Archive for the ‘What can Dr. Doug do for you?’ Category

Three Tips for Opening a Flourishing Business While Caring for Your Baby by Emily Graham
Welcoming your baby into the world is one of the most exciting and memorable times of your life. However, this amazing yet exhausting time can prove extra stressful when trying to get a company off the ground. If you want to make your business ownership dreams a reality and still bond with your bundle of joy, these tips from Dr. Doug Green’s blog can help.

1. Prep the Night Before
Preparing as much as you can at night for the following day saves you time and helps your professional and personal tasks go much smoother the next day. Make a list of tasks that can be done ahead of time.

Lay out the baby’s outfitbaby’s outfit the night before with a couple of spares in case of accidents. Have clean burp rags handy, and stock diapers and wipes. Make sure bottles are clean and any frozen milk is put in the fridge to defrost. 

Be sure your clothes are also ready for the next day. If you have a coffee maker that runs on a timer, load the coffee and set the timer, so your cup of joe is hot and ready when you awake. Prep as much food as possible so that when it is time to eat, your entree is mostly or completely done. 

2. Redesign Your Office
Whether your office space is an entire room or the corner of your bedroom, update your workspace to accommodate your little one. There are times throughout the day you pull double duty as a parent and entrepreneur, so a few tweaks to your office can make the adjustment much easier.
 
Add a rocker or bouncer to the office, such as a baby swing or bassinet. According to What to Expect, babies sleep 12 to 17 hours every 24 hours, depending on their ages. So chances are, your kiddo is going to take some naps throughout the day. This gives the baby a place to snooze while you are hard at work.

Have a mat and box of toys ready to go should your little one want to play. You may need to add a fence once your tike becomes mobile. Finally, be sure to remove any breakable or dangerous objects from the baby’s play zone. 

If the office is simply not functioning for the two of you, it may be time to list your home and purchase one that meets your needs. If you are going to own a business, you must be able to work comfortably while keeping your child safe. Make a list of the new office requirements for your real estate agent so he or she knows exactly what you need. 

3. Utilize Helpful Services and Tools
Finding help takes a portion of work off your plate. A great example is a formation service that can help you complete and process a limited liability company application. Setting your business up as an LLC has numerous advantages, including less paperwork, limited liability, increased flexibility, and tax advantages.The regulations around forming an LLC vary by state, so know your state’s rules before proceeding. Once you are ready to move forward, hiring a formation service saves you lots of time; plus, you avoid the hefty fees that a law office charges. 

Look for ways to make your business more cost and time efficient. Instead of hiring a graphic designer, you can use a logo design tool to create free online logos. This tool offers thousands of professionally designed logos that you can customize. Or you can use images, icons, and other design elements to enhance your current logo. And a PDF joiner may help to organize the multiple documents you and your team are juggling for a client. Instead of searching through dozens of digital documents, you can merge PDFs into one living document during your team’s process. Then, you can formalize the document and it will be ready for your client.

While this momentous time in your life may have more stress than you would like, you can still have a flourishing career as a business owner and be a dedicated parent. Following these three tips can help you achieve success both in the workforce and at home. And you can visit Dr. Doug Green for additional tips for parents and EDUCATORS.

Emily Graham
Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.Net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

Tony Blair on Leadership: Lessons for the 21st Century summarizes what Tony has learned as prime minister of the UK from 1997 to 2007 and consulting with leaders in many other countries as head of the Tony Blair Institute. Although this book is written for aspiring politicians, I believe that each short chapter contains timeless lessons for leaders and potential leaders in any field.

Introduction

• When leaders take over, most listen carefully as they know they have a lot to learn. The second stage occurs when they have become acclimated and start to think they know everything. In the final stage, they realize that what they know is not the sum total of the necessary knowledge associated with their leadership scope.
• Tony has concluded that the key attributes of leadership are the same whatever the leadership position. While politics has its place, it isn’t the same as leadership. Giving people what they want is not always what they need. Leaders need to do what is in the best interests of the lives they touch.

Part I: Taking Power – 1. Be the Leader with the Plan

• You must have a plan. It needs to contain your destination, milestones, and priorities and accurately describe the essentials of what you want to achieve. Priorities are essential as if you try to do everything, you just might do nothing. Change takes time and you will need to consider mid-course corrections as you move along. Not all of what you plan is likely to work as intended.

