Eye Health Care Tips

Today's world is totally based around computers, TV and other electronic visual elements that affect eyes with their harmful rays .Eyes are the most essential part of the body and much sensitive too.

When you sit in front of the computer whole day watching TV, reading books or when your eyes get exposed in pollution, it affects eyes very adversely. It makes your eyes look over worked and tired. In the busy life schedule give some relaxation to your eyes, spend 15-20min every day on eye exercise, and wash your eyes daily with clean and cold water.

It is important to cure your vision before it take chance to develop bad effects. Prevention is definitely better than cure. So what you can do for your eyes?

• Give proper relaxation to your eyes


• Do not expose your eyes to sunlight, wear sunglasses


• Wash eyes with clean and cold water regularly


• Take a layer of cotton dip into cold milk and put it on your eyes it will give relax to your eyes and also remove dark circles.


• Cotton layer dip into Coconut oil and rub it out skin of your eyes it gives nourishment and shine to your eyes.


• Take regular eye exercises.


• Take proper vitamin containing food and green vegetables.


• See greenery till five minutes it will increase your vision.


• Minerals and many eyes drop product can take care of your eyes.


• Dust particle can be harmful for eyes so clean your eyes daily

Which supplements or vitamins are the best for eyes?

Vitamin A -it helps from many eye disorders; lack of vitamin A can lead to corneal ulcer and night blindness

Source of vitamin A: - carrots, sweet potatoes and liver and many green vegetables.

Vitamin C -need to reduce the pressure in glaucoma and slow down the affect of degeneration.

Source of vitamin C: - fruits like oranges, strawberries, rosehip and broccoli, bioflavonoid and much more.

Vitamin E - It helps in the risk of contracts and muscular degeneration.

Source of vitamin E - Some rich foods are Dry Fruits and nuts like almond and hazelnuts and many more

Zinc: -Found in red meat, oysters and wheat.

As you all are aware that "Improper Diet is the Root to many diseases". So First of all if you take care of your diet and take proper Vitamins and foods, mineral, water green vegetables, it will give a direct relation in nutrition and vision of your eyes.

What Is Glaucoma and How Does It Affect Your Vision?

Glaucoma is a disease that directly impacts the optic nerve of the eye, which slowly deteriorates over a period of time as a result. It's a debilitating eye disease that can have long-term affects on your vision if left untreated, such as permanent damage of the optic nerve and blindness.

Glaucoma is normally associated with other chronic diseases, most commonly diabetes. But it can also occur on its own in individuals who are older in age and who have experienced continual vision loss over the course of their lives. Glaucoma can arrive in one of two versions: open angle glaucoma or closed angle glaucoma. Open angle glaucoma occurs over time and is often slow and progressive. Closed angle glaucoma occurs suddenly, is often painful, and results in rapid vision loss.

Closed angle glaucoma is usually associated with severe eye trauma, but many people do not even know that they have open angle glaucoma because it affects the vision at such a slow pace. It is often hard to detect, especially in younger individuals. As it stands, glaucoma affects roughly one in 200 individuals age 50 and older every year. The symptoms of glaucoma are hard to define because everyone experiences some kind of vision loss as they get older. But if you have eye exams on a regular basis, you'll be able to stay on top of any changes in your vision that might be associated with glaucoma. If caught early enough, glaucoma can be treated properly so that long-lasting vision complications do not occur.

The treatment of glaucoma varies, depending on the ophthalmologist you have as well as your age and health condition. Some ophthalmologists prescribe intraocular eye drops to help sustain the pressure in your eye, which is often the cause of glaucoma. If the glaucoma is more severe, you may need to undergo eye surgery. Most eye surgeries are performed with a laser and provide temporary relief from glaucoma. Additionally, there have been many technological advances over the years that have evolved for the treatment of glaucoma. These advances often use innovative procedures to help treat the disease. With the rise of diabetes and other chronic diseases, there has been a direct increase in individuals diagnosed with glaucoma. Many diseases go hand in hand with glaucoma, so it's understandable why there has been a direct increase.

The bottom line is that the best you can do for your eyes is to take care of yourself. The healthier you are, the less likely you will be to develop glaucoma. Unless you have a genetic disposition to the disease, you should be able to maintain healthy vision for the rest of your life. Also, do yourself a favor and see you eye doctor on a regular basis. It's important to be aware of the symptoms of glaucoma so that you can identify it if it does occur. The best way to treat glaucoma is to catch it early so that it does not cause any major vision loss. The sooner you begin to treat glaucoma, the better of you'll be.

How to Improve Vision Without Glasses

Good eyesight is no longer the norm in the United States. Just over half of the population uses some kind of prescription lenses. Many other people have eye problems that they aren't even aware of. It is important to learn how to improve vision without glasses.

Continual tension and strain cause the eye muscles to tighten, and as a result, vision problems occur. Learning how to relax those same muscles can correct a variety of problems. A vision training program can teach the person the necessary relaxation techniques.

Palming is one of those techniques. Place your elbows on your desk and cover your eyes with the palms of your hands. Ideally you should see total blackness. Let your eyes, neck and shoulders totally relax. Do this for two or three minutes. You can do this as often as you need to during the day.

Don't forget to blink. Practice blinking rapidly. This helps to relax and rest the eyes, while at the same time helping to lubricate and cleanse them.

If your eyes are sensitive to the light, this exercise may help. First thing in the morning, stand in the direct sunshine with your eyes closed. Relax and allow the sun to relax your eyelids and the muscles around your eyes. Move your head from side to side, or move it slowly in a circle. Don't squint.

Myopia is the most common visual problem. It is usually brought on by eyestrain and emotional stress. One way to improve your sight is to hang a calendar on the wall and sit far enough away that the numbers can barely be seen. Take off your glasses and do the palming technique. Read each number. At first you may have to close your eyes and open them quickly to bring the numbers into focus. Repeat with each individual eye and then do both eyes together.

These simple suggestions can do a lot to improve vision without glasses. If you do them faithfully, you may find that in time you will no longer need your glasses. It is certainly worth a try.

Direct Support Professionals - The Important Roles They Play in Health Service Delivery

Direct Support Professionals constitute a workforce that plays an important role in the care, health delivery, and quality of life of millions of people in America. They represent those who do the essential of the job functions in human service organisations, especially among the developmentally disabled population, nursing homes, day treatment programs, and state institutions. Yet, their recognition remains muted, their pay stagnant; and it appears that they suffer different forms of stigma due, I dare believe, to the fact that the issue of disability and people with disability have not received the type of attention and respect they ought to have had. At some point or another every one needs assistance, no matter how rich, powerful, educated and healthy one might be. And direct care workers will always be needed. Direct care professions are very important but they seem to be faced with various forms of resistance. A survey of many direct care workers revealed that across the board compensations, career advancement and stability take a beating when referring to this segment of our population.

No amount of wealth and knowledge, or title is sufficient enough not to need someone else's support, help or assistance. At the same time no amount of personal achievement ought to be big enough not to lend support, give assistance or pay attention to the less fortunate. There needs to be a profound transformation within the direct care environment in order for people whose career is to provide support to other human beings to have decent wages and benefits, great recognition and career advancement.

Social change and transformation do not happen overnight and never smoothly. Without any doubt, there will always be resistance. Resistance is due to the fear of the unknown. It is due to a sense of comfort. But it is also due to ignorance. However, with education, true believers and visionaries in social change do not set any deadline while pursuing their ultimate change goals or objectives. They are not unrealistic either. They know they will face difficulties, opposition, rejection, disappointments and setbacks but they always press on. If they do not live to see the results of their fight, so be it, others will.

So, as social and human service workers, we must be fully engaged in our mission even though we may not see the complete fulfillment of our vision. To be clear, visionaries do not initiate a process and expect to see or live what they have their sight on. It is always for tomorrow, for future generations to continue, perfect the work, and reap the fruit of their labor.

Even as we get frustrated daily by the reactions or ignorance of the public to the field in general and to direct care positions in particular, we are partaking in the larger welfare system that is in place to bring about security, equal access to opportunities, and happiness for all.

Being fully engaged requires learning and requires relentless practice again and again. It requires patience and courage, yes courage because of all the setbacks, frustrations and difficult moments; but most importantly, however, it is our profound understanding of why we are doing what we are doing that will hold our head high, keep us together, and propel us forward as we envision a better world for our fellow human beings and for us all. It is central to everything that we do.

At some point or another, in one's lifetime, one will need some type of help. As human beings we are interconnected, interdependent and related by a moral contract. We are related by time, need and space.

Direct Support Professionals are those who, by virtue of their training, character and disposition, become necessary when a person has some type of disability or impairment and needs help. And they are there to ensure the needs of a person with disability are met. It is a profession that requires strong ethics, qualifications and dispositions, be they physical or mental. Direct Support Professionals represent more than a business force for an organization, they assist and get paid. They represent more than a physical or gender entity, a man or woman there to help. They become a valuable emotional strength for the disabled.

