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THE BEST YOU TRANSFORM • INSPIRE • MOTIVATE • ENRICH • EMPOWER • ENJOY december 2014 / Price £3.99
NLP FOR THE CLASSROOM SHOULD NLP BE TAUGHT AT SCHOOL?
THE PITCH DOCTOR
BERNARDO MOYA INTERVIEWS PAUL BOROSS
jennifer lopez
WE TALK TO THE SINGER, DANCER AND ACTRESS ABOUT THE CHALLENGES OF MOTHERHOOD
DAYLIGHT SAVING DOES IT AFFECT OUR LIVES?
what does it take...
...TO BE A POLICEMAN? WE CHAT WITH LONDON COP
HACK TO BE HAPPY
SIMPLE TRICKS TO IMPROVE YOUR MOOD
Also: argos spearheads basic online skills
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Contents
December 2014 / Issue No.26
regulars 5 Editor’s Letter Bernardo Moya welcomes you to the latest issue of
The Best You
18 We Support...
Extreme Abilities – an organisation helping disabled people achieve their dreams
31 Book Reviews
A few of our favourite recently published books – a small selection of what’s available
66 The Best You Directory
Find the best coaches, trainers, and practitioners here
features 22
still jenny from the block
We chat with the singer, actress and empress about her empire and life as a single mom
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a Pitch in time
We interview Paul Borros, aka, The Pitch Doctor about what it takes to be in business
16 Top 6 Christmas getaways We look at some of the best festive vacation spots
30 The Best You Investigates
We delve into the history of Daylight Saving and the effect it has on the UK population
inner you 10 Get them while they’re young
Gemma Bailey from NLP4Kids points out the advantages of teaching NLP techniques at a young age
12 Free yourself from stress
The English Sisters claim they can rid you of stress in three minutes. What are you waiting for?
enjoy life 16 Top 6 Christmas getaways
We look at some of the best festive vacation spots
19 It’s the Good News
With so much of what we read in the papers being negative, The Best You is bringing you some good news
20 Ring out the old, bring in the new
Sophia Husbands says it’s time to let go of bad habits, so make them a thing of 2014
22 still jenny from the block We chat with the singer, actress and empress about her empire and life as a single mom
editor / publisher Bernardo Moya · DEPUTY EDITOR Zoë Henry · associate EDITOR Bryan Szabo · copywriters Aaron Wells and Peter Rogers layout Zoë Henry · NEW MEDIA Allan Banford · Technical consultant Martin Carter · ADVERTISING advertising@thebestyou.co The Best You Corporation LTD 5 Percy St. · London, United Kingdom, W1T 1DG · Tel: +44 (0)845 230 2033 w w w . t he b e s t yo uma ga z i ne . c o
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live love legacy 40 To thine own self be true
According to Anne Mulliner, being honest with yourself is the first step to success
42 Their inspiring stories
We chat with some inspirational people about how they got over their challenges
45 Why you don’t fit in
Jim Aitkins is back with his regular column. This month it’s all about why fitting in isn’t always a good thing
46 What does it take…
…to be a policeman? We chat with A. Hoffman, a London City police officer
feel & Look Good 50 Working health
Keeping healthy while being stuck behind a desk for nine hours a day is a challenge. Scott Roberts has some tips
52 Hacking happiness
Sebastian Nienaber says that being happy isn’t as difficult as it seems. Achieve happiness with his hacks
46 What does it take… …to be a policeman? We chat with A. Hoffman, a London City policeman
55 Google trumps GP
Recent studies show that a fifth of Britons Google their symptoms before visiting a GP
wealth & Riches 58 Put your best foot forward
Best-selling author David Sturt offers a guide on how to make the kinds of change people love
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Life after debt
Ann Wilson, author of The Wealth Recipe, says debt is no reason to get into a panic
62 The rise of the mumpreneur
With childcare costs on the rise, more and more mums are starting their own businesses
64 The Rocky Road to Success
The Best You looks at some historical figures who didn’t have success handed to them on a silver platter
21st century living 70 Back to basics
Argos is teaming up with local charities to teach those who have been left behind in the online revolution
72 Have yourself a techy little Christmas
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Associate Editor Bryan Szabo looks at some Yuletide gadgets that will bring joy to those on your nice list
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70 Back to basics Argos is teaming up with local charities to teach those who have been left behind in the online revolution
THE BEST YOU
EDITORIAL
The $1 million
question: Why?
I
recently read Simon Sinek’s book, Start With Why. It’s a brilliant book aimed at business, but it has really made me think about myself, and my company, on a deeper level. I’ve frequently asked myself the questions, “What would I like my legacy to be?” and “Why am I here?” But after reading this book, why comes first. People tend to have very clear ideas about what they do, what they want, what they don’t want, and what they earn. They visualize what they want their lives to be. But I really believe that Simon Sinek is on to something. That “what” is important, of course, but with every task we take on in life, we should first ask ourselves the question, “Why am I doing this?” Ask yourself now: Why do you do what you do? Why do you want a family? Why do you have kids? Why do you want to be rich? Why do you want more? Why do you live where you live? When I made the career change into personal development, which was coupled with a location change from Spain to England, I did some deep soul searching. It was a complete lifestyle
change, and my new career was alien to me. I had to remind myself that I enjoy what I do. I enjoy working with inspirational people I love, providing people with resources to better themselves. And I get a kick out of it when I see that what we do helps people, inspires them, and creates hope. We have so many articles from great contributors this month – many of them who, like me, made a career change from something else to personal development. Gemma Bailey, for instance, feels passionately that NLP should be taught in schools because she, like so many NLP practitioners, wishes she had learned these techniques earlier in life. So she has taken matters into her own hands and started an organization called NLP4Kids, which she tells us all about. And we are thrilled to welcome the English Sisters, who specialize in helping people achieve a stress-free life – something from which we can all benefit. And speaking of stress, few lifestyles are as stressful as that of a single mom. We talk to Jennifer Lopez about how she deals with the challenge, amongst other
A life without cause is a life without effect.” – Barbarella
things. I have had to face a few challenges myself recently, but you know what? I mean, you know why? I face these challenges head on and come out the other side because I love it. So my advice to you, which I will try and implement myself, is to remember why you do what you do. And if the why isn’t clear, maybe it’s time to move on. Life’s too short.
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Bernardo Moya, Editor-in-Chief Follow me: @Bernardo_Moya
We want your stories The Best You is all about inspiring people. If you have a tale to tell that you think will help someone become the best they can be, please tell us.
video slider gallery
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THE BEST YOU CONTRIBUTORS
Ann Wilson
Anne Mulliner
is an award-winning executive coach and leadership development expert eager to share her passion for helping her clients access their full potential and live a full life. She is an accredited master coach, behaviour specialist and image consultant.
@Supercoach100
is an author, speaker and NLP Master Practitioner. Formerly a highflying civil engineer, she turned herself into a self-made millionaire using a straightforward, jargon-free approach to wealth. One hundred per cent of Ann’s royalties will go to The Small Enterprise Foundation.
@TheWealthChef
Bryan Szabo
is a Canadian-born freelance editor and writer who specialises in helping authors realise their full potential as writers. He believes that everybody has a story that should be told. His prominent appearance on the acknowledgement page of dozens of published works is proving that the voice he is helping budding authors to find is a precious thing indeed.
@eidolonink
Gemma Bailey
is the director of the award-winning NLP4Kids. She is a qualified nursery nurse and created NLP4Kids as a result of her NLP and childcare experience colliding. She is also Director of the Hypnotherapy and NLP Clinic and People Building, a published author and she was responsible for a top 10 podcast on iTunes for five years.
@NLP4Kids
Jim Aitkins
is an American author. He speaks and trains for corporations and organisations on the topics he writes about. He believes personal growth is not only easier than most people think it is, but fun as well. Visit Jim’s blog, Obstacle Blaster, and leave a comment if you like what you see.
Scott Roberts
is the founder of SR Fitness and a fat loss coach. He is based in Manchester and specialises in lifelong transformations based on sustainable habit change. He will take you back to basics with a nutritional plan to suit both your goals and body type. He also provides a training programme that will be set at your fitness levels and experience.
@srfitnessgroup
David Sturt
is a New York Times bestselling author. In the last two decades, he has developed products and services that engage employees and reward outstanding results. He regularly consults with Fortune 1000 leaders and speaks to audiences worldwide. He has been interviewed by the Wall Street Journal and is a contributor to Forbes.com.
The English Sisters
Violeta and Jutka Zuggo, live in Rome and travel around the world seeing corporate and private clients. They specialise in stress management and are the authors of several lifestyle and children’s books including the bestselling Stress Free in Three Minutes. They were featured recently in Rochay Elite.
@david_sturt
@englishsisters
Sebastian Nienaber
Sophia Husbands
is an entrepreneur and business advisor. After founding two Internet start-ups, he joined Rocket Internet – the world’s largest incubator for Internet companies – as Entrepreneur in Residence. With Hacking Happiness, Sebastian wants to create a communitydriven platform to explore simple yet powerful tools for better living.
@Bastinienaber
is an inspirer and motivator. She dreamed about becoming a writer and travelling around the world when she was younger, as she loves to explore life. She is a main host of the GoGetterMe podcast show. And don’t forget Be Happy, her debut book. Expect other books on everyday life soon.
@sophiaworld
The Best You is published by The Best You Corporation Ltd, 5 Percy Street, W1T 1DG. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect The Best You Corporation Ltd, policy. The Best You Corporation Ltd accepts no responsibility for views expressed by its contributors. Advertisements and reader offers are not endorsed by The Best You or The Best You Corporation Ltd.
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inner you THE BEST
YOU
Life Without Limits
TM
Connect with the wonderful, special, and powerful inside. Learn new ways to get your mind and body in balance, bringing out the rich core of your being. Discover the secrets that will enable you to take charge of your inner life and become The Best You.
Get them while they’re young
Gemma Bailey from NLP4Kids points out the advantages of teaching NLP techniques at a young age
Free yourself from stress
The English Sisters claim they can rid you of stress in three minutes. What are you waiting for?
If you or your company is interested in sponsoring this section, please email us at advertising@thebestyou.co
inner you Gemma Bailey
Get them while
they’re young At The Best You, we have long believed that Neuro-Linguistic Programming should be taught in schools. It would set children up with a set of life skills they could use for the rest of their lives. Gemma Bailey from NLP4Kids tends to agree.
N
ot too long ago, I was with a friend of mine, and we were heading out to lunch in the seaside town of Whitsable. Just beyond the car park, someone had spray painted on a wall in very large letters “Santa isn’t real!” My friend suggested I should graffiti underneath, “Yes he is!” but I thought that what would be even better is to write “Yes I am!” It’s one thing to believe something about your environment or circumstances or to believe something about someone else. It’s pretty powerful to believe in someone else. But the most powerful beliefs any of us ever have are the beliefs we have about ourselves. Back in 2004, I started stumbling across self-development, and in particular, NLP. This whole idea that I could change my thinking – my thoughts that seemed to just arrive without regard for the emotional impact they were having upon me – was life changing. I began to shape my feelings, my experience and results in life instead of having these things just happening to me. It was a bit like having someone turn on the lights after being in the dark for a long time. You think that
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the experience is entirely positive and illuminating, when in fact you know that when you turn on the lights after being in the dark, initially, it strains your eyes and it takes a while to adjust. Being in the dark can in some cases, feel more comfortable than flicking on the lights. And the longer you have been in the dark, the greater the illumination seems when the light comes on, and the bigger the adjustment is. I couldn’t help wondering why I’d been in the dark for so long and why someone hadn’t shown me the light switch sooner. Then I skipped merrily off to an NLP Practitioner training and discovered that many others there were thinking in the same way, the key question being ,“Why didn’t I learn this stuff at school?” It took a while for a colleague and I to put together the NLP4Kids training programme. Essentially it’s NLP that has been adapted and in some parts simplified to make it tangible and comprehensible for children and young people. As a qualified nursery nurse, I’ve always found it easy to adjust the level of my communication to suit the age and stage of development of the listener, so that is how the NLP4Kids training programme was designed.
Initially, I offered workshops to young people, these were then picked up by some people working in education, and we began to roll out sessions in schools, and I focused my one-on-one therapy practice in the direction of young people too. In 2007, I recognised that I would have limited impact on the world’s young people if it were only me out there teaching emotional intelligence to them, so I designed a franchise model that would enable me to teach NLP4Kids to well vetted, suitable people so that they too could join me in helping young people learn not just the important academic stuff, but the important stuff about managing their emotions, being good citizens, having empathy and standing up for themselves at the same time. We work with children with behavioural problems, bad habits, stresses and worries, self-harming behaviours, negative attitudes and phobias. The list of different challenges is long and at times, when a new acronym with each letter standing for some newly recognised disorder arises, it can be daunting. Even after all these years, I sometimes catch myself thinking, “Hmm, I’ve never heard of that problem before, where will I start
with this one?” But the truth is that most problems are pretty simple and solvable. It’s people that make them seem more complicated, and those people are usually adults. These days NLP4Kids is as much about supporting the wonderful team of practitioners as it is about helping improve the lives of children and their families. The practitioners have to keep up with their learning and development and participate in mentoring if they are going to keep up the standard of support to their clients and succeed in securing paidfor bookings – something that those with a “make a difference” mentality struggle with. We now have practitioners dotted around the UK working with young people, their parents and their teachers. We provide training
to children’s charities, county councils and many other national organisations that interact with young people. Typically, we work with children eight years old and over in workshops and use some slightly more grown-up and urban branding for older groups. In the last 12 months, we have launched nine programmes designed to slot into the average school term, and next year we are launching an entire curriculum for a weekly after school programme. We have very slick marketing systems for reaching out to schools that are notoriously tricky to secure funding from, and we are the single biggest NLP brand specifically focused on young people that the world has ever seen. It all started in the back bedroom of my mum’s
house, and this year we moved into High Street premises, so as far as we are aware, we’re the first NLP company to have a walk-in high street site.
