Help! I Have Been Scammed!

Identity Theft is a huge and ever-increasing crime.  Although most people associate ID theft with the internet or credit cards, it is actually a much larger problem.  In fact nearly half of all ID theft claims come from people who lost or had their wallet stolen.  ID theft due to lost or stolen wallets is three times more common than either internet scams or data breaches.  So, the number one preventative measure you should take is being certain your wallet and/or purse are secure at all times.

Victims of ID Theft have had their credit ruined and lost enormous amounts of money.  So whether or not you use credit cards EVERYONE is a potential victim.

I frequently see women in grocery stores leave their purses in their cart and then turn their backs to the cart to get something off a shelf.  It only takes a moment to grab a purse out of the basket.  Ladies, always hold onto your purse while shopping.  If you lay it in the “baby seat,” keep your arm through the strap so it cannot be easily grabbed.  In addition, if the basket has a “seat belt,” place it through your purse strap, and put the purse in a position that hides the straps.  Even with these precautions, however, never leave your purse unattended!

Never keep your Social Security Card, list of PIN numbers or bank accounts in your wallet!  Leave them in a secure place at home.  If you’re on Medicare, don’t carry your Medicare ID card with you.  Instead, make a photocopy of the card and cut out the last four characters of the number.  If you are visiting a physician for the first time, you must bring your Medicare card, so guard it carefully.

Keep a photocopy of both the front and back of all cards that you carry in your wallet at home.  That includes your driver’s license, insurance and credit cards, even your library card!

In spite of your best efforts, if your wallet is stolen do the following:

·        Call your credit card issuers immediately.  Do NOT tell them you want to cancel your account.  Instead, request an account number change.  They will issue you a new card with a new number to prevent thieves from using your card and possibly costing you a great deal of time and money and ruining your credit score.

·        Contact your bank immediately as well.  Change your PIN number and cancel your missing ATM card.  If your checkbook too is missing, get a new account number.

·        File a police report in the city where your wallet “disappeared.”  Be sure to request a copy of the report and send a copy to your bank and the three credit-reporting agencies.

·        You will also want to put a “fraud alert” on your record with the credit-reporting agencies.  They are free.  You can also request a “security freeze” which is more secure, but they may charge a fee for that service.

·        Contact your local Motor Vehicle Department to replace your driver’s license or State ID.  Also ask them to put an alert on your record.

·        Contact your medical insurers and ask them to assign a new account number.  Health insurance fraud has become a major problem over the past few years. 

·        Contact your auto insurance company to prevent the thief from making an accident claim on your insurance.

·        Check to see if your homeowner’s insurance includes ID theft protection.

·        As strange as it seems, thieves have been known to take out books using their victims’ library card, and never returning the books.  So, get a new library card as well.

·        A couple weeks after your wallet “went missing,” check your credit report.  You can get an annual credit report at no charge.

One of the most important things you can do is to purchase an Identity Theft Protection plan.  My husband and I both have LifeLock®.  My husband received an alert this past weekend from them advising him that someone was trying to access one of his online accounts.  He immediately went to that account and changed the password.  When I purchased a new smart phone last year, before I even left the store, I received a text message advising me that a large purchase was made on my credit card.  I seldom make large purchases with my card, so that created an alert with LifeLock®.  I was pleased to see how quickly they would have responded if a thief had been using my card.

LifeLock® is among the benefit plans (NOT insurance) that I promote with my Xpress Healthcare® business. There are several other companies that sell ID Theft Protection plans as well.  Whichever you purchase, sign up for one TODAY!  Please do not wait until it is too late.

========================

For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, visit http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

Multitasking – A Good or Bad Thing?

You're on the phone with a team member and at the same time typing up notes about your previous phone call. An instant message arrives as soon as you end your call, so you read it while you are dialing the phone to speak with a prospect. 

Believing it will increase our productivity, many people multitask – some frequently, others occasionally.   Our lives today seem to move more quickly.  We often believe people who frequently multitask as productive and resourceful, using their time wisely.  Do multitaskers truly accomplish more than those who do not? 

In reality, when we try doing more than one thing at a time, neither task is likely to be done as efficiently as if we gave our full concentration to one task at a time.  The quality of our work will suffer, and in the end, we may have to repeat projects we thought we had completed.  Studies have shown that we waste 30-40% of our time when we try to do two or three things at once.

