When allergies strike, most allergy sufferers head to the
drugstore where they purchase an antihistamine. They take it,
and soon their symptoms begin to subside. They’re all set until
the next outburst.
Over-the-counter antihistamines are effective but unfortunately,
taking them often causes unpleasant side effects such as
drowsiness and a feeling of lethargy. If you’re tired of feeling
tired when allergies strike, maybe it’s time you reach for
natural allergy remedies instead.
Natural allergy remedies come in all forms and are made from
many different types of ingredients including herbs, plants,
ground up honey bees, and other vitamins and nutrients. Most
natural allergy remedies have been designed to either stop
histamine outbursts from occurring in the first place, or they
act to combat the individual symptoms that occur with the
release of histamines. They accomplish these tasks naturally,
which is why unpleasant side effects are non-existent.
Besides treating allergy symptoms with all-natural ingredients,
the term “natural allergy remedies” has come to mean something
more. In addition to being a natural and effective way to treat
allergy symptoms after they develop, the term can be used to
describe taking control of your surroundings so that you limit
exposure to the allergens that cause you trouble. For example,
if pet dander is a problem, don’t keep pets. Or if you must,
you’ve got to be vigilant about keeping pet dander under
control. Likewise with dust mites. You need to protect your
furnishings with casings that keep this type of problem under
wraps.
Watching what you eat is important if you’ve got food allergies,
so taking steps to control your diet can also be considered a
natural allergy remedy. In addition to closely monitoring what
you eat, there also are foods you can consume that are known to
contain naturally-occurring histamine combatants. For example,
Quercitin, a flavinoid found in onions and apples, is capable of
blocking the release of histamines which cause the familiar
allergy symptoms like runny nose, congestion, and itchy, watery
eyes. Besides being effective against allergies, there are
countless other health benefits of eating these and other types
of fruits and vegetables, like lowering your risk of developing
heart disease and keeping your blood sugar levels stable.
If you’re like a lot of people and find that monitoring what you
eat is too much work, then consider taking a daily
multi-vitamin. Many of the vitamins and minerals benefit the
immune system which in turn helps keeps the symptoms of
allergies under control.
With so many natural allergy remedies being offered,
understanding the ingredients as well as the actual benefits of
each can be mind-boggling. Even though these types of products
are available without a prescription, if you’re confused, it
might be advisable to speak with an allergist or someone who
specializes in natural remedies. These specialists can help
explain how each of the individual ingredients work and why
they’re thought to be effective. This type of information may
help you decide whether natural allergy remedies are right for
you.
People relish films, so why not think about calling on the capital & delight in a range of the spots in the picture? Our capital surfaces in quite a few astonishingly special movies and now, for in excess of 10 decades, it has welcomed in elite movie makers to engineer their motion pictures in. London is up there with the world’s most widely & world class filming venues. There are some principle hotspots for films situated in the capital; lots of the most known of spots have been filmed again and again. A share of the planet’s very best film makers, new & old, are from the city. Incredible movies have been filmed in this metropolis & commonly get good reviews.
The capital is known as the 3rd busiest movie making area on earth. After L.A. and also NY, Westminster borough is the dominant area with over 2,230 shooting days for 05. Coupled with the city’s films you also have London’s film festivals. The festivals take place each year around the a similar week. They’re extremely contrasting, meaning there is a great festival for everybody. There’s over 60 picture festivals merely in the capital and the festivals express most of the capital’s particular multicultural make ups. These festivals range from animation to digital, Africa to thrillers and of course their catalog just keeps growing.
An example of the coolest considerations concerned with the capital’s motion picture scene, are the actual film houses themselves. Coupled with the shabby hell holes are some superb big screens that will certainly help you lose yourself in the movie. The city encompasses well over 500 big screens, that range from elite movie theatres, including the Odeon and Vue, that put on the most recent movies & also blockbusters, over to the smaller scale movie theatres that feel intimate and also oftentimes present classic and they more cultured movies, maybe movies that wouldn’t be performed at the mainstream movie houses.