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We work with children with behavioural problems, bad habits, self-harming behaviours, negative attitudes and phobias. The list of different challenges is long and at times, when a new acronym with each letter standing for some newly recognised disorder arises, it can be daunting. www.t he be st youma g a zi ne .c o 11
inner you The English Sisters
Free yourself
from stress
W The English Sisters are experts when it comes to letting go of life’s unnecessary stresses. Join them on this journey, and you too could be stress-free in minutes. 12
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e all have the potential within us to be the best versions of ourselves each and every day, yet so many of us keep this potential at bay. Maybe it’s because we are stressed and frightened of what we do not know; maybe it’s because we hold onto unhelpful thinking patterns simply because they are familiar to us; maybe it’s because what we really fear is discovering our own immense inner power, so we tell ourselves stories based on our own limiting beliefs. We tell ourselves that we could never do this and that we can never become that, and then we end up believing these stories and feeling even more stressed and uneasy. Being the best you is all about learning how to be who you really are. It’s about letting go of the labels and judgments you have placed upon yourself with or without other people’s help. It’s about remembering to forget the unhelpful stories you tell yourself everyday. It’s about remembering to tell yourself a different story, a story that inspires you, a story that empowers you and leaves you feeling good and at ease. You are more than what you will ever truly know and when you think you can be no more, you will discover yet another side to yourself that you have not yet discovered. You have the potential within you to become the best version of yourself
The English Sisters inner you
at any given time, and that is extremely empowering and freeing. The word potential itself is derived from the Latin verb meaning ‘to be able’. You are able! The power and ability to excel at being yourself is within you, and it will happen naturally once you allow it to happen, and the more you begin to get curious about the wonderful future possibilities, the more you will be able to create these for yourself. You are your own master; nobody knows you better than you do, and you may have forgotten what it feels like to be the best. However, you have the capacity to embrace lifelong learning and to develop day by day. Being the best you is what you naturally did as a very small child when you took your first step forwards. You cried and laughed in the best possible way and you did it naturally and with ease. Those first words you spoke and those first steps you took were you at your best and naturally stress-free. Free from worry, free from anxiety and free from not being good enough.
Free from fear except for the fears that kept you safe and sound and are innate in all of us. Take a moment between moments now to close your eyes for a moment or two and focus on how easy it is for you to take a deep breath and begin to wonder about who you truly are. Just as the sun is always above the clouds you can wonder about the earth you live on. The sky, and the deep blue seas all nurture a longing to fulfill their purpose and do so without any effort at all. The trees and the flowers and nature all come together and flow like a wondrous poem. When you are just you, you are naturally in a state of calm wellbeing, without a care in the world just growing and learning and feeling inspired by what is. We can all benefit from this feeling of connection, and you are no exception. And the more we feel connected to our loved ones, our friends and our colleagues the more we feel a sense of wellbeing, purpose and satisfaction. You can begin to notice the
moments throughout your day when you connect to your heart and through that connection travels love, for yourself and for those your heart touches that day. Take a moment to share your sunny rays with those that just now are touching the clouds. As you know, clouds come and go and the winds of change blow and you can think about the fact that potential does not come in a fixed quantity. There is no end to your potential and the good news is that it doesn’t finish or run out. There are no limits to what you are about to achieve, and with each new achievement comes a new sense of wellbeing – the kind of wellbeing you felt as a child when you took your first step and when you spoke your first words and smiled.
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Thank you for reading. We would love to connect and help you manage your stress, so please get in touch. Smiles from The English Sisters, authors of Stress Free in Three Minutes
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enjoy life THE BEST
YOU
Laughter, humour, travel, love – these add the sparkle that make life worth living. Climb a mountain, give to others, start a family, embrace life. What are the things you wish you had done but haven’t yet? Life is no rehearsal – find ways to enjoy it whenever you can!
Life Without Limits
TM
Top 6 Christmas getaways
We look at some of the best festive vacation spots
It’s the Good News
With so much of what we read in the papers being negative, The Best You is bringing you some good news
Ring out the old, bring in the new
Sophia Husbands says it’s time to let go of bad habits, so make them a thing of 2014
If you or your company is interested in sponsoring this section, please email us at advertising@thebestyou.co
ENJOY LIFE
top six
TOP 6 Christmas Getaways Amsterdam, Netherlands
The 16th- and 17th-century houses that are decked out with twinkling lights, which reflect and sparkle in the winding canals, make Amsterdam a joyous place to be during the festive season. In addition to this, the spirit of Santa Claus is strong in Dutch culture, making this Christmas vacation one to remember. Don’t miss: Many ice rinks pop up around the Dutch capital at this time of the year, which makes a fun change from the bicycles the locals usually get around on. Take part in the local tradition and strap on a pair of skates.
Lapland, Finland
Reindeer pulling sleighs are not only the stuff of Christmas songs and stories – in this part of the world, they are a complete reality. Probably the closest you can get to Santa’s home in the North Pole without actually being tasked with delivering presents to the whole world on Christmas Eve. Don’t miss: If being close to Santa’s home isn’t enough for you, make the trip to the Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi. Or, if that’s not for you, how about a stay in a real igloo? They are made from thermal glass, so you don’t have to worry about being cold.
Munich, Germany
Winter in the Bavarian capital means a hundred-foot-tall Christmas tree in the Marienplatz, about two dozen Christmas markets (weekdays draw fewer crowds), and mulled wine and gingerbread served on a tram that crosses the old city. Looking for the Christmas spirit? Look no further than Munich. Don’t miss: Nothing quite says Christmas joy like the sounds of the holidays. From 25 November to Christmas Eve, there is live holiday music on the Town Hall balcony from 5:30pm. Get into the spirit and enjoy some Christmas tunes.
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top six
ENJOY LIFE
If you live in a big city, you might want to get away for the holidays. Trying to negotiate your way down London’s Oxford Street or New York City’s Fifth Avenue in the days leading up to Christmas can be exhausting. We’ve put together a list of our top six Christmas escapes.
Nashville, USA
Up until now, this list has been pretty Eurocentric, so we thought it would be fair to dedicate three choices to traditional, snowy European Christmases and three to Christmases in warmer climes. Nashville is great for a country Christmas, thick with honky-tonk entertainment and family values. Don’t miss: The food. This part of the USA is known for dishing up some of the yummiest soul cuisine, from beef tenderloin to butterscotch bites. And of course you can’t go to Nashville without going to a beer hall line dance.
Bali, Indonesia
In the Western world, a lot of us have replaced the traditional meaning of Christmas, which is celebrating the Christ in Christmas, with indulgent food and gift giving. If you don’t celebrate Christmas for the Christ aspect, then why not celebrate somewhere warm and not traditionally Christmassy? Bali is a great option for this. Don’t miss: Tours of the Hindu temples, the sunrises and sunsets, and a Christmas dinner with a difference. Fresh seafood is plentiful in this part of the world, so be sure to take advantage of it while you are there.
Goa, India
Portuguese influences in seaside India, whitewashed Catholic churches, firecrackers, bells, and carollers will make your holiday perfect as a scene from a Bollywood film. There is so much more to Goa than the beaches for which it is famed, so try to cram in as many activities as possible. Don’t miss: The festivals and the dancing that goes along with them. Goa is known for its dance festivals and for the heightened state of awareness that revellers reach while doing meditative dance. Join in the fun. You might see some things.
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ENJOY LIFE we support
We Support Extreme Abilities Extreme Abilities is an innovative group of disabled people whose taste for adventure and desire to explore and travel the world drove them to create opportunities for themselves and other people living with disabilities.
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he disability world is rapidly growing. With all the new advancements in disability aids, inspirational philosophies and brilliant sporting and awareness initiatives that have been surfacing in the past decade, we will soon reach a point where the question will be asked: “Is that really so much of a ‘disability’?” From doing a backflip in a wheelchair, surfing the legendary Mavericks wave paralyzed, to sailing around the world blind, people all over the world have been doing things that really force us to re-examine the word ‘disability’. So much so, that these amazing disabled individuals, athletes and thinkers really give the other 85 per cent of the world’s able-bodied people something to think about. One of these pioneering individuals is Dries Millard, a T8 complete paraplegic. He introduced and adapted surfing to the disabled community of South Africa in 2011 through Extreme Abilities, a non-profit company that caters to disabled people. Through this
platform, anyone with any kind of disability can experience the thrill of surfing. Dries and his team have a few events scheduled for the rest of 2014 and in 2015. They rely on volunteers to help out on these adapted surfing events and invite anyone to come and be a part of this initiative to uplift and create awareness. Through these events, they have helped over 300 disabled individuals to realise the vast amount of opportunities that life after disability still holds. A little bit of know-how, a good attitude, and the will to learn is what it’s all about. People from all walks of life get together to help, teach and learn from one another in a safe and fun environment. Best thing is, it doesn’t cost a cent to either participant or volunteer! Like any other non-profit organistaion, Extreme Abilities relies on sponsors and funding in order to host these events. As part of their fundraising and their effort to create awareness, Dries does motivational speaking and hosts seminars on disability in the corporate world and
at schools. Extreme Abilities is run with one thing in mind: “You’re only as limited as you allow yourself to be.” In essence, Extreme Abilities doesn’t provide disabled people with money or disability aids like most non-profits; instead, they offer disabled people the means to uplift themselves mentally and emotionally in order to regain independence and a normal life after disability.
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For more information on how to get involved with this unique initiative, you can visit the Extreme Abilities website at www. extremeabilities.co.za. You can also contact Dries via the website if you would like advice or have any questions about disability.
People from all walks of life get together to help, teach and learn from one another in a safe and fun environment.
OTHER WORTHY CAUSES WE SUPPORT Teenage Cancer Trust www.teenagecancertrust.org
SMA Trust www.smatrust.org
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Katie Piper Foundation
Children Of The Night
War Child
The Children’s Trust
www.katiepiperfoundation.org.uk
www.warchild.org.uk
www.childrenofthenight.org
www.thechildrenstrust.org.uk
the good news
The Good News
ENJOY LIFE
The news we read in the newspapers and see on the television is so negative that it can often feel like the media is conspiring to get us down in the dumps. That’s why The Best You is bringing you snippets of good news.
Bluefin’s chance to grow
Countries fishing in the eastern Pacific Ocean for bluefin tuna have heeded scientific advice agreeing to almost halve their fishing quotas. The European Union, US, Mexico, China, and Japan, along with 16 other nations belonging to the Inter American Tropical Tuna Commission agreed to establish a catch quota of 6,600 tons of Pacific bluefin tuna for commercial catches spread over the next two years. That achieves a 45 per cent reduction, almost meeting the reduction of 50 per cent recommended by the International Scientific Committee for tuna.
“This decision is vital to the survival of the Pacific bluefin tuna, as is evidenced by the current catch being 90 per cent composed of young juveniles yet to breed and the breeding stock estimated to be down to just four per cent of original levels”, said Pablo Guerrero, Eastern Pacific Ocean Tuna Coordinator for WWF’s Smart Fishing Initiative. In June 2012, the group of nations set a tuna quota in the eastern Pacific for the first time ever. Last year, the quota was reduced to 5,000 metric tons for all of 2014. This new significant cut could lead to a Pacific bluefin recovery.
To protect and serve Officers from the Aurora Police Department went way beyond what one great-grandmother expected of them after she became a victim of a purse-snatcher while grocery shopping. Officers Robert Little and Craig Hess met her at the store and immediately helped
the 86-year-old woman cancel her credit cards. The thief got away with her wallet and keys to both her vehicle and house. ”They grabbed my shopping list (and) bought the groceries”, Julia Brecht told KMGH. Afterward, they drove her home, picked
up her spare set of car keys and returned to bring her car home. “After doing all of that the officers then purchased a new lock for her door with their own money and installed the lock that night”, said the police department on their Facebook page.
No smoking
By now we all know that smoking causes cancer and a plethora of other diseases. Smokers are constantly battling to give up, and research shows that they are succeeding. The proportion of adults smoking in the UK has declined to its lowest level since recording started in the 1940s.
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ENJOY LIFE Sophia Husbands
Ring out the old, bring in the new As we progress through this journey called ‘life’ we pick up habits, beliefs, possessions, friendships, enemies, or even frenemies. Sophia Husbands urges us to let go of some of these things if they are no longer serving us.
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nowing when to let go is great in terms of awareness. But there are other times when this may not be the case and we are still holding onto stuff. This may be due to many factors. It may be because of wanting to remain in our own comfort zone. It may be that at times we believe that we were making the best decisions based on our current foundations. Here, I am talking about how our experiences up until this point shape our consciousness. While I was at University, I befriended the daughter of one of my landlords. She told me a story about her older sister, who had a bright personality, was a mother and, who had always been a high achiever. She shared with me some insights into her sister’s first marriage and how it had broken
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down. I can remember she made reference to how she had rushed into the marriage, as during that time she thought that it was the only option to get away from her controlling parents. So she got married to escape her family, as she thought that was the best that she could do in the situation. She really did not know her husband and found out over a time that they did not complement each other. She then made the difficult decision to end the marriage. To transform your life, you need to start a new way of thinking. This includes letting go of things that do not make you feel good, especially those that are no longer serving you. Going through a detox is a good thing. I am not only talking about the detoxification of your body, but also of your mind. I am a firm believer in ‘happy mind, healthy body’.
