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In the rich history of herbs and roots, sage remains the queen of the garden. When you think of sage, you probably think of the quintessential seasoning for Thanksgiving turkey and dressing. For centuries, various species of sage have been used for culinary, medicinal, and spiritual reasons.

What is Sage?

Culinary sage, Salvia officinalis, is the recognizable species that you’ll find in your spice rack. It is a perennial woody herb native to the Mediterranean region. Because sage has a historical reputation as a powerful medicinal herb, it was given the Latin name salvia, which means healing.

Origins of Burning Sage

White sage, Salvia apiana, is a species that is native to the western part of the United States. For many Native American cultures, white sage is considered a sacred herb used for cleansing and spiritual ceremonies. For generations, some indigenous Americans dried white sage, tied it into small bundles, and burned it a service called smudging.

Burning sage or other herbs has become a popular tradition in New Age and other spiritual practices. Many cultures around the world have observed some form of this cleansing ceremony. If you watch any television shows about physics or paranormal investigations, you’ll often see spiritual practitioners burning sage to clear the area of harmful or malevolent energies.

How to Burn Sage in Your Home

It isn’t challenging to perform a sage purification ceremony in or around your house. You can do the service alone or with your family. The critical thing to remember is to do it with respect and with positive intentions.

Supplies Needed for Smudging

• A bundle of white sage: Salvia apiana is available in New Age retail shops, which carry products like crystals and singing bowls.

Be sure that your purchase is from ethical and sustainable sources, such as native growers and gatherers. In the west, the white sage harvest is often depleted because of improper cutting techniques and over-picking. It’s important to know your source before buying.

It’s better if you grow white sage in your garden. This plant is exceptionally adaptable in most areas and doesn’t require a lot of care. You can plant it in an outdoor herb garden or grow it in attractive pots indoors.

• An original container for the ashes, such as an abalone shell, wooden bowl, or clay pottery. The ceremony becomes more personal if your vessel is something that you or a loved one handmade.

• A long feather for fanning the smoke: Only use feathers that are legally and ethically obtained. If you object to using feathers on moral grounds, you can use a decorative fan or your hand too.

• Wooden matches

How to Smudge:

• Strike the match and light one end of the sage bundle until it is barely smoldering. You don’t want it to catch fire, so blow out any flame quickly.

• As the leaves burn, it will produce a cloud of thick smoke. Now, use the feather to fan it around yourself and every corner of the space you’re cleansing. Visualize the smoke wiping your area clean of all negative energy.

• Let the sage ashes slowly collect in the shell or other vessel. After the smudge ceremony, release the ashes outside to the wind as symbolism for the negativity blowing away.

Possible Benefits of Practicing Sage Burning

Sage burning ceremonies can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. Not only can you reap spiritual benefits, but you can also gain practical advantages. For safety reasons, never get smoldering sage around flammable materials, and you must make sure the ashes are completely cold before discarding.

Are you ready to see how this mystical practice can help you? It may be something that you can incorporate into your spiritual rituals and journey. Here are ten benefits of burning sage for you to consider.

1. Purify Your Air

Underlying most ancient spiritual practices is usually a physical and scientific principal. Burning sage can purify the air around you, just as native practitioners have claimed. White sage is a natural insect repellent, antibacterial, and antifungal.

When you smudge, smoke from the burning herb creates negative ions that attack allergens in the air like pollen, animal dander, mold, and dust. Do you have asthma or other allergies? A sage cleansing ceremony may clean the air you breathe to minimize your symptoms.

2. Provide Aromatherapy to Calm Your Stress

Have the stresses of life built up in your space to where it’s unbearable? The mesmerizing fragrance of burning sage may be the stress reliever you need. Scientific reports about using sage as aromatherapy suggest that the scent reacts with parts of the brain to produce a calm and feeling of well-being.

3. Boost Your Mood

Everybody has a bad day occasionally that puts a damper on their mood. Did you know that a sage burning ceremony may help lift depression, ease anxiety, and give your mood a much-needed boost? As with stress, the smoke’s gentle fragrance works with your brain to put you in a peaceful, happy atmosphere.

4. Help You Get a Good Night’s Sleep

It makes sense that if your bedroom is charged with negative energy, it will disrupt your sleep. Many people find relief from occasional insomnia by using sage in their room before bedtime. After the sage embers have died into cool ash, the smoke lingers in a soothing perfume that can help you relax, fall asleep, and awaken refreshed.

5. Pump Up Your Energy Levels

When your living or working space is teeming with positive energy, your body reacts with the same vibrancy and positive power. As the positively charged smoke from a sage burning clears the area of negative charges, you may notice that you feel recharged, inspired, and able to do more things than you usually do.

6. Can Boost Your Brain Power

Are you studying for a test or working on a project and need some more enthusiasm from your brain? Try performing a simple sage burning ceremony in the space where you are working or studying. Some scientific research on burning sage suggests positive correlations between the herb and a boost in cognition and creativity.

7. May Dispel Residual Negativity of the Past

Have you ever walked into a room that you’ve never visited before and felt a heaviness you couldn’t explain? Some spiritual practitioners believe that apartments, houses, and even land can harbor negative energy from past traumatic events. Maybe you’ve experienced trauma or other negative experiences, and it still lingers in your shadow.

Burning sage in this spiritually heavy room may dispel residual negativity and replace it with a positive glow. Along with the smudge, the ceremony must come to the positive intentions and affirmations that your cleansing ceremony will work to your good. It may be a tool to cleanse your heart and spirit from past hurts and open your eyes to the beauty of the present.

8. Can Cleanse Objects

We know from high school science classes and Einstein’s theory that matter has energy. Everything in the universe is vibrating at different levels and can produce positive or negative charges. So, it stands to reason that objects in your home or office are energized and can carry negative residual energy from the past.

Before you bring anything into your home, especially things that may have been used in a spiritual ceremony, consider cleansing them first with a smudging ritual. Use your feather to gently waft the smoke around the object and visualize any harmful or detrimental energy vanishing.

