2/29/12

CT NOW Networking Event - March 8th - International Women's Day



Come celebrate with us!


In celebration of International Women's Day, CT NOW is hosting a networking event on Thursday, March 8th, 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. at


Barca Tapas, 1429 Park Street, Hartford.


For more information please visit our website.


We look forward to seeing you there!

2/24/12

Why So Cynical?

(Note: I wrote this for a class I took two years ago, and I think it still applies today. It isn't about any specific topic, but one can make parallels with many different kinds of issues. I edited it and added a bit of content for the purposes of this blog post. So, here it is.)

Do we have to be so cynical? There is a fine line between being critical and being cynical, and I think we're flailing our arms like a tightrope artist while we attempt to walk it. (Don't think I'm saying I'm never guilty of it, because at times I can be.)

But, if a foreigner who had never heard of our country came here and talked to certain members of our population, he or she could plausibly think we are the worst country ever to exist in the history of the world. Although we're not always in a place to discuss it, there are many great things about this country.

That being said, I am more than okay with criticizing our country where it needs to be criticized. As Robert F. Kennedy put it, "The sharpest criticism often goes hand in hand with the deepest idealism and love of country."

I think the most important words in Kennedy's quote are "idealism" and "love." I really do love my country; not necessarily for what it often is, but for my idealistic interpretation of what it can be. I don't think we should think we are better than other countries by default, but our nation has previously been a great and positive presence in the world, and I think we can be great again. To me, it takes a critical, not cynical, attitude to achieve greatness.

I really enjoyed this quote from Conan O'Brien's speech during his final episode of "Tonight Show" a couple years ago:
"All I ask of you, especially young people...is one thing. Please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen. I'm telling you, amazing things will happen."

I'll end by saying the following: don't let anybody tell you that our country is going down the tubes. This country has gone through so many changes in its short history, and guess what? We're still here. If we as individuals and as a country try our best, be positive, and be optimistic, I believe that we can and will accomplish great things.

2/23/12

What's with all the convo about women's reproductive rights?

Have we been transported to the Dark Ages? Women --and men-- discuss these issues with your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers. Then make sure you get them out to vote in November.

Republicans unite women--against their party

February 23, 2012 - 4:31am By LEE-ANNE GOODMAN

Every day, as I approach the subway station near my home, they’re out there — two or three Planned Parenthood canvassers, asking people to donate money.

It’s not an unusual scene outside D.C.’s Metro stations. There are often representatives from a wide array of groups, from Greenpeace to churches and soup kitchens, seeking donations from those riding the subway.

But here’s what is unusual: Commuters have been milling about the Planned Parenthood canvassers, eager to donate. Well-heeled women on the way to the office, new immigrants pushing their babies in strollers, young college girls on their way to school, older women with the odd grandkid in tow. And not just women: some men, too, young and old, equally diverse.

All of them are eager to donate some money to a group that provides an array of health-care services to low-income women, from PAP smears to birth control and breast cancer screening.

"Does that Rick Santorum guy really think they should ban birth control?" I heard one college-age girl incredulously ask one of the Planned Parenthood canvassers the other day. An animated discussion broke out among the women gathered, the primary theme of the conversation being: "It’s 2012, and men are still telling us what to do with our bodies?"

Indeed, February 2012 may go down in history as the month when the Republican party and its supporters unwittingly roused the women of America, uniting them in outrage over issues like birth control, involuntary vaginal probing and pre-natal screening.

Who’s been at the forefront of the debate?

Rick Santorum, the sudden front-runner in the Republican presidential race who believes birth control poses a threat to America, that sex is only meant for procreation purposes, that federal health-care legislation must not pay for pre-natal screening since it only leads to an increase in abortions, and of course, that life begins at conception, and not even in cases of rape or incest should women be permitted to terminate pregnancies.

He’s also suggested radical feminists have brainwashed women into thinking they’re happier working, suggesting that, in fact, women should stay home with their children.

The Republican party was doing well on the abortion issue. An increasing number of Americans regard themselves as pro-life, although the country remains deeply divided on the issue. But contraception? The vast majority of American women, including 98 per cent of Catholics, have used it and support the Obama administration’s contraception policies.

Indeed, access to birth control hasn’t been an issue in the United States since the mid-1960s.

Santorum, however, says that states ought to have the right to outlaw the sale of contraception. It’s hard to imagine what state would go there. But it doesn’t matter — he’s touched off a firestorm in the aftermath of a series of startling developments on women’s issues in the U.S.

First the Susan G. Komen Foundation, a breast cancer group, yanked funding to Planned Parenthood at the urging of pro-life forces even though just three per cent of the organization’s services are related to abortion. A public outcry forced Komen to backtrack.

Then the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops reacted with fury to President Barack Obama’s contraception policies. And so House Republicans invited a panel of five men — and not a single woman — to debate the issue. The optics were horrible, and simply served to anger American women even further.

And then the state of Virginia voted in favour of a new law that requires any woman seeking an abortion to be subjected to a "transvaginal ultrasound." Hundreds of women gathered outside the Virginia legislature earlier this week in protest.

It’s hard to imagine a dumber political strategy in a presidential election year than to undermine the hard-won rights near and dear to women.

Women outnumbered men by eight million voters in the last election, representing 54 per cent of the electorate. There are predictions of a similar turnout by women in November — in fact, some pollsters have suggested that number could increase given the events of the past few weeks.

Conservatives can argue all they like that the issues at hand are not about birth control or women’s health, but about protecting the U.S. Constitution and freedom of religion. That may technically be true — but it doesn’t matter. The PR battle was lost when Rick Santorum, a devout Catholic, started talking about the evils of birth control while in the same breath railing against abortion and working mothers. It all suggests a "barefoot and pregnant" throwback to another era that most women are happy no longer exists.

Indeed, to women from very diverse walks of life, the Republican party currently looks like it wants to return to the Dark Ages. There’s little doubt women will punish them for it come election day.

Lee-Anne Goodman is the White House correspondent for The Canadian Press.

2/22/12

Conn. Mom to Plead Guilty in School Residency Case

Interesting article in the Hartford Courant today about a Norwalk mom who is pleading guilty to allegations that she fradulently enrolled her child in a Norwalk school and stole more than $15,000 in educational services from that school district. Does this point to a problem in our educational system?

http://www.courant.com/community/norwalk/hc-ap-ct-schoolresidencyarfeb22,0,6244815.story

Associated Press
February 22, 2012

NORWALK, Conn.— A Connecticut woman is set to plead guilty to allegations that she fraudulently enrolled her son in a Norwalk school and stole more than $15,000 in educational services from the district. Tonya McDowell's attorney says he expects her to plead guilty Wednesday in Norwalk Superior Court.

McDowell was homeless when she was charged with felony larceny last year. Authorities allege she enrolled her son in kindergarten in Norwalk using a babysitter's address when he should have attended Bridgeport schools, where her last permanent address was.

McDowell's case drew national attention and support from civil rights leaders and other advocates, who wanted the charge dismissed. McDowell also faces drug possession and sale charges and has pleaded not guilty. She is set to appear Wednesday in Norwalk court on those charges, too.

2/21/12

Where Are All the Women?

Articles like this make my blood boil and make me truly wonder, where are all the women? How can a panel of men make a decision birth control, something that they do not need to take now will ever take in their life??!?!? Women if you have ever considered running for office, may this article be your inspiration!!


Absence of women at birth-control hearing prompts larger question

Washington Post


Jena Mcgregor



Religious leaders told a House panel Thursday the Obama administration was violating basic rights to religious freedom with its policies for requiring that employees of religion-affiliated institutions have access to birth control coverage.
On Thursday, a brouhaha broke out during the House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform hearings on the contraceptive coverage rule. Congresswomen Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) walked out of the hearing after questioning why there were no women representatives on the first hearing’s panel of witnesses. Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and his staffcountered that the hearing was not just about contraception, but religious freedom; that the female Georgetown University law student the Democrats proposed was not “appropriate” or “qualified”; and that the Democrats should have turned in their witness selections earlier in the week.

But while the two sides may be battling over why women weren’t invited to the hearing and whether this is an issue about women’s rights or religious freedom, there is an even bigger issue at stake: the lack of women leaders in these institutions. The morning panel was composed of religious leaders and professors on ethics and religion: Rev. William Lori, Roman Catholic bishop of Bridgeport, Conn.; Rev. Matthew Harrison, the president of the Lutheran Church in Missouri; Ben Mitchell, a professor of moral philosophy at Union University; Rabbi Meir Solveichik, from Yeshiva University; and Craig Mitchell, a professor of ethics at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

It’s unfortunately not surprising that there weren’t many women invited to such a panel—Roman Catholic priests cannot be women, of course, and women cannot be ordained as Orthodox Jews and are a minority of rabbis in other movements. And while there are certainly female professors of ethics and philosophy, women continue to be a minority in the academic world as well. A 2011 Catalyst study found that just 24 percent of tenured full professors in U.S. higher educational institutions are women and that just 38 percent of associate professors are female.

I’m hardly arguing that there wasn’t a way for the committee to find notable female professors and even religious leaders to include on their panel. From Sister Carol Keehan, the CEO of the Catholic Health Association, who has been a pivotal figure in the birth control debate, to Katharine Jefferts Schori, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, there are notable women who hold positions of power in religious fields. Nor am I arguing that they shouldn’t have asked them: Even if the broader context of the discussion was about religious freedom, the hearing centered on an issue that is core to women’s lives, and it is painfully obvious that women should have been included on it.

