Flats fishing in the florida keys

Flats fishing can be an exciting and rewarding experience for fishermen of all ages, whether just beginning or accomplished angler. Flats are long, level, shallow water areas next to deeper water. They are found in bays estuaries and marshes. They are also found atop reefs and atolls, and along shorelines.

The bottom of a flat may be made up of grass, sand, rock, mud, gravel, or a combination of these. Flats with grass or other aquatic vegetation offer cover and food for a variety of fish as well as shrimp and crabs. The most sought after fish when flats fishing include redfish, tarpon, seatrout, bonefish, permit and snook. Other popular catches are striped bass, bluefish, barracuda, shark, cobia and mutton snapper.

When choosing the best areas for flats fishing, look for flats that are 8 feet deep or less. More productive flats usually contain stumps, brush piles, grass beds or other types of cover. Flats that contain shallow ditches or humps are especially attractive to bass. Also look for baitfish, crabs and other “fish foods”.

Observe tides carefully when locating good flats to fish. Some will be totally dry during low tide. As the tide rises, game fish will move in to feed whereas when the tide drops gamefish will wait for crabs and baitfish to flee the flat.

Flats are usually fished with fly gear or light spinning gear. Light tackle is the rule. Fly rods should be 8 or 9 weight. If you are using a spinning outfit, load it with no stronger than 12 pound test. Live bait such as mullet, pigfish, pinfish and shrimp works well. If you are using artificial lures, any size with attractor colors may be used from May through June. If you are flats fishing during July through August, natural colored lures work best.

Other equipment to include on your fishing trip is proper footwear, sunscreen, sunglasses, a raincoat and plenty of water to drink. Hydration is important since most flats fishing takes place in sunny climates such as the Florida Keys and the Caribbean, as well as lakes and rivers across the United States and other countries.

The most important equipment required is usually a small skiff with no more than two fishermen aboard. This lets the guide pole across shallow waters with ease, to reach the best flats. Also remember to wear light colored clothing to reflect the sun’s heat, and be less visible to the fish.

Book review chicken soup for the american idol soul

The Chicken Soup For The Soul series has been a runaway success in the book world, over 100 million copies have been sold worldwide. They have been translated into just about every language but Klingon! When you combine this with American Idol, a TV show that garners 60 million viewers an episode, and 7 seasons under its belt you have what must be a sure fire success.

The formula behind Chicken Soup is deceptively simple, short two or three page real stories that are uplifting, and often concern overcoming some adversity. This format appeals to readers and non-readers alike. Many people are scared of tackling a 300 page book, but everyone can manage a couple of pages.

Chicken A La American Idol features vignettes from performers, backstage staff and even fans of the show.

I have to make a confession at this point. I am likely the only person in North America, maybe even the developed world that has never actually watched American Idol! My entire sum of knowledge about it was gleaned from overheard conversations between co-workers around the coffee pot. This was not an impediment to enjoying the book though. The stories stand by themselves, you do not need to understand the show to enjoy them.

It is hard to pick a favorite story, several stood out in my mind. Mandisa was a contestant that made it to the top 10 finalist list in season 5. Mandisa is overjoyed to to have made it through the audition phase, and her performance is so good that the producers opt to include it in one of the TV episodes. She is gathered with her friends to watch the great event air. Her world is destroyed when what is actually shown on TV includes a snide remark from judge Simon Cowell about her weight. "Are we going to get a bigger stage this year?" he inquires of co-judge Paula Abdul.

Mandisa is crushed. But she gets her revenge. In what could have been a career ending move, when next she meets Mr. Cowell under the glare of the lights and scrutiny of the cameras rolling she does what I am sure many contestants that have been on the receiving end of Simon’s barbed remarks would love to do, she gives it to him with both barrels! A deflated Simon Cowell's only response is to ask her to come and give him a kiss!

Nigel Lythgoe is the Executive Producer, and his story ends with the sage advice that is applicable to anyone, under any circumstance. "So, if you are going to dream, dream in Technicolor. Don't dream in black and white." How true he is.

Many of the stories though have little to do with the actual show, the show is merely the catalyst. There are rags to riches stories, and many of the contestants have indeed shot into the spotlight as a result of American Idol. Most though have not forgotten their humble beginnings, whether it be a farm in Iowa, or growing up in 'the projects' of some urban sprawl. And many have 'given back' in some way, from meeting young cancer patients through the 'Make A Wish' foundation, to benefit concerts, they have done it all.

