Thanks!

Scented Laundry Products Release Carcinogens, Study Finds

By Ryan Jaslow, http://tinyurl.com/3mszss4

(CBS) Scented laundry detergent and dryer sheets make laundry smell great – but do they cause cancer?

A small study suggests scented laundry items contain carcinogens that waft through vents, potentially raising cancer risk.

“This is an interesting source of pollution because emissions from dryer vents are essentially unregulated,” said lead author Dr. Anne Steinemann, professor of civil and environmental engineering and of public affairs at the University of Washington, said in a written statement. “If they’re coming out of a smokestack or tail pipe, they’re regulated, but if they’re coming out of a dryer vent, they’re not.”

Previous studies have looked at what chemicals are released by laundry products, since manufacturers don’t have to disclose ingredients used in fragrances or laundry products.

Needless to say, these researchers weren’t thrilled with what they found.

For the study – published in the August issue of Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health – researchers enlisted two homeowners to volunteer their washers and dryers, which the team scrubbed clean beforehand. The researchers ran a regular laundry cycle for three scenarios in each home: once without any detergent, once with a scented liquid laundry detergent, and the last with both scented detergent and a leading brand of scented dryer sheets.

Their analysis found more than 25 “volatile” air pollutants – including the carcinogens acetaldehyde and benzene.

Benzene causes leukemia and other blood cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. Acetaldehyde has been shown to cause nasal and throat cancer in animal studies.

Steinemann thinks agencies focus too much on limiting other pollution sources when they should look closer to home.

“We focus a lot of attention on how to reduce emissions of pollutants from automobiles,” she said. “And here’s one source of pollutants that could be reduced.”

The American Cleaning Institute, however, Steinemann’s study, calling the findings “shoddy science” that didn’t take into account many factors like washing machine brands, different load cycles, and non-scented products.

“Consumers should not be swayed by the sensationalist headlines that may come across the Internet related to this so-called research,” the Institute emailed CBS News.

Insufficient Vitamin D Tied to Severe Asthma Attacks

Asthmatic children with relatively low vitamin D levels in their blood may have a greater risk of suffering severe asthma attacks than those with higher levels of the vitamin, a new study suggests.

The study, which followed more than 1,000 children with asthma for four years, found those with vitamin-D “insufficiency” at the outset were more likely to have an asthma attack that required a trip to the hospital. Over the four-year study, 38 percent of children with insufficient vitamin D levels went to the emergency room or were hospitalized for an asthma exacerbation. The same was true of 32 percent of children with sufficient levels of the vitamin.

When the researchers considered other factors — including the severity of the children’s asthma at the study’s start, their weight and their family income — vitamin D insufficiency itself was linked to a 50 percent increase in the risk of severe asthma attacks.

Researchers led by Dr. Augusto A. Litongua, of Harvard Medical School in Boston, report the findings in the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology.

As it stands, people are considered to have an overt deficiency in vitamin D when blood levels drop below 11 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL). But there is debate over how the optimal vitamin D level should be defined — and what the daily recommended intake of the vitamin should be for children and adults.

Some experts believe that vitamin D blood levels above 30 ng/mL are desirable for overall health, and that levels between deficiency and 30 ng/mL should be viewed as “insufficient.”

For their study, Litongua and his colleagues considered children with vitamin D levels of 30 ng/mL or lower to be insufficient in the vitamin.

The researchers based their findings on 1,024 children with mild-to-moderate asthma who were part of a clinical trial testing two inhaled asthma medications — budesonide and nedocromil. Using blood samples taken at the start of the trial, Litongua’s team found that 35 percent of the children had vitamin D insufficiency, and 65 percent had sufficient levels.

Overall, the researchers found no evidence that sufficient vitamin D levels protected kids from moderate asthma symptoms; in fact, children with low levels of the vitamin tended to report fewer moderate symptoms.

However, these children were at greater risk of severe asthma attacks.

