Technology

Could the mighty Zambezi River really become a waterway?

Worrying reports have recently surfaced in the press that the Zambezi Seaway Scheme, first raised in the 1950s by the Portuguese to reduce freight costs for landlocked countries in southern Africa, is back on the cards. .

The proposed seaway would be 1,500 km long, stretching from Victoria Falls in western Zimbabwe to the Indian Ocean in eastern Mozambique. The promoters of this mammoth scheme, the Zambezi Seaway Corporation, say it will offer a cheaper, faster and more efficient route to the ocean, thereby boosting local economies. The current cost of transporting large quantities of goods and minerals to the coast is prohibitive. Thus, by floating these goods, the cost of transportation would be drastically reduced, bringing them to the world market at greatly reduced prices, leading to an industrial boom.

The developers intend to dredge some sections, while the channels and locks will be used to bypass the rapids. Simple: well, the walls of the Cahora Bassa and Kariba dams will also have to be circumvented, apparently via a boat lift.

Can this really be true?

Reading various reports on the subject, the people behind this corporation are considering this. Haven’t we made enough of a mess of our planet earth by now? Have we learned nothing from the mistakes we have already made? Do we really need another industrial boom? Haven’t the latest industrial booms done enough damage to our world? Damage – that many of us are now trying to correct.

The concept is based purely on the economic advantages for the people of the region and the economies of the host world. There is no doubt that this would stimulate economies, but at what cost, it is about people, people, people.

No one seems to have considered the impact such a project will have on the environment and the abundant wildlife that thrives along the banks of the Zambezi or in its waters.

It is not up to us to destroy it, what right do we have to take one of nature’s most magnificent spectacles and turn it into a man-made seaway for our own economic gain? We are the custodians of this planet. Is this what you would call taking care of it?

If anyone, including the people behind the concept, took the time to experience this place of incredible beauty in its entirety, they would not be able to contemplate destroying it. This 1,500 km stretch of water is home to some of the most outstanding wildlife areas left on our planet.

I respect that each one of us on this planet has a different point of view. That if you didn’t know the Zambezi intimately, then you could be forgiven for not thinking of changing it from a place of outstanding natural beauty to economic viability.

But for those of us who know about this place, we must do everything we can to expose the value and beauty of this place to the people behind this scheme. Showing that if we destroy it, it can never be replaced, is it fair to our children, just so we can export cheaper minerals? Everything for the benefit of humanity is what it really is about. Does the animal kingdom really have no say in this?

The cost is expected to exceed US$3 billion, which is hopefully enough of a deterrent to prevent this scheme from going ahead. The worrying thing is that some nutcase in a government department who gets a big enough spin, along with possible backing from the East, could really get this project off the ground and destroy one of the world’s natural wonderlands.

We have to take action and prevent this from happening.

Before you can truly live, you need to find something worth dying for!

Please, if you have any comments or opinions regarding this, please visit the website below and give your opinion.

Home Kitchen

Door handle problems and how to fix them

1) Sometimes the screws used to attach the handle to the door have been over-tightened, especially if a power screwdriver was used. Overtightening can cause 2 problems.

Firstly, this causes the back plate that the handle is mounted to “pin” on the door and in turn “pinches” the lock/bolt, preventing the spring inside the lock/bolt from doing its work. work correctly.

Second, over-tightening can create friction on the spring inside the back plate of the handle. To rectify these issues, simply loosen each of the screws that hold the handle in place very slightly (say a quarter turn for each screw). Try the handle and, if necessary, loosen the screws a little more.

2) Many door handles have internal springs which, if not properly lubricated, can rub against the inside of the handle backplate.

To check if this is the cause of your problem, do the following. Remove the door handle. Hold the back plate with one hand and operate the lever with the other hand to see if it seems to be squeaking. If so, smear some grease or Vaseline on the spring and move the handle a few times until the grease or Vaseline is gone. it forced its way into the spring mechanism.

