Things change at Christmas time - new people come to your house with strange new things, you rearrange furniture, add new things like trees, get more tired, and pay less attention.

All these things can confuse your animal companion causing them to do things they ordinarily wouldn’t do, and also bring harm to themselves.

Since it has been my fate to learn from experience, sometimes vicariously, sometimes straight-on, I’ll include examples which I hope this article will keep you from having to experience.

1. Keep careful track of visitors’ possessions.

People bring all sorts of things in their suitcases and purses, like nitroglycerine and sleeping pills. Keep purses and luggage up off the floor, and in the case of cats, closed and latched.

Or you’ll end up at the vet’s, as I did one year, when Thisbe smelled chocolate (Ex Lax) in my mother’s suitcase and ingested enough to kill her, said the vet, who was surprised she survived.

Or your dog may, for reasons known only to him,

urinate in your father-in-law’s suitcase, marking I

suppose, though he knew better!

2. Pay attention to the gifts under the tree.

People wrap food dogs can smell that you can’t, but then again it doesn’t have to be food. Chucky tore open packages of bath powder, perfume and bath salts as well. If you catch Fido nosing around, remove the package to somewhere safe.

Chocolate is a special culprit. It contains theobromine which is poisonous to animals.

3. Keep your animal companion on their regular regime and diet.

Don’t, like me, carve the rib roast tossing the fat down to Shy Nell, then carry it in to the table, begin the feast, and have Shy Nell enter the dining room and proceed to vomit it all up, sending one of your guests to the restroom. Try working that into the dinner table conversation!

4. Protect your animal companion from new people and vice versa.

Guests can agitate and excite your pet so they get in trouble, do bizarre things, and also harm people.

There are people like me who don’t know what they’re doing, stick their hand in the bird cage to acquaint themselves with your Macaw, and … “the Macaw uses its bill to score and then, in steel-cutter fashion, shear the nuts in two so cleanly that the cut surfaces resemble the work of a metal-cutting saw or laser …” and it’s ho-ho-ho, off to the emergency room we go.

5. Don’t let your pet eat all gifts that are presented!

The houseguest from hell, I brought homemade dog biscuits for my relative’s Labs, which they duly ate … and we were all up all night as the dogs struggled with fulminating diarrhea.

6. As my cousin and his wife settled down for after-dinner drinks at a festive dinner given to impress his boss, Weisschen, the regal Persian, rolled into the living room and proceeded to hack up … poinsettia leaves. Holly and mistletoe are poisonous to both humans and animals and poinsettia, though not technically poisonous, doesn’t sit well. Keep them out of your pet’s reach.

7. Watch your animal pet around the Christmas tree.

Woody was sick the week before Christmas. We didn’t know why, but he sickened and paled, and soon we were off to the vet’s … for major surgery costing $1,000, and which yielded 3′ of tinsel, pulled from his intestines. That stuff (and many other things on the tree) is made of metal. Many pets try and ingest the pine needles that fall.

8. Secure your tree.

This is for your protection, so if the cat decides to leap, or the dog is fascinated by some ornament, the whole tree doesn’t land on the floor. Also don’t put anything in the tree water as a “preservative” that could harm your pet.

9. Rabbits like to chew electrical cords.

Cover your cords with duct tape and get them out of the way as best you can.

10. Tranquilize your pet or tranquilize their environment.

Bing just got hyper when company came. Something else difficult to work into the dinner table conversation is when Bing gets up, ambles over, and tears the sleeve off your guest’s shirt. You can buy tranquilizers for your pet, or secure them in a special room, or put them outdoors if they’re the excitable type.

11. Guard against escapes!

Weejums who lived with us for a while, was always looking for his chance to escape, and the holidays were the most exciting time of the year for the little rascal. Oh the opportunities! If you have such a knave in your house, make sure they have their tags, and explain to the kids and to houseguests, to please take care.

12. Talk to your houseguests, who are more under your “control,” and keep your eye out for your other guests.

Or your pet companion may end up with an injured tail and bad memories like Muff Tuff, who was sleeping near the rocking chair; or internal injuries and bad memories like Stan-the-Man, who got stepped on by someone wearing bifocals.

BOTTOM LINE: You’re busier and preoccupied, things change, it’s a good time to stop and think, for the safety of your animal companion. They’re counting on you!