9. Might be a Tool for Spiritual Practices

For many indigenous cultures of America, sage has had cultural and spiritual significance. It has often been used to enhance spiritual awareness, open the mind’s sixth sense, or to encourage psychic dreams. A sage burning ceremony usually coincides with services for healing and dedication.

Along with the spiritual experience comes some scientific evidence. Many cultivars of sage, including white sage, contains a chemical called thujone that has trace psychoactive properties. While it certainly isn’t like a psychedelic herb, sage can bring mild feelings of well-being and improved intuition.

10. Enjoy a Natural Air Freshener

Your house is filled with things that can make it smell less than appealing. From the kitchen to the kids’ rooms to the bathrooms, you may have an arsenal of scented candles, potpourri, and sprays to kill the odors. However, most of these synthetic air fresheners only mask the smells and can have chemicals that are hazardous to your family and pets.

Instead, why not freshen the air in your home naturally with a sage burning ceremony. White sage and other varieties have a distinct verdant and woodsy smell that most people find pleasant and relaxing. Burn sage throughout each room that harbors odors, especially the kitchen and bathroom.

Final Thoughts on Taking Advantage of the Healthy Benefits of Burning Sage

There is no magic involved in smudging. While it’s important to use visualization and clear intentions, many attributes of this ancient ceremony have some basis in science. No matter how you plan to practice, do so with respect for the service and those who created it.

Excellent social skills are imperative in life. As a parent, it’s your responsibility to teach your children how to communicate and thrive. The skills you teach your child must be continuously refined as they age. Everyone has a social nature, but you should always look for those little moments to educate and enhance their abilities.

Unfortunately, not all societal skills are quite so simple to master. If your child is a victim of being bullied, then they should know how to handle these complicated situations. They should know when to stand up for themselves when they’re being bullied, but they should also know how to be silent when the teacher reprimands them.

Parenting Requires Teaching Social Adequacies

If your child develops excellent social skills, then they will have no problem building long-lasting relationships. Having stable friendships is suitable for your child’s mental health, and they will be more apt to know how to handle conflict resolution. The goal is to have your child’s social skills at a reasonable level by making it to kindergarten.

A study showed that these children who are already well versed in social adequacies are typically the ones that are successful when they are an adult. Every parent wants to raise well-rounded children. When your kid reaches school age, they will know how to follow the rules, cooperate with the teachers, and share with their peers.

Also, a study done at Penn State University found that children with excellent social skills by the age of five are more likely to go to college and have a great job by the time they reach their mid-20s. On the flip side, socially inept children often have issues with substance abuse, relationships, and a fair share of legal debacles. Additionally, the study found these children are more likely to be on public assistance.

Five Social Skills Every Child Must Learn to Thrive in Today’s World

It’s incredibly stressful when a child doesn’t have the proper skills to interact with others. It puts a strain on them, and their communication skills make matters worse. Additionally, studies have shown that when children know how to socialize, they have a lower cortisol level than those who don’t have these skills. Stress can have a significant impact on your child’s health too.

Thankfully, you can teach your child how to socialize appropriately, and even if they are a little behind, they can catch up. Perhaps, they are already a social butterfly and just need to sharpen their skills. If you wonder what social skills you should be teaching and refining with your children, then here are the recommendations.

1. Following Directions

Following directions is one skill that needs to be taught from a toddler. If children don’t develop this skill by the time they reach school age, then the consequences can be intense. For instance, if they cannot listen to the teacher and follow orders, they will likely miss what they need to do, misbehave, and be in the principal’s office.

Your child must be able to take simple instructions like making their bed, and they should also be open to trainable directives like tips on improving their baseball game. As a parent, you need to learn the proper way to give directions.

Telling your child a long list of things to do may only confuse them. It’s better to give them one task at a time, wait till they complete that task, and then move on to the next item. Another tip is never to ask them if they want to do something as it gives them the chance to say no.

Never use sentences like “Would you, please put your shoes away?” Instead, say something like, “Put your shoes away, please!” You changed it from a question to an expectation, as there is no room for negotiation. Once you’ve given an order, ask them to repeat back what they’ve been told.

Children are easy to distract, act on impulse, and often have a short memory. It’s your job as a parent to point out their errors and show them how they could have done things better.

2. Sharing

There’s nothing worse than a stingy, selfish child. Sadly, children who act this way often grow up to be adults with the same mannerisms. Did you know that when a kid learns to share, it can help them form and keep friendships?

Don’t be too hard on your toddlers as children from ages three to six are often naturally selfish, but it still something that you must correct. It’s often the case that the toy they were fighting to keep from their sibling loses its luster once they won the battle.

By the time your child reaches seven to eight years old, they are more apt to be teachable when it comes to sharing. Children who feel good about themselves and don’t have a need to prove anything, and they often have no problems sharing with others. Some children are stingy because they need to prove themselves and have a hard time expressing themselves effectively.

Parents, you should teach your kid to share even if they don’t want too. Make sure to praise them when they share with their siblings, and you can help build their esteem by pointing out their victories.

3. Listening

It isn’t very pleasant to tell your child something, and they are talking over you the whole time. Teaching communication skills means that you show them how they should listen and how they should absorb what’s being said. When they head to school, their success will depend on the ability to listen.

To succeed academically, a child must learn to hear and absorb what’s being told to them. Beyond school, they must know how to follow instructions from their boss. It’s also beneficial to have excellent communication and listening skills in a relationship.

Communication is something that people must work on even into adulthood. Living in the digital age makes things more difficult. People would rather text, stare at their phone screen, or engage virtually than have a meaningful conversation.

The right way for parents to help their child develop these skills is to pause and ask questions. For instance, if you’re reading a book to your five-year-old, stop and ask them halfway what they have learned. If they’ve missed anything, you can fill in those gaps and continue with the book.

Additionally, teach them that they never interrupt others when they are speaking. It’s always essential for them to wait their turn as what they have to say is just as important as the other person’s concern.

4. Respecting Personal Boundaries

Personal boundaries are one of the essential social skills. Some children tend to be clingy by nature, while others are more aloof. It’s one of the main reasons parents tell their kids never to talk to strangers as it’s pushing limits.

You can encourage boundaries by telling them that there is an imaginary bubble around them, and no one can come into this bubble without their permission. Additionally, they must be respectful of the other person’s bubble too. They should also learn that they should knock on doors that are closed and always keep their hands to themselves.

Things like hitting, pushing, or taking something out of someone else’s hand are actions that deserve consequences. Personal space is a big issue throughout life. If your child doesn’t learn about these boundaries early on, they will have problems as they grow.

You’ve probably seen the adults that are too touchy-feely and make you uncomfortable. These are people that never learned appropriate boundaries, and their childish actions have followed them.

5. Making Proper Eye Contact

The eyes are the window to the soul, and looking directly at someone is a social skill that is part of your communication. A shy person will look to the corner or the floor when speaking or being spoken too. However, while they may get by with it in elementary school, their boss may not think too highly of their actions.

Every time you see their eyes wandering, ask them to refocus them back to your eyes. Remind them that it’s essential to look at people. It’s a standard trick for folks to avoid looking someone in the eyes when they’re lying or have been caught in a wrongdoing. Encourage them that eye contact is imperative as they grow.

Final Thoughts on Teaching Social Skills to Your Children

Having the ability to socialize appropriately is an integral part of life. It takes a bit of extra reinforcement from a parent, and then maturity will also do its part. If your child cannot follow social cues and to socialize with their peers, then it can be the sign that there are some medical issues behind this, such as autism or ADHD.

Generally, by the time your child can walk and talk, it’s time to start teaching and training about boundaries and other ways to thrive socially.

There’s never been a more accurate statement than “all is fair in love and war.” Even the best relationships go through downward phases, but what happens when you call it quits? Can you walk away without dissing the other party, or do you feel inclined to share all their dirty deeds and put a little twist on the story for interest?

Spreading rumors is gossip, and there are many reasons why people love to pack tales. If the situation ended on a sour note, you might want to make yourself look and feel like the victim in the relationship. Saving face is not necessary if you keep your private business personal. Why is it that people feel the need to share everything they know with their friends and family?

A simple “it didn’t work out” should suffice any curious folks. Besides the fact that talking trash about your ex is not in good taste, it can have some negative psychological repercussions. Here are some reasons why spreading rumors is not healthy.

1. It Makes You Look Childish

Imagine sitting around the lunch table at work talking about all the horrible things your ex did to you. While a couple of people may be curious to hear the scoop, most of your coworkers would rather you save the details for a more captive audience. When you are spreading rumors and talking about intimate things that went wrong, it makes you look childish.

Remember the days of grade school where your best friend ran and told the teacher every time you looked at her wrong? Your family and friends may feel that you are a bit childish if you are spreading gossip. An adult should be man or woman enough to admit it didn’t work out and move on.

2. A Rumor Keeps You in a Negative Mindset

Life is full of disappointments and trials, and when you’re dealing with a broken relationship, it can be quite a blow to your esteem. However, it’s not as much about what happened to you as it is your choice to ruminate about it. When you focus on the negative things that happen in life, then it’s setting you up for a pessimistic outlook.

Instead, why not take positive matters from your relationship and choose to remember these things? There will undoubtedly be several relationships in your life that don’t work out, romantic and otherwise. If you dwell on all the things that went wrong, you won’t be able to get past the negativity.

As counselors will reveal, broken dreams hurt, but you must learn to move beyond the brokenness to find healing. If you’re constantly dwelling on the past and the negative parts about it, then you can’t move on to the future.

3. You May Get a Bad Reputation

Do you know that person in the family or your workplace that everyone avoids? You don’t want to turn into this individual. No matter how hard you try, your constant “Negative Nelly” attitude and downward demeanor are a real turn off.

People want to be around those that lift them and make them smile. If you’re continually trashing your ex and talking about all your problems, then the individuals in your life may want to steer clear of any interaction with you. Additionally, if you’re telling things that aren’t 100 percent true, then it also has some serious consequences.

4. Your Stories May Come Back to Bite You

It’s often said that there’s his side, her side, and somewhere in the middle is the truth. You see things from your point of view, and your partner has their opinions. However, you need to make sure that what you are telling is the truth.

Anything you say can come back to bite you later. For instance, let’s assume this person wants to get back together with you. You’ve had time apart, and now you realize you can’t live without each other. What about all those rumors and stories you told about them?

Your friends and family may tell the other person all the things that you said, and they might not even do it on purpose. The lies you tell can come back and haunt you later, especially should you reignite your passion.

5. Rumors Can Affect Your Children

If your relationship was more than a short fling, then you may have children from the union. It’s hard to talk trash about your ex when there are little ears around you. Remember, little ones are listening to everything you have to say.

When you are trashing their mom or dad, it’s very hurtful to them. It would help if you allowed children to form their own opinions, and they will. As your kids grow and mature, they will see the people who are there for them and those who aren’t.

Additionally, just because you had a bad relationship with their other parent doesn’t mean that they will be anything less than a great mother or father to their children. You don’t want your kids to see you in a negative light, and when you’re spreading rumors about their parents, it can cause problems.

6. People Won’t Trust You

Sadly, along with getting a bad reputation, people won’t trust you if you’re sharing intimate details about someone else with them. If there’s any golden rule of relationships, it’s that if people are talking about others with you, then they are talking about you with others.

When someone confides in a friend, they trust that the friend won’t be spreading their business all over town. If they hear you are always talking smack about a bad relationship, they will be less likely to want to share anything with you. They will be afraid that you will share anything that they tell you with others, and their fears are warranted.