2. Make the Center Strong

• The skill set you need as a leader is not the same as the skill set that gets you the job. A strong center is needed to initiate and carry though on a change. The most important person is the one who runs your schedule. Leaders are constantly being asked for their time and if they can’t say no, they need someone who can. Meetings and events can be real time suckers. Leave them as soon as you can. Be sure to make time for yourself to recharge and time for your family.

3. Prioritization: Try to Do Everything and You Will Likely Do Nothing

• Once you get your leadership position, ask what you would like to accomplish the most. You can work back from these items to set your priorities. Tony sees five as a good number. Your followers will all have their pet projects. While they may not be at the top of your list, they don’t need to know that. Priorities have to be doable. Be sure to perform a feasibility check on each one. This process may not be easy, but it deserves your attention along with all of the uplifting rhetoric of hope you can summon.

4. Good Policy Is (Nearly) Always Good Politics

• Always put policy first and politics second. Avoid maters of ideology and convenience when crafting policy. Policy should be evidence-based. Work hard to do research so you know what you are talking about. Always think about a topic as if you were the person most impacted. Good policy strives to make change that will last rather than a quick splash. Be sure to look outside of your organization (country/school) for bright ideas and be sure to think ahead.

5. It’s All About the People

• The people Tony refers to here are the people who directly report to you. They need to be smart, hard working, loyal to you and to each other, and able to handle stress. Internal debate is healthy, not disruptive. Don’t reject someone just because they are smarter than you. Be sure to promote your most talented people. They are more likely to challenge you if you don’t. Effort you put in to finding the right people may be the most important thing you do..

6. Curb Your Bureaucracy by Cultivating It

• As a leader, you will have a bureaucracy to deal with so you need to get to know what it does and doesn’t do. bureaucracies tend to be permanent while the leader tends to be temporary. They are not known for creativity or innovation. Be clear about results, delivery, and on getting things done and the system will adjust. Look for opportunities to re-skill and retrain it. Don’t expect it to be a substitute for a leader and a team.

Part II: Delivery – 7. Democracy or Not, It’s All About Delivery

• As a leader, your success will be judged by what you deliver. The real test of government is making change that works, which is delivery. If you can deliver a higher quality of life with improved health care, education, and security, you should be reelected. Governments turnover due to instability, which is caused by the failure to deliver. People sometimes accept a strong man because the know that something will get done. Corruption is the enemy of delivery.

8. The Supreme Importance of Strategy

• Strategy assists in the long-term fulfillment of your overall plan. Without a strategy, failure is likely. Tactics are the smaller decisions that you make on a daily basis. It’s important that they align with your long-term strategy. You have to reconcile your day-to-day tactics to your core strategy. When fundamental facts change, but sure to see if you need to adjust your strategy. You should seldom discard it altogether.

9. Be a Change-Maker, Not a Place-Holder

• The world is changing fast. If you are standing still, you get left behind. If you are an elected leader, you probably got elected by promising to make some changes. Appointed leaders may have the same expectations. You need to create a constituency for your change so you have some support. Consider how you can break big changes into a series of smaller ones and take them incrementally. Consider how changes will benefit the consumers rather than the providers.

10. Le Suivi: Delivering

• Two things are necessary here. The priorities you choose must be measurable and you must be able to harvest reliable data so you can show that you accomplished your priority. When it comes to delivery, the leader needs to be actively involved. The leader need not do all of the work, but the leader must know what’s happening.

Top 10 Tips for Test Preparation by Craig Middleton offers sound advice for parents so they can help their children do their best on tests given by their teachers and standardized tests like the SAT and the ACT.

Testing scores are an important part of any child’s school experience. These scores allow a regular classroom teacher to evaluate a student’s progress and recognize any areas that may need more attention or improvements. Testing is an effective way to measure progress and to make sure that the child is able to communicate effectively. It can also be a way to recognize and discover learning disabilities in certain situations. Testing is also important when it comes to pursuing higher education as it is a big factor in college admissions. To ensure that your child does his or her best, take measures to ensure that they are adequately prepared for any tests so that they may do their best.

