Podcast Episode #31 -Socially Responsible Investing

Episode # 31 of Xtraordinary Living is out. When you open your Internet news browser, read your paper or change your TV channel, it won’t take long to read about hybrid autos, earth-friendly products or global warming. The words, “green,” “sustainable” and “socially responsible” have taken on new meaning in the 21st century. As individuals leading, or striving to lead Xtraordinary Lives, the topic of Socially Responsible Investing or SRI is one that deserves our understanding. This informative podcast is an quick and easy way to get “in the know.”

Justin Martello, a financial advisor with Blue Summit Financial Group was my featured guest. Founded in 1994 Blue Summit Financial Group, Inc. specializes in ethically and socially responsible investing options tailored to a person’s values and goals. Born and raised in Michigan, Justin’s passion for the environment began in high school when he helped form a club called Students for Environmental Action. He further pursued his interest and obtained a B. S. degree in Resource Ecology and Management from the University of Michigan, School of Natural Resources. Since that time, he has gone on to obtain his financial advisor credentials.

Justin has taken a number of PL&L courses, and we have watched him create his extraordinary life with his wife Barbara. He works in a “perfect-fit career” one that is aligned with his personal mission and values.

In our 31st episode, you’ll hear:
– What is Socially Responsible Investing (SRI)?
– How does it relate to living an extraordinary life?
– What is the history behind SRI — from its beginnings in the 16th Century to date?
– Why the “clean technology” sector is creating waves in the financial community?
– What are some of the current issues the SRI industry is working on?
– Do you have to sacrifice portfolio performance when you invest responsibly?
– How did Justin align himself with his ideal career?
– and more.

There are a couple of common phrases that may come to mind as you listen to this podcast. “Put your money where your mouth is (values are)” and “Money flows to where it is treated best.” In our courses we let our clients know they vote for their values through their pocketbooks and time. This podcast gives us all something to think about. For more information on Socially Responsible Investing, call your current financial investment advisor or Justin Martello at (888) 698-4330.

After you listen to the podcast post your thoughts below. In addition, you can leave your feedback by phone. Simply call 1-800-609-9006 x3144 and record your comments and tell me what you think.

This episode is approximately 22 minutes long. To listen to it, click here:Podcast 31

Instead of listening to the podcast here, you may want to consider subscribing directly using your preferred podcasting tool (see below.) The benefit to you in doing this is that it frees you from being tethered to your computer. You now have the freedom to listen to it WHEN & WHERE you want to.

Subscribe:

Or copy and paste this URL into a podcasting tool:

http://www.switchpod.com/users/rickipll/feed.xml

Technorati Tags: Socially Responsible Investing, SRI, Sustainable Investing, Green Investing, Blue Summit Financial, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Thousand-hand Guanyin dance

PL&L client Karen Sachs pointed me to this incredible example of Xtraordinary Living. Turn your sound on. This video is a little under 6 minutes long.

There is an awesome dance, called the Thousand-Hand Guanyin. Considering the tight coordination required, their accomplishment is nothing short of amazing, even if they were not all deaf. Yes, you read correctly. All 21 of the dancers are complete deaf-mutes.

Relying only on signals from trainers at the four corners of the stage, these extraordinary dancers deliver a visual spectacle that is at once intricate and Stirring. Its first major international debut was in Athens last year at the closing ceremonies for the 2004 Paralympics. But it had long been in the repertoire of the Chinese Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe and had traveled to more than 40 countries.

Its lead dancer is 29 year-old Tai Lihua, who has a BA from the Hubei Fine Arts Institute. The video was recorded in Beijing during the Spring Festival this year.

Technorati Tags: Thousand-hand Guanyin dance, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Quotes for the week of May 21 – 25

If you are currently a “QuoteActions” subscriber and would like to receive the corresponding actions to these quotes, please send me an email requesting them. Just be sure to include this week’s dates in the subject line so I can send you the appropriate ones.

If you are not yet a subscriber, you may want to take the two-week $1 trial so that you can find out the tremendous value that these actions add to the quotes.

