Future Knowledge Worker Management - From Work-For-Hire to Intellectual Capital Co-Ownership P1 of 2

Abstract

The last 50 years caused a major transformation in the industrial landscape. The manager's emphasis shifted from technology and manufacturing management to service and ultimately to knowledge management. The internet has revolutionized the way business is conducted across borders and cultures and it also made knowledge easily available. Entrepreneurs now have a way to reach markets worldwide at little cost. This places them at a new stronger position due to lower capital requirements to establish a business and has given more bargaining power symmetry to knowledge workers than in the past. Knowledge workers are therefore different and need to be managed differently as they tend to be more loyal to their professions rather than the organizations they work for. One major challenge for human resource managers apart from recruiting and retaining knowledge workers is to find a way to motivate them. This paper rejects work-for-hire arrangements and instead advocates shared knowledge ownership scenarios which can generally result in a better outcome for all stakeholders.

Introduction

The rapid technological advances of the 20th century and the massive changes in the global political landscape have dramatically changed the environment for every organization today. Before and shortly after World War II (WWII) managerial focus was mainly on manufacturing efficiency but the successive opening of international markets that lead to a globalizing economy confronted organization with far more complex issues, such as managing human factors, different cultures, and a rapid increase in competition (Wren, 2005). Even though the shifts from manufacturing excellence to service excellence and from national focus to global outlook started after WWII, management's adaptation to these changing forces remains an ongoing process.

Several coping mechanisms were deployed by managers to cope with new risks and dynamics of today's complex organizational environments. Some of these coping mechanisms have failed and some have worked in the past but will not continue to work in the future because the underlying assumptions are no longer valued. Diversification, for example, was long touted as a promising risk management tool; however, the recent economic meltdown and failure of dozens of financial institutions worldwide are an indication that there may have been too much reliance on diversification after all. Drucker (2006) suggested that organizations can only be effective if they focus on one task only. By diversifying, as stated by Drucker, the organization's performance capacity is destroyed. Possible explanations for this contradicting outcome are the greater switching costs between concurrent activities within the organization as well as the increased administrational overhead of managing several endeavors.

As the organizational environment becomes more complicated, organizations responded by collecting more information. Drucker (2006) criticized, however, that most often companies used information only to trace the past rather than to base future action on it. Today the sheer volume of information collected and drawing the quality conclusions from it constitutes an additional challenge to management. Rather than simply responding to information, tomorrow's organizations will have to be designed around information and create value and wealth in order to survive (2006). One of the critical information an organization should constantly monitor is the set of underlying assumptions around which the organization has been built.

Drucker (2006) also asserted that business crises often originate from the fact that organizations were built on assumptions that no longer hold true. Businesses, hence, need to constantly reassert that their assumptions still hold true and revise their internal structure to accommodate changes in their environment when this becomes necessary. This form of intelligent adaptation that Drucker favors can be interpreted as a form of organizational critical thinking and self-awareness.

As a great thinker in the field of management and a practicing consultant, Drucker realized that the human factor has become more important than ever before. Because of the transition from touch laborers to knowledge workers, the relationship between management and workforce needs to change from command-and-control to leadership by employee empowerment. Drucker's main criticism is that managers tend to be too isolated from their workforce and do not spend enough time communicating with their employees. The failure to listen to employees is why managers have it difficult to build trustful relationships with their workforce and consequently have trouble motivating their teams. While these forces that are internal to organizations will need to be managed appropriately, there are several external forces as well that will affect the human resource management discipline of the future.

Future organizations will be exposed to higher degrees and frequencies of change (Aghazadeh, 2003). Competition rooted in globalization and technology will continue to intensify and businesses will increase their emphasis on the creation of intellectual capital. Furthermore, as many organizations will seek to increase their profitability through growth and consolidation, the new knowledge economy will need to find new ways to nurture and protect intellectual capital in the light of these developments (2003). In order to cope with these organizational forces that started to build up in the last two decades, a new form of organization emerged. Virtual organizations, powered by technology and low-cost communication, brought some relief to these forces but also several new challenges.

Virtual organizations have already started to influence managerial practice and their impact will certainly strengthen due to their wide deployment, especially in hybrid form, that is traditional organizations which have virtual components. One hybrid form is the partial virtualization of traditional offices known as telecommuting or teleworking (Sparrow & Daniels, 1999). Companies realized at the turn of the millennium that technology can result in several cost savings and flexibility even in traditional office settings. Telecommuting reduces or eliminates commuting times, and gives greater job autonomy to workers. Workers can save money by having to spend less on lunches and clothing and benefit from less work-related stress. Unfortunately, the virtualization also brought negative side effects, such as an increase in working hours, higher levels of home-related stress, and a change in social relationships between team members (1999). Sparrow and Daniels found that individuals varied greatly in their ability to adapt to the home office work environment and that working from home requires different skills than traditional office work. The impact seems to be stronger on purely virtual organizations and entrepreneurs, however, because telecommuters usually spend only part of their time at home and the majority at the office. Virtual work settings were found to promote routinization, longer hours, increases in work demands, decreased role clarity, poorer physical working conditions, fewer career opportunities, and less social support from colleagues.

Many of these negative effects will diminish due to improvements in technology and worker computer skills in the future; however, human resource departments will need to find ways to motivate and train workers to become productive in virtual settings. Setting up virtual organizations can be a great tool to benefit from globalization. For example, companies can reduce travel expenses and benefit from lower labor rates and uninterrupted operations by dispersing their workforce around the globe. Since competitors will be readily setting virtual organizations to seize such opportunities, ignoring or circumventing virtual work environments will not be an option in the future as it may be at the moment; rather, managers will need to reflect on their management styles and communication skills and find new, improved ways to handle work environment that lack of face-to-face communication.

Another trend affecting human resource management is that the U.S. economy has gradually shifted from manufacturing to services. In 1970, 27% of the workers were employed in manufacturing, whereas by the turn of the century that percentage dropped below 15% (Konrad & Deckop, 2001). At the same time, the female workforce participation rate approximately doubled from 31 to 63%. Konrad and Deckop further uncovered that incentive pay schemes have gained popularity and that skill shortages will continue to pose a threat to U.S. companies. Furthermore, there will be an increase in outsourcing even for small and medium sized enterprises and the workforce will continue to become more diverse (2001). The shift from manufacturing to service in the industry resulted in a shift of managerial focus from managing technology to managing people. What new issues will tomorrow's managers face and how should human capital be managed?

One new challenge to today's organizations is the internet. As foreseen long time ago by Ettorre and McNerney (1995), the internet has already strengthened employee bargaining power because the internet empowers people to become self-employed by reducing the costs for entrepreneurs and exposing them to worldwide markets. Employers are losing their grip on employees because there are many opportunities to make money as an entrepreneur online. To a certain degree and by establishing certain types of businesses on the internet, people will not have to work for organizations at all in the future. Technology has enabled entrepreneurs to reach customers globally at a very low cost and for many types of products and services individual entrepreneurs are now competing directly with large multinational corporations. The possibility of individuals competing directly with corporations imposes a great risk to many industry sectors; hence, managers will need to find strategies to protect their businesses as well as to attract and retain key employees.

With the transition from manufacturing to service, several new types of businesses emerged and existing professional service industries became stronger players in the market. As these professional service companies, such as law firms, designers, and software companies, become more common in the future, human resource management will need to adapt to such knowledge intensive firm environments.

Knowledge intensive firms are characterized by employing people with higher education who deliver knowledge intensive services and products (Teo, Lakhani, & Brown, 2008). Often there is a link to scientific knowledge within the area of expertise of the company and the products and services tend to be customized and delivered by experts in the firm. Another important characteristic of knowledge intensive firms is that they engage in intensive interaction with their clients in order to perform their services (2008). Because of the level of interaction required and all the other unique features of professional service firms, human resource management will need to develop place more emphasis on social intelligence of their workforce. In addition, because knowledge intensive companies have a complex internal and external structure, human resource departments should use performance management systems which require employees to set goals and align to the firm's environment. Moreover, employees of such companies, the so-called knowledge workers, should be recognized and rewarded for their contributions, ideally using continuous feedback (2008).

Knowledge Workers in the Present

The future will bring lots of new challenges to the management theory and practice. The three main trends affecting the management of knowledge workers are likely to be globalization, technology, and the shifting workforce demographics (Ruona, Lynham, & Chermack, 2003). The success of knowledge workers as well as the organizations in which they operate will depend largely on their learning ability. The competitive advantage of the future is therefore likely to come from superior human resource development. It will need to be faster, more efficient, and across nations and places. Human resource departments will need to find ways to learn and deliver results more quickly. As the pace of business will be even faster in the future than it is today, the responsiveness of organizations will be more critical in the future (2003). Organizations, however, can only be responsive when their people are understood and motivated appropriately.

The knowledge age as we know it today has just begun. In developed economies after WWII, workers have migrated from farming to manufacturing and then from manufacturing to service-based work. (Despres, & Hiltrop, 1995). In OECD countries more than 60% of the workforce is employed by service industries (1995). After WWII, management theory transcended from bureaucratic and engineering perspectives to psychosocial and humanistic concepts before ultimately reaching the notion of systems. At the same time, the information revolution stimulated the creation of knowledge in the industries.

Today knowledge is often the major aspect of production and rather than being sold, it is shared; however, as it has been known since beginning of time, it is impossible to separate knowledge from whoever created it (Despres, & Hiltrop, 1995). In addition to the inseparability of knowledge and worker, human resources will need to promote several work practices that are peculiar to knowledge intensive firms. Workers need to challenge accepted wisdom and be intuitive, experimental, and knowledgeable about all systems within the company. Furthermore, incentive systems should be installed which promote the sharing of knowledge and information throughout the organization. One successful form of appraisal system which has been shown to achieve these goals takes into account all interface points of workers, such as superiors, peers, customers, as well as subordinates. Given that more than 50% of all workers report that they are unhappy about their pay and bonuses in general, human resources will need to work on its schemes and improve the framework in the future (1995).

More recently, Ehin (2008) proposed a more radical approach to solving the knowledge worker management problem. From an interdisciplinary viewpoint, Ehin made several observations which are crucial to the management and understanding of knowledge workers. Ehin noted that knowledge workers cannot be managed via traditional methods. The analogy from anthropology is that all biological systems are self-organizing and that their behavior adapts to environmental stimuli. Ehin pointed out that hierarchical social systems are manmade and do not support self-organization; hence, the rigidity of hierarchical systems is rooted in their inability to self-organize and adapt to changing environments. When organizations promote self-organization, so Ehin, more social capital will emerge from greater group interactions. Consequently, such organizations benefit from more commitment and intraentrepreneurship activities (2008).

Anthropological studies revealed that 200,000 years ago humans lived in self-governing groups with high levels of reciprocity where members were autonomous and would lead interchangeably based on their expertise instead of their rank or seniority (Ehin, 2008). Since all human interactions reflect self-organization principles, it is necessary to promote these principles in organizations and gradually shift from hierarchical means of control towards self-regulation of the group. Ehin predicts the intensification of knowledge work in the future will lead organizations to rediscover the principles of self-organization; however, this "un-management" of the knowledge workforce in the so-called Knowledge Age will require different skills than the common superior-subordinate setting in hierarchical systems. As companies try to deploy self-organization today, there are many internal conflicts due to a mismatch of ideology, practice, and reward schemes. Given Ehin's observations, are organizations and society currently in a transition phase towards self-organization?

Knowledge intensive firms have existed for quite a long time; however, mostly in particular industries, such as law, medicine, architecture, etc. Since the Knowledge Age starts to affect most industries today and companies are constantly consolidating and growing, it becomes more difficult to motivate the workforce. Knowledge, however, being the most important asset today for many organizations, needs to be shared; otherwise, the company will not be able to capitalize on it. But how can organizations facilitate the exchange of knowledge? Apparently this is one of the main hurdles today and human resource departments can do a great deal about it. Forstenlechner and Lettice (2007) found that cultural differences can pose a great obstacle and make the exchange of information and knowledge very inefficient, especially in industries and cultures where individuality was expected in the past. For example, in the past, lawyers and general practitioners were working on their own but as competitive forces increased these medical and law offices discovered economies of scope and scale in consolidating.

The mentality of the associates, however, apparently has not followed that trend and lawyers tend to remain individualists (Forstenlechner & Lettice, 2007). Much of the knowledge management fails in those industries because of a lack of time, lack of incentives, and the individuality of workers. In individualistic cultures, which are typical for Western countries that score low on collectivism, it is therefore no surprise that 74% of the workers in law offices only feel motivated to share knowledge if knowledge sharing activities are considered in the appraisal system. Peer recognition and one-time rewards, on the other hand, scored lower with 59% and 43%, respectively (2007). The willingness of individuals to share information is therefore fundamental to the company's success and companies need to find ways to reeducate the work style of their workforce to embrace knowledge sharing. Companies need to build internal knowledge and intellectual capital in order to survive but they will not be able to do so if knowledge workers fail to cooperate. The selection of suitable personnel and the motivation to share knowledge will hence become one of the main challenges to future human resource departments and theorists.

Adelstein (2007) took the point to an extreme with her analogy in comparing the knowledge worker to Icarus. Adelstein notes that as the world economy continues to change and grow together, manufacturing will move to third world countries and so-called first world countries will need to set themselves apart by the quality and quantity of the knowledge they posses and create. Adelstein holds that knowledge is an important asset and that the owning organization needs to be protected against knowledge theft and misuse. This ideology is unfortunately very common and reflected in the practices of most corporations today. Another point of view, which might have not gained yet much popularity in the press, is the opposite notion; the organization wants to protect and own what is actually the knowledge worker's property. If knowledge was protectable per se, there would be legal instruments, intellectual property laws in particular, similar to copyright and patent law, to protect that knowledge. It appears that our society has recognized the need to protect the investments of inventors by granting them patents; however, by explicitly limiting patent life to at most 20 years and limiting the scope of patentable apparatuses the law has implemented a policy to strike a balance between keeping up strong levels of competition and protecting inventors and investments to a certain degree. One could argue, hence, that organizations may have an interest in the knowledge created by knowledge workers but there should not be an automatic claim to it because of mere employment.

The question then remains of whether organizations pay for the work that knowledge workers accomplish or for the knowledge they created. The rhetorical question is then where is the limit of knowledge property? It would be ridiculous for an organization to charge its employees for the experience they gained while working for that organization. Similarly non- compete clauses that are legal in some states target to protect "trade secrets" and other information; however, many states and countries do not uphold such clauses and other states only do so if consideration was received for it by the worker and only if there is a substantial interest to be protected by the company.

The treatment of non-competes in current legal discussions in effect reflects our transition phase as a society. The Knowledge Age will most likely bring unforeseeable new challenges to management theory and many old ones are likely to reappear as well. For example, Wren (2005) noted how workers retaliated by deliberately reducing their work output, such as limiting the number of pieces per hour. It is then to be expected that knowledge workers, who perceive they have reason to retaliate, will reduce the quality of their work to a minimum, just enough to pass "quality control" and meet requirements. Such knowledge workers will intentionally interfere with processes and fail to cooperate and hoard instead of sharing knowledge. As knowledge becomes a valuable asset and workers perceive a high risk of layoffs, they may try to secure their position by engaging in politics and by treating knowledge as what it is: an asset. This situation is very common, especially in companies that do not reward their knowledge workers for their achievements. The challenge, hence, is to better understand the Knowledge Age and knowledge workers and their idiosyncratic needs. Human resource departments can tailor specifically to the needs of knowledge workers and greatly affect how they perceive and succeed in their work environment.

Knowledge Workers in the Future

So what do knowledge workers want and need? As the above discussion has shown, the Knowledge Age has brought many new opportunities such that the need to work for an organization begins to diminish altogether; hence, attracting and retaining knowledge workers as well as their knowledge will depend on a thorough understanding of the situation.

The study conducted by Yigitcanlar, Baum, and Horton (2007) took a very broad perspective by looking at cities in which knowledge intensive organizations operate successfully. They found that knowledge workers need environments rich in retail and professional sports and music. In addition, childcare, school, and higher education as well as health care are also primary considerations of knowledge workers. Furthermore, knowledge workers demand affordable housing costs and seek affluent retirement. Knowledge workers prefer urban, cosmopolitan environments that a rich in time and offer good transportation facilities (2007). Organizations aim to attract this particular type of workforce should therefore focus on environments that satisfy these requirements; however, many of these requirements change as organizations set up on a large scale. For example, housing costs can be expected to rise when several large organizations establish offices in a particular area; hence, it is difficult for an organization to manage its environment. The organization can, however, try to offer additional incentives such as childcare in areas where such facilities are short in supply.

Contingent work, as a subclass of knowledge work, is a practice expected to gain more popularity in the next decade (Redpath, Hurst, & Devine, 2007). Redpath, Hurst and Devine's survey of contingent workers revealed that most of them would prefer work that is not contingent but find it nevertheless rewarding. They enjoy working in different industries, projects, and companies and benefit from higher wages and generally more interesting assignments. Increasingly contingent workers are given greater independence and can choose how and where they complete their work. This additional flexibility also helps them to reduce the stress in their private life, for example by having more time to spend with their children.

It appears that gradually organization begin to realize that more value needs to be passed down to the worker and higher pay and additional flexibility in the work environment are just a two examples of a new wave of bargaining between organizations and workforce. The other transition taking place today is that human factor is found to be far more important with knowledge workers than with touch laborers in the past. Pyöriä (2007) argues that human relations should be therefore valued much higher by knowledge intensive firms than technology. Technology can be bought; however, talent needs to be nurtured and cultivated. Pyöriä found that technology has generally been overvalued and that it merely aids automation and coordination. This could explain in part why many knowledge management initiatives have failed because organizations overlooked the human factor by overemphasizing on technology. What can be done in some larger companies is to appoint knowledge facilitators who can help other workers to learn, organize, conceptualize, and share their knowledge. Given that many knowledge management systems are unsuccessful because of a mismatching organizational culture, such facilitators can help gradually changing culture and perceptions within companies towards a more cooperative environment.