Sleep

• Proper sleep is absolutely necessary, especially on the night before a big and important test. If your child is well-rested they are more easily able to focus and concentrate on the test.

Breakfast

• Breakfast is another essential part of preparing for a test day. Make sure that your child has had a good breakfast the morning of the test so that they are full and have the energy they need to stay alert. Hunger can be distracting and lead to sub-optimal performance.

Organization

• Good organization is another tip in preparing for a test. Make sure that your child has all the necessary testing materials such as pencils, erasers, pens, calculators, and any other equipment that has been recommended. Have all of these things gathered ahead of time and ready to go to avoid last-minute stress and scrambling to find missing items.

Tutoring

• A good way to prep for testing is to get additional instruction. Tutoring in addition to regular classroom preparation may help the child achieve greater results. Consider this option for ongoing education but especially for ACT Prep.

Positive Attitude

• Stay positive and make sure that you maintain an upbeat attitude for both yourself and your child. Be a good example and show them that the test is necessary and important, but not a reason to become upset and dread what is to come. Help them keep an elevated mood so they’re excited and ready to go.

Teacher Conferences

• Consider having regular conferences with a student’s teacher. This will keep you up-to-date on their current academic levels and let you know if any additional instruction would be beneficial. Conferences open communication with the teacher to allow you both to work together more efficiently and will give you an idea of what to expect for future performance.

Relax

• t’s also important to make sure that your child is relaxed. Ensure that they are not overly anxious over the upcoming test. Help your child to stay calm and be mentally prepared so the stress doesn’t become overwhelming.

Homework

• Make sure the child is current with all of their homework. Having all the work done on time will help them learn to be responsible and prepared and will keep you up-to-date with the materials that may be covered on the tests.

Test Format

• Test formats can vary greatly and if your child is already stressed over the thought of taking a test, an unexpected or new format may cause them unnecessary anxiety. Make sure that the student is familiar with the test format so there are no surprises and so that you are sure they understand how to fill out the form and complete all tasks.

Practice Tests

• Take advantage of any practice tests that may be available. Many of the larger tests, such as the ACT, offer practice tests, or you can create your own for smaller tests. A practice test will give your child an idea of test format, time limits, and topics that will be covered. This allows the students to be better prepared and comfortable so they can relax and do their best.
• The more prepared your child is the more likely they are to do well on their tests. Familiarize yourself with the entire procedure so that you can help your child prepare and reach their full potential.

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

Two Thoughts” A Timeless Collection of Infinite Wisdom by Jim O’Shaughnessy with Vatsal Kaushik captures insights from 250 of the world’s most influential minds. These pages capture the essence of human thought and experience. These quotes will challenge, inspire, and illuminate as they provide a lens through which to view your own life. Put a copy on your desk and open it to any page to find a companion for your thoughts, a catalyst for your aspirations, or simply a moment of clarity in your day. Thanks Jim and Vatsal.

Preface

• It all started with a tweet from Jim O’Shaughnessy on December 28, 2020. It contained two quotes from Buckminster Fuller. This started Jim’s Two Thoughts series that became a daily institution. What is important is not what is said or who said it, but it’s what you do with it. Try to make some of these quotes your own. As you read, scribble, go on tangents, and find weird relationships. This should be a book or action, not only of thought, so try not to read it cover to cover. Good luck and have some fun.

Introduction

• Consider that the human mind contains two characters, the thinker, and the prover. After some effort, the thinker decides that something is right or wrong and then shuts off. The prover’s job then is to look at the beliefs delivered by the thinker and get to work proving them right. The prover might firewall information counter to what is supposed to be proved. Once the proving is done, most people stop thinking on the matter and go on to something else. (Doug: From what I’ve seen, many people let the media they consume do the thinking, and perhaps most, if not all of the proving.)
• The authors encourage you not to accept the quotes here as gospel, but rather to use them to get you thinking, proving, and thinking again in an endless cycle. Weigh these quotes, but don’t worship them. Be entertained rather than exalted. Chew on them, but don’t swallow.
• The next five chapters contain two quotes from 250 people followed by a brief biography. Rather than try to summarize them, I will give you some of my favorites. Yours will probably be different, so BUY THIS BOOK!

