Due to some recent national TV appearances by people who call themselves nutritionists, which have included inaccurate, and down-right wrong information, a colleague went to work to collect videos from registered dietitians around the country who have done TV interviews. Since this was my last topic, I though I’d go ahead and share those interviews on my blog! But as I watched them, I also realized how educational they will be for those of you who watch them! As a consequence, I then did a little more research on my own, in order to add to the list.

So, do spend time watching the particular topics that interest you, to not only learn something new (which we all try to do, right?), but to also take away tips to help improve your life, and also get a better sense of the role dietitians play in helping people learn how to apply the science of nutrition to your own life.

Now, I again want to point out that although there is no standard for someone calling themselves a nutritionist, before either accepting what they say OR ruling them out, do a little checking of your own. Did they graduate from an accredited university with a degree in nutrition, or did they just find a certification program? We are talking about your health, here, so don’t fall prey to someone who says you have to avoid this or that, because of their own mis-information and lack of education.

Curious about gluten-free? Check out http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/food_coach&id=6358243.

What about information on pregnancy? Check out http://www.abc15.com/content/living/yourhealth/story/Pregnant-5-health-nutrition-myths-busted/Wz8Sqx1qCUued8bTH6h3hw.cspx.

With the holidays just around the corner, check this one out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CybyhlV1OR4.

Have young children or picky kids? Watch this; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjcu4nOXR5M.

Curious about fish oil supplements? Then you need to watch this one; http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/food_coach&id=6698760.

Curious about nutrition needs for teens? Watch this; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sGoUk5E7c8.

Starting to wonder about Halloween candy? Here is a segment from last year to help; http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=6118955

Good segment on eating to prevent cancer http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=5620219.

Happy watching!

Margie

Do you know the difference between a registered dietitian and a nutritionist? Chances are, unless you ARE one of either, you do not. But as a professional, you really should, especially if you decide you want the HELP from one!

I like to describe it this way: First, anyone can call themselves a ‘nutritionist’. It really has no meaning. Granted, people who call themselves nutritionists often claim that they focus on the physiology of nutrition where a registered dietitian just focuses on food or providing patients meals in a hospital.

Well, that makes me laugh, because before you can even QUALIFY to become an RD, one of the requirements is at least a bachelor’s degree.  So, would it even be possible that if someone were to get a bachelor’s degree in nutrition that the physiology of nutrition would NOT be covered? Quite often, in fact, a person who calls themselves a nutritionist may not have ANY education beyond a certification.  A certification can come from any type of program, from an online course to something more intense. But a certification cannot be accepted at face value without researching what is required.  However, saying you have a certification as a nutritionist would be like a physical therapist or a nurse or even a doctor practicing with just a certification, but people don’t really think in those terms, because we all eat!

So, I like to say that a registered dietitian is a nutritionist with the education and experience to help people learn how to apply information to their own lives. The difference, then, is further education.

This does not go to say that if a person did get their degree in nutrition and chose to NOT go the extra mile to become an RD isn’t as qualified! The difference between the two is the RD has much more experience, due to the 1,200 hours of practical internship, than the person who didn’t take it to the next level. And, if a person chose to teach, they would be just as qualified with their PhD in nutrition as the RD. This may also be the case if the person chooses to be involved in research.

So, when you read information about nutrition, ask yourself what qualifies that person to write. If you watch someone who calls themselves a ‘nutritionist’ on TV, ask yourself what really is the background of this person. Don’t take it at face value when someone tells you not to eat fruit for dessert or avoid all soy products. Do your research and find out just what the knowledge and education level is of that person who says such things. Just as you would do your research if you were looking for a surgeon, you should also do your research when listening to people telling you what to put into your body.

Jeff Bland says that we are a generation of human gineau pigs; we believe everything we say without questioning it. I feel that’s the case when someone tells me, “OH, I heard the lady on TV say we shouldn’t drink milk because it will kill us!”

Sigh. And the next experiment is on!

Margie

You’ve started your business and am excited to get things up and running. And you may even have a few new clients, so things are moving nicely!

But now you’re wondering what’s next! You hear all about the importance of marketing, but since you’re not a business specialist, you’re wondering just what the best marketing would be for you?