This is a great book, and one that even I, an admitted American Idol virgin can read and enjoy.

Seo and the phone directory

Imagine a time when the invention of the telephone was new. Let’s pretend there was a small firm that determined they would make a directory available with all the names and phone numbers of the citizens of the town.

The marketing department, small as it was, decided that they would list the most prominent citizens first, which or course made the successful citizens happy, but did little to make the other citizens feel that this approach was a form of discrimination.

No wanting to offend the citizens of that town the firm went back to the drawing board. It was suggested that perhaps it made sense to list the phone numbers numerically. The problem was you had to know an individuals phone number to link them up with their name.

One after another the directories were printed and distributed with phone customers feeling as if the entire process was unfair. So the phone directory firm started listening to the people they served.

In our fictitious story in our fictitious town the directory publisher determined that after several tries to make people happy he would simply list the customer alphabetically by last name. Oh, there were still those who felt there must be a better way, but at least people could find each other easily and the system was based on something other than preferential treatment. In time it was accepted as normal.

This story is a bit like indexing websites using Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

For some savvy webmasters it was easy to crack the code in learning how to get their client’s websites indexed and ranked well early in the history of search engines. In fact, some websites learned how to work the system well enough that their site pages were listed in at least all of the first page positions. That’s when search engines learned that the fair and equitable ideas related to search engine rankings were only serving those fortunate to know how to manipulate the system.

Refinements continued to be made and webmasters and designers needed to reevaluate strategies. In the end the black hat methods that had been in use were abandoned for the most part and actual quality in content and keyword positioning were implemented and expected.

It seemed the search engines grew up and webmasters learned it was time to play fair. New rules were in place and strategists had to revise their plans in order to help their clients fit in this new search relevant environment.

So, today, when you hear Internet marketing experts talk about the need for quality keyword rich content they are carefully guiding you to a method of significantly better long term placement in search engine rankings.

The phone book operates on a principle that does not play favorites, so do search engines for the most part. The primary difference is you can affect the outcome of your site rankings you simply need to learn how to best adapt to the requirements of the search engine and improved rankings will follow.

Decaffeinated-coffee-14

We’re all concerned about our health and for good reason. Consuming too many fatty foods or drinking too much caffeine can cause serious health problems. Many people are turning to decaffeinated coffee as a way to get their morning cup of java without the side effects of the stimulant.

One of the problems, in the past, with coffee that is low or free of caffeine has been the process used to remove the substance. For many years a form of solvent was used to soak the coffee beans in order to make the decaf coffee.

The health effects of this procedure were called into question by medical professionals. They suggested that people who were drinking decaffinated coffee were absorbing these solvents into their bodies. Some individuals even went so far as to suggest that drinking decaffeinated coffee led to cancer.

Leaving the beans to soak in a solution of solvent was viewed as unhealthy, so many people instead turned back to regular coffee. They traded the idea of drinking something lower in stimulants for drinking caffeinated coffee, simply because they were afraid of the chemicals used in the decaffeination process.

Today’s coffee makers are using much safer methods of removing the caffeine from the beans. One new and effective method involves soaking the beans in Swiss water. The water naturally removes the caffeine, leaving beans that are low in caffeine and not filled with unhealthy chemicals.

The easiest way to tell if you are drinking a healthy decaf coffee is to look at the label. Many coffee companies now use labels that contain information on how the caffeine is removed from the beans. If it says it’s a naturally decaffeinated coffee you can be fairly certain that only a natural process was used to take the caffeine out of the beans.

Taste is often the biggest hurdle for diehard coffee drinkers. If you are accustomed to the taste of regular coffee, it’s going to take some adjustment for your taste buds to welcome the difference. Some individuals find that if they slowly switch from regular dark roast to a decaf coffee, that it’s easier. Perhaps mixing half of each together for a few days, before increasing the portion of decaffeinated coffee, and decreasing the regular would help with the switch over.

Healthy eating often means making some changes in your diet. If coffee is one of those changes, consider that the less caffeine you’ve got in your system, the better. Finding a satisfying brand of decaffeinated coffee can be a challenge, but when you do, you won’t miss the stimulant at all. You’ll just be enjoying the taste of a great cup of java.

Making-kindergarten-normal

Making Kindergarten Normal

Each year when a child makes that transition from months at home to going back to school, there is always a transition. As adults we might compare it to that feeling when we go off on two weeks vacation and then return to work. Except the transition is much more difficult for youth because each year it is a new school routine, new teachers and they have often been out of school for months, not weeks.

