October, 2020 | Boizelle Insurance Partnership
How You Can Start Leading a Happier Life Right Now
Exercise more.
Not only does exercising regularly have the potential to help you lose weight, but it has profoundly positive effects on your psychological health. Exercise releases dopamine, a chemical that plays a role in how you feel pleasure, into your brain. It also has the ability to help us focus, plans, and strive to improve in various aspects of our lives. Even those who don’t see a dramatic change in their physical appearance from regular exercise do tend to have better brain health.
Get more sleep.
Lack of sleep may lead to feeling extremely irritable and short-tempered. Additionally, people who are sleep-deprived have a more difficult time recalling pleasant memories, but recall unpleasant ones just fine.
Move closer to work.
Most of us don’t spend too much time focusing on it, but we spend a lot of time behind the wheel. We drive back and forth to work five days out of the week and we do it twice a day. What’s worse is we never take the time to consider the negative effects surrounding our commutes because the factors involved are always everchanging. For instance, on some days, the traffic may be light and easy-flowing. On other days, what usually takes us thirty minutes takes us an hour and fifteen minutes. Because these instances are often spread out, we never grow accustomed to them. As a result, our attitudes are negatively impacted. When we are stressed or upset about something, that can have a tendency to seep its way over into our work, affecting our job performance. The negativity begins to snowball, eventually resulting in a catastrophic event.
Spend more time with friends and family.
Material possessions may bring you happiness, but oftentimes, that happiness is fleeting, meaning that it is short-lived. Clothing goes out of style, cars age and break down and depreciate in value. It’s our relationships with friends and family that bring us true happiness and feelings of fulfillment.
Go outside.
Studies have shown that prolonged periods of sitting down are bad for our health. In fact, such conditions as obesity, increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol levels have been linked to this. Many of us work office jobs that require us to sit at our desks for long periods of time. It’s important to get up and stretch periodically to increase circulation and blood flow in the body. Additionally, being outside for at least twenty minutes when it’s warm versus being stuck inside has proven to increase happiness and overall productivity in the workplace.
Give back to your community.
You might think that spending money on material possessions such as cars, shoes, TVs, or expensive jewelry can bring you satisfaction and happiness. Temporarily, yes, this may be true. But, remember what we were saying about how our relationships with other people is what really brings us happiness? Human beings are social creatures who need human-to-human contact. It’s a necessary thing for both or mental and physical well-being. Acts of service like volunteering at a soup kitchen or participating in a clothing drive for the less fortunate or just being involved with a recreational sports league can bring us immense happiness because we are surrounded by people we care about and people who care about us.
Plan a trip. But, don’t actually take one.
Having a goal, working hard towards achieving that goal, and then finally being successful in accomplishing your goal is incredibly satisfying. Studies have shown that getting a break from work can improve our overall happiness. Have you ever gotten really excited about the prospect of going on an extended vacation? Didn’t you feel really happy about the idea of getting away from the stresses of everyday life? It’s been said that time period of time leading up to vacation creates much more happiness than the period after the vacation is over.
Meditate.
Reserve some time out of your day for meditation and self-reflection. Meditation can help improve focus, clarity and attention span. YouTube has several videos you can follow to practice meditating. Light some candles to create a relaxing ambiance and then get started.
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How to Clean Your Car to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19
Every year, we create New Year’s resolutions for ourselves. I know. It’s October and I’m already talking about New Year’s resolutions. I get it. Stay with me for a second, though. Typically speaking, these lists focus on self-improvement: getting in shape, reading more books, taking more time to meditate, taking a cooking class, etc. There are several reasons why these resolutions fail. What’s one of the main reasons: They’re not specific enough. When you talk about any kind of personal goal, it will serve you better to be as specific as possible. For example, if you want to lose weight, consider writing down a particular date on your calendar, so you have an opportunity to chart your progress. These kinds of personal goals are common among people. But, what about making changes to your daily life?
