Alcoholism does not only affect the victim but those surrounding him as well — including families, relatives and friends. Helping an alcoholic is just as difficult as dealing with the disorder itself. However, with patience and understanding, little changes can become permanent. Here are some general reminders in dealing and helping with alcoholics.

Be aware on the nature of alcoholism and addiction and what it does to the victims. When you have become more educated and knowledgeable on this disorder, you’ll understand better and be more prepared on the current situation. Most organizations like Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon and the National Council on Alcoholism have more than enough reading material to get you started.

Don’t make excuses or cover up all the mistakes and slip-ups the alcoholic does because of the excessive drinking. Let him deal with the consequences head on without anyone trying to soften the blow for him. Only when he has experienced first hand the negative effects alcohol has caused him would he seriously consider stopping and start with the healing process.

Don’t let any unruly, hurtful, offensive and embarrassing behavior pass by even if it has become a normal routine. Confront him on his negative behavior when he is sober. Remember that you should remain objective on the offensive behaviour that was displayed. Only be subjective when you are already relaying your feelings toward the incident. Also, focus on the incident and not on the character of the alcoholic.

Let the alcoholic know that you care for him and that you are concerned for his well-being. Choose the correct time to stage a small intervention — perhaps during when he is sober or contemplative of his actions. Remember though that the alcoholic might not respond in an acceptable manner. Denial comes with alcoholism and he might even turn the dialogue or argument back at you.

Disciplining children is one of the hardest things to do as a parent or guardian. Most of the time, you just want to shower your kids with all the love and attention but this will backfire if you turn a blind eye to their misdeeds. Here are some tips on reprimanding children.

First of all, avoid disciplining children in public. All warning, reprimands, penalties and punishments should be managed at home. No one wants to be criticized in public and it goes double for children. Administering discipline and punishment might even backfire if you involve other people — like his siblings, friends and maybe even strangers. Remember that how you want to be treated even in times of misdeed is also the way your children would want to be treated.

Reprimand the child as soon as he misbehaves. Prolonging discipline will only lessen the impact on the child. Also, do not wait for the other parent/guardian to administer discipline in your place. This is also a way to prolong the retribution. Plus, it is also unfair to make one parent/guardian the “bad guy” who always imposes punishment even if he is not present at the time of the misdeed.

Do not under any circumstances inflict corporal punishment on the child, even if the physical misdeeds are involved lke hitting his younger siblings. This sends the wrong message to te child and you can face serious consequences. Instead, call a serious time-out and delierate on a different but just as grave punishment like no TV time and added chores.

Hospital visits give sick patients an unexplainable emotional lift. For a brief moment, they forget that they are in a hospital and being with family and friends gives a sense of normalcy to them. However, patients are confined in hospital for a reason and utmost care should be given to them. Here are some tips on hospital visits.

Know the visiting hours of the hospital. Also, inform in advance that you are planning to visit and ask for the preferred time. Do not go on surprise visits to avoid any inconvenience to the patient and the caregivers.

Check beforehand if there are any restrictions on gifts. Flowers may not be allowed within hospital premises and food gifts may not be advisable to the patient at the moment.

Do not prolong your stay. A 5-minute visit to a very ill patient is more than enough. You can extend your visit to 20 -30 minutes for other patients. If there are other visitors who comes in, better cut your visit and leave immediately. Avoid turning the hospital room into a mob scene.

Remember that the patient and the caregiver will not entertain you and they won’t expect you to entertain them, either. Exchanging a few good news and stories is more than enough.

Surgeries and other major medical proceudres are very tough pills to swallow. You can opt to have a second opinion just so you can be well-informed. Here are some tips to consider on getting second opinion from doctors.

Do tell your doctor that you are going to ask for a second opinion. Your first doctor can send your medical records to your second doctor without any additional hassle. This will also prevent repeated testing. It will surely cost you more time and money if your first doctor is unaware of your plans.

