Think Like an Entrepreneur - Become a Sparkplug

What is your community doing to become a wireless one that attracts telecommuters and home-based businesses?   

Larger companies are allowing employees more flexible options to telecommute to expand their workforce.   

People want to find a home where they can thrive with the job or career they bring with them.   

With better broadband comes easier access to telemedicine.    With better broadband comes easier access to education.  

With better broadband comes easier access to a global economy.  With better broadband comes easier access to the world.  

Do not miss your opportunity.

More than 60 Million people live in Rural America. They rely on communities, businesses, and services to support them and their families.   

Rural America cannot afford to "return to normal." Rural needs to create a new environment that attracts people. 

But it take intention.  

What is the first step in leading your community out of the COVID crisis?

What's the connection between climate action by farmers and ranchers and more nutritious diets (foods)?  

What opportunities are there for communities to lead the great transformation from a world powered by fossil fuels to a world that is energized by the abundance of creation?  

We are in a time of transitioning into a new way of living together on Earth. We won't run out of the sun, the wind, gravity, AND the almost limitless power of biology--living things.)  

What have we learned this past year during the COVID pandemic that can help us shape public policy and public institutions to empower families, small businesses, farms, communities, and our whole state to get to the outcomes that both science and our own desires for success invite us to embrace?  

Matt Russell is the Executive Director of Iowa Interfaith Power & Light. Matt and his husband Patrick Standley operate Coyote Run Farm, a 110 acre farm in rural Lacona, IA. They market fresh produce, eggs, and grass-finished beef at farmers markets and other local outlets. Matt and Patrick do what they call retail agriculture. Everything that comes off the farm is a branded product that is sold primarily to single individuals and families. Some goes to restaurants. Most of their clients are in the Des Moines market or local in Marion and Warren Counties

If you want strong schools in rural America, you need to do healthy actions to create healthy people that will create a healthy community.  

Does food really matter to how kids do in school? In today's show, we'll talk about what research shows about students who eat sugar, healthy foods, classroom behavior, office referrals, and what makes successful students and communities.  

If you want to make your community attractive to new families, investing energy and money into initiatives for healthy foods, drinks, and physical activities can bring great results from the classroom to Main Street.

A December, 2019 study reveals that poor diets cost about $300 per person, or $50 billion nationally, accounting for 18% of all heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes costs in U,S. These costs come down to communities in many ways: increased healthcare rates, taxes, sick days, and absenteeism, when our people are literally sick with chronic diseases and poor health. 

These realities put strains on our community infrastructure, such as our hospitals and law enforcement.   Take a high-level view of the impacts of our physical and mental health, why health matters to our communities, and some great ideas improve our futures.  

Rural Community Solutions assists in Designing Family-Friendly, Youth-Centered Places that attract the people you want. 

Start now and contact us.

What makes an entrepreneur successful? Why everyone out there can’t be an entrepreneur? There is no doubt that a successful entrepreneur possesses a set of qualities, skills & characteristics which are different from others.  

But what happens when they hire people? Does the entreprenure know how to create that entrepreneurial environment for their employees?   Disengaged employees are costing American companies $550 Billion a year.   

Employee health care is not a government issue. The government is stepping in because businesses are not taking responsibility to create a healthy environment in their business. Reducing health care costs start with employers creating an environment that engages employees.   

The Engagement Institute — a joint study by The Conference Board, Sirota-Mercer, Deloitte, ROI, The Culture Works and Consulting LLP — reports disengaged workers cost American companies $550 billion a year. This reflects a larger, global trend.   AON (a global leader in human resource solutions) finds only 27% of people worldwide are highly engaged at work.  

It's predicted that global healthcare spending is expected to rise 5%  during the next four years.  

It is up to you.

Financial health is one of the leading causes of stress. When you get a handle on your finances, you get a handle on your health.   

According to an October survey released by the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®), over four in five (84 percent) Americans say the COVID-19 outbreak is causing stress on their personal finances right now. Although slightly down from 88 percent when NEFE first issued the survey in April, many Americans express little to no relief on the amount of financial stress they are currently experiencing. 

If the recent state of the world has caused you to reevaluate your financial health, or if you realize it’s finally time to put on your grown-up pants and take your money seriously, get into a solid financial position. The good news is, it doesn’t matter where you’re starting from! According to Rachel Cruze, the principles apply to everyone, no matter how much or how little money you have.

Want some great recipes for healthy meals? It does not have to be a chore to eat healthy nor does it need to taste terrible!!   

Here are some quick ways to satisfy your hungry crew!!  

https://1drv.ms/u/s!Ah-50t95hiIxg_k2t3qMrhi7g5oe2Q?e=1mOPVT

Bon Appetit!!

Eating a wide variety of foods increases eating important nutrients. 

Some healthy body outcomes:  

plenty of calcium increases bone strength.   increased muscular strength and endurance  increased oxygen utilization  thicker hair  increased coordination  well-hydrated, with balanced electrolytes  you feel well, strong, and have a good heart rate    

Next time you think you should diet, take a time-out to consider why you want to lose weight and what is the best approach to do it. Instead, emphasize fruits and vegetables to keep our bodies well, at a healthy weight, filled with energy.   

A greater emphasis on lots of fruits and veggies really matters! 

Here are 6 benefits - 5 of which you'll likely see in a short period of time:  Better blood sugar Better digestion More energy Less muscle pain Satisfaction with how you feel because of what you're eating - our bodies know how to nourish our cells with real, whole foods. Longer life.                             OneGreenPlanet, 2016

Mind and Body Yo-yo” dieting (repetitive cycles of gaining, losing, & regaining weight) has been shown to have negative health effects, including increased risk of heart disease, long-lasting negative impacts on metabolism, etc.  

Dieting forces your body into starvation mode. It responds by slowing down many of its normal functions to conserve energy. This means your natural metabolism actually slows down.   

Dieters often miss out on important nutrients. For example, dieters often don’t get enough calcium, leaving them at risk for osteoporosis, stress fractures, and broken bones.    

Dieters often experience physical consequences such as...