Are you Happy?

I went away for the weekend to chill with a girlfriend. On Friday night we decided to watch a movie and we chose Collateral Beauty as neither of us had seen it yet. The movie is about a successful advertising executive played by Will Smith, who is reduced to a clinically depressed loner after his young daughter’s tragic death. During this time he writes letters about abstract concepts of Love, Time, and Death.  I won’t spoil the movie but suffice to say, since it dealt with time, love and death, it got us thinking.

After the movie, my friend asked me, “Are you happy”? The question took me by surprise as I was not displaying any unhappiness, so I wondered why that question. It was a question I had pondered when I wrote my last book, The 30 Laws of Flow. So since I knew the Law of Polarity, that was how I answered. The Law of Polarity shows us that in order to know happiness, we have to also know sadness. In our dualistic world, you can’t know happiness without experiencing sadness. This goes for all of our emotional states. It is one of the privileges and greatest challenges of our human experience.

We can choose to be happy as an adopted attitude but I propose that what we are looking for is more appropriately described as flow or harmony, serenity, joy, bliss or love. Flow seen in this way is an acceptance, a receptive state of being. So when asked, am I happy, I described the state by using the word serenity instead of the word happy.

The word happy has so many connotations. The state of happiness will be triggered by completely different circumstances for everyone. The greatest teachers and sages throughout time have said that only the urge to find your real Self can make you truly happy.

When we start the transformation of expressing our inner selves in the external world, we become more open, removing the filters and masks and letting spirit move through us. A sure sign of this is when we are happy for no reason, feeling content, peaceful—it is coming from within us, we are no longer separate from it, and we are in a different state of consciousness, in the flow.

So when my friend expressed that she was not happy, we explored her inner world to discover the reason. What became clear is that a book project she had been passionate about had been left behind and she was not having fun doing what she was currently occupying her time with. As soon as she spoke about her book project, her energy changed and there were an aliveness and a joy back in her voice. So it became clear that rekindling this project would connect her back to her soul’s work.

Fascinating how after that conversation we saw in the village a placard saying “Happiness is not a destination, It’s a way of life.” Also, Denis Waitley said, “Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.” So two great reminders that happiness is an inside job.

So I will leave you with the question, “Are you happy?”

To your success,

Charlene

When You Need More Energy – Naturally

Sometimes we need more energy to do a particular task. This week I needed more energy when I got the call from my granddaughter that she was in labor around 11 p.m. So as her Doula, instead of preparing for bed, I prepared to go to the midwives’ clinic where we were meeting for the birth. So I had to switch gears and rev up my energy instead of preparing for a quiet night’s sleep.

So how can we get that extra boost naturally?

Many people turn to drinks like coffee and Red Bull type energy drinks. But these are not natural and overall are not healthy for you.

I am going to share what I did to get through the night without any sleep and to have enough energy to be there for my granddaughter as she went through the birthing process.

The first thing I did was get a few water bottles filled up with purified water. Enough for her and me. Then I grabbed a can of Performance. This is an electrolyte balancing powder that prevents dehydration. It bypasses the stomach and contains three types of carbohydrates for energy and stamina. This was added to the water. It was especially important for her as she needed that extra energy between contractions.

I took a bag of Shaklee Energy Chews to pass around to all of us at the birth. I gave extra to the father of the baby as he had to go to work the next day. Each chew contains a scientific blend of caffeine from natural green tea extract associated with energy and performance, plus key amino acids  L-tyrosine, L-theanine associated with mental alertness and focus, energy-releasing B vitamins and vitamins D and C. So each chew boosts your energy naturally.

I also packed a bottle of B Complex. The B Complex promotes cellular energy production and converts food into energy for your cells. This Shaklee B has a unique folic acid coating that makes the nutrient more accessible to promote absorption. So the B Complex was available all night to give an extra boost when needed. Since B’s are water soluble, we could just take them without food.

Speaking of food, when you want to stay awake all night, you don’t want to eat foods heavy in carbohydrates, like those found in sugary drinks, cookies, and processed foods. They provide a fast boost of energy by spiking your blood sugar and then dropping it quickly, followed by a crash. So it best to stay away from those if you want to keep your energy up.

I also brought some 180 Energizing Teas sticks. They are a safe and natural way to get a quick pick-me-up.  They contain an exclusive blend of antioxidant-rich green, white and red teas, as well as taurine, which naturally boosts your energy and enhances alertness. Since they are in a powder form and can be added to cold water, that is how we drank it during the night.

The last item in my bag of goodies was Stress Relief Complex.  The Stress Relief Complex formula contains ashwagandha, a traditional adaptogenic herb used to help the body adapt to heightened stress. Adaptogens help your entire body gently cope with stress, anxiety, and, of course, fatigue.

So we all went through the night with great energy, thanks to my bag of natural goodies. My granddaughter gave birth to a healthy baby boy (featured in the picture when 2 hours old) completely naturally. Natural birth and natural energy aids, what more could you ask for.

To your good health!

