By Peter Greenlaw and Dr. Dennis Harper

Another failed diet.  Unfortunately, those words ring hollow and true for many Americans who are left wondering why diets consistently fail them.

There are many answers to this question, but a primary reason is the polluted world in which we live.  Major studies conducted by Mount Sinai Medical School and National Geographic have shown that our bodies are storing pollution, acid and impurities in fat cells.  The more impurities we ingest, the more fat cells our bodies create.  This is one of the main reasons why over 75 percent of America is overweight, and why 3 million Americans weigh over 500 pounds.

The answer would seem to be a diet with the proper amount of nutrition – eat healthy and cleanse the body.  However, in order for the body to naturally cleanse itself of impurities, it needs proper nutrients that contain trace minerals (by ingesting trace minerals and rare earth elements in a high nutrition diet, enzymes can more rapidly break down food and cleanse the body).  The problem with this solution is that there are no more trace minerals in our food.

In a report to the US Senate in 1936, it was reported that American soil had become “almost void of trace minerals” due to the use of pesticides and herbicides, and the fact that farmers no longer rotated their fields.  Today, in 2009, the problem has only been exacerbated, and America is considered to be the most overfed and undernourished society on the planet.  In fact, our food supply is so nutritionally bankrupt that it would take about 12 apples in 2009 to equal the nutrition in just one apple from 1976.  The nutrition in a bowl of spinach from 1957 requires 51 bowls of spinach in 2009.

It’s with this dilemma in mind that 21st century thinking is taking over when it comes to nutritional health.  Scientists, doctors, health advocates and other health professionals are backing the attributes of nutritional cleansing, a viable option that is rapidly gaining momentum among people who want a new way to lose weight and achieve overall wellness in their bodies.  They are discovering the benefits of flooding their body with massive amounts of nutrients, trace minerals, fats and proteins, leaving the body satisfied without having to overindulge on food.

While trendy diets and dramatic steps such as stomach stapling continue to be the solutions people are turn to for their weight and health problems, nutritional science is an option that cannot be overlooked.  As people become more aware of the value of nutritional cleansing, it’s likely the choice they’ll make to lose weight, gain energy and improve their lifestyle.

Peter Greenlaw and Dr. Harper have spent the past several years researching nutritional science and the health benefits of nutritional cleansing.  They are both considered experts on the subject, and can be reached at 303-589-7087

Mr. Greenlaw will be speaking at the Hilton Garden Inn/Allen, 705 Central Expressway, in Allen Texas on December 3, 2009 at 7:30PM..

For more information, please contact Kerry Erling at 214-295-7631 or you may pre-register for this FREE seminar at http://www.cleansing-coach.com/seminar-signup-form.htm

Are your sales costs increasing per sale?

Does your marketing scare prospects away?

Do you have products or services that no one is buying?

Are your revenues down?

If so, then you may have a decentralized revenue capture approach where your strategy, marketing and sales process are not aligned as an integrated revenue capture program.  (Click this link to visit The CxO Group and watch a 2-minute video that defines what a centralized Revenue Capture Strategy is.)

In my previous life, before starting this company and others, I was VP of Strategy Worldwide for an $800 million public company called Renaissance Worldwide. This was the company that bought Renaissance Solutions, the consulting company owned by David P. Norton, author of The Balanced Scorecard.

As VP of Strategy, I worked for the CEO and the board of directors to evaluate and make appropriate recommendations on the strategy, marketing and sales process of ten (10) operating business units we had. Our operating units included internet start-ups, acquired businesses, and organically grown divisions.

Using the balanced scorecard approach, I identified that many of our business units had a decentralized revenue capture process because their departments were not linked to a common goal or aligned symbiotically to each other. Not that the management teams were consciously trying to build barriers of cooperation between departments, but it occurred due to their individual corporate goals, compensation plans and the team members inability to understand the other department’s functional operational attributes.

This lack of functional operational interdepartmental knowledge and lack of alignment forced departments, even with good intentions, to work as business silos.
Four Truths Many People Ignore

1) Corporate Strategy is based on research of what prospects will buy, not what you want to sell.

Just because you bought a company, created a new offering, or spent $10 million on development to create the greatest widget in the world, it does not mean you have a market for what you sell.

Buyers only care about themselves.

2) The marketing department ’s primary goal is to help generate qualified leads for sales . . . that’s it.

Yes branding, third-party analysis research and beautiful tradeshow booths are important, but they are just tools to ultimately increase revenue.

Marketing must have ROI or it is a wasted investment.

3) The sales department must sell new business.

