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Infertility is a common and often distressing problem affecting approximately 1 in 6 couples. Statistics confirm that the incidence of infertility is not actually increasing. More couples are, however, seeking help and advice as treatments become more readily available and effective. Having worked in the specialist area of infertility for fifteen years, I appreciate that many couples find a diagnosis of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) confusing and difficult to understand.

PCOS is a highly variable and individual disorder which was first described by Drs. Stein and Leventhal in 1935. They identified a group of infertile women who had menstrual abnormalities and enlarged ovaries (now known as polycystic ovaries). They also described hirsutism and obesity amongst this group.

Not all women with polycystic ovaries however, will exhibit these features. Goldzieher J. W. and Green J. A. (1962) reported that in women with surgically proven polycystic ovaries, 20% had no menstrual irregularities, 50% were not obese and 31% were not hirsute. Polson et. al. (1988) confirmed these findings and reported that polycystic ovaries are found in 22% of the normal population i.e. women who had not sought treatment for menstrual disturbances, infertility or hirsutism.

PCOS may be classified using three main criteria:

1. Clinical presentation,

2. Biochemical characterisation and

3. Characterisation of ovarian abnormalities.

It is these three criteria which are important for the diagnosis and classification of PCOS.

Most women with PCOS have a history of normal menstrual age but develop irregular cycles after the menarche. It is clear therefore that some women presenting with infertility may have had physiological difficulties in their teenage years, and may have foreseen the impact that this would have on their reproductive health in the future. Women with PCOS often have excessive hair growth and may be overweight. Yen (1980) noted that more than 80% of women with PCOS were obese prior to the onset of puberty. Although obesity is frequently associated with this condition it is unclear whether it is an intrinsic component or a predisposing state as weight loss is frequently associated with the correction of hormonal abnormalities and the re-establishment of regular ovulation.

As there is a high prevalence of PCOS in families of affected individuals, the syndrome may have a genetic component (Hauge et. al., 1988). Hypertension, diabetes, insulin resistance and obesity occur more often in families of PCOS women, whilst endocrine abnormalities and disturbed testicular function have been described in male family members. A recent study of familial PCOS has identified premature balding in male relatives as the male phenotye of PCOS.

Biochemical assessment of women with PCOS will now be discussed and involves assessing hormonal levels in the blood stream. At the time of birth a woman has between 200,000 and 400,000 primordial follicles within each ovary. As a consequence of a cyclic release of hormones the menstrual cycle occurs, a primordial follicle will mature during each cycle and a mature oocyte will be released. Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and Leutenising hormone (LH) are Gonadotrophic hormones released by the anterior pituitary gland which act directly on the ovary.

These hormones convert pre-antral follicles to antral or Graafian follicles and each one appears to exert its effects at different locations within the follicle. The granulosa cells of the follicles bind FSH whereas only the cells of the theca interna bind LH. Proliferation of the granulosa and thecal cells cause an increase in follicular size.

During this phase of growth the follicle will increase its synthesis of androgens from acetate and cholesterol and this conversion is greatly stimulated by LH As the follicle continues to increase In size the synthesis of oestrogen’s increases and the largest more advanced follicle releases steroids into the circulation. These steroids feedback negatively to the pituitary and this leads to a progressive reduction in circulating FSH and therefore limits development of further follicles.
Oestrogen, in conjunction with FSH plays a crucial role within the follicle towards the second phase of growth.

Together they stimulate the appearance of LH binding sites on the outer layer of the granlosa cells which previously lacked them. The Graafian follicle will die unless a brief surge of high levels of gonadotrophin coincides with the appearance of these LH receptors. The surge of LH has two effects. Firstly, ovulation occurs and the oocyte is expelled from the follicle and secondly, it changes the whole endocrinology of the follicle, forming a corpus luteum after ovulation. The corpus luteum
then secretes progesterone and some oestrogens which will support a developing embryo.

Carole Mallinson is a healthcare professional with over 15 years experience
in the field of Female & male Infertility. Join her and get access to here range of medical niche products with full

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Nearly 10 years ago I immigrated to Canada. I gave up a successful legal practice and my other business interests to start a new life in Canada. People ask me all the time why my family and I chose Canada. What makes Canada unique and special?

Although I did lots of research before making the decision to move to Canada, over the past 10 years I have discovered for myself what makes Canada special and why the country and its cities are consistently ranked amongst the top places to live in the world by the UN. I have discovered what it means to be truly Canadian. I have learn’t to appreciate what Canadians so often refer to as Canadian values and to understand how important they are to being Canadian.