But until more women reach positions of influence in academia and religious institutions, the real question won’t just be why there aren’t enough women on the panels, but how their absence in greater numbers at the top of our cultural organizations is influencing the very decisions being debated on the panels from which they’re missing. We need women on any formal national discussion on birth control and religion, of course. But even more important, we need more women making the decisions that influence women’s lives in the first place

2/19/12

To Help Others, Start With YourSELF

With so much going on in the world around us, it is very easy to get lost in the news, daily on-goings, friendships, and work stress. When we come home at the end of the day with a headache and absolutely wiped out, we assume it's from all of the running around and chaos we had to get through in order to make it back to bed. While, yes, this may be so - your body are also screaming at you to STOP and LISTEN to yourself and not just those around you.

So start at the beginning, experience any of these?

  • Depression
  • Presence of headaches
  • Craving sweet foods
  • Excessive sleep
  • Thoughts of suicide
  • Loneliness
  • Drastic mood swings
  • Fatigue
  • Complications at work
  • Disinterest in social activities
  • Low energy
  • Drug abuse
  • Increase in weight
  • Sensitive to rejection
  • Guilty feelings
  • School complications
  • Anxiety
  • Poor concentration
  • Feeling hopeless
You're not alone. Over 500,000 Americans experience these symptoms as seasonal depression, majority of which are women. Additionally, depression, anxiety, poor work conditions, stress at home, and everything throughout the day can affect our bodies - not just our minds. Truly sit down and have a conversation with anyone and guaranteed there is at least two stressors in their life. Even the meditation yoga teacher has road-rage. Knowing you're not alone is one thing, but being able to do something about it is another...

Women do not have the same nutritional needs as men. It is estimated that more than 60% of Americans are vitamin D deficient, most of which are women! Because of factors like menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause, we have different needs in exercise, food intake, and vitamins. Now add to that the slue of pills we take (including birth control pills) and our bodies start screaming for our attention.

Today, the most common vitamin deficiencies include B6, folate, iron, calcium, and D. Additionally, every person's chemistry is different so there are so many more that your body may be in need of. Just think, by taking your vitamins, you may start to feel:

  • PMS symptoms relief
  • Natural menopause treatment
  • Weight loss and control
  • Rejuvenation for hair, nails and skin
  • More consistent and restful sleep
  • Clearer thoughts and less stress


A Few Important Vitamins to Start...

Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency that many women develop today. Menstruating women require almost twice as much iron as men, because blood loss during menstruation is sapping their iron stores.

Calcium deficiency among women is next after iron. Many women develop its shortage just because they do not eat enough foods that are rich in this mineral.

Folate is one of the most important vitamins for women and many do not get enough of this vitamin through their diet. Deficiency of folic acid (another name for this vitamin) increases the risk of cervical cancer, gum inflammation and anemia.

Vitamin E helps to relive premenstrual syndrome symptoms such as breast pain and hot flashes in menopausal women. As an antioxidant it necessary for the prevention of breast cancer. Vitamin E promotes healthy skin and hair and retards the aging process. Women who are on slimming diets risk developing vitamin E deficiency because the richest sources of this vitamin are foods rich in fats and those are usually avoided by slimmers. The easiest way to get enough of vitamin E for women on the diets is to take it in a supplement form.

Omega-3 fatty acids – nutrients most people do not get enough through their diets including women. Omega-3s play a key role in many body functions and may prevent many health disorders including heart diseases, breast cancer, high blood pressure, joint problems and many others.


Vitamins for Women and Birth Control Pills

Are you on the birth control pills? Then you need to think about extra intake of some vitamins, because birth control pills are causing serious depletion of many necessary vitamins for women. Especially vitamin C blood levels are very low in women on the “pills”, because of high excretion rate of vitamin in the urine. About one in twenty women that are taking pills suffer from depression and researches indicated that depression in those women is due to a deficiency of pyridoxine (B6). Trials revealed that depressions in pill takers might be prevented by supplementation of B6 vitamin. Women, who had vitamin B6 deficiency in their blood, lost all the symptoms of depression after the treatment with pyridoxine.Vitamins B12, riboflavin, thiamine and folic acid are also reduced in the women’s systems by the contraceptive pills. Serious depletion of vitamin E is caused by the “pills”. It has been suggested that prevalence of thrombosis in women, taking contraceptive pills, may be related to vitamin E deficiency.


Here are some tips on choosing the best vitamins for women:

  • Make sure it is a plant based product containing natural plant concentrates that are rich in phytonutrients found only in plants.
  • Check if your multivitamin formula provides all essential vitamins and minerals you need daily (12 essentials vitamins and at least 7 minerals).
  • Avoid vitamins for women that contain artificial flavors, colors and preservatives.