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, countless Americans all over the country may be living in fear of getting sick. It’s important to know that there is hope. We need hope. We need positivity. We need positive reinforcement in our lives. How can we ensure our own safety and the safety of those around us? One way we can protect ourselves is by keeping our cars clean and pristine.
Many cleaning solutions can be effective for killing germs. In fact, you may have a lot of these hanging around your house. According to the CDC, cleaning solutions that contain at least 70% alcohol are effective against coronavirus. Soap and water are safe to use for most auto interiors—especially fabric interiors.
Most leather interiors in cars contain urethane coatings for protection. Because of this, it is safe to use alcohol on these surfaces. However, using alcohol persistently may lead to damage and discoloration over time. It’s safer to use simple soap and water.
If you do have leather interior in your car, proper care is essential to prolong the integrity and life of your leather. You should use a good leather cleaner and a good leather conditioner after your cleaning.
For fabric interiors, it’s important to not use too much soap and water. Soap suds can be a problem. If you scrub too hard, you may create soap suds that can soak through the fabric, working its way to the cushion underneath. As a result, a musty smell and possible mold can build up over time. To prevent this from happening, use a little amount of water and laundry detergent.
Once you are finished cleaning your surfaces, it’s important to remember to wash your hands. If you have dirty hands and touch your car’s surfaces, that dirt and griminess will rub off and you’ll have to start from square one. It may be a common belief, but washing your hands consistently is still one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Although coronaviruses can remain on surfaces, it is still believed among medical experts that the primary means of transmission is through respiratory transmission.
Whether you are at work or at home, maintaining a clean, clutter-free area has proven to improve mental health, relieve stress, and prevent us from becoming physically ill. Why not make this a permanent practice in our daily lives?
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When It Comes to Homeowners Insurance, How Much Do I Need?
For many, buying a home is the single most important investment they will make in their lifetime. Because of this, it’s especially important to protect that investment the best way you can. To help you better understand how a homeowners insurance policy works, let’s break down the six basic coverages of a typical homeowners policy:
Dwelling
What does the dwelling portion of a homeowners policy cover?: This coverage pays to restore your home to its original state before the insurance claim was filed. Anything from fire, windstorm, hail, lightning and vandalism is covered.
How much coverage do you actually need?: This value is determined by the estimated cost to rebuild your home which may be determined by an insurance adjuster.
Other Structures
Other Structures are any structure that is detached from the dwelling such as a shed, a fence, or a detached garage. If you were ever in a situation where filing a claim with your insurance company was necessary to restore these structures, this portion of your homeowners insurance policy would apply.
How much coverage do you actually need?: Typically speaking, most insurance policies cover detached structures about about 10% of the total amount of insurance that you carry on your home.
Personal Property
Your personal property are basically your belongings i.e. clothing, furniture, kitchen items.
How much coverage do you actually need?: There is more than one way to go about covering your personal property as it relates to insurance. Normally, actual cash value or ACV is included in a typical homeowners insurance policy. Replacement Cost Coverage is optional. In order to effectively determine the cost of your personal property, it is highly recommended that you do a home inventory. A home inventory is a breakdown of everything in your home from clothing in your closet, jewelry, kitchen utensils, cookware, exercise equipment, entertainment systems, etc. It is much more difficult and a much longer process to determine these values if you do not have a home inventory to refer to. Oftentimes, you won’t remember every little thing in your home. Take care pictures of your items and determine the value of each before disaster strikes. You’ll be thankful you did!
Loss of Use
If you suffer a disaster like a fire or a windstorm or any other covered loss that effectively makes it impossible to live in your home, Loss of Use will pay for additional living expenses during the process of having your home rebuilt. For example, if you need to stay in a hotel, these costs will be covered under the Loss of Use portion of your homeowners insurance policy.
How much coverage do you actually need?: Typically, Loss of Use Coverage is approximately 20-30% of your dwelling coverage limit.