Our animal companions count on us. Be there for them at Christmas and all the year.

©Susan Dunn, MA, EQ coaching, http://www.susandunn.cc, mailto:sdunn@susandunn.cc. Individual coaching, business programs, EQ Alive! #1 rated program to increase your EQ - simple, no memorizing, it works. Email for information, and free ezine.

Permission to reprint if byline stays intact and its links are activated on the internet. Courtesy copy appreciated. You may change the title if you like and make minor formatting changes to accommodate your publication.

It used to be that in order to manage your properties, be it apartments, mobile homes, or office space, each of the managers would have to store the data on their own machines either on software built for that purpose or with an assortment of personal databases and/or spreadsheets. In order for a central office to be able to view that information or do any sort of reporting, the individual managers would have to mail a floppy disk to the central office, or, as things became more advanced, email or ftp that information. IT Managers hoped that the property managers were backing up their software in case of computer crashes, but never actually knowing if that was occurring or if the backups were valid. Among the other problems that were sure to occur in these scenarios were differing versions of the software, being tied down to a specific operating system, being tied down to a specific computer (the one with the installation), and difficulty correcting problems in the data from a remote location.

I talk about those things as if they are archaic when, in fact, many companies still rely upon these decentralized programs and databases and outdated methods to manage their properties.

Recently, however, companies that wrote these personal solutions have begun to develop centralized solutions based on web servers. And they are not the only ones. Intense competition from Internet startups with savvy web developers backed by knowledgeable property managers and property management companies have appeared, sometimes overnight.

Is it worth it to try one of these out? What does it buy you?

Whether you go with a proven player in the property management software market or a program written by a fledgling company, moving to an Application Service Provider (ASP) most likely provides you with the following important concepts. This list is by no means all-inclusive.

Centralized Data and Software

With data in one location, you can ensure backups happen on all of the properties as many times as you deem necessary. You no longer have to worry about whether your managers are backing up data.

With data in one location, you can run reports on all of the properties at the same time without waiting for managers to mail or email you their data. You can even view these reports with real-time data.

All of your manager’s machines are always running the most up-to-date version, and the ASP doesn’t have to take time building and testing the patches to make sure they patch the program properly on all supported operating systems. They can just make and test the changes on their own servers, and move those changes to where the property managers themselves can use the modifications.

Data fixes do not require the data to be zipped up and sent to the programming company, nor do they require access into your computers or networks.

Versatility and Convenience

No more are the days when you have to buy the Windows version, the Mac version, or, if you are especially daring, trying to get the version of the software to work with the flavor of Unix or Linux that you have selected. If done properly, property management software will run on any of the more popular web browsers on any environment you choose.

You no longer need to bring the computer with you that has the installation on it. You can access your properties from any library, school, Internet caf©, home, or work location at which you find yourself, as long as you have a connection to the Internet.

Cost

How many property managers honestly want to pay a team of IT professionals to manage all of the software and its upgrades at all of their properties?

There is really no need to keep using antiquated alternatives. If the convenience of easy access from anywhere using any web browser doesn’t provide enough of an incentive, the easy and less expensive management and real-time statistics and reporting should. Take a look at some of the choices in online property management software today, and see how easy managing your properties can be.

David Hickenbotham is a professional writer and programmer. He developes property management software for Resident Map.

Before wasting your money on a pile of bodybuilding supplements you really need to work out what you are hoping to achieve. Don’t lose sight of the fact that sound nutrition forms the basis of any muscle building program and no amount of supplementation with the latest and greatest products will make up for bad eating habits. The bottom line is, bodybuilding supplements should be used IN ADDITION to regular food, not INSTEAD OF it.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s go on to think about what supplements could be of use and this is something that can only be determined by your physical and performance goals. Don’t make the mistake of copying your training partners or believing all the garbage spouted in magazine ads. Decide first what you want to achieve and then choose the supplements that will help you reach your goals.

To help you make an informed choice, the most popular and useful bodybuilding supplements available today are listed below, broadly divided into two goal-related categories.

Determined to build muscle? This cannot be achieved without dedication, sheer hard work and sound nutrition. With a solid foundation in place you can help the process along with supplements like creatine, whey protein, prohormones, testosterone boosters and amino acids.

