Success Lessons from Kevin Hart(The Short Comedian)

Listen!! The concept of laughing till you cry was foreign to me for the longest time. In fact, I thought it was stupid. How can one possibly laugh so hard that they start crying? I had seen other people do it but I just thought ‘eleyi o gbadun’! This one is not well or maybe they are just confused about their feelings. However, this all changed when I saw the phenomenon that is Kevin Hart in ‘Soul Plane’. I watched that movie at least six times and I ‘cry laughed’ every single time.

Kevin Hart PHOTO: AFP/Getty Images

I remember thinking, this guy is ‘hella’ funny and quite good looking but he’ll probably never be a superstar like Chris Rock because he’s too short. Boy was I wrong! 15 years later the guy is a comedic rock star, actor, producer, and writer with an estimated net worth of around $50 million USD and I’m in awe of his hustle.

There is no overnight success…hard work takes time
‘Soul Plane’ may have been extremely funny to me and a few other people but it was a box office flop! So it could be considered a failure. The next time I saw Kevin Hart was in a cameo he did in the video for Fat Joe and Remy Ma’s hit song ’ Lean back’ and I thought oh look at that funny short guy from soul plane ‘eyya now he’s doing skits in music videos’. For several years, Kevin Hart couldn’t get an audition or movie role, he starred in TV shows that were cancelled, he was booed off stage a number of times but he never let any of his failures deter him. He focused on perfecting his craft and taking the jobs he could get, not necessarily the jobs he wanted. He would do seven shows per weekend at smaller venues like college campuses and low-key comedy clubs. Today he stars in movies that gross $80 million USD at the box office and has sold out comedic tours.

We live in a generation where we expect instant success just because we have a good business idea or expect a high paying job or because we went to a fancy university but a champion is a champion long before they ever win the championship. We see the glory but we don’t see the time, effort, preparation and sacrifice that it takes prior to the championship for them to be successful. If you haven’t achieved your goals yet its because you haven’t developed the skillset knowledge and experience to be at the top yet so keep working, keep grinding.

Embrace your Authenticity
Authenticity is something that is somewhat elusive, especially in Nigeria. Most people believe that there is no point trying to re invent the wheel because if someone is already doing something and is successful at it then just copy their format and BOOM you’ll be successful! I can respect this philosophy up to a point because there are generally no new ideas. Everything you want to do or are thinking of doing, someone, somewhere has thought about it and is already executing some version of it.

However, I can’t get with the ‘copy and paste’ phenomenon that we tend to employ because at this point you are basically trying to be someone else and you can’t do that effectively or sustainably enough to make any real money since you don’t understand their vision or motivation for doing what they are doing, you’ll always be a poor imitation.

A better way to approach this is, ‘I think I can do what this person is doing but how do I put my own spin on it’? What makes me different?

What can I do better?
Kevin Hart is a G when it comes to this! There were comedians before him and there will be comedians after him but the guy is authentic. He incorporates every aspect of himself in his work. A lot of his work is centered on his 5’2 height, rejection from women, his painful divorce and his father’s battle with drug addiction. These are things that most people would hide but have made him more relatable. It’s not even about trying to be perfect. It’s about owning where you are in your journey and embracing what makes you different even when they are perceived flaws.

Never depend on a single income
Forget Beyoncé, Kevin Hart is arguably the hardest working person in showbiz! If you follow him on snap chat, you will agree that his hustle is relentless. He is always working on and promoting several opportunities. We haven’t even hit the 6-month mark in 2016 yet but he has achieved more than most people have in 5 years. His ‘What Now’ world tour which sold out arenas and was dubbed ‘the biggest comedy tour in history’, promotional tours for at least two movies ‘Ride Along 2’ and ‘central intelligence’, hosted the MTV movie awards and continued his

‘Move with Hart’ crusade. I could go on but… you get the point.
Did you know that Nike is paying Kevin Hart to create his own cross fit trainers? Which I am convinced came from his constant promotion of his fitness goals and the transformational progress he has made with his body. That’s another thing you can’t promote Kevin Hart more than Kevin Hart, he leverages his social media platforms and has become a marketing machine for his work and his brand such that every tour and every movie is sold out

In this economy, we all need to evaluate our skillset and look out for opportunities to leverage on to improve our earning potential. The average millionaire has seven sources of income. How many do you have?
Kevin Hart inspires me because that little man has the same 24 hours in a day.

Space Agency Predicts First Moon Crescent for June 5

The National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) has predicted that the appearance of the first astronomical lunar crescent for the month of June 2016 will commence on June 5.

Kaduna, Sokoto to witness spectacle around 5:12 p.m.

NASRDA is saddled with the responsibility of carrying out scientific observation of the Moon, which is the nearest celestial object to the Earth.

