The Grand Masters of Eskrima Receive their Lifetime Awards

Location: New York, USA – Viewing / Reading Time: 8-9mins

On the evening of Saturday 30th January 2010, I was invited as a VIP guest to the World Premiere of a brand new, Filipino-made, documentary film called “Eskrimadors”, an inside look at the ancient and at time deadly Filipino martial art, Eskrima – also known as Arnis on a more international scale.

I grew up enjoying martial arts. I loved the movies from Hong Kong legends such as Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, and later on in my late teens and early twenties, Jet Li. I even got involved, to a certain degree in the Hong Kong film industry in the UK in the late 90’s. And I also studied a few different martial arts (karate, wing chun and aikido), but never really got heavily occupied with any of them.

I have now lived in the Philippines for close to a decade and have, of course, been aware of the Arnis they teach the kids in school, or used to, rather, and the deadly challenges that used to be put together involving rival schools and masters. However, that was basically my knowledge level of the art. Until that night at SM Cinema 2, where a friend (who is also the film’s producer) invited me to attend the premiere of her latest work. And I have to say, I was blown away.

The film’s production quality was amazing and the editing was excellent. Not only this, but the camera work was nothing short of awesome (its tough filming this stuff in close quarters, I am sure, because its unrehearsed and unbelievably fast!). However, what got me more than anything else was the STORY behind the Eskrimadors themselves. And I don’t mean a script, I mean the REAL history behind what they went through. The challenges of being forced underground and then allowed to practice the art in the ‘open’ again, thanks to American rule, the late night, bloody, battles involving rivals from different areas of the city and many other up’s and downs.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Before the film was presented the audience was treated to several demonstrations (one of which I have included above, and can be found on my YouTube channel) from the various Eskrima / Arnis schools when the Cebu area (this is where the art originated from and where I have now been living for over 6 years), and we were even introduced to one of the founding fathers of the art itself, Grand Master Cacoy Canete, who is now 90 years old and STILL practicing and teaching the art that he loves so much. His demonstration alone was memorable enough, without the movies’ presence.

Following the film, all the masters and grand masters were award with Certificates if Recognition for a Lifetime of Devotion to the Art, which is fading slowly, but surely, as youngsters now prefer to play video games and more modern sports, such as basketball and soccer. This is hard for the masters to accept as they watch the once extremely popular home-grown martial art, which is now bigger internationally, in regards to schools, clubs and competitions, fading in the country where it was created.

This whole thing touched me, sincerely. So much so, that even though I am traveling at 35,000 feet as I write this post, on my way from Miami to New York on a four-city tour of the US involving meet-up’s with clients, prospects and other like-minded entrepreneurs – the moment I get back to Cebu in the middle of February, I will be looking up my producer friend and getting the contact details of one of the clubs, Doce Pares, that have been around since the early days (and who’s full-time school is just a five minute drive from my office), as I now want to go and learn this amazing martial art for myself, to add a real experience to my life journey (although the obvious strikes and subsequent bruises, I am going to receive from those sticks as a complete beginner, will be avoided whenever possible, I assure you!).

I also want to be able to pass it on to my two sons and my daughter (if she will put down her fashion magazines and log out of her facebook account!) to hopefully show them a little more of their Filipino roots and to be able to enjoy the pleasure that I believe I will get by beginning a brand new experience at my own ripe-old age.

So, wish me advance luck, and I will be sure to let you know as to when I begin, what its like to be taught by masters who have been teaching for decades, as well as what it feels like to no doubt get hit repeatedly by bamboo rattan sticks!!!

For a general explanation of Eskrima / Arnis, check it out on Wikipedia – no point in me even trying to tell you about the actually martial art itself at this moment, but I do believe a few of you, at least, might be interested enough to want to read a little more on the subject.

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Home Office – Reading Time: 3mins

Meet my youngest son, Charles (or Charlie Boy as he is more affectionately known!).  This is Charlie at our local Starbucks branch in Ayala Center, Cebu.

