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DECEMBER 2019
One of my favorite things in the world is traveling with my family. This year, we were lucky to enjoy so many wonderful trips, from taking the kids to play in the snow for the first time to an impromptu healing journey to Hawaii. The world is full of amazing places and cultures, and Nicole and I want our kids to be able to experience as much of it as possible. That said, we also want our kids to love their hometown, too. Rather than going on a big trip during the holidays, it can be fun to plan a staycation. Here are some ways we create memorable moments without getting too far from home. Let’s Play Tourist Did you know there are plenty of awesome places in this part of California? Nicole has spent a lot of time showing Finn and Harlow the world right outside our front door. If you’ve never played tourist in California, I recommend it — take your family out and explore local landmarks or historical sites, eat at a restaurant you’ve never been to, or visit museums and art galleries. Finn and Harlow love it when we let them pick a destination or two. There’s always something new to experience that will make you forget you’re practically in your own backyard. Rent a Home Booking a hotel room can be a fun and easy staycation, but instead of packing your family into a single room, check out some popular short-term rental sites like Airbnb or HomeAway. Many home rentals go above and beyond by providing an entire house and all its amenities for your family to enjoy. Have a memorable trip by looking for a backyard with a pool, planning FAMILY BONDING WITHOUT THE STRESS When Was Your Last Staycation?
a movie night with a giant TV, or cooking in a kitchen big enough for the whole family to participate. We’ve used Airbnb a number of times for our family trips, and it’s much better than sticking the kids in a hotel room. Explore the Night This one might be tricky if your kids are on a strict sleeping schedule, but if you’re brave enough to switch things up, take them on a nighttime excursion. Planetariums and observatories are great for exploring the night sky in an educational way. It’s also fun to go retro with some old-fashioned stargazing. Our backyard isn’t the best place for stargazing, but someday I would love to pack some blankets and hot chocolate, pile Finn and Harlow into the car, and drive away from the city to where we can all gaze up at a sky full of stars. That would be a truly out-of-this-world staycation. Vacationing isn’t about spending crazy amounts of money or traveling hundreds of miles from home. It’s about stepping away from your hectic life to carve out time with your family and make new memories. This could mean a trip to Hawaii or a trip to your favorite park down the road. Whatever your family loves to do, make more time for it so your family can have fun and grow closer. In 2020, I recommend looking for ways to spend more time with the people you love. We only have so much time on this Earth, so we need to cherish every moment we have with people who make life special.
–Case Barnett
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A Science-Based Approach to Achieving More SUSAN FOWLER’S ‘MASTER YOUR MOTIVATION’
your motivation, create choice, connection, and competence.” When you measure motivation across these three factors, which are the result of rigorous academic research rather than folksy conventional wisdom, you unlock the power of motivation. It’s not hard to see how Fowler’s framework is much more actionable than traditional motivational techniques. Creating intrinsic motivation, especially for others, is a mug’s game, but defining choice, connection, and competence is much less ambiguous. If you have team members who you feel lack motivation, ask yourself if their jobs have these three essential traits. Do they have agency (choice) in their work? Do they generate meaning (connection) from what they do? Do they get a sense of accomplishment (competence) from doing something well? If you can’t answer all three of these in the affirmative, you can create a plan for increasing motivation that doesn’t involve empty metrics or meaningless rewards. If you or your team could use a proverbial kick in the pants, the solution might be to ignore those proverbs entirely. “Master Your Motivation” takes a refreshing look at what makes us strive for more. It’s a great addition to any leadership library.
“You have the power to change your behaviors,” says Susan Fowler, “but to be successful in changing, you need an evidenced-based framework for motivation and techniques for applying it.” In her new book, “Master Your Motivation: Three
Scientific Truths for Achieving Your Goals,” Fowler synthesizes her decades of research into a guide that provides such a framework. In the process, she overturns countless widely held myths about what motivates us. Fowler believes the traditional carrot-and-stick approach to motivation (a combination of reward and punishment to induce a desired behavior) results from our perception of motivation as being either intrinsic or extrinsic. “Simplifying motivations into two types presents a conundrum when you aren’t intrinsically motivated,” she writes. “Your only fallback position is extrinsic motivation.” In other words, just by thinking about motivation as intrinsic versus extrinsic, you’ve already set yourself up to fail. To really motivate yourself and others, she argues, you need to think about motivation in different terms.
Thankfully for the reader, Fowler defines an alternative framework for motivation. In what amounts to the book’s thesis, she states, “To master
NO MORE SPAM EMAILS!
3 Tips to Make Emailing a Breeze
In other words, you can buy yourself time until you can focus on a more thought-out response. Leo Laporte, host of the “This Week in Tech” (“TWiT”) podcast, has another suggestion: Tell people you don’t read emails. Of course, you do read emails, but the world doesn’t need to know it. This is a great way to cut down on the number of emails waiting in your inbox.