Need to lose fat? There is no point in building awesome muscles if they’re covered by layers of fat. Once again, the key to success is hard work but you can boost fat loss by using products from supplement categories that include fat burners, stimulant-free products, appetite suppressants and carb blockers.

Many more supplements are available to support your bodybuilding endeavors. These include energy boosters and products aimed at enhancing the condition of your mind and body. As we progress through this series of articles we’ll look at each of these in turn.

In the meantime you can find out more by visiting the web site listed below.

Richard Mitchell is the creator of the bodybuildingadvisor.com website that provides guidance and information to athletes at all levels of bodybuilding experience. Go to Muscle Building Supplements

By Flemming Andersen

Getting a moving company to help you with the difficult task of moving is a great idea. There are so many moving companies that it may seem hard to find the perfect one for you and your needs. You should treat hiring a moving company like you would if you were hiring a doctor or having any other service done. You have to research the people and the companies to make sure that you getting the best choice for you.

After you find the movers that are right for you and your needs, you should do a few things to ensure that you are protected and that you have an easy and safe move. You do not want to have any problems with your move. It should go as smooth as possible. You should always take notes when you are talking to the movers and write down everything that they say. They will give you a quote and a confirmation number. It is important to get that number as well as the names of the people that you talk to at the moving company. If there is ever a problem, you will know who to talk to in order to get it settled.

You should always make sure that you make a necessity kit for your move. When the movers come to take all of your belongings, you may find that it is difficult to find exactly what you are going to need for the first night in the new home. You should make your own box of the things that you are going to need for the first night and take that package with you. This will include your clothes, toothbrushes, and a set of sheets, blankets, and towels. This will be a big help in the morning.

You may also want to protect certain things before the movers get there. This may include some of your irreplaceable keepsakes. Although the movers are there to do all of this work for you and make your life easier, you may want to box up the things that mean the most to you and take them with you. The movers that you hire should have insurance to cover anything that is lost or broken, however, you can not replace the memories of some things that you have so it is easier to just take care of these things yourself.

Something that will help you and the movers is to take the pets away for the time that the movers are there and for when they take the items to the new house. You may want to take the pet to a friend’s house or a kennel until after the move. Things will be hectic and the last thing that you need is for your pets to get in the way of the movers from doing their job. You want your move to be as simple and as fast as you can.

The last thing that you should do is relaxed. You have hired people to help you with the hard things and it is important for you to let them do their job. You should concentrate on the other things that are involved with moving and do not worry about the movers. They are professionals and they will take care of everything.

For more info visit: http://www.find-movers.org/

About the Author
To find the best movers for you, the author provides a detailed website with info and resources for your next move.

A healthy pregnancy almost always involves weight gain. But now that
baby’s here, you’re probably wishing those extra pounds would hurry up
and disappear! While it won’t happen overnight, these six simple tips
can help you lose that extra weight in a healthy way. (If you’ve missed
part 1 of this article, or want to read part 3, you can find them both at
http://www.mambomoms.com/articles.html)

3) Drink plenty of water. You will probably be very thirsty if you are
nursing your baby and you should drink as much as your thirst dictates.
But even if you’re not breastfeeding, lots of pure water is important in
your quest to shed those pregnancy pounds.

First of all, water has no calories, so when compared to other
beverages, it’s hands down the best bet in terms of weight loss. Diet soft
drinks and other low calorie beverages may have only a couple of
calories, but your body craves pure water in order to be able to function
properly. Besides, many people are concerned about the artificial
sweeteners used in these products, and caffeinated diet drinks may
increase fussiness in your baby if you’re nursing. Go ahead and
indulge if this is something you just can’t live without, but make sure
you’re not doing it at the expense of your water needs.

Secondly, water is helpful in the process of burning stored body fat.
Studies have shown that not drinking enough water can hinder your
weight loss efforts because the liver has to work harder to metabolize
waste when your body is not properly hydrated.

And finally, drinking enough water will help you feel full so you eat less.
This is especially true if you’re eating lots of high fiber foods such as
whole grain breads and cereals. The fiber in whole grains will absorb
water, making you feel full longer.