This involves releasing those negative feelings that you may have on different areas of your life. It can be about your relationship with food, love and other people. A habit is hard to break. That is why it is going to take some time, patience and consistent behaviour to transform it. You may need to address other underlying issues, which may be a lack of self-esteem for example. But remember that you are supported. When you need help, it will come if you look for it. One attitude that can help you is, “‘Faith it until you make it!” Faith it until you make it is about putting aside those fears you may feel when embarking on a new way of doing things. You may not be aware of this, but you have probably been practicing this approach for some time. This may have occurred
Sophia Husbands
when you started the first day of a new job, when you first got your driving license, and even starting a new day. Yes, there are many first times and unknowns. I have a confession to make: approximately 85 per cent of the time when I am about to embark on a new project or major life change, I get scared. But what I have learnt is that I need to have belief and
faith in myself that it will work out. Let me rephrase that, I know it will work out to my highest good. It is only human to get scared at times, allowing the negative thoughts and beliefs to take over. You may call this the time when the ego mind may be taken over. One way to combat this is to remember to focus on the end goal and feelings that you would like to achieve. Your end objective may
RECOMmENDED READING Get the Life You Love, Now By Phil Parker Happiness and Fulfilment
ENJOY LIFE
be benefiting not only you but also others. When I was bringing my GoGetter Me podcast to life, I had times when I was afraid and one interviewee taught me a valuable lesson that highlighted why I must proceed with my goal. I’d like to share with you a powerful quote here to keep you going when you have a moment of doubt and may feel like giving up: “Get out of your own way.”
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The Pocket Therapist
By Therese J Borchard An Emotional Survival Kit
No Matter What
By Lisa Nichols Steps to Living the Life You Love
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Still Jenny from the Block Pop superstar, actress and TV judge Jennifer Lopez on juggling her career, being a single mom-of-two and dealing with the pressures of being in the public eye.
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he’s been a Fly Girl, a movie star, a pop superstar, a tabloid staple, a businesswoman, a philanthropist and, most importantly to her, a mother. It’s been a long journey of many twists and turns for multi-talented superstar Jennifer Lopez, yet she still sees herself as Jenny from the block. As she is celebrating the launch of her tenth album, AKA, she is in a reflective mood, ready to look back on her life and career. Born Jennifer Lynn Lopez in 1969, half a lifetime away from fame and fortune, in a decidedly working class corner of The Bronx, her father worked for an insurance company, and her mother was a housewife. She lived with her parents and two sisters in a small apartment before the family had saved up enough money to be able to purchase a two-storey house, which was considered a big deal for the relatively poor family. Even though they weren’t a wealthy family, Lopez’s parents stressed the importance of a strong work ethic and being able to speak English. They made sure that their children had the necessary skills and principles to succeed in life. “So much of what I’ve learnt from parenting, I’ve learned from my own parents”, Lopez says. “Kids don’t do what you say; they do what you do. I watched my parents. My dad worked nights, and I was aware of how much he was doing for us. My mom was a Tupperware lady and also worked at the school. I always felt that I couldn’t let them down. And I had a natural discipline from early on. I was always training for something.” What she was training for was a life of superstardom. She started performing at a young age with the encouragement of her family, already taking dancing lessons when she was five years old and touring New York with her school when she was seven. “I can remember dancing and singing in front of the mirror in my bedroom”, Lopez says. “I’ve always had dreams – the dreams have just gotten bigger.” She grew up to be a gifted athlete, but her heart always belonged to performance. When she was in her final year at high school, she won the role in a low-budget film called My Little Girl. “That was when I realized that I wanted to be a famous movie star”, she says. When she expressed her dream to her parents, they were initially opposed to it. They told her that it was a stupid idea and that it was an impossible goal for Latinos. She eventually dropped out of college and moved to Manhattan, determined to make her dreams reality. She performed in a couple of stage productions and even did a stint on a Japanese TV show. But her big break came when she was recruited as one of the famous Fly Girls on In Living Color, the seminal comedy show. “My mom and I butted heads”, Lopez says. “I didn’t want to go to college – I wanted to try dance full-time. So she and I had a break. I started sleeping on the sofa in the dance studio. I was homeless, but I told her, ‘This is what I have to do.’ A few months later, I landed a job dancing in Europe. When I got back, I booked In Living Color. I became a Fly Girl and moved to L.A. It all
Jennifer Lopez performing during the opening ceremony of the FIFA 2014 World Cup at Corinthians Arena
happened in a year.” A handful of low-profile acting gigs followed before she garnered attention in the relatively unsuccessful Money Train with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson. She then proved her acting chops in the biopic Selena. Her performance as the ill-fated Latin diva won her acclaim as well as interest from Sony Music Entertainment’s Tommy Mottola. Successful film roles soon followed (including hits such as Anaconda, U Turn and Out of Sight) and she released her debut single, “If You Had My Love” in 1999. It was a risky move, spreading her talents across acting and music, but it paid off when she became one of the most successful film stars turned pop stars in the world. She has proven to be one of the most adaptable stars, able to ride out the vagaries of fashion and trends. Part of this is not forgetting her humble roots. As she has always asserted – and despite unflattering reports that claim her to be a diva – she’s ‘still Jenny from the block’. “I always felt that was unfair”, she says of the ‘diva’ label. “It might be because I have nice stuff. I came from virtually nothing, so there was a time when I was like, ‘Oh my god, I can have that car or I can have that coat.’ I don’t think anybody in my position wouldn’t have done the same thing. But you get to a point where you want to strip down. Not that I won’t have a nice bag, but I’m going to sell that big museum-type house and get a nice cozy house, and I’m going to have one car and trade the
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cover story the best you others in. I want to go back to something simpler.” Part of the reason that the whole ‘diva’ thing started and spread was because of her eventful and wellpublicised love life. She’s been compared to Elizabeth Taylor because of her multiple marriages and high profile relationships. Her romances became tabloid fodder from the outset, when she divorced her first husband, Cuban waiter Ojani Noa. After their split, he threatened to reveal everything in a tell-all book. Legal intervention by Lopez’s attorneys put an end to that. She went on to date rapper and businessman Puff Daddy. The two made headlines when they were arrested in connection with a nightclub shooting in Times Square. She was quickly exonerated. She then married and divorced her back-up dancer Chris Judd before moving on to become a ‘super-couple’ with Ben Affleck. After they broke up, she married long-time friend and fellow Latin pop-star Marc Anthony with whom she had twins Max and Emme. The couple split after three years. She then dated former back-up dancer Casper Smart before splitting up recently. About being single again, Lopez says: “As women, we get so panicked about being alone and being without a man. To be honest, that is when we are able to truly soar. That in turn allows us to attract the perfect person; when you’re comfortable within yourself.” She is happier than she’s ever been. One of her main focuses is her wellbeing. After all, maintaining that famous J-Lo physique takes a lot of hard work. “I try to eat much better than I used to”, she says. “Part of it is teaching my kids to be healthier and have longer lives that we can spend together. I am like anybody else, I hate going to the gym. It takes time out of my day just like everybody else. But you have to be
Jennifer Lopez at the American Idol Season 13 Finale at Nokia Theater at LA Live on May 21, 2014 in Los Angeles, CA
Jennifer Lopez on Hollywood Blvd where she was honored with the 2,500th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
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healthy. Luckily, dancing helps keeps me in shape.” Like all other parents, juggling work and family life can be challenging for her. “Both worlds exist at the same time”, Lopez says. “It’s not like one gets turned off when the other is on. When I am working, I am thinking about what are the kids doing. And then when I am with them I’m thinking about all the work I need to do. As a single mom you always have ten juggling ten balls in your hands.” One of the balls that she has been juggling very successfully is her role as a judge on American Idol. Her appearance has led to a spike in ratings and made her one of the most popular personalities on the show. It’s a mutually beneficial situation, as she derives a lot of satisfaction from it. “Being a judge allows me to see things from a different perspective”, she says. “It forces you to take a hard look at things that you could to improve yourself.” When you consider her TV work, her film work, her music, her fashion line and fragrances, it’s hard to deny the massive impact that Jennifer Lopez has had on our cultural landscape. It’s been a long, hard road to overcome the insecurities at the beginning of her career. “When you are coming up in this business, there are millions of insecurities”, she says. “You have to learn how to navigate the minefield of being in the public eye. When bad things happen, you pick yourself back up and you keep going and you remember who you are and where you came from and what you do. I’ve worked very hard to be where I am today and I feel that I have earned the right to face the world and proudly and say, ‘This is my time to be me.’”
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Jennifer Lopez at a glance Born July 24, 1969 in The Bronx in New York City Became interested in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry following a minor role in the 1986 film My Little Girl Her parents were not happy with her choice of career Gained her first regular high-profile job as a Fly Girl dancer on In Living Color in 1991. She remained a regular there until she decided to pursue an acting career in 1993 Her first leading role was in the Selena biopic of the same name in 1997 Became the first Latina actress to earn over $1 million for a role in 1998, with the film Out of Sight Ventured into the music industry in 1999 with her debut studio album, On the 6 With the simultaneous release of her second studio album J.Lo and her film The Wedding Planner in 2001, Lopez became the first person to have a number one album and film in the same week Beyond entertainment, Lopez enjoyed a highly successful business career, consisting of various clothing lines, accessories, fragrances, a production company, television shows and a charitable foundation among other business interests Her personal relationships have attracted worldwide media attention; she has been married three times Lopez gave birth to her and Marc Anthony’s, her third husband, twins, Emme and Maximilian, in 2008 She and Anthony’s divorce was finalised in June of this year, and Lopez is now a single mother – something she is proud of
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feature the best you
A pitch in time Bernardo Moya tracks the rise and rise of Paul Boross from tough state school to TV star and international speaker.
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the best you
feature
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hen it comes to upbeat attitude, Paul Boross has it by the barrowload. Perhaps his constant readiness to laugh and his freedom in conversation is explained by the fact that he regards everything he and, indeed, everyone does as a pitch. “Whether you’re trying to get a new boyfriend, a new girlfriend, it’s still a pitch. Whether you’re trying to get on in your job or get promotion, it’s a pitch. If you’re trying to get a job, it’s all about how you pitch yourself.” For Paul, communication is a passion that started early at the state school he attended in south-west London. “I loved English. I loved language, all kinds of language. I was in the debating society. I did all the plays. I didn’t really grasp science, but I loved every aspect of communication. “ School also taught him other skills. “It was a wonderful grounding for everything I learnt later, because a comprehensive school was 2,000 boys all shoved together. You got some of the smartest people you’ll ever meet and some of the stupidest there at the same time”, he reflects. “It made me have a natural instinct for people. I can tell what people are like at a hundred yards.” “You know, a lot of comedians say that they learnt their comedy at school because they had to survive and not be beaten up. It works with psychology as well. You get to read people much better if you’ve come up through that system.” Paul learned his upbeat attitude from his father. A Hungarian refugee who fled his home country during the 1956 uprising, he was an economist who (because of his bad English) had to work for two years as a waiter before managing to return to his profession. “My father’s a huge inspiration for me because he is the person who always sees the positive spin on everything. He’s kinda got that, ‘it’ll be alright’ attitude. We’re talking about a man who, at 17, was thrust into the Second World War. In 1945 he entered Berlin with the Russians. Then he was put in a Russian prisoner of war camp where for eight months – they used to take it in turns to pick the lice out of each other’s hair. He tells it like it’s a funny story. Like it was easy. I sometimes, in lectures, tell stories about my father, who has been through all these hardships but still walks through life going, ‘I’m lucky.’” He smiles. “He says, ‘I’m lucky’ in the sense that when other people were lined up and shot, he was one of the people who wasn’t shot. I think that’s coloured my attitude. Most people who I deal with, even at the lowest levels, are still luckier than 95 per cent of the world’s population.” They say that belief in luck creates luck, and after studying in California, Paul returned to the UK, working as a film extra. He met comedian Tony Hawks, and together they formed a musical comedy act, a band called Morris and the Minors. Later, he had a minor hit with Ainsley
Paul performed with Ainsley Harriot, who went on to become the host of ‘Ready, Steady, Cook’
Harriott, who later became the host of ‘Ready Steady, Cook’. With his insight into psychology, performers came to him for help. “One day, a very famous person came up to me and said, ‘I’ve completely lost my confidence. I can’t go on stage anymore.’ He had a live television show from a theatre next week. I didn’t know what to do.” Paul looked for someone who could help him. The person he found was Garner Thomson, an NLP Practitioner. Garner cured him of stage fright within one session. It was a turning point. Paul embarked on NLP training. “I was astonished at this knowledge that was so much more practical than anything I’d ever learnt in psychology before. So I owe a lot to him for teaching me that.” Having learnt the skills of stagecraft from the likes of Tony Hawks and comedians such as Paul Merton and Jo Brand, Paul decided to combine his skills in psychology and NLP with performance. He decided to specialise in
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feature the best you
teaching others about pitching and performance. The idea for The Pitch Doctor was formed. “The thing that people don’t understand is that a lot of performance is what’s going on in your head. It’s also what’s going on in the head of the person you’re talking to, or the person or people you’re talking to. I think, up until recently, people thought you could teach people how to perform and present by just going, ‘Stand up straight. Look the audience in the eye. You know, think good things’ whereas I get much more into the psyche of the person. What are they thinking? What are they saying to themselves? How do they view the audience? So The Pitch Doctor brand is really about melding those two sides.” While there are skills required to change the audience’s state to bring them with you – a skill Paul learned in the comedy clubs and for which he rightly admires NLP co-creator Richard Bandler – there are also the basics of public speaking. “What surprised me when I first started was how many people were just frightened of standing up, and this included people at managing director and CEO level. People are just scared of standing up. It’s still the number one fear in the world.” Recently, Paul has taken his presentation skills and confidence-building to television. “I do a show on Sky called School Of Hard Knocks, where we take a group of young unemployed men and
turn them into a rugby team. I do all the psychology with them and get them ready for the communication aspect of getting a job at the end of the series. Now, I go to them, ‘You’re lucky because, you know, some people don’t have the opportunity to even go for a job, or even sort of get some training, or even eat regularly in the morning.’ So it’s all about perspective of where you are. What I say to people is, ‘Think of what you have’ - and what we have makes us fortunate compared to the majority of the world.” As well as TV, Paul makes keynote speeches, trains CEOs to make speeches, helps advertising agencies make their pitches and basically gives advice on the art of pitching to all comers. With his genuine interest in others and his desire to help them be more themselves, Paul Boross is making a difference. It’s something he’s genuinely proud of. “When somebody comes back to me years later and they say, ‘You know that bit of work we did? Well, I managed to get a job as a result of that and I took my family out of poverty. Now my son is going to university and he can get a job because of what I learnt.’” He sums up his approach to life: “That you help one person and then the ripples keep on going. The legacy should be that in generations’ time, somebody you helped, their children’s children’s children are much better off as a result of you touching that one life.”