7. You Can Be Sued for Slander

When you’re hurt, it always sounds better to add a little bit of juice to the story, especially if you’re trying to save face. However, today’s society is “sue happy,” and they are more than eager to take you to court. While Defamation of Character is a widely overused term, it’s grounds for a suit.

If you have said things about your ex that can affect their business or personal standings, it can cost you big time. Never put anything on social media outlets. If there is one shred of proof that can back up their claims, then a judge will likely rule in their favor.

8. Bad Karma Always Comes Back Around

Karma is the universe’s way of rewarding or punishing deeds. If you plant goodness into your garden, then you will receive kindness in return. However, if you plant negativity, gossip, and lying in life’s garden, then karma will not be so kind.

Remember the old saying, “what goes around will come back around?” When you are telling lies and spreading gossip, the same judgment that you give out to others is going to come back on you. It may not happen today, tomorrow, or even in the next year, but at some point in your life, you will be repaid for your evil deeds.

9. You Can Hurt the Other Person

Most folks think that the best way to get back at someone who has hurt you is to cut them in return. However, you can do some real damage when you spread vicious rumors. More importantly than what others think, how will the person you once loved feel when they hear the things you’re saying?

You don’t want to do anything that will be a stumbling block to anyone, especially someone you once had intense feels about. Causing them to have issues in their personal or professional life is downright mean. Could you live with the guilt if you got them fired or had other severe repercussions over lies?

10. They Can Retaliate

According to the NIH, retaliation or reprisal can have a “chilling effect” on relationships.

Be careful what you say to others about your ex. Not all people take rumors and gossip so kindly. Some folks believe in the “eye for an eye” type of retaliation. Your ex may start spreading rumors about you or worse yet do things to get back at you.

Many unbalanced people in this world will stop at nothing to get revenge. Do you want to take a chance of a severe retaliation against you? When you threaten someone’s reputation or well-being with lies, there is no telling what they might do to get revenge.

Final Thoughts: Move on Gracefully from Your Ex Without Spreading Rumors

Though it’s difficult, it’s always best to count your losses and move on. If you need a therapist to help you through a bad breakup, then go to therapy. You don’t want to hurt others because karma can and will pay you back for your misguided deeds.

Don’t start rumors. Instead, you will find it best to forgive. Only then can you can move on with someone new. You deserve to have someone who will love you 100 percent and won’t cause the problems of your previous partner. Shake the dust off your feet and start the journey to find someone new.

How Does an Installment Loan Work Exactly?

Americans carry over $14 trillion dollars in debt.

There are many types of loans that people can take out that contribute to this debt. Some are for specific purposes, while others are more general and you can use the money how you please. 

Loan products work in different ways. For example, credit cards are a type of revolving credit whereas an auto loan is a type of installment loan. How does an installment loan work? That’s what we’re going to dig into here. Check it out!

What Is an Installment Loan?

Installment loans go by many names — mortgages, car loans, student loans, personal loans, and more. 

Understanding how installment loans work is quite simple. They get the name because you take out a lump sum and then pay it back in installments over a period of time. Your payment is set at a certain amount each month and you keep making payments until you pay off the loan.

This is different from credit cards where you can keep taking out small amounts and either pay in full each month or make smaller payments. As long as you make the minimum payment you don’t get in trouble, but you do pay a lot of interest. 

Smaller installment loans, like personal loans up to $5,000, are easy to get online through a lender like bonsaifinance.com. The process is quick and you can usually get approval in minutes after filling out a simple application. 

Benefits of Installment Loans

With a set repayment period and monthly payment amount, consumer installment loans can offer lower interest rates than credit cards. The higher your credit score, the lower an interest rate you’ll pay. 

Some installment loans come with built-in collateral, like a home loan, or you can offer collateral. Collateral is an asset that the lender can seize if you default on the loan. This lowers their risk, allowing them to lower your interest rate even more.

If you’re having trouble with high credit card balances, one option is to take out a debt consolidation loan. This is an installment loan that you use to pay off your high-interest credit cards. Afterward, you make payments on this lower-interest loan to finally clear your debt. (As long as you don’t keep charging those credit cards, that is.) 

Generally, even if you have poor credit, you can work with a lender to take out an installment loan. Keep in mind, however, that your interest rate will be a bit higher. You can also use installment loans to help boost your credit score by making on-time payments in full. 

How Does an Installment Loan Work? It’s Simple!

So how does an installment loan work, exactly? We hope this quick crash course answered your main questions. As usual with loan products, installment loans can be a helpful financial tool if used correctly. While it’s harder to get in trouble with installment loans than with credit cards, you should still be vigilant in how you use these so you don’t get in over your head.

Looking for more great advice? Check out more articles on our site!

Your parents worked hard to teach you how to do the right thing, but you didn’t need any help in learning wrong as it seems to come naturally. One way that people justify their bad choices is to blame others. From an early age, you learned how to point fingers at your siblings, friends, or even the dog when you were caught doing something wrong.

What is it about human nature that makes us want to shift the burden of wrong over to the next person? Do you remember being a kid and telling your parents not to blame you as it was your little brother’s fault? Even though you may have done the deed, bringing an innocent party into the equation somehow made you feel justified.

One of the first things that children learn to be generous with is guilt. You’re not alone, because everyone is guilty of finger-pointing. As adults, you often find it even easier to find fault in others and blame them for your mistakes or things going haywire.

It goes against your nature to accept responsibility for your shortcomings. Have you ever felt good about biting the bitter pill and admitting to your faults? There’s an old saying that the person who is always smiling has thought of someone to blame.

There’s a difference between owning up to your mistakes and continuously blaming yourself for everything. While it’s not healthy to live under the staggering weight of guilt for things beyond your control, you should feel guilty about doing wrong intentionally and then make it right.

Blaming others for your shortcomings may give you a skewed sense of satisfaction. However, it doesn’t last long, and it won’t do anything to resolve the issues. If you allow the blame game to become a habit, you can blame others and live in misery.

