I very often see and hear guys looking for good questions to ask their girlfriend. There may be a lot of reasons, what is yours?

• Looking to get to know your valentine date better?
• Running out of things to talk to your sweetie about?
• First date jitters and don’t know what to talk about?

Well, here are first half of 100 questions that can break the ice and get a conversation going. Check them out and then continue to my blog for the other half, agreed?

And, please, remember that the most important thing is to have fun! Although this might seem easy to sit and list all the questions before your girlfriend but she might freak out and run away from you and we wouldn’t like that, would we? So make fun of it. Throw a couple of questions and talk about them, discuss the answers, enjoy the conversation.

You might be very much surprised by what you learn about the other person. People are fun and they are so different but also so alike. Finding out your new girlfriend to be like minded with you should turn your date into a celebration at the end. Be prepared!

Don’t force anyone to answer a question they don’t want to and don’t pry deeper if they are not willing to talk about a certain subject. Good manners are a must when asking personal and intimate questions, especially if you are not too acquainted with each other.

1. What was your best job?

2. What were your worst jobs?

3. Tell me all the places you worked

4. Tell me about your best friend

5. Tell me about your family

6. Tell me about your relatives

7. What was your first car?

8. Favorite movie star?

9. Favorite entertainer?

10. Favorite song?

11. What were your life changing moments?

12. First girlfriend/boyfriend?

13. First kiss?

14. What is the dumbest thing you have ever done?

15. Have you ever been arrested?

16. Political affiliation?

17. Have you voted for someone you wished you hadn’t?

18. Have you used drugs?

19. Do you like to shop?

20. Best way to relax?

21. Favorite thing to do alone?

22. Ever had a one night stand?

23. Do you save money?

24. What hobbies to you spend money on?

25. If you found a $100 what would you do?

26. Do you want children/more children?

27. Are you a good parent?

28. What makes a good parent?

29. Are you romantic?

30. Ever loose a pet?

31. Dog or cat?

32. Pets growing up?

33. Sleep in the nude?

34. Favorite midnight snack?

35. Do you exercise?

36. Did you ever see your parents making love?

37. Peanut butter and what?

38. What is one food you will never give up?

39. What is a food you can live without?

40. Favorite drink?

41. Perfect day?

42. How many CDs do you own?

43. How many DVDs do you own?

44. Favorite thing to spend money on?

45. What is the weirdest thing about you?

46. What is on your bedside table?

47. Are you cheap or thrifty?

48. Ever been in love with 2 people at the same time?

49. Grades in high school?

50. Favorite teacher?

51. Relatives in jail?

52. Toppings on pizza?

53. Black or white?

54. Glass half full or half empty?55. Ever been to a food shelf?

56. Ever milked a cow?

57. Ever tipped a cow?

58. Bath or shower?

59. Mountains or the beach?

60. Plane, train or automobile?

61. Favorite all time movie?

62. Worse movie you have ever seen?

63. Best concert you have been to?

64. Beer, wine or coffee?

65. Best vacation?

66. If you could retire tomorrow what would you do?

67. Worse vacation?

68. Three places you would love to visit?

69. Worse boss?

70. If you could do anything what would it be?

71. Super powers you wish you had?

72. Ever had a massage?

73. Ideal romantic dinner?

74. Dumbest purchase you ever made?

75. Where did you find money when you were flat broke?

76. Ever sold blood?

77. What sporting event/concert/entertainment would you buy tickets to regardless of price?

78. Ever hit a jackpot on a slot machine?

79. Ever won the lottery?

80. What would you do with your lottery winnings?

81. Are you a neat freak?

82. Can’t stand being around people who_________?

83. Crowds or small groups?

84. How old do you want to live to?

85. Loose your sight or hearing?

86. Ever had a crush on a member of the same sex?

87. Pet peeves?

88. Most annoying habit?

89. Sexiest parts of a member of the opposite sex?

90. Major turn offs?

91. Tattoos?

92. Bodypainting?

93. Piercings?

94. Plastic surgery-would you/have you?

95. Computer geek?

96. Trekee?

97. Play an instrument?

98. Been in a band?

99. Most embarrassing moment?

100. Nude beach yes or no?

Did you like this? I think this is a nice list of fun questions to ask your girlfriend. I hope the list is interesting enough and will keep you going for some time. Enjoy your conversations and have fun!

Given that 75% of buying decisions are made once a shopper is in the store, it is understandable how interacting with the customer at the point of sale can dramatically increase sales.

