Hat Trick Your Life

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BE AN ONLINE NINJA Inspiring Women to Succeed

Volume 2 Issue 7  July 2013

about Hat Trick (noun): 1. A sports metaphor for three achievements by a single player in a game. 2. A magic trick. We happily accept both definitions. Hat Trick Magazine is a special project targeted at sharing spiritual and professional growth with likeminded people from around the world. We share strategies that truly will change your life, business and career (with a little help from some pro friends). We’ve all been there: under/un/employed, in a bad situation, in transition, wondering what the options are and not knowing the skills we would need to get us there. We won’t lie to you. Coming out the other side isn’t easy, but we can show you what we learned along to way and help you get the confidence to turn that leaf over and pursue that which is your destiny. Knowledge is power. Not everyone fancies themselves to be an entrepreneur but the truth is, even when seeking employment these days, pulling together your resumé requires some sly articulation to showcase your skills, be keyword-optimized and with a strong, personable presentation to get noticed. We feature inspirational people who have great careers, amazing businesses, tips and a host of amazing stories will inspire and amaze you. Our editors and contributors are some of the most connected in their industries and specialisms. Hat Trick Your Life! Take control of your lifestyle, your career, your dreams and your journey. We’ll share what we know and we invite you to join us. If you or your business would like to be featured or simply would like to contribute a feature in an upcoming issue, please email us on content@hattrickmagazine.com

Hat Trick Strategies cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited coverage made by our contributors including reviews, articles, manuscripts or photographs of products, services. While every care is taken, prices, details or availability of items are subject to change and we cannot accept responsibility for omissions or errors. We reserve the right to publish and edit letters or correspondence received via email, social media or other communication. All advice is given in general terms or as a matter of opinion, for entertainment purposes only, and may not be exhaustive nor suitable for all situations. Always seek specialized professional advice, specifically suited to you or your business needs. Absolutely no part of this magazine should be taken as medical, professional or other advice - always seek the advice of a qualified practitioner.

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Editorial Team

Michelle Fitz Editor-In-Chief, Page Design Michelle is originally from Arkansas and the head of Hat Trick Strategies, a UK firm for Emerging Technologies, Business Change and Corporate Strategy. Her firm has served US and UK household names, government departments and a portfolio of business coaching clients, based globally. Michelle produces all page layout, custom graphics and ad designs for this publication. She holds professional qualifications in LEAN Six Sigma, PMI PMP, is a Practitioner in both PRINCE2 and MSP and is a leader in digital synergies linking content, the customer journey, social media and customer care words/SEO.

Michael Hartley Associate Design Editor Michael is a British entrepreneur based in Manchester, England and is an expert in graphic design, digital artistry, branding and design management. He is a trained violinist, and brings a tremendous breath of creativity to projects. His firm, Michael Thomas Designs, are experts in brand research for target demographics, image and the production of a consistent brand identity for mid-sized companies. Michael understands how to get at the heart of a firmâ€™s offerings and customer base and works closely with select web designers to implement a consistent look and feel across digital, print and online platforms.

Eleni Sofroniou Illustrator Eleni is an illustrator based in London and owns Fall Into London. She produces the majority of the illustrations which appear in Hat Trick Magazine (which compliment give our magazine its distinctive look and feel). She has previously created pieces for ELLE Magazine, Essex Style Magazine, and The Female Entrepreneur Association. As well as creating personalised illustration, Eleni's illustrations can be purchased from her website.

Andrea Sullenger Business & Tech Editor Andrea is a mix of “kick butt” sales / marketing coach and inspirational possible-i-tarian. She has been working with solo-entrepreneurs for the past 16 years, helping them build their own thriving transactional businesses all while creating streamlined and successful digital products to maximize and leverage their income streams. Andrea shares many of her strategies via Hat Trick Magazine, but to get the latest, subscribe to her list.

Editorial Team

Sandra Cunningham Career & Learning Editor Sandra contributes to the Careers column for the Financial Times and is the owner of Outside In Coaching and Communications, where she helps mid-career women make a successful transition from a soul-sucking, dead-end job to a meaningful and fulfilling career, while creating a lifestyle they can afford and enjoy. Sandra truly believes it’s possible to be wildly successful doing work you love whilst having the work/life balance most people can only dream of. Visit her website for free articles, resources and to sign up for your free e-booklet "21 Pointers to Sharpen Your Career Edge."

Shalanda Turner Style Editor Shasie has a B.S. Degree in Chemical Engineering and works as a Project Engineer for a Specialty Chemicals company in Houston, Texas. When Shasie is not at work, she moonlights in the Fashion Industry. She is the creative voice behind the top Fashion Blog; Live Life in Style, Founder of Houston Fashion Bloggers, Style Editor for online media site FashionMingle.net, Fashion Brand Ambassador for Monarch Magazine, Owner of Shop Shasie’s Closet and Houston Fashion Examiner for Examiner.com.

Charlene SanJenko Wellness & Lifestyle Editor Charlene SanJenko is a serial entrepreneur with a successful lifestyle and fitness practice serving Canada. She is an accomplished figure competitor and has served her community in local government. As a social entrepreneur, she believes there is an intrinsic link between physical and emotional fitness, leadership and excellence. She is a thought leader whose emphasis is in helping transform ordinary ladies into â€œHIPâ€?, High Impact Performance women. powHERhouse.com

Brittany De Staedtler Beauty Editor Brittany is an entrepreneur and owner of bath, beauty and skin care brand Posh Brats and flagship store Bathery, located in Macclesfield, England. She is an advocate for career progression for women from small towns. Being from the Southern US, she overcame what could have easily been a template predefined for her, but pursued a career and degrees in Cosmetic Chemistry, leading to the successful career she has held to date. Brittany regularly shares simple beauty secrets you can make at home, as well as her thoughts and skills in business.

Editorial Team

Tanya Jackson Food, Home & Family Editor Tanya is the author of our popular Southern recipe column and the editor for our Food & Home section. She is married to a pastor, her high school sweetheart, and is a proud Southern mother and grandmother. Tanya has lived all over the US, but wherever she has lived, she has brought her love and curiosity for local foods and flavors. Tanya believes the best aspect of having cooked in the four corners of the US, was learning to cook what grows around us; because it is our families that make a difference in our lives and sharing our love and enjoyment of good food together goes hand-in-hand.

Karen Salmansohn Faith & Self Help Editor Karen is an ex-Senior VP, awardwinning ad writer/creative director (at age 27) who left her successful advertising career (having worked as a writer/creative director/ image consultant for numerous household names), to pursue her passion of writing. She owns notsalmon.com, is an Oprah columnist and a best selling author and book packager with over 1 million books sold. Some titles: How to Be Happy Dammit; Enough Dammit; The Bounce Back Book; – and many more. Journalists call Salmansohn “Deepak Chopra Meets Carrie Bradshaw”, merging empowering psychology/philosophy tips with edgy humor and stylish graphics.

Contributors Lorraine Hill Head of Global Planning

Michelle Holmes Business Contributor

Sorelle Amore Style Contributor

Mina Muirhead Health Editor, Lifestyle

Gina Hussar Lifestyle Contributor

Manuela Wahnon Lifestyle Contributor

Mellissa Mallaya Lifestyle Contributor

Dara Avenius Career & Learning

Suzanne Perry Faith & Self Help (Victim Support)

Katie Clifton Faith & Self Help (Christian)

Cherie DeBurger Home Contributor (Life & Family)

Sukh Pabial Career & Learning

Marina Berberyan Style Contributor

Lisa Wynter Style Contributor

Rosie Mazumder Associate Editor (Cake Masters)

Amber Hamilton Henson Associate Home Editor

Joey Phelps Cartoonist

Michael Phelps Cartoonist

Ann Pissard Graphic Artist

Nathalie de Ahna Lifestyle & Wellness

Kate Spencer Lifestyle & Wellness

CONTENTS

From the Editor

Business & Tech Tips

Facebook Hashtags, Instagram Video and Google Penguin 2.0

Unlocking The Perfect Pricing System: 3 Steps How To Be An Online Ninja

Career & Learning

When To Call Time On A Bad Job 40 4 Steps To Finding Your Talent Engagement Happens When Graphic Art By Ann 10

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Cover Story

56 58

Faith & Self Help

Karen Salmansohn

Domestic Violence Advocacy: Poem Christian Columnist: Crazy Girl Rant

Peace Coaching: The Truth And Nothing But The Truth

Ask Laura: Any Question, Ask Our Agony Aunt

Style & Beauty

Shashie’s Style Picks

Lil Nipper Snapper Cartoon

70 70

Sorelle From Pin Up Passion

Beauty Editor Talks Sunburn Remedies Confessions of a Hollywood Stylist

Starting Your Own Beauty & Fashion YouTube Channel 82

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Lifestyle & Wellness

Profiles of Excellence: PowHERhouse Women

How to Detox With Green Superfood Smoothies Weight Off Your Mind

Mystic Sisters Answer Your Psychic Questions

106 106 108

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Food, Home & Family

Frying Fish The Southern Way Garden Boxes: Peppers, Peas and Okra For Kids

112 Laughing At You, Not With You 117

Cake Masters Magazine: Special Online Preview!

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We Love Hearing From YOU: content@HatTrickMagazine.com

Inside every one of us is a gift which is not yet in existence. Go get them

Hat Trick Magazine â€˘ hattrickstrategies.com â€˘

From the Editor Two questions I am often asked: 1) what does ‘Hat Trick’ mean and 2) why did I start this magazine. The name Hat Trick Strategies, was a recognition that I was pulling off one of the biggest stunts of my life. I was facing a rebrand after dumping a business partnership and for the first time, I found myself with a very full client list and an online presence. This was my chance to really change my approach to business, which previously was simply that of “freelancer for hire”. Now I won’t lie to you, freelancing is great money but we can be a bit like builders ... feast or famine. However, when we feast, we feast quite well. I remember saying to my other half “I feel like I’m pulling something out of thin air”, because I didn’t want to drop the ball on continuity (we had a magazine already and I was dumping all of my graphics, imagery and look and feel to break this partnership). So hence the name Hat Trick. It turns out that it is a hockey term, for when a single player scores three times successfully. I will say that both the magic trick and the third lucky goal defined the situation. Regarding the magazine, my first grown-up job was working as a course developer for e-Learning software and online portals. Writing is my first love. I think I was aching for an avenue to simply to write again, but in fairness, there are much deeper reasons for delving into an online magazine. I come from humble, small town (southern) America. I’m also a member of Generation X and I’m fairly sure that despite the early label of ‘slacker’, our generation has held its own. We are the first generation to beat the stereotype of college drop out = fast food worker. 9/11 changed everything. Then, the credit crunch drove it home. People with masters degrees found themselves long-term under/unemployed. At that time, I did not have that level of education, so it was hard for me to fathom how such a person could be in this situation, yet people from my home state and even former colleagues were asking me for advice. It made no sense. As a management consultant, I’ve been inside my share of big companies and I knew the technologies and skills that most employers have been selecting as part of their corporate strategies. I could help those people. But then there were a number of people with great skills who were still passed over on jobs for which they were more than qualified. 14

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Companies didn’t want as many permanent people. At Heathrow in 2010, the ratio of contract to permanent staff was a shocking 70:40, respectively! Additionally, HR and headhunting techniques changed from hand sifting to keyword search, but jobseekers seemed unaware and failed to optimize their profiles and resumes. I started thinking, if it’s this hard for educated people, what about those who always worked with their hands, whose jobs had been outsourced? What happens to those people? The magazine just seemed like a no-brainer. I was repeating myself and it was an avenue to write tips down. From there, I started sharing my skills and what I knew, mostly giving talks at universities and professional development meet ups, in the spirit of giving back. I helped domestic violence shelters, single moms and anyone who contacted us via Facebook. It seemed the world was in a depression, and not just a financial one. I realized that the magazine had to include things like hope, triumph, lessons and techniques to master mind over matter - and this is why and how the amazing team before you came together. Over the last 11 months, I have helped a portfolio of some 87 clients set up real businesses with an online presence and/or enter into the freelance/ consulting market - a place often untapped in preference for a permanent position. Seven of these clients were on a scholarship basis and were at one time homeless. In all case, my clients and I carved out a space in the market where previously, perhaps there was none for them. I took the back road through corporate America: the world of freelance. No stability, little gravitas, but a world of daily rates, financial freedom and frankly, a world of ‘yes’ both for progression in your career and opportunities otherwise get sitting in a corporate structure. I believe that instead of hoarding what we know, we can help each other build and grow upon technologies and ways of working. The world wins and there is a a bit of the pie for every single one of us - no bitchy back-biting required. That’s what Hat Trick is about. You will find only writers at the top of their specialisms contributing to our magazine. No kitchen table wanna-be poseurs, just a few friends of mine who are professionals here to help you to truly

#HatTrickYourLife. By MICHELLE FITZ, Editor-In-Chief

Michelle

Letter From The Editor, Michelle Fitz •

Cover Story

Just A Girl From Philly

Living her dream

Dorothy Cascerceri

Last autumn, I hit the New York social set to deepen my media and PR ties across the city, a little bit for Hat Trick’s consultancy base but also for Hat Trick Magazine. Our NYC-based PR hipster and Career and Learning writer, Dara Avenius, was in the throes of pulling off an event for men’s fashion label Petchburi Avenue, (you may remember from their ad in our February issue). These networking opportunities are one of the reasons I love the East Coast. Approximately 907 business cards and several handshakes later, I had the pleasure of an introduction to the one and only, Dorothy Cascerceri with the comment that she was “one to watch”. It’s a small world out here! FIND ME ONLINE HERE

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By MICHELLE FITZ

A Profile Of The East Coast Media’s One To Watch

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This Philadelphia native has worked with some of the hottest personalities on TV, from Wendy Williams to Chelsea Handler from late night’s Chelsea Lately and even giants like Entertainment Tonight, In Touch Weekly (Senior Editor), People Magazine, the National Enquirer and Life & Style. She’s also represented numerous consumer brands including One Kings Lane, PopCap Games, Blue Nile Jewelry, Stella & Dot, Dukan Diet and more. She’s just kicked off a brand new show which airs every Thursday night at 7:30 pm (sponsored by Zoya Nail Polish) in 3 million homes in PA/ NJ/DEL and online, which features celebrity interviews, hot Hollywood gossip, fashion, beauty, fitness and more. She also co-owns a women’s 100% organic cotton T-shirt line called Bittle-D (co-founded with her amazing and equally talented sister) and has interviewed countless celebrities.

