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PowerStart Your Day

Many gurus, millionaires and 7-figure income entrepreneurs believe in starting their day right – with a powerstart.  This involves positive affirmations amongst methods for best results.

When you wholeheartedly adopt a ‘with all your heart’ attitude and go out with the positive principle, you can do incredible things. – Norman Vincent Peale

However not may practice this.  Here is something that you should practice.  I have found that it works!

Every morning upon getting out of bed, set aside ten minutes for yourself.  Spend this quiet time with yourself and reflect upon positive thoughts.  Remember that success is a state of mind.  If you want success, you have got to start thinking of yourself as success.  Think positively.

You see things and say “Why?’ but I dream things and say ‘Why not?’ – George Bernard Shaw

Everyday is a new day.  Enjoy each and every beautiful day that we have been blessed with.  Never regret the past.  Regrets are just an appalling waste of energy.  Instead ask yourself positive questions such as: How could you have avoided the situation?  What could you have done to change the outcome?  As Jack Zufelt mentions, we are all human and as humans, we are prone to some goof-ups in our life.  Learn to laugh at your goof-ups.

We must accept finite disappointment but we must never lose infinite hope. – Martin Luther King Jr

Envision your future.  How would you like your future to be?  What sort of life do you see yourself living?

Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe and enthusiastically act upon… must inevitably come to pass.  – Paul Meyer

Feel it in your body and see yourself living the life you dream of.  Make use of all your 5 senses in order to let it sit in your whole being.

Live in gratitude.  Be grateful for what you already have.  Ask yourself how you can share this gratitude with others.  What about making someone smile today?  Or doing some charity work?

Do not forget to also fill your stomach with energy boosting breakfast to powerstart your day.  This will allow you to concentrate better and not feel sluggish and out-of-sorts with yourself.  When you begin the day on the right foot- (pun unintended) – you will have a clear head which will boost your productivity.

Decide to take empowering actions today.  You will realize that when you start the day with positive thoughts, you begin to be able to count your blessings.  At the same time, feelings of gloom and hopelessness tend to be far off from your mind.  You start vibrating at a higher energy and attracting more and more positive energies into your life.  Would that not be simply awesome?

As Winston Churchill put it:-  Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.

Thus being in a good frame of mind helps keep one in the pink of health.  So why not powerstart your day?  Positive affirmations are the way to go…

Thank You Greeting Card

Getting a card in the mail is such a rare treat these days and a much overlooked gesture.  In the olden days, a proper thank you card etiquette is thoughtfulness on your part that reflects your thankfulness, gratitude and appreciation.

So what, you may ask, can we be thankful for? Lots!  If you continuously live an attitude of gratitude!  Listed below are some instances where a thank you note, a message or card may be considered appropriate and which may strengthen kindred bonds for years to come.

• After receiving a gift, be it for any occasion which may include, but not limited to, birthday, Christmas, wedding anniversary, baby shower, etc…, it is always polite to send thank you notes.
• After holding a birthday, wedding or anniversary celebration, it would make a nice touch to send t hank you cards to your guests who took the time off to attend your event as well as bring you gifts
• Very frequently we forget to thank your loved ones, especially our parents for their unending love and support.  Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are good occasions to send out that thank you card
• Lets’ not forget our teachers who spent so much time, effort and patience in imparting their knowledge to us
• Recognition is very important for your staff who has given their best whilst at work.  Thus, a thank you note can always brighten their day
• When someone in your company is leaving, it is a good time to pen down a note of appreciation and thank them for their contribution
• When you are leaving the company, you can write a farewell thank you note to your friends, peers, bosses and subordinates to thank them for their past support and indicate important information such as your last day of service and contact information
• More than 97% of people do not bother to send out thank you notes after their job interview.  However this act can make or break your chances of nailing that job that you so badly wanted as you show how serious a candidate you are
• Sending out sympathy thank you notes can be comforting, warm and meaningful to the recipient
• Funeral thank you notes may be the most difficult chore of all
• Once you have been discharged from the hospital, it is always nice to thank those who visited you whilst you were not in the best of health
• For every person who comes into your life and touches you in some way or other, lets take some time to reach out and appreciate them for who they are and maybe even being our ‘guardian’ angel
• When you are fighting a cause and collecting donations, send thank you cards to your donors will show your appreciation indeed
• For all those times when you needed someone else’s expertise such as medical professionals, it is always good to thank them especially those who went above and beyond the call of duty
• It is always a great idea to teach your kids to send out thank you notes from young.  If your kid is too young, you can always include a picture of them opening their presents in your thank you card.  This is really so cool.
• For those individuals who take their time to refer business your way.