Want to know more? Call or stop in for a personal consultation

Parkade Health Shoppe
Erika Dworkin Nutrition Consultant & Coach
378 Middle Tpke W Manchester, CT 06040
(860) 646-8178

2/15/12

Virginia: Right to Bear Arms, Duty to Bear Children

An interesting perspective on what's happening in Virginia.

Virginia: Right to Bear Arms, Duty to Bear Children
by Tamar Abrams
February 15, 2012



What do you call a state (excuse me -- Commonwealth) whose legislature in one month advances laws allowing unlimited purchases of handguns, declares the rights of personhood from the moment a sperm and egg unite and forces all women seeking abortions to first have an invasive, unnecessary medical procedure? Why, Virginia of course. Oh, and lest I forget, we can lay claim to the highest total of state-sanctioned executions of any state in the Union at 1,384. Color me proud.

For those of you keeping score, our newly Republican supermajority -- including our governor -- appears to condone killing fully grown people but is determined to ensure that the women of Virginia not be allowed to use certain forms of contraceptives for fear it will prevent the formation of pre-born people. And clearly they are concerned that women are too dumb to realize what an abortion is, so they are mandating trans-vaginal ultrasounds. Have you ever had one of these? They are not entirely pleasant and they are certainly medically unnecessary. The only reason to require one for a woman seeking an abortion is to show her there is a fetus inside her womb. Duh... I think that's why she is seeking an abortion.

So let's recap again. The party that is seeking to get government out of our lives by, for instance, allowing an unlimited number of gun purchases, is inserting itself into the reproductive lives of women. Long before there was a United States of America, Virginia hosted the future nation's very first execution in 1608. And as attorney general, Governor Bob McDonnell supported expanding the death penalty to participants in a homicide other than the "triggerman."
Confused? Life and death in the Commonwealth of Virginia appear to have different value depending upon who is making the decision. If you want to load up on guns and wear one on your hip as you're chugging beers at a Virginia tavern, go ahead. It's a right for the "law-abiding" citizens of Virginia, presumably even for the pre-born once personhood is conferred upon them. Unsure what to get the mother-to-be? How about a sporty little firearm for Junior? Sure, the chance exists that he may end up in the electric chair down in southern Virginia, but let him have some fun with guns before then.

We may have the right to bear arms, but we have the duty to bear children. With contraceptives and abortion being effectively outlawed, I'm guessing our borders will swell with little ones. Babies everywhere -- because many times sexual activity results in pregnancy. Without easy access to birth control, lots of people will be having babies who likely can't afford to care for them or maybe don't want to. But I'm sure the legislature is already planning for how to fund more and larger schools. Maybe they're even revising the sexuality education curriculum to ensure that it's comprehensive. Of course girls will need remedial classes as it is clear legislators think we don't understand conception or fetuses.

I am so grateful that my 19-year-old daughter chose not to attend a Virginia university. It was worth paying out of state tuition to know that she is someplace where her rights are safeguarded and where, presumably, she is trusted to make good decisions. I can only hope that each member of the Virginia legislature -- as well as Governor McDonnell -- are forced to undergo a medically unnecessary and invasive trans-anal ultrasound performed by a technician wearing a holstered handgun before they are allowed to pass these bills into law. A little rough justice for all.

2/12/12

Loving ourselves by supporting each other

(<-- WARNING: reflections in this mirror may be distorted by socially constructed ideas of 'beauty')

No matter your gender, age, personality, or any other identifying trait, it feels great when someone tells you "You're Beautiful". In fact, it is the words of others that genuinely impact the way we see and feel about ourselves.

Caitlin set out to make women around the world sincerely feel beautiful whether by the words of a stranger or a peer in school. Her motto is "transforming the way you see yourself one post-it note at a time". Women have written out about ending Fat Talk, Healthy Living, Bullying, Pregnancy, Eating Disorders, and the Media. But the post-its don't have to be themed, the messages are about genuine sincerity.

And it has worked! Post-its are pictured on her website it a plethora of languages, different words, different sentences, but all with the same message. But more than the pictures, what will really inspire you is the comments section. There are girls supporting girls from age 11 to far beyond. The safe space that Caitlin has created is not only necessary but is truly Beautiful.

So next time your in the supply closet, grab an extra post-it stack and start sticking em' up. If you need a little pick me up - check out her website at: http://operationbeautiful.com/. She also has a book out in most major shops - great for the coffee table or your daughter's locker.


And just in case you want a really good lesson in what beauty looks like...


"Mom, I'm Fat": How I Responded To My 7-Year-Old Daughter

I am sitting, cross legged, on the bathroom floor trimming my 5-year-old daughters' toenails. My 9-year-old son showers his muddy body as I lean against the tub. My 3-year-old daughter wrestles herself into pajamas in her bedroom. My 11-year-old son bursts in from football practice and hollers upstairs about reheating leftovers and having a sore throat. My husband is out dropping our minivan off for a tune up. The sun has set and we're putting another day to rest. In the confusion of this typical weeknight, I glance up from the floor at my 7-year-old daughter, standing on the step stool, completely undressed, brushing her teeth. I don't like the way she is looking at herself in the mirror. I don't like the way she pokes at her belly and frowns at her profile. I watch her for another minute and step in.