Eight Ways to Stop Blaming Others

It takes a strong person to stand up and own your mistakes. Nobody wants to make themselves look bad when they falter. However, you’ll find that people will respect you more when you admit to your shortcomings and do something to rectify them.

Are you tired of being a pawn on the board of the blame game? It’s never too late to get off the fault-finding merry-go-round and admit when you’ve missed the mark. Here are some positive ways to stop blaming others for everything wrong in your life.

1. Admit That You Have a Problem

It may sound clichéd, but the first step to solving a problem in your life indeed is to admit that you have one. Of course, it feels uncomfortable to bear the scarlet letter of blame. However, you will feel the burden lifting when you come to terms with your habit of not accepting responsibility for your actions.

Now that you realize that you have a problem, you can formulate ways to resolve it. However, this isn’t going to be an easy task, especially since the blame game is ingrained in the human experience. Owning up to your problem is the most significant hurdle.

Sometimes, it’s difficult to confess your faults because you have low self-esteem. Maybe you feel better and morally superior when you’re blaming others for your shortcomings. Unfortunately, it’s a slippery slope that can cause many conflicts in your personal and professional relationships.

2. Assess Your Life

While finding your responsibility in a current problem may be difficult, reviewing the past problems may shed some valuable light. Perhaps you can make this a section of your journal or make a separate one for this soul-searching task. Look back on some of the major upheavals in your life and see how your pattern of blaming others may have begun.

Maybe it started when you were a child when it helped to get out of trouble by pointing out your siblings or making them partially responsible. Understand that this behavior is normal for children but is unacceptable and detrimental in adulthood. As you review past problems in your life, notice if you still hold grudges and blame others.

3. Learn to Take Some Blame

A prime example of people shifting all the blame to another person is usually observed after failed relationships. If you’ve ever been in a relationship that went sour, you may have self-medicated your heart by making everything your ex’s fault. If this has become a life pattern, perhaps you see a string of broken relationships in your rear-view mirror.

This scenario may also be real if you have a long history of failed friendships, skipping from one job to another, or uncompleted tasks. Sure, it’s easy to blame the ex, your former bosses, or everyone else in your family and friends. Did you ever consider that you share some of the blame?

Of course, this doesn’t apply to toxic or abusive relationships, but you may have made poor choices along the way. It takes two to make a relationship and two to break it, so be woman or man enough in owning your mistakes.

Discovering how to be responsible for your shortcomings can make it less difficult to fix personal or professional relationships. Try to be a non-judgmental observer and see your place in the dilemma. Learning to share blame may take time, but it’s worth it.

4. Learn the Language of Problem Solving

Whether you have a problem at home or work, you’re never going to get anywhere by blaming everyone else and becoming a martyr. It only adds fuel to the fire and breaks down healthy communication.

Do you listen to yourself when you are talking to your family, friends, or coworkers about a problem or weakness? Avoid starting sentences with “You Always” or “You Never.” These toxic prefaces are classic blame shifters. You ALWAYS forget to check the calendar, or You NEVER let me know things in advance. It’s ALL your fault, and I BLAME you. Do these remarks sound familiar?

If you are partially or fully to blame, be strong, and own your mistake. Say things like, “Wow, I messed up on this, or I should have been more attentive to details, and it’s my fault.”

Review the problem together and see how things could have been done differently for a successful outcome.

5. Learn to Listen

There’s a big difference between hearing and listening. It goes against every grain of your fiber to listen to someone honestly pointing out your mistakes. The ability to take constructive criticism is a trait of a wise and experienced person.

Hold your tongue and listen to another person’s point of view instead of going on a rampage of self-defense and denial. When you truly listen with an open mind and empathy, it may open your eyes to what you are doing wrong and need to fix.

6. Learn How to Apologize

Yes, we often feel smug and self-righteous when blaming others for our mistakes. It’s especially satisfying if the situation truly was another person’s fault. When you shift the blame, you may be encouraged for a while, but you’ve not won a real victory.

Watch others’ reactions when you confess your faults and genuinely apologize. You garner respect from other people and for yourself when you take proper blame and ask forgiveness. We are all human, and we make mistakes, so learn how to admit, apologize, and learn from your blunders.

7. Learn from Your Mistakes

Einstein allegedly said insanity is to repeat the same actions and expect a different outcome. Once you’ve practiced how to own up to your weaknesses, learn from it, and find ways to remedy them. When you mess up and continue doing the same thing repeatedly, your apologies don’t mean much.

Maybe some of the problems in your personal and professional relationships stem from how you manage your time. Perhaps you are a perennial people pleaser and overextend yourself, so you don’t want to disappoint someone. Take full responsibility for your actions and work on changing how you do things in the future.

8. Learn to Let Go

How long have you nursed that grudge and pointed fingers at people for things that happened years ago? When you realize how your words and actions fit into the puzzle, it becomes easier to leave it in the past. It’s even truer when you’ve learned to recognize your faults and own up to your mistakes.

From now on, refuse to be bound by past blunders and failures and put them behind you. Even if someone is rightfully to blame for causing you grief, find the grace to forgive. Above all, learn to admit your faults, forgive yourself, and learn from past errors.

Final Thoughts on How to Stop Blaming Others for Your Shortcomings

When it comes to the infamous blame game, nobody comes out a winner. If you’ve noticed a pattern of blaming others for everything that’s gone wrong, then it’s time to take a serious self-assessment. Owning your faults and inadequacies can help you overcome them, and you’ll gain more respect from others and for yourself.

A Simple Guide on What to Do When You Need Money

Feeling broke is one of the worst experiences you can go through. You’re not alone, however. The average person in the country has a debt of $6,200, and paying it off isn’t easy.

If you’re deep in debt, need to bounce back, and want some breathing space, you’re probably wondering what to do when you need money? Thankfully, you can make money anywhere and at any time with the right research and planning.

Not sure where to start? Here are some things you should try!