Well, the best marketing strategy will be whatever works!

Where do your clients hang out? What interests them? Who do they listen to, what do they read? What makes them tick? Once you figure out the answers to THESE questions, you can go where they are  and speak to them in a language they will understand, and address the issues that are important to them.

Sounds so simplistic, huh? But it really is that simple. Let’s give you an example:

Let’s say you want to help women lose weight. Where do they hang out? What websites do they visit, what blogs do they read and perhaps post on? Who are they following on Twitter? Get to know the answers to these questions. Then start posting and sharing, yourself. Write articles and submit to these websites, and even submit to various article-submission sites, such as ezinearticles.com.

Does this audience listen to other women, or do they search out health experts? Find this out and determine how to provide them with information in the form they want to see/read/hear it. Do not assume you KNOW without researching, first, though.

Finally, this is a very important point: IF your audience does NOT spend time online, don’t spend time online yourself, trying to find the FEW who are! Go where they are! Busy male executives tend to spend less time online for anything other than shopping or hobbies.  So it’s important to know where your clients are, so you can reach them.

What’s next for you is to grow your business, and by spending a little time researching who and where your clients are, you are increasing your chances for success.

To help you take your business to the next level, or even just get it off the ground, I invite you to come join us for the Just Jump into Business membership program! First month is free, so you have nothing to risk… except success!

Margie

What do you imagine? Are you living what you imagine doing? If not, how does that help you live your life?

I say this all the time, but life is WAY too short to not do the things we imagine doing.

I’ve shared that we will be moving out of state within the year. It’s time. Sure, it’s MUCH easier to stay put and ‘wait’. Wait until the economy is better. Wait until we could get a better price for our house. Wait until my mother is ready to move with us…. But I totally believe that the last thing we should do is put off what we want to do in our lives. I do NOT want to be looking back at my life and saying, “I wish I had…”.

Whether it’s your health or your career or a business, I can’t encourage you strongly enough to NOT put off what you imagine.

Dreams are easy. Moving into them can be a challenge. BUT, moving into dreams can also be the greatest expression of LIVING there is! Don’t let life pass you by. What is the worst that can happen if you move into living your dream??

Margie

Need help moving into that dream? If your dream is business, come join us in the Just Jump into Business coaching membership program. No risk, because the first month is FREE!

Many professionals are incredible at what they do! But some struggle with maintaining a healthy weight, which can lead them to feel less successful than they actually are.

Green Mountain at Fox Run is an incredible facility to help women learn how to live in peace with their bodies, and learn how to improve their health in a supportive, healthy way, rather than drastic dieting or guilt trips.

Green Mountain falls into the category of “adult weight loss camps”, but it’s much, much more. Here is the link to learn more about it: http://www.fitwoman.com/

So, I could write more, but I think my colleague Monika Woolsey does a much better job. To read what she has to say, click here

Even if you really don’t have a lot of weight to lose, but are looking for an experience of caring and self-discovery, Green Mountain is the place for you!

Margie

There has been a lot of discussion among nutrition professionals, lately about the wealth of inaccurate nutrition information being spread by the media. The problem is the media doesn’t know any better than the public!

Why would the media do such a thing? Do they do this when looking for someone to discuss medical issues? Nope; they contact an MD. Do they do this when discussing teeth? Nope; they contact a DDS or other dental professional.

But when it comes to nutrition, it seems that if someone reads a lot of books or takes some certification program (as many people do to list their qualifications to call themselves a ‘nutritionist’), or just decides to call themselves a ‘nutritionist’, or even today a ‘nutrition coach’, then they are suddenly the person asked to speak to an audience that could be in the millions!

YIKES!

I have shared links of dietitians who have shown up on national shows on Twitter, but not everyone is on Twitter, so I’ll share a couple of them, here:

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8295838

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8278705

As a result of the discussions I mentioned above, another colleague finally had enough and felt compelled to write a blog on the issue, which is here: http://tinyurl.com/p27obu.

What is the point to all of this? My point is that as a business professional, you may not know what is really accurate nutrition information and what isn’t. When a ‘nutritionist’ comes onto a national show and gives advice, some of the advice may be just a bit off. Will it harm you? Probably not. But it also may cause you to change your eating habits that COULD actually put your health at risk!

