Posted on September 22, 2011 by Dave Wellman babyboomentrepreneurs.com

I had the pleasure of sitting in a meeting today with one of my clients. She was doing a presentation to a group of people in the area of her specialty. What she does is unimportant, but what I saw in her inspired me to write this article and challenge we Boomers looking to grow our businesses to keep it simple.

Keeping it simple means:

1. Don’t over think things. I remember hearing about Occam’s razor. This is a scientific principle that indicates that, “when faced with competing hypotheses that are equal in other respects, selecting the one that makes the fewest new assumptions.” In other words the easiest answer is most often the best answer.
2. Find a niche and master it. Being an expert in your chosen niche makes you more valuable to your clients/customers than if you are simply good at a lot of things. Most people can be good, but only experts are sought after.
3. Learn the honestly care for your customers/clients. When you have an honest concern for those who buy your products and services, you will treat them with the utmost respect and they will make you their sole supplier!

There you have it! Boomer business success, by just keeping it simple!

By MOLLY BAKER

On a recent Sunday evening, each of my kids was engaged with some electronic gadget or another. I was about to call for a moratorium on screen time and a return to family time.

Unbeknown to me, they were already enjoying family time.

My 9-year-old in our Philadelphia home was playing an online Scrabble game with his grandmother on her iPad two time zones away in Denver.

My 11-year-old was video-chatting with his grandfather in Florida on Skype, a program I didn't even know we had.

And my 14-year-old was checking in with his "friends" on Facebook. And whom does he count among his 300-plus friends? His great-grandmother in Minneapolis.

Certainly, it's nothing new that kids are plugging in and staying connected. But what is new is that it may be a grandparent on the other end of that virtual tin can—and that technology is bridging the vast age and distance gap that has long divided the generations. "A group of us was having dinner, and one woman had to tell her husband to put his iPod Touch away. He was emailing his grandchildren," says Mary Henderer, a Wilmington, Del., grandmother of four.

It's a perfect storm of demographics and technology.

As a group, grandparents and grandchildren have plenty in common. They have free time, disposable income for gadgets and gizmos, and a keen interest in staying in touch with people.

As for technology, smartphones, tablet computers and digital cameras have made sharing fun instead of frustrating. And the affordability and speed of broadband Internet have made possible activities like video-chatting and streaming home movies.

The new era is in stark contrast to what took place in recent decades.

"When the baby boomers went to college and moved away, we lost an entire generation of connection between grandparents and grandchildren. They saw each other once or twice a year, and there was a real disconnect," says Andrew Carle, professor and director of the Program in Senior Housing Administration at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

"Now with technology, we are regenerating those bonds. People say technology is so impersonal, but we are watching it being used to reconnect one of the most personal and important relationships of the species."

Prof. Carle adds, "I watch my own kids talking to their grandparents 1,000 miles away, and I love it," he says. "They may take it for granted, but I only saw my grandfather once a year. Nothing will replace a hug, but this is as close as it gets."

Building Blocks

Granted, on the surface, many of the messages that fly back and forth are as trivial as the messages that kids send to one another. But trivial communication are often the building blocks of many close relationships.

Eleven-year-old Emily Hykes of Orange County, Calif., likes to make singing and dancing videos for her grandmother, whom she calls Honey, to watch in St. Paul, Minn. But her favorite way of communicating with her grandmother is using her iPod Touch to text or email.

"Honey, I hear it's below zero there. I'm sitting on the beach. Love, Emily."

"Emily, I'm sitting on the beach in Florida. Back at ya. Honey," her grandmother, Carolyn McKasy, texts back.

Emily's mother, Kristi Hykes, who is caught between the two generations of texters, says her mother and daughter's electronic correspondence largely consists of jokes about the weather and photos of their favorite sushi meals. "It might just be a few sentences back and forth, but at least a couple of times a week they are in touch with each other," says Ms. Hykes. "My kids are much closer to my parents because of technology."

Virtual Christmas

The family even used their computer's built-in camera, the Internet and Skype software this past December to celebrate a virtual Christmas with the extended family in Minnesota. The grandparents wanted to give their seven grandchildren a Christmas gift at the same time—a water trampoline at their lake cabin.

A generation ago, grandparents and grandchildren living apart had Thanksgiving, birthday cards and a Sunday night phone call—after 8 p.m., when long-distance rates went down.

"There used to be a scarcity of communication, and it was very precious," says Thomas Kamber, founder of O.A.T.S., or Older Adults Technology Services, a nonprofit training and support center in Brooklyn, N.Y. "Nowadays, communication is so ubiquitous it's free. Older people are catching on to that, and they want to be a part of it."

Mary Madden, senior research specialist with the Pew Research Center, says: "The most powerful force convincing them to take the plunge…is their families. Especially when it comes to their grandchildren, they do not want to be left out of the loop."

