December’s unemployment data came out recently, showing a progressing trend of lower unemployment; however, one key demographic hasn’t been feeling the relief—post Sept. 11th veterans. These veterans saw a major increase in unemployment from 2010 to 2011, moving from 11.7 percent to 13.3 percent.

Although many veterans hold highly sought-after skills, including expertise in engineering, communications, logistics, and medical services, not all know how to translate these skills so that businesses can understand the great accomplishments that they have completed. For instance, you may be an F-68Q; however, not everyone is going to know that it means you are a pharmacy specialist.

Because of this knowledge gap between civilians and service members, Washington has started forming legislation to help aid veterans and service members as they transition away from their respective branch.

A couple of the major forms of transition assistance are:

Transition Assistance Program (TAP)

The Transition Assistance Program (TAP) was established to help service members as they transition to civilian life. This three-day program provides job search, employment information, training information, and VA benefits information. Those eligible for TAP are service members who are within 12 months of separation from service or 24 months from retirement.

Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Program

The Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Program (VR&E) provides counseling to service members, veterans, and eligible dependents of veterans. These services are designed to help individuals choose a post-service route to employment or schooling.

Eligible service members include current members of the armed forces and veterans that have not been discharged for more than a year. Potential applicants can apply for services using the VA Form 28-8832 or by writing a letter expressing their need.

Veterans Opportunity to Work Act

Chairman for the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, Jeff Miller, said he has the goal of lowering unemployment among all veterans to sub five percent levels over the next two years. He plans on accomplishing this through the Veterans Opportunity to Work Act (VOW).

The VOW Act combines TAP with other major vocational programs, as well as streamlining licensing and certifications to make it easier for qualified veterans to receive gainful employment.

Among the education and training available, the VOW Act offers nearly 100,000 unemployed veterans from conflicts happening before Sep. 11, allowing veterans to acquire the skills needed to thrive in today’s job market.

Many state and local governments also offer programs to help our returning troops find the right job, which means it is always a good idea to check with your local VA or a local government official to see what is available to you. Job-hunting can be a stressful time, which means you should get an early jump on it, by starting your search up to a year before you are discharged.

About the Author

Kevin Pearia is a mortgage commentator for Veterans United Home Loans, the nation’s leading provider of VA home loans.

The importance of being eco-friendly has become more obvious in recent years, and online education can help students and instructors become even greener. Everyday consumption like paper, fossil fuels for transportation, and electricity can add up on a campus with thousands of students. By making your degree program portable, you can do your part to make your education even easier on the environment.

Control paper usage

Controlling paper usage isn’t simply a matter of using fewer sheets, though that is an important part of going green. Use recycled paper and pencils to do even more. By using recycled paper, you help keep it from going into a landfill or a municipal incinerator. You also help to slow deforestation by reducing demand for virgin paper and pencils, and using recycled materials helps to reduce pollution.
Thanks to technology, there are alternatives to using pens or pencils and paper altogether. If you are accustomed to writing notes, try using a text document on your computer rather than jotting things down on paper. Buying a tablet can help you stay mobile: taking notes on an iPad or Kindle Fire eliminates your need for buying notebooks, and reading your textbooks on a tablet can help you save energy as well.

Lower electricity usage

It may surprise you, but computers and other electronics use electricity even when they are turned off because they contain transformers that remain energized if they are plugged in. The only way to stop them from wasting power is by disconnecting them from the source of electricity.

To lower electricity needs while you’re using your devices, look for options that carry the Energy Star label which tells you the machine makes efficient use of power. Monitors often have this designation. Some computers and printers are also made to be extra efficient.

Use alternative sources of electricity

Using electricity is unavoidable when you have to run a computer, printer, and other peripherals. This does not mean you have to draw electricity from some pollution-belching power plant. A small solar panel setup can provide enough energy to keep your system running for as long as you need it. If you usually use your computer at night, add a battery to store the sun’s power. Another alternative—though it will take a lot of work and land—is to set up a windmill. It takes a fairly large amount of wind to power an entire house, but a smaller setup will still help lower your usage of on-grid energy.

Recycle waste materials

Even studying at home can generate a surprising amount of waste; so lower your environmental footprint by recycling everything you can. This includes, but is not limited to, paper, empty ink cartridges, empty soda or energy drink cans, water bottles, and pretty much any other kind of empty container.