"What's up, girl?" I ask. "I'm fat," she responds without hesitation. I'm instantly weak. She continues, "My stomach jiggles when I run. I want to be skinny. I want my stomach to go flat down." I am silent. I have read the books, the blogs, the research. I have aced gender studies, mass media, society and culture courses in college. I have given advice to other mothers. I run workshops and programming for middle school girls. I have traveled across the world to empower women and children in poverty. I am over qualified to handle this comment. But in reality, my heart just breaks instead. I am mush. Not my girl.

I rally some composure and stay cool. "You are built just perfect -- strong and healthy." And she is. But this doesn't soothe.

I flounder. This child -- my first and wildly celebrated daughter -- was breastfed girl power. I read picture books with only central female characters, I insisted she wrestle her big brothers, demanded family call her words like smart and brave as much as cute and adorable. I tell her we are all different -- straight and thin to round and plump and millions of ways in between. I tell her it's what makes us all beautiful. Unconvinced.

I send all the other kids away. I shut the door and we sit face to face on the floor. There is more here and I need to see it through. I tell her I looked just like her when I was seven. I tell her she will grow to be tall and strong and fierce, like me. Not good enough. I reach and scramble. I tell her how fast she runs. Remind her of the goal she scored in soccer. What an expert she is on her bike and the amazing balance and tricks she does on her scooter. I remind her of her high level reading, her artwork, her mastery of math facts. "Fat."

I grow desperate. "Child! What is the first thing everyone tells you when they meet you?" She sighs, "I'm beautiful." Beauty is not helping me here. I'm failing. Pleading, I ask her why. Her blue eyes meet mine. She tells me on two different occasions friends have called her "kind of fat" when they were talking about bodies this summer in their bathing suits. And she felt sad. But she also felt good because finally she confirmed that what she thought about her body was "mostly true."

I think a few bad thoughts about her peers and their mothers and wonder what messages are being sent. I am out of tools. And now twenty minutes later, I'm out of patience too. I feel powerless to what seems certain to her. And I cannot understand how she does not see all of life's perfection in her reflection.

I stand her up on the step stool in front of the mirror. I strip off my yoga pants, my tee shirt, my bra and underwear. We are side by side completely naked together. She laughs. I start singing a song that I'm making up as I go. It's rap meets Raffi with lyrics like "We are perfect, just the way we are." It's wild and silly, but I cannot be stopped. We're shaking everything, and she's belly laughing and totally thrilled. I pick her up. We are a ridiculous and magnificent pair. The other kids hear the commotion and barge in. They are confused and horrified. I carry her to the bedroom raving about all the ways we are powerful and naked and women. We settle into comfy pajamas and read a story together. Fat is not mentioned again.

On this night, I have no idea if I have succeeded. I'm not sure if what I said and did had an impact, if I fixed anything, or even if I changed her mind. But I do know that I must continue to infuse myself and my children with bold confidence. I must check in, ask questions, take the time. I must build and undo. I must be open and genuine. I must but willing to dance naked in the mirror, resist the urge to see all the ways five babies have changed me, and stare straight into my reflection with love. Then together, with a twinkle in our eyes, we only see radiance shining back.

This essay originally appeared on rachelsimmons.com.

2/8/12

Birth control is a public health issue

http://courantblogs.com/susan-campbell/2012/02/07/should-birth-control-be-covered/

Do people think access to contreceptives is a public health issue?

Pres. Obama is taking it on the chinfrom some groups on a provision of the Affordable Care Act that requires insurers to drop deductibles and co-pays for FDA-approved contraception drugs and devices.

Some Republicans — including the party’s frontrunner for the presidential nomination — liken the policy an attack on religious freedom. But, as writes Sahil Kapur at TPM:
…the policy itself carves out an exemption for churches and doesn’t require any individual or employer to violate a religious belief — it simply ensures that their employees with different beliefs have the same access to birth control as all other women.

Do you think citizens should have access to no-cost birth control? Do you think access to contraceptives is a public health issue? I do, and if you do, too, you can sign a petition here.
And thanks, Cynical, for the link.

You can read more about how the act and contraceptives and preventative care here. And you can read more on Mitt Romney’s thoughts on birth control here. And thanks, Jennifer, for that link.

2/7/12

How to Save an Unproductive Work Day

We have all had those days, we enter the office full of energy ready to make a difference, to accomplish everything on our to do lists. Then suddenly is is 11 and we have yet to do anything but cruise Facebook and repin things on Pinterest! The below article points out a few key things we can do to save our days and leave our guilt at the door!! Enjoy!