If someone tells you to eat avocado every day for lunch, instead of a balanced meal, I again cringe. I LOVE avocados, but unless you’re working to GAIN weight, I would NOT suggest you eat a whole one every day. Yes, it’s a healthy fat, but it IS all fat! A fat serving is 1/8th of an avocado, which is 45 calories. This means you will eat an extra 360 calories a day if you ate a whole one each day. At that rate, you could gain a pound of weight in 9 days!

And I’ll use another one of of these issues as an example: Fruit. Does it matter WHEN you eat fruit? NO! What’s most important is you EAT it! Now, maybe YOU can’t eat fruit at certain times, like after a meal, but rather than promoting that eating fruit after a meal will slow down digestion (which is mis-information), you need to determine if eating fruit for YOU causes you problems after a meal.

Now, before I get tons of complaints about disparaging the term ‘nutritionist’, let me end by saying that there IS such a thing as a ‘qualified’ nutritionist. Do your homework. Someone who has taken a certification program is NOT anyone I would want providing nutrition information to any family member or friend of mine. But, not everyone decides to take the next steps and become a registered dietitian after getting a degree in nutrition from a QUALIFIED educational program, which is fine. More important is, what do I mean by qualified? A correspondence school is NOT a qualified educational program. A bachelor’s degree or above in nutrition would be a qualified program.

How do you know if a person is someone you should listen to? Look at where they went to school and what their experience is. If they said they attended a particular school, check out the school! It should be an accredited school in the educational system, not some little hole-in-the-wall that provided a diploma.

I’ve love to hear your comments!

Margie

One of my action items for when I was done with school was to get involved, as a volunteer, with the Inland Empire Women’s Business Center . I’ve recently had several conversations with their training manager and they are now taking me up on my offer! Naturally, as a business coach, this is a good fit for me, and I’m excited to work with a wider range of women who wish to start a business.

In 2006, shortly after starting my MBA program at Cal State, I took part in their “It’s Your Time” business plan competition and education program. That was my first ‘real’ business plan, incorporating cash flow projections and a SWOT analysis, neither of which I had ever even heard of before. Naturally, since my MBA emphasis was in Entrepreneurship, after that, I did multiple business plans and marketing plans! In fact, it helped me better map out what to discuss in my book, Just Jump,  and how better to help clients.

The project I am currently working on is evaluating business plans that have been submitted for this very same program that I took part in, as a student, in 2006. I love seeing the fruits of all my labor (school) now paying off!

What I am seeing is a wide variety of clarity, focus and purpose in these plans – good and bad. I also better understand what was being considered when MY plans were submitted for evaluations! Some plans are excellent and I have graded them very high. Others… well, they have more work to do. It is said that in order to increase your likelihood of success with a business, that you have to put a business plan together, and these plans really bring that point home for me!

If you are working on starting your business, be sure to definitely put a plan together! As with the Women’s Center, mentioned above, there are many low-cost or free programs to help you create your plan. The first resource I often point people to is the Small Business Association. Play around on there because they have a LOT of tools to help you! You can also just do a Google search for ‘business plans’, and get TONS of help. Granted, some are better than others.

When clients come to me, or members join the Just Jump into Business membership program, I do things differently than a ‘traditional’ business coach. They have preliminary work to do before they even THINK of starting a business plan because, as professionals who specialize in what THEY do, they can quickly become overwhelmed with the thought of a business plan. They do not know ‘business’. Terminology is different. Focus is different. However, by addressing all the important PARTS of what goes into a business plan from a different perspective, by the time they have completed that preliminary work, they are ready!

We have several different services to help people move forward, and if the one-on-one coaching, small group coaching, or the membership coaching program are not for you, the business planning services, provided by our Business Plan Specialist, Mike Capps, MBA, might be the best route for  you.

No matter what you do when putting ideas and thoughts together for your business, do take the time to put a business plan together. It does not have to be a novel, but it does need to help you focus on what you want to create, what you will offer, who you will target and how likely it is to succeed. For a better sense of why a business plan is important, read Mike’s article, “Business Planning and Business Plans: What’s the Big Deal“. Creating a business plan is a tool for success; use it and benefit from it!

Margie