1. Find a Freelance Job

If you have an iPad or laptop, look up some freelance work from Upwork, Freelancer.com, or sign up on Fiverr. There’s a variety of work available online; from tutoring to being a virtual assistant. You can control the workload and schedule, so it’s a great option for what to do when you need money.

Freelance jobs can be a full-time job or part-time. Some jobs can be difficult to get if you have no experience or diplomas. However, once you have a job, you’ll get a steady paycheck and you can work from the comfort of your home.

2. Sell Stuff You No Longer Need

If you have things like clothes or phones that you no longer use, you can sell them online or hold a garage sale. Consider selling your furniture and appliances as there are many second-hand enthusiasts for these things. If you really need money, sell your car or a part of your lot as these are temporary assets that are better off liquidated.  

3. Do Some Odd Jobs 

Go around the neighborhood and ask if they need any help doing something they hate doing. People who are busy or don’t have the knowledge to do certain things are quick to jump at the chance. You can offer your services for odd jobs like walking their dog, cleaning their yard, or painting.

An advantage of taking odd jobs is that it never takes too long and it’s a great way to expand your network. However, keep in mind that there is no set paycheck so it’s hard to start budgeting. Letter drop around your area or advertise online to let people know you are available.

4. Pawn or Sell Your Valuables

Pawning means giving a valuable item as collateral to borrow some money. The pawnbroker will give back your valuables once you pay back the money. This option can net you some cash, but keep in mind that these valuables get sold off if you can’t pay back.

Alternatively, just sell your valuables at pawn shops. You leave with the cash in hand and you have no other obligations. Some of the best items to sell or pawn are tablets, power tools, gems, firearms, and antiques.

5. Get a Loan

This option should be your last if other options haven’t worked out well. It’s great to get loans if you need emergency money fast. Make sure, however, that you have a plan to pay back on time.

Taking out a loan depends on whether it’s a personal loan, a payday loan, or a home equity loan. 

Loans are the best option if you just need money quickly and can afford to scrimp by. Get a payday loan at bonsaifinance.com and pay off the loans you take as soon as you can.

What to Do When You Need Money

Think long and hard on how you got into this situation like spending too much or your income is low. It’s important to address the problem, start planning, and make a budget to solve and prevent the problem!

Thanks for reading! Learned from our article on what to do when you need money? If yes, take some time to browse through a few more of our helpful articles! 

The Role of Technology in Business: Examples of Ways It’s Changing the Workplace

Almost half of all businesses plan on increasing their technology expenditures in 2020. The reason being that many have identified tech as the most efficient way to get out ahead of the competition and ultimately, boost profits.

If you’re a business owner that’s looking to make key technological investments, you may find yourself quickly overwhelmed by all of the options you have.

“Which technology in business investments make the biggest impact?” “Where would I be best served to invest my limited capital?”

These are questions we hear all the time as owners of small, medium, and even large companies fumble through how technology is being applied to today’s marketplace and what that could mean for them. To help bring some clarity to your technology questions, below, we walk you through key ways technology is being integrated into company settings in hopes of inspiring you!

1. Improving Accountability

Whether you mean to or not, it can be easy to get complacent when you’re working 5 days a week, 8 hours per day. That complacency often leads to falling behind on projects and costly overtime requests.

As a business owner, it behooves you to know how efficient your team is being and where improvements need to be made. Companies are investing in tools like time tracking software that can analyze employee’s activities throughout a shift and share detailed reports on what’s working and what isn’t.

These reports are instrumental in determining who needs assistance staying on task and who is providing the most value to your organization.

2. Enabling Collaboration

Business success rarely emanates from a single individual. Success almost always comes from a collective of talent that has been assembled and allowed to work together to do incredible things.

Technology in business has made that kind of special collaboration much easier over the last decade.

Several cloud-based applications let employees work on the same files at the same time. Furthermore, sharing files has become as easy as directing team members to a communal “share folder”.

That has eliminated the need to email attachments and manually track updates.

3. Keeping Data Safe

Imagine if all of your company’s key documents, intellectual property data, and customer information were saved on a single computer. Now, imagine that computer was destroyed in a fire.

How would your company recover?

For many, that question is one they’d prefer not to answer and as such, they’ve invested in technology that automatically backs up their systems to on-site and off-site servers. Today’s best backup technology automatically runs backups across all of your company’s machines so team members don’t have to bother with engaging backup mechanisms manually.

4. Getting Paid Made Easy

Sending out invoices can be a hassle. A lot of that hassle comes from having to manually itemize charges in a template, emailing that template to clients, and hoping to receive a response.

Today, companies can integrate with bookkeeping software that lets them invoice straight from within the application. Those invoices are pre-generated per charges you enter into the system and can be tracked to see when they’ve been opened.

Even better is the fact that clients can pay your invoices with their credit/bank cards straight from your digital invoice!

5. Paying the Government Made Easier

No matter how much technology you throw at filing taxes, managing that task is likely to remain a headache. Still, technology has made accurately filling out and filing taxes more streamlined.

Technology in business has integrated bookkeeping and tax filing solutions into all in one systems. That has allowed businesses to use tools like a receipt scanner to automatically track expenses and deduct those expenses from tax documents as well as manage other typically time-consuming tasks.

Even filing your taxes with federal and state authorities can be as simple as pushing “send!”

6. Breaking Down Commerce Barriers

Brick-and-mortar operations used to be limited to selling to people in their immediate vicinity. That’s no longer the case!

eCommerce makes it so even the smallest of businesses can develop a robust online presence and sell to customers all over the globe.

That reality is becoming increasingly important to a company’s bottom line as competition gets to be more global and local consumer saturation starts to be a problem.

7. Engaging Customers Like Never Before

Imagine a world where you’re able to market to a customer based on what they purchase, where they live, and their spending habits? This kind of customized, high conversion marketing is 100 percent a reality.

Over 60 percent of the customers you engage expect personalization to be part of their shopping experience. By investing in technology that enables that end, you’ll meet expectations. You’ll also give yourself a great chance of heightening consumer engagement.