In-store video allows retailers to stimulate brand recall, counteract advertising campaigns by competitors and make the shopper feel good about their brand purchase.

Here are seven reasons why savvy retailers are implementing in-store video displays at the point of sale:

1. Shoppers actually appreciate in-store video displays. In the Arbitron Retail Media Study (2006), 78% of consumers believed that in-store video displays that feature product or sale information are helpful. In fact, 81% of consumers said that they were interested in seeing in-store video promotions that included sales and specials (81%), product information (72%) and special events (68%).
2. Unplanned purchases increase by around 30%. Various research studies have uncovered that consumers who stop to watch the digital retail screens have decided to purchase the showcased product on the spot.
3. Spend increases by an average of 10%. Research by Mintel has found that consumers in retail outlets with in-store video displays spend an average of 10% more money.
4. Digital signage introduces a ‘wow’ factor that engages, supports branding, helps the customer at the point of sale and most importantly, brings fun into the equation. Of course, don’t expect this to be a long term factor when the rest of the market starts using in-store video displays.
5. It’s highly flexible. In-store video displays allow products to be advertised in an instant. For example, if it’s raining outside, change the marketing message to a special on umbrellas. Different stores can also run different ads for the same product to evaluate which ad is more successful at lifting sales.
6. It interacts with the customer. Companies are finding that transferring the 30 second standard television ad onto a retail television network can have lukewarm results. However, ads that are targeted to the retail environment, help the customer make a decision and engage have the power to heighten sales.
7. It improves brand recall. A study by Nielsen found that the average recall of a brand advertised on Wal-Mart’s in-store television network is a staggeringly high 66% compared to around 15-25% for brands advertised in other media.

The Arbitron Study also found that if given a choice 42% of shoppers would prefer to shop at a store that has video displays.

In-store video has the power to engage with customers, alert them about new products, special offers and provide a relevant and helpful shopping experience. Any retailer who wants to cut through the clutter and create a more meaningful dialogue with their consumers needs to seriously consider in-store television advertising as part of their media spend.

Back in 1963 when the first episode of Doctor who aired on BBC television in the United Kingdom, who would have thought that this small budget science fiction series would become the longest running science fiction series of all time and eventually have several spin-offs? The success and popularity of Doctor Who over the years has simply been amassing!

Today in all the mayor English speaking countries most people will have at least heard of Doctor Who. The countries where Doctor Who has been most successful are the United Kingdom, New Zeeland, Australia and the United States. There exist totally dedicated fan groups in all these countries, most are accessible via the World Wide Web. The web has become one of the best places to access the Doctor Who world, with 100s of dedicated websites about anything from simple Doctor Who news and episode reviews to props collecting and other merchandise!

The fan base for Doctor Who, after it’s around 44 years is considerable; as a result there exist literarily 100s of fan made episodes even some films. On the Would Wide Web you can find pages that list lots of the episodes.

The BBC in response to Doctor Who’s popularity, expanded the series to radio and to Audio book. The radio was used as a way to allow some of the past Doctors to play the role once more, in totally new stories written especially for radio and later made available in audio book format. Doctor Who audio books, in addition to covering radio episodes, have also covered lots of the old original episodes, lost episodes, the new Doctor Who series and Torchwood and even episodes written exclusively for audio book! The first ever Doctor Who audio books were available to the public in the mid seventies on tape and LP, now days there are currently over 50 titles available!

Most of the first Audio books were in simple doctor who soundtrack form from the original television series with linking narration by the Drs., but due to there popularity it wasn’t long before the BBC were bringing out the radio episodes and the original audio book episodes. More recently the BBC has been taking the opportunity to use the audio book format as a way of preserving the lost television episodes by making them available to the public once more. They have also just recently been bringing out audio books for the new series and Torchwood. Doctor who soundtrack audio books are the most economical with prices for downloadable versions as low as 13 $!

But the BBC haven’t been the only ones making Doctor Who audio books, there is also a company named big finish who have for some time now been making their own audio books with original content!

Now it’s up to the likes of the new doctor who series and the two Doctor Who spin-offs, “Torchwood” and “The Sarah Jane Adventures” to live up to doctor who’s incredibly successful past. So far it would appear that they are on the right track as the shows are proving to be very popular indeed with episodes being broadcast all over the globe.

Many men still link their virility with the size of their penis. No matter how proficient they are in their lovemaking, they still feel insecure because they are not hung like a porn star. Thus, they end up looking for penis enlargement devices online. However, these devices cost hundreds of dollars putting them beyond the reach of most men; fortunately, you can easily make your own homemade penis enlargement devices at minimal cost.

Hanging weights from your penis is one of the oldest known techniques for making the penis longer; in fact it may even have been practiced by the Pharaohs of Egypt. The basic principle behind it is that by hanging weights from your penis, the tissues will expand and give the impression that your organ is longer. As the tissues grow looser, more blood will be able to enter your penis when it is aroused, creating longer erections.

To make your own penis weight hanger, you will need two pieces of stiff material. Drill holes on either side of them so you can attach loops of string, from where you will hang the weights, and to add a device to close them, either beads or a bolt and wing nut assembly.

To use the weight hanger, first wrap a piece of cloth around your penis for comfort and to protect it from chafing. Then attach the device to the shaft just below the head; test the fit first to see if it’s comfortable. Stop using the device if you feel any pain or numbness and never use it when the penis is erect or semi-erect; your penis should be fully flaccid. Once the weight hanger is on, you can start hanging weights from the loops; begin with a 2 to 2.5 pound weight then gradually work your way up by adding another half-pound every ten days until you reach a comfortable maximum. The ideal routine would be wearing the device ten minutes on and ten minutes off for two hours in the morning and evening.

Jelqing is another popular technique for enlarging your penis, but you could achieve better results if you use Jelqing sticks. To make these, all you need are two PVC pipes around ten inches in length and a half-inch in width. To use them, place the Jelqing sticks at mid-shaft when your penis is flaccid and then gently pull them downwards and out in the direction of the head. Repeat for about fifteen minutes per session one to two sessions a day. If you do Jelqing exercises you should watch out for any discomfort or bruising. Although some soreness in the beginning is natural, persistent pain means you are overdoing it.

How much improvement can you expect when using these homemade penis enlargement devices? One study showed that weight hanging resulted in an increase of 1.25 inches over a period of four months, but this was when the exercise was done for 12 hours a day, seven days a week. You should see a similar level of improvement but over a longer period of time; do not attempt the routine described above. Jelqing should produce similar results. Remember to measure your penis when erect before and after using the devices to measure your progress.

Embarking on an alkaline diet is one of the simplest and most practical things you can do to maintain good health and avoid diseases. Advocates of an alkaline diet cannot overemphasize its importance. According to them, the overriding principle of the alkaline diet is that the nutrients, vitamins and minerals in alkaline-forming foods, supplements and water may help bring the body back to its optimal state of balance. This in turn, ensures the absence of ailments and diseases and infuses the body with tremendous energy and vitality.

It is generally believed that over-acidity in the body may result in chronic health problems. Bacteria, viruses and infections are thought to heavily thrive in a highly acidic environment. In fact, pH (potentiality to hydrogen) tests conducted on many cancer patients yielded highly-acidic body milieu. In everyday life, an overly-acidic diet may manifest itself through fatigue, gum and teeth problems, pain and inflammation, and premature aging.

An alkaline diet may help your body in several ways.

• It may help your body absorb more of the essential vitamins, nutrients and minerals in their natural form. Consequently, it may help your immune system better resist infection and foreign bodies that initiate body imbalances that lead to illnesses.

• It may help provide the means by which your body can neutralize acids and toxins that may wreak havoc in the blood, lymph, tissues, and cells.

• It may also aid in boosting energy and enhancing vigor to better enable your body to withstand the daily challenges and stress it undergoes.

• It may help keep away various aches and pains. Pain in the different parts of the body is generally due to inflammation. This condition may be overcome by an alkaline diet rich in the mineral magnesium. As it is known to support joint and tissue health, this may help ensure that arthritis, rheumatism and other pesky aches may be avoided.

Getting into an alkaline diet is as easy as gradually incorporating several changes and modifications into your existing diet. Though this transition requires a major shift in your attitude towards food, it is important to realize that the change cannot be implemented overnight. The important point to remember is that small changes go a long way.

Here are 10 steps toward an alkaline diet that may do wonders for your health.

1.) Consume more vegetables and fresh fruits. Try to incorporate vegetables and fruits in each meal. During breakfast, make sure you eat a piece of apple or banana. It may be better to take them on an empty stomach. Drinking fruit juice instead of coffee may make it better. Try to include some salad with lots of green leafy vegetables during lunch and dinner.