But the transition from being a child in the home to the classroom is most extreme for a very young child facing that first day at kindergarten. It helps to think about that transition by trying to look at the challenge through the eyes of your little girl or boy as much as you can. In most cases, being at home with mom, dad, siblings and the family pet may be all that he or she knows. Not only does it seem that the world revolves around family, the family home is a place of comfort and other than brief outings, the world is not a place that the child feels comfortable with yet.

So if you take your child to school for that first day and leave her there, the environment she is now in could not be more strange to her than if you put your child in the middle of the rain forest to fend for herself. Small wonder so many children undergo extreme anxiety that first day of kindergarten when their parents leave them to the first major adjustment of life and they are doing it from a cold stop with absolutely no preparation whatsoever.

There is a lot you can do to make that first day they are stetting in the classroom less strange to your child. By taking your child through some preparation times in advance of the first day, you can do a lot to make the idea of going to kindergarten normal to your child and to make that first day seem more routine and even fun when she finds her desk and begins to listen to a teacher for the first time ever.

Videos can help your child visualize school and be of tremendous help. Look for children’s videos that are appropriate to your little one’s age that are educational and above all fun and comforting to her as these videos picture the on screen children in a school like setting. Many of the most popular children oriented TV shows like Sesame Street and Barney will have videos to help with this transition. Watch them together with your child and then afterward talk about the day that will come when she will go off to school. In that way, you are helping her process that such a thing is a reality and that she should mentally prepare for that day.

You can also use playtime at home to help your child pretend to be in school. You can arrange the play furniture you have in a classroom setting and put her stuffed animals in the other chairs. Then you can be the teacher and simulate how being in school might go. As you call on her stuffed bear to answer questions or on her toy ducky to sit up straight, you child will laugh but also be preparing mentally for when that is a real situation with lots of other real children all around her.

Visits to the classroom that your child will attend and meeting the teacher are also good steps toward making that transition. When you see your child actually initiating going to school during play with her toys or with other children, you will know that she is well on her way toward a smooth transition into academic life, even if that academic life is at this time only kindergarten.

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You don t need sales training

If you’re a solopreneur, consultant, business owner, or independent professional, you probably have asked yourself some or all of the following questions:

* How can I get more clients?

* How can I get better clients?

* How do I sell more to the clients I’ve got?

* Can I earn more money and still have a life?

* Why are sales activities so difficult sometimes?

* Is there a "right" way to sell?

* Where can I turn for hands-on advice when I need it?

* When will this get easier?

Well, I’ve got some answers. Here’s what most sales training companies will tell you is the answer to your sales and marketing challenges: sales training. Here’s what most marketing consultants will tell you is your answer: marketing consulting.

Well, that just isn’t the case.

If anything, you need to UNlearn what a lot of sales training and marketing seminars and sales books have told you. You need to reconnect with how to sell based on WHO you are – in short, to start using and recognizing the power of selling differently.

And here’s something new and different coming from someone like me: You don’t need sales training.

Sales training (and any training) is for people who lack knowledge. My clients are typically very smart. But they've learned to sell from the head - using gimmicks, clever phrases, manipulative “closing” techniques, and artificial “rapport-building.” None of this works or lasts because it's outside-in – trying to force you into a mold that you just don’t fit.

A truly effective approach will unlock your thinking and help you sell FOR REAL. It's more authentic, and it works and lasts because you start to sell from the inside-out - based on WHO you are, and not on an external set of behaviors that work for only a very small percentage of "old school" salespeople.

Think about it. You know how to sell (or at least you know you don't like what a lot of sales training SAYS is the way to sell). You have probably had some sales training; and you might have gone to a few sales seminars; you have probably read a sales or marketing book or two; and you may even have heard some fluffy “woo-woo” talks that call themselves sales training; but none of it stuck because none of it seemed relevant to you or spoke to your desire to help people by providing genuine value.

You need a personal sales and marketing strategy that seamlessly combines your natural self with your strongest message to your best prospects with the highest value, using the least time and effort.

Then you need a plan and an accountability mechanism (sales manager, coach, or colleague) that will help you work your plan, day by day, prospect by prospect.

Unlike traditional sales training, true sales and marketing effectiveness is a process, not an event. And it always works from the INSIDE out. That means that it’s focused on internal skills and lasting tools, not sales training gimmicks or external “techniques.”

When selecting a sales and marketing professional, you need to be aware that a lot of marketing consultants give detailed blueprints but no tools. And a lot of sales training provides specific tools but no overall blueprint.

