It's not a challenge. Opportunity.

Life isn’t a slow incline. There are detours, valleys and boulders along the way.  Traversing how the climb is traversed will make the difference of getting to the top or even rolling down the hill.  There are many challenges in our lives and the way we face them makes all the difference.

 Turning challenges into opportunities will help you grow, learn, innovate, and achieve your goals. Challenges can be seen as problems that need to be solved, or as opportunities that can be seized. The way you view challenges can affect your motivation, attitude, and performance.

There are many benefits to this mindset:

Cultivating a positive mindset, which can help you cope with stress, overcome obstacles, and find solutions.

Building resilience, which is the ability to bounce back from adversity, learn from mistakes, and adapt to changing circumstances34.

Embracing change, which is the willingness to accept new situations, explore new possibilities, and take calculated risks.

Learning from failures, which is the process of analyzing what went wrong, what can be improved, and what can be learned for the future.

Developing a positive mindset is a process that involves changing your thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes to focus on the bright side of life and expect positive outcomes. There are many strategies that can help you cultivate a positive mindset, such as:

Focusing on your strengths and positive qualities and acknowledging your achievements and successes.

Practicing gratitude and appreciation for the things and people that make you happy and enrich your life.

Practicing self-compassion and self-care, and treating yourself with kindness, respect, and forgiveness.

Shifting your attention away from negative thoughts and emotions and replacing them with positive and optimistic ones.

Embracing challenges and changes as opportunities for growth and learning, and not as threats or failures.

Seeking feedback and support from others who can inspire you, motivate you, and help you improve.

These benefits can help you improve your skills, knowledge, creativity, and confidence, which can in turn lead to better outcomes and results in your personal and professional life.

 REFERENCES:

Embracing Adversity: How to Turn Challenges into Opportunities for Career Success

Turning a Problem into an  Opportunity – Harvard Business Review

Turning Challenges into Opportunities as a Leader | Hive

The Words You Use Matter

For some of us speaking is as natural as breathing. We speak without thinking. We don't give a thought to the words we use. We pour out thousands of words- our thoughts, our opinions our judgments and our beliefs. And many of us are oblivious of the effect on our listeners. 

Words have tremendous power. The words we speak give out an energy message and that energy is received by the people who are listening. Everything you say has an effect on the world. It's going to either have a positive effect or a negative effect. We are always creating with our words. People react to our words and it comes back intensified. For example if I was to say something negative or judgmental to a friend of mine, they will judge me back with more intensity. 

 The words that I use can cause pain or anger. And if I use words of kindness, people tend to take that with warmth and friendship. Whether our words are positive or negative, it's going to multiply back at you. The persons reaction is going to be even stronger based on the emotion you attach to it. Because the power of our words have a ripple effect. Words can move us to action.

Think about some of the famous people in history. Patrick Henry - He is famous for the line, "Give me liberty or give me death." and Martin Luther King who stated: " I have a dream." JFK who said "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country". These words changed history. 

The words you use every day can make the way you think or how you feel change literally in an instant. Your words actually create a biochemical effect in your body. Think about that. I'm going to say some words and I'd like you to listen and feel them: Darkness, Dreary, Turmoil, Sadness, Impossible, Disappointing, Ugly . How do you feel right now? Probably not very good even if I was to say them in an uplifting way, they have a negative effect on our body. But if I say, Light, Love Hope, Joy, Sunshine, Peace, Laughter, Giggling, Success, Victory.............. Can you feel the difference that these words have in your body? 

As human beings we don't think in words or phrases. We think in pictures. the words we use every day are raw materials of our thoughts. The belief system that each one of us started with when we were children and the words that we were taught. 

If I were to say,:

Money doesn’t grow on ____ 

What do you think I’m made of ___ 

Money doesn’t buy ____ 

Money is the root of ____ 

Save your money for a rainy ___ 

The rich get richer and the poor get ___ 

So you are probably filling in the blanks, right? You have a mental image of what that looks like. You have a belief system that started from when you were a child. Maybe when you asked for something you were told, " What do you think I'm made of ______?" And you just filled in Money. 