Emails are a time suck. As you read through the subject lines, you wonder how your time can be better spent. Kevin Rose, entrepreneur and founder of Digg.com, discovered an interesting way to limit the time he spends replying to emails, and it’s extremely simple. All you have to do is end all emails with “Sent from my smartphone.” Why does this make a difference? According to Rose, he found that people have different expectations based on whether emails are sent from mobile devices or computers. Presumably, any email that doesn’t include the tag “Sent from my smartphone” is sent from a computer with a full keyboard and your full attention. As it turns out, people don’t mind short, to-the-point emails if you reply on the go. The best part is that you can add the “Sent from my smartphone” from any device. You can add the signoff manually when you need a quick fix or add it to your signature. You no longer have to waste time writing paragraphs in response. Instead, you can limit your responses to single words or short phrases. This is helpful when you need to send someone a quick answer to keep things moving but you’re not interested in getting into the details then and there.
Finally, set aside time to do an email purge. Look at the people and businesses that are sending you emails, decide which ones you don’t read anymore, and unsubscribe. Depending on the size of your inbox, this can take time, but it’s worth it. You’ll receive fewer emails, which means you won’t spend hours scrolling through your inbox, and that can save you time and money in the long run.
This publication is intended to educate the general public about personal injury and elder abuse. It is not intended to be legal advice. Every case is different.
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JOIN THE CASE BARNETT VIP CLUB FOR FREE OPEN ENROLLMENT! The holidays have arrived, and we want to celebrate with a special gift to our readers! From now until the new year, Case Barnett Law is opening up enrollment for our VIP Membership Club. This invitation is extended to our clients as well as their friends and family. Members of our VIP Club are entitled to many free perks and benefits, including: • A copy of our book, “It’s Settled: The Accident Victim’s Guide to Settling Your Case Without an Attorney” • Access to our legal guide, “How to Protect Your Wealth After an Accident” • Automatic entry into any Case Barnett Law contests • Free notarization services • The accident toolkit to keep in your car • An exclusive directory of experts that includes accountants, financial advisors, real estate agents, interior designers, contractors, and more! In addition to this special perk package, VIP Club members also receive a free auto insurance policy review! Don’t wait until after an accident to learn if your insurance will take care of you — join the VIP Club and let an experienced personal injury attorney evaluate your policy. We make sure our members have adequate liability insurance, proper uninsured/underinsured coverage, and the right medical payments coverage to protect you and your family in the event of an accident. We started the VIP Club to give people the resources they need to protect themselves before an accident. At Case Barnett Law, we have a duty to help; this includes helping people avoid calling an attorney if possible. VIP Club members have access to a number of resources and services to help them in many areas of their life. Join the Case Barnett Law VIP Club today! To join, simply call our firm at 949-565-4886 and tell our client care specialist that you want to be added to our VIP Club. You can also email us at offer@casebarnettlaw.com and let us know you’re ready to join the club.
Cranberry Gingerbread
Inspired by Food & Wine Magazine
Ingredients
1. Heat oven to 350 F. 2. Grease a loaf pan with canola oil. 3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together 1/2 cup canola oil, molasses, brown sugar, eggs, ginger, and cranberries. In a separate bowl, sift and combine flour with baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients until blended. 4. Scrape batter into loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes. 5. Transfer to a rack, let cool for 20 minutes, slice, and serve. • 1/2 cup canola oil, plus more for greasing • 3/4 cup unsulphured molasses • 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar • 2 large eggs • 1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated • 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped • 2 cups all-purpose flour • 2 tsp baking powder • 1 tsp baking soda • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon • 1/2 tsp ground cloves • 1/2 tsp kosher salt Directions
Already a member? Tell someone you know about the VIP Club and give them the gift of reliable help and support this holiday season.
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Page 1 Take a Break Without Taking a Flight
Page 2 A Better Way to Think About Motivation
3 Tips to Make Emailing a Breeze
Page 3 A Special Gift to Our Readers
Cranberry Gingerbread
Page 4 Boost Your Mental Health This Season
FEELING SAD? Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a form of depression that people experience every fall and winter. If you find yourself feeling blue as the days become shorter and darker, know there are things you can do to boost your mood until spring returns.
Get Some Sun Exposure to sunlight is also significantly beneficial for people suffering from SAD. Sunlight helps your body produce adequate amounts of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that contributes to feelings of well-being and happiness. Getting just a few minutes of sunlight a day through a walk or short jog can make all the difference. If you live in an area where the winters are bleak, cloudy, and dark, sunlight can be harder to come by. But technology has you covered: You can purchase “sun lamps,” which simulate sunlight without the damaging UV rays. Just set up a sun lamp in your workspace or living area and feel your mood lift. Maintain Your Routine Often, it can be difficult to stick with your daily routine during the cooler months. It may be harder to wake up on time in the morning to work out, or it may be too cold outside to go on your daily run. Luckily, you can find small ways to mitigate this. For example, invest in a sunrise alarm clock, which gently wakes you up with a simulated sunrise, or shop for high-quality thermal workout gear. If you continue to suffer from SAD and feel there’s no end in sight, it’s important to seek help from professionals. They can determine the best treatment options available for you. Ways to Fight Seasonal Affective Disorder
Increase Your Activity Keeping your body active can increase your energy levels,
help you sleep, reduce anxiety, and boost your self-esteem. Summit Medical Group states
that a person who exercises for 30–60 minutes a day can
manage or avoid SAD easier than a person who does not exercise regularly. When you participate in physical activity, your body releases feel-good chemicals called endorphins, which have a morphine-like effect on your brain. If exercising outdoors is not ideal, consider swimming, walking, or dancing instead.
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