So what makes this lady tick and how did she find herself in the career and lifestyle she has today? What were the barriers to her career and what are her wider goals for herself? These are things I wanted to ask for Hat Trick Magazine and this is her interview. Dorothy first of all, I want to thank you for being a part of our publication this month and congratulate you on your brand new show! I know you have worked in the media industry for a number of years now, but considering the opportunities youâ€™ve had over the last handful of years, are you pinching yourself or has it all finally sunk in and youâ€™re enjoying the success?

I pinch myself everyday pretty much and have done so throughout my career! It is hard work but I feel very blessed to have all the opportunities I do. I want to take you back in time to one of your first gigs in your industry. Now, I love the parallels in our story because you actually got your start as a freelance reporter for People Magazine. I have spent a large part of my career as a freelancer and have very strong opinions about the fact that I feel that it can open doors to a career and, also, progression in a career. You graduated from The George Washington University in 2003 and kicked off straight away into freelancing. What was the story behind the dip into the freelance world? How did you find out about it? Did you consider it an option in comparison to getting a job as a junior level writer on a permanent or intern basis or was just an opportunity that arose and you pursued?

I was an intern for People magazine senior year of college and while I thought I would be making copies and fetching coffee for the editors, I ended up doing some pretty cool hands-on things. Attending and covering the White House Correspondents Dinner was one of them. I did so much for People magazine was an intern that the New York Bureau asked me to stay on after graduation and work for them. In the Dorothy Cascerceri Career Profile

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meantime I had gotten hired as a features writer – and eventually a columnist – for a daily newspaper in the Philadelphia suburbs called “The Intelligencer.” By day I covered tons of interesting lifestyle stories in the area and by night, I was up in NYC at star studded events interviewing Alisters on the red carpet. It was an interesting time for People magazine because they were trying to figure out how to compete with emerging magazines like In Touch Weekly and US Weekly and they had to figure a way to switch their reporting to the more gossip-y type. That’s where I came in. I was their secret weapon – planted in the hottest NYC clubs and restaurants as the eyes and ears of the magazine. I was paid to party. Do you think starting out in the freelance world helped you progress through in your career at a better pace? I’m asking because you went through a three year period of solid writing and columnist roles but then got a relatively good break in 2006, when you got your first Editor position. That’s a great achievement. We already know you’re great at what you do and that is why so many great brands and people have sought you out in your career (like attracts like, so they say) but do you think freelancing gave you an edge to guide your career at that early, pivotal stage, in establishing the foundation for the rest of your career?

Freelancing was just something I did in addition to working fulltime, not instead of it. Plus I was hired at the Intelligencer newspaper in 2003 as their Features Editor so I was very lucky in my career to never work as an assistant or junior level position aside from some internships in college. It’s kind of crazy to think I was never anyone’s assistant! How competitive did you find it, when you were starting out in journalism, and how did you overcome that in order to set yourself apart from the sea of resumes and talent? 20

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It was always very competitive and still is but I believe talent speaks for itself in this business – and being NICE, humble and genuine. I never forget where I came from – a small town outside of Philadelphia, and I don’t think I’m entitled to much. I believe in hard work and persistence – and true talent and smarts to back it up. Anyone can be a pretty face on TV but you have to have substance behind it. Did you have any mentors or role models? Whose career did you, or perhaps still do, look at and say “I want that job”.

Less so than well-known people, I really looked up to my dad throughout my career. He was a bar and nightclub owner in Philadelphia – a pioneer really – and I saw how hard he worked growing up and always knew my work ethic would shadow his. In the journalism field, a professor at GW named Steve Roberts. Steve was always very supportive of my career when I was a student and since I have graduated. His resume is extremely impressive and includes positions as Bureau Chief for the New York Times, so to have someone that successful believe in you is a real vote of confidence. Another person who has really helped me is Lauren Purcell, the former Executive Editor of Self Magazine and current Editor in Chief of “Everyday with Rachel Ray.” She turned me down for a job at Self in the early days of my career because she felt I was overqualified and we became friends since. Some of my best friends from college and growing up have been very instrumental, too. The ones that don’t really understand my career or its path have always been supportive in light of that and that means a lot.

Dorothy Cascerceri Career Profile

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Have you had a favourite interview so far?

So many! Talking to Mariah Carey on a red carpet was a special moment. It brought me back to 8th grade dances where “Hero” would play and I would cross my fingers that the boy I liked would ask me to dance. He usually didn’t! I was so awkward in 8th grade with braces and long brown hair with orange streaks from Sun-IN. I really liked the Pauly D. interview on your new show,. He was just so normal and despite the cash with all the zeros coming through the door (readers, you will have to watch it online over at dorothyontv.com for more context), he has really kept his persona, image and made a living literally being himself. That’s an example of a down-to-Earth celeb who, clearly, you enjoyed interviewing and had a great rapport with. I won’t put you on the spot and ask you to name your nightmare of an interview, but what I am curious about is how you adapt your interview style to overcome a, let’s just say, “less than ideal interview subject”.

I have had a few – only a few – never the A-listers though. They are graceful. It’s the C-listers and D-listers who are more prone to fits. I always try to be myself in interviews and remember that I’m just a girl from Philly and the celeb is just a person from another town somewhere. They cry when they’re sad, yell when they’re mad and are humans just like the rest of us. Who is on your dream interview list? I know you must have a list of those big stories or people you would love to cover. Who is on that list for you at the moment?

Bradley Cooper! He is from my town, which is just a strange small world. I have a serious crush on him and would just love to meet him in person. I would also love to interview Melissa McCarthy because I know she would make me laugh. Pitbull would be cool because I think his music is just unbelievable. Talk about raw talent. 22

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How did you find yourself in this position of “pop culture” expert and celebrity commentator and was there ever a point in your career where you were a little reluctant to share your opinions? I was watching the new show and I just squealed with “You are so right!” when you were giving the update on Tiger Woods and his new-found romance. I am assuming that level of moxy and confidence took some time and development so how did you build that up or was it just natural for you?

Haha my family thought I would become a lawyer because I was always very opinionated and never scared of speaking my mind. When I was younger I wondered what “stage fright” was and why some people would rather die than speak in front of an audience. It was always my thing. It had to be innate because I don’t think I learned it from anywhere. My parents divorced when I was 3 and I was an only child until age 8 so I think my imagination was always my best friend and that imagination almost led to me performing even if it was in front of my Cabbage Patch dolls. Dorothy Cascerceri Career Profile

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Was it difficult for you to jump from print to TV and do you have a first love between the two? Where do you see your career going and more importantly, where are you hoping to steer it for the future?

I love writing and I love TV too. I could never decide between the two which is why I still write for many publications in addition to doing TV. I have been working on a fictional novel for something like 100 years haha so I hope I can finish it soon, market it and sell it. I also hope I can continue to do TV while I can and entertain people. It’s a tricky industry I’m in so you never know what tomorrow will bring but you just have to enjoy today. Let’s talk about this brand new show. I was absolutely thrilled to hear that anyone in the world can watch it online but I understand that this is a local show for your area, which for American TV is a HUGE deal. How did this opportunity come about? Did you pitch the idea to someone and what was the process like for you? I’m sure that was exciting, to say the least, but what was the roadmap to getting a show like this together for such a broad audience? I know you are reaching more than a million people just in your area.

Thanks! I am lucky to have a personal publicist named Robyn Stevens – she is a publicist, manager, friend, mentor all rolled into one. I adore her because she is one of the smartest women I have ever met and knows her stuff. She had a meeting with the network my show airs on and she showed them my reel. I didn’t even know she was doing this! They asked when I could come in for a meeting and the rest is history haha. I know I gave away some of your guests so far but who can we look forward to seeing in the series, what is the scope of the show and how can we check it out, either right there in your area or online?

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It airs every Thursday on WMCN44 in PA/NJ/DEL and on my website DorothyOnTV.com …. Coming up in the season we have exciting interviews with 50 Cent, Patti Stanger and Melissa Gorga plus some others. The show lineups just keep getting better and better in my opinion! I would love to know about Dorothy, the woman. Clearly, you have so much drive and tenacity and I want to know what you’re passionate about, what gets you up and at it every day and what motivates you in your career?

Great question … never really thought about it before! I can’t imagine what else I would do every day if I wasn’t working … sleeping in? Lunching with friends? That would get boring after a while. It’s a hustle but I enjoy it. Some girls I knew growing up wanted to marry a rich guy and sit back and coast. I never saw myself doing that. Eventually when I have kids, I’m sure my work will change in some way but then I will be even busier chasing the kids around. Above (Dorothy and Danielle, Heads of Bittle-D Clothing Line) Dorothy Cascerceri Career Profile

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You are such a professional and across the East Coast, everyone I talked to constantly mentioned that, not only are you on pointe when it comes to your subject matter and deadlines, but you are (as we would say here in the UK) absolutely brilliant and warm to work with. That is such a grand-slam compliment for a woman in any industry because so often, to be authoritative and assertive in directing large scopes of work, we can easily have another label or perception applied. Sometimes fairly; sometimes unfairly. Did you know this about yourself and do you think that this is an important priority for you in the way that you conduct your career or is this just “Dorothy Being Natural”?

I can be hot-headed and very emotional about things but I always tried to stay level-headed about work. I didn’t succeed in the early days of my career but I try now to be diplomatic at all times and professional. Even if I want to send a scathing email back, I try to just state my point and move on. Interesting fact, which I found to be truly amazing, was that you are also an entrepreneur! You are the co-founder of a t-shirt line, fashion label Bittle-D, which you design alongside your sister, Danielle. (Readers, Bittle-D is a line of fitted T-shirts made from 100% organic cotton and with colorful graphics and embellished with hand-placed rhinestones.) I love hearing how a concept came about when it comes to business, so please tell us how this brand got kicked off. What was the catalyst that made you and Danielle sit down and say “Ok we have to do this. Now.” Who is buying it and please tell us about your big plans to merge into the high-end market.

Shop Online

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Check Out The Full Line

Unlocking The Perfect Pricing System â€˘

Bittle-D has been a labor of love. My sister (little D) and I (big D) combined our nicknames to form the line. We had this crazy idea one day to start a T-shirt line and we did it. We’ve had a good amount of celebrities wear our shirts, and we find women of all ages absolutely love them. They are sassy and fun without being childish or reserved only for teenagers. Women in their 50s and 60s tell us they feel “free” wearing our Tees. My sister and I went to all-girls’ high school and have always been all about girl power so it only made sense! I’ve always been very entrepreneurial and I love connecting with other entrepreneurs. In fact I started another business – a media tour company – where I provide the service to brands of securing them airtime on TV shows around the country. I work with big brands like the ones you listed above and smaller brands too. I love working with the smaller brands because they oftentimes don’t have the connections to get their products on TV themselves and hiring a publicist can be pricey with no real guarantee of what you are going to get. My brands know exactly what their sponsorship fee gets them. This has been a fantastic interview and I know so many people will really appreciate your candid answers. Just in closing, when it comes to your career, your purpose in life or just general things you wish you knew when you were, say in high school, what would the Dorothy of 2013 say to the Dorothy in her freshman year of college, and again upon graduation and just entering into the job/professional market?

You did it, kid. Good work. I try to take minute every single day to reflect on how far I’ve come and I tend to think I am somehow where I always believed I would be. When things were tough, I didn’t believe it. But I think deep down I did.

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Check out Dorothy Cascerceri and her brand new show “Celebrity Corner,” a 22-minute show that dives into the hottest Hollywood headlines and trends airing every Thursday at 7:30 pm in PA/NJ/DEL on WMCN44 and also on DorothyOnTV.com. On show 1: Sexy Wayne Brady, Designer to the stars Autumn Hawk and former “Biggest Loser” contestant and Q102 & Mix106 radio host Nicole MIchalik. It’s a party you don’t want to miss! PLUS - a nail polish giveaway from ZOYA. Visit www.Zoya.com/CelebrityCorner, watch the show for the code word and the first 100 viewers to enter the code at the link above will get a bottle of nail polish on their doorstep! No credit card info required!

Above (Dorothy and Danielle, Heads of Bittle-D Clothing Line) Dorothy Cascerceri Career Profile

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Business & Tech Tips

Facebook Hashtags, Instagram Video, and Google Changes

Oh My! This month saw so many changes to a number of online products and tools that I almost loathe writing this, at this stage in the year. After all, these roll-outs are not yet complete and the wider strategy for most of the big tools out there has not and (for many, like Facebook), likely will not ever be communicated, in fullness. Still, it is just far too timely not to mention and although I should note that this article is going to be HIGH LEVEL, it will at least give you some heads up on information which should be right at the top of your radar for research. Hashtags help to classify a post made on social media in a way which can be searched and collated by another social media user. Twitter has incorporated hashtags for some time now, and the purpose of these wonderful, little, marketing and search features has long-since been a mystery to many (putting them off Twitter altogether). Allow me to recap and explain these magical little symbols (which look like this: #). If I want to know what’s going on with Britney Spears, I can search #Britney and come up with a reasonable set of returns (although they are conversational and there are clearly a number of girls named Britney).

