Entrepreneurs - Do You Run a Socially Conscious Business?

Increasingly businesses are finding that social responsibility is more than good philanthropy and a good image. It makes a difference in the bottom line as well. Socially responsible businesses do better financially.

Researchers, Marc Orlitzky, Sara Rynes, and Frank Schmidt looked at 52 studies covering 34,000 companies world wide over a 30 year period. Their 2004 study found that well-run, profitable businesses also boasted strong social and environmental records. Firms that rewarded employees with good work climates and higher pay and benefits saw stronger sales, and stock prices, plus less employee turnover. Rynes says, "As a company becomes more socially responsible, its reputation and financial performance go up, which causes them to become even more socially responsible."

If you are a socially conscious entrepreneur, it may even easier for you to see the impact on your business. Bigger businesses are often isolated from the real world by bureaucracy. You may not need all of the research statistics; you may see it first hand.

Running a socially responsible business means consciously managing the social impact of your business, how it relates to you, your clients, and your community. A good place to start is from within. Take time to identify your strengths, your values and higher purpose. The more your work comes your social conscious, the more effective you will be in creating meaningful and purposeful actions that promote healthy change. Then translate your purpose into your business practice. Here are three points to consider:

1. Keep your house in order. Be authentic and check out your business practices to ensure that they are ethical and represent your values and purpose. Authenticity attracts success. Good customer care is the cornerstone of business success.

2. Consciously choose associates and clients that share the same values and mission. Connect and communicate with them with them authentically. Streamlining your efforts for the customers who share a similar purpose and values helps you identify those who are more likely to profit from your products and service. You will be able to build your business from your relationships.

3. Create value. Become aware of how your business impacts the community and environment and communicate it to your customers. This is life-affirming and transforming for all involved. It expands awareness, enhances flow, and builds the greater good. The results - increased profits.

Entrepreneur Profit -7 Neglected Steps That Turn Ideas Into Cash

Entrepreneur profit eludes many entrepreneurs because they unwittingly create their own roadblocks to success. The entrepreneurial spirit is something to be admired with its passion, free spirit and many ideas, but if it isn't bridled and pointed in the direction of a target, it can cause unfavorable results.

True entrepreneurs are full of energy, excitement and ideas. But getting an idea is only the first step. That is where discipline is required to choose the best one and take it to the next step and then the next until you join the circle of people who actually enjoy entrepreneur profit. Decide on an idea and then take control over your thoughts and energy so they are highly directed.

Every human body has an energy system. Your energy plays a major part in the way you feel physically and what you experience mentally. In order to feel good physically, your energy patterns, which are connected to your thoughts, must be in a state of coherence, which is an ordered pattern of frequencies. Your emotions, coming from your thoughts, are very powerful. Chaotic thoughts release stress chemicals that throw your body and mind out of balance. Coherent thoughts allow you to be focused and in tune with ideas and actions that will lead to entrepreneur profit.

Your emotions are a vital part of the equation. Belief in what you are doing is crucial and you must feel passionate about it in order to make steady progress. It is important to physically feel the kind of emotions that are associated with success and then make a habit of feeling them as you are visualizing. Notice that I said FEEL them-which is much different than entertaining a passing thought about success that does not evoke an emotional response that you can feel.

As often as possible, feel positive emotions while you are visualizing a scene that is fashioned around your successful idea. Visualizing is simply watching a movie or scene in your mind's eye or that place where you go mentally when you think about something.

You must have a very clear intention in mind that creates laser beam focus on the end result. In order to see results from your ideas, you must follow through on the thoughts that prompt you to take action. Put one foot in front of the other and entrepreneur profit will be yours before you know it.

But be wary of the #1 pitfall-too many ideas, too little action.

The one thing that entrepreneurs have is plenty of ideas. The ideas come but the follow through doesn't always follow. If your mind is a thought factory that continuously pumps out new ideas but you never take action and turn the ideas into cash, its time to choose one and go for it.

The language of your mind is pictures and you must feed it pictures that represent the life you want to be living.

Create an image in your mind that is symbolic of the success and profit you desire. You can look through magazines for ideas. Find something that makes you feel really good as you think about it because it is the feelings that are most important.

Have a focus statement ready so that when distracting thoughts come to mind, you can brush them aside and repeat your focus statement. Choose something meaningful to you that will break up the thought patterns in your brain that are scattering your energy over too many areas or creating negativity. Then bring in the image that you have chosen to be symbolic of your success and think about it. Dwell on it long enough in your thoughts to create excitement and the kind of energy you will feel when it truly IS your reality.

It is very important to keep an open mind. That allows infinite possibilities to come to your conscious awareness.