Head, Media and Corporate Communications of the Agency, Dr. Felix Ale, in a statement said the first appearance of the moon could not be sighted with naked eyes except with the aid of Charge Coupled Device (CCD) imaging, astronomical telescope or any good optical astronomy instrument. Thus the proper sighting of the crescent with naked eyes signifies the beginning of Ramadan.

He explained that the first astronomical lunar crescent will appear in Nigeria on June 5, 2016 between 5:12pm and 7:37pm with Kaduna and Sokoto being the first to witness the first young lunar crescent at about 5:12pm concurrently to 7:33pm and 7:21pm respectively; while the lunar crescent will be sighted lastly in Jos the capital of Plateau State between 6:02pm to 7:14pm.

All other states of the federation will experience the first lunar crescent between the estimated time of 5:12pm and 7:37pm on June 5, 2016.
Ale pointed out that the results released by the Agency show precise dates, appearance time of first crescent, sunset as well as moon set time for all the state capital of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

He noted: “In Abuja, the first lunar crescent will appear between 5:37 p.m. and 7:18 p.m., with sunset at about 6:47pm, and moon set at about 7:18 p.m. While in Kano the appearance of the first lunar crescent will be experienced between 5:14 p.m. – 7:18 p.m., with sunset and moonset at about 6:55 p.m. and 7:18 p.m. respectively.

“Sokoto the seat of the caliphate will be the first along with Kaduna to experience the appearance of the lunar crescent between 5:12 p.m. – 7:33 p.m., and 5:12 p.m. – 7:21 p.m. respectively with a sunset and moonset time of about 7:04p.m., 7:33 p.m., and 6:43 p.m., 7:21 p.m. respectively.

“The South-West states of Lagos and Ibadan will expectedly experience the first lunar crescent between 5:46pm – 7:32pm, and 5:48pm – 7:31pm respectively. And the sun will set in these states at about 6:57pm and 6:55am, while the moon will set at about 7:32pm and 7:31pm respectively.”

The NASRDA spokesman emphasised that the conjunction time for the first lunar crescent in Nigeria on 05/06/2016 is at 4:00 local time, oriented at an Azimuth of +288⁰:2’53” in Abuja, Azimuth of +288⁰:04’25” in Kaduna, Azimuth of +288⁰:04’57” in Kano, Azimuth of +288⁰:01’03” in Lagos, Azimuth of +288⁰:04’”00” in Sokoto, Azimuth of +288⁰:05’54” in Maiduguri, Azimuth of +288⁰:01’21” in Ilorin and, +288°:05’:00” in Port Harcourt.

He added that, the calculated results are made available for the information of the general public especially those who would need them for religious and academic purposes, saying scientific researchers should be at the liberty to request for detailed analysis or more results on other states of the federation from the Space Agency.

S’Arabia offers more oil to Asian clients ahead of OPEC meeting

Saudi Arabia is offering extra crude to customers in Asia, a sign the world’s largest oil exporter does not intend to cut output as it battles for market share with other top producers.

Saudi’s offers of more oil come after it recently completed maintenance programmes that had reduced supplies from some fields during the second quarter, traders said. The kingdom will also soon increase its Arab Extra Light crude output in an expansion of the Shaybah oilfield.

But some Asian refiners said they are not rushing to buy more Arab Extra Light after Aramco raised the oil’s official selling price (OSP) by 80 cents a barrel in June, making it more expensive relative to similar Abu Dhabi grades.

In a market that still has the most growth potential and in which many producers, including Iran, Iraq and Russia, are trying to increase sales, that does not portend well for Saudi Arabia as it begins to bring new output online in June.

“It will be challenging (for Saudi Arabia). One of the things that will come into play is whether they will start cutting OSPs to attract customers and keep volumes intact,” said Sushant Gupta, downstream oil analyst at energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie in Singapore.

State oil company Saudi Aramco plans to ramp up output from the Shaybah field over the next two weeks to 1 million barrels per day (bpd), fully utilizing its expanded capacity, Saudi media reported on Thursday, quoting the company’s chief executive.

This month, Saudi Aramco has asked at least two Asian refiners if they will lift more oil in June on top of contract volumes, two trading sources familiar with the matter said.

However, “their latest OSP is not attractive to refineries,” a trader with an Asian refiner said, adding that grades from the United Arab Emirates, of quality similar to Arab Extra Light, were more competitively priced.

A second trader with an Asian refiner said: “Refining margins are so-so, so I don’t think there is a big drive to take more prompt oil.”
Complex refining margins in Singapore have risen slightly from five-year lows touched earlier in May, with ample fuel supplies continuing to cap refiners’ profits.

Saudi Aramco did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on any offers made to Asian refiners.Iran and Iraq have also said they will increase output, slimming hopes that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will agree to any long-term plan to curtail supplies when it meets in Vienna next week.

Russia’s oil shipments to China hit a record in April, as it took the top spot as largest crude exporter – ahead of Saudi Arabia – to the world’s No.1 energy consumer for the second time this year.

Iran said on Sunday it aims to raise its exports to 2.2 million bpd by mid-summer after it cut June prices to Asia to the biggest discounts to Saudi and Iraqi oil since 2007-2008.

Iraq said its exports have hit an all-time high of 3.9 million bpd on increased output from southern fields, and that it is still on track to triple production by 2020.

Egypt Digs Deeper for Gold in Desert

Miners in Egypt are digging deep at what will be the country’s second gold mine, excavating in a desert where the pharaohs tried without much success to unearth the precious metal 5,000 years ago.

Alexander Nubia International Inc., a Vancouver-based miner, may open the yet unnamed mine by 2019 at a cost of up to $500 million, Chief Executive Officer Mark Campbell said in an interview at the company’s Cairo offices. Centamin Plc operates Egypt’s only other active gold mine, Sukari, which opened in 2009 and produced 439,072 ounces by last year.

“We’re using modern technology to go where the ancients went before, and basically exploit what they couldn’t,” Campbell said. “The old-timers could go to about 30 meters (98 feet) and mined by hand. They didn’t have the technology to go deeper.” Alexander Nubia is drilling core samples at depths of up to 350 meters, more than twice the height of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Egypt had all but abandoned mining after its British rulers left in 1952. The pharaohs, the Romans and the British all dug in the mineral-rich Arabian-Nubian Shield area in the country’s Eastern Desert, but they lacked equipment that could go deep enough to extract much gold. Centamin introduced modern open-pit mining to Egypt that helped to identify deep-lying resources.

While the country has significant natural gas deposits, its mining industry is much less developed. Mining and quarrying contribute only 0.4 percent of its gross domestic product and 1.5 percent of total exports, in spite of the large potential, Campbell said.

“Our main focus is gold, but we will of course look at all other precious and base metals that we may have in this deposit,” Campbell said. Geologists at Alexander Nubia are currently collecting samples to be sent for analysis in Romania.

Alexander Nubia is exploring over 2,700 square kilometers (1,042 square miles) in Egypt’s Eastern Desert, about 800 kilometers southeast of Cairo, in an area known as the Arabian-Nubian Shield. The company expects to announce its initial estimate of resources from the area later this year and declare a discovery in one or two years, Campbell said. The company has identified at least six sites that were mined in ancient times and show potential for production.

The company’s shares have climbed 25 percent this year in trading on the Toronto TSX Venture Exchange, lagging behind Centamin’s 59 percent advance in London, as gold rallied.

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Success Tip 9 - How to Believe in Yourself in the Face of Overwhelming Self-Doubt

“When you doubt your power, you give power to your doubt.” ~Honore de Balzac

You know what that voice in your head says…

You can’t do it. You’ll never be good enough. You’re going to fail.

This voice taunts you whenever you set a goal. It criticizes you when life gets difficult. It beats you down when you struggle to stand up against its running commentary.

You know you shouldn’t let self-doubt bother you, but it’s a sneaky critter. Sometimes, you just can’t contain it and it slips past your barriers.

And self-doubt is greedy. When it’s loose, it devours your confidence, strips logic and reason from your mind, and steals happiness from your heart. In return, it leaves you with only fear and insecurity.

You try to remove self-doubt by forcing yourself to “think positive,” which usually doesn’t work as well as you think it should.

The more you fight your self-doubt, the more it fights back. However, with self-knowledge and understanding, you can use self-doubt for your benefit.

A Story about Crushing Dreams and “Being Realistic”

When I was a child, I was in love with drawing. For me, drawing was as exciting as going to the playground.

At some point in my childhood, I decided I’d become an artist of some kind. But the critics in my life were quick to cut me down. I’ll bet you’ve heard the same kind of clichés:

“Art is great but not a ‘realistic’ future goal. While it’s a nice hobby to have, you can’t really make a living out of it. You’ll just be another starving artist.”

As children, we internalize these negative messages and parrot them back. If the adults say so, it must be true, right? By adulthood, every time we have a small hope, we’re the first to snuff it out:

“Drawing is nice but not necessary. I’ll never be as good as the real professionals anyway. I don’t even have a degree from an accredited art school.”

For years I stopped myself before I even tried. I did it because I was afraid.

I was afraid of what people would say. I was afraid everyone would hate my art. I was afraid of failing as an artist.

When fear grabs you, your beloved goal forever feels out of reach. But it doesn’t just stop there, does it?

If left unchecked, the infectious bite of fear and self-doubt can spread. You unconsciously start questioning your knowledge and abilities in everything you do. And if you’re like me, you desperately want to find a cure.

One fateful day I realized that trying to beat out my self-doubt wouldn’t rebuild my confidence.

If I wanted to believe in myself, I needed to face my self-doubt and be willing to take care of it.

Before, I imagined self-doubt as a life-sucking monster. Now, I realize it’s actually a fearful, angry, and lost creature secretly crying for help.