Those belief systems could be holding you back . What if you could change one simple word and you could change your life? I want to talk about this because, I've seen this happen when I talk to clients. There is a big difference about how successful people talk and how people who are not very sure of where they are going to, talk. The words you use today are going to create a belief for your business. 

If you are reading this now, it's because you care about your business, and you are willing to work as hard on yourself as you do in your business. You are a person who is ready to achieve what your incredible opportunity has to offer .

 The words you use matter. One simple word will change a belief from can't to can. Those words create incredible personal satisfaction. Words that you speak have the power to change your destiny. 

What words have been spoken to you that have gotten you where you are today? When I was growing up I was told to be happy with what I had and to not expect more. That not  "expect more" part really stuck with me so as I was making my dreams in college, I didn't have the drive to get to the top of my game, even though I had the talent. I chose to adopt that belief and let go of my dreams. 

Where are you in your business today? You are where you are because of what you spoke yesterday. We just are beginning a new year and what is wonderful about that is knowing we can change where we are and where are going ourselves. So if you want to change your direction, change your words and move yourself up to your next goal. Where you are today is about what you have been speaking. What kind of destiny in your life and in your business are you creating? 

There is an ancient proverb.  "Words kill or words give life. They are either poison or they are fruit." Or how about another favorite "Your mouth can spit venom, or it can mend a broken soul."  You choose. The words you are speaking; are they giving life or are they killing? Are you spitting venom or mending broken souls? 

What kind of words are you using every day? Are you getting up in the morning and saying: I don't know who I'm going to talk to today or I don't know how I'm going to do this. 

Or instead; "This is a Great day, I'm so excited to meet new people and make a difference.:  What kind of things are you talking about? Are they negative and unhappy or full of energy and passion? 

I've had to overcome complaining. As a young Mom I hung around with a lot of complainers. And I have worked very hard to change that. Because those words we spoke about our children have more power than I realized. Because the things you focus on become magnified, you are feeding it. It reminds me of my garden. My weeds tend to double faster than the plants. The negative gets multiplied. 

We get to be a springboard to people's dreams or we become a jackhammer. Just visualize that. With a spring board you jump and you catapult into the air where a jack hammer is loud and it destroys what it comes in contact with. Are your words a springboard to your dreams or are they jack hammers helping to bring others down? 

You can change circumstances by the words you speak. You will possess the things you confess. Challenge each and everyone to start speaking possibilities. Not just the way you think. Sometimes you have to change the words you say to believe what you think. They are the seeds of your thoughts. You can change the atmosphere of where you are by the words you speak. 

The other day I was in a check out line and the customer in front of me was rude and obnoxious to the checker complaining about the prices and arguing about a sale item and I could tell that she was very close to saying something mean back to him and she started speaking back to him unkindly. After the customer left and it was my turn, she looked at me and said, "He was a real jerk."  I could have allowed her words to affect my day, but instead said, " Well everyone isn't having a great day like me. And I know yours is about to get better, too." And she relaxed and smiled. 

You can go into a situation and just by speaking positive words can change that situation. We are what we say. And it is time to start taking responsibility and change the words we speak. Dare to speak encouragement, words of light and uplifting things about your business and your team. Ask yourself what limits you have put on yourself. How many times a day have you said, I can't, I can't, I can't. Every time I think about saying that I hear my mother. " Can't means you won't." 

We have to recognize this. So here are some simple steps to create positive power with your words. 

1. Stop complaining - Out loud and to yourself. When you hear it say something positive. 

2. Start listening to how successful people talk. Follow big thinkers vocabulary. 

3. Use positive cheerful phrases and words, like Magnificent, Amazing, Glorious! Write down and create scripts that you have agreed with in the past and then create a new list of positive scripts of where you want to be. 

