Advice worth taking note of!

This is the best advice you will ever receive.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.
Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God.. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay cheque.

10.When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16.Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion, Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

26. Always choose life.

27. Forgive everyone and everything.

28. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything.. Give it time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42.The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Sustainable microfinance requires sound client relationship management

While the microfinance sector has grown at a rapid pace, concerns have been raised about the qualitative aspects of this growth. There have been a few instances in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh which have led to questions being asked on microfinance business models and their ability to sustain client relationships in the long run. The areas that have been particularly in focus are client over-indebtedness, coping strategies in case of crisis, transparency in loan pricing and overall client protection. There has been a lot of deliberation on how MFIs should deal with these issues, it is difficult to say whether MFIs have been effective in addressing them.

MFIs have to cope with the growth expectations that lenders and investors have of them and operate in an increasingly competitive environment. In addition, the nature of credit operations requires regular follow-up with clients in order to ensure prompt repayments. At times, this is construed to be coercive and leaves MFIs vulnerable to accusations of malpractices.

Practicing client protection principles requires MFIs to treat every client interaction as a relationship exercise. MFIs need to view this as an opportunity to build a sustainable and sound business.

There is a heaven after all, as there is a hell!

Of all the strange thoughts one has one sometimes wonders how it would be like to experience death. The research on Near Death Experiences (NDEs) is an interesting one. This research gives us a window into the largely unknown realm of death. The most common NDEs are associated with feelings of calmness. NDEs include experiencing intense “pure bright light”, out of body experiences and communication with the divine, and a review of life. All these experiences are becalming and soothing. On the other hand, research suggests, some people (a minority) going through NDEs do not experience feelings of peace, nor do they visit Heaven or meet friendly spirits. Instead, they feel terrified and are accosted by demons or malicious imps. They may visit places that fit Biblical descriptions of Hell, including lakes of fire, tormented souls and a general feeling of oppressive heat.

A Gollop and Proctor research in 1982, which formed the basis of their book - Adventures in Immortality: A look beyond the threshold of death, found out that 15% of Americans who had been in near death situations had NDEs and only 1% had negative NDEs. However, there is little evidence that could suggest what could be the cause of a positive NDE or a negative one. What is clear though is that those who have a positive NDE very nearly experience something that is close to the common conceptualization of heaven, while those who have a negative NDE get close to hell.