I am sure there are many other instances where you can find that sending thank you cards are appropriate and can even brighten up the day of the person you are thanking.  I love doing this and it has been such a joy sending personalised thank you notes and cards to all my friends, colleagues and acquaintances.  The more I live with an attitude of gratitude, the more blessed I am.

By Brian Tracy

Full 85 percent of the happiness and success you enjoy in life will be determined by the quality of your relationships with others. All of your selling success today, and for the rest of your career, will be based on the quality of the relationships that you form with your customers. Because of the complexity of your product or service, customers are usually unable to make an accurate judgment of the details of what you are selling. Instead, they have to depend upon how they feel about you and your claims. For most customers today, the relationship comes first. It is more important then the product or service itself.

Relationship Selling Model
The building and maintaining of high-quality sales relationships proceeds in four stages. We call this the Relationship Selling Model. 

Stage One
The first stage, roughly 40 percent of the sale, is the development of trust. This is best achieved by asking good questions and listening closely to answers. In fact, a recent survey of members of the Purchasing Managers Association of America (PMAA) concluded that the salespeople these professional buyers rated “the best” were the people who asked the most questions before attempting to sell. 

Stage Two
The second stage of building high-quality sales relationships, 30 percent of the process, is focusing on identifying the true needs and wants of the prospect.

Motivating People Toward Peak Performance

Instead of talking about what you are selling, you ask questions about the prospect and his or her situation. You probe the answers you get and, as Stephen Coveysays, “See first to understand, then to be understood.”

Once you have built a high level of trust by asking questions and seeking to understand how your product or service can help the prospect in some way, you move to stage three. 

Stage Three
20 percent of the relationship between you and your customer is presenting solutions. In this stage, you show the prospect how he or she could be better off with what you are selling than he or she is today. You carefully match the prospect’s expressed needs with the specific features and benefits of your product or service. 

Stage Four
In phase four, the final 10 percent of the Relationship Selling Model, you ask for confirmation from the prospect to make a decision and take action on your offering. You close the sale. 

The relationship selling model is based on trust. You develop trust by asking the customer about his or her needs and then by listening intently to the answers. The more you ask good questions and listen carefully to the customer, the more the customer will trust you and open up to you. When the customer trusts you enough, he or she will tell you everything you need to know to either make a sale or to determine that this customer is not a good prospect for what you are selling. 

Action Exercise
Focus first and foremost on the prospect and the relationship–before anything else. Concentrate on building a high level of trust. Only when you have built a bridge of understanding of the prospect’s real needs should you start talking about what you are selling. When the relationship is strong, the sale will take care of itself.

Brian Tracy has been empowering business professionals by sharing his knowledge all over the world. His techniques will allow you to reach your goals and achieve the unthinkable.

Personalised Greeting Cards

I am sure most of you have had some experience or other with online greeting cards and the majority of these would be with electronic cards, commonly known as e-cards. There are also some personalised greeting cards in the market as well.

Recently, there have been more and more e-card platforms to select from and most, or all, of these can be customised with your personal heartfelt messages. Animation is also possible with some online systems and others even allow you the flexibility of uploading your own photographs to personalise your card.

Have you ever felt the need to make a difference in someone else’s life?

I am so fortunate to have come across a wonderful personalised greeting cards system where I can bless others and touch the lives of people around me. Not only am I able to have fun doing it, it also allows me to fund my dream lifestyle.

With this system, I am able to send out personalised greeting cards to family, friends and acquaintance. The best part of this system for me personally is the ability to attach pictures of my recipients on the greeting card.

As the saying goes:- A picture is worth a thousand words. This is a priceless gift to each and every card recipient as I am able to create my very own greeting cards and personalise them in my own unique way.

For example, after attending my friend’s wedding, I sent her a card with her wedding photo on the front of the card. WOW! Did that make such a positive impression that she herself started using the system and creating more positive ripples in this world!

Now I can send notes of congratulations and cards of appreciation in recognition of friends, loved ones, business associates and clients with this easy to use system that comes with numerous templates and image editing capabilities.

What stands out with this personalised greeting cards system is that I can do everything online, from uploading of images to inscribing my heartfelt messages to clicking a button to have my card printed on environmentally friendly paper, placed in an envelope and sent to my recipients.

The quality of these cards, according to one of my friends who used to deal in greeting cards, is pretty good! Pricing wise, you pay anywhere from USD0.90 for a personalised card with your hand picked photographs to USD1.61 for a three panel greeting card in the United States. This can go up to USD2.90 for international destinations.

