Support Local Organic Produce
June 23, 2009 by rosie
Filed under News, Sustainable Living
We are children of a chemical age. Chemicals are everywhere and so too are allergies, disease and mental suffering. It’s not surprising there is a current movement towards living a more sustainable, organic and healthy lifestyle.
Choose organic products to reduce the intake of residues of chemicals that may be present on food such as fruit and vegetables. Organic foods have less impact on the environment as producers avoid chemicals, which otherwise get into our soils and waterways.
Nature has been growing plants without pesticides since the beginning of time.
The current movement towards organic farming isn’t just about eating healthier, it’s about the idea of re-building a healthy eco future for the planet. This is a great reason to go organic, but unless you are growing your own produce, you could be supporting the ‘big’ mass producing organic farming that is occurring particularly in the US.
Commercial agricultural techniques, even organic farming, wreak havoc on both the topsoil and ecosystem through their huge fields of growing just one strain of plant.
The Japanese farmer Masanobu Fukuoka invented a no-till system for small-scale grain production that he called Natural Farming.
If you want to eat and live organically, not only for your health, but also to protect the environment then it’s important to shop at your local organic store or farmers’ market. Read the labels and help support the small family farmers and local environment and find out where your supermarket sources food.
Author: Health in Harmony founder and editor, Rosie Cox is a Wanaka based yoga teacher.
Winter Listening & Reading Pleasures
June 22, 2009 by hamish
Filed under Holistic Wellbeing
1. Brainwave Symphony: Relax & Let Go [Digipak] – We all experience many states of consciousness, from ordinary waking and sleeping states to extraordinary states in which we are more at peace, particularly aware, or unusually creative. Each state has a unique pattern of brainwaves that can be mapped and measured. Brainwave Symphony uses inaudible pulses of sound, based on these brain maps, to trigger your brain to produce the state you want to experience.
2. Simple Taoism: A Guide to Living in Balance: – Are you confused about the differences between Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, Zen, and Tibetan Buddhism? Then the Simple series, dedicated to demystifying these Eastern philosophies, should be on your must-read list. Each of these popular gift books is an easy and entertaining introduction to the history, teaching, and practices of these fascinating traditions.
3.Living Green: the New Zealand Handbook for an Eco-friendly, Toxin-free, Sustainable Life – Green issues are hot, and they are here to stay. But where can New Zealanders find an authoritative yet neutral voice that is packed with the facts they need to make informed life-changing decisions? Living Green is a ‘bible’ for every New Zealand family: an assiduously researched and effortlessly readable manual that operates on two levels to appeal to all readers.
4.The Elephant and the Twig: The Art of Positive Thinking – In India, young elephants are trained in obedience by being tied to an immovable object like a tree. No matter how hard the baby elephant pulls it cannot break free, and eventually, after trying to break away and being thwarted time and again, it believes that it cannot escape, no matter what it does. This book argues that what ties you down and prevents you from realising your potential is only a ‘twig’.
Register for Queenstown’s Sustainable Business Programme
June 15, 2009 by rosie
Filed under Healthy Business
Registrations are now open for the second intake of Queenstown’s Sustainable Business programme, which will kick off with a three-hour workshop on 17 June.
Several “big hitters” have signed up for the next programme, including Lakes Property Services and Pinewood Lodge.
First intake businesses have found great value in the programme and encourage other businesses to get involved as soon as possible.
Mark Rose, the Chief Executive of The Rees Hotel & Luxury Apartments, described the process as “invaluable” to his team on a number of levels.
“Through this programme we have been able to identify ways in which we can operate more efficiently and sustainably. It has also enabled us to think more clearly as a team about where we want to position our business, what our long term goals are and has shown us that sustainable practice is intrinsically tied to the general wellbeing of our business and those that operate it.”
Longtime local Tim Barke, General Manager of Kiwi Discovery & Queenstown Rafting says it was rewarding to be part of a programme that encouraged and valued participant input as well as providing guidance.
“The Sustainable Business Programme has helped us focus on the areas of our businesses that can enhance our own sustainability as well as that of our community and environment.”
Skyline Gondola, Restaurant and Luge manager Blair Deasy encourages Queenstown businesses to get involved.
“I was quietly surprised at what we have achieved in such a short time. We set up the Skyline Green Committee over 18 months ago but it was hard for staff to make inroads while keeping up with their own day to day responsibilities. The Queenstown Sustainable Business Programme has helped us prioritise and manage our sustainable action lists and identified areas that can benefit greatly from change. It has also shown us that it’s about much more than recycling. It’s been positive all round for us.”
Sustainable Tourism Advisor Sharon Schindler says there are a few remaining places for the mid June intake.
“We have a maximum of 12 places available at heavily subsidised rates and expect these to fill quite quickly so I do recommend businesses interested in taking part in the late June intake get in touch as soon as possible.”
The fee structure for participating businesses starts at $150 plus GST for businesses with 1-2 full time employees and ranges to $1000 for those with more than 50 full time employees.
Registrations are now open for the third programme intake in October.
For more information visit www.otagopolytechnic.ac.nz and click on the box “Central Otago – our Central Otago campus”.
For further information please contact:
Sharon Schindler
Sustainable Tourism Advisor
Email: sschindler@tekotago.ac.nz
Phone: 021 989 347Subsidised by the Ministry of Tourism, the Queenstown Sustainable Business Programme aims to encourage Queenstown businesses of all sizes to become more sustainable in terms of environment, social responsibilities and financial viability. The Sustainable Business Programme is delivered by Otago Polytech’s Centre for Sustainable Practice in collaboration with partners Destination Queenstown, Queenstown Lakes District Council, Ministry of Tourism, and the Queenstown Chamber of Commerce.