We popped in together when his Mummy was doing some serious show shopping, and Daddy had gotten tired of the question “What do you think of these…?”. We go into this Starbucks 2-3 times a week. The staff there know us well, and we’ve got to know them pretty well, too. However, on this day KZ, the young lady on the left in the photo, remembered that the last time I was there with Charlie she gave me a taste of their new Orange Latte Drink, without the coffee, just to check it out. It was good, and so I let Charlie have a little taste too (one of the rare occasions where anything remotely close to Chocolate gets near him as he’s only 14 months old!).

Charlie liked the new beverage, too. So much in fact that he smiled at the staff with a grin from ear to ear! (Gotta love that choco taste, huh, kids…?!)

So, on this trip to Starbucks, I didnt get the customary ‘Hi Chris, same as always..?’, as I walked through the door… No, no. This time around it was a great big ‘Hi Charlie..!’, and then I ordered my drink. I already had a smile on my face – not only was the staff great with Charlie the last time we went in, but they even remembered his name (and he wasnt the one paying for the coffee!).

Before my beverage was completed and served to me, KZ was walking around the counter, with a little tasting cup in hand, towards Charlie. With that she bends down, along with a co-worker in tow, and starts to feed my little boy the choco-orange delight that he fell in love with the last time he was in the store. Absolutely awesome.

This my friends, is why I will be a Starbucks customer for LIFE. The coffee is great, yes, and I do love it. But there ‘are’ other coffee shops in town. The fact of the matter is that Starbucks employees, or ‘Partners’ as they are known as, are among the absolute BEST employees that I come across. Everywhere – not just in the Philippines.

Thank you Starbucks for being awesome, and thank you KZ at Ayala Center, Cebu Branch for being spectacular as always and putting another smile on my son’s face – I have a feeling he’ll be back for more soon!

Over at my other business blog, Telesales Magic, which focuses on telesales tips, telemarketing tips and cold calling tips, I recently sat down and put together a few things on the subject of using voicemail and email to help the telesales efforts that so many sales pro’s put forth every day. At first it was going to be a 2, or maybe a 3 part series of  posts, but it evolved into something bigger. After a little planning and getting together with a great eBook designer, my first FREE Telesales eBook was created.

Make no mistake, emails and voicemails will NOT ‘close’ business for you (maybe very rarely, but let me emphasize the word ‘rarely’ here!). People prefer to buy from people. Plain and simple. Even the greatest emails and the strongest, most professional voicemails left on hundreds of thousands of machines throughout the course of the day do not bring clients on board.

However, when used properly, they can greatly increase the possibility of doing so, by providing more in-depth information, and generally allowing you to look professional and seasoned, as a company or individual.

Just sign-up at the Telesales Magic website NOW and a link to the eBook (along with my other two eBook’s, too!) will be emailed to you directly. I hope it helps you out, and please let me know how you get on by commenting on this page.

As telesales professionals it’s our job, and we know this, to help people find solutions to their problems. We’re picture painters. Artists. Helping people see that the issues and headaches that they have been experiencing can be forgotten with the help of our spectacular range of products, or services. This will almost always be done by creating rapport, engaging our clients, and helping them along in the buying process.

Remember, people LOVE to buy, they just don’t like to be SOLD!

This particular eBook focuses on using these two tools to help you when making your follow-up’s with prospective clients, to supplement your teleselling efforts. However, I do focus a little more on email, as we do tend to use this medium more than voicemail nowadays, don’t we..?!

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Starbucks, Cebu – Reading Time: Post – 3mins, eBook – 25mins

Get it whilst its still hot!

Visit my www.virtualbusinesslifestyle.com site for more details and download details!

