With the advent of so many new modes of entertainment, things like good reading habits seem to be passé. If you want your child to develop this wonderful habit you need to serve it in front of him not as a compulsion but as an entertainment.

You can try the following points to inculcate good reading habits in your children.

• Rather than forcing them to read what you think is right, initially let them choose what they want to read and eventually introduce the books you think are right also.
• Reading along with them or aloud to them can be another good idea.
• Starting as early as your baby would start recognizing the pictures in the book is another helpful idea.
• There are a lot of baby books available in the market. Choose the one for your baby which is brightly colored, has big, attractive pictures and is easy to hold.
• At this age, choosing books with lesser words and more of pictures is better. Just hand it over to him and let him explore it whichever way he wants to.
• Kids get fascinated by fairytale books which have pop-ups, different textured pictures and flaps to be lifted. .
• Once your child starts pre-school and learns to recognize some words, you can introduce him to books with very short stories written in bold letters and illustrated with pictures.
• To little older children, you can get books which have games that teach numbers, alphabets, dates, knowing the clock.
• Remember that all such things should be very colorful and illustrated with a lot of diagrams and pictures to keep your child’s interest.
• Once your child begins to read properly, you can start taking him to the library or the bookstore.
• Let him decide what level of books is he comfortable in reading alone. You can also make him read aloud to his younger sibling.
• If you feel that your child gets easily bored of his books you can make out games out of the book, like enacting the title, narrating an incidence of the story and finding the related picture etc.
• If you child wants to go back to his old books there’s no harm in it. Remember, even some grown ups love reading their childhood comic books.
• To a little grown up kids between the age group of 8-11, you can give story books that have a mix of longer imaginative stories.
• You can also try non-fiction for children who do not like stories. You can introduce him to encyclopedias with photographs and illustrations and other such knowledge books.
• You can also find out books that suit his interest. For instance, if he likes sports, then you can get him books on that. For girls, you can get books like Nancy Drew and for boys something like Hardy Boys. You can also try imaginative books of magic and horror.

This way, slowly you can lead your child to the path of making reading a hobby. They will soon discover that they are loving it and it is much better than spending time on useless play stations and video games!

Concentration plays the key role for success in endeavors. The lack of concentration can mar the quality of the task undertaken or can spoil the whole task. Lets look into some important details in points for developing concentration skills.

• Before undertaking a task come to terms with yourself that you would complete the task at any cost
• Allot a no interruption time period for the completion of the work including phone calls.
• Compel yourself for the closure of the job undertaken and be satisfied only with the 100% completion of the task
• Engage yourself in a game like chess or Chinese checkers and play it alone.
• Play a card game alone on your own.
• Mark a point on a board or a wall and keeping staring at it without blinking. Let tears roll down your cheeks. Slowly close your eyes. Repeat again. Over a period of time you will realize that you are focused and can concentrate.
• Light a candle in a dark room and place it at eye level. Fix your gaze on the tip of the flame. Slowly close your eyes. Repeat again. Over a period of time you will realize that you are focused and can concentrate
• Word games like crosswords can help in monitoring your thoughts in the desired direction, thereby enhancing your concentration.
• Solving puzzles can also help in arranging the train of thoughts on the undertaken job.
• Mediation is the best way to develop concentration
• If your mind does not succumb to meditation in the beginning adhere to repeat your chosen deity’s name for a fixed period.
• Another easy way is to try to concentrate on your breath as you breathe in and breathe out.
• Spend your leisure time in your garden or a secluded place and try watching your thoughts. You will find them disappearing as and when you look at them. In other words, think, what you are thinking.
• Last but not the least motivate yourself to achieve your ideals and concentration will follow suit.
• But however, do not get disturbed if you are unable to pick up concentration soon as your mind is accustomed to wandering and will take some time to settle down. But this itself should not become the reason to delay the whole process. The amount of effort put in by you to develop concentration depends on how well you concentrate in doing it! Try hard and you are sure to succeed.

• Use the ‘empty chair’ technique: Place an empty chair in front of you and imagine the person, God, the feeling, etc. to be in that chair. (You may want to place a photo or symbol in the chair to help you.) Talk to that person or thing, saying everything you want to say at that time. Yell, blame, whatever you need to do.
• When you feel like you are ’stuck’ in a feeling or thought, try the following:
• Either inside or outdoors walk or sit still and simply count every object you lay your eyes on. You notice a tree-1, a leaf-2, the bug by your foot-3, etc. Keep counting without lingering or thinking about the object until you feel ‘done’ counting. You might feel done at 20 or at 200!
• Then as you focus your attention again on the objects around you, instead of counting, say something to that object. Example: “You are a stupid tree sitting there doing nothing.” “You are such a blah color.” etc. Continue until you feel ‘done’.
• The object of this is not so much that you have any insight, but that you focus your attention outward to the objects around you. It forces your attention out, and helps you step out of being stuck inside.
• Another way to focus attention outward is to go for a walk and to notice things as if for the first time. Touch them, smell them.
• Put on music and act out your feelings through movement. Then act out what you want to feel instead. You can also ‘pray’ through movement and music allowing your movements to express whatever is inside you to God.
• Learn a form of meditation or centering prayer–a word to which you can keep returning your attention.
• Create a box that is a ‘burial ground’ for unwanted intruding thoughts or feelings. Keep slips of paper nearby and when the thought or feeling ‘intrudes’, simply write it down briefly and ‘bury’ it in the box.
• Make time to fully experience your feelings. Put on sad music and let yourself cry.
• Create ‘grieving periods’. Create a time when you can be alone to look through mementos of your relationship and let yourself feel what you feel and express it. You may want a friend in the house, but in another room so that you can feel free to feel and express what you need to. They are there just as a support if you need them.
• See a counselor with whom you feel comfortable talking about what’s going on for you.
• For anger, some people find it helpful to pound a pillow with their hands, to use a foam bat to strike a photo, to simply scream out their rage (in car with windows rolled up is great!), to do vigorous physical activity/exercise, dance, furiously clean house or yard.
• For other feelings try wailing out loud like you see in movies to express pain or loss. You may want to growl or make other noises to express what you’re feeling. Be an animal and express feelings like that animal would—hiss, roar, curl up, hide, etc.
• For self comfort, find something that represents you–a doll, a stuffed animal, and hold it, comfort it, tell it what it needs to hear. Allow that object to represent the vulnerable part of you, the Child that is scared or alone or mad. You be the adult and comfort the child.
• When you can’t sleep at night, one of the best remedies is a glass of orange juice—honest!
• A massage can be a wonderful treat to yourself–to relax, reduce stress, pamper yourself, and be touched in a healing and non-sexual way. Helps satisfy hunger for touch.
• Hang around people who give lots of hugs, touches. Ask for them when you need them.
• Do something nice for someone else. Volunteer if you have spare time to give.
• Rent old “Candid Camera” or other funny videos and have a good laugh.
• Spend time in nature to relax your mind and heart.
• Visit the self-help section of Barnes & Noble bookstore (or other store) to find info on any possible area of growth and healing you might need. You can sit at a table or in a big chair and read a section right in the store.
• Check out support groups.

