I’m excited to introduce to you Robin Stephens, for a very inspiring and informative interview in the Encouraging Health Series.  I know that you will take away lots of golden nuggets from Robin’s interview, just as I did.  Enjoy!

1.  What is the name of your business, and what do you offer? YourLifeinOrder.com – Life Design for Women Professionals, Entrepreneurs and Business Owners Organizing your life and your business by making YOU your #1 priority

2.  Is there a specific group of people that you serve through your work? Women professionals and business owners – especially over 40.

3.  What are some of the health challenges that you see in women/women entrepreneurs today? Stress and burnout from trying to do too much. Not putting their own self-care as their #1 priority. 70% of women when asked to name their top 5 priorities put themselves at or near the bottom of their list. 30% don’t put themselves on the list at all! These are sad statistics and we must do all we can to change them.

4.  From your perspective, what prevents women/women entrepreneurs from taking better care of themselves? Our tendency to nurture and take care of everyone before we take care of ourselves puts us at a greater risk for health problems. Stress and "obligation overload" as I like to call it. We want to do it all and be all for everyone.

5.  What has your own journey with self-care been like? After age 45, I recognized I could no longer impose the same stress on my body as I had in my 20’s and 30’s. I’ve always enjoyed excellent health, but as is often the case, took that for granted. In my late 40’s I got the wake up call and took that opportunity to begin a new relationship with my body, mind and spirit. And as it happens, what I teach now is what I’ve most needed to learn.

6.  What 3 tips can you share with our readers for encouraging greater health and well-being in their own lives?

1. Assume there will be obstacles and challenges to your self-care. You will fall off the wagon – life happens while you’re busy making other plans. Don’t beat yourself up and above all don’t quit! Use the obstacles as a learning tool and keep moving forward.

2. Your body is unique. As Dr. Oz puts it you have your own "unique factory settings." One size fits all wellness doesn’t work. Learn what your body needs to be healthy. Love the skin you are in.

3. Accept yourself right where you are. No excuses or stories. That’s a victim mentality and it will keep you stuck and stressed. Your total fitness and wellness begins first with your mind – then your body will follow, not the other way around.

7.  Where can our readers go to learn more about your offerings?  http://www.yourlifeinorder.com – sign up for my free weekly audio energy tip and visit my Resources page for lots of free articles and self-care tips!

The quest for the magic pill applies to so many areas of our lives.  Tune in to hear about my own experience for looking for the “magic pill” when it comes to entrepreneurship and building my business.  It’s something that I have only recently become aware of, and yesterday I acknowledged it out loud for the first time as I spent time with a dear friend.  I have to admit, it was very hard for me to say the words…but I do feel a greater sense of freedom now, and I know that moving forward I will be better equipped to deal with it when it shows up again (and I know it will;-).

You can listen in on the player below, or to download the recording to your MP3 player please click here for The Energized Woman on Blog Talk Radio.

In what area(s) of your life is the quest for a “magic pill” showing up?  Leave me a comment to let me know.

I’m so excited to be kicking off the “Encouraging Health” interview series with Christine Cook, from www.Truebluematch.com.  She is here to share with you the amazing power of friendship, and how friendship can nourish us on so many levels.

1.What is the name of your business, and what do you offer?  Truebluematch.com is a friendship matching service for parents with young children. It matches moms with moms and dads with other dads for friendship, support and fun.

2. Is there a specific group of people that you serve through your work?  Parents of children under the age of 10.

3. What are some of the health challenges that you see in women/women entrepreneurs today?  Many entrepreneurs work from home and are very busy. Lack of interaction with coworkers and friends can lead to feelings of isolation, loneliness and depression.

 4. From your perspective, what prevents women/women entrepreneurs from taking better care of themselves?  I am a strong believer in the power of friendship. I believe in it so much that I built a business to help create it for others! Taking time to find and then nurture a friendship is so important. There are countless studies that show how friendship improves our physical, spiritual and emotional well-beings. Women need to connect with other woman and with today’s society and busy lifestyles friendships often suffer. While I see the value in on-line friends there’s nothing that can replace face to face friendships.

5. What has your own journey with self-care been like? After having my first son I stopped working. While I was thrilled to be a mom I soon became very lonely. Finding other "mommy-friends" wasn’t easy for me even though I am a fairly outgoing and friendly person. I would have benefited greatly from the service my website provides.

6. What 3 tips can you share with our readers for encouraging greater health and well-being in their own lives?  Connect face to face (or at least on the phone) with a friend as often as you can. Get outside and MOVE your body…doing it with a friend makes it twice as beneficial and twice as fun. Eat good quality food with as few ingredients as possible. If you can eat with a friend it will fuel both your body AND your spirit!

7.Where can our readers go to learn more about your offerings?  www.truebluematch.com

Have you ever felt like that?  It could be something you’ve experienced in your own business, or it could show up in another area of your life.  More than likely, this shows up in a lot of areas, hence the saying – how you do one thing is how you do everything. 

You can listen in on the player below, or to download the audio to your MP3 player click here.

Because of this, I find that it’s been a challenge to get myself into “work mode” at times.  I feel pulled in so many other directions, and my energy reserves have decreased because of the increased demands. 

During the school year I created my audio blog every Wednesday, and for the summer I have chosen to do every-other-Wednesday.  As today progressed, I found myself not really feeling like I wanted to do the audio blog.

You know how that can be…you find yourself in the land of “I just don’t feel like…”  This is a place I visit from time-to-time, and if you’re human, then you probably do, too.