The handle should now move freely and can be reattached to the door.

3) Some door handles have a long ‘neck’ on the inside where the square spindle bar is located. Occasionally these can get stuck against the door, preventing the handle from returning to its normal position.

Remove the door handle and place it on a table. It should lay flat, but if it ‘rocks’ then the ‘neck’ sticks out more than the back plate of the handle.

You will need to drill a hole in each side of the door large and deep enough to allow the handle backplate to rest flat against the door.

4) To save money during construction, many doors are fitted with very cheap tubular latches and it is quite possible that the spring mechanism has failed.

Remove the door handles and pull out the latch. You should be able to press the latch with one finger and see it pop back out.

If it doesn’t completely or slowly, you should install a new latch of the same size, but ideally of better quality. ‘

5) Sometimes, especially on new houses or newly installed doors, the doors ‘fall off’ after a while. If this happens, the bolt may bind against its support plate.

If this has happened, you will probably be able to detect signs of wear or scratches on the strike plate and perhaps the deadbolt.

To correct this you need to remove the keeper plate and reattach it a little lower in the door frame.

Digital Marketing

How Google’s mobile-first indexing is affecting your website

If you want to make sure you maintain your SEO results and maintain your search engine rankings, you better pay attention to the latest updates from the biggest search engine; Google. Below are some reasons why Mobile First Indexing could be affecting your page.

Mobile usability issues on your site

If your site has mobile usability issues and is difficult to navigate on tablets or phones, it will affect your search engine rankings. You’ll need to make sure that links and buttons aren’t too close together and that the text is readable on all screens. Most likely, if you are using an older template, this is a problem. You may want to get a responsive theme, but this is not enough.

mobile speed test

Once you’re sure your site works well on mobile screens and you’re giving your visitors the best user experience possible, it’s important to speed test it. Most sites, like the Google page speed checker and Pingdom tools, will tell you about page speed on mobile and desktop. Anything under three seconds is good, but anything over six seconds will simply ruin your search engine ranking.

Google Page Score

You will also need to look at your page quality and performance score. Sign in to your Google Webmaster Tools account and check for issues. If there aren’t any, you can still make improvements, especially if your site loads slowly. Consider the source of the traffic. If you have an international audience, you are better off using a CDN service. CDN stands for Content Delivery Network. As an example, if your host is located in Austin, Texas, and all the servers are there, and your traffic is coming from Europe, it will take a while for the server to respond. A CDN service can solve this problem.

How to update your site

It is important that you update your website and check the loading time regularly, especially after installing new plugins or widgets. However, switching to a lighter theme is another option that can work very well. Instead of paying thousands of dollars to a web designer to create a new site, you can simply add speed optimization plugins or change settings manually. Getting a fresh install will likely resolve the issue. You can also get a mobile-first optimized site powered by LMNTs Marketing.

The mobile performance of your website is important. Be sure to check your ranking and page speed to keep traffic flowing.

Relationship

In Your Honor: Tips for Hosting a Party for Someone Else

One of my favorite aspects of being Shot In The Dark Murder Mystery Games Mystery Maiden is designing custom games for special events and parties. Usually, my clients ask me to design a game to surprise a loved one during an event held in their honor.

A party in someone’s honor is very different from the boozy birthday party some of us have grown accustomed to. A party thrown to honor another is an opportunity to present your accomplishments, milestones, and interests.

Throwing a party to honor another person, whether it’s for a birthday, graduation, or anniversary, is something that needs to be done with care. Here are some tips to help you plan a party for someone.