Like fear, joy, and sadness, doubt is part of human nature, and it needs understanding. If you want to improve yourself, you need to tame your self-doubt, not fight with it.

That means paying attention to how you react to things, understanding the root of your insecurities, and taking steps to address your fears.

Now I no longer tell myself, “I’ll never be a good enough artist.” Instead, I ask myself, “What can I do to become better?” And I take baby steps.

I went from drawing every few weeks, to every week, and now every two to three days. Re-framing self-doubt has also helped me cope with other challenges, like successfully starting a small business.

Self-doubt doesn’t have to be as monstrous as we make it out to be. It’s all about perspective. The following tips will help you manage your self-doubt:

1. Identify and ease your doubts.

Learning how to recognize when your self-talk takes a turn for the worse is crucial. When you hear yourself saying, “I can’t,” or, “I don’t know,” or, “What if,” a red flag should go up. Instead of telling yourself, “I can’t do X,” say, “I can’t do X yet. But I’m working on it.” Or if you start wondering, “What if I fail?” you can respond by saying, “Then I’ll try again.”

Doing this transforms a negative situation into an opportunity for growth. In the end, it’s about giving yourself a chance.

2. Stop listening to toxic people.

Toxic people are convinced that everything is impossible, and they are quick to shoot down ideas. They’ll poison your mind into a state of hopelessness. Don’t let them steal your energy just because they’ve lost theirs.

Instead, surround yourself with supportive and passionate people who can both inspire you and bring out the best in you. You can find them among friends, family, books. They will lift you up when you feel down and help you see the bright side of your darkest fears and doubts.

3. Recall your successes.

This one is tough. When you’re down, you’ll more easily remember the bad instead of the good. And oftentimes, the “rah-rah” pep talk just doesn’t cut it.

So, I suggest writing a list. Grab a piece of paper or small notebook, or open a blank document. Now write down your successes, big or small. If you’re a bit bashful about your achievements, ask someone you trust to tell you the great things they think you’ve done. It’s refreshing and a great confidence boost.

And finally, keep your list with you at all times. It will help you find your way back to yourself whenever you get lost.

4. Trust and love yourself.

You probably spend more time being your own worst enemy instead of being your own best friend. But you deserve to treat yourself better. After all, you have the rest of your life to spend with yourself.

Think of it this way: Would you mentally abuse or condemn your loved ones? Would you let them suffer in their time of need? If not, then why would you do it to yourself?

So, be kind to yourself. You are more capable and worthy than you give yourself credit for.

5. Give yourself permission to try…and try again.

Self-doubt never disappears. Over time, you just get better at dealing with it. It will greet you every time you fall out of your comfort zone and whenever you strive to do something great.

But know that it’s not something you have to fear or resent. Your doubts are only thoughts, not your future.

Sure, something may go wrong. But if you never try, you’re losing an opportunity to improve your life.

8 Reasons to Start Your Own Affiliate Marketing Business to Make Money Online

Affiliate marketing is one of the best ways to make money online. In fact it is a dream of many bloggers that one day they become a successful affiliate marketer.

If you are a blogger then you should start thinking of affiliate marketing now.

I am ready to give you eight good reasons why you need to become an affiliate marketer.

1. The Start Up Cost is Not Much High

This is nothing new.

In fact I should say there isn’t any extra cost for starting affiliate marketing. If you are already a blogger then you can start affiliate marketing without having to invest anything extra.

A blogger can easily graduate to affiliate marketing by doing few tweaks to his or her website.

It wouldn’t be so difficult for you if you are already a blogger for some time now. However later on cost may increase.

2. No Product or Shipment Required

This is one of the beauty of affiliate marketing. You sell the product but you don’t need to develop it, own it or deliver it.

Your role is purely to sell this & every care is taken by the merchant from billing to shipping the product.

3. Affiliate Marketing is Where the Real Money Is

This point should be on top because it is very obvious.

Why affiliate marketing because there is a lot of meat in it.

Revenue you generate from affiliate marketing is 2 to 4 times higher than the revenue you generate from Google AdSense.

Selling a product generates more money than getting clicks. Selling is a bit difficult than getting clicks but the money is really great.

It is the income that makes a big difference between a blogger and an affiliate marketer. But you need to learn the tricks of selling the products through your blog or other methods.

4. Easy to Scale Affiliate Marketing Business

Once you have graduated from blogger to an affiliate marketer it’s time to scale up.

If you are being able to sell products to customers then you got to expand by incorporating more sophisticated affiliate marketing techniques.

You just can’t scale up with a website that is suited for blogging only.

You have to integrate auto responders, buy a database, run campaigns etc.

All of this can be done easily because you get readymade help from various service providers.

5. Implement Most Tested and Successful Business Model

As I said earlier you don’t have to work very hard when it comes to implementing business model.

There are a lot of tailored services that you can incorporate to get desired results.

In other words you don’t have to reinvent the wheel because you can always reengineer it. However these services are not free and you have to pay them.

