Distance Learning School

Archive for February, 2009

There are a lot of people out there that are in their late 40′s who are now just experiencing some fear about retirement. There are some immediate steps you can take to correct your situation.

Let us assume you have no retirement savings or very little but you do own your home and at this point you have a small balance left on the mortgage. As tough as your situation may seem, there are definite actions you can take to make up for lost time. But first you have to genuinely commit to spend less and save more, and stick to that commitment whatever it takes.

In today’s uncertain economy, it may be more difficult to achieve financial security, but that very uncertainty makes it all the more important to do so. The good news is that the things you can do right now have much more to do with your own prudence than with the volatile markets. Most importantly, be positive and stay focused on your goal. Here are six things I suggest you do right now:

1. Create a budget

Take a long hard look at what you earn and what you spend, using this simple formula:  Read more... (1223 words, estimated 4:54 mins reading time)

Even with children’s bedroom furniture there is a trend leaning toward the use of organic mattresses. Both adults and children are learning the importance of having a mattress that is healthy both in the way it is made and the way it treats your body. With the increasing popularity of organic foods, doesn’t it seem likely that mattresses should go in the same direction? You do not want to sleep on something that uses pesticides and chemicals during manufacturing nor do you want to subject your children to these unhealthy products.

People will also learn that foam mattresses are healthier and provide a better night’s sleep. As more people begin to see how much difference a mattress makes, we will see more people opting for foam mattress instead of the traditional mattress that has been the one of choice for centuries. When we understand the health benefits of a foam mattress we are more likely to want to throw out the old mattress and invest in one that will make the most difference in our sleep patterns. A good night’s sleep is the essence of our overall health—if we are unable to sleep, our health is going to deteriorate thus subjecting us to various illnesses that our immune system will be unable to fight.  Read more... (531 words, estimated 2:07 mins reading time)

Having a big balance with your credit cards is no fun during these times. With the stress it brings with you, especially if you only have barely enough money to make it through from one payday to another. One of the secrets to leaving this cycle of hard work yet without any pay off is to get rid of debt. And learn also how to enjoy life on a budget. The thing is it is easier said than done, so how?

The one thing where overspending has direct relationship with is your behavior. By learning to modify your behavior with money, you will learn small things that can be changed to save some extra money. Of course, discipline and motivation are very much important. A support group like your family can definitely help along the way. By learning the proper behavior with money, you will tend to allot more money to your bills and later, if you have already paid off the debts, your savings account every month.  Read more... (442 words, estimated 1:46 mins reading time)

The National Park offers something for everyone. Whether you want to see it from its miles and miles of trails on cycling trips and New Forest Walks, boat rides along the coastline, or perhaps just to visit some of the many museums and historic sites located within The national park boundaries, no visitor will be disappointed. The only let down is that one has to go home sooner or later!

To ensure you get to see the absolute best and beauty of the New Forest it is a good idea to take up one of the many guided tours that are available within the Forest. The choice is yours and what your preference might be but experienced Forest Rangers offer tours either cycling, walking or horseback. This is a way to ensure you capture the entire beauty of the forest.

Within the forest, things happen throughout the year. No matter when you are visiting this fabulous National Park there are always experienced Forest Rangers and guides to take you through the wonders and beauty of the park. There are also a few good websites you can visit so you can make the most of your trip here.  Read more... (558 words, estimated 2:14 mins reading time)

Saving up in this current crisis can be very hard. Jobs are lost and the common everyday expenses are getting higher in prices. And your savings account is drying up sooner than you think. Now, you truly need all the help you can get.

For you to save up money, whether to pay off your credit card debt or set aside some money for retirement, the first thing you need to manage is your spending habits. By distinguishing the things that you need from those you only want, you will begin to prioritize your spending. Strolling around the shopping mall and seeing all those new and trendy clothes or shoes, you are only tempting yourself from splurging in these doodads.

You can simply save thousands of dollars a year with a little effort from your part. Follow a few well-planned cost-saving measures to give direction to your personal financial management. Evaluate the current mortgage you have. Maybe you are paying a slightly higher interest rate compared to your credit rating. By asking your banker, you could perhaps refinance with a much better deal. Doing this is one way to save more money for the long term.  Read more... (458 words, estimated 1:50 mins reading time)

Fear of dogs or dog phobia is a quite common issue. It is something that we are presented with fairly regularly here in our UK hypnotherapy practice.

Its clinical name is cynophobia.

Like most other phobias, dog phobia is irrational in that the cynophobic person is well aware that the vast majority of dogs pose no real threat. Even though they may fully realize this, the individual is powerless to control their often all consuming fear.