They become a disabled person's only solace and relief. They become family or the family a disabled person wishes to have had. Direct Support Professionals become a disabled person's protector, advocate and defender. He or she becomes the disabled person's voice, ears and eyes. In short, direct care workers represent the disabled person's interest at all times and all circumstances. Hopefully, understanding the value and importance of the direct care position will change how it is viewed not only by the public, government officials and politicians but also and more importantly by direct care workers themselves, their managers and other professionals in the human services field.

Hopefully more support will be given to human service organizations, their direct care workers who do the essential of the work, and as a result direct care workers will see their job and position in a different angle and will be proud of what they are accomplishing. It is the wish of every human service professional that the threats of constant budget cuts cease to hover over their valuable organizations whose revolutionary missions and visions are moving our society, nation and indeed the world to a completely different level of understanding and treating people with disabilities with dignity, respect and fairness.

Direct care workers or direct support professionals provide various types of services and support to individuals with disabilities, to the elderly, the sick, to our servicemen who protect us and some of whom returning home with certain disabilities, to retired doctors and lawyers. So, they occupy and play an important role in the care, stability and overall health of our society. The work of a direct care is very intense in terms of daily responsibilities and it can be extremely draining, physically and mentally. For instance, there are sites in human service organizations that function with the bare minimum of staff, dealing with behaviors from their individuals all the while keeping in mind the expectations of the agency.

In human service organizations, nursing homes, and social services much of what causes stress, neglect and abuse, poor performance and eventually a high turnover rate, is directly the result of overworked, underpaid, inadequately trained staff, and paradoxically, some and I repeat some poor management and supervisory styles and practices which go unchallenged and not reported to the executive team until and unless things go dangerously and publicly wrong and embarrassing. Obviously, in addition to the above, the rules and regulations added every year stifle and sap the environment causing unnecessary burden, fear and stress. Sadly, it is often those who have never worked, been associated and never directly dealt with people with disabilities who want to speak of the directions human service organizations have to take.

The field of disability, even with all the intellectual, medical and technological advances, is still victim of our collective silence and inaction to embrace it fully. Even though some of us have better human, professional and emotional dispositions to care for others, there seems to be a conscious laziness to try to learn more about the issue until it concerns us personally or someone very close to us gets affected. First and foremost, the regular budget cuts that government agencies subject human services to are here to highlight the point I am making. Everything, from new regulations to organizations' fiscal policies, what follow is the direct result of those budget cuts.

In the human services field, direct care staff get trained to administer medications, observe and assess their individuals, evaluate and make certain recommendations etc. In the process, they acquire a wide array of knowledge and skills, gather valuable information and get educated on health delivery, health administration and processes. They learn about medical and pharmaceutical issues that they take with them and pass on to their families and communities etc. Direct care staffs are taught to recognize signs of medical emergencies and to take actions in case of those emergencies by contacting their nurses or other medical professionals. When they transport their individuals to medical facilities they communicate with the medical staff of those facilities, hospitals or clinics. They provide various types of assistance such as behavior management in some cases, medical and social information in other cases that, often, doctors don't have or know. The paradox is the direct care staff sometimes is treated with condescension even as he or she provides assistance and gives valuable information to doctors, nurses and other professionals.

The work of a direct care staff is valuable beyond words. It is not limited to the basic daily functions performed at a residence or out in a community. It is multidisciplinary.

Yes, it is multidisciplinary in nature because it involves various areas: medical and health, diet and nutrition; educational and administrative, behavioral and psychological, recreational and social, it is financial and accounting etc. And we must be fully educated or trained in those areas as we will be put to the test every day and every time these areas involve our individuals.

It requires a high level of deep understanding without which those in the position will eventually suffer burnout, discouragement and devaluing what they do.

If we do not have the core understanding of our mission, our duties and responsibilities, then, we will fail in their fulfillment. We will fail our community; we will fail and betray our social contract. We all have a contract towards one another, if only a moral one. We have the obligation to assist, support and protect our fellow human beings but especially the most vulnerable, the elderly, the weak and the marginalized.

Throughout history there have been individuals, groups and institutions that have dared to challenge the resistance to positive change; whether for racial and religious, national equality or gender and social justice. How many times have we witnessed people of different races, professional backgrounds, and status, experiences and interest join hand in hand to denounce injustice, mistreatment and wrong?

The same applies to the field of disabilities. Courageous men and women, young and old, all races and cultures combined are working tirelessly every day to bring about positive and long lasting changes we so desperately need in removing the barriers that have held, for so long, a segment of our population, a group or a class of people.

As direct care staff in the human services, our mission is not limited to simply providing care. It includes participating in the larger public and social policies, in a welfare system whose primary goal is to provide security of all kinds for its citizens. We are partaking in creating an environment of human decency through our daily help, however minimal and modest it may seem. We have a workload that is overwhelming but we have a mission that is possible if we arm ourselves with the tools to succinctly explain what we are doing and why we are doing it, if we accept to train and educate ourselves on a variety of issues that are essential for our own good.

Direct care workers have the obligation to educate their communities, educate the public but more importantly educate and prepare themselves as well. How can we not when we have so much at stake?

We need to have strong intellectual and educational tools. By intellectual, I mean the sum of knowledge about the issues: knowing ourselves, our individuals, their history or backgrounds, their needs and conditions, our rules and regulations, our processes etc. in order to perform with the highest quality of professionalism, aiming for the most accurate and tangible outcomes.

In order to change how the public views the issues of disability and the importance of direct care work, we have to believe in what we are doing, and everything else will proceed easily from that belief.

Because it involves human beings, their values, emotions and what they have learnt or acquired over time, it is not going to be a one time exercise, nor is it going to be an easy and quick task. It is a continuous process that involves multiple various stages of learning and doing.

When it comes to our individuals not only does it involve learning to familiarize ourselves with their conditions, what may have been at the root of it all, accepting them and knowing that we must make every effort to keep our moral, intellectual and professional promise to them. Those efforts are essential to moving closer to the fulfillment of our mission. At the same time they involve helping people understand and work on preventing those cases of disabilities whenever possible.

It requires sacrifice. Yes, sacrifice. We all are sacrificial lambs for one another. Look around you and ask yourself whose effort, however small, contributed to making you who and where you are today.

Nothing in human history was achieved overnight. Every human endeavor and accomplishment went through stages of trials, errors and more sacrifice. In the end, it is those who stood strong, determined and educated who succeeded. Direct care workers are no different. They have to spare no effort to that end. They have to know the individuals they are working with. Only then will they truly appreciate their organization's mission and all the duties that come along with it. And only then will they appreciate their line of work and sacrifice.

If we look around, someone has sacrificed something to make us who and what we are today, who and what we shall be tomorrow. Whether it is our family or teachers, doctors or coaches, friends, neighbors or total strangers all have contributed to where we are today. Therefore, we must be willing to sacrifice our time, our resources and to do the same for those who are less fortunate to make it on their own. We will have impacted someone else's life in a positive way while impacting our own lives in ways that we have never imagined. We will have contributed to history. Everyone has to be part of it. Our time will come and go. Others' time will come and go. This is how mankind has functioned for years and generations. Whether we know it or not we will have participated, however minimally, in maintaining, improving and advancing mankind. Let us not belittle what we are doing. Let us not minimize our effort and sacrifice. It is our obligation to continue our work, improve and perfect it. It is our role to educate ourselves, others and the public.

Educating the public takes a long time, it requires explaining again and again. It involves strong advocacy. Direct care work, often not recognized, is demanding, overwhelming, and many times over, very frustrating. Yet, it is very rewarding. Direct care workers sacrifice time, effort and intellect to ensure the millions of people affected by disability have a sense of normalcy that many of us take for granted.

There is nothing to be ashamed of but much to be proud of. It is our mission to re-educate our families, friends, and communities on the importance and value of our work. What matters in the end, is a meaningful and productive life that we try to provide for our individuals. If we were in their shoes, imagine how we would be feeling. It is not the condition that they had hoped for and wished for themselves. It is not what their families have envisioned for them.

And, what good are one's education and training if they do not open the public eye and do not stir consciousness on the most central of human decency, helping another human being live a safe and productive life, to enjoy life and satisfy one's basic needs?

We are giving meaning to someone else's life. It equals participating in building and reinforcing the various social policies in place. We are participating in strengthening our social welfare system.

Often we hear politicians; officials in our various government agencies talk about public policies, social policies and so on and so forth. They may formulate those policies but in practice they are not necessarily the ones who implement those policies. It is people like us: direct care staff, nurses, trainers, police officers, firefighters, and others who implement those policies for the good of our communities and nation.

Throughout the country there are hundreds of human service organizations operating in the developmentally disabled population. Their main workforce are the thousands of Direct Support Professionals who provide various services ranging from medication administrations, behavior management, nutrition, community integration, and skills acquisition etc. Their roles in the health of our communities are of paramount importance. Therefore, it is high time this segment of the professional world be given much credit, respect, and recognition.

What Is Fusarium Fungus?

Fusarium fungus is a type of fungus that is commonly found in soil and plant material in subtropical and tropical locations. Somehow this fungus made its way into eye care products from a major United States eye care product manufacturer leading to serious complications for a number of unsuspecting patients.

If eye drop medications are not used for a period of two to three months after becoming infected with fusarium fungus, the infection can cause scarring of the cornea leading to blindness. Symptoms of an infection can include pain and redness of the eyes, sensitivity to light, excessive amounts of discharge coming from the eye, and blurry vision.

In April of 2006, a major eye care product manufacturer in the United States voluntarily stopped shipping one of its most popular contact lens solutions after federal health officials found it was linked to a fungal eye infection that caused temporary blindness. The CDC has reports of fungal infections in hundreds of patients across the United States, and health officials in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia have also received reports of contact lens wearers being affected with this type of fungal infection.

As if it were not bad enough to suffer a fungal infection of the eye, it is further complicated because the fungus can be difficult to diagnose. This is because in order to diagnose the infection, a lab culture is needed and not all doctors know how to do this or how to read it. The fungus can also grow so slowly that it can weeks for a culture to be returned. On top of all of these issues, the medication needed to treat fungal infections is not always stocked at pharmacies and many times has to be special ordered.

Fusarium fungal infections can be extremely serious and can cause a variety of symptoms such as eye strain, irritation, pain, and swelling, to more serious issues such as permanent corneal damage which can lead to permanent blindness. These issues can cause people to have to undergo serious medical procedures such as corneal transplants in order to have some of their vision restored.

The major manufacturer appears to be aware of the concern with its products, but failed to report a number of fungal eye infection cases that were linked to their contact lens solutions. Because of this failure, which was a direct violation of the law, consumers were not immediately made aware of the problem and continued to use the product as sales were not suspended as they should have been.

The FDA sent the manufacturer a condemnatory letter because the fungal infections were serious in nature, were not properly reported as is mandated, and was directly related to manufacturing conditions at one of its plants. An inspection revealed a large number of quality control problems, as well as a number of violations for the manufacturing process in general.

If you or someone you know is a contact lens wearer who developed a Fusarium fungal infection because of using a contact lens solution, you should understand that you have legal rights that need to be protected. The best way to go about doing this is to consult with a personal injury attorney who specializes in product liability. These professionals are quite skilled in this area of the law and know how to get the most compensation for your injuries.

Compensation can be sought for a variety of issues such as past, present, and future medical bills, a loss of income, loss of quality of life, for permanent disabilities and loss of vision, as well as pain and suffering. Punitive damages can also be sought since the manufacturer was negligent in reporting the infections early on and warning the general public about the imminent threat.

Personal injury attorneys who specialize in product liability will review all of the details of your case and will manage it appropriately from start to finish. This will include gathering medical information, data from other people who have suffered the same consequences, as well as talking with experts and officials to determine what was known by the manufacturer and when. Your attorney will make a determination as to who should pay for damages, and will take proper steps to make sure all those responsible are brought to justice.

Fungal infections of the eye are not something to take lightly as serious; potentially lifelong consequences are possible. When such injuries are suffered because of the negligence of a product manufacturer it is extremely important to bring forth legal action to not only protect yourself, but to also protect others from falling victim to a similar situation in the future.

Personal injury attorneys work on a contingency basis in most cases. This means that no payment is due in advance or as your case progresses through the legal system. In most instances, no payment is made until the time your case is settled. Removing the financial burden from a stressful ordeal such as this can mean so much and will allow you to focus your attention on more important matters such as your personal recovery and well being.

Since these cases are quite complex and are often based on a great deal of information and many small details, they should not be filed without the professional assistance of a qualified personal injury attorney. There are many criteria that must be followed as well as various statutes of limitations that need to be met. Missing just one detail can cause your case to become disqualified or dismissed entirely. This is not something that you should risk.

While a personal injury attorney cannot undo the harm that has been done because of a Fusarium fungal infection of the eye, they can help you to rebuild the broken pieces of your life and move forward in a more positive direction. Taking the appropriate steps to stop product manufacturers from harming innocent consumers is extremely important. Manufacturers should never be allowed to get away with knowingly harming people and must be accountable for their actions.

Prescription Eyeglasses - What You Need to Know

When dealing with prescription eyeglasses, you have several ways of filling those prescriptions. Most ophthalmologists or optometrists can fill them as well as stores such as Lens Crafters, Sears Optical, Wal-Mart Optical and J.C. Penney Optical for starters. How do you get prescription eyeglasses you may ask? The whole process starts with an eye examination. During this examination, your doctor will examine for glaucoma and other eye diseases. You will also be given sight tests to determine the range of visual correction that you will need. Based upon these tests, you will be given a prescription for a pair of eyeglasses.

Now, you have your choice of where to fill the prescription as noted above. You can also get your prescription eyeglasses filled at many different stores online such as Frames Direct or Zenni Direct as well as Peerless Optical and Go -Optic. These are just some of the places online that you can fill your prescription with. Now depending upon what the vision correction is, you may need just regular glasses, bifocals, trifocals or just reading glasses. You can easily find what you need and fill your prescription at the same time at a variety of places both online and offline.

With prescription eyeglasses, these glasses will be made to order using special equipment in order to create the lens and will be fitted to an eyeglass frame for a custom order. The time that it takes can range from one hour in certain circumstances to over two weeks in others. This time is also variable and dependent upon where you go to get it filled. For most places such as Lens Crafters, they can do most in an hour. This can be the exception rather than the rule of thumb. Any way you look at it, you will be filling your prescription eyeglasses.

Once the order for the prescription eyeglasses is filled, you will need to return to the place that you filled the order to receive your glasses. A trained person will fit the glasses to you and adjust them to fit. This ensures that you have a good fit and can see properly. They will also talk to you about care and cleansing of your glasses for maximum benefit as well as explain any warranties that may be on the glasses themselves. You will also need to purchase a glass case if you do not have one or if you are not given one when the prescription is filled.

Tips to Taking Proper Eye Care

Nearly half of the Americans suffer from some kind of eyesight problems. They usually wear glasses or contact lenses to correct the problem. So the eyesight problems need to be monitored, and that comes at a price. People suffering from such problems require frequent visits to the doctor, and follow medications provided by them. Such corrective measures need to be adopted for a longer term.

The function of the eye is to sense light, and then transmit those signals to the brain through the optic nerves. The image is registered by the brain, which acts as per the requirement. It need not be said that eyes are one of the most important organs of the body and that's why "Prevention is better than cure" -this adage suits to the treatment of eye problems to the T.

Timely care for the eyes prevents degeneration of the muscles, which normally happens with age. So those who make it a habit to visit eye doctors regularly can prevent such problems. Eye care and nutrition has a direct correlation. Eye is protected by food which has a high content of Vitamin A and E. In this connection, it must be kept in mind that:

o Carrots are known for Vitamin A.

o Spinach has a lot of Vitamin E, which is an antioxidant, and slows down the degeneration of muscles and eyesight deterioration.

o Vitamins C and E strengthens the connective tissues of the eyes.

o Minerals like zinc are very good for the eyes.

o Aloe Vera prevents infection of the eyes and improves eye immunity.

o Red Blood Corpuscles are important for the eyes, since they help the brain and the nervous system in functioning properly. Vitamin B-12 is very beneficial in this case.

o Extracts of bilberry, mahonia grapes and aspalathus are also very good for the eyes.

Much like physical exercise is required for keeping the body fit and healthy, the eyes, too, need exercise for proper eyesight. So you must spend a few minutes behind eye exercises.

Given below are some suggested exercises for the eyes-

Fold the arms while keeping the hands under the armpit, and stand, while relaxing. In a circular motion, push the shoulders back and repeat the exercise.

Use your chin to touch the underside of your neck and then move back the head as far as possible. Then rotate the head in a circular manner and touch it with the right and the left shoulders. Then repeat the same exercise in the reverse direction.

Move your head from one side to another without any corresponding movement in your body. Then keep the head still, and move the eyes upwards and downwards. Then move them right and left.

Put your index finger in front of your eyes and concentrate fully on it. Just as you are concentrating on the index finger, try to view things which lie a little far away, and repeat the exercise at least 20 times, if not more.

Keep in mind the above eyecare tips and enjoy a healthy and clearer vision.

Vision India - 2025 (Expectations of an Ordinary Person)

Introduction

The way one lyrist has written, "Hum logo ko samajh sako to samjho dilbar jaani; jitna bhi tum samjhoge utni hogi hayerani"...in a nut-shell we Indian's are most "unpredictable". When the expectations are low...we have performed really well and contrary to that when expectations were very high...most of the time we have failed to live up to those expectations.

As we are going to complete 58 yrs of independence on 15th August 2005, it is a pleasure to share with you the facts about India, Vision India 2025 (From Ordinary person's point of View), and India in 21st Century.

From Independence...till now

India was a British colony. It earned its independence from the British on 15th August 1947. Day before that Pakistan which was created as a result of partition of British India was established and flanked on two sides of India: West Pakistan which is called today Pakistan, and east Pakistan, now an independent state called Bangladesh. After its independence, the political leaders of India adopted the liberal democratic system for the country.

