A Gift of Hope - 52 Ways to Live a Better Life by Shadonna Richards - Book Review

Infinity Publishing (2009)

ISBN 9780741451675

Shadonna Richards, a Canadian registered nurse, freelance writer and former newspaper columnist, has put together a simple but concise book on how to live a better life. As a nurse working with terminally ill cancer patients, who are told they have only six months to live, she was inspired to write empowering words of wisdom. Richards also interviewed many individuals for her newspaper columns, thus compiling inspirational stories to encourage us to look at our own lives, makes changes as necessary, and to live a fulfilled life. Although her resources are Canadian, the concept of her book is global and I'm sure readers will find similar resources in their respective countries and areas.

"A Gift of Hope" is designed to be used as a workbook, with each week having an exercise to be done daily. For example, the first week starts with "Stay Mentally Fit." The text talks about the stresses in our lives and then gives exercises. The first exercise for the first week is to "Identify, then rectify." Richards says "A crucial part of any solution is locating the problem. Do worries keep you up at night? Go directly to the source of your tension." The second exercise for the first week is "Detox Your Mind." Richards says "We always have a choice. We can choose to dwell on being hopeless in situations or dwell on having hope."

The second week covers "Dare to Dream: Believe that Anything is Possible" and captures president-elect Barrack Obama's "Yes We Can" powerful slogan. Using his story and his dreams, Richards iterates that our dreams can become reality if we persist and believe.

Other weeks cover topics like: Understand That Money Isn't Everything, Reach out to those in Need, and Be the Friend You Desire to Have. For the purpose of this review I didn't have the opportunity to test the system for a full 52 weeks; however, being a student and teacher of transformation, I know it works. Shadonna Richards has provided a book, "A Gift of Hope," to take us to a higher level of consciousness, a place where we can manage our personal lives with ease and contentment.

http://www.readerviews.com/

Installing a 32 Inch Back Door

In some older houses you will find a 30 inch back door. Have you ever tried to move a refrigerator or some large furniture through a 30 inch door? Keep in mind most bedroom doors are 30 inches wide and are in 36 inch hallways. 30 inch doors and bedrooms make it tough to move some furniture in too.

Let's start with the price difference between a 30 inch door and a 32 inch door. The cost difference is usually going to be around $20. If you are building a hundred homes this could become quite an additional expense. So we can understand why the home builder installed a 30 inch door in the back of our home.

He got the extra money in his pocket, you got a headache.

Here's the big problem. If you ever want to install a larger door you will need to replace the structural door framing. Now this is where you could run into a little bit of an expense. Changing the framing for a wider door could become quite costly. It could actually cost over $1000 in some cases.

Now if the homebuilder would have originally installed a 32 inch door in your house it might have ran him as high as an additional $45. How can this be? I will give you the first clue. There is a good chance the homebuilder will not be moving into any of these houses. If for some strange instance he did move into the house, he would learn the same lesson whenever he needed to move a large item into the house.

I'm a contactor and learned this lesson in a long time ago.

If you are building a new home you might even want to consider installing a 36 inch back door. This door will give you plenty of room when it comes to moving large items in or out of your house. The cost difference between a 36 inch door and a 32 inch door is usually around $20 also.

When building a new home most people don't give very much thought about their interior or exterior doors. Here's a simple chart I made to help with some basic door decisions.

Bathroom Doors Should Be 28 Inches Wide Minimum.
Bedroom Doors Should Be 30 Inches Wide Minimum.
Front Doors Should Be At Least 36 Inches Wide
Back Doors and Garage Doors Should Be At Least 32 Inches Wide

If you are a professional football or basketball player don't use these numbers above.

If you have large sliding glass doors or French doors throughout your home and can use them to move large items into the house you can install whatever size doors you choose that are comfortable to walk through.

Give some thought when installing a new door on your next project and keep some of the above tips in mind..

If you are designing a home give some thought to the stairways and hallways in the home as well.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on building and remodeling your homes and Bay Window Ideas

Ask And You Might Receive Or Ask

Books On Financial Freedom

Financial freedom is the most important thing a person can have, but it can also be very difficult to achieve. Most people will need assistance from an outside source. For those of you who cannot afford to hire a financial expert to manage your finances, there are many books available that will teach you how you can use your money wisely and eventually achieve financial freedom.

There are many financial experts, as well as people who have already achieved financial freedom, writing self-help books for people wanting to free themselves from the clutches of living in debt. The hardest part is choosing the right one. You will need to make sure that the advice you follow is the right one; you do not want to follow the wrong advice and go further in debt.

These books are not very expensive, and they are very helpful. They will be able to give you very valuable advice. There are also books available on the Internet that contain the same material.

If you are able to access the Internet, you should first look for online books on financial advice. This will save you money, considering these are usually free. If you have the need to have a paper copy of the book, there are many places from which you would be able to obtain one. Obviously, bookstores carry books of this nature. You will also be able to buy financial books on the Internet, since most major bookstores have a website where you can place orders. There are many websites available from which you can purchase your book. In fact, some of these websites will offer these books at a lesser price than if you buy them at a bookstore.

Debt is the number one cause of many problems in peoples lives. Getting out of debt is the first and most important step a person needs to take in the process of achieving financial freedom. If you think this task is too difficult to achieve without assistance, then it is best that you buy a book that will aid in your struggle to achieve financial freedom.

Financial Freedom provides detailed information on Financial Freedom, Steps To Financial Freedom, Financial Freedom Resources, Financial Freedom Services and more. Financial Freedom is affiliated with Commercial Equity Line Of Credit.

Cost Effective Stair Building

What is the most cost effective way of building stairs? Why do the tract homes use on site methods of construction? When you think of a factory assembling a product on a assembly line you think why not a home. Why do they still build homes on lots or residential home sites?

If homes could be built in a factory cheaper than on site that is exactly what every home builder would be doing. They just haven't quite figured it out yet. When dealing with the large amounts of materials required to build a house and of course the expense of shipping. It is not cost effective to build a conventional home in a factory and ship it over long distances.

This is the biggest problem with cost effective stair construction. Most prefabricated stairs you will notice are spiral stairs. These stairs are smaller than most stairs that are used for multi level construction.

Spiral stairs are hard for your average carpenter to build. These stairs can be purchased from a factory easily and quite inexpensive.

The stairs in your average two story house are going to weigh about 3 times the amount of a spiral set of stairs that could be shipped in a cost effective way. Spiral stairs are not going to be the main stairway in a home and normally go up to a loft or an attic. Most spiral stairs don't meet the minimum building requirements for the main stairway in your home.

When building tract homes the lumber is shipped in bulk directly to the house site where it will be assembled. The lumber and other building materials will be shipped once. If it went to a factory and then assembled it would also have to be sent to the site on which the house was to be built. This added expense in shipping the materials twice is the problem for such a large and heavy item such as a set of stairs.

There are other prefabricated types of stairs that are built locally and the shipping usually is not a major expense. If you are building a stairway that is not to difficult to build for the average carpenter it will normally be cost effective to build the stairs on site. This would require having the carpenter build the stairs as part of the rough framing and then after drywall have the finish carpenter build the stair handrail system.

Visit us now for easy Home Constuction Help

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more building stairs books and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Was Jesus A Good Example

Happy Children - Create a Happy Child with a Tantrum of Thankfulness

In my research on potty training for our potty training course, I have learned that children respond to the emotions of their parents and care takers. In further research, I have learned that in all relationships, the most important step you can take in creating a successful relationship is to be happy yourself.

All people are attracted to happiness. This trait is most easily observed in children who have not yet learned to suppress their emotions.

The most important gift that you can give your child is your own happiness. When you are happy yourself, you will naturally be more patient, kind and loving toward your child. You dont have to work at it, the love just flows naturally when you are happy.

Too many parents think that once they have children, pursuing their own happiness is selfish and something to feel guilty about. Neglecting your children while pursing your happiness may be something to feel guilty about; however, there are many ways to create your own happiness and provide care for your children at the same time.

Children need love and happiness as part of their nutritional requirements. They cannot grow and develop to their full potential unless they receive adequate love and attention.

