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<title>Will Barnes - EzineArticles Expert Author</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Will_Barnes</link>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2012 09:15:38 -0600</pubDate>
<image><title>Will Barnes - EzineArticles Expert Author</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Will_Barnes</link>
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<copyright>Copyright 2012 EzineArticles.com - All Rights Reserved.</copyright>
<description><![CDATA[My life's work is highlighted by over thirty-eight years as a therapist, business-financial consultant, and public speaker. I believe that one's personal growth directly impacts one's financial status and that focusing on personal growth should be a continuous effort throughout one's lifetime.]]></description>
<lastBuildDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:03:41 -0600</lastBuildDate>
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<title>How to Write a Great Rather Than Just a Good Business Letter</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6850124</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6850124</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:03:41 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Think of writing a business letter as if you are having a conversation with the other person. In other words, write your business letter in a conversational style. And, while keeping it in this type of style, make sure that your letter is as specific as possible -- typed and both free of spelling errors and incorrect grammar.]]></description>
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<title>Medicare Choices for 2012 After Annual Enrollment</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6805023</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6805023</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 Jan 2012 08:49:19 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Congress is constantly changing programs funded with our tax dollars and Medicare is no exception. Last year the significant annual enrollment dates for Medicare recipients were October 15th through December 7th. During that time your government allowed you to change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another; join a Medicare plan and a Medicare Part D plan for the first time; or, choose a Medicare Supplement Plan and a Part D plan. All of the changes were effective on January 1st.]]></description>
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<title>The Demise of the CLASS Act and the Need for Long Term Care</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6706375</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6706375</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:10:15 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The CLASS act (Community Living Assistance Services and Support) was another poorly designed and grossly inadequate government program. As a part of the Health Care Reform Act, it was to pay you a paltry lifetime benefit of about $50 per day when you became elderly or disabled and needed long term care. But, to receive this benefit in the future, it would have been necessary for you to voluntarily allow your employer take an undetermined amount out of your regular paycheck along with the Social Security, Medicare, and Income taxes that's already being withheld. It is good that the CLASS act no longer exist. May it rest in peace.]]></description>
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<title>Seven Ways to Start Working Smarter Today - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6597008</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6597008</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Oct 2011 16:42:49 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[By definition, the term independent consultant alludes to a condition of being self-reliant. There is no weekly, bi-monthly, or monthly salary to be cashed or deposited each time. Your time is your money. It must be used wisely. You must be organized and your computer must be your best friend and assistant. Using your computer efficiently, being organized, and working smarter is the key. If you can't find an important document, if you forget to make an important phone call, or you forget to pay an important bill on time, you will not only waste time, but it can cost you money.]]></description>
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<title>Goals and Goal Setting for Personal Development and Growth</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6601528</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6601528</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:24:58 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[We are all increasingly bombarded by events beyond our control. Wars, inflation, recession, and other outside stresses impinge on our emotions. When we add these events to career, family, health, financial, and personal problems, it is apparent why stress overload is such a common problem. While these realities are here, with its rapid changes, the delicate human nervous system remains unchanged. We continually search for firm ground on which to stand and meet our problems. Goals and goal setting is that firm ground. The truth is if you don't have a goal oriented game plan for your life and personal development, you may well lose control of those events which you can exercise control over. For example you may feel reasonably secure in your career today, but are you prepared for a second, or perhaps a third career if circumstances make such a decision necessary? Things happen unexpectedly -- career crisis, health problems, and family problems -- and, without planning you will end up being a reactor rather than an actor in life.]]></description>
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<title>Ten Ways to Read for Personal Growth - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6587523</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6587523</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:55:49 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[If you are like most people, you have to read a tremendous amount of material, at home, at the office, or at school just to keep from getting buried in paper. Considering all the reading materials you get just in the course of a day, if you read all this information word for word, you'll wind up spending all your time reading and not have time for anything else. These Ten Ways to Read for Personal Growth will help you to experience reading, not as a chore to be put off as long as you can, but as an enjoyable and satisfying skill.]]></description>
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<title>The Law of Evolution and Personal Growth - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6581402</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6581402</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:15:16 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The law of evolution should not be confused with the theory of evolution. The law of evolution deals with the fundamental purpose of life which is to grow, expand, and progress. The theory of evolution is an assumption about how man came into being. Nothing in life was meant to be static. Growth and change is normal and necessary for progress. That's why everything can be improved or changed into something better.]]></description>
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<title>What You Need to Know When Shopping for Health Insurance</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6570588</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6570588</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 09:05:46 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Money can't buy health, but it can certainly make it easier to stay healthy. If you have been sick or injured you know that it's important to have the right kind of health insurance at the right price. To get to this point, you need to ask the right questions and get the right answers. There is a lot to learn when shopping for health insurance and you need the coverage clearly explained to you.]]></description>
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<title>Five Ways to Help Protect Your Family's Financial Independence</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6560531</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6560531</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:39:17 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Growing families have a way of outgrowing everything, especially their incomes. Having the right type of insurance coverages and estate planning helps to relieve you of concerns associated with that reality as well as knowing that you have taken the necessary steps to protect your family's financial independence.]]></description>
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<title>Do You Have High Blood Pressure? Here Are 15 Natural Ways to Prevent or Reduce It</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6556815</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6556815</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:37:38 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As the wise saying goes, The best doctors in the world are Doctor Diet, Doctor Quiet, and Doctor Merryman. Doctor Diet is the focus of this article -- specifically, Doctor Diet in reference to preventing or reducing high blood pressure. Being a vegetarian for forty-six years and realizing the health benefits from such a life style has made me keenly aware of this serious problem many Americans are experiencing. In fact, in this country 50 million Americans are currently afflicted with it. Also it is important to note that one out of every three Americans have a condition that leads to high blood pressure or hypertension and is not aware of it. You need to get your blood pressure checked regularly and take specific action to prevent hypertension from becoming a factor in your life.]]></description>
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<title>How to Choose the Right Diet to Eliminate Stress</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6536165</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6536165</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Sep 2011 13:53:45 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In a previous article, Take Control of Your Life. Choose a Stress Free Diet, I discussed the importance of your choice of foods and its impact on managing the stress in your life. Here, I will focus on specific elements in specific foods that produce the desired impact. While some amount of stress is expected and, indeed, desirable, excessive and un-managed stress can lead to many types of physical problems such as high blood pressure, migraine, stomach disorders, anxiety, depression, and panic. Even certain research indicates that the possibility exists that certain disorders of the immune system can be triggered by stress.]]></description>
