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Managing Stress in the Claims Profession

admin — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:31:03 +0000

Stress – it’s a knotted feeling in your stomach…. a headache that won’t go away…. anxiety that you can’t escape even at the end of an exhausting day. Focus and concentration are off and errors in your work are mounting. Your significant relationships with family, colleagues and friends are experiencing distress. It may come from difficult work or personal circumstances, or you may not even know it’s source. YOU FEEL OVERWHELMED, FRUSTRATED, literally burned out as the cumulative effect of stress mounts.

The impact of stress on your life can be crippling, affecting you mentally, emotionally, and physically. Performance and productivity suffer, directly impacting your professional life. The negative cycle of mounting stress creates imbalance in your mind, body, and spirit that endangers every aspect of your life. We cannot eliminate stress. However, we can learn to live with stress encountered in our professional and personal lives, thus leading a healthy and productive happy life.

We are excited to be able to offer you an educational opportunity that doesn’t come around often outside of the PLRB conference. Vanderbuilt Construction along with Restoration Management Company has arranged for Ray Shelton to teach his Managing Stress in the Claims Profession / Achieving Balance in Mind, Body, and Spirit workshop for one day at the CSAA training facility in Sacramento on Tuesday, March 30th. There will be a morning session and an afternoon session – details of the event and how you can register are in the attached flyer. This session will explore stress in everyday life, uncovering the ways it disrupts your smooth flow, blocking happiness, peace, harmony and your competitive edge. We hope you can take advantage of this life changing opportunity!

If you have questions about this educational seminar please contact Traci Dorsey at 510.22.5939. Email inquiries should be mailed to TDorsey@Vanderbuilt.net.

Water Damage Tips

admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:24:35 +0000

We at Vendor Billboard are always looking for great tips to pass along to our users. One of our vendors, Baldwin Construction, recently partnered with us to help share some tips for avoiding water damage in your home. We hope you all find this helpful and that you take the time to visit the web page of Baldwin Construction to find out more about them.

Tips to Prevent Water Damage in Your Home

Water damage to your home is often avoidable through routine maintenance. Simply taking a few extra moments each week to check on potential problem areas can mean the difference between easy clean up work and major home repairs.

In general, it is a good idea to know where your main water shut off valve is, and to check it often to make sure it is working properly. To check for hidden leaks, turn off all water-using appliances and faucets, and don’t flush any toilets for an hour. Then, record the water meter reading. If it changes while no water is being used in the house, you might have a leak. The most common places to find leaks are bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms.

In the bathroom, check under the sink for signs of leaks. Discoloration or soft areas around on the walls or floors around your shower or bathtub may indicate a problem. Check the caulking where the walls meet the floor and the bathtub, and be on the lookout for mold or cracks. Mold can be a serious problem, so if you find it, call a professional mold remediation contractor.

In the kitchen, the dishwasher, refrigerator, and sink are the problem areas you want to keep an eye on. Make sure you check periodically under the sink to make sure the hose connection of your dishwasher to the water supply line is secure and not leaking. Look around the base of the dishwasher for discolored or warped flooring. If your refrigerator has an ice maker, make sure that hose connection is also securely attached to the water supply line.

In the laundry room, check the washing machine hose regularly for signs of cracking, fraying, or bulging. As part of a preventative maintenance plan, replace the hose every three to five years. Other appliances to keep an eye on are your water heater and air conditioning unit. Water heaters generally last 10 to 15 years, and should be placed on the lowest level of the house near a floor drain. Keep an eye out for a rusted tank or wet spots on the floor. Have your air conditioning system serviced at the beginning of each cooling season and change the air filters regularly to avoid problems.

When water damage does happen, it can cause a great deal of harm in a short period of time. Prompt action is essential when you discover water damage in your home, and you want to know you’re being taken care of by qualified professionals. We at Baldwin Restoration have over 20 years of experience in the industry, and are available 24/7 to help you through any water-related emergency. We provide full-service water restoration and mold remediation services across Southern California, Colorado, and Arizona.

Fireplace Safety Tips

admin — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 16:30:53 +0000

Do you have a fireplace in your home? It’s a great way to chase the cold-weather chills away. It can also be a great way to heat your home this time of year.

In a recent FamilyLink.com survey of 8,000 respondents, about 34 said they percent have a working, wood-burning fireplace in their home. However, nearly two-thirds of those with fireplaces never had the chimney cleaned by a professional.