When I was young, I was delighted to hear that my dad ordered lawn flamingos to celebrate my mother’s 40th birthday (much to my disappointment, the flamingos turned out to be plastic). Thankfully, Mom took the embarrassing prank well (but she got her revenge on our 16th birthday!). When she tried to return the favor to my dad a few years later, he didn’t take well to the idea of ​​a surprise party. The difference between my parents was that my mom liked the idea of ​​a surprise in her honor. My dad felt the opposite. When planning his party, you must first determine if the event will be a surprise or if the guest of honor will know ahead of time. In the case of my parents, my dad would have reacted better if they had informed him of the party in advance. Consider everything he knows about the person when deciding if the party will be a surprise. I never would have guessed my dad wouldn’t love a surprise party, and I’ve known him my whole life! How can you be sure? Bring up surprise parties casually with his honoree and gauge his reaction.

The next thing to do is find out everything you can about the honoree. Regardless of how well you know someone, chances are someone else knows something that you don’t. Last fall I created a custom murder mystery game centered around my aunt turning 60. One night while she was in the shower, I had a clandestine phone conversation with my uncle, who gave me such great ideas that we identified the topic. immediately. Brainstorm the information you know along with the information you learn to put together the details of your party.

The guest list will make or break your party. There are two things to remember when creating a guest list. First, don’t invite the wrong people, and second, invite the right people! Sure, I could probably throw a party for your Aunt Gertrude. I can put up pretty green and orange decorations and order a celebratory flan cake. You could even fill your living room with guests simply by stealing your address book from its place next to your rotary phone. But how would you know that “Big Barry” is actually Aunt Gertrude’s exterminator, Penny Marshall is the IRS agent who audited her last year, and Hilda Harper was her best friend who stole her favorite pair of shoes 30 years ago? years? ? The truth is that I will not know. When Aunt Gertrude walks into the party venue, she’ll wonder why her bug boy, the auditor, and her evil ex-best friend are raising glasses to toast her.

However, there are always people who touch our lives that we would love to see at a party thrown in our honor. A coach, teacher, mentor, or even a former boss might be on that list, but they’re not in Aunt Gertrude’s address book. Hmm… complicated.

First, I’d make a list of everyone I know Gertrude likes: her next-door neighbor; her childhood best friend; the women of her skydiving club. Then she would call each of those people and ask if they can think of anyone else they know that she should be on the list, and so on. I’d have to do more than just steal her address book, but this is Aunt Gert, after all: if she’s worth a big party, she’s worth a few phone calls and an afternoon of my time. Inviting mentors, coaches, and others from your honoree’s life means the difference between an everyday party and a true celebration of your guest of honor.

During the party, keep your honoree in the spotlight. Select about five people on the guest list to write and deliver a speech about your guest of honor. Not sure who to turn to? Choose one person from each part of your honoree’s life. For example: childhood, adolescence, 20, 30, etc. If your honoree is young, select from your work/school/social life and clubs or activities your honoree belongs to.

Lastly, create memories. To truly host a fancy soiree, make invitations or programs to commemorate the event. Guests, as well as your guest of honor, will cherish the keepsake for years to come. Don’t know where to get them? We recommend: Nicola Jane Originals at http://www.nicolajane.net/.

Anyone should be honored to have a party thrown just for them. Follow our tips to make sure your guests, as well as your guest of honor, feel that way: Honored.

For more party planning tips and to share your own tips, visit the Shot In The Dark Mystery Games dark community.

Health Fitness

Salads – a great addition to any meal

Salad – a bowl of health and happiness

Today’s salads are bursting with flavor, not a bowl of wilted lettuce, over ripe tomatoes and little else. Today’s salads are full of color, appetizing, full of fresh fruits and vegetables. They are appropriate for all occasions. You can create a salad for a family dinner, light lunch, or dinner. The salad can be your main dish. Salad creation is limitless. If you can dream it, you can create it.

Today’s salads can be prepared at any time of the year. They can be as simple or as complex as you like. Salads can be the main dish by adding meat, seafood, or poultry along with greens, vegetables, nuts, fruit, and cheese. Salads will fit very easily into your eating plans. As you get into the habit of adding salads to your menu planning, you’ll find yourself searching for the ingredients for the next type of salad you want to put on your table.