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<title>The Value of Winging It Vs How to PowerPoint - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6494194</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6494194</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 10:44:09 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Winging it is my preferred way of making a presentation which I believe offer significant value to both the audience and the presenter. Nevertheless as I recounted in a previous article, in that so many of my audiences have become accustomed to anticipate a PowerPoint presentation, I have decided to integrate it within my preferred style of Winging It. In this article, I will discuss the value of winging it as well as How to PowerPoint effectively to keep the audience engaged.]]></description>
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<title>The Four Key Responsibilities of a Sales Manager - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6442795</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6442795</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Jul 2011 13:17:04 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A sales manager's role is not only to manage sales, if by definition it means to identify the type of products being sold, how many are being sold, and the dollar amount of the sales, it also means to develop the people who produce the sales. To be very specific, sales are produced by good salespeople and these sales people must be cherished and developed. Your salespeople come into the occupation with varying levels of experience, skills, and assets. For you to be successful as a sales manager, you need to recognize the uniqueness of each salesperson and individualize your relationship to each one.]]></description>
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<title>The Connection Between Spirituality and Mental Health - A Mental Health Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6395206</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6395206</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jul 2011 11:38:20 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Spirituality has been defined as the belief and practices that develop based on personal values and ideology of the meaning and purpose of life as part of a larger scheme. It refers to the belief that there is a power outside of one's own that transcends understanding. For many individuals identifying with a religion and having religious beliefs influence their spirituality. However spirituality is not confined to those who belonged to organized religion or have religious beliefs. People can develop spirituality without practicing a particular religion or believing in the powers of a supreme being. However, whatever is the nature of their spirituality, many individuals achieve a sense of inner peace and harmony as well as emotional fulfillment by believing that life has a purpose. Consequently a breakdown in spirituality can have a negative impact on one's mental well-being.]]></description>
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<title>Whole Life Insurance or 529 Plans - The Choice for Funding a College Education</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6395672</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6395672</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jul 2011 11:37:41 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Whole life insurance is the workhorse of the insurance industry. It is designed to be in force throughout the life of the policyholder with the premium never changing. It has often been compared to buying a home with a 30 year fixed rate mortgage with your monthly note containing your principal and interest never changing during that time all the while your home equity is building up. Similarly, all the while your whole life policy is in force, your cash value is building up tax-free.]]></description>
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<title>Three No Nonsense Ways to Deal With Worry: A Mental Health Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6370062</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6370062</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:44:17 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[To a degree, everyone worries, some people worry in nearly every situation. Whether things are good or bad, they worry that this situation would surely get worse. Understand that worrying is a drain on your energy and enthusiasm and if uncontrolled, it can be a terrible burden to your existence. How you handle worry can determine whether you are going to live a happy, normal life or one filled with neurosis and negativism. The good news is that any situation which can be used to generate worry can also be used to generate hope. Psychologist have found that worrying is simply a matter of choice unrelated to the event in our lives. In fact, some people experience worry more than 10 times as often as others, and, not surprisingly, they reduce their likelihood of happiness by 64%.]]></description>
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<title>5 More Important Things You Can Do To Stay Healthy</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6335904</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6335904</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:29:57 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In my previous article, the Five Most Important Things You Can Do To Stay Healthy, I focused primarily on the preventative aspect of health eating in staying healthy. At this time, I will focus on the behavioral component in healthy living. That is to say healthy living has a strong behavioral and relationship component that has to be taken control of. Health disease is often caused by unhealthy eating, smoking, and by our level of physical behavior and activity. The common thread here is human behavior which to a great extent is causally involved in major organic disorders. In fact, studies have shown that half of all organic illnesses that patients complain about have psychological factors among the basic causes.]]></description>
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<title>A Power Point Presentation or Winging It? An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6336239</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6336239</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jun 2011 15:46:32 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[PowerPoint has always seemed to me to be a stiff and un-engaging way to make a presentation. I have never used a Power Point presentation over the decades of speaking engagements and workshop presentations I've done. I declined from using it primarily because it hindered me from connecting with my audience. When you are using Power Point, you tend not to be the focus of your audience, but rather what is on the screen is the audience's focus. ]]></description>
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<title>The 5 Most Important Things You Can Do to Stay Healthy</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6315838</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6315838</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Jun 2011 08:17:15 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The current crisis in American health reflects the premise that curing disease is the essence of health. However, as evidence accumulates that modern medicine is not as good at curing today's killer diseases as society is at creating them, it appears that a more useful approach to health and wellness would be one that emphasizes prevention as well as treatment. This article discusses the five most important things that I personally do and I hope you are willing to do to stay healthy and well. Here they are:]]></description>
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<title>Three Important Ways to Stop High School Dropouts: An Independent Mental Health Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6263059</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6263059</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 May 2011 10:10:18 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Recent reports indicate that on the average every 26 seconds another teenager drops out of high school. This translates in to more than 3,000 students per school day. Or taking a longer range view, it is estimated that approximately 12 million students will drop out over the next decade or so. Specifically, nearly 1/3 of public high school students end up quitting school. Nearly half of all African-American and Latino students dropout. And, in some cities it is even worse. Actually fewer than half of kids in 17 of the nation's 50 largest cities graduate. In Cleveland, only 34% of students graduated with their class, in Chicago only 39% graduated, and Indianapolis, only 30% graduated. Even worse, in Detroit, according to 2003-2004 data analyzed by America's Promise Alliance, only 25% graduated.]]></description>
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<title>The Title Search in Buying a Home - The Key to Discovering and Clearing the Possible Missing Link</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6237593</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6237593</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 05 May 2011 09:37:12 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Another step that takes place once your offer is approved is the title search. Before the title can be transferred, the seller must provide evidence of marketable or merchantable title, one that is readily salable in the locality. This step is needed to uncover any possible problems or missing links with title (legal ownership) to the property. Title searches are generally set up by the buyer's Realtor, lawyer, or your loan officer. Marketable title is not perfect title. It is not necessarily that the title be free of all liens. In the case of a sale with mortgage assumption, the buyer has bargained for and will accept the sellers' title with the present mortgage as a lien on the title.]]></description>