By MICHELLE FITZ 30

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If I, instead, use #BritneySpears, a more specific list comes up and yes, I note that this is conversationally-driven. If you’re a brand manager, or simply want to understand your customers, searching for a hashtag which is meaningful to your company, the service or genre it represents, etc will give you some insight into what people are saying and thinking. I can only imagine it must be a little bit as a psychic must feel or perhaps even our guardian angels... it will be a random mass of clutter and you do need some skill, time and interest to really pick through the bits that are most meaningful to you and assimilate that information. You create a hashtag simply by typing one into a conversation, status or comment you are making. No big fuss. It would be a good idea to first investigate whether that hashtag is in use. Not only is it simply good manners, but it also will give you more meaningful returns when you go to monitor yours. Facebook’s roll-out of hashtags was just one reaction in a series in response to marketer complaints (and thankfully, so). You’ll remember my own very “out loud” caution to small businesses a few months ago. I indicated that changes made to the newsfeed, decreased percentages in “Liked” users actually seeing your posts (forcing a need to advertise twice, once for new likes and again to ensure existing likes actually saw your posts on a consistent basis). If you are a small business, a band or other such emerging brand, investment in Facebook advertising was starting to become a minefield. Targeted posts was another key feature rolled out, which enabled a more targeted and meaningful marketing approach on the network and a very welcome one indeed for most brands. For me, personally, this meant I could tap my 10,000+ Facebook fans for different ads, for example targeting women located in Arkansas (my home state) for helping to market a non-profit event called Designing Hope. Last year, these ads were a lucky dip. Thanks FB! Latest Facebook, Instagram and Google Changes •

Graph Search is another key improvement, although I’ll note that I am one user who has not had this rollout just yet. Like hashtags, Graph Search is all about searching and hopefully finding more targeted people, topics, pages, etc which are in line with your interests. This is a profound change, and the fact that not even everyone on the network has it yet really reinforces the fact that hashtags were one of the fastest iterative pieces of functionality rolled out to date in the Facebook Strategy. One thing Facebook does very well, is the mapping of key words in a Facebook page (note I did NOT say your profile, I said page as in a fan or business page - the first you click “friend” and the second you click “like”, just for the avoidance of all doubt here). If you haven’t already, it is worth putting a detailed description into your Facebook business page. An odd statistic for you which raised many eyebrows was the decline in traffic on Google, Bing and other search engines. What was the reason for this decline? Quite simply, more people were searching for things on social media in increasing numbers than they were previously. Google clearly recognizes this, and perhaps in response but certainly in-line with their regular, planned changes, they broke some of the longstanding tricks that so many have come to rely. These changes should make the internet a more even playing field. One key change came in the form of a longstanding loophole commonly exploited by bloggers known as back-linking, a practice now penalized. For as long as I can remember, guest blogging, multiple links to your content/main website, etc were easy “quick wins” you could employ to boost the traffic on your website. 32

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Instagram, a FB company, also made a bid to keep up with Vine’s short video functionality and rolled out video. Users unfamiliar with Vine will be aware that YouTube (which is now firmly in bed with Google) has historically allowed lengthy videos on its platform. Vine limits videos to just six and a half seconds, with Instagram limiting users to 15 seconds. Both platforms do not allow the import of videos, and with such short limitations imposed, many struggle with the concept and ask “why bother?” - but the worlds of Instagram, Twitter and Vine all play to users seeking “moments” of shared thinking. The trend is making an impact on YouTube videos and even website content (the written word) with many users simply “switching off” if content cannot get to the immediate point early on in its presentation. Google made key changes to its algorithm in recent months and as with any big SEO change, many of us are still coming to terms with the ways that traffic will be affected. Penguin 2.0 (or Penguin 4 as it’s sometimes called in consultancy), goes much deeper into the heart of your website and its content. Unlike previous updates which were simply data refreshes, this was a complete change to the algorithm. Despite what you may have read elsewhere, Penguin 2.0 is all about getting to the root of web spam, including people who have exploited the back link and comments containing links to drive up SEO returns for bogus websites and spam purveyors. For small businesses, this was a gunshot to the head for those who haven’t taken SEO seriously or perhaps haven’t stayed as white hat as they should have in constructing their web strategies.

The good news is, as with every iteration, you’ll have plenty of good company and now is as good a time as any, to learn the right way to go about SEO. Latest Facebook, Instagram and Google Changes •

? e c i r P Unlocking The Perfect Pricing System

Three Simple Steps

Pricing can be a tricky topic for many, if not most entrepreneurs. Most entrepreneurs lean toward doing the competitive tango. They research their so called competitors and then try to steal the show by offering similar products or services for a lesser price. Some choose to go with a magical math calculation based solely off of the price the product or service cost to build and design. Both of these tactics could work but I want to propose to you a far superior way to address pricing. This simple formula will walk you through a process that will allow you to map out and come to the perfect price to attract more ideal clients and close the sale. FIND ME ONLINE HERE

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By ANDREA SULLENGER

Know, learn and understand who your IDEAL CLIENT really is and what he/she really wants. It should always be your complete priority to start with this piece. Who are they? What do they think they need and want? What do they really need? What would the emotional benefits be for them if they were to purchase your product or service? What will their objections be? How does your ideal client perceive value? Focus first on getting into the head and heart of your ideal client. The more emotional payoffs you can address and deliver for them the more likely they are to purchase from you.

Know your competition and then listen to their clientsâ€Ś.which in turn are probably your ideal clients. Of course you want to scope out your competition, but not as a way of out pricing them, but as a research platform. Find out what they offer, what the price is, who is actually pulling out their Visa and making that purchase. Now go after them. Not to steal them away, but like I said, for research. Put yourself in their shoes, heads and hearts. What was the need that led them to this product or service? What has the payoff been, the emotional gain been? What do they think and feel about the price? How was the experience, did they get everything they had hoped for? Poke holes in your competition so that you can build a better mouse trap!

Be honest with your self-evaluation. A few key factors to look at are:

What type of product is this? Is this an introductory offer, premium or exclusive offering or does it fall somewhere in the middle? How much did it cost you to build and design? What type of revenue are you looking to earn from this product or service? How many can you sell? How does this impact your big picture? Ask yourself what the honest to goodness tangible benefits will be for your clients?

Unlocking The Perfect Pricing System â€˘

In the end you have to do the up-front work: The pricing clarity work to find that sweet spot number for you, the one that converts over and over and over again. We have all seen offerings for products and services that we either thought were way too inexpensive or out of control expensive. When we see the inexpensive we typically have that gut reaction that says, “wait…that can’t be right. Ooooo, maybe she really doesn’t know what she is doing if the price is that low.” Or if the pendulum swings the opposite direction and the product or service is ridiculously expensive we say, “WHAT…you have got to be freakin’ kidding me! Who does this gal think she is!!” I have seen coaches with very little social media presence, bland and antiquated websites offer their services for a ridiculous price point and yet they sell out and always have a wait list. Then of course, you see the opposite all the time also. So why does one product or service sell while others do not? It doesn’t seem to even be tied into the price. I have learned that all of the above pricing clarity work has to be done and it does bring you to a conclusive price strategy.

However, there are a few other factors that have to be addressed.

1 2 36

The one with the biggest balls wins! The level of confidence you bring to the product offering and pricing strategy is a reflection of how you authentically feel about your skill level. Social Proof is EVERYTHING – you gotta have stacks and stacks of rock solid testimonials. People want to see, feel and hear what you did for the little guy…the guy or gal they can relate to.

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Bring your Trump Card…..that would be your authority. You have one shot at establishing that you are the guru of guru’s and can do what you are promising. Two simple ways to do this are, declare it….tell everyone in your copy that you are an authority and get a celeb or published name or recognized media source to say that youʼre an authority. Your commitment and passion to your product and service will come through. If your passion is 100 on a scale that only went to 10 then you will be rocking it out my friend. Your passion is what will put you into hyper speed to position yourself correctly, build out a product or service that over delivers and it will be evident in all of your communications. Your ideal client will become emotionally connected to you, engaged in the process and be grabbing for their wallet before you can say, “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!”

See, no boogie man here. Pricing can be easy.

Here’s to your GIGANTIC success!

FIND ME ONLINE HERE Unlocking The Perfect Pricing System •

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How to be a Ninja Business ninja moves for building an online business FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Michelle Holmes How To Be An Online Ninja â€˘

Career & Learning

Stay or Go?

When To Call Time On a Miserable Job The decision about whether it’s time to call it quits from a frustrating job or career situation is often a difficult one to fathom out. If you’re like many mid-career professionals who have hit that hard place (and you may have been here before), the answer is not always clear-cut. Some days you’re ready to storm out of the office soap opera-style – other days, things seem largely more tolerable, at least for the time being. And meanwhile the quiet, nagging questions remain:

Is it time to call it quits? Or should you stay and make it work? FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Sandra Cunningham • Hat Trick Magazine • hattrickstrategies.com

Well, m’dear, keep on asking these questions, rack your brain, weigh up the pro’s and cons …and I guarantee you’ll continue flipping and flopping until you’re driven virtually insane. The brain is an amazing little trickster – it can convince us that just about any course of action is viable. It’s mental torture. And not at all helpful. So to help you with your choice, I invite you to take a deeper look into your situation. It might just help you find some new answers. Here are three great questions to help you self-coach your way out of the gridlock and get you to the truth about what’s right for you.

Are you heading for long term, future fulfillment or are you stuck in the past? When reinventing my career as a coach, I paid the bills by doing some low-ish level, uninspiring, interim marketing roles. Despite the passion I felt for my new venture, it really pained me at times to see my former career path taking such a nose dive. All too often I’d find myself frustrated and overly pre-occupied with those soul-sucking assignments, even though I had taken them for merely tactical reasons. Eventually I realised I was experiencing what every person going through career change will know to be true: I hadn’t fully let go of my previous career identity. Furthermore the pain and discomfort of transition was blinding me from having a more healthy, balanced and realistic view of my situation. What about you? Take a look back at the reasons why you originally chose your current job. Are they still valid? What is this job giving you, that is worth the Deciding To Stay Or Go At Work •

investment of your time, energy and talent? In what ways is it helping you move forward? Are the frustrations that significant, when weighed against your longer term aspirations? What do you need to let go of in order to create space for the next phase of your career to materialise? Getting things into perspective helps a lot sometimes. But let’s be honest, if your current situation serves no real purpose and it’s eating you up, then it might be a good time to re-think your direction of travel.

What is your body telling you? Physical reactions – migraines, insomnia, repeated colds, even shingles – are among the best indicators that an unhappy job is taking its toll and we’re out of control. If you’re feeling anxious about your career, then your body can help you figure things out. Start by taking an inventory of your general physical state. Where do you hold your tension? Be it a stiff neck, rounded shoulders, or a sunken, withdrawn chest, most of us have an habitual holding pattern designed to protect us from harm, but which also consumes a lot of our energy and flow. Sadly, when allowed to continue, this ends up robbing us of our lifeforce and can prevent us from experiencing real joy and satisfaction in almost every aspect of our lives. Now this may be nothing that a good walk, a chat with a friend or an hour of massage can’t sort out, but wouldn’t prevention be a far better option? Next time you tense up, take note. Do you feel nervous when walking into your office building? How’s your concentration; are you productive? Are you like a bear with a sore head when your overtalkative, elderly mother is just being herself? Consider what triggers the reaction each time you spot it happening. Then dig deeper to try and identify its root cause: what is the thought 42

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or belief you hold that is being challenged – or highlighted – here? Take time to reflect on this thought or belief. How does it affect the way you experience your situation? Is there anything you can do to change either your belief or the situation? If the answer is ‘yes’, then you have something to work with. And it may not be time to bail. But if not, and deep down you know you’re a heart-attack-waiting-tohappen, then quitting your job is possibly the healthiest thing you can do.

What kind of work would make your heart sing? Many people stay a very long time in a bad situation because they haven’t yet figured out what else they can, or want to do with their lives. They often feel trapped, but the longer they stay put without the situation improving, the harder it is for them to remain positive or move on.

Deciding To Stay Or Go At Work •

It always helps to have an idea about what you want next in your career and to feel good about it – genuinely. Nobody wants a disappointed and resentful employee working in their organisation. If you do tip over the edge and start a new job search, believe me, your true emotions will be very hard to disguise. If only from a very practical point of view, you want to be seen to be moving toward a new opportunity rather than away from a negative experience. And isn’t that a lot more motivating and worthwhile than feeling frustrated and stuck? So, before you make any hard and fast decisions, and before you feel pushed to call it quits, invest some time and effort into ‘YOU’. What really makes you tick? Take the lessons you’ve learned at your current job about what does and doesn’t work for you, and turn them into a set of positive preferences. What are you really good at? What do you like to do outside of work? What did you dream about doing as a child, but had all that ‘nonsense’ knocked out of you in later years? Once you have some ideas, don’t delay in taking action. From action, more ideas and solutions are guaranteed to emerge. Try to make a little progress each day — calling someone who works for a company you’re interested in, reading about a new field or joining a professional association. Do it gradually. And stick with it. Don’t imagine that you have to decide now and make an immediate, gigantic leap into your next job – this is one of the biggest causes of inertia and seldom works, especially if the desired change is significant, yet still unclear. You may even find that your next job is sitting right under your nose and you don’t need to go anywhere. By giving yourself permission to start exploring the different options available to you, you’re likely to discover that the question is no longer about whether to stay or leave; it’s really a question of ‘what you will do’ and ‘when’! 44

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Make resigning a smart choice, not a desperate one Finally, for most of us, there comes a time when we’re forced

to face what we’ve really known for some time – that we’ve been flogging a dead horse for far too long and it’s time to take more positive steps. Remember, you don’t have to move on straight away – you can make up your mind that whether your stay or leave, you’re in control. Set a goal or deadline that takes into account your short term needs, savings, level of dissatisfaction and any other relevant factors.

But whatever you do, make up your mind that resigning will be the smart choice, not a desperate one.