Location: Live2Sell HQ – Reading Time: 7mins

As kids, we grow up with stories about Santa Claus, the Boogeyman, and the Tooth Fairy.  A few years later, our bubbles burst when we realized that those stories are nothing but mere stories, myths, concocted for whatever purpose adults had in mind. Now several years later, as adults, allow me to shock you a little more… Don’t be astounded. Believe me.

Multitasking is a myth.

Well, it is according to Dave Crenshaw (www.davecrenshaw.com), author of “The Myth of Multitasking: How Doing it All, Gets Nothing Down”. As entrepreneurs, we often take pride in ourselves for our ability to “multitask”. Multitasking has become a laudable term in our everyday vocabulary. Think of executives taking pride on their capability to multitask. Think of the job description that asks possible employees to have the ability to multitask. This may come to you as a surprise, but multitasking is a myth. It is costly and upsetting whenever people try to take on it.

I picked up Dave’s book, like thousands of other business owners and serial entrepreneurs, with the view that I do definitely multitask. I was wrong, and Dave explained very clearly why, in his book.

The term “multitasking” is not doing something entirely monotonous and mechanical such as writing a blog entry while eating your sandwich, watching TV while washing your dishes, or listening to music while exercising. When you do these things, you are not multitasking. Instead you are “background tasking”.

For most people, multi-tasking is concurrently executing two or more things that necessitate mental concentration and effort. Imagine discussing a plan with an employee while you are crunching numbers, or attempting to write a business proposal while talking on the phone, attempting to get courtside tickets for the Lakers! You probably think that you are multitasking, but you are not. You’re simply “switchtasking”.

The more I read of Crenshaw’s book, the more I realized something. Truth be told, no matter how much we try, we can’t do two things simultaneously. Equipped with one body and one brain, multitasking, neurologically speaking, is just impossible.

Instead, what we are doing is simply switching back and forth between two chores hastily – paying attention here, writing there, listening to the CD, checking mails there. We do these things back and forth at such elevated pace.  This intensely deep-rooted habit can lead to stress and apprehension, leading to several concentration and productivity problems. Not only this, but when looking at this ‘myth’ myself, I realized that it has (not anymore!) resulted in me getting involved with quite a bit of procrastination – which isn’t good for any busy business owner!

When all is said and done, Dave Crenshaw is right! Multitasking is just switchtasking. We switch quickly between one task to another. Whenever we switch, there is a cost coupled with it.  In economics, they call it the “switching costs”, and these switching costs are high.

Now, am I writing this review because Dave recently became a client of Live2Care, and is using our Virtual Assistant Service to great effect? No. I am reviewing the book, in my own special little way, as I genuinely enjoyed it and thought it was a great read (Dave contacted me via Twitter, when he saw me praising it, before we had ever even spoke..!).

I am sure that he will not mind if I give you a few tips to help you decelerate your switchtasking and become more productive as busy entrepreneurs, so here you go:

• Be in control with technology. Be the master over the niggling buzzes and beeps by creating silence. Turn off your cell phone and computer e-mail notifications.
• Schedule. Create regular periods in a day and week to inspect your e-mail and voicemail. Inform others of the schedule so they’ll know when to anticipate a response from you.
• Pay attention to a person. Whenever you switch from one task to another when dealing with a computer, you lose efficiency. However, when you switchtask on a person, you could damage a relationship. Remember to listen carefully. Listen attentively. Move on only after the conversation is complete.

You can get your own copy of Dave’s book at Amazon, and I also suggest a visit to his website at www.davecrenshaw.com, as he has a great blog, and regularly updates with fantastic posts. He also produces a “Get Time Bootcamp”, which you should definitely check out, too.

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Home Office – Reading & Viewing Time: 2mins

I wanted to publish this quick post to share what I woke up to yesterday – and in fact what I wake up to most days when I’m home and not traveling. This is the sunrise from the balcony that leads off the bedroom at my house in Cebu, Philippines. In the short video below you’ll hear me say that this is what the Virtual Business Lifestyle (VBL) has provided me.

