I am so excited to share with you all March's Fireball bonus! My awesome blogger buddy and go-to fitness guru Diana Antholis has been amazing enough to create a bonus just for GMW Fireballs! If you haven't been following this blog for very long then you can check out the incredible interview Diana and I did when she launched her unique fitness program - Unleash Your Sexy! We recorded this interview about a year ago and since then her business has helped countless individuals find their center, get balanced and get healthy!

Just recently Diana launched her first ebook Unleashed: Live the Balanced, Centered and Sexy Life You Deserve and it quickly became a best seller on Amazon! Some of you have already picked this up, but in case you haven't here's why you should:

1. It's less money than a couple of lattes from Starbucks.

2. This isn't necessarily about dieting or losing weight (though it can definitely help!) - it's about living an overall healthy lifestyle including mind and body.

3. It's a handy guide to keep around for when you fall off the health wagon or need some quick stress busters

4. She gives you effective tools to deal with stress, fear and anxiety! Tools that actually work!

5. She's loving and gentle. This book in no way makes you feel inadequate or suggests you should strive for perfection. The point is to live a better life, not your stress yourself out with trying to create it.

6. She's got an exclusive bonus just for Fireballs - a free 30 Minute "Find Your Center" one-on-one stress busting workshop! 

Here are the deets:

 How do you get in on this?

This month's Fireball Bonus is ONLY for email subscribers - current and those who subscribe during the month of March. You will receive instructions all month long on how you can snag this awesome offer!

1. Sign up for the Fireball Newsletter! You can use the form below, on the side bar, below the header or the Pop Up.

2. Check your email for instructions all month long!

3. Current subscribers: Check the sidebar of the weekly blasts for instructions.

I hope you guys get as much fulfillment, joy and happiness out of Diana's work as I have! Here's a to a healthy March!

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

It happens. We're human. And so are our bosses. Which is a really important key to remember when you're dealing with anything in life - we're all human.

Now, for those times that we forget that, I fervently believe that if you want to get far in a traditional career path you need to add one important skill to your repertoire. It's not a skill on your resume or one you learn at school. In fact, I'm pretty sure no degree can prepare you for what I'm about to say. The number one skill you need to acquire if you're going to make it in a traditional career is this:

You need to know how to manage your boss.

Kate White mentions this in her latest book, I Shouldn't Be Telling You This, and I soon realized that knowing how to manage your boss can make or break you. It can make all the difference between having a miserable time and a good professional relationship.

So how do you do this? How do you learn to manage your boss?

Read on Fireballs...

Know how they function as a human being.

Bosses are human. They deal with life stuff - and some of them don't know how to handle life stuff very well. As a result they may tend to project outward at employees or cause some trouble. Once you become aware of this a) you learn not to take it personally so you move on and b) you don't get sucked into their drama.

Knowing your boss' patterns as a human being will really help you professionally. You'll know when to avoid them altogether or learn when you should be paying a little more attention to your job.

Is this manipulative? Absolutely not. You just learn how to make your work life easier. In fact, this makes your relationships in general easier.

Notice your boss' managing style.

Pay attention to what your boss likes. Do they like an occasional email with your progress? Don't wait until they ask for it before writing it. Do they like to use you as a sounding board? Use the opportunity to help them talk through solutions.

Every boss has a different style of managing and handling employees, so it's essential that you start paying attention to how your boss manages those underneath them.

Notice your boss' communication style.

Okay, this is something I have definitely had to learn the hard way in the past. Is your boss quick and short when looking for answers, or do they drag out stories before they finally get to the point? Noticing these habits will help you communicate with your boss when you guys are working together. You'll notice if you need to keep answers short and sweet, if they want background info or if they just like to talk. Communicating to your boss in the way they communicate to you will lead to a better understanding of each other and help the day flow more smoothly.

If your boss is incompetent, make their lives (and yours) easier.

I stumbled upon a great article from Forbes that talks about this very thing. You can actually assess your boss' personality to come up with a strategy to a)calm them down and b)get off your back. Take a look at this awesome example from the Forbes article:

What if your manager is downright incompetent? Zofi has a solution for that, too. One of her clients worked at a medical device manufacturing company and reported to the daughter of the owner. The company made sophisticated medical resonance imaging machines that were constructed from parts produced in various countries including India, China and Israel. Overwhelmed by the challenges of coordinating so many disparate sources, the boss became extremely anxious, constantly pestering the employee for information and even interrupting her when she was in meetings or on the phone with long-distance suppliers.