Time is one of the most important things needed in order to accomplish your business and personal goals. Because of this, organizing your time is one of the most important things that you can do to have a successful day, or one that seems like a failure. Remaining organized with what you do with your day will help you to achieve goals and to be able to do the things that you want and need with your career and family. Here are ten tips that can help you to organize your time.

Have time management tools. Whether this is technology software, a computer, or a pen and paper, knowing what your tasks are for the day and knowing the time frame in which you have to complete them always helps you to see what you have to do and how much time you will have to do it.

Know your priorities. It is best to put the things that are most important at the top of your list and allow yourself the right amount of time for getting these things done. At the end of the day, these accomplishments will help you in feeling like you’ve done a good job of managing your time. If certain things don’t get done, you want to make sure it’s the things that don’t have the tight deadline or matters that aren’t as important.

Have a routine. If you are able to stick to a certain time frame each day, it will help for you to stay organized and will become easier for you to manage time day by day. This will also help if something unexpected happens or if there is some sort of interruption to your day. You’ll know exactly what you need to do to get back on task for the rest of your day.

Stay organized. This means managing files on your computer as well as organizing either household or office times. This will help you to save time on things such as looking for items that you may need. By always knowing where you have everything, you will effectively save time.

Don’t waste time. A lot of times, procrastination and low motivation can get in the way of you accomplishing your goals at an internal level. Externally, interruptions such as friends and extended conversations may end up throwing you off schedule. It is best to stay focused and try not to let these different influences get in the way of what needs to be accomplished for the day.

Have extra time that you need personally. No matter what the tasks that you have at hand, always have time that you can use for yourself. There are times during the day that are good to stop and relax or have a meal. When you are planning out your day, make sure to plan time for your self, personal time or extra time that you can use away from the goals that you are trying to accomplish. This is a good way to refocus and find more energy for the rest of the day.

Track your time. There are several software management tools that you can use in order to successfully track how much time you are spending doing certain tasks. These, as well as making mental or other types of notes on how much time you are spending doing something will always help. There may be times where you are not spending enough time doing something, or where the goals that you have set are requiring more time than you estimated. You can then refocus your goals and tasks for the next day.

Use the right resources. Often times, time is wasted trying to find the right thing to use. It is best to stick to one type of system or process that works best for you. This will help with your routines and daily tasks. When spending too much time searching for something new, time is wasted when trying to accomplish your goal.

Ask for help when you need it. If there are a lot of goals that you have to accomplish and you are not seeing a way to get it all done on time, ask for help from someone. There are plenty around you that will support what you are trying to do and would be willing to help with certain tasks if you need it.

Time management is really life management. If you improve the quality of your time management you will improve and enhance all parts of your life. Tips for time management are as follows.

Break major tasks down into small chunks: Break major projects into small pieces and tackle them one at a time.

Eliminate tasks: Evaluate each task and don’t do time consuming routine tasks like rewashing the car weekly or dusting.

Consolidate tasks-Whenever possible do more than one thing at a time

Evaluate your habits: Save time by changing your routine actions.

Be prepared to lower your standards: The heavy demands on your time, it is doubtful that everything you do can be perfect.

Learn to say No: There is never time to do everything we want to do, so we must learn to do those things that move us toward our goals and say no to those that do not.

Be flexible but remain in control: Expect interruptions, as they are bound to occur. An effective time management will survive if, you do your works in a priority order.

Make a study schedule and stick to it: The best way to ensure that you will have enough study time to meet your goals in each course is to plan for it.

Understand assignments and write them down-Keep all assignments in one place to avoid forgetting something.

Develop an understanding of your best concentration times: Arrange your schedule so that you have study time during your peak hours.

Remember that study includes many different tasks: When teachers talk about the need to study and you should read review material in preparation for class.

Realize that different subjects require different types of preparation: Lecture classes require that you have to review your notes right after class and preview the new topic just before the classes.

Schedule study learning sessions to fit your attention span: Try studying for 45 minutes and then take a ten-minute exercise break.

Vary subjects and type of study for maximum efficiency: Within a study session do some reading, writing, and recitation, to stay interested and alert.