This weeks blog comes to us from guest contributor, Jan Leasure.  Currently Jan is a Senior Loan Officer in Libertyville, but previously was a teacher and nationally syndicated columnist for over 20 years.

Why was November chosen as “National Gratitude Month”? The obvious reason is because Thanksgiving happens in November and that gives everyone a reason to stop for a moment and visualize the things for which they are grateful.

When I was an English teacher, one of the things that I had my students do was keep a Gratitude Journal. Many students had a lot of ups and downs in their lives so sometimes writing down one thing was a struggle.  What we all learned from this exercise is that there were a lot of intangible things to be grateful for; love, friendship, a sunny day, trading lunches with your bestie, or the fact that Mrs. Leasure did not read your love note over the intercom!  What was the purpose of this exercise? We learned that although there...

I’m not sure about you, but about 3:30 pm every single day my brain decides to turn off and stop working. I tend to get tired and antsy at the same time, which leads to some seriously shameful unproductiveness. Seeing as the boss (as most bosses do), frowns upon dilly dallying till 5 pm, I decided that I needed to find some ways to boost my energy levels. Here’s a few simple ideas that I’ve found help keep you going till the very last second.

1.Get Moving!

Yes, I know it sounds cliche, but seriously. Get up and go to the bathroom, empty your shred pile, or just take a lap around the office! Your body needs occasional movement to change channels and get oxygen flowing. You don’t need to be away from your desk for an hour but little breaks to stretch your legs here or there won’t hurt.Keeping your body warmed up will prepare you for whatever tasks your boss might throw at you.

2. Eat Well.

I’ll admit that snacking is my weakness. I’ve found...

Did you know that there are 11 deaths reported with the use of 5-hour Energy and at least 5 deaths reported for the use of Monster Energy Drinks?  It is important to note that the details surrounding these deaths are not all cited, so there is great possibility of adverse reactions of energy drinks with medications and/or alcohol.  

Energy drinks do not provide energy, such as the type we get from carbohydrates for example.  They provide caffeine, a stimulant to your nervous system.  The goal of an energy drink is to boost your mental alertness, appearing as an energy boost.

Consumerlabs.com privately tested the caffeine levels in some popular energy drinks.  

• 8-Ounce Cup Of Coffee: 95 milligrams

• Monster Energy M-3 Super, 5-Ounces: 206 milligrams

• 5-Hour Energy, 2-Ounces: 206 milligrams

One of the problems with energy drinks is the quick uptake of such high levels of caffeine.  Most people may have more than one cup of coffee a day, but they drink...