"My client was getting sick over it," Zofi recalls. "It was affecting her personal life. She even thought about going on Prozac." Zofi counseled the employee to assess her boss's erratic personality and come up with a strategy to calm her down. Instead of confronting the boss directly, Zofi's client reached out to the foreign suppliers and gathered information. She wound up creating spreadsheets that laid out the status of each part and when it would come into the manufacturing facility. "She gave her boss a comfort zone," Zofi notes. The strategy worked. In addition, the employee formed good relationships with the suppliers, which helped everything run more smoothly. "She doesn't love her boss," Zofi notes, "but she's still got a job, and she's dealing with it."

 Don't ever fuel the fire.

If your boss is having a bad day, pissed at your coworker or just not in the right frame of mind it's definitely not the time to ask for a favor. Also stay away from conversations involving other coworkers or their personal lives. You don't want to fuel any fires and you definitely don't want to end up being a punching bag.

(If you work in a very small office this can be really hard. Just try to your best to notice when your boss goes from business to personal and then steer as far away from it as possible.)

Knowing how your boss functions, paying attention to their managing style, communicating to them in their language, make their lives easier and staying away from drama will help you tremendously as you start moving in your career. Sure, we'd all love to have great bosses, but sometimes even the great ones get on our last nerve. Knowing how effectively manage it, however, is where your power lies.

What are some effective ways you have found for managing your boss? Got any crazy boss stories? Share them in the comments!

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

In the past you guys have met this with open arms so I figured I should keep doing it. This week we’re going to talk about meeting challenges when you are working very hard on something you absolutely love. Maybe it’s a business, a job, a relationship, a project, whatever.

The point is - some of you may relate to the fact that as soon as you make a commitment to something that is amazing for you and very exhilarating - everything else around you starts to go crazy. One might even say - shit starts to hit the fan.

This is what has been happening to me lately. I made a very big decision when it comes to my online brand and business. I made a commitment. I have, as my boss says, “postulated it to the Universe.” And I have told a few people to keep myself accountable.

(I don’t mean to keep you guys in suspense but I will be letting you all in on more details later.)

And I was totally pumped! Ready to go! Psyched! And as soon as I made this commitment doors started opening. I got asked to do a live workshop (more details on that later), was invited to Puerto Rico to spend some time with other online entrepreneurs, was contacted by a columnist for a major media outlet, and have an incredible support system! I was totally being guided to everything I needed to make this happen!

That, of course, lasted all of twelve hours. Suddenly everything that could possibly make me upset, angry, sad, stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, doubtful and scared came up for me. From my personal life to my professional relationships it seemed like suddenly shit hit the f*cking fan in a matter of days! Seriously, I don’t think I’ve been this irritated in ages!

After a few days of feeling like pure crap I finally made some time for myself to just relax. Did some yoga, took a long shower, pampered myself and just tried to make myself feel better. Once my brain had gone from crazy left-sided rational thought stress bomb to right sided creativity I remembered something my very devout Catholic mother has said my entire life:

“Cuando el maligno se asoma, es buena senal.”

In other words, when evil, hardship or difficulties arise, it’s a good sign that you’re on the right track. The story goes that St. Teresa of Avila used to say this when she was reforming the Carmelite order in Spain during the 14th century. Now, if you think we’ve got problems - they were probably nothing compared to what this spiritual mystic had to deal with - and she was undertaking a HUGE MASSIVE SCARY project!

Can you imagine what it must have been like to be a leader in the Counter Reformation movement, reform the Carmelite order of nuns and found her own order of Carmelite nuns who are now known as Discalced Carmelites? For those of you who don’t know, she was met with loads of adversity and opposition, even within her closest circles! But she still did it! She knew she was on the right track despite the difficulties - and the result? - she wrote beautiful works like The Interior Castle (which I recommend to anyone), was named one of the very few female Doctors of the Catholic Church, whipped the Carmelites into shape and founded her own order of Catholic nuns which is now known worldwide.

I also remembered something one of my favorite authors, Gabby Bernstein, says when people start cracking open and doing some serious work on themselves and discovering what they love - for a while there stuff can be really, really uncomfortable. In fact, things may get way worse before they get better. And this is an awesome sign! It means you are on the right track and your ego is trying desperately to bring you down! Your ego will start pulling out all the stops when you’re on to something amazing and it’s our job to recognize that and keep going.