In this day and age we are encouraged to eat more fruits and vegetables in our diets. There’s no better way to add them to your diet than a fresh salad at mealtime.

Salads: keep them fresh

Salads are only as good as the ingredients you use. When shopping for your ingredients, it’s important to make sure they’re fresh. Just as it’s important to be eye-catching when serving a dish, let your eyes do the shopping.

Salad recipes:

Greek Salad (serves 4)

Ingredients:

7 ounces Greek feta cheese

2 heads of romaine lettuce, shredded

4 tomatoes, cut into quarters

1 cucumber, sliced

24 Kalamata olives, pitted

2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (such as Greek oregano, flat-leaf parsley, or basil)

Dressing room:

6 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 clove garlic

3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon of sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Addresses:

1. First make the dressing and reserve.

2. Prepare all the salad ingredients and divide them equally among 4 bowls.

3. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)

Salad Dinner (serves 4)

3 ounces cucumber, sliced ​​or diced

8 chives, chopped

2 tomatoes, seeded

1 yellow or red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips

2-3 radishes cut into thin slices

3 ounces spring mix

1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped

Dressing room:

1/4 cup fresh or frozen berries

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon of water

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, crushed

Salt and pepper to taste

Addresses:

1. Add all dressing ingredients to a blender and puree. set aside

2. Prepare the ingredients for the salad and divide them equally among four bowls.

3. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)

Shrimp, Salmon and Tomato Salad (Serves 4)

6 ounces grape tomatoes

12 romaine lettuce leaves

4 ounces of smoked salmon

8 ounces cooked and peeled shrimp

Dressing room:

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons of sugar

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh dill, chopped

Addresses:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl, set aside.

2. Cut the tomatoes in half. Take the lettuce leaves and arrange them around the bowl.

3. Cut the smoked salmon into strips. Add the tomatoes, salmon, and shrimp to the bowls.

4. Drizzle with dressing and serve. (Do not add dressing until ready to serve)

Legal Law

Aid! I was on an H1B and got fired!

It’s pretty clear that the economy is bad and only a reticent few are in denial at this point. So what do you do when you have an H1B visa and you get fired? Well, first of all, don’t panic. You probably have a visa that lasts for years right now, so you are NOT increasing unlawful presence even though you ARE out of state. What does that mean? Well, just putting on too much of an illegal presence means you won’t be allowed back into the US for many years. Specifically, 180 days to 365 days of unlawful presence means that you will be barred from entering the US for three years if you leave and try to return. Anything longer than one year results in a 10-year reentry bar should you leave the United States.

But I’m out of status, so I’m increasing unlawful presence, right?

Not at all. The date on his I-94 rules his world. So if you still have time on your I-94, then you are not increasing unlawful presence until after that date has passed.

EXCELLENT! I’ll stay!

Well, the bad news is that you ARE deportable since you are out of status, so that is a very bad idea! Also, you cannot change your status to any other status once you are removed, since you no longer have a valid nonimmigrant status. That means you’ll have to leave if you try to change your status.

Then what do I do??

I can’t answer that question for you. However, I can say that you are not supposed to be here (and I would never recommend that you violate any immigration laws), BUT if you find a new and appropriate H1B visa sponsor quickly, you MAY be in luck and USCIS MAY allow you to change employers without go out. It certainly has happened before and possibly getting fired is not your fault and you and your new employer should not be punished for your firing. In other words, you shouldn’t have to spend the money to leave the US, get your new H1B, and then re-enter, costing you and your employer time and money. The likely worst case scenario in this case is USCIS issuing you an H1B but forcing you to leave to get your new visa stamped. But you will have to find a suitable job and beg for mercy from one of the most ruthless agencies in the United States!

Good luck!