The programme is led by Queenstown’s Sustainable Tourism Advisor Sharon Schindler and well-known sustainable practice expert Steve Henry, who heads the Centre for Sustainable Practice.
How Good is Your Immune System?
June 15, 2009 by rosie
Filed under Healing & Bodywork, Holistic Wellbeing
How many days last year did you spend suffering from flu, coughs, colds, sinusitis, stomach bugs, cystitis or other infections? If the answer is twelve or more, your immune system is not doing its job and it’s time you did something about it.
Our immune system has two basic jobs:
- To prevent foreign bodies like bacteria, moulds and viruses from entering the body;
- and to eliminate foreign bodies that do manage to infiltrate the body.
Sounds simple, but in fact the workings of the immune system are amazingly complex and involve your nervous system, bone marrow, thymus gland, lymph nodes, lymph vessels, blood vessels, circulation, spleen, skin, hair, mucous membranes, saliva, digestive juices, blood vessels, liver and hormones. In short, your whole body needs to be in harmony for your immune system to function efficiently.
Risks of Neglecting Your Immune System
It’s common knowledge that a weakened immune system means you’ll get sick more often and take longer to get better. But there are other less well known problems that occur when your immune system has gone awry. For instance wounds and injuries will heal more slowly. This is because the immune system cleans up damaged tissue from injuries.
A weak immune response can allow simple infections to develop into serious conditions. For example, minor chest infections may trigger asthma attacks, simple bacterial or viral infections can lead to heart disease, diabetes 1 and some varieties of arthritis. And last, but not least, a good immune system acts to destroy cancer cells.
Allergies are another symptom of immune imbalance, as are autoimmune diseases.
12 Dos & Don’ts of Immune Health System
Obviously, anything as complex as the immune system must be hard to fix when it goes wrong but there are a few simple dos and don’ts that can make a big difference.
- Do get eight hours sleep most nights
- Do eat fresh fruit and vegetables every day
- Do drink about two litres of good quality water every day
- Do take moderate exercise most days
- Do work in an environment where you are appreciated
- Do maintain a warm and dry home
- Do seek help with depression or anxiety
- Don’t continually push yourself when you are tired or fatigued
- Don’t eat mostly sugary, processed or fried foods
- Don’t smoke
- Don’t use marijuana or other ‘recreational’ drugs
- Don’t abuse alcohol
If you feel your immune system needs some serious help, you should consult a professional who will help you find out what you are doing wrong and work out strategies to put it right. A naturopath may also prescribe herbs and nutrients to put you on the right path.
Author: Louise Cooper is a naturopath who operates Simply Natural Health Care of Queenstown.
For more information call her on 03 442 9137 or visit www.simplynaturalhealth.co.nz
Revealed: How to Make Sure You Get Results From Your Advertising
June 8, 2009 by rosie
Filed under Healthy Business
If you hired a salesperson to be the face to your product or service in your market place and after paying her/him for a few months you discovered that they had not generated one single sale, what would you be tempted to do? Put them on a sales boot camp until they got the results?
Well I am truly fascinated by so many conversations I have with small business owners who spend a sizeable amount of money on print advertising, and never measure the results of their advertisements.
So let’s go back to basics for a moment: Advertising is nothing less than salesmanship in print. If for some strange reason you cannot measure the results of your ads or if you have measured and got no results, you need to ask yourself “Is my virtual salesperson getting more clients through the door”.
If not, then your ads need to be put through a sales “boot camp”. When writing your ads, ask yourself if you are committing any of the Seven Deadly Marketing Mistakes…
Seven Deadly Marketing Mistakes
- Marketing Mistake #1: Not sticking with what’s working. If it has generated good results, just repeat it. People have a short memory and won’t remember your last advert.
- Marketing Mistake #2: Cutting a new path when someone else has already built a highway. Don’t re-invent the wheel. Do your homework.
- Marketing Mistake #3: Writing jingles and clever slogans instead of giving lots of reasons why someone should buy your product. “The more you tell, the more you sell” contrary to a widespread belief among business owners. This vital element is usually overlooked by all those creative minds in the marketing and advertising world.
- Marketing Mistake #4: Not marketing and selling to those who already bought the same thing from you.
- Marketing Mistake #5: Thinking your customers are smarter than they really are. When selling, explain things in baby talk because if what you say can be misunderstood, it will be.
- Marketing Mistake #6: Forgetting that most people have been “Burned” in the past. As a result they don’t trust all businesses and will probably be skeptical about your offer.
- Marketing Mistake #7: Not asking for help, especially from other people in your industry. Almost every problem you face has already been solved by someone else. Successful people are almost always givers, who will lend a helping hand.
Four Essential Elements of Effective Ads
Once you have avoided all these mistakes, look at your ad and make sure it has the 4 following vital elements:
A) Attention grabber. You need a very strong reason for people to read you ad. No your logo won’t do it, but a good headline will!
I) Interest. You will have to feature the best parts of your products or generate interest through some intriguing facts or studies etc…
D) Desire: spell out what’s in it for your clients, how they will benefit, how it will make them feel
A) Action: a clear call for action with a good offer is the best approach. Make it easy for them to respond to the ad.
I’m sure you agree that in the present climate, you need all the efficiency you can gain, so don’t hesitate to put your ads through Boot Camp and start reaping real benefits!
Author: Eric Billoud is a Queenstown business consultant. For more information you can get in contact with Eric at:
Eric Billoud
Breakthrough Business Systems
PO Box 1241, Queenstown
Mob: 021 711952
Ph: (03) 442 1091
Email: eric@earth-fit.com