So, for those of you who are knee deep in self-reflective work, are working toward a massive passion project, or are just starting to figure out who you really are and what you want to do with your life - don’t get disheartened when challenges come up. That just means you are on to something amazing

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

Sometimes I wonder how the hell I'm still doing this - after all, a job like this makes you susceptible to losing your faith in humanity. Most of the time, however, I am so grateful for the information, stories, experience and color these interviews add to my life. Seriously, I've got some great stories for social gatherings!

At the 200 interview mark I was starting to notice patterns among people. This was right at the beginning of starting my life coaching certification so I was becoming very aware of the problems people are facing not just on the job hunt, but within themselves and life in general. Below you'll find a few of the patterns I have noticed:

• People get in their own way. Their egos are strong and loud.
• Lack mentality is an epidemic. Most of them have some crazy fears around money and scarcity.
• People who act like complete jerks a) don't usually notice they are doing it and b) have something very funky going on inside of them.
• People let their job problems seep into every part of their lives. Or, vice versa, which may be even worse.
• People are VERY quick to judge themselves and others.
• People don't put their money where their mouth is. They talk a lot about changing, quitting their jobs, running their own business and the like but never do anything about it - and they certainly don't want to financially invest in their own betterment!

See? I told you this job might make you lose faith in humanity. But for me, it's been an eye opener. I already had a feeling that people were living on autopilot, merely existing rather than living, but conducting all these interviews has certainly proved it. At the end of the day, regardless of what issues they were bringing into my office, most people had the same basic problems: they weren't really living and they'd been hurt. Maybe even really hurt.

This prompted me to start reading and researching the psychology of happiness. I asked myself some very basic, yet fundamental questions. Why are we living this way? Why are we so quick to judge, control and attack ourselves and others? Do we have a predisposition to viewing life in a negative way? Is this genetic? How come only a few people seem to really be happy? And how can we spread the happiness?

What resulted was a journey (and a newfound love) for metaphysics, other forms of philosophy, spiritual teachings of all kinds, psychology, neuroscience and quantum physics. My Catholic upbringing had already exposed me to some of this stuff, but after witnessing first hand how people are sleeping through life I needed to know more. Never in a million years did this English major think she'd say "Wow I'm totally digging - and understanding - neuroscience right now."

My research was astounding. Turns out we have a set point for happiness. Fifty percent is determined by genetics, 10% is determined by circumstances outside of ourselves (car, money, house) and the other 40% is totally up to us. By this point its not rocket science. Things like chronic stress and anger make us feel like shit. Meanwhile things like exercise, community, feeding our brain with good stuff and proper management of our emotions makes us feel better. The point here is that happiness is up to us - we have more control than we think!

You know what else is interesting? Having material things doesn't make much of a difference. Sure, if you take a homeless guy and give him some food and a roof over his head it's going to really affect his happiness quotient for the long term. But if you go from maybe $100,000 to $500,000 or even $1 million the positive affects don't last very long. Ever notice how millionaire athletes are notorious for blowing through their money? Or how some people keep finding themselves in the same financial problems even when they make more money? Have you noticed the string of suicide and crimes in the athletic world lately? Or how some of the world's most famous actors and musicians are so deeply troubled? Thats because material wealth and success affects our happiness to a minimal degree.

Oh...and this one might actually blow your mind. We affect our surroundings. Our thoughts and our feelings can affect other people, animals and even our reality - and there is science that really backs this up! The idiom "I'm getting a good/bad vibes" is based on actual science!

Of course, we all already know this stuff. We're born knowing this stuff. We can feel it. Some people even tell us these things long after we've forgotten. So why aren't we listening?

Below you'll find some great books and documentaries on this very subject. I promise you won't look at life the same way again.

What the Bleep Do We Know?

I AM

The Unleashing Part 1 by Osmar Vindel (This one really goes into a bunch of other resources as well. Way too many to count!)

3 Magic Words 

Happy reading + watching everyone! Feel free to share any thoughts or resources in the comments below.

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

This month we're dishing about Rockstar Blogging - a guide to help you earn over 1K in sponsorship, get free stuff and get noticed by brand you love!

One of the coolest thing I have found through my blogging journey is the ability to get free stuff from brands. Lately, I've had more companies and people reaching out to me offering me awesome products to review and give away - from books to calendars - and you all have responded very well to this!

Because of this I thought it would be a great idea to teach some of YOU how you can do the same on your blogs! So I brought in the Giveaway Queen herself, Shannyn Allan from Frugal Beautiful. Shannyn has created a Rockstar Blogging to help bloggers of any stage  use their work as leverage to make extra income, get free stuff and get noticed! Shannyn and I have dished on this stuff before, and with her advice I've been able to get more free stuff to give away and share with you guys - from books to calendars and even a Kindle Fire!

