MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Convetion, Exhibition)

Most agendas for a meeting look like this.

* Budget

* Payroll

* Staff

* Sales

* Vutszxtn

Some people would tell me, “That’s a perfectly good agenda. I know what all of
those things mean, except, uh, ‘vutszxtn’.” The point is, vutszxtn means as much to
you as the other terms mean to the other participants. For example, does budget
mean increase the budget? Plan a budget? Report on the budget? Reduce the
budget? Complain about the budget? Make fun of the budget? Or what?

An agenda like the one above could launch a meeting that considers all of the
possibilities mentioned above. Instead, you may have wanted to reallocate funds
from one department to another.

A proper agenda specifies everything that the participants need to know to make
the meeting effective. It should contain:

Goal: A clear description of the results expected by the end of the meeting, such as
a decision, agreement, or solution.

Outcome: The reason (or benefit) for achieving the goal.

Activities: A detailed list of the activities that will be used in the meeting. This
should be so complete that someone else could use it to lead your meeting.

Logistics: Everything that the participants need to know to contribute to an effective
meeting. This can include directions to the meeting room, instructions on how to
prepare, and a list of things to bring.

A complete agenda will help you hold effective meetings.

IAF Certified Professional Facilitator and author Steve Kaye works with leaders who
want to hold effective meeting. His innovative workshops have informed and
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support. Call 714-528-1300 or visit his web site for over 100 pages of valuable
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Industrial workers are paid compensation for their services in the form of wages. Wages are fixed as the time spent by the worker in the factory or per the production produced. Wage is a matter of great importance as most of the labor problems are related to wage payment. The efficiency of workers and their interest and development in their work depend on wages. Their attitude towards their employer is influenced by how fairly they thing they are being paid.

Wages are important to employers because their profit depends on total wages billed. An employer, in general, is interested in paying as low wages as possible. However, low wages are not necessarily economical. In fact, they may prove to be too costly to the employer. An employer has a moral and social responsibility to pay fair wages to the workers, as they are the partners in the productive process. The employer should introduce an incentive wage system that will benefit both employer and employee.

There are basically two types of incentives – financial and non-financial. Financial incentives help individuals meet their basic needs and non-financial incentives assist in meeting the higher order needs such as social, esteem and self-actualization needs. Non-financial incentives are based on sociological and psychological principles of higher behavior.

Some of the important objectives for which incentive programs are used are to increase production, productivity, yield, manpower utilization, and earnings of employees, sales and quality. Incentive programs also play a major role in improving quality, reduced cost of production, reduced inventory and reduced wastage.

Financial incentive schemes can be direct or indirect in nature. In direct financial incentive schemes, the payments are based on an employee’s performance or contribution to the job such as production incentive schemes, attendance bonus, etc. In the case of indirect financial incentives, the payments are not directly related to employee contribution. Leave encashment, gratuity schemes and leave travel concession fall in this category.

Incentive Programs provides detailed information on Incentive Programs, Employee Incentive Programs, Corporate Incentive Programs, Safety Incentive Programs and more. Incentive Programs is affiliated with Pay Per Click Affiliate Programs.

In trying to implement the “No Child Left Behind” Act, schools are scrambling to standardize their curriculum and upgrade their instruction to make sure students can pass achievement tests mandated by the Act. In order to fit all the instruction and other demands of childhood education into the day, many schools have resorted to “teaching to the test,” shortening lunch period, and cutting back on or even eliminating recess.

There are better ways to provide the instruction that students need without relying on boring drills or lengthening an already demanding school day. For years, savvy teachers have been integrating the curriculum – using high-quality children’s literature to teach phonics and other basic reading skills; combining reading and art lessons with history, social studies, science, and math; and relying on the concepts of multiple intelligences theory and differentiated learning to reach every child.

The availability of high-quality children’s literature has never been greater. Children’s book publishers are providing rich collections of compelling stories that reflect the increasingly diverse world of today’s primary and middle school students. Educational publishers are also offering colorfully illustrated, engaging books and periodicals on a wide variety of subjects designed to meet today’s national curriculum standards.

For years dedicated teachers have known about and used multiple intelligences theory in their classrooms. Harvard graduate school professor Howard Gardner proposed in his 1983 book Frames of Mind that human beings learn by use of seven different intelligences – verbal, logical-mathematical, musical, visual-spatial, tactile kinesthetic, and inter- and intrapersonal. He later suggested that more intelligences exist, among them naturalistic intelligence, spiritual intelligence, and something he referred to as “existential” intelligence. Teachers quickly latched onto this concept to provide a variety of learning experiences in their classrooms involving these intelligences. In addition, they’ve geared their teaching methods to children functioning at a variety of developmental and intellectual levels. The combination of multiple intelligences theory and individualized learning opportunities has in recent years been formalized as differentiated or differential learning. Differentiated learning allows for targeted instruction that will teach children the basics needed to meet state and national requirements while providing support for slower learners and enrichment for learners at all levels. A wealth of materials for both multiple intelligences theory and differentiated learning is available to help teachers structure a supportive classroom environment for all their students.