While the findings point to an association between vitamin D status and asthma exacerbations, they do not prove that vitamin D is responsible — or, by extension, that taking the vitamin will prevent asthma attacks.

It is biologically plausible that vitamin D would affect the severity of asthma attacks, according to Litongua and his colleagues.

Vitamin D may be best known for its role in healthy bone development and maintenance, but it is also needed for normal nerve, muscle and immune system function. Some studies have linked low vitamin D levels to a higher risk of type 1 or “insulin-dependent” diabetes in children and, in adults, heart disease and certain cancers.

The effects of vitamin D on the immune system, which include the inflammatory response to infections, might help explain why higher levels of the vitamin were linked to a lower risk of severe asthma exacerbations, according to Litongua’s team.

They say it’s also possible that vitamin D enhances the effects of anti-inflammatory steroid hormones — both the body’s natural supply and the synthetic corticosteroids used to treat asthma.

In this study, the beneficial association between vitamin D and asthma attacks was mainly seen in children who were on budesonide, a corticosteroid.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants, children and teenagers get 400 IU of vitamin D each day. Milk, breakfast cereals and orange juice fortified with the vitamin are the main food sources, though some fatty fish naturally contain high amounts of vitamin D. Experts recommend vitamin pills for children who do not get enough of the vitamin from food.

Vitamin D is naturally synthesized in the skin when it is exposed to sunlight, but long winters and sun avoidance in the summer mean that many kids may not get enough vitamin D this way. In addition, vitamin D synthesis is less efficient in people with darker skin, and African Americans are at higher risk of deficiency than whites.

Overweight children and adults also appear to be at elevated risk of deficiency because vitamin D is stored in body fat. The more vitamin D that gets sequestered into fat tissue, the less active vitamin there is in the blood.

Information from http://www.healthfreedoms.org

The Crippling Toxin You Knowingly Consume Every Day…

Posted by Dr. Mercola, http://tinyurl.com/42uvnc7

By The Fluoride Action Networkr

The fact that fluoride can damage your bones, often quite seriously, is no longer in dispute. Just ask the millions of people throughout the world who currently suffer from skeletal fluorosis—a crippling bone disease caused by too much fluoride and marked by irregular bone growth and calcification of the joints.

Of course, it takes a high dose of fluoride to cause crippling fluorosis.

But fluoride accumulates over time, so the severity of skeletal fluorosis exists along a continuum, with the earlier stages produced by lower doses and marked by more subtle symptoms, such as joint pain and stiffness.

These early symptoms, which may not be accompanied by obvious bone changes, are often very hard to distinguish from common forms of arthritis. And, indeed, researchers over the years have repeatedly cautioned that the early stages of skeletal fluorosis may be misdiagnosed as a form of arthritis.

In 2006, skeletal fluorosis was identified by the US National Research Council (NRC) as an adverse effect that needs to be considered by the EPA when lowering the maximum safe level of fluoride in water. While case studies in recent years have documented advanced skeletal fluorosis in the US among high-tea drinkers, the EPA has done no serious analysis of the extent to which the disease may be occurring throughout the country.

While fluoridation proponents and US health authorities claim that clinically obvious skeletal fluorosis will only develop at prolonged exposures to 10 milligrams (mg) of fluoride per day, virtually no attention—and even less research—has focused on the earlier, less obvious stages of the disease.

The fact that fluoride exposures in the U.S. are generally not high enough to cause crippling fluorosis is therefore of little comfort when taking into account that fluoride can cause non-diagnosable joint problems well before the crippling stage sets in—especially in a country where 60 million adults suffer from some form of arthritis. As noted by Dr. Phyllis Mullenix,

“If I was an arthritic individual, I would be eliminating every possible source of fluoride exposure that I could think of.”