8. Your Office Everywhere

Never before has being able to access your office remotely been more important. Several tools that allow chatting, file sharing, accessing desktops remotely, and more work together to make your office available to your team members no matter where in the world they are.

If you want your company to make it through today’s challenges and tomorrow’s, you’d be well served to have an excellent work from home plan in place. That plan should be powered by cutting edge digital tools.

Technology in Business Defines Success

Companies that embrace technology in business give themselves a much better opportunity of growing and surviving adversity. Keep that in mind as you juggle what your technology budget might look like this year and beyond.

Technology solutions are in a constant state of evolution. Feel free to keep up to date on all things new by browsing the content available on our blog!

Fashion Frenzy: Retail Marketing Tips for New Boutique Owners

Did you know that the fashion industry gets $20 billion in revenue annually? This revenue comes from online shopping and retail shopping in boutiques and malls.

As of 2020, there are 74,007 clothing boutique businesses in the United States. Keep reading, and we will guide you through retail marketing tips to help grow your business.

Independent Fashion Boutiques

People say that online shopping’s success is the “death of retail,” but this is not correct. Independent retailers are on the rise, and boutiques have been building multimillion-dollar companies.

They are building such successful empires by using online shopping and e-commerce. They are also having less than three physical locations across the country. The digital media community helps develop these businesses.

There are a few takeaways for boutiques to help set them apart from major retail corporations.

1. Embrace the Experience: Create an online and offline experience through your brand. Think about how the product is delivered, and how it makes you feel, make this experience more personalized. Help inspire people with the latest styles and fashion trends.
2. Business with People: Customers don’t want to do business with large corporations with a chatbot to answer questions; they want to talk to a person. Create this customer experience that allows for their experience to be more personalized.

There are other ways you can make your business soar. Now we will dig into the marketing strategies that can help make your boutique successful.

Retail Marketing Techniques

You can create a community or follow through social media and other marketing techniques. We will walk you through a few tips that can help you develop your strategy.

1. Identify Your Target Audience

Find the target audience for your marketing campaign. Think about the characteristics they might have, including: are they male or female, what is the age range of your customers, what is their income bracket, and if you’re targeting specific geographical locations.

2. Branding

You need to develop your boutique’s brand and messaging before you start a marketing campaign. You need to create a logo, color scheme, and more. You want to make sure you’re consistent. From social media to emails to direct mail to your website, everything should work together. You can also enhance your brand by developing a loyalty program for your best customers, so they get deals and learn about sales first.

3. Physical Displays

Window displays are essential marketing tools for the boutique because if they catch someone’s eye, you can attract new and loyal customers. You can promote a sale or upcoming event with a countertop sign holder.

4. Social Media

You can use social media to build a community for your boutique. Use it as a forum for people to get involved. Post giveaways and sales and engage with your followers. Make a part of the giveaway for them to post about your boutique.

Start Working On Your Marketing Strategy

Get started on your retail marketing. You can establish your target audience and brand and then build from there.

There are plenty of paid and free marketing strategies, from social media to email to direct mail, and you should use multiple channels to reach as much as your target audience as you can.

ArticleCity can help you work on your inbound marketing. Read more about their services on their website today.

What is the Difference Between MSDS and SDS?

Are you a bit confused about the documentation you need to include when moving hazardous materials? Or are you not sure what sort of documentation has been provided to you?

If you’ve answered yes to either of these questions, then chances are you have also asked a third question: What is the difference between MSDS and SDS?

MSDS and SDS are both documents that accompany hazardous chemicals. But there are some key differences between them. 

These differences are not superficial. They can have impacts on business relations as well as create legal issues. So, it’s best to really wrap your head around the differences between the two. 

Let’s dive straight in then and check out what SDS and MSDS are, as well as how they are different from one another.

What Is MSDS?

MSDS stands for material safety data sheet. The datasheet is a document that is usually very long and outlines the safety concerns associated with hazardous materials.

When hazardous materials are moved from one place to another, an MSDS document is sent with them. Sometimes, the document is also sent in advance. 

The main purpose of an MSDS is to inform the receiver of the hazardous material exactly what precautions they need to take in handling it. It is important that MSDS documents are prepared properly to avoid legal issues.

The type of legal issues associated with MSDS documents may involve both civil and criminal law. If the MSDS is improper, you may be in breach of government regulations. 

Even worse, if someone is harmed by the hazardous materials, a lawsuit may be brought. If it can be shown that the MSDS was not properly written, you may have to pay a lot of money in damages to the injured party. 

You can use an MSDS database to see what documents have already been published for specific hazardous materials. This is useful in creating new MSDS documents, or when dealing with chemicals yourself. 

What Is SDS?

SDS stands for safety data sheets. It is somewhat confusing to work out the difference between SDS and MSDS because their names are so similar. 

SDS is basically an updated version of the MSDS. The reason for the update was that the old MSDS documents could be quite different from one another. 

The idea of the SDS is to have a uniform set of standards that companies adhere to around the world. Any SDS document must follow a step-by-step order of headings. 

The major benefit of this is that safety communication has become standardized. Also, there is greater accountability in the process of using and moving hazardous materials.

The SDS was created according to specific guidelines laid out by the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). It has now been adopted by the United States’ Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA). 

What’s In an SDS?

Any SDS must follow 16 specific sections. They must also be presented in the correct order using the exact headings specified by GHS. 

The 16 sections of the SDS are:

1. Identification

• The name of the hazardous material

Hazard identification

• Any hazards related to the particular material

Composition/ information on ingredients

• The specific chemical ingredients

First-aid measures

• Particular measures relevant to the hazards

Fire-fighting measures

• The correct response in the event of a fire hazard (e.g. some chemical fires will not respond to water)

Accidental release measures

• Guidance on recollecting spilled materials (i.e. when released in open water)

Handling and storage

• Specific requirements (i.e. sunlight, temperature, etc.)

Exposure controls/ personal protection

• Necessary equipment to handle the material (i.e. gloves, glasses, etc.)

Physical and chemical properties 

• Properties such as acidity, odor, viscosity, etc.

Stability and reactivity

• Known chemical interactions (i.e. oxygen or hydrogen)

Toxicological information

• Human response to ingestion and other exposure

Ecological information

Disposal considerations

• Where and how the material can be disposed of

Transport information

• Guidance on modes of transportation and related concerns

Regulatory information

• Regulations from relevant jurisdictions

Other information

• All other necessary information to prevent and mitigate the hazard

Not all hazardous materials will be applicable to some of these heading. However, according to SDS guidelines, all headings must be included anyway. 

Since the SDS is formal and uniform, there is SDS software available to help create and store SDS sheets. SDS documents can also be found on SDS/MSDS databases. 

What Is the Difference Between MSDS and SDS?

The most important difference between an MSDS and SDS is uniformity. Under the MSDS system, there were a number of templates that could be used. The simple development of the SDS is that there is only one template. 

It is actually possible that an MSDS was created that satisfied the criteria of an SDS. So, in effect, an SDS is really just a particular type of MSDS. 

The other major difference between an SDS and an MSDS is their legal implications. An SDS is a safer document to use because it adheres to all of the major regulations on hazardous material.

If you want to learn more about when an SDS is specifically required, check out this article from online-msds.com. 

So, an SDS and an MSDS are more or less the same things, but an SDS will always contain the same information and adheres to international standards and regulations. 

Know Your SDS/MSDS Rights and Responsibilities

You should now know the answer to the question ‘What is the difference between MSDS and SDS?’ But now you really need to spend the time getting to know your datasheets.

This is important whether you are sending or receiving hazardous materials. Seeing an SDS will give you confidence in dealing with the material. But you also need to make sure that if you are sending hazardous materials that you follow the SDS guidelines clearly. 

You have both rights and responsibilities surrounding hazardous materials. So, don’t take chances. Get to know the SDS guidelines back to front and stay safe!

If you have found this information useful, why not read up on some other tech developments with our great selection of articles?

Beginning a Business: 6 Steps to Plan Opening a Shoe Store

The footwear market is valued near $250 billion in the U.S. alone. It shows how valuable and attractive the shoe industry is. 

But does that mean you should open a shoe store? 

That depends on what kind of shoe store you want to open and how well you know your target market. It also depends on how much you know about starting a business, especially a shoe business. 

Just because the shoe is the industry is booming doesn’t necessarily mean your shoe store will be booming. 

Before opening a shoe store, you should know 10 critical things about opening a shoe business. These 10 critical things can help make your life easier as you consider opening up a shoe store. 

1. Know Your Market

Before you consider starting a shoe business, you need to do some market research. You need to know your target market. 

That means figuring out the shoes they like. After you’ve figured out the shoes they like, you need to get more specific about how to target them. 

You’ll have to figure out the demographic, age, interests, and why they love the shoe they are buying. Find the reason why your ideal customer loves the shoes you are selling because your goal is to sell to them. 

Your goal is to imagine what your ideal customer is thinking about that makes them want your shoes. Your shoes might provide extra support, they may be exclusive, or they might offer some other benefit. 

Overall, the more you know your market, the more you know how to help them. The more you know how to present your product in a way that shows them how your product is the best solution. 

2. Master Your Niche

Your niche is everything about your specialized area of shoes. If you open a shoe store, you should know everything about your niche. 

It includes not only knowing about your target market but also about the shoes you sell. 

If you master your niche, you should know everything about how your shoe is made. You should know everything from the design to the price point. 

Ultimately, you should be an expert in your niche. If you aren’t, it could hurt your business because you don’t know who your ideal customer is or who your shoe appeals to. 

3. Online or Offline

When it comes to the business side of opening a shoe store, you will have to make the decision to be a brick and mortar store or an e-commerce store. 

You have to decide where your target market shops. You will also have to assess how much you have to spend on creating a store and creating the product. 

If you decide to have an online store only, you will have to be specific about shoe sizes and lenient on returns since some shoes may not fit when they arrive at the customer’s home. 

You should also consider the benefit of an e-commerce store because you can have anyone shop at your store from anywhere.  

4. What’s Your Marketing Strategy

Your market strategy is about knowing who to target and how to target them with organic or paid search. 

Since you already learned about your target market, it’s important to consider ways that can help you reach your target market. Take for instance social media. It’s one of the best ways to promote your product in front of your audience. 

Facebook ads, Twitter advertisements, LinkedIn ads, and other forms of social media help spread brand awareness. It also helps you create very targeted ads that can make your product more specialized. 

5. Start-Up Costs

Another factor to consider before opening a shoe store is start-up costs. 

You may need to spend money on research expenses, inventory costs, as well as obtaining licenses. 

If you don’t prepare for these costs, it could put you in a financial bind. It’s also important to consider how much you’re paying employees. 

6. Business Planning

Business planning is about calculating startup costs but also having short-term and long-term goals set up. 

You want to have goals in the first year and the first 5 years. You also want a gameplan that details how you’re going to make money. That means understanding what you’re overhead is as well as your profit margin. 

In addition, you should also know your budget and have an exact plan on how to address your market. A business plan is everything that goes into making a business work effectively. 

A business plan is also a written document that helps give you a blueprint on everything you need to start a business. It should include what your competitors do and how your strategy will be different. 

Your business plan should also include the kind of shoes you will be selling. You should also know the impact of the shoe industry on the environment and if you will be creating more environmentally friendly shoes. 

Opening a Shoe Store is a Lot of Work, But You Can Do It

Opening a shoe store is a lot of work. It takes commitment to understanding business strategy, the costs of opening a business, and the work behind developing a fundamental marketing strategy. 

However, if you put in the work, you can create a profitable shoe store. You can target the right audience, know everything about your product, and have a solid business plan. 

Now it’s your turn to start a shoe business and be successful at it.

If you liked this article, you can read more like it by visiting our website.