Wordsmiths: Writers, Playwrights, Poets, Satirists, and Cartoonists

• The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity. Dorthy Parker
• Progress isn’t made by early risers. It’s made by lazy people trying to find easier ways to do something. Robert Heinlein
• You don’t have the right to the cards you believe you should have been dealt. You have an obligation to play the hell out of the cards you’re holding. Cheryl Strayed
• There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. Ernest Hemingway
• Children aren’t coloring books. You do not get to fill them in with your favorite colors. Khaled Hosseini
• You’re twice as biased as you think you are (four times if you disagree with that statement). Morgan Housel
• Youth is happy because it has the capacity to see beauty. Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old. Franz Kafka

Scholars: Researchers, Psychologists, Economists, Academics, and Executives

• When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves. Viktor Frankl
• My advice is to read widely and think for yourself. We need more dissent and less dogma. Camille Paglia
• Self-improvement comes mainly from trying to help others. Sir John Templeton
• Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge. Charles Darwin
• It is an iron rule of history that what looks inevitable in hindsight was far from obvious at the time. Yuval Noah Harari
• To the man who only has a hammer, everything he encounters begins to look like a nail. Abraham Maslow
• You can’t hold a man down without staying down with him. Booker T. Washington
• The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking. John Kenneth Galbraith
• When supporting others, we need to offer the comfort of Kirk and the intellect of Spock. Ethan Kross

Uncommon Sense Teaching: Practical Insights in Brain Science to Help Students Learn by Barbara Oakley, Beth Rogowsky, and Terrence Sejnowsk
t explains how the brain works when it learns. It also offers lots of practical real world advice for teachers and learners of all ages. No school professional development library should be without it.

1. Building Memory: How Students Fool Themselves into Thinking They’re Learning

• Information in working memory generally goes away when we stop thinking about it. This can fool students into thinking they really know something. What they need to do is right after they have encountered new information, they should see if they can retrieve it from long-term memory. Retrieval practice is one of the best techniques for strengthening new information in long-term memory. The more times you retrieve something the stronger your memory of it will be. Students should jot notes about what they just learned and compare their notes with other students. Retrieving information from previous days or weeks is called spaced repetition, which further strengthens long-term memory.

2. Teaching Inclusively: The Importance of Working Memory

• Not all students have the same amount of working memory. For those with less, it’s vital to build their long-term memory, which will make the short-term memory they have more efficient. Working memory increases over time until children reach the age of about 14. Engaging students’ interests makes learning more effective while stress gets in the way.
• Slower learners can benefit from reteaching, giving them more time to practice, giving them outlines to take notes on, and breaking things down into simpler steps. For faster learners go beyond factual questions, have them work together, increase the complexity of assignments, have extra activities for them to do, and let them devise their own activities. This helps you differentiate your teaching. In all cases, active practice should break up teacher talk.

3. Active Learning: The Declarative Pathway

• Research shows that active learning is much more effective than simply listening to an expert. Note that not all hands-on activities are considered to be active learning. Active Learning engages students in the process of learning through activities and/or discussions in class. It emphasizes higher-order thinking and often involves group work. The foundation for conceptual understanding and creative thinking is the storage of basic facts and procedures in long-term memory. Note-taking and retrieval practice facilitate this process.
• Long-term memories are stored in the neocortex, which is the big front and top of your brain. The process is facilitated by the hippocampus, which is composed of two small bean-shaped pieces at the base. It acts as an index while the connections of neurons that store memories are being made. Retrieving recently stored memories serves to help consolidate the information. Much of this consolidation occurs while we are sleeping. Brief breaks of even less than a minute can help students make sense of new material. Index links from the hippocampus dissolve after a while, which is why cramming the night before doesn’t work as there is no time for consolidation.
• Frequent formative assessments, low-stakes tests, homework, and exercises can all help with retrieval. Daily physical exercise of an hour or more helps with the formation of neuron connections. Be sure to tap into prior knowledge. Use the think-pair-share method when teaching. Students will find that working in pairs or groups of three or four is more effective than larger-sized groups. If possible, pick a shy person from a group with the right answer (or a good answer) to present to the class.