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Paul Boross at a glance
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Born in Paddington and went to school in southwest London Loved acting and appeared in minor TV and film roles from childhood Regularly guested with original Comedy Store Players team of Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, Mike Myers and Josie Lawrence Had a hit comedy single as part of Morris Minor and the Majors with Tony Hawks Teamed up with schoolfriend Ainsley Harriet to release a single under the name The Calypso Twins Performed regularly at The Comedy Store, London and across the world On seeing a famous friend helped with NLP, learned the skills of NLP and decided to combine them with his performance abilities Has coached and developed media businesspeople, politicians, doctors and performers, including Sir Richard Branson and Dermot Murnaghan Is skilled in showing people how to overcome their fears and really make an impact when speaking Believes strongly that “we are pitching all the time” in whatever we do Has hosted TV shows, and is currently working on the Sky TV programme School of Hard Knocks which takes unemployed men and teaches them how to believe in themselves Admires NLP co-creator Richard Bandler as a brilliant exponent of teaching with humour Believes that humour separates good speakers from great speakers Is known as The Pitch Doctor because of his ability to help people get their message across
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the best you investigates Daylight Saving
Saving the day On 26 October, the clocks in Britain went back, giving us an extra hour to spend in bed, or, for the motivated, to get up and do something productive. But studies have shown that many people have a negative reaction to Daylight Saving. The Best You Investigates.
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ven though many earlier civilisations adopted some form of daylight saving before, the father of modern daylight saving time (DST) is widely recognised to be a New Zealander named George Vernon Hudson. Hudson was an enthusiastic entomologist whose shift-work allowed him with ample leisure time to dedicate to his passion. However, he was frustrated in winter, when the reduced amount of daylight afforded to him and his creepy-crawly friends meant that his work was prematurely cut short. In 1895, he presented a paper to the Wellington Philosophical Society proposing a two-hour daylight-saving shift. Put simply as possible, daylight saving is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that light is extended in the evening hours, and sacrificing normal sunrise times. The big idea is to provide extra time for activities that benefit from sunlight after working hours, such as sports
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and retail. Other benefits include possible reductions of energy usage. Now there is no denying that Hudson and his fellows meant well, but a recent British survey has shown that DST is not widely embraced by all who are affected by it. The survey was conducted across 2,050 Britons, yielding surprising results. In a nation where DST remains a contentious issue, this could reignite the debate around the merits of the system. Most notably, 25 per cent of Scots have suffered a “negative impact on their lives”. This comes as a surprise, as Scotland has always been somewhat of a lynchpin in the clock change argument, yet their dissatisfaction is near identical to that felt by the South. It was thought that our neighbours to the north were firmly in favour of DST. The survey also found that women were most affected, with a third of women reporting negative effects. These negative effects on our health can range widely in intensity and type, but they centre on the
ways in which they affect our internal body clocks. It changes our body biorhythms, including our production of cortisol and our production of melatonin. The effect upon our cortisol levels was recently proven in a study by researchers from Australia’s Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre. The researchers analysed 27,569 panels of blood cortisol taken during different seasons over a period of thirteen years. The researchers monitored the relationship between the cortisol levels and the season, and whether it was taken during daylight saving time or not. Their exhaustive study found that cortisol levels indeed do change with the seasons. Cortisol increases three per cent in the summer equinox and 4.5 per cent in the autumn to a height of almost nine per cent increase during the winter solstice. The research indicates that as the sunrise is delayed, cortisol levels rise. The research also found that daylight savings time in itself also changed the morning peak of cortisol by an
Daylight Saving
hour – meaning that the body clock did not effectively adjust to the hour daylight savings time. While a slight change in the body’s cortisol levels and the delay of peak levels by an hour due to daylight saving time doesn’t seem that critical, it seriously effects our sleep rhythms, and produces an increase in sleep disturbance. And, as numerous studies have shown, sleep disturbances are linked to a wide range of negative outcomes including dementia, heart disease, automobile and workplace accidents. Researchers from the William Beaumont Hospital in Michigan conducted a study that monitored the incidence of heart attacks – myocardial infarctions to be precise – between 2006 and 2012. The study population ended up being 935 patients, about 60/40 men to women. They found that while there was little increase in heart attacks during autumn – even slightly lower – there was a major spike in heart attacks the day after the springtime change (spring forward) to daylight
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savings time. The number of heart attacks the day after the springtime change vaulted 71 per cent over the average incidence numbers. For the rest of the first week after the time change, heart attack incidence averaged an increase of 17 per cent higher than the average incidence rate for heart attacks. This effect upon our sleep patterns was shown in a study by researchers from Germany’s Ludwig-Maximilian-University. The researchers conducted a survey of 55,000 people that found strong connections between daylight saving time and sleep quality. The researchers found that while most people were able to adjust to the fall change, reversing daylight savings, they had a tough time adjusting to daylight savings time, and the result is poor-quality sleep and sleep disturbances when the clocks spring forward. The researchers also conducted a second study that followed 50 subjects for eight weeks around daylight savings time and the reverse
of the clock during autumn. The researchers studied their sleep quality and timed their sleep length during the two clock transition periods. In this second study the researchers again found that the subjects did not adjust well to the daylight saving time change in the spring, though they adjusted better during the autumn change. This, of course, is to be expected, because during the daylight saving time change, the clock is advanced forward, and this forces a loss of an hour, a later sunrise and a later sunset – both of which rearranges our body clock to the negative. In autumn, this loss of an hour is gained back, allowing an earlier sunrise, which effects our cortisol levels positively. Multiple studies from Finland’s National Public Health Institute have also determined that daylight saving time disrupts sleep. In one study, ten healthy adult subjects were given special wrist activity clocks called accelerometers. This allowed
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the best you investigates Daylight Saving
the researchers to monitor the subjects’ rest-activity cycles for ten days during the transition period of daylight saving time. This study was done for two consecutive years on the same people to confirm and calculate the results. The research found that average sleep time was reduced by one hour and 14 minutes and average sleep efficiency went down by an average of 10 per cent. This means, of course, that sleep disturbance went up by 10 per cent, and the people lost an average of an hour and a quarter sleep due to the time change. The same researchers conducted a study of 90 people between 20 and 40 years old between 2005 and 2006. Again they wore accelerometers. This study found that daylight saving time disrupted sleep by 54 per cent during the autumn transition and 37 per cent during the spring transition. This was measured using motion during sleep and wakefulness – also called sleep
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fragmentation. Why does daylight savings time continue despite proof that it increases heart attacks, increases sleep disturbance and reduces sleep time? These are added to the confusion time changes create, the cost in massive efforts each year to adjust clocks back and forward and so forth. All of which increase the complications of life – meaning they add to our stress factors. One of the potential compromises is a shift away from the seasonal DST. MP Rebecca Harris is one of the champions of Happy Hour, an initiative that proposes Single Double Summer Time (SDST); a sort of permanent DST that puts UK clocks one hour forward throughout the year. “The majority of mainland Europe is already on full daylight Saving Time,” she says. “The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents and all the road safety organisations conclude that it will save up to 80 lives from fatal road accidents and
prevent many more serious injuries, by adding more daylight to the busier afternoon rush hour. Tourism organisations believe it will increase tourist revenues by as much as £4 billion and create up to 80,000 jobs in the industry, by extending the season and letting attractions stay open an hour longer every day. Environmentalists like Lighter Later and Green Peace say that less use of electric light during the evening peak time will not only reduce energy bills but also help us meet our carbon emission targets.’ Whatever resolutions are reached, it is encouraging that debate is being generated and that new ideas are being formed around this issue. DST was an innovative idea when it was first developed, but we must allow ideas to grow, breathe and adapt. After all, it is highly unlikely that George Vernon Hudson was aware of all of the contentions his proposal would incur. The poor man just wanted more time with his insect friends.
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BOOK REVIEWS THE BEST
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The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest minds of past centuries.� – Rene Descartes
Great reading, viewing and listening to empower, entertain, enrich, delight and enhance. The Best You rounds up classics and new books and media products that will make a positive difference in your life.
BOOK REVIEWS
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Jennifer Lopez: A Biography By Kathleen A. Tracy
One of Hollywood’s first Latina megastars, Jennifer Lopez has held fast to her New York Bronx roots, while rising above them to become the highest paid Latina actress in history. Her expansive body of work – ranging from film, music, and dance to television production and fashion – has broken down long-standing racial barriers and earned her a place in Forbes’ 2007 list of the Top 20 Richest Women in Entertainment. In spite of several box office flops and a dramatic personal life that has made her the frequent target of tabloid gossip, this determined artist has managed to retain her place at the top of her field, where she stands poised to make more significant contributions to the entertainment industry.
“Loved the book. A very enjoyable read. She can do anything from singing and dancing to designing clothes.”
– Nicola Platt
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Stress Free in Three Minutes By The English Sisters
You may be feeling stressed right now or maybe you would like to help someone that is feeling stressed. It has been proven that heart attacks, strokes, high blood pressure, headaches, ulcers and many more medical conditions can all be brought on or made worse by cumulative stress. The English Sisters will take you on a relaxing journey in each of their easy-to-read short stories, which guide you into a comfortable stress-free state of mind in only three minutes. Each easyto-read, hypnotherapeutic story is filled with metaphor and hypnotic language, which takes your mind on a mini break, providing relief from stressful thoughts.
”Experience peace, tranquillity and a stress-free life with this excellent book.”
– Rochay Elite
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THE BEST YOU
Wealth Chef By Ann Wilson
Forget the old recipe of getting a good job, working hard all your life just to get by and hoping there may be some money left at the end of it all to finally live the life of your dreams. Instead, discover the world of the wealth chef. By understanding just five recipes for wealth, you can live your dream life now, while creating financial freedom. Bestselling author, speaker and international wealth coach Ann Wilson is a self-made millionaire with a straightforward, jargon-free, supportive, and most importantly, fun approach to money, investing and wealth, designed to help anyone become financially free. This is the stepby-step guide to creating a financial feast in your life and living the life of your dreams.
“This is a fantastic book to help you understand how to change your life financially for the better. Easy to read and implement.”
– Kezia Luckett
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THE BEST YOU
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Empowered By Anne Mulliner
Are you stuck and disillusioned with life, unsure what to do? Are you a fraud waiting to be found out? Are you resisting putting yourself forward for better career opportunities because you are afraid that you may fail? Are you sleepwalking through life, feeling like it is all out of your control? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need this book. It is full of stories, exercises and anecdotes to shift you from that stagnant rut you are stuck in, giving you the tools, techniques and strategies to find a new zest and zing for life where you can be the authentic empowered version of you.
”You showed me how to be a better version of myself and for that I am truly grateful.”
– S.M. – Finance Director
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BOOK REVIEWS
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Great Work By David Sturt
The question is: Do we make the contributions we’re capable of? Is our best work getting out there? Breaking through? Creating a difference the world loves? We’ve long been told our ability to succeed depends on our IQ, talent, education level, gender, job title, or when and where we were born. Great Work turns that conventional thinking on its head to reveal that innovation can come from anyone, anywhere. Especially you. With insights from the largest-ever study of award-winning work, Great Work reveals five practical skills that will help you ideate, innovate, and deliver work that gets noticed and appreciated. Great Work is filled with stories of real people in real jobs who did what was asked and then added something extra – a personal touch all their own to deliver better-than-asked-for results.
“We all know difference makers who, in small ways, make a profound impact on how we work and live. This book helps us celebrate them.”
– Tom Post, Managing Editor, Forbes Media
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live love legacy THE BEST
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What do you want to be remembered for? What are your relationships like with those around you? How does life treat you - and how do you treat your life? There is so much good in you. Enrich your life with the passion you feel and the connections you make.
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To thine own self be true
According to Anne Mulliner, being honest with yourself is the first step to success
Their inspiring stories
We chat with some inspirational people about how they got over their challenges
What does it take‌
‌to be a policeman? We chat with A. Hoffman, a London City policeman
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live love legacy Anne Mulliner
To thine own self be true As the year draws to a close, you might be reflecting on your inner peace and happiness and be keen to make 2015 a year of attitude adjustment. Anne Mulliner has some great tips for doing this.