Canada is a country that is built on immigration and immigrants continue to play a very dynamic and important role in the development of both the economy and culture of the country. It is very rarely that you will come across a Canadian who will not be able to trace his or her roots back through their parents, grandparents or great grandparents to another country in the world. That is of course if they themselves are not an immigrant.

Canada needs immigrants. It needs people who have the ability to become economically established and who can add to the cultural fabric of society. But that doesn’t mean that Canada is desperate. Far from it! There are many people waiting in line (some have been waiting a really long time too!) to be considered for permanent residence visas and there are many of those applicants who regretfully will not meet the selection criteria. For those who are selected, the adventure and a new life will begin when they arrive in Canada to take up their residency. It will be a very worthwhile reward at the end of a lengthy and complex process. And they will start to understand what it means to be truly Canadian:

People in Canada can live their lives according to their individual value system. Canadians see richness in diversity and what makes each of us different, rather than seeing this as a divisive factor. This is apparent in everyday life and not just something protected in the constitution. Differences in lifestyle and divergent opinions are respected and accepted rather than criticized. Canadians care about Canadians.

Canada has an excellent health care system. I know of someone recently who experienced some chest pains - what followed was an ambulance ride following a 911 call, admission into hospital, the attention of a cardiac specialist and other doctors, additional diagnostic procedures, and an ECG. This person was diagnosed with a heart condition that required immediate surgery and an extended stay in hospital. There was no cost to the patient other than the very reasonable monthly premium he pays to the government. I have my own private family physician, however if I wanted, I could drive a few kilometers down the road and visit one of our local walk in clinics (there are about 4 in close proximity to where I live). I could see a doctor immediately. Again, outside of the very affordable premium I pay to the government each month, there would be no cost to me (the same would apply if I saw my own doctor).

We don’t like guns in Canada. In fact we have strict gun control and only people who have a very good reason to possess a gun are permitted to do so. Compared to most countries in the world, Canada has a very low rate of crime. Where I live, (a 30 minute drive from the city centre of Vancouver), our biggest concern are the bears that wander through the garden in the summer. One or two of the larger cities may not be as free of litter as the other cities in Canada, but on the whole our cities are clean and have low levels of smog and pollution. The roads are in great shape and the environment is very well maintained. Things work in Canada. Levels of service are high and there are few instances where you will find that you are not treated courteously and with respect.

Canada is a true democracy. The quality of life factor is high. The economy is in great shape. For people with drive and initiative the sky is the limit in Canada. It is a privilege to call myself Canadian.

Charles Burgess is the publisher of Charles Burgess’ “Live in Canada!” Ezine - a free newsletter for people thinking about living, working or studying in Canada. Read breaking news from Canada as it affects you and get up to date information to help you make the right decisions at:
http://www.canadaimmigrationinfo.com

Do you have a home based business opportunity or program that you currently promote?

Are you doing any affiliate program?

Are you a shining success in the home based business opportunity that you’re doing?

Are you making enough money and are you financially secured?

Read on, to discover how to succeed in any home based business opportunity and create true wealth.

Most people are like the hound dog that lies on his back and howls all day because he is in pains and feels lazy to get up and do something about it.

They waste their time and lives in dead end jobs that they hate.

Some dabble in various home based business opportunities.

They seem to think that their lives are like a TV show which will have a happy ending.

So they stay in the same job for years, waste their lives and whine.
Like a hound dog.

Some of them will retire, but will walk around for the rest of their lives wounded and miserable because of the stress they accumulated from their jobs.

The others will get downsized, and end up in the skid row, where they will continue howling and whining for the rest of their lives, unable to figure out where their happy ending went.

You don’t have to be a hound dog because you can do something about your current financial situation.

Most people rush into home based business opportunity for various reasons.

Some people are tired of working hard at their jobs and desire a home based business opportunity as away to escape from the 9-5 job rat race.

Some other people desire a home based business opportunity so as to earn extra incomes to supplement the money they make at their jobs.

Other people desire a home based business opportunity because of the comfort and freedom of working from their homes and the power it gives them to control their financial destinies.

There are some people who have bought a home based business opportunity because they are retired and need something to keep them busy.

When the internet gold rush happened about 6 years ago, millions of average people all over the world rushed into different types of home based business opportunities because they bought the internet hype of get rich fast.

Millions of companies were born overnight and they began to offer free affiliate programs.

Millions of people signed up with the mistaken notion that just by signing up and getting a free website to promote a home based business opportunity will make them rich over night.

This gave birth to various internet promotions and marketing.

One of the most annoying internet promotions was spa-mm-ing.

This in turn gave birth to anti-spam activism which has almost wiped out spamming.

After 1 or 2 years, most of these millions of people who rushed into home based business opportunities had to admit failure because they were not making any money.

Their dreams of fast internet wealth were shattered.

As a way to console themselves, they started labeling every home based business opportunity as a scam.

Most of these people will buy a home based business opportunity and after they download or receive it will claim that the home based business opportunity is a sc-am (even though they have not tried it yet and have no proof) and apply for a chargeback and a refund so as to eat their cake and have it also.

By so doing, they ripped off the sellers of these home based business opportunities.

While some of the companies that promote home based business opportunities may engage in deceptive advertising, it is not true that all home based business opportunities are scams.

Most home based business opportunities are valid and can make the buyer a lot of money.

The problem is that most people who buy home based business opportunity are not capable of doing them because they are not business oriented.

Most of them don’t have a clue about marketing and internet promotion.

Most of them buy the programs or sign up in free affiliate programs and after they get the websites they don’t do any serious marketing.

A lot of these people don’t even know the difference between selling and marketing.

I have known some of these people who don’t even know how to write a simple business letter or e-mail.

They write an e-mail without beginning it with a salutation and at the end of the e-mail, they don’t include their names or phone numbers or physical addresses.

When they phone you and leave a message on your answering machine, they don’t even know that they have to state their names, the reason why they called and their own phone numbers and the best times you may call them back.

Most of them don’t even know how to create a folder or save or upload a file or install a software and yet they had signed up in 100 different affiliate programs and home based business opportunities and had dreams of making a million bucks overnight!

Is it any surprise that these people fail miserably?

The least that any serious business person should know how to do should be how to write a business letter.

Most of the people who fail in home based business opportunity have no discipline and are disorganized.

They have the mistaken notion that working from home and doing a home based business opportunity program means that they can wake up anytime they like and that they can choose whether to work or not and when to work or not.

They fail to realize that doing a home based business opportunity can be more demanding than doing a regular job.

Doing a home based business opportunity requires more discipline and competence than a regular job because you may have to do many different chores all by yourself because at the beginning, you probably will be working alone and may not be able to hire helpers.

This means that you may have to play many roles and do so many things all at the same time.

You may be forced to become a website designer, a copy editor, a sales person, a customer service person, a spokes person, an attorney, a book keeper, an accountant and a publisher all at the same time.

This is one of the biggest reasons why most people fail in home based business opportunity because they are unable to play all these roles at the same time.

Another reason why most people fail in home based business opportunity is that they don’t spend enough money to promote it.

To attain success in any home based business opportunity may require that you spend thousands of dollars.

But most people spend $25 a month to place an ad and if they don’t make any sale, they conclude that the home based business opportunity doesn’t work and give up.

To succeed in any home based business opportunity may require that you do different types of marketing and internet promotions.

Your website must be optimized and competently submitted to both the major directories and the search engines on a regular basis.

You must have a link exchange program that is effective.

You may have to do pay per click campaign.

You may have to do both online and offline marketing.

You may have to do many press releases in order to get free publicity and generate free traffic to buy your home based business opportunity.

You may even have to do direct marketing to drive traffic to your websites.

This depends on what type of product or service that you promote.

You may have to go offline to find the targeted customers who need what you promote.

To succeed in doing this, you must know how to locate a targeted mailing list and how to test it.

You may have to do magazine and newspapers advertising too.

Above all, depending on the type of product or service that you’re promoting, it may take time for you to start seeing a return on your investment and to become profitable.

Unfortunately, most people that get into home based business opportunity lack patience because they are looking for quick ways to make money.

For that reason, they don’t do enough marketing and internet promotion and don’t network and don’t spend enough money to generate traffic and so consequently they fail.

But when they fail, they are unable to admit that they are at fault.

Instead they blame the home based business opportunity and the company who sold it to them and label all home based business opportunities as sc-ams.

May these home based business opportunity insights open your eyes to the possibility of infinite wealth and success that can be yours.

Please feel free to print or publish this article anywhere and read and also send to your friends and well wishers and please preserve the author’s resource box below.

Warmly,

Ikey Benney

I-key is the creator of “Mscsrrr, Millionaire Secret Cash System, The Royal Road To Riches, Generate $1,500 Weekly For Life” (http://www.mscsrrr.com ) and “TMT: Transcendental Mental Technology, The 10,000 Yr Old “Secret” Of Infinite Wealth, Infinite Success, Infinite Happiness, Revealed. (http://www.tmtworldwide.org )

To learn more about this powerful ultimate marketing secret book, by VJ, please go to: http://www.12-month-millionaire.com?a_aid=982e5bcf

Sensuous silk is said to be spun from gold although it is cultivated from the cocoon of silk worms. Conjuring up images of it beginning as gold however is a more romantic thought. No matter where it comes from, silk has long been known as royalty among fabrics. Silk has great components; it takes color beautifully and has a range of possibilities with different textures for its finish. There is raw silk, which resembles a linen weave; dupioni with its “slubs” has great distinction; taffeta is bold and crisp; and silk duck is great for upholstery.