Unlocking New Horizons: How Women Can Expand Their Careers and Personal Growth

Across industries, women continue to redefine leadership, creativity, and impact. Yet many still face systemic and situational barriers—limited mentorship, career plateaus, and the constant balancing act between personal and professional ambitions. True progress requires intentional strategies: identifying new opportunities, building supportive networks, and pursuing education that empowers change.

What You’ll Find Here

Key mindsets that transform career plateaus into growth cycles

Actionable strategies to identify and seize new opportunities

A practical how-to checklist for advancement and self-development

A data-informed comparison of leadership pathways and outcomes

Guidance on continuing education

Shifting From Aspiration to Agency

Career advancement starts with shifting from hoping for growth to designing it. Women often wait for recognition that never comes—or downplay their readiness for leadership roles. Instead, clarity and visibility are critical: articulate what you bring to the table, seek sponsorship rather than passive mentorship, and connect your career story to measurable outcomes.
When a woman claims her narrative and aligns it with her organization’s priorities, she transitions from being seen as a contributor to being understood as a catalyst for progress. That shift changes everything: it moves conversations from “What role can I have?” to “What impact can I make?”

Education as a Force Multiplier

Pursuing advanced degrees or credentials remains one of the most powerful catalysts for reinvention. For women balancing career, family, and growth, flexible learning models open new possibilities.
Enrolling in an accelerated online EdD in leadership program allows ambitious professionals to develop advanced strategic, organizational, and research skills—without pausing their current careers. These programs are designed for real-world impact: graduates lead school systems, nonprofits, or corporate learning initiatives that shape the next generation of leadership.

The Network Effect

Collaboration is the real engine of advancement. Networks—formal or informal—magnify opportunities, visibility, and resilience. Women who connect across industries often discover lateral moves that unlock unexpected doors.
Before the next opportunity arises, ask yourself:

Who consistently challenges and supports my growth?

Which relationships bring visibility to my work when I’m not in the room?

How am I reciprocating, advocating, and amplifying others?

A network built on mutual growth doesn’t just offer professional connections—it creates psychological safety and belonging, both essential for sustained success.

Common Barriers—and How to Navigate Them

Women still encounter structural obstacles and cultural expectations that slow career progress. Yet proactive navigation strategies can mitigate many of them.

Imposter Syndrome
Work-Life Balance

How to Identify and Seize New Opportunities

Sometimes, opportunity doesn’t arrive neatly packaged. It’s discovered, created, or reframed.
Try this short checklist for proactive career expansion:
Scan your environment: Where are unmet needs, untapped audiences, or inefficiencies you can solve?

Prototype action: Test a small-scale initiative that demonstrates capability beyond your current scope.

Ask for feedback, not permission: Share results and insights to build momentum.

Quantify the win: Convert impact into measurable metrics (time saved, revenue gained, satisfaction improved).

Document the story: Turn outcomes into case studies or internal presentations to position yourself for future roles.
The most successful leaders don’t just fill roles—they create new ones through demonstrated value.

Key Habits That Sustain Long-Term Growth

A few behavioral anchors separate those who progress consistently from those who stall.
Continuous reflection: Schedule quarterly self-reviews as you would a business audit.

Skill stacking: Pair technical expertise with communication, strategy, or design thinking.

Visibility hygiene: Keep your professional profiles, publications, and bios updated.

Mentorship loop: Mentor others; it reinforces your authority and expands your network.

Boundary literacy: Sustainable success depends on saying “no” as decisively as “yes.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few of the questions that often arise when women explore new career and growth pathways:

Q: How do I balance career advancement with family or caregiving responsibilities?
A: Leverage flexible education models and remote collaboration tools. Focus on progress over perfection—growth can happen in increments.

Q: What if I’ve been out of the workforce for a while?
A: Reentry programs, certifications, and online graduate degrees are designed for this. Highlight transferable skills and recent learning to show readiness.

Q: Is leadership training really necessary for influence?
A: Influence without training can happen, but structured leadership education accelerates it—especially in environments where credentials still shape credibility.

Q: How do I know which opportunities align with my purpose?
A: Evaluate each one by asking: “Will this expand my impact, align with my values, or improve my learning curve?” If at least two are true, it’s worth pursuing.