I want to obviously point out that I wasn’t talking about the sunrise, the house, the balcony or any one particular thing when I said this. Instead, I was trying to get across that the VBL gives me the chance to get up, take my time, enjoy the goodness that the earth has to offer (instead of focusing on all the horrible things that happen around the world each day) and look forward to having breakfast with my 11 month old son, Charlie, and then spend some time playing with him.

The fact that I own my own business, run my own life and fundamentally have created a lifestyle for myself and my family that allows me to slow down regularly and enjoy the more important things in life is a very, very beautiful thing.

So, enjoy the sunrise, have a great week, and start thinking about embracing your own VBL soon. Take care!

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Home Office – Reading Time: 8mins

As a once-self-confessed email junkie myself, like most entrepreneurs looking for that Virtual Business Lifestyle, I truly enjoyed this post from www.zenhabits.net on how its creator, Leo Babauta, dropped his Inbox and came up with a new way to control incoming messages to streamline his life a little more than it already is. Outsourcing email it is one way, but check this idea out! Here’s the text, in its full-format, thanks to Leo’s no-copyright guideline! Thanks, Leo. Enjoy.

After more than 15 years of dealing with email, of checking email multiple times a day, of responding over and over throughout the day, of deleting spam and unsubscribing from newsletters and unwanted notices, of filtering out messages and notifications, of deleting those dumb forwarded jokes and chain mails …

I’m done.

It feels so good to say those words! It’s so liberating to break free from my inbox!

I’m done, because email takes up too much of my time. I’m done, because I don’t like being at the mercy of every incoming request, because I would rather spend my free time creating than replying to emails.

I could go much further into explanations, but I think you get the point. I’ll let others argue the point for me — a number of people have talked about and experimented with killing email … here are just a handful:

• Can we kill email?
• How to kill email before it kills you
• Video: One man’s experiment with email independence
• Declaration of Email Independence
• Business email overload

How I Ditched My Email Inbox

I’m actually experimenting with this over the next couple of weeks, phasing out email instead of ditching the inbox immediately. But the transition has already started, and I think by the end of today, I’ll be able to stop checking email entirely, or once a week at most.

Here’s what I’m doing:

1. I’ve set up an autoresponder for my email that explains what I’m doing and how to contact me and for what reasons. I know, I hate autoresponders too, but I’m hoping people will get tired of seeing the autoresponder and stop sending me emails. I’m curious what will happen if someone sends me a vacation autoresponder, and then my autoresponder goes back to them, and theirs goes back to me, and so on for infinity. Anyway, I’ve set up a filter with a few keywords so those who want to advertise or do a few specific things can still get through to my inbox. I’ll discuss those below. (Btw, feel free to test out my autoresponder: email zenhabits (at) gmail dot com.)

2. Twitter will be my main form of communication. I know, not everyone uses Twitter, but the people I communicate with the most are (mostly) on Twitter. What I love about Twitter is that it’s very limited (140 characters), so you have to keep things brief, and also there isn’t the expectation that you’ll respond to every message, as there is in email. Friends can DM me on Twitter for personal communication.

3. For longer conversations, there’s IM or Skype chats. These will be required to be scheduled, and are for friends, interviews or close colleagues only — you’ll have to DM me on Twitter, and we’ll set up a 10-minute chat. I won’t schedule too many of these (like one per day at the most, probably) and again they’ll be limited to 10 minutes. This is much more effective than email for complex discussions.

4. For collaboration, I’ll use Google Docs and/or wikis. I’m looking into whether wikis are necessary or desirable. It might be that I just use Google Docs, which have worked great for me so far. Still, maybe a wiki would be good for holding an entire project together. At any rate, collaborative online software is much more effective for working on a project with others than email is.

5. Friends and family can call me. Especially if they don’t use Twitter. They already do, actually, so email isn’t absolutely necessary. The phone is better for personal communication anyway.