Personally, I feel that this is so much more value than the custom cards that are available in the market even after including the yearly maintenance fee for the use of the system.

Not only have I been having fun using this online personalized system to send out cards, I have also been able to touch the lives of many people by adding a smile on their faces and brightening up their lives.  Plus, they have a physical card on hand for those times that they need to add some cheer to their lives.

Are you ready to touch the lives of others? Start using the personalised greeting cards system to light up someone’s life today!

Heartfelt Messages

Do you understand the power of heartfelt messages?

Have you ever felt the need to make a difference in someone else’s life?

You see things and say ‘Why?’ but I dream things and say ‘Why not?’
~ George Bernard Shaw

There are many ways to start the day. Why not begin your day on a positive note?

Heartfelt messages come from the heart and are so personalized that they touch the recipients in more ways than one. They are sincere connections that can help improve both personal and business relationships.

A well-penned heartfelt message is one of the most ideal ways to show a loved one just how special they are. It also goes to show that they are in your thoughts even if you are not able to be with them physically.

When out of ideas for thoughtful and meaningful messages, I have always found it best to include an inspirational or motivational quote that is ideal for the occasion. However, adding in some personal words tend to make a huge difference in how the message is received.

When someone is feeling down and out due to some unforeseen circumstances, it would bring some cheer and brighten up their day upon receiving a special note and knowing that there is a shoulder for them to cry on or a listening ear for them to turn to. They will be most touched by the emotional support and understanding.

It is the norm for wedding couples to provide suitable wedding favors for their guests as a symbol of their gratitude. However, how many guests actually receive heartfelt thank you notes after the ceremony? If you wish to stand out from the hundreds and thousands of other wedding couples, you could send a thank you card with your wedding picture on the front and a simply worded note of appreciation to all the guests who helped make your wedding a beautiful and successful event. This card serves as a dual purpose. Not only will your guests cherish your thank you note, they will get to keep a memento of your wedding as well.

Everyday in our life, we come across so many wonderful people – friends, family, acquaintances, business partners, etc… These are people who touch our lives in their own special way. Why not send heartfelt messages to them, reach out to them and let them know how special they are? Make a difference in someone’s life today!

Thank You Greeting Cards

When is the right time to send thank you greeting cards? How often do you receive thank you cards?

Getting a physical card in the mail is indeed a rare occurrence in modern days, let alone a thank you greeting card. Although there is a basic etiquette for sending thank you notes and thank you cards to show appreciation for a kind act, a thoughtful gift or just expressing gratitude, more and more people do not bother with this simple act.

In our daily lives, if we take the trouble to sit down and ponder over the happenings of the day, we will realize that there are many instances when someone has touched our lives with their love, warmth and caring attitude. How often do we show our gratitude and appreciation to these ‘angels’ in our lives?

Picture yourself receiving a thank you card with a message that is written specially for you and not a card that is bought from off the shelf. Imagine if this card comes with a picture of yourself on it! Would it not be a most pleasant surprise and immediately brighten your day when you receive it?

When you send a personalized thank you greeting card with your heartfelt message to your friends, clients, colleagues, partners, teachers, bosses, not forgetting your loved ones, that is the best way to show your appreciation for all they have done for you and the support they have given you in good times and in bad.

There are tons of reasons to send out cards. Here are some people whom you can send out thank you greeting cards to. These include people who:-
- touched your life
- made a difference in your life
- need a spark of kindness
- gave you support
- showered you with love
- stood by you in tiring times
- held the fort for you as you weather difficult times
- shared with you unselfishly
- volunteered their time for your cause
- helped you with your projects
- gave you gifts
- invited you for vacation
- hosted you to dinner
- attended your wedding celebration
- helped make your birthday a special one
- work with you including your staff, peers and bosses
- visited you whilst you were in hospital
- nursed you back to health
- funded your college education
- acted as your baby sitter when you desperately needed one
- conducted your job interview
- gave presents for your kids
- offered your kids a warm and loving environment to study
- took care of your pet
- helped you win the top salesperson award
- gave you repeated business
- and many, many more

Personally, I have found that sending thank you greeting cards have helped me increase my business referrals as well as improve my personal relationships. Do not wait to thank someone. Do it now! It is better to send an imperfect thank you note than not to have sent one at all. If you are ready to start showing your gratitude and appreciation, do start to send out cards now.

