The Radiance of Knowing

Why is it that so many people believe that they don’t have time or the initiative to be romantic? Perhaps most men and women don’t accept that they are inventive enough to be romantic. Everyone is inventive! The definition of being inventive is having the ability or capacity to produce. The word invent offers a much broader definition than most people accept when it comes to the technique of being able to come up with something original or just sufficiently thought out.

Gifts that are considered to be traditionally romantic like candy and flowers are fantastic, but occasionally you want that something special that pushes to the extremes. If your partner enjoys flowers, you don’t have to settle for roses because they can become unexciting after a while! Present him or her with something totally original such as a daisy or another blossom where petals can be counted. Ask him or her to play the childhood pastime of ‘they love me, they love me not’ and watch them pull the petals as they go. Warning, don’t allow for the chance of him or her arriving at the ‘they love me not’ . Count the petals before you present the bloom to your partner and trim it so that there is an odd number of petals for the desired result!

Arts and crafts used to be a fun break from the drudgery of the public school day, but believe it or not, it will come in handy when it comes to original romantic gestures. Instead of promising that you will love him or her forever, show them. Get a piece of paper, ribbon or other fabric you choose and write “I love you” on both sides from end to end. Twist the paper 180 degrees and connect both ends of the paper until you have made what looks like the number eight. Tape or glue to ends together. You can present your love with a figure that shows them your love for them is an infinite love.

Creativity comes in many different forms! Being original can mean creating an atmosphere. If you want to plan the ultimate romantic evening but funds are low or you just don’t want to have to leave the house, close down the electricity and mimic a power outage (it’s up to you whether or not you tell him or her!). You won’t have any distractions or warmth, so it is up to both of you to keep the other heated and amuse each other.

Maybe romance is on your mind, but he or she is going on a trip out of town. Did you know that people on airplanes are typically incurable romantics? Any flight attendant would be more than delighted to make sure that your partner receives a special gift after the plane has left the area. Simply approach a crewmember after your partner boards the plane and they are, on the whole, more than happy to accommodate a hopeless romantic like you! (You might want to make sure that the present is unwrapped or keep it to a single rose due to heightened security.)

Creativity doesn’t have to come in the shape of gifts every single time. Gestures like getting up and dancing with your partner when a specific tune comes on the radio is quite inventive and amazingly romantic! Whenever the inclination strikes you, allow your creative juices to run wild!

Jeff Rose has published an eBook on romance in relationships and marriages entitled ‘The Magic Marriage.’ A free 5 day set of Romance Lessons is available at http://www.magicmarriage.com/tips.htm.

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If you want to keep your Yoga students coming back for more, you have to keep your classes interesting. Don’t keep doing the same thing every week. How would you feel if the restaurant you went to served you the “usual” every time you sat down? Most of us would change restaurants, because it’s boring.

If you are bored, and feeling stale with the routine and lesson plans in the Yoga classes you teach, so are your students. This is time to develop alternate lesson plans. Look around your class to get a feel for the energy; if there is none, you have to make changes. Design Yoga classes with a slightly different emphasis to see if you can recapture some excitement or find a trend.

Monitor your drop out rate and know your stats. Are you losing more students out the back door, while focusing on bringing new students through the front door? This is very common, but many health clubs and Yoga studios make the mistake of taking repeat business for granted.

When you have a small number of Yoga students to track, you don’t have to drive yourself crazy with statistics. If you grow into a large Yoga studio, you have to pay attention on a weekly basis. Who is out? Why are they out? …and so on.

I’m not telling you to hit the panic button every time your numbers drop. Some slow downs are seasonal and others just happen. What you are looking for are trends. Trends tell you the average life of a student / teacher relationship and why most of them leave.

Many of them leave, because they don’t feel like they are acknowledged. No one greets them or makes any small talk. Others leave because of the class atmosphere; they didn’t bond with the particular teacher, they didn’t like a student in the class, or the material covered went stale. Other reasons might be a job/family change. This is why you have to get to know your students, and if you don’t like it, find someone who will. A person who greets your students is important, no matter what size your business is. This person serves as a “sounding board” and can head off a few disasters at the pass.

Sometimes you can guide a student gently into an alternate Yoga class. Without understanding and identifying trends, we would all fly blind. This takes a lot of guesswork off your back in the future. When the company grows, you will need to understand your direction and make corrections accordingly, just like any other business.

© Copyright 2006 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

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Let’s face it: As a parent or guardian, your child means
everything to you. When putting your child through daycare or
school, it is important to make sure that nothing goes wrong to
harm your child - either physically or mentally.

Additionally, your child’s health and safety should be one of
your top concerns. If your child is enrolled in a day care or
school program and something goes wrong, you’re sure to feel
upset or angry.

However, taking an aggressive approach and complaining with the
daycare or school can sometimes make the problem worse rather
than better. Rather, you should take preventative measures to
making sure that your child will have a wonderful experience.

Below are some proven steps you can follow to making sure that
your child doesn’t run into any serious problem at daycare or
school:

- Do not blame anyone before having solid proof or evidence.
Work with your child’s teacher or caregiver on coming up with
several solutions to the problem and reaffirm your active role
in your child’s education. By being a problem-solver, you’re not
only showing that you’re active and involved in your child’s
life, but also that you’re a responsible individual who cares
about coming up with solutions rather than winning arguments.

- Use subtlety when trying to probe the truth from teachers or
caretakers. Try to find something worth praising or noting in
the school or person who is working with your child. Starting
the conversation out on a positive note shows that not only are
you concerned about your child’s well being, but that you also
notice and appreciate the dedication and enthusiasm of the
caregivers and teachers involved.

- Let your child tell you in his or her own words what’s going
on at daycare or school. However, you shouldn’t rely on their
explanation as the only one. Get information from teachers,
classmates or even other parents. You’ll find that there are
several sides to the story, and the more you know, the more
fully and accurately you can approach the teacher or caretaker
and voice your concerns.

- Follow up with the people you’ve taken your complaints to and
talk with your child to see how things have improved. If the
situation hasn’t changed, take your complaint to the next person
up and repeat the steps above until a resolution has been made.
Being informed and involved with your child’s school shows that
you’re more interested in seeing quality results than making a
one-time complaint and letting the issue sit while nothing is
done to correct it.

- Try to keep the issue on the actual incident instead of the
people involved. This helps minimize any later confrontations
(between your child and another child, for example), and also
helps the teacher focus on the problem and not the ones who
started it. Also, don’t forget or ignore your child’s possible
role in the problem.

As they say, it is best to prevent than to find a cure later.
Always be sure to show your confidence in the daycare or school
you enroll your child in. This way the daycare or school will
also respond by living up to your expectations!

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