Nothing can lift or plummet our outlook on life like our almighty attitude. So in this first week of 2014, take stock of yours. Is it healthy and robust? Or negative and contaminating?
Do you find yourself already lapsing into the woe-is-me thinking of 2013? Is the thrill that accompanies the headiness of a new year already nosediving into a familiar bleakness?
Caution ahead
DANGER! DO NOT ENTER! Back away immediately from the well-traveled mental roads leading nowhere.
A new year is the perfect time to challenge yourself to think and act differently to get different results. Now is the time to turn those resolutions into reality. The journey toward achieving your goals begins with the most powerful engine you own: your mind.
Throughout this year, there will be times when you sputter, race, crash, cruise or run out of gas. Whatever happens, your attitude can either help or hinder your journey.
The good news is we are just a few days into 2014 and you have more than 355 left to pump up your positive thinking. A fresh, energetic and optimistic attitude can improve health, relationships and job performance and help you navigate life’s unexpected curves.
Attitude adjustment tools
So how do you stay chipper when the challenges of life seem to work overtime to dull your shine?
Here are some action steps:
Fill up on gratitude. Start your day by saying aloud three things you are grateful for. Better yet, tell someone. Or make it a family practice.
Reflect and write. You may want to start a gratitude journal and regularly list what you appreciate. Read it on New Year’s Eve.
Grow from setbacks. Instead of throwing a pity party where you are the guest of honor, explore how you can improve your skills.
Seek out upbeat people. Surround yourself with positive thinkers. Emulate them.
Judge less. People are flawed. Avoid making their shortcomings your concern.
Help others. Sometimes the only way to lift your spirit is to lift others.
Laugh at yourself. Chances are, people are doing so anyway. Join them by showing you don’t take yourself so seriously.
Share your approaches if you already have a winning attitude. We’d love to hear them.
Robin Farmer is an award-winning writer with a focus on health, education and business. Visit her at www.RobinFarmerWrites.com
Today marks the 2nd day of the New Year. Maybe one of your goals for 2014 is to save more money. What is your plan to reach that goal? Today, on the 2nd day of the year, have you already implemented money saving changes?
Saving more money is a good resolution for anyone to have. Many people want to save more money, but it can sometimes prove to be difficult. Here are a few tips that can help you save more money in the New Year:
1. Use more cash for everyday purchases. This tip works three-fold for those wanting to save more money. First, using cash forces a person to really think before purchasing an item unlike using “invisible money” (i.e. credit and debit cards) for purchases. Those who hold larger bills e.g. $20, $50, and $100 are less likely to break that bill for a small amount like a Starbuck’s latte for example. Secondly, if you do break a bill, you can take the change from that bill and put it in a piggy bank. And third, using cash for certain purchases can be used as a budgetary measure. Give yourself a certain amount of cash to use for purchases. For example you set a budget of $300 dollars per month for groceries, pay for your groceries in cash and once you reach $300 you’re done for the month.
2. Keep a piggy bank. I alluded to this in # 1. Don’t scoff at piggy banks and think they’re just child’s play. Piggy banks can amount to big money depending on how much and how often you contribute to it. Remember to check your coins for rarity before cashing in. Some coins have significant value worth way more than their face value.
3. Cut costs on household utilities. Begin shopping around for better deals on your phone, cable, and internet. If you can completely cut your cable and use alternatives like HULU or Netflix, your cost savings will be even more.
4. Purchase “like new” items instead of brand new items. During my school days I never purchased a brand new book if I could help it. I always purchased “like new” or rented them if I didn’t think I would ever use them again. This tip alone saved me hundreds of dollars last year. This tip is not just isolated to school books. If you’re eyeing something in a traditional retail store, most times you can find a better deal on sites like Amazon or Ebay.
5. Eat at home more often. Making dining out a special treat instead of a regular everyday habit can add more money to your pockets. Try to limit you dining out to no more than twice per week.
These are just a few tips that can help you save more money in 2014. What are your best money saving tips?
In addition to working as a RN, Nachole Johnson is a freelance copywriter and an author with her first book, You’re a Nurse and Want to Start Your Own Business? The Complete Guide, available on Amazon. Visit her ReNursing blog at http://renursing.wordpress.com.
With the new year about to unfold, you have likely reflected on what’s working in your life and what needs altering. Have you decided that the changes you need to make in 2014 include career reinvention? Join the club.
Are you looking for a job providing higher pay, less stress, more adventure or passion? Loving what you do and the people you do it with is the ideal situation, regardless of profession.
Most nurses enter the profession to facilitate healing, combine the art of caring with scientific thinking and educate others. If you are an experienced RN and your current position leaves you feeling unsatisfied, consider exploring these nontraditional career options:
1. Independent Patient Advocate
This job allows experienced nurses to empower, teach and guide people in their healthcare journey as they seek the best treatment options. These nurses work with the patient, primary care physicians, family, hospital, and specialists, to develop an appropriate plan of care. Advocates can help review diagnoses, test reports and medical records, accompany a patient to appointments or assist in finding the best doctors.
