Special 10K!

Hey Gang,

This is an exciting week for me. My blog is about to hit 10,000 views!   There is a commonly held belief that if you practice anything for 10,000 hours you become an expert at it. Michael Jordan was rumored to have practiced rock and roll music in his garage for 10,000 hours while The Beatles shot hoops for that same amount of time.  Look at who they became...legends!

I have posted 79 blogs that take me anywhere from one to two hours to write, which means that I still need more hours to become a world-class blogger. (If I factor in procrastination time, along with dawdling and dilly dallying, I spend about three and a half days in front of a computer to write one blog post.) However, if it takes at least a minute to read one blog post then that makes my collective readers expert blog viewers!  Congrats on such a huge accomplishment!

10,000 is also significant in a few other ways:

• It is my gross lifetime income! (I don't like to brag, but I had been at the $9,500 mark for a couple of years, it was so great to make it over that hump.) 
• I once tried to start a band that consisted of a large number of maniacs, but Natalie Merchant apparently had parallel thinking and came up with her musical act first. 
• I was asked to run a 10k, I thought it meant to run the shape of a K ten times, apparently the K stands for metric miles. It was too much for me, I still ran the K shape, though. (I pulled a muscle after a K and a half.)
• 10,000 is also about 416 days, which is about 59 more weeks which equals 59 more blogs that may lead to 10,000 more views. (If your mind is not blown, then your not paying attention!)

Thanks again, Gang for the reads, the likes and the subscribes! Be sure to watch my weekly videos as well!

Stay Awake Kids,

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

The Writer's Block Blog

Hey Gang,

I have been writing this blog for a year and a half.  If it were a baby, it would be walking by now.  If it were a kitty, it would be fully functional and plotting against its enemies by now. If it were a panther chameleon, it would have gone through puberty, laid eggs, saw its offspring and died of old age by now.  I have had this blog for awhile is what I am trying to say.

It isn't always easy to come up with new and exciting topics week after week.  Some weeks, I am inspired by world events, personal challenges or even interesting observations that come into my mind.  This week I have nothing.

I am sure the news is chock full of fodder, but there are times when I become Cathy Gainer Stick My Head In The Sand Trainer.  There is only so much I can read without becoming overwrought with anxiety and fear for the future, it's at that point I transform into Cathy Gainer Can't Get Out Of The Fetal Position Trainer.  No one really wants her to write a blog.  It usually just consists of tears on a computer screen and the words, "When will it end?" written over and over.

This week has also been full of personal challenges. Not the fun, 'I have gone through the storm and came out on the other side' challenges.  They have been more like the 'When will it end?' challenges that turn me into Cathy Gainer Full Of Regret Trainer.

That leaves me right where I am, on the computer with nothing to write about.  I try to think WWTRANOD? (What Would Tony Robbins and Oprah Do?)  In my mind's eye, I see them pulling up from their funk, sitting at the computer and finally writing a weekly blog.  In reality, I wonder if one of Tony or Oprah's assistants would just write the blog while the gurus sat in a dark Gremlin binge eating cracker sticks and cheese dip in a packet. (Those snacks are delicious. Oprah probably has a fancy cheese like brie in her packet. )

Well gang, I hate to disappoint but this week's blog is going to be preempted by a case of writer's block and a very small block of gooey fake cheese.

Stay Awake Kids,

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

My DemBROgraphics!!

Hey Gang,

I recently discovered statistics regarding this blog!  It turns out that men between the ages of 25-35 are reading it the most!  I thought I would take a moment to pander to my biggest demographic....The Bros!

So...have you all seen the latest superhero movie?  It was way rad, especially the part when the villain was seemingly winning the confrontation but was ultimately defeated by the end of movie.  Also, who likes to watch organized games of sports? Tater Tots are delicious. Never having to be a real adult is nifty!

Ok guys, I am back...I had to italicize the above dialogue so you  know that I was in my "bro" character.  I am just me now.  Just for full disclosure (because there are a lot of legalities regarding what you can and can't say on a personal blog) I have never watched a superhero movie.  As a child I tried a read comic book once, but was bored and opted for a Tony Robbins pamphlet that I fatefully found at a mall parking lot.  I am sure they are lovely movies.  Who doesn't get entertained by 90 minutes of watching people getting all punchy and kicky on the big screen?

Also, I don't really watch the sporting events either.  When I was in high school, as Cathy Gainer Adolescent Trainer, I would attend some of the athletic competitions.  It is fun.  Our school had colored uniforms that the athletes wore. The other teams competing also donned matching clothes.  I would cheer vehemently for my school, until the coaches would tell me to leave the gymnasium.

I really do eat tater tots, though. Who doesn't?  I feel that is kind of a universal appeal, not just dudes like finger sized crispy potatoes

Well folks and bros, keep reading every week. I hope you are watching my podcasts as well.  Tune in this Saturday for a video that thanks to the blog-reading bros!

Stay Awake Kids
Peace Out, Broseph
(That is Bro-Talk for Stay Awake Kids!)