2.) Decrease your consumption of beef, pork or chicken and try to substitute fish (like mackerel, salmon, trout, tuna) or turkey. The latter-named sources of protein contain considerably less harmful fat and have more of the beneficial fats in them.

3.) Avoid eating processed foods such as luncheon meats, canned fruits, breads, peanut butter, canned soups, hotdogs and sausages. You might also want to avoid such condiments as ketchup, salad dressings with mayonnaise, cheese dips and the like. These are packed with acid-forming substances that may wreak havoc in your system once these are digested.

4.) Lower your consumption of sugar and products made from sugar, such as candies, ice cream, softdrinks, cookies, jams, doughnuts, puddings, chewing gum and the like. Foods with sugar are also acid-forming.

5.) Lessen your consumption of dairy products such as milk, cheese, butter, as well as eggs. These are mostly acid-forming foods.

6.) Eat more grilled or roasted food and less fried foods. Fried foods tend to have higher levels of fat and therefore are higher in calories. These foods also tend to trigger higher acidity levels in the body due to chemical interactions of the grease and oil with the food and other substances in the body.

7.) Spice up your food. Most spices like turmeric, basil, bay leaves, tarragon, thyme, cilantro, dill, marjoram cinnamon, curry, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper contain antioxidant substances and other phytochemicals that are beneficial for your alkaline balance and therefore, overall health.

8.) Increase your consumption of alkaline-forming grains such as quinoa, rye, wild rice, and amaranth as these are good sources of vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients that form the base of a balanced alkaline diet.

9.) Drink herbal tea instead of coffee. Coffee is highly acid-forming and it may be wise to substitute such herbal teas like chamomile tea, ginger tea, lemongrass tea, fennel tea and peppermint tea to help enhance alkalinity levels in your body.

10.) Drink lots of water. Try to consume at least half of your body weight in ounces of good quality of water each day. If possible, choose spring water, mineral water or alkaline water. If you’re taking tap water, try to add a slice of lemon or lime as these tend to enhance the alkalinity of the water. Avoid drinking distilled water as it is acid-forming.

Keep in mind though that an alkaline diet does not mean the absence of acid-forming food. An optimal balance of consuming 80% alkalizing foods to 20% acidifying foods is a workable formula for maintaining healthy alkalinity levels. Too much of either foods will result in imbalance that will again trigger the onset of diseases, ailments, aches and pains.

So try to follow the 10 practical steps toward an alkaline diet mentioned above and these will gradually create the proper alkaline balance within your body. Remember that when the body’s pH levels are in balance, the body reaches the ideal weight and naturally corrects the negative health challenges.

One day, while pondering the cultural-effect that the internet has had on the social-importance of books, I suddenly had an insight into what effect book-publishing must have had on the quasi-hereditary oral-tradition of previous times. In the oral-tradition, legends and cultural beliefs were passed down in a manner that easily facilitated new generational interpretation – anyone who’s played the “telephone-game” has a good idea of what I mean.

With the widespread publication of book, however, the interpretability of information passed along, while not eradicated, was somewhat diminished – the communication vehicle was preserved, while in the oral-tradition the teller of the story would have told the story in slightly (if not extremely) different ways as his/her life progressed, and to an evolving audience as well.

For a great many years the written-word grew to an exalted position as a more concisely-permanent means of relating ideas – though readers, of course, would come up with interpretations and supplications of their own. Some of these would come to create subsequent written-works reflecting new understanding in the current stage of an evolving informational-paradigm. Others, reading the works of others from times-gone-by, would influence the cultural receptibility of evolving written-works by way of, (you guessed it), the enduring remnants of oral-tradition – renamed “word-of-mouth.”

After a long time, (though not nearly as long as the time span that oral-tradition enjoyed before subsiding to the emerging written-tradition), the customary nature of written-tradition was challenged by the evolving technology of telecommunications. After the establishment of a postal-system that allowed persons to communicate with one-another through the written-word, people soon embraced the technology of the electric telegraph to send message much more quickly. While the information-relating importance of books was not much disturbed by this development, new technological advancements were on the way…

The telegraph soon gave way to the telephone and to radio – television was soon to follow… The means by which individuals communicated with one another, and the means by which small groups communicated en masse with much larger ones were all rapidly changing as new innovations were being advanced at an ever-quickening pace.

The industrial era gave way to the technological era, and the outward, apparent landscape of human beings communicating and working with one-another seemed to have changed dramatically – but on a fundamental level, nothing had been replaced by anything else.