Tabb Farinholt, 73, who lives in Gloucester, Va., joined Facebook about two years ago when a friend from her book club told her about it. "She said, 'You need to do this because you'll learn so much about your grandchildren.' "

Those were the magic words. She has been enjoying looking at pictures and posts of her six grandchildren ever since. Sure, most of it is inane, and she's even considered stopping. But then she thinks of the photos she might miss seeing.

"It does make you feel closer to them—just to see their picture or a few words by them," she says. "They are certainly not thinking, 'How can I be close to my grandparents?' And I wouldn't expect them to. But Facebook is kind of nice to keep up with them a little bit."

Leveling Effect

Over the past few years, Facebook has morphed from a closed site for college students to an online playground where barriers of age, distance, background and technological expertise have been leveled. It has become a rare space where generations can meet on neutral turf to share and interact. Currently, users must be 13 years old to open a Facebook account, resulting in the young and old tiptoeing into the space at the same time.

Says the Pew center's Ms. Madden: "Seniors who have recently retired, teens and young adults just beginning their lives are all going through very significant changes. And this social networking and communicating can be a very powerful force in helping them move forward."

She also says that grandparents can play a unique role on Facebook. Plenty of kids block or limit the access their parents have, but they give free rein to the extended family—enabling grandparents to perform duties of light surveillance.

Just ask Bart Farinholt of Richmond, Va.

Recently, the 20-year-old sophomore at Denison University posted a Halloween photo of himself gesturing inappropriately (in character) on his Facebook page. Not long after, he received an email from his grandmother: "Obscene gestures on Facebook. Just so sophomoric." And she had underlined every word.

"If my mom told me to change it, I might have argued with her," he says. "But it was different because it was my grandmother. So I changed it. It's actually nice to have her checking on me and giving me advice."

It's So Easy

Such frequent and casual communication is actually changing the relationship between these two generations—and so far, all for the better.

With his grandmother as easy to reach as a roommate or teammate, Mr. Farinholt was compelled to ask her to help with a study-abroad application. Yes, even after the Halloween incident.

"He emailed me his essay to read. And of course, it was due the next day," Tabb Farinholt says. "But I didn't say anything because I was so thrilled to be asked. I was a high-school English teacher, but this was the first time any of my grandchildren asked me to edit anything they've written."

Dick Anderson, 77, of Bradenton, Fla., fields requests for help, as well. He emails and Skypes regularly with his four grandchildren in Virginia and Minnesota. Recently, he's been engaged in an online discussion on Facebook with his oldest grandchild about investing.

"He was curious and wanted to learn more. He had lots of financial questions for me," says Mr. Anderson. "Sometimes it's on Facebook. Sometimes it's texting. Either way, I'm here for him."

Toys for All Ages

Certainly the teaching goes both ways—especially when it comes to technology. The vast improvements in personal computers and phones over the past few years make the new toys the perfect middle ground for the generations to share their curiosity and expertise.

For the Feiner girls of Ridgewood, N.J., teaching their grandfather, Harold Schwartz, 79, of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, is a family affair.

"We teach him how to do things on his new computer," says 9-year-old Amelia Feiner. "And he gives us a dollar and takes us to the candy store to buy caramels."

For the past few years, the girls' grandparents have taken an annual cruise lasting several months. They see plenty of ports, but they don't see their granddaughters. So during those months it's back to emails. Lots of them.

Last year, when 11-year-old Ella Feiner was in fourth grade, she and her classmates joined her grandparents for a virtual cruise around the world. They posted a laminated map of the world on the wall and marked every stop the cruise ship made.

"Every other day my grandparents would send two emails, one for me and one for my class. They like to tell us about their ports or send quizzes and geography games," says Ella. "If I forgot, my classmates would say, 'Did we get a message?' "

Ella keeps an email folder for missives from her grandparents, appropriately named "Cruise Emails."

"My girls have a whole separate relationship with my parents that just skips right over me," says Ella's mom, Shoshana Feiner. Which is perhaps a key component to the success of such interactions. Email, text and Facebook are done on kid time or grandparent time, and they require no intervention or supervision from the parents in between.

'Being Friends'

In her day, Ms. Feiner grew up down the street from her grandmother and saw her several times a week. "But if my grandmother was over, that meant she was baby-sitting. She was in charge," Ms. Feiner says. "Their style of communicating today is much more fun. Communicating from afar is about being friends. There's no discipline involved."

No discipline, and sometimes just a single word.

When Mary Henderer in Delaware broke her wrist snow-blowing this winter, she sent an email updating her family on her swift healing after a doctor's visit. Her two grown sons responded with good wishes and lots of questions. Her 15-year-old grandson replied, "Yay!!"

Says Ms. Henderer: "That was the one that mattered to me."

In a recent study, 402 middle-age women from Chicago were asked about their personal experiences with discrimination in the past year, and were then given CT scans to determine their levels of visceral fat.

Visceral fat forms around the internal organs, and may not show up on the surface as an expanded waistline. However, it has been linked to hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes.

Tené Lewis of Yale University School of Medicine studied the relationship between discrimination and abdominal fat in white and African-American women. She said that, surprisingly, the association seemed to be linked to the individual’s perceived experiences of discrimination in general, and not to their race or whether they appeared overweight, since visceral fat is not apparent.

Subjects were asked whether they had experienced insults or a lack of courtesy or respect based on discrimination. Lewis and her colleagues found that on average, the more discrimination a woman reported, the more visceral fat she had.

February issue of American Journal of Epidemiology.

A. Although not dangerous, a sudden leg cramp, sometimes called a charley horse, can be a painful presence in the middle of the night. Cramps are involuntary muscle spasms caused by firing of the nerves that stimulate the muscle. Although the occasional cramp is a common experience, a few conditions can promote cramping, including pregnancy, rapid salt and water loss, thyroid deficiency, or nerve disease. For unknown reasons, leg cramps also can become more frequent with age.

Although preventing cramps is tricky, treating them isn’t. When you find your calf cramping, Layzer says, “take hold of the foot and toes and pull them back. It will stop the cramp, and it’s very cheap.’’

PR 101 Lesson #90 Of course content is king

Jeff Cole | January 3, 2011

For Baby Boomers, A Positive Attitude Is A Critical Component Of Both Physical And Mental Health.

Implement these 20 tips for a great 2011 and beyond.

1. Stay Positive. You can listen to the cynics and doubters and believe that success is impossible or you can know that with faith and an optimistic attitude all things are possible.

2. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement: My purpose is_______________________.

3. Take a morning walk of gratitude. I call it a “thank you walk.” It will create a fertile mind ready for success.

4. Instead of being disappointed about where you are think optimistically about where you are going.

5. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.

6. Remember that adversity is not a dead-end but a detour to a better outcome.

7. Focus on learning, loving, growing and serving.

8. Believe that everything happens for a reason and expect good things to come out of challenging experiences.

9. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

10. Mentor someone and be mentored by someone.

11. Live with the 3 E's. Energy, Enthusiasm, Empathy.

12. Remember there’s no substitute for hard work.

13. Zoom Focus. Each day when you wake up in the morning ask: “What are the three most important things I need to do today that will help me create the success I desire?” Then tune out all the distractions and focus on these actions.

14. Implement the www.NoComplainingRule.com. Complaining is like vomiting. Afterwards you feel better but everyone around you feels sick.

15. Read more books than you did in 2010. I happen to know of a few good ones.

16. Get more sleep. You can’t replace sleep with a double latte.

17. Focus on “Get to” vs “Have to.” Each day focus on what you get to do, not what you have to do. Life is a gift not an obligation.

18. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements:

I am thankful for __________.

Today I accomplished____________.

19. Smile and laugh more. They are natural anti-depressants.

20. Enjoy the ride. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy it.

-Jon

If your gift list include back pain suffers, an ergonomic office chair may be the perfect gift.

These tips help make choosing the correct ergonomic office chair for the back pain sufferer.

What Features Should a Good Ergonomic Office Chair Possess?

In first considering the "conventional" style of office chair, there are a number of things an ergonomic chair should have, including:

• Seat height. Office chair seat height should be easily adjustable. A pneumatic adjustment lever is the easiest way to do this. A seat height that ranges from about 16 to 21 inches off the floor should work for most people. This allows the user to have his or her feet flat on the floor, with thighs horizontal and arms even with the height of the desk.
• Seat width and depth. The seat should have enough width and depth to support any user comfortably. Usually 17-20 inches wide is the standard. The depth (from front to back of the seat) needs to be enough so that the user can sit with his or her back against the backrest of the ergonomic office chair while leaving approximately 2 to 4 inches between the back of the knees and the seat of the chair. The forward or backward tilt of the seat should be adjustable.
• Lumbar support. Lower back support in an ergonomic chair is very important. The lumbar spine has an inward curve, and sitting for long periods without support for this curve tends to lead to slouching (which flattens the natural curve) and strains the structures in the lower spine. An ergonomic chair should have a lumbar adjustment (both height and depth) so each user can get the proper fit to support the inward curve of the lower back.
• Backrest. The backrest of an ergonomic office chair should be 12 to 19 inches wide. If the backrest is separate from the seat, it should be adjustable in height and angle. It should be able to support the natural curve of the spine, again with special attention paid to proper support of the lumbar region. If the office chair has the seat and backrest together as one piece, the backrest should be adjustable in forward and back angles, with a locking mechanism to secure it from going too far backward once the user has determined the appropriate angle.
• Seat material. The material on the office chair seat and back should have enough padding to be comfortable to sit on for extended periods of time. Having a cloth fabric that breathes is preferable to a harder surface.
• Armrests. Office chair armrests should be adjustable. They should allow the user's arms to rest comfortably and shoulders to be relaxed. The elbows and lower arms should rest lightly, and the forearm should not be on the armrest while typing.
• Swivel. Any conventional style or ergonomic chair should easily rotate so the user can reach different areas of his or her desk without straining.