Making a Go Of It!
Well I must say one thing about Honest Riches, I might not be rich yet (monetarily) but the program certainly is honest! I decided to make a fresh start about a week ago (like the new design?) and noticed there’s a new version of Honest Riches. So I followed to steps to get the update. For some reason Holly Mann’s website was having some issues, so I put in a request. That didn’t work right, so I posted a note on her blog (quite informative by the way). Within minutes of posting I received a nice e-mail from Holly personally apologizing for the website issues along with a link to the download.
Wow. I tell my students all the time that you can learn more from how people handle problems than you can by how they handle success. Needless to say I am quite impressed.
I’ve finished reading/scanning the book and it is exactly as I thought it would be. For me (someone who has been looking at this stuff for years and teaches some of the concepts) it was nothing new. But that’s a good thing. What she did was she put all the information into a useable format. I plan on applying some of what I learn and posting the results here. So stay tuned.
Also, more changes are on the way to the site. I have some new ideas on how to focus it and perhaps make it more useful. Until then please check out the new and improved Honest Riches.
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Tip JarHonest Riches?
Well, I took the plunge. You should start seeing some changes to this site in the next few days or weeks (always seems like there is more to do than I have time). Those who have checked here from time to time know that Success in Balance with the rest of your life if a passion of mine. I think many misinterpret both “success” and “balance”. Even this last weekend my definition of these two was being refined….more on that later.
Anyway, I have been looking at an online program by Holly Mann called “Honest Riches” and it attracted me for several reasons. First the honesty. There were/are no outrageous claims and the process makes sense. So I bough the e-book. On first glance the thing that struck me is “I know most of this already”, but that’s actually a good thing as it shows the program is in line with what I am thinking. What I am hoping is that it will take what I already know and help me better focus/apply it.
Isn’t that the case with most of us? Think about it. You have probably ready many Time Management books, but it’s what you are able to apply that makes the difference. Anyway, wish me luck and check back later to read how things are going as well as to see how the site evolves….I have some new ideas 
Check it out for yourself if you are interested:
Teen is running out of innings, but the game still isn’t over
Teen is running out of innings, but the game still isn’t over
When asked where he gained his wisdom, he answered, “Through cancer.”
Wow, as I read this I was inspired and thought perhaps that’s the direction Success in Balance should go. Perhaps this should be a site full of encouraging links. There’s so many things to be thankful for, it all depends on what we focus on. We can learn so much from and through adversity. We can also learn a lot from others…if we jst slow down for a minute to reflect. This story reminded me of that and I need to be reminded more often.
Grace & Peace!
Tip JarThe Last Lecture: A Love Story for Your Life
ABC News: The Last Lecture: A Love Story for Your Life
Professor Randy Pausch’s inspiring last lecture at Carnegie Mellon about living life to the fullest struck a chord with people all over the country. Seven months later, Pausch talks about his battle with cancer, his family and how that last lecture changed his life.
Wow, every time I listen to Randy I get something of value. I came across this web page by ABC News with interviews and links to his lectures and just found it so inspirational. So I thought I would share. I hope you find it encouraging as I did.
Tip JarMobile Phone - Improving the quality of life?
I just read this interesting article by John Dvorak. The interesting thing is it is a PC Mag article. His whole premise is that phones have not made life better, in fact in many ways it has created some misplaced priorities. At least that’s my take. At first I didn’t agree, but the more I thought about it the more I think he is right. A friend and I had an e-mail conversation earlier today about the latest smart phones and PDAs. We really like the promise of convenience, but is it a reality? Do they allow me to work from the beach and thus allow me to spend more time at the beach? Or a ballgame or someplace else I enjoy? The reality is they could, but instead I can now work from the beach when I would have been at the beach anyway. So the reality is they enable work to creep into my private life…not a good thing.
Years ago scholars predicted with all the improvements we would be able to work 20 hours a week. But what has really happened? All the improvements mean we can now work 70 hours a week.
Gadgets can help with success in balance, but they must be used strategically. So instead of running out to get the next gadget, think about how it will make your life better…I mean really better.
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Tip JarTwelve-steps to curing e-mail addiction
Twelve-steps to curing e-mail addiction - CNN.com
An executive coach in Pennsylvania has devised a plan to teach people how to manage the electronic tool, which some users say can be as much an intrusive waste of time as it is fast-paced and efficient.
Developed for cases such as a golfer who checked his BlackBerry after every shot, and lost a potential client who wanted nothing to do with his obsession, Marsha Egan’s plan taps into deepening concern that e-mail misuse can cost businesses millions of dollars in lost productivity.
Fascinating article that for me touches on many levels. First is the addiction part. Sure I think many are addicted to the instant gratification that e-mail can provide and also the idea of living up to expectations. For academics this can be very real. Last semester I had a student e-mail me at 6:30pm with a question, but I was out at a family function. When I returned home and checked e-mail at 9:30pm (just 3 hours) I was greeted with a nasty note “why have you not responded”.
But the reality of this article is that it is more about time management and setting priorities than then addiction. There are some good tips for keeping e-mail under control. As our attention spans continue to get smaller and smaller we need to work hard to bring them back up or the IQ of the entire nation will eventually suffer.
Happyness Found in Fatherhood
FOXNews.com - Happyness Found in Fatherhood - Blog | Blogs | Popular Blogs | Video Blogs
It will also remind them to be encouraged, because some of their best fathering may start when they are flat on their back. After all, success in life, and in fathering, is less about how many times one falls, but rather, about how many times one gets back up.
One more movie to add to the holiday viewing list 
Cheer up: You hold key to being happy
The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Cheer up: You hold key to being happy
Think about three good things that happened to you each day before you go to sleep…
People keep doing it on their own because it’s immediately rewarding, said Seligman colleague Acacia Parks. It makes people focus more on good things that happen, which might otherwise be forgotten because of daily disappointments, she said.
Miller said that the exercise made her notice more good things in her day, and that now she routinely lists 10 or 20 of them, rather than just three.
Great article with some great perspectives. We are what we think and when we think happy we eventually become happy
Sort of like Thanksgiving every day!
Having money helps, to a point
The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Having money helps, to a point
Daniel Kahneman, a Nobel Prize winner and Princeton economist, and colleagues recently declared that the notion that making a lot of money will produce good overall mood is “mostly illusory.”They noted that in one study, people with household incomes of $90,000 or more were only slightly more likely to call themselves “very happy” overall than were people from households making $50,000 to $89,999. The rates were 43 percent versus 42 percent, respectively.
Definitely interesting to think about this article. What role does money play in your happiness? Sure it does not cure issues, but it can do other things. I suspect if they accounted for other issues, such as marital state, family relationships etc. they could have explained more of the difference. That’s why we all need balance.