Yes, selling existing customers is important, but to grow top line revenue where you will not be dependant on your existing customer’s ability to buy . . . you need to hunt for new business as a premeditated approach. By focusing on the lifetime value of deals, you can reduce sales capture costs.

Hunt Now or Be Eaten Later!

4) If your departments are not aligned together by goals, key performance indicators (KPI’s), compensation plans and parallel knowledge of the operational tasks of the other departments, then you have a decentralized revenue capture process.

Revenue capture is a company responsibility . . . not the sales departments.

Take The Revenue Capture Scorecard Alignment Test

Here is a quick assessment of a much larger assessment test we give to help you decide if your team is focused on revenue capture as an integrated group or if are they operating as independent silos.

1) Does your company create (or acquire) new products or services based on market demand?

__Yes   __No

2) Does your sales team have separate sales quotas for business from existing customers and business from new prospects?

__Yes   __No

3) Is your marketing department paid based on the number and the quality of their leads they generate?

__Yes   __No

4) Are your sales quotas or targets calculated based on mathematical demand models?

__Yes   __No

5) Do your senior marketing executive and your senior sales executive have a team metric then need to reach together?

__Yes   __No

6) Are your marketing managers paid based on corporate department sales increases?

__Yes   __No

7) As a business to business company (B2B), does the marketing department report to the VP of Sales?

__Yes   __No

Do the sales, marketing and strategy departments meet at least four times a year to discuss successes and failures to date and document action steps required by each?

__Yes   __No

9) Does your senior management team assign specific measurable metrics to the strategy, sales and the marketing department managers and is their performance discussed at executive meetings?

__Yes   __No

10) Are your sales team members evaluated on how quickly they follow-up on sales leads given to them by the marketing department?

__Yes   __No

11) Does your marketing department go on sales calls at least twice a year to understand the sales process?

__Yes   __No

12) Has your marketing team researched why prospects buy, why they don’t buy, and how your firm creates value?

__Yes   __No

13) Do you have a written corporate strategy for all department heads to review as needed as a corporate guideline?

__Yes   __No

14) Does the sales team have a written step-by-step sales process to guide the marketing department on what communication deceives they need create for each sales cycle step?

__Yes   __No
Scorecard Answers:  1. Yes; 2. Yes; 3. Yes; 4. Yes; 5. Yes; 6. Yes; 7. Yes; 8. Yes; 9. Yes; 10. Yes; 11. Yes; 12. Yes; 13. Yes; 14. Yes
Leadership should be more participative than directive, more enabling than performing. Mary D. Poole

Learn more about CEO Coaching, Marketing Advisement, Business Growth Strategies and Strategic Planning services at http://www.thecxogroup.com

Contact The CxO Group directly by email info@thecxogroup.com or phone (972) 727-6880

This is MY personal experience and opinion, so take it for whatever it’s worth. Use them if you want, but I will never use them again.  Also, I failed to check BBB prior to using the company and I realize that they have a good grade but had 4 complaints in the last 36 months.

So I had bought a couple of trees to be planted. To make sure I didn’t mess up anything underground. I had contacted DIG Tess number to have them mark things such as the gas line. I also had to have a stump removed and the tree removal people were going to dig a hole for the tree as well. They had mentioned to get sprinkler people to check where the lines might be.

I had contacted C-Green sprinkler company since I had used them for a couple of other things before. Also, another company told me on the phone that they can not detect where it is at. C-Green however did not say that over the phone even after explaining to them the situation. So I had made the appointment to have them home specifcally for that reason and I added the rain freeze sensor since it was one service call I had to use.

When they came out, the guy said we don’t have a tool that can detect it. The only thing he can do is by looking at the sprinklers heads. He had said they usually run in a grid and told me a spot that would be the safest to dig.

So the tree stump removal was here and removed one stump and then began to dig the whole for the new tree. The spot that was said was the safest ended up to be the exact spot where a pipe was and since a machine was used. It broke.

I called C-Green to ask if they would take responsibility for it since my initial service call to them was mainly for that. The “Service Manager” did not call me back and I had to call again and they gave me his cell number. He basically said in a irritating tone, “well, we didn’t break it so we won’t fix it”. What kind of business attitude is that? Honestly. He went on saying that the people who dug the hole broke it so they should be responsible. I don’t think that way because they were responsible in telling me to call professionals who deals with sprinklers. I also don’t blame the service guy who came out from C-Green, he was actually nice. I would not go back because the tone of the Service Manager and because I still think the company should take responsibility and at least offer to waive the service charge to fix it since my initial call was to avoid this from happening.

If you run a business. Whether the customer is right or wrong, the number one thing is to treat them like a valuable customer. There are ways to say things nicely even if it’s not what the customer wants to hear.