How to Save an Unproductive Work Day

By Cindy Perman, CNBC.com

We've all had those days: A failure to launch. Hit a wall. Too many interruptions. Got distracted. Whatever the reason, an unproductive day is maddening.

We've all had those days"People get caught up in the tyranny of urgent," explained Michael Crom, the chief learning officer at the Dale Carnegie Institute, a corporate training organization. "Texting. People popping into our office. Phone ringing … cellphone ringing … personal stuff … it can all lead to some pretty bad work habits."

That's right, like your overflowing inbox, or easy-to-steal password, the first step of an unproductive day is to admit that you - and your work habits - are a big part of the problem.

First question: Do you make a to-do list every day?

Next question: What do you do first?

"The tendency is to do the things I like to do first," Crom explained. "We all have time to jump on Facebook!" he quipped.

If you just start ticking off the things you like to do, instead of the important ones, guess what happens? You run out of time and you find yourself at the end of the day declaring it an unproductive work day because you didn't get the things accomplished that you NEEDED to get accomplished.It's called procrastination.



"It robs you of vitality. Almost numbs you," Crom said. "If you accomplish those important things, it generates more energy. Keeps you more positive. Your productivity goes up," he said.

"In essence, we're talking about creating a proper work environment for being productive."
So what happens when you hit that wall and you can't focus, can't work on anything big or small - do you throw in the towel and belly up to the bar?

Hang on there, Cliffy. Not so fast.

Crom suggests taking a break - take a walk outside for some fresh air, call someone who's positive, have a cold glass of water - or play a particular song that pumps you up or gets your focused.Crom says he writes best to Mozart, uses James Blunt to get the positive energy flowing and likes Chris Brown's "Forever" to pump him up before a public speech.Of course, everyone's taste is different - so find what works for you.



You might find just giving yourself a little pep talk works. Or, keeping an inspiration or a kudos file to rev you up and help you get back in the game. "I think you can always get things back under control," he said. "Even a half-hour break."He also cautions against spending too much time with negative people.



Crom recalls an old boss who preached SNIOP - being susceptible to the negative influence of other people. "The moment someone around you is negative or complaining, say 'SNIOP!' and take two steps backwards," Crom said. "You have to treat them like a vampire!"


It's like saying "Beetlejuice" three times fast!

Crom recommends getting in early - before everyone else to make your to-do list for the day and set up what the priorities are.

If you prioritize and you don't get through the whole list, then guess what? What didn't get done wasn't that important. By contrast, if you do the things you like first, or the things that are easy, then that's all you've accomplished - not the priority items.

If you have too many important items on that list, check in with your boss to help you prioritize and, if necessary, redistribute some of the important stuff to other people to make sure the team hits all the deadlines.The importance of communicating with the boss cannot be overstated.



Crom recalls a survey of CEOs and their direct reports. They asked nearly 300 CEOs what they thought their direct reports' priorities were, then asked the direct reports the same question. Guess what? The results showed a 20 to 70 percent variance between what the CEOs thought the jobs of their direct reports were and what the direct reports thought their job was.

"Imagine as you move down the organization how wide that variance must become!" Crom said.
Of course, you have to be agile. If things change course midday, you have to be ready to drop everything and then re-prioritize.

"The worst thing is if you take on an assignment that's due tomorrow, give no feedback and don't accomplish it," Crom said. "Then you look like a poor member of the team. And, you make the organization look bad."

And, while you might think that guy who stays until 9pm or later every day has it all together - think again. He's also part of the problem.



Working long hours too much can cause a person to miss personal or family priorities which can build internal stress.

"Then they struggle through," Crom explained. "There are consequences to that."

Not only should you be making a daily to-do list but also a list of yearly priorities that you discuss with your boss periodically. Then, break that down into what you can accomplish in each area on a monthly and weekly basis.

"Keep the focus tight so you really understand - this is what I need to be doing this month, this week, this day," Crom said. "When you're focused, you perform at a much higher level."

And, if you ever feel like you're the only one who suffers from an unproductive day - think again.
"I think it's an increasing issue," Crom said. "I've seen some rare individuals who just seem so self-motivated and very organized - but it's very rare."



He recalls a time-management workshop he did with about 200 executives in the room. He asked, "Raise your hand if you think you waste an hour a day."


Every hand went up in the room except for one. So he challenged that guy - to see if he was, indeed, this rare species of man who doesn't waste time.

The man replied, "Oh, I misunderstood. I waste more than an hour a day - I was waiting for that option to raise my hand!"

2/5/12

Women's Football at the Superbowl?