Fluoride Linked to the Development of Bone Fractures

In addition to skeletal fluorosis, the National Research Council’s 2006 landmark review of fluoride toxicity also expressed concern about fluoride’s ability to decrease bone strength and increase the risk of fractures. Of particular concern was fluoride’s potential to increase hip fracture rates in the elderly, as hip fractures often send elderly patients into a spiral of declining health ending in death. Based on available evidence, the NRC concluded that fluoride increases the rate of fracture at 4 ppm (the level currently considered “safe” by the EPA), and noted that fluoride may increase the fracture risk at levels lower than 4 ppm.

To understand fluoride’s potential to damage bone structure, some basic information about how fluoride acts in your body may be helpful.

First, up to half of ingested fluoride accumulates in your bones, with the other half excreted in urine. Second, once fluoride enters your bones it is removed very slowly. The NRC estimates, for instance, that the biological half-life of fluoride in bone (the time for half of it to be removed) is as long as 20 years. Third, most people have constant low level exposures to fluoride, and are taking more fluoride into their bones than is being removed. As a result, the fluoride level in bone increases steadily with time.

Thus, whereas young people generally don’t have more than a few hundred parts per million (ppm) fluoride in their bones, older people living in fluoridated areas can have several thousand ppm—a level where skeletal fluorosis may begin.

Fourth, the ability to excrete fluoride in urine is significantly decreased among individuals with impaired kidney function. This creates a double-whammy for the elderly, for not only do they already have high accumulated levels of fluoride in their bone, but – because kidney function declines with age – they have a reduced ability to remove the new fluoride entering their system.

Finally, fluoride appears to interfere with the process of bone turnover (aka bone remodeling), wherein the mineral portion of bone is broken down by one type of cell and rebuilt by another.

Specifically, fluoride may cause an irregular mineralization, where the density of trabecular bone (which comprises the majority of the spine) can increase at the expense of reductions in cortical bone (which comprises the majority of the extremities). Since the integrity of cortical bone is critical to hip strength, fluoride’s ability to reduce cortical bone density has been posited as a key mechanism explaining the link between fluoride and hip fractures.

In the past, for example, when high doses of fluoride were given as an experimental drug to osteoporotic patients, fluoride was consistently found to both decrease cortical bone density and increase the rate of hip fractures. Even when fluoride increases bone density, as it often does with trabecular bone, it can simultaneously make your bone more brittle and subject to fracture.

Recent Studies Shed New Light on Fluoridation and Bone Density/Fracture

Whether water fluoridation can lead to high enough levels of fluoride in bones to cause the type of alterations that can weaken them, remains an unresolved question. About 20 epidemiological studies have tried to find out, with mostly mixed results. Some of the studies suggest that fluoridated water, at 1 ppm, can increase the risk of fractures, whereas others have found no effect.

University of Toronto Study First in Humans to Show Fluoride and Fracture Connection1

An important recent study from a team at the University of Toronto tried a different approach. Instead of looking at the rate of fractures in people exposed to varying amounts of fluoride, it used samples of actual bone from people undergoing hip replacement to see whether the fluoride concentration in bone correlated with the mechanical strength of the tissue.

This type of study had previously been done on laboratory animals (where increased concentrations of fluoride have been correlated with decreased strength), but never in humans.

The Toronto study was completed in 2001 but not published until 2010. The number of subjects in the study was small, with only 92 people, so the results were not definitive and the authors themselves do not draw any firm conclusions. Yet when the results are examined carefully, there is clear evidence that the people with higher levels of fluoride in their skeleton had weaker bones, by several different measurements of bone quality.

This lends further support to the concept that fluoride, like osteoporosis drugs, does make your bones denser, but may actually make them weaker and more susceptible to fracture.

The most straightforward measurement of strength was the amount of compression force the sample could withstand before breaking, which is called the Ultimate Compressive Stress. The people with the highest levels of fluoride in their bone had their sampled bone tissue break under about 50 percent less stress than those with the lowest levels of fluoride. This result was statistically significant.

