Helping Hands Help Land Job

Well, so much for summer on it's way.  Back to 20 degree weather!  I'm at the gym this week (great place to spend the colder months by the way....other than FLORIDA) and a friend of mine comes up to me and tells me he is applying for some police officer positions.  He begins to tell me that he is worried about the entrance exam and how he has experienced trouble in the past with police exams.  So we spoke a little and I explained to him that he needs to first think like he is already a police officer.  I explained to him that he needs to look at each question like he is investigating it and trying to uncover the truth.  I assured him that he did not need to wear a trench coat or carry around grocery lists and other Detective Colombo paraphernalia.  A few days went by and I came across an old copy of a study guide that was given to me from a department a long time ago during different application processes.  It provided a background of the type of information an applicant should familiarize him or herself with prior to taking a police officer exam.  I also explained to him that it would not hurt to visit the local bookstore and purchase a study guide; Baron makes some of the best study guides available. 
So more time went by, and before you know it he was growing more comfortable with the material, and was becoming more and more eager to actually take the test.  The big day finally came for him and he did what I said and showed up clean shaved, pressed suit, and shined shoes.  I even taught him the trick of putting a small circle on shoe polish on the top of his shoes and neglect to buff it off.  This technique shows the contrast of the un-buffed and buffed portion.  It shows the instructors that you did indeed polish your shoes and just missed a small portion.  Of course you would NEVER do this once you are in an academy or you will have to do push-ups, but at an exam it shows you took the time to prepare yourself for the process.  Immediately after his exam he called me up and said, "I went in to the building and they had us line up and they were picking on people for not shining there shoes!  They took me out of line and brought me to the front for the other candidates to see, and started telling at everyone saying that I was the ONLY ONE that took the time to polish their shoes!"  Now, not only did he get recognized in a positive way, but he also gained an incredible amount of self-confidence going into the exam.  The test results came back in a little less than a week and he received....drum roll please...a 96 out of 100!  Not only did he thank me for helping him ace is exam, but he also told me that this exam was the first police exam he has ever passed.  Next step, the agility test.  I will keep you posted. 
So remember; when someone tells you that they have a problem, instead of just brushing it off and going on with your day take the time to listen and maybe you can help them.  We all need a step up!
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Spring and Summer Just Around The Corner

I have got to be honest, the beautiful day we had yesterday here in my area was definitely a tease.  Of course, we are back to 30 degrees today and possibly 10 degrees with the windchill over night.  The previous nice day, however, did get me thinking about all the great things I love about spring and summer.  So I thought I would put this post up for people that may also be getting the spring/summer jitters and may be looking to get themselves in better shape before the season.  I have recently helped a good friend of mine lose over 50 pounds over the course of 5 months.  He had never really exercised before and didn't know what to expect.  I love it when I get challenges like this.  I explained everything to him and met him at the gym.  I wrote up meal plans for him and exercise regimens.  He was pretty discouraged at first, but I told him, "you're just starting out!"  I explained that all the secrets and rules couldn't be explained all at once.  Processing all that information at once would be like teachers explaining how to count and how to perform Algebra in the first grade.  "Baby steps," I explained.  Now my friend does pull-ups, jogs, eats healthy, does martial arts (even has people ask him for private lessons).  At about the second month mark he started telling me that he was glad he was seeing results, but was still frustrated because he knew if he stopped he would go back to the way he was.  Which of course wasn't a bad thing.  He was always talking about getting in shape so I just helped him out with some information.  So after he told me about how he knew he was going to go back to the old him if he stopped exercising, he also explained that he didn't like exercising.  So I changed the routine a little for him and he liked it more.  Later he joined martial arts which was a lifelong dream of his.  After that he was hooked.  He loved and still does love his martial arts classes.  It wasn't soon after his martial arts class that he began going to the gym more and more because he was enjoying what he was doing.  That is the keyword folks; enjoying.  Lets all say it together, ENJOYING.  You see exercise doesn't have to be about doing hours of work that we don't enjoy.  It can be fun and you can laugh while you do it.  I see my friend on a weekly basis and he still loves exercising.  As a matter of fact he even teaches me things now.  It has also built up his self-confidence a great deal, which I sometimes regret because I can't shut him up now.  No I'm only kidding!  He's a great friend and I am proud of all the work he continues to put in. 
So like I said before, the purpose of this blog is to help others like my friend.  It doesn't matter if you are just starting off or if you have been around the block a few times.  Just send me comments, and tell me a little bit about your situation and I bet I can help.  You can also e-mail me at MyStepUp1@hotmail.com.  Good luck and I hope I see you with me for this spring and summer!  As always donations are always welcome so that I can hopefully reach more people.  I do ask for comments though :)