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<title>Know the Difference Between an Appraisal and an Inspection</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6230647</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6230647</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 May 2011 13:43:44 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In buying a home, after your purchase offer is accepted, your loan application will be reviewed. At the same time, an appraisal and an inspection must take place. The appraisal is an evaluation of the property's value. The appraiser visits the house and reviews recent selling prices of similar houses in the area. Though appraising is not an exact science, it is crucial to the selling, buying, and refinancing process. The inspection, on the other hand, is an evaluation of the house to find out if there any problems with it that could change its value. The inspection also help you to decide if there any items that you want the seller to repair before the final contract is signed.]]></description>
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<title>What You Need To Do Before Making a Home Buying Offer</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6230507</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6230507</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 May 2011 11:26:33 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Once you decide on a home you want, your next step is to negotiate about what to include in the offer to purchase commitment. In most states, your Realtor will help you determine what to say or even say it for you. Some states may require an attorney to take part in the transaction. If possible, ask your Realtor to let you see a blank copy of a purchase agreement when you first begin looking at homes. This is the document that you will present to the seller, and where you offer a price and any conditions you have for the purchase. That way, you will have time to think about what you want your contract to cover. Be sure to include in your contract a stipulation that the purchase depends upon a satisfactory professional inspector. If you have any doubts about the results of the inspection, ask for another one.]]></description>
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<title>Why Some Marriages Fail and How to Keep Yours Safe</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6223319</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6223319</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Apr 2011 14:20:09 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Sixty percent of all marriages for couples between the ages of 20 and 25 end in divorce. Children of divorce have a higher risk of divorce when they marry and an even higher risk if the person they marry comes from a divorced home. One study found that when the wife alone has experienced a parental divorce, her odds of divorce increased to 59 percent. When both spouses experienced parental divorce, the odds of divorce nearly tripled to 189 per cent. Nevertheless marriage still remain one of the most fundamental institutions in this society the most viable institution for producing and developing the next generation.]]></description>
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<title>Buying a Home? Down Payment Assistance Is Available</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6189324</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6189324</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 15:35:11 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Down payment assistance for FHA loans from private sources have been effectively eliminated since 2008. However the FHA and other public and private sources have somewhat filled the gap by offering various types of some help to first-time who need those who need down payment assistance. A first time buyer can include a buyer who had no ownership in a principal residence during the three year period ending on the date of the purchase of the property. The FHA programs to find out about are the Affordable housing Programs or Homeowner Set-Aside Program. Moreover, some banks are now more willing to work with borrowers who need down payment assistance.]]></description>
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<title>Take Control of Your Finances: Make the Right Choice Between a Fixed or Adjustable Rate Mortgage</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6189341</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6189341</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 15:28:16 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Choosing the right mortgage in your home buying pursuit is essential. Choosing the wrong type of mortgage can cost you thousands of dollars as well as many serious headaches. Although there may appear to be many different types of mortgages, essentially there are two types: the fixed rate and the adjustable rate mortgage. Here I will draw the distinction between the two and help you to make the right decision.]]></description>
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<title>For the Savvy Independent Consultant - 10 Steps to the Top of Google</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6188985</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6188985</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 14:04:13 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Assuming that you are an independent consultant and already have a web site, then you want to drive more traffic to our web site and convert that traffic to paying customers. While these steps will certainly drive more traffic to your web site, it will be the relevancy of what you have to offer on your site that will convert your visitors. For now, here are the 10 steps that I have found to be particularly useful. These steps are in no order of importance. However, if you use some or all of them, you will experience remarkable results.]]></description>
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<title>Take Control of Your Life - Choose a Stress-Free Diet</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6175307</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6175307</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Apr 2011 15:16:12 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Stress has been with us is the beginning of time. But today's life challenges are far more complex than they used to be. Living in an age of immense and increasingly rapid change, we are subjected to greater, more insistent, inescapable pressures to adapt, keep up, and compete than at any other time. An act that you can take right now which will have great benefit to you is to choose a stress free diet. While fasting and purification regimes allow your body's internal organs to rest and recuperate, a consistent healthy diet is what's necessary for the long-term. Among the most important food to consume are fresh fruit, vegetables, and fiber. If you eat meat, make sure it's lean and remove the fat before cooking.]]></description>
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<title>The Keys to a Successful Marriage - What You Should Do Before and After</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6156391</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6156391</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Apr 2011 07:52:14 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Certain key pre-marital considerations can reduce the possibility of a troubled marriage and raise the likelihood of a successful one. For example: Did your parents have a sound marriage? How old are you? How long have you dated your partner? How much money do you earn? Does the other person have the same religious and educational background? And, are you happy? Think about these questions seriously before your marry. The article will further explore this matter.]]></description>
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<title>For All Single Parents - How to Survive Your Adolescents</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6144836</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6144836</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:16:49 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Every stage of life carries with it certain tasks of emotional development and adolescence is no exception. Adolescence is a major developmental bridge lasting from ages 10 and 20 and can be an extremely stressful time especially for a single parent. During this developmental period, adolescents have the following tasks to accomplish: establish their own identity; give up childhood dependency; develop their own values; deal constructively with authority; learn to deal with the opposite sex; and, handle their rampant physical and emotional changes. All this, while on the surface, rejecting their parent.]]></description>
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<title>Know the Basics for Becoming an Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6118958</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6118958</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:35:39 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant, you must have a marketing mentality focused on generating new business until you're well established and have more business than you can handle. If you are already a well-established consultant, consider becoming a mentor to a new consultant or do some hiring and teaching. Independent consulting is an area of work in which expertise in your niche is both expected and required.]]></description>
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<title>Take Control of Your Life - Learn How to Break Bad Habits</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6119435</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6119435</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:00:54 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Let's recognize that habits are response patterns to situations. If you are a smoker, you reach for a cigarette when the coffee is served, but not during the soup. You don't smoke or even want to in church, in the theater, in a courtroom, or in other places where no one usually smokes. Given the right circumstances you will light up. In order to break habits, then, you must recognize that you must deal with the source of satisfaction - that is, you must want to change your ways and give up the real or imagined benefits; you must be aware of what you are doing, and, you must take in account the situation that had become associated with the habit.]]></description>
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<title>The Best Way to Really Help Your Child With Self-Esteem - An Independent Consultant's View</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6094769</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6094769</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Mar 2011 11:30:49 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Self-esteem is best described as one's estimation of oneself. If someone has low self-esteem or high self-esteem it can be readily identified in his behavior, his appearance, his relationship with others, and his approach to tasks and challenges. Building your child's self-esteem has to be an essential task for you to embrace as your child's parent as well as doing it the right way. As an independent mental health consultant who observes children professionally, in my opinion, the best way to help your child with his self-esteem is to begin by carefully observing his child's strengths, talents, and abilities.]]></description>