“Faith is not a pill you take, but a muscle you use.” Anonymous

“Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.” American Philosopher & Writer, Elbert Hubbard

“Few people are successful unless a lot of other people want them to be.” Judge, Charles Brower

“Lean too much upon the approval of people, and it becomes a bed of thorns.” 19th Century Educator, Tehyi Hsieh

“The most beautiful thing in the world is the conjunction of learning and inspiration.” Musician, Wanda Landowski

Technorati Tags: Motivational Quotes, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

What are you looking for?

The following article was attributed to Jay Leno. While I am not sure that Jay Leno wrote this nor do I agree with EVERYTHING he wrote, I do think he makes some excellent points – especially the last paragraph. Would love to hear what you think?

“The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right?

The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence two thirds of the citizenry just ain’t happy and want a change.

So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, ”What we are so unhappy about?”

Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter?

Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job?
Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more
food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?

Maybe it is the ability to drive from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through each state? Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter?

I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.

Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames thus saving you, your family and your belongings.

Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes , an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss. This all in he backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 percent of teenagers own cell phones and computers.

How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world? Maybe that is what has 67 percent of you folks unhappy.

Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S. , yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don’t have , and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.

I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The president who has a measly 31 percent approval rating? Is this the same president who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks?

The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn’t take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad?

Think about it……are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the “Media” told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day.

Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom. There is currently no draft in this country. They didn’t have to go.

They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ”general” discharge, an ”other than honorable” discharge or, worst case scenario, a ”dishonorable” discharge after a few days in the brig.

So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts. How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for-profit corporations. They offer what sells , and when criticized, try to defend their actions by “justifying” them in one way or another. Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn’t kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way……Insane!

Stop buying the negativism you are fed everyday by the media. Shut off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as a country. There is exponentially more good than bad.

We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative.”

Technorati Tags: Jay Leno, Apreciation, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Quotes for the week of May 14-18

If you are currently a “QuoteActions” subscriber and would like to receive the corresponding actions to these quotes, please send me an email requesting them. Just be sure to include this week’s dates in the subject line so I can send you the appropriate ones.

If you are not yet a subscriber, you may want to take the two-week $1 trial so that you can find out the tremendous value that these actions add to the quotes.

“The past should be a springboard not a hammock.” Satirist, Ivern Ball

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” Best Selling Author, Maya Angelou

“You never know who your real friends are until adversity overtakes you.” Author, Napoleon Hill

“Praise does wonders for our sense of hearing.”
Psychologist, Arnold Glasgow

“It is what we think we know already that often prevents us from learning.” Physiologist, Claude Bernard

Technorati Tags: Motivational Quotes, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Podcast Episode #30 – Feeling Better, Doesn’t Necessarily Mean You’re Getting Better.

Episode # 30 of Xtraordinary Living is out. Since I have received several requests from listeners to explain how to get from the mundane here…to the extraordinary there, I recorded this episode to address the topic “Feeling Better, Doesn’t Necessarily Mean You’re Getting Better.”

In this 30th episode, you’ll hear:
– Why “good” is the enemy of “great.”
– How our society has become obsessed with comfort.
– Why taking risks both physically and emotionally boost your chances of living an extraordinary life.
– How an extraordinary life is not a place, but a process of living. It’s traveling the journey, not the destination.
– What successes can be achieved when you push beyond your ordinary limits.
– and more.

If you have been listening to the podcast episodes and musing – “sure that’s fine for them, but I could never do anything ‘over-the-top,’” consider this podcast a wake-up call.

After you listen to the podcast post your thoughts below. In addition, you can leave your feedback by phone. Simply call 1-800-609-9006 x3144 and record your comments and tell me what you think.

This episode is approximately 15 minutes long. To listen to it, click here:Podcast 30

Instead of listening to the podcast here, you may want to consider subscribing directly using your preferred podcasting tool (see below.) The benefit to you in doing this is that it frees you from being tethered to your computer. You now have the freedom to listen to it WHEN & WHERE you want to.