Conclusion

Growth doesn’t happen by waiting—it happens by positioning yourself where opportunity meets preparation. For women ready to lead, reinvent, or influence change, the path forward is both personal and systemic: cultivate clarity, pursue education that fits your life, and surround yourself with allies who amplify your ambition.
Every time a woman claims her leadership narrative, she reshapes what’s possible—not just for herself, but for every woman who follows.

Emily Graham

Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

Free Resources for Busy Parents and Educators Who Don’t Have as Much Time to Read and Surf as I Do

What Is Covered in a Human Trafficking Course? by Kathleen Zara explains why at least one person in every school district should take such a course. Be sure to share it with leadership in your school district.

Human trafficking has become an international issue that is gaining more attention yearly. On the international level, South and Central Asia was the region with the second-most trafficking victims in 2019. Businesses need to be aware of what it is and how to identify it. This article will discuss the different things covered in a human trafficking course.

1. The Definition
It is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of persons using threat or use of force or other methods of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of power or position of vulnerability, or giving payments or benefits to get the consent of a person having control over another person for exploitation.
Exploitation is prostitution or any other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, slavery or similar practices, and the removal of organs.

2. How to Identify Victims
The course will cover identifying potential victims of human trafficking and the signs that may indicate that someone is being trafficked. It includes looking for patterns of control, exploitation, and victimization.
It is essential to identify victims because they are often hidden in plain sight. They may be working in massage parlors, nail salons, or factories. They may be living in homes with many other people and not have any personal belongings. They may also be moved around frequently and have few close friends or family members.
If you see someone you think may be a victim of it, the best thing to do is reach out to organizations that can help, such as the National Human Trafficking Hotline. (888 373-7888) They can support victims and connect them with resources in their area.

3. The Different Forms That Human Trafficking Can Take
It is crucial to know the different forms that human trafficking can take to identify it. It can include sex trafficking, forced labor, organ trafficking, or domestic servitude. Sex trafficking happens when someone is forced or coerced into sexual activity. It can happen through force, fraud, or coercion. Victims of sex trafficking can be children or adults of either gender.
Forced labor is when someone is made to work against their will through force, fraud, or coercion. It can happen in many industries, such as agriculture, manufacturing, construction, and domestic work. Organ trafficking is when organs are removed from a person for transplantation.

4. What Businesses Can Do to Help Prevent and Report Instances
You can learn how to prevent it in your business and what to do if you witness or suspect it. This knowledge is critical for business owners, employees, and managers. You’ll also learn about the signs of trafficking and how to report it.

5. Due Diligence, Victims, and Perpetrators
The human trafficking course covers a variety of topics related to crime. These can include due diligence measures businesses can take to ensure they are not complicit in trafficking, how to identify victims of trafficking, and profiles of typical perpetrators. The goal of these courses is to help participants better understand the issue and try to prevent them.

Conclusion
Whether you are searching to start a career or want to learn more about human trafficking, taking a certified course is a great way to gain knowledge and skills. A comprehensive online course will identify victims, understand legal issues, and develop victim-centered responses.

Kathleen Zara
Kathleen works as a freelancer and entrepreneur working from a start-up learning along the way about marketing, social and networking, creating Web sites, and web content. @ACAMS_AML

What Schools Should Be Teaching About Nutrition by Craig Middleton covers some of the basics of nutrition that schools should consider adding to their formal curricula. While there is a lot more to know, this is a good place for you and your kids to start.

Introduction

• For a long time, many educators have pleaded that schools should teach more about problems that children will run into when they become adults. Adult challenges that some schools have started preparing students for include finances and general computer classes like teaching office software for example. Often disregarded is nutrition even though physical education is still typically required. Whether a school decides to integrate nutrition into their physical education or health classes or create a separate class, it should be part of every school’s formal curriculum.

The Truth About Sugar

• Added sugar has been increasingly seen in more foods than ever in the United States and around the world thanks to initiatives like the U.S. Sugar Program. Making sure you don’t consume too much sugar is important as it can cause many different issues such as cavities, weight gain, and even diabetes. Teach kids how to read labels on food products so they can limit how much sugar they consume on a daily basis. Additionally, have them avoid or very sparingly consume high sugar products like soda and instead consume better alternatives like green tea or just water. Cutting down on sugar is one of the best ways you can live a nutritious lifestyle.

