The PBWN June Issue

TheFaceof Change

Yvonne Ybarra

2 PBWN Magazine • JUNE 2009

PBWN Magazine • JUNE 2009 3


Hello Professional Business Women!

The PBWN magazine is in its 3rd month and theresponse to the magazine has been overwhelming. Weare dedicated to providing women with the latestinformation to help them grow and build their business.

Each month we highlight women in Houston that are determined,compassionate, and successful. In this issue we share stories that willinspire and motivate you.

The PBWN presence online is growing exponentially each month. Ourvisitors are choosing their products and services from a site they know andtrust. They’re choosing their products and services from the same site thathelps them grow their businesses.

Our promise to you is that we will continue to deliver top informationthrough multiple venues. We are excited to help you take your businessesto the next level.

Until our next connection make every connection count.

Freda GravesEditor in Chief

E D I TO R ’ S N OT E


I N E V E RY I S S U E

PUBLISHER & EDITORFreda Graves

GRAPHIC DESIGNC•S•S Art & Design

CONTRIBUTINGWRITERS:Kim Gebron

Katherine BurtWalethia AquilLeslea Stock

Chiquandra CrossToni Harris

PBWN MAGAZINE832-203-7083 Office832-867-5896 Cell

[email protected]

2415 W. Little York, Unit JHouston, Texas 77091

All advertising in PBWNMagazine is subject to therate card, copies of which areavailable from the publisher.

PBWN Magazine reservesthe right to reject any adver-tiser’s order.

PBWN assumes no responsi-bility for unsolicited materialand reserves the right to editand make appropriate modifi-cations of any and all materialsubmitted.

The opinions and/or editorialsby contributing writers pub-lished in PBWN Magazine donot necessarily represent thephilosophy of PBWNMagazine or its advertisers.

The entire content of PBWNMagazine, including adver-tisement created by PBWNMagazine staff, is copyrightprotected in 2008, with world-wide rights reserved.

N O P O RT I O N O F T H I SPUBLICATION, INCLUDINGADVERTISEMENT, MAY BEREPRODUCED, in whole orin part, by any means or byanyone, including advertisers,without the written permissionof the publisher.

CONTRIBUTING AUTHORSKim Gebron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Walethia Aquil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Leslea Stock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Toni Harris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Chiquandra Cross . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Katherine Burt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

HEALTH & FITNESS50 Pound Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

GIFTS & SERVICESTupperware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Errands R Us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Galan Graphix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28Woodlands Media Hub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3ITEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Drawer by Drawer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

LEGAL, FINANCE, & INSURANCEPre-Paid Legal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

NON-PROFIT CORNERBrilliant Lecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

GOING GREENGreen Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

FEATURED STORYYvonne Ybarra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9

HOUSTON’S CONNECTION CORNERNetworking Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Onyx Six . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33The JOC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITYThe Joy of Connecting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12


GIVE UP THE POUNDS, NOT THE FIGHT.When you’re getting back in shape, small steps make a big difference. So, take that firststep. Join The 50 Million Pound Challenge™ and help our community get healthy again.Ask your participating State Farm® agent about our free Challenge kit at the following event:

P075022 05/07


Organizing Drawer by DrawerA “How To” Guide for Organizing Your OfficeBY KIM GEBRON

Last months’ article focused on eliminating paper clutter. The suggestions work but what should you do if your officeis in a state of disarray? You look around and find yourself surround by stacks of paperwork, unopened mail, folderson the floor, books stacked on chairs, and limited desk and surface space. Here’s a “How To” guide for organizingyour office.

1. Start by packing any unfilled or loose papers intostorage containers, such as boxes or bins. Literallyclear all paper from your desk, chair, table, and floor,the top of your file cabinet and wherever else youhave papers.

2. Move it all out of your office.

3. Pack up all items that are on your desk, such aspictures, paperweights, pencils, pens, pads ofpaper, supplies, collectibles, and anything else thatis sitting on top of your desk.

4. Do the same for all other items.

5. Remove these containers from your office. Placethem into a hallway (leaving a clear pathway),another room, or any place that is not your office!

Now step back into your clutter free and spacious room.Take a deep breath, look around, sit in a chair, andenjoy the total cleanliness of your office.

Don’t you wish you could leave it like this and beginanew?

Here’s the key: put away what you require and store ordiscard the rest.