Other liquids are fine too, such as juice, milk (dairy or substitutes), and
herbal teas. But do try to stay away from those empty calorie soft drinks
and anything that’s labeled “beverage,” “punch” or “drink” instead of
“juice.” And even though they may be considered healthful, watch your
intake of pure fruit juices. Juices contain nutrients that your body needs,
but they are a very concentrated source of sugar as well. Whenever
possible you are better off to eat a piece of fresh fruit and drink water for
thirst.

You should also try to limit your intake of coffee and caffeinated tea.
Doing so may help both you and your baby regulate your sleep habits.
Some babies get very fussy and hard to settle when mom is
breastfeeding and drinks caffeinated beverages.

Drinking lots of water is one of those things that seems easy in theory,
but in practice it can be difficult to accomplish. One effective strategy to
help make sure you get enough is to place water bottles strategically
around the house. You can buy small plastic bottles of water by the
case at the grocery store or you can buy the refillable type of bottle that
you might take to the gym or on your bike.

Put a bottle anywhere you spend time during the day: near your
favourite nursing chair (put several hereyou’ll probably use them all!),
near baby’s change table, on the bathroom counter, on top of the
washing machine, on the kitchen counter, on your desk, on a shelf near
the front door, beside your bed, on the kitchen table, etc. Each morning,
spend 3 or 4 minutes making the rounds collecting yesterday’s empty
bottles and replacing them with fresh ones. This way, you’ll be more
likely to drink lots of water because there will always be some close at
hand.

4) Breastfeed your baby if at all possible. Depending on the age and
weight of your baby, you can use around 800 calories a day producing
milk for her. Besides the host of other benefits that breastfeeding affords
both you and your baby, quicker postnatal weight loss is one advantage
that all new moms welcome. Even if you are returning to work or can’t
breastfeed full time for any reason, any amount of breast milk is good for
your baby, and as a perk, will help you use up additional calories for as
long as you are able to continue.

In addition, breastfeeding releases natural hormones that help you
relax. Since the hormones released when you are stressed can
contribute to weight gain, it only makes sense to counter this with
activities that help you relax. Breastfeeding is a wonderful way to do
this, and you and your baby will also benefit in so many other ways. If
you need more information or support with breastfeeding, visit La Leche
League International on the web at http://www.LaLecheLeague.org

In part three of this article you’ll learn ways to burn extra calories easily
and enjoyably without sweating it out at the gym. You’ll also learn the
secret that savvy new moms use to effortlessly burn up to an extra 200
calories a day that’s 2 pounds a month with no extra effort!

Susan Peach is a retired La Leche League Leader, a dance and fitness
instructor, and mother to two teenage boys. She is also the creator of
Mambo Moms, a fun and gentle Latin dance based fitness program that
helps new moms get back in shape while spending quality play time
with their babies. Find out more at http://www.mambomoms.com

If GM decides to sell General Motors Acceptance Corp., they will be declaring bankruptcy in the future, simple as that. General Motors should not be seen as an auto maker, but rather as a financier with an automotive division attached to it.

In the past, GM as a whole has been able to make money, even while their automotive operations suffered. The profits from their financial arm have surpassed these losses in GM’s better days. Unfortunately, their manufacturing losses have been far too steep lately and their obligations to employees too great, calling their future into question. Despite management’s assurances that bankruptcy will not be declared, all other signs suggest that it is imminent. If GM decides to sell GMAC, their fate may as well be sealed.

The only hope for GM at this point, is that they are somehow able to recoup some of the losses in market share that they have suffered from the last few years. Not because they will make money from the sales themselves, but because of the cash that their financial division will generate from financing these sales. If they are somehow able to regain market share, but no longer have GMAC, these market share increases will be meaningless. Selling GMAC may delay bankruptcy, but it will also guarentee it. The most recent offer for a controlling stake in GMAC was $13 Billion. While this may seem like a good amount of money, it isnt when compared to the $8.45 Billion that they lost in 2005. Take out GMAC’s profits, and their loss increases to over $11 Billion. At these rates, selling GMAC would only provide a little more than one year’s worth of cash to burn. GMAC generated $2.8 Billion in income in the most recent year alone. Should they somehow be able to survive after selling GMAC, which I don’t believe is possible, their main source of income will be gone. If that happens, the next time a drought like they are currently in rolls around, they will have nothing to fall back on.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any ingenious plan to provide management with, I dont know what will fix the mess that the UAW has created for them. What I can do though, is say that selling GMAC is not the way to turn things around. So to the GM board, please, for the sake of your shareholders, don’t even consider the recent $13 Billion bid.