There are some movie theatres nowadays that offer a more unusual encounter from one’s general cinema. You will rejoice in your flick from within the snugness of your settee or arm chair; you might also buy nosh from their waiters. There are 1 or 2 of these places around. The Roxy Bar and Screen is considered to be a pleasing establishment which is placed near the well known Borough Market. This enterprise is an assimilation of independent movies, a cheerful bar area & a restaurant. The famous Electric Cinema which is situated within the area of Notting Hill has with us for a long time and plays a combination of cultural movies as well as the greatest flicks of the average theatres. Along with soft leather seating, its footstools and also the bar area at the very rear, you’re sure to appreciate seeing any film. The Rex Cinema is located in the Soho area in this metropolis and is presently advertised as one of the best establishments to see. With its intimacy and the cocktails to savour in, this picture house is one place that all should investigate.
It’s invariably bound to be difficult, when deciding which movie to go and view at the cinema, but nevertheless, the ambiance of a fine location of course enhances everyone’s merriment. Locate your nearest cinema at film with Time Out.
As a site developer, I have experienced an odd phenomenon with some of the businesses I have worked with over the years. A website is something that should give a comprehensive overview of an organization, and should provide a detailed image of the company, as opposed to the caricature that is provided by other media. When small business owners sit down to discuss the structure of a site, and what will be included, they often realize the holes in their own business model.
In particular, family-owned businesses that have been successful for years sometimes never slow down enough to really chart out specific policies. It had always been enough for the owner to make a call on the fly when it came to return policies, or bulk pricing, or other grey areas. When they sit down to create the content of their websites, they are faced with the fact that whatever they publish to the internet will be taken as across-the-board policy, and they, in a sense, must give up that freedom to make decisions based on a gut feeling. This may be disheartening for some, but I believe it is a very positive thing for most businesses.
I usually describe the pre-internet state of these companies as having a ’subjective business model’. The turn toward a transparent, totally objective way to conduct business may be a bit painful to some, but in the end it will give customers a much stronger sense of trust and confidence in your business. Where I live, on the coast of Maine, there is a very strong sense that a personal touch is needed when conducting business. I agree with this completely, but I don’t agree that ‘personal touch’ has to mean ’subjective business model’. The owner of a company that makes contact in a personal way with his customers, yet is so organized that there is regularity and equanimity in his company’s policies, has a huge advantage over not only less developed local businesses, but also against the less personal corporate giants. The fact is, large corporations got to be large corporations because people bought what they sold. What they sold was an advancement in their product, and also the ability to operate efficiently through a sound, well-organized business model. I know plenty of high-quality product producers whose only barrier to immense success is the complete disorganization of their company structure. The country is littered with fine products that fail because they are brought to market incorrectly.
So back to web design-
When the process begins, I have always tried to take a slow tour through a client’s business, to get a feel for what the owner is doing, and particularly, what aspects of the operation bring the strongest feeling of pride to the owner. This has to be the core of the marketing piece. Through this process, I also can generally get the idea of what the challenges to the company are, and how those challenges may translate into bumps in the road on the way to getting a solid internet presence to happen.
When we sit down to talk structure, what must be included, how certain aspects of the business are to be portrayed, I see this look in the business owner’s eyes that says - ‘ Oh crap, I never thought of that’, or, ‘Hmmm, what IS our policy on that?’. What follows is a trial-and-error process of defining every aspect of the organization in painful but consistent detail, full of re-writes and tweaks and crumpled papers. But once we trudge through the anatomy of their business, I feel strongly that the company is better off than before the process started.
This is yet another unplanned benefit to bringing a business into the internet commerce world, and as time goes on, the state of the business world in general will be stronger and more effective because of it.
Lance Dutson is the owner of Maine Coast Design, a Maine web design firm and internet marketing company, specializing in search engine optimization and cutting-edge site design. Maine Coast Design- Maine web design and search engine optimization
As a child I was very introverted, often spending my time on the computer, reading, playing video games, or pursuing other solo hobbies. I’d spend time outdoors biking, exploring the nearby fields and hills (which today are filled with houses), or shooting hoops, but I’d usually favor doing these things alone or with people I knew very well. I never felt too comfortable around strangers, and I never cared for big family events. Psychological tests like the Myers-Briggs pegged me squarely as an introvert. Anyone who knew me would have described me as an introvert without a second thought.
Like many introverts I was pressured by others to socialize more. But I largely resisted this pressure, partly because I enjoyed being an introvert. I often viewed extroverts as lacking in intelligence and depth, and I can’t say I wanted to count myself among them.