Since its independence, India has transformed a lot. When India attained independence in 1947, its population was around 400 million people. Now there are billion people in India. India is the largest democracy in the world. It has the biggest number of people with franchise rights and the largest number of Political Parties, which take part in election campaign.

Before its independence, India was never a single country but a bunch of different entities. Many predicted that India, because of diversities in its cultures, religion, languages, castes, manners, local histories, nationalities and identities, would not survive as a single democratic country, but would break up into smaller countries.

Since independence, India had many political problems. During independence the most burning issues were the riots between the Hindus and Muslims while the Sikhs were siding with Hindus. Another issue was convincing the Princely states not to declare independence or join Pakistan but to join the Indian Union. India also had a few wars with its neighbors on border issues.

India also has many internal problems. Different communities with different identities - regional, language, caste, religion - demanded different rights for their communities. Some communities demanded more autonomy for their cultures within the Indian states. Others demanded autonomous states within the Indian Union, while the others demanded to be independent from India.

With all its problems India survives as a single state with democratic character.

How much do you know about India? (India - Fact File)

Location: Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

Population: 1,080,264,388 (July 2005 est.)

Population Growth Rate: 1.4% (2005 est.)

Life expectancy: 64.35 years

Sex ratio: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Composition of Religion: Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.1% (2001 census)

Languages: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language

Administrative Break-up: 28 states and 7 union territories

Executive Heads: President A.P.J. Abdul KALAM (since 26 July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT (since 19 August 2002)

Head of government: Prime Minister Manmohan SINGH (since May 2004)

Economic Overview: India's diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of services. Services are the major source of economic growth, though two-thirds of the workforce is in agriculture. The UPA government has committed to furthering economic reforms and developing basic infrastructure to improve the lives of the rural poor and boost economic performance. Government controls on foreign trade and investment have been reduced in some areas, but high tariffs (averaging 20% in 2004) and limits on foreign direct investment are still in place. The government has indicated it will do more to liberalize investment in civil aviation, telecom, and insurance sectors in the near term. Privatization of government-owned industries has proceeded slowly, and continues to generate political debate; continued social, political, and economic rigidities hold back needed initiatives. The economy has posted an excellent average growth rate of 6.8% since 1994, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers. Despite strong growth, the World Bank and others worry about the combined state and federal budget deficit, running at approximately 9% of GDP. The huge and growing population is the fundamental social, economic, and environmental problem. In late December 2004, a major tsunami took at least 60,000 lives in India, caused massive destruction of property, and severely affected the fishing fleet.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $3.319 trillion (2004 est.)

Important Years for India, since independence

1947: India gains independence at the stroke of midnight on Aug. 15. Hours before, Pakistan is born. As many as 6 million people cross the communal border in a two-way exodus. Rampages among Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs claim a million lives.

1948: Spiritual leader Mohandas "Mahatma" Gandhi is shot dead Jan. 30 by a Hindu extremist. An advocate of non-violent political action, Gandhi had campaigned against British rule and sectarian violence for two decades.

The fighting stops in Kashmir; the disputed territory belongs to India.

1951: India's first Five-Year Plan is initiated.

1961: Indian troops move in to liberate Goa from the Portuguese.

1962: Indo-Chinese hostilities break out on the Tibetan border.

1965: Political tension rises with Pakistan over Kashmir. India proclaims Hindi the national language.

1967: Drought and major famine strike India, especially the Bihar region.

1971: India goes to war against Pakistan, recognizes the independent state of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan).

1974: Nuclear tests are performed in the Rajasthan desert.

1975: PM Gandhi is accused of electoral crimes. A state of emergency is declared across the country, restricting political and individual rights.

1977: State of emergency ends. Cyclones plague the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu regions.

1984: Sikhs occupy the Golden Temple compound in Amritsar. On June 6, Indian troops storm the temple. On Dec. 2, a leak at the Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal kills 2,000 and leaves millions affected by chemical poisoning.

1987: Indian peacekeeping troops are sent to Sri Lanka to deal with Tamil insurrectionists.

1990: Singh announces plans to reserve places for the lower castes in the public service. Riots erupt across the country.

Hindu militants attempt construction of a temple on the site of the former Babri Masjid mosque in Uttar Pradesh. A procession to the site leads to thousands of arrests. Clashes between police and Hindu militants occur throughout Northern India.

1992: India's worst financial scandal, involving state-owned commercial banks, leads to a major slump on the Bombay stock market.

Sectarian violence erupts after Hindu extremists level the 16th century Babri mosque at Ayodhya on Dec. 6. The violence is the worst seen since Partition. The government's offer to build a mosque and a Hindu temple at the site fails to appease both sides.

1993: Hundreds are killed when bombs go off in Bombay public buildings. Four days later, a bomb ignites in Calcutta. Pakistan denies complicity.

1995: The World Bank allocates a $980 million loan, its largest ever, to aid Indian bank reforms.

2002: Communal riots in Gujarat, hundred's of people were killed.

Vision India, 2025 (From an Ordinary Person's Point of View)

1) Ensure dignity, Self-Respect and Pride for each individual, irrespective of age, gender, region or religion.

2) Drinking Water, Food, Cloth, Shelter and education for all.

3) World Class infrastructure: roads, airports and railways.

4) Every year there is a loss of billions of rupees due to flood; only solution is "Unification" of all rivers.

5) Only one caste (Brotherhood) and one religion (Humanity), across the length and breadth of the country.

6) No "reservation", no subsidiary, no "special privilege" and no discount, on the basis of Region, Religion, Community, Profession and Community.

7) Minimum education (Graduate), Minimum Administrative Experience (7-10 yrs) and retirement age (67 yrs) for all politicians. Also, annual appraisal system for all ministers.

(These are the few points, I am able to pen down; however I have not mentioned anything about security and foreign policy...because as an ordinary person above mentioned things are of more importance than anything else)

India in 21st Century

Everyone recognizes that the twenty-first century is the Century of Knowledge. Nations, which have mastered the production of knowledge, its dissemination, its conversion into wealth and social good and its protection have assumed a leadership position in the world today. But it must be recognized that knowledge without innovation is of no value. It is through the process of innovation alone that new knowledge can be created. It is innovation, which converts knowledge into wealth and social good.

India was a leader in innovation several centuries ago. In fact, our innovations were diverse and pioneering. They included

1. Remarkable town planning,

2. The use of standardized burnt bricks for dwelling houses

3. Interlinked drainage systems

4. Wheel-turned ceramics and solid-wheeled carts.

5. The dockyard at Lothal in Gujarat is regarded as the largest maritime structure ever built by a bronze-age community.

6. The discovery of zero and the decimal place value system by Indians dates back to the Vedic period.

7. Our pioneering work in algebra, trigonometry and geometry was truly outstanding.

8. Indian innovations in medicine, especially in Ayurveda, not only aimed at the cure of diseases but, more importantly, on the preservation of health.

9. The innovations in surgery included pioneering efforts in laprotomy, lithotomy and plastic surgery.

10. The iron pillar at Delhi, which testifies to the achievements in metallurgy some 1500 years ago, is truly inspirational even today.

Indian civilization was characterized by scientific thought, capabilities and techniques at levels far more advanced than others.

In spite of this great heritage and record of accomplishments, why did India fall behind in the ensuing centuries? When the scientific and industrial revolutions took place in the West a few hundred years ago, there was a period of stagnation in India. The lack of development over this period was a result of a hierarchical approach, irrational subjective thinking, and build up of superstitions and superficial ritualism. We have lost the leadership position. This cannot continue into the twenty-first century. We must regain this position with determined action.

Our confidence in building the new innovative India of our dreams stems from our major successes in the arena of many technological innovations that have made such a difference to the nation. Some prominent examples include

the blue (space), green (agriculture), white (milk) and gray (software) revolutions. Let us just take one example.

1. The Indian space program, for example, has designed and sent into space a series of satellites that, among other things, comprise the largest domestic communication system in the Asia-Pacific region.

2. It has also developed a range of launch vehicles, the most recent being a geo-synchronous launch vehicle with an 1800 kg payload. These developments have helped in the application of space technology for national needs in communication, meteorology, broadcasting, and remote sensing. All of this has been achieved in a relatively cost-effective manner. The Indian space programmer's current annual budget is equivalent to US $450 million while NASA's budget, in comparison, is over $15 billion.

3. Other innovations serving specific Indian needs include C-DOT digital switches, CorDECT cost-effective wireless-local-loop products, the Simputer, which is a low-cost computer and the Param supercomputer.

4. The last is an example of "denial-driven innovation," illustrating that India has the potential to tackle highly advanced technological issues, given the proper motivation.

Conclusion

Yesterday was good since then we have traveled a lot; covered a lot of distance, but still there are miles to go. Building a nation is not easy. We have to "learn from our past and focus on future". The way ahead is not easy...is not a bed of roses. Instead of pulling each other, lets grow together...lets be a "Team India".

On this independence, this is all I have to share...to write.

Have a great day and take care of yourself.