For silk curtains, fabrics need to be the lighter weaves. Dupioni, taffeta, and raw silk are favorites. Dupioni and taffeta are popular for another distinction known to silk: it’s exquisite embroidered designs. These designs run the gammet from detailed, ancient designs to newer, contemporary designs like polka dots and stripes.

The negative aspects of silks, such as fading and rotting easily with sun exposure, are easily overcome for draperies by using durable linings. Silk require two linings to really hold up to the test of time. An inner lining will usually be a heavier weight “gimp” or cotton flannel in a good quality curtain construction. This will serve to give body to the silk in how it hangs and protection from fading by keeping the fabric away from the direct sunlight. It also serves as an insulation from the outside elements. The outer lining should be medium weight twill in cotton or synthetic. Outer lining helps keep lighter weight silks from dropping and makes for proper hanging of the curtain. It also helps to keep the silk from fading and rotting. Another purpose of the outer lining is to keep moisture away from silk, which may occur when windows “weep”.

Silk curtains are usually quite an investment so consumers need to be sure they get a quality product with all the bells and whistles. Other details that add to longevity and appearance are of silk curtains are that they be hand sewn and have weighted hems.

Paige is the Head Merchandiser (President) at Shades of Light curtain & rug division, Curtains On Call and Rugs Under Foot, specializing in silk curtains. Her Merchandising background began in 1977 at Virginia based retailer Miller & Rhoads continued with Sales & Marketing for Lancme Cosmetics before beginning career as merchant in flooring and rugs with Shades of Light in 2000. Began rugs and curtain business for Va. Based multi channel marketer Shades of Light national mail order, e- commerce and retailer specializing in distinctive lighting, rugs and curtains.

I’ve been called many things over 22 years in this business but I’ve NEVER been called a BCS expert. In all honesty, just who would WANT to be known as one? That being said, we’re stuck with the BCS determining college football’s national title game matchup and most people are a little nervous these days, as almost EVERYONE is anticipating a Texas/USC or USC/Texas (whichever way you prefer) showdown in this year’s Rose Bowl.

The first BCS standings were released on October 17 and there were rumors that while USC would be No. 1, consensus No. 2 in the polls Texas, could find itself behind Va Tech in the standings. Those fears were unfounded, as USC and Texas were a solid one-two in the first BCS standings. I pause here for a moment to remind everyone that since the BCS’ inception in 1998, the two teams ranked first and second in the initial standings of the year, have NEVER met in the BCS’ season-ending title game!

Moving on, the second BCS standings were released this past Monday. In somewhat of a surprise, USC fell to No. 2 with Texas moving up to the number one spot. The margin of .0007, was the closest-ever between the first two spots in the standings history. USC owns the nation’s longest winning streak at 29 games (Texas has the second-best streak at just 14!), has been ranked No. 1 in the AP poll for 26 consecutive polls (an all-time record) and is the two-time defending national champion but now finds itself at No. 2!

For USC fans, it’s not as bad as is sounds. USC is comfortably ahead of No. 3 Va Tech and remember, No. 2 is just as good as No. 1 in this ‘game’, as they both advance to the Rose Bowl. Actually, Texas, which has no more ranked teams on its remaining schedule, is in greater danger of falling out of one the top two spots than USC. The Trojans still have Cal (No. 23 in the BCS), Fresno State (unranked in the BCS but 22nd in the AP and 24 in the coaches’ poll) and UCLA (No. 9 in the BCS) on their schedule.

Currently, Va Tech is in the “dreaded” No. 3 spot (see USC in 2003 and Auburn in 2004). However, the Hokies play Boston College (BCS No. 12) Thursday night plus still have Miami-Fl (No. 8 in the BCS) and a likely ACC title-game showdown on tap with Florida State on December 3 (No. 11 in the BCS), to boost their computer rankings. Currently, there are SIX unbeatens remaining in college football and it’s possible that the year could end with as many as four.

Either USC or UCLA has to lose when those teams meet on December 3 and assuming Georgia and Alabama were to remain unbeaten through the end of the regular season, the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide would meet in the SEC title game, dropping one or the other from the ranks of the unbeaten.