How do you manage this?

6. Set up a sorting area, where you have a box forrecycling, a box for donating, and have placed yourfiling supplies (folders, hanging files, tabs, pen,marker).

7. Bring in the first container of items you removedfrom your office. Handle each item once and takeaction with each item you touch. For instance, youfind a folder that you no longer need to access foryour active projects. File it immediately. If it is afolder with information that is no longer current (i.e.,2003 income tax return) and you have limited filecabinet space, then place it in a bin.

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C OV E R S TO RY

Yvonne Ybarra is an ordinary woman on an extraordinary mission: tocelebrate women of all ages and to empower them to recognize their abilityto create positive change.

Yvonne is herself on a journey to release her fears and embrace the powerful strength within tocelebrate life and inspire others to do the same. Her own transformation began with a vision of abook containing portraits of women—not celebrities or women of wealth and privilege—ordinarywomen, like herself and so many others, who look for and find simple ways to enjoy life, take actionto improve themselves and the lives of those around them, and to inspire greatness in others.

I Am the Face of Change is the consummation of Yvonne’s vision. Her black and white photographscapture the true essence of women, their quiet confidence and courage often in the face ofconfusion, doubt, and tremendous struggle. These are women with whom you live, work, andworship. Their images are beautiful in their simplicity and rich with the details of life shown in theireyes and faces.

Yvonne knew she was meant to celebrate women for the extraordinary beings that they are…creative, courageous, dedicated and spiritual. I Am the Face of Change artfully displays thesequalities within ordinary women of all ages and backgrounds and inspires readers to recognize thesame qualities within themselves. She hopes that inspiration will propel her readers to find theirown passions and strengths and use them to affect positive change in their own lives andcommunities. She states, “I believe that so often women do not have the confidence or courage toconsider themselves catalysts for positive change. Most certainly cannot envision themselves asbeing extraordinary.” She continues, “My mission is to celebrate and empower all women of all agesand to create different projects and events to manifest this intention.”

I Am the Face of Change:

A Pictorial Celebration ofExtraordinary Women

Yvonne YbarraYvonne Ybarra


Yvonne is an ageless woman with 49 years oflife’s celebrations and challenges. She is theowner and founder of I Am Celebrations, acoaching and mentoring company that assistswomen on their journey to success, happinessand well being. Before launching her ownbusiness, she honed her marketing andleadership skills as Sales & Customer ServiceDirector of Greenlights USA, a provider ofCFLs. Prior to Greenlights, she held theposition of Manager with James Avery duringher 12-year tenure. Yvonne holds degrees inPhoto-Communication and Marketing fromStephen F. Austin State University,Nacogdoches, Texas. She is the currentChairman of Services Cooperative AssociationCrossroads, Houston chapter.

To find out more about Yvonne Ybarra or IAm Celebrations, visitwww.iamcelebrations.com.

I Am Celebrations Photography, encompasses the “I Am” series of books, personalphotography in natural settings and my transformational coaching practice.

Beginning with “I Am the Face of Change” book containing black and white photos ofwomen who inspire and their stories, Yvonne’s readers can have their photos taken torecord their memories and to tell their own story.

Those who feel stuck in life and not up to inspiring others can benefit from life trans-formational coaching from I Am Celebrations Coaching.





Colors that Create WealthBY WALETHIA AQUIL OWNER - CHARM & GRACE

What we wear and the colors we wear can help us project an image of success and trust; or one of uncertainty anddistrust. Color plays such an important role in our lives whether we realize it or not. It has the ability to influenceour feeling and emotions in a way that few other mediums can.

Color can: Evoke memories, tell a story, reveal personality, affect your emotions, change your mood, evoke sounds,and effect all or our senses.

When you think of these colors what do you see, feel, hear, or taste?

RED: You see, a rose, heart, or ruby, you may feel passion, strength, power,you hear screams, siren, pulse.

PURPLE: See, velvet, lilacs, satin robe, feel rich royal, immaculate.

YELLOW: See, sunshine, lemons, the happy face, feel happy, optimistic,playful, taste, sour, tart like (just the thought of lemons make your mouthwater).

BLACK: See, night, black tie, limousine, feel confident, discreet, mysterious.

BLUE: See, ocean, sky, feel soothed, calm, reassured, hear, peaceful, sighof the tides.