I'm fortunate enough not to just consider Shannyn a colleague but also an incredible friend with a HUGE heart and lot's of spunk! We had so much fun making this video for you guys and I hope you all get as much out of it as we did!

What You'll Get From Rockstar Blogging

A specific action plan to help you earn 1K+ in sponsorship, free products & get noticed by brands you love. You'll learn how to:

• Understand what companies look for in sponsoring a blogger.
• Write the “Perfect Pitch” and talk to major brands.
• Grow your traffic & social media followings for free using giveaways.
• Prep your blog so brands will seek you out to send you free stuff.
• Build brand relationships effectively to earn free travel or sponsorships

You also have different options depending on your needs:

• ROCKSTAR BLOGGING

  Includes the guide to becoming a Rockstar Blogger

  • Rockstar Blogging 51 Page Guide

  Click here to learn more & purchase.

• GOLD PACKAGE

  Guide, Worksheets & Video

  • Rockstar Blogging 51 Page Guide
  • Supplemental Worksheets: Perfect Pitch Essentials and Rockstar Pre-Reqs
  • Action Guide: “The Freebie Filled Gift List:  How To Score Your Christmas Gifts For Free"
  • 2 Exclusive Video Interviews. With Rockstar Bloggers Kylie Ofiu & Kelly Whalen.
  • Access To Video Rockstar School. 4 Video Lesson Modules

  Click here to learn more and purchase.

   

• PLATINUM PACKAGE

  Guide, Workheets, Video & Personal Consulting

  • Rockstar Blogging 51 Page Guide
  • Supplemental Worksheets: Perfect Pitch Essentials and Rockstar Pre-Reqs
  • Action Guide: “The Freebie Filled Gift List:  How To Score Your Christmas Gifts For Free"
  • 2 Exclusive Video Interviews. With Rockstar Bloggers Kylie Ofiu & Kelly Whalen.
  • Access To Video Rockstar School. 4 Video Lesson Modules
  • Special Launch Day Bonus: Free Personalized Site Feedback/Critique for first 10 buyers!

Click here to learn more and purchase!

February Subscriber Bonus: 10% off Rockstar Blogging!

Alright my little fireballs, all of you who are already subscribed to the blog have received a 10% discount code for Shannyn's awesome program Rockstar Blogging! Just look on the sidebar all month long for your code. And no worries, I will be sending out a huge email blast with the code as well, plus your monthly dose of personal insights from me.

New subscribers: When you subscribe to the Grad Meets World email list you'll also get the 10% discount code in addition to the Post-Grad Tool Kit which is full of guides and templates to help you start a side hustle, make a budget and start kicking some major ass in your life. Simply use the box below, under the header or on the side bar to subscribe!

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

I am a big advocate of meditation. It's made a tremendous difference in my life and that of many others. Most of you already know the benefits of meditation, but just in case you didn't here's a rundown from Mayo Clinic:

The emotional benefits of meditation include:

Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations
Building skills to manage your stress
Increasing self-awareness
Focusing on the present
Reducing negative emotions

With that in mind, some research suggests that meditation may help such conditions as:

Allergies
Anxiety disorders
Asthma
Binge eating
Cancer
Depression
Fatigue
Heart disease
High blood pressure
Pain
Sleep problems
Substance abuse

Okay, now why wouldn't anyone take five minutes a day to try this? It's quick, it's easy, it's natural and it's FREE!

Below you'll find some of my favorite tools and resources for keeping my meditation practice alive. Feel free to use any of these or share your own resources in the comments.

Yoga

I've learned some pretty awesome meditations thanks to my yoga practice. Whether you're going to studio classes or streaming yoga online, there are a ton of different resources you can use to learn different tools, techniques and breathing exercises.

I personally go to Prana Yoga Miami for studio classes and use MyYogaOnline or Gaiam for online video.

Gabrielle Bernstein

She's got free meditations on her podcasts, groovy youtube videos, a myriad of empowering lectures and three amazing books that help make meditation easy, practical and attainable. Seriously, this chick is a one stop shop for spirituality.

(P.S. You can still win an autographed copy of her latest book, May Cause Miracles! Click here to enter.)

Meditation Oasis

Meditation Oasis is a 100% free resource for guided meditations. I've been using these meditations since 2010! They also have a stellar blog that answers all of your meditation questions.

Terri Cole

Terri Cole is a psychotherapist and meditation advocate. Her album, Meditation Transformation, has a variety of meditations to get you through your day.I particularly love Manifest to Sleep. I'm out cold as soon as it's done.