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

I've Got Sunshine In My Pocket and On My Blog!

Hey Gang,

I want to take this opportunity to thank the nifty folks at traveloptician.com who nominated me for the Sunshine Blogger Award.

Like all things in life, this honor comes with fun stipulations. The following are the
Sunshine Blogger Award Rules:

The Sunshine Blogger award is given by bloggers to bloggers who inspire positivity and creativity in the blogging community.

The rules are:

1. Thank blogger(s) who nominated you for a blog post and link back to their blog.
2. Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you.
3. Nominate up to 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
4. List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog

There are a following questions from traveloptician.com and I would love to answer them now! 

1. Are you a full – time blogger? I prefer to call myself a fun-time blogger.  Do I work 40 hours a week on it? No.  Do I get a salary from it? No. Do I have health insurance that includes death and disability coverage?  No. Do my parents mention this blog when they are out to dinner with friends and my name comes up? No. Do I have fun with blogging? You bet I do!
2. How you get into blogging? I have always been a fan of the great Tony Robbins.  I tried becoming a motivational speaker.  I rented out several arenas to put on my seminars.  No tickets were sold, so I figured the next best thing to would be to start a blog. 
3. Your favorite coulor? If you have seen any of my podcasts, you would see that I wear a signature canary yellow blazer.  I do love yellow, but on occasion I also enjoy saffron, mustard and gold.
4. What is your biggest dream? It is usually the one where I forget that I have a test and when I show up to class I am not wearing a shirt.  After a while people start chasing me, then I fall off of a building and then I wake up.  Night terrors, am I right?
5. How you pick up what you’re going to write next about?  I usually think about what is going on in the world both economically and politically, wonder how it affects me and society in general.  Or sometimes I just write about what I ate for breakfast
6. If you could appear in any magazine for your blog, which one would it be? I like the magazines by the check-out stand.  I would like to be featured feuding with the Kardashians and having my recent weight loss be widely speculated about.
7. What inspired you to start your blog?  I heard it was free and you couldn't get fired from it.
8. What is a success for you? I don't measure success in money, or job security or even happiness.  I measure it using the metric system, it is so much easier to deal in 10s, 100s and 1000s.
9. What would you do if you didn’t blog? I would probably go back to writing in my online journal. 
10. What do you do when you need to clear your mind?  I find a comfortable space, close my eyes and picture my bank account...vast and empty.
11. Who has the biggest influence on you? One word...Anthony Robbins

My Nominees: 

Adrian Long from https://angjellockheart.blogspot.com

Paul De Lancey from https://pauldelancey.com

Donna Cavanaugh from https://humoroutcasts.com/

Sarah Dew from https://asimpleandcontentedlife.com

Grace Swain from http://www.beuniful.com

Heidi Clements from https://welcometoheidi.wordpress.com

Lydia Samson from https://allmychaosbylydia.wordpress.com

Mama from http://www.mamawritesreviews.com

Cristy from http://happyfamilyblog.com/

The Twins from https://linktr.ee/twinspirationalparties

Ariana Huffington from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/


My 11 Questions are:

1. Do you think I'm pretty?

2. What is your proudest blog moment?

3. If you could be any forest creature, which one would it be and why?

4. What are some ways that you market your blog?

5. Oprah or Gail?

6. Do you feel like the blog industry is over-saturated, if so, what can be done to streamline the way blogs are posted?

7. If you could bare-knuckle punch one person, without fear of repercussion, who would it be?

8. What is the best way to get sponsors for your blog?

9. Chewbaka or Warf?

10. Do you feel that living in a time of blogging and You-Tubing helps ambitious people jump the industry and produce quality entertainment and knowledge?

11.  Has the world had enough of pumpkin spiced foods or will there be a resurgence? 

Congrats to all the nominees this far! To my nominees, don’t forget to include a logo on your own. You can find one or make your own like I did. Here are some logos to choose from.

I hope you enjoyed this short nomination post! Stay Awake Kids!

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

The State Of The Blog Blog

Hey Gang,

The State of the Union was on on last night and it was riveting.  Just kidding, not only did I not watch the SOTU on Tuesday, I wrote this blog on Monday, the night before it aired.  I have never been interested in fancy speeches with  big words so I was awfully tempted to listen this one, but decided otherwise. I did realize, though, that it has been a full year since I started writing "Gaining Insight," so I want to look at the state of this blog within this blog post.

First, let me take you behind the scenes of the magic that is blogging.  You go to a swanky office that is filled with warm loving people and fresh homemade bread. Classical music is playing in the background to stimulate the great ideas that freely flow from my mind. Just kidding, I usually hand-write my blog alone huddled inside my 1968 Gremlin and then type it into a public library computer.  Sometimes I stare for hours at the dashboard because I have no clue what to write about.  It's what I call my "creative process."