Subscribe:

Or copy and paste this URL into a podcasting tool:

http://www.switchpod.com/users/rickipll/feed.xml

Technorati Tags: Journey vs. Destination, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Quotes for the week of May 7 – 11

If you are currently a “QuoteActions” subscriber and would like to receive the corresponding actions to these quotes, please send me an email requesting them. Just be sure to include this week’s dates in the subject line so I can send you the appropriate ones.

If you are not yet a subscriber, you may want to take the two-week $1 trial so that you can find out the tremendous value that these actions add to the quotes.

“The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.” Poet & Educator, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities; an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.” WWI soldier, Reginald B. Mansell

“Even if you fall on your face, you’re still moving forward.” Business Leader, Victor Kiam

“Love talked about can be easily turned aside, but love demonstrated is irresistible.” Dr. Stanley Mooneyham

“A conversation not grounded in honesty is not real communication.” Editor, Ismail Royer

Technorati Tags: Motivational Quotes, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Minimizing expenses vs. maximizing benefit

I’m fascinated by how individuals and businesses are often obsessed with minimizing expenses. They use terms like “streamlining”, “simplifying” or “eliminating waste.” .” However, in the end it seems to be about minimizing the expenditure of resources – time, money or people

While this is not inherently bad, I often find that people do this out of reaction and “throw the baby out with the bath-water.” I believe their mindset is certainly a contributing factor. By focusing on minimizing resources exclusively, they simultaneously minimize benefits. In the long run, this is approach ends up being far more costly.

Seth Godin shares an example of this in his article Even governments market.

As an example, I received a call from one of our clients who had been participating in the “QuoteActions” daily call program for six weeks and wanted to cancel. Their reason was: “Even though I really like the program and have really benefited from it, I am not using the ‘QuoteActions’ like I thought I would.”

I was really interested in what they meant. The client explained that they had only been doing an average of two actions per week (instead of five.) Because of this, they felt they were wasting money by not taking full advantage of the program.

I then asked them how they had benefited from the program. They gave me three different examples where the “QuoteActions” had prompted them to take an action that had really made a difference in their day. As a matter of fact, one of those actions had a profitable direct result. An action led to a conversation with someone, which then led to earning an additional $250. Money they wouldn’t otherwise have earned.

So here is a program that requires an investment of less than 1 minute a day and $10/month. The program had already proven it’s value and had paid for itself for the next two years. And yet they wanted to cancel.

The concern I have with this reactionary approach is that they were only looking at what they were “wasting” and not at what they were “gaining.” An incomplete picture for sure. Once they viewed the entire picture – cost vs. benefit – the decision to cancel didn’t look quite so good!

The next time you’re thinking about minimizing expenses, be sure you look at the “big picture.”

Technorati Tags: Minimizing Expenses, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Quotes for the week of April 30 – May 4

If you are currently a “QuoteActions” subscriber and would like to receive the corresponding actions to these quotes, please send me an email requesting them. Just be sure to include this week’s dates in the subject line so I can send you the appropriate ones.

If you are not yet a subscriber, you may want to take the two-week $1 trial so that you can find out the tremendous value that these actions add to the quotes. Don’t forget to vote for this week’s favorite quote in the poll at the end of this post. Here are this week’s quotes:


“Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.” Songwriter, Jackson Brown

“Managers light a fire under people; leaders light a fire in people.” Management Consultant, Kathy Austin

“No matter what accomplishments you achieve, somebody always helps you.” Athlete, Althea Gibson

“One of the most lasting pleasures you can experience is the feeling that comes over you when you forgive an enemy- whether he knows it or not” Author, O.A. Battista

“You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him.” Writer, Leo Aikman

Technorati Tags: Motivational Quotes, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich

Additonal evidence supporting VSS

The following article from Reuters Health Exercising harder keeps weight off longer offers further evidence that in order to make changes, we need to have Vision, Structure & Support (VSS).

To find more about VSS, please read the following posts:
Are you a self-help junkie?
Structure – One of the 3 pillars of change
1-Year Anniversary.

Technorati Tags: Vision Structure & Support, Exercise, Weight Loss, VSS, Change, Xtraordinary Living, www.productivelearning.com, Rick Itzkowich