BONUS! Inner Health Studio

While working on my coaching model I came across an awesome resource for visualization, relaxation techniques and meditations. Inner Health Studio has MP3s, scripts and a podcast to help you deal with just about anything - from writing a report to nightmares.

Happy Meditating everyone!

Spread the Love with a Tweetable:

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

You can't work with everybody.

Subsequently, there is such a thing as an ideal client. One that you will enjoy working with, is cooperative and that you can actually help.

Since starting my own coaching practice in 2012 I have discovered this to be true. Now I know why life coaches and trainers everywhere have such detailed intake forms - they want to make sure the relationship will work. They want to make sure that this is a person they can ACTUALLY work with and help.

It was very rocky at first because I had no idea what my ideal coaching client would be. I like to face my scary demons head on so I just jumped into it like I usually do. Though the experience was rough I learned a very important lesson: I need to get very very clear on the kind of person I want to coach. Because the reality is that although I may try, I cannot help everyone. My services are not suited for everyone and in turn not everyone is suited for my services.

(I learned other things to - like trying to stay present, focusing on practicing power listening and a few other things I need to work on; but those are separate blog posts.)

By testing different techniques on different people I've been able to start narrowing down the kinds of people I want to work with and how I can better serve them. I want people who are a lot like me - ambitious, fire starters, hard workers, focused and with a good sense of humor. Of course I will have to refine this as I go on and with time I am sure this will become more clear.

The same rings true for my freelancing endeavors. I've had some clients that I adore and we really rock it! And I've had clients that were a complete waste of time (spider porn and bed bugs, anyone?) Furthermore, the same theory applies to this blog. Though most people love the content I have gotten flack for some of the things I write. But hey, I write for a specific group of people and it's never going to be everyone's cup of tea.

How this applies to you...

I'd like to take the time to point out how this theory applies to everything regardless of whether you're working the daily grind or running your own business. Hell, this even applies to dating and frienships! You or your company have something to offer to the RIGHT people. These are the relationships that will flourish into something dynamic and beautiful. These are the relationships that will click.

So whether you're a salesman, a blogger, a coach, a personal trainer, a secretary, a musician, a web designer or a dog walker it's very important to keep in mind the kind of people you'd like to work with. Otherwise it'll be a lot of wasted time and effort topped with frustration for the both of you.

You can start by asking yourself a few questions (these are some of the questions we ask at work as career consultants and I've begun using it in my coaching and freelancing):

What characteristics/personality traits does your ideal client/customer have?

What interests them?

How cooperative are they? (What is your definition of cooperative?)

Are they realistic in their wants/needs?

What kinds of problems do they have? (Be specific!)

How committed are they to the service/project/change?

Do you think they can actually pay you? (Haha! Very important one at the day job!)

These are just a few questions you can ask yourself in terms of narrowing down the clients you can serve. Now when it comes to what clients you'd LOVE to work with try making a list of 10 client attributes - as in, you won't let anyone hire you unless they match these guidelines. Here are some of mine:

1. They are committed, focused and ready to crack open instead of dilly dallying around. I want action takers!

2. They have a big vision they can actually see in their mind. Maybe they don't have all the details, but they can definitely smell the outcome.

3. They pay on time, and gladly.

4. They actually enjoy my brutal honesty and understand it comes from a place of love and compassion.

5. They treat me like a partner to share ideas with, not a guru or a life saver.

6. They like to have fun and joke around!

7. They recommend me to others.

8. They respect time schedules. I'm picky with my calendar.

9. They appreciate my services and show gratitude.

10. They have a sense of humor!

The theory of only working with the right clients is nothing new. In fact, it's basically mentioned in every marketing and business blog there is.

Think Traffic mentions how people who are considered experts in their field do not take on just anybody as a client. They have an application process, a waiting list and only offer free services occasionally.

Marie Forleo talks about the importance of identifying ideal clients in her video "Do Your Clients Drain Your Energy?". (Very good video!)

Ramit Sethi (I Will Teach You to Be Rich) and Derek Halpern (Social Triggers) also talk about the importance of knowing what kind of customers you want to work with on a podcast they did together.

And of course, you can't have a post like this without mentioning Seth Godin, who pretty much coined the idea of building your tribe. (If you don't know who Seth Godin is at this point you need to watch this and this.)

So as you can see, some of the leading online experts in marketing, sales and numbers all seem to agree on the same thing.

Bottom line: Get clear on who you WANT to work with.