4. Start paying attention to what you are listening to. Your ears are not garbage cans. News, and most TV- They are there to alarm you. They will get rooted in your heart and come out of your mouth. 

 5. Tape yourself when you are making phone calls. Ask someone to hold you accountable. 

6. Describe other people with powerful words, Amazing, Wonderful. Use upbeat favorable . positive language to help other people. Be positive on Social Media Be in the business of building castles and not graves .

Talk about things as how they can be and your future will come into alignment with those words. What if it doesn't work? Well what if it does? Nothing happens by chance. 

You have the power in your tongue to change your destiny. Use it wisely.

Are You an Annual or a Perennial ?

Flowers play an important part in my life. There is so much about them that I enjoy. Their fragrance, their colors, even the sounds they make in the breeze. And the smiles they bring when shared.

Video Here

There are so many different kinds and textures of flowers that it's oftentimes hard to choose which ones should go in my ever growing garden. Sometimes it's good to have a plant that comes back year after year called a perennial. And other times for a spot of color, an annual is best.

As I was contemplating planting this year, I was determining which plant goes best where, and the thought came to my mind— If I was a flower, would I be an annual or a perennial? So I decided to remind myself what's best and most challenging about each of these types.

I decided to start with annuals, because those are the fun flowers. They are normally the least expensive of the two. When an annual is planted in the spring they normally stay blooming all season long. It grows fast and shares its color and joy for all to see. At the first sign of frost, the flowers lose their bloom and the plants wither and are gone forever. I love annuals, but miss them when the season is over. I remember having a particular flower that I was never able to replace.

Let's also look at perennials. They have a shorter blossoming time but never give up. In the cold weather they may disappear, but as soon as the warmth hits in the spring, they are back ever faithful to not only bloom another season, but spread and continue to grow. The initial cost is much higher, but don't have to be replaced every year. Because perennial spread they can be moved around in the garden and shared with friends. At times they can become invasive and hard to remove.

 Is one better than the other? They both have a place in my garden. My annuals have steady color all season long and my perennials  bloom and make the garden ever changing. I get to choose new annuals every year for that pop of color and rely on my perennials to be there every year.  If my garden was only full of perennials, there would be plenty of times when all that could be seen is green. When a garden is full of only annuals, each year you have to start from scratch,

When it comes to people some of my friends tend to be annuals and others perennials.

Some are like annuals. They bring fun to my life and are a bright star and are in my life for a short period of time.  

Some of my friends are more like perennials in and out of my life when I need them but steady and reliable,

So, am I an annual or perennial? What are you?

Some people popping in and out of our lives bring joy and variety like an annual. And others are always there when needed year after year similar to a perennial.

At the end of each season, I take special care with my perennials so they will return for another year. I have been bringing some of my annuals inside so they stay alive and  now I have plants that are over 40 years old. It's the best of both worlds.

Unlike flowers I like to think that we can cultivate the qualities we want. We can take special care of each other and bring our best to the world at all times for ourselves and those in need.

How Stress Impacts Both Your Heart and Microbiome Health

Are you feeling more stressed lately? If so, you aren't alone; millions of people worldwide are stressed out, struggling to cope during COVID-19. Not only do you have to deal with the grief of losing loved ones to this deadly virus, but there's also the stress of being isolated and wondering if you've done everything you can to protect yourself. Even if you do survive, maybe you've lost your job, which creates mental stress. Besides affecting your mental health, stress also compromises your health. Here's how the impacts of stress can mean damage to both heart health and microbiome health, along with some considerations and warnings.

How Stress Affects the Heart

Becoming overly stressed results in the adrenal glands releasing the hormones known as cortisol and adrenaline. This causes the heart to beat faster as well as creates an increase in blood pressure. In most cases, this occurs from a momentary stressor in which the effects stop after the event is over, meaning the stress is gone. But, having too many occurrences of this type of acute stress can lead to inflammation in the arteries, which can be a cause for heart attacks.