6. A few types of emails will get through for now. My filters allow emails for advertisers, interviews, refunds, and people who want to hire me, to get through to my inbox. I’ll be checking this once in awhile (every 2-3 days), but I’m working on automating these processes via the web — people would get a link to schedule an interview with me, or a page to buy an ad, or do a refund, etc. This will eliminate the need for these emails.

I think this will work, but we’ll see. It’s possible that within a couple of weeks, I’ll return to email. I’m always willing to experiment, to try new things, to find the method of working and living that works best for me.

Will it work for you? Perhaps not. If you get a lot out of using email, don’t stop just because I am. Do what works for you — as for me, I’ll be focusing more on creating, and less on processing.

Frequently Asked Questions

A few questions I’ve been getting so far:

Q: Why so extreme? Why not just filter and check email less often?

A: I’ve tried a number of tactics with email, including extreme filtering. For awhile I set up a special email address for friends and family and close colleagues, and everything else was shunted into a special folder to be read less frequently. It still took up too much of my time. I don’t check email as often as most people, but it was still a chore I have been enjoying less and less. So I decided to try something different.

Q. Why not just get a Virtual Assistant?

A. I actually had one for awhile, and it worked fine, but inevitably there are emails I need to respond to. I’m going to try this and I really think it’ll be easier.

Q. Won’t you lose your connection with your readers?

A. Maybe a little, but to be honest, email hasn’t been my favorite way of connecting with readers for awhile now. I much prefer the comments section here on Zen Habits, as well as Twitter. I love connecting with readers, but there has to be a balance between connecting and creating, and I have to find a way of living that works for me.

Q. I couldn’t do it — it’s required for my business.

A. Possibly, and I’m not saying you should. I really think all businesses could rethink their use of email, and use it less. There are better solutions for collaborating, for scheduling meetings or events, for getting group decisions, for managing group tasks, and so on. But people will do that when they decide email isn’t working for them as it should.

Q. What about friends and family?

A. They know how to get ahold of me. I much prefer the phone as a form of personal communication anyway. Those who want to send me messages can get on Twitter, which they should have done by now anyway, the dorks.

Q. Won’t you lose customers?

A. It’s possible. I really think people who want to get in touch with me will — I’ve provided a way to do that. If that doesn’t work for some people, it’s something I’ll live with. I can’t live my life dictated by trying to find what works for every single person.

Q. Is Twitter really any better than email? Won’t it just be another inbox?

A. I’ve found that I don’t need to check Twitter as often, or spend as long processing it. It’s not an always-connected, always-communicating tool that some people think it is — you can choose when and what to process, and only do it 1-2 times a day if you like, scanning your messages and not necessarily replying unless you feel the need to do so. It will be another inbox, but not as tyrannical as email.

I’m pretty sure there will be other objections, or people scoffing at this, but really, if it works for me, why not do it? And if it doesn’t work, I’ll switch back.

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Live2Sell HQ – Reading Time: 4mins

Enough has been written about the ‘importance’ of being available via online social networking sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook, so I’m not going to get too involved in giving you guys the run-down as to what they are and how they work, etc. However, I do want to touch on one particular site that I have been enjoying a lot this year, as know a lot of business owners and entrepreneurs, and I personally use social networking as a way to make new contacts and connect with friends around the world.

For me, social networking is just that – networking. Its not the be-all and end-all of my day, but I do flirt with it on a daily basis, and from time to time, because of one reason or another, I might get more involved than other times. My personal ‘fave’ is Twitter.

The reason why I favor it over all the others is because its quick. The simplicity of simply typing out a fast 140 character message and sending it to either everyone on my follower list, or just an individual is great. Facebook, on the other hand is my site of choice for anything more personal related, giving me the chance to stay in touch and up-to-date with buddies worldwide.