For the person experiencing dog phobia, even the smallest and most inoffensive of dogs is threatening and fearsome. In some instances, even the sound of a dog barking in the distance is enough to cause apprehension and fear.

In common with other phobias and irrational fears, what has happened to the individual suffering from a dog phobia is that at some time in the past, he or she has been frightened by a dog or has been influenced by another person’s fear of dogs.

It may even have been the case that they became afraid when watching a television programme or a movie. Or they may have heard frightening stories concerning dogs relayed by a family member, friend or acquaintance.  Read more... (659 words, estimated 2:38 mins reading time)

Which part of that title did you not understand? It could reveal quite a lot about your personality…

“Making?” you say. “There’s no need to make the act of bringing up kids fun… It is fun! My little sunbeam brightens up the house from when I get up at 8:00 to when I settle him to sleep at 6. I just love seeing his cheerfulness throughout the day. And when he has his afternoon nap, it allows a little ‘me-time’ – maybe have a friend over for coffee or write a letter…”

Perhaps you are more cynical?

“Fun?” you cry. “What’s fun about getting up at 6:00 to ensure that my little darlings are dressed, fed and watered, allowing myself a mere five minutes before the school run to sort myself out? What could possibly be entertaining about having to deal with a temper tantrum in the baked bean aisle of the local supermarket? Or flopping down on the sofa fit to drop at 8:30, hoping that the night ahead will not involve too many interruptions from screaming babies? Huh!”  Read more... (952 words, estimated 3:48 mins reading time)

Growing up, I had a best friend named Reggie who lived in a home that was always clean, always well decorated. Because of this, painting and decorating has always seemed like a common sense necessity to me.

His mom used to re-paint their whole house every spring. She and Reggie (his dad died when he was young) would take a whole week to give everything a fresh coat of paint. His mom was a very clean women. She was raised on a farm and I guess people back then farm kids were raised well.

Because my best friend and his mom would take a few days to go throughout the house painting, no doubt this made an impression on me. I would come into the kitchen or go through their house and everything was nice and new. A nice lifestyle. Something painting decorating is all about – it adds flavor to our lives.

As I got older and found a wife, I moved into one of my grandfathers apartments. I noticed that he did a good job painting also. He painted white ceilings with pastel color walls and the woodwork trim was enameled white also. So from these two experiences alone I learned how to be a good painter decorator.  Read more... (773 words, estimated 3:06 mins reading time)

This article explores the importance of reflective practice as a tool for school self-improvement by looking at the relevance and implications of the reflective practice cycle.

The article is structured under the following headings:
- ON REFLECTING
- THE RELEVANCE OF REFLECTIVE PRACTICE
- WHAT IS THE REFLECTIVE PRACTICE CYCLE?
- WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF RP FOR A SCHOOL?
- CONCLUSION

ON REFLECTING …

Have you ever, having returned from a date with someone new, sat down and dissected the events of the evening in minute detail? Perhaps you have wondered whether a comment you made could have had an unintended meaning or was perhaps misunderstood.

Have you ever worried whether you have misread your date’s body language or – particularly if the date goes awry, pondered over what went wrong and how to avoid making the same mistakes next time?

This is perhaps an overly negative view of a possibly lovely evening, but it does serve to highlight the fact that we all, in our everyday lives, take time to ponder and reflect on things that have happened during our day.  Read more... (1299 words, estimated 5:12 mins reading time)

Keeping the colon clean and healthy is very important in order to keep your body totally healthy inside and out. Most doctors recommend the use of colon cleansing treatments to achieve this kind of wellness because it could effectively remove toxins that have accumulated in the colon and the digestive track. But there are people who are having second thoughts about trying colon cleansing treatments because of something they have read from the web or something they have heard from other people.

It is true that there are certain sources that will tell you that colon cleansing is not a very good choice for keeping your colon clean and there are also some that will give you wrong information about what colon cleansing can really do. These are called myths that are not proven to be true. You can find lots of these myths if you will search the web about colon cleansing.  Read more... (623 words, estimated 2:30 mins reading time)

Almost all of my clients are business people. They either head up large organisations, run medium sized businesses or own their own small to medium sized business. Regardless of their individual circumstances, they all find themselves in the same position right now. How do we continue to be successful in the current economic environment? I would re-phrase that question slightly: How can we thrive when everyone around us is feeling fearful, worried and sorry for themselves?

You see, the point is that the current economic environment is at least as much about state of mind as it is about economic “reality”. The “greed” state of mind created the current crisis. The “lack of confidence” and “sentiment” states of mind created the current “lack of confidence” in stock markets – and everything else has followed from there.  Read more... (916 words, estimated 3:40 mins reading time)