University of Iowa Study

Another recent study, from the University of Iowa, suggests that fluoridated water might be causing subtle bone changes in young people, long before the bone fluoride concentration reaches the high levels in later life. In the study, several types of bone mineral density measurements were periodically made among a group of children during the first 11 years of their life. Simultaneously, the children’s fluoride intake was also being monitored. When the authors (led by a pro-fluoridationist dentist who owes his voluminous research funding to the pro-fluoridation NIH), checked to see if there was any association between fluoride intake and bone density, they concluded there was no effect to be worried about.

For, while they found a slight reduction in bone density among girls, they found a slight increase in density among the boys.

However, lost in the authors’ discussion, was the important fact that the alteration in bone density among the girls mirrored the changes that have been found in high-dose clinical studies. Namely, when the highest-exposed girls were compared with the lowest-exposed girls, the highest-exposed girls had reductions in bone density in cortical-rich bone (e.g. hip), but not in trabecular-rich bone (e.g. spine). These reductions were statistically significant after 8.5 years of life, and remained very close to significant after 11 years.

The fact that this same pattern has been consistently observed in high dose clinical studies, suggests that this was not merely a random finding, but could well represent a similar, albeit subtler, fluoride effect on bone.

While the authors never discussed this possibility, they did note in closing (without any explanation), that they plan to do further research on how low-level fluoride intake may be related to “trabecular versus cortical bone component outcomes.” In the meantime, however, anyone reading the abstract to the study will be forgiven for having the impression that their data gives fluoride a “clean bill of health.”

Millions are Likely at Risk for Bone Fractures from Fluoride

Simply finding that water fluoridation may be sufficient to cause changes in bone remodeling at both old and young ages is worrying. However, when these two recent studies are seen in the light of earlier work, the concern is heightened. In one of the best bone fracture studies on adults to date4, it was found that hip fracture rates increased steadily starting from the lowest fluoride level examined, which was similar to what many Americans are getting from fluoridated water.

In children, one of the only studies ever conducted on children looked at fracture rates among Mexican youths in relation to dental fluorosis, a developmental disorder of the growing teeth caused by too much fluoride. The study, led by Alarcon-Herrera, and published in 2001, found that bone fracture rates rose sharply with increasing severity of dental fluorosis, and that the risk was heightened even among children with “mild” fluorosis.

In the US today, roughly 40 percent of all children have dental fluorosis, with millions having “mild” fluorosis” and thousands having the more severe stages. No U.S. study however, has yet attempted to investigate fractures in children as a function of fluorosis.

Despite the fact that 170 million Americans now drink fluoridated water every day, we continue to have little understanding on how the consequent contamination of our food and water with fluoride is affecting bone health.

While we know that fluoride at high doses clearly harms bone, and while there are several worrying indications that similar harm is occurring at the lower levels that Americans regularly ingest, the absence of competent research by U.S. health authorities has enabled many basic, fundamental questions to remain unanswered. Until researchers feel free to report adverse findings on fluoride without fear of losing their funding, this situation is likely to persist, to the possible peril of millions of American’s bone health.

What You Can Do TODAY!

The Fluoride Action Network has a game plan to END water fluoridation in both Canada and the United States, and this Fluoride Awareness Week will hopefully bring us a lot closer to that goal by spreading mass awareness. Our fluoride initiative will primarily focus on Canada since 60 percent of Canada is already non-fluoridated. If we can get the rest of Canada to stop fluoridating their water, we believe the U.S. will be forced to follow.

Please, join the anti-fluoride movement in Canada, New Zealand and the United States by contacting the representative for your area below.

Contact Information for Canadian Communities:

If you live in Ontario, Canada, please join the ongoing effort by contacting Diane Sprules at diane.sprules@cogeco.ca.
The point-of-contact for Toronto, Canada is Aliss Terpstra. You may email her at aliss@nutrimom.ca.
Contact Information for American Communities:

We’re also going to address three US communities: New York City, Austin, and San Diego:

New York City, NY: With the recent victory in Calgary, New York City is the next big emphasis. The anti-fluoridation movement has a great champion in New York City councilor Peter Vallone, Jr. who introduced legislation on January 18 “prohibiting the addition of fluoride to the water supply.”