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<title>For All Single Parents: Five Ways to Get On With Living</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6085672</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6085672</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Mar 2011 15:53:57 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Breaking up with a spouse or boyfriend should not be viewed as a devastating experience. On the contrary, it should be viewed as a liberating one. If you were to take a step back, to take a deep breath, and to reflect on how the circumstances fell in place that led up to the break up you will have to admit that you saw it coming. You may have resisted accepting it because of fear of being alone and having to start all over, but if the relationship had been characterized by constant arguments, demeaning language, and consistent lack of cooperation, then the absence of this type of stress should be well received. It is indeed time to get on with living.]]></description>
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<title>What Is the Best Way to Hold Title to Your Property?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6050626</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6050626</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:59:56 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[There are three common ways in which people hold title to their property: joint tenancy with the right of survivorship, tenancy in common, and tenancy by the entirety. However, neither of these forms of ownership is the best way of holding title to your property. Read further to learn what it is.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>How People Change</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6048894</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6048894</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:20:33 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The French philosopher, Henri Bergson, once said that, "To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly." Change is unavoidable. Change is continuous and is occurring all the time. Our country changes, our city changes, our neighborhood changes, our family changes, and we as individuals change. Sometimes it may not be perceptible by someone on the outside. But, we know ourselves better than anyone else that we have changed. Our political views changed, our attitudes changed, our appearances changed, and even our faculties changed.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>What You Need to Know About Depression</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6011023</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6011023</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Mar 2011 15:16:06 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Just about everyone gets the blues from time to time - that feeling of sadness or grief that usually results from unpleasant life experiences. While many people-refer to the blues as depression, however, true clinical depression is as different from the blues as pneumonia is from a head cold. The blues is a temporary and usually normal reaction to stressful life situations. Most cases don't involve physical symptoms, loss of self-esteem, or suicidal thoughts, and the negative state usually passes within a few hours or days. Depression on the other hand, is an intense, pervasive and long-lasting disorder of mood that attacks the body as well as the mind, often resulting in serious problems in work, social, and physical functioning. Unfortunately, some people don't recognize depression for the serious illness it is.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Computer Buying Tips for Single Parent Families</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6011651</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6011651</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Mar 2011 09:41:29 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The decision to buy a computer for the first time or to replace an aging or obsolete one is a significant decision for single parent families, especially if there will be only one computer for the family. When considering the purchase of a computer, here are some basics you need to know: Computers come in all sizes and for the family, only consider a desktop, not a laptop. And, the hardware, what's inside your computer, which includes the hard drive, random access memory (RAM), central processing unit (CPU), graphic card, and the optical media drive must be essential in your consideration.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>14 Ways to Save Your Marriage</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/6011127</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/6011127</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Mar 2011 08:41:59 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[It is important to realize the difference between loving and being in love." As C. S. Lewis put it, "It is this other, quieter love that enables two people to keep their promise. It is on this love that the engine of marriage is run. "Being in love" was merely the explosion that started the engine." Aside from the fact that most couples share in the work routine these days, by holding down jobs, here are fourteen ways to stay in tune with your marriage partner and save your marriage:]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What Independent Consultants Need to Know to Keep Your Computer Running Smoothly</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5961011</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5961011</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 13:05:11 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant, your computer is your best friend and best non-paid employee. You need it to do your billing, design and prepare your reports, write your letters, design and upgrade your website, write and post your blogs, send and receive your e-mails, get news on your industry, check on your competition, as well as give you some moments of distraction and pleasure. It is therefore, important to keep it running smoothly.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Why Families Are So Important?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5960995</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5960995</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:54:53 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Families are so important because we are born into them, marry into to them, and even create them among the people we love. They come large and extended or small and nuclear. But whatever their size or wherever they live, strong families give us the nurturance and strength we need in order to survive.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>For All Single Parent Families - How to Have Sound Nutrition on a Limited Budget</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5961004</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5961004</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:49:43 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Realizing sound nutrition on a limited budget is synonymous to just eating cheap. Beans, potatoes, bananas, oranges, apples, grains, rice, carrots, oats, macaroni, spaghetti, flour, additional fruits, and vegetables all can be bought at economical prices. The opposite of this is true for unhealthy foods.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>What Seniors Ought to Know About Medicare Benefits in 2011 - Part 2</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5927725</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5927725</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Feb 2011 10:07:57 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Medicare continues to offer choices for seniors beyond age 65 throughout the year. I covered the benefits to seniors in Part 1 who are aging in. Here I will focus on the benefits available to those over 65. But first, a little history. As of now you are in the "lock in" period which essentially means that your Medicare choices are extremely limited. That is, this is the time in which most Medicare beneficiaries are unable to change their underlying Medicare coverage.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>How to Exercise Your Body and Your Mind</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5913012</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5913012</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 15 Feb 2011 08:44:54 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Nearly six out of ten people experience no daily exercise. However, like any other activity, it takes both choice and commitment. Walking, jogging, biking, or working out regularly on a home exercise machine such as a stationary bike can have a positive impact on your physical and emotional health, but you have to choose to do it and commit to doing it. Do it even if you think you don't have time for it. It's good for the mind, good for the soul, and it doesn't have to cost a cent. Also consider walking with a friend. It's a perfect way to do two things at once: exercise and create an opportunity for good conversation. In addition to a regular exercise routine, get extra exercise by walking up a flight of stairs rather than using an elevator.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What Seniors Ought to Know About Medicare Benefits in 2011 - Part 1</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5916069</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5916069</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 09:46:47 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[There are still Medicare benefits for seniors to choose from during the remaining months of 2011. Choices remain for seniors who are both aging in and for those who are already beyond 65 years old. Here we will primarily focus upon those who are aging in.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Anger Management - A Self-Help Strategy</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5913059</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5913059</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:47:02 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Anger is a destructive emotion even though it's a very common experience. Everyone gets angry at some time or another. Although some people have learned such self-control that they won't show their feelings, rest assured that their close friends, relatives, and especially their doctor know that they are angry. It can show up in migraine headaches, ulcers, skin problems, allergies, and even sexual problems. While these problems are not always or even most always related to angry feelings, there is a relationship between feelings and physical well-being.