Speaking of unbeatens, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, UCLA, USC and Va Tech are all 7-0. However, only Texas is a perfect 7-0 ATS. The teams combined ATS mark is 26-16, or 61.9 percent. At the other end of the spectrum, FOUR Division I-A schools enter this weekend’s action winless. The list includes Buffalo (0-7), New Mexico State (0-7), Rice (0-6) and Temple (0-8). Of those four, only Rice, at 0-6 ATS, is also winless against the points! The combined ATS mark of the four winless schools is 11-17 or 39.3 percent.

Here’s an interesting fact. You have often heard me and others refer to the pointspread as the “great equalizer.” Here’s why? The six unbeatens naturally have a winning percentage of 1.000 and the four winless teams naturally are at .000. However, you’ll notice that when you compare the two groups’ SU winning percentage versus their ATS percentages, here’s what you get. The unbeatens’ ATS percentage is .619, a difference of .381. As for the winless teams. the difference between their SU and ATS winning percentage is .393. Pretty darn close!

Before leaving this discussion of unbeatens and winless teams, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention both Duke and Purdue (although I’m sure those schools would rather I didn’t!). While Texas is the nation’s ONLY perfect ATS school, Rice is not the nation’s only winless ATS school. Joining the Owls are Duke and Purdue. The Blue Devils are 1-7 SU but 0-7 ATS, beating only VMI in a non-lined game. As for the Boilermakers, they are 2-5 SU but 0-7 ATS, as they won but did not cover against Akron and Arizona to open the year, before losing their last five games both SU and ATS!

How are those new head coaches doing?

In one of may many preseason articles, I mentioned that 23 of the nation’s 119 Division I-A schools (almost 20 percent!) would open the 2005 season with a different head coach than they had finished with in 2004. Are most of the schools better for the change? I won’t waste time listing each school’s individual record but alphabetically from BYU to Western Michigan, the 23 schools that changed head coaches for the 2005 year went a collective 114-149 (.433) in 2004 with an ATS record of 117-138-2 (.459). Heading into this weekend’s action, those 23 schools are a combined 70-91 SU (.435) and 66-88-1 ATS (.429).

If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one around to hear it, does it make a sound? While the overall numbers are pretty similar from last year to this year, here are seven schools that have surely noticed a change, either good or bad.

Skip Holtz has East Carolina at 3-3 SU and 5-1 ATS, after the Pirates went 2-9 SU and 5-6 ATS in 2004 (ECU was a combined 3-20 in ‘04 and ‘03). Hal Mumme brought his supposed “Air Raid” offense to Las Cruces but the Aggies of New Mexico State are averaging just 14.3 PPG and are 0-7 SU and 2-5 ATS after going 5-6 (6-5) in 2004. Mike Gundy took over at Oklahoma State and the Cowboys are 3-4 SU (wins have come over I-AA Montana State, Fla Atlantic and Ark St) and 1-5 ATS, following a 7-5 (7-5) 2004.

Greg Robinson got his first head coaching job, after 30 years in the business, at Syracuse this year. However, his mid-season report card is not good, as the Orange are 1-6 SU and 2-5 ATS after going 6-6 (8-4) in Paul Pasqualoni’s final year (had 11 winning seasons in 14 years at Syracuse!).Utah set the college football world on its ear in 2004, becoming the first non-BCS conference school to get a BCS bowl bid and finished 12-0 (10-2 ATS). However, Urban Meyer left for Florida (where he’s a disappointing 5-2 SU and 3-4 ATS) with former DC Kyle Whittingham taking over for the Utes and going just 4-4 and a pathetic 1-7 ATS so far in 2005. Things are looking up in Kalamazoo these days (try writing that with a straight face!), as Bill Cubit in his first year as a Division I-A head coach, has the Broncos 4-3 SU and 2-4 ATS after the school finished 2004 at 1-10 (3-7).

I haven’t forgotten about Charlie Weis and Notre Dame, I just left them until last. Weis, with none of his own recruits, took over an offense that had finished 108th in the nation in total offense in 2002, 90th in 2003 and 81st in 2004. After seven games of the 2005 season, Notre Dame is 8th in total offense (492.7 YPG), 12th in scoring (37.9 PPG) and 5-2 SU (6-1 ATS). After going 6-6 SU and ATS in 2004 plus 5-7 SU (4-8) in 2003, Weis has the Irish ranked 9th in the latest AP poll, 10th in the latest coaches’ poll and 15th (?) in the latest BCS standings. He’s got a QB (Brady Quinn) that’s breaking Notre Dame passing records on a weekly basis and would be the Heisman front-runner if not for two guys from USC and a QB from Texas named Young. Most importantly, he’s got the Irish in line for a BCS bowl bid, if he can win-out.