Lifestyle Fashion

How to get rid of candida

You’ve probably seen your doctor numerous times, and maybe even seen several different doctors. She may have spent vast amounts of money trying to feel better, but nothing has worked. Finally, after countless hours of research or finding the right doctor, she realizes that she has candida. Now what? You can find a lot of literature on the candida diet (an essential component but not a treatment in itself) and there are many products available that claim to cure yeast overgrowth. How do I know what to do?

First things first: Candida is a very stubborn little organism to get rid of. You need to treat this infection on every possible front for the best chance of success. Be aware that a very small amount of yeast left in any part of your digestive tract can start to grow – within 6 months to a year you can become re-infected! It’s also important to note how long you’ve had the yeast overgrowth. Many people have been dealing with this problem for years and haven’t realized it. If it is a relatively new situation, it should be easier to treat the condition. The more extensive the infestation, the tougher the battle will be.

It is best to attack the problem in phases. Your first phase should involve killing parasites and cleansing the intestinal tract. Parasites are always present with yeast overgrowth. It is not known if the parasites are part of the cause or an occurrence due to the yeast infection. We know they come hand in hand. Parasites excrete toxins that kill beneficial bacteria and can suppress the immune system, creating an environment conducive to yeast growth. You will also want to start killing the yeast during your first phase. You’ll want to use products that kill parasites, kill yeast, and rinse and cleanse the gut. Some great products include:

CandiClear5 (Kills parasites, kills yeast, absorbs toxins and kill yeast products, absorbs heavy metals, and balances the body’s PH. A note about this product: It’s a wonderful yeast killing product, probably the best! It’s pretty awful to drink though Mixing it into a fruit smoothie is a good way to swallow it, avoiding the chalky texture and bad taste).

Colon cleansing products (colon boost, colon cleanse, indigest free, colonix, Re gulux are all good products. However, Indigest free is the only product I know of that actually strips away the lining of the intestinal wall.

After you have worked to kill the parasite and cleanse the intestine, you are ready for phase two. This phase involves attacking the yeast with full force! During phases 1 and 2 it is most important to spearhead the candida diet! Use as many products as you want or can afford during phase two.

Keep using CandiClear5! (Sorry about the taste and texture, but it will work.)

Hemoxide (your body naturally produces nitric oxide to fight yeast. This product will help your body use its own natural defense. Nitric oxide also increases circulation, makes nutrients more available at the cellular level, and flushes out toxins)

Threelac, Candex, and Carnivora are also excellent yeast-killing products.

Phase three is the point at which you begin to regenerate healthy flora in your digestive tract. Putting healthy bacteria into your digestive tract when it’s still full of yeast is counterproductive. After you have killed a large number of yeasts and parasites, now is the time to repopulate. You don’t have to be as strict about the candida diet at this time, although you should always avoid a diet high in refined sugars for general health. Some great repopulating products are:

Biotic Bloom (this product also continues to kill yeast and can be used in phase 2 if desired)

Ultra Blend (probably the best source of healthy bacteria as it contains the same bacteria found in babies that are gradually eliminated as we age)

Threelac and Fivelac (great repopulators and yeast killers, can also be used in stage 2, but better for stage 3)

Now that you’ve killed the yeast and parasites and repopulated your digestive tract, it’s time to move on to phase 4. Candida dramatically reduces your cells’ ability to absorb nutrients, leaving your body depleted on a cellular level. Now you need to replenish your body and help your immune system work more effectively. Here are some great products for this stage:

Take a good multivitamin and mineral supplement (Life Essence Multiple, Omica Plus, Bio Sil, Daily Foods Megaflora – these are all great supplements, but you can choose any supplement you like, just replenish your body!)

Your liver and kidneys have been working overtime since you got infected, so it’s important to help them heal (Liver balance plus and rescue kidney are great sources)

Taking supplements to boost the immune system is a good idea (Echinacea, ActivaMune, and ImmunExtra are all great products).

Continue taking healthy bacterial supplements

You may want to take CandiClear5 or a product like three lac as a maintenance product.