Though the printed-word dramatically changed the necessity of oral-tradition in preserving information, people still spoke directly to one-another in preference to writing letters.

Though the availability of long-distance telephone calling was well used by persons seeking the direct, person-to-person verbal communication, letters were still being written, and books were still being read.

Though radio and television provided the masses with an easy source for news and entertainment and information about valuable consumer-products that they’d likely find useful, very few TV-zombies were ever produced, and people still sought to make informed purchase-decisions, whatever various advertisers might have to say. Even still, people spoke with one another and wrote to one another and read books in the search for greater understanding of whatever information may be available to them.

Though the internet and its powerful information-sorting algorithms eventually came to provide many with almost every answer or explanation they sought, the power of world-wide electronic communications was still only made so powerful by the participation and communication of individuals among others, people speaking to one another.

The human voice takes the form of the written word, the form of organized collections of words in expression of detailed ideas, the broad-casting of such plenitude of various media, and in the form of a Tweet or a Facebook status-update. As much as has changed since the days when sons and grandsons gathered before an elder to hear what wisdom might be so imparted, we are all still people interacting with other people – the only difference being the very many more ways and means by which we do it.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Most individuals who want to open their own retail business or internet business need to approach a lender to secure financing. For your request to be successful, you need to have a very powerful business plan. The more detailed your business plan is, the more it shows the lender that you are dedicated to following through on your project. It also shows you have the skills to work through all the aspects of your business including day to day operations and long term plans.

Don’t make the mistake of simply going in to talk to your lender without a business plan in hand. To make it easy to read, you need to have it divided up into sections. Together, the sections of your marketing plan are going to discuss what your product or service is, who your target market is, how you plan to reach them, and the estimated profits and expenses for the next five years. Simply place it all in a binder or clear cover to make it look more professional.

The first part of the business plan needs to be your introduction. It needs to be short, but also very powerful. If the lender isn’t impressed with the introduction, they may decide not to finish reading what you have to offer. This is the perfect place to include information about your skills, desires, and motivations for operating your own business.

The next part of your business plan needs to discuss your target market. This section needs to be very detailed. Make sure it covers why you think there is a need for your product or service, how you will reach your target market, and discuss each of your marketing strategies in detail. It is very important that you have at least two distinct marketing strategies in your business plan.

In this section you will also discuss the elements of your product or service. It needs to include the cost of making it, how much you plan to sell it for, and how you will distribute it. All of your prices need to be as accurate as possible. This shows the lender that you have been doing your homework and that you have a realistic idea of the profits and expenses involved in the business.

Your lender is going to want to find out how your business is going to be operated, and this information goes next. Include all the information about the internal structure of your business. You also need to include information on the equipment necessary to operate your business in this section.

Think about any consultants, marketing agencies, employees, managers, etc. that you will be incorporating into your business. Try to get as accurate of a dollar amount associated with these operating expenses as you can.

Your financial plan for the business is the next section of your business plan. This needs to include projected income and expenses over a five year period. You will need to provide information on how you came up with the figures used. It is a good idea to use conservative figures in your business plan when it comes to income. If you make more that is wonderful, but don’t overshoot your profits.

I suggest that you include risks that can increase your expenses and lower your profits in this section as well. It is not required, but your lender will already be thinking of the risk factor involved with your business venture. By outlining some of them as well as how you will handle them, you show the lender you are willing to take that risk and that you understand some of the challenges you may face on the road to having a successful business.

The last section is to be a brief summary of everything including in your business plan. Focus on the positive aspects of it in this area of the business plan. This is the last information the lender will read so you need it to be convincing.

Writing a successful business plan is going to take you time, but it will be a very valuable tool for securing funding for your business. Try to include as many details in your business plan as possible. It is a good idea to get a friend or family member to read through it before you see the lender.

They may have questions about particular areas, and this gives you a chance to make any changes to the business plan. Don’t forget to include your personal views in your business plan. This is the best way to allow your passion and motivation for operating your own business to shine through.

There is a lot more to branding than identity, advertising and public relations. Brands also need to get in touch with their human face.

“I want to build my brand.”