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s the nights close in and the temperature drops, many people find themselves feeling melancholy, restless or frustrated with their lot in life. As the end of the year approaches, the need to make commitments about what will be different in the next year magnifies. And yet, despite their best intentions, 12 months roll round and the cycle continues with no progress. In my book Empowered – How to Change Your Life in Your Coffee Break, I share case studies and exercises to give my readers some ideas of things they could do to look at life differently. Over 25 years, I’ve met and worked with thousands of people around the world. I’ve learnt that every single one had insecurities. Every single one had a critical inner voice that fed these insecurities. Every one of them was comparing themselves to someone else who they believed was doing better. Every one of them talked about needing to get to a mythical place known as ‘there’. So I challenged them. What if they changed their thinking so that ‘there’ was actually ‘here’ and they had already achieved it? It was an idea that blew some minds. I believe that, in order to feel
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happier, we have to concentrate on the whole person, outside and inside, and by consciously choosing our thoughts, it is possible to show up at 10/10 or pretty close to it every single day. My formula is very simple:
Show up as yourself
Who you are
Own and protect your personal brand
I believe all of us intend to be the best version of ourselves based on our experiences and upbringing. Think about the key experiences that you believed have shaped your life – the good ones, the bad ones and the down right ugly ones. Is there a pattern that is keeping you from getting what you want? Take time to notice and give yourself credit for how far you have come to get ‘here’ and celebrate it.
The space between your ears
Most of us would never say to one of our friends the things we say to ourselves in our head, but these thoughts drive our thinking, our moods, our decisions and our behavior, yet most of us don’t do anything about it. We have to snap out of this sleepwalking syndrome and start working to change our feelings, consciously choosing what we want to feel instead of accepting what just comes to us.
You have to stop wearing a mask or trying to be someone else’s version of you; it’s very draining and inauthentic and is a major contributory factor in relationship breakdowns and mental illness.
The clothes you wear, your body language, the tone of voice you use, all create a message, but if you never think about what you want to transmit, chances are you are getting it wrong. Wearing the right colour, style and scale of clothes will give you energy, confidence and save you money.
Reinvent yourself when you need to
In my life, I have needed to re-invent myself when I have moved on from different big situations. This can be a massively positive approach, especially if you want to gain confidence and assertiveness.
Research, research and more research
A very wise friend once told me that I could never fail at anything I did because I was just conducting research, and if something didn’t work out as I expected, it was simply
Anne Mulliner
learning that I could use to help me try again but differently in the future. This is such a powerful game changer.
Use role models to help you break free
If you need some re-invention, don’t be afraid to borrow behaviour from someone else or chose to change your behaviour to get a different result.
Be willing to move your mountain
What if your thoughts about yourself are 100 per cent wrong, how might that be holding you back? Always ask yourself “what else might be going on that I hadn’t already considered?” See what comes to mind.
Create a happiness plan
Identify how satisfied you are with
live love legacy
the different areas in your life and then pick the two that you think would make the biggest difference if you improved the rating. Keep updating your plan as your situation changes. Over time your energy, decision-making and motivation will change and improve.
Ask for help
If you are struggling with anything in life, have a conversation with someone you trust. Chances are they will relate to the feelings you are having, and sharing might uncover the answer you need.
Accept life is meant to have some ups and some downs
This simply helps us appreciate and notice when things are going well. Even in the worst of times, you have to trust that you will not stay stuck.
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LIVE LOVE LEGACY The Best You
Their inspirational stories
There are so many challenges in the world, and everyone goes through a fair amount of these in their lives. But some have to go through more than others. We have three amazing survival stories from people who have overcome these challenges.
Cecilia Adamou Born with a heart condition
My name is Cecilia-Joy. I’m 14 years and enjoy my laptop, makeup, bubble baths, Lush (the shop), scented candles, fashion, YouTube, sushi, gossip, and One Direction. I am also addicted to Instagram and spend half my life on Tumblr. In many ways, I am your average teenager. However, my life has been anything but ‘normal’. I was born with a serious heart condition, which had been diagnosed weeks before I emerged, healthier than expected. Two operations, one at the age of six months and the other at two years old, kept me going until the age of 10. My symptoms, by this stage, were worsening, and I was struggling to continue with day-to-day life. I was cold almost all of the time, my heart unable to circulate my blood properly, and I could barley walk a few metres without feeling like I had just run a marathon. My family, doctor and I decide it was time for another operation, one that would hopefully improve my quality of life. So, on 12 April 2010, feeling every emotion possible, I was wheeled down to the theatre, hoping to come back changed for the better. The operation on my heart didn’t work, and I went into heart failure. I spent four months in ICU, and finally, the doctors agreed I would not survive without a heart transplant. Only two hospitals in the country are able to perform heart transplants on children, so for me it was a journey to Newcastle by ambulance, on full life-support. The Freeman hospital had agreed to take me in and put me on the transplant list. Once we arrived in the land of Geordies, I waited a month for my heart, and it finally came on 13 September 2010. It took me a while to get used to it, and I suffered a few cardiac arrests, but I eventually started to get a lot better. But there was one problem; my kidneys had begun to fail, and, bedridden for eight months, I had lost the ability to walk. I was on dialysis for 18 months after returning to London, and on 27 July, during the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, I received a kidney transplant – the donor, the person I love more than anybody in the world: my mum. On 19 March 2013, I underwent surgery on my feet, and after a lot of hard work I was able to walk again. Life can go wrong at any moment, so you should live everyday as though it’s your last. Have no regrets and jump at every opportunity; slow down so you don’t miss anything; be grateful for all that you have and always, always have fun!
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The Best You
LIVE LOVE LEGACY
Dries Millard T8 complete paraplegic
Before my disability, the course of my life was set thanks to full sporting bursaries and all the promise and aspirations of a professional rugby player. After my accident, I knew that I would have to find a new course. In the first year after my accident, I opened myself up to many disability-orientated programmes and activities. Everywhere I went, I could recognise the gap between the social lives of disabled and able communities. It is a sad fact that the world is unintentionally cruel towards disabled people. Living life in a wheelchair, you learn to expect obstacles, many of which you didn’t have to face in the past. Learning to adapt to different situations is vital. Over the years, I’ve learned to do things in my chair that I never dreamed of doing before I landed in one. I just looked at other disabled people and knew that lifestyle was not for me. I started to challenge everything that prevented my wheelchair from doing what I wanted it to do. Fear became my strength, and later that fear turned into curiosity. The more I succeeded in breaking my boundaries, the more boundaries I wanted to break. I began to forget that I was disabled; I started doing things that frighten even able-bodied people. I wanted to share my knowledge of breaking boundaries, overcoming fears and mastering life in a wheelchair with other disabled people. After two years of teaching myself how to surf again, I finished a course in surfing instructing. I studied to be a tour guide, and I started doing motivational speeches. I want to give people living in wheelchairs the experience of a lifetime. I want to give them new reasons to live. I want to give them that experience of staring into the face of a great white shark, of jumping off the edge of a 100m drop, of flying over mountains and braving the swells of the ocean. I want to show people what it is like to find strength in fear. With Extreme Abilities Adaptive Tours, I am achieving that goal.
Sonjia Norman Fashion designer and environmental activist
Interview by Rebecca Koppenhaver
Sonjia Norman is a fashion designer, an environmental activist, a mother, and a self-described “hunter”. She is busy. 10 years ago, this daughter of a Korean mother and a South African father, decided she had more to offer the world than her full-time law career would allow. She quit her job and she hasn’t looked back since. Her acclaimed upscale Hong Kong atelier, Myst Limited, and her recent online site Sonjiaonline.com are the apogee of a life inspired by multiculturalism, love for the environment, art and beauty. She frequently travels the world looking for the rare and unusual: “I like to think of myself as a hunter, I’m always looking for the eclectic, something special and beautiful, those collectable items that people would not only think of as clothing, but appreciate as art.” Five years ago, she added another important dimension to her life. After hearing about the massive gyres of floating plastic in the world’s oceans and the detrimental affect they are having on ocean and human life, she was propelled into action. She co-founded The Plastic Oceans Foundation in 2009. Based in Hong Kong and London, the foundation works to educate the public about plastic pollution in our oceans and to persuade industry to be more environmentally conscious in the manufacturing/disposing processes of plastics. The foundation is also finishing up production on the film, Plastic Oceans, A Toxic Love Story. Although the film portrays the plastic pollution situation as a challenging reality, Sonjia says it ultimately carries a hopeful and inspiring message that will encourage people to take action in their everyday lives. “I’m passionate about the cause”, says Sonjia. “People need to know how immense the problem is but that there are solutions.” Staying true to her innovative nature, Sonjia has mixed her love of eclectic fashion with her altruistic endeavors. She has created a high-end line of collaged kimonos and shawls inspired by the beauty of the sea to benefit the foundation. The profits from the one-of-a kind stunning works will go entirely to The Plastic Oceans Foundation and are available on Sonjiaonline.com.
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Jim Aitkins
live love legacy
Why you
don’t fit in Jim Aitkins is an American writer and speaker who enjoys making simple observations about everyday life that can provide powerful lessons that lead to personal growth. This month he reminds us that the best you may be closer than you think.
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o you ever wish you looked like someone else? Perhaps you’ve wished you were like someone else in some other respect. The truth is you are different. You know you are. You may worry that everyone else knows it too. In the fall of 1960, the groundbreaking television show The Twilight Zone was in its second season. My favorite episode of the series was originally aired on 11 November of that year. It was titled “Eye of the Beholder”. It’s about a disfigured woman. We are not told how she became so dreadful to look at; all we know is that she had undergone more than one surgery in order to look more like everyone else and now this would be the final attempt to correct her awful facial disfigurement. Here’s a quick synopsis excerpted from Wikipedia: “Janet Tyler has undergone her eleventh treatment in an attempt to look like everybody else. She is described as being ‘not normal’ by the nurses and doctor, whose own
faces are always in shadows or offcamera, and her head is completely bandaged so her face cannot be seen. The outcome of the procedure cannot be known until the bandages are removed. Tyler pleads with the doctor and eventually convinces him to remove the bandages early. After a climactic buildup, the bandages are removed, revealing to the audience that she is beautiful. However, the reaction of the doctor and nurses is disappointment; the operation has failed, her face has undergone ‘no change — no change at all.’ At this point, the doctor, nurses and other people in the hospital, whose faces have never been seen clearly before, are now revealed to be horribly deformed by our perspective, with large and thick brows, sunken eyes, swollen and twisted lips, and misshapen, pig-like snouts. Distraught by the failure of the procedure, Tyler runs through the hospital as the disfigured faces of everyone she runs into, the norm in this society, are revealed. Eventually, a handsome man (by our standards) afflicted with the
same ‘condition’ arrives to take the crying, despondent Tyler into exile to a village of her ‘own kind’, where her ‘ugliness’ will not trouble the State. Before the two leave, the man comforts Tyler with the very, very old saying that ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder.’” In many ways, we are all like Janet Tyler. We emphatically do not want to ‘stick out’, to be ostracised and made to feel like we’re ‘ugly’. So, we strive to fit in. But let me tell you something that we all have in common: we will never fit in. Let’s think about this logically. Exactly where are you supposed to fit in? Or exactly what are you supposed to fit into? You do not need to try to look or be like everyone else. Just be you. Be the best you. The ironic truth is that if you’d stop trying to make people think you’re better than you really are, people would start to think that you are better than you probably really are. Just relax. You don’t fit in because you’re not supposed to. You were designed to be beautiful and unique and special. And you are.
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LIVE LOVE LEGACY What does it take…
to be a policeman? Part of being the best you can be is focusing on what it takes to get there. We’re continuing the “What does it take…?” column, which looks at this aspect of being the best. This month, we’re chatting with London City policeman A. Hoffman. What is the best thing about being a policeman?
You get to meet people from all different walks of life. The job thrusts you into situations that challenge you to think on your feet. You get a healthy dose of adrenaline every now and then, and every once in a while you get to genuinely change somebody’s life for the better.
And the most challenging?
I had never been in a fight in my life before I joined the police. The first time somebody screamed in my face, I was trembling. But dealing with aggressive confrontation is a skill that you learn with practice like any other. You have to learn de-escalation skills, tactical communication and, when necessary, you have to be willing and able to step in and apply force. That was a big challenge for me. Some of the more extreme sights and experiences that we have to deal with can also be tough. You have to learn to cope with things in a healthy way and not carry them with you.
What’s your average day like?
How do you become a policeman?
A written application is followed by an assessment day, which involves English, mathematics and logical reasoning tests. You are also assessed in a series of role-play scenarios where you have to demonstrate professionalism, communication skills and an ability to react to situations as they arise.
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I work in the core “response” role of policing. I carry a workload of around 15 active criminal investigations that I am responsible for dealing with from the point of first attendance and dealing with the victim, gathering evidence, building a case, arresting the suspect and interviewing them to securing a prosecution and giving evidence at trial. And if you call 999, we’re the ones that turn up, so I’ll often be doing paperwork when suddenly I have to run out the door and jump in the car to attend a burglary, pub fight, or a domestic abuse incident.
What does it take…
LIVE LOVE LEGACY
control and command violent drunks and drug-addicts. You will have to deliver the news to people that their loved ones have died. You will have to communicate effectively with people suffering with ill mental health. Ninety-five per cent of this will come from your own people skills.
There are a lot of cop shows on TV at the moment. Of course they exaggerate things for dramatic effect, but is there a show that gets it even a little bit right?
I’ve never seen a drama series that is even remotely realistic. I’ve yet to slide over the hood of a car during a foot chase. And we don’t have a “partner” to avenge when a mafia boss murders them the day before their retirement. There are a whole lot of police reality programs. I never watched them before, but now I’ll catch an episode every now and then and laugh knowingly at the situations and types of people that come up.
Which living person do you most admire and why?
Is this something you see yourself doing for the rest of your life?
Absolutely. I’m in love with the job and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I crave new experiences and new challenges. The job certainly provides those. I’ve grown so much and achieved things I never could have imagined myself doing before I became a copper. There are frustrations that come with the job of course, but it gives me a deep sense of satisfaction when I know that I’ve gone above and beyond and really helped somebody.
What made you want to become a policeman?