Human resource departments need to also keep an eye on the variables influencing the job satisfaction of their knowledge workforce Lee-Kelley, Blackman, and Hurst (2007) found that shared vision, systems thinking, and team learning are skills that should be looked for in new recruits but organizations should also offer opportunities for knowledge workers to develop their skills. This can be achieved by assigning work that is challenging and requires the workers to come up with new ideas. In effect this is actually a form of employee involvement and also helps reduce turnover and increase job satisfaction (2007).

The lessening bond between knowledge workers and the organizations for which they work should also be a major concern for human resource practitioners. Knowledge workers have non-substitutable knowledge and are less dependent on their employer given their rare skills and knowledge (Donnelly, 2006). In addition, so-called psychological contract is no longer between employer and employee but the loyalty of knowledge workers slowly shifts towards their career and profession rather than the employing company (O'Donohue, Sheehan, Hecker, & Holland, 2007). As successful knowledge workers reach seniority, they seem to develop self-actualization needs that exceed the individual and the organization. Knowledge workers feel they need to make a contribution to the body of knowledge of their profession and industry; therefore, it can be expected that the workforce of the future will be much more autonomous and independent. Since command-and-control structures, which still dominate today's organizational landscape, seem to go against self-sufficiency, how can human resources go about managing such individuals?

Successful knowledge workers are intrinsic learners, need less structure and more flexibility to thrive. Courtney, Navarro, and O'Hare (2007) proposed the Dynamic Organic Transformational (DOT) team model to support high-performance teams of knowledge workers. There are five dimensions in knowledge worker teams: purpose, people, partnerships, process, and performance. The DOT model is built on three major assumptions about such teams. First, knowledge worker teams are dynamic and need to have a holistic view of the organization. Second, teams consisting of experts can only thrive when they are self-directing and therefore need an organic environment. Third, such teams need an organizational culture of learning creates an environment that encourages innovation, high-performance, and effectiveness.

This dynamic view of teams was recently extended and applied to the concept leadership by Karl and Helgo (2008). According to their research, the concept of leadership will need to become more dynamic in the future. At the present time there is too much of a fixation on the leader in management theory rather than the followers. Because leadership is a transient phenomenon in groups, it appears from the internal group interaction; hence, a leader cannot be understood in isolation from the group. The social interaction within the group is a feedback mechanism and it also shapes the leader as well as the group. Trying to analyze leadership without focusing on the followers, hence, shifts the emphasis of the analysis away from the group. The group, however, is actually the nurturing ground for the group activity and the dynamics within the group are what leaders achieve to exploit. A better understanding of the group dynamics should then help the human resource discipline of organizations identify individuals who are better suited to lead departments and teams.

Copyright 2009 by Savas Papadopoulos, FastNeuron Inc Savas Papadopoulos is a software business consultant with FastNeuron Inc http://www.fastneuron.com. He can be reached at 410 571 5950 or via email: savas@fastneuron.com

Be More Competitive With Business Process, Product Knowledge and Accounting in NetSuite

There are three business areas that NetSuite can help your business make more money:

1. Business Practices
2. Product Knowledge
3. Operational Accounting

Business Practices

Business practices are the skills, know how, and procedures that comprise your business operations. In a fundamental way, customers trade their money for the practice your business produces which may show up as either a good and/or a service. A superior business process produces better goods and services and this will lead to more profit.

NetSuite excels in that it can track and coordinate business processes. For example, if a marketing initiative is going well (or not), you can see this in NetSuite's analytics area, and this will allow you to design new action for further spend, or new initiatives. NetSuite's integrated ERP and CRM function gives you a window into your business practices, allowing you to decide, minute-by-minute, where you are succeeding, and where you need improvement.

Product Knowledge

When talking about product knowledge, we are suggesting that your superior understanding of your good or service makes a marginal difference to your customers. The marginal difference is that you win the sale. Your knowledge will be seductive to prospective customers and will lead to more sales versus your competitors. For example, we have a client that sells air-cleaners via eCommerce. Their understanding of allergies, pollutants, smoking, and health conditions help them listen better to customers and suggest the best product from their inventory. This leads to more sales.

NetSuite's capacity to organize information about your products and services through its robust item master can help you demonstrate your superior knowledge. For example, our client can track the typical ailments in a custom field in the item master which makes it easy to search and organize. The eCommerce website can then key on this information to present the best product to the customer. This triggers the customer to trust my client and be willing to purchase their goods.

Operational Accounting

Operational accounting is different from financial accounting when it comes to being more competitive and making more money. Whereas financial accounting tracks the "GAAP" results of employing assets through fulfillment, operational accounting is much more forward and real-time looking. For example, counting the number of leads in the CRM system relative to the number of phone calls made today is an operational accounting practice. This has very little to do with finance. It has everything to do with assessing if action is powerful for opening and closing new sales. Hence, operational accounting is an extremely useful practice for gauging the effectiveness of our actions.

NetSuite performs very good financial accounting functions, while it offers superior capacity to track and measure operational functions. Since everything from marketing to order entry to collecting cash is integrated within NetSuite, all business action is tracked and can be measured in real-time. Email alerts can be generated that trigger people into powerful action depending on key events that can be defined based on your imagination. Information dashboards can bring important measures into the foreground keeping management on track.

In summary, NetSuite is the premier tool that allows you to be more competitive. You become more profitable because you can seduce customers to buy your goods and services with your superior product knowledge, you can offer your business process by delivering on your promise in an effective and efficient fashion, and you can account for all the action in your business to help you continuously learn and improve.

Copyright © Marty Zigman 2011

Marty Zigman, founder of Prolecto Resources, the leading Southern California consultancy leading companies to advanced growth through NetSuite based implementations and innovations. Marty's organization has developed scalable eCommerce systems for companies such as Time Warner and Bank of America which processed over $1.6 billion in order revenue within 12 months. Marty Zigman, a previous CPA and Deloitte & Touche consultant, brings a unique perspective to how business systems can lead to increased enterprise value and competitive advantages. http://blog.prolecto.com.

7 Things to Teach Your Kids About Money

Did you know that many people retire broke?

It's true. After a lifetime of hard work and having earned literally hundreds of thousands of dollars, they end up with nothing. So where did all their hard-earned cash go? The answer is, it passed right through their fingers. While schools are great at teaching algebra, calculus, and geometry... how many of us learned about the basics of personal finance and creating financial security for ourselves?

The truth is, the earlier you learn to handle money, the more likely you are to manage it properly and live a prosperous life.

So why not provide a little home schooling for your family and teach them the basics? Here are 7 important lessons to instill in your kids about money:

1. Save something of what you earn

Acquiring the savings habit is one of the smartest things you can ever do. If you're reading this now as a middle-aged parent, imagine how much you'd have in the bank today if you'd saved 10% of everything you'd ever earned. (It's almost scary to think about, isn't it?) Teach your kids to save a little of everything they earn.

2. Don't borrow what you can't pay back

Debt is one of the greatest social diseases of our time. The price to pay for the "have now, pay later" philosophy is that you certainly will pay later. Debt imprisons you in a job you don't like, creates stress and anxiety in your life, and erodes your wealth creation program. You will never become rich while you're in debt. Period. Teach your kids the value of delayed gratification. "If in doubt, go without".

3. To give is to get

Managing money doesn't mean hoarding it and locking it away in its own purpose-built high security jail. It simply means being careful, spending wisely, and acquiring a regular savings habit. Teach your kids that donating money to worthwhile causes is a noble thing to do, and that the money returns to you in more ways than you can imagine.

4. Money isn't evil

"Money is the root of all evil" and "filthy lucre" are phrases you'll hear banded around. Ignore them. Money actually brings enormous good into the world. For example:

- Creating wealth helps create jobs for others

- Investing in business helps to bring solutions into people's lives by way of innovative products and services

- Acquiring a great fortune allows you to donate more money to charity - or even start your own trust fund

Teach your kids that money is neither good nor bad - it's what you do with it that makes the difference.

5. If you don't spend much, you can't lose much!

One of the oldest wealth-creation maxims is, "It takes money to make money". Unfortunately, it also takes money to lose money. Teach your kids the value of caution when entering into financial affairs. And let them know that many self-made millionaires started with literally nothing.

6. Get the best price for everything you can

Your financial health is really the difference between how much you earn and how much you spend. It therefore makes sense not to pay any more money for something than you have to. Teach your kids that bargain-hunting doesn't make you a "miser" - just a sensible individual.

7. The fast buck is your last buck

Sooner or later everyone gets offered a "surefire" method of making a fortune, whether it's the three-card trick, a once-in-a-lifetime investment plan, or some time-limited business opportunity only available to a select few... Don't fall for too-good-to-be-true scams. Teach your kids that wealth creation is a simple and timeless process based on common sense.