These are just a few of the many ways you can be even more eco-friendly while you pursue your education. As you go through your day, keep an eye out for other opportunities to lower your use of resources, reduce your carbon footprint, and lessen negative impacts on the planet. You might be amazed at what you can do!

About the Author

Harper Mac

Harper Mac loves to write about education. Making time to study and play with her children can be difficult to balance. She feels as if finding the balance is very important to personal health. Harper loves to learn more about eco-friendly living in her spare time. She writes on behalf of Colorado Technical University.

My husband and I just returned from two weeks in Europe–one week in Cyprus and one in Croatia. These destinations are off the beaten track for Americans; in fact, we saw only one other American family during the entire two weeks.

When we travel, we don’t go on tours. Instead, we get maps and books and decide, one day at a time, what we will do. I call this wayfinding–letting one thing naturally lead to the next, open for discovery. Our technology didn’t work well, so we were completely unplugged–no phone, no internet, little English language TV. A beautiful head-clearing. A wonderful re-connection with each other. Nothing to tie us to the everyday lives we live here in Austin.

Greek mythology has it that Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, was born from the Mediterranean sea crashing ashore near the place where we stayed. So I set an intention for the trip to become more open for love.

For two weeks I was set free from judgment. People I encountered were speaking other languages; I couldn’t understand what they were saying, so I didn’t judge whether or not I agreed. They were from different cultures, so I gave no thought to what they wore or how they looked. We were seeing wondrous, beautiful sights, and my heart was increasingly opening to the beauty, with each sight even more amazing than the last. Appreciation was my dominant emotion.

This is a gift of travel–seeing with new eyes. One of my teachers once said, “What you see is not what you’re looking at; it’s what you’re looking with. So let us look with eyes of love.”

It’s easier to look with eyes of love when I’m in a strange place. Now my intention is to be the me who was in Cyprus and Croatia when I’m in Austin in my everyday life.

About the Author

Nancy Oelklaus

Nancy Oelklaus is a personal life coach based in Austin, Texas and the author of Journey From Head to Heart: Living and Working Authentically as well as Alphabet Meditations for Teachers and co-author of Rewriting Life Scripts, with Liliane Desjardins and Irene Watson.

Nancy Oelklaus leads Hye Road Retreats with horseman Lindy Segall. Learn more at www.HeadtoHeart.com.

Jay S. Levy is the author of Homeless Narratives & Pretreatment Pathways: From Words to Housing.

Patricia Wellingham-Jones from Richard Anderson on Vimeo.

.

Video interview with our own Patricia Wellingham-Jones!

When words can’t express everything, your gesture does it. Communication, either in form of verbal or nonverbal, has to be so intense that the person receiving the message should get a clear meaning of what has been said. And if a person is blessed with good communication skills, then the enchanting impression that they drop in the mind makes you talk good about their personality. Even if you have good verbal skills, without the proper inculcation of nonverbal qualities, things won’t work out in the desired direction. These skills include your expressions, gestures, body movements, eye contact, tone of voice, and posture. So, in order to establish a bonding of love and care, a person needs to have such qualities in them.

Importance of nonverbal communication

Nonverbal communication is necessary in every sphere of life, be it personal or professional; good nonverbal communication builds a relation which is strong. It all depends on the behavior of the individual. The way a person listens to things, moves, and reacts; it all affects the bonding procedure. And when the nonverbal signs match up with the words being said, it gradually increases the trust and rapport with the person.

Types of nonverbal communication

The various types of nonverbal communication include facial expressions, body movements, posture, gestures, eye contact, touch, personal space, and voice.

Applying your nonverbal communication skills

There are several ways in which we can apply our nonverbal communication skills for improving our personal and social life. Some of the important ways in doing so include the following.

1. Convey compassion

When you really love a person, then the first gesture that should emerge from you is compassion. And that person should be getting the exact feeling as that of yours. When you can empathize your feelings for others and that could be the best way to convey what you feel for others. It will help them to understand what you really feel for them. For developing that strong bond, all you have to do is to put yourself in others’ shoes and that will be the time when you would actually be able to develop a compassionate bond.

2. Develop hand gestures

Let your hands do the talking. The way a person shakes hands very much shows how much of importance he/she is paying the other person shaking hands. Not just this, hand signals can even make or break a relation. If you point your figure to your partner, this gives a negative signal to the person, thus ending up badly. It is very important to know the correct hand gestures for conveying the right message.

