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8 BusinessLink, Wednesday, April 23, 2008 Ask The Professionals Karen MacKenzie-StepnerMarta Masley B.Sc.(PT), M.C.P.A. Send your questions for any of these professionals: Ask the Professionals Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown L7G 4B1 MANON DULUDE Q:How can Coaching help me better manage my careerplanning process? A:Finding a new career or a new position can be an intimidatingprospect. One of the important goals of the career decision- making process is finding career options most compatible with an individuals interests, skills and abilities. Job searchers fall into 3 categories; the Hunter, the Explorer, and the Conqueror. The Hunter has a targeted career goal and needs a personal marketing plan. The Explorer tends to be vague about his career direction and needs assistance in discovering his interests. This personal discovery work is achieved through conversation and the use of assessment tools which provide clarity and unbiased information about the persons skills, interests, personal style, and career values. This information maximizes the clients confidence in designing and implementing a new career plan. The Conqueror likes the work he is involved in and is motivated to move his career forward. In this case, coaching assists in identifying and developing key behavioral strengths necessary to secure a promotion. Coaching will assist him in mapping out a career plan to achieve his desired career destination. Wherever you find yourself on your career path, working with a Coach will guide you through the discovery, career decision-making and marketing phases of your career management process. Coaches focus on helping clients to create career plans which are aligned with their strengths, values, interests and skills. Coaching will also assist you with implementing your plan and overcome obstacles as they are encountered. The outcome is expected to bring you personal success and overall life satisfaction. Manon Dulude is a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation. She offers Executive, Leadership and Team Development Coaching as well as Career Coaching. To contact Manon, call 905 873- 9393 211 Guelph St., Suite #5 Georgetown L7G 5B5 905-873-8400 www.haltonspeech.com Q:My husband suffered a strokerecently and now has aphasia. Can you explain what that is and what we should do? A:Aphasia is a language problem that oftenresults from brain injuries such as stroke. A person with aphasia has difficulty with communication. Speaking, understanding the speech of others, reading (even silently) and writing may all be affected. This communication disorder creates barriers to a persons ability to engage in conversation and makes participation in social and community life difficult. There are numerous things that you can do to help support your husband and assist him with communicating with others. Depending upon which communication skills he has difficulty with and the degree of this difficulty, the level of support and assistance will vary. However, regardless of the degree of difficulty, your husband should be encouraged to participate in as many conversations as he can. You can assist him by phrasing sentences and questions in a way that he is able to understand and respond to them. This may involve saying the sentence and rephrasing it again with gestures so that your husband can understand the message. The most important thing is for your husband to participate. A Speech-Language Pathologist can help with more specific suggestions. Call our Centre for more information. SUSAN S. POWELL Q:I have been living with myboyfriend for 4 years. He owns the house we live in and he pays the bills for the house but I pay for the groceries and other expenses. He wants me to move out. Does he have to pay me spousal support (his income is much higher than mine) and can I make a claim against his house? A:You can make a claim against acommon-law spouse for spousal support if you have lived together for 3 years or longer or if you are the parents of a child and have had a relationship of some permanence. Property claims are different when you live common-law or are married. If you live common-law you do not have a claim against your boyfriends house, unless you made a substantial and direct contribution to the preservation, maintenance, operation or improvement of the property, which should entitle you to an interest in the house. If you wish to further discuss this situation please contact me to ensure you understand your rights. Q:The season for my favourite hobby -gardening - is approaching. I want to make sure that this year I am prepared, and dont end up hurting my neck and back as I did shortly into last years seasons. Is there anything that I can do to prevent injury? A:First of all, you are on the right track byseeking prevention advice rather than waiting until you have sustained an injury. Gardening can be just as strenuous as any other sport, putting your body in awkward positions, involving repetitive movements and requiring stamina. Therefore, it requires a warm up and strategy like