Here are steps that if followed, will lead to entrepreneur profit.

1. Create a state of coherence or relaxation in your body 2. Think about the intention or image of success 3. Associate as many positive emotions with it as possible 4. Take the actions you are prompted to take 5. Be on the lookout for opportunities that present themselves 6. Hold the expectation of success 7. Feel grateful because you KNOW success is just around the corner

Repeat often.

Practice awareness because opportunities for success and entrepreneur profit WILL come your way.

Chimney & Co - The Poetic Story of a Family Cat By Pamela Douglas - Book Review

Who is Chimney? He is a family cat and he is telling his story in poetic form in the book "Chimney & Co." Chimney starts the poems at a time when he was very young and they continue up through his mature years.

The titles of some of my favorites are:

My Arrival - Chimney tells how some people came to the kennel to choose a dog for their pet and the little girl picked "Susie" an Irish Setter. The litter of kittens was spotted under a chair and Chimney was the one chosen to go along with Susie.

The Naming of Me - Chimney tells how he got his name.

Time Wasting - Chimney tells why he hates to see people working.

Susie - Mother - When Susie had eleven puppies in all and how proud she was at that time.

My Favourite Person - Chimney explains what a joy it is for families to have a Granddad.

My First Christmas - This one is my very favorite of all. Chimney tells about his first time seeing a Christmas tree. If anyone has a cat, this poem will mean so much to you and I'm sure it will give you many laughs. I could go on and on because I own a cat and many of these poems bring back some fond memories.

Pamela Douglas has done an excellent job with these poems. Any reader, young or old, will come away with the feeling that the cat is "really" the one telling the story in these poems. The author uses her writing skills and creative imagination to make the reader feel this way.

If you are a cat lover, this is a must read book of poems. If you don't own a cat, you might want to get one after reading this book. Parents will enjoy reading these poems to their younger children. What a combination - cat adventures made into poetic stories!

What I really liked about the author's writing style is that she makes the reader aware that cats are keenly aware of everything going on around them. If you have ever had a cat, you are well aware of this trait.

There are also several poems that teach lessons with messages such as Sadie's Sore Paw. Sadie stepped on a piece of glass due to someone "littering" the countryside. Another example of a message is All Pals Together where we learn it is important to "share and appreciate friends."

Be sure to pick up a copy of Chimney & Co. You will find the poems funny, a learning experience and very entertaining.

Men in Therapy

This book should be read by the psychotherapists for whom it is intended and also by anyone, male or female, who wants a better understanding of why men are the way we are.

David Wexler draws upon masses of research and his own experience as a father, husband and uncomprehending-of-women man to offer guidance to therapists looking for new ways to help their male clients.

If the book has a limitation it is that while brilliant in clarifying the male mind of the past two generations or so, it hardly speaks to current young men who, in my opinion, are unlike their fathers and grandfathers in that they have little difficulty expressing emotions, changing diapers or recognizing their feelings.

Those older men were brought up to not show emotion, to hold back tears and never admit to vulnerability or sensitivity. As a consequence, writes Wexler, when they are upset they don't even recognize the feelings of loss, sadness and depression, for example. Instead they experience anger.

A man's anger, arising from fear of abandonment by a woman, only serves to alienate the very person he loves. In the chapter on relationships Wexler offers guidance on how to deal with the underlying fears that such a man is not even aware of.

Several chapters have lists of Rules. In the section on Men Who Abuse Women the author offers Nine Rules. The first is excellent (although modern men, despite or maybe because of being attuned to their feelings, seem largely to ignore it): "We are all 100% responsible for our own behavior."

But how can a misogynist wife-beating guy accept Rule Two: "Violence is not an acceptable solution to problems"? America is steeped in violence as a solution to problems. This was the rationale for the birth of the United States. It's what the white-hat cowboys used against the black hats. It's the excuse for invading Grenada, Iraq, Afghanistan. It's the justification for the right to bear arms.

While the book ranges over a wide territory something about the author's justification of his credentials for writing the chapter "When Women Treat Men" made me uneasy. He admits "I am a little uncomfortable writing this chapter. I would feel presumptuous (as a white male) writing a chapter on the experiences African-American therapists face in treating white men... " [Although there is a chapter on white males treating "Men of Color"]. He then goes on to proclaim "...over the years I have supervised many female therapists, I have co-led groups with many female therapists, I have reviewed many articles on this subject by female therapists, I have been in therapy myself with female therapists, and I have a wife who is a female therapist."

The many other instances of self-disclosure by the author enable the (male) reader to identify with familiar themes, e.g., self-doubts about being a good father to one's son.

