Please Schedule An Appointment With The Dentist Today

Please Schedule An Appointment With The Dentist Today It started a few weeks ago, when my four year old daughter complained of a really bad toothache (the kind that makes crocodile tears flow), and cut short her trip with her grandparents.   We drugged her up and scheduled an appointment with a dentist for the next day. As she was sitting in the chair, the dentist explained to me that he is seeing the quality of Americans teeth go downhill rapidly.   He said the main reason was the lack of dental insurance, which we used to have in abundance, and now not many people have it.   Im sure the healthy supply of soda and other sweets doesnt help, but his argument was that people used to come in for six-month visits regularly, since their insurance paid for it, but dental insurance started going away and people now neglect their regular visits. The diagnosis on my daughter was not what we wanted to hear.   I was expecting to pay a few hundred dollars to fill a few cavities, but he said she required a child root canal or something like that.   Nothing sounds like money falling out of your wallet like root canal. Turns out she got two of them, one for each side.   Shes only four and quite proud of these silver caps that cover the entirety of two teeth.   My wife feels guilty, horrible, as she never wanted to be that mother, the one who obviously let her kid eat junk and neglect her teeth (another stereotype, of course hey, were human). This put us back over $1,500.   Very expensive procedure, not to mention scary to have your kid go under with anesthesia. I quickly made an appointment to see the dentist.   You know when you watch a movie about, say, spiders, you suddenly feel like you are covered with spiders?   I suddenly felt like all my teeth were about to fall out, or at least ridden with cavities.   I remembered every little pain or discomfort and was sure I, too, would have tons of cavities.   I would rather get them fixed now than have to pay for root canals later. Guess what?   I hadnt been to the dentist in about 5 years.   I didnt go in the last year that I lived in Idaho, and havent been in the 4+ years since I moved to Utah.   When I told the receptionist this, she said they would probably have to do a deep clean which went under the gums, and they charge by the quadrant (in my mouth).   Charging by the quadrant sounds VERY EXPENSIVE, doesnt it? Long story short, I went in, scared (of pain) and worried (about money).   About 90 minutes later I walked out they were amazed my teeth looked so good.   Not one cavity, and a simple cleaning and polish, and I was good to go for another six months!   I felt so blessed at that time, and glad that I had flossed and used Listerine faithfully.   Reminds me of a saying from a friend of mine: Be true to your teeth, and they will be true to you. and, Q: Do I have to floss every tooth?   A: only the ones you want to keep! The reason Im posting this is because I probably have some readers who are putting off critical things, like dental care.   Take care of it now, while its inexpensive (my trip, including all xrays, was about $200) and relatively easy.   Ignoring certain things is just asking for trouble.   I wrote about this last year in Water Damage Is Expensive Don’t Neglect Your House, and should have taken my own advice! Please Schedule An Appointment With The Dentist Today It started a few weeks ago, when my four year old daughter complained of a really bad toothache (the kind that makes crocodile tears flow), and cut short her trip with her grandparents.   We drugged her up and scheduled an appointment with a dentist for the next day. As she was sitting in the chair, the dentist explained to me that he is seeing the quality of Americans teeth go downhill rapidly.   He said the main reason was the lack of dental insurance, which we used to have in abundance, and now not many people have it.   Im sure the healthy supply of soda and other sweets doesnt help, but his argument was that people used to come in for six-month visits regularly, since their insurance paid for it, but dental insurance started going away and people now neglect their regular visits. The diagnosis on my daughter was not what we wanted to hear.   I was expecting to pay a few hundred dollars to fill a few cavities, but he said she required a child root canal or something like that.   Nothing sounds like money falling out of your wallet like root canal. Turns out she got two of them, one for each side.   Shes only four and quite proud of these silver caps that cover the entirety of two teeth.   My wife feels guilty, horrible, as she never wanted to be that mother, the one who obviously let her kid eat junk and neglect her teeth (another stereotype, of course hey, were human). This put us back over $1,500.   Very expensive procedure, not to mention scary to have your kid go under with anesthesia. I quickly made an appointment to see the dentist.   