You don’t have to worry because your profits would cover the money spent on buying such services.

6. Monetization Resources Available

If you want to increase your profits then you have to monetize your website and entire strategy.

You don’t have to worry about this because you get all the help online.

Whether it is about landing page or acquiring a quality database you get all the help online.

There are services that can help you in generating more leads and running your campaign effectively.

All that you have spent on monetization can be recovered easily from the profits that you make.

7. Whole World is Your Marketplace

You can sell a product 24×7 to the whole world without worrying about the geographical boundaries.

It doesn’t matter whether you live in USA or in Australia you can sell it to anybody anytime.

Although you can sell to every other country in the world but you can to bunch English speaking countries.

There isn’t any problem when it comes to transaction because it is being already taken care of.

Unlimited access to marketplace really increases your profit margins.

8. Why Depending Upon Google

This is another great reason to start affiliate marketing. You don’t have to depend upon Google too much.

Yes you do have to when it comes to traffic but not as your payer.

You should always look for diversifying your income. It is good that you have other companies that are paying you.

This helps you not to depend upon one particular company.

9. There is No Limit and You Can Make a Million Dollar

We already talked about this. But I want to emphasize that affiliate marketing can really make you rich.

It is because the money is really great.

You can easily make up to $50K per month. It is not difficult if you are a serious affiliate marketer.

In fact many are making over $100K per month. So the money is really great and you can be a millionaire.

Caution!

All of this sounds great but I need to caution you before you think of affiliate marketing.

Here are some important caveats before you dream of making money with affiliate marketing.

Prerequisites

To be honest affiliate marketing is not for beginners. Actually you don’t start as an affiliate marketer you indeed graduate to it.

So you have to a blogger for some time and then graduate to an affiliate marketer.

In other words you simply don’t start with affiliate marketing without any background.

You have to have an experience of at least 2 to 3 years in blogging.

Experience with Blogging and Marketing

As I said earlier you have to an experience of blogging and marketing too.

You need to know about running campaigns, creating landing pages and many other marketing techniques.

Knowledge of SEO is very important for being an affiliate marketer.

So it requires a vast knowledge and experience from diverse background.

No Easy and Quick Money

I will conclude by saying don’t get an impression that affiliate marketing is easy.

You don’t make million dollars or even half a million dollar so easily.

You won’t be rich overnight as mouthed by many so called marketing gurus.

Affiliate marketing is a long haul and you will take years to generate an income.

Selling is perhaps one of the most difficult things.

I wanted to be honest so I gave you both sides of the picture.

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11 Natural Ways to Reduce Symptoms of Menopause

Menopause begins in the late 40s or early 50s for most women. It usually lasts for a few years.

During this time, at least two-thirds of women experience symptoms of menopause.

These include hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, irritability and tiredness.

In addition, menopausal women are at a higher risk of several diseases including osteoporosis,obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

Many women turn to natural supplements and remedies for relief.

Here is a list of 11 natural ways to reduce the symptoms of menopause.

1. Eat Foods Rich in Calcium and Vitamin D

Hormonal changes during menopause can cause bones to weaken, increasing the risk of osteoporosis.

Calcium and vitamin D are linked to good bone health, so it’s important to get enough of these nutrients in your diet.

Adequate vitamin D intake in postmenopausal women is also associated with a lower risk of hip fractures due to weak bones.

Many foods are calcium-rich, including dairy products like yogurt, milk and cheese.

Green, leafy vegetables such as kale, collard greens and spinach have lots of calcium too. It’s also plentiful in tofu, beans, sardines and other foods.

Additionally, calcium-fortified foods are also good sources, including certain cereals, fruit juice or milk alternatives.

Sunlight is your main source of vitamin D, since your skin produces it when exposed to the sun. However, as you get older, your skin gets less efficient at making it.

If you aren’t out in the sun much or if you cover up your skin, either taking a supplement or increasing food sources of vitamin D may be important.

Rich dietary sources include oily fish, eggs, cod liver oil and foods fortified with vitamin D.

Bottom Line: A diet rich in calcium and vitamin D is important to prevent the bone loss that can occur during menopause.

2. Achieve and Maintain a Healthy Weight

It’s common to gain weight during menopause.

This can be due to a combination of changing hormones, aging, lifestyle and genetics.

Gaining excess body fat, especially around the waist, increases your risk of developing diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

In addition, your body weight may affect your menopause symptoms.

One study of 17,473 postmenopausal women found that those who lost at least 10 lbs (4.5 kg) of weight or 10% of their body weight over a year were more likely to eliminate hot flashes and night sweats.

Here’s more info about losing weight during menopause.

Bottom Line: Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight may help alleviate menopause symptoms and help prevent disease.

3. Eat Lots of Fruit and Vegetables

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables can help prevent a number of menopause symptoms.

Fruits and veggies are low in calories and can help you feel full, so they’re great for weight loss and weight maintenance.