However, over a long period of time, I eventually found myself becoming more and more extroverted. I embraced spending time with other people, went out of my way to meet new people, could comfortably introduce myself to strangers, and actually enjoyed it. The Myers-Briggs test now labels me an extrovert. To the people who know me today, this wouldn’t be surprising.
I’m not the kind of extrovert I envisioned as a child though. I feel I’ve done a good job balancing the introvert and extrovert parts of myself, such that I enjoy both types of activities equally. I feel just as comfortable staying at home reading a book as I do going to a new social event and introducing myself to people I’ve never met. I enjoy both group and solo activities, each for different reasons. Some weeks I’m far more introverted and mostly stay home with my family. Other weeks I have a full social calendar with an event almost every night. I enjoy both just as much.
In order to become an extrovert, I found that I had to overcome several blocks to being more extroverted. Chances are that if you’re in the same boat, you have some of these blocks as well.
Blocks to becoming an extrovert
* Undervaluing extroversion. Spending time alone and with people are equally important. If you’re very introverted, you may undervalue the positive role people can play in your life, such as knowledge, friendship, growth, laughter, and so on. The optimal outcome is to strike a balance between the two. You don’t have to give up the introvert activities you enjoy. In fact, when you balance them with more social activities, you’ll probably find them even more satisfying. After several nights of being around people, I really look forward to a night by myself to read, meditate, write, etc. And after lots of time alone or with my family, I’m itching to go out and be around other people.
* Underdeveloped social skills. Social skills can be learned like any other skill set. One reason introverts shy away from social activities is that they don’t feel comfortable because they don’t know what to do, especially if the unexpected were to occur. Being able to start up a conversation with a stranger AND feel completely comfortable doing it is a learnable skill. The more you do it, the better you get at it. Embrace the fact that you’re a beginner, and don’t compare yourself to others.
* Envisioning yourself as the wrong kind of extrovert. If you find the extroverted people around you shallow and perhaps even annoying, why would you want to be more like them? You wouldn’t. When I was a kid, I really didn’t want to be more like the extroverts I knew. Even as an adult, my vision of an extrovert was an in-your-face salesperson who only wanted to build a shallow relationship with you so they could sell you something. It seemed very fake and phony to me. And of course that vision prevented me from ever wanting to be like that. But you needn’t choose such a limited vision for yourself you’re free to form your own vision of a positive way to be more extroverted.
* Hanging out with the wrong people. Why would you want to spend more time with people you don’t like? If becoming more extroverted means spending more time with people you’d rather avoid, you’ll have no motivation to do it. Again, you’re free to break this pattern and form a social group that you’d love to be a part of.
* Overvaluing online socializing. Online socializing has its place in your life, but it’s a pale shadow compared to face-to-face, belly-to-belly communication. Voice and body language can communicate a lot more than text, and emotional bonds are easier and faster to establish in person. I feel much closer to the local friends I’ve known for only a few months than I do to the people I’ve known online for years but never met in person. It’s just not as fun going out to dinner with a laptop. You don’t have to do away with online socializing, but don’t allow it to crowd out meeting people locally. If you do that, you’ll only cause your interpersonal skills to lag further behind.
If you have some of these blocks and want to get past them, the first step is to acknowledge them and consider how they’re holding you back. Then begin to work on them just as you would any other challenge in your life. Focus your intentions, set goals, make plans, and start taking action. It may be awkward and clumsy at first, but just accept that, and get moving anyway.
Suggestions for becoming more extroverted
Here are some additional suggestions for how to become more extroverted:
* Envision the type of extrovert you’d like to be. What’s your ideal outcome? If you feel too introverted and want to be more extroverted, start by working on your vision of your outcome. Chances are that if you’ve been making little progress in this area, you have a somewhat negative vision of extroverts. When I formed a positive vision of being an extrovert that included building genuine relationships with intelligent people I respect (as opposed to random, shallow socializing), I soon began attracting those relationships. Being a “dumb jock” kind of extrovert still has no appeal to me.