other sports. A warm up is important because it helps decrease strain and fatigue to your muscles by making them more extensible. A proper warm up will include stretches that are held for 20-30 seconds and repeated 3 times. Important areas to stretch before gardening are: neck, shoulders and low back. Aside from preparing your body for gardening you should utilize the appropriate tools to make the task easier on you. Ergonomic tools are designed to minimize the stress on your body so that you can enjoy your gardening. Ensure that your work is directly in front of you and at an appropriate height. The less reaching, twisting, bending that you have to do, the easier it will be on your body. Finally, know how to pace yourself and when to stop. Take a break when you feel you need it. Ask for assistance when you have to lift something heavy. Dont push through it if you are feeling any discomfort or pain. You dont want to put an early end to your hobby. 83 Mill Street, Suite B, Georgetown, Ontario Tel: (905) 877-8668 Fax: (905) 877-4165 SUSAN S. POWELL BARRISTER & SOLICITOR FAMILY LAW 350 RUTHERFORD RD. S. (Plaza 2, Suite 320) on the Corner of Steeles & Rutherford 905-455-6677 PSYCHOTHERAPIST PROFESSIONAL COUNSELING SERVICES 905-873-9393 HTTP://FORGECOACHINGANDCONSULTING.COM INFO@FORGECOACHINGANDCONSULTING.COM Focusing on Business of the Month The recipients for this quarter are:Express Personnel Services(January), Art of Flowers and More (February), The Terra Cotta Inn (March) Congratulations to all of you! Express Personnel Services 318 Guelph Street, Unit 1A Georgetown, Ontario L7G 4B6 905.877.1466 E-mail: steven.prestipino@expresspersonnel.com Website: www.expresspersonnel.com Chamber member since 2001 Express Employment Professionals, (formerly Express Personnel Services) managed by Operating Partner Steven Prestipino, came to Georgetown eight years ago as part of a franchise operation started in Oklahoma some 17 years earlier. It may have started out as a temporary placement agency, but has since outgrown that limited function. Yes, they still will do temporary placements, but are now really here to provide comprehensive workforce solutions for their extensive client base. The idea is to give the client the staff they require for any position needing to be filled. They do evaluation and searches at all levels of the clients organization, ensuring a fit between the clients culture and the prospective employee. The intent is to augment the clients own human resource staff and create a long-term successful relationship. The mantra of Express Employment Professionals - We are all about respecting people and impacting business is being achieved. Congratulations to you all! Art of Flowers & More 333 Mountainview Rd. S., Unit 6, Georgetown, Ontario L7G 6E8 905.702.1754 Chamber member since 2007 Walking into the Art of Flowers immediately transports you away from the five foot snow banks and grey sky, to a place thats full of colour and fragrance. Owner Zenia spent most of her life in Poland; hence many of her floral arrangements have a European feel to them for customers who like something out of the ordinary. Art of Flowers also offers a cornucopia of jewelry, balloons and all kinds of gift baskets. Customer service is of utmost importance. States Zenia, We have many loyal customers who refer new clients to us because of our service and product quality and this gives me great personal satisfaction. Next time youre in South Georgetown, take a moment to stop and smell the flowers. The Terra Cotta Inn 175 King Street, Caledon, L7C 1P2 905.873.2223 Email: cterracottainn@rogers.com Chamber member since 2005 The Terra Cotta Inn, managed by Colleen Cauchi, is tucked away in the quiet hamlet of Terra Cotta. With brief breaks, the Inn has been open since the 1950s. The setting is gorgeous, even in winter, and its reputation for fine dining is well deserved. The new patio (laid using the stone of the old patio as the standing perimeter) is ideal for large parties, particularly weddings. Smaller functions are catered in the banquet rooms adjacent to the beautifully appointed restaurant, which has 4 dining rooms plus the downstairs pub (the only part of the building that survived the fire of 1975). The intent and purpose of The Terra Cotta Inn is to deliver fine dining and make that available to families, and it seems to be working. Congratulations to all the staff! Every month, Chamber members and local residents have the opportunity to nominate a local business for the Chambers Business of the Month award. The criteria for selection are: quality of service, unique products, and/or civic involvement which benefits the community. Companies are selected regardless of Chamber membership, and the Chamber presents each of the recipients with a plaque. Business of the Month: January 2008 Express Personnel Services Photo: Georgetown Independent & Free Press Business of the Month: February 2008 Arts of Flowers & More Photo: Georgetown Independent & Free Press Business of the Month: March 2008 The Terra Cotta Inn Photo: Georgetown Independent & Free Press By Pauline Greatbanks and Cor Baarda