A serious injury is something most people hope that they–nor any of member of their family and friends–have to suffer. As I know from experience, the only thing worse than seeing a loved one in pain is seeing their discomfort amplified by huge medical bills they were unprepared to afford. Morbid or not, accidents happen, and it’s best to be prepared for the worst. For example, if you are living in Toronto or just outside of it, you may want to get to know the business practices of personal injury lawyers in Mississauga so that, in case of injury, you won’t have to waste any time finding the right attorney. A physical injury can have a lasting impact on your life, but with timely intervention from a personal injury attorney, you can focus on recovering while resting assured that your lawyers are fighting for your rights, medical and otherwise. Below are some tips that should help you if you’ve been injured and think you may require legal assistance:

-Seek medical treatment immediately

You need to find out right away how serious the nature of the injury is, whether you will require surgery or other costly procedures, or if it will force you to take time off from work. Determine the expected cost of treatment.

-Keep correspondences with your insurance company in writing

Most insurance providers want to offer a settlement right away to close your case as soon as possible. This is why it is so important to seek medical attention first; some unfortunate cases have ended with a patient accepting a settlement, whether from a work or car accident, only to find out later that they will suffer chronic health problems as a result, which, due to a settlement already being received, will not be covered.

Hire a personal injury lawyer immediately if:

-You have been asked to provide documentation of the state of your health before the injury occurred

-Your insurance company has offered you a settlement you are not happy with

-There is a dispute over who is at fault for the accident

-You have been injured and are a parent or the primary caregiver of someone else

If there’s one skill that we all, in the Information Age, could probably brush up on, it’s the art of communicating ourselves, our businesses and our passions online more effectively. Whether you like it or not, if you have a Facebook or Twitter page, you have created a brand: yourself. Every decision you make with that account will reflect on you personally. As a blogger, this is always something that I keep in mind–whether I’m promoting a brand I like, writing out a recipe, or sharing an anecdote about the wonders (and woes!) of parenting–even though I’m self-publishing, I’m still publishing. I can’t tell you how to get thousands of hits on your website each day–you’ll need a full service marketing agency for that–but I can tell you how to build your online presence and…omniscience.

Network

Join other social networks besides Twitter and Facebook; there are lots out there: Pinterest, Digg, chime.in, zoomit.ca are some of my favourites. Get social in some of these spaces and you might be amazed at the reception your brand receives, often directing readers back to your blog, or myspace or website. These platforms are more interactive than a blog format, and give you insight into the effect your brand is having on others. Another way to network is to experiment with forums. Pick a topic you’re interested in or just join a local forum and build a solid reputation there, which leads me to my next point–

Keep it Appropriate

Think carefully before you publish something that could be controversial. One of the great things about the internet is that anyone is entitled to publish anything they please, but the internet doesn’t forget, and neither do readers, when they read something you posted that was disturbing or negative. One ill-timed rant can turn a casual reader off your page forever, so take a moment before you hit publish to reflect upon whether or not what you’ve just written is true to your overall vision.

Build Community

You can’t expect to gather hordes of readers for your blog if you don’t take the time to support other bloggers, leaving comments on their page or referencing them on Twitter. Participate in online discussions and reach out to other bloggers with similar interests. There is a niche for everyone’s brand on the internet , and community comes with that.

As the wife of an entrepreneur and mother of two, themes of leadership are prevalent in my life. But what is the difference between a good leader, and a great one? A good leader is able to direct others to meet a targeted goal or deadline with satisfactory results. They are essentially in charge of the people who follow their lead, and take ultimate responsibility for the final results. A great leader, however, does more than simply get the job done: they inspire their company, students or children to achieve more, raise productivity levels, and, in the best case scenario, to acquire leadership skills of their own. Not all of us are born leaders, and even those who are can benefit from a leadership development program. This specialized training can help already seasoned leaders develop the skills and knowledge to provide effective, exceptional leadership in any situation or organization.

You may consider yourself a great leader and role model, but there is always improvement to be made.  At leadership development training you will focus on:

Mentoring - Mentoring allows you to directly communicate what you know about leadership to others. Mentoring improves teaching and communication skills, and teaching is a great way to strengthen the knowledge you already have. Some executives have been leaders for so long that they have become out of touch with their employees; mentoring is a way to encourage communication and a sharing of ideas from both parties. Coaching your peers is an invaluable way for you to enhance your leadership qualities while improving your faculties for listening, answering questions, and conversing with others in general.

Personal Coaching - Yes, you’re already a leader, but how well will you handle constructive criticism? When people in positions of leadership allow themselves to be coached by their peers at leadership development training, it can open up a whole new level of awareness into how they have been approaching leadership thus far. Awareness is the beginning point of change and improvement. At first, you might find yourself responding negatively to a peer’s suggestions for improvement, but the experience will leave you better equipped for a time when those roles are reversed, and you are about to offer criticism to an employee yourself.

Professional Networking – There really isn’t any textbook definition of leadership; new strategies are invented all the time and there are countless ways to approach managing and leading. Connecting with other like-minded professionals in leadership development training will give you the chance to share your stories of leadership with others, and to hear what has and hasn’t worked for them. A good leader gets people to listen, but a great leader listens to others, and learns from them.

While I like to think of myself as a committed Do-It-Yourselfer, there are certain events in life for which I feel I need expert advice before I even begin, and the process of selling and buying a new home is a fine example of an occasion where one should feel zero guilt about hiring professional help.

In search of the perfect real estate lawyer North York I did a lot of research which I am now happy to share with my readers. My family and I have been living in our suburban home for 12 years, and much has changed in the market since:

1. Resolve to make finding a real estate lawyer the first step of your move.

The importance of legal council cannot be understated when making what is perhaps the most costly purchase of your life. Selling or buying a home requires serious decision making and the guidance of a legal professional will reinforce to you the gravity of the choices you make.

2. Find out how your real estate lawyer structures their fees.

Some real estate lawyers work on a flat fee structure and some do not; you may be in conversation with one or the other. If you choose a lawyer who charges a flat fee structure you’ll know exactly how much their expertise will cost. If you are dealing with a lawyer who does not charge on a flat fee structure then be very firm in asking for a complete invoice of charges. Agree on a price before you agree to services.

3. Familiarize yourself with your lawyer’s practice.

What type of  real estate law does your lawyer specialize in? Commercial? Residential? Agricultural? Choose a lawyer whose specialty matches up with what you’re selling or buying. If a real estate lawyer has been working exclusively in a certain residential area for 10 years, you can bet his/her office and administrative staff is well versed in their work as well.

4. Find out what services are included.

Will your lawyer look over your mortgage documents for you? If you want this done and don’t specify upfront you might find yourself with unexpected fees on the bill. Is your lawyer, or is their assistant, going to be able to give you answers to your complicated questions? Will you be educated somewhat throughout the process, or left in the dark about the particulars? You may need to shop around until you find a lawyer who can offer you exactly what you’re looking for at an agreed-upon price.

5. Can your lawyer’s office close the sale electronically?

It is now possible to register land electronically throughout the entire GTA. This is not the most important tip in the article, but in the digital age we all know how much more convenient it is to work online rather than wait in a line. Plus, if your lawyer’s office hasn’t upgraded to be able to close electronically, it might reveal a need for them to be making upgrades to their practice in general. Again, this is a minor piece of advice. Be sure to hire a real estate lawyer–legal documents are very complicated.

Well you know me, I love food…

And the CRFA’s (Canadian Restaurants and Foodservices Association’s) annual show at Exhibition Place is for those who love food. I spent a very happy Monday morning meandering (I confess this word annoys me sometimes but it really seems fitting here) from booth to booth and–at the risk of sounding melodramatic–from wonder to wonder.

I haven’t decided yet whether or not it was a blessing that I ate a wholesome breakfast of oats and strawberries this morning. I didn’t want to overeat, and it worked–I only grazed on healthy foods I really wanted to try. But now that I’m home I’m starting to regret my restraint…those desserts…and those cheeses, and even though I’m vegetarian the meats looked tasty, and…would 10 AM really have been too early to sample a nice beer? I’d like to think it was all a moveable feast I could carry around with me in spirit and in mind, but something tells me I’m going to have to physically stop at the cheese shop tomorrow after I go to the bakery.

Apart from the food, which was glorious and beautiful, there was another focus to the event, and that was technology–whether it was new equipment for the kitchen, new software for restaurants or a presentation on how social media can spread the word about your restaurant (or anything really!) online.

I caught Rob Campbell AKA Smojoe give a talk at high noon about navigating the internet to your best possible advantage using storytelling funneled through all varieties of free online mediums. As a blogger, I found the talk extremely useful, and Campbell was an engaging speaker (and a little eccentric!) which made it entertaining. I learned a lot about what Google considers to be relevant in terms of web searches. Someone told me recently, I think at a Reiki healing event I attended with a friend, that you usually walk away from a presentation having learned one key thing to take home with you (let’s hope so!) Rob Campbell’s presentation today left me with a lot to think about. In fact, I’m even blogging differently.

I guess in the end the oatmeal was a good idea–there’s no way you would have found me in a CRFA lecture room for business management consulting at lunchtime otherwise.