If you’re using a fireplace, be sure you use it safely. Here are some quick tips that can help:

Remember to open the flue on the fireplace before starting the fire.
Equip the fireplace with a metal screen to catch burning embers or shifting logs.
Keep combustible objects a minimum of three feet away from any fireplace.
If the fireplace is gas operated, be sure to move the gas valve to the “closed” position when you are not using it.
Never use a fireplace for grilling food or burning holiday wrappings.

Chimney safety and maintenance

Protect the chimney top with a spark-arrester screen. This should help keep animals out and prevent burning embers from escaping and landing on nearby combustibles or landscaping, which could ignite.
Have the chimney flue cleaned annually by a professional. If you live in an apartment, consult with your building management to ensure this is done properly and regularly.
Inspect the chimney for cracks on an annual basis. If repairs are necessary, have them performed by a reputable contractor.

Note: These recommendations were developed using generally accepted safety standards. Compliance with these recommendations is not a guarantee that you will be in conformance with any building code, federal, state or local regulation regarding safety or fire. Compliance with these recommendations does not ensure the absolute safety of your occupation, business or residence. It is the property owner’s duty to warn any tenants or occupants of the property of any safety hazards that may exist.

If you use a fireplace this winter season, be sure to check out the safety tips brought to you by American Family Insurance - and share them with your Facebook friends.

*This article originally appeared on American Family Insurance’s Facebook page. You can visit by clicking on the link.

Assured Success With Tish Hummer

admin — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:24:25 +0000

Hi! My name is Tish Hummer, and I am excited to partner with Vendor Billboard to share my experiences and opportunities with you.

I have over 20 years experience in the restoration industry. I have been an insurance agent, marketing professional, VP of a restoration company and a CAT adjuster. I have been a member of and/or have associated with organizations such as DKI, IMACC, NARD, the “Big I”, NAIA, Honorable Order of the Blue Goose and many more. I have traveled nationally and have cold called on 1000’s of insurance agents AND claims offices. I know what it is like to have doors shut in your face and arms held wide open to welcome me in.

My company, Assured Success and its services were designed specifically for this “new economy”. My programs allow you to hire a coach, mentor and accountability partner for your marketing team, without the expense of high consulting $$$ and travel expenses. The industry has not ever offered the program that you will see when you connect with me below…

I am hoping to appeal directly to the vendors and users that view Vendor Billboard everyday and tell them about my weekly teleseminar series.

“Restoration Success” is a weekly teleseminar program with 30 minutes of meaty content and 30 minutes of live Q&A from across the country. I have great topics lined up and surprise guests. The program begins on 2/10/10, 4:00pm EST

In addition to “Restoration Success” I am also offering a complimentary teleseminar, “Restoration Resolutions” which will be presented on 1/27/10, 4:00pm EST. This call will mimic the series and will give additional info on the program.

Imagine an opportunity to connect with others that do what you do every day, on a weekly basis…

If you are interested in this series and the free call…you MUST register for it. There is limited seating…So connect with me at tish@assured-success.com.

The email marketing blast for the free call went out on Tuesday 1/13. So connect with me for the link to register before it is full…I look forward to the conversation…

Tish Hummer

Assured Success L.L.C.

http://www.linkedin.com/in/assuredsuccess

http://twitter.com/TishHummer

http://beassuredsuccess.blogspot.com

www.assured-success.com (under construction)

440-379-7313 Office

734-904-6903 cell

tish@assured-success.com

With A Little Help From Our Friends

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:59:00 +0000

We here at the VB Blog would like to thank Market Insight Group for including our brand new site on their Blog Roll. For those new to this area of the web world, a Blog Roll is a list of topical sites that the author feels may interest you, their reader.

As stated above we are highly appreciative of their recognition. So much so, that we would like to pass a bit of love their way by sharing an excerpt and link to a great article they published yesterday.

NYL Is Improving Agent Use of Social Media

New York Life’s tag line is “The Company You keep.” New York Life (NYL) recognizes that the “company you keep” has to be involved with social media because that is where a growing number of their clients and prospects inhabit. In particular, NYL continues to build momentum and experience applying social media to strengthen their interactions and relationships with their agents and policyholders. Most recently, NYL has invested their time and resources with two social media initiatives supporting their agents: one involves using Socialware and the second involves LinkedIn.

NYL is working on a Proof-of-Concept with Socialware to ensure that their agents remain compliant regardless of which social media sites they use. Socialware accomplishes this by getting in the middle between NYL’s agents’ dialogue and social media sites the agents want to post information. With Socialware, NYL agents can use Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, LinkedIn and other social media sites. (Read More)

We encourage you to follow the link above and give the entire article a read. Also, don’t forget about our free Internet Marketing Seminar we are hosting on January 7th. Sign up soon, spots are filling up every day.