FIND ME ONLINE HERE

Deciding To Stay Or Go At Work •

Steps

Finding Your

Talent

Finding your talent is something many of us struggle with over the years, as we take job after job to pay the bills and forget about work that soothes the soul. I've done that. In fact, I did that for years, having jobs that by10:30am had me looking out the window wondering if it was time to go yet. I was miserable. I hadn't found my talent yet. Well, rather I had - many years ago, but then life got in the way. Ready for a story? I went to a top liberal arts school at 18, as many kids do, and giddily applied for the internship of my dreams at a top entertainment PR company. I got it. And then, reality struck when I came back to the school and they told me that I couldn't take that internship because it didn't fit the parameters of their program and well, they couldn't grant me credit for it. My dreams died right there. I won't go into the details, but my life then veered many different ways, but up. And I found myself in the career of my nightmares - I was an administrative assistant.

FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Dara Avenius â€˘ Hat Trick Magazine â€˘ hattrickstrategies.com

For someone who thrills at working with people and being creative, the role of administrative assistant was directly counter to my personality, talents and abilities. Truth? I sucked at it. I took and was fired from job after job - all temp jobs mind you. My career was going nowhere, and I was dejected. I filled reams and reams and reams of journals with moaning on about who was I and what did I want to do with my life. You see, by this time, I'd forgotten about PR. Or rather, I thought I was too old for it. It was a career that kids got into after college and I was well past that age. That changed with a few experiences in my life. The first was the summer that I volunteered on a politician's campaign, and the wife of the candidate gave me a compliment I've never forgotten. She said: "you have a gift for connecting with people; we've known you for a month and feel we've known you for years." I perked up at that comment, but bitterly thought to myself "yeah, I know I have these talents, too bad I can't make a career out of them". But there was an important lesson to learn in that comment. My unique talents were being noted and pointed out to me. Many of us practice our passions and talents daily without noting how special those talents are, because they are so natural to us that we don't realize it. If you're still trying to figure out what your talent is and how to find the career of your dreams: Listen to the compliments people give you. No, not the fluffy ones. The ones that you receive consistently, or the ones that are of some depth like the compliment I received are the ones to write down in your journal. I guarantee when you start putting them together, you will start seeing your talents and passions emerge.

Passion. What does passion have to do with work? It's just a way to make money so you can afford to live the rest of your life, right? Well, for some that's true. They're perfectly happy to have that situation. Let them. You're not reading this because you want a job. You're reading this because you want to spend your eight hours (and more!) doing what you love. To quote Warren Buffett "the greatest luxury in life is doing what you love." Four Steps For Finding Your Talent •

If you're unsure of what you love to do, then think back - all the way back - to childhood. Think of the things you loved then, before money, before social pressure, before parents and friends and teachers inserted their visions of you into your instincts. The passions we pursued and enjoyed as children are the passions that are most innate to us. Think of what you gravitated to then. Did you love fashion and makeup? Maybe putting Legos together to make buildings was your idea of heaven. It doesn't just have to be childhood though that will guide you to your passions. Think of a time when you felt either a high from what you were doing, or just a genuine contentment. Those are your passions, and that is what Mr. Buffett is referencing in his advice. Follow your passions. It will lead you to your happiness. Failure. What does failure have to do with finding your talent? Oh, just about everything. Failure is a gift that reminds you to be a student of your life again just when you think you've got nothing left to learn. Remember that. So many view failure as the end of the line, but in truth, it's the beginning of it. I've failed multiple times. I've failed out of school (very typical for those who have ADD. For those of you reading this who have learning disabilities, please know that if you have failed, it does not mean you are a failure. It just means you have different and more obstacles in front of you to overcome. But you can overcome them.). I've failed at jobs and been fired more times than I can count. The most important thing however is that I got up and tried again. I went back to school and finished with top grades. I found a career that suited me more. Just remember, many who we see as successful have failed quite a bit themselves. Some fail after having reached success. The most successful people however are those who are able to step back, take stock of a situation and reinvent themselves.

If you've failed at something, good. Take the time to regroup after a failure, to listen to the lessons you've learned and to really think about what it is you want. So many focus on success and achievement, but the real lessons to be found are in your moments of failure, so take the teeth out of that word and remember that you are not a failure, but the situation was the failure. 48

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Your personality will determine your success more so than your skills. Wait, what? Yes, it's true. Skills are obviously very important to have, but just having a skillset won't set you up for success. Your personality will determine it as well. If you are an outgoing personality, then sitting in a cube in the back of an office will be the best way for you to fail. Yes, you may have the skillset necessary to do the job, but if you aren't honoring your personality then you will not do well at that job - period. When you read a job ad and it states the type of person who is best to do that job, it's on purpose. Skillsets can be taught to just about anyone, but your natural inclinations and personality will carry you forward in your career.

If you find a job that is up your alley, but you don't have the skillsets for it yet, apply anyway. Oftentimes, if a recruiter likes you enough and sees your determination to learn, they will try to find space for you in the organization and teach you what they want you to know. When you are on the path to figuring out your talent, it helps to journal. I know, not everyone likes to write as much as I do, but journaling or in some way keeping track of your thoughts, compliments, and analysis of your passions will help you find your talent. Note the compliments you receive. Write down your passions. Keep track of the times you've failed. And most of all, keep searching for your talent. You will find it!

"The greatest luxury in life is doing what you love." Warren Buffett

Four Steps For Finding Your Talent â€˘

Engagement Happens

When ...

You know what’s always good to share? Stories of actual success. Both are mine. The first is a success story of engagement. The second is also a success story of engagement. You see, engagement is a range of things. Engagement happens when you do the right things with your people. And it’s those right things that make the difference. So let’s get the first thing out of the way. I was happy with my role – the basics were all in play. My salary was a fair one for my role. I was clear about the work I was responsible for. I had autonomy to do the actions I thought necessary. I had clear expectations of what I needed to do. I understood the consequences of not acting in a way which was beneficial to the organisation, the team, and to me.

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FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Sukh Pabial

This has been true of my last two jobs. I was respected by my manager from the off for having the knowledge, skills, and attitude to do the job well. From there it was a matter of letting me get on with it. A series of things helped keep me on track. Regular conversations with my manager about things happening in my workflow. The freedom to try new, creative, innovative ways of delivering learning. I was coached where my performance was going awry of expectations. My ideas and opinions were sought on things that were important. There was the flexibility to work the hours needed for the organisation, and to work from home or adjust working hours where appropriate. I was given regular feedback about my performance. I was allowed to explore how I worked best, and talk with my manager about making this happen. I handed in my notice in my most recent role, and worked my notice period. All along that time my manager kept the same approach â€“ and I appreciated that greatly. My team were highly supportive of my time left in the role, and helped me to figure out what I needed to do to leave the role and workload in a state which was meaningful and useful for the future person. There was no animosity, or maliciousness, just genuine support and empathy. Right up until the last day I was working on things which I was not going to see put into action, but will help the team achieve things later. These were things which may have been backed up by some policy somewhere, but I was never told about it. My manager understood these were ways to engage me because we talked

Engagement Happens When ... L&D Column â€˘

about them. I’m about to start a new role with a new employer. I am seriously excited by this. All because the recruitment, and candidate experience has been excellent. My interest was piqued about a role I saw advertised. From the moment I applied, within a period of ten days I had been through the recruitment process and been offered the role. To say I was impressed by this is an understatement. It was seriously impressive. They understood I needed to work my notice period and we agreed to stay in touch. In the two months leading up to my first day I’ve had regular conversations with my new manager. This has been awesome. I have a sense of the organisation I’m about to join from these conversations. I have an idea about the culture of the place and how receptive they are to the role I’m going to do. Some of the ideas they have in place to engage staff have been shared with me, and I’ve been allowed to offer my tuppence about what I can do to support them. I’ve connected with some of the new team members ahead of joining which gives me a sense of the attitude they have to social media. Information about upcoming work has been shared with me and helps me to get a sense of what the expectations are of me. I feel welcomed and motivated to do well in the role, before I’ve even stepped in the front door, or met the team. So there you have it. Two success stories about how to put engagement into practice. Both offer a different sense of how to make it happen. Both offer some insight into what worked to engage me. Because at the end of the day, I’m just like you. Someone who wants to work, do it well, and feel positive about the contribution I can make.

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Faith & Self Help

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By Karen Salmansohn • Hat Trick Magazine • hattrickstrategies.com

Self Help for People Who Wouldn’t Be Caught Dead Doing Self Help

The Instant PepTalk App !

E RE

Hello!

Plus, Check Out My Shop!

How are you feeling today? Stressed? Depressed? Working on a dream, and need a quickie faith-booster? Dealing with a grumble-grumble toxic person? You’ve come to the right app – because you’re about to receive an instant pep talk – for FREE! My app’s name is also my app’s mission: Instant Peptalk. (Click here now to see it on iTunes!)

We Are

Human This column follows Suzanne’s devotion to helping survivors of domestic violence and others who are struggling with the trials of life. She is an advocate, public speaker and media personality. Most of all, she wants you to know love shouldn’t hurt.

FIND ME ONLINE HERE

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By Suzanne Perry

We are human.

We are born under the same sun.

We sleep under the same stars. There are no such things as “hate genes” or “mean chromosomes.” Aggression is taught, whether directly or by example, cause and effect, belt and flesh, or words and tears. In the animal kingdom, fear is when a predator nears. Humans are a species of animal. Our fear and defense mechanism should not have to engage when somebody comes home and closes the door. Aggressors, perpetrators, predators. Children,

elderly,

women, and those taught not to hurt under any

circumstance. Love is also taught, whether directly or by example. Nurturing, compassion, understanding, empathy, forgiveness. Envy, obsession, jealousy, anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and other mental issues including addictive tendencies drive a raging hurtful and solid wedge between our good emotions and loving abilities.

You may think they aren’t listening but they are hearing. They may not be looking but they are seeing. What are you showing by example? Too much of anything is no good, even water. Nobody can grow in all shade. Nobody can flourish in only sun. We need each other but we also need our independence.

Love is not controlling, it is limitless.

Love does not tether itself to a subject but gives of itself and flourishes, multiplying by contagiousness, dropping its seeds to grow, bloom, and seed again. Love is a great thing to share and the most rewarding to give.

Nobody has ever been loved to death.

Christian Column: Crazy Girl Rant •

Crazy Girl

Rant

About two years ago I began praying for friends. I

struggle with friendships. For those of you who know me, this may seem really strange because from the outside looking in, it seems as though I may be surrounded by friends. And to a certain degree, you would be correct. What I am referring to is live life with me, like minded, there through thick and thin, not one sided, trustworthy, raw, real friends. I have people who can tell me what I want to hear. I have friends who I can go to dinner with and laugh over coffee (and these relationships are cherished), but what my heart yearned for (and still frequently yearns for) are friends who I can share the desires of my heart with, hear their struggles and desires and then 1) still choose to love each other after all the FIND ME ONLINE HERE dirty laundry has been aired By Katie Clifton and 2) have accountability. Christian Columnist 58

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I need accountability. I need to be thrown off my high horse "Listen to advice and from time to time. I need accept instruction, someone to ask me tough questions like "Are you taking that you may gain time for your husband?" and wisdom in the future." "what are you struggling with?" Proverbs 19:20 "how are you being tempted?" and I need friends who can listen (and not just hear) me when I need to have a break down because parenting is tough, schedules seem overwhelming at times, I have no idea what God is doing most days, or I need to have a full blown adult temper tantrum.... this is my crazy girl rant. I am not trying to sound like poor pitiful me. Please don't get me wrong. I am blessed to be surrounded by people who would probably run through fire to help me- but I have also experienced extreme loneliness in the midst of a crowd of people. I don't always feel like I can be raw and real or expose my insecurities or anxieties with people. Two years ago I felt very alone. Like Tom Hanks on cast away kind of alone. I feel like if I shared my babbling and confused thoughts and ideas on life and the direction the Lord is leading me (or maybe not leading me... who really knows yet) then most of the people around me would think I am a certifiable lunatic. So, I keep most of these to myself- even still. I poured my heart out to my husband and whined about loneliness and he prayed with me that God would send me friends. And as I prayed God revealed some things to me.

"Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm." Proverbs 13:20 Christian Column: Crazy Girl Rant â€˘

"And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them." Luke 6:31 I am not a very good friend. I want to be, but I am not. I don't bring food after births. I forget to call and check on you. I get caught up in my own world and forget that yours may feel like it is crashing down around you. I am terrible about remembering birthdays. I buy cards and forget to mail them. I have good intentions deep down but I feel so busy and distracted and I am so selfish that my life comes first and yours comes somewhere else down the line of my chaotic life. I make excuses both good and lame. I try to justify my selfishness, meanwhile I am heartbroken by yours. Sometimes, I am a crappy friend. Who wants to be friends and share openly with someone like that?! Not me...Â And apparently those people who also want more out of friendships might not want that either. When God began to reveal to me the kind of friend I was, it hurt horribly and it also became clear as to why I have many surface level friends and fewer deeper friendships.

I also began to realize that I am not alone in this desire. I am finding that many grown women are sitting around having these same pity parties. Some are working moms, some are stay at home moms, some divorced and some newly married. It doesn't seem to matter where we are on our journey our prayers and cries are still the same - we crave a sisterhood of love. I don't have all the answers I began praying for 2 years ago. I am trying to allow God to teach me to be a better friend. I am trying to seek out like minded friendships that grow and challenge me. I work on being honest when I am held accountable. I am trying to learn to apologize when I let my friends down. I try to show up and be there when a friend needs a friend. And I mess up a lot. I have learned that I need to extend grace and forgiveness and I need grace andforgiveness as well. I have also realized how great of a friend my husband is. I am realizing how great of a friend Jesus is. 60

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But there will be always be something special about female laughter, tears and anger, a held hand and a comforting hug- An unspoken language of looks and the comfort of being understood in the midst of a crazy girl rant.

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another about yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited."

us s e J Said

Christian Column: Crazy Girl Rant â€˘

The Truth (and Nothing but the Truth!)

Yes, I am an inner peace coach. But I am also human. And sadly, I am reminded of this fact a gazillion times a day. Last week I had plans to swim at my friend’s house. I got my three small children changed, sun screened and ready to go. That is no small feat. My youngest just turned one and getting him ready to go to the pool has become a three person job and one of those people better be a member of the Olympic Wrestling team. I am convinced that dressing this baby has adequately prepared me to wrestle an alligator should the need ever arise. I get to my friend’s house and no one is there. I carry my ridiculously heavy, awkwardly large pool bag around back to see if they are already swimming. Nothing. I call one of their cell phones and learn that plans had changed last minute and that they were all at the park. I was fuming. I get in the car and tell the kids. They are sad. FIND ME ONLINE HERE

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We start to make the ½ mile drive home and in that 1.5 minute drive here is what happened in my head:

I can’t believe they forgot to call me. So inconsiderate. They are probably sitting there now talking about me. What did I do to them? I don’t remember doing anything to deserve this. This really hurts.

Clearly they don’t cherish my friendship. Maybe I am just not as close to them as I thought I was.

The Truth and Nothing But The Truth •

Mind you, these are two of my closest lifelong friends who have ALWAYS been there for me, always had my back but I had already had a hugely challenging morning and was exhausted from the night before. But do you see what I did right there? I made up a bunch of “truths.” And my body reacted to those truths. And so did my children. I was angry, breathing heavily, speaking in a dialect I like to call bitter staccato. Long story short, my friends felt awful. It was a miscommunication. They each thought the other had called me and three hours later we were totally fine, hugging it out, back to normal. Amazing that just shortly before then I was devastated and mentally convinced they were ending the friendship. Pay attention to how many stories you tell yourself throughout the day. Someone is late and immediately you think they must not value your time. You pass an acquaintance from your kid’s school and she doesn’t speak to you. You walk away ready to tell everyone who asks what a mega-bitch she is, or worse, you walk away wondering why you aren’t good enough for her to say hello to. Guess what? It’s all crap. You are making it up! You are one hell of a story teller aren’t you? We all are. And it sabotages our peace.

Inner Peace Principle: Seek the truth In every situation you encounter ask yourself this question: “What do I know to be 100% true?” Usually you will find that the answer is a big, eye-opening “Not much!” Maybe you have a friend who never calls you. She is always happy to hear from you, but if you were keeping score, (and many of us are), you are ALWAYS the one who calls. Odds are, you start putting some checks and balances on the relationship. You think back, checking the score card, coming up with all sorts of bullshit and false self-righteous thoughts like “I’m done! If she wants to talk to me, she can pick up the phone.” Perhaps your friend is struggling and breathes a sigh of relief when she hears your voice. Perhaps she thinks of you often, but with a bunch of kids at home just doesn’t find the time to chat with friends during the day. You don’t know. Read that again. YOU. DON’T. KNOW. There is one thing we are all masters at and that is the art of Ego Storytelling. Ego Story-telling is when we have trouble getting out of our own heads. We assign blame, judgments and mis-placed anger. We weave tall tales about people we know, and don’t know, making assumptions about their lives, their character, their feelings about us. It’s all crap. 64

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I had a client call me a couple of weeks ago. He had been stood up twice by two different women and felt a dive in his self worth. “I’m just not good enough. Since the divorce, I’m broken and they can sense it.” I said, “Ok maybe. Or maybe they saw your pictures on Facebook, were completely intimidated by how handsome you are and didn’t feel ready to put themselves out there. Hell you made up the other story, why not make up one that’s a little more fun and empowering?”

Similarly, I had another client who had a friend of the opposite sex

that suddenly stopped speaking to him. He had reached out but to no avail. She was treating him totally differently, as though a five year friendship never existed. He was devastated, spent weeks trying to figure out what he had done, convinced maybe he had made her uncomfortable, or said something wrong. I asked what he knew to be 100% true. He replied, “Nothing. She won’t talk to me.” Exactly. He knew nothing. He had no idea why she had stopped speaking to him. Maybe it was because her husband didn’t like the friendship. Maybe it was because she had developed feelings for him. In this case, the truth may never be known so I encouraged him to let go of his attachment to it. In this situation, you make up a truth you can live with, one that empowers you and assigns love to them, and you move on. We always have that choice. In any situation or any relationship we have the option to choose love, assume good intentions, be who we are despite who they are. We have no idea what someone else goes through 24/7. We don’t know their internal struggles, we might not know their goals, their feelings, their insecurities. What we do know is how we want to feel. We want to feel loved, validated and happy. So rather than coming up with a block buster worthy tale that fills you with resentment, try a happier script; one that offers love and forgiveness to the other person and power and peace to yourself.

Save the drama for when Hollywood calls. ;)

The Truth and Nothing But The Truth •

Ask

Laura

Laura, is it still bad manners to do your makeup in a Q. restaurant because lately, I notice that all the younger ladies are taking out everything from a compact to eye make up! When did this become OK? I don't mean to show my age, but we would not have dared even getting out the compact at the table in the 70s. Jolene Hi Jolene! Do I agree with putting on a full face of makeup A in a restaurant, No. And I also believe it your nose needs a little powder, excuse yourself to the restroom to dab a bit on. Of course the 70's are long gone, and a different era than today, standards today in public have reached an all time low in my book! It almost seems that "anything" goes and it also goes unnoticed. Sadly. XOXO Laura

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Our resident Agony Aunt answers your questions in the same way she’s been imposing her opinion upon friends and loved ones for years.

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Write In!

By Laura Bariola

Hi Laura, our cat keeps peeing in my closet and now I'm at war with my roommate (it is her cat really). It just keeps coming back to the closet and my take on it is that if she cannot stop peeing inside, it either becomes an outside cat or it is out of here! I love my roommate to death and we have been like sisters since our second year of college. How can I raise this issue with her? She already knows it is happening. LKR

Interesting Question, LKR! The easiest way to solve this is to A lock your closet somehow! I would also leave anything that the cat pee'd on layed out on her bed with a polite note that she can clean, and/or replace what is ruined, or she may pack her things, along with her cat and find a new home. Cat urine is such a hard smell to get rid of! Much luck to you! Laura

Laura, my sister has started dating my ex, who I was with for more than four years. It feels like betrayal. At the moment, I just cannot have anything to do with her at all and it is killing our mother. I find this too painful and the ultimate deception. My question is, is it unethical for me to cut ties with her for now considering the pain it is causing our mom? Claudia C.

Hi Claudia! I am shaking my head as I read this. First of all, I am So sorry for what has happened. Betrayal, yes. Heart wrenching, yes. I can understand you not wanting anything to do with her at this moment, but remember, she will always be your sister no matter what. You can never change that. Men come and go, but your sister will always be there whether she is with this man or not. Your mother's pain is because 2 of the most important people in her life are now at war and not speaking because some guy, whether he was with you or your sister, and no one should ever come between family. Period. Sure it will take some time, but step back and look at the big picture here. You should actually be thankful those 2 are together because he sure as hell didn't deserve you and you will move on to something wonderful! XOXO, Laura Ask Laura Advice Column •

Our family has a small number of graves in our local cemetery and no one other than me bothers to go and make sure it is kept up. It stings because some of these relatives were close aunts and uncles, one of whom had children. I'm 22 and even I can see this is wrong. The caretakers mow the lawns but everything else is a mess. Is this just the norm and I'm being just a little sensitive or am I justified in my reaction? Dusti

Hi Dusti! This is a tricky question for me, as I have family buried all over different places. At this point, it seems that you are the only one who deeply cares about taking care of these grave sites for family members, and I commend you for that! It is a difficult task to manage, and it is very unfortunate that you have no help. To me, this proves that you have great respect for these family members who have passed away, while the others just find it easier to let someone else deal with it because it can be a tough job to handle and some think that once someone is buried, their job is done. At the age of 22, you seem to have a lot of respect for these lives that are no longer here on earth. I applaud you for this. No good deed goes unnoticed! All my respect, Laura.

Dear Ask Laura, I have been seeing the same guy for three years and although I deeply care about him, I don't feel he is "the one". It is almost like the best friendship you could ever ask for and I know this is what every girl should try and grab ahold of but the sparks aren't there. How can I know for sure if it's right to cut my losses and pursue butterflies or stick it out with something that isn't really broken. G. Schaffer.

Hi G. Schaffer! If you have already been in a relationship with this guy for 3 years, yet don't feel that he is "The One", why waste anymore years of your life waiting on "sparks" to fly? I would assume that after 3 years and no "butterflies", move on girl! If it is more like a best friend situation, it is time to sit him down and tell him where your feelings stand on this relationship and get out there and find those butterflies that any girl deserves! Best of Luck! Laura

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Style & Beauty

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Blazer, Reiss ♛ Handbag, Henri Bendel Top, H&M ♛ Necklace, Henri Bendel ♛ Nail Polish, Nicole by OPI ♛ Heels, Zara ♛ Trousers, Zara Sunglasses, Asos Shammies’ Fashion Picks •

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Pin Up Bodies

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There is no such thing as the perfect body.

All bodies are beautiful. Pin Up is about confidence, self-belief and women acknowledging each other for their own unique contributions and abilities.

Pin Up is the only style where every

woman can look and feel her best, regardless of her size, often for the first time in her life. Pin Up Passion

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Sunburn

Remedies

There is nothing fun about sunburn and most of us have had our share of them through the years. I remember when I was a teenager most of us looked forward to our first sunburn of the year as we could establish our 'tan base' for the summer. In the 70's and 80's natural suntans were a very serious pursuit of most teenagers and 20-somethings. We'd mix a bottle of iodine in a bottle of baby oil and slather ourselves liberally, only to roast like the Sunday chicken in the hot Mississippi sun. Luckily, most of us have left that particular pursuit behind us, choosing instead to go for a nice wash of color from some bronzing cream or a spray tan. Those that haven't are looking like your Granny's old leather handbag about now. With the 4th of July celebrations, many of you will be spending lots of time outside indulging in picnics, barbecues, water sports, and family reunions. With this fun may come the very UN-fun sunburn.

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By Brittany De Staedtler â€˘ Hat Trick Magazine â€˘ hattrickstrategies.com

Here are a few natural remedies that will help you get through the agony of overindulgence in the sun. One common remedy for sunburn is yogurt. Smear yogurt on

your skin as soon as it turns pink to help cool the skin, reestablish pH balance and promote faster healing. It is best to use plain unsweetened full-fat yogurt that contains few additives. Let it sit on your skin until it warms up and then rinse it off with tepid water. Apply as often as needed. Better still, use a paste made of barley, turmeric and yogurt in equal proportions. Apply it over the affected areas for sunburn relief and healing. Another common item that can be used for sunburns is tea. Make a

large pot of very strong tea, use a towel to soak up all the tea and then apply to the sunburn area. Alternately, use a large number of teabags and make a bathtub full of tea; soak in the bath when the temperature is tepid to barely warm. The tannins in tea help draw out the burn and heal the skin. You can also apply cold, used tea bags to sun-burned eyelids to relieve pain and swelling. One superior good remedy for sunburn is to combine

Aloe Vera, vitamin E oil, and cucumbers. Liquefy cucumbers

in a blender and mix with Aloe Vera gel, and Vitamin E oil. Finally, an age old remedy for sunburns mentioned in ancient texts is potato peels - and it appears to have science on its side. Doctors have found that in case of minor burns, potato peel bandages work better than conventional dressing. Potato peels provide moisture and they also have anti-bacterial properties that help in healing. Whichever remedy you decide to use, please remember that using the proper amount of sunscreen and applying it often is the BEST remedy of all!! Sunburn Remedies •

Have a wonderful summer holiday and enjoy all that fabulous weather! Much Love, Brittany xx

As always, you know I love to give you easy fun recipes you can make at home. This month is no exception: I give you this wonderful homemade sunburn relief spray.

Lavender Aloe Cooling Sunburn Spray

2 fl oz Aloe Vera Juice 2 fl oz Distilled Water 9 drops of lavender oil 2 drops of peppermint oil 1 drop of spearmint oil

Directions: Mix all, and spritz lightly over sunburned skin.

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Confessions of a

Hollywood

Stylist This is a slow season in Hollywood. Other than the BET

Awards, people are winding down from Cannes, starting the rejuvenation process and, for some, wrapping up the big blockbusters we’ll all hear about at Christmas or in the Spring. Although it sounds quiet, this is the season of fashion done local (well, local if you happen to live in Los Angeles, one of the hottest style capitals of the world). Mikey Koffman of The Gallery LA does it again. It was quite an eventful evening on the first day of summer at the second Annual Fashion Splash event which took place at the Drai’s Nightclub on the W Hotel’s rooftop in Hollywood, CA on Friday, June 21, 2013.

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DJ AMP Radio played the jams while the guests drank fruity cocktails from O’Neill Winery and were treated to complimentary manicures and hairstyling by Planet Salon. Before the fashion show Mikey announced to her guests that LA Fashion Weekend will make its debut at Palm Springs Fashion week this fall. As always she looked chic with her new haircut wearing white linen suit. LA’s hottest fashion designers, Anthony Franco, Sue Wong, and Hope Reiners of Culture Swimwear showcased their latest collection. In the honor of first day of summer I wore Escada floral print blazer with white satin pants. I paired my ensemble with my gold Gucci stilettos. As Livia Cassemiro says “ Style enhances the simplest garment.”As for make up, for the first time ever I’ve tried the yellow and green eye shadows to match the summer theme outfit and I absolutely loved the results.