The Burger Derby

Burgers are big in Toronto. From old standards like Dangerous Dan’s and Johnny’s to nouveau joints like Big Smoke Burgers and BQM Burger Shoppe, Toronto is smack in the middle of a burger revival.

Even the most seasoned burger eating veteran might have trouble sorting out where to get the best burger in Toronto with all the new joints that are popping up. That’s where Burger Derby comes in.

Burger Derby is a social burger review website that aims to use a combination of expert reviews and crowd-sourced ratings to determine Toronto’s top ten burgers. Burger Derby allows users to rate and review individual burgers, rather than rating whole restaurants. “We recognize that not every burger on a restaurant’s menu is created equal,” says Basil Godevenos, a co-creator of the Burger Derby review website. “That’s why we rate the burgers, not the joints. We want people to know not just where to go, but what to order when they get there.”

BurgerDerby.com, which launched early this year, comes at a perfect time for Toronto. Torontonians are giving the burger status as a valid gourmet option. Toronto foodies even named newcomer joint The Burger’s Priest as the third best place to get fed, according to the 2012 Toronto ZAGAT survey.

Toronto loves burgers, and now it has a burger review website to help people find the perfect combination of beef and bun.

Do you love Valentine’s Day? I used to hate it, and told my husband so when we first started dating. Year after year passed with me scoffing at what I viewed as commercialism of the holiday as he, well, remained indifferent, though probably relieved that my expectations were low. It wasn’t until two years ago, when I was helping Sam prepare his Toy Story valentines for school, when I became inexplicably interested in celebrating.

All of a sudden I felt like the fact that we didn’t do anything special on Valentine’s Day was a major indication of our feelings for each other. I mentioned going out for dinner and got really touchy when he…remained indifferent. Then I set about making reservations and finding a babysitter, but naturally, it being February 13, wasn’t able to accomplish either. To make a long story short, I completely lost my cool when he said the inevitable “But…you’ve never cared about Valentine’s Day!”, even though it was true. I stormed out of the house for an angry walk and nearly burst into tears when I saw some other woman’s (or man’s) significant other walk up a driveway with a bouquet of flowers.

I know that I acted irrationally and overreacted to boot, but that night Brian and I had a good talk. He said that he’d always agreed with me that there didn’t need to be a day set aside specifically for love, but he’d also never hated the holiday like I’d always claimed to. I said I didn’t know what brought on my wanting to celebrate it, and he joked that having children must have unfrozen my heart! Then we agreed to celebrate the next year, because, hey, there wasn’t really any harm in it, after all. We agreed to take turns organizing each year’s outing, and he (very gallantly, I thought) offered to go first. In 2011, Brian and I went to dinner at Gio Rana’s (one of my favourites) and a movie, and I was pleasantly shocked by the new pair of earrings he gave me.

This year was my turn to plan Valentine’s, and I spent at least a week mulling over menus of some of the most romantic restaurants in Toronto. I was just starting to analyze wine lists when I realized I’d become a complete parody of myself, looking up the most expensive restaurants in town to blow money on just because it happened to be Feb. 14. I also reminded myself that seven-course dining isn’t really Brian’s thing. “That’s it!” I thought, and “Duh!”

Nothing would make Brian happier than a pint of Belgian and some good old-fashioned pub food. We were going to Bier Markt.

It was a great decision; he couldn’t believe it! Bier Markt may not sound like the most romantic of locations, but beer is the way to a man’s heart, and the grin on his face as we sat down was much brighter than the single flickering candles that have come to be associated with romancing. Ironically, theirs was the one menu I didn’t pick apart, so I was overjoyed when I saw FONDUE on the menu. Funny how things work out sometimes, isn’t it? Brian had his best Valentine’s ever at Bier Markt, and I did too, because there’s nothing better than making the person you love feel very happy, after the Chocolate Peanut Butter Fondue, of course.

Click here to enter a contest for a $75 Bier Markt gift card!

My family and I usually cook at home as opposed to going out to eat, but that doesn’t mean the kids don’t ask about having dinner in a restaurant! Of course I remember what it was like to be their age–anything tastes better than Mum’s cooking, right?–but I try to provide a healthy, balanced and…edible diet as much as possible before taking the kids for the ultimate treat of dining out. I want to spoil my kids, trust me–I just love them too much to actually do it.!

Last night, Brian and I caved and took ourselves as well as Sam and April to an eatery very much their cup of tea: the Rainforest Cafe in the Yorkdale Mall. It’s certainly not the first place I want to blow my money on mediocre food (although I like their solar panels) but it’s set up for little ones and they’re able to burn a bunch of energy playing in the ‘rainforest’ before it’s time to sit down and get nourished. Before we’d arrived, I had Sam and April promise to be on their best behaviour, to play nicely together and to expect only one chocolate milk. Sam was a little too quick to acquiesce– I had a feeling he’d opened his mouth and spoken empty words–and that I’d have to have the ‘Pinocchio’ discussion with him a bit later.

