How to Write a Love Letter

Since this Sunday is Valentine's Day, this article from The Art of Manliness seems very timely:

We’ve previously discussed the idea that every man should strive to be a romantic lover, and how the date is one of a man’s best tools for wooing a lady. A man’s other major tool in the romance department is the love letter. As long as love (and writing utensils) has existed, so has the love letter. It has been the go-to way for millions of men throughout history to confess or reiterate their feelings of love for another.

Plenty of women, of course, have and will continue to write love letters. But as the sex that has historically been the “pursuer” in the relationship and often has trouble vocally expressing their feelings, writing love letters has traditionally been the purview of men.

It’s not always easy to express our feelings to our significant others. We’d rather show our love through actions. We feel that our love for someone is manifestly obvious, because after all, don’t we vacuum the house, and mow the lawn, and make them their favorite pancakes every Sunday morning? Our actions show that we’re faithful and true, and to us it feels like this should be enough.

But it’s not quite that way for a woman. Women definitely appreciate our acts of love, but their brains are also quite a bit more language oriented than ours. They want to hear the words behind the actions. They want to know exactly what’s in our hearts.

But it’s hard to not only find the right words to express how we feel about someone, but to also make it flow and sound real purty. It’s especially difficult when you’re sitting down with someone and trying to remember exactly what you wanted to say. Enter the love letter.

So, can't you just send a text or email?

Love letters were definitely more popular in the past when soldiers were off fighting the Big One and men left on trips that took them away from their love for months or even years at a time. With the rise of modern means of communication, love letters, and letters generally, have fallen into disfavor.

But as we talked about in our letter writing post, letters have special properties that no modern form of communication can duplicate. A handwritten letter is something tangible that we touch and hold and then pass to another to touch and hold. And they are preserved and cherished in a way that text messages or email never will be.

The love letters you give your wife or girlfriend are testaments in the history of your love. They constitute a record of your relationship that she’ll hold onto for the rest of her life (unless of course you break her heart and then the letters will give her the satisfaction of having something to burn or line the bird cage with).

Your love doesn’t have to be far away for you to write a letter to her. A love letter is appropriate even when you’re sleeping alongside your special someone every night. It’s a chance to express your feelings in a more ardent way than you do on a day-to-day basis.

A woman cannot hear too many times that’s she beautiful and that you love her. They’ll never get sick of it. They want to know that you still feel the same way as you did when you first met, heck, the same way you felt last Monday. When high-profile cases of infidelity are so often in the news, a lady can be forgiven for wanting regular reassurance that she’s still the only one for you.

Now that you know why you should write a love letter, how do you actually go about writing one?

1. Start off by stating the purpose of your letter.
2. Recall a romantic memory.
3. Now transition to a section about the things you love about her. 
4. Tell her all the things you love about her.
5. Tell her how your life has changed since meeting her.
6. Reaffirm your love and commitment. 
7. End with a line that sums up your love.

Let's wrap this up with some final thoughts:

Hopefully, you are now fully inspired to write your lady a romantic love letter. One need not wait until they are nigh unto death to make their feelings known. Each day could be your last; tell her how you feel right now.

And if you are single, write a love poem to hone your romantic writing skills.

Interesting days

Today - Umbrella Day, Plimsoll Day and Cream Cheese Brownie Day

Tomorrow - Fat Thursday, Peppermint Patty Day, Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day, Get Out Your Guitar Day, Get Out Your Guitar Day, Pro Sports Wives Day, Satisfied Staying Single Day, Make a Friend Day and White Shirt Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Flirting Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Jell-O Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Great American Pizza Bake 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Condom Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Feb 7 - Feb 14: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Feeding Tube Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Freelance Writers Appreciation Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Children of Alcoholics Week

Next Wednesday - Random Acts Of Kindness Day, World Human Spirit Day and My Way Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 15 - Feb 21: Random Acts of Kindness Week

Feb 14 - Feb 21: Nest Box Week

Feb 14 - Feb 20: Kraut and Frankfurter Week

March 10 - Pack Your Lunch Day, International Wig Day, International Bagpipe Day, Blueberry Popover Day, Skirt Day, Mario Day and Day Of Awesomeness

Week long celebrations:

Mar 7 - Mar 13: No More Week  

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Women in Construction Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Procrastination Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Peace Corps Week

Time Never Stands Still

Today's blog post is from Harvey Mackay. For some reason my email doesn't have a link to the online article.

“How do you explain the relativity of time?” the professor was asked.

“Well,” she replied, “if I am rushing to catch a plane, and the check-in clerk is so slow that I miss my flight, the extra two minutes don’t mean much to him but they sure make a difference to me. That’s relativity.”

Time is one gift that we are all given equally. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. The only variable is how many years we each have. And that alone is reason enough to make every minute count.

Have you ever wondered where all your time goes?

The average person spends seven years in the bathroom, six years eating, four years cleaning house, five years waiting in line, two years trying to return phone calls to people who aren’t there, three years preparing meals, one year searching for misplaced items and six months waiting at red lights.

That’s nearly 30 years and doesn’t include a lot of what you might need or want to do. That’s why prioritizing your time should be a top priority.

February is National Time Management Month, a perfect time to develop a plan to ensure everything you do is moving you in the direction of your goals and limiting the distractions that prevent you from realizing them. Do a quick audit of your day to consider whether you’re working hard or smart.

I didn't realize that it was Time Management Month until I read this! The calendar I normally use didn't have that on it. 

I’m a time management freak, so anything I can do to save time is important to me. That includes returning phone calls at the end of the day, being specific in leaving messages when I’m available to prevent telephone tag, calling ahead to confirm an appointment and even the best place to park to get going quickly. Time is money. I can get more money, but I can’t get more time.

The best advice, don’t waste time.

Benjamin Franklin said, “If we take care of the minutes, the years will take care of themselves.” One minute doesn’t seem like much; however, never underestimate the cumulative effect of each minute we live.

Let’s suppose, a minute is worth one penny. You see a penny lying on the street but pass it by because it is hardly worth the effort of leaning over to pick it up. But if you double that penny every day for a month, at the end of 31 days you would have 536,870,912 pennies. Translated into dollars, that’s $5,368,709.12.

The value we place on each minute of every day will have a cumulative impact on the remainder of our lives. Maybe that’s why Franklin also said, “Waste neither time, nor money, but make the best use of both.”

Peter Drucker, the late management guru, said, “Time is the scarcest resource, and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.

“Everything requires time,” he added. “It is the only truly universal condition. All work takes place in time and uses up time. Yet most people take for granted this unique, irreplaceable and necessary resource.”

My friend Wally “Famous” Amos sent me this story years ago. A man was working on a Saturday when he realized how he had lost track of his life’s priorities, including spending time with his family. He did a little arithmetic and figured the average person lives about 75 years. He multiplied 75 times 52 and came up with 3,900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person will live. With his age, he figured if he lived to age 75, he would have 1,000 Saturdays left, so he went to a toy store and bought 1,000 marbles and went home and put them in a large jar.

Every Saturday after that he took one marble out and threw it away. He found that watching the marbles diminish helped him really focus on the important things in life.

There’s nothing like trying to gauge your time here on earth to get your priorities straight. When every minute is precious, you learn to use them to the fullest. As humorist Bob Murphey said, “The only person to succeed while horsing around is a bookie.”

A little boy, late for school, asked God to help him get there on time. He ran, stumbled and breathlessly said, “God, I asked you to help me, but don’t push me.”

Don’t let your time push you. Take the time to manage your time.

Mackay’s Moral: You can save time, but you can’t bank it.

Interesting days

Today - Pizza Day, Safer Internet Day, Toothache Day, Read In The Bathtub Day and Extraterrestrial Culture Day

Tomorrow - Umbrella Day, Plimsoll Day and Cream Cheese Brownie Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Flirting Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Jell-O Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Great American Pizza Bake 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Condom Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Feb 7 - Feb 14: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Feeding Tube Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Freelance Writers Appreciation Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Children of Alcoholics Week

Next Tuesday - Innovation Day, Tim Tam Day, Do a Grouch a Favor Day and Almond Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 15 - Feb 21: Random Acts of Kindness Week

Feb 14 - Feb 21: Nest Box Week

Feb 14 - Feb 20: Kraut and Frankfurter Week

March 9 - Meatball Day, Barbie Day, Organize Your Home Office Day, Crabmeat Day, False Teeth Day, Get Over It Day, Panic Day and Unique Names Day

Week long celebrations:

Mar 7 - Mar 13: No More Week  

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Women in Construction Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Procrastination Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Peace Corps Week

 

Influence and Persuade Through Human Hacking

Today's blog post is based on a podcast from The Art of Manliness:

When we think of hacking, we think of a tech-savvy dude breaking into computer systems to steal data. But hackers can also take the form of “social engineers” who get what they want by building rapport and penetrating psychological defenses.