Parents who are filled with happiness and who think happy thoughts the majority of the time are in a much better position to provide the nurturing environment that children need to grow and develop. Finding your own happiness is the first step in creating a happy child.

Dr Wayne Dyer suggests in his books that you can choose your emotions. You simply choose to feel angry or choose to feel happy. While I love his writings, I have had trouble practicing that suggestion. What works better for me is to choose thoughts that allow the happy emotions to flow naturally.

For example, when my dog was injured, there was no way I could feel happy about his injury. However, after a great deal of prayer and meditation, I was able to slowly begin to find things about the episode that I could feel better about. By slowly changing my thoughts from sadness and anger to thankfulness and expectation, I was eventually able to feel happy again about my dog.

And just like a child, my dog has responded to my thoughts and emotions. While I was sad, he moped around and looked awful. As my mood improved, he began to get more active and is now again the feisty puppy that I enjoy spending time with.

Because children respond so visibly to your emotions, it is your duty as a parent to be as happy as you can be. Seeking your own happiness is not selfish, but the act of a loving and responsible parent.

Over the years, I have observed many child behavior issues that we very obviously linked to the unhappiness of the parents. Well, it was obvious to everyone except the parents of these children. They kept looking for someone else to blame for their childrens problems. They continued to create more unhappiness for their children and everyone involved.

So, if you notice undesirable behavior in your own children, take a moment to look inside yourself before you start looking for someone else to blame. Are you happy? If not, take steps to address your own emotions before you start to work with your childrens behavior problems.

As an engineer, I was very good at the identify a problem, find a cause, remove the cause, theres your solution kind of problem solving method. But in my work with children, I have found that this method is ineffective.

A better method is to simply identify and express the desired behavior and then encourage it. I call this the creative intention method of problem solving.

We can leave the cause finding to the research scientists. As parents, we just want happy well behaved children.

And the first step in creating happy children is to find happiness ourselves. Creative intention works especially well in finding ways to create more happy thoughts in your life and in the life of your children.

In every situation, there is always something good to be thankful for. Those of us who are accustomed to finding problems that need a solution will need to practice a bit before we can easily and quickly see the good in every situation. You may want to find someone who is naturally optimistic to mentor you.

But with practice we all can learn to think thoughts that will create happy feelings.

One quick exercise that can help is throwing a Tantrum of Thankfulness. We all know that two year olds can express a lot of emotion is a short period of time so let us use that example to create more of what we want and less of what we dont want.

Set a timer for three minutes. During that time think of as many things as you can to be thankful for. Write them down, speak them aloud or just think about them. I like to do opposites: I am thankful for sunshine, I am thankful for rain. Get as animated as possible while doing this exercise. Jump around, sing, yell, do whatever you can to experience the emotion of passionate thankfulness.

Get your children involved in the game. Really listen to what they are thankful for. If they dont understand the concept of thankful just ask what makes them happy. Dont make any judgments, just go with what they say.

I prefer to do this exercise with my dog as my children are older and think I am crazy. My dog just enjoys the company.

Whenever you find unhappy thoughts creeping in, just throw a tantrum of thankfulness. If it is not appropriate to throw a tantrum right there like waiting in line at the post office - just remember the last tantrum you threw. Experience the happiness in your mind and smile.

The greatest gift you can ever give to anyone is that of your own happiness. Guard it with all your might and seek new ways to create happiness everyday.

Teach your children how to be happy. Create a happy world for all of us one happy child at a time.

Mike Strawbridge is the owner of Straw Solutions Performance Improvement Consulting and is dedicated to creating happy business owners and happy employees.

http://www.mikestrawbridge.com

Mike is also a contributing writer for the Potty Training Site http://www.pottytrainingsite.com

Installing a 32 Inch Back Door

In some older houses you will find a 30 inch back door. Have you ever tried to move a refrigerator or some large furniture through a 30 inch door? Keep in mind most bedroom doors are 30 inches wide and are in 36 inch hallways. 30 inch doors and bedrooms make it tough to move some furniture in too.