I crave for Indian food sometimes and especially Naan bread. I’ve tried other indian restaurants (can’t even remember the names on the top of my head, that’s how forgettable they were), but I really like Mumtaz because they have Chicken Tikka Masala and really good naan. They are also accomodating to us since we have kids, we ask for a milder CTM and they will make a smaller portion for us, they usually do this when we get the buffet.

The better thing about this place is that they have a monday night buffet for $5.99. Yes, $5.99 - it’s almost unimaginable for an Indian Restaurant or for most buffets that are actually pretty good. The selection isn’t a whole lot, since most Indian Restaurant have their normal Chicken Tikka Masala and other curry/spice type food, but it’s enough for me since I only eat CTM with Naan. A whole lot of Naan. I eat so much of the Naan that I think it’s probably over the $5.99!

The place itself is a sort of low light “family own” type of place and the people running it are nice since we do go there quiet often, even when it’s not mondays and we just want take-out. Come to think of it, maybe I remember the name of Mumtaz because my husband somehow just starting singing this “mumtaaaz” song hahaha so it’s stuck in my head!

Here is their info:

216 W Campbell Rd, Richardson, TX‎ - (214) 575-2100‎

Last year I was lucky enough to have a neighbor share with me some food she made. She mentioned it was west indian food and something about Roti. The main dish was made with Mango and some kind of meat (lamb, goat, or beef…yeah I can’t tell the difference). But the Roti she was talking about, it wasn’t actually  just Roti, I later found it was Dahl Puri. It has some powered up yellow pea or something in it and looks like very thin layers of Roti. I LOVED it with the sauce she had from the main dish.

Ever since then, I was in search of the recipe. She did tell me I can watch her make it the next time, but I haven’t had that chance. I googled all over and found a place in Plano called “A Tast of the Island”. They had roti and Dahl Puri. I quickly made a trip there and bought both, but they didn’t have anything with Mangoes in it. So I ended up getting Chicken Curry and another day I got Chicken Stew. I was just wanting it mostly for the sauce. Since the Chicken Curry is more spicy, I now always get the Chicken Stew. I even tried looking for the recipe on google with keywords “trinidad chicken stew”…but the one I found and tried to make did not tast anything like theirs.

I just went there again this week…and last week. This time, I got 8 Dahl Puri, the Chicken Stew, and I wanted to tried Ox Tail Stew. I know..Ox Tail right? But OMG, it was delicious!!! I think it’s the first time I’ve ever tried Ox Tail. I think I’ve had Pig Tail in soup (asian stuff) but the Ox Tail was so tender and tastey. MMM….I still have a couple of Dahl Puris left, but I will surely get more again once I’m done (you can refrigerate it or even freeze it and just put it in the microwave for about 35 seconds or so). I’m so hook and thought I should shared this with you all! I wouldn’t have tried Caribbean food probably if it wasn’t for my neighbor, so I’m so thankful for her!!

It is owned by a couple and they are very nice. I love going to places that are indie owned and small. They usually have the best homey food. Here is their website and info:

http://tasteoftheislands.net/

Address:  909 W. Spring Creek Plano, Texas 75023
Telephone:  972 - 517 - 5900

– Providing individuals with the opportunity to manage and organize their busy lives; R2 Business Ventures announced today that it has launched the website http://www.groupusup.com.

The website www.GroupUsUp.com. is a social networking community site focused on allowing individuals to form groups for anything or join groups such as clubs, family, friends, neighbors, neighborhoods, HOA’s, organizations, teams, co-workers, alumni, non-profit, jobs & career, business, social, charities, nightlife, sports and more.

Managing Partner Rick Erling adds; “Our early market gap analysis uncovered a need for an easy to use community social networking site that is focused on groups, rather than individuals. We wanted a way for people to organize their lives by having a place to socialize with groups that they have a common interest with.”

With the Group Us Up! concept of “groups for anything”, there is no limit to the benefits of having an outlet to organize your members. You decide if your own profile and the groups you create are public or private and you also decide who to invite. Groups can have multiple discussion forums, photo albums, file attachments and your members can also post blogs, organize events and keep track of who’s attending those events.

Mr. Erling adds; “We have neighborhood and HOA groups that are staying connected and sharing information about their groups and organizing social events. Intramural sports teams and booster clubs are also using it to organize and provide updates on when practices are, where the games take place and plan fundraising events. Businesses are getting onboard for internal corporate communications and reaching out to new customers and partners. There is no limit to the benefits of having an outlet to organize right from your home or anywhere, anytime you have web connection.”

As Mr. Erling and his team grow Group Us Up! they will be depending on their members to provide input on functionality to make Group Us Up! as user friendly as their members desire.