Having the privileged of posting on the same day as the Superbowl means that I am writing about football. Now while I am sure may of you reading have chosen sides...Pats...Giants...Pants...what-have-you. My husband just asks me "do you know who the quaterbacks are?" and without event thinking I respond "no and I don't really care". He stops short and laughs as he realizes that I am typing and being absolutely serious. I have just finished a little research and here is what I have to share with you:

American football is not just for men. I don't mean "anything you can do, I can do better" but rather women have sought out and excelled at the sport. The women's teams do not make the money the men's teams make, get the media coverage, or get to call their passion a full-time career. But these women play for the love of the sport and are really good at it. "When you think about American football, you envision it being played by heavily-padded big men making violent contact with each other. But Tarsha Fain, team captain of the Baltimore Nighthawks says, think again." The Independent Women's Football League is the center of all things women's football including a countdown of just 56days to the start of the 2012 season. There are more than 30 women's teams throughout the nation, including the Connecticut Wreckers. In addition to the IWFL is the Women's Football Alliance which grew in the first five months of its existence from 0 to 32 teams, "making it the fastest growing league in the history of the sport. This momentum continued as the WFA grew by an additional twenty-five percent after its first year, making it the fastest growing league in the country. Now in it's third year, the WFA currently has 63 teams making it the largest-ever women's football league in the world."

The moral of the story, it's not about feminism, about women surpassing men, or about women striking out only to achieve equality. Women playing football, and being recognized for it, is just one more playing field for women to find themselves and have fun. Maybe someday there will even be a women's team in the Superbowl. Either that, or maybe America will move to a gender neutral sport...leave the pads at home and try rugby...or football...the real kind. In the mean time enjoy the game!

2/3/12

Sleepless: Komen and Planned Parenthood


(from The Decemberists' "Team Jenny" breast health awareness campaign)

There has been so much in the news this week regarding women’s issues, especially in this state. I cannot do justice to everything that has gone on in one blog entry, so with a major update this morning on the Komen/Planned Parenthood issue, I will focus on that today.

As this organization blogged about on Wednesday, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation decided to pull funding of breast cancer screening by Planned Parenthood due to “a new Komen policy forbidding grants to organizations under official investigation.” However, in the court of public opinion, the decision had everything to do with politics, with many feeling that Komen succumbed to anti-choice, and frankly anti-women, sentiments.

This morning however, Komen announced that it will reinstate funding to Planned Parenthood. According to Komen CEO Nancy G. Brinker,


“We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives…We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants, while maintaining the ability of our affiliates to make funding decisions that meet the needs of their communities.

As with many others, the issue really hits close to home for me having dealt with breast cancer in my family. Even with this reversal, however, the fact that Komen even considered cutting this funding has left many, including myself, hesitant to trust that Komen really wants what is best for women’s health.

As has been the case in the last couple years, social media played a huge part in quickly riling up public fervor over the issue. Julie Stagis of the Hartford Courant referenced Netflix’s recent series of bungled business decisions on her Twitter page this morning, characterizing Komen's thought process as "Oh, wait, you're mad, we'll pretend this never happened!" In today's social media-oriented society, organizations like Komen need to take extra care to make sure that their "business" decisions are completely thought out, or else face harsh backlash.

Perhaps my favorite use of social media in the Komen/Planned Parenthood situation was from the Portland, Oregon indie rock band The Decemberists. One of their members, Jenny Conlee, has recently battled breast cancer; as a result, they have been selling "Team Jenny" t-shirts with proceeds going to Komen. However, when Komen announced their decision to pull funding from Planned Parenthood, The Decemberists took to their Facebook page (over 460,000 followers strong) about the issue, saying:

"...it is unconscionable that Komen should politicize this very important issue by bowing to the fear campaign being waged against PP by the right. We've decided to redirect the proceeds of the Team Jenny t-shirts and buttons away from Komen for the Cure. 100% of the net profits of these items will be instead donated to Planned Parenthood's Breast Health Emergency Fund."

My favorite song by The Decemberists is "Sleepless," which was written for AIDS awareness, but I feel that it applies to this situation as well in multiple ways. It's really encouraging to me that in situations like this, public commotion through social media can be used for positive reasons to influence change and progress. But this victory for women's health is only a minor skirmish in what has become a massive war against women's health; once again, we cannot forget that women's issues are everybody's issues. We must never stop fighting. We must be sleepless.




References:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/02/03/146344674/in-reversal-komen-reinstates-funding-for-planned-parenthood

http://www.courant.com/la-he-planned-parenthood-komen-20120201,0,6858356.story

2/1/12

Komen Breast Cancer Charity Severs Ties with Planned Parenthood

Interesting article in today's Courant:

http://www.courant.com/la-he-planned-parenthood-komen-20120201,0,6858356.story

By Shari Roan, Los Angeles Times
February 1, 2012

In what looks to be a break between two organizations dedicated to women's health, a national breast cancer awareness group said it would stop providing funds to Planned Parenthood centers for breast cancer examinations and other breast health services.Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a leader in fundraising for breast cancer research and famous worldwide for its iconic pink ribbon, said Tuesday that it was halting all partnerships with Planned Parenthood affiliates because of recently adopted criteria that forbid it from funding any organization under government investigation.