They may also help prevent a number of diseases, including heart disease.

This is important, since heart disease risk tends to increase after menopause. This could be due to factors such as age, weight gain or possibly reduced estrogen levels.

Finally, fruits and vegetables may also help prevent bone loss.

One observational study of 3,236 women aged 50–59 found that diets high in fruit and vegetables may lead to less bone breakdown.

Bottom Line: A diet rich in fruit and vegetables may help keep bones healthy, and can help prevent weight gain and certain diseases.

4. Avoid Trigger Foods

Certain foods may trigger hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings.

They may be even more likely to trigger you when you eat them at night.

Common triggers include caffeine, alcohol and foods that are sugary or spicy.

Keep a symptom diary. If you feel that particular foods trigger your menopause symptoms, try to reduce your consumption or avoid them completely.

Bottom Line: Certain foods and drinks can trigger hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings. This include caffeine, alcohol and sugary or spicy foods.

5. Exercise Regularly

There is currently not enough evidence to confirm whether exercise is effective for treating hot flashes and night sweats.

However, there is evidence to support other benefits of regular exercise.

These include improved energy and metabolism, healthier joints and bones, decreased stress and better sleep.

For example, one study found that exercising three hours per week for one year improved physical and mental health and overall quality of life in a group of menopausal women.

Regular exercise is also associated with better health and protection against diseases and conditions including cancer, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis.

Bottom Line: Regular exercise can help alleviate menopause symptoms such as poor sleep, anxiety, low mood and fatigue. It can also protect against weight gain and various diseases and conditions.

6. Eat More Foods That Are High in Phytoestrogens

Phytoestrogens are naturally occurring plant compounds that can mimic the effects of estrogen in the body.

Therefore, they may help balance hormones.

The high intake of phytoestrogens in Asian countries such as Japan is thought to be the reason why menopausal women in these places rarely experience hot flashes.

Foods rich in phytoestrogens include soybeans and soy products, tofu, tempeh, flaxseeds, linseeds, sesame seeds and beans. However, the phytoestrogen content in foods varies depending on processing methods.

One study found that diets high in soy were associated with reduced cholesterol levels, blood pressure and reduced severity of hot flashes and night sweats among women who were starting to enter menopause .

However, the debate continues over whether soy products are good or bad for you.

Evidence suggests that real food sources of phytoestrogens are better than supplements or processed foods with added soy protein.

Bottom Line: Foods rich in phytoestrogens may have modest benefits for hot flashes and heart disease risk. However, the evidence is mixed.

7. Drink Enough Water

During menopause, women often experience dryness. This is likely caused by the decrease in estrogen levels.

Drinking 8–12 glasses of water a day can help with these symptoms.

Drinking water can also reduce the bloating that can occur with hormonal changes.

In addition, water can help prevent weight gain and aid in weight loss by helping you feel full and increasing metabolism slightly.

Drinking 17 oz (500 ml) of water, 30 minutes before a meal may lead you to consume 13% fewer calories during the meal.

Bottom Line: Drinking enough water may help prevent weight gain, aid in weight loss and reduce symptoms of dryness.

8. Reduce Refined Sugar and Processed Foods

A diet high in refined carbs and sugar can cause sharp rises and dips in blood sugar, making you feel tired and irritable.

In fact, one study found that diets high in refined carbs may increase the risk of depression in postmenopausal women.

Diets high in processed foods may also affect bone health.

A large observational study found that among women aged 50–59 years, diets high in processed and snack foods were associated with poor bone quality.

Bottom Line: Diets high in processed foods and refined carbs are associated with a higher risk of depression and worse bone health in postmenopausal women.

9. Don’t Skip Meals

Eating regular meals may be important when you’re going through menopause.

Irregular eating may make certain symptoms of menopause worse, and may even hinder weight loss efforts.

A year-long weight management program for postmenopausal women found that skipping meals was associated with 4.3% less weight loss.

Bottom Line: Irregular eating may cause some symptoms of menopause to worsen. Skipping meals may also hinder weight loss in postmenopausal women.

10. Eat Protein-Rich Foods

Regularly eating protein throughout the day can help prevent the loss of lean muscle mass that occurs with age.

One study found that consuming protein throughout the day at each meal may slow down muscle loss due to aging.

In addition to helping prevent muscle loss, high-protein diets can help with weight loss because they enhance fullness and increase the amount of calories burned.

Foods rich in protein include meat, fish, eggs, legumes, nuts and dairy.

Here is a list of 20 healthy high-protein foods.

Bottom Line: Regular intake of high-quality protein may prevent the loss of lean muscle, aid in weight loss and help regulate mood and sleep.

11. Take Natural Supplements

Many women take natural products and remedies to relieve their menopause symptoms.

Unfortunately, the evidence behind many of them is weak.