The Truth About Protein

• Protein is a very important factor when building a diet for yourself. While protein is in so many foods, make sure to know which types of foods have the most like eggs, milk, beef, pork, fish, or chicken so you are able to build a well-balanced diet. Without protein, you can have deficiency issues that can stunt growth and make you more susceptible to infections. Additionally, you’ll want to eat more protein anytime you get into weightlifting as protein is what will help you build muscles. Make sure you fully understand protein when you want to know about proper nutrition.

The Truth About Dairy

• Dairy is the group of products made out of the milk of mammals such as cows, goats, sheep, and more. These products all include cheese, milk, butter, ice cream, and more, and you probably have at least one of these on a daily basis. If you’ve ever had stomach problems, for example, make sure you don’t have lactose intolerance. Lactose is a sugar found in dairy products and the enzyme lactase is needed by people consuming dairy products to digest them without problems. Make sure you don’t have lactose intolerance when consuming dairy products and if you do, consider ways you can still have dairy products such as taking lactase supplements or going for lactose-free products. Understanding dairy products is important when living a nutritious lifestyle.

The Truth About Cell Health

• Cell health is important as the more healthy your cells are the more energy you will have and the easier time you will have maintaining your target weight. Following proper cellular nutrition is important in gaining positive cell health. To do this, you’ll want to go for plant-based nutrients (fruits and vegetables) that will trigger your cells to become more healthy. Once you’ve started incorporating plant-based nutrients into your diet, you’ll see results down the line. Ensure that your cell health is good when you want to live a healthy nutritious lifestyle.

Conclusion

• No matter what age the children you’re responsible for teaching are, it’s always a good time to start teaching about nutrition. While many kids won’t be able to plan their own diet until they become young adults, some will be able to pass on what they learn to their parents so they might cook better for them. Teaching nutrition at a younger age can also get them to be dead set on following a stricter diet once they are cooking on their own. Building knowledgeable kids for the future will make them happier and healthier adults.

Craig Middleton

• Craig is a New York City-based retired business consultant, who is an expert in education and cultural trends. He has a Masters of Business Administration and a Masters in Education from St. Johns and loves sharing his knowledge on the side through his writing. If you have any questions or comments you can direct them to Craig at craigmiddleton18@gmail.com.

Writing for Busy Readers: Communicate More Effectively in the Real World by Todd Rogers and Jessica Lasky-Fink spells out the six principles you can follow to increase the probability that people will read, understand, and respond to what you write. Be sure to add it to your professional development library.

Introduction

• This book sets out the six fundamental principles of effective writing. It should have a well-defined purpose, help the writer and the reader, not be beautiful writing, have a rigorous science underlying its rules, and have a real context. Busy people tend to skim, postpone, or ignore complex messages. The average professional spends nearly one-third of their time reading and responding to email. If messages are ineffective they impose a tax on the readers’ time. Voters, for example are likely to skip ballot questions that use complex language.
• Much of what we learned in school is irrelevant or counterproductive in the real-world. The principles in this book are derived from the sciences of cognitive psychology, social psychology, behavioral economics, neuroscience, marketing, and time management. The authors draw on randomized studies and have worked hard to make this book easy to navigate. (Doug: I think they have.)

Part I: Engaging the Reader – 1. Get Inside Your Reader’s Head

• Our brains have a limited ability to attend to and focus on multiple things, which also limits our ability to act. Unfortunately, we all tend to multitask, which is really task switching. When we switch from one task to another we are less efficient at both tasks and are more likely to commit errors. Even if we focus on a single task, we tire over time. Our writing, therefore, has to respect this landscape of stress and distraction.

2. Think Like a Busy REader

• Readers first have to decide to engage. This usually depends on the envelop, which is the subject line for an email or the importance of the sender. They also need to decide when to engage. Most readers tackle things first that appear to be easier. They need to decide how much time to engage where the decision to skim or scan comes in. Scanning involves reading things like headings and the first sentences of paragraphs. Finally, they have to decide whether to respond. To increase the probability the request has to be clear so the reader knows the task and how to do it. Make it as easy as possible. Above all, know your goals.

3. Know Your Goals

• Effective writing is about transferring key information from writer to reader. What is the most important information you want your reader to know? You cannot achieve your goals as a writer if you are unclear on what those goals are.