3. Use positive reinforcement

Don’t show anger or rude behavior as it will imply you are complaining to your partner. Appreciate your partner’s flaw in a positive way, things will really work better.

4. Use nonverbal communication to connect and bond

A mere touch can make the other person feel what’s going around in your mind. In situation of trouble and problem, a mere touch can tell your partner that you are always there with them. A simple touch can reveal feelings and make the other person feel special. A simple touch can do wonders in tensed situations.

Nonverbal communications, be it with a small baby, couples, parents, friends or colleagues, have to be in a way that brings out the best in you and make you a better individual.

About the Author

Bethany is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology and luxury. Beside this, she is fond of gadgets. Recently an article on Mini Fridge attracted her attention. Currently, she is busy in writing an article on Teen books.

RTS Vol. IV, No. 1

The following blog post is excerpted from a story appearing in Recovering The Self: A Journal of Hope and Healing, Vol. IV, No. 1 (January 2012).

Lying is pervasive. There are many forms of lies—little white lies, fibs, tall tales, and bold-faced lies. Some lies are told to spare feelings; others because it is a game of cunning. And sometimes lies come in the form of not saying anything at all—avoiding. In the end, they are all the same. They are all deceitful; they are all dishonest; they all hurt.

He told lies because he could. It was a sport—a game he played; an art form he’d perfected—without regard for the other person,  He could look you squarely in the eye without blinking and weave stories that could twist you first this way and then that, because you’d want to believe; but deep down, you’d know.  And when you knew and questioned him further, he’d become violent—a scare tactic he used to avoid the truth. When you were afraid and backed down, he won.  He always won.

Countless times, the telephone would ring, but no one was ever there when she answered. He, of course, had no idea who it was. When she changed to unlisted, the hang-up calls persisted.

“The only people who now have our number are those we have given it to. Who did you give our number to who would hang up when I answer?”

“Me? You’re crazy. Where do you get these crazy ideas? Do you lay awake at night to dream up this stuff?”

His eyes bulged; the veins in his neck exposed the beating of his heart. His nostrils flared like a bull ready to charge. Towering over her snorting and ranting, the rampage continued.  Backing herself into a corner, she wondered if there’d be another hole in the wall made by the back of her head she’d have to cover with a picture. Instead, he displayed his power by thrashing around the house, slamming doors and objects before going off to his “den” like a bear in a cave during hibernation—coming out only to eat, and then acting as if nothing happened.

When you believed his lies, he’d call her gullible without admitting he’d lied. He resented her for being gullible—it was weakness to him. It was not gullibility—it was self-defense. Acting gullible stopped the wars and the violence—for another day.  He had just told another of his concocted stories after being asked where he had been. He’d always said, “Know the answers to the questions you ask.” This time she did. She called where he said he’d be, but wasn’t; she confronted him. He did his usual accusatory dance. She tried something new—not getting caught up in his drama and not allowing him to put her on the defensive. He stood silent. Busying herself, she kept him in her peripheral vision in case she’d have to duck and cover.   Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore, “Well, do you believe me?”

“Of course, you’re my husband. You wouldn’t lie to me,” she smiled.

He seemed lost; he stared at her for a moment, then turned and walked away, retreating to his cave, probably to ponder what had just happened, and how he’d lost control. It always made her wonder how a person, who professed to love her so much, could be so deceitful and so filled with contempt. Could he not see the pain his lies caused or the devastation swirling around him? Could he not see the hopelessness and despair? Did he not care?

More than 25 years they were together—since high school. She never told anyone the hell she was living. She covered for him, hiding her bruises, making excuses for the missed appointments and cancelled social engagements. In public, he was always self-controlled; always showed her the utmost attention; always a gentleman. Who would believe her?

He didn’t realize he was building walls instead of bridges. In the end, he’d built himself a house without doors. He couldn’t escape, but she was set free—free from the master deceiver, and free from his clutches. Free because she was on the outside of the house with no doors.

About the Author

Linda Silfies

Linda Silfies is an avid writer and blogger. She has a Paralegal Associate Degree, and is a former licensed massage therapist for the Olympic Games. She earned certification as a District Justice and currently is working toward her Bachelor of Arts degree in writing and linguistics. She was raised in Easton, Pennsylvania, and currently resides in Jacksonville, Florida.