Anthony Franco

Sue Wong

Culture Swimwear

Confessions of A Hollywood Stylist

•

Starting Your Own Beauty & Fashion YouTube

Channel

While I've only been making youtube videos for a little over a year, I've learned quite a bit about dos and don'ts when it comes to making quality videos. I'm still learning myself, so please feel free to add additional tips and tricks. Anyhoo, let's hop right into it, shall we? 82

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•

• •

Let’s Talk Do’s

Invest in a decent camera. I'm using an older model Canon Rebel DSLR camera. Super easy to use, and worth the money. I tried using the cameras priced in the 100-200 range and the quality was embarassing to say the least. If you want people to watch your vids, you gotta make em pretty. Just sayin'. Click here to view camera pricing and specs. Study the vloggers you love and copy what they do. Not the video content, of course, but how they set up their vids, and maybe some editing tips and tricks. I've learned everything I know from watching other vloggers. Sit in front of a natural light source like a window and film during the day. Additional lighting is always great too, so go to Target, Walmart or Amazon and pick up a couple of floor lamps like this one: Use compact fluorescent light bulbs like these (pictured right): Keep your background clutter free. Some girls go so far as to purchase backdrops or a green screen, but I keep it simple. If and when I actually make some income from my videos, I prefer to keep it simple and not invest too much of my own $$$ for extras plenty of top gurus don't have. But if your background looks a mess, it's super distracting. Clean up. Then film.

Anthony Franco

Sue Wong

Culture Swimwear

Starting A Beauty & Fashion YouTube Channel •

•

Film what you like and what you are comfortable doing. I started out doing makeup tutorials, and after doing them for a while not only did I realize no one was watching, but also I didn't have fun doing them! I was always worried about being out of frame, and often had to refilm the videos which was a pain! Editing the vids weren't fun either. So if it's not fun, DON'T DO IT! Your video view counts will tell you a lot. Pay attention to them. Watch other videos and make friendly with other youtubers. Subscribe to their channels and comment on their vids. The more your channel name is seen the more people are likely to stop by and visit your channel. Promote yourself. Set up a blog, twitter, facebook fan page, and instagram account. Be as visible as possible. Competetion is STIFF. If you aren't making yourself be seen, you'll never be seen. Have confidence. Talk about what you know and stick to it. Don't try to do what everyone else is doing. DO YOU!

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Now Some Don’ts •

Upload super long videos. Most people won't watch them and if you're not a youtube partner, youtube won't allow it. Try to keep most of your videos under 10 minutes. • Ask other bloggers to sub for sub. It's annoying! The best way to get someone to subscribe to your channel is by being a fan of their work. Like their vids. Comment on their vids. And make mention of your channel, letting that person know s/he has inspired you to create your own channel. I personally only subscribe to channels I like. And really, subscriptions don't mean much. You want views. You want people to watch your content, so having someone subscribe and then never watching your videos is a big let down. TRUST ME. • Over do giveaways. In fact, I'm phasing them out. From here on out, I will do one a year, and that's it. I find they don't pay off, and people will subscribe only to win and then NEVER watch another video. You want true blue fans/followers/subbies. Giveaways aren't the way to get to them. At least not anymore. • Be desperate. The opportunity for freebies will come. Frankly, I'm so busy with my personal life to even take on doing reviews for companies anymore. I do hair reviews, because it's not a lot of extra work, but other than that I'm pretty lax about taking on jewelry or makeup reviews UNLESS the company is willing to sponsor a giveaway. If the company will sponsor a giveaway it will help in your brand recognition and you'll get more out of the deal than a free bracelet or eyeshadow. • Try to be concise. Stay on topic. • Smile! I always forget this one! ha ha, and it Anthony Wong shows!!Franco Looking like a grumpSue ain't cute! Starting A Beauty & Fashion YouTube Channel •

Lifestyle & Wellness

Profiles of Excellence PowHERhouse Women

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Meet three passionate Canadian women role-modeling the

elevated definition of success: happiness, self-care and making a difference in their families and communities. Julia, Suzanne and Shelly are leaders as they choose not to follow. Be inspired, learn something and know you are not alone as you eaves-drop on our latest PowHERhouse chat – it’s real, it’s frank and honest, and it’s for you.

Julia Chung Wealth strategist, providing integrated financial and estate planning services to businesses and families. She is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and is currently working towards the Family Enterprise Advisor (FEA) designation through the UBC Sauder School of Business.

Suzanne Doyle-Ingram Suzanne is a best-selling author, having written seven books in 2012. She helps entrepreneurs and business people write books and self-publish them to create a passive revenue stream.

Shelly Lynn Nellis Shelly Lynn publishes two successful magazines, a business woman accountable for countless entrepreneurial ventures and is Women of Worth’s 2013 Mompreneur of the Year. Charlene SanJenko PowHERhouse Women •

What does Leadership mean to you?

Julia: There are many discussions on leadership yet the definition

remains fuzzy. I believe the definition of leadership is uniquely personal. If we want to be effective leaders, we must spend more time observing and connecting with the people we wish to lead. We have to determine what their needs are and what information, skills and guidance they require in order to reach their ultimate potential. The world has changed, society has changed, and leadership must adapt as well. We are now a network of many small communities inside larger ones, which means far more leaders are required, leaders who possess wisdom, communication skills, creativity, confidence, adaptability, and humility. It’s a lot harder to be a leader now, but a great deal more interesting.

How do you manage a Frenetic Life? Suzanne: I run two businesses, I have three kids under 12, and I volunteer in my community so I am crazy busy all of the time. Here’s what works for me: I accept the fact that I don’t actually do eight hours of work each day. At best, I get three or four hours accomplished. I section off my time in 30-minute blocks, and I work with fearsome focus on ONE thing for 30 minutes. You’d be amazed how much work you can accomplish in 30 minutes! When I am working on large project, I create a checklist of all the smaller tasks that go into it, and I get great satisfaction checking things off the list. It also serves as a visual reminder of how much of the project has been completed. The most important thing for me is to stop and literally breathe calmness into my life.

Shelly: I admit my life is in fact frenetic. Managing three businesses,

homeschooling my daughter who has multiple severe food allergies, being a wife - all the while keeping myself active – yes, my daily life can be defined as frenetic. That being said, it is not a crazy, uncontrolled, unhappy lifestyle. I manage by making sure whatever is within my frenetic life is what I truly enjoy and appreciate. I take time to have a cup of tea with a friend, ask colleagues for help with projects, and meditate or exercise on a regular basis. Quite simply, 88

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I ask for help when I'm am feeling overwhelmed, surround myself with people and projects I love and stop to appreciate what and who I have in my life.

What does ultimate RAD success feel like to you? Julia: Time for myself, my health and my family and the opportunity to do the work that I love and provide a regular a meaningful outcome to my clients and my team, experiencing recognition and continued unstoppable growth as a qualified expert in an important and meaningful field.

Suzanne: I have enough money in the bank to feel secure, I am

enjoying my work, all three of our kids are happy, my relationship is solid, and my body is strong and healthy. That is RAD ultimate success.

Shelly: A mixture of emotions - feeling alive and excited yet calm and connected.

What tough decisions or big changes have you made in your life in order to ensure your self-definition of success is happening? Julia: The biggest and toughest decision I’ve made in recent years was one to remove myself from a system of delivery that I believe is broken, despite the many strong and talented individuals in it, to independently create the delivery model and career path that I believe in. I know I picked the more difficult path, I know it could fail at some point, and I did it anyway. Apparently the need to create something I believe in, that brings excitement, meaning and achievement to both me and my clients was more important that the security of the larger, more consistent pay cheque.

Suzanne: I am spending less time working and more time with my

kids. This means I have had to say ‘No’ to opportunities that have come my way but it’s well worth it. You really and truly cannot do it all, Charlene SanJenko PowHERhouse Women •

especially if you have kids. Something has to give, and I can’t let it be my family. I asked myself about 2 years ago, “How do I want my kids to look back and remember their childhood?” And I realized with horror that they might say, “My mom was a workaholic who worked all the time.” Ack! I slowly started adding in small passive revenue streams into my business (such as Kindle books) and now can afford to take more time off.

Shelly: The biggest change I have made is to no longer be afraid of

the word ‘No’. That word used to frighten me! “No, we are not interested in you product or service.” Now, I do not take it personally. I have also learned to say ‘No, thank-you’, this was also tough for me.

What is a crazy activity, habit or ritual you do to ensure you stay within your ‘RAD success zone’ and not take yourself too seriously? Julia: I’ve determined that there are three things I need in my life in

order to stay in my most productive, happiest, RAD success zone: Laughter, Creativity, and Physical Activity – especially outdoors. I need to laugh out loud every day to feel okay about the world.

Suzanne: I do consistently volunteer at the local food bank and that

always makes me feel grateful for everything I have in my life. I also take time to go away on Girls Weekends with friends 3-4 times a year which are always so much fun. We end up laughing non-stop for two days.

Shelly: Everyday I ensure to connect with one new person. It might be on Linkedin, through email, a cold call, returning a message or phone call. There are opportunities everywhere; you just have to have your eyes open for them.

If someone called you a RAD PowHERhouse Woman what would be your reaction? 90

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Julia: I think I would say I’m not there yet. However, I’m an unfinished product at all times; if I was finished, I would be dead. The problem with achievement is determining what to do next…

Suzanne: I think that would be awesome! Shelly: I would smile and say "Thank You, I work at it!" About PowHERhouse We build HIP Women (HighImpact Performance). Our mission: Helping women build confidence, courage and capacity through the convergence of Lifestyle & Leadership. Study the latest PMP syllabus with Joseph Phillips, America’s foremost in PMI PMP Education. FREE bonus material including exam cheat sheets, one hour of video training and MORE! Buy Now On Amazon

GET QUALIFIED 2013

Charlene SanJenko PowHERhouse Women •

How To Detox With Green Superfood

Smoothies Have you ever tried fasting to help your body cleanse? I have. And you know what? It didn't work! Because with two kids, two dogs and a job to take care of, I simply cannot function on water or tea alone. Equally, juice fasting turned out to be a mission impossible, because I was still hungry and cranky all the time. Not cool! However, due to the increasing quantity of toxins we have to deal with every day, we all MUST give our body a proper "spring cleaning" every now and then. Because if we do not get rid of the junk that accumulates in our cells, over time our system will shut down: we will feel tired and sickly and also look much older than we actually are. But don't panic, there is a solution: Green Superfood Smoothies! I know this sounds too good to be true, but give it a try and I promise you will love what they do for you. This is my all-time favourite Green Superfood Combo.

FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Nathalie de Ahna â€˘ Hat Trick Magazine â€˘ hattrickstrategies.com

What You’ll Need (Makes Four Servings)

• • • • • • • • • • •

•

4 green apples (e.g. golden delicious) 1 small pineapple 1 lime 1/2 cucumber 3 celery stalks 1 hand full deep-frozen kale 1 cup of coconut water 2 Tbsp of chia seeds 1/2 teaspoon spirulina powder 15 drops marine phytoplankton 1 teaspoon vitamin C powder (=ascorbic acid) ice cubes

Add the coconut water and chia seeds to your blender. Juice two apples, the pineapple, lime, cucumber,

and celery stalks and blend the juice together with the remaining ingredients. The juice keeps fresh for a day when stored in an airtight container in the fridge. How to Detox With Green Superfood Smoothies •

This smoothie is not only really tasty, it provides you with tons of easy-to-digest nutrients while boosting detoxification: •Green Apples: eliminate toxins & are a great anti-cancer food •Pineapples: aid digestion •Limes: great body cleansers which neutralize toxins and harmful bacteria •Cucumbers: reduce fluid retention, flush out harmful substances (and are great for beautiful hair, nails & skin!) •Celery: reduces acidity & fluid retention, effective diuretic (AND: when you consume it regularly, it helps you tame your sweet tooth!) •Kale: boosts your immune system, maintains healthy cells •Superfood chia seeds: an incredible source of nutrients! They clean out your intestinal tract, are very satiating and nourish your cells! •Superfood spirulina: great source of antioxidants + it boosts your energy •Superfood Marine phytoplankton: facilitates detoxification while providing an extremely high q u a n t i t y o f a l k a l i z i n g minerals •Superfood vitamin C powder: removes and neutralises toxins (plus it reduces the signs of ageing & makes your skin beautiful) 94

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If you drink this smoothie twice a day

as morning and afternoon snack you will quickly feel your batteries recharging. Your general wellbeing will improve, your digestion will work flawlessly (making your tummy flatter!) and your skin will start to glow. Give it a try - I'm sure you will love it

How to Detox With Green Superfood Smoothies â€˘

Weight Off Your Mind Summer is finally here and as we dare to bare, the world suddenly seems to be filled with fabulous looking girls in flimsy florals. Girls like me that are a li;le on the chunky side might go as far as cropped pants, with a flouncy top to hide a mul>tude of sins and some kind of shrug to cover up the bingo wings, but that’s it. Strappy is a no no and boob tubes are totally out of the ques>on. It’s either in casual observa>on of a passing yummy mummy, or an accidental peek at a celebrity magazine that our mind turns to the D word, Diet. We might start off well with calorie coun>ng and the odd power walk, but this can slowly spiral into old habits. We start to blame the wrong food for out weight gain, our metabolism, or the fact that we have no >me or will power. I have used all of these excuses and more. If we are really honest with ourselves, there is no such thing as the wrong food, or wrong genes, it’s the wrong thinking and the wrong behaviour that keep us stuck on those scales. FIND ME ONLINE HERE

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By Kate Spencer

We all know the theory of what to eat and what not to, of how many calories we need to take in and how much we need to exercise, in fact many of us could write the script perfectly for successful weight loss. We know what we should be doing, so why aren’t we doing it? Between the good inten>ons and the results that we crave is a chasm of hopelessness ﬁlled up to the brim with past disappointments, broken promises and feelings of not being good enough.