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

We all know that healthcare has become a huge issue in the U.S. and I’m right there with you in wondering why a first world country can’t get their shit together in the healthcare department. Sure, we just had the Affordable Care Act go through, which increased coverage for millions of Americans (myself included), but we really don’t know what this is going to end up costing us. The fact of the matter is that healthcare in America is a complicated hot mess, and we’re going to have to learn how to maneuver it.

First things’s first: Practice Preventative Healthcare

Preventative healthcare can save you a lot of money in the long run. What do I mean by this? Eating right, exercising, meditation, stress management - all of this can make a huge difference in how much you shell out for healthcare.

(If you're not sure where to start my dear friend, personal trainer and blogger buddy Diana Antholis just launched an eBook to help you out! Make sure to check out Unleashed: Live the Centered, Balance, and Sexy Life You Deserve)

But what about the health stuff I can’t control? What’s that going to cost me?

Now, obviously we’re all big on preventative healthcare like eating right and exercising, but as one of you so eloquently put it via Facebook, “We all try to live healthy but sometimes the flu, a cavity, or genetically poor eyesight gets in the way.” (Shout out to MaryBeth Tellez in Long Island for that one!)

And if life’s medical mishaps aren’t enough to get you to start wondering about healthcare costs check out some of these statistics:

• Health insurance costs for younger Americans in the individual market could rise by 42% or more (The Hill)
• Single adults between the ages of 20-29 can expect to see higher premiums (Contingencies, Jan-Feb 2013)
• For a 27 year old making $33,500/year premiums are expected to jump from $2,400 to $3,183 (Contingencies, Jan-Feb 2013)

You can also find numbers about how healthcare has become a huge financial burden for young adults all over the place including Forbes, The Washington Post and The Huffington Post. (If I’m being frank, my head hurts from reading all the information out there. It’s endless!)

I’m not telling you guys this to scare you. I just want you to be aware of what’s going on before I delve into how we can manage this. In fact, this may turn into an ongoing series on the blog, but for now we can start with these steps:

Step 1: Set up an emergency fund.

Before you start looking into individual healthcare plans or what your employer offers you need to head on over to the bank and open up an emergency fund. Why? Because even with insurance many times you will have to pay for something out of pocket.

Take it from personal experience, even though I have insurance (and one that is considered to be quite good) I have still had to pay for a lot of stuff. As a result my emergency fund has become my lifeline when I need to go to the eye doctor or get a wisdom tooth surgically removed (which is still costing me upwards of $300 despite the fact that I have insurance).

Besides, it’s just smart finances to have an emergency fund.

Step 2: Learn some lingo.

You can do all the research in the world but if you don’t know what the hell they are talking about it’s useless. I have oftentimes found myself reading about insurance and saying “What the hell is a PPO? HMO? WTF? Aaaah!” Since I am sure I’m not the only one here is a basic rundown of the different kinds of plans:

HMO: You choose a primary physician within a network who then will give you a referral for a specialist if you need to see one. Prices for visits are fixed for primary physicians (usually $25-$30) with specialists being higher at ~$45.

When treated under a HMO you are usually only responsible for copayment which has its own copayment (~$150).

Prescriptions have a copayment as well which falls under different categories for different price ranges depending on what medication is being prescribed. You can talk about brand name and generic meds here.

PPO: When treated under a PPO you also designate doctors from within a network but also have the option to see a doctor from outside the network.

Pro: you have a wider selection of drs to see both locally or when traveling.

Con: in addition to paying the copayment you are responsible to a certain percentage of the service rendered price (usually 15-25% depending on your plan).

• Prescriptions: same Information for prescriptions as HMO prescriptions.
• Hospitals: In addition to the copayment you are responsible for a certain percent of the hospital bill (15-25% depending on the plan you have)

PPOs have what are called "out of pocket expenses." depending on your plan within one year an amount is designated by the insurance company. Once you reach that amount you are only responsible for copayments when visiting a doctor or hospital. Usually this amount is not met unless you get really sick and have to be admitted into the hospital for an extended period or for a major surgery.

PPOs have FSA (flexible spending accounts) which is money deducted from your paycheck that can be used for copayments at doctor offices, hospitals or for prescriptions. Might or might not be offered by your employer depending on the plan.

FSA amounts can be personally chosen based on how many times you feel you will need to go to the doctor or how many prescriptions you will be purchasing in a year. (I.e. max for  blue cross blue shield is $1200).

POS: Combination of HMO and PPO. It's combination is aimed at for those who need a more limited insurance. More limited coverage for lower costs.