I had never thought of being a policeman in my life. I was a highly intelligent student, but I went through a rebellious phase in my mid-teens and completely underachieved in all of my GCSE and A-level exams. I ended up in a series of dead-end office jobs, which did not challenge or excite me in any way. A colleague left the office to join the police and told me all of the exciting stories about what he’d been doing. I decided to apply and worked very hard to get in. It’s the best decision I ever made and I’ve never been happier.
Which assets are most useful in a career in policing?
More than anything, you should be confident and have people skills. They teach you the law and the policies, but they don’t give you any real advice or instruction on how to relate to people in the vast array of situations that you will encounter. You will have to comfort and encourage vulnerable victims of crime. You will have to talk people down when they are ready to fight. You will have to
My dad. He is truly a larger than life character. I learned my sense of humour and my skill at telling anecdotes from him. He’s hedonistic and has a childlike joy about him. He has a strong moral code and would do anything for the people he loves. He’s taught me so much and had a huge influence on the man I’ve become. We’re good friends and drinking buddies. I love him.
What’s your proudest moment been?
A young woman was in an extremely violent relationship with her boyfriend. There was a real risk that she would be killed if she stayed with him, but she refused to provide a statement to police. She felt trapped and completely without options. I spent an entire day with her and built up a rapport until she felt confident enough to give evidence against him. When my shift was over we were only halfway done, so I stayed for another six hours, unpaid, and got the job done. He ended up going to prison for several years and she moved abroad, quit her drug habit, and enrolled in college. She emailed me two years later to tell me how much her life had changed and thanked me for the role I had played in that.
What did you want to be when you were little?
An accountant. Thank goodness that didn’t happen.
When did you last see the sunrise?
I work night shifts, so I’m often still at work when the sun comes up. But I haven’t taken the time to sit and watch one for a long time.
How do you relax?
I drink and party with my friends, go rock-climbing or throw myself around the flat to silly music.
What do you want to be remembered for?
Being a decent, fun and funny person who always spoke his mind and was always true to himself.
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feel & look good THE BEST
YOU
Feeling good about yourself makes the joy shine from your eyes and your skin. It makes others respond to you in new ways and it gives you a whole new outlook on life. Looking good draws others to you and enhances your life in ways you haven’t yet imagined. It’s great to find new ways to feel and look good now!
Life Without Limits
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Working health
Keeping healthy while being stuck behind a desk for nine hours a day is a challenge. Scott Roberts has some tips
Hacking happiness
Sebastian Nienaber says that being happy isn’t as difficult as it seems. Achieve happiness with his hacks
Google trumps GP
Recent studies show that a fifth of Britons Google their symptoms before visiting a GP
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feel & look good
Scott Roberts
Working health Sitting behind a desk all day and snacking on unhealthy foods will make you feel tired and irritable. Personal trainer and nutritional advisor Scott Roberts offers a few top tips for office workers who want to stay fit in the workplace and safeguard their health.
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he French have a saying: “Metro. Boulot. Dodo.” This translates to: “Tube. Work. Bed.” Does this sound familiar? Rushing out of the door with a soggy piece of toast? Skipping meals completely, or managing energy mid-morning or afternoon crashes with sugar fixes? Well, you and thousands of other office workers can all claim to not have enough time to exercise or pay attention to the food you consume at work. According to US research released this month, obesity-related conditions cost organizations $12 billion a year. So what is the solution? The office nowadays can be the hardest place to keep fit and healthy due to long working hours, not moving around, and increased stress levels. However, for all of us, whether you are sat in an office all day or training for The Olympics, the cornerstones of each and every daily diet should be based on singleingredient, nutrient-dense food that keeps you nourished and full for longer. This isn’t a fad or a celebrity diet. It’s very simple. A piece of fish is a piece of fish. A potato is
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a potato. Fresh produce, ideally organic, seasonal or locally grown is preferable. Many of these foods contain all the nutrients our body needs to function to its full potential, keeping you alive and alert at work throughout the day and when you get home. A basic rule of thumb is to have one portion of protein (any meat, fish, eggs, etc.) and a wide variety of vegetables with each meal: one palm-sized portion of protein for women and two for men, plus half a plate full of vegetables. Supplementing meals with high-quality Omega-3 fish oil or eating a portion of oily fish each day will also boost brain function and concentration levels. Be careful with meal replacements or tablets. Unless you understand how vitamins are processed within the body (and what other elements are required for the body to process them) stick with food fuel as a safe and stable option. If time is an issue, pre-planning should come into play. Firstly, a lack of time often comes down to bad time management, so try and make a list of everything you need to achieve each day. Eating well means
planning and shopping well. You should also stock up on essential homeware like Tupperware. Making your own food can also save you an awful lot of money (funds that can be put towards a gym membership, personal training or even a holiday). Just Google ‘The Latte Factor’. Many clients come to me and say they don’t have enough time to eat healthily. When they actually break down how much time they waste, once the pattern shifts, they start to love cooking and food. This is part of the challenge when it comes to healthy food prep and eating. When it comes to meal planning, you can prepare things a few days in advanced or even for the whole week. If you make a healthy dinner, make extra and have it for your lunch the next day. Most workplaces will have both a fridge and a microwave. If you run out to the local supermarket for a meal deal option or something similar, it will take just as long to grab one of their pre-prepared salads and a packet of cooked meat (beware of sugar content in many of these pre-cooked meats). There are many types of
Scott Roberts
marinated fish that you cook in the microwave for three minutes that taste amazing. Have a few small bottles of chili sauce, good olive oil and balsamic or apple cider vinegar nearby, and voila! Speaking of sugar, this happens to be one of the life’s health enemies. This includes ‘diet’ drinks and foodstuffs. Some ‘diet’ ranges actually have a higher fat rating than their regular counterparts. Consuming too much sugar can lead to many diseases and impact our effectiveness at work. Chains of coffee houses have a lot to answer for with the introduction of mocha, caramel mixes and similar drinks. Water is essential to keeping you and your brain hydrated, as well as fooling you into thinking you are hungry when, in fact, you are
dehydrated. Stuffy, air-conditioned offices wreak havoc with the sinuses as well as the head. Most people do not drink enough water. Check on your bathroom habits (no joke), and aim to drink two to three litres of water a day, depending on your sex and size, having a drink every 30 minutes or so. Eating out and consuming excessive alcohol can also interfere with healthy living practices. Each action has a reaction, and eventually all this catches up with you. And as for the ‘Dodo’ part, let’s discuss sleep. You should aim for seven to eight hours a night. This will help control stress levels in the body (cortisol levels) and also help control your food and drink choices during the day. A poor night’s sleep can lead to grabbing sweets or chocolate for
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an energy high, which is inevitably followed by an energy crash. The same is true of coffee. Try and have total blackout in the bedroom and turn off your phone to avoiding flashing lights disturbing your REM. Before you go to bed, make a list of the things you need to achieve the next day. This will prevent you from lying in bed that night worrying about what you may or may not have to do when you wake up. Once your food system is on track, exercise is the other piece of the jigsaw. Getting yourself fit will not only help you look and feel great, it will also provide you with more energy and help you get your ‘Va Va Voom’ back. And every workplace needs some Va Va Voom.
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Hacking happiness
Do you remember when Western science scoffed at meditation? When it was considered pseudo-scientific (if not New-Agey) to talk about a mind-body connection or the possibility that our brains remain malleable and plastic throughout our lives? Sebastian Nienaber asks if you’ve noticed how things have changed.
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owadays, hardly a day goes by without a new scientific study being published on how exercise can boost our memory, how meditation improves concentration or how the right kind of diet enhances our mood. After centuries of looking at human life through a mechanical, one-dimensional lens, science is shifting towards a more nuanced and subtle understanding of what it means to be happy. Instead of alienating us from ourselves, science seems to point back to our multi-dimensional nature. Along with the rise in scientific evidence, an increasing number of tracking devices and wearable technology now allow us to collect data on anything from our fitness and nutrition levels to the quality of our sleep. Neurofeedback devices can help us train our level of concentration and relaxation. On many levels, technology is starting to help us become more aware of the multitude of factors that make up our physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. Self-understanding and the pursuit of happiness have entered a technological and data-driven age. From a scientific point of view, terms like
Sebastian Nienaber
happiness and wellbeing were always slightly elusive and a bit fluffy. Over the last decade, however, a growing number of studies have identified factors that can be said to make up our happiness. As such, attempts to quantify happiness have become more and more prevalent, as shown by the publication of the first World Happiness Report in 2012. Assured by scientific evidence and geared with new technology, more and more people are becoming interested in how they function. Seeing a direct and quantifiable relationship between certain habits and how we feel empowers us to make positive changes to our lives. Suddenly, self-discovery and improvement – long considered by many to be just empty new-age jargon – are becoming more tangible, or dare I say, traceable possibilities. The convergence of science, technology and wellbeing that I am describing has profound implications on our notion of happiness. We realise that we can decode or ‘hack’ our happiness. Originally associated with computer crime, ‘hacking’ has taken on a whole new meaning in the last few years. Indicating curiosity and the ability to find out for ourselves, it suggests a greater sense of independence and self-reliance. Take meditation for example. For a long time
feel & look good
considered to be some new-age woo woo fad, it is rapidly being recognized as an inner technology, one that helps us to understand how our minds work. Or what about nutrition? It’s hard to miss how many people have become more conscious about their diet and response towards certain foods. Connect those (and many other) dots and you see a pattern where a lot more people are trying to ‘hack’ their happiness. You might argue that this isn’t anything new, that, since the beginning of time, humans have always wanted to be happy. True, but here is my point: For the first time in history, we are able to directly track and quantify different aspects of happiness, which in turn gives our technology and data-driven society the assurance and ability to more consciously engage in the pursuit of happiness. This is exactly what motivated me to set up a conference called Hacking Happiness. Starting with a summit on human potential, performance and wellbeing, this conference took place from the 13th to the 15th of November in London. We are trying to tap into the zeitgeist, responding to the call of more and more who are interested in how they function – physically, mentally and emotionally. We see it in many of our friends becoming more aware of how certain foods affect their mood, the secularisation of meditation into mindfulness or an increasing number of people becoming entrepreneurial. What they have in common is that they start hacking their happiness. They want to understand, find out for themself and become more self-reliant. Bringing together a global line-up of speakers on entrepreneurship, productivity, neuroscience, psychology and healthy living, Hacking Happiness is meant to catalyze this movement.
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“It’s all about getting as many people as possible to help find a cure for kids like me.” Millie Hawes (pictured) Registered Charity Number 1097765
Dedicated to finding a cure for
Spinal Muscular Atrophy Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is the leading genetic killer of infants and toddlers. The SMA Trust works to fund medical research into the disease.
We need your help To find out ways of getting involved call us on 01608 663415 or email info@smatrust.org
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Google trumps GP
New research by a specialist firm of medical negligence solicitors has revealed that as many as one fifth of Britons trust Google to diagnose their symptoms more than they do their doctor. The Best You reports.
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ccording to a recent study, more than half of those who use a search engine to research information about their symptoms end up feeling anxious about their potential illness. A new poll by a specialist firm of solicitors dedicated to pursuing medical negligence and catastrophic injury claims has uncovered a potentially worrying trend amongst Britons. Many of them are choosing to self-diagnose themselves using Google or another search engine instead of visiting their local GP surgery. Medical Accident Group conducted the research as part of an ongoing study into the relationships between patients and their doctors. 2,471 people aged 18 and over from around the UK, each of whom was registered with a local GP surgery, were quizzed about the level of trust they had in their doctors. All respondents were asked: “When you are unwell, are you more likely to Google your symptoms or visit a GP surgery to determine what’s wrong with you?” The majority of those taking part (42 per cent) stated they tended to “Google symptoms first and then decide whether or not to visit the doctor”, whilst 31 per cent chose to go immediately to the doctor and a whopping 27 per cent “rely entirely on Google for a diagnosis”. A fifth of the respondents taking part (21 per cent) said that they actually trusted Google to diagnose their symptoms more than they did their own GP. Those respondents who stated they used Google, either to determine whether or not they needed the doctor or in place of going to see their GP, were asked why they tended to do this. Provided with a list of possible responses and told to select all that applied, the
top five results were as follows: Quicker than waiting for an appointment Not sure if symptoms warranted a visit to the doctor Don’t have the time to visit the doctor Think a doctor could downplay my illness Wider scope of knowledge According to the poll, less than half of self-diagnosing respondents (42 per cent) had self-diagnosed themselves correctly, with the remaining 58 per cent having overexaggerated or misdiagnosed their illness. Fifty-four per cent of the respondents who had previously used Google to self-diagnose themselves admitted that the results had ended up making them feel anxious about their potential illness. Ally Taft, Senior Associate for Medical Accident Group, said the following: “Whilst doctors have been known to get a diagnosis wrong in the past, they’re far more trustworthy and accurate than a Google search. You could have symptoms that are present in a minor illness, yet by typing them into Google it’s easy to self-diagnose yourself with something much more serious that what you really have. “We’d always recommend that, if you think you have an illness, you put your trust back into your doctor and go to see them. While doctors do make the occasional mistake, you always have the option of a second opinion if you so wish. Anyone can put information on the Internet, accurate or not, and because it’s on the Internet, you’re likely to believe it, forgetting that the Internet is full of incorrect information.”
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wealth & riches THE BEST
YOU
Wealth [n] “happiness,” also “prosperity in abundance of possessions or riches” from Middle English “wele”, meaning “well-being”. Riches [n] “valued possessions, money, property." Make money and bring greater wealth to EVERY area of your life.