GREEN: See, freshly cut grass, jade, crisp granny smith apples, wealth,smell, freshly cut grass, money.

Color is powerful. It can make us see, feel, hear, and taste. The next time you have an important meeting with aclient, or with your significant other consider the message we want to send.

How are some ways to use color to achieve the results you want.

Energize or warm up a outfit, wear socking pink, fuchsia, red, yellow, red, orange, and turquoise.

Soften the starkness of neutral colors. Lilac, pale yellow, baby blue, pale green, peach, pink.

Add more dimension with silver or gold.

Colors that sell more: True blue, light shades of blue; inspire trust. Orange ; friendly and appeals to all. Yellow,cheerful and stimulating. Blue based pinks, are calming and inspire others.

Colors that demand attentions: Yellow based pinks and peach, demand attention, enhance perceptions of romanceand lull the heart.

Midrange red violet, attract men of wealth and influence., radiate spirituality, and illuminate the personality.

Women should be careful using pink, as it may come across as too girly.

The power colors are: blue, black, beige, and red.

There are many ways to combine color to influence whatpeople perceive. Use color confidently and imaginativelyto get noticed. The right colors brighten your eyes, makeyour skin look radiant and create a glowing healthy andconfident you. By learning which colors “pick you up” youwill soon have a clear idea of which shades of color suityou and you can then use them with confidence, safe inthe knowledge that they make you look and feel great.

Walethia Aquil is the founder ofwww.womenempoweringwomenglobal.com.About "Woman Empowering WomenGlobal" is a pool of strategic alliancesdesigned to help women entrepreneursachieve financial independence. Walethiaunderstands the pains of giving birth to a"dream". She has committed herself toencourage and support women in thepursuit of their "dreams".



Investment ‘GPS’a guidance system for your futureBY LESLEA STOCK

Last month we discussed investing and the many reasons every woman should make it a top priority. Women faceissues that men do not, in general we are paid an average of 25% less than men, we take time away from ourcareers to raise children and we live longer, thus needing more to last our lifetime. Add to that the uncertaintyof traditional income sources like pensions and Social Security and it all adds up to our needing to takeimmediate action.

If I’ve convinced you to begin, then the next step is to develop a financialplan that can be your guide to investment success. I call this your ‘GPS’ –like a Global Position System for your car, your investment GPS guides youand keeps you on track to reach your destination by defining your Goal,Plan and Strategy.

Let’s start with your investment Goals. Is it Retirement? College for thekids? A new home or business? Whatever your goal, write it down andprovide details. Set a timeframe and if you know how much you will needto reach that goal, include that in your plan. Don’t worry if you don’t knowhow much you will need right now, we will talk about that in a few minutes.Let’s use retirement as an example. Write down when you want to retireand how much you need in today’s dollars to live the life you want. It willlook something like this: I would like to retire at age 60 and have an incomeof $100,000 (in today’s dollars) for the rest of my life.

Now to the Plan; this portion has you looking at all the resources you havenow to assess where you are today and then guides you to what you needto reach the end goal. If we use the retirement goal mentioned above, yourreview of resources would include an IRA (Individual Retirement Account),an employer retirement plan like a 401(k) or a savings account.

The next step requires some calculations to determine how much you need to contribute today to reach your futuregoal. Take your goal (retirement at age 60), the amount you want each year ($100,000), your current investmentresources (if any) and the calculator will tell you how much to contribute each month or year, using historical marketreturns as a guide to your investment potential growth. Financial calculators can be found on investment web sitesand a Financial Advisor will provide this information in your plan, along with the details on the best types ofinvestments for you.

You’ve set your Goal, you have the Plan telling you how to reach that goal and now the Strategy will put it all intoplace. The strategy includes knowing your comfort for market risk (the ups and downs in the market) and the typesof investments that will best move you toward your goal. Again, look to an investment web site for a riskquestionnaire and investment options or discuss this with a Financial Advisor who will walk you through thequestionnaire and provide a direction for the best investments that are in line with your results.

If you are ready to take the next step,please see my article in the August issuewhich will provide details on the riskquestionnaire and how to chooseinvestments that are designed with yourgoals in mind.

Leslea Stock is a Vice President ofInvestments for Wunderlich Securitiesin Houston. ([email protected]).She advises business owners andwealthy individuals on how to reachtheir financial goals through planningand choosing the appropriateinvestments.Leslea is an experienced investmentprofessional and is the financialcontributing author of The PWBN.