You choose your primary physician from within a network but are able to see a specialist physician from outside the network if needed.

Pro: Lower costs for those who don't have major health issues or for those who do not need to see a specialist periodically.

Cons: More independent. Patient does paperwork themselves. Payments are sent in by patient by mail. Patient must keep track of all payments made and receipts for payments made. Patient is able to see a doctor outside the network but insurance company will only make minimum compensation to patient.

Prescriptions/co-payments info is same as HMO.

Primary physician monitors the patients major health care plan.

(Kudos to my bestie Mel who is not only studying to be a doctor, but is also a whiz at figuring out how healthcare works. This entire section would not have happened without her!)

Step 3: Research, research, research.

The thing about health insurance is that a lot of determining factors are in play: where you live, what is offered in that area, what companies are in your area, what your employer offers, etc.

This is the part where you need to take matters into your own hands and do some major research. If you’re married and your spouse’s job offers insurance, check out the benefits and see if they suit your needs at an affordable price. If you’re self-employed or don’t get insurance through your job, research the individual plans of different companies. If you have a family check out family plans.

You can even check to see if the local public hospital offers some sort of health insurance plan. Local cities also sometimes offer low cost insurance options by partnering up with companies.

Different things work for different people. Your job is to figure out what you need, figure out who offers it in your area, and compare.

Then, of course, you need to fit it into your budget. But first, figure out what it’s going to cost you and then worry about budgeting.

Was this helpful? Did you guys learn from this? What else do you all need to know? I am all ears!

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

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Last week I had the absolute pleasure of going to see one of my sheroes speak live and in person. On Thursday night I went to The Standard on Miami Beach for Gabrielle Bernstein’s May Cause Miracles Book Launch Event.

If you’ve been following the blog for a while then you know I am a huge fan of Gabrielle Bernstein and her work. I have been following her for a little over a year and can testify that what she teaches about spirituality, positive psychology and meditation actually works!

I use her tools, techniques and teachings on a daily basis and have truly seen miracles occur - from managing my day job and having abundance to this blog becoming a major vessel for an empowering message. And, if you saw my Kick Ass Books for an Awesome 2013 video then you know that her teachings helped me have the easiest breakup recovery ever.

It is her work that helped me not only witness, but stop playing crappy records in my head. I now notice when I have thoughts like “My job blows”, “I’ll never make enough money”, “My ex is an asshole”, “I suck” etc. etc. Now instead of getting caught up in them I disengage and choose to see love instead. This kind of perception has literally created a better outward experience and has certainly helped me better deal with life’s occasional obstacles.

Gabrielle Bernstein has taught me and countless others how to live in an empowered love filled way. Following her work has literally changed my life for the better and I am constantly sharing these tools with you all because I whole heartedly believe in their power. (By constantly I really do mean constantly. You can read about my journey following Gabby here, here and here.)

So as you can imagine I was pretty excited to see one of her lectures live instead of on Vimeo. And I was certainly completely ECSTATIC when I got to meet her!

I met Gabby Bernstein! Squeal!

Autographed copy of May Cause Miracles and a pass to enjoy The Standard Hotel & Spa. Miracles indeed!

Seriously, dream come true! It's moments like this that make me realize how grateful for everything. If it wasn't for writing this blog that constantly forces me to look inward, take care of my side of the street and most importantly serve others, I may have never stumbled upon this incredible teacher. And I certainly wouldn't have had the balls to hand her a business card (Yes, I did do that. Make that two best selling authors I've slipped my business card to!)

You know what else makes me feel grateful? This beautiful setting on the water. I am so blessed to live in such an incredible city!

Getting ready for Gabby on the Bay!

I know a lot of you already follow Gabrielle Bernstein, but for those of you who don't here is a rundown of some of my favorite lessons:

Forgiveness is the bedrock of a happy life.

Relationships are assignments.

Gratitude is the only attitude.

Focus on the content instead of the frame.

Treat your romantic relationships as more brotherly and treat your friendships as more romantic (Good one!)

The Universe has your back.

Win an Autographed Copy of May Cause Miracles!

Since I purchased a VIP ticket for the event I got an EXTRA copy of Gabby's latest book, May Cause Miracles. And guess what?  I got her to autograph it for you! Just use the Rafflecopter widget below (you may need to click refresh) to enter! I can't wait to share this amazing guidebook with one of you lucky readers!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube

This has been an incredibly slow process because well, most things that are worth having in life are. Little by little I have been weaning myself off of dairy (easy because dairy makes me feel kind of sick anyway). If I order out I'm paying attention to lean meats, going for more veggies and trying to pick from local raw and organic restaurants. I also whipped out a blender that's older than I am and started experimenting with making green smoothies.

