< PreviousSMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE - PAGE 494. OUTSTANDING BRANDS PRODUCE ENTHUSIASTIC REFERRALSRemember what I said about brands being a promise. When our brand is authentic and we live up to our promises then positive referrals follow.The best jobs and the strongest networks usually come from word-of-mouth referrals. 5. YOU ARE YOUR OWN BRANDRemember, you are an ambassador for your business. You are a brand. Me Unlimited!Always do what you say you are going to do, live your promise, and do your professional image proud. Seeing yourself as a brand is not always comfortable - it may feel unnatural at first - but leaving your comfort zone is no bad thing. If you want to make it in this big crazy world then there is no good in cutting yourself off and shrinking back into your ‘small self’. Work hard on your personal brand. Be a person others can trust and rely upon, and above all… be authentic! Ophelia was chosen as ‘the Face of Melbourne’ by Tourism Victoria in 1996“Jon is your coach, he’s your mentor, he’s on your side in ways that, sometimes you don’t really want him to be. And I don’t mean that in a negative sense but I mean sometimes, you just wanna go, ‘Oh, I can’t be bothered doing that. That’s too hard. Let me just go back and, you know, shrink back into my small self.’” - Deborah HalpernSMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE - PAGE 51If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things. ―- PAGE 52 - SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINEWHY SELF-CARE SHOULD ALWAYS BE NON-NEGOTIABLEby Amanda SterczykWhen our kids were little, I discovered a key difference in my husband’s and my parenting styles. I like to call this difference, “You First versus Me First”. It first became apparent to me in the kitchen: I always fed our children first, then myself. My husband, though, always fed himself first before feeding the screaming kids. Was he immune to those screams? I certainly wasn’t, and I wanted the screaming to stop. Whatever was causing the screaming needed to be addressed. Right away.“Self-care is never a selfish act—it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have” – Parker PalmerSMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE - PAGE 53My husband’s “Me First” behaviour extended to many facets of daily life. He got up every morning at 6:00 am and headed to the gym for his daily one-hour workout. That never changed for him. In our life BC (Before Children), I went too. But, breastfeeding and caring for a newborn took precedence over my morning exercise routine. Now that the kids are older, he still heads to the gym every day at 6:00 am. I also get up at 6:00, but my morning is vastly different: I get breakfasts and lunches sorted out, get the kids up for school, drive them to school if needed. My workout doesn’t always happen; if it does, it’s squeezed in between other family commitments.I once remarked on this difference to a friend. Her response? “Of course, they put their needs first. That’s how men are wired. Women, on the other hand, are wired to take care of their own needs AFTER everyone else’s needs have been met.”- PAGE 54 - SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINEWhen you’re caring for loved ones, it’s easy to let your own needs take a back seat. There are, after all, only so many hours in a day. But what happens if you neglect your own health? Your body starts to break down - you get sick, you get injured, you get stressed out. And then, how can you care for others? You can’t. Upon reflection, I noticed that my husband didn’t get sick, stressed out, or injured as often as me.When you’re travelling by plane, the in-flight safety briefing instructs passengers to don their own oxygen mask before they help others with theirs. You’re no good to anyone if you pass out. And the same goes for life on the ground. You need to be strong and healthy - for yourself and for your loved ones. One place I’ve seen women’s needs take a significant second place to their loved ones is physical activity. And according to the World Health Organization, “Physical inactivity has been identified as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality causing an estimated 3.2 million deaths.”SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE - PAGE 55Physical activity, though, lies on a continuum. Check out this video I created on the topic. It’s not an all or nothing endeavour. Just because you can’t make it to the gym doesn’t mean you can’t be active. Rethink your activity levels - go for a walk, play with your kids/grandkids, clean the house, garden. You get the idea. If you move more, you will feel better.That’s why I created The Move More Institute™. It’s an initiative to promote healthy active living by adding more movement to individual’s daily lives and nudges them to be more active throughout the day. Natural, non-exercise activity spread across your day. Every day. I’m a fitness professional with a radical idea - don’t exercise! Just move more!- PAGE 56 - SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINEMy philosophy is short-term coaching for long-term results. And here’s what some of these women have to say:“After way too many years of not moving enough - Amanda has helped me to get moving again and to be mindful of it in my daily life. What a difference it is making.”“I went to yoga last night for the first time in over year. We worked on feet. And I thought of you. ”“Hi Amanda! I took your advice and went on a power walk at lunch! I had been working on end of month reports and needed to get my blood & heart pumping as I was getting sluggish!! I feel so alive again!! #keep-moving”“I have you and your reminder about movement and good posture in my headtelling my body to do so, thank you @amanda_stretch!” So, before you let your own needs slide into the back seat, think about the long-term viability of your current whirlwind existence. Then take a deep breath, get out a piece of paper, and write down 2-3 things you can do for your own health: 2 Take a nap. 2 Go for a walk. 2 Read a book. 2 Meet a friend. 2 Laugh out loud. You know - things just for you!SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE - PAGE 57―Don’t just fit in; make it a point to brighten yourcorner. Decide to resolve your challenges.” - PAGE 58 - SMART HEALTHY WOMEN MAGAZINE5 STEPS TO REAL &LASTING CHANGEby Darleen Barton2018 marks the beginning of executing those meticulously planned resolutions that everyone found time to scribble down in the final days, weeks and months of 2017. It isn’t often that new year’s resolutions can ever be defined as ‘resolved’ and many tend to carry them on to the following year or simply just give up. Leading business site, Business Insider, states that 80% of new year’s resolutions fail by February. Even Worse, Forbes states that only 8% of resolutions are achieved.More often than not new year’s resolutions are a waste of time and every year millions of people set themselves up for failure. If you are serious about improving your life, making key changes and achieving the things you set out to do, you need to start taking change seriously. Next >