You know when you watch a movie about, say, spiders, you suddenly feel like you are covered with spiders?   I suddenly felt like all my teeth were about to fall out, or at least ridden with cavities.   I remembered every little pain or discomfort and was sure I, too, would have tons of cavities.   I would rather get them fixed now than have to pay for root canals later. Guess what?   I hadnt been to the dentist in about 5 years.   I didnt go in the last year that I lived in Idaho, and havent been in the 4+ years since I moved to Utah.   When I told the receptionist this, she said they would probably have to do a deep clean which went under the gums, and they charge by the quadrant (in my mouth).   Charging by the quadrant sounds VERY EXPENSIVE, doesnt it? Long story short, I went in, scared (of pain) and worried (about money).   About 90 minutes later I walked out they were amazed my teeth looked so good.   Not one cavity, and a simple cleaning and polish, and I was good to go for another six months!   I felt so blessed at that time, and glad that I had flossed and used Listerine faithfully.   Reminds me of a saying from a friend of mine: Be true to your teeth, and they will be true to you. and, Q: Do I have to floss every tooth?   A: only the ones you want to keep! The reason Im posting this is because I probably have some readers who are putting off critical things, like dental care.   Take care of it now, while its inexpensive (my trip, including all xrays, was about $200) and relatively easy.   Ignoring certain things is just asking for trouble.   I wrote about this last year in Water Damage Is Expensive Don’t Neglect Your House, and should have taken my own advice! Please Schedule An Appointment With The Dentist Today It started a few weeks ago, when my four year old daughter complained of a really bad toothache (the kind that makes crocodile tears flow), and cut short her trip with her grandparents.   We drugged her up and scheduled an appointment with a dentist for the next day. As she was sitting in the chair, the dentist explained to me that he is seeing the quality of Americans teeth go downhill rapidly.   He said the main reason was the lack of dental insurance, which we used to have in abundance, and now not many people have it.   Im sure the healthy supply of soda and other sweets doesnt help, but his argument was that people used to come in for six-month visits regularly, since their insurance paid for it, but dental insurance started going away and people now neglect their regular visits. The diagnosis on my daughter was not what we wanted to hear.   I was expecting to pay a few hundred dollars to fill a few cavities, but he said she required a child root canal or something like that.   Nothing sounds like money falling out of your wallet like root canal. Turns out she got two of them, one for each side.   Shes only four and quite proud of these silver caps that cover the entirety of two teeth.   My wife feels guilty, horrible, as she never wanted to be that mother, the one who obviously let her kid eat junk and neglect her teeth (another stereotype, of course hey, were human). This put us back over $1,500.   Very expensive procedure, not to mention scary to have your kid go under with anesthesia. I quickly made an appointment to see the dentist.   You know when you watch a movie about, say, spiders, you suddenly feel like you are covered with spiders?   I suddenly felt like all my teeth were about to fall out, or at least ridden with cavities.   I remembered every little pain or discomfort and was sure I, too, would have tons of cavities.   I would rather get them fixed now than have to pay for root canals later. Guess what?   I hadnt been to the dentist in about 5 years.   I didnt go in the last year that I lived in Idaho, and havent been in the 4+ years since I moved to Utah.   When I told the receptionist this, she said they would probably have to do a deep clean which went under the gums, and they charge by the quadrant (in my mouth).   Charging by the quadrant sounds VERY EXPENSIVE, doesnt it? Long story short, I went in, scared (of pain) and worried (about money).   About 90 minutes later I walked out they were amazed my teeth looked so good.   Not one cavity, and a simple cleaning and polish, and I was good to go for another six months!   I felt so blessed at that time, and glad that I had flossed and used Listerine faithfully.   Reminds me of a saying from a friend of mine: Be true to your teeth, and they will be true to you. and, Q: Do I have to floss every tooth?   A: only the ones you want to keep! The reason Im posting this is because I probably have some readers who are putting off critical things, like dental care.   Take care of it now, while its inexpensive (my trip, including all xrays, was about $200) and relatively easy.   Ignoring certain things is just asking for trouble.   I wrote about this last year in Water Damage Is Expensive Don’t Neglect Your House, and should have taken my own advice!