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Single Parent Families and Child Abuse - The Best Way to Prevent It</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5903217</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5903217</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:13:02 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Parenting runs along two continuums: abusive and nurturing. One can equate higher incidence of nurturing with less incidence of abuse because the two behaviors are mutually exclusive. In nurturing single parent families, children receive support, have clear boundaries, and live under appropriate expectations. In abusive single parent families, too much may be expected from the children. Empathy for the children is lacking, physical punishment is prominent, and lack of awareness of the children's developmental levels is evident.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Eleven Time Management Tips for the Busy Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5866515</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5866515</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Feb 2011 13:57:17 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A wise man once said that counting time is not so important as making time count. Good time management and making time count is a must for busy single parents. While there are many books and articles on time management, here are eleven time management tips, boiled down, that I believe you will find useful.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Seven Ways to Become More Involved in Your Child's School Life Despite Being a Busy Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5843190</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5843190</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Feb 2011 09:04:56 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Being busy is no excuse for not being involved in your child's school life. It might just require a need to become more organized, to organize your child life better, and to set the right priorities. But, once you instill the value of education in your child, he will require less monitoring and less effort on your part.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Independent Consultant's Six Keys for Business Growth and Management</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5827786</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5827786</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 02 Feb 2011 11:51:05 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant, your time is money. Time wasted is money wasted. Not only must you handle your time effectively, you also must have certain tasks pre-identified that will help you to both manage and grow your business.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>The ABC's of Managing Difficult Classroom Behavior</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5828310</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5828310</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 31 Jan 2011 11:08:30 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[All teachers have to, at least occasionally, manage difficult classroom behavior. Unless you are extremely lucky during a school year, have parents who set clear expectations for their children and follow up, or you are in a school that excludes children with problem behaviors, you will be faced with this challenge.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>For the Busy and Thrifty Single Parent - Seven Tips for Buying and Organizing</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5780938</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5780938</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 26 Jan 2011 08:55:24 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[It is unusual for a busy single parent to not be concerned about thriftiness and being organized. Here I'm offering seven tips to help out in these areas: buy generic items, control your impulses, shop with cash only, deal with the mail efficiently, set up family in-boxes, use a home filing system, and reuse plastic grocery bags.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Three Ways to Get the Most Out of Your Life As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5739623</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5739623</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Jan 2011 09:59:08 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As a single parent, you are the most important individual in your children's lives. Keep yourself in good physical condition. If you have young children, you realize how important it is to keep yourself in good shape to deal with the needs of your active offspring. If getting a membership at the local health club or YMCA is out of the budget, then find a way to at least get an exercise bike and work out at least ten minutes a day and eat a balanced diet. Now, here are three ways to get the most out of your life as a single parent.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Five Tech Tips for the Busy Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5739257</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5739257</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 19 Jan 2011 09:27:40 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[If you are the average single parent, you are too busy to have to deal with a troublesome computer. You want your computer to perform smoothly and you want to access the information you need without any hassle. To help you in doing so, here are five tech tips.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>How to Deal With the Physical Consequences of Mismanaging Stress</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5715192</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5715192</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:56:13 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[There is rarely a simple or single solution to any problem no matter how large or small. However, the situation can be made worse if the resulting stress is mismanaged since mismanaging stress can lead to a variety of health problems. There is evidence linking the mismanagement of stress with upper respiratory infection, coronary artery disease, autoimmune disorder, poor wound healing, and depression. These health problems represent the extreme conditions that can occur.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Leadership and the Art of Motivation - Three Steps Leaders Should Take</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5614166</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5614166</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Dec 2010 13:24:01 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Whether you are the president of a nonprofit organization or the supervisor of a group of employees, you are viewed as a leader and as a leader one of your responsibilities is to keep your people motivated. While leadership skills are valuable regardless of whatever the setting is, here we will focus on motivating individuals who are participating on voluntary non-profit organization boards.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>The Annual Enrollment Period for Seniors - Five Questions to Consider</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5583489</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5583489</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:07:51 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The Annual Enrollment Period beginning November 15th and ending December 31th is the time for seniors to make key choices in their Medicare plans that will be beneficial to them in the coming year. In fact, Medicare recommends reviewing your coverage once a year in their publication, Medicare and You.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>For All Single Parents - Seven Things You and Your Children Can Do Seven Days Before Christmas</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5563917</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5563917</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Dec 2010 09:16:56 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Christmas time should be a time for family fun and enjoyment. Let it be a time for you as a single parent and your children to draw even closer together as a family by engaging in activities that require planning, cooperation, and shared responsibilities. Here are seven things that you and your children can do seven days before Christmas. Feel free to choose the order in which these things are done.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>For Single Parents - Three Steps for Dealing With the Holiday Blues</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5555062</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5555062</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 16 Dec 2010 08:09:47 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Holiday blues can easily become a factor in bad economic times for a single parent with no spouse to talk and no one with whom to share enjoyable activities. Guilt feelings can also arise if you see others buying gifts for their children and you are unable to do so. Or you may just not be able to buy what you would like your children to have. However, these feelings, especially the blues, need to be identified for what they are - a negative way of thinking about your current situation instead of reframing the situation to your and your children's advantage.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Seven Things Single Parents Must Juggle Successfully</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5520525</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5520525</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 18:05:17 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[It is fascinating to watch professional jugglers keep multiple plates, bottles or whatever in the air without dropping them. In the same context it is fascinating to watch how a competent single is able to successfully juggle all the demands associated with raising two or more children alone and still maintain poise and serenity. Here are seven things successful single parents have learned to do well.