Awaiting your feedback and comments,

How To Create A Trade Show Promotional Plan

When operating a trade show booth, it is very important to have a promotional plan in place. Without one, the promotional aspect of the business can be complete and utter chaos. That is certainly something you don't want. You want a plan where everything is organized because nothing works without some kind of order. That is why there are processes to virtually everything and trade shows are definitely not an exception. There is a process to setting up the booth and there needs to be one for promoting the booth as well, so a promotional plan must be put in place.

Promotion is the biggest part of your marketing. You have to promote your booth before the show, at the show, and even after the show. So many trade show exhibitors do not have a solid plan in place that takes care of all three of these areas. The reason is because of the budget. Some believe that they cannot do such promotion on their budget. It is true that money will decide how much promotion can take place, but the budget can serve has a good guide as to what can be done and how much of it can be done. A little is definitely better than none at all. One sale can be the difference between making money and not making money, so every little bit helps.

When creating your promotional plan, it is a good idea to have a theme in mind that can be remembered by those you are promoting to. This should become a significant part of your promotional plan. You want to determine who it is you need to target and you may even want to consider having different approaches for the different types of people you are aiming for. You want to do such things as broadcast faxes, direct mail, PR sponsorship, advertising, and utilize the internet as much as possible. Of course how much of this you do depends on your budget, but try to touch each area at least a little bit so that you can get the word out in many different areas.

When using such methods as direct mail, you want to make your mailing stand out from the rest that ends up in the mailboxes of potential customers. You don't want them to glance at it and automatically think, "Junk mail." This means your money is going to go straight to the trash. Also, in any of your marketing approaches, you want to provide your prospective customers with an incentive to check out your business. Everyone has busy lives and sometimes an incentive is the only thing that is going to bring them to you. You also want to highlight what is new in your business because people take an interest in things that are new versus the old. People are always eager to learn about those things that are new, so be sure to provide them with the information they crave.

Also, sending press releases into local newspapers is a great way to get exposure. Public relations are very cost-effective and are very successful when generating sales and inquiries. That is why you want to send catchy and newsworthy press releases to the local papers that focus on what is new with your business such as a new product.

Another part of your promotional plan should be to have everyone trained and ready to communicate with anyone and everyone that walks up to the booth. This means customers, press, and whoever else shows up. By having your people prepared, promotion can be consistent, organized, and successful.

How to Generate Marketing Keepers, Not Sleepers - Part II

Marketing, for many small businesses, is the biggest expense you've got. Why? Because after tossing hundreds if not thousands of dollars into campaigns, promotional items and other material with the hopes of catching your markets eye, you are rewarded with a big fat bill and no new clients.

But it doesn't have to be that way...

If you find yourself tossing your hard earned small business dollars into direct mail campaigns, newsletter mailings or other client acquisition or retention efforts that just don't give you a good return, it may be that your marketing is putting your audience to sleep!

Follow the steps below (and be sure to check out the previous steps from last week) to make sure your marketing is an investment that is printed, posted and acted on:

3. Brand Engagement

Whether you are developing a special offer or simply use your marketing as a means for creating awareness, you can't omit your brand message. Ultimately, it's your brand message that will create loyalty and common ground with your audience.

What does your brand stand for?

It alarms me that few small business entrepreneurs can answer this question in just a few sentences. My friends, a logo does not a brand make and believing that simply placing your logo on all of your pieces is your brand message is a tell tale sign of brand delusion.

During a conversation with a highly skilled designer the conversation turned to branding. A terribly conservative designer (and person), she chose to use the image of a rather round, balding man as her 'brand persona.' She thought using the image of this jolly fellow would give her brand recognition plus it brought humor to her marketing.

When I asked her to describe her brand, she stammered a bit and uttered a rendition of what virtually every business owner in the free world states, "I care about my clients, and do my best to make them look good in order to help them succeed..."

Honorable but says very little about her brand.

After just a few weeks working together, she quickly realized that her brand essence, the beating heart of her business and what truly drives her, had yet to be communicated to anyone.

She has since retired Mr. Jolly and replaced her brand imagery to reflect what her brand is all about. Here's what she now say's about her brand:

"Every design I create enables me to leave my mark as an artist and human being. My designs are created to help my clients leave their mark. Together, we leave our imprint on the world expressing our passion and purpose..."

Although her former Mr. Jolly campaign was memorable, it did not create brand engagement because the brand she was projecting was not a reflection of her own. A funny and jolly brand experience is what she promoted but is not what her clients actually enjoyed when they work with her.

Brand inconsistencies are the kiss of death in a world of smoke and mirror promises. Your clients and customers are looking for not only good information (in the form of products and services) they are also looking for connections. Falsely representing your brand is a sure way to disengage before you ever get to connect.

So let me ask you again...what does your brand stand for? And, are you projecting that essence in your Marketing? Your ability to engage your audience with your brand depends on it.

4. Call to Action

If you're not inviting your clients and customers to take a next step with you...what's the point?

A major marketing blunder is to either have no call to action or have more than one.

The rule of thumb is to always ask for a next step - this is a rule that is true in selling and marketing. But remember, only one action at a time.

In a recent email campaign, the marketer (a coach) had a deliciously intriguing subject line, which led me to open her message. The promotion was simply delightful and nearly had me ready to whip out my credit card. As I read a little further, she made a major marketing blunder by also promoting two other events in the same message.

Because she now had me lured into another offer, I lost my connection to the first message. You see, even experienced marketers react to over stimulation by making no decision at all.

In your marketing, do not be tempted to offer it all up once; your services, your free consult, your upcoming event. Focus your message on one key action you want your audience to take and help guide their next step with you.

Begin to think of your marketing as you would an event. That flyer or postcard you're sending out is an event worthy of getting your audience excited about - that's where your images and copy come into play. But like any event, you've got to give them a reason to join you!

Aren't you more excited about attending an event when you know there's great food, door prizes, good company or some other personal reason you must RSVP? Look at your marketing in much the same way and you'll entice your audience to pick up the phone to reserve their spot, pick up that special report or take advantage of your time sensitive offer.

The days of unimaginative, irrelevant, cookie cutter marketing are over! By implementing a few key marketing principles you're more apt to keep your message out of the trash.

©Copyright 2007 Liz Pabon. All rights reserved.

9 Things That Hinder Business Growth

Have you ever wondered why some small businesses take off and grow very rapidly and others stay the same for years and years?

Small business growth takes strategy and strong leadership. Some new business owners achieve a certain level of success, sit back and fail to do what is necessary to grow the business.

9 Things That Hinder Small Business Growth

1. Lack of Vision

All businesses need a written vision statement to help direct their planning and decision making. If there is no clear vision, a business can waver with no specific direction. Lack of vision is detrimental to any organization. How can you plan, or have a business strategy without knowing where you want to go?

2. No Strategic Plan

Every organization needs strategy and should have a strategic plan to map out steps to achieving the strategy. The strategic planning process helps to keep an organization's vision fresh and moving forward. Strategic plans need to be updated every few years as the market, environment and focus changes.

3. No Written Goals

Not having SMART Goals, and accountability for achieving those goals, is a sure way to impede the growth of an organization. Goals are what make a strategic plan happen. Not writing goals, and having a structured performance management process to achieve those goals, is an invitation for business failure.

4. No Desire to Grow

Believe it or not some businesses don't have a desire to grow. With growth comes growing pains and sometimes business owners aren't comfortable making the necessary changes for growth. Hiring the first employees and dealing with human resource management issues is an example of a growing pain. Other areas of growing pains are delegating and trusting others to do things the way you would do them. Growth requires a commitment from the top of the organization.

5. Not in Tune with Customer Needs

This is where many organizations get stuck. The world is changing at such a fast pace that unless an organization understands customer expectations and puts systems in place to take care of their customers, competitors will do it for them. Ensuring good customer service is critical to long term success. The fact is, customers pay the bills and employee salaries so you'd better find out what they want and give it to them!

6. Failing to Reinvest Back In the Business

When a business is just starting out it is sometimes difficult to reinvest back into the business, but not doing so can affect business growth. Keeping up with changing technology and updating facilities are examples of areas that can consume considerable resources but are important to meeting customer expectations. Clean, updated facilities can have an impact on customer perceptions and customer loyalty.

7. Failing to Delegate

As a small business grows, it becomes more and more important to learn the art of delegation. It is important for business owners to develop employees, delegate and trust others to complete tasks. Small business owners can quickly get overwhelmed with trying to manage every aspect of the business and learning to allow others to help is critical at this stage of growth. Successful small businesses have learned the skill of developing, delegating and letting go of lesser things so they can continue to drive organizational vision.

8. Not Collecting and Believing Data

Collecting, analyzing and making decisions based on data is another critical aspect of small business growth. Confronting "the brutal facts" (as described in Good-to-Great by Jim Collins) is one of the most important aspects of managing a small business. Understanding what the data is telling about the business can lead to changes in practice or improving processes. All organizations should have established critical success factors to help monitor and track performance toward goals.

