NortonAccountingServices.com 985-640-6072 Info@NortonAccountingServices.com MARCH 2020 NORTON NEWSLETTER EASE OF MIND • AVAILABILITY • FLEXIBILITY • INDIVIDUAL APPROACH • EXPERIENCE • TAX SAVINGS OPPORTUNITIES THE REAL ESTATE TAX PRO ™
FROM THE DESK OF Bob Norton
We bought our current home 1½ years ago. The plan was to buy a fixer- upper that we could renovate to increase
the value to either sell in a few years or turn into a rental. What I didn’t count on was that I’ve come to really like the house and the quiet neighborhood! We completed a few updates when we moved in and repaired the pool. All the walls were some shade of brown, but we like bright colors, so we repainted. We also replaced the floors and vanities in the bathrooms shortly after we moved in. Recently, we began working on completing the bathrooms. (For me, that means pointing and writing checks. I let the professionals do the work.) What sold us on the configuration of the house was that the formal living and dining rooms were one big room, which we converted to our office. One bedroom became Penny’s craft room and another will be my library. Presently, it’s a storeroom filled with boxes of books. Now, if only the shelves we ordered would arrive ...
T he B enefits of M indfulness WHY THE MILITARY JUST GOT MORE MINDFUL
These days, the termmindfulness is more likely to conjure thoughts of smartphone apps than rooms wafting with nag-champa. Business guru Tim Ferris and journalist Dan Rather profess an almost cult-like devotion to the practice, and multinationals like Goldman Sachs, Google, and Bank of America all offer mindfulness training to their employees. Recently, another large organization has jumped on the bandwagon: the United States military. So, what’s all the fuss about? For years, mindfulness devotees professed that cultivating it as a practice could alleviate the symptoms of everything from high blood pressure to anxiety. Historically though, critics were dismissive, claiming studies on mindfulness weren’t rigorous enough because they didn’t include a placebo. Unlike participants in traditional studies, where half the group believes they are being treated but are only taking the equivalent of a sugar pill, participants in meditation studies usually know whether or not they are meditating. One researcher changed that in 2016. Neuroscientist Dr. Amishi Jha conducted a study where students at the University of Miami were split into two groups and then put through a series of cognitive tests. One group received mindfulness training and practiced it for a combined one hour a week, over a period of nine weeks. The other group of students received instruction about escaping worries and fake stress relief strategies.
-Bob Norton
Continued on Page 2 ...
985-640-6072 • 1
nortonaccountingservices.comMade with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker