September 22, 2005
We’re back up!
The good news is that this blog is back up. The bad news is that it was down for a week. Apparently there was some strange and obscure configuration item in PHP that was messing everything up. Thanks to Rich Westcott (He’s the guy who administers this server…YES we have our own server) who I am sorry for yelling at a lot this week and the wordpress experts we are up and running again.
September 9, 2005
Press Release from Warren Township (Illinois) Youth Services
NEWS
For immediate release
>From the Office of Adam Krieger, Warren Township Youth Services, (847)
244-1101 ext. 402
PARENTS AND TEACHERS CAN LEARN COACHING STRATEGIES TO HELP AD/HD CHILDREN
September 9, 2005
Warren Township Youth Services and Gurnee Counseling Center present a free
workshop called Coaching Strategies and Change: A New Approach to Help Your
AD/HD Child. This presentation is perfect for parents, teachers and
professionals who want a greater understanding of the gifts and challenges
of AD/HD, while learning some proven coaching strategies that have empowered
individuals and family members to create positive, self-initiated change.
The presenter, Ken Zaretzky, MCC, is a sought after speaker on ADD and
Coaching and has recently presented at Lutheran General Hospital, Illinois
Association of School Psychologist and C.H.A.D.D. National Conference.
CEU’s are available. The presentation is on Wednesday, October 5th from
7:00-8:30 pm at the Warren Township Center-New Town Hall located on 17801 W.
Washington Street, Gurnee. To register, please call 847/244-1101 ext. 401.
August 31, 2005
Gulf Coast Disaster
This whole thing is starting to be clearer to me. It’s the first time I have written about something that doesn’t directly have to do with ADD or with Coaching.
This may be the most significant disaster in the history of human kind. It is certainly one of them either way. I’ve heard people in other parts of the world say things about how the US deserved it and try to politicize it in different ways. This of course is absurd. This is no more a political situation than the tsunami was.
I’ve heard people talk about global warming. I don’t know if this it true or not (neither do they really) but I do wonder if it might be just a bit egotistical to believe that human beings can change for either the better or the worse cosmic forces like the climate or weather patterns of an entire planet.
Here is what I do know…….There are people suffering. There are displaced refugees in the United States. Thousands, maybe millions of them. I want to do something to help. Hopefully many other want to help also. I wasn’t sure how I could help.
I mean I’m a 49 year old fat guy who is pretty smart and coaches pretty well but I’m not going to be a lot of use in a rescue operation. I do however make a pretty good living.
Maybe the best thing I can do is throw money at the problem. That’s what I’m going to. The Salvation Army has one of the tiniest administrative expenses of most major charities. What I mean by that is they keep very little donation money for themselves. Almost all the money they get is used to help people.
So for the foreseeable future I will be donating ten percent of all coaching fees and appearance fees that I earn to the Salvation Army Hurricane Relief Fund. That’s the best way that I can think of to help. I hope you will help the best way you can too.
August 29, 2005
Speaking and Appearance Schedule for Fall 2005
I have gotten a number of e-mails from people asking where they can meet me or hear me speak. So here’s where I’ll be in the near future….
Sept 14, 2005 - Speaking and Exhibiting at 2005 National AD/HD Awareness Day Focus Fair, 4:00-8:30pm, Naperville 95th St. Public Library, 3015 Cedar Glade Dr., Naperville, IL 60564
Sept 17, 2005 - Attending and coaching (Coach with an MCC) at ICF-New York at the Holiday Inn Martinique on Broadway, 49 West 32nd Street, New York, NY 10001
Sept 19, 2005 -Speaking at ICF Greater Madison (Wisconsin) from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Noodles & Company at 3600 University Avenue. Madison Wisconsin.
October 5, 2005 -Speaking at Warren Township Center, “Coaching Your ADD Child To Change A New Approach to Help Your Child”
-New Town Hall, 17801 W. Washington Street, Gurnee, Illinois 7:00-8:30 pm
October 27-29, 2005 - Speaking at C.H.A.D.D. National Conference, Hyatt Regency Downtown Dallas Hotel, 300 Reunion Boulevard, Dallas, Texas 75207
November 14, 2005 - Speaking at CCF (ICF-Chicago Chapter) American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, Rosemont, IL 4:00 PM 7:30 PM
Other events will be added as they are confirmed. I hope to see/meet you there!