The Impacts of Stress on Microbiome Health

Stress can also affect microbiome health. In fact, a study done by Ohio State University scientists discovered that being exposed to stress can cause changes in the diversity, composition, and number of gut microorganisms. As a result, the microbiome is less able to protect a person. That's why many people undergo a lapse in their immune and digestive health when experiencing heightened stress, such as during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

When stress was increased in mice, there was an increase in bad bacteria, along with reduced microbial diversity. What's more, mental stress can slow down the movement in your small intestine. Not enough intestinal movement can lead to too much destructive bacteria growing, which affects the intestinal lining.

Types of Stress

Acute or short-term stress—This type of stress, which is the most common one, involves the body's fast response to a new event, demand, or challenge. Acute stress typically activates a fight-or-flight reaction. Some common examples include arguments with people, near-miss vehicle accidents, or making costly mistakes. An isolated, acute stressor typically doesn't affect health and can actually be beneficial as it gives the body practice in dealing with future situations.

Episodic acute stress—On the other hand, acute stress that occurs frequently, which is known as episodic acute stress, can compromise health. People suffering from episodic acute stress tend to worry about everything, making them anxious, irritable, and short-tempered. It's often hard for these people to adjust their lifestyles.

Long-Term Stress—Long-term or chronic stress, which is stress that continues for a long time, is the result of acute stress that hasn't been fixed. Chronic stress can be caused by situations such as a dysfunctional family, poverty, unhappiness in a job or marriage, an ongoing illness, rebellious children, and other events. Ignoring chronic stress by not getting help can lead to severe health problems, including cancer, heart disease, cirrhosis of the liver, accidents, and even suicide.

Ways to Manage Stress

By learning how to mitigate the impacts of stress, you can not only be healthier, but also happier. Some main guidelines for stress management include:

• Exercise regularly.

• Consume a balanced, heart-healthy diet, along with probiotics and prebiotics. Probiotics include sauerkraut and yogurt. Prebiotics are foods including bananas, whole grains, garlic, onions, and greens. Probiotics and prebiotics are also available as dietary supplements.

• Maintain a positive attitude.

• Explore new interests and hobbies.

• Manage your time more effectively.

• Learn to be more assertive rather than aggressive. This includes expressing your opinions and feelings instead of stuffing them, which can lead to anger and addictions.

• Set healthy boundaries with people.

Other Considerations and Warnings

• Stress has different effects on different individuals. While some people have psychological effects, others suffer from physical symptoms, such as heartburn and headaches.

• By recognizing the common symptoms of stress and learning ways to reduce it, you'll be more likely to manage your stress as well as reduce its impact on your body.

Prebiotics and Probiotics: A Key Facet to Microbiome Health

It is an undeniable fact that the microbiome plays an important role in individual health. While scientists still have much to learn about this fascinating and complex system, prebiotic and probiotic-rich foods are consistent with a healthy diet, and can arguably strengthen the gut microbiome to the benefit of that individual.

What Circulation and Viruses Have in Common

There is new information on how CoVid19 damages the lining of your cardiovascular system - What is called the endothelium. As someone interested in improving circulation, I wanted you to understand this new information and how nitric oxide therapy helps to offset this damage.
Here's the bad news about how the CoVid19 virus damages the endothelium causing the following problems:
● Inflammation of the vascular lining, which gets worse as the virus causes more damage to the endothelium.
● Increased blood pressure.
● Increased release of a protein need for blood clotting called the Von Willebrand factor resulting in blood clot formation throughout the body but especially in the lungs.

Here's the good news about how Nitric Oxide Therapy (NO) helps to offset these three concerns:
1. NO helps to relax the vascular wall to maintain normal blood pressure levels.
2. NO helps to prevent vascular inflammation by initiating repair mechanisms to heal damage to the endothelial cells.
3. NO helps keep blood platelet cells from sticking together to prevent blood clots.