Let's start with the price difference between a 30 inch door and a 32 inch door. The cost difference is usually going to be around $20. If you are building a hundred homes this could become quite an additional expense. So we can understand why the home builder installed a 30 inch door in the back of our home.

He got the extra money in his pocket, you got a headache.

Here's the big problem. If you ever want to install a larger door you will need to replace the structural door framing. Now this is where you could run into a little bit of an expense. Changing the framing for a wider door could become quite costly. It could actually cost over $1000 in some cases.

Now if the homebuilder would have originally installed a 32 inch door in your house it might have ran him as high as an additional $45. How can this be? I will give you the first clue. There is a good chance the homebuilder will not be moving into any of these houses. If for some strange instance he did move into the house, he would learn the same lesson whenever he needed to move a large item into the house.

I'm a contactor and learned this lesson in a long time ago.

If you are building a new home you might even want to consider installing a 36 inch back door. This door will give you plenty of room when it comes to moving large items in or out of your house. The cost difference between a 36 inch door and a 32 inch door is usually around $20 also.

When building a new home most people don't give very much thought about their interior or exterior doors. Here's a simple chart I made to help with some basic door decisions.

Bathroom Doors Should Be 28 Inches Wide Minimum.
Bedroom Doors Should Be 30 Inches Wide Minimum.
Front Doors Should Be At Least 36 Inches Wide
Back Doors and Garage Doors Should Be At Least 32 Inches Wide

If you are a professional football or basketball player don't use these numbers above.

If you have large sliding glass doors or French doors throughout your home and can use them to move large items into the house you can install whatever size doors you choose that are comfortable to walk through.

Give some thought when installing a new door on your next project and keep some of the above tips in mind..

If you are designing a home give some thought to the stairways and hallways in the home as well.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on building and remodeling your homes and Bay Window Ideas

Is King Solomon Going To Heaven

Communication Style Quiz

Try this fun self-quiz to find out your dominant Communication Style. Afterwards read about the different styles and reflect on how you can work with others of a different style. Choose the number of the statement that most closely resembles you:

1. At a large social gathering, you are most likely to:

a. interact with many different people, strangers included.

b. talk one-on-one mostly with people you already know.

c. use the opportunity to make important contacts.

d. leave as soon as it is polite to do so.

2. When you first arrive at a meeting you are usually

a. ...a bit late, and try to sneak in the back without being noticed.

b. ...purposely a bit late, you like to get there when things have started happening already.

c. ...arrive right on time and feel impatient if the meeting starts late.

d. ...arrive early so that you can be ready and organized when the meeting starts.

3. If you were famous in your field, which career would most suit you?

a. Movie star

b. Head of a company

c. Inventor

d. Humanitarian

4. What style of entertainment do you most enjoy watching?

a. Something warm and friendly.

b. Something quirky and intellectual.

c. Something political or satirical.

d. Something wild, outrageous and/or fun.

5. Of these four personality traits, you consider your strongest to be:

a. Compassion

b. Assertiveness

c. Imagination

d. Persistence

6. The statement that most closely describes you is:

a. Sensible and frugal.

b. Rational and quick-witted.

c. Sensitive and reliable.

d. Creative and fiery.

7. Which appeals to you the most?

a. Taking action on a calculated risk.

b. Creating harmonious human relationships.

c. Discovering the secret behind a complex mystery.

d. Going to an exciting social event.

8. Which rules you more?

a. Your heart

b. Your head

c. Your wallet

d. Your libido

9. New and non-routine interaction with others:

a. ...usually stimulates and energize you.

b. ...revitalizes you, if you have a special connection with someone in the process.

c. ...taxes your reserves, and you arent afraid to let people know it.

d. ...taxes your reserves, so you quietly slip away when no one is watching.

10. When doing group projects, which part of the process is most important to you?

a. Creating relationships with people.

b. Sorting out who is playing what role in the project.

c. Organizing the way the project is done.

d. Making sure the process of doing it is fun and exciting.

11. If you suddenly have some spare time on a weekend, what you usually most WANT to do is:

a. ...contact several friends and see if there is something fun going on.

b. ...have some quality time with one or a just a few people.

c. ...get a number of important things done on your TO DO list.

d. ...focus your energy on one specific hobby or project.

12. You want to buy a special gift for a new friend that you dont know very well. You are most likely to:

a. Buy the first thing you see that you intuitively think they would like.

b. Carefully find just the right thing, after much comparison-shopping.

c. Buy the same special gift you always buy for special people.

d. Get someone else to buy the gift, or just give your friend some money.

13. Which description most fits you?

a. Hard working and ambitious

b. Animated and gregarious

c. Focused and efficient

d. Cooperative and gentle

14. Most of the time, when working, you prefer:

a. To do your job quietly on your own.

b. To be an integral part of a team working together.

c. To influence the team in new and creative directions

d. To be the leader and structure-maker for the team

15. When the phone rings do you

a. ...answer it immediately and talk at length.

b. ...look forward to the call, but wait a few rings before answering.

c. ...deal with whoever it is quickly and efficiently.

d. ...hope someone else will answer it.

16. Your favorite type of clothing to wear:

a Something comfortable, practical and low key.

b. A unique ensemble that makes a statement.

c. An expensive-looking power outfit.

d. Something easy-going and nice.

17. Which genre of fiction to you most prefer:

a. Mystery, documentary or science fiction

b. Feel-good story or romance

c. Epic, historical or action

d. Comedy, psychological thriller, glitzy

18. Which is more admirable:

a. The ability to organize and be methodical.

b. The ability to take charge in a chaotic situation.

c. The ability to motivate others to succeed.

d. The ability to make people feel comfortable and included.

19. In terms of comedy, I most closely identify with people who can:

a. tell a heartwarming, funny story.

b. tell a good joke.

c. create great characters through movement, voice, costume, etc.

d. tell a witty one-liner, pun, or wordplay.

20. If a conflict arises between a friend and I, my first reaction is to:

a. make sure they understand my position on things.

b. make sure the relationship doesnt get damaged.

c. avoid that person for a while.

d. find a compromise, where we both get at least part of what we want.

Communication Style Quiz - Answers

Circle the answers you chose. Then, count the number of As, Ds, Ns, and Cs you have at the bottom

1. a. D b. N c. A d. C
2. a. N b. D c. A d. C
3. a. D b. A c. C d. N
4. a. N b. C c. A d. D
5. a. N b. A c. D d. C
6. a. C b. A c. N d. D
7. a. A b. N c. C d. D
8. a. N b. C c. A d. D
9. a. D b. N c. A d. C
10. a. N b. A c. C d. N
11. a. D b. N c. D d. C
12. a. D b. N c. C d. A
13. a. A b. D c. C d. N
14. a. C b. N c. D d. A
15. a. D b. N c. A d. C
16. a. C b. D c. A d. N
17. a. C b. N c. A d. D
18. a. C b. A c. D d. N
19. a. N b. A c. D d. C
20. a. A b. N c. C d. D

Total As _____

Total Ds ______

Total Ns ______

Total Cs ______

Total should come to 20

Read on about the various Communication styles. Keep in mind, the descriptions that follow are extreme examples to illustrate how they differ. Most people are a combination of the four styles, and some people are so unique, they dont fit into any quadrant. Use the descriptions simply as a guideline to help you see how workplace communications can be greatly affected by an individuals style

Demonstrators

Demonstrators are people-oriented, fast-paced and enthusiastic. They usually have more open and casual body language. They tend to be animated and outgoing, and prefer an informal atmosphere. Demonstrators can be outrageous, spontaneous, excitable and sociable. They are ideas people who like to be in the limelight. If over-balanced in this style some weaknesses may show up such as being unreliable, self-centered, overly optimistic and indiscriminate.