What Do Women Want?

Respect from Car Dealers!BY KATHERINE BURT

Let’s face it. The typical car dealership with its line-up of “rugged and powerful” SUVs and“sleek-lined” and “voluptuously curved” designer vehicles doesn’t cater to women. Butperhaps it should. After all, according to recent studies, women purchase 65% of all newcars, 53% of all used cars, and influence 95% of all auto purchases (Source: Road & TravelMagazine).

The people at Lone Star Chevrolet of Houston have not only recognized this trend, theyhave developed their business model around it. With women taking rank in everydepartment from management to parts and service, Lone Star has proven itself second tonone in customer service and satisfaction, earning GM’s prestigious “Dealer of the Year”award seven years in a row. The presentation of the award is a testimony to the top 1% ofdealers who exemplify the drive to achieve what GM seeks in all of its authorized dealers.The award recognizes not only sales performance and customer satisfaction, but ongoingoperating standards and industry leadership.

AskPatty.com, a website and blog where women can get advice on car buying,maintenance and other automotive related topics, rated Lone Star Chevrolet a “CertifiedFemale Friendly” dealership. Jody DeVere, President and CEO of AskPatty.com stated,“Women are just as passionate about their vehicles as the guys are, just maybe fordifferent reasons.” To become AskPatty.com certified, the Lone Star team had to completeten hours of training on how to better serve the female car buyer. According to Joe Healy,Internet Director at Lone Star, becoming more aware of the things women look for in a car-buying experience has helped his team to meet and exceed customer expectations.

At the Lone Star dealership, customers will find a relaxed showroom that feels more like aluxurious hotel lobby, complete with comfortable chairs, fragrant flowers and calming

continued on page 23


How to Go Green:Work from HomeBY BLYTHE COPELAND

Working from home can be a great alternative to a desk in acubicle, but, as many people who try it will tell you, it isn't aseasy as slapping your laptop down on the dining room table.And, while wearing pajamas all day might sound nice, itdoesn't make the cut for many who work from home. Still,whether you embrace the romantic-sounding ideals ofmanaging a home office or not, one thing remains true: It canbe way greener than commuting to an office every day.

From cutting out the commute to scaling back onunnecessary paper or energy use, there are tons of ways thatworking from home can help make you just as happy, healthy,and successful as you might be working in an office, but it isn'tquite as simple as inserting recycled paper in your printer tray.You'll want to take action to insure you create and maintain ahealthy home working environment, and do things likeschedule sufficient breaks, to help keep your mind and bodymoving throughout the day.

And, while it's easy to concentrate on the environmentalbenefits of working from home, the mental and emotionalones are sometimes just as important, which is while it'simportant to carefully consider a space in which you cancomfortably, productively work (and not just an empty closetyou don't have anything else to do with). The benefits—environmental, emotional, or otherwise—can be myriad, so ifyou hate commuting, if you're most productive outside atraditional 9-5 schedule, or if you just got laid off, then workingfrom home might be the answer. And while some of the greenchanges you'd make by skipping the office are obvious—likecutting your carbon output by not commuting and saving ondisposable lunch containers—there are dozens morechoices, from desks to chairs to pencils, that you can turn intoan opportunity to support eco-friendly products. Read on tolearn how to go green while working from home.

Green

Going




Planning to Do Good:

Starting a Non-ProfitBY CHIQUANDRA C. CROSS

A non-profit organization is often the offspring of a passionate person or groupof people. The world is full of passionate people who are driven to make adifference on the local, national, and/or international level. Whenever we stepoutside of ourselves and commit to something greater we tap into synergisticenergy that often manifests itself in organizational creation. A non-profitorganization is often the end result of an unmet need. When the need isidentified and resources are pooled together a systemic difference is theresult. Think Susan G. Komen, Make-a-Wish Foundation and the HoustonFood Bank.

Starting a non-profit organization is an endeavor that should not be taken lightly. When considering starting a non-profit it is important to ask yourself how your goals and objectives will best be achieved by forming a non-profitorganization versus forming a for-profit organization. This determination can be made by considering theorganization’s purpose, constituents, revenue potential and governance.