Originally published at The New Wall Street a proud member of the Wall Street 2.0 Network

http://www.thenewwallstreet.com

“R.O.E.: Return On Employee — A measure of corporate business
performance as determined by the gross revenue achieved per
staff employee.”

by Phil McCutchen Marketing Manager, VCG, Inc.

As the definition above points out, ROE (Return On Employee)
focuses on your staff, the people who generate the revenue that
makes your operation profitable. For any business with
above-average employee turnover, ROE is a critical component of
success that is too often neglected by management. For the
purposes of this article, we’ll focus on the staffing industry;
temporary employment and recruiting agencies that provide
important personnel-related services to the business community,
yet typically suffer from above-average staff employee turnover.
We will show you the challenges and offer some tips and
techniques to improve the turnover situation and thus, ROE. In
our analysis of available operational data, the average ROE for
commercial staffing firms is a bit under $400,000. We’ve also
seen some firms (many of them VCG staffing software clients)
with ROE’s that exceed that by 50% or more. Why do some staffing
and recruiting firms settle for average or less, while others
excel? One key to success is staff employee retention. According
to data from the ASA 2002 Staffing Industry Compensation Survey
by Mercer Human Resource Consulting Inc., the average annual
turnover for staffing industry jobs was 48 percent. In fact, in
previous years, turnover was as high as 70% for some positions.
As might be expected, the impact of such high staff turnover –
for whatever reasons — can be tremendous. One case study in
“Continuity Management” by Hamilton Beazley, chairman of
Strategic Leadership Group, an Arlington, VA-based consulting
firm, pointed out the potential cost with this true story. A
large company delayed a major product launch by nine months as
it struggled to resolve a technical issue. The delay allowed a
competitor to introduce a similar product first, gaining a
competitive advantage among customers. As a result, the firm’s
product never reached its projected volume and revenue
potential. In investigating the launch, it was discovered that
the solution to the technical issue that caused the delay
already existed as the firm’s intellectual property based on
research that had been done 15 years earlier! Knowledge of that
research was lost due to staff turnover. Total cost to the firm
in duplicated research and lost revenue was $1 billion. Similar
losses happen on smaller scales every day, and that includes
your staffing firm — all because ‘head knowledge’ was lost.
Such quantifiable losses however, are just the most easily
quantifiable part of the problem. Among the more obvious issues
of turnover are: •Loss of morale among remaining staff members,
leading to reduced productivity •Increased ‘Ghost Work’, i.e.,
remaining staff taking on the burdens and tasks of departed
staff, which can also be stressful and demoralizing •Loss of
revenue directly or indirectly attributable to the loss of staff
•Cost burden related to the recruiting and training of
replacement staff •Loss of tacit ‘head knowledge’ and
experience. According to the Boston-based Delphi Group, tacit
knowledge represents some 70% of an employee’s knowledge base.
It includes knowledge about those they consult and discuss
business with, company culture and operations experience, and
unique experiences in the business that lead to innovation
Planning An Employee Retention Program Recognizing that employee
retention is important is easy enough. Doing something effective
about it requires both strategic thinking and smart tactics,
especially for staffing firms. Temporary staffing and recruiting
firms may justifiably pride themselves on their intimate
knowledge of human relationship management, but may also expend
much of their efforts on clients and temporary or contract
employees instead of their own staff. Changing that focus will
change your business and its productive profitability big time.
Let’s start with the strategic planning factors: •First, be
aware that employee needs differ from management’s. They
typically don’t have ‘ownership’, and so their motivations are
markedly at odds with what management believes they want.
According to a number of surveys done over the past 50-plus
years, the top ten things employees want vs. what managers
‘think’ they want are: Top 10 Things Employees Want vs. What
Managers ‘Think’ They Want FACTORSMANAGERSEMPLOYEES Full
Appreciation for Work Done81 Feeling ‘In’ on Things102
Sympathetic Help on Personal Problems93 Job Security24 Good
Wages15 Interesting Work56 Promotion/Growth Opportunities37
Personal Loyalty to Workers68 Good Working Conditions49 Tactful
Disciplining710 Sources: Foreman Facts, Labor Relations
Institute of NY (1946); Lawrence Lindahl, Personnel Magazine
(1949). Repeated with similar results: Ken Kovach (1980);
Valerie Wilson, Achievers International (1988), Bob Nelson,
Blanchard Training & Development (1991), Sheryl & Don Grimme,
GHR Training Solutions (1997-2001) •Second, acknowledge that
employee retention is great for business. A recent survey
conducted by the Gallup organization researched the Impact of
Employee Attitudes on Business Outcomes. They found that
organizations where employees have above average attitudes
toward their work (that is, high employee satisfaction), have:
o38% higher customer satisfaction scores, o22% higher
productivity, and o27% higher profits •Third, understand that
improving employee retention isn’t so much about dollars as it
is personal effort. This is the hard part. It takes continuous
effort and involvement by management at all levels to coach,
cheerlead, mentor, and encourage. •Fourth, your strategies and
tactics for employee retention should affirm that an employee’s
tacit (head) and explicit (external) knowledge has some
intrinsic value to the firm and efforts should be made to
gather, catalogue, and make this information available to others
who could benefit from it. Tips to Improve Employee Retention
Any tactics that you implement, as part of your employee
retention program, should be geared to eliciting one response
from your employees, “The pay ain’t bad, and they treat me
great!” Most of the following tips and techniques aren’t rocket
science. They are based on well-proven and documented successes
in the business world. Here are some tips based on the work of
Bob Nelson, author of “1,001 Ways to Reward Employees”: 1. Pay
employees fairly and well — then get them to forget about
money. 2. Treat each and every employee with respect. Show them
that you care about them as persons, not just as workers. 3.
Praise accomplishments and attempts •Both large and small •At
least four times more than you criticize •Publicly and in
private •Verbally and in writing •Promptly (as soon as observed)
•Sincerely 4. Clearly communicate goals, responsibilities and
expectations. NEVER criticize in public — redirect in private.
5. Recognize performance appropriately and consistently: •Reward
outstanding performance (e.g., with promotions and
opportunities) •Do not tolerate sustained poor performance –
coach and train or remove! 6. Involve employees in plans and
decisions, especially those that affect them. Solicit their
ideas and opinions. Encourage initiative. 7. Create
opportunities for employees to learn and grow. Link the goals of
the organization with the goals of each individual in it. 8.
Actively listen to employees concerns — both work-related and
personal. 9. Share information promptly, openly and clearly.
Tell the truth with compassion. 10. Celebrate successes and
milestones reached — organizational and personal. Create an
organizational culture that is open, trusting and fun!
Techniques to Reduce the ‘Brain Drain’ It’s not enough to
improve your employee retention. Turnover in the high-pressure
staffing environment is natural and to be expected. What you
don’t want is staff to leave with stuff in their heads that
helps you generate business. Part of your retention strategy has
to involve knowledge. You want to retain as much of the tacit
knowledge that contributes to your firm’s business and its
profitability as possible. Following the lead of such
organizations as General Electric, Siemens, the World Bank, and
others, the knowledge management of your staffing or recruiting
firm has to include ‘Continuity Management’. Here are some
techniques for gathering, storing, cataloguing and making
available this knowledge: •Use in-person methods to identify the
knowledge that is critical to capture. According to a study by
the American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC), while
electronic communication (email, on-line chat, etc.) has its
value and its place, it does not and cannot take the place of
knowledge gained in face-to-face interaction. Such human
interaction opportunities include: oSenior management meetings
oInterviews with internal subject matter experts oInternal or
external communities of practice and/or interest oInternal
conferences oFocus groups oExit interviews •Establish
methodology, infrastructure, and practice of capturing tacit and
explicit knowledge for use oRecording and reporting tools. This
may include information systems (such as your staffing software)
that record activities and other business processes, meeting
notes and related documents, or even audio or video tapes of
events oFile storage and access. This may be hard copy files for
some information or any form of digital information storage,
such as databases and document management systems oEstablish
review and validation process for captured knowledge •Establish
methodologies and practices for the access and use of knowledge
oKnowledge databases should be easily accessible and updateable
oBusiness information staffing software systems should be able
to suggest best practices based on real-time ongoing capture of
tacit and explicit information The End Result A full-blown
program that addresses both employee retention and knowledge
retention may seem to a big task — one too big to handle in
many respects. However, such an initiative — even one
implemented one department or division at a time — will make
your firms’ future more manageable. At the same time it will
focus the spotlight on you as a proactive, forward-looking
leader who understands the big picture. Such a program tells
employees that management understands the value of employees and
their knowledge — that is both motivating and empowering. –
end — Resources: •Employee Retention Headquarters:
www.employee-retention-hq.com •American Productivity and Quality
Center: www.APQC.org •Society of Human Resources Management:
www.SHRM.org •Continuity Management:
www.continuitymanagement.com •American Staffing Association:
www.staffingtoday.net •Bob Nelson: www.nelson-motivation.com