Phase one should last around 2 months, phase two 4-6 months, phase three and phase four can overlap and will generally take a year. You can be cured of yeast infection, but always be aware of the circumstances that led to the problem in the first place. It is always important to take care of one’s health – many people find that taking a probiotic for the rest of their lives is a great way to keep yeast at bay! Remember: drink lots of water! Water helps your cells stay fat and healthy while flushing out toxins, flushing out cells, etc. our from your system. There is no substitute for WATER!

Real Estate

I just bought a parcel of real estate at a tax sale: what do I do now?

Once you have successfully purchased a parcel of real estate at a tax sale, you still do not “own” the property. You have required a “Tax Sale Certificate,” which is similar to a lien against the property. To actually convert that fiscal sale certificate into a fiscal deed, you will need to perform the following procedures:

First, you will need to apply for title work on the property to an established real estate title company. The title company will look at local records to determine who might be an interested party in the real estate. This can be a tenant, a mortgagee, a judgment lien holder, anyone who has an “interest” in the property.

You must then notify the owner of the property and all other interested parties about the purchase of the property at the tax sale by certified mail.

After notification is given, there is usually a long waiting period until you can file your verified petition for issuance of the tax deed. This is the “redemption period,” which generally lasts one year from the date of sale. During this period, the owner (or anyone else) can redeem the property by paying any unpaid taxes, fines, and other assessments. The redeeming party must also pay an amount equal to 10% of the money paid by you. At all times during the redemption period, it will be your responsibility to ensure that all property taxes are paid.

Because the property is redeemable, you must file a cost statement with the county auditor’s office as soon as you are allowed to. This statement will include a certification of costs incurred, including title and attorney’s fees. Once those costs are certified to the auditor, any redemption party will be required to make payment of those costs prior to redemption. Those costs will then be reimbursed to you if the property is redeemed.

After the expiration of the redemption period, if no redemption has been made, you will file your verified petition for tax deed with the county court. You will name all interested parties as parties to the petition. Assuming there is no objection from the interested parties, the court will order the issuance of their tax deed.

Please note that there are strict time constraints for each of these steps throughout the process. Failure to meet a deadline may mean the loss of your right to your tax deed.

Finally, even after the tax deed has been issued, there may still be work to be done if you want to sell or mortgage the property. Most title companies will not secure title to property acquired by tax sale without a “silent title” claim. A silent title lawsuit is a lawsuit filed in court in which the plaintiff asks the court to enter a judgment declaring their title to the property. Potential interested parties are given the right to object to quiet title. If the plaintiff wins, they usually get a judgment stating that they are the rightful owner of the property. The judgment is final (although subject to appeal) and will usually grant commercial title to the property.

Shopping Product Reviews

7 Ecommerce Trends You Might Be Missing

More than half of the world’s population now loves to shop online while sitting in their comfortable bed or armchair. The rise of e-commerce has clearly brought some notable changes to the retail segment and to consumer buying behaviors. For you, as well as for all other retail businesses, having an online store is no longer an option. Rather, it is imperative to stay in the game. However, for those who already have a vibration shop, it is not easy at all. There are many similar retailers coming onto the scene every day. So what is important for the existing players in the market is to keep them up to date with the latest trends that the evolution of e-commerce unleashes every year.

If you have a dominant position in the online retail market, don’t miss the following trends that the eCommerce industry is currently driving.

Increased use of mobile devices

“The future of eCommerce will be governed by mobile phones” have revealed studies. With a large proportion of consumers now touching their phone screens to place orders instead of logging into the site via their desktops. Also, with Google’s announcement of the ranking algorithm that would count on a site’s mobile responsiveness, there was an even bigger boost in mobile shopping through an app that is the exact replica of the site.