Personal Liability
This particular coverage is for instances when another party is injured as a result of an occurrence in your home i.e. a slip and fall. This coverage also applies to another party’s property being damaged while in your home.
How much coverage do you actually need?: A typical homeowners insurance policy offers $100,000 of personal liability coverage per occurrence. If you feel you may need higher limits, we will be more than happy to discuss your options with you. Now, a homeowners insurance policy has certain limits regarding coverages for injuries. One option you may want to consider is purchasing an umbrella policy. An umbrella policy is extra coverage that would kick in if the limits under your homeowners insurance policy were exhausted. If an incident does happen in your home where someone becomes injured and you are sued as a result, your investments and savings could be at risk. Purchasing an umbrella policy may be a very wise choice.
Medical Payments
If someone suffers an injury while on your property that requires medical treatment, this portion of your insurance policy would cover that. Your policy’s limits are listed on your policy’s declarations page (the first page of your policy). It is important to keep in mind that if injuries sustained are bad enough to exhaust your policy’s limits, you are directly responsible for covering the remaining costs. Again, this is another reason why obtaining an umbrella policy is smart.
No one knows when disaster may strike. Of course, no one wants to go through life in fear of financial ruin. Planning for the future and giving yourself a sense of security and peace of mind is what insurance is all about. Take the necessary steps to protect yourself, your loved ones, and your futures! We’re here for you!
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Celebrating the Holidays Safely During COVID-19
October is finally here! And that means holidays are just around the corner. We’re still facing certain challenges due to the novel Coronavirus and, as human beings, naturally, we are social beings. Therefore, we need human contact in our daily lives. In order to accomplish a sense of normalcy back into our lives, there are certain steps we can take to achieve this.
Celebrating holidays through the use of Zoom meetings, FaceTime, and WhatsApp have given us the opportunity to stay connected to the ones we care about. These methods pose little to no risk of person-to-person spread of COVID-19. Still, before gathering with your loved ones, it’s a good idea to be sure you aren’t carrying any symptoms. Additionally, consider the confirmed cases of COVID-19 in your immediate and surrounding areas and make your ultimate decision based upon that. If your area has a considerable amount of confirmed cases, it may be wiser to keep things virtual for now. You may find current statistics in your area here:
https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html
- Furthermore, consider the areas in which your attendees have been traveling from. If people are traveling from multiple locations, it may pose a higher risk than if people were traveling from a single location.
- You should be aware of the behaviors of your attendees as well. Have they been practicing social distancing and wearing a mask prior to traveling? Maintaining proper hygiene is also essential i.e. washing your hands regularly.
- If you are planning to host a gathering, consider doing so outside. If this is not possible, do everything you can to make sure the area indoors is properly ventilated. If weather permits, consider opening windows to increase circulation of fresh air.
- Give your potential guests time to consider avoiding contact with people outside of their households for a minimum of 14 days before your event.
- During your gathering, still consider maintaining a distance of at least 6 feet between yourself and others.
- Wear a mask around people that do not live with you to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.
Keep all areas around food and drinks clean. At this time, there is no evidence to suggest that handling food contributes to the transmission of the virus. And although it’s always a good idea to keep surfaces disinfected, this is not considered one of the main ways in which the virus is transmitted. Maintaining proper hygiene is important and is something we should all strive for, regardless of having a social event or not.
- Everyone should be washing their hands regularly with hot water and soap for a minimum of 20 seconds. If it is not possible to wash your hands, using a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol should suffice.
- Consider wearing a mask when preparing food for yourself and others.
- If you’re serving any food, consider designating one person as distributer of food to avoid multiple hands touching utensils or food.
- Avoid any situation that would allow for self-serving of food or drink i.e. a punch bowl or a bowl filled with potato chips.
- If you are using any kind of reusable items, be sure to disinfect them first before using them again.
We hope that everyone continues to stay safe during these uncertain times.
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