9. Not Having a Clear Problem Solving Process

The reality is, every business has problems and as soon as one problem is solved another problem takes its place. That is what management does - solves problems. As small businesses grow, problems are created that need to be solved. As an example, outgrowing office space creates the problem of finding new office space. Finding new office space creates the problem of planning out the layout of the new space. Once a layout of new space is done, planning to move offices needs to be done. Organizations need to have structured processes for planning and problem solving. Having good leadership, coupled with good processes, can result in successful problem solving.

Lastly, thriving small businesses understand how to remove those things that impede growth and put a lot of focus and energy into strategy, planning and goal setting.

Should You Use a Direct Mail Campaign?

Direct mail is not a new idea, but it can be a very effective part of your overall marketing plan. Today, when consumers are bombarded by images on their televisions and computers, there is significant value in being able to hold a written message in your hand for thoughtful consideration. The television and radio can easily be ignored, and spam filters has made a lot of email marketing a thing of the past. It is also one of the most cost-effective forms of advertising; with direct mailings you can reach a targeted audience for little money. Direct mail also has the advantage that you choose who you send your message to based on specific criteria that makes those people more likely to want your product or service.

The key to success with direct marketing is to create a plan and stick to it. You need to consider how large an audience you wish to reach and plan appropriately. A reasonable direct mail campaign averages a 3 to 4% response rate, an excellent campaign 5 to 10%. Plan to make your mailings large enough to bring in the numbers you will need to make it profitable. Think about who is most likely to want or need your product or service. Your list can be narrowed down based on any number of factors like age, income, location, etc. You can create your list in a number of ways depending on who your target audience is. It can be as easy as retrieving a list of past clients, using government statistic sites, or employing a reputable list provider. Make sure your list is "clean" - addresses are up to date and accurate. You don't want a lot of return mail.

Once you know who you are mailing to, you need to decide what you will be sending, and how often. You can send something as simple as a postcard, or elaborate as a pop-up brochure with confetti. Remember, most people open their mail by the garbage can, so make your mailer something that catches the eye or makes the holder want to open it. For example, different shapes, bright colors, or "fat" mail - something bulky in the envelope that feels unusual - can all be used to make your mailing something your target audience notices and remembers. (You know when you get those envelopes that look like a check is enclosed? You open it even if you know it isn't real, don't you?) If you're unsure what to use, consult with your printer, they have plenty ideas for effective marketing pieces and the costs associated with each one.

The frequency of your mailing can make a big difference on the effectiveness of your campaign. Don't send one mailer out and then forget about it. At least five mailings spaced on a one to five week cycle is preferable to get a strong response. The farther apart the mailings, the slower and fewer responses you will get. It's your decision on what you feel will be the best way to reach out to your target audience and inform without being annoying. For many, keeping up with the mailers is the most difficult part of their direct mail campaign. Substantial lists can make it a chore to print, address, stamp and mail your marketing pieces. It's easy to put it off until later, then later becomes never and your campaign becomes useless. A good printer will let you set up a schedule in advance and take care of the mailing for you. While this costs a little more than do-it-yourself, you gain it back in saved time and completed work.

Track which pieces get the best response for future direct mail campaigns. You may want to cut a particular mailer for your next campaign, or add a similar piece to get better responses.

A direct mail campaign is a smart, economical way to get your message out to a large number of potential clients/customers who are specifically suited to your product or service. A good list of addresses, interesting marketing pieces, and a reliable schedule are all you need to have a successful campaign.

Transformation and Vision Part 1 - Living the Questions

Have you noticed how much we worship destination? At the gym, your destination is physical perfection. At the mall, your destination is material abundance. At work, it's recognition or promotion. In our daily lives and habits, the destination is fulfillment, peace, and a perpetual veneer of having it all together.

We want our days to be filled with the effortless choices of veggies over that tube of raw cookie dough (I cannot confirm if this is from personal experience or not), morning meditation over a frantic push to get out the door on time, exercise over yet another hour of TV, positive ideas over negative reactions -- and we mercilessly punish ourselves for those times when we don't meet this barrage of personal and cultural expectations.

We resolutely set our sights on the end. We think, If I could just be there, then things would be better. We long to be at the point where we have already arrived, and tend to resent the people we perceive to already have achieved that thing we want, and we continue in cycles of attempting, failing and beating ourselves up.

There are times when simply doing the thing you want to do is enough; a popular and effective method of mind training involves "acting as if" -- that is, doing or thinking the things that someone who has already arrived would do or think -- and once we start to feel the benefits of, say, daily exercise or good study habits or eating well, we then become more motivated to keep it up. I think there can be great value in this when it arises out of a healthy and life-giving place in us.

But I would argue that a person who has reached that point of "acting as if" has also already faced some tough questions, clarified her priorities, and is being drawn forward by a vision that truly excites her. She is not dragging herself unwillingly into compliance, and she is not pretending to be something she does not really want to be deep down.

We tend to avoid looking into the direct gaze of questions, with their blank stare and often unnerving quiet. There are so many of them, and they are content to just sit there, like a house full of strangers, patiently waiting for us to introduce ourselves.

The poet Rainer Maria Rilke said:

...I would like to beg you to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.

The answers, from this distance, seem pristine, and the landscape between here and there is often messy, uncertain and usually uphill. It's easier, frankly, to fantasize about the destination without having all those uncomfortable conversations with the questions, to throw ourselves at trying to get there, and then to stack the blame when we take wrong turns or wind up back at the beginning.

But the questions themselves, apart from their answers, have much to teach us. They don't really care about appearances; they just show us who we are. Unlike our fantasy destinations, which might frown on our less-than-stellar moments, the questions simply hold up a mirror and ask, "Well, okay, now what?"

The questions, when we are willing to be with them, show us the more compelling components of our journey. This is where we discover not just, What do I want? but:

* Do I actually want this? (you'd be surprised how often the answer is "no")

* If so, then why do I want this? If not, why not?

* Are the reasons for wanting this reasonable or sustainable? Is this a reflection of my true self? (for example,

wanting to impress, placate or please others is an unworkable motivation over the long term)

* What am I missing in my life that I feel would be filled by this? And if I had it, would that space truly be filled?

* What about success frightens me?

* What are some of the benefits, pleasures or escapes I get out of not doing this, things that provide comfort or

security or that release me from being responsible for my own health and happiness? (This can be an

extremely difficult conversation to have, but it really is at the heart of all lasting transformation: we have to

honestly understand what is driving us)

* What are some things that I don't want to face that I will have to honestly confront or let go of if I really want

to achieve this goal?

* What kinds of things genuinely motivate and excite me?

Really, questions are as closely linked with vision as answers (perhaps even more so considering that often our idea of the "right answer" from this standpoint might not be actually what's truly best for us) because they reveal our sometimes complicated motivations and show us the best and most sustainable ways to navigate the landscape towards true transformation. Walking with the questions allows something real to unfurl in our lives, to make decisions that sit right in our gut and that work, to truly grow into what we were meant to become. As uncomfortable as they can be, questions deserve our respect, our listening, our time, and our welcome.

Seven Main Complications of Cervical Spondylosis

Cervical Spondylosis, also known as cervical syndrome, mainly includes cervical osteoarthritis, hyperplastic cervical inflammation, cervical nerve root syndrome and cervical disc prolapsed. It is a type of degenerative disease pathological change. Now, more and more people, especially ones working in front of computer often, are suffering from cervical spondylosis. So we listed 7 major complications of cervical spondylosis hoping that you pay more attentions to your own health.

1. Dysphagia: a sense of obstruction when swallowing, a few people have such symptoms as nausea, vomiting, hoarse voice, dry cough and chest tightness.

Reasons: the esophagus becomes narrow when cervical vertebra has a direct oppression to the cervical esophageal posterior wall. And soft tissue around the esophagus makes stimulus-response when the bone spurs are forming too fast.

2. Visually Obstruction: it is shown decreased visual acuity, eye pain, photophobia, tearing and uneven pupil size, especially a narrowing vision field or sudden dropping in vision, even blindness when very severe.

3. Carotid-cardiac syndrome: it is shown precordium chest pain, chest tightness, cardiac arrhythmia and ECG ST segment change, easily misdiagnosed as coronary heart disease.

4. Hypertension Cervical Spondylosis: it can cause blood pressure increasing or decreasing, in which high blood pressure is more known as the "neck hypertension."

5. Chest Pain: it is shown pains of unilateral pectoralis major muscle and breast which have a slow but persistence performance, when examining it may cause pressure pain of the tenderness pectoralis major.

6. Paraplegia: an early show is as follows---numbness, pain and limp in lower extremity, and some patients may walk like the feeling of riding the cotton, individual patients may accompanied by disorders or defecation and urination such as frequent urination, urgent urination, voiding disfunction or incontinence.

7. Cataplexy: it is shown a sudden falling down when standing or walking and return sober when falling. Such patients may be accompanied by the vegetative nerve functional disturbance symptoms like dizziness, nausea, vomiting, sweating.

In an Aging Society - Are Senior Citizens Driving Safely?