One of the biggest factors to consider when starting a non-profit is accountability. Non-profits have moral andethical obligations that require organizational integrity and transparency. One guiding rule for non-profitorganizations should be to always put public good before personal interests.

Before you file one document it is absolutely necessary for you to consider the following:

• You need to identify your reasons for starting a non-profit. What community need will you be fulfilling? Is yourconcept original or is it an improvement upon an existing product or service? What will make your organizationdifferent from other non-profits? How will you market your goods and/or services?

• You need to identify your niche. Who are your constituents? Where do they live, work, shop, go to school, whatdo they do for recreation? How will they use your product or service? How will they benefit directly from yourorganization? How will your organization influence their lives? What immediate impact will your organizationhave and how will you measure your impact?

• You need to identify the appropriate documents you will need to file in your county and state in order to becomea recognized non-profit organization. You will also need to draft bylaws and articles of incorporation and anyother governing documents.

• You may want to organize a founding committee to help you determine your organizational structure, strategiesand goals. This can be accomplished by creating a formalized business plan. This living document shouldinclude goals, mission, and vision, operating policies and procedures and organizational structure.

• You need to identify potential board members. Non-profit organizations are governed by a group of memberscalled board of directors. You can do this by considering your network and your networking skills. You will needmembers of both influence and affluence. Your board of directors must be committed to the vision and missionof the organization and they must be willing to work hard. The board must be committed to using all of theirpersonal and professional resources in order to help the organization become and remain successful.

Operating a non-profit is just like running a business.Many businesses fail because improper and incompleteplanning. Be wise and be sure to avoid commonmistakes by planning carefully and fully developing yourorganization.

Chiquandra C. Cross, Non-Profit Consultantand owner of Destiny Consulting Services.www.dest inyconsult ingservices.com.You can also follow me on Facebookand Twitter.



candles. A safe and clean children’s area allows customers to shop while the kids play. LoneStar also developed and integrated into the main website a female-targeted site designedspecifically to appeal to the way women communicate and look for information. Visitors areencouraged to “Ask Michelle” (Michelle Shepard, Internet Manager at Lone Star) for advice onboth buying and maintaining their cars.

In addition to a complete inventory of new and used personal and commercial vehicles, LoneStar Chevrolet offers one of Texas’ largest parts inventory and was ranked #1 in service. Withall of these accolades and testimonials from satisfied customers, Lone Star is truly making adifference among car-buyers in Houston and the surrounding communities.

continued from page 17

Katherine Burt is the ownerof Docu Shine for more infoyou can visit our website atwww.docushine.com.


KEEPING GOOD CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS

Now that the deal is done,now what?BY TONI HARRIS

Isn’t it exciting to close the deal? It feels so good, to get that ink on the dotted line. There’s no other feeling like it.Typically, in sales, you have to “court” your prospect in order to get to the end result of closing the deal. In thecourting phase of the relationship, you are prompt with your follow up, provide all the necessary documentation,anxiously take their calls, answer any questions and solve all of their problems. Then sometimes after the ink hasdried, you forget about all of the little things you did to close the deal.You’re probably wondering am I talking abouta sales relationship or a romantic relationship? Funny how the two are very similar. Just like when you first startdating someone, everything is rosy and euphoric, the same could be true in the sales relationship. The key is foryou as the provider of the product or service, not to let the relationship get stale and die. So how do you keep thisfrom happening?

First, show genuine interest in your client. What do they like to do? Whatare their hobbies? What’s their family situation? If you have similarinterests, why not ask them to join you for a round of golf or to join you fora play or concert. If you see a newspaper or magazine article that mentionssomething their interested in or their company, cut out the article and mailit to them. It shows that not only were you interested in making the sale butyou connected them personally also.

Second, stay in touch. Remember when you first started dating someonespecial? You probably talked on the phone for endless hours several timesa day.You couldn’t get enough of that person. Then once you’ve been in therelationship for a while, you’re lucky to get one call during the day andusually it’s to pick up something from the grocery store! Don’t let your salesrelationships become stale. Stay in touch with your clients. Call them fromtime to time to see how things are going. If their industry or company is inthe news, give them a call or an email to just check in and see how thingsare affecting them. They will greatly appreciate it and who knows they maygive you a referral just because your timing was good.