I have lost count of the number of times I have heard this statement in the 11 years since we started brand-comm, a consulting company dedicated to building brands. And yet, as is to be expected, people have different expectations from branding and the entire process of branding. The next steps to these statements usually follow one of the following courses of action. ‘I think our identity is dated and today’s consumers are young, so let’s change it, and shouldn’t we be thinking global?’ This is good news for international brand consultants and design experts as they instantly see (million) $$$ signs. The identity change is announced with great fanfare and it usually goes down like the Indian team went down in Zimbabwe – with scarcely a whimper – as nothing except the identity has changed and the brand is still the same boring brand.

Another alternative is to try to build corporate image through a high-profile TV commercial, probably shot in New Zealand, but without the benefit of a core idea that defines the essence of the brand. “The execution will be clutter-breaking” says the agency Creative Director. The brand promise is not delivered, after all “Yuvarajs” exist in corporate life too!

Another way forward is to hire a public relations firm which goes hammer and tongs at the media – organises one-on-ones, speaker and photo opportunities – all of which generate intense interest about the MD in cocktail parties and amidst head-hunting firms but nothing much happens to the brand. And today there is another option as well.

Sponsor some high-profile IPL team and even if the team does not win a single match, the players dutifully land up at post-IPL parties wearing your brand on their sleeves (if not their hearts) on them.

I know that I am perhaps sounding cynical, a not unexpected reaction from someone my age, but that is hardly the impression I wish to convey or the point I wish to make. There is a whole lot more to branding than identity, colours, TV advertising, sponsorship, events and public relations. While I am not denying the importance or value of these, I think there is something more basic, more obvious and yet, perhaps, more difficult to manage, which is why companies seem to spend so little time on this and that is what I would call the “human side of branding”. Here are a few examples of how companies, however big, get this important aspect of their functioning woefully wrong.

The first impression…

… has the potential of being the worst impression. You enter an impressive building, exquisitely designed, wonderfully architected with a façade that could make you stop in your tracks. You cross the manicured gardens and enter the plush reception. And whom do you meet? A security guard in place of the young, efficient, smiling, helpful receptionists that people of my age were used to seeing earlier, but then this is perhaps the order of the day in most companies.

Of course, some of these security guards are smart, even speak good English and can be courteous enough, as was the security guard at the Oberoi in Bangalore last week. He welcomed me in the traditional Indian way. But many are not the way they ought to be and you can easily imagine the impact on the brand when they are found wanting. Of course, I am fond of repeating my experiences of having been welcomed in a company by a security guard whose company name tag read “Doberman”. Obviously, you can understand my nervousness! Did the Chairman of the company ever walk past this, I wonder, or does he have his own private elevator that enables him to bypass this welcoming committee?

You don’t call me,

I will call you

Another quick reality check for a brand is the way the company answers, or should I say does not answer, the phone. How often do we get the impression that the phone is ringing and the operators are having a good time, when the phone is actually busy?

Let’s assume that you have achieved the holy grail of actually getting through to the company and to an operator who puts you on hold. Of course, you may be calling the company not because you are in love with it, but probably because it has goofed and you want to give it a piece of your mind.

What happens then? You are put on hold and the company’s jingle of how it is God’s gift to the human race goes on endlessly like the maiden overs that Nadkarni used to reel off and you are seething. So what is your view of the brand at that particular point in time? Top-of-mind for all the wrong reasons is probably your reaction.

Let’s move on to a slightly more sensitive topic of company or brand culture. Have you ever tried getting in touch with the CEO of a large company? Life seems to be one long meeting; senior people are constantly in meetings, unreachable despite being online 24 x 7. They never take calls, respond to text messages or answer mails. After all, they are busy. I remember my first boss telling me “you are paid to be busy”.

But are these captains of industry so busy as to be completely unresponsive, sometimes to calls even from their friends and former colleagues? But what happens then? The company takes its cue from the CEO and soon you have a company that is completely, totally inaccessible, at times even to the media.

If, for whatever reason, the company needs you, it will call you a few hundred times! Do these companies ever bother to assess what the rest of the world has to say about them? Do they even care?

And this is precisely how the brand comes across to the rest of the world and I cannot imagine the ignored parties being quiet about the company and its total lack of response. Surely there has to be a better, more sensitive, more humane way of doing business that can impact the brand and the corporate image positively?

A better way to recruit?

Bangalore is the software capital of India, if not the world, and if you were to believe everything that you read about these companies then you would be convinced they are the greatest places to work in. They probably are.

Make no mistake about this, I am a great admirer of Indian software companies and yet here is an incident that made a profound impression on me, even if it had me a bit concerned about how the brand was getting it wrong.