How to Make Innovations at Work - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

How to Make Innovations at Work - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Everybody likes to come up with exciting ideas and want to turn them into real life projects. However, innovation is risky and there are factors beyond our control such as bureaucracy. Maybe, the bosses want to keep the company safe and will not be open to innovation as much as you want them to be. In this situation, it is important not to lose your enthusiasm and start implementing the tips below. Innovate Your Meetings: If you want to make faster and more effective meetings, try stand-up meetings. The entire meeting changes, when you stand-up. It takes much less time to complete the meeting while standing-up and you take real action at the same time. Also, attendees do not get distracted by phones or computers so this keeps the meeting more focused. You will soon see that the meetings become much more effective and shorter at the same time. Since you spend less time in meetings, you will have more time to do real work. Stop Whining and Start Doing: Whether you have a problem that you want to solve or just a new idea that you think would be cool implementing, then, don’t just talk about it and start working on it. Write a report, draw a business model, make a presentation or build a prototype about it. If you have materials to show to others, then others can take you more seriously and start giving you their supports. Otherwise, no one remembers your idea at the end of the day, if you just talk about it without any supporting documents. Make Brainstorming Gatherings: Gather a group of coworkers especially the ones you trust and feel comfortable with and brainstorm the issues that you feel needs to be solved or improved. Encourage each other to try out new things and contribute to each other’s ideas. In this way, you can get inspired from each other and innovate. Start Small: You don’t need to make a big innovation from the beginning. Start with small projects that you think will add up eventually and make a difference. Small projects finish more quickly and therefore, you can get success and the appreciation of your coworkers faster. For example; you can start innovating your meetings first. As you achieve these small scale projects, maybe you can start getting into bigger ones without hassle. Ones people see that you are delivering, they will trust in you more and let you work on bigger scale projects.

Public Relations at Home

Public Relations at Home Theres no doubt that our jobs can influence the way we handle things at home.   If youre a Mom this is especially true.   Thanks to Veronica Hunt for sharing how her career has influenced her parenting! As a Public Relations (PR) professional for more than 20-years, I work with clients to develop and disseminate key messages that influence behavior and establish credibility. Who knew that I’d employ the same principles at home with my tween daughter? Wikipedia links a tween with preadolescence, stating that “preadolescent children have a different view of the world from younger children in significant ways.” Well, I’m here to say “yes”. Example #1: On a school night my daughter was faced with having to study for a math chapter test (a subject she struggles with) or go to swim practice (she’s been working hard to improve her breaststroke).    I wanted her to study but left it up to her to decide. Using persuasive thinking and sticking to key message points about school being a priority and doing what’s easiest not always being a smart choice, we talked about the consequences of each decision i.e. go to practice and risk getting a poor test result which could lower the C+ she’s worked so hard to earn, or stay home and work harder at swim practice two-days later. Example #2: Uniforms are required at my daughter’s school, so any occasion to showcase “regular” clothes with classmates is a big event. We were climbing out of the car to attend a Friday night social and pot luck dinner at the school when my younger child spilled spaghetti sauce on my daughter’s jeans ruining the look my tween had been planning for weeks.   Screaming and tears turned to fury towards her sibling and me!  Cue my all-important crisis communications and reputation management skills.  I quickly ran in, dropped off the spaghetti and raced home, explaining that accidents happen and it’s always smart to have a plan B. I asked her what she was planning to wear to her friend’s party next weekend so she could substitute outfits. No one had seen her in the spaghetti-riddled jeans, and she could wear that next week. We were fashionably late, but the crisis was managed.   Her reputation as a “cool dresser” (who knew!) was saved. Spend 10 minutes reading any number of mom and dad blogs, and you’ll soon learn that as kids go from child to tween, there is a significant change in the way they view and perceive their parents.  It’s interesting to me that as I strive to educate myself on how to work with my tween, I find counsel that I offer my clients: Communicate effectively and often â€" talk about issues before they arise Stay engaged and connected â€" show interest Set aside some face time and listen don’t push an agenda and follow through, do what you say Lead by example â€" demonstrate responsibility Apologize when you are wrong â€" recognize when you fall short In my quest to get smart, I find myself employing basic PR tactics to reap knowledge, better understand my daughter and keep her trust: Case studies talking to parents who have had children for 20+ years and learning what worked well Focus groups and surveys addressing and dissecting the topic at social gatherings with other parents Spokespeopleâ€" positioning teenage and young adult nieces and nephews to champion my cause Content development â€" I’ve been lucky enough to have a few articles published; this blog post should help too! I’m optimistic that as I learn more, stay on message and stay calm, I’ll be able to survive this personal PR challenge. Many years ago I made a career decision between marine biology or PR. I had no clue this decision would help me with my greatest job in life â€" being a parent.

