Read back issues of The Balancing Act eZine.

Forward this issue to family, friends or foe!

THE BALANCING ACT

Building Balance for Better Living

JULY 2005

by Brent O'Bannon, MBS

(Author, Speaker, Counselor/Coach)

Read in this edition...

Always Personal...Addiction and balance

Always Professional...Communicating with color

Forever Playful..."Vacation on the beach" at work

James was court ordered to attend a substance abuse evaluation at my counseling practice. He completed the paperwork and for the next hour, as I interviewed him he was hostile, hurting and hopeless because of methamphetamine addiction.

I'm amazed at how much addiction plagues our society today. Approximately 3 out of 10 people will experience addiction in their lifetime. A large percentage will be influenced by addiction in their family members: parents, siblings, children, extended family members, friends and co-workers.

James hit rock bottom in prison and lost his wife in divorce. He struggled in his relationships with his daughter, parents, and co-workers. It is said that addiction leads to the hospital, prison or death, and for James, fortunately it only led to the hospital and prison. 

Addiction is any obsessive compulsive behavior that alters your mind (thinking), mood (feelings) or manners (behavior). A person can develop addictions to: alcohol, drugs (legal or illegal), exercise, food, gambling, love, sex, spending money, religion and work.

The downward spiral of addiction starts with experimentation, then casual use, leading to regular use, and finally, dependence. Addiction is the opposite of balance. Your thinking, feeling, and lifestyle turn to chaos. Some people believe in positive addictions. Technically, addiction to good things will still create imbalance and burnout.

James entered a hospital for detoxification and continued counseling with me for approximately one year. James jumped into 12 step programs and committed himself to a sponsor. Slowly but surely, James began to walk the road of recovery and rebuild balance in his life. I was humbled when his mother called to thank me for my counseling. I was delighted and amazed when James himself dropped by my office after several years and shared how he graduated from the University of North Texas with honors, and was now a counselor himself. That is the power of balance!!!

By now you may be curious if you or your loved one may be experiencing addiction and if there is help available. Take my FREE “Do I Need Counseling” test & get your results.

Buy Now & build balance in your life by listening and learning "The 7 Habits of a Balance Master".

"Brent gave a wonderful professional presentation with the right amount of humor, education, and heartfelt information! (Quote by recent workshop participant)

Whether for fee or free, book Brent for a personal, professional, playful talk or training for your organization.   

"Go ahead make my day"

Call 903-819-0301 or  Contact Brent Now.

The Institute of Color Research reveals all human beings make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment, or item within 90 seconds of initial viewing, and that between 62% and 90% of that assessment is based on color alone.

Use the following guide by the Institute of Color Research and the Wagner Color Response Report to help you implement personal, professional and playful impression management.

Red: Can create powerful emotions. Red gives us a state of excitement, passion, heat, danger, aggression and anger. (Men favor/are attracted to yellow reds, women favor/are attracted to blue reds). Red also makes the wearer appear heavier.

Blue (Lt-mid tone): Stated color of preference by most (80%); tranquilizing, cool, pleasant, peaceful, calm, serene. It's fresh & vital. Causes the opposite reaction of red.

Orange: Energetic, cheerful, and warm. It is a declassifying color and affordable. When paired with a strong blue, gives the impression of great strength. An example is laundry detergent boxes.

Yellow: First color the eye sees, exciting, inspirational, and cheerful (in small amounts). Color of intellectualism. Increases anxiety and temper loss. Increases concentration. That is why legal pads are printed on yellow paper.

Purple: Conveys wealth, poise, dignity, royalty, power & drama. Also, color of passion and sorrow.

Pink: Calms anger temporarily. Makes us feel young, gentle and calm. We tend to highly value things in pink. Bright pink can cause energy loss.

Green: Pleasant, peaceful, tranquil, cool, fresh, balanced, friendly, and candid. Be careful using this color close to the face; it changes complexions. Dark green implies wealth.

Blue-green (Turquoise & Aqua): Prestige, attracts attention. Turquoise is high powered and not as restful as blue. Men tend to undervalue women in Turquoise but like Aqua.

Brown: Protection, practical, maturity, security and not tender. Works well in business and social settings. Camel and khaki imply genuineness, but not as good to indicate authority.

Black: Sophistication, mastery, refined and solid. The ultimate power color and paired with white equals great authority. Mysterious and tragic. Makes people appear thinner.

Gray: Exclusive, successful, cultured, sedate and modest. Conveys wisdom. An excellent color for men and women in business. Sad and old. Not typically good in overcast climates.

White: Delicate, refined, pure, genuine, innocent, youthful, clean, sterile, and faithful.

Colors that can have negative impressions generally do so in large amounts. They can be used as accent colors.

By now you're likely wanting to learn more on making personal, professional and playful impressions that make a lasting impact. Your worth it!!!

IMAGE Matters-Creating a Successful Image by Cathrine Hatcher for only $21.95

Recently I was the "Toastmaster" of the day (Emcee for you non Toastmasters). Attempting to make the meeting more fun, I created a theme of "Vacation on the Beach". Creating the beach image, (Cathrine taught me that Image Matters) I wore my surfer swim suit, flip flops, and cabana hat. The Workforce board room (sometimes "bored" room) was transformed with palm trees, beach towels, and beach balls. To intensify our tan and protect us from the bright florescent lights, we lathered up with  coconut oil and sunscreen. We truly experienced a vacation on the beach in the middle of the work day!

Why don't we foster a fun vacation atmosphere at work? Why not transform the serious to slightly silly?

I had a full schedule of clients (most of you know I'm a family therapist) to see that afternoon after the Toastmaster meeting. Bing. Bong. Believe it or not I had an idea! Why not continue to wear my beach garb and decorate my counseling office with the vacation on a beach theme?

My clients needed a beach break from all the STRESS in their lives. They needed a casual, comfortable, "humor- contagious" climate to create courage to deal with their issues. As their therapist, I could model how to break out of the boredom box and balance with playfulness.  

If your serious side is wondering how this could ever happen in a work place, your not alone. I had my own doubts about my professionalism, however I discovered my clients were crazy about the vacation on the beach experience. My co-workers raved about the creative idea and want to plan a joint theme for a week in the office complex.

By now you're probably having ideas about how you could help your workplace "fun suckers" hop off the treadmill of seriousness and  jump onto the trampoline of playfulness!          

Would you like to learn how these major companies used humor in the work place to build better business while laughing all the way to the bank?

Dr. Roger Anderson, President of the Devry Institute of Technology; Sherwin Greenblatt, COO Bose Corporation; Bob Wendover, Leadership Resources, Inc.; Barry Tatelman, Co-Owner, Jordan's Furniture; Daniel Wolfe, President Cape Air; Jim Laffey, CEO, Color for Real Estate. 

My friend and 2003 World Champion Public Speaker Darren LaCroix and professional speaker, Rick Segel wrote the book, "LAUGH & GET RICH"-How to profit from humor in any business. In the book you will find 268 pages of inspiring humor ideas, interviews with the people and businesses listed above, and the "Nifty Fifty" (50 tips, techniques, and strategies to laugh & get rich).

"I double dog dare you !"

Contact Brent now!   

• Do you have a question or comment for Brent?
• Do you or someone you know need counseling or coaching?
• Do you or your organization need a speaker/training workshop?
• What topics would you like Brent to write about in upcoming issues?

View Brent's resources at www.brentspeaks.com