Photo via Wildtofu.info

Are there days when I fall off the wagon? Of course! Like when my family makes the annual batch of oatmeal chocolate chip Christmas cookies. Or when I'm out with friends. And I don't think I can ever give up coffee for too long (Maybe because I'm Cuban? Heh heh). Oh and I'm such a sucker for pasta! But the point is that I am slowly incorporating healthier foods into my diet.

One of the easiest ways to ensure that you're getting plenty of green & raw goodies is through juicing. It's become such a fad that you've probably seen it mentioned just about everywhere. As such you're probably rolling your eyes as you envision me hugging a tree and enduring whatever new cleanse happens to be popular.

But I assure you this is much more than a fad. Below you'll find some of the benefits of juicing:

The ability to consume a wide variety of produce. Seriously, it takes a ton of fruits and veggies to make a juice. Just this morning I used an entire pack of spinach, and entire pack of blueberries, carrots and celery. I couldn't chew all of that even if I wanted to. Juicing makes it easy to consume and digest.

You get the nutrients faster. A lot of times nutrients get stuck in the fibers of veggies and fruits. Juicing is able to extract all the nutrients from the raw components for you so you can gulp it right on down. Granted, we need fiber every once in a while so don't totally forgo the whole food either.

Promotes alkalinity. Any of you Kris Carr fans know all about alkalinity. Here's the Cliff Notes version: in order to keep our bodies healthy and balanced they need to be slightly alkaline. Here's the problem: the typical American diet is extremely acidic and practically devoid of any good things like enzymes. So what happens? Inflammation, allergies, arthritis, skin problems, mood disorders, depression, constipation, bowel issues, stress (physical & mental) and in my case IBS. And those are just the minor ailments. Let's not forget to mention obesity, heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

If you'd like to learn more about alkalinity I recommend clicking here, here and here.

Allows for efficient elimination. We need to get rid of the bad stuff. Period. Point blank.

Encourages weight loss/control. So many people go on diets to lose weight only to gain all the weight back in no time. Diets aren't the solution, sustainable lifestyle changes are. Green juices are a great way to start making those changes and control your weight.

Youthful appearance/smoother skin. Okay, so I know we're all mostly in our twenties, but I can't tell you how many young people I interview who look so much OLDER than they actually are. Seriously, some of you look like crap. The goodies in green juices give you a youthful glow.

So where do you start learning about green juices? Where do you find recipes? How do you even pick a juicer?

Ladies and Gentlemen allow me to share my personal collection of green juice resources. I've used these resources to grow my own knowledge in health, wellness and you guessed it - green juices and smoothies!

Crazy Sexy Diet: Eat Your Veggies, Ignite Your Spark and Live Like You Mean It!  by Kris Carr (This will give you a good run down of everything you need to know for your body!)

Crazy Sexy Juices and Succulent Smoothies by Kris Carr

KrisCarr.com

Tina Pruitt.com

Raw Foods on a Budget

Karen Knowler - The Raw Food Coach

Oh She Glows

The Blender Girl

Healthful Pursuit

FitLife.TV

A Beginner's Guide to Juicing by Sharon Daniels

The Juicing Bible by Pat Crocker

Juicing for Life: A Guide to the Benefits of Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Juicing by Cherie Calbom

The Juice Lady's Guide to Juicing for Health: Unleashing the Healing Power of Whole Fruits and Vegetables by Cherie Calbom

Green for Life by Victoria Boutenko - You can also check out an interview she did on Gaiam Inspirations.

Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead - A documentary that outlines the benefits of juicing as one man undergoes his own journey in getting healthy while helping others do the same. PURE AWESOMENESS!

One of my faves - Morning Glorious Juice by Kris Carr

Follow me on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter to keep up with my Green Juice Challenge, share recipes or get support for your own healthy resolutions!

Amanda Abella

Amanda Abella is a Gen Y blogger, freelance writer and life coach that has been featured in online publications such as Forbes and The Consumerist. Her blog was also named one of the 100 Blogs You Need in Your Life by Leaving Work Behind. Her experience working in career consulting, her adventures in entrepreneurship and her passion for the success of Gen Y has led her to create a community of millenials who strive to create the post-grad lives they dream of. She is available for hire for writing and life coaching.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook - LinkedIn - Pinterest - Google Plus - Flickr - StumbleUpon - YouTube