Take Action #24: Go House Hunting

Fall is here.  The weather is gorgeous and there are plenty of houses on the market.  Some of my favorite memories are when my mom would take us to Open Houses on Sunday.  She would go to dream about what “could be” and that’s where I learned to dream.  We would walk through huge houses and my sisters and I would pick out our room and talk about where we would put our bed and dresser and dolls.  I loved to fantasize about living in a big, open, beautiful house.  Little did I know that was part of “visualization” – the other part is of course “believing” that you can actually have it.

Anyway, there are so many houses on the market, the opportunities are endless, interest rates are low and some sellers are flexible – meaning that they may work out owner-financing, lease-purchase or some other creative arrangement.  You never know until you start to explore.  Not sure what the weather will bring this weekend, but get on online and see where there are some Open Houses in your area of interest and go see what’s out there.   Here are some resources:  www.century21.com, www.realtor.com, www.craigslist.com and your local paper.

Click here for buying tips.  Happy Hunting!

Angela

Take Action #23: Get your Oil Changed

I have a book called “You Can Do It” by Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas.  It was a book written for women about trying new things.  One section is on Car Care with ideas shared by Patti Critchfield, the owner and operator of Patti’s Auto Care in Berkeley, CA.   I’m not the greatest when it comes to taking care of cars and I have to be reminded to change my oil and sometimes red lights are on for a while before I ever notice.    Below is some advice by Patti which I took directly from the book.  Some guys and gals won't need this but the reminder might help others:

CAR CARE TO-DO's

1.      Read Your Owner’s Manual

2.      Check the fluids

3.      Keep an eye on your gauges

·        Fuel Gauge

·        Odometer

·        Speedometer

·        Tachometer: shows engine speed in thousands of revolutions per minute

·        Water temperature gauge – shows the  temperature of the engine coolant

Warning Lights

·        Brake system – lets you know if your parking brake is on; if the brake light is on while you’re driving and the parking brake is off,  your brake fluid and/or braking system needs to be inspected

·        Charging system: Indicates a malfunction of the alternator or charging system.

·        Check engine: indicates a problem with the engine function or, on some cars, the transmission

·        Engine oil pressure – reveals low engine pressure

4.      Check your tire pressure

5.      Inspect your windshield wiper blades

6.      Assemble an emergency kit:

·        Flares

·        Flashlight

·        Rope

·        Gallon of water

·        Couple of quarts of oil

·        First-aid kit

·        Tire changing equipment

Glove Compartment should have:

·        AAA or other roadside assistance cards

·        Auto insurance info

·        Health insurance info

·        Pen and paper

·        Regional maps

·        Tire gauge

·        Travel-size packet of wet wipes

·        Owner’s manual

·        Car registration

Hope this information helps and check your oil every 3,000 miles.  I had my first car for a year when I met my ex-husband.  He asked me when I last had my oil changed.  I responded with a big clueless "what?".  He said, the oil - you know, it has to be changed several times a year.  I said "Yeah, well I don't think I have ever done that."  I was 22 then.  At 43, I at least know to change my oil....

Have fun Taking Action by taking care of your car.

Angela

Share your Brain: Take Action #22

Each of us has the gift of having our own personal experiences, relationships and lessons.  I believe it is part of our job to share those with others so that we all can learn from the knowledge we have gained.  For example, if I just started a business and went through the process of getting a loan, forming an LLC, creating a website, buying a phone system, and more, it would be great to share that knowledge with someone else who wants to start a business.  This helps to short-cut the process for the new business owner. 

If I am expert at gardening, rather than watch my friend suffer through planting the wrong flowers in the wrong place at the wrong time, perhaps I could help save her frustration and an ugly garden by giving her some tips.

We do this every day in our personal relationships with our children, co-workers and friends, but how about sharing it with a larger audience?  Creating a blog is free and there are various resources  wordpress, blogger, blog.com.  Or, if you have a Facebook account, you can write a note and tag all of the people you think would get value from your advice.  You can write an article for the community newspaper or an on-line newsletter.  You can provide advice through groups on LinkedIn.  You can go to lunch with someone who needs advice or ideas.

So, go share your experiences and your brain with another person today!

Have fun Taking Action.

Angela

Take Action #21: Own Your Name

I read an interesting article  the other day that said that some parents have e-mail addresses for their babies before they are born and 80 percent of children have a profile online before they are 2 years old!   People thought I was nuts when I reserved my kid’s domain names – i.e. www.angelalieb.com   I did this when my daughter Jessica was producing a music demo cd.  I thought that if they were ever going to do something where their name was part of it – then I wanted to make sure they owned their domain.  It makes it difficult for folks like John Smith or Julie Jones – but if you can, I would encourage you to reserve your namesake domain – you can get one for less than $10/year.  GoDaddy, Register.com, NetworkSolutions are just a few places to purchase your domain. 

Another benefit to having your name as a domain is if someone does a Google search, the first thing that will pop up is your namesake website.  For example, I meet you at a networking event.  I want to learn more about you but I forgot who you work for or the name of your business.  I do a search for you on Google.  If you have a domain name, that will be the first item to pop up on Google.  Even if you aren’t using the domain, it will come up.  You can always point your domain name to your existing website or you may be able to point it to your LinkedIn or Facebook account.

So, if your name is important to you and you think you will ever want to promote yourself online, make sure you own your domain name.  So Take Action and go claim your name online!