A victory there could signal the beginning of the end of fluoridation in the U.S.

If you live in the New York area I beg you to participate in this effort as your contribution could have a MAJOR difference. Remember that one person can make a difference.

The point person for this area is Carol Kopf, at the New York Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation (NYSCOF). Email her at NYSCOF@aol.com . Please contact her if you’re interested in helping with this effort.
Austin, Texas: Join the effort by contacting Rae Nadler-Olenick at either: info@fluoridefreeaustin.com or fluoride.info@yahoo.com, or by regular mail or telephone:

POB 7486
Austin, Texas 78713
Phone: (512) 371-3786
San Diego, California: Contact Patty Ducey-Brooks, publisher of the Presidio Sentinel at pbrooks936@aol.com.
Contact Information for New Zealand Communities:

New Zealand: Contact Mary Byrne if you would like to be involved in stopping fluoridation in New Zealand. Mary would like to hear from you! Email her at: mbyrne64@yahoo.co.nz

In addition, you can:

Tell the EPA you expect them to uphold their duty to protect you and your children from this toxic food fumigant.

Make a generous tax-deductible donation to the Fluoride Action Network, to help them fight for your rights to fluoride-free food and water.

Check out FAN’s Action Page, as they are working on multiple fronts to rid our food and water supplies of fluoride.

For timely updates, join the Fluoride Action Network Facebook page.
REFERENCES:

1 Chachra 2010
2 Levy 2010
3 Levy et al 2009
4 Li et al 2001

Practice Creative Procrastination By Brian Tracy

By Brian Tracy

Creative procrastination is one of the most effective of all personal performance techniques. It can change your life. The fact is that you can’t do everything that you have to do. You have to procrastinate on something. Therefore, procrastinate on small tasks. Everyone procrastinates. The difference between high performers and low performers is largely determined by what they choose to procrastinate on.

Priorities versus Posteriorities
To set proper priorities, you must set posteriorities as well. A priority is something that you do more of and sooner, while a postieriority is something that you do less of and later, if at all. One of the most powerful of all words in time management in the word no! Say it politely. Say it clearly so that there are no misunderstandings. Say it regularly as a normal part of your time management vocabulary. For you to do something new, you must complete or stop doing something old.

Procrastinate on Purpose
Most people engage in unconscious procrastination. They procrastinate without thinking about it. As a result, they procrastinate on the big, valuable, important tasks that can have significant long-term consequences in their lives and careers. You must avoid this common tendency at all costs. Your job is to deliberately procrastinate on tasks that are of low value so that you have more time for tasks that can make a big difference in your life and work.

“How to get more done, faster and easier, and have more time off for your family and personal life”

Do you feel like you have too much to do with too little time to do it? Let’s face it-You’re not the only one. It’s easy for you to procrastinate and fall behind.

Learn how to get control of your time—double your productivity and double your time off, right now! Learn more here http://www.briantracy.com

Set Posteriorities on Time-Consuming Activities
Continually review your life and work to find time- consuming tasks and activities that you can abandon. Cut down on television watching and instead spend the time with your family, read, exercise, or do something else that enhances the quality of your life. Look at your work activities and identify the tasks that you could delegate or eliminate to free up more time for the work that really counts.

Begin Today
Begin today to practice creative procrastination practices that will free up more time for the more important things in life. Set posteriorities wherever and whenever you can. This decision alone can enable you to get your time and your life under control.

Action Exercise
Examine each of your personal and work activities and evaluate it based on your current situation. Select at least one activity to abandon immediately or at least deliberately put off until your more important goals have been achieved.

Brian Tracy is the most listened to audio author on personal and business success in the world today. His fast-moving talks and seminars on leadership, sales, managerial effectiveness and business strategy are loaded with powerful, proven ideas and strategies that people can immediately apply to get better results in every area. For more information, please go to http://www.briantracy.com

Your Career Change Plan – Staying Motivated By Catherine Trebble

Motivation is very important when it comes to pursuing your goals and fulfilling your dreams. This is especially true when it comes to pursuing a new career.