2. Forensic Nurse
The route to becoming a forensic nurse often begins by working as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner, who cares for victims of sexual assault crimes like rape and attempted rape. These nurses collect evidence as part of the medical forensic exam and they can also testify in court. They work alongside criminal justice system professionals and may assist with death investigations,
3. Life Coach
If you enjoy educating people on how to make significant life changes, this area of the field may be the career change you seek. With a clinical background, you already have the skills needed to communicate challenging information to diverse people. This job can also be done face-to-face as well as by phone, email, or Skype.
4. Nurse Researcher
Do you have strong writing skills along with an interest in studying ways to improve healthcare services and outcomes? These nurses are scientists who conduct scientific studies, collect and analyze data, and report their findings. Nurse researchers often make presentations and write articles and research reports for professional journals and publications.
Whatever path you explore the real challenge will be executing a plan and staying on track as the sparkle of 2014 fades away.
Robin Farmer is a freelance writer with a focus on health, education and business. Visit her at RobinFarmerWrites.com.
Ahhh…the holiday season, who doesn’t love it? The decorations, lights, food and gifts. Not to mention quality family time. What’s not to love?
This time of year brings happiness and holiday cheer to many, but as quickly as the season begins, it ends. We’ve finished Thanksgiving and Christmas and some may be reeling from the guilt that usually ensues afterwards.
Guilt? Yes. Guilt.
The magical holiday season is almost over and some feel guilty. Credit cards have been maxed out from all of the shopping and waistbands have expanded from the endless food buffet available from Thanksgiving to Christmas.
You can get back on track for the remainder of 2013 so you don’t go into the New Year with feelings of guilt. Here are a few steps that can help you beat the Post Holiday Blues:
Acknowledge. Acknowledgement is the first step to change. Acknowledge you’ve over done it this holiday season by overspending or overeating and you are willing to make a change for the New Year.
Plan. Make a plan for the upcoming year. Your plan may include living a more healthy lifestyle or saving more money. What ever you decide to work on put it in writing to keep yourself accountable. Figure out how you will reach your goals and make a game plan. Remember the old adage, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
Action. After the first two steps are in place you are ready for action! Set your plan in motion. Don’t get discouraged if you make mistakes along the way, just pick yourself up and continue where you left off. Keep pushing forward and the changes you have set in place will become easier as time goes on.
Use these steps to get back to your normal self and beat the Post Holiday Blues!
In addition to working as a RN, Nachole Johnson is a freelance copywriter and an author with her first book, You’re a Nurse and Want to Start Your Own Business? The Complete Guide, available on Amazon. Visit her ReNursing blog at http://renursing.wordpress.com
As the year comes to an end many people start to evaluate their goals for the upcoming New Year. Typical resolutions like losing weight, saving money, and trying a new hobby prevail, but what if your resolution is to find a new career?
When one applies to a new job they usually submit a resume. As an applicant, you want to put your best foot forward. What may have worked for you 5 years ago may not work for the competitive job market now. A resume revamp is in order if you plan on changing specialties, the content is outdated, or you are a recent graduate.
My recent graduation from a Family Nurse Practitioner program prompted the need for a resume revamp. As a nurse with over 12 years of experience my resume was nearly 4 pages long and it didn’t embody all the qualities recruiters look for in an applicant.
What qualities do recruiters look for in a resume?
Four key aspects:
Concise: Keep it to 1-page; 2 if you have extensive experience. Obviously my old resume wasn’t concise. I’m surprised I’ve gotten so much attention in the past with a resume that long. We’ll see how much of a response I get from a 1-page resume.
Clear: Make sure your resume format isn’t cluttered and hard for a recruiter to read. If it is, it will surely be tossed in the trash no matter how qualified you are for the job. Also be on the look out for poor grammar and typos. This is another reason good applicants get overlooked for a job.
Consistent: Keep abbreviations contained within your resume consistent and make sure they are universally understood. Keep all fonts within the resume the same and no smaller than 11 point for easy readability.
Keywords: Many resumes submitted online go through a scanner, weeding those out that don’t have specific keywords for the position. This means your resume gets lost in cyber world before any human could lay eyes on it. Keyword examples for a nursing resume include: Registered Nurse (RN); health care; intensive care; admit; medication administration.
Use these tips to revamp your resume for maximal results…your new career in the New Year! Stay tuned for next week’s installment reviewing the most common resume mistakes people make.
In addition to working as a RN, Nachole Johnson is a freelance copywriter and an author with her first book, You’re a Nurse and Want to Start Your Own Business? The Complete Guide, available on Amazon. Visit her ReNursing blog at http://renursing.wordpress.com.
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