If you had learned the above principles when you were 10 years old, and had applied them every day of your life, would you be financially healthier today? You betcha!

Teach your kids the timeless truths of acquiring and keeping wealth. Knowledge truly is the most precious gift you can give.

http://www.101moneymatters.com/personalfinance/things_to_teach_your_kids_about_money.php

Yoga and Health - Yoga For Profit

The number of people practicing Yoga has probably never been higher. People are increasingly realising that there is a branch of Yoga that suits the vast majority regardless of their age and general state of health.

If you have been practising Yoga for some time, and have the commitment, there is no reason why you should not consider teaching it. As with any business there are many levels and Yoga is no exception. If you are highly experienced already it would make sense to take a teaching qualification. If you are slightly less experienced and without a qualification you can still make money.

The entry level into teaching Yoga could perhaps be teaching what you know to friends and acquaintances in the comfort of your own home. This won't make you rich but may very well bring in the extra money that would make a positive difference to your income. The beauty of doing it this way is that you would have no overheads to pay. Working with friends you will be more at ease than if you immediately started teaching strangers.

A far riskier strategy, one that requires a great deal of thought, would be to open your own studio. Any new business is most at risk in its first year because of bills like rent and local taxes. There is also the fact that as a new business, coming from a standing start, you will have to find clients quickly. To do this you will have to advertise, which in itself is expensive. My own view is that the route to your new studio should be via a teaching position with another studio. Having prior knowledge of how things work can only be to the good and will definitely save you money.

If you have ever considered teaching Yoga, whatever ever level you are at, you may benefit from looking at the resource below. There are many article there that cover almost the whole spectrum that is Yoga. On visiting the site you will find a whole host of Yoga articles. The last two of these deal with teaching Yoga for a living. Be sure to read them.

Yoga for Profit [http://www.yoga-and-health.info].

Money Answereth All Things!

You certainly would have come across this phrase at one point or the other in your life. Many have criticized this as not being true or as being an exaggeration. My dear friend, the truth is this; you cannot live without money! And the reason is not far fetched;

(1) Money gives us options:These options are what make our life colourful; they literally help us live out our dreams and heart desires. What could you possibly do without money? Have you ever given it a deep thought? Yes, I know many who subscribe to the school of thought that the best things in life are free. Of course, I do subscribe to that also, but what about the necessities of life? Do they come free? When was the last time you had a free meal? When I talk about free, I mean it in all sense of the word. This means, you didn't have to work for the food, neither did anyone else. The food came as 'manna' from heaven as was recorded in the bible. Certainly not, somehow, somewhere, someone did something to get that food which you might regard as free. Even if it came from the government as welfare service, or from a relief program; it still came from the sweat of some people.

While it is true that the best things in life, such as; air, oceans, trees, natural resources, happiness, health, sanity, friends, talents, and family are free, which implies that we don't need money to attract, acquire or enjoy them, they are provided by nature itself for the benefit of mankind. How about those that are not literally the best things of life but are vital to our existence here on earth? Things such as; food, clothing, shelter, education, security, health care and so on. These are things that are not luxury but necessities, they are what we cannot live without if we as humans must grow and develop mentally, socially and even physically. The funny thing about anything you get for free is this; you are not open to any option whatsoever. You either take it or leave it. Remember the phrase - "a beggar has no choice."

(2)Money is an Instrument: most people who have a bias for money are no other than those who have a wrong perspective of money. You see, money is neither good nor bad; it's only an instrument and like every other instrument, the knowledge of good or bad can only be determined from its usage. Money can either be good or bad, it depends on how we use it. Owing to the fact that no one is entirely self sufficient, money was introduced as a store of value and medium of exchange. Money is that which makes it possible for us to exchange what we are freely given by nature for those which are needed for our survival as humans here on earth. Money was created to be used. There is nothing wrong with money; the problem is how people go about getting it and how they handle it. Miles Munroe was right when he said; "when the purpose of a thing is not known, abuse is inevitable". If you don't know why money exists, then abusing it is easily achievable. The only reason why you would consider life without money is because you've lost your right to control money. Think about it, money in the hands of good managers are not considered bad. Why? Because It opens up more doors and gives us more rooms to fully maximize our stay here on earth. Money is essential to man as air is natural to life. The lack of it can be very dangerous and the excess of it can lead to danger also. The key is to strike a balance in our usage!

How is Money created?

In your spare time. The truly rich and wealthy made all their fortune from their spare time. You'll only be as rich as how you spend your spare time. Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook in his spare time while in his dormitory at Harvard University. Bill Gates and his founding partner, Paul Allen, began the Microsoft project in their spare time. Sir Richard Branson of Virgin began creating wealth from his child hood at age 16 when he left high school to publish a student magazine he created in his spare time. Google was a pet project which Larry Page and Sergey Brin started in their spare time. And the master of them all, Warren Buffet began creating wealth in his spare time by selling packs of chewing gum at a tender age of six. From each pack he sold, he made two cents profit. They became the first few snowflakes in a snowball of wealth to come.

Still at age six, Warren Buffet during his spare time at night sold coke from door-to-door. He made a net profit of a nickel from every six bottles he sold. He was also distributing door-to-door newspapers and magazines still at age six. By the time he was fifteen, still a kid but now a young businessman, Warren Buffet had accumulated more than two thousand US dollars throwing papers. No one else in high school was a businessman, not alone has two thousand dollars to their name. Just from throwing newspapers a couple of hours a day during his spare time, young Buffet was earning 175 dollars a month, more money than his school teachers! His passion for making money which occupied most of his spare time is what made Warren Buffet the world's third richest man alive today.

The simple question of 'how is wealth created?' is answered with another question; "how do you use your spare time?" If you're serious about creating wealth, a good place to start is by answering the above question. Why? Because the answer to the question of how is wealth created? is this; in your spare time. Wealth is created in your spare time. Yes! You read that well. The simplicity of that sentence has a far reaching impact than most of us would like to come to terms with. Being wealthy begins with watching how you spend your spare time. Knowing how to create wealth begins with knowing how to spend your spare time. You cannot be wealthy if you are not spending your spare time on activities that create wealth. The answer to the question of whether you will be wealthy or not; is found in the use of your spare time. How do I mean?

Of all the resources available to mankind, time is the most crucial. Whatever it is we all wish and dream of becoming is first determined by the use of our time. Whether rich or poor, black or white, we've all been given equal amount of time daily; 24 hours, no more, no less. The outcome of our lives is dependent on how we use our time. At the core, the primary difference between the rich and the poor; winners and losers; those who succeed and those who fail is how they use their time. Time is mankind's most valuable resource. The gravity of this last sentence may not be quite clear at a glance, so permit me to go a little bit deeper.

A resource is simply anything that can be converted into the creation of something else other than itself. A resource in essence is an instrument or tool that can be used in the creation of something new. A resource is not useful all by itself or for itself; it must be applied to the creation of something else other than itself. The creation of anything other than itself is the purpose and essence of a resource. A resource therefore exists to be used in the creation of something uniquely new. A resource must never be wasted. Other forms of resource include; money, people, life, knowledge, idea, thoughts etc.

Having this clear understanding of what a resource is form the basis of how we ought to be using our time knowing what a valuable asset it is to our lives. The outcome of a person's lives can be predicted to an extent by merely observing how they spend their time. Our life is predictable through the use of our time. The rich become rich as a result of how they spend their time. The same is true of the poor. Our future is created today from how we use our time. Time is the currency through which life is spent. Take control of your time and gain full control of your life. Creating wealth begins by having full control over our time. Whoever or whatever controls your time owns your life.

How are you spending your spare time? Sleeping? Watching TV or movies? Discussing sports, guys, babes, fashion or politics? Drinking? Clubbing? Or even Facebooking? There a million and one things to do with your spare time, what you decide to do with yours is entirely your choice. However, you must understand that the choices we make determines the decisions we take which ultimately defines the quality of life we live or would live. The activities you spend your spare time on will reflect and determine the quality of life you live. People can tell what you do when there's nothing to do by simply looking at the kind of life you lead. If your goal is to be financially free and wealthy, then your spare time must be dedicated to the learning, practice and discipline of creating wealth. Wanting it is never enough; your habits which are expressed in your spare time must reflect what exactly you want.

Wealth creation is a function of habits; those things we do during our spare time. If you can form the habits of the rich, you will ultimately acquire the wealth and fortune of the rich. The rich know how to make use of their spare time for wealth creating activities (habits), while the poor engage themselves in wealth draining activities (habits). Knowing the difference between these two realities is the first step to acquiring great wealth.

What is a spare time?

A spare time is anytime you have all to yourself. In other words, it's a time you are in control of. A time free of external control or influence; a time you can totally call your own. It's a time whereby you get to decide what you choose to use the time for. Spare time is anytime spent for yourself. It is your time, use it well. Examples include;

· Sleep time

· Idle time

· Toilet time

· Travelling time (e.g. driving, flying etc.)