WOW! Have just got back from serving at The Opening, an event where participants learn to go deep down to their innermost self to find out the truth of who they are. It was a most wonderful experience for all of them with some experiencing minor breakthroughs and others being able to experience being in union with the Universe.

That very evening, I had the opportunity to listen to one of my partners share about appreciation marketing, better known as relationship marketing and constantly upholding an attitude of gratitude.

Based on the book Appreciation Marketing – How to Achieve Greatness Through Gratitude by Tommy Wyatt and Curtis Lewsey, he summarized it into three principles.

1. Thank them by surprise – When you thank others, do so with the intention of surprising them and not expecting anything in return. Be genuine in your actions. This simple idea can be most powerful!

When was the last time you received a card in the mailbox from someone you did business with, and it wasn’t your birthday, wasn’t a holiday, wasn’t a special occasion – and it didn’t have business cards, logos, or ask for referrals? It rarely happens! What if it did?

Would it not make a huge impact and create a wonderful feeling? Indirectly, without asking, you would make a mental note of the person who had sent you the card and should you require the services of someone in future, he would definitely be the first person whom you would call if he is in that profession. Appreciation wins over self promotion every time!

2. There are a few ways to show appreciation. You can thank the person, make use of gestures or the ultimate in appreciation marketing; sending a gift that relates to the trade they are in.

When you show people that you appreciate them in the form of regularly sent hand written notes/cards, you will receive many more direct and indirect benefits when weighed against the time/money/effort of actually sending them.  This has been proven time and again through his experience.

3. Schedule a timely follow up after sending your card and/or gift. In modern times with the hustle and bustle of everyday life, people tend to have short memories. With a timely follow up, this will allow you to WOW the recipients of your card, be they your clients or prospects, and show them how much you truly do care.

People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” William Arthur Ward

Remember that it is never too late to show your appreciation and say two simple words:- Thank You.  This attitude of gratitude will bring you help you build and maintain a rolodex of clients that LOVE you and want to help you!

Simple marketing concepts like showing appreciation, being nice to people and building a relationship still have a significant impact on bottom line profits, if that is what you are looking for. Moreover; in today’s somewhat self-absorbed society, getting those things right will go a long way and reap huge rewards.

Remember that being sincere and genuine in your recognition, appreciation and gratitude of others and without expecting anything in return will not only increase your business referrals but you will get back 10 fold the effort you put in.

My partner also went on to share an online greeting card system that we use to put appreciation marketing and relationship marketing into action and gave a short overview of how simple and practical it is to use the online system, not mentioning the convenience and lower cost as compared to what you get out there in the market.

Authentic Happiness

We convince ourselves that life will be better once we are married, have a baby, then another.

Then we get frustrated because our children are not old enough, and that all will be well when they are older.

Then we are frustrated because they reach adolescence and we must deal with them.  Surely we’ll be happier when they grow out of the teen years.

We tell ourselves our life will be better when our spouse gets his/her act together, when we have a nicer car, when we can take a vacation, when we finally retire.

The truth is that there is no better time to be happy than right now.   If not, then when?

Your life will always be full of challenges.  It is better to admit as much and to decide to be happy in spite of it all.

For the longest time, it seemed that life was about to start.  Real life.

But there was always some obstacle along the way, an ordeal to get through, some work to be finished, some time to be given, a bill to be paid. Then life would start.

I finally came to understand that those obstacles were life.

That point of view helped me see that there isn’t any road to happiness.

Happiness IS the road.

So, enjoy every moment.

Stop waiting for school to end, for a return to school, to lose ten pounds, to gain ten pounds, for work to begin, to get married, for Friday evening, for Sunday morning, waiting for a new car for your mortgage to be paid off, for spring, for summer, for fall, for winter, for the first or the fifteenth of the month, for your song to be played on the radio, to die, to be reborn… before deciding to be happy.

Happiness is a voyage, not a destination.

There is no better time to be happy than … NOW!

Live and enjoy the moment.

~ Author unknown

Now, think and try to answer these questions:

1. Name the 5 richest people in the world.
2. Name the last 5 Miss Universe winners.
3. Name the last 10 Nobel Prize winners.
4. Name the last 10 winners of the Best Actor Oscar.

Can’t do it?  Rather difficult, isn’t it?

Don’t worry, nobody remembers that.

Applause dies away!

Trophies gather dust!

Winners are soon forgotten.

Now answer these questions:

1. Name 3 teachers who contributed to your education.
2. Name 3 friends who helped you in your hour of need.
3. Think of a few people who made you feel special.
4. Name 5 people that you like to spend time with.