One great way to stay motivated is to set up a reward system for yourself. Rewards are fun and give you something to work towards.

When it comes to setting up a reward system, here are a couple of suggestions:

At the end of each week, if you completed your entire task list, reward yourself for staying on track and following through with your plan. My weekly reward is a massage at a beauty salon near where I live. I LOVE that massage, I really feel I’ve earned it and the very thought of it inspires me as I work through my to-do list each week.

But massage may not be your thing. So work out what your thing is. It can be something as simple as treating yourself to a special dessert, or having a guilt-free soak in the tub with scented candles.

Reward yourself whenever you accomplish a milestone towards your goal. Because these milestones are crucial to achieving your overall mission, go for something a bit more elaborate than your task list reward.

You may have to stash a little money away per week to save up for this one. My milestone reward of choice is a new pair of shoes. Shallow? Oh yes, but they make me feel so happy-and rewarded. Plan for whatever your “shoes” are. Go shopping at the mall for a new outfit, or take an afternoon off and visit with a friend. Accomplishing an entire goal is a big deal-you deserve something nice!

Just like the last example I gave here, not every reward needs to involve money. Sometimes time to yourself can be far more precious. If funds are tight, use your creativity to think up some fun and exciting rewards that are inexpensive or don’t cost a penny. The important part of setting up a reward system is to treat yourself to something special for your hard work. You deserve it and you are worth it!

Another way to help keep yourself motivated is to post some of your favorite inspirational messages and quotes in various places. You can post them around your work area, on the bathroom mirror, on the fridge, next to your bed, and even on the sun visor of your car. Post them wherever your own personal space is. These motivational statements will come in very handy during times when you feel you are running out of steam or having a down day. We all have them.

From my own experience at creating written plans for myself and setting up goals, one of the most motivating factors for me was following through with my plan and keeping track of my progress. Each time I got to check off a task or larger goal as being completed, I felt proud and wanted to accomplish more. So stick to your plan and continue to take action-the sense of accomplishment itself will do wonders for your motivation!

About Catherine Trebble- “Changing careers can be just the boost you’re looking for. It can also be a scary proposition, especially when you are a woman. The pressures and obligations we are under can make this a difficult challenge. Don’t let these obstacles stop you from finding the job you love. Discover everything you need to know about changing careers at http://www.CareerChangeInHeels.com

Building a Resilient Mind-Set

By Robert Brooks, PhD

When my boss handed back the draft of an article I had edited, it was covered with blue ink — his many questions, corrections and redirections. Here’s what went through my head…

1. Oh no! I must stink as an editor. I should quit.
2. If he’d stop being so darn fussy, my job would be so much easier.
3. Still, I’m not really surprised. He often has lots of comments.
4. Let me see where I went wrong so I don’t make the same mistakes again. If I can’t figure it out, I’ll ask him to explain.
5. Anyway, I shouldn’t feel bad — he praised the article I edited yesterday. And, overall, I love my job.
6. What the heck, I’ll have some fun by using this anecdote in the article I just started working on — which, appropriately enough, is about resilience.

In those few moments, my mind touched on several of the main points that Harvard Medical School psychologist Robert Brooks, PhD, covers in his book The Power of Resilience. Since my first thoughts had been decidedly nonresilient (though I came around in the end), I was glad for the opportunity to discuss the topic with Dr. Brooks.

“A resilient person has a mind-set — assumptions or expectations about herself — that allows her to bounce back after encountering obstacles. She adopts a problem-solving approach instead of languishing in feelings of helplessness and hopelessness,” Dr. Brooks explained. “Even if you don’t have a resilient mind-set now, you can develop one, because mind-sets are not chiseled in stone. There are guideposts you can follow and activities you can engage in that strengthen a resilient mind-set and lead to a more fulfilling life.” What to do…

Tell yourself that adversity is an expected part of life — a challenge to face and grow from, not evidence that you are a failure. When you do catch yourself getting into a negative mind-set (I’m stupid, this task is impossible), making a list of your strengths or thinking about a time you were successful dealing with a difficult situation can help adjust your attitude.