· Waiting time (e.g. in a client's office, before an interview/appointment)

· Laundry time

· Exercise (work-out/gym) time

· Cooking time

· Office time (yes, believe it or not, there are spare times during working hours e.g. break time)

· Etc.

How can you tell it's a spare time?

Firstly, observe yourself; are you in a conversation? You can't have a spare time when you are talking or listening to someone else talk. Spare time is when you have the control to keep your mouth and your ears shut. This means that you have to critically examine your conversations and fish out those idle talks which yields no productive result.

Are you all by yourself? This does not necessarily mean being alone (no one physically around). What this means is that you're mentally alone. People may be all around, but you don't have an obligation to them; either to speak or listen.

Secondly, observe the situation/environment; is there no better place for you to be at that particular time? Even though you are obligated to be physically present in such a place at that time, must you be mentally present too? Can't you be physically present but mentally elsewhere; either thinking, reading or daydreaming?

Thirdly, observe your emotions; what is your body or mind telling you? Is your spirit, soul and body fully present and aware? Are you being reminded from within of something else you could be using that time for? Are you feeling uncomfortable or absentminded at that particular time? Are you feeling pressured or restless? These are all indications of boredom signifying that you should find something more exciting and challenging to engage yourself and your time.

Fourthly, observe your schedule; is the activity you're currently engaged in a priority? A priority is an activity that is both urgent and important. Urgent in the sense that it requires immediate attention, delay could mean disaster. Important in the sense that it constitutes a vital part of a much bigger whole.

The key thing to bear in mind when trying to detect or maximize a spare time is this; always ask yourself how the present activity you're engaged contributes to the future goal you're targeting. Remember what has been said about time; a resource used for the creation of something uniquely new. There are countless number of things that would signal to you acting as reminders of how you ought to be spending that time.

The 2 things you must do in your spare time to create wealth

Having discovered how to identify and seize our spare time; how do you know if what you're spending your spare time doing is productive or not? On what kind of activities do the rich and wealthy spend their spare time? There are basically two broad classifications of activities that constitute wealth creating activities and they are;

· Preparation

· Execution

Preparation: this constitutes all the required activities that equip and empower you for the goal, dream or vision you've predetermined for yourself. As the great inventor and businessman Henry Ford once said; "before everything else, getting ready is the secret of success." They are the behind the scene habits that constitute external success or victory. As a matter of principle, preparation is the most vital of the two classes of wealth creating activities. As former coach Bobby Knight once put it; "the will to succeed is important. But I will tell you what's more important; it is the will to prepare!" After all is said and done, fortune will only favor those who are fully prepared to seize opportunities when nature makes them available. The first use of your spare time is in preparing to become the qualified person for the goal, vision or dream you seek. You the dreamer must first and foremost grow and develop yourself to match the size of the dream you seek.

What then are some of the habits that constitute preparation? They are basically three and come in this order; Learning, Thinking and Planning (LTP).

Learning: our ability to do is constantly limited by what we know. Therefore, in order to be able to do more, we must perpetually expand our knowledge through learning. Knowledge is therefore the power to do. Without knowledge our ability to do is limited. So the first kind of habit to develop in order to equip and empower yourself for where you want to go and who you want to be is learning. Learning is the willingness to acquire the knowledge, attitude and skills required for the dream, vision or goal you seek. Learning is perpetual; we are never through with learning. It's a lifelong habit!

How do you learn? Learning basically comes from two sources;

a. Studying: this describes knowledge or skills obtained mentally. It could be done through one; personal reading of books and two; being taught by someone else.

b. Observing: this involves knowledge or skills acquired socially. They are obtained from the environment in which you find yourself and the experience, either yours or that of others. The environment comprises learning from your immediate surroundings and they constitute both positive and negative experiences and events. That means you should be learning from your mistakes, successes, failures, victories and loses as well as that of others.

What should you be learning? They are basically three dimensions of learning;

1. The why: is the purpose for the kind of dream, vision or goal you seek. Do you have a reason for wanting what you so desperately seek? Do you know why you want to achieve that goal, dream or vision so badly? Why is it so important for you to be wealthy for example? Do you know why creating wealth is so important? Why do you want to build a wealth generating system and make so much money without ever having to work? What is the purpose of wealth to you? Why do you need so much money? The why is the first kind of knowledge you should seek, because it brings into perspective all other things which you still have to learn. Without a healthy reason for chasing a dream, vision or goal, we end up becoming victims and prisoners of our own dreams, visions or goals. We compromise on the right principles, standards and values that naturally would have preserved whatever it is we so desperately seek. The 'why' serves as a fuel (motivation) to propel you towards learning other things you need to know in order to have the dream you seek. The 'why' ignites your passion to endure the whole preparation process. It constantly keeps your dreams, visions or goals in check making sure your actions, attitudes and thoughts are all in line with what you desire. If the 'why' isn't big enough, the 'what' (dream) will appear too difficult for you to achieve and the 'how' (process) will appear too difficult for you to endure. Your reason (the why) must be big enough to give you the required energy to embark and stick to the process (the how) in order to fulfill your dream, vision or goal (the what).

2. The what: is the vivid knowledge of what you seek. The 'what' is the clear picture of the desirable future you so desperately seek. Do you know what exactly it is? It answers the question; "what exactly do I want?" "How well do I know this dream, vision or goal?" "How will I know when it is eventually achieved?" "How am I so sure this is what I really want?" Knowing the 'what' helps to clarify your focus. It puts your dream, vision or goal into the right perspective. That is; the way it ought to be not the way you perceive it to be. Many of us want and pursue dreams, goals or visions we don't even fully understand, how then do we intend to achieve them? For example, most people don't understand what it means to be wealthy yet they hunger and thirst after money. Without a clear understanding of the goal or vision you seek, there's every possibility that you won't recognize it when it comes or worse still settling for something lesser than what you originally set out to accomplish. If you're going to spend your life pursuing a goal, dream or vision, wouldn't it be wise to first spend ample time learning about the goal, dream or vision? Pursuing a goal, dream or vision you don't fully understand, is like chasing thin air; you would only be busy doing nothing. So learn about that particular dream, goal or vision you seek. What would it look like when it's finally achieved? What are the obvious characteristics of the dream, vision or goal? What will be the signs of the dream, vision or goal once achieved? In this case, what does it mean to be wealthy? What are some of the challenges of being wealthy? What will you do with so much money when it eventually comes?

3. The how: is learning about the requirements or ingredients needed to make your dream, vision or goal a reality. The 'how' is the price tag of the 'what' and a test of the 'why'. The 'how' is having an understanding of the essential skills and knowledge commensurate to the dream, vision or goal you seek. The 'how' involves learning what it takes to make your dream, vision or goal happen. Without the 'how' what you seek will only remain an imagination. Dreams, visions or goals don't just COME through, they are WORKED through. You must be prepared to learn all that it takes to do the work of making your dream, vision or goal a reality. The truly successful KNOW what it takes and DO what it takes, no wonder they are the only ones that HAVE what it takes to make their dreams, visions or goals a reality. While the unsuccessful ones still dream, they LEARN, DO and ultimately HAVE and LIVE the dreams the unsuccessful are still busy imagining. Show me the size of your dream, vision or goal and I will tell you to go begin developing your muscles. The 'how' is often three times bigger than the size of your dream, vision or goal. So the next time you lay on your bed dreaming and imagining what your life would look like once your dream, vision or goal becomes a reality, check your muscles to be sure they are three times bigger than what you seek. You want to be sure you have developed enough mental, emotional, spiritual and physical muscles needed to deliver the dream, vision or goal you seek. For it takes consistent hard work and perseverance to make dreams, visions or goals a reality. Many are ill-prepared for the dream, vision or goal they seek. How prepared are you? In this case, do you know what it takes to build a system that generates so much wealth with or without your physical input? In other words, do you know how to create enduring wealth?

Thinking: this is the second habit of preparation. After learning comes thinking; the digestion and internalization of knowledge or skill acquired. In my opinion, this is about the most dreaded habit of many. What many refer to as thinking is simply worrying. Success in the pursuit of a dream, vision or goal will only happen once we are all able to tell the difference between thinking and worrying. The successful think while the unsuccessful worry. Thinking is that rare ability of coming up with unique and useful solutions or ideas to challenging situations or problems by using our mind to creatively ANALYZE, ORGANIZE and INTERPRET information received from our five senses. Thinking is the art of making sense of reality; how we interpret the information received from our five senses. Thinking is how we form our perception (understanding, opinion, belief, and mindset) of reality. It is how we interpret the world around us (reality) and come up with our own definition or meaning to things. That means, how we analyze, organize and interpret (think about) the information supplied by our senses from the world around us (reality) forms the basis of our perception (understanding, opinion, belief, and mindset) about things (issues, problems, events, experiences, circumstances, environments etc.). And that is why it is such a very delicate matter. Thinking has the power to change our perception (understanding, opinion, belief, and mindset) of the world around us (reality). And once it begins to change our perception (understanding, opinion, belief, and mindset) of the world around us (reality) our life begins to change either positively or negatively depending on the kind of information we received from our five senses. That is thinking can totally alter how we analyze, organize and interpret what we see, feel, hear, taste and smell.