I am going to talk about one of the top software companies in India if not the world. They needed a director for their brand and I had with great difficulty organised one of my juniors from IIM for this; she was the head of a large advertising agency and went for the meeting at my insistence.

There were many calls reminding her of the meeting. She went to the complex and found herself with hundreds of engineers looking for a job. She also found herself at the venue much earlier because the company wanted her to fill up a form! She was hopping mad, and to add insult to injury, it was not the HR head that she met but her lackey.

Clearly, the company was better suited to recruit thousands of engineer trainees but was probably not geared to deal with a senior employee, particularly someone who needed to be wooed. Luckily the lady in question did not have a blog or she could have told the world about the company and its manner of recruitment.

There is nothing wrong with the company, its financial results or even its image. It is still admired and will continue to be admired but such incidents can and will hurt the brand. But then someone has to be aware of the implications of the acts of commission and omission of each and every one of its employees and we are not talking of CEOs here.

Let me end this piece with a quote by Lee Clow: “Managing brands is going to be more about trying to manage everything that your company does.” Yes, everything that your company does! Every action that every employee or your outsourced partner does or does not do continues to impact your brand.

Let’s continue this discussion next fortnight. But in the meanwhile can you think about how good your brand’s human side is? Let us discuss it in my blog: Third Umpire On Branding

(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO, brand-comm, and the author of Googly: Branding on Indian Turf.)

The reason I love animals so much is that they give off an attitude of happiness, innocence and unconditional love to their people.  Our pets are just as happy being a part of our household as we are of having them with us.

But sometimes an animal comes into our life that is a bit “out there!”

For instance, the dog that has an irrational fear of rain and won’t for the life of him go outside to potty during a rain shower.  Or the cat who hides for hours when a friend comes over.  Or, how about the dog with attachment issues that destroys the house while you’re at work?  Any of these sound familiar?

My cat’s, Sammie and Max, love to hang out on our screened-in patio.  But whenever the garbage truck comes rolling in, they flee for their lives!

It might sound crazy to us, but whatever your animal’s fears or wacky behaviors may be, they are completely legitimate in their minds.

Using essential oils on your animals can really take the edge off of their anxiety, big time!

Because of an animal’s heightened senses, they respond very well to essential oils.  In the wild, animals eat specific plants to heal themselves.  In captivity (our homes), the plant kingdom is not readily available.  Using essential oils on your pet gives them access to the vast healing properties of nature.

The three best essential oils to calm your pets are:

Lavender

Roman Chamomile

Peace & Calming® (a blend from Young Living)

These essential oils can be used to support your animal with; fear of rain and thunderstorms, separation anxiety, hyperactivity, trauma/abuse, depression, Illness, trips to the vet’s office, grief/loss of another family pet and any other situation that causes great stress for your animal, such as garbage trucks!

When you apply essential oils to animals, always remember less is more as animals are very sensitive to essential oils.

Also, with animals, it’s best to dilute essential oils with a carrier oil such as organic olive oil.  I recommend one part essential oil to 1 part carrier oil for all animals EXCEPT cats. The dilution ratio for cats is 1 part essential oil to 10 parts carrier oil.

Use caution with cats!

Any of the essential oils listed in this article are safe for dogs and horses, however; cats are a different story! Cats are extremely sensitive to essential oils containing phenols, such as oregano and thyme. Cats can not effectively metabolize phenols because they lack an enzyme in their liver to digest the phenols. Avoid Peace & Calming® essential oil blend on your cat, as it does contain phenols. Lavender and Roman Chamomile essential oils ARE safe for cats.

How to apply essential oils on dogs, horses and cats:

For calming dogs:

Mix 1 drop Lavender, Roman Chamomile or Peace & Calming® essential oil with 1 drop carrier oil.  Rub this mixture on your dogs pads, ears or comb through their fur.  Apply any time you sense your dog is stressed.

For calming horses:

Mix 1 drop Lavender, Roman Chamomile or Peace & Calming® essential oil with 1 drop carrier oil. Rub this mixture on your horse’s muzzle, ears or cornet bands. Apply any time your horse is stressed.

For calming cats:

Mix 1 drop Lavender or Roman Chamomile essential oil with 10 drops carrier oil. Rub this mixture on your cat’s pads, ears or comb through their fur. Apply any time your cat is stressed.

By the way, the essential oils in this article are also good for easing your anxieties, too!  Dilution is not required on humans.  Just apply a drop or two on your wrists, shoulders or behind your ears.