Remember when you couldn't wait until you were old enough to drive. Getting a driver's license gave us an opportunity to experience a new freedom we did not have before. For those of us with two parents working, driving meant taking ourselves and our siblings to after school activities and work. Driving took us to a level of independence that we had not experienced before. In an aging society of drivers, those very same feelings exist in many today. Driving gives us a sense of independence and freedom, the ability to go out and socialize, go to work or to church. Safety issues are a concern as many move into the golden years. The life expectancy of seniors is increasing. There are more active senior citizens out on the road today than ever before. Since we all age differently, many aging adults, can drive into their seventies and eighties. As we age, the risks for having a serious car accident that requires hospitalization rises. Statistics show that fatal car accidents rise after the age of seventy.

If you know an aging adult driver who is experiencing difficulty with driving, it is important to carefully monitor the situation. This article can help you determine whether you should take steps to encourage the senior to stop driving.

An aging society and risk

Some key risk factors that affect our aging society are:

Vision declines affecting depth perception and ability to judge speed of oncoming traffic. Night vision becomes a problem as our eyes loose the ability to process light. By age 60, you need three times the amount of light that you did at age 20 in order to drive safely after nightfall. We also become more sensitive to bright light and glare. Signs and road markings can be difficult to see.

With age, flexibility may decrease as response time increases. A full range of motion is crucial on the road. Turning your head both ways to see oncoming traffic, moving both hands and feet can be difficult for those with chronic conditions such a rheumatoid arthritis, or Parkinson's disease, heart disease and diabetes.

Older adults in an aging society will often need to begin to take medications. Certain medications, as well as a combination of medications and alcohol, can increase driving risk. Be aware and careful about medication side-effects and interactions between medications. It is important to talk to your pharmacist to be aware of interactions that could affect your driving safely. Some medications cause drowsiness.

Aging affects our quality of sleep, resulting in daytime sleepiness. Falling asleep at the wheel is a major concern for those that dose off during the day.

The beginning of dementia or mental impairment can make driving more dangerous. A decreased mental capacity or decrease tolerance to stressful driving situations such as complex and confusing intersections may cause delayed reactions to sudden or confusing situations on the road. An aging brain and body does not have the same response time as we did when we were younger.

Look for warning signs

There are multiple warning signs that an aging adult is becoming or is an unsafe driver. Some of them are small, but if there are multiple concerns it may be time to talk about your concerns with the aging driver. Warning signs of an unsafe driver include

• Abrupt lane changes, braking, or acceleration.
  


• Increase in the dents and scrapes on the car or on fences, mailboxes, garage doors, curbs, etc
  


• Trouble reading signs or navigating directions to get somewhere
  


• Range-of-motion issues (looking over the shoulder, moving the hands or feet, etc.)
  


• Becoming anxious or fearful while driving or feeling exhausted after driving
  


• Experiencing more conflict on the road: other drivers honking; frustration or anger at other drivers. Oblivious to the frustration of other drivers towards them
  


• Getting lost more often
  


• Trouble paying attention to signals, road signs, pavement markings, or pedestrians
  


• Slow reaction to changes in the driving environment
  


• Increased traffic tickets or "warnings" by traffic or law enforcement officers
  


• Forgetting to put on a safety belt

If you are concerned about an aging adult driver, closely monitor their driving before deciding whether they need a refresher coarse on their driving skills or approaching them to give up their driver's license altogether. Ongoing and open communication is important to addressing the issue of driving. Studies conducted by Harvard and MIT show that while most drivers preferred to discuss the issue with their spouse, doctor or adult children (in that order), this is not the case for everyone. The right person may not necessarily be the most forceful or outspoken one, but rather someone whose judgment and empathy are especially trusted by the driver.

Talk with other family members, your doctor, and close friends to determine the best person for "the conversation." Remember driving signifies independence, freedom and being self sufficient to active senior citizens. Realize you may meet with resistance and the aging driver may become defensive. Emotion may get in the way of a rational conversation. Express your concerns and give specific reasons for those concerns.

The goal is to get the aging driver be part of the decision making process

You may begin by asking your loved one to make some concessions because of your concerns.

• Taking a driver refresher course
  


• Not driving at night
  


• Suggest they not drive on busy thoroughfares or during rush hour
  


• Taking shorter trips
  


• Not driving under adverse weather conditions


Encourage a visit to their primary care physician or pharmacist to go over medications that may affect driving skills. Your physician may be able to recommend a Driver Rehabilitation Specialist. This individual can assess driving safety by an office exam and driving test and make recommendations regarding special equipment or techniques that can improve the driver's safety.
Consider ways to decrease the need to drive. Check out alternatives to shopping by car, including:


• Arrange for home deliveries of groceries and other goods, and try to arrange for home visits by clergy, medical and personal care providers, and government service providers.
  


• Use financial services that don't require bank visits, like automatic bill paying, direct deposit, and bank-by-phone or on-line banking services.

Fears of those living in an aging society

Fear of isolation and decrease in socializing is a real concern for the aging driver. It is important to keep spirits high as the aging driver makes the adjustments to becoming a non driver. Be in tune to their need for fun, volunteering, work and religious activities. Create a transportation plan that can make it easier for the aging driver to give up driving. You can create a list of friends and family that are willing to drive, contact the church and the local Area Agency on Aging in regards to transportation programs in the area.

Some seniors may adjust better if they can keep their own car, but have others drive them. Their own car may feel more comfortable and familiar, and the sense of loss from not driving may be lessened. Remember, baby boomers have grown up walking out the door and being able to go where they want to go. We need to keep the aging adult driver and those on the road with them safe.

Components Of Body Language

"The body never lies. " ~ Martha Graham

Research has shown that the words we use in face-to-face communication only contribute 7% of the message we send when we communicate with others. Wow! So what can speak louder than words? The answer is our body language. It accounts for a whopping 55% of our message. Tone of voice takes the rest. Don't think it's true? Well think again. Let's say I am telling a story and you approach me, yawn, roll your eyes, shake your head and walk away. Did you say a word? No. Did I understand what you wanted to say? Yes. You did not like my story and found it boring. Amazing! You delivered your message without saying a single word.

There are several components of body language: eye contact, facial expression, body movement, and personal space.

Making eye contact

Eye contact is one of the most important ways in which we communicate. Just by making eye contact you can change the way the customer perceives you. When you establish good eye contact with a customer you are seen as trustworthy, confident and knowledgeable. It also shows that you want to listen to what the customer has to say. People who avoid direct eye contact are presumably nervous, lying, distracted or just not interested.

However, don't overdo it. Don't stare at the customer; you'll scare them away.

Facial expression

A genuine smile is the best facial expression. It makes you feel better even on the days when you are feeling under the weather. With a smile on your face you look friendly and approachable. Smiling makes other people feel good too. Smiles are contagious and it's the best way to put your customer in a good mood and open up.

Sometimes, however, the customer is upset and angry, so in this case listening to them with a smile on your face would aggravate them. Read your customer's body language and respond accordingly.

Body movement

The way you are facing the customer tells a lot about you: Are you interested in what the customer has to say? Do you care about their problem? Are you happy to see them? Standing straight, nodding and giving the customer your full attention shows that you are actively listening. Leaning on the wall, turning your body away and multitasking indicates that you don't care.

Hand gestures are very important. How many of us were shown the index finger when asked for directions? Doesn't it feel disrespectful and rude? It's like you were shown to a corner for something that you did wrong. I encourage open-handed gestures, which are professional and inviting.

Personal space

It's important to pay attention to the space between the customer and yourself. If the customer is moving away, don't try to move closer, it's a clue that they wish to have more space to communicate comfortably. Generally the comfortable distance is between half a meter to a meter. Do keep in mind though - what's considered comfortable personal space in one country can differ in another.

Body language is a powerful tool in communication. Understanding and using it appropriately will make you successful in business situations and personal relationships.

Organizational Alignment - A Worthwhile Investment

When was the last time you considered whether your business organization was tightly aligned? It is never too early to evaluate your business organizational alignment. Whether your business organization is a 1 - 50 person concern, a 51 - 200 person concern, or employees over 1000 people; the organization that invests in a healthy discipline of alignment, is an organization that leverages a critical success factor. Alignment within your business organization has a direct and indirect influence on your bottom line and your competitive momentum. . Alignment within your business organization should be structured, systemic, and organic. A well defined and executed alignment effort synergistically includes every facet of your value chain including your business mission, vision, values, core competencies, strategies, staff, customers, products, vendors, and sociopolitical conscientiousness. Let's take a deeper look at defining, valuing, measuring, and achieving the right alignment for your business organization.

Defining Organizational Alignment - Organizational alignment refers to the existence (or absence) of a consistently clear understanding of the organization's purpose throughout the business organization's entire value chain. That clear understanding of purpose includes the stated mission, vision, values, core competencies, strategies, policies, procedures, staff, products, customers, vendors, and sociopolitical conscientiousness. Traditional definitions of organizational alignment were limited to processes, strategies, and communications. Such a narrow view of alignment today can lead to catastrophic problems for a business organization. The press has highlighted examples in recent years regarding the abuse of laborers in foreign suppliers to U.S. companies triggering sociopolitical issues for Wal-Mart®, GAP®, and JCPenney®. These companies missed a facet of their alignment strategy by overlooking certain vendors' production methods. Contemporary definitions of organizational alignment take on a value-based holistic approach evaluating the business organization from its core values to secondary and tertiary outside relationships encompassing vendors and suppliers.