You want to look for a resource that integrates big-picture marketing strategy with day-to-day selling tools so that your marketing WORKS and that MORE SALES HAPPEN. The truth is that nobody needs “one-size-fits-all” sales training or “here’s-your-marketing-plan-good-luck” consulting. You simply need a customized set of keys to unlock the business answers you need. There is no cookie cutter. You’re no cookie.

How to write the best teacher resume you can

It should come as no surprise that there is a currently a shortage of teachers in the United States. This unfortunate trend has been seen for well over a decade. To compound the issue, recent labor studies have predicted that teaching positions will likely continue to grow faster than the national average for the next several years due to recent government regulations to reduce class size and increase educational accountability. The need for teachers has never been greater.

Though this trend is good news for teachers on the job market, it does not diminish the fact that competition will remain tough for the most desirable teaching positions. Competition is especially fierce for English, Social Science, Humanities, and Elementary grade positions. Teacher will need to pay close attention to the presentation of their credentials, as detailed in their resume, in order to ensure that they can compete in the race for prime positions in the educational system.

To write a solid resume tailored specifically for teaching opportunities, consider the following guidelines:

Highlight your Educational and Licensure Qualifications

In addition to including the details of your teaching or academic degree (school name, when you graduated, your degree), you should mention any academic honors, grants, scholarships, or fellowships awarded during the course of your studies.

If you are an experienced teacher, you should include any relevant continuing education courses or seminars you have taken to demonstrate to prospective employers that you are keeping your skills sharp.

If you are a newer graduate or have limited teaching experience, a list of related education courses and any completed student teacher or mentorship rotations will enhance your qualifications to prospective employers. Graduates who completed their degree with an impressive grade point average should highlight this fact by including their GPA in the Educational section of their resume.

All teachers who have completed the process and testing requirements to get their teaching license will need to provide details of their license(s) in this section. Include the state(s) and subject area(s) in which you are licensed to teach and the date that your license went in effect. Since your employer will ask for a copy of your license once you are made an offer, you do not need to include your licensing number on your resume unless otherwise requested.

Emphasize your Teaching Expertise and Key Skills

A quick 10-second scan of your resume should reveal important keywords that summarize your teaching experience and give school administrators an overview of your qualifications. The most effective way to do this is to incorporate a section of your resume dedicated to teaching expertise and key skills. Include a bulleted list of your subject area specializations (such as biology, mathematics, special education, or K-3) and any pertinent teaching skills, such as curriculum development or teaching to style, that will enhance your resume presentation.

If you have several years of teaching experience, it may beneficial to list your years of experience in each area. For example, indicate that you have three years of experience teaching high school biology, two years of experience teaching middle school general science, and one year of experience teaching high school earth science.

Entry-level teachers and teachers with limited experience should also include this section in their resume, highlighting those areas and schools acquired from schooling, student teaching rotations, working as a student aid, and teaching mentorships.

Detail Your Teaching Experience

Since most school administrators hire teachers based on their previous experience in (or knowledge of if you are a new teacher) a particular subject area or grade level, prospective employers will need to know the details of your teaching experience.

If you are an experienced teacher, you should detail your subject area expertise, the type of educational system you worked in (public, charter, or private school), the grades you taught at each assignment, and your class size for each of your previous employers.

If you are an entry-level teacher just out of school or a teacher with limited work experience, you should detail any practicums, student teaching, student aid work, volunteering, tutoring, mentorships, or other unpaid work you were involved in during your schooling.

Demonstrate You're a Top Performer

Employers love to hire the cream of the crop, and educators are no exceptions. School administrators will be looking for teachers who are willing to contribute to the betterment of the school outside of just their day-to-day teaching responsibilities. In fact, many experienced teachers would argue that a significant part of the teaching career was went doing things outside of the classroom. Therefore, it is imperative that you demonstrate that you are a top performer.

Your resume will be more memorable and better received if you can detail specific contributions you made to each of your previous employers. What have you done that was above and beyond your basic responsibilities? How have you helped make a positive impact on your students and their families, your fellow co-workers, your school or school system, or even your community?

Consider your possible involvement in:

--Committees or review boards

--After school programs including school sports, academic teams, or clubs

--Fundraisers

--Community education drives

--Literacy board

--New teacher mentorships

--Cross-training in different subject areas

--The launch of a new school or program

--Outside education

The more details you can provide about your involvement in the educational community and your accomplishments, the better job you will do at impressing your value as a team member to potential employers.