My guest is an expert and pioneer in the area of human hacking, and shows individuals and companies the weaknesses of their security systems by breaking into their offices and computers, not by bypassing pass codes and firewalls, but simply by walking in the front door, and knowing how to ask for and receive access from the humans who run the show

His name is Chris Hadnagy, and he’s the author of Human Hacking: Win Friends, Influence People, and Leave Them Better Off for Having Met You, which takes the social engineering principles con men and malicious social hackers use to breach security systems and steal data, and shows the average person how to use them for positive ends in their personal and professional relationships. Today on the show, Chris shares how assessing which of four styles of communication someone prefers can help you better connect with them, why you should approach every interaction knowing your pretext, the keys for building rapport, and the difference between manipulation and influence. We end our conversation with tips on the art of elicitation — how to get information from someone without directly asking for it.

Here are the highlights from the program:

• What is human hacking?
• Using the DiSC assessment to figure out which of 4 types of communicator someone is
• Using “pretexting” to decide how to approach a conversation
• How to build rapport with others
• How to influence, persuade, and have hard conversations with your kids
• Why offering choices leads to greater compliance
• The difference between manipulation and influence
• How to get information from someone without asking for it directly by having an “elicitation conversation”
• Why it’s helpful to outline a conversation before having it

I'm not real familiar with DISC, but it looks like it's similar to the four temperaments of MBTI. This picture ties the four DISC categories, the four temperaments and the 16 MBTI types together:

These both are similar to BANK...you can take a BANK assessment here...it only takes about 90 seconds. BANKwill sort the four types into a hierarchy...so you can see which is your primary type, secondary, etc. The letters BANK correspond directly to DISC, which makes to easy to correlate between the two. BANK, as well as some others use colors also, but the colors don't matchup...but that's ok.

In the podcast, Chris talks about labeling the top as direct, the right side as people, the bottom as indirect, and the left as tasks, you'll come up with basically this diagram:

I'm a "C", although I'd label myself as contemplative as opposed to some of the other "C" terms.

Go ahead and take the BANK assessment or a DISC assessment (there's a link on the AoM website) and then see if you can figure out the type of the people in your life. Have you been communicating in their preferred style?

Interesting days

Today - Clean Out Your Computer Day. Molasses Bar Day, Opera Day, Laugh And Get Rich Day and Kite Flying Day

Tomorrow - Pizza Day, Safer Internet Day, Toothache Day, Read In The Bathtub Day and Extraterrestrial Culture Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Flirting Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Jell-O Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Great American Pizza Bake 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Condom Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Feb 7 - Feb 14: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Feeding Tube Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Freelance Writers Appreciation Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Children of Alcoholics Week

Next Monday - Hippo Day, Annoy Squidward Day, Singles Awareness Day and Gumdrop Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 15 - Feb 21: Random Acts of Kindness Week

Feb 14 - Feb 21: Nest Box Week

Feb 14 - Feb 20: Kraut and Frankfurter Week

March 8 - International Women’s Day, Peanut Cluster Day, Proofreading Day and Fill Our Staplers Day

Week long celebrations:

Mar 7 - Mar 13: No More Week  

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Women in Construction Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Procrastination Week

Mar 7 - Mar 13: Peace Corps Week

 

Stop Confusing Habits for Routines: What You Need To Know #TBT

Today's blog post was originally published last year:

What's the difference and does it really matter?

A lot and apparently so.

Today's blog post is based on an article from getpocket.com:

Habits are hot. Self-help articles extol the power of habits and books on the topic sell by the millions. Yet, like many pop psychology topics, the conventional wisdom about the effectiveness and application of habits is frequently outdated, misapplied, or flat out wrong. Building habits to change behavior the right way can be a wonderful tool to improve your life. But false notions about what habits are and what they can do can backfire. 