Membership is FREE and signing up is quick and easy at http://www.groupusup.com/.

Anyone who puts up a Dallas business venture hopes the business will become flourishing and successful. We always look for ways to be on top, especially when it comes to the internet.

It would be a great benefit to make use of Dallas internet marketing and advertising. just about any business can be done online. In connection with this, search engine optimization could help you a great deal to become successful in your business. You can send information or marketing reports about different items for sale to all your family and friends and you may request them to forward these messages to their families and friends as well. You just have to remember to include information on how a potential buyer could contact you.

Dallas search engine optimization is an excellent way to enhance and develop your marketing strategies; thus resulting to better visibility on the search engine outcomes. With the search engine optimization, there is a consequent increased number of visitors to your website hence, creating a much bigger opportunity for you to find many potential clients.

If you really want to have a booming Dallas business, you should start optimizing your website now. However, to create a lot of traffic to your website entails some time and effort. You should first understand what Dallas search engine optimization is all about.

To optimize your website, the contents of the website must be valuable information. With informative and interesting contents, your visitors will tend to go back to you whenever they need more information regarding the business. They will begin to see and be interested with your products and services.

For those of you who know about Pippi Longstocking - it is coming to the Eisemann Center this Sunday February 15th, 2009. 

I grew up watching Pippi with my cousin and remember we would set up a bunch of chairs and pretend we were at sea like Pippi. Just recently I mentioned it again to my cousin since I wanted my son to see it. I haven’t seen it on TV again, but coincidently my cousin had told me they bought set of DVD released (the original and not the remake). I always enjoy watching it, even now. It’s great for imagination and just really takes you away to another world.

Here are some more info and you can check out the Eisemann site for more info:

“The Eisemann Center’s Family Theatre Series will present“PIPPI LONGSTOCKING” from the book of same title written by Astrid Lindgren, Sunday, February 15, 2009 at 2:30 pm in the Hill Performance Hall. American Family Theater’s production of Astrid Lindgren’s popular children’s story brings this most outrageous redhead to life in an enjoyable performance for the whole family.”

It’s not a typo…it’s really $3.95/Dozen of Oysters at Pappadeaux. It’s for a limited time of course.

I’ve seen some that says it’s good until Feb 14. When I asked the waitress, she didn’t seem to know. She said maybe for another month. If you love Oysters, I would go there quick and get a bunch! The first time I went there few weeks back, I only got one dozen. After having it, I wanted another but I didn’t want to look like I was a pig. I got home and just kept thinking about them hahaha. Seriously, I really did. So we went back this past weekend and they still have them. This time I ordered two dozens. Yes, all for ME!! I slurped them down in probably less than 10 minutes…I don’t know, but it was fast. Yes, I did want another dozen hahaha but I didn’t get it. I’ll just have to go back.

The food at Pappadeaux is pretty good in general. The price is in the middle to high. You can get salads and appetizers in the $10 and main dish for about $20’s. We usually go there for special occasions…and I consider $3.95/Dozen Oysters a very special occasion!!

You can check for there locations here. If you are just going for the sake of the Oysters, I would give them a call ahead to make sure they still have a deal so you don’t get disappointed if the deal ends.

December 12, 2008 — Tis’ the Season! lifeBLUE Media is giving one lucky winner a free web design makeover. The 2nd Annual I Need a New Web Design Contest has officially started with more features than before to help contestants reach the coveted #1 ranking. Registration is 100% free and anyone can win as the grand prize is determined by the website with the highest number of average daily votes.

2007 marked the first year of the contest and it proved successful from the start. Over 300 entries were received and over 100,000 votes were accumulated during the course of the one month competition. Competition was stiff from beginning to end with as many as 30 different front runners. For 2008, lifeBLUE Media is expecting entries to be twice that amount if not more. Phillip Blackmon, Director of lifeBLUE, states “we want people to not only have a chance to win the contest but to use it as a way to promote their website and get their own site visitors involved in the process.”

This year lifeBLUE Media has chosen to provide even more tools to help contest participants spread the word. Contestants can email the contest directly to friends and family; place a direct link voting button on their site, and to give everyone a shot at a new web design, the winner is determined by the highest number of average daily votes. Contestants can therefore register anytime and still have a chance to win. Sign-up is easy and free, simply go to http://www.lifeblue.com/web_design_contest_two/join_contest.html and see what the rest of the world thinks about your website. Contest ends February 15th, 2009.

lifeBLUE Media is a custom web design company located in Dallas, TX. LB Media specializes in quality web solutions and application development for small, medium, and Fortune 500 businesses.