Out of respect to the Willingham family, I won’t mention how Notre Dame’s former head coach is doing in Washington. On second thought, I don’t know him or any one in his family, so what the heck. Willingham has the Huskies 1-6 SU and 2-4 ATS through seven games, with his lone win coming over an Idaho team which is 1-6. In fairness to Ty, he inherited a team that was 1-10 (3-7) in 2004.

Larry Ness is a documented member of The Professional Handicappers League. Read all of his articles at http://www.procappers.com/Larry_Ness.htm

Some of the greatest words of wisdom for any man or woman seeking change or growth are, “Surround yourself with people who will support and believe in you.”

Creating any kind of significant change requires determination, focus, energy, a game plan, and more than anything else, desire and a positive attitude.

Sometimes, we become stalled in our progress or just lose the desire to continue because we do not have a strong support structure in place.

How many times have you tried to create something for yourself but failed because your circle of influence provided negative input and little support for you?

I once worked with a client who wanted to secure the career of his dreams. He was in his late 30’s and had spent a good deal of his life working in an unfulfilling job that involved heavy lifting all day long.

When he finally made the decision to commit to pursuing his dream career, he shared his goals with his co-workers, family and friends.

He received little to no support from his co-workers. Some told him he was too old, he would never make it and that he was a dreamer.

His family members tried to convince him that he was going through a phase and that he should be grateful for his current job. It paid the bills.

His friends wished him well, but didn’t offer much in the line of support because they thought his goal was too lofty and unrealistic.

We worked together to create an action plan, to keep his momentum high and his attention focused.

His greatest struggle, however, was he could not understand why he seemed to be traveling this road alone; why he had such little support from his closest circle of influence.

One day at work after having his dream quashed yet again, he confided in a co-worker that he just didn’t know if he was doing the right thing anymore because no one believed in him.

His co-worker then shared a story that turned his day around by giving him a new perspective. He told my client he was experiencing the “Crab Effect,” then shared his explanation.

While vacationing in Florida, he observed a bucket of crabs on a fishing dock.

While all of the crabs were either motionless or squirming at the bottom of the bucket, one little crab kept crawling up the side in an effort to reach the top.

Each time the crab made his way closer to the top rim, a crab from below would reach up and pull him back down. Time and again, the little crab would climb the wall and time and again, one from below would pull him back.

By observing this behavior, my client’s co-worker related this to how we function as human beings.

This one crab did not want to be confined. He believed he had a choice and did not have to accept his lot in life. He was willing to venture outside of his imposed boundaries in search for freedom.

Unfortunately, the others in the group did not recognize that they too had a choice, and would not allow the venturing crab to leave the rest of them behind.

This is the same for you. Have you ever wanted to create something new for yourself or make a significant change that would give you a sense of freedom or purpose?

Did you find that those around you did not provide the support you needed to succeed?

Unfortunately, you won’t always receive the support you expect from those you believe should be there for you.

This doesn’t mean they’re bad or want to see you fail. They just might not be in the same place you are right now.

The Crab Effect usually occurs because others are not willing to expand their boundaries of thinking. They won’t accept that they have a choice or the ability to create what they truly want.

You creating change for yourself may prove that their thinking is not sound and no one wants to be proven wrong. The ego does not like to be challenged.

The Crab Effect also occurs because some people are afraid of change or may not have sufficient confidence in themselves, and by you embracing change and creating a more desirable future for yourself, their self-limiting beliefs may be reinforced.

Some people are afraid of being left behind and don’t want to be left alone. Like they say, “Misery loves company.”

If you want to make a significant change in your life, surround yourself with people who believe in you and the power of creating anything you desire.

Don’t share your goals and dreams with those who will bring you down or try to sabotage your efforts.

Sometimes the journey can be lonely when you decide to venture outside of the pack, but remain open and positive, and you will attract those who will support you and guide you in the right direction.

Be true to yourself and don’t let the fear and limited thinking of others get in your way.

The day my client left his unfulfilling job for his new career, some cheered while others stood dumb-founded. It was a three-year journey, but he made it!

And once he realized he could accomplish what seemed impossible to many, he set new goals for himself and not only achieved, but exceeded many of them.

No one questions him anymore. They know if he says he plans to accomplish something, he most certainly will!

Laurie Hayes works with small and home-based business owners who feel stuck. To receive valuable tips, strategies and techniques designed to grow a successful business without sacrificing quality of life, subscribe to her free bi-weekly newsletter at http://www.wheretheheartis-lifecoaching.com

1. Dolphins are mammals; they nurse their young from mammary glands.

2. Dolphins can swim up to 260 m. below the surface of the ocean, although they are mainly shallow divers.

3. Dolphins can stay up to 15 minutes under water although they usually stay only a few minutes diving.

4. Dolphins use a technique called echolocation to find food and navigate.

5. Dolphins are social beings which live in groups and cooperate among each other for activities like getting food and calf rising.