The idea of building a habit is very appealing. The popular notion that tasks can be put on autopilot makes habits sound effortless. Wouldn’t it be great if you could simply make a habit out of doing tasks like exercising, journaling, paying bills, or running a side business? Unfortunately, you can’t. Habits don’t work that way.

I know I've written about habits before but I may have passed on inaccuarate information. I'll leave it up to you to go back and decide for yourself.

So, what are habits?

According to Dr. Benjamin Gardner, a habit researcher at King’s College London, “habit works by generating an impulse to do a behavior with little or no conscious thought.” Habits are a type of learning. By forming a habit, the brain frees the mind to do other things without deliberation. 

As a child, you needed reminding to wash your hands after using the toilet. Children must focus on the task of turning on the water, dispensing the soap, lathering up, and cleaning their hands. As an adult, you do this automatically (hopefully) and you’re able to think about other things as you take the steps to wash your hands.

Many of the things we do in our morning routine are habits. We usually brush our teeth the same way at approximately the same time most days. We usually shower at about the same time and in the same way. I know showering is the best time for me to solve all the world's problems and I don't have to worry about forgetting to wash my hair and/or body while I'm doing it.

Can we turn any activity into a habit? The short answer is no:

By definition, behaviors that require concentration, deliberation, or extended effort, are not habits. This isn’t just semantics. We shouldn’t try to form a habit out of a task that can never become one. If we do, we will be sorely disappointed. 

When we fail at forming a habit, we tend to blame ourselves, rather than the bad advice we read from someone who doesn’t really understand what can and cannot be a habit. 

If behaviors that require conscious thought, like cleaning your apartment or writing in a journal daily, are not habits, then what are they? They are routines. A routine is “a sequence of actions regularly followed.”

To change a behavior you need to understand the difference between a habit and a routine. Otherwise, it's like using the blunt end of a screwdriver to bash in a nail. It’s possible, but you’re likely to give up or hurt yourself. You should have used a hammer instead. 

How do we tell the difference between behaviors that are good candidates to become habits and those best left as routines? To answer that question we need to start with a more fundamental question, “Why do we do anything?”

In other words, what motivates us? I like this quote on motivation:

For years, we thought that Sigmund Freud’s “pleasure principle” is the basis of human motivation. He promoted the idea that behavior is driven by the desire to seek pleasure and avoid pain. Behaviorists like B.F. Skinner popularized the notion that reinforcements and punishments drive conditioned behavior. 

But, we now know that motivation is not driven by pleasure and pain. Rather, neurologically speaking, motivation is the desire to escape discomfort. All human behavior, even the itch of desire to do something pleasurable, is in fact prompted by pain. It’s called the homeostatic response. 

Our brains get our bodies to do what they want through discomfort. When we’re cold, we put on a coat. When we feel hunger pangs, we eat. Does feeling warm again or eating food bring pleasure? Of course. But that good feeling comes after we’re spurred into action by an uncomfortable sensation prompting us to take action. 

The same rule applies to psychological discomfort. When we feel lonely, bored, or uncertain, we act to relieve our emotional disquietude. We might see a friend to relieve loneliness, or watch a show on television when we’re bored. We may look up something online to satisfy our uncertainty -- all because we seek to escape these uncomfortable sensations.

If we're motivated by avoiding discomfort, then does the above quote still apply? Or would motivation then be automatic?

If all behavior is prompted by discomfort, then habits and routines must follow the same rule. How and when we feel the discomfort of doing, or not doing, a behavior is critical to understanding the difference between habits and routines. 

Recall that part of the reason people find the idea of building a habit so appealing is the notion that they can put unfun tasks on autopilot. Tasks like paying bills or doing the laundry annoy us. They hang over our heads until the pain of not doing them gets to be too much. However, if some magic laundry-folding fairy appeared and told you not to worry about the task, you’d happily go about your day. Turns out your brain comes built in with just such a magic pixie, it’s called procrastination. 

When we procrastinate, we tell ourselves we’ll avoid the task for later. Doing so is a telltale sign the task is a routine and not a good candidate to become a habit. 

I'm really good at procrastinating!

Imagine intending to wash your hands and the water suddenly shuts off. If you’re in the habit, not doing the behavior would feel strange, even uncomfortable. Even if the magic habit fairy told you your hands had been cleaned and there was no need to wash them, it would take you several days, if not weeks, to undo this habitual behavior. 