Have a great rest of the day!

Angela

Take Action #20: Laugh!

I read a great article in Fast Company about Oxytocin and how it affects our brains - it is known as the "love hormone" and we all have it - mostly known for the bond between mother/child - however it is also the hormone for empathy, trust, and connecting.  Our Oxytocin levels have been known to increase when we are face to face with a friend or loved one.  Researchers have also been studying if our Oxytocin levels also increase with online relationships and they are finding that yes indeed they do AND companies need to get on board with understanding how they can interact with those consumers online and build trust.

Here is a link of a baby laughing that was uploaded by a dad video taping his baby - cost = FREE - number of views on YouTube = 140,673,872.  Here's the link to the video. 

Today is an awesome day because it is 10-10-10.  It is also a beautiful sunny day in St. Louis, MO.  Take Action and find something to laugh about today.  If you need help, see the video above - or interact with someone online that makes you laugh or go out with a friend or family member that makes you laugh.  Life is short and those who laugh live longer!

Have a happy day.

Angela

Take Action #19: GWI (Get With It) and Learn Text/IM Language

If you have been texting for a bit or have kids, you are probably familiar with the acronyms ASAP, TMI, LOL, BFF, BRB, B/C or GR8.  But how about BBL (be back later), WE (whatever), GAL (get a life), or HIH (hope it helps)?  If you need some help, as I do, go to this website to figure out how to get a clue with this new texting language.  PAW (parents are watching), PA (parent alert), PAL (parents are listening) are codes that parents might need to clue into. 

I gave a social media workshop a couple of weeks ago to some agents and one older gentleman said that one time he got a text and all that was on there was “K”.  He didn’t know what to do with that.  He also said that he was trained (as many of us over age 40) to use proper grammar when writing.  So the older Gen Y, Boomers and Veterans are spending 10 minutes to write out a text that is grammatically correct, as well as spelled correctly.  If we are going to be in business or communicate with the younger Gen Y, Gen X and Gen Z, I guess we should start learning how to use their language – seems crazy.

However…..I also think that the younger generations need to learn to communicate with “us” – especially if they want jobs J  For example, learning how to write a proper cover letter and send a professional e-mail would be helpful if they would like to be hired. Maybe that will be a future post.

HTH B/C even if U R OTL, OOO, or OTP, U don’t want to B OOT.   Perhaps, UNTCO, GWI and TA.

Translation: Hope this helps because even if you are out to lunch, out of the office, or on the phone, you don’t want to be out of touch.  Perhaps you need to chill out, get with it and Take Action (I added that one – like it?).

CYL,

Angela

Take Action #18: Write an Encouraging Letter Today

In an earlier post I talked about sending hand-written notes and thank-you notes.  I would like to elaborate on that one and ask that your Take Action item be to write a letter of encouragement to someone you care about – you have no idea the long-term impact that it could have.

E-mails and Facebook messages are great, but they are rarely keepers.  A hand-written letter with your personal hand-writing style is unique.  My dad just passed away on Sept. 25^th and 3 days before his death I got to read to him two letters that he wrote to me.  One was to me and my sisters when we were only 7, 4, and 1.  I also scanned the letter and sent it to my sisters so they would have a copy.  It was at a time when he was not with us at Christmas and he wrote about the true meaning of Christmas and what love was all about and wrote it just as if we were grown women – although we were so young.

The other letter was written to me when I was 18 and away at school for the first time.  He told me what made me special to him.  He listed all the qualities that he recognized in me and reassured me that I would be successful, find love and be a leader – not a follower.  One part of the letter that was powerful to me since I am divorced and recently ended another relationship was this: “Because you have esteem for yourself and a healthy love of self, you are not likely to have love forced on you because of lack of security.  You will wait and choose.  You will love everyone, yet reserve that “LOVE” for the right one.  This of course won’t guarantee you a life of bliss, but at least will put the odds in your favor.”  I saved this letter for 25 years.  I read it to my dad on Wednesday September 22^nd and he said he didn’t remember writing it and said “I wrote that? with tears in his eyes.”  I wanted him to know how much he helped to define who I was as a woman.  Sometimes when we write, we release it/share it and it is out of our mind because we have made our peace. 

At my dad’s visitation service, a long-time guy friend of mine came to see me and pulled me aside and said, “Do you remember the letter you wrote to me after my brother died?”  I was a little worried because I didn’t remember writing it and I would have been 9 months pregnant and it was 20 years ago and wasn’t sure if I professed my love or what.  He laughed and said, “No, you just said some things that were powerful, heartfelt and basically said that we will be friends for a long-time and will go through many life events together like births and deaths.”    I was mainly shocked because I don’t remember writing that letter and it was interesting that he brought it up because he knew nothing about my dad’s letter to me. He saved that letter for 20 years because I guess it impacted him just as my dad’s letter did for me.

You have no idea how powerful your message can be to someone during a major life event.  If you have a child going off to college or a friend who needs to be encouraged or told how great they are, get out that pen and spiral notebook and write down your heart-felt message.  Who knows, you may be responsible for shaping the life of another human being AND they may be reading your letter at your funeral.  I read the letter my dad wrote at his service because I wanted those in attendance to know what kind of man he was.

Enjoy writing – don’t worry about spell check or having crappy handwriting – they will love it!