Last but not least, always, always, give outstanding customer service. When your clients call you, call them back.This seems to be easier said than done for very busy sales people. If necessary, block out time during your day toreturn phone calls. Even if you don’t have the answer, call the client back and let them know that you haven’tforgotten them and you’re still trying to get the answer. Don’t let days go by without acknowledging the client’s call.It’s a good practice to see the client’s problem outuntil it’s resolved. Even if you have to pass theproblem on to someone else in yourorganization, your follow up with the client will beinvaluable. They will appreciate the efforts youmake to keep them happy.

If you employ some of these strategies, your oldbusiness will stick and new business will comebecause you now have a solid relationship withyour clients and they trust that you will get the jobdone and refer you to their friends. Happy selling!

Toni Harris is a sales trainer, motivationalspeaker and aspiring author with over 20years experience in adult education and 10years financial sales experience. Pleasecontact her at [email protected] forsales training or speaking opportunitieswithin your organization


Why Sweat Is Good For Your Skin?BY ONEGroup

Most people don’t really enjoy sweating. In fact, sweat can be a largeproblem when it comes to working out, walking on a hot day, or meetingsomeone that makes your pulse race. Still, sweat is actually good for yourskin…and it might even slow down the aging process.

Ahh! Sweat!

Sweat has the natural ability to cool down your body within a matter ofminutes. In fact, this is the main reason why we sweat when we do. Thus,the more that you sweat the cooler your body will be.

Incidentally, sweat is also great for calming your nerves and regulating yourpulse. When you sweat, it’s your body’s way of cooling you down in nearlyevery manner. While this is fascinating enough, sweat also plays anotherimportant part that most of us never even think about.

Toxic Flush

Our bodies are filled with lots of harmful toxins. We pick up toxins everysingle day from the foods that we eat, the environment that we live in, andthose things that are all around us. While the body can eliminate some ofthese toxins, it cannot get rid of all of them without a bit of sweat

Sweat can effectively eliminate nearly thirty percent of all toxins in the body. All of this sweat can actually help toslow down the aging process, since those harmful toxins will cause the skin to age quicker. So, the more that yousweat; the better off your skin will be in nearly every manner.

Sweat During All Seasons

If you live in a cold climate, it may be hard to think of ways to sweat during those winter months.You can join a gym;take up an outdoor sport; or try a hot activity such as Bikram Yoga. All of these things will help you to work up thathealthy sweat.

It is important to sweat during every season in order to get rid of those toxins. However, it is also important to usea proper cleanser and body wash following any strenuous workout. It doesn’t make any sense to sweat, eliminatetoxins, and then use a chemically produced cleanser. Instead, choose all-natural skincare products for use after yousweat.

Wash, Rinse, and Scrub

After you work up any kind of sweat, make sure to wash away those toxins with an all-natural product. This way,you can ensure that your skin will stay looking young and fresh, while you get rid of those bacteria-filled toxins.

Once those toxins are washed away, you will then begin to see a large difference in the way that your skin looks.While sweat seems like a real nuisance, it is actually one of the best ways to keep your skin from ageing quickly.

Remember – sweat might not be the most romantic thing in the world, but it is your body’s way of keeping youhealthy, young, and free from all those daily toxins.

Organic and Natural Enterprise Group (or ONEgroup) is an Australian based company who creates andmanufactures the world’s first Certified Organic skincare, haircare, personal care, health care andcosmetic products. www.mionegroup.com



Note: When archiving folders, keep similar topicstogether as much as possible. Keep your tax returnstogether in one bin to make it easy to locate them. Aseparate bin can be labeled “Memorabilia,”“Keepsakes” or “Memories” for personal and businessitems you wish to retain. Another bin might be labeled“Investment Records.”

8. Continue this process until all of your paperwork isfiled or placed into a “pending” folder.

One office tip is to have a rolling file cart next to yourdesk. This filing system can hold folders that you arecurrently using and want easily accessible. Once youfinish with a folder, it is returned to its’ permanentlocation (usually a file cabinet).

9. Move to the box(es) that have office supplies, photosand whatever other items you keep in your office.Hang pictures rather than placing them on the top ofyour desk. Keep office supplies in drawers ratherthan have items loose on your desk. The purpose isto keep your work surface clear to provide adequateworking space. Donate or store items that arecutesy that do not enhance your work area or servea useful function. Less is best!