***
To get more information about Ken Zaretzky, MCC as a speaker click here
June 23, 2005
It’s Just a Tool
There is a man stuck in a tiny clearing in the middle of an impassible jungle. If he stays in the clearing there is no doubt that he will either die a horrible death as a result of starvation or of being eaten by a tiger or other wild animal. There is no way he can escape because the jungle is so thick that he can’t even walk through it.
Suddenly he finds a machete in the ground near the edge of the vegetation. Is this good or bad?
Many people would say that it is good because he can use the machete to chop his way to safety.
On the other hand, what if he believes that he will either die a horrible death as a result of starvation or of being eaten by a tiger or other wild animal and uses the machete to slit his own throat?
Was finding the machete a good thing or a bad thing? The answer to that question is yes. It was a good thing or a bad thing based on what perspective he chose to take. The machete was just a tool. He chose how to use it.
I see Attention Deficit Disorder in a very similar light. It’s a tool. If you choose to you can cause it to debilitate you OR you can choose to use it to do wonderful things. To become like Ben Franklin or like John Lennon or like Thomas Edison…
There are whole corporations who give their employees “thinking outside the box” awards. Trying to get them to see solutions or different than “standard” ways to do things. Then there are people like us who hear about that and say “what box?”. Outside the box is where we live, we’ve never been in it, we don’t even know what it is…
Having ADD is just like the machete…It’s good or bad, depending on what perspective you elect to see it from.
May 26, 2005
New Online ADD Test
I just launched a new Online ADD Test. It isn’t meant to be a diagnostic test but rather a screening. Of course people should be diagnosed by a physician or other mental health profesional. This test is based on the DSM-IV criteria and will give the taker the likelihood of whether or not they may have ADD/ADHD and suggests that they contact someone qualified to make the diagnosis.
What sets this specific test aside from the very few others on the internet are two things:
1. It isn’t a list or guidelines. The test is actually scored by computer online and gives results right away.
2. It isn’t based on what came out of somebody’s mind. It is quite faithful to the DSM-IV criteria (To the letter) so someone can go to thier physician or mental health professional and be pretty certain that they will be using the same diagnostic criteria.
The test is located at
May 20, 2005
I added a link to “Focused Distractions”…..
I added a link in the sidebar today to Terry Matlen’s blog which is called “Focused Distractions”. Terry is a therapist who I consider to be expert on ADD. She is on the board of directors of ADDA (Attention Deficit Disorder Association) and plays guitar and sings real well.
I like Terry. I like her blog. It has a lot of good information.
May 7, 2005
Name this Blog Contest!
I keep changing the name of this weblog because I don’t seem to be able to think of a name I like. So I’ve decided to abdicate the responsibility of naming it. YOU can name it.
Whoever comes up with the best name for this blog will receive fabulous prizes!
Please enter by posting your suggestion as a comment to this post.
It’s starting to look okay…
It’s beginning to shape up. It actually isn’t bad as brand new blogs go. Now I have to actually write things. Useful things about ADD and about coaching. The point of this is to actually help people. People who are my clients, and just people out there who need help.
There are a couple of other categories that you can’t see yet. There is “About ADD” and “About Coaching”. There is also a surprise category that I’ll tell you about later. They will all appear when I post something in them.
Beginning on Wednesday May, 11 through Monday May 16 I will be at the Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) Annual conference in Tucson. I’ll be speaking there on coaching couples. That will be Sunday morning. Also on Saturday I will be co-presenting with Patrice Lynn, PCC (A great coach in Oregon) on “Coaching For The Action Progression”. I’m sort of “pinch hitting” because Peggy Bonsee, PCC (another great coach from Virginia) who was supposed to run this session with Patrice is ill and can’t make it. I’m sorry for Peggy, but I’m excited about presenting that program with Patrice. It should be fun!
I’ll try to post in this blog about the conference while I’m there. Maybe I can share some interesting information.