Beware of the doctor social network. Although it is wise to ask the names of other doctors from your doctor, you should be wary on the underlying relationship between the doctor and the names he/she provided. Most doctors will provide names of experienced and unbiased specialists but some would recommend their good friends who would most likely affirm his/her opinion. If you can, ask an appointment from a hospital where your doctor is not associated with.

Get a third and/or fourth opinion if your first two doctors have conflicting opinions. Of course, there will be a time where you must decide for yourself. Weigh the pros and cons of all doctors’ opinions and talk it over with a relative or a loved one before making the final decision.

Parties are a great way to boost your social life. It’s a great place to mingle with friends and meet new ones. You can plan to let loose and enjoy the night away but that doesn’t mean you should forget your basic manners. Here are some reminders on guest etiquette for parties.

Never crash a party. Crashing a party is not a sign of coolness but of sheer rudeness. People around you will think that you only want to have a good time and dismiss the plans of the host/s. Showing at a party uninvited will also ruin your credibility and reputation since most of the guests would be your peers or other people that might know you through them.

Do RSVP. Let the hosts know if you are comming or not so that they can plan ahead with the food, drinks and venue. Ask them if it is okay to bring along someone — whether it may be a friend or a date. Never assume that you can bring someone along just because you got invited. Always confirm these details with the hosts.

Dress accordingly. Wearing inappropriate clothing to the party will get you more forwns than smiles. Check the dress code indicated at the invitation before going through your clothes. If the party has a specific theme, try to come up with an outfit that will blend with the theme. You don’t want to be caught in luau wearing your stylish LBD.

Don’t drink more than you can. Open bar parties is not an excuse for you to test your alcohol limits. Drink moderately to avoid looking like a major wreck and humiliating your hosts.

Here are some tips on how to complain when eating out in a restaurant:

First thing you should do is assess the situation. Is your “unhappy
meal” really the restaurant’s fault? Sometimes we order stuff that we
don’t really know about and find out later that it’s not to our
liking. If this is the case, the restaurant won’t be at fault.

If your food lacks seasoning, or if it is merely a small problem, you
can either tolerate it, or you can ask your server to help you rectify
the state of your food. If taste is the problem, perhaps you can use
salt and pepper, or you can ask for an extra helping of cheese, or
herb, etc. If the food is not hot enough, you can have it reheated.
Just be polite and nice to the server.

If the problem is more serious, do not make a scene. Ask help from
your server, if he or she cannot help resolve the matter, then take
the issue to the manager. Just be polite and state facts. There is no
need to be angry or rude.

Here are some tips on how to while away your time during a flight layover:

If you brought your laptop or notebook with you, and provided that the
airport boasts of a WIFI network, you  can always do some internet
work. You can post on your social network site and e-mail family and
friends.  If you have a business, you can check on your work e-mail or
company website. You can also write reports and such.

If you’re a bookworm and you brought or bought some reading material
with you, it’s actually a good time to catch up on your reading. Once
you get engrossed, you’ll be surprised at how time actually flew fast!

Some airports offer a lot of shops and forms of entertainment. Others
even have spas in them. You can try the local restaurants and even get
yourself a full-body massage while you wait!

Here are some tips on how to be better managers:

Be good teachers. Instead, of yelling or getting irritated the whole
day, be a little more patient. Instead of telling your people what to
do, it would be better focus on how to do it. By teaching skills
necessary to finish tasks, you are actually teaching them to be more
independent when they do their work. Arrange for your team to do cross
training so that all of them can do multiple tasks when others are
won’t be able to come to work.

Be just and fair. Try to be more emphatizing and considerate when it
comes to addressing the needs of employees. However, bear in mind that
you also need to be firm if need be. Be consistent in your decision so
before you pass judgment, make sure you have made the proper
investigation and you have all the facts straight.

Be a listener and be humble. The last thing employees need are
managers who don’t want to hear what they want to say, making them
feel un-needed in turn. Managers who feel high-and-mighty and think
that their employees are beneath them will not actually get the
respect they want.