And the next time you’re opening up a bottle of lavender essential oil, share some with your animal friends!  They’ll thank you!

© 2008 Christa McCourt

Currently the US population is about 300 million people, 75% of them, or about 225 million people wear corrective lenses whether they are glasses or contact lenses. That is an extremely high number, especially when compared to the statistics of 1980 where only 50% of the people wore glasses. That’s a 50% increase in just 30 years. Why is our eyesight getting worse and worse? Many are born with a less than perfect sphere for an eyeball and this is definitely a common reason for eye sight issues. The only known method to correct this problem is Lasik eye surgery; other than glasses and contact lenses, of course. However there are other things that we do that will cause this less than perfect vision. We will look at the top 5 reasons for this real concern and how to keep it from getting worse.

Focused staring is the number one reason for the loss of vision in America and most likely around the world. What does that mean? When you stare at something your eyes blink about 3 times slower than normal. So when you are watching TV, a movie at a theater, your computer screen, reading a book or staring at many other things, your eyes become dry and this creates damage to your eyes over time. There are things you can do to reduce the problem, other than avoiding these activities all together. When watching TV, take breaks during commercials. That doesn’t mean to stare at your computer screen during commercial breaks. Perhaps playing a hand or two with playing cards, it would the best if you could get a game that requires physical activity like play a game of ping pong, foosball, etc. a Nintendo WII would not help here; maybe get some fresh air outside; you can call someone, etc. Watching a movie at a theater is different. There are a few things you can do. You can buy the “tears” eyedrops, not the “get rid of the red” ones. Use that throughout your movie. Try to glance around the theater every once in a while. Maybe force yourself to take that annoying bathroom break during a slow part of the movie. You may have to get creative here but find something to do that doesn’t require you to stare at one unmoving object. Perhaps go to a play theater. You can apply these principles to your computer time, reading time, etc. A random fact, there is no evidence to suggest that reading in a darker causes any more damage than reading in a well-lit room.

The sun’s rays, or ultra-violet rays, are the number two reason for eye problems in our country. The ultra violet rays that come from the sun and tanning machines do massive damage to our eyes. Sunglasses with UV protection are an absolute requirement for everyone, in my opinion. The sun’s UV rays bounce off of many surfaces. They also pierce many surfaces. Just because you are turned away from the sun or are driving in your car doesn’t mean that you are protected from those damaging rays. In fact it is usually the most common situation where the sun’s damage takes place. I will also mention that it is crucial for you to wear eye protection when tanning. Closing your eyes does not stop the UV damage and in fact it is usually much worse because most of the time when we tan with our eyes closed, we lay in the direct rays of the sun or tanning machines, causing serious damage, much more than if we face away from sun.

As if there were not enough reasons to quit smoking tobacco. Smoking is the number three cause of loss of clear vision in America. Smoking cigarettes causes macular degeneration which is a problem where the part of our eye that sends the signals that it receives to the brain degenerates and less and less of the signal gets sent to the brain so our eye sight becomes poor. There is little else to say here except quit smoking, we all now know how horrible it is for us. This also includes snuff and chewing tobacco.

Injury to the eye is the fourth reason for loss of vision in America. It can be injured in a work environment with certain chemical gasses being in the air or pieces of debris flying into your eyes. It can be injured by contact sports with improper protection. A tackle without a helmet can cause very serious and likely to be permanent damage to the eye. Damage by fireworks and camp fire, specifically the sparks that fly out of the fireworks and camp fire can be the most dangerous kind because it happens so fast that even your eye lids may not have time to react. Then by the time that you can get to a hospital the damage is permanent and beyond repair. The only thing that can prevent this from happening is keeping a far away enough distance from the source of danger. You must also be vigilant in making sure that such fireworks are far enough away from children, which could be a difficult task since kids are usually very excited about fireworks and insist on playing with them.

Infections cause conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye, and they can do damage to the eye and in severe cases even cause serious damage. Pink eye is a condition where a bacterial or a viral bug transfers to your eyes, most likely through using a towel or bedding that belongs to someone else. This is one of the reasons why we are told to not share towels, razors, and other personal items. If you do get infected you will need to go to a doctor to get a prescription. They do have an over-the-counter treatment, but it is not as effective.

Now that you know the things that you do in your daily life that cause your eyesight to get worse over time, you will be able to protect yourself. Keeping to these five steps will certainly help us, adults, to see better but it will be most beneficial when applied to our children before their eye sight is damaged.