Stephanie O'Donnell's Blog

Have you ever wanted to be more persuasive?

Being able to communicate in an intelligent, articulate, and persuasive way opens so many doors in your life. And it’s not just limited to helping you be more social - it’s an extremely attractive personality trait.

This is a very important skill that I will probably find very useful - especially after doing major “brainiac” activities like setting stuff up on the website, doing social media stuff, replying to emails… even writing about crap products like Pheromone Advantage by Dr Amend. 

Anyway, I just discovered something very interesting after a discussion with an old friend who used to be VERY shy.

We both grew up in New Zealand, so after calling this guy about 7 years after the fact got me pretty curious about how outspoken and how much more confident he sounded on the phone.

We got to talking about the high school days - and it turns out afterwards he got very successful at a network marketing gig (USANA) and literally owns a mansion.

Won’t go into detail about all that, but when I brought up the comment about how his speaking style was so dramatically different, we talked about HOW he did that.

His quick and dirty tip: He started to read his daily paper OUT LOUD (awkwardly) and try to “warm himself up”.

… and this got him in the mind frame of being able to put his words into thoughts much more easily, and use better sentences - more persuasively.

I gave this a try today, and while I haven’t really noticed anything too different (I am naturally this way now myself), I could definitely feel a sense that I was more “out of my head”.

I felt like I could be present, and not have a backlog of questions, and other interesting stuff in the background. That I could fully focus on being in the moment.

If you struggle with feeling “social” (especially with women), I could see how reading a book or newspaper out loud for 10 minutes could help you out tremendously. 

owlturdcomix:

I thought it was supposed to be pleasant.

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My life in a nutshell

Chemical Research And Endocrinology

Chemicals are all around us - in the food we eat, products we put on our skin, even in the air we breathe. For so long, scientists have been trying to create a “greener” world, and helping us live happier, healthier lives.

For most people, the thought of harmful chemicals in their everyday products and food items would be a scary thought - but currently, awareness remains low for what many common ingredients used in cosmetics and food actually have on the body. For example, many moisturisers that people use can contain chemicals like:

DiethanolamineMonoethanolaminePhthalatesParabensPheromonesSiliconesGalaxolides

Most of these ingredients are fully capable of causing or exacerbating cancer growth, as well as being severe hormonal disruptors. Meaning they can throw the natural balance of your body off, and cause issues such as mood/emotional issues, acne, lethargy, and other proven/anecdotal health problems.

Many times, these ingredients are approved by the FDA as they are under an umbrella term which makes non-compulsory for cosmetic/fragrance manufacturers to list these ingredients on their products. They can also use the argument that it is a brand or trade secret, to avoid disclosing the fact that their products contains ingredients that can be harmful, especially to pregnant mothers, young children, and even people who may consider themselves reasonably healthy.

There are also pheromone products which contain extremely low doses of synthetic pheromones, which can absorb through the skin. Because these are metabolites of steroids (naturally produced on the skin, but they can still have effects - although clearly not in the doses such as products like testosterone therapy cream contain), there are still concerns about whether long term use of these products can have effects on the endocrine system, as well as any significant mood changes while wearing them. House Of Pheromones contains more information about this subject matter.

Many of the silicones, galaxolides, parabens and other harmful ingredients that are used commonly in cosmetic items are also banned in Europe, whereas in the US and other countries generally allow these ingredients to be used. Whether its out of genuine distrust, accepting some level of risk for these health issues, it is unacceptable to allow it to happen without offering the general public more information about negative side effects that can occur from using these products.

For consumers who care, there is a range for organic alternatives for most of their skin care, fragrance, and health needs. We advise anyone who may experience harmful side effects to speak to a doctor about their product usage, and to do further research into what they ingest or apply to the body. The environment is harsh enough as it is, and taking care of yourself is an excellent investment at any age.