Learn from your mistakes — and successes. Here’s an exercise to practice at any time but especially when you have just experienced a setback and feel defeated. Think about a situation in which you made an error. Write down what you could have done differently to get a better outcome… and what you will do next time a similar situation arises. Now remember a time when you faced a tough situation and handled it well. Make a list of the coping strategies you used… and consider how to apply those strategies to a current challenge.

Focus your efforts on factors over which you have personal control — instead of feeling powerless and resentful over things you cannot control (such as another person’s behavior). Example: Suppose you feel unfulfilled at work. If you sit around waiting for your boss to offer more interesting assignments or stewing about the lousy economy that prevents you from getting a better job, you will fall prey to a “victim’s mentality” and not develop a resilient mind-set… and your situation won’t improve. Instead, figure out what you can control and work on that — for instance, by sending out your résumé or telling the boss, “I’m excited about Project X, and here’s how I could contribute to it.” Although your boss may not agree, at least you are taking a more active approach and will have a better idea of how receptive your boss will be to your ideas.

Ask for help… and give help, too. Resilience does not mean toughing it out alone. Look for resources that will help bring about a desired change, and willingly accept assistance when it’s offered. Also remember to display compassion and support for others. This creates a “helper’s high” that connects you with others… and reinforces the belief that you can make a positive difference in the world, which is a key component of a resilient mind-set.

Source: Robert Brooks, PhD, is an assistant clinical professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School in Boston and a private practitioner in Needham, Massachusetts. He is author or coauthor of 14 books, including The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence, and Personal Strength in Your Life (McGraw-Hill), and winner of the Outstanding Educator Award for Mental Health Education from the New England Educational Institute. http://www.DrRobertBrooks.com

Why You Know More About Nutrition Than Your Doctor Does

By Beverly Meyer

A friend of mine recently called and was sharing his new knowledge that — Surprise! Did I know Doctors have NO training in Nutrition?

How is this possible, he asked? How can they attempt to help fix my body when they don’t even understand the difference between calcium carbonate and limestone, know that zinc is necessary for wound healing, or that antibiotics must always be followed with Probiotics?

Another friend, a mid-wife, contacted me recently about her daughter-in-law who refused to give her baby (just home from 7 weeks in the ICU) any probiotics! Why? Because the doctor did not prescribe them! Seven weeks on antibiotics and no one had prescribed probiotics to a new-born!

Doctors have extremely limited exposure to the study of foods, vitamins, enzymes, herbs, minerals and all the wonders that our body can do on its own when helped out a bit. They know the names and some basic functions of vitamins and minerals, but that’s about it…..

Even worse, there is NO medical specialty that trains people in the therapeutic use of food, vitamins, herbs, etc. I am a CCN – Certified Clinical Nutritionist – and we have to have supplemental training to learn all this, as it is not taught in school. We are then tested and certified by our governing body.

The Nutritionists and Dieticians generally have limited study of this too. They are more oriented towards feeding hospital patients or schools, how to buy and prepare bulk foods for economy, or maybe how to administer IV nutrition to patients who cannot eat.

So what are doctors learning?

Doctors study emergencies and diseases. They learn to name things, and to call this group of symptoms that name. And then what? Well, the pharmaceutical companies have pretty much bought their way into the medical schools, and they teach, either directly by “sponsoring” a professor, or indirectly, by providing textbook funding with their names on it, etc.

When you go to a conference and the bus that picks you up at the hotel looks like “the little purple pill”, you know where the money is for sure.

There are three or four naturopathic medical schools in the United States. Doctors from there are known as Naturopathic Physicians. They are only allowed to practice medicine in a fraction of the US. They take all the normal course work of a regular medical school, plus extensive training in Integrative Medicine.