Oftentimes people will be speaking to someone on the phone while they are writing an email to someone else.  With two different forms of communication going on at once, one or both will suffer.  We might put a lot of “ums” or pauses in the phone conversation or make typing errors on the email.  When we attempt to perform technical or more complex tasks, the quality will suffer the most.

Multitasking can also cause stress.  We may become confused, feel more tired or be overwhelmed.  Some people don’t even realize that they ARE multitasking.  We tend to do this even more when we’re working on an unpleasant task. By doing something else at the same time, we are “avoiding” doing the task we dislike.

Do you have several website tabs open at once?  Is your desk covered in papers that you’re working with?  Do you check your email while you’re on a phone call or working on a document?

Frequent interruptions can contribute to multitasking.  Let’s say that while you are working on a presentation, you are interrupted by one of your children.  You try to answer their question without looking up from the presentation.  You are not giving your child your full attention, nor are you doing your best work on your document.

Resist the urge to check your email several times a day.  Turn it off when working on any job.  Since nearly everyone has caller ID these days, if your phone rings and you see it isn’t work related or important, let the call go to voice mail. 

Focus is the key.  If something urgent comes up while you’re working on something, stop what you’re doing and deal with the urgent situation.  If what you are working on is complex, quickly write down notes about it before stopping.  When you have handled the immediate situation, you can check your notes and continue on with your original task.  This way both tasks are given your full attention and the quality of your work will not suffer.

If you find you are having difficulty focusing on a particular job, stop for five minutes.  Take a quick break.  Walk around to clear your head.  When you return to your desk, you’ll likely have your focus back.

Look closely at yourself.  Are you multitasking without thinking about it?  When you put all your efforts into one job at a time, watch your productivity improve.

 ========================

For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance). 

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle 

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, visit http://joinxpresshealthcare.com. 

I Am Not a Quitter!

·        Difficult things take a long time, impossible things a little longer.

·        Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go. -  William Feather

·        If you quit ONCE it becomes a habit. Never quit!!! ― Michael Jordan

·        It's always too soon to quit! ― Norman Vincent Peale

·        It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop. Confucius

I have never been a quitter.  From my very first job working part time at a nursery school while I was still in school (high school and college), I stuck with it for several years.  I held my next job for six years, until I had my first baby. Then, when my children were older, I resumed my career and held one job for 14 years.  I put my best effort into every job I had, because that was what I was being paid to do.  

When I first started working a home business nearly a decade ago, I worked with a network marketing company for a year.  It was a “party plan” company, and I disliked it from the beginning, but I still gave it my all.  When I learned that the company itself was failing, I decided to leave the company before that happened.  After a year with the company, I broke even.  All I lost was time, but I gained great knowledge from the experience.

You see, with that first network marketing company, I did not research the company well before I joined.  Had I done so, I would have known I was joining a faltering company. 

After researching the next company quite a bit, I joined and put my heart and soul into it.  I worked the business full time for over six years.  I earned decent money with that business, but I was not a super star.  I doubt I would have ever left though, because I liked the product I was promoting and it helped many people.  Over the years, that company became greedy.  So, they terminated hundreds of reps, including me.  The termination letter told us we were “terminated without cause.” I was not earning a six-figure income, but whatever I was earning ended up going to the company.

This brings us to my current business with Xpress Healthcare.  Not only did I research the company thoroughly – not finding a single negative comment on the internet, but I also spoke with the founders twice before I joined.  They actually changed their Policies and Procedures, because they did NOT include a statement saying reps could not be terminated without cause.  There is now!  

I have had my Xpress business nearly three years.  I love the company, our products and the founders.  Like most people, I have had my ups and downs, but I NEVER considered quitting!  I am not yet earning a six-figure income, but I am earning a living and growing my business consistently.  

“It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.”  I have watched many new reps come and go, quitting without ever putting in the effort required to succeed.  I have also seen way too many people join my team and quit when they don’t begin earning money immediately.  “Anything worth having is worth working for.” 

For anyone considering starting any home business, remember, “Do. Or do not!! There is no try....”  

========================

For affordable discount plans to reduce your Health and Dental expenses AND reduce costs on Hearing, Vision, Prescriptions, Roadside Assistance, Lifelock™ and even more, visit: http://ibourl.net/XpressSavings (NOT insurance).  

Please visit my Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/XpressHealthcareTheWinnersCircle  

For Xpress Healthcare® business opportunity info, visit http://joinxpresshealthcare.com.