As far as entrepreneurs go, it does seem as if Twitter is the way that the majority of them are swinging. I think one of the main reason for this is because if you look everywhere, on almost every blog, the ‘retweet’ buttons are all over the place. Even on this blog! The opportunity to get your feelings, writing, articles, etc., out there into a mass-market is something very special, and the folks at Twitter know this. Plus, there are a lot more Twitter widgets and plug-in’s out there, up and running, than there are Facebook, etc.

Lets face it, Twitter has really hit home over the last two years. My company has personally generated around $25,000 in sales this year through Twitter. If we hadnt have been involved in Twitter, and relatively ‘active’ (tweeting regularly, getting into conversations, retweeting, etc) we wouldnt have gained that revenue and met the fantastic clients and partners that have come on board with us because of it.

Because of the nature of social media and viral marketing, Twitter users who are also ‘famous’ off Twitter are the ones with the big follower lists. But, is that the only thing that people want from using the service? I would rather (and I do, I believe) have a good quality list of people following me, than 100,000’s who simply follow everyone in sight. Some of the best people that I have got to know through tweeting have been business owners, entrepreneurs, internet marketing guru’s, etc. These people have something of value to pass on to guys like me, who enjoy learning, in every capacity.

So, I’d like to give everyone the chance to ‘network’ a little more by posting their Twitter ID below. Mine is @chrisducker, and if you follow me, I will go ahead and follow you right back – promise.

Also, for those of you that might be interested in learning more about how to use Twitter to create more awareness for your business, there is a great free Twitter Guide at Hubspot, that you can get in PDF format by clicking here. Its a good little read.

See you in Twitterverse!

In the meantime, here’s a few very useful Twitter links for you:

Twitter Counter – See how your Twitter following is growing

Twitter Ratio – Find out how popular you are and why

100 Other Twitter Tools - what is says it is!

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Home Office – Reading Time: 3mins

This is a repeat-post from www.zenhabits.net for the enjoyment of our readers. Thanks, Leo.

I’m sure many of us can relate to this quote, or at least, to the distractions of beauty. A gorgeous workspace with a view invites longing glances at a sun-drenched lawn, a lingering visual tour across the spines of our book collection, and excessive fiddling with the trinkets and toys co-habiting our desk.

We put time and effort into making our workspace a nice place to be without realizing that most of what we add will serve only one purpose: to make procrastination easier.

Simplifying your workspace can help boost productivity by removing distractions.

1. Keep the light, lose the view. Natural light is essential to any healthy workspace, but an interesting view will have you staring blankly into the garden or out onto the street when work gets tough. During work-time, your computer screen should be the most interesting place you can look. During your breaks, however, a trip outside or a peek out of an open window can help reinvigorate you.

2. Move books into another room. In moments where our concentration is broken it can be tempting to reach up into a bookshelf and start thumbing through a book. Unless you need them for your work, it could be a good idea to remove books or magazines, and in doing so, remove the distraction.

3. Keep your desk focused. A productive desk contains the items and resources you need to complete your current task within arm’s reach. Photos, toys, figurines and other items can make our desks seem more homely, but also have the potential to trigger day-dreaming sessions and tinkering.

If you can’t bear to part with the items, consider placing them on a shelf behind where you sit. You’ll get the comfort of knowing they’re there without the visual distraction.

4. Minimize digital distractions. If your work doesn’t require connectivity, disconnect the internet while you work. You can reward yourself with some browsing during break-time. If games are a distraction for you, consider uninstalling them. If you have more than one computer, save one for work only, and use another for fun stuff.

5. Simplify decorations. My workspace — also my bedroom — used to contain one wall covered in a collage of photos. It was the wall behind my desk, and the time I spent poring over the images when I was supposed to be working began to eat into my productivity. I’ve since taken down the collage and have found I actually like the clean, uncluttered look better. I’d also much rather look at my computer screen than a blank wall!