As we speak I have published 44 blog posts and have over 6300 reads.  In addition, I started a podcast (I have been told it's a vlog, but that sounds like a Russian curse word so I'll stick with podcast.) that I film with my good friend. (I can't always remember her name.  She has a place and then her name as a name....Sacramento Sally, Salt Lake City Cindy or Seattle's Finest..something like that)  We film every Saturday morning, I have a lot of fun and so does my friend  Just kidding, she tells me it's stupid and usually asked me to leave her condo. (She has a stationary home unlike my portable Gremlin resident.)  So far we have only 4 video podcasts out, but many more are on the way.  Take a look at the rest of my blog and watch them!

Thanks for all the reads and views and as always...Stay Awake, kids!

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer






  

My Podcast on Lockdown!

Hey Gang,

I got locked out of my studio on this podcast!

Total E-Clips of the Part

Hey Gang,


As you have heard by now, there will be a giant E-Clips coming soon.  Everyone is saying it will be historic and special glasses are going to be needed when the E-Clips happens.  I personally think it will be like Shakespeare's quote, "much Scooby Doo about nothing."

This is my first E-Clips.  I have had experience with E-Harmony, E-Mail and I once tried an E-Cigarette, but never an E-Clips.  Personally, I am little confused on how someone can get a haircut on the internet, but I have never truly understood how this wide world web works.  I think that it may be an app (like the kids call it) that you download and it clips your hair, hence the term E-Clips.

It seems unfair to human hair dressers.  There are so many jobs that these computers have taken over, this is just another casualty of the technical age.  I have decided not to participate in the E-Clips.  As a Gainer, our hair genetically stops growing after a certain age.  My Great Grandmother Gainer had a Dorothy Hamilton bob until she was 98.

Have a great August 21st and remember, only you can choose to get a cyber haircut!

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

Back To Cool

Hey Gang,

As I have stated in previous blogs, I currently reside in my 1968 Gremlin that is parked at the Walmart.  I have noticed business picking up due to "Back To School" shopping.  The hustle and bustle of parents and children takes me back to the days when I was just Cathy Gainer, Student Trainer.

I remember it well.  My parents would go on shopping sprees ,fill their baskets with supplies and clothes, sometimes they would even buy stuff for me.  It was a glorious time!  The public school I went to didn't require us to wear uniforms, but I did anyway.  On Mondays and Wednesdays I would wear a policeman's uniform and I would dress like a fireman on all the other days.

It was at our school's pep rallies that I would start to get a glimmer into my future.  I wanted to stand before crowds of people and speak.  I wanted to inspire and motivate the masses with pride.  I wanted to make people happy and excited.  I guess, the school's mascot was my first mentor, is what I am saying.

I look at how far I have came since those days.  I am still learning. I am still working to make my dreams come true and I am still dressing like a fireman on Tuesdays and Thursdays!

Happy Back To School Days,

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

Lady Who Who

Hey Gang,

There is a televison show in England that features a hero of sorts called "The Doctor."  I am not sure what the doctor's last name is. This doctor travels through time and space in something called a TARDIS.  It  looks like an old American phone booth, but it's actually a British police box, which is a phone booth used only for English emergencies.

The Doctor has gone on many adventures and has had many enemies.  All of the foes are scary and challenging. Some are very scary, like the Weeping Angels, they are statues that stay still if you look at them, but if you blink or glance away, they will attack. (This once resulted in me staring down a garden gnome for hours.  It was intense and I was banned from Walmart's garden section for six months.)  The most famous nemesis of The Doctor are the Daleks, they look like a bedazzled R2D2 and sound like an old scratched record that skips.

There are also times when The Doctor regenerates.  Every time a regeneration happens, The
Doctor looks like a totally different person. He's looked like old English men, middle-aged English men and young English men. Twice the regeneration made him Scottish.  It was announced that The Doctor will be regenerating into a woman for the next season of the show.

Some people are upset that a time travelling fictional character will take the form of a woman.  I'm not quite sure why.  I have tried to come up with reasons why a women couldn't be a super-natural sci-fi hero.  Here is what I have so far:

The  bathrooms in the TARDIS only has urinals.
Time travel is dependent up the amount a chest hair that the traveler has.
Only an Adam's apple can stop a Dalek.
The Tardis can get chilly and there aren't sweaters readily available.
One of the "stops" may  have a pull-up contests in which women typically have less upper body strength than a man.

I'm still stumped, I am looking forward to seeing how the show progresses.  Since my 1968 Gremlin that I live in doesn't get cable, I am hoping that the Electronics Dept in Walmart will be showing the Christmas special.

Take Care,

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

Haters Be Hating

Hey Gang,

The great T-Swizzle has taught us that Haters gonna hate, the Fakers gonna fake and off course the Shakers gonna shake it off.  This got me to thinking...do I have Haters?  Am I a Hater?  I am a Breather, an Eater, a Fantasizer of Tony Robbins, but a Hater?  I don't think so.

There are a few people that I feel extremely envious of.  I mean the envy eats me up so much that I can't sleep, I obsess about them and wish for their ultimate demise.  I don't think that makes me a Hater.  I would call it more of