Business Training Seminars

When I arrived at my very first hoarding client's home, the front door was slightly ajar. I tapped, called out and walked in. The stifling air and the bad smell hit me first. Thick dust covered everything. Papers were stacked everywhere. It appeared as though the floor was made of dirt. On closer inspection, the carpet had turned to dust. Suddenly from behind a cluttered pile on the kitchen table, a tiny, perfectly coiffed, elderly lady in a lavender sweater set and pearl necklace stepped out...

What is Hoarding? I am not a mental health professional so I can't make a clinical diagnosis. But I can tell you what I have seen and what it looks like to me. I can also share with you my considered opinion of what causes it from the perspective of a person who sees hoarding on a regular basis, not from a tidy therapist's office but from the real,down and very dirty places where hoarders live.

Hoarding is not the same as being a slob. Hoarding is not dirty dish
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March 09 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

According to a recent United Nations Study, the older population is growing at a faster rate than the world's total population. It is predicted that by 2050, older persons will make up more that 50% of the populations in western, developed nations, including The United States. As our beloved seniors leave the work force, there are not enough younger replacements. In addition, our need for elder care and senior services is rising faster than we can come up with solutions. Older women outnumber older men by a landslide.

This is not meant to be a doom and gloom report. On the contrary, what I am saying is that where there is a tremendous need, there is also tremendous opportunity for creating new services. Not only are the seniors themselves going to need help; their families will need help and support too.

It's only going to get bigger.

Right now, a senior and/or their concerned family members have to navigate through a myriad of agencie
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March 09 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

Perfectionism is a curse - a self limiting belief that paralyze us and keep us from moving forward in our lives. Coaches often term these self limiting beliefs "gremlins". We all have gremlins that whisper in our ear. The Perfectionism Gremlin is probably the biggest offender.

Researchers are finding that the need to be perfect is a factor in those suffering from depression, eating disorders, hoarding and other obsessive compulsive behaviors. Perfectionism paralyzes and prevents meaningful living. It robs us of our self confidence, our relationships with others and our personal happiness. It can even ruin our health.

So why do we suffer from Perfectionism? Some aspect of it may be inherited or due to a chemical imbalance in the brain. But much of it is nurture, not nature. As children, our society has ingrained in us the idea that we must be perfect. We must be perfectly athletic, perfectly beautiful, perfectly academic, perfectly put together
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March 08 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

Moving into Assisted Living isn't the end of the road - it's a new beginning. While your beloved senior might desire to stay in their home, it may not be practical due to stairs, inadequate bathroom designed for their needs or the home is in disrepair or too big or costly to keep up. They may have suffered a recent unexpected and permanent loss in function. Moving in with you or having someone live with them may not be an option.

If you haven't visited an Assisted Living Community in several years or maybe never, you are in for a happy surprise. They are nothing like the early 20th century horrors of a nursing home.

In major population centers throughout the U.S. many are like cruise ships that never sail - beautiful common rooms, elegant dining rooms, media centers, beauty shops and meeting rooms. The program director is much like a cruise director, encouraging residents to partake in a myriad of activities. Seniors can stroll or sit in beautiful outdo
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March 08 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

OK, I'm not trying to be flippant here. The news is bad. Very good people have been hurt and swindled by very people. Innocent people are losing their jobs and their savings. But I repeat, as a business person, what has this got to do with you?

Even in a down economy, life goes on. People still need goods and services. You provide those goods and services. You are the best at what you do. You have no competition. I mean that. You have insight, knowledge, life experience and talents that are unique to you and no one else in the Universe. You are positively amazing and your clients love you. They tell all their friends and neighbors about you. In short, they know you, like you and trust you. They need your services. The economy doesn't matter. If you believe that, then you will inspire others to hire you and/or buy your products. If you don't believe that - worry about the economy, worry about the competition - well then, good luck because you get what you think.
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March 05 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

The media is on a roll! What fun and profit to be able to report doom and gloom and have viewers glued to their TV sets, listening to the pundits tell us how bad it all is and how worse its going to get. TV advertisers are loving it. How do you stay positive and continue to attract abundance in your life when there's a downright conspiracy to keep you focused on the negative? Here are Ten Tips to overcome and to manifest abundance, despite the so-called gloom and doom of the current market.

1. Refuse to buy in to the fear (media, newspapers, naysayers) Bad news sells. Good news is considered dull and unworthy of reporting. Have you noticed how the stock market reacts to even the slightest rumor? Thoughts are powerful! Be aware of what you are contributing to that power.

2. Be grateful for anything and everything. I know, sometimes it seems impossible and sounds like Pollyanna playing the "glad game". But Polly
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March 05 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

So often I hear frustrated clients tell me, "Help, my elderly parents are so stubborn and they are driving me crazy!" I completely understand this frustration as I have been there too. My elderly mother became more and more forgetful as she got older. She would forget to eat and drink. She was too frail to drive and her life consisted of playing solitaire, watching TV and waiting and hoping that someone might stop by for a visit or give her a call. Trouble was, she never had anything to talk about because she had become so isolated from the world. She refused to move to a senior community and expected me to be available at a moments notice - even though I lived hours away and had a family and full time job. I was so worried about her and frustrated too. So, I get it. I really do. I understand what it's like to be a parent to a parent. I got through it. I help my clients get through it and you can get through it too. Here are some thoughts that might make you, as a parent t
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March 04 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

Thinking about starting your own business? Good for you. There's a big difference in the way employees and business owners think. Do you know the difference? If you truly understand the difference, then you are ready to skip to the head of the class. If you don't, here are the critical points that once understood, will accelerate your success.

Attitude:

Company Employee
You must follow company policies and procedures
Your work performance is done by your supervisor
You think inside the box and do and go where you are told
You don't worry about the bottom You put up with office politics
You don't pay for advertising
If you work overtime,you usually get paid

Entrepreneur
You make the policies and procedures (when you get around to it)
The money you make IS your ONLY performance review
The only ideas are yours
Sometimes yo
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March 04 , 2010    Posted by: Marilyn Ellis    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)

   My "calling card" for more than four decades has been giant bags of popcorn, much of it served from the back porch of the president's home at Howard Payne University, deep in the heart of Texas.  Students there knew that when the porch light was on, I was on the back porch, popping and giving away popcorn. The practice began 25 tons ago, and inspired the title of my first book, When the Porch Light's On...Stories of People, Popcorn and Parasails....Seven other books have followed, including recently released audio book, Life with IF in the Middle.

   My background includes experiences as editor of a country weekly newspaper, basketball official, host of state-wide syndicated radio sports show, professor and university president.  I've also been on Board of Governors, national policy-making body for small college intercollegiate athletics.

   I've been privileged to address educational, corpor
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March 01 , 2010    Posted by: Don Newbury    |    Add Comment    |    Comments(0)