6. There are 32 species of ocean dolphins and 5 species of river dolphins.

7. The largest dolphin is the “killer whale” (orca), which can grow to 6.1 meters long.

8. The most known dolphin is the “bottlenose dolphin” which can grow to 2.5-2.8 meters.

9. Dolphins are warm-blooded and their internal temperature is around 36 degrees. To conserve this temperature they are surrounded by a thick layer of fat called “blubber” just below the skin.

10. The average botllenose dolphin brain weighs 1500-1600 grams, while average human brain weighs 1200-1300 grs. This is not a conclusive evidence of dolphin intelligence as many other factors might be the cause of intelligence according to scientists.

11. Dolphins can make a unique signature whistle that may help individual dolphins recognize each other or perform any other kind of communication still unknown.

12. Bottlenose dolphins can swim 5 to 12 kilometers per hour, although they can reach up to 32 km/h.

Laurent Mikhail is a dolphin fan. You can find all the information about dolphins
in his site http://www.dolphins-world.com

Many renters say they prefer to rent because it is simple and doesn’t carry the stress of home ownership. In truth, they are simply making other people rich.

Equity

What if I told you that if you purchased a home, you wouldn’t have to make any monthly payments on it? On top of this, I’d promise you that when the house was sold, you would get to keep all of the equity gain in the home. Sound like a pipe dream? This is exactly what renters are doing for their landlords.

Regardless of how you break down a renting versus homeownership argument, there is one universal fact. If you rent, you are building equity for your landlord. Let’s take a look at a simple example.

Assume you rent a unit in a duplex and pay $1,000 a month for it. Assume further that you live in the unit for three years. During this period, you will have paid your landlord a total of $36,000. You can further assume that your landlord’s mortgage payment was less than $36,000 or he would raise your month payment. The end all effect of this situation is you have paid his mortgage for three years. Think about that for a minute.

Over the three years, you have made every single mortgage payment for your landlord. In doing so, you have helped him build equity in the home through the part of the mortgage payments applied to the principal of the loan. On top of that, the equity growth in the property is entirely his. If you’ve paid off $10,000 in principal and the home has appreciated by 100,000, you’ve just put $110,000 into his pocket. Yep, you’ve been making other people rich.

If you’re renting, you will undoubtedly find the above scenario very depressing. Unfortunately, it gets worse. Go ahead and make a list of your assets and debts. List every single thing you can think of and then subtract the total debts from the total assets. Whatever the number is, would it look better if you had added $110,000 to your balance sheet instead of your landlords?

Renting is a necessity, not an option. You should only rent if you cannot get into a home for some reason. With millions of loan options out there, home ownership should be at the top of your priority list.

Dan Lewis is with www.gwhomeloans.com - San Diego mortgage brokers providing San Diego home loans. Visit www.gwhomeloans.com/services.html to learn more about options on San Diego mortgages from a San Diego mortgage broker company.

In the past, purchasing ad space was the solution to every entrepreneur’s marketing challenge. Then it was direct mail, followed by telemarketing. But with advertising and postage costs on the rise, these tactics have lost some of their appeal.

Today the competition is fierce for a customers’ attention. In order to compete, you need to employ take-it-to-the-customer techniques. Some of these techniques can include attending trade shows, seminars, and sending them to your website.

You want to promote your business and in doing so you want to maximize referrals and conduct effective public relations campaigns. The following are five sure-fire, inexpensive marketing methods:

1. Be an expert. Don’t overlook your most accessible source of promotion: yourself. Give speeches to industry groups, colleges and community organizations, or offer workshops at conferences and business expos. Provide sign-up sheets or marketing materials for potential customers. Also, be a reference for customers, clients, vendors and related businesses by circulating relevant information and providing contacts. After all, home-based businesses thrive on a steady stream of referrals from clients.

For those of us in the lease purchasing business, this means writing articles for publication. Don’t make it difficult, write about the deals you’ve done. Give speeches at local real estate clubs on lease purchase. Network with local groups (accountants, mortgage brokers, financial planners, etc.). Operate your lease purchase business as we do, as a business, and referrals will come to you, rather than you chasing the deals.

2. Create a press kit. Getting quoted in the media or having an article written about your business is a great and inexpensive way to target your market. Watch for trends that you can tie your business into. Your press kit should include a profile of your company, biographies of its principals, product fact sheets and testimonials from customers. Make a list of trade magazines, local newspapers, and radio and TV stations to which you can send short releases on new products, deals, awards or special events.