Behold The Power of a Thank You Note

Behold The Power of a “Thank You” Note Growing up, my mother forced me to  write personalized thank you notes for every gift I ever received…and  for every major life milestone. Huge. Pain. But as I got older, I realized a thank you note was not only a way to say “thanks”, but a way to show appreciation and respect for someone who went out of their way to do something nice for you. Knowing that thank you notes are a great way to show your appreciation, why wouldn’t you utilize them in your professional life as well? Fast forward a few years to when I started interviewing for internships in college. My professors advised me to follow up each interview with a personalized thank you note. Ugh. Not again. As a bratty, too-concerned-with-social-events college student, I very reluctantly wrote them. “These people get a ton of mail each day â€" they’ll never know if I followed up with a thank you note or not.” Boy was I wrong! Now that I am sitting on the other side of the table and interviewing interns for my firm, I understand why a thank you note can be so important for your career: When a company is looking to fill an open position, a brief note can set you apart from others, forcing your interviewer to go back and think about your interview again. While e-mail thank yous are nice, taking the time to personally write a note and snail mail it shows enthusiasm and commitment. Demonstrating gratitude respect is a reflection of the type of worker you’ll be; one who makes an effort to get along with others and to fit in with the culture of the company. This may be a no-brainer for you, but not everyone does it. Taking the time to write a short, personalized note can make all the difference. And you shouldn’t limit thank you notes to post-interview follow-ups. My supervisor recently gave me some great advice: You should always write a hand-written note after getting a promotion, raise or bonus. The thought never crossed my mind before then, but I think it’s a great rule to live by. After I received my end of the year bonus, I wrote thank you notes to each partner of my firm. The next day, I was told by one of them, “I really appreciated your note. Your mother is the only one who raised you right.” Shop at CVS or your local grocery store and you will find cute, inexpensive packs of thank you notes.   Think of it as just another way to Style Your Life!

Top 10 Googled Career Pivot Posts for 2017 - Career Pivot

Top 10 Googled Career Pivot Posts for 2017 - Career Pivot Top 10 Googled Career Pivot Posts Every year I like to highlight the top pages/posts that were found by people searching using Google.Check out last year’s listand you tell me what you see different. The Career Pivot website was googled over 151,000 times in 2017 and that is up from 111,000 in 2016. Search traffic continues to grow at a healthy rate year over year. Let’s look at the top 10 Googled posts to see what it tells us about what people want to know. #1 Googled Post: “What If You Are Not Passionate About Anything? [Updated]” What If You Are Not Passionate About Anything?[Updated]was written back in 2012 but is still googled at a whoppingrate of 140 times a day. I updated this post just last week. This has been the #1 Googled post two years in a row. When I originally wrote this post, I received two kinds of comments: Don’t you have a pulse? You have to be passionate about something! Gosh, I am not alone! There are others like me. I am a multipotentialite, which means I have so many interests that I am not overly passionate about any one thing. You will find a post on this list about being a multipotentialite. Multipotentialites make up 10-15% of the population, but society wants to say we are broken. We are not. #2 Googled Post: “College Degree After 50 â€" Worth It?” College Degree After 50 â€" Worth It?was written in March of 2015. I wrote this post based on my observations of so many in the baby boomer generation who went back to college to re-invent themselves and who mostly gained nothing but student loan debt. This post generates more comments and questions than any other on the website. #3 Googled Post: “Talents versus Skills â€" Do you know the difference?” Talents versus Skills â€" Do you know the difference?was written back in 2013, but was googled over 40 times a day in 2017. So many of us who are in the 2nd half of life have no idea what our talents are or are able to differentiate our skills from our talents. Just because we can do something does not mean we want or should to do it. #4 Googled Post: “3 Steps to Get the Hiring Manager or Recruiter to Respond” 3 Steps to Get the Hiring Manager or Recruiter to Respondwas written back in 2015 and is new to the ‘Top 10’ list. You are sitting around waiting to hear from a hiring manager or recruiter and it is nerve-racking. This post discusses clear, concrete actions you can take to get them to respond and hopefully relieve some of your nerves. #5 Googled Post: “Are you a Multipotentialite?” Are you a Multipotentialite?was written in August of 2015 and it dropped a notch from #4 to#5 in 2017. Multipotentialites are people who have many interests, get bored easily and love to learn. I am one of these and, therefore, I have changed jobs or areas every 3-5 years throughout my career and took lots of lateral moves. This article is directly related to the #1 post on this list,What If You Are Not Passionate About Anything? #6 Googled Post: “What is Your Current Salary? How to Answer! [Updated]” What is Your Current Salary? How to Answer! [Updated]was originally written back in 2014 and was updated in 2017. This post has climbed the list significantly because the economy is getting betterand this has become a hot legal topic as it relates to the gender pay gap. I suspect this will continue to climb the list in 2018. #7 Googled Post: “Perfect Fit for the Position? Expect to Lose! [Updated]” Perfect Fit for the Position? Expect to Lose! [Updated]was written in 2014 and updated in 2018. This post was written based on a presentation given by a well-respected recruiter atLaunch Pad Job Club, where I serve on the board of directors. The presenter said, “If you are a perfect fit, we ain’t going to hire you. We want to hire someone at a lower starting salary but who can grow into the job. If you are a perfect fit, we assume you will leave when you find something better.” This is even more relevant today than ever before. #8 Googled Post: “Who is Really Making the Hiring Decision?” Who is Really Making the Hiring Decision?was written in 2015 and is part of the Negotiators Job Search Serieswhich is based on concepts fromJim Camp’s book, Start with NO…The Negotiating Tools that the Pros Don’t Want You to Know. I take the concepts and techniques that Camp describes and apply them to the job search. In this installment, I discuss how you determine who really is the decision maker. This is the first year this post made the list. #9 Googled Post: “Re-entering the Workforce â€" Marketable Skills After 50 [Guest Post]” Re-entering the Workforce â€" Marketable Skills After 50was written in 2015. Along with the post,College Degree After 50 â€" Worth It?There must be a lot of baby boomers looking for information on how to prepare themselves. #10 Googled Post: “3 Signs You Are Institutionalized Like Brooks at Shawshank” 3 Signs You Are Institutionalized Like Brooks at Shawshankwas written back in 2015 and is one of my personal favorites. I still run into individuals who have spent 25, 30, 35 or more years at companies and are so surprised when they are offered early retirement packages, or more likely, laid off. They have no idea what a career would be like outside of the company where they worked for so many years. What Does This Tell You? Search traffic to Career Pivot continued to grow at a healthy pace in 2017. The growth continues in 2018 but it appears to be slowing. Search traffic was up 35% in 2017 and it appears to be up half of that in 2018. Those of us in the 2nd half of life continue to search for answers to our career questions. Most of us will not be retiring like our parents did anywhere in the near future. We want to continue to work -but on our terms. What does this list tell you? Marc Miller Like what you just read? Share it with your friends using the buttons above. Like What You Read? Get Career Pivot Insights! Check out the Repurpose Your Career Podcast Do You Need Help With ...

Making Danish prisons a happy place ... to work - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Making Danish prisons a happy place ... to work - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Ill be away from the blog for the rest of the week. Ive been hired by the Danish Prison and Probation Service to participate in a project to make the prisons a better place to work. This is actually pretty cool: Theyre working from the assumption that the best way to create better functioning prisons is to make them better workplaces, so people enjoy their work there. I agree :o) Ill let you know how it goes have a great week and week-end! Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

Soft Skills for Your Job Search -

Soft Skills for Your Job Search - What are Soft Skills? Soft skills, otherwise known as emotional intelligence, may make a difference between an employee who can do the job and one who does it well. Soft skills include: leadership, written and verbal communication, problem solving, motivation, interpersonal skills and creativity. Soft skills are transferable to any position; they do not rely on technical abilities. They are not skills typically taught in classrooms. (Although some business school programs are incorporating training in emotional intelligence to give their students a competitive edge.) Take a look at this soft skills (emotional IQ) test that you can take on line to get a sense of how your skills rate. Some recruiters believe that soft skills make the difference between the candidate who is hired and the second choice applicant. Employers today seek flexibility, teamwork and integrity. They realize that someone who communicates well and has a strong work ethic makes a good employee. As a result, incorporating these skills on your resume may make the difference between getting an interview and getting passed over. The key is to incorporate soft skills with specifics that SHOW your abilities. For example: Before: Excellent oral and written communication skills. After: Wrote and presented successful training sessions to 200 telephone operators, resulting in measurable gains in companys ordering efficiency. The first bullet begs the question: Prove it! The after bullet leaves no room for doubt: This applicant can communicate verbally (in front of a group) and in writing. Selected Soft Skills List approachable business acumen charisma communication composure conflict management creativity crisis management critical thinking decision making dedication empathy energetic ethical flexibility hard working honesty humor ideas initiative inspire others instincts integrity interpersonal skills leadership listening management morale building motivational multicultural sensitivity multi-task organizational passionate personality planning poise problem solving professional public speaking reasoning research respect for others self confident self-motivated sensitivity supervisory take constructive criticism team building team leadership team player time management verbal visionary work well under pressure writing