* Think of relationships in terms of what you can give, not in terms of what you can get. If you seek to build new relationships based on mutual giving and receiving, you’ll have no shortage of friends. Identify people with whom you’d like to build a relationship, and start by giving. I’ve found that my geeky knowledge is actually a tremendous strength when it comes to socializing because there are an awful lot of non-geeks who’d like to understand geeky stuff better, and I can explain it to them in ways they’ll understand. For example, I’ve been teaching some local speaker friends about blogging and web marketing, and in return I’m learning a lot from them about speaking, humor, etc. There are many intelligent people out there who’d love to have a geek as a friend. What can you bring to a relationship that will be of benefit to someone else? When you figure out what that is (and it’s probably many different things), you’ll have an easier time attracting new friends into your life.
* Find the right social group for you. Consciously consider the types of people you’d want to have as friends. There’s no rule that says this has to be your peers or co-workers. I actually find myself more interested in making friends with people who are much older than me as opposed to people my own age or slightly younger. People around my age (34) tend to be very career- and family-oriented, but often in a somewhat mindless, socially conditioned way that isn’t centered around any consciously chosen life purpose or belief system. And people in their 20s, while often highly energetic, tend to be largely unfocused… or focused on trivial pursuits that just aren’t that important. So it’s been difficult for me to find people near my age where we have enough in common for a long-term friendship. I seem to have an easier time making friends with people in their 40s, 50, and older. They typically have greater knowledge and experience, more fascinating stories to share, more resources (information and ideas, financial resources, contacts), and a better sense of who they are and what they want to do with their lives. Often I find myself attending social events where I’m the youngest person in the room, but that feels very comfortable and normal for me. Don’t be afraid to stretch beyond the most obvious peer group and hang out with people from different ages, neighborhoods, cultures, countries, etc. You might find the variety to be a lot of fun.
* Play from your strengths. It’s interesting that many introverts have no trouble socializing online. In that environment they’re able to play from their strengths. But you can also use your strengths consciously as leverage to branch out into more face-to-face socializing. For example, after I graduated college, I met a woman on a local BBS (before there was much of a World Wide Web). We got to chatting online over a period of weeks. Eventually we met in person and became friends, and I soon fell into her pre-existing social group through osmosis. My social calendar went from empty to full almost overnight. That woman, by the way, has been my wife for the past 7.5 years. If you socialize online, see if you can’t use that strength to build new local relationships. While people have done this in global forums like online games, I think it’s easier to try it in local forums. For instance, there are message boards for people who’ve recently moved to Las Vegas.
* Join a club. It’s old advice, but it still works. The advantage is that you’ll find people who share similar interests, which makes it easier to build new relationships. One good club can fill your social calendar. For example, through my membership in Toastmasters, I get invitations to lots of other local social events. I don’t go to everything, but it’s nice to get those invites. Plus belonging to an international organization with 200,000 members worldwide creates social inroads around the planet. If you join a club and find that it’s not right for you, quit and join something else. My wife and I have both been through a number of local social groups that just didn’t resonate with us (too boring, too slow, too disorganized, too many alcoholics). But one good group is all you need.
* Develop your social skills consciously. You can learn to become better at building rapport, introducing yourself, keeping a conversation going, asking someone out on a date, feeling socially comfortable instead of nervous, and so on. You don’t need to be shallow and manipulative about it, but genuinely build these skills because it will greatly enhance your life. One approach I find extremely effective is to ask the other person how s/he got started in his/her current line of work. 80-90% of the time the person will say something like, “Well, that’s an interesting story….” And I genuinely like hearing these stories. A small basic set of social skills can go a long way because you’ll get to reuse them every time you meet someone. Whatever skill you’d like to develop, try doing a Google or Amazon search on it, and you’ll probably find plenty of articles and books.
Realize that when you hold yourself back from socializing, you’re not only depriving yourself you’re also depriving other people of the chance to get to know you. How much longer do you want your future spouse or best friend to remain alone?
Here are some follow-up posts that further explore this topic:
1. Improving Social Skills
2. A Question for Introverts
3. Risk vs. Reward in Human Relationships
Copyright © Steve Pavlina
Steve Pavlina
Personal Development for Smart People
http://www.stevepavlina.com
http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog (blog)
http://www.stevepavlina.com/articles (articles)
Steve is intensely growth-oriented. He trained in martial arts, ran the L.A. Marathon, and graduated from college in three semesters with two degrees. He can juggle, count cards at blackjack, and make damn good guacamole. Steve is also a polyphasic sleeper, sleeping just 2-3 hours per day and only 20 minutes at a time. So chances are good that he’s awake right now.