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Put your best foot forward
Best-selling author David Sturt offers a guide on how to make the kinds of change people love
Life after debt
Ann Wilson, author of The Wealth Recipe, says debt is no reason to get into a panic
The rise of the mumpreneur
With childcare costs on the rise, more and more mums are starting their own businesses
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wealth & riches David Sturt
Put your best foot forward
The big questions about being the best you at work are: Do you contribute to the best of your ability? Is your best work getting out there? Is it breaking through? Is it creating a difference people love? David Sturt tells us how to make a difference with great work. 58
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any of us have grown up believing that our ability to succeed at work depends on our IQ, talent, education level, gender, job title or when and where we were born. But, the truth is, innovation can come from anyone, anywhere – and especially from you. This isn’t a motivational statement. We researched it. A study conducted by Forbes Insights, the Cicero Group, and the O.C. Tanner Institute that analyzed 1.7 million cases of award-winning work across all industries and geographic areas found that simple activities (things people do) predict success more accurately than any of the traits (who people are) listed above. What can you do to bring out your best work and the best you? Here are just a few activities culled from the Great Work study that show what awardwinning workers do, and that you can do today. Learn to ask the right questions. Pause as your next project begins or schedule time weekly to think about the people your work serves. Consider customers, team members, leaders and partners. Think about things you could do that those people would love. Ask yourself if you can make something easier, simpler, faster, safer, greener or smarter. Can you make it more affordable, convenient, enjoyable, more connected or more secure? In our research we found that 88 per cent of great work projects began with some version of the question, “What difference would people love?” Go and see how people experience your work. When you go and see for yourself, you’ll witness first hand what’s working and what isn’t. Watch how your work is being used. Look at what your work does. Look deeply at the process. Understand the workflow and how the work is conceived, produced and delivered. By looking in new ways, you will see new ways of doing things
David Sturt
and new opportunities to make a difference. It will also fuel your passion for difference making. Those who go and see are 17 times more likely to have passion for their work. Talk to your outer circle. Instead of just having conversations with people in your ‘inner circle’ (the people you often share ideas with) reach to your ‘outer circle’. Pay attention to new thoughts and ideas from people who may not be familiar with you and your work. Invite others to share their opinions. Explain your hunches and ask what they might improve. Gather all you can from each conversation. Seek out specialised know-how and explore naysaying points of view. Look for points of clarification. Remember to keep notes of all the ideas (both positive and negative) you hear and record how they can apply to your work. According to our research, 72 per cent of projects that end up with people receiving awards for their great work involve people talking to their outer circle. Improve by adding or removing. When you decide to make something
better, your first impulse will be to add something new. Think of your project like a soup recipe—a little more of this and a little more of that. But difference makers also know that making something better sometimes means removing unwanted, unnecessary or even distracting elements. Look for areas to add and remove until your work really makes a big difference. Statistically speaking, your work will be three times more effective when you add or remove an element or two. Deliver the difference. One of the most important things you can do to deliver your best work is to see it all the way through until you know a difference has been made. Too often, people think their work is done before they know if what they did was actually loved. Stay with your project and measure the impact from the change you made. Keep your eye out for any additional tweaks you can make that would make your work even more effective. In our research, we found that so much of the impact came from the final adjustments toward the very end of the project after others had moved on to
wealth & riches
something else. Ninety percent of award-winning projects we reviewed included employees who remained involved through implementation. To be the best you, it’s important to look at you as a whole – your work, your relationships and your attitude. Great work begins when you take the time to ask if there is something different you could do that someone else would love. Great workers look with their own eyes from a variety of perspectives to see new possibilities. They initiate new conversations with new people to generate ideas they wouldn’t be able to think of on their own. They tinker and test and tweak things in hope that they will not only improve a product, process or service, but that they will also improve someone else’s life through the difference they make. Oh, and don’t forget: you can’t become the best you in a silo. You will be surprised at how many people are there to help you, support you and feed you ideas. Being the best you also means showing genuine appreciation to those people who helped you get where you are today, and those who will champion your great work in the future.
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wealth & riches Ann Wilson
Life after debt There is life after debt. In fact, it’s a pretty glorious life. Sadly, for many people mired in debt who feel desperate and unsure where to turn, that life seems like a pipe dream. Ann Wilson has seven steps to break free.
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Ann Wilson
wealth & riches
Step 1: Imagine
Get very clear on what you want and why you want it. Write an outline of your ideal life – see it, feel, it, get excited about it. Write it in the present tense and in the first person: “I am doing... having... creating... experiencing.” This will start to help you focus on the life you want and will help you create it. Start every day by reading this outline, getting excited about it, adding to it. Consciously change your focus from worrying about your debt to creating the life you want.
Step 2: Be proud
Every night while you’re brushing your teeth before you go to bed, ask yourself these five questions: What am I proud of in my life right now, in relation to my wealth and my money? What am I committed to in my life right now, in relation to my wealth and my money What am I excited about in my life right now, in relation to my wealth and my money? What am I grateful for in my life right now, in relation to my wealth and my money? Whom do I love, and who loves me? Here’s the deal. You can’t stop brushing until you have at least one answer in each category. Look at the bright side. Either you’re going to end up with the most amazingly sparkling clean teeth, or you’re going to have discovered so many things that you’re really proud of and excited about and grateful for in your life right now. Hopefully, it will be both. Really answer them fully and mentally record how you feel when you get your answer. If nothing clear pops into your mind, just keep asking the same question until something does. Write your answers down in your wealth journal and really start noticing how wealth starts expanding in your life. It’s about mastering your focus, so make sure you do it, even if it feels a bit woo-woo.
Step 3: Blitz your debt
Put in place a simple debt-blitzing plan, commit to it and make it as automatic as possible. You can get the full debt-blitzing recipe with step-by-step instructions on how to implement it in your life in my book, The Wealth Chef.
Step 4: Relax
Relax, breathe, and know that by having a debt-blitzing plan in place and by your commitment to stick to it and free yourself from consumer debt, you can now focus on creating wealth.
Step 5: Wealth flows
Learn about money, how it works, how it grows, and start looking at the way you have been managing it. Determine what your money flows have been in the past that got you where you are and, with that understanding, change your money flows to wealth flows that enable money to stay in your life and grow.
Step 6: Pay your self first
Start paying yourself first. What this means is, start allowing money to stay in your life by starting both a
saving and investing plan. One of the things I always get asked is, “Shouldn’t I put all my money into clearing my debts first?” No, what you need to be doing is creating new money habits and you must create the habit of investing at the same time as destroying your debt. Energy flows where focus goes and if you only focus on your debt that is all you will know. Part of breaking a habit is replacing it with a new one, and your new wealth habit is investing. The great thing about investing is, you are still buying stuff, except now you not buying things that starve you; you’re buying things that feed you. If you don’t do this, you won’t break the debt habit. Even if you clear all your debt, you are likely to go back into debt if you haven’t created a new investing habit.
Step 7: Focus
With your money now being given great leadership by you, you can focus on bringing more in and converting more of it into assets that can work hard for you while you get on with living a rich juicy life.
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wealth & riches
The rise of the
mumpreneur
New research from Direct Line for Business (DL4B), reveals nearly two thirds of mums with children under the age of ten are considering starting a business from home in the next three years. The Best You reports.
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ne sixth (16 per cent) of mothers are exploring the route of the mumpreneur because of the prohibitive childcare costs associated with working a traditional nine-to-five job. With recent figures putting full-time annual childcare costs at £11,700 for two children, it is understandable that almost half of the mothers (49 per cent) surveyed believed that they would be better off financially if they started a business from home. One in seven mums (14 per cent) are motivated to start a business from home by the flexibility of being their own boss, while one in eight (12 per cent) have always had the ambition to start their own business. Only one per cent are motivated by the fact that
they do not like their current job. Jazz Gakhal, Head of Direct Line for Business, commented: “The costs of sending a child to day care, or hiring a nanny continue to spiral. It’s great to see that mums are tackling this problem with such an entrepreneurial spirit, as they understand considerable childcare cost savings can be made by running a business from home. “While launching a business from home has many benefits, it also brings its own set of challenges. These ventures often require substantial financial investment, alongside the time and effort required to build a business from scratch. The effects of theft, damage to stock or to customer property can therefore be devastating on both a personal and business
level; we urge business owners to consider organising business insurance as a priority to protect their investments.” DL4B recognises that there are substantial childcare savings to be made from operating a business from home, but budding mumpreneurs need to ensure that they are fully prepared for their venture, from understanding the risks of launching a business through to insurance requirements. Mumpreneurs need to be aware that basic home insurance does not cover stock, customer property or liability arising out of an injury to a client in connection with the business that they are undertaking from home so to protect themselves, business insurance cover should be arranged.
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WEALTH & RICHES
the rocky road to success
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Becky Hammon
Pumped Up to Prosper
Digging In for the Win
The worst thing I can be is the same as everybody else. I hate that.”
It’s a chance for girls to play and a chance for us to do something different.”
“Early and often” is the motto by which Arnold Schwarzenegger has lived his entire life. It’s a life that began in Thal, Austria in 1947. His father was the local police chief, an occupation that extended into the home whenever the elder Schwarzenegger would discipline the younger. Despite a difficult upbringing that included everything from being constantly ignored by his father to his family straddling the poverty line, Schwarzenegger excelled at many sports, and at the young age of 15 began serious bodybuilding training. At 18, Schwarzenegger joined the Austrian army, where he took the top prize in the Junior Mr. Europe contest. He won the Mr. Universe just two years later and moved to the U.S. Based in the movie capital of the world, it was in Los Angeles that Schwarzenegger was first noticed by Hollywood. Roles in Pumping Iron, Conan the Barbarian and The Terminator were among those that catapulted him to superstardom. Hit after hit after hit in the 1980s and 1990s gave Schwarzenegger the platform to pursue his political ambitions, which he had always harboured to varying degrees throughout his life. In 2003, he announced his candidacy for the California Governor’s race, won the special recall election that year, and served as the Golden State’s governor for almost eight years. Since he was a young man, Arnold Schwarzenegger has shown the world that you don’t have to be American to live the American dream.
Becky Hammon would travel a long way before she would return to the American heartland. Born in Rapid City, South Dakota in 1977, Hammon grew up on steady diet of basketball. Before heading off to college, she earned the title of South Dakota Miss Basketball, and averaged almost thirty points per game during her high school playing years. Hammon continued her momentum coming out of high school as, playing college basketball for Colorado State, she began lighting up the scoreboard and didn’t stop until she held multiple records, including points-per-game and three-point field goals. Her professional career in the WNBA saw Hammon playing for the New York Liberty and the San Antonio Stars. She was twice snubbed for a spot on the U.S. National Olympic team. Subsequently, she took her own path toward Olympic glory and played for the Russian National Team at the 2008 Beijing Summer Games, helping Russia to a bronze medal that year. After sixteen professional seasons, Hammon made history when she crossed over to men’s basketball and became the first paid female coach in NBA history. In the summer of 2014, she signed on as an Assistant Coach under legendary San Antonio Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich. Becky Hammon was born with talent, and while her way wasn’t always laid out for her, she found it anyway.
“While we may not all agree with Schwarzenegger’s policies, it’s undeniable that he is an inspiring go-getter. Going as far as he has in a foreign country is truly remarkable.”
“Basketball is by and large a man’s world. Becky Hammon has defied stereotypes and proven to the world that it takes more than excess testosterone to rule the court. She should be proud of her accomplishments.”
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– Bernardo Moya
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– Bernardo Moya
the rocky road to success
Celine Dion
A Voice for the Ages
I want to be more successful as a mother than I am in show business.”
WEALTH & RICHES
Jay-Z
Empire State of Mind
I’m far from being god, but I work god damn hard.”
Celine Dion was born to be heard. She had to be, as she was the last child born in a family of fourteen siblings in French-speaking Canada. Despite their lack of money, the family did own a small piano bar, where Dion regularly performed throughout her childhood. Dion’s brother took a big chance and sent an early recording of her to famed music manager Rene Angelil. The chance paid off, and Angelil quickly decided that he would take Dion under his wing and provide her a stage from which the world could hear her powerful voice. After a string of international successes, including winning the Eurovision Song Contest in 1988 and notching a gold record in France, Dion was ready to crossover to success in the U.S. She finished off her English-speaking training and recorded what many American critics heralded as a solid niche-carving soft rock/adult contemporary effort. Slowly building success in the U.S. paved the way for the triumph that would cement her as a global star: singing the signature track “My Heart Will Go On” from the mega blockbuster film Titanic. The song went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song from a motion picture. Celine Dion sang her way to the top and has proven that staying there is a success story all its own.
Hailing from the projects of New York City, Jay-Z came straight out of Brooklyn in 1969. He was raised with three siblings in a broken home, after his father abandoned the family. A culture of drugs and violence surrounded him through high school. After his mother bought him a boom box for his birthday, the teenaged Jay-Z began to show a hyper-focused interest in music, crafting lyrics and rhymes and becoming known around his Brooklyn neighbourhood. With no shortage of influences and adversaries during his youth, Jay-Z learned what he wanted to do and what he didn’t want to do when it came to his style of rap music. Guest starring on recordings and live performances of favourites such as Big Daddy Kane in the early 1990s, Jay-Z built momentum. Employing his never-ending supply of do-it-yourself spirit, he sold albums from the trunk of his car and created his own record label. Upon securing a distribution deal, Jay-Z began to release hit album after hit album throughout the 1990s and 2000s, including The Blueprint and The Black Album. Between music, fashion, and high-profile sports investments such as an ownership stake in the Brooklyn Nets NBA franchise and starting his own sports agency, Jay-Z has displayed not only his ambition to rise from humble beginnings, but also the golden touch that has made him one of the world’s most successful businessmen.
“She has overcome so much, and became a household name anyway. She has taken a step out of the spotlight now to focus on family, which is commendable.”