Here are the most common natural supplements for reducing symptoms of menopause:

• Phytoestrogens: These can be consumed through natural food sources or supplements such as red clover extracts. There is currently not enough evidence to recommend them for alleviating menopause symptoms.
• Black cohosh: Although some studies found that black cohosh may effectively alleviate hot flashes, the evidence is mixed. In addition, there is a lack of long-term data on the safety of this supplement.
• Other supplements: Evidence is scarce for the effectiveness of other commonly used supplements such as probiotics, prebiotics, kava, DHEA-S, dong quai and evening primrose oil.

Bottom Line: Natural supplements may help treat menopause symptoms, but more evidence is needed about their safety and effectiveness.

Take Home Message

Menopause is not an illness. It’s a natural part of life.

Though its symptoms can be difficult to deal with, eating the right diet and exercising regularly may help alleviate and prevent them.

Experiment with the tips above to make your time during menopause and beyond easier and more enjoyable.

Buhari Shelves Publishing Looters’ list Despite Pressure

President Muhammadu Buhari

• Lai Mohammed to disclose recovered loot this week
• Leader vows to arrest N’Delta Avengers, sponsors

Nigerians who had expected a comprehensive list of the alleged treasury looters as promised by President Muhammadu Buhari were disappointed yesterday. The president failed to make good his promise. However, he directed the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture to publish the list.

Later in the night, the Minister of Information and Culture said during a television programme that he would disclose the recovered loot this week.

Buhari had, on May 14, during his recent trip to London, the United Kingdom to attend the anti-corruption conference put together by the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, pledged in an interview, to avail Nigerians of details of the alleged treasury looters, including where stolen assets were being kept.

“So far, what has come out, what has been recovered in whatever currency from each ministry, department and individual, I intend on the 29th to speak on this because all Nigerians are getting from the mass media is the number of people arrested either by the EFCC, DSS. But we want to make a comprehensive report on May 29”, Buhari said while attending the anti-corruption summit in London.

But during a special nation-wide media broadcast to mark his first year in office as president, Buhari failed to give the details, citing the cumbersome nature of tracing the looters, merely repeating his previous position that his administration was grappling with bureaucratic hurdles that make it difficult for stolen assets to be recovered from foreign jurisdictions.

His words: “We are also engaged in making recoveries of stolen assets some of which are in different jurisdictions. The processes of recovery can be tedious and time-consuming, but today I can confirm that thus far: significant amount of assets have been recovered. A considerable portion of these are at different stages of recovery.”

Rather than personally speak on the matter and provide specific details as promised, the president only said he had directed the Ministry of Information to periodically publish details on the assets recovered so far.

“Full details of the status and categories of the assets will now be published by the Ministry of Information and updated periodically. When forfeiture formalities are completed these monies will be credited to the treasury and be openly and transparently used in funding developmental projects and the public will be informed.”

The president admitted that his government had of recent come under pressure to publicly substantiate his claims that billions of dollars have been recovered through the administration’s intensified war against graft.

In a broadcast, which lasted for 25 minutes, the president dwelt extensively on his economic blueprint and used the opportunity to formally unveil what he called “by far the most ambitious social protection programme” in Nigeria’s history.

He attributed the widespread poverty in the country to what he identified as largely certain policies of the Federal Government which were “necessary pills” to swallow in order to have a better future.

Buhari who announced the official inauguration of his administration’s Social Protection Programme, lamented that the Nigerian society had been neglecting the poor and victimising the weak.

He said the social protection programme would seek to start the process of lifting many citizens out of poverty, while at the same time creating the opportunity for many to fend for themselves.

“For too long, ours has been a society that neglects the poor and victimises the weak. A society that promotes profit and growth over development and freedom. A society that fails to recognise that, to quote the distinguished economist Amartya Sen, ‘poverty is not just lack of money…’

“So, today, I am happy to formally launch, by far the most ambitious social protection programme in our history.’’ He, therefore, expressed optimism that the programme would lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty while at the same time creating the opportunity for people to fend for themselves.

Accordingly, he said, N500 billion has been appropriated in the 2016 budget for social intervention programmes in five key areas. He said that his administration was committed to providing job creation opportunities for 500,000 Nigerians to work as teachers and employ 100,000 artisans across the nation.

His words: “5.5 million children are to be provided with nutritious meals through our school feeding programme to improve learning outcomes, as well as enrolment and completion rates. The conditional cash transfer scheme will provide financial support for up to one million vulnerable beneficiaries, and complement the enterprise programme which will target up to one million market women; four hundred and sixty thousand artisans; and two hundred thousand agricultural workers nationwide.”

He said this particular programme would target up to one million market women, 460,000 artisans and 200,000 agricultural workers, nationwide. President Buhari further disclosed that, through a education grant scheme, the Federal Government would encourage students studying sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics as well as lay a foundation for human capital development for the next generation.