The demands of the “No Child Left Behind” Act don’t have to result in developmentally inappropriate expectations or rigid scheduling for our children. Schools can use many creative, child-friendly techniques that will help students of all ages meet learning standards while retaining their carefree, fun-loving kid status.

Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwestern New Hampshire and frequently contributes to Tips and Topics. She has published numerous articles in local and regional publications on a wide range of topics, including business, education, the arts, and local events. Her feature articles include an interview with independent documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and a feature on prisoners at the New Hampshire State Prison in Concord. She may be reached at amfredenburg@yahoo.com

Recently, a Japanese study showed dramatic results of organ fat loss and increased muscle strength, in test rats fed rare phytochemicals from baby green apple skins.

Without additional vitamins or supplements, these rats lost 27% of their internal organ fat — “belly fat” in you and me– and increased in muscle strength by 16%, in just three weeks. Should these findings translate to humans, we could be looking at a true health breakthrough of the new century.

Belly fat in mice and men is a signature of aging. The body deposits additional fat around the organs and raises blood levels of cholesterol in response to uncontrolled oxidative stress (aging) in the organism, because body fat and blood fat are the natural protectors of every cell in our bodies.

Exercise, which elevates human growth hormone, was the only proven way to reduce organ fat before the discovery of the remarkable water-soluble polyphenols given to these test animals.

What could this mean for you? It means that a concentrated natural apple extract, with no side effects, may reverse some of the aging markers in the human body. It is also worth noting that every drug which is given to humans has first shown its effectiveness and safety in mice and rats.

Ancient Supermen

In ancient mythology, the apple was considered to be the Goddess’s sacred heart of immortality. The Celts called the western paradise Avalon, which means “Apple-land.” The Irish kings received the Goddess’s magic apples of immortality. King Arthur was taken to Avalon (Apple-land) by the triple Goddess, in the form of the three fairy queens.

The Scandinavians thought apples essential to resurrection. The Greeks said Mother Hera kept the magic apple garden in the West, where the tree of life was guarded by her sacred serpent, represented by icons showing the great Goddess offering life to her worshippers in the form of an apple. The Norse Goddess Idun kept all the gods alive with her magic apples.

And now science is proving the mythic legends. In recent human tests, polyphenols from apples dramatically raise the biological activity of all three of the body’s anti-aging, disease-fighting enzymes- superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase, and catalase. No wonder the apple eaters were considered to be “consorts of the Goddess.” Such a man would be stronger, look better, and live in radiant health much longer than his non-apple-eating peers.

Modern Medical Marvels

Phytochemicals in baby apple skins may be the closest thing to “magic” to come out of the labs since penicillin. The list of health conditions that these botanical compounds improve or prevent is truly impressive. Apple phytochemicals are showing promising test results in 3 of the 5 leading disease killers of Americans, including seven types of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.

Apple polyphenols are 6 times more powerful than vitamin C against human cancer cells in lab tests. They may prevent asthma attacks, inhibit dental carries, lower cholesterol, and stabilize insulin response. Recently, scientists from Cornell University proposed that extracts from apples “could reduce the risk of neurodegenerative disease such as AD (Alzheimer’s Disease).”

But unfortunately, an apple a day won’t keep the doctor away. Polyphenols in ordinary grocery store apples are lost through ripening, storage and processing. Immature green apples, which are too bitter to eat, contain up to 10 times more polyphenols than mature fruit. And in nearly every study, the test animals are not eating whole apples. They are given dehydrated, highly concentrated powder extracted from the apple skins, the richest source of these phytochemicals.

The blessing of these natural botanicals are our inheritance as children of the legendary Goddess, Gaia. Her crown jewels are the fruit of the trees, and the blossoms of the rain forest. And her most precious emerald gems– baby apples– may one day reverse aging, cure disease, and help her children realize their ultimate perfect health and longevity.

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Katrina Kern is an author, women’s health counselor and former practicing nurse. More information on these exciting health discoveries, and her new e-book, “How to Absolutely, Positively Know When Your Body is Burning Fat,” are available now at http://www.applepoly.com/bellyfat/. You can find a link there for current medical studies and breaking news on apple phytochemicals.