This project may take more than one day depending onthe amount of disarray in your office. An efficient wayto clear up your office is to hire a professional organizerwho will motivate and assist you to complete thisproject.

Finally, how do you keep your office organized andclutter free after all this arduous work?

At the end of each day, take 5 to 10 minutes to file, sort,and return items to their location or storage area.Leave your office clean so when you walk in the nextday, you’re prepared to be productive.

Enjoy your clear office space!

Organizing Tip: Store archived items in the same sizeand type of bin. See-through plastic bins that are arectangular shape work best. Use bins that have asolid top rather than the folding type. This gives youmore stability when stacking them.

continued from page 7

Kim Gebron is a ProfessionalOrganizer who enjoys restoringharmony to your home and office.She receives personal satisfactionfrom walking into a cluttered areaand leaving it organized with lots ofopen space.

You can contact her by emailing:[email protected]



Twitter - How to Write Tweets That GetPeeps to Take ActionBY MICHELE PARIZA WACEK

Probably the biggest question I get asked is if social networking is worth it or a big waste of time. Well, if you'redoing social networking to make money, and you aren't making money, then it most certainly is a waste of time. Ifyou¹re on Twitter then here are 3 more tips to make those tweets as compelling and persuasive as possible.Probably the biggest question I get asked is if social networking is worth it or a big waste of time. Well, if you'redoing social networking to make money, and you aren't making money, then it most certainly is a waste of time.

So, how do you make money with social networking? A lot depends on the words you use and how you interactwith your friends and followers. Today I'm going to focus specifically on Twitter.

Remember, for Twitter you only have 140 characters including spaces for every tweet. That means every charactercounts so use them wisely.

Here are 3 more tips to make those tweets as compelling and persuasive as possible.

1. Get your personality in there.The beauty of social networking is it's driven by relationships.You build relationshipsby letting people see who you really are. That means showcasing your personality.

The more people can get a sense of your personality, the more they'll decide if they like you or not. And the morethey know, like and trust you, the more likely they'll become your customers.

In addition, people don't like to be sold to. If your tweets sound canned or not authentically from YOU, they'll beturned off. And turned off people are not likely to buy from you.

2. Give and you shall receive. The more you give, and do things for other people, the more it will come back to you.You spend your time helping other people, the more they'll help promote your products and services, the more likelythey'll go check out what you offer and if it's a match, the more likely they'll buy.

If all you do is push your own stuff on Twitter, you're not going to get very far. You need to spend most of your timedoing things for other people. Then, when you do promote yourself, people will take notice and be more likely toact.

3. Be entertaining. There's an old quote in the copywriting world that you can't bore anyone into buying something.(I think it was David Ogilvy who first said it.) Same goes for Twitter. You can't bore people into building andmaintaining a relationship with you. You can't bore people into promoting your products or events. And you can'tbore people into buying your products.

Now this doesn't mean you have to a stand-up comic. Sure this is easier if writing short, pithy statements comesnaturally to you. But don't forget Tip #1 -- stay true to your personality. We're all interesting in our own way, even ifyou're not a stand-up comic.

The key here is to be entertaining in your own uniqueand personal way. What, you don't think you'reentertaining? You have friends, right? You go out todinner with them, right? What do you talk about? You'reentertaining them or they wouldn't want to go dinnerwith you.

So entertain your twitter followers the same way. Andthe ones who respond to that will respond to you. Andas they get to know you , they'll move to like and trust.And that leads to them becoming your customers.

Michele PW (Michele Pariza Wacek) isyour Ka-Ching! marketing strategist andowns Creative Concepts and CopywritingLLC, a copywriting and marketingagency. She helps entrepreneursbecome more successful at attractingmore clients, selling more products andservices and boosting their business. Tofind out how she can help you take yourbusiness to the next level, visit her site athttp://www.MichelePW.com.



Save Your Properties Makes History!BY LATRICE GAULT

LaTrice Gault serves as thePresident of Save YourProperties (SYP), Inc. For thelast four years SYP has helpedrescue hundreds of clients fromforeclosure and helped them torehabilitate their lives throughher patented Transformationprogram. For more info contactus at www.saveyourprop.com.

The mortgage foreclosure crisis has plagued our nationby causing dramatic drops in cities revenues, increasedcrime, more homeless, and increased vandalism ofvacant properties. More than 2.3 million homeownersfaced foreclosure proceedings last year, an 81 percentincrease from 2007, and analysts say that numbercould soar as high as 10 million in the coming years,depending on the severity of the recession.