I experienced just such a predicament when the water to my bathroom sink was shut off because of construction in my building. I needed to use the kitchen sink to wash my hands for a week. Even though I was fully aware that the bathroom sink wasn't going to work, I kept turning it on day after day out of habit. Every time I lifted the faucet handle and no water came out, my habit was interrupted and I’d get annoyed. I knew the faucet wouldn’t work, but I kept attempting to do the behavior with little thought. 

A habit feels uncomfortable when we don’t do it, exactly the opposite is true of routines. This is where people get into trouble confusing habits and routines. They expect routines to be as effortless as habits, while the only thing about routines that’s easy, is how easy they are to skip. Not doing an effortful task, like doing the laundry or writing in a journal, is easy to forget because such behaviors are not a habit, they are a routine that requires effort.

How can we form habits? Here are some things you can do:

• Start with a Routine
• Hold the Time
• Welcome Discomfort
• Pre-Commit
• Do It Right

Check out the article and this post I wrote about the Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg.

 BTW - there's more to come on this subject tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Interesting days

Today - hank A Letter Carrier Day, World Cancer Day, Sweater Day, Stuffed Mushroom Day and Homemade Soup Day

Tomorrow - World Nutella Day, Weatherperson’s Day, Wear Red Day, Western Monarch Day and Working Naked Day

Week long celebrations:

Jan 30 - Feb 6: Cordova Iceworm Festival Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Cheerleading Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Patient Recognition Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: School Counseling Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Pride in Food Service Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Solo Diners Eat Out Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: African Heritage and Health Week 

Next Thursday - Fat Thursday, Get Out Your Guitar Day, Peppermint Patty Day, Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day, Pro Sports Wives Day, Satisfied Staying Single Day, Make a Friend Day and White Shirt Day

Week long celebrations: 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Flirting Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Jell-O Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Great American Pizza Bake 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Condom Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Feb 7 - Feb 14: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Feeding Tube Awareness Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Freelance Writers Appreciation Week 

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Children of Alcoholics Week

March 4 - Name Tag Day, Grammar Day, Marching Band Day, Toy Soldier Day, Pound Cake Day and International Scrapbooking Industry Day

Week long celebrations:

Mar 1 - Mar 5: School Breakfast Week  

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Return Borrowed Books Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Read an E-Book Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Schools Social Work Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Dental Assistants Recognition Week  

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Consumer Protection Week 

Feb 27 - Mar 7: Jewish Book Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: World Orphan Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Endometriosis Awareness Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Pet Sitters Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Will Eisner Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Write a Letter Appreciation Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Universal Human Beings Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: British Pie Week 

Feb 22 - Mar 7: Fairtrade Fortnight 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Telecommuter Appreciation Week

 

A Better Way has arrived!

I've been talking about this for a couple of months and it's finally launched!

A Better Way was just the description for what is being offered. I like to think of it as the framework and you could look at that framework as being a wheel. The hub of the wheel is called "Greener Still" and coming out of that hub are 6 spokes. Each of those spokes represent an independent business. And the rim of the wheel is made up of all the customers of those 6 businesses.

Check out the Greener Still page for an overview of the compensation plan, as well as an introduction to the 6 streams of income. 

The six income streams focus on self, others, and business:

Self

• Blue 42 For Life offers industry-leading supplements and products to help the customer become their best self for the people who matter most!
• Prompting U is an online education platform with courses from experts in the fields of personal development, business, and relationship marketing.

Others

• SendOutCards is a unique online greeting card and gift system that makes it easy for anyone to act quickly when prompted to reach out to others.
• Bella Cadeaux, a boutique gift company, believes that the gifts customers give should be remembered forever.

Business

• Stream Marketing offers a streamlined and consolidated way to market a business online.
• Steam Virtual Assistant helps customers stay connected and expand their reach. Time-consuming tasks can be handed off so all efforts can go toward building relationships and business growth.

If you were part of the pre-launch, you have a 12 month affiliate account with SendOutCards, the others cost a total of $14 a month for all of them. If you're a SendOutCards affiliate and you don't want income from the other 5 streams, you can sign up for Greener Still as just a SOC affiliate without paying extra. You'll want to do this because all of the revenue flows into Greener Still and then commissions flow out to you.