Valuing Organizational Alignment - Organizational alignment can bring increased value to your organization through cost reductions, goodwill, employee morale, shareholder dividends, and customer loyalty. An aligned organization is more tactically and strategically efficient contributing to lower costs from errors, missteps, and competing priorities. Customers can sense that a business organization is well aligned through their interactions with the business organization. Consistently good customer experiences will create repeat and incremental business increasing the value of a business organization's goodwill. Employees and shareholders also benefit from the aligned business organization through profit gain sharing, the potential for sustained growth, and mutual commitment. Southwest Airlines® represents a terrific contemporary example of a company with a penchant for alignment and an appreciation for the values associated with organizational alignment. Southwest Airlines® is known for their fierce employee loyalty and perceived tight alignment from its customers, industry, and shareholders.

Measuring and Evaluating Organizational Alignment - Many of the tools your business organization needs to evaluate alignment already exist. If your company commissions routine customer and employee surveys, consider adapting these tools to also provide a periodic measure of alignment. If your company routinely tracks employee turnover, consider adapting this process to include information gathering related to perceptions of alignment or misalignment. If you organization acquires market research data, consider adapting that process to provide data reflecting customer and market perceptions of company, brand, and product alignment. So often, businesses overlook the opportunities to leverage the value of these tools to comprehensively and collectively evaluate survey results in light of alignment opportunities. Instead, surveys are viewed independently, and in narrow isolation, to determine faults in marketing, HR, operations, or brand recognition. Leadership Pinnacle provides a more extensive discussion and tools on measuring and evaluating organizational alignment as a gratis concierge service for those interested in deeper guidance on organizational alignment. Visit http://www.leadershippinnacle.com and click on "Pinnacle Solutions".

Achieving and Sustaining Organizational Alignment - Achieving and sustaining organizational alignment is easier said than done. At the core of the initial and ongoing success of this effort must be:

oA passionate, deep, and abiding commitment throughout the "C" suite to define, achieve, and sustain organizational alignment throughout the organization as a part of the organization's business strategies.

oDeveloping a benchmark measure from which to compare future measurements.

oDeveloping a valuation approach to affirm the tangible and intangible value of alignment focused efforts and the return on investment.

oAn honest appraisal of measurement results including current state, future state, gap analysis, and action plans that consistently complement the businesses iterative strategic plans.

oChange management integration of organizational alignment strategies, tactics, and measurements to assure continued alignment throughout the change process. Additionally, change management must develop contingency plans to detect and remediate alignment issues before, during, and after change occurs. Leadership Pinnacle provides a more extensive discussion on contemporary change management practices as a gratis concierge service for those interested in deeper guidance on integrating change management and organizational alignment practices. Visit leadershippinnacle.com and click on "Pinnacle Solutions".

oAn independently budgeted and supported high level iterative strategic initiative to create and maintain organizational alignment and not consider alignment merely an adjunct effort.

oA clear and compelling array of communications approached targeted to promote the alignment initiatives and results.

To merely assume that organizational alignment will "take care of itself as long as we're making bundles of money", is building a dangerous house of cards. On the other hand, a company that organically integrates organizational alignment initiatives into its core structures can eventually create an inertia that perpetuates alignment to a point that the effort is barely visible.

A final word of caution at this point is well noted. While enthusiasm and euphoria for alignment is well deserved, a tolerance for some non-conformity is part of a healthy alignment initiative. Misplaced or overemphasized alignment initiatives can create animosity, stifle creativity, and limit innovative thinking resulting in an organization with a cultish feel for employees. Every business organization has its uniquely collective corporeal personality and need for individuality. Most business organizations want to be viewed as tightly aligned and leverage their corporate identity as a market differentiator. Fortunately, the non-conformists are usually few and far-between. Cautiously and respectfully give fair-minded attention to those with a tendency to stray from the pack. Separate the malicious from the accidental or innovative event, take appropriate action, and continue moving forward with your alignment initiatives.

The rewards for an aligned organization are represented internally and externally. Internally, your staff remains committed, loyal, self-directed, efficient, innovative, and focused. Your organization has a better chance of remaining viable and producing shareholder dividends. Externally, your customers, suppliers, competitors, industry analysts, and general community acknowledge and respect your business organization as a well aligned enterprise.

Breene, R.; Nunes, P.F.; Shill W.E.; Timothy S.; (October 2007); THE CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER; Harvard Business Review, Vol. 85 Issue 10.

Happy Employees Are Productive Workers - Boosting Morale in the Workplace to Reduce Labor Costs

Studies have shown that organizations with high morale and happy employees are more profitable and have lower labor costs. The success of an organization is dependent upon upper management, which sets the overall mood of the company. High morale is achieved when 70 percent of employees report they are satisfied with their current job. The same study indicates companies who nurture their employees achieve higher productivity and satisfaction levels.

Why Traditional Management Isn't Profitable

Traditional management has proven deadly for the world's largest corporations. This type of management often holds the belief that employees are simply replaceable resources, and are supposed to succumb to the orders of their superiors. Employees have their own reasoning when joining an employer, however; the post-hire relationship is not what was expressed in the original job offer or interview. Low retention and satisfaction ratings are indicative of the management and not the company in general. The traditional paradigm treats employees as criminals or servants, rather than being part of the solution.

The Carrot Principle

Improving employee relations not only boosts morale, but it increases productivity and lowers labor costs. The Carrot Principle studied 200,000 people over a period of ten years and identified a direct correlation between managers who gave constructive praise and employee satisfaction (morale). Managers who motivate their employees with achievement and purpose-based recognition products received higher returns on their assets, operating costs, and return of investment.

The principle relies on productivity, engagement, retention, and customer satisfaction to lower labor costs and increase morale. The driving force behind the carrot principle is that the methods do not require a significant amount of money. The principle is culture-based and team-oriented, fostering genuine relationships that lower labor costs.

Lowering Labor Costs

When organizations need to lower labor costs the terms "layoffs," "terminations," and "buyouts" come to mind, however; by increasing workplace morale, companies save thousands of dollars each year. Employees who are satisfied and happy at their current job are less likely to leave their position for another company. Considering hiring expenses are astronomical, high retention rates reduce costs associated with recruitment, training, lost productivity, new hire, and lost sales. Retention rates among current employees may fall if the department is forced to pick up the slack, as positions are not filled immediately. It would cost $150,000 to replace an employee who made $100,000 per year, including benefits.

Addressing Morale Issues at the Top

When surveyed regarding workplace morale, most employees blamed their immediate supervisor, manager, or overall company structure. While managers have more autonomy and responsibility, they do not have the right to belittle their employees. Despite their past positions, managers need to be good leaders more than anything else. Beyond the basic job description, managers need to communicate the company's vision, energize staff, build trust, and develop genuine connections with their coworkers.

The role of the manager is much different than it was twenty years ago, as there has been a general shift in employee relations that reduce labor costs. The modern workplace culture is solutions-based, with employees working to achieve a common goal. Communication amongst employees and managers should be open, honest, and genuine, with both parties actively listening to each other. More importantly, managers need to clearly identify their requirements and needs in a friendly manner. Dictatorship has no place in the modern workplace, as managers built trust and gain an employee's loyalty.

Mentoring Employees

Increase productivity and build trust simultaneously by encouraging managers to coach their employees. Coaching is a friendly technique that provides employees with a means to improve their work and increase performance levels, which reinforces long-term job security. Mentors interact with their employees by engaging them during lunch, on breaks, or after work in a friendly environment. While intimate fraternization is cost prohibitive, mentors are encouraged to get to know their employees on a semi-personal level.

Foster the relationship by providing each employee with individual attention, as they need to feel they are part of the equation. Lower labor costs by keeping the conversations professional and enhancing their skills as an employee. Consider creating a "career track" for your employees, which helps them develop personal and professional goals. Discuss their current skills, and encourage them to develop new skills by taking professional development courses. Keep the communication open by asking employees for their input whenever possible, especially at larger company events where it will be noticed by other executives.

You can lower labor costs by thinking of your employees as regular people, asking them about their daily lives and their families. For larger organizations, consider adding an employee of the month column that highlights some of their professional - and personal - accomplishments. This is a great way to encourage employees to meet their personal fitness goals, for example, which reduces health care expenses. However, keep in mind that it's advisable to avoid playing 20 Questions or getting too personal with employees.

The Cost of High Morale

Employee mentoring, incentive, and recognition programs significantly lower labor costs and are far less than what a company would spend to hire new employees. There is a direct correlation between low satisfaction and employee retention, which indicated that those less happy at work are more likely to leave their current position for a different job within the same industry. The truth is, most employees want working relationships with their managers that foster collective thinking for the greater good. Cheerful and happy workers are excited about their job and want to do their best, thus increasing productivity while lowering retention rates.