While there are many agencies aimed at providing aforeclosure solution, there is one in particular who hasprovided “The” Foreclosure Solution. Save YourProperties Inc is a non-profit consulting firm offeringadvisory, strategic planning, and real estate coordinationservices to both home owners in need of foreclosureassistance and real estate investors. They offerinformation, education, preparation, and most of allTransformation. They specialize in foreclosure prevention,and debt cancellation. In the event a property has alreadybeen foreclosed they provide the needed assistance to re-establish homeowner’s financial portfolios. Save YourProperty’s Transformation Program is a bi-fold programserving both the lender and the client. In contactinglenders we assure them that if they trust us with their un-qualified borrower, we will return to them financiallyhealthy clients within one year if they first modify theclient’s loan.

In a recent battle to save the property of Mrs. Troy LynnCosse, a single mother of two, who was referred byher lender Countrywide to the Hope Now Organizationto request assistance for her overdue loan Mrs. Cosse,stated that she made numerous attempts to contactthis organization and never received a response . Shealso made an attempt to contact her lender, Bank ofAmerica formerly known as Countrywide, whoseautomated system gave her a false sense of hope, witha recording stating that her loan was in review and allcollection activity had been suspended. The automatedsystem recording also stated that it was common not tohear from the lender during the review and furtherscalls would delay the process.

Believing the message to be true, Mrs. Cossediscontinued calls to the lender. Unfortunately, therewas no review being done on Mrs. Cosse file she hadinevitably slipped through the system with noassistance; and on Tuesday, February 3, 2009 herhome was foreclosed. She found about SYP, and in adesperate attempt to find answers to her now almosthomeless situation she scheduled an appointment tomeet with an SYP representative. SYP not onlyprovided counseling regarding her personal financesthey immediately discussed re-instatement of her loanand qualified her for a loan modification, and submittedall necessary documentation to Bank of America,formerly known as County Wide.

As a follow up on the modification Mrs. Cossecontacted her lender Countrywide, (Bank Of America)and was told by an negotiator, Melissa, that she did infact qualify for a loan modification, however, FannieMae’s would not reinstate her loan, due to Texasforeclosure laws. SYP president Latrice Gault, couldnot conceive the idea that the investor and the lenderwould not come to some sort of agreement to re-instatethe loan of a qualified borrower. She personallyintervened and communicated directly with the investorFannie Mae, in an attempt to save Mrs. Troy’s property.Latrice Gault requested a tele-conference with FannieMae, & Country Wide / Bank of America to find aresolution. A lease option was placed on the table andagreed upon due to the standards of Texas law (non-redemption) Latrice Gault persisted in fighting theforeclosure and on after much deliberation, on May 26,2009 at 4:21 pm; The History making news wasannounced. (Fannie Mae gave the property back toBank of America to reinstate the loan and do therequested loan modification.) Lynn a representativefrom Bank of America excitedly stated, “I’ve never seenthis done before, this was a first time deal done in anon-redemptive state like Texas!” She furtherexclaimed, she would like to see this happen for morehomeowners.

In an interview with Mrs. Gault she stated, “We foughtso hard because this property should have never beenforeclosed”.

SYP truly lives up to their slogan “Where We AreRedeeming the Land”.

Visit www.saveyourprop.com for more details aboutthe real foreclosure solution.


Wednesday, July 8, 2009SOLOPRENEURSHIP:The Business Side of Contact Grant WritingUnited Way of Greater Houston, 50 Waugh Drive, Houston8:00 am

COST: $25 -GWN members / $35 for nonmembers

For more event information visit:http://www.grantwritershouston.org/news

Thursday, July 9, 2009LADIES NIGHT OUTSun & Ski Sports, 6100 Westheimer6-9:00 pm

Sun & Ski Sports will be hosting a free event focusing on women-specific clinics tohelp them empower fitness and health.

Saturday, July 25, 2009NON PROFIT ROUNDTABLEFreed-Montrose Library10:30 am

This three-hour session will focus on what to consider before starting a non-profit,how to identify potential board members (influence and affluence), an overview ofgrant writing and organizational development.

For more event information email:[email protected]

U P C O M I N G E V E N T S

Documents

The PBWN June Issue