Worrying on the other hand is not trying to make sense of reality. It's more of trying to deny reality by focusing more on the issue, problem, situation, experience etc. rather than trying to understand it so as to gain the power to overcome it. Worrying is not analyzing, organizing and interpreting the information we receive from our five senses, it's complaining, labeling and ignoring the information we receive from our five senses. Instead of trying to analyze the situation or problem (this is the first step of thinking), worrying focuses on complaining about the situation or problem. Instead of trying to organize the facts obtained from analyzing the situation or problem (this is the second step of thinking), worrying focuses on labeling; attributing blames and assigning names to the situation or problem. Instead of trying to draw up solutions or ideas by interpreting the organized facts obtained from analyzing the situation or problem (this is the third step of thinking), worrying simply ignores all the information presented by the problem or situation hoping that the problem or situation will take care of itself somehow.

The goal or objective of thinking is to gain adequate knowledge or insight of the problem or situation so as to be able to uncover a suitable idea or solution to overcome the problem. It's like looking at the problem or situation through a microscope; you want to see the patterns, the cause and effects of the problem or situation by dissecting and magnifying it. Thinking helps us discover solutions by understanding the problem or situation. Until the problem or situation is fully understood through deep thinking, the suitable idea or solution required to overcome the problem or situation will keep eluding us. The goal or objective of worrying is to SAY everything humanly possible to make the problem or situation go away except to DO the right thing which is; spending time to analyze, organize and interpret all the information you are getting from the problem or situation. Problems don't go away by simply talking, they go away by taking actions. After 'the saying', 'the doing' must follow. This is the essence of thinking; it helps us know WHERE to begin to do. It gives us an idea on how to tackle the problem or situation. Since the role of learning is to equip us with a reason to pursue our dreams, visions, or goals (the why); a vivid understanding of the dreams, visions or goals we seek (the why); and a knowledge of what it takes to make our dreams, visions or goals a reality (the how), the role of thinking is to help us identify with our present problem or situation so as to be able to discover a way out of it (the where) and begin the journey towards the dreams, visions or goals we so desperately seek.

Planning: is the formulation and presentation of knowledge and skills acquired through learning guided by the ideas or solutions generated through thinking into a strategic series or course of action. Planning is the intelligent organization of our knowledge, skills, experiences, ideas and solutions into a set of strategic actions. By strategic, I mean each action carefully developed and executed as a vital part of a much bigger whole. That is every action in the plan builds on previous actions and sets the tone for future actions. The outcome of your preparation stage is a finished and detailed plan that will be used as a guide in your execution stage. In this case, you want to have a laid out series of strategic actions that will deliver your dream, vision or goal of a financially free future. Your plan should include the following;

1. Timeline: how long will it take you to go from here to where you want to be? In other words, what is the expiration date for your dream, vision or goal? For example, what date do you plan on retiring from active duty?

2. Deliverables: how will you know you are gradually approaching the accomplishment of the dream, vision or goal you seek? Dreams, visions or goals don't happen as a whole, they materialize in tiny little parts that when put together makes the complete whole. Deliverables are the tiny little parts of your dream, vision or goal and you've got to have a list of what they are. For example, how many businesses must you build to be financially free for the rest of your life? How much in residual income (income earned without working) do you want to generate monthly or yearly for you to be wealthy?

3. Tactics: how do you want to play to win? What are going to be your tools for delivering your dream, vision or goal? In this case, how do you want to create your wealth? What wealth creating instruments or tools do you want to adopt? There are several ways of creating wealth such as profits from businesses, capital gains and dividends from investments, cash flows from real estates, royalties from intellectual properties, etc.

Tito Philips, Jnr. is a young Nigerian who is MAD-Making A Difference. He's a People, Business and Life developer who is passionate about helping you become SIGNIFICANT -different (being Unique) and Making a difference (being useful). You can read more about his thoughts on Business here; http://www.naijapreneur.com, and his thoughts on People and Life here; http://www.MADphilips.com

Christian Health - 15 Reasons Your Prayers For Healing May Be Blocked

You've thought you've been a "good" Christian. You go to church, have devotions and are active in church events. You pray - well, especially now that you're sick and neither the medical community or alternative medicine has been able to help you. You've exhausted all avenues known to "man" and came up empty. So God is your last hope.

Like many "good" Christians you're not alone in taking this route first. In this modern age we've come to rely on human physicians instead of the Great Physician. After all, God has blessed doctors with knowledge and a gift for healing. But, many times we go to them as our gods for healing and many of them readily take on that persona and to go against their directives they feel may even qualify as blasphemy.

I'm not against doctors mind you. God has raised them up to be blessings. But, we are to seek God and His wisdom first and not set up other human beings as a replacement for God the Father, Son and Spirit.

And when conventional medicine comes short we seek alternative medicine.

Proverbs 3:5-8 talks about trusting God even more than you trust your own instincts for trusting God will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

God's will is not that of miraculous healing for your body and mind but that you walk in His will first and by doing so live in divine health. It would be vain to miraculously heal a smashed thumb if the carpenter does nothing to prevent the possibility of hitting it with a hammer again thereby injuring it consistently.

So why isn't God listening to your pleads of anguish and your cries for healing? God is waiting for you to quit swinging the spiritual hammer. Sins prevent God's work in our lives and sometimes we don't even realize that we are sinning. The number one hindrance to being blessed is disobedience.

The following may be some reasons it seems as though your prayers are falling on deaf ears.

1. Holding a grudge or unforgiveness toward another.

God is not a bubble-gum machine. In Mark 11 we are told that we can pray to even have a mountain removed and be thrown into the sea and if we don't doubt it will come about. People so often want their prayers for health answered so badly that they fail to keep reading. Just the next two verses tell us to forgive so that our heavenly Father may forgive us. If we don't forgive neither will He. How can we be healed of a chronic disease if we fail to forgive others as we have been forgiven?

God's love is not conditional but He won't bless sin. He also isn't fooled. He knows forgiveness for us is sometimes difficult. But, forgiveness is an attitude of the heart and a choice. You don't forgive people who have wronged you because you feel like it. You make the choice to forgive and because we have the Spirit of God dwelling in us, He gives us the ability to forgive. We won't necessarily forget, but the bitterness of being wronged can be removed from the memory of the wrongful action.

2. To be ignorant or to lack knowledge.

God created your body with the ability to balance it's functions and to heal itself if given the optimum circumstances. Your body operates at a cellular level. If large numbers of cells fail to communicate then the created balance is upset and symptoms of disease manifest.

Disease is the miscommunication of cells. What we have to find out is what is causing the miscommunication. God knows all things and to come to Him in prayer to ask for understanding and wisdom should be foremost. Wisdom is knowledge in action. Proverbs tells us that the beginning of knowledge and wisdom starts with the fear or respect of the Lord.

3. Knowing of God but not having a relationship with Him.

Do you need to accept Jesus in order to be healed? Will He heal you anyway? Yes, God will heal people who do not accept Jesus. We see this in scripture from Mark 7 when the woman from the border of Tyre and Sidon asks for her daughter to be healed. She was not a believer but Jesus healed the daughter anyway.

And take the ten lepers for example. All were healed but only one came back to give thanks. But if you can be healed physically isn't it up-most to be healed spiritually for salvation? In James 4 we are told that we don't receive what we ask for because we ask amiss. Our motives for asking are not right and our motives aren't right because we don't really know the one we are petitioning to. When Jesus healed He preached the gospel first then He healed.

Now you say that there are those who are not Christian and receive healing. They may be instinctively following God's truths by their own reasoning in their heart. Their rewards will be of this world.

In reading through Leviticus it shows us how serious God is about sin. The penalty was high in the Old Testament. Sacrifices had to be made. Much blood from animals was shed. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for all of our sins with His shed blood. We no longer need to kill animals for forgiveness. But God still views sin as serious. It causes physical and spiritual consequences.

4. Personal sins (unknowingly or flagrant) and inherited generational sins.

In Isaiah 59 we are told that the Lord's hand can save and his ear can hear but, our iniquities have separated us from God and our sins have hid His face from us so that He will not hear. In Exodus 20 it says God holds the fathers responsible for the spirituality of the family and that consequences of sin can go on for generations.

So we not only have to consider the sins we commit ourselves but also inherited family tree sins. Diseases run in families and so do spiritual dynamics; fear, worry, anxiety, resentment, bitterness, negativity also run in families.

Temptation is not sin. But if people habitually practice those things that God has said is wrong with a hardened heart as a way of life then the God's word in Galatians 5 says that the Kingdom of God is not theirs. As with forgiveness it's a matter of the heart. It's a matter of knowing it's wrong and doing it anyway or knowing it's wrong and desperately wanting to change.

5. Not having faith that God is able to do what He says.

Praying and not really believing God can heal you is a major block for healing. Even Jesus was unable to do mighty works because of people's unbelief and doubt. As we trust in Him to work in us and with us we see His power revealed. Many books in the Bible talk about having the faith in God to know that He can do what He says; Mark, Hebrews, and Matthew. Take your belief to point of commitment!