Jay-Z is someone who I have always found to be very inspiring. He came from a broken home in a poor neighbourhood, set his heart and mind on being a success and didn’t stop until he achieved it. And he’s still going.”
– Bernardo Moya
– Bernardo Moya
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THE BEST YOu directory The Best Professionals in Personal Development
UNITED KINGDOM
SPORTS THERAPISTS AND NUTRITIONISTS
Dr Stephen Simpson NLP, Hypnotherapy, and Havening Email: doc@drstephensimpson.com Website: www.drstephensimpson.com clients include leading names from the world of sport, business, and the entertainment industries.
Shayna Schulman Attitude adjuster and flexibility enhancer Email: Shayna.s@virgin.net Phone: +44 (0) 208 960 7715 Licensed trainer, coaching, consulting, yoga, nutrition
NLP TRAINERS Tina Taylor: Licensed Master Trainer and Practitioner Email: kay@the-me-group.com Phone: +44 (0) 7946 351640 Website: tina@tina-taylor.com Tina’s experience allows her to create and provide some very unique coaching services from stopping addictions to pregnancy and pain control.
Ulrika Shaw: Thrive consultant and hypnotherapist Email: enquiry@shawmind.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)7810 556029 Website: www.shawmind.co.uk Are you suffering from anxieties or depression? Maybe you’re struggling with bad habits such as overeating or smoking? I help people overcome anything that holds them back!
Geoff Rolls: Corporate Coach and Kinesiologist Email: geoff@geoffrolls.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)7905 056 513 Website: www.geoffrolls.co.uk Learning and development, NLP Trainer, TFH Kinesiology Instructor
June O’Driscoll: Exec Coach, Business Coach, Trainer Email: june@thoughtitude.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)7876 657 8055 Website: www.thoughtitude.co.uk NLP, Coaching and Hypnotherapy Training School and Consultancy
LIFE COACHES Dr Andrew A Parsons Mindfulness, Resilience and Finding Clear Purpose Email: aaparsons@reciprocalminds.com Phone: +44 (0)7854 029 268 Support people, build awareness and make changes for success
Dustin Vice Personal and Business Development Coaching Email: dustin@alliancecoachingsystem.com Website: www.alliancecoachingsystem.com Professional Coaching, Coaching Business system for professional coaches
Gail Cherry: Torchlight Coaching Email: gail@torchlightcoaching.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)1143 489 161 Website: www.torchlightcoaching.co.uk Helping people with their personal and professional development. We work together to be the best you.
Ruth Hepworth: Life Coach Email: ruth.hepworth@ntlworld.com Phone: +44 (0)1252 655 849
Those Life Consultant Guys: Coaching, Seminars. Business, goal setting and more. Website: www.thoselifeconsultantguys.com A coaching company who pride ourselves in helping you live your best life; every day, through one on one sessions and seminar programmes.
Nick Nanton Career and Life Coaching, Consultancy and Public Speaking Website: www.nicknanton.com Phone: (407) 215-7737 Recognised as one of the top thought-leaders in the business world
Edson Williams: Life Coaching Email: edson@leadbyexample.com Phone: +44(0)7867517777 Website: www.leadbyexample.com Specialising in leadership development and sport coaching
David Owen: Life Coach & NLP Trainer Email: bestyou@excel-yourself.com Phone: 07900 243494 Website: www.excel-yourself.com Stop smoking, slimming, phobias, relationships, stress, confidence, self-esteem.
THE BEST YOu directory The Best Professionals in Personal Development
PHOBIA SPECIALISTS John Vincent Public speaking without fear Email: John@JohnVincent.tv Phone: +44 (0)7808 545 421 Website: www.johnvincent.tv
Paul Wright Phobias, Anxieties, Panic Attacks Email: paul@phobiagone.com Phone: +44 (0)203 086 8444 Website: www.phobiagone.com
NLP THERAPISTS / HYPNOTHERAPISTS Linda Cameron and Gail Walshe Inspire For Impact Email: say-hello@inspireforimpact.com Phone: +44 (0)845 601 7567 Website: www.inspireforimpact.com NLP Trainers, NLP Master Practitioners, NLP Life Coaches, Hypnotherapists
Debbie Williams Birmingham NLP Practice Group Website: www.debbiewilliams.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)121 241 0728 Life coaching, public speaking, sports coaching, all eating disorders, emotional mastery, OCD, stopping blushing, cocaine addiction, binge drinking.
Edson Williams Coaching, NLP, Personal Development Email: say-hello@inspireforimpact.com Phone: +44 (0) 7867517777 Website: www.leadbyexample.com With a holistic approach Edson is specialized in performance coaching
Laura Spicer: Public speaking skills and confidence Email: laura.spicer@gmail.com Phone: 01752 361 576 Website: www.laura-spicer.com The only accredited Sound Practice Trainer for the Society of NLP
Eating disorders John Arroyo Coaching, Personal Development Email: john@johnarroyo.co.uk I have been a therapist and personal development trainer for 20 years, specialising in eating disorders for the last 10 years.
EUROPE
NLP TRAINERS
Pasquale Acampora (Italy) Master Trainer and Mental Coach, NLP, Team building Website: www.blackship.it Phone: +39 (0)335 70 99 000 Pasquale’s key areas are sport and business, he has worked with top athletes and multinational companies.
Alessandro Mora (Italy) Sport Coaching Email: a.mora@ekis.it Phone: +39 (0)522 337 611 Website: www.pnlekis.com NLP, coaching and team building applied to sport and business all over Italy
Xavier Pirla (Spain): NLP Master Trainer and NLP Coach Email: kay@the-me-group.com Phone: 91 002 84 44 (Madrid) 93 193 6449 (Barcelona) Website: www.the-me-group.com NLP, NLP Business Applications, Coaching workshops and Consultancy
Aleksander Sinigoj (Slovenia) Mastermind Academy Email: info@itnlp.com Website: www.aleksandersinigoj.com Leadership, Motivation, Sales, Business NLP
If you’d like to be featured on this list, please contact us on 0203 011 0866 or email advertising@thebestyou.co Visit www.thebestyoudirectory.co for more personal development professionals.
21st century living THE BEST
YOU
The pace of change can sometimes bewilder, but it can also give amazing opportunities to meet new people, discover new things and thrive. Bring out the best in you by discovering the latest innovations that will put you ahead of the pack.
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Back to basics
Argos is teaming up with local charities to teach people who have been left behind in the online revolution
Have yourself a techy little Christmas Associate Editor Bryan Szabo looks at some Yuletide gadgets that will bring joy to those on your nice list
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21st century living the best you
Lives on the line There are an alarming number of people in the UK who are not comfortable using the Internet. Argos has teamed up with a few charities including the Tinder Foundation to try and bring these members of the population into the 21st century.
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e live in a thoroughly digital age, with seemingly everyone hooked up to the Internet on a laptop, tablet or mobile phone. With everyone and their grandmother on Facebook, the Internet has stretched its fingers across to embrace the entire world. It’s easy to take it for granted that everybody knows their way around computers. This, sadly, is not the case. Whilst access and affordability are seen as barriers, knowledge and confidence remain major challenges in people’s continued online absence. According to research by the BBC into media literacy, one in four people are uncomfortable with technology, and one in five state they simply don’t know how to use it. Nearly one in five said they didn’t like to try new things on the Internet because of fears that they would do something wrong. According to Helen Milner of the Tinder Foundation, “There are almost 10 million people in the UK who don’t have the basic skills to use the Internet. That means that
the best you
they are missing out on critical thing such as jobs and timesaving technology, as well things such as keeping in touch with friends and family. It’s really important for them as individuals as well as for the economy that they get the opportunity to get those basic online skills that they need.” Tinder Foundation is a not-for-profit social enterprise that supports a network of 5,000 local community partners and works with hundreds of national organisations in providing digital literacy to those who need it most. They have teamed up with Argos to launch Argos Internet Workshops, an initiative aiming to help those
without basic online skills. People within the community who have limited digital skills can come visit an Argos store for a two-hour session and walk away with increased confidence that they can access the Internet going forward. Specially-trained store representatives will help participants learn the basics of how to use a tablet, connect to and surf the Internet, use a search engine, set up email, stay safe online and more. Up to 10,000 people will be given training and a tablet to help them communicate, connect and develop the digital skills needed to feel confident online. Argos has pledged to provide practical skills, access and technology to some of the 9.5 million Brits who are still not online. This is part of the company’s commitment as a board member of digital skills charity Go ON UK. “The digital revolution continues apace; however, millions remain on the digital outskirts”, says John Walden, Argos Chief Executive. “Argos Internet Workshops have been developed to help people overcome the barriers of access and affordability and bring them online. Improving digital skills will help build people’s knowledge, understanding and confidence in digital technology. Our customers tell us they want help and, in response, we are giving away 10,000 tablets to those who most need them.” The digital landscape is always changing, with more people being less inclined to use sedentary technology such as desktops. The trend is heading more towards mobile technology, such as laptops, tablets and mobile phones. Research released earlier this year from OFCOM shows the number of adults using tablets specifically to go online almost doubled year on year from 24 per cent to 44 per cent. Whilst almost all age groups are more likely to use these handy devices, those in older age groups find them particularly accessible, with use by those aged 35-64 doubling and 65-74 trebling from five per cent to 17 per cent. “We’re going to be training a minimum of 360 of our team to work with 10,000 of our customers to give them basic digital skills”, said Stephen Kelley, Area Manager and Business Partner for Argos Northern Ireland. “We’re doing this with 120 stores across the UK and Ireland and are hoping to make a really big impact with it.” With such dedication, there is hope that the tides of computer illiteracy will start changing.
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RECOMmENDED READING The Facebook Effect
By Dabid Kirkpatrick The Real Inside Story of Mark Zuckerberg
21st century living
The Best You website is packed with loads of great books, DVDs, CDs, downloads, free articles, and reports. Check it out now: www.thebestyou.co
The Google Story
By David Wise Inside the most remarkable business
KaChing
By Joel Comm How to Run an Online Business That Pays and Pays
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21st CENTURY LIVING
Bryan Szabo
Christmas
Tech
If you’ve got a tech-lover on your ‘nice’ list this year, you’ve probably already prepared a laundry list of ideas (tech fans, after all, are never truly up to date). Why not surprise them, though, and get them something so cutting edge that they might not even know it’s an option? Here’s a few of the latest tech items that’ll have your technophile squealing with delight on Christmas morning. Robert Wilson Snowy Owl So this one might not make it under the tree this year, unless, that is, you’ve got the price of a family car lying around to spend on something that won’t do much outside of hanging on your wall. The Snowy Owl is actually a 42-by-24-inch plasma video screen that displays an image of – you guessed it – a snowy owl. What makes it worth the hefty price tag? The image appears static, but look at it for a few seconds and it will swivel its head or blink its eyes. It’s eye catching enough on its own, but this added feature, which produces shocked reactions from nearly all viewers, might be enough to justify the cost for a small handful of elite art collectors. Suggested Retail Price: £45,000
Audeze LCD-3 For the audiophile who enjoys nothing more than slipping into an immersive music experience, nothing quite beats the experience of ultra-high-quality headphones. Audeze headphones have frequently left reviewers absolutely agog, stunned at just how much they communicate to the listener. They call the process holographic imagine, and, no matter what you’re listening to, close your eyes, and you’ll feel as though the artist is playing a one-night engagement between your ears. They’ll need a dedicated headphone amplifier or an integrated amp, so keep that in mind if you’re considering purchasing a pair. Suggested Retail Price: £1225
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www.thebe sty o u m ag az i n e . co
Bryan Szabo 21st
CENTURY LIVING
Celluon Epic There’s no better way to gather a crowd around you in a coffee shop than to take the Epic out of your pocket, turn it on, and begin typing on the table or counter. It displays a fixed keyboard pattern onto any flat and opaque surface, and whatever you type can be displayed on your Bluetoothenabled tablet or other mobile device. It’s also got an easy-to-use multi-touch mouse option. If you’ve ever put off sending an email until you can type it out on anything other than a three-inch screen, the Epic is exactly what you’ve been looking for. Suggested Retail Price: £99
DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ Drone
Roku 3 Roku has been making streaming players since 2008, and their most recent offering, the Roku 3, builds upon the advancements that they’ve made since then. The nicest thing about streaming is that it puts you, the consumer, in control of what channels and services you want to pay for. If you only ever use your TV to watch sports, there are dozens of sports channels to which you can subscribe, and you only pay for the ones you want (no more bundles of channels you’ll never watch). The interface is easy to use, and, since it has been on the market for so long, nobody can compete with the Roku in terms of selection. If you haven’t got a streaming player yet, this one is a great place to start. Suggested Retail Price: £99
If you spend a great deal of time in the outdoors – especially if that time is spent engaging in adrenaline-fuelled activity – this drone has the potential to capture all the action from every angle you can imagine. Its bird’s-eye views make it look as though you hired a professional camera crew to follow you around in a helicopter. It’s easy to fly, and the powerful camera attached to the device is held steady by a robotic stabilisation system. Attach your mobile device to the controls, and you can see everything the camera sees. A must have for adventure-seeking photographers. Suggested Retail Price: £940
Apple Mac Pro Definitely not for those on a budget, the Mac Pro is Apple’s top of the line desktop offering. It’s a sleek and sexy machine, capable of wowing even those who are normally unimpressed by Apple’s range of more popular products. Everything inside the housing is top of the line; its cutting-edge processor is lightning fast, capable of handling anything you can throw at it. The Mac Pro is so powerful, in fact, that, unless whatever you’re currently running is slowing your work down considerably, the Mac Pro might be more machine than you need by far. That doesn’t stop technophiles from dreaming of owning one. Suggested Retail Price: £1999
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