It wasn’t long before my son was driving me batty. There was a small group of ‘big boys’ (and by ‘big boys’ I mean 8-year-olds as opposed to 6-year-old Sam) and he clearly didn’t think he looked very cool with his three-year-old sister trailing after him. So, he left her alone as soon as they were out of my vision. I heard her crying within minutes and ran off to rescue her, standing alone under some giant fake leaves with tears and snot dripping down her face and a score of concerned–no, smug–mothers watching her from their perches. I picked her up just as Sam was ripping by in full pursuit of one of the big boys; I grabbed him with my free arm.

“OK, playtime’s over, Sam,” I said. “You were supposed to keep your sister safe.”

“Can I have chocolate milk and pizza?” was his reply.

I should have said no, but by that point I was already feeling a little nutso and was willing to give him what he wanted until it was time to go–so we ordered the pizza, two chocolate milks and two much-needed pints. Sam gulped his milk down in one go, mischief in his eyes. “Can I have another chocolate milk?” he asked. “Sam, what did your mother tell you?” asked Brian. “Who cares what she said?” said my son. “She’s just old!”

That was it.

“That’s it, Sam,” I said, very calmly, I might add. “No more chocolate milk and no more playing. Green chair when we get home, ten minutes.”

Does it make me a bad person that it was kind of satisfying to watch his face go from cad to sad? I should hope not. A survivor of discipline-by-spanking myself, I’ve found that method savage and ultimately unproductive. This is what capital punishment looks like in our house: a small closet with nothing in it besides an old stove timer and an ugly little green chair. Naughty child must serve their sentence without getting up or sentence is doubled, no exceptions. For a child just getting in touch with their own reserves of daytime energy, no punishment is worse.

I like to think it serves a triple purpose psychologically: 1) it helps children realize that time is precious and 2) it helps children (well, my speed-of-light children at least) to experience a quiet moment of reflection and 3) will eliminate poor home furniture choices (ie. green chairs) in the future.

Oddly enough, our last restaurant experience has left me craving another (childless) one. Has anyone tried the Bier Markt in Toronto? I’m looking for a great Winterlicious experience, and a babysitter!

Happy new year, everyone! If you read my blog (I thank you) you know that anything involving organics, healthy eating/living, environmental activism and…ahem… saving money are some of my favourite topics. I felt my first post of 2012 was a great time to start talking about Aveda hair school and salons; Aveda is a cutting edge (pun intended) company that is pioneering a new renaissance in beauty care: their products are kept as organic as possible, 100% of the company’s energy consumption is powered by wind power, and their stylists are some of the best in the world.

I have been a fan of Aveda and Aveda products ever since the first time I visited an Aveda salon in Toronto and, on a whim, had my hair dyed bright red! Over the moon about my bold new look, I allowed myself to be persuaded to buy the suggested shampoo and conditioner (also bright red colours) to keep the colour intact, as red tends to fade quickly. It was the first time I had seen an organic product for sale in a salon, and I was intrigued.

Aveda was born after founder Horst Rechelbacher visited India for the first time and was introduced to the concepts of Ayurveda, an ancient Indian holistic discipline that I study. (I have outlined the basic concepts of Ayurveda in a previous blog post). Finally, I thought, a beauty company I can really get behind. I believe that what we see is very important, that it has a direct correlation to our happiness and well-being, so it’s important to surround yourself with beauty and cleanliness and to look your best. Aveda understands this at a deeper level–beauty isn’t just skin deep–and efforts are taken to ensure that the company’s entire process, from manufacturing to power usage, is conducted with the best interests of the environment in mind.

Aveda Hair School Scholarship Video Contest

Since Aveda is running a cross-Canada hair school scholarship video contest, I’m thrilled to spread the word to budding stylists across the country. If you’ve got a flair for spotting up-and-coming trends and/or have ever dreamed of a career as a stylist, this is the opportunity of a lifetime! Aveda stylists are internationally respected; many enjoy careers of glamour and travel, and hair stylists frequently top lists reporting job satisfaction.

Four grand prizes, each at a $10,000 or more value, are being given away. Submit a two-minute video entry explaining why you were ‘Born to Style’ and you could win a full scholarship to: Aveda Institute Toronto, Aveda Institute Calgary, Aveda Institute Vancouver or Aveda Institute Victoria. Complete contest rules and details can be found here. Good luck!