You probably won’t have a collage, but you might have ornaments, paintings, wall-hangings and other decorations that prove to be visual distractions when you’re feeling uninspired. Consider simplifying down to one or two decorations, preferably out of your immediate field of view.

You may even find there’s a certain beauty to be found in your workspace’s new simplicity.

As always, if you liked this post, please ‘Be Sweet and ReTweet” by clicking the button at the top of the page, as well as bookmarking it by using any of the options below. Thanks!

Location: Hong Kong Airport – Reading Time: 4mins

Eating healthy as an entrepreneur or business owner is more important than ever. Keeping healthy and eating healthy makes a big difference on your energy levels. This is a repeat-post from www.zenhabits.net for the enjoyment of our readers. Thanks, Leo.

When my family and I visited Tokyo earlier this year, it was a bit sad to see the rise of fast food in Japan.

It’s a beautiful country with a rich history of a traditional lifestyle, incredible food, and good health. They’ve perfected the art of food preparation, using the freshest ingredients to create small portions of beautiful dishes.

And while there still aren’t many fat Japanese people, especially compared to the U.S., I’d bet that will change with the insidious growth of fast food restaurants on many a street corner. McDonald’s is prevalent, of course, but so are many other Western food chains and an increasing number of Japanese fast food outlets.

It’s been awhile since I’ve written about the Slow Food movement, but I really believe it’s the answer to many of our problems: health and obesity, the hectic and stressful pace of modern life, and the lack of happiness in a complex and often burdensome world.

This is the Anti-Fast Food Diet — a way to not only lose weight and get healthier, but to change your life to one of simplicity, moderation, and joy.

Abandon fast food, and all the values it brings: mass consumption, mass production, the exploitation of workers, the destruction of the environment, the destruction of small local businesses, the corporatization of our culture.

Instead, embrace Slow Food. Here’s how.

1. Stop rushing to eat. Set aside more time for eating, for shopping and preparation, for enjoying life. Stop rushing to fast food places because it’s convenient — because it’s not so convenient to be hospitalized. Instead, make time, and take things a bit slower.
2. Prepare your own meals. I know, who has the time? You do. Make the time, and cook simple meals without a lot of ingredients or preparation time. It takes 10 minutes to whip together a healthy and tasty lunch or dinner. And it can be a lot of fun (get the family or your partner involved). Preparing your own meals is healthier, frugal, and you know you’re eating good food.
3. Eat real food, not processed. Buy fresh ingredients such as fruits, veggies, whole grains, nuts, beans, and the like. Use ingredients you can recognize, not things filled with chemicals. Don’t use prepared food if you can avoid it — microwaveable or boxed foods are not the best. Avoid processed food at all costs.
4. Eat slowly and mindfully. Too many people stuff food down their gullets these days. It’s not healthy, and you’ve just consumed food without enjoying it. Instead, take the time to chew your food, to taste it, to be present as you eat.
5. Enjoy the food. Fully savor each bite. Appreciate the miracle of the food you’re eating, and be grateful you have that bite at all.
6. Take time to breathe, and smile. Before you begin to eat, smile, and take a deep breath, reminding yourself to be present and enjoy the food. Between bites, instead of rushing to the next bite, breath, relax, enjoy. Savor the moment.
7. When drinking tea, just drink tea. When eating, just eat. Be fully present. Don’t read a book or surf the net or drive or work or anything else but eat and drink.
8. Good conversation. OK, the exception to the above rule: eating with friends and family. Fast food has destroyed the good meal and conversation, because we’re rushing as we eat and don’t have time for a good talk. Bring it back.
9. When you do eat at a restaurant, make it a good one. Avoid the fast food places, but also the chain restaurants (Chilis, TGI Fridays, Lone Star, Olive Garden, etc). Go to locally owned restaurants where they use real ingredients and really make good food. These may be more expensive, but you’re not supporting a corporation and your food will be better, and even if it means eating out less that’s OK — quality is more important than quantity.

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