And the best product in the market for the creation of Nitric Oxide is ProArgi-9+ from Synergy Worldwide. It is why it remains the Product of Choice for optimizing nitric oxide production. Plus, ProArgi-9+ has been clinically proven to help prevent vascular inflammation. While nothing can currently prevent you from potentially getting the CoVid19 virus, there are ways to reduce your risk. And nitric oxide is one of the ways.

Boosting your immune system can protect you from viruses

Your immune system is the first line of defense against harmful microbes that you encounter in your daily life. Keep it boosted and balanced and you won't need harmful antibiotics or vaccines.

One of the ways to start is with Chlorophyll.

Chlorophyll is the lifeblood of plants and has been known to promote a strong immune system and eliminate toxins from the body. Additionally, our Liquid Chlorophyll helps to boost the body’s natural antioxidant enzymes, supporting your immune system, digestive track, and overall health.

With potent concentrations of chlorophyllin, barley grass, alfalfa, and peppermint oil, our Liquid Chlorophyll provides powerful protection for your body through natural means—it’s truly nature’s simple solution for health.

We’ve set the highest standards for producing top-quality product. Our Liquid Chlorophyll is manufactured and thoroughly tested in-house to ensure the purity of each ingredient. We are committed to giving you the best products, enabling you to unlock your full potential.
Here is a great video  from Synergy Worldwide to discover more
  

It's time to elevate your health.  As a thank you, this month receive FREE shipping on a Jumbo ProArgi9+ or any order over 150 points. You can order on line with your customer ID or call me at 630/289-2750.

Need more help with improving your immune  system?  Schedule a 30 minute consultation with Judy on her Calendar in the month of March.

The Benefits of Owning Your Own Business

We live in the Trump era. And whether you like him or not, business and economic opportunity has never been higher. With a significant reduction in regulatory laws, coupled with tax incentives, now is the time to consider owning your own business. You can do your own Google search for “benefits of owning your own business” and you will find hundreds of articles. I've summarize the list of benefits below. And after you read the list, I'm going to give you my take on which one I believe is the most important. Here's the list of benefits from multiple sources (and in no particular order):

Being in Control Being Your Own Boss Independence Living a More Flexible Lifestyle Flexible Hours Helping People Personal Fulfillment Power Money Change the World

Some of these benefits overlap. And I'll leave it up to you to determine which of them has the greatest appeal to you. For me it was personal fulfillment. I wanted to start using my passion for helping people improve their health. But also use one of my skills, which is to effectively communicate with people. And the area I hit upon was Nitric Oxide Therapy to naturally improve blood flow to address a wide range of cardiovascular concerns.

This gave me the opportunity to differentiate myself from the competition in this arena. I first started by learning the information on Nitric Oxide Therapy. How this Nobel Prize winning information can help those with high blood pressure, diabetic complications, erectile dysfunction, poor wound healing, and even athletic performance.

I then took courses on how to brand and market myself through Social Media and other means. And once I had enough knowledge (remember you will never have all the knowledge you need) I implemented my marketing strategy. A marketing strategy of educating my client base on how Nitric Oxide Therapy is a valid and natural way to address most of their cardiovascular concerns. I aligned myself with the best product in the industry to help create nitric oxide so that as I attracted people to my message, I also had a means to create an income stream through traditional sales.

Now I have thousands of clients who provide me with an income greater than when I worked for others. But most importantly I've learned how to take an area of passion and market it to those who need it to help them improve their lives. And if you read the narrative of my journey you will see how it has given me the other listed benefits of owning your own business.

Benefits like: Being Your Own Boss Living a More Flexible Lifestyle Helping People Change the World Money Elite Health

So, my suggestion to you is focus on your passion. Then examine the market to see if people can benefit from your passion. If there is a market, then learn some key tools to market yourself and your services to those who need it.

And through hard work and persistence you will begin to build a viable business that will be rewarding on multiple levels.

And I hope your journey will be as fun as mine continues to be.