Surely this should show us that diets just don’t work? So if diets don’t work then what on earth will? We need to change our beliefs and feelings at a deep level in order to be able to change our behaviour. What we think creates what we do, and feel. In order to change pa;erns of overea>ng, poor food choices, lack of exercise and more we need to look at what is driving these and heal the underlying causes. This usually comes back in one guise or another to self-‐worth and self-‐love. When we are carrying around wounds and trauma, it’s hard to love ourselves, and when you don’t love yourself you don’t look aLer yourself. Part of looking aLer yourself is about good food and nutri>on and caring for your body through achieving a healthy weight. Unless you are in a place of thinking that you are worth looking aLer, then you will not be able to make las>ng change in your rela>onship with food and with your body. So what’s a girl to do? We need to give up the cycle of crash die>ng and despera>on to drop a dress size, and start the proper healing and introspec>on that you need to do in order to free us from past hurts. We need to get our mojo back in a big way. Then, and only then will we be able to really value and love ourselves enough to change behaviour and make choices that will serve us. It starts from the inside out, and un>l that’s sorted we’ll always be making excuses. I for one am commiPng to walking my talk this summer. I’m digging deep into my own stuﬀ and healing what I can in order to change my own rela>onship with food and my self-‐image in posi>ve ways. I don’t know what I’ll lose in weight, but I do know that if am commi;ed to healing and looking at weight loss a diﬀerent way, then there will be a whole lot to gain.

Weight Off Your Mind With Kate Spencer •

I’m Ditching The Diets If you’d like to join Kate on her conscious weight loss journey you can get involved online. This summer I am going to ditch the diets and think myself thinner, and change those nega>ve self-‐beliefs that have been holding me back for far too long. I know that in my heart if I can really do this, then the rest will fall into place for me, and that weight loss will be a natural side eﬀect to loving myself and healing my past.

About A Homemade Year

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Buy Online Now!

Mystic Sisters

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Mystic Sisters Mellissa and Jayshree Mallaya are a household name in South Africa with a clientele of the who's who from Hollywood to Bollywood. Mellissa followed her heart and now lives with her husband in London where she does Skype, telephone and 1:1 sessions (in addition to planning naughty book club meetings and girls pamper parties). As Seen In Cosmo Magazine!

Write In To Get Featured!

Life Or Love Question? Book Your Consultation With Mellissa Phone: +44 7720748095 Or Email Her 100

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FIND ME ONLINE HERE

By Mellissa Mallaya

Dear Mystic Sisters, My ex-husband is still trying to rule my life. He does everything he can to hurt me, emotionally, through our children. Is he an energy vampire and what can be done to stop the impact he has over me? Shallah

Dear Shillalah, Oh dear! The cards don't look good at all A regarding him. He is an energy vampire and gets a sadistic thrill from drawing all of your positive energy. Sadly your second child who is usually very loving is inclined to her fathers behaviour. I don't see you being in love with him, but there is an extensive vulnerability regarding him. He will not stop with this behaviour. You will have to build a strong positive field around you to repel his energy. You will have to focus on you and not on him. Every now and again you allow yourself to feel sorry for him and his negativity draws you in. Please be careful. Mellissa how can I tell if my boyfriend and I are going to get better with time or if we will continue to float in this stagnating way that we've been going down for the last year? Is there another out there for me because he ignores me no matter what I do and I am craving something real. Thalia M.

Hi Thalia, This relationship is at a comfortable stalemate. I do A see you leaving and getting back with him. He does seem in adept as romance but his feelings for you are point blank sincere. I do see a marriage for you both. Talk to him. Open up. You do seem aggressive with your approach to the relationship. Tread carefully as your heart is till heavily invested. Dear Mystic Sisters, Ever since the baby came along, I've noticed my husband has lost interest. Sunday, I found him looking at a men's magazine and another online site. Most of all, he just seems annoyed being in the same room. I gained 20 pounds only in the pregnancy and he supports us. What am I doing wrong? I cannot look like that 16 weeks after giving birth without looking and feeling a mess. It is causing me resentment. Help. Linda S.

Mystic Sisters Answer Your Psychic Questions •

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Hi Linda. Firstly, congrats! Being a mommy is truly a gift. He is A sexually frustrated. He does not want a pin up girl, but he wants your mojo baby! Stop questioning and start doing. He is not having an affair. What are you doing to improve and kick start your energy? Have you changed your diet with more B vitamins? Signed up for yoga or a gym? He loves you completely but gets turned off by "that look" you have on your face of constant irritation. He is annoyed that there is a cap on sex. Not annoyed with his wife. Get moving gorgeous x

I am 46 and it looks that I will be single for the rest of my life. I've always been open to relationships and have a great career. I'm also attractive and a good person. Is there someone out there for me and if there is, how do I find him? I live in the central part of England, I'm a size 8 and a middle class, well-spoken lady with dark hair and blue eyes. Where is he, Mellissa? Claire M. Hi Claire. It seems you have done well for yourself. Well done. There is someone out there for you. You do give off a rather stiff impression of yourself and people who (potentially would like to date you) find your passion for life running dry. Don't focus on the obvious which is to ind your man. Focus on you. He will head your way in 9 months from now. I see you meeting him socially so get out there and live a little!

I have been attempting to attract the interest of a particular guy online and although we both really like each other, trying to get him to open up his feelings to me has been like pulling teeth. He keeps saying that if he wasn't interested, he would not be in touch "and put such feeling into it". Clearly he isn't great with expressing himself because I don't get that message at all! Am I being strung along? I just want to take time to know each other for a while and take the plunge into something bigger with him. Brenda M.

Dear Brenda, Forget him! Love Mellissa. 102

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I am in a dead relationship and want out. I'm scared of being alone and I like having him as a companion. Is this acceptable or am I being deceptive and wrong? Daisy

Hi darling, Many people keep their options open and so are you. He adores you but has become mentally lazy in this relationship. He won't walk away unless you do. I do see a new man in 2 years. Yes it is deceptive but mostly to yourself as the world sees you as an attached woman. You would never carry a dead horse about, why carry this? You are witty, loving, naughty and gorgeous. Get out there and seize the world!

How to Detox With Green Superfood Smoothies •

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Food, Home & Family

Frying Fish The Southern Way

Tanya’s Tip Before you fry the fish, cook your corn on the cob, fried onion rings, make your salad, pour your tea, set your table etc. because the fish is “hands on” and it needs to be last.

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By Tanya Jackson • Hat Trick Magazine • hattrickstrategies.com

• Set your oven at 200 F • Set up long casserole dish ★1-2 cups vegetable oil with paper towels to ★12 fish fillets-make sure absorb the oil, set in oven they are all equally thin so the dish is warm. ★2 cups milk • Put your fish fillets in a ★2 cup yellow cornmeal bowl of milk. Soak move them around so that ★1/1/4 cup flour they really get the milk ★2 tsp. salt coated on & in the fish. ★3 tsp. black pepper (This takes the fishy ★1/2 tsp onion powder tastes out of fish that is strong and helps the ★1/2 tsp garlic powder coating stay on.) • Mix the cornmeal, flour, salt, pepper, onion & garlic powder • Heat the oil so when you drop some cornmeal mix in the oil it sizzles • Put ¼ cup of the cornmeal mix on a plate • Pick up fish and let drip dry a couple of seconds • Dredge the fillets both sides. • Lay-do not drop- fish in oil. • Cook several pieces at a time no more than 1 min total each piece. The first side usually fries longer & you turn the fish to brown the coating on the other side. • Take out fish and with spatula not tongs. Lay on paper towel & put back into oven. Continue with rest of fish. Serve immediately

Hat Trick Magazine • hattrickstrategies.com •

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Garden Boxes, Peppers, Peas and Okra

For Kids

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By Amber Hamilton Henson • Hat Trick Magazine • hattrickstrategies.com

Building Raised Garden Boxes and Watching our kids watching PEPPERS, PEAS, & OKRA grow has kept me in smiles recently! Want a peek at part of what has been happening in our yard this season? Garden Boxes For Kids â€˘

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I enjoy every season, but I must admit that being so fair (um, pale) skinned, summer hadn’t always been a favorite. It is amazing how different I feel about summer as my garden interests have grown through the years, especially now that my daughters are interested in raising edibles! 4ft. by 4ft. might be the most common dimension for traditional square foot gardening, however we built 6ft. by 3ft. raised garden beds for our daughters’ melons and vegetables in order to minimize cost and minimize waste of material by using readily available, USA cedar fence pickets!! We are quite pleased with how easy it was to source materials, how easy the planting boxes were to assemble, and how well Bonnie plants andBurpee seeds are performing for our daughters! We have built a total of 5, so far, but have room for a few more!

Building The Boxes

Tools for box construction: power chop saw; cordless drill with drill bit and Phillips head bit; stapler Supplies purchased: We bought 6″ wide 6′ long fence pickets (6 pickets per box, the ends are half length pickets); 4inch by 4inch post, 6′ long (cut into 1′ long sections); Plastic sheeting, 12mil. thickness (keeps water and soil from escaping between the pickets, simulating using much more expensive wider width lumber. DO NOT cover the bottom of the box, as drainage is important!) Plants and Soil, Manure, & Organic Compost: Our daughters are interested in trying to raise a variety of edibles! So far, things are going well! We’re already harvesting some things, watching blooms on others, and trying to decide what else to raise as the seasons change!

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Basically, we needed the raised beds to be affordable, large enough to plant what we want on our rocky hilltop yard, yet small enough that the kids can reach into the center for planting and harvesting. The kids helped with the entire process, including excavation of the plots where the boxes sit! We are so pleased with our plants, so far! Here is a peek at the variety of BONNIE Peppers that our kids are already harvesting and BURPEE Sweet Peas we harvested are planted beside our BONNIE Okra that will be ready soon, as modeled by our two older daughters, Caroline and Abigail. BONNIE Plants and BURPEE seeds may have just reached a completely untapped, youth market audience for their products in our neighborhood! As far as weâ€™ve seen, weâ€™re the only family in our neighborhood growing vegetables this year. The neighborhood kids seem fascinated when our daughters show them their vegetable gardens and talk about the plants! LOVE!! Weâ€™re enjoying ourselves, so it is very rewarding for there to be so much interest in our little gardens! It wonâ€™t surprise me at all to see more of this style of gardening start popping throughout these suburban backyards! Theyâ€™re just so fun! Theyâ€™re great additions beside our RAINBOW swing set/playground, trampoline, and basketball court! Next on our â€œto-doâ€? list? Our middle daughter will be in 3rd grade this next school year, and I hear that BONNIE plants has a 3rd grade cabbage patch program! Weâ€™re interested! Weâ€™ve never tried our hand at growing cabbage before! It would be fun to try! I wonder if Mitch would be willing to make a few more of these garden boxes for Abigailâ€™s elementary school? đ&#x;˜ƒđ&#x;˜ƒđ&#x;˜ƒđ&#x;˜ƒ Weâ€™ll post more updates on other things growing in our gardens and fruit trees in the backyard, soon! â€œLater, â€˜Gators, and Afterwhile, Crocodiles!â€? Your Friend,

Amber Hamilton Henson Garden Boxes For Kids â€˘

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Laughing

(At You, Not With You) Cherie began as a weekly columnist for the main local newspaper in her area. Her articles focus on a humorous look at married life with five children and the ups and downs we can all relate to. She has won 2 international short story contests as well as being published in Our Canada magazine. Cherie is a breast cancer survivor and a huge advocate of self-exams.

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By Cherie DeBurger â€˘ Hat Trick Magazine â€˘ hattrickstrategies.com

I have see it time and time again, someone falls down or gets smacked in the face with a fish and people laugh to the point that they are crossing their legs in an effort not to lose control of their bladders. Some television shows have made this behavior the main theme of the show and have been huge successes with decades of re-runs still airing in living rooms around the world to this day. What malicious tendency is woven into our genetic make-up that sends us into fits of uncontrollable laughter at the physical misfortune of others? My family is no different from the rest and we are notorious for laughing when one of us gets injured. Of course I am referring to accidents that are not serious like stubbing your toe or falling off a chair. The mishaps that make you hold your breath and fill you with the occasionally irrepressible urge to say bad words are the ones we respond to with sidesplitting giggles.

When I was younger, we lived in an old house that had beautiful old world architecture. Wonderful decorative wooden gables adorned

the roof peaks, glass-like hardwood floors, incredible wood staircase and railing, and my favorite feature, striking double pocket doors that framed every interior doorway downstairs except the kitchen. These old houses always had a never-ending list of items that needed to be fixed or replaced and ours was no different. I clearly remember the pocket doors in the TV room that had broken hinges. The piece of hardware that stopped each door from going past the center of the doorframe was broken and so there was nothing to stop the door from going further than designed. When the door was pushed to far it would create a gap between the end of the door and the wall that the door slide into. My father would sit in the corner of the "L" shaped sectional sofa and lay his arm along the back cushions while he watched the news, sometimes letting his fingers fall into the gap that was formed when the doors where pushed to far open. I remember an evening when I watched my mother walk up to the entryway and, as she had done many times before, grabbed hold of the door and tried to push it back Laughing At You, Not With You â€˘

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into the wall pocket where it was supposed to be. When she felt the resistance she pushed again a little harder in an attempt to clear out whatever was in the way. I looked over at my dad as his eyes grew large and he started to yell her name, "Theresa! Theresa stop!" My mother looked around the door as my father recoiled his arm and started to rub his red and throbbing fingers on his right hand. As she clued in to what had just happened and realized that she had inadvertently been slamming his hand repeatedly between the door and the wall she slapped her hand over her mouth as she began to giggle. My father glared at her as she struggled to keep her composure, within seconds she was crossing her legs and doubling over, desperately trying not to laugh out loud as she asked him if he was okay.

I am nothing if not a duplicate of my mother, I am like her in so many ways and even though I try not to, I always find myself reacting the same way in those situations. It wasnâ€™t long ago one of my youngest kids was using the washroom and as I walked by the door I hear him talking to himself. I was standing outside the door stifling giggles as I listened to him and the seriousness with which he debated with himself over which of his two favorite super hero's was the strongest. Moments later in his own little world and deep in thought he opened the bathroom door. I didn't say anything, I just stood there looking at him and it was obvious he was not expecting anyone to be standing in the doorway. He jerked back and his head literally bounced off the door into the wall, bounced off the wall in back into the door. It wasn't hard enough to actually injure himself but enough to be painful and bruise his ego. As he held his head and demanded that I not scare him like that, I started to laugh.

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That made him angrier and as he stomped his foot it made

me laugh harder. I walked over to where my husband and daughter were sitting and I tried to explain what had happened. The more I tried to describe what I had seen the harder I laughed until tears where streaming down my face and I could only speak in a high pitched whisper. Just like I had seen my mom do many times before I crossed my legs in an effort to control my bladder as I finished describing the incident. Even a week later, when I was telling my friend about the happening, I was overcome with laughter and had trouble finishing the story.

Maybe itâ€™s genetic because my children are also displaying this peculiarity. It seems to

be hilariously funny to all of my children if someone is accidentally slapped or trips. A sure fire way to get one of the younger kids to stop crying over a scraped knee or a tumble is by having my older son fake an injury and fall over. Immediately the tears turn to smiles and even laughter. Is it some sadistic characteristic that we all seem to share or could the old saying that misery loves company be ringing true?

Laughing At You, Not With You â€˘

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ISSUE 9 JUNE 2013

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 £3.00

BAKING ~ DECORATING ~ SHARING Baking ~ Decorating ~ Sharing

Cupcake

Special

Buy the full 84 page version from www.cakemasters.co.uk

Fantastic step-by-step tutorials

Recipes, Interviews, Tutorials, Boxes, Wrappers, Afternoon Tea Dessert Table Delights, Baking Wish List, and lots more!

PREVIEW VERSION

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

ERIC LANLARD

Tutorials Detailed step-by-step projects

EXCLUSIVE Interview Eric Lanlard

38 Cupcake Collection

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 COOKIE SPECIAL

Contents

Welcome to our July issue dedicated to Cupcakes!

Cupcake Special 4 7 9 12 14 23 36 42 57

Before I talk about what is in store, I wanted to thank you all for the feedback and comments following the issue of the June magazine and the launch of our new website. A big “HELLO!” to all our new international subscribers, we hope that you enjoy each and every up-‐ coming issues of the magazine. For our UK readers, we have managed to get onto the shelves of several sugarcraft shops across the country which is very exciting for us to be more accessible to our readers. In this issue we have lined up some great interviews with some of the best cupcake-‐ists from across the globe and I am particularly pleased that we have a short interview with Shamima Desai from ‘Tres Chic Cupcakes by ShamsD”. Shamima is actually partly responsible for why I got into cupcaking myself, and is also gracing the front cover of this issue with some of her cupcakes.

Victoria -‐ Victorious Cupcakes Shamima -‐ Tres Chic Cupcakes by ShamsD Amanda-‐ The Clever Little Cupcake Company Rebecca -‐ Wicked Little Cupcakes Sheryl -‐ Buns In The Oven Cupcakery Baked & Boxed Dessert Table Delights Wrapped to Perfection The Cupcake Collection

Recipes 26 Chocolate and hazelnut muf_ins 35 Easy vanilla cupcakes 46 Very vanilla cupcakes

We also have interviews with Rebecca from Wicked Little Cupcakes, Sheryl from Buns In The Oven Cupcakery, Victoria from Victorious Cupcakes, and the lovely Amanda from The Clever Little Cupcake Company.

Tutorial 28 Cupcake topper -‐ Bear in a bunny suit 47 Cupcake topper -‐ Lion 75 Bulldog cupcake

New in this issue are three very detailed step by step tutorials on how to make some fantastic cupcake toppers which I hope you try -‐ thanks to Rebecca, Sheryl and Shereen for submitting these.

Interviews

Last and by no means least on the list to mention is an exclusive interview with Eric Lanlard, who has to be the nicest celebrity baker I have met to date; so friendly, so hardworking, and so deserving of his successes. I interviewed Eric to _ind out what’s new with him and talked about his new book Chocolat.

38 EXCLUSIVE: Eric Lanlard 44 Susie Kelly

We have lots more inside this issue and I really hope you enjoy it, as always, I would love to hear any feedback from you.

Rosie x

Editor

Editor editor@cakemasters.co.uk Review: Ceri Roberts Content editor@cakemasters.co.uk Advertisement magazine@cakemasters.co.uk Product features: magazine@cakemasters.co.uk Class directory: magazine@cakemasters.co.uk Front cover: Shamima Desai -‐ Tres Chic Cupcakes by ShamsD Special thanks: Jen from Jen’s Just Desserts for fantastic photos throughout the magazine and her excellent afternoon tea reviews. Photos from Buns in the Oven Cupcakery

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 CUPCAKE FEATURE

Meet Victoria From Victorious Cupcakes

Tell us about you and your family My family and I now live on the South Coast of England after moving here from Liverpool 5 years ago. I'm engaged to Mark, who I met in Kiev in the Ukraine 10 years ago. He's not Ukrainian but from Bolton. Mark was on holiday there and I was working as a _light attendant. We saw in the New Year together at a chilly -‐32 degrees and the rest is history. We have a daughter, Millie, who is 7 and a keen baker/decorator just like her Mum. Mark is great at baking too, but his speciality is bread and pastry. What is your baking story? Baking came late for me and I only started baking at 39, when Millie was 4. I realised that I had never even tried to bake a birthday cake and had relied on my Mum or (and it pains me to say it) the local supermarket for cakes. So I thought I would start to bake Millie's birthday cakes. Mum had made my birthday cakes all my life -‐ she still does! Millie wanted a Hungry

Caterpillar cake, so I gave it my best shot and it wasn't too bad. Maybe I had a bit of the baking gene from my Mum after all? Mum has always been a great baker. She made all sorts of cakes, but the one that sticks in my mind was my Mount Etna cake. Mum made it for my 30th birthday after I had spent 3 months working in Sicily. It even had sparklers on top to make it look like it was exploding, just like Etna had been the whole time I had been in Sicily. Mum and I make a yearly trip to Birmingham NEC to Cake International to stare at all the wonderful cakes, and also try not to spend the contents of our bank accounts. We are terrible for spur of the moment purchases, some of which I still haven't got round to using. I then became obsessed with Facebook and Youtube, trying to learn how to decorate. Until then I had not really used the computer so I had to fathom that out too. Google was my best friend, and I used that to

learn what I do today. It's still my best friend, there is nothing you can't _ind if you look hard enough. Why cupcakes? Cupcakes have always been my thing. I get a cold sweat just thinking about any cake bigger than 5". I like the tiny details and the painting. I _ind it very therapeutic. Mark is always saying larger cakes would take half the time that cupcakes take, but that's what I like. I've become much quicker at decorating over the last 3 years. I remember staying up 'til 3 and 4am making toppers as I wanted them to look absolutely perfect. I have since found ways Continued >

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 CUPCAKE FEATURE

Meet Shamima From Très Chic Cupcakes by ShamsD

Tell us about you and your family I am a mum to 3 beautiful children who are aged between 13 and 22. My husband is a businessman and is self-‐employed. I'm a stay at home mum and baking is my hobby. What is your baking story, how did you get into baking? I started in 2006 when my youngest child started primary school, leaving me with some free time to pursue my interests. I was inspired by Zahira Motala's work on Flickr, who graciously advised me on how she made her cupcake toppers. This was the start of my journey into baking and decorating, helped along with lots of support from all the ladies on Flickr who always share their tips gained from years of experience. What do you love about cupcakes? Each cupcake is unique, and I enjoy the challenge of crafting something unique and special.

What are your goals? Where do you plan to be in 5 years? I would love to travel and discover the world. My cupcake/cake business is a very ful_illing hobby which I would love to explore more deeply. What has been your biggest cupcake disaster? I haven't had too many disasters and hope to avoid any in the future.

What decorating tool is your best friend? My exacto knife Which has been the most difDicult cupcake you have made? The little red tea-‐set and the tiny rose, for which I had to make 85 pieces .It was more time consuming than dif_icult.

Continued >

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 CUPCAKE FEATURE

Meet Amanda From The Clever Little Cupcake Company

Tell us about you and your family: I am a 41 year old mother of two, and I have been married for 17 years to my husband Neil. I met my husband whilst studying Maths at St Andrews University, and we have been together for almost 21 years. I have a son, George, who is 13 and a daughter, Elizabeth, who is 10. They are the best kids in the world (who doesn't say that about their kids though!). We live in a little town called Bury, just north of Manchester in the UK. I was born and bred here, but having lived all over the world, we decided to settle back in Bury 8 years ago.

Have you always had a career in cakes? Not at all. After graduating from University, I fell into the _inancial sector working for a large pensions company. I hopped around from department to department, before settling into my _inal role as an Actuarial Assistant, based in Cardiff, Wales. It was where I met my greatest friends, whom I miss so much. What is your baking story, how did you get into baking? After we moved to Bury, I became a stay at home Mum to my then two very young children. As they grew, the thought of returning to the _inancial sector _illed me with

dread. I longed to work from home so I could be there for them, and to be able to pick and choose my hours. My Mum's 65th birthday was looming and I decided to give the cake a go myself (I had previously made a few cakes for my children's birthdays), and I enjoyed it very much (looking back, it was truly awful!!) and everybody seemed to love it. I invested in a few sugarcraft pieces and started making the odd cupcakes here and there. I made some for my husband's birthday and I was completely hooked at the endless possibilities at how a cupcake could be decorated. A couple of months later, I had my _irst non family order and the rest is history.

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 CUPCAKE FEATURE

Meet Rebecca

From Wicked Little Cupcakes Tell us about you and your family I live in Australia with my husband and two little dogs! We live close to the coast and enjoy going to the beach, our local cafes and working on renovating our 1960’s bungalow house on the weekends. I work fulltime as a music teacher, and in my spare time I run my cupcake business which is my creative hobby. What is your baking story, how did you get into baking? I’ve always loved cooking and food. Even as a little girl, I was always in the kitchen helping (or pestering Mum to lick the bowl!) I’ve always enjoyed the creative arts, making crafts, anything that has involved ‘making’ things. So baking really is a combination of all of these interests and happened quite by accident. I had to bake some cupcakes for a work morning tea and my obsession for them to have a theme and look just right took over. Looking back now, they were pretty hideous, but that was where my addiction to cupcakes and baking started. I began experimenting with cake _lavours and cute toppers, modelling with fondant, _irst with _lowers and cutters to then more experimental sculpturing. I bought every cake book I could _ind and watched online tutorials on modelling fondant. At that point both my parents, especially my Dad kept on saying that I should start a business, which I eventually did and that’s how Wicked Little Cupcakes came about. What do you love about cupcakes? I love to create edible art essentially. A cupcake is the entire package to me. You have the perfect size cake – not too much, not too little; which becomes my blank canvas to create on. My toppers then challenge me to have a ‘wow’ factor yet have to be on a small scale; petite but detailed.

KitchenAid all the way! My mum brought me mine – a beautiful blue one that she called bluebell. I love the old style look (super_icial I know!) but it’s very hardy and stands up to a huge beating of copious amounts of butter cream.

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What are your goals? Where do you plan to be in 5 years? Making cupcakes is my creative outlet which is so different from what my full time job is! As it is a hobby, I take on the orders which I’d like to do which extends my creativity. In the perfect world I’d love to do baking full time and spend my days modelling fondant creations! What decorating tool is your best friend? De_initely my balling tool and my 1M star tip for icing. What do you love about baking? It’s therapeutic. There’s de_initely a comfort about baking and _illing the house with the smell of cupcakes.

Continued >

ISSUE 10 JULY 2013 CUPCAKE FEATURE

Meet Sheryl From Buns In The Oven Cupcakery Tell us about you and your family I grew up in a fairly small family in a small city called Melaka in Malaysia. I spent most of my life in my hometown until about 10 years ago when I moved to the capital, KL. I am the youngest of 3 siblings and sadly not all of us are living in the same state/country. My parents moved to Penang (a state up north) to live with my sister while my brother is down south in Singapore with his family. We don't get to meet a lot and I think the one that travels the most to visit us is my mom! She really enjoys having the freedom to travel now that her children are all grown and have children of their own. Have you always had a career in cake? I was a sales co-‐ordinator in a manufacturing company for 6 years in my hometown, then I got a job as an air stewardess so I moved to KL. I left the airline after a couple of years and

went into the entertainment industry. I was working as a traf_ic presenter on radio for 5 years before I took the plunge and got into cake full time, since last April. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be making cakes for a living so it's all still kind of surreal for me. I always have thought that cake found me. What is your baking story, how did you get into baking? I think my story is similar to a lot of other bakers. It started as a hobby as I was mostly into cooking, after a while my interest shifted to baking. The _irst cake I ever baked was from box mix and even then I had to call my mom 3 times to make sure that I was doing everything right. Then, one day I came across an advert for a cupcake decorating class and everything just fell into place. I still remember vividly the excitement and fun I felt

at piping rosettes and balloons, I knew then, that there was so much more to explore. What do you love about cupcakes? The fact that I only have a small amount of space to work with really amps up the challenge and that really pushes me to think out of the box. For instance if I were to make a _igurine of a car, every part has to be painstakingly replicated in minuscule proportions but the look on people's faces when they look at the details makes it all worthwhile. Continued >

Hat Trick Magazine July 2013

No matter where you are, you can Hat Trick Your Life. Get FREE information, inspiration and the latest tips from professionals and entrepren...

Hat Trick Magazine July 2013

Published on Jun 24, 2013

No matter where you are, you can Hat Trick Your Life. Get FREE information, inspiration and the latest tips from professionals and entrepren...

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