Again, for those of us operating a lease purchase business, become the local expert in lease purchasing. Offer to write articles. Be sure to do a press release when you start your business, and distribute it to the local newspapers. If you run a group meeting, seminar, or any type of special event be sure to send a press release to the local papers, radio and television stations. Send out follow up letters after your deals are completed to get testimonials, and keep a journal of your deals.

3. Circulate newsletters. Newsletters are a great way to showcase your company’s expertise and keep your name in front of prospective clients on a regular basis. They show that you are not just a salespersonyou are an expert with important information to offer. Develop a mailing list of clients and send copies of your newsletter quarterly.

Again, for those of us in lease purchasing a newsletter can be the perfect vehicle to use as a follow up piece to send to sellers, tenant buyers and investors.

4. Network. You’ll save money by selling through trade or professional groups. Swamped with running the daily operations of your business, you may feel you have little time to give. But you’ll learn about sales leads by joining groups of like-minded individuals. Also, serve on the boards of community organizations, and host house parties tied to your businessyou can hire students from cooking or catering schools or work out an arrangement with a local restaurant to keep costs down.

Whatever type of business you are operating networking is a must. Develop a networking plan and follow through with it. We discuss this extensively in our home business manual. Check it out at our products page on our site.

5. Form alliances. There are several ways you can band together with complementary enterprises to reduce costs and increase business opportunities. Some involve complex legal paperwork, such as a joint venture or a strategic alliance. Others are less formal partnerships, such as a virtual corporation, where you assemble a group for a specific project or client. For instance, as a contractor, you might partner with two other companies to win a bid. Another type of alliance is a consortium, where a group of companies with different specialties share their services; for example, a consulting firm teaming with a graphic artist and a photographer to create brochures and other marketing materials.

In regards to forming alliances in lease purchasing, we have mentioned on numerous occasions to work with accountants, mortgage brokers, financial planners and real estate agents. The key to forming and keeping alliances is to reciprocate and to pay great referral fees. You have to be sincere when forming alliances, if not, don’t bother.

Copyright DeFiore Enterprises 2002

Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 19 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com for the latest FREE tips and tricks, educational products and coaching in creative real estate investing and home based businesses. No time to visit the site? Subscribe to our “how to” Home Business Solutions Digest, it’s like having your own personal coach: mailto:subscribeHBS@homebusinesssolutions.com

This is a copy of my most recent email newsletter. This was an overwhelming success. I suggested the newsletter on the spur of the moment when I was not busy thinking what the heck, give it a chance. *********************************************************** January 2006

The Early Bird Gets the Worm—Don’t Delay Free Tree Day Jan. 28th is a Free Higan Weeping Cherry Tree Day

Greetings! January 28, 2006 is free Weeping Higan Cherry Tree Day…..All members of our email club can receive a free Higan Weeping Cherry when you bring your pickup to our 5275 West Swamp Rd. Fountainville Pa. location. These trees are 10-12′ tall and in 24″ baskets. These trees must be picked up on the 28th, before 5pm. sorry, no rain checks. There is a limit of one per family and you must have been a member on or before January 27, 2006 of our email club.

Sincerely,

Bill Hirst Free Tree Day Jan. 28th, 2006 is Free Tree Day

5275 W. Swamp Rd. Fountainville, Pennsylvania 18923

January 28, 2006 8:00AM-5:00PM Reasons to Come to this Event We are selling 150 acres of our nursery and we must liquidate many trees and plants. Some of of plants are in quantities that would supply us for many years of sales. But we can’t move that number of trees. Thus they will be either sold at a discount, destroyed, or given away. I like the last option. Thus if you bring your pickup to the farm today, Saturday the 28th, we will give away 1 free Higan Weeping cherry to each email newsletter subscriber to Highland Hill Farm that picks up the tree by 5PM. Sorry you must be have be signed up by Jan. 27th, to qualify. There are no rain checks. These trees are in 24 and 28 inch baskets and are app. 10-14′ tall. We will help load them in your pickup.

We have a total of 75 trees ready to give away while the supply lasts. All other trees and plants are 20% off today.

Driving Directions to the Farm Highland Hill Farm 5275 W. Swamp Rd. Rt. 313 Fountainville, Pennsylvania 18923 myhirst@yahoo.com http://www.seedlingsrus.com We will have other free tree offerings each month. So keep in touch. ************************************************************** Within 15 minutes of this email being sent people started to arrive to make selections. We would have had no customers on this day. Yet we sold enough other stock to make this offering possible. We gave away 52 trees and this was even covered by the press showing up and giving us exposure in local papers.