Voice purchases on the rise

While smartphones are only recently being integrated with voice assistants, there is great scope for e-commerce to take advantage of that and offer more personalized shopping experiences. Voice assistants help users perform different tasks on the phone by speaking it. Therefore, an e-commerce application can also implement it so that shoppers can search for products simply by expressing their desires.

More improved fulfillment and payment options

In addition to flexible shipping options, like free shipping within a specified distance or above a certain order quantity, eCommerce owners offer more lucrative fulfillment to beat the competition. Premium shipping options are emerging, such as same-day delivery, expedited delivery, store pickup, etc. On the payment side, new options like Buy Now Pay Later, E-Wallet, Mobile Payment, etc. were developed. Therefore, on an obvious note, you should also consider them to secure your position in the market.

Chatbots along with the Messenger feature

Chatbots that help in personalized interaction via messenger will be on the rise in the eCommerce segment. They are used by retailers to send personalized marketing content, recommend product purchases, and notify coupon deals or offers. Additionally, with Chatbots, retailers can attend to customer service requests or inquiries at any time and resolve them instantly. With the increasing relevance of personalization in e-commerce, the Chatbots trend is bound to become more prominent.

Omnipresence

It’s 2018 where the mobile presence has eclipsed everything else in the world. People use hundreds of mobile devices with different operating system platforms to search for things online. Therefore, it will not be more fruitful for e-commerce companies to only target particular devices. They need to target everyone from smartphones to iPhones, tablets, laptops and desktops.

Video integrations along with AR

Popular e-commerce giants have already fueled this trend. They are using videos to showcase products or demonstrate their uses. Furthermore, some are also playing around with the concept of Augmented Reality where users can test a product virtually on screens.

Storytelling that captivates viewers more

Well, in eCommerce marketing, storytelling today works well to entice visitors to buy because it directly ties their lifestyle to the brand. It pinches the emotions of the buyers. Different statistics, consumer advice or habits will help make a difference in people’s perception.

That’s everything for now! Retailers who see themselves as a stronger player in the market need to quickly catch on to one or a few of these trends as quickly as possible before time runs out.

Sports

Coaching Tools 101 – The Wheel of Life – 11 new and improved uses for the ultimate coaching tool

The Wheel of Life may be ‘old hat’ to us trainers, but it is a powerful visual training tool with many uses in the world of training. In fact, it may be the best and most flexible training tool in any trainer’s toolbox.

We forget that The Wheel of Life is still new to most of our customers. And even when they’ve encountered it before, it will tell them something new when they use it again, because like most training tools, it can only pick up on how someone is feeling at any given moment.

So, besides the common use of the wheel to see the balance of life, how else can we use The Wheel of Life to help our clients? Here are 11 new and improved uses for The Wheel of Life:

  1. Use The Wheel of Life to help your clients set meaningful goals. Areas with low scores are prime candidates for your clients to set bigger goals. Advice: This is an especially useful tool for business and career coaches/executives: to guide left-brained clients into ‘softer’ areas that improve their entire lives. Which of course will benefit their careers and businesses in the long run.
  2. Use a dig wheel to help your clients understand their lives and problems more deeply. Take one of the segments or categories and ask them to dig deeper by writing 8 areas that make up that segment for them. Advice: E.g. a ‘Finances’ wheel could include saving for a house or wedding, spending less/budgeting, saving for retirement, paying off credit cards, getting a better paying job, etc.
  3. Help your customers see how far they’ve come. Use The Wheel of Life monthly or quarterly with your clients, as a record to see how they are doing AND as a way for them to see how they have improved and grown. The improved scores demonstrate the concrete value of coaching and helping clients see their learning and progress. Advice: It’s a bit like looking back in an old journal and seeing how far you’ve come!
  4. De-stress your Clients! What about The Wheel of Stress from The Wheel of Frustration? Eliminate the usual ‘life balance’ categories and help your client to ‘think free’ through their problems. Ask them to label the top 8 areas that stress or frustrate them the most. Ask them to rate HOW stressful and frustrating each of their areas out of 10 is, and review the results with them. Advice: Ask, which area stresses them out the most? Are there surprises? How could they lower their scores?
  5. Help your customers get excited about life! How about The Wheel of Happiness, fun, or even excitement? Depending on what your customer needs/seeks, ask them to come up with 8 areas or things that are fun or excited/happy. Label the segments of the wheel accordingly and ask your customer for an action or commitment for each segment. What do they notice? How could you bring more of each segment into your lives? Advice: Help them find multiple wins, ie. areas where a stock increases its score in several areas?
  6. For Business Coaches, use the wheel to identify Sales and/or Marketing actions for your clients. Take a blank wheel and add the key areas your customers need to act on. Ask your customers to propose actions for each of you to complete in the next month. Advice: For example, a marketing conference could include the following; online social networks, SEO, article marketing, traditional networking, newsletter, fairs, advertising, seminars.
  7. Priority Management. What are your client’s top priorities? This could be at work, home, or life in general. Ask your client to label each segment and specifically identify their top 3 priorities. Then ask them to rate their satisfaction out of 10 for each area. Advice: What do they notice? Do they have their priorities “clear” or do they need to change their approach? What actions could they take to improve their scores?
  8. Understand what is TRULY important in life. Have your client list or brainstorm their priorities or goals; Asking him to list everything he wants to “Be, Do, and Have” in life is a great way to go. Now ask them to take each priority or goal and run through the ‘balancing’ categories of the Wheel of Life and ask themselves, “Will this improve my satisfaction in this area?” and for each area that is improved, that goal gets one point. Then, review which goals get the highest and lowest scores. What do they notice? What have they learned? This helps people see what will really make a difference in their lives rather than what they think will improve their lives. Advice: Suppose your customer wants to buy a Ferrari. Will it improve your finances? No. Will it improve your relationships with family and friends? Probably not. Will it improve your career? Unlikely. Will it enhance your fun? Yes. And so on until you get a score of maybe 2 out of 8. Now consider being a great dad. It may not improve your finances or career (although you never know), but it will help your family relationships, fun, health, personal growth, etc., which is why you might get a score of 6 out of 8.
  9. Identify skills gaps for promotions/new jobs/careers. Use a blank wheel and ask your client (or you can do it beforehand) to label the top 8 skills you’ll need to get the job or promotion you want. Now ask them to rate, out of 10, where they are at the moment in each of the skills. Finally, assign an action against each of the skill areas where they need to improve their skills. Advice: You could even ask them to identify an action for the areas in which they score high, “What could they do to really excel in that skill?”
  10. Help your clients identify what they are looking for in a relationship. This is called The Relationship Wheel. So, take a blank wheel and ask your client to label the segments with the 8 qualities an ideal partner would have. This MUST be done by the customer! And then ask them to rate how IMPORTANT out of 10 each quality is. This will help them figure out if being attractive or romantic is just as important as being trustworthy, having a good sense of humor, or being a good parent. Advice: You can even use the strategy outlined above in number 8, where you take each personal quality they’ve listed and assign you a point for each area of ​​the Wheel of Life that you improve. What qualities will really make a difference in their lives?
  11. General Planning of Actions. Just use a blank wheel to help your client think of actions. Write the goal at the top of the page and then ask them to write the 8 actions or parts of work that make up their goal. Advice: Have them put a date on each one, and they can use the pie pieces to record the % Complete for each area until it’s complete!

Of course, you’re not limited to 8 segments, it’s just a useful number, and an easy one to split on the wheel! So feel free to use fewer segments or split segments for more.

And whatever we’ve used the wheel for, I like to ask this question when it’s complete: “So if this wheel represented your life/relationship/career/marketing strategy, is it a bumpy ride?”

I hope this has given you some new ideas on how you can work with and use ‘The Wheel of Life’ in your coaching practice. Try it, it’s very good!