6. Needing to see a miracle or a sign first.

How many people won't believe until they see a miracle or a sign first? They wouldn't believe Jesus was the Messiah unless He came down from the cross and delivered Himself. Thomas wouldn't believe until he saw the scars in Jesus' flesh. But Jesus said blessed are they who haven't seen and yet believe.

We are not to look to other humans for health and healing. We are to look to God, to the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, and to His Word. Doctors may be looked upon as miraculous healers when in fact it is God, who made your body, who heals.

We must seek God and His Word, and not wonders and signs for the foundation of our faith. Disease is a fruit of separation from God in some area in our life. Faith in God and His Word is the key to a relationship with Him not if you see miracles or signs and wonders.

7. Thinking God should heal you on your own terms not His.

First of all we are not to be impressed with our own wisdom as told to us in Proverbs 3. And if we respect the Lord and turn away from evil (sin) we will have healing for our bodies and strength for our bones.

A great illustration of this takes place in 2 Kings 5:11-14. The commander of the king of Aram's army, Naaman, had a spiritual problem of pride. Pride in thinking he knew what was the best way for God to heal him of leprosy. Elisha the prophet had sent a messenger to Naaman to tell him to wash seven times in the Jordan river. But Naaman got irate that first of all Elisha himself didn't come out to heal him and secondly that there were better rivers than Jordan to wash in. He left in a rage.

Naaman's officers confronted him with the fact that if Elisha had given him something complicated to do he would have done it. So why was he being stubborn in doing something simple like washing in the Jordan and be cured? Naaman conceded and washed in the Jordan river 7 times and was healed of leprosy.

8. Looking to man to be the source of your healing.

Are we running from one doctor or expert of a medical modality to the next trying to find the answer to our healing rather than turning to God in prayer and to seek a relationship with Him first and then His wisdom?

Psalm 118:8 says it's better to go to the Lord than to trust in people. We find this in 2 Chronicles 16 when King Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet and even though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. He died two years later.

The Lord tells us that cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD. Our salvation through Jesus Christ may be secure because we we trust in Him for forgiveness of sins but we can still suffer physically if we don't trust in Him for guidance in healing.

9. Trying to hide sins and faults from God and not being honest with one another.

Why do people lie about doing something they think is wrong? Why do they try to hide it? Because of pride and fear. Fear of what others will think, fear of rejection, fear of failure and fear of not being loved and too proud to admit that even you can make a mistake or have weaknesses.

Yet we are told to confess our faults to one another and pray for each other in James 5. God sees it all anyway so there's no hiding anything from Him. We need to bear one another's burdens as in Galatians 6.

Proverbs 28 lays it out on the line by saying that he that covers his sins shall NOT prosper: but if you confess and turn from them you shall have mercy. We all sin and fall short of the glory of God. But we are to help each other build one another up. Team mates.

We are not to be angry and resentful of ministers of God's Word when they speak the truth to us regarding sin and turning our lives around. That's truth when it hits an open wound of pride. Destruction closely follows pride as a fall also follows a haughty spirit.

10. Not giving to God what is rightly His in tithes and offerings.

Everything is God's because He made it all. Malachi 3 talks about robbing God. When we neglect to see that all of our blessings come from Him and take and take and take and not respond in kind, then we rob from God. If you're a manager of a store,a department, or an executor of an estate you want to know how the owner or boss wants it handled. Your job is a steward of what you were given. But, to do the best job you can you ask how it should be managed. It's called embezzling if you take it as your own.

God has given us time, talent and money. To show our trust and gratitude for His blessings we are to give back a portion. Not just any portion, however, but the first portion of what He has given us. If we do that He promises to pour out blessings that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

11. Looking to the symptoms and not to The Healer.

Anytime you concentrate on the problem instead of how to solve it you get nowhere. I know it's difficult to look past the symptoms especially when pain is involved. It consumes our present life and gives us the fear of pain in the future.

But just as Peter started to sink because he took his focus off of Jesus Matthew 14 so we must remain focused on the author of our faith and the creator of our bodies. We are to put on the FULL armor of God as in Ephesians 6. The enemy does not want to easily give up a stronghold. To distract you with symptoms is a great tactic to hold you in fear and paralyze you - maybe literally.

Look to the Healer that we see in Romans 8. If He can raise Jesus from the dead surely He can heal you. Don't negate that Christ took your sickness as well as your sins to the cross and by His stripes we are healed as 1 Peter 2 tells us.

12. Harboring fear in your heart.

Fear quenches faith. Fear put your focus on you and your problems and tells you that God isn't who He says He is. Fear produces doubt and doubt makes you think that God isn't omnipotent. God can't handle your disease. God wants you that way. Fear quenches prayer. After all God must not be listening to pitiful you.

Fear doesn't come from God. As a matter of fact over 300 times in the Word of God we're told NOT TO FEAR or FEAR NOT! God's antidote is His Spirit. His Spirit is found in reading His Word and hearing the truth of who God really is; creator, redeemer and sustainer of our lives. God gives us peace as in John 14 and a spirit of power, love and a sound mind in 2 Timothy 1.

Discern where the spirit of fear is coming from as it is keeping you from prayers being answered. Even in the secular realm we've been told we have nothing to fear but fear itself.

13. Neglectful lifestyle.

You expect healing when you neglect the care of your body. Unhealthy and risky lifestyles are directly opposite of God's command to take care of your body, His temple. We were bought with a price; we are not our own. We are to honor God with our bodies and to present them as a living sacrifice to our Maker. It is our spiritual act of worship.

So not getting the right nutrition, drinking enough water and getting enough sleep and rest have a natural consequence. So does watching vile media, taking in unhealthy substances and listening to negative and counterproductive music.

Don't keep blocking your own healing with a lifestyle choice you won't give up.

14. Not resisting the enemy and just giving up thinking God wants you that way.

Your premature death doesn't help God build His Kingdom one bit. Your being in disease doesn't fulfill God's purpose for you in the least. Can you declare His truth to others if you're dead? Can the dead arise and praise God as it states in Psalm 88 and 30?

God doesn't need disease to get you to heaven. We are of no earthly good to God if we die without ministering to other souls that need to hear His Gospel of Salvation! We are to spread the Good News and how can you do that if you are totally concentrating on your own physical health? We fail ourselves and God if we don't ask for wisdom for healing and stop being in His Word.

We are told to fight the good fight and give God ALL glory.

15. Past and continued involvement in occultism or other spiritualities.

There are a lot of healing practices and medical modalities. From acupuncture, meditation, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), yoga, diets, reiki, energy healing, biofeedback, tarot, New Age, angelology, breathwork, Chinese herbs, hypnosis, healing touch, imagery, reflexology, shamanism and the list goes on and on. We get so caught up with the finding THE answer or THE cure that we stay on this medical-go-round and totally miss who gives us life and health in the first place.

We look to other gods running from one thing to the next to relieve our fear or pain instead of to the One that has had the answers all along and has been patiently waiting for us to come and ask Him. To rely on Him only. Psalm 118 reminds us to trust in God and not in human means that will let us down. We also are not to turn to idols and that includes ourselves.

God has given us an inborn yearning for Him; a spiritual tug. But we must not confuse that yearning for anything other than the One true God; Father, Son and Spirit who created, sustains and saved us from spiritual death and carried our diseases to the cross. To do so may mean earthly rewards but spiritual sabotage.

Don't be deceived. God is foremost concerned with you going to heaven but He needs healthy soldiers who give Him ALL glory to carry out the spiritual warfare to win others to Christ. We must clean up our spiritual act so we have the energy and zeal to fulfill our purpose in His Kingdom. Times of trial and pain test our commitment, faithfulness and trust in a God who loves us dearly and gave His Son so we may have life, and have it abundantly.

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. ~3 John 1:2

God is dealing with you; His body in this world. If you are Christian in your beliefs and know that God raised Jesus from the dead then He surely can bring healing and health to your body and mind as well as forgive your sins. But just as Jesus followed His Father's will so must we.

Christian Natural Health Coach, Patti Olson, was inspired to become a health and wellness coach after her victory over 23 years of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and assisting her husband's victory over Farmer's Lung, sleep apnea and arthritis.

Since then she has helped many others overcome their chronic conditions by following the same basic steps. Get her free report titled Overcome Chronic Illness: 5 Steps to Reclaiming Your Life from:

http://www.OvercomeChronicIllness.com

Feng Shui and Money Symbols

Are you happy with your situation in life? Invite wealth into your life using Feng Shui money symbols. With the right knowledge of how to use it, you can attract abundance, good health, and good relationships to your life.

Health and Relationships come first, because money can't buy good health and good relationships. Once you have avoided any negative energy (chi), then you find ways to improve Wealth and Success.

The first step is to clear all the clutter from your home and office, it is important to set your intention, otherwise the space you clean up will fill right back with the same bad energy. Second thing to do is get yourself a good compass and determine your home.