More manageable?  It’s easier, isn’t it?

The people who mean something to your life are not rated “the best”, don’t have the most money, haven’t won the greatest prizes…

They are the ones who care about you, take care of you, those who, no matter what, stay close by.

Think about it for a moment.

Life is very short!

And you, in which list are you?  Don’t know?

Let me give you a hand.

You are not among the most “famous”, but among those to whom I would love to be friends with…

Some time ago, at the Seattle Olympics, nine athletes, all mentally or physically challenged, were standing on the start line for the 100m race.

The gun fired and the race began.  Not everyone was running, but everyone wanted to participate and win.

They ran in threes, a boy tripped and fell, did a few somersaults and started crying.

They slowed down and looked behind them.

They stopped and came back…  All of them…

A girl with Down’s Syndrome sat down next to him, hugged him and asked, “feeling better now?”

Then, all nine walked shoulder to shoulder to the finish line.

The whole crowd stood up and applauded.  And the applause lasted a very long time…

People who witnessed this still talk about it.  Why?

Because deep down inside us, we all know that the most important thing in life is much more than winning for ourselves.

The most important thing in this life is to help others to win.  Even if that means slowing down and changing our own race.

If you share this post, perhaps we will succeed in changing our heart, perhaps someone else’s heart, as well…

A candle loses nothing if it is used to light another one.

So, what have you decided?  To share this post or just leave it be?

Personalised Greeting Card

How time flies… It is already the end of October and in less than two months, the holiday season dawns.

Received this email in my inbox:-  I wish it would be Christmas everyday…

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And since Christmas season is just around the corner, how would you like to create more positive energy and vibration around the world?

I have worked with a personalised greeting card program that allows me to personalise all my cards, from birthday cards to festive cards to get well cards, keeping in touch cards, congratulations, condolences and the list goes on.  Not only is it fun being able to personalise all my greeting cards, including my xmas greeting cards, I also get to share my joy with others.

Personally, I have received many positive feedback when my greeting cards are received.  On certain occassions, I take the opportunity to attach meaningful gifts as well.

So continue to help others and love others.  That way, you will be blessed in return.  If you love to make a difference in people’s lives, then I invite you to try out this amazing greeting card program which I have grown to love.

Giving and appreciation are two very important concepts.  I have found that the more I give, the more I receive in return – Nature’s Law.  :)

In addition to that, there is a personalised campaign feature that I can make use of as well as an awesome contact management feature that reminds me of upcoming birthdays and anniversaries in time for me to send personalised greeting cards for those special occassions.

A great relationship builder, this greeting card program allows me to show appreciation and warmth with those in my life.  In so doing, I am now able to live my life with more gratitude.

If you are ready and willing to try this amazing greeting card program (for free), and start sending personalised greeting cards that would light up the lives of people around you, send me an email at admin@veronrecommends.com and give me a good reason why you should be rewarded with a free greeting card.

Attitude of gratitude

It is never too late to send heartfelt greeting cards and start appreciating people around you.

Do you show your appreciation to the people who support you?  What about the people closest to you?  Or the one time that you were so thankful for the thoughtful gift?  How much time do you take to appreciate these wonderful people?  Or are you like most people rushing around day in and day out without showing gratitude to most of the things or people in your life?

I personally have received a few compliments from my clients,
business partners and friends and that has affirmed my commitment
and resolve in showing gratitude and appreciation to all around me.

As the saying goes:-  Begin your day with gratitude.

There are many small little things in life that we can be grateful
for.  Most of the time, though, we tend to take these simple things
for granted.  Until we are hit by a wake-up call!  That could be
too late by then to show our appreciation.

How would you like to start showing your appreciation and
simultaneously get an opportunity to grow your business further?

As Tommy Wyatt and Curtis Lewsey, authors of the book Appreciation
Marketing quotes:-  Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like
wrapping a present and not giving it.

That is so true indeed as it resonates deeply within me!
Previously even though when I felt grateful, I would never voice it
out.  That feeling just sat with me and never had a chance to be
shared with the parties concerned.

However, since I have found this online software that allows me to
show my appreciation any time of the day at a more than reasonable
cost, I have started living my life in gratitude and expressing my
appreciation to those who help to light up my life as well.

At the same time, if you are running a business, one of the most
wonderful ways to increase your visibility among your business
contacts is to send them heartfelt cards thanking them for the
things they have done to help you or simply appreciating their time
they spent with you.  This will absolutely make a difference in the
way you conduct your business.

So if you are ready to send a greeting card and start appreciating someone
today, click here.