But in the afternoon, as I sat down at my computer because my kids had gone across the street to play, I got a little nudge.  Not the “you should be doing this…” kind of nudge, but the “you’ve made a commitment that you know you want to keep and here’s an opportunity for you to do so”  kind. 

So I went ahead and scheduled the audio blog on Blog Talk Radio, and I moved forward with the call.  I basically put one foot in front of the other.

Once I was on the call, the enthusiasm and passion returned.  I was feeling so good. 

If I had waited for those feelings to arrive first, I probably would not have done the audio blog at all today.  I would have let myself off the hook, and rationalized with a variety of reasons for why today just wasn’t a good day to do it. 

I also would have gone to bed tonight with that icky feeling – you know the one, kind of a knot-like feeling in your stomach that you get when you’ve let yourself down. 

And you know what else would have happened?  It would have made it easier to not follow through the next time.

That’s why breaking a commitment that we’ve made to ourselves can be such a slippery slope.

Especially when it comes to your health goals, the old “I really don’t feel like getting on the treadmill today…” can lead to letting yourself off the exercise hook for weeks (or more!).

What I’d like to leave you with is that sometimes the action precedes the feelings.  It’s natural to have days where we just don’t feel like doing something.  But once we start getting into motion, we find that the feelings somehow show up;-).

Are you ready for a program that offers you the support you need to consistently stay in action and help you reach your weight loss and health goals even when you don’t particularly “feel like” taking the steps?  Check out the three programs that I’m offering this summer at amazing introductory prices. 

If the idea of a structured exercise program is not all that appealing to you, check out the lists below for some great alternatives.  Remember, the more you mix it up and engage in activities that you truly enjoy, the more likely you will be to stick with exercising for the long haul.

Great exercise options for women:
– yoga
– pilates
– walking
– swimming
– jogging or running
– volleyball
– rollerblading
– water aerobics
– dancing of all kinds

Keep in mind, exercise doesn’t have to be complicated or even planned.  Things to try:

–biking around your neighborhood
–doing housework quickly and to music
–doing yardwork, raking leaves, mowing the lawn, gardening
–be spontaneous and creative in your exercise choices

I hope the lists above have given you some great ideas.  It’s important to take breaks throughout your day, even if your work hours don’t shift all that much in the summertime.  Incorporating movement into your breaks is a powerful stress reducer and also increases that creativity muscle! Definitely some powerful reasons to get going with more movement this summer.  Enjoy!

What activities are you going to try this summer?  Leave me a comment to let me know.

Audio Tip Download–>Stress — Emotional Reserves

Which tip resonated with you the most?  Leave a comment to share.

You can listen to the episode by clicking on the player below, or you can download the episode to your MP3 player by clicking here.

What is your typical reaction pattern when it comes to stress?  Leave me a comment to share what your experience has been like.

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How To Have a Mental Breakdown in 11 Easy Steps

By Jason Kotecki

Have you ever wondered to yourself, “How can I add more stress to my life?” Of course, we all have. But now, for the first time ever, comes a comprehensive guide to take the guesswork out of getting stressed. Never before has such a thorough, step-by-step guide to your very own mental breakdown been published, be it online or off. If you can master these easy to follow instructions, you too can be the envy of all your friends and find yourself well on your way to a life you’ve only dreamed of!

1. Treat traffic jams exactly as they are: carefully planned and sinister conspiracies designed to keep you from your destination.
2. Pack your day so full that you are not distracted by superficial things like the sunset, the smell of roses, or the toddler smiling at you from across the grocery aisle.
3. Avoid the time wasting activity known as sleep. For best results, try to keep it under four or five hours per night.
4. Take everything seriously because, obviously, it is.
5. Don’t fall into the trap of expecting big, amazing, wonderful things to happen. They probably won’t and you’ll just end up disappointed anyway. And while you’re at it, pat yourself on the back for outgrowing the silly practice of believing in things like Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and God.
6. Make sure you eat most meals either in the car, near the microwave, or from your recliner. If someone invites you to join them for a dinner that is likely to last more than fifteen minutes, respectfully decline.
7. Don’t bother asking questions. You probably know all the answers anyway. If you don’t, just act like you do. And remember, “Because we’ve always done it this way” is a perfectly good answer to a almost every question.
8. You can take some time for yourself, but only if you’e caught up on all of your work, your e-mail inbox is completely empty, your bills are paid, and your junk mail has all been alphabetically sorted. And the grass has been cut.
9. If someone drags you on some sort of “vacation,” be sure to bring your beeper. Also, figure out the total time you’ll be on said “vacation” and plan things to do and see that will accommodate roughly double or triple that time.
10. Spend most of your waking hours — remember, you should be shooting for about 20 of those a per day — doing things that completely drain you. You know, the stuff you’d never do in a million years if they didn’t pay you such a good salary.
11. If all else fails and you forget the other guidelines, a handy shortcut is to observe a child and do the exact opposite.

As you can see, a complete and utter mental breakdown does not require any extraordinary skills. By following these simple steps, literally anyone can have one. However, a failure to comply with the majority of the steps listed here may result in a life that is less-stressed and more fun and fulfilling. Good luck!

Jason Kotecki is an artist, author, and professional speaker. Jason and his wife Kim (a former kindergarten teacher) make it their mission in life to fight Adultitis and help people use strategies from childhood to create lives with less stress and more fun. Learn more at www.KimandJason.com.

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I definitely can relate to so many of the steps that Jason shared, but lately I have been especially prone to step #4 – taking everything seriously.  Which step(s) most resonated with you?  Leave a comment to let me know.

 Audio Tip Download–>  stress~physicalreserves

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