Customers can receive discounts by referring others to any of the 6 businesses. They don't have to be a customer of that business.

There has been a change to SendOutCards pricing...check it out here

There's a launch details page that covers things like how to earn money and the costs of various products.

Interesting days

Today - Carrot Cake Day and Golden Retriever Day

Tomorrow - Thank A Letter Carrier Day, World Cancer Day, Sweater Day, Stuffed Mushroom Day and Homemade Soup Day

Week long celebrations:

Jan 30 - Feb 6: Cordova Iceworm Festival Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Cheerleading Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Patient Recognition Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: School Counseling Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Pride in Food Service Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Solo Diners Eat Out Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: African Heritage and Health Week

Next Wednesday - Umbrella Day, Plimsoll Day and Cream Cheese Brownie Day

Week long celebrations:

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Cardiac Rehabilitation Week

 Feb 8 - Feb 14: Flirting Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Jell-O Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Great American Pizza Bake

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Condom Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Feb 7 - Feb 14: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Feeding Tube Awareness Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Freelance Writers Appreciation Week

Feb 8 - Feb 14: Children of Alcoholics Week

March 3 - World Wildlife Day, What If Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs Day, National Anthem Day, Registered Dietitian Day, Canadian Bacon Day, International Irish Whiskey Day, World Maths Day, Cold Cuts Day and Mulled Wine Day

Week long celebrations:

Mar 1 - Mar 5: School Breakfast Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Return Borrowed Books Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Read an E-Book Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Schools Social Work Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Dental Assistants Recognition Week 

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Consumer Protection Week

Feb 27 - Mar 7: Jewish Book Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: World Orphan Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Endometriosis Awareness Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Pet Sitters Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Will Eisner Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Write a Letter Appreciation Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Universal Human Beings Week

Mar 1 - Mar 7: British Pie Week

Feb 22 - Mar 7: Fairtrade Fortnight

Mar 1 - Mar 7: Telecommuter Appreciation Week

 

No blog post today

I started writing a blog post about the A Better Way launch but the websites are kinda wonky so I'll try to do it tomorrow. 

(S)he's Creating An Empire

She's Creating An Empire is a Facebook group that I belong to. Most of the members of the group are women, but there are a few guys in the group.

Here's the description of the group:

Welcome to the She's Creating An Empire™ Community group! 

This Group is about transforming your HOT MESS SELF into a debt free business boss with a brand on fire! 

Women are the hearts of their families, communities, and companies. When women are educated and independent, they can enrich the lives of so many. The beauty is…the path to creating an empire can be learned! 

This group is designed to help women get purpose-driven results in money and business...thereby making their own economies.  

We're so glad you're here!!!

Every Tuesday evening they have a Facebook Live where they do some training...here are the last few topics they discussed:

• Multiple Streams of income in 2021
• Digital Currency Global Educators
• Creating Financial Security in 2021

Everyone is welcome to join the group. Be sure to tell them I sent you!

There's also paid training available that goes more in depth than the free weekly events, but it's not necessary to take those paid trainings,

An example of paid training is the Financial Fitness Round, which spends 4 weeks covering the following:

Week 1 - Goal Setting, Money Mindset, & Net Worth
Week 2 - Crushing Debt
Week 3 - Trading & Financial Freedom
Week 4 - Branding

Week 2 of the current Financial Fitness Round begins today.

So, join She's Creating An Empire and join me while I create mine!

Interesting days

February will be Black History Month, Vegan Cuisine Month, North American Inclusion Month, Cherry Month, Bake For Family Fun Month, Bird-Feeding Month, Hot Breakfast Month and Library Lovers’ Month

Today - Baked Alaska Day, World Read Aloud Day, Serpent Day, Decorating With Candy Day, Car Insurance Day and Ice Cream For Breakfast Day

Tomorrow - World Play Your Ukulele Day, Tater Tot Day, Candlemas Day, Lung Leavin’ Day, Sled Dog Day, World Wetlands Day, Marmot Day, Crepe Day, Hedgehog Day and Groundhog Day

Week long celebrations:

Jan 30 - Feb 6: Cordova Iceworm Festival Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Cheerleading Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Patient Recognition Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: School Counseling Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Pride in Food Service Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: Solo Diners Eat Out Week

Feb 1 - Feb 7: African Heritage and Health Week