How do you go about obtaining a loan if you have a poor credit score? Is it even possible if you have declared bankruptcy? Well, the short answer is yes. It may be difficult however, so you should be ready to put up with a few rejections. You should also be ready to accept higher interest rates and tighter restrictions. You should also be wary of disreputable loan companies who specifically target those with poor credit ratings and offer them loans with excessive interest rates, unfair terms and very high penalties. With offers like this, it may be that you are better off without the loan than with it.

There are a variety of possibilities available however and some of them are worth considering. They range from unsecured credit cards, to mortgages secured over your home. Everyone, before taking on extra debt, should carefully assess how much they can afford, what are their needs and how much do they need to borrow. Lenders will need to see evidence of income so if you try to borrow a very large amount, you will likely be turned down. However, it is often possible to borrow far more than you can reasonably afford so think about how much you ask for too. If your credit rating is very bad you will have to adapt to these circumstances.

For example:

I know people in my life who when asked how are things going, will reply, “I’m living the dream.” Can you say the same? If you could, what would it mean?

As far back as Sigmund Freud, psychologists have been saying that there are two major areas in a person’s life—love and work. When you are “living the dream,” you will be able to say that you have found satisfying work and are fulfilled in the relationships you share with the important people in your life.

Now, I ask again, “Are you living the dream?” Let’s talk about work first. When you wake up in the morning are you filled with a sense of excitement and anticipation for what your day at work has in store for you or do you have a sense of dread about what lies ahead? Of course, these are two opposite ends of the spectrum and more than likely you fall somewhere in between.

As a parent, I always advised my children to choose a profession that they love because they will be spending a lot of their time doing it. I don’t want them to be one of many who hates their job and dreads going to work every day. That is a terrible burden to bear.

So, what can you do if you are one of those people?

Have you discovered your definite purpose in life? We were all placed here on earth with a variety of gifts that will help us make the world a better place to live. We all have unique skills, interests and abilities that will add to the good of mankind and fulfill our own inner desires, as well. What is your unique, definite purpose?

I believe mine is to help people learn to lead more satisfying lives and to get along better with the important people in them. That’s what I do. I love to do it. I am energized when I do it. And although I generally get paid for the things I do, I love doing them so much, I would do them for free! This is what I wish for everyone in the area of work.

Many of us are living the dream but it is someone else’s dream. Are you working for the “man” without any pay off? What do I mean by a pay off? Why do you get up and go to work everyday? What motivates you? If it is only the paycheck, then you are living someone else’s dream.

Your work should be something that motivates you, gives you pleasure, provides something valuable to others and is in line with your definite purpose. If that doesn’t describe your work, you may want to take some time to reevaluate. You may think you are too old to change careers now or to go out on your own. However, in ten, fifteen or twenty years you are still going to be the same age whether you invest in your own dream or not. So what’s stopping you?

Now, let’s look at your relationships. What is the state of your current relationships with the important people in your life? I suppose I should start with the question: Do you have important people in your life? Hopefully, the answer to that question is yes, but if not, there is help available. You can improve your relationship skills and learn to make new friends and develop those relationships to their fullest. Everyone needs to have human contact in order to survive.

Some of us have companionship but we are unhappy in these relationships. How can you live the dream when you feel miserable around the people who are supposed to be supporting and encouraging you? Getting our relationships in order is a critical task that too many ignore. We look around us and see lots of other people in unhappy or mediocre relationships and we tell ourselves that is just the way it is. No one is truly happy. That is not true.

Creating healthy relationships is a matter of choice. You are not destined to be in a miserable relationship. Do you remember what it was like when you first got together? It was more than chemistry. There was something between you that made you know each other was special. You can regain that feeling.