On the Niger Delta, the president said his administration was committed to implementing the United Nations Environment Programme, (UNEP) report, noting that he believed the way forward was to take a sustainable approach to address the issues that affect the delta communities. He noted that re-engineering the amnesty programmes was an example of this.

He stressed that the recent spate of attacks by militants disrupting oil and power installations would not distract the administration from engaging leaders in the region in addressing Niger Delta problems, warning that if the militants and vandals were testing the government’s resolve, they were much mistaken, saying, “We shall apprehend the perpetrators and their sponsors and bring them to justice.

“The policy measures and actions taken so far are not to be seen as some experiment in governance. We are fully aware that those vested interests who have held Nigeria back for so long will not give up without a fight. They will sow divisions, sponsor vile press criticisms at home and abroad, incite the public in an effort to create chaos rather than relinquish the vice-like grip they have held on Nigeria.”

The president condemned the activities of illegal miners in the country, saying that a special security team had been set up to check the menace. He stressed that the security team was saddled with the task of protecting the nation’s mining assets. He also revealed that special measures would be in place to protect miners in their work environment.

According to him, the Ministry of Solid Mineral Resources has produced a roadmap where Nigeria would work closely with the World Bank and major international investors to ensure best practices and due diligence in the mining sector.

On security, the president commended members of the Armed Forces for their efforts in checking the menace of Boko Haram insurgency in the North Eastern states of the country.

“I would like to pay a special tribute to our gallant men and women of the armed forces who are in harm’s way so that the rest of us can live and go about our business in safety. Their work is almost done. The nation owes them a debt of gratitude,’’ he said.

Buhari described the last one year of the administration as being a year of triumph, consolidation, pains and achievements, adding “By age, instinct and experience, my preference is to look forward, to prepare for the challenges that lie ahead and rededicate the administration to the task of fixing Nigeria.”

On putting the economy back on track, he noted: “The measures we must take, may lead to hardships. The problems Nigerians have faced over the last year have been many and varied. But the real challenge for this government has been reconstructing the spine of the Nigerian economy.”

According to the president, the good news about low prices of crude oil is that it has provided the nation with an opportunity to restructure its economy and diversify.

He said: “We are in the process of promoting agriculture, livestock, exploiting our solid mineral resources and expanding our industrial and manufacturing base. That way, we will import less and make the social investments necessary to allow us to produce a large and skilled workforce.”

He assured the citizens that the “Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN) would offer more fiscal incentives for business that prove capable of manufacturing products that are internationally competitive. We remain committed to reforming the regulatory framework, for investors by improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria.”

To assist the women, the president said: “I am very pleased to announce that the government will shortly be launching the national women’s empowerment fund, which I have approved to provide N1.6 billion in micro-finance loans to women across the nation to assist in rehabilitating the economies of rural communities, particularly those impacted by the insurgency and conflict.”

On the foreign scene, Buhari said: “We want to assure our neighbours, friends and development partners that Nigeria is firmly committed to democratic principles. We are ready partners in combating terrorism, cyber-crimes, control of communicable diseases and protection of the environment.

“Following on the Paris Agreement, COP 21, we are fully committed to halting and reversing desertification. Elsewhere, we will intensify efforts to tackle erosion, ocean surge, flooding and oil spillage which I referred to earlier by implementing the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report.

“We are grateful to the international community notably France, the U.S., UK and China for their quick response in helping to tackle the recent Ebola outbreak in our sub-region. We also acknowledge the humanity shown by the Italian and German governments in the treatment of boat people, many fleeing from our sub-region because of lack of economic opportunity. We thank all our partners especially several countries in the EU.

“We appreciate the valuable work that the UN agencies, particularly UNICEF, ICRC, the World Food Programme have been doing. We must also appreciate the World Bank, the Gates Foundation, the Global Fund and Educate A Child of Qatar for the excellent work in our health, education and other sectors.”

He reaffirmed his administration’s belief in democracy as the form of government that best assures the active participation and actual benefit of the people, noting that despite the many years of hardship and disappointment the people of this nation have proved inherently good, industrious tolerant, patient and generous.

“The past years have witnessed huge flows of oil revenues. From 2010 average oil prices were $100 per barrel. But economic and security conditions were deteriorating. We campaigned and won the election on the platform of restoring security, tackling corruption and restructuring the economy. On our arrival, the oil price had collapsed to as low as $30 per barrel and we found nothing had been kept for the rainy day. Oil prices have been declining since 2014 but due to the neglect of the past, the country was not equipped to halt the economy from declining.

“The infrastructure, notably rail, power, roads were in a decrepit state. All the four refineries were in a state of disrepair, the pipelines and depots neglected. Huge debts owed to contractors and suppliers had accumulated. Twenty-seven states could not pay salaries for months. In the north-east, Boko Haram had captured 14 local governments, driven the local authorities out, hoisted their flags. Elsewhere, insecurity was palpable; corruption and impunity were the order of the day. In short, we inherited a state near collapse.”