Unfortunately, Texas will never allow them to practice here. Our ever-powerful TMA (Texas Medical Association) will see to that, so people have to learn on their own how to eat, and how to organize a supplement program that is helpful. And they can find the CCN’s who are scattered all over the US, including Texas.

I have great admiration for the few physicians who spend their “free” time and money seeking answers in the Naturopathic field. They have a difficult path to negotiate, and often are put down by their colleagues.

In any event, everything you do to learn another piece of your health puzzle will pay off for you. Let the learning continue for a lifetime, and pass on your knowledge to others. Including your doctors. The more they hear about vitamin therapies and herbs that help you, the more they get a look into our world! Spread the word!! And always do your own research before and after you see a doctor.

Diet & Health Center has been assisting clients with their health since 1989.
We are located in the Center For Life at 12915 Jones Maltsberger Rd. #600 in San Antonio, Texas, 78247. We are open Tuesday through Friday from 10 to 5:30.
Call us at (210) 826-0034 anytime or visit us at www.dietandhealthcenter.info.

Stop Being So Tired

Do you find yourself sluggishly dragging through the day? Time to say goodbye to that fourth cup of coffee! Making some simple lifestyle changes can provide you with the energy you are currently lacking. Watch this week’s video in which fitness guru Jack Lalanne breaks down the most likely reasons as to why you are so tired.

Do you often feel inexplicably tired? Are you guilty of any of the mistakes cited by Lalanne? Do you plan on making these changes or do you have any other suggestions for people who want to increase their energy? After watching the video be sure to share your comments below, and feel free to pass this video along to friends and family.

What Happens When You Settle for Less?

By Scott & Shannon Peck

When you settle for less than the love you deserve, you know in your gut that you have abandoned a part of yourself. And then you have to figure if it was worth it. You start to recall, “Why is it that I decided to settle?”

Sometimes we settle just to give ourselves immediate relief from the empty feeling of loneliness, and longing for our dream to come true of meeting The One. On these types of decisions, tension can run high. It’s exhausting!

Still, when we are left to evaluate our decision to settle, we have several choices:

See if you can possibly improve the relationship by working on it (hopefully, with your mate!).
Mourn your decision and its disappointing outcome.
Get out of the relationship. Then, of course, once out, you can again experience a great relief.
But, how can you not settle and avoid the whole mess of making a mistake to begin with?

The decision not to settle will only work if you come from your inner power base. This is imperative. If you are willing to do this, we can get you started.

Begin by creating a strong mindset to live from your inner power base & commitment not to settle for less than the love you deserve – no matter what. And from that strong vibration, go ahead and call in your soulmate.

Continue this high new vibration with an inner vision quest (an inner envisioning). In your vision quest, prepare yourself to defend your position to not settle because any vision quest arouses buried doubts and fears. As you hold your new, strong mindset to receive the love you deserve without settling, this will convey strong energies to sufficiently overcome the negative onslaught which argues, “It’s impossible! I’ve tried this before! What if my soulmate isn’t even out there?”

The negative energies will eventually recede because they have been overwhelmed with the power of your new inner mindset to receive the love you deserve, without settling. Decide also that you are not backing down – no matter what. This new, self-healing mindset creates a new reality for you, one that manifests your highest vision.

It is often surprising how powerful the outcomes can be from shifting our thoughts from negative to positive, not as a superficial exercise, but as a profound inner transformation. Such envisioning, and loving yourself in this high place of the love you deserve, sends a strong message to your entire life direction. You begin to live in the place where you become stronger and stronger, more convinced than ever that you will not settle. By doing this, you are also sending out a clear message to the universe that you are ready to call in the most wonderful soulmate imaginable for yourself.

Welcome to the soulmate journey! Our love is with you!

“Would you like to learn more simple ways to find and nourish your soulmate? Check out http://scottandshannonpeck.com, for free articles, resources! The Love and Relationship Experts, Scott & Shannon Peck.