Most of us never learn healthy relationship skills. We think it is something we are just supposed to know how to do but how good were our teachers? Shouldn’t you learn relationship skills from someone who has strong relationships and who knows how to maintain them?

Living the dream is not just for a few select individuals. Every single one of us is entitled to live our dream. It is possible and we have a right to be happy and satisfied. Here are some steps you can take:

1. You must clearly examine whether or not you are happy and satisfied with your current life’s work and your relationships with the important people in your life. If you are, then congratulations are in order and you need to read no further.

2. If you are not satisfied, then you must clearly delineate what the problems are and the source of your unhappiness.

3. Next, you must identify a solution over which you, yourself, are in control. That means you must formulate a solution that doesn’t involve someone else doing something differently. You know what I mean. “I could be happy if my wife would just cook dinner every night”. “I would love this job if only the boss would get off of my case.”

4. If you are unable to think of a solution that is solely up to you, then daydream about what the perfect job or the perfect relationship would look like. How would you be, what would you have and what would you be doing? Assess your interests, skills and abilities to uncover your definite purpose. What is it you were destined to do?

5. Once you have your ideal picture in your mind, ask yourself what is stopping you? What would you have to give up to move in the direction of your dream? What obstacles do you face? What do you fear?

6. Now you must formulate a plan that has a reasonable chance of success. I’m not suggesting that you file for divorce or quit your job. What I am saying is come up with a plan that will move you forward in the direction you want to go. You can take small, baby steps as long as you do something each day that will move you along the path of living your dream.

7. The final step is to develop the strength to actually take the action you planned in Step 6. Making a plan is great but it will never accomplish anything if you don’t take action. Les Brown tells us, “You don’t have to be great to get started; but you have to get started to be great.” Do something.

If you are having difficulty with any of these steps, then perhaps coaching would help you. Coaching provides just the right balance of support and encouragement with challenge and accountability. You decide. Do you want to live your dream or someone else’s?

Kim Olver has a degree in counseling, is a certified and licensed counselor. She is a certified reality therapy instructor. Kim is an expert in relationship, parenting and personal empowerment, working with individuals who want to gain more effective control of their lives and relationships. Visit www.TheRelationshipCenter.biz

If you’re looking for a cheap homeowner loan, you might be wondering what you can do to reduce the amount that you have to pay.

The simplest answer lies in two things… shopping around to find the lender that offers the lowest interest rates on a cheap homeowner loan, and maximizing the value of your loan against the equity in your home that’s being used as collateral.

We’ll look at each of these items individually, so as to give you a better understanding on how to get the most for your money with a cheap homeowner loan.

Shopping around for a lender

A variety of cheap homeowner loan options exist for individuals regardless of their credit rating, so long as they have sufficient home equity.

The main difference that a homeowner will encounter when looking for a cheap homeowner loan comes from the different interest rates that some banks and finance companies offer.

Get several quotes for a cheap homeowner loan from different lenders in your area, and then find a computer with internet access and check out the rates at some of the online lending sites.

These sites can sometimes offer lower interest rates due to reduced overhead, and have the additional advantages of faster processing and greater convenience.

Once you’ve obtained your quotes from all of your options, you can use the information you’ve gathered to determine which lender has the best loan for your money.

Getting the most for your equity

The other key to getting a cheap homeowner loan is knowing how to maximize your loan request to get the most from the equity in your home.

It’s the equity, or the amount of money that you’ve actually paid for the house against the outstanding mortgage, that determines how much money you can borrow and how much interest will be charged until that money is repaid.

To get a cheap homeowner loan, it’s best to make sure that your asking amount is well under the total equity that you have in your house.

Since the equity that you have serves as a guarantee that the loan will be repaid even if you are unable to make all of your payments, lenders are much more willing to grant low rates to people who are asking for significantly less than the value of their home equity.

You might even consider getting quotes for two different amounts, so as to compare the rates offered for the two amounts and see if there is a difference.

Make sure that any loan that you get will cover your needs, but remember that you’re just borrowing the money… don’t ask for more than you actually need, because it will be just that much more that you have to repay.

You may freely reprint this article provided the following author’s biography (including the live URL link) remains intact:

About The Author

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.