The Million Dollar Challenge

All comments welcome!

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So – what else are we going to do about the lack of education to the future leadership of our country?  I’m proud to be a part of Rotary International who puts great emphasis on literacy.  As this week is “Literacy Week”, many of us have found our way to local elementary schools to “read to the students”.  It was most satisfying to have those little faces full of attention as they listened to stories about everything from the alphabet to animals.  Not only are we lacking in the schools – but how many parents take (or even have) the time to just read with their kids.  I can remember back to my own childhood and my parents encouragement to read.  I started like most kids with Dr. Seuss, moved on to Nancy Drew, and from there, a continuous library of reading has been a good part of my life and learning experiences.  My mind opened up to all kinds of possibilities and dreams.  Adventures of story book characters kept me enthralled and as a bi-product improved my vocabulary and imagination.

So, here’s where I encourage you, my readers.  Choose a school and volunteer.  Get involved.  Find alternative learning opportunities.  We have a wealth of life experiences to share.  So let’s share it.  My kids are grown now with kids of their own.  They love reading and being read to.  My daughter was reading to my granddaughter while still swaddled.  Now, at 10 years old, Anya reads voraciously, sometimes 2-3 books at a time.

Don’t wait for a week especially created to “read to our youth”.  They need us now!  And that’s just the beginning…..

After the decorations, celebrations and communion with family and friends, Monday morning will reappear.

My holiday gift to each of you: a few tips from the IndiBrand™ Individual Branding Workshop series.

Even in this economy. There is much to be grateful for:

The future is the present moving forward constantly. This means that whatever you envision for your future is being impacted by your choices right now—this very minute—and the next, and the next, and the next.

The future is connected to your present (which has just this instant become your past). As you consider what you want 2010 to be like for you, engage all of your senses. What do you want it to smell like? Taste like? Look like? Sound like? And feel like? The more visceral your imagination of your future, the more real it becomes and the easier it is to make choices in this instant and the next that truly support your goals for your future!

When I am considering my future I make sure I am specific and engage each of my senses across multiple areas of my life. Like good marketing, the more targeted I am in my focus on each area of my life, the more impactful my connection to it is! The more likely I will actually create it, and the more joy I experience in all areas of my life as a result. Following are some of the focus areas for my future. What are yours?

There is always room for changing one’s vision. Don’t let your fear of commitment or your belief that you cannot control what the future holds, or anything else, get in your way. It’s the distinction between making choices that lead to something that fulfills you or not.

Author: Michele Lando, president of Skilset Communications, Inc., and author of the internationally acclaimed IndiBrand™ Individual Branding workshop series. To reproduce any portion of this article, you may write or phone 626-792-0032.

Find an image of something that you really love:  flowers, a rainbow, a special song, a sport that you love.

Let that be the image that you use every time you start to scare yourself!

Click on this link for an attitude adjustment!

Gratitude

Love – the emotion that is most expensive, yet most gratifying.  I’m so fortunate to have found love with my husband of 32 years.  We’ve shared so many journeys.  Some wonderful, and other’s painful.  Each journey has offered timeless lessons and layers to our life.  My husband has cheered me on, comforted me in sorrow, and taken care of me when I was ill.  He has supported my activities and several careers throughout the years.  We’ve shared some really tough times, and come through as better individuals and a stronger couple.  Yes, we’ve used the “sickness and in health” commitment, and the “for better or worse”, too.  If I had it to do over, I would do it in a heartbeat!

Family – can extend to anyone you want to include.  Some of my closest family are my friends.  When I was a young girl, I was told that if you could count your true friends on one hand you were truly blessed.  Well, that’s me.  I’m so fortunate to have the most wonderful friends.  They have offered such loyalty over the years.  No matter what, my friends have been there when I needed them, as I am for them.  There is a circle of life and what goes around DOES come around.  My sister, although living thousands of miles away, is as close as my cell phone.  When we’re together, it’s as if we’ve never been apart. If I need her, or vice versa, we’re there for each other.   Our children mean the world to us, and we love the appreciation that goes both ways as they are now adults.  Our children have given us angst and pride over the years.  More lessons!  All in all, we’re blessed.  Our 3 kids, their spouses and children are tremendous blessings.

Health – We don’t take this for granted.  We’ve both had some pretty serious health issues and as a result, don’t take anything for granted here.  Gratitude for getting through these challenges and what we’ve learned as a result is a given.

So, I have a lot to be grateful for, and this is just a small list.  Take some quiet time this week, and just contemplate your blessings.  When you sit at your Thanksgiving table, grab hands and say a blessing of gratitude.  We all have much to be thankful for.  What are you grateful for this week?

Comments to this post are welcome!