Feng Shui has money tools (wealth, fortune, success and abundance) to help us manifest anything we want and need. It needs to be positive, (focused on what you want, rather than what you don't want). The key as always is to create the balance into your life.

This three colors purple, red and green support prosperity (a never ending flow of giving and receiving) energy in your home or office.

The Feng Shui or Money Frog (this is a three legged statue of a frog or toad with a coin in his mouth)

The frog can bring good fortune, happiness, longevity and good health! And also called Three Legged Toad or Frog, "Chan Chu" as the money frog is called in Chinese is associated with the moon. This is because it is believed that the frog transforms with the moon. The Feng Shui money frog represents wealth, good health. Place the Money Frogs to enhance the southeast. To double your cash flow and the income of your home, you may put two Money Frogs on each side of the entrance inside but their heads must looking in and not out because if they walk out the door they will never return. Place as many fogs as you feel in your living room, but not too high, as frogs lives on the ground.

The Money tree (botanical name Pachira)

Just like other indoor plants, it needs some sun light and periodically watering. It can grow as tall as seven feet. The money tree have thin branches with five big green leaves on the top, like human hands with five fingers, which symbol the five fundamental elements of Feng Shui: Metal, Water, Wood, Fire, and Earth. It is also known as the good luck or good fortune tree. It brings prosperity (a never ending flow of giving and receiving) to your home.

The Good Luck Golden Cat of Abundance and Protection is a unique Feng Shui symbol.

On one side the cat is smiling and holding his paw up which in Feng Shui represents good fortune and the attraction of wealth. On the other side the cat is frowning for protection and holding a broom to sweep away trouble. Place this cat in your wealth sector, South-East.

Chinese Coins

Imperial Coins, round with square hole in center, also called Feng Shui Coins or I-Ching Coins, are an excellent symbol of wealth, prosperity, and security especially when tied with red thread and also attract money to your home. They are tied in multiples of 3, 6 or 9 with red thread. Hang the coin sword on the wall in the living room, with the tip facing down and towards the entrance or windows

The laughing Buddha of Wealth

The Happy Buddha is a symbol of happiness and abundance. You will find him sitting on a huge gold ingot or dancing on a money bag. The gold ingot is considered a very lucky symbol of wealth. Place the Buddha of Wealth on your desk or in the wealth sector of your home to bring wealth to the family.

Goldfish

"Yu", is the Chinese word for fish it also means success. The best location for your aquarium is the North wall or the South East wall. The best shape for an aquarium is rectangular or round.

The Chinese place three orange or yellow gold fish (energy) and one black goldfish (protection) in an aquarium to attract money. They believe that if misfortune hits your family, the black goldfish will die and receive the misfortune.

The Pearl Dragon

The Dragon is the symbol of absolute power in Feng Shui. Dragons are the most striking creature in Chinese mythology. The Pearl Dragon stands for power, and abundant wealth. He can be placed anywhere in your home, (buy not in your bedroom bedroom), it brings good luck. Place this dragon in high-activity working areas, on the East of your desk.

If you are considering bringing Feng Shui into your life, you must think about it before purchasing any products. Your intuition and your own energy will lead you to the right product of Feng Shui money symbols that is right for you. And the energy flows where intention goes.

Health! Whose Responsibility - Yours or Theirs?

What turns a person into a patient?

Have a think about it.

Is it a choice that turns a person into a patient? The choice to hand over power for one's own health to someone else. The handing over of power seems mutually beneficial. It maintains the doctor's status, it means the doctor's customer can abdicate responsibility for healing.

I'd like you to play with this thought for a moment. When you visit a doctor you are a customer rather than a patient.

How does that feel? What do customers do? They go into a shop, have a look round, if they need some advice they ask for it and an expert, or someone who thinks they're an expert, happily gives it. If the salesman is experienced the customer will probably make a purchase. If the salesman is ethical then the customer will be pleased with the purchase and feel they have received value for money. But if they are ignored, or made to wait an unreasonable amount of time, or treated rudely, the customer simply takes their business elsewhere.

What do patents do? They arrive five minutes before the agreed appointment time. They go into the reception. They give their name. They are told to sit in the waiting room. Anything from 20 minutes to two hours later they hear their name called. They try as best they can to describe the problem they want taken away. They are given a piece of paper, which they then have to take to a pharmacy to exchange for drugs, and that's the end of it. The whole process generally lasts less than 5 minutes. If/when the drugs don't produce the desired effect the whole process is gone through again. This is all endured stoically, or stressfully, by the patient who feels powerless to bring about the outcome they desire.

And what exactly is this outcome?

The desired outcome is healing. The desired outcome is freedom from the pain, freedom from the discomfort, freedom from the stress, unhappiness or anxiety; freedom from concern that this is something life threatening.

Although the last time I visited a doctor was around 5 years ago, in my life I've spent many, many hours in doctor's and hospital waiting rooms. In all that time I have never once heard a doctor mention the word 'healing'. I've heard about symptoms and diagnoses; I've taken the latest wonder drug on several occasions filled with hope that this was the miracle I've been waiting for only to have that hope dashed as the miracle made me feel worse than I already did.

The miracle that I'd been waiting for was the realisation that I was responsible for my own health and well-being. Only when this happened did I start to heal.

Now I need to make myself clear. Being responsible for your own health does not mean doing your own surgery. It does not mean, selecting the drugs you think you need and buying them from an internet pharmacy. Doctors have valuable knowledge. When I broke my wrist I was very grateful for the knowledge and skills they used to assist my healing. I used their x-ray machines to find out what the damage was. I used their plaster to support my wrist. I used their skills and knowledge and listened to their advice on exercise. But I didn't use their drugs for the pain. I used my own mind to deal with that. And having made that choice the pain was never intolerable and was a useful feedback mechanism to let me know if I was pushing my wrist too fast.

Being responsible for your own health means:

1. Acknowledging there is a physical or psychological problem that you'd like to change.

2. Getting advice from several expert sources, such as... Doctors, Other health practitioners like... Herbalists, Nutritionists, Psychotherapists, Hypnotherapists, Counsellors, Healers, Chiropractors, Past-life regressionists, or Books and of course the internet.

3. Making a choice

Making a choice means going with what feels best to you, and trusting your decision despite pressure from vested interests to follow their particular healing system. I know people who when they have a problem are quite happy to have surgery as soon as possible to get it sorted. I know others who are happy to live with the problem while they explore mind-oriented techniques to see if they can find the emotional cause and release it, thereby healing the problem.

You can even make a different choice every time. There are no rules here, other than to go with what feels right or comfortable to you. Doctors and hospitals are brilliant in emergency situations, but if it isn't an emergency then you probably have some time to consider options. The moment you open your mind up to a different approach to healing you will find that the information you need comes to you in an almost magical way. Coincidences are an indication that you are making the right choices for you.

A selection of self-help books are available on my web site. I particularly recommend The Journey by Brandon Bays.

Michael J. Hadfield MBSCH is a registered clinical hypnotherapist. You can experience his unique style on a popular range of hypnosis CD's and tapes at http://www.hypnosisiseasy.com Here you can also obtain treatment for a variety of problems and explore his approach to health, healing, and hypnosis.

How to Compare Low Cost Health Insurance in Oregon

Oregon has an excellent health care system; in fact, one of the best in the nation according to U.S. government figures, but regardless of how good the system is at saving and prolonging life, the fact is that Oregon's heath care, like health care everywhere in this nation, is expensive.

In fact, according to figures released by the Oregon Department of Insurance, almost half of all citizens of Oregon find health care costs a financial burden and fully one quarter of all adults in Oregon report spending up to twenty-five percent of their monthly income on health care.

Clearly for the majority of people something has to be done to bring down the cost of staying well.

The most formidable weapon at the consumer's disposal is knowledge. Become knowledgeable about health care and your health care choices. Go online and compare policies and prices - the difference in cost for the same basic policy from one company to another can be truly staggering.

Before going online sit down and figure out what you and your family need out of a health care plan. What is important to you - and what isn't? Are doctor's visits more important than hospital stays? Are prescriptions more important than visits to the emergency room? Do you need a policy that covers you when you travel? Do you have a new baby - or are you expecting one in the next year?

Write your answers down on a piece of paper and play around with them when filling out your online comparison forms. Remember, when you are looking for low cost health insurance here in Oregon there are bound to be trade-offs. Don't expect to find the perfect policy - unless you can afford a high premium or your needs are simple.

And of course the main trade-off that many people use to create an acceptable health policy at a price they can afford is their deductible. This is money you have to pay from your own sources for your health care needs before your insurance begins to pay. The greater your deductible the lower your monthly insurance premium.

Health insurance is costly, there's no getting around that - but if you spend some time online and ask some tough questions of yourself, the answers you come up with just might make health insurance a lot more affordable than you ever thought possible. The key is to compare low cost health insurance plans side-by-side until you find the one that's right for you.

The sites that I recommend

Fast Health Quotes
Cheapest Health Insurance Quotes