Charlene

Experiential Selling

First of all, what is the meaning of sales? The dictionary says, “the exchange of a commodity for money; the activity or business of selling products or services; persuading someone of the merits of buying the product or service that will benefit him or her.”

The Old English definition of sales is “to give, furnish, supply, lend, surrender, give up; deliver to; promise,” and Old Norse is “to flow” and what I was taught is that the root word for sales is “to serve”.

The” experiential” definition is “relating to, derived from, or providing experience; involving or based on experience and observation.”

So putting the two words together means that we can serve the best through offering an experience. Most people are wired to believe what they experience, not what you tell them they will experience. It engages multiple senses at the same time and focuses on an emotional connection.

So our job, if we have a product or service to sell, is to create memorable events and meetings, and engage our prospect emotionally so they can make their own judgments about the product or service. Also, the process of gaining knowledge from direct experience has more of a meaningful and lasting impact. There is a motivating spark that happens when a prospect suddenly “gets it.” And it can be a physical sensation as well.

The most important aspect of the selling process is asking key questions to set the stage for the experiential experience. It’s when you ask the right questions that get the prospect to really think something through, to visualize, to see themselves as the desired outcome, and come up with the solution on their own. When this happens you will see it in their physiology.

Experiential selling is all about the prospect: Putting them in the picture with the product, in their mind. Solving the problem they have and improving their life. You cannot provide a solution until you identify the problem. You must dive deep into the discovery process, and when you do, you get to the right solution that will feel right to your prospect.

Every person is unique. Each prospect is coming from different circumstances, with different experiences and will have different expectations. So our job is to find out as much as possible about the problem that needs solving.

Look for ways to give prospects more hands-on experiences with your product or service, whatever it may be. You may offer either a complimentary service or a product, so the prospect can experience the benefit for themselves and become enthusiastic ambassadors.

Stories can be very powerful sales tools. A well-told story with emotion draws the prospect in, and allows the prospect to put themselves into the story, and take away lessons or ideas that they can use to solve their own challenges. Stories can also help your prospect to experience your expertise and problem-solving abilities.

Ultimately sales are about serving and developing a relationship with your prospect. Keep in mind, people don’t remember what you said, they remember how you made them feel.

So here’s to good sales relationships!

Charlene Day

How Many Diets Have You Been on This Year?

With summer right around the corner, it is customary for many people to want to lose a few pounds to get into their bathing suit or go to a wedding, etc. While there are many reasons to want to lose weight, the bottom line is that diets are on people’s minds during this time of year.

The definition of overweight is a person with a body mass index (BMI) over 25. A person with a BMI of 30 or more is generally considered obese. BMI is the Ratio of your Weight (kg) over your Height (in centimeters, square). Overweight can also be defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a health risk. Some hazards of being overweight are high blood pressure,  heart disease,  hypertension, diabetes,  sleep apnea,  joint disease,  respiratory problems,  atherosclerosis,   gallbladder disease,  hernias,  bladder control problems, psychological problems,  and some cancers.

As of today, over 126 billion dollars have been spent on weight loss programs and is rising by the minute. The typical dieter makes four attempts per year to try to lose weight. That’s pretty dismal because it means at least three diets fail, if not all four. On average people spend $800 per year on weight loss. 80 percent of dieters do it on their own, while 20 percent join a paid weight loss group or see a health professional.

Fads are part and parcel of the diet industry. Most diets are nutritionally inadequate, too hard to follow, results are too slow, use unsafe ingredients like stimulants, slow your metabolism which leads to the yo-yo effect.  The vicious diet cycle or yo-yo consists of losing both fat and muscle, leading to a reduced metabolic rate and fewer calories being burned with increased fat storage. This leads to the famine response. You then fall off the diet as your body wants to recover the muscle, so then you feast on everything in sight.  You regain the weight you lost plus about 5 extra pounds. Then you start the cycle all over again.

Why is this? and What can you do about it?

In many diets on the market, 40% of the weight lost is muscle due to inadequate protein and other essential nutrients. Most diets do not provide enough protein so you lose muscle along with fat. Remember protein builds muscle so it is essential as about 40% of your body’s weight is muscle. For instance, your heart, digestive tract, glands, arteries, and veins are all muscles.

Losing lean muscle sets you up for future weight regain because muscle is what burns calories. Muscle is key to your metabolism. Muscles are your metabolic engine, your calorie burning furnaces. Exercise heats up your muscles so you burn calories faster.

What you want is to burn fat but maintain 100% muscle mass. When you prevent muscle loss you will protect your metabolism resulting in enhanced fat loss leading to weight loss and inch loss. This increases your metabolism and increases your energy. Side effects are lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels, lower elevated blood sugar levels and it helps to normalize blood pressure. Another beneficial side effect is that the yo-yo effect will be stopped as the body is not searching to replace lost muscle.

To find out about proven programs that work, feel free to contact me at http://charleneday.com/contact/ for an individualized assessment.

To your good health!

Charlene