How to recognize Demonstrators

They tend to:

be somewhat disorganized

have trouble being on time and keeping track of details

wear bright colors

sit in an open posture

take the initiative in the conversation

laugh easily and loudly

are fun-loving

like to talk about themselves

Types of professions where you find many Demonstrators

Salesperson

Trial Lawyer

Entertainer

Public Relations Officer

Advertising Executive

Social director

Famous people who are predominantly Demonstrators

Steve Martin

Carol Burnett

Robin Williams

Jim Carey

Lucille Ball

Jerry Lewis

Elvis Presley

Zig Ziglar

Pierre Trudeau

Marilyn Monroe

Charlie Chaplin

Assertors

Assertors are fast-paced and direct, like Demonstrators, but are more task-oriented, than people-oriented. They tend to be hard working, ambitious, leader types. They are good at making decisions quickly and efficiently. They are goal-oriented, assertive and confident. Assertors are the take-charge people who let nothing stop them. If over-balanced in this style some weaknesses may show up such as being too impatient, competitive and judgmental.

How to recognize Assertors

They tend to:

like timeliness and efficiency

look and appear powerful and formal

sit in an erect posture

be highly discriminating in many areas (people, opportunities, food, etc.)

laugh less frequently than demonstrators, maintain a more serious demeanor

take a leadership role in most situations

ask pointed or challenging questions

have strong opinions and creative ideas to share

Types of professions where you find many Assertors

Corporate CEO

Politician

Stockbroker

Lawyer

Hard-driving newspaper reporter

Independent consultant

Drill sergeant

Film/TV Director

Entrepreneur

Famous people who are predominantly Assertors

Jonathan Winters

Bea Arthur

Joan Rivers

John Cleese

Muhammed Ali

Carroll OConnor

Ed Asner

Clint Eastwood

Candace Bergen

George C. Scott

David Letterman

Margaret Thatcher

Contemplators

Contemplators are task-oriented like Assertors. However they are more indirect and slow-paced. Contemplators tend to be analytical, detail-oriented, thinker types. They are persistent, good problem solvers, and pride themselves on their orderliness and accuracy. Often seen alone, they tend to have quiet, low-key personalities. If over-balanced in this style some weaknesses may show up such as being too withdrawn, rigid, closed-minded, and overly pessimistic.

How to recognize Contemplators

They tend to:

wear conservative, simple, functional clothing

sit in a closed posture

keep to themselves

not initiate conversations, wait for you to do that

take copious notes

maintain meticulous organization

stay serious, rarely laugh

like to hear facts, figures, statistics and proof

Types of professions where you find many Contemplators

Accountant

Secretary

Bookkeeper

Repair person

Engineer

Draughtperson

Electrician

Plumber

Jeweller

Scientist

Famous people who are predominantly Contemplators

Albert Einstein

Rick Moranis

Steven Wright

Woody Allen

Leonard Nimoy

Paula Poundstone

Deepak Chopra

Victor Borge

Carl Sagan

Al Gore

Angela Lansbury

Narrators

Narrators are slow-paced and indirect like Contemplators, but they are more people-oriented like Demonstrators. They are warm, friendly, gentle and cooperative. They highly value relationships over goals. They are good at listening, have a sweet temperament, and tend to be open-minded. Most people find them to be loving, and emotionally intuitive. If over-balanced in this style it can show up as overly meek and easily sidetracked.

How to recognize Narrators

They tend to:

come across as very accommodating and helpful

wear casual, simple clothing, nothing too loud

take the initiative to create relationships, like to both talk and listen

have pictures of family on their desk

laugh quietly and often (but sometimes theyre laughing just to be polite)

show gratitude easily

Types of professions where you find many Narrators

Counselor

Teacher

Minister

Human Resources Manager

Nurse

Social Worker

Famous people who are predominantly Narrators

Mary Tyler Moore

Bill Cosby

Jean Stapleton

John Candy

Mr. Rogers

Gilda Radner

Dan Ackroyd

Jack Canfield (Editor of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books)

Leo Buscaglia

Jimmy Carter

Barbara Walters

Bill Clinton

Florence Nightengale

Carla Rieger is an expert on creative people skills at work. If you want a motivational speaker, trainer, or leadership coach to help you stay on the creative edge, contact Carla Rieger.

Web site: http://www.carlarieger.com
Tel: 1-866-294-2988
Email carla@carlarieger.com

Spoiled Children