Wexler's broad experience in treating men individually and in groups infuses the text with a vast amount of enlightening explanation rendered memorable by his pithy labels (e.g. the "Broken Mirror" of Mummy not reflecting back to her son what the boy longs to see), Lists (e.g. "The Four Pillars of Intimacy") and references to books, movies and TV shows (particularly the Sopranos).

Each chapter is a stand-alone piece. Not surprising since the Depression chapter is largely taken from a previous book by Wexler and the first chapter appears to be a research paper complete with jerky reading because almost every sentence finishes with a reference.

Wexler warns of transference and counter-transference. But elements of many psychological approaches besides psychoanalysis are intertwined in the text. Such as attachment theory, cognitive dissonance, control and mastery, feminist theory, family systems, CBT, even Zen Buddhism.

I am so impressed with this book that I have prescribed it to several female clients who want to better understand the men in their lives.

Downloadable Audio Books

Audio books is a term that's not heard enough now days. It seems like the world will soon past up books and audio books all together. They have filled this gap by replacing them with movies, music, and all other sorts of entertainment. When was the last time you have had a chance to settle down and read a book? Right it cant happen if you don't plan for it. (with the exception of retired folks, and people with more time on their hands than they know what to do with)

Audio books from eMusic.com allow people that are basically the busy folk enjoy books but still have more time. Audio books are audio recordings of someone with a good voice reading a book to you. This way you don't have to stop and pay attention to plain words on a sheet of paper, work usually covers that area, of having to read lots of memos, even more emails, posts, bad handwriting, and lots of other things. eMusic.com knows that your time is very important, and that you don't have the time to take 45 minutes to read a couple chapters out of a book.

How would you like to read while driving, or cleaning your house, or even at work you can sneak a headphone in your ear and listen to magical worlds of wonders, or drama that keeps you listening until you have to leave. Audio books will make it so that you cant wait to drive to work, or do you cleaning. Geeze maybe it would help you keep you house clean; every time you get a new audio book you would clean you house just to listen to it.

Audio books range in frequencies some take up the full spectrum of the human hearing to bring you the best audio books that is around. Many other companies claim that the audio books they have are the best, but really do you think that they have listen to every audio books they have? I don't think so, eMuisc.com is a company that you can trust to be there when your ether too bored or too busy to fully put your full time into a book that gets lost.

Have you ever lost a book before? The answer is probably yes, audio books are just digital data stored on a computer. Computers are everywhere just put it on your jump/flash/cool drive and hook it up to your computer and listen to a good audio books. Mp3 players are great, just put it on and listen to it while jogging, exercising, working, and just about anything you can do now days you could listen to audio books. Have you ever had an urge to do something why don't you try listening to audio books while you do it? You could become some sort of super genius quoting books left and right, amazing people where ever you go. Having them whisper about what a know it all you are, im sure they would want you to do their book reports.

Prefabricated Sheds - The Many Uses Of Concrete Buildings

If you are worrying about the expenses and time required in putting up a storage shed, then you need not be concerned. A prefabricated shed is cost effective, attractive, and installed by professionals in hardly any time at all. You will be moving your things out into storage before you know it, and have more space in your home for whatever you want or need.

Prefabricated sheds are not all big cement blocks in your yard, either. Although the best models are made of concrete, you would hardly know it from the outside. The sheds are nicely painted and are as attractive an outbuilding as you could hope for. You will be delighted with the look almost as much as you will love the additional storage space.

You need not fear that you will not have any choices when it comes to your new storage shed, either. In addition to the colors and textures with which you can customize your prefabricated shed, there are other customizations available. You can modify the size of your prefabricated shed to get just the right length and width for the space that you have available as well as for the amount of storage that you need.

Once you have chosen the perfect size for your prefabricated shed, a team of installation professionals will show up to install it on the location that you need it, and make sure that there are no problems with the shed, the location, or with anything else, as well. Your shed will be set up from prefabricated parts, and should be resistant to the elements, as well, keeping your important possessions safe, rain or shine.

In addition to size and color, the style of the shed can also be customized to meet your needs. A door will be installed, and a roof and gutter system as well. You have the option to add other features such as windows to your shed if you are planning on using the space for something other than storage, or even if you just want to give it a more homey feel.

The options to customize your shed are wide, and you can make it blend right in with your house and the rest of your property if you want to, or have it stand out a little like an attractive accent. However you choose to set it up, it is fully up to you.

You will love the additional storage that is provided by your prefabricated shed, and you will also love that they styles and sizes available are designed so well to meet your needs and personal tastes. They are easy to buy, easy to install, and easy to use and love.