In September, Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) launched an inquiry to determine whether Planned Parenthood uses public money to fund abortions. Planned Parenthood receives federal money but cannot use it to provide abortions.

Komen has a long history of providing funding to various Planned Parenthood affiliates for such services as manual breast exams and referrals for mammograms and biopsies to check suspicious lumps for cancer. Although that money is not used for abortions, the Komen Foundation may have yielded to demands from antiabortion groups to sever its ties to Planned Parenthood.

"We had the sense this was coming and that they were under pressure," said Sue Dunlap, chief executive of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles. "I find this really disappointing. I think when women's health is more of a political conversation than a conversation about healthcare and taking care of people, then we've gone too far."

Officials for Planned Parenthood Federation of America said they learned of Komen's new stance on funding late last year and asked the Komen board of directors for a meeting to resolve any issues or questions related to funding. The meeting did not take place, said Cecile Richards, the federation's president.

"We are alarmed and saddened that the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation appears to have succumbed to political pressure," Richards said in a statement. "Our greatest desire is for Komen to reconsider this policy and recommit to the partnership on which so many women count."

Over the last five years, Planned Parenthood has provided about 4 million breast exams and referrals for 70,000 mammograms nationwide. Funding from Komen covers about 170,000 of the breast exams and 6,400 mammogram referrals, Richards said. Although mammograms and biopsies are referred out, Planned Parenthood doctors manage their patients' cases.

Officials from the Komen Foundation could not be reached for comment. But in an earlier interview with the Associated Press, Komen spokeswoman Leslie Aun said that the decision was based solely on the Stearns investigation and did not imply wrongdoing by Planned Parenthood.

"We want to maintain a positive relationship with them," Aun told the Associated Press. "We're not making any judgment."

In Orange County, the loss of Komen grants will end programs to reach out to special groups in need of breast cancer education, said Stephanie Kight, senior vice president of the Planned Parenthood affiliate for Orange and San Bernardino counties.

One Komen grant funded outreach to Vietnamese women in which Planned Parenthood workers would provide breast health education in hair and nail salons and other gathering places for Vietnamese women. Another allowed the chapter to fund referrals for biopsies for women who had suspicious lumps discovered during breast exams at a Planned Parenthood clinic.

The $120,000 annual grants the affiliate received from Komen made up half of its yearly budget for breast health care, Kight said.

"We've been long-time partners with Komen in taking care of women's breast health," said Kight, who added that her affiliate had not yet been informed of Komen's decision to halt Planned Parenthood funding. "If this decision was brought on because of political pressure, that would be really disappointing."

Antiabortion groups lauded the decision and described it as the result of years of lobbying from Americans who oppose abortion.

"I know that hundreds, even thousands, of people reached out to Komen to request they stop giving to Planned Parenthood. That was constant over the years," said Eric Scheidler, executive director of the Chicago-based Pro-Life Action League. "Pro-life people object because Planned Parenthood is the nation's largest abortion chain. Every dollar they take in facilitates their operations.

"Planned Parenthood has become the central target of antiabortion groups, Scheidler added. Last year, the organization, which serves about 3 million people a year for reproductive healthcare and other primary-care services, was the focus of a bill introduced by Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) that would have halted its federal funding. About one-third of Planned Parenthood's $1.1-billion national budget comes from the federal government.

The bill was defeated. But the Komen Foundation decision "really shows that when pro-life people make their views known in a vocal way, through all of those phone calls and emails and public protests, it can have an impact," Scheidler said. "It's really encouraging and, hopefully, will be followed by other corporate donors to Planned Parenthood.

"The decision spurred vigorous comment on websites across the country Tuesday night.

"Shame, shame, shame on Susan G Komen. I thought you cared about women's health," wrote one visitor to the Susan G. Komen "Sound off!" message board. "Betrayal," wrote another: "I have had friends and family members who have survived breast cancer and other cancers. ... I will never make another contribution to another SGK event or cause."

"Thank you!!! Susan G. Komen for breaking your ties with abortionists!" wrote a third. "Never should you have supported them, regardless of their non-abortion activities."The action is bound to stir up feelings of torn allegiance, Kight said. Orange County's Planned Parenthood and the local Komen Foundation chapter have had a close working relationship designed to support common goals, and women's health advocates are likely to feel baffled by which organization to align with.

"Our affiliate always sponsors a team of 30 to 40 people who participate in the Race for the Cure," Kight said, referring to a major Komen fundraiser. "I don't know what we'll do now. When we go to the Komen race, we're all just women."