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Parenting Styles - A Key Single Parent Concern</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5469997</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5469997</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Dec 2010 11:32:46 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A wise observer of the human condition once commented that the politics of the family is the politics of the nation. Just as the authoritarian family can be the state in microcosm, the democratic family is the best training ground for life in a democracy. To take this perspective further, the two most easily identified parenting styles in our democratic society, whether you are a single parent or not, is the authoritarian style and the permissive style. But both have their drawbacks regarding your relationship with your child.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Seven Strategies for Single Parents Raising a Child With ADHD</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5411068</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5411068</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Nov 2010 11:41:00 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Raising a child with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a major challenge for a single parent. According to the Center for Disease and Control, 4.5 million children have been diagnosed with (ADHD). These children's behaviors are characterized by a short attention span, difficulty sustaining attention on a consistent basis, susceptibility to distraction by extraneous stimuli and internal thoughts, losing things necessary for tasks, and repeated failure to follow through on instructions. Moreover, two or three times more boys than girls are affected by it. And, there is an average of one child with ADHD in every classroom.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Single Parent's Need for a Social Support Network and How to Acquire One</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5410667</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5410667</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Nov 2010 11:34:16 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Parents, especially single parents, need to be connected and receptive to all the help that's available. The strongest as well as the most fragile family requires a vital network of social support not only in reference to mortality risk, but to deal with the stresses that are out of proportion to what any one parent can handle. In today's world parents find themselves at the mercy of a society which imposes pressure and priorities that allow neither time nor place for meaningful activities and relations between children and adults. It downgrades the role of the parent and the functions of parenthood and prevents the parent from doing things she wants to do as a guide, friend, and comparing to her children. At this point in time, the social support network can play a major role.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Retirement Consideration for Single Parents</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5391838</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5391838</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:35:28 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In 1983, the retirement age for Social Security was changed from 65 to 67 beginning in the year 2000. It was designed to go up steadily so that everyone born in 1943 will have their retirement age increased to 66. It will then remain at 66 for 12 years and then steadily increase to age 67 for workers born after 1959. Therefore, if you are a single parent born in 1943 or thereafter, your retirement age will be either 66 or 67.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What Seniors Need to Know Before Making the Hard Choices</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5388438</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5388438</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Nov 2010 09:45:53 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Many senior citizens will have hard choices to make between now and the end of the year. The Annual Enrollment Period for Medicare recipients begins on November 15th and ends on December 31th. During this time seniors can make changes in their private Medicare coverage or search for new options.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Guidelines for Developing a Budget for a Non-Profit Organization</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5329049</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5329049</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Nov 2010 13:26:08 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Budgeting needs to be placed second in a two-part approach with planning. When budgeting is teamed with planning, the figures cease to be just hazy projections snatched out of the sky, but logical predictable numbers that flow easily out of the overall plan. Budgeting without planning gives you little more than a record of income and expenses. Planning put you in control of that record, and provides both the means and the impetus to use those numbers to insure the organization's success.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>The Technological Edge for the Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5312065</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5312065</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 03 Nov 2010 13:35:32 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant working in any field it which you have competition, you need to get and maintain an edge over them. To continue to learn about your best friend, your personal computer would help you keep that edge. To this end, always look to pick up a few new computer skills instead of just knowing how to use your computer. To begin with, learn the meaning of some technical acronyms. There are at least eight essential acronyms that are important to know. Here I will describe just four: central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), universal serial bus (USB), and hypertext markup language (HTML).]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Never Being Married and Liking It - A Choice for Single Parents</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5310539</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5310539</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2010 14:38:36 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Never being married is not a stigma to be avoided. The divorce rate in the United States is at forty percent. Not only that, but a divorce can be nasty and circumstances leading up to it can be psychologically devastating. Both individuals may be left with "baggage" that can be carried over and easily affect future relationships. Never being married and liking it can be reflective of various circumstances. It could be that you are a rational person who does not let emotional responses overcome your rational responses.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Seven Ways to Become Involved in Your Children's Education As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5304139</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5304139</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Nov 2010 15:12:29 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[According to a study published in the American Educational Research Journal, parental involvement has been shown to influence children's achievement in language and mathematics, their academic persistence, and their behavioral problems. As a single parent, parental involvement falls solely upon your shoulders. If doing this is a struggle for you, admit to it and ask a relative, a friend, your neighbor, or a pastor for help in keeping close tabs on how your children are doing and working with the school to implement an action plan for improvement.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What a Single Parent Should Renegotiate With Her Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5284269</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5284269</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Oct 2010 13:59:11 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[An aging parent can present both a financial and physical challenge for single parents with personal child rearing responsibilities. Among everything else you have the responsibility of keeping yourself well, your children well, and then caring for a parent who is not well. However, if you're not currently in such a situation, plan ahead not only for your parent, but for yourself also so that you will not be a burden on your children. Considering the financial realities of growing old and renegotiating with your parent then is a must.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What You As a Single Parent Should Know About Your Child From Age 2 to 5</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5270830</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5270830</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Oct 2010 14:58:35 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Raising children as a single parent while handling all your other responsibilities can be quite demanding and stressful. Nevertheless, because you love your children and want only the best for them, an understanding and appreciation of developmental milestones can be quite useful as you carry on your parenting. Children develop at their own pace, so it is impossible to tell exactly when your child would learn a given skill. However, with these developmental milestones you will have a general idea of what you can expect as your child gets older, but don't be concerned your child takes a slightly different course.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>An Independent Consultant's View of Mental Health Disorders and Special Needs</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5243770</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5243770</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Oct 2010 13:22:02 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, one in five children from birth to 18 has a diagnosable mental disorder. Moreover, one in 10 youths has mental health problems that are serious enough to impair how they function at home, in school, or in the community in which they live. Among the diagnosable mental disorders common in children are anxiety, mood disorder such as depression, and disruptive disorders such as attention deficit and hyperactive disorders. Special needs, however, are a different concern. Special needs is an umbrella term under which a broad array of diagnosis can be put. Children with special needs may have learning disabilities that range from being mild to profound mental retardation. They may have developmental delays from which they may catch up quickly or some from which they may not catch up at all.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Setting Limits for Your Children As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5237054</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5237054</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:51:58 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Whether you call them limits or rules, as a single parent you must set them, and you and only you must see to it that they are adhered to. The limits or rules must be practical and within your child's capacity to follow. And they must be consistent and expressive of your loving concern. Effective discipline is essentially setting limits and maintaining the limits while at the same time tailoring the home environment to the developmental level of the child - what the child can handle - and to the individual differences among your children.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Counseling Or Therapy: Is There a Difference?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5230506</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5230506</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 16:10:59 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Data from the National Institute of Mental Health suggests that about 52 million Americans suffer from a significant psychological disorder, but that only eight percent undergo treatment. In other words, one in five American men and women has an emotional disorder that goes untreated with counseling or therapy.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Funding College Education With Whole Life Insurance - The Only Real Choice for a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5191129</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5191129</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Oct 2010 11:30:24 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Funding a college education at the rate that tuitions continue to increase can be extremely difficult for a single parent. For example, in Illinois the range for in-state 2010-2011 tuition and fees for a state University such as the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana is $13,640 while the tuition for private university such as Northwestern University is $40,247. Other educational institutions in Illinois may have tuitions that maybe a few thousand dollars more or less. Nevertheless, as a single parent you need to prepare to meet at least some of the cost of financing your child education. And, because your child is clearly dependent upon you, the value of life insurance is a must for consideration.]]></description>
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<title>To Rent Or To Buy - The Choice for Single Parents</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5184435</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5184435</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 12 Oct 2010 10:19:00 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[While the value of home ownership as a way of building wealth over time for either single parents or two parent families is well accepted, hardly mentioned is the value of home ownership on the cognitive and behavioral outcomes of the household's young children. A recent study on the impact of home ownership on child outcomes, while controlling for the child's gender and health, number of siblings, nine characteristics of the household's locality and other factors, has indicated that the impact on a child's cognitive outcomes is up to 9% higher in math achievement and 7% higher in reading achievement for children living in owned homes.]]></description>
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<title>Managing Your Money Effectively As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5146483</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5146483</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Oct 2010 11:51:54 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Managing money effectively as a single parent requires both planning and implementation of the plan. This includes taking accurate stock of your income from any and all sources, a careful review of your monthly expenditures, a review of all your debt obligations, and a review of how you have been handling credit. Taking stock of your income is rather easy and straightforward if you get a paycheck on a regular basis. If you have alimony or other type of regular income in addition to your paycheck, it's still all very easy to do.]]></description>
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<title>For Single Parents - Loneliness Or Aloneness?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5133332</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5133332</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Oct 2010 12:33:43 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As a single parent, loneliness has to be coped with properly or it can lead to symptoms related to depression. It is faulty relationships, or in this instance, a lack of healthy relationships that lead to the undesirable consequences. However, when you take a closer look at the experience of loneliness, it indicates dependency upon someone to meet your need for enjoyment, fun, and self-fulfillment. While it is desirable to have healthy and caring relationships which indeed help our mental health, dependency upon someone else to meet our need for enjoyment, fun, and self-fulfillment may in fact be unhealthy.]]></description>
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<title>The Single Parent's Challenge - Raising a Mentally Healthy Child</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5118707</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5118707</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Sep 2010 09:28:38 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A mentally healthy child, as well as a physically healthy child is what all parents desire. As a single parent, it is a challenge that requires you to fully use your abilities, energy, and resources to develop a physically healthy child by making sure the child eats the right foods, gets the proper rest, and have time for exercise and active play. But how do you develop a mentally healthy child?]]></description>
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<title>How to Navigate the Insurance Maze As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5118947</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5118947</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 30 Sep 2010 09:15:12 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Having the right type of insurance is a necessity, but one that you may not have given adequate thought to. As a single parent you intuitively realize that you needs your life covered by life insurance should you experience an untimely death and consequently leaving a burden on someone else to raise your children. The main consideration has to be how much life insurance do you need and can you afford it.]]></description>
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<title>Managing Your Children's Behavior As a Single Parent</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/5111189</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/5111189</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Sep 2010 10:22:52 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Managing your children's behavior and finding time to pursue personal interests and development is one of the greatest challenges that you face as a single parent with no spousal support. As children progress through their developmental stages, they present different set of needs in addition to their basic needs and it is incumbent upon you as the parent to identify your children's individual needs and address them appropriately as they develop.]]></description>
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<title>Stress and the Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4824176</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4824176</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Aug 2010 08:27:32 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In his recessionary period, financial conditions can become a source of stress and can complicate both personal and family life significantly. Although stress is a commonly used term, a useful definition of stress for this article is that it is an uncomfortable experience especially when it is overwhelmingly based on personal events and circumstances. ]]></description>
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<title>Success Habits of the Savvy Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4818866</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4818866</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Aug 2010 15:47:36 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Let's agree that we first make our habits and then our habits make us. From a psychological point of view, habits are well learned responses that are performed automatically in response to some stimulus, often unrecognized by the performer. If you had to stop and think about anything, it's not a habit.]]></description>
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<title>An Independent Consultant's View of ADHD and Low Self-Esteem in Children</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4815530</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4815530</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 09 Aug 2010 14:01:22 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The work of an independent consultant in preschool settings can be challenging. According to the National Center for Child Poverty (NCCP) one in five children from birth to eighteen has a diagnosable mental disorder and preschool children face expulsion rates three times higher than children in kindergarten through twelfth grade due in part to lack of attention to social-emotional needs.]]></description>
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<title>Must Have Skills For the Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4812596</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4812596</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 06 Aug 2010 10:00:36 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[An independent consultant must know how to engage the potential client, gain the client's acceptance of you as an expert who can deliver, and then gain the client's willingness to use your services to solve his problems. This article identifies the must have skills for the successful independent consultant.]]></description>
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<title>The Savvy Independent Consultant's Attitude Towards Knowledge</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4791312</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4791312</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Aug 2010 13:51:05 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Knowledge is of two types: theoretical and practical. Someone with an advanced degree from a major university but with no practical experience in the real world is a candidate for on-the-job training and will not likely make much of a contribution to his employer during the early going. ]]></description>
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<title>The Attitude of the Savvy Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4783494</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4783494</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 02 Aug 2010 11:10:43 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A wise man once said that attitude is the paintbrush of the mind with which we color our lives. We can choose whatever color we wish. To take it a step further, it is everything a person thinks or feels about objects, persons, or issues. How we think or feel provides the color. Providing the color is controlling your attitude and controlling your attitude is an essential aspect of becoming successful as an independent consultant.]]></description>
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<title>Even More Things the Computer Savvy Independent Consultant Must Know</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4754047</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4754047</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jul 2010 13:13:52 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant, the personal computer should be your friend or perhaps even one of your best friends. If it helps you to become more productive, make more money, and make your life easier, it can certainly merit the description.]]></description>
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<title>The Independent Consultant As a Mental Health Consultant in Early Childhood Settings</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4725189</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4725189</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:21:16 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The goal of a mental health consultant who works in early childhood settings is the promotion of mental wellness and encouragement of positive social relations in children. The mental health consultant, in early childhood or preschool settings, helps small children to learn the lifelong social and emotional skills they need. Children have to learn how to get along with people, to respond to them appropriately, and to acquire an awareness of how their actions affect other people and how other people's actions affect them.]]></description>
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<title>An Independent Consultant's View of Salesmanship</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4691762</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4691762</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:31:01 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant who works with people in a variety of occupations, I look at salesmanship as encompassing a set of skills that is useful across a variety of livelihood and careers. If you are teacher, you must gain interest and create attention from your students; if you are a lawyer, you have to develop a presentation that motivates through logic and emotion; if you are a doctor, you must gather facts before you can make a diagnosis or prescribe a solution; and, if you are to be a successful parent, it will take sales psychology to effectively raise your children. Let's take a closer look at three of these salesmanship skills.]]></description>
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<title>An Independent Consultant's View of Therapy</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4691703</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4691703</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:21:53 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[An independent consultant can also be a therapist and vice versa. However, as an independent consultant who has done extensive work as a therapist, I have come to realize the importance of the match between the therapist and the client as well as the attributes that are peculiar to effective therapists. Six are mentioned in this article.]]></description>
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<title>Are Both Consultation and Counseling Skills Needed by the Independent Consultant?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4650643</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4650643</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Jul 2010 13:05:50 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A useful distinction can be made between consultation and counseling. Consultation can be defined as giving expert advice or information. Whereas, counseling can be defined as a support process intended to help someone to solve a personal or family problem. ]]></description>
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<title>Four Workshop Presentation Tips For the Independent Consultant</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4648282</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4648282</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 12 Jul 2010 10:43:26 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant, unless you have a ton of clients, you have to be constantly on the lookout for opportunities to increase your business. Getting your message out in formats you feel comfortable with is what's necessary. One format that I look for are opportunities to present workshops. This is an activity that I find both exhilarating and challenging. And, above all brings in new clients.]]></description>
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<title>Seven Things You Should Know About Health Care Reform in 2010</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4635648</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4635648</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 09 Jul 2010 10:51:11 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The 2,700 page Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Obama on March 23, 2010. This reform of the health care system is enormous and its impact on the lives of American citizens promises to be equally so. Although nineteen states have challenged the Constitutionality of this Act with different hearing dates around the country, it is likely that at least a portion of this Act will take place this year. Here are seven health insurance provisions that will be operational after September 23rd.]]></description>
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<title>Three Things Every Computer Savvy Independent Consultant Must Know</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4604198</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4604198</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jul 2010 10:08:24 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[As an independent consultant you must be constantly concerned about personal development and continuous growth. If you aren't, you will be passed by those who are. The personal computer remains an essential tool in carrying out this mission. Use it effectively and efficiently.]]></description>
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<title>The Challenge of Aloneness and Loneliness For Independent Consultants</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4593540</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4593540</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Jul 2010 11:03:30 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[If you work as an independent consultant often you will find yourself working alone even though you may have close friends or family members. In fact, depending on the type of consulting work that you do, finding time to be alone may be a must. However aloneness should not be confused with loneliness. For two terms which sounds so similar, there is a world of difference between the two.]]></description>
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<title>Little Known Features in Nonprofit Directors and Officers Liability Coverage</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4580250</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4580250</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jun 2010 10:38:30 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Nonprofit organizations are in jeopardy when attempting to exist without directors and officers liability insurance. Liabilities, which are best defined as obligations that legally bind an individual or organization to settle a debt or to settle a wrongful act they may have committed, need to be anticipated and accounted for.]]></description>
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<title>Directors and Officers Liability Insurance - A Must For Non-Profit Organizations</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4575922</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4575922</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jun 2010 07:44:24 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Directors and officers of nonprofit organizations who generously donate their time to advance the cause of an organization created to serve the public shouldn't have to be concerned about a lawsuit. However, at least 45 percent of nonprofit organizations can expect to experience at least one directors and officers' liability claim during its existence.]]></description>
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<title>Medigap Plans Or Medicare Advantage Plans - The New Choice For Retirees</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4496477</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4496477</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Jun 2010 11:38:28 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Medigap Insurance, often referred to as Medicare Supplement Plans, underwent significant changes as of June 1, 2010. Medigap, the health insurance plan designed to cover deductibles and coinsurance Medicare recipients are obligated to pay when accessing health care services, just had a major makeover. Several plans were eliminated and new ones added.]]></description>
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<title>For Personal Development and Productivity - Start by Managing Your Time</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/4417639</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/4417639</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:24:55 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Procrastinations, interruptions, and distractions are the three culprits that work against your efforts at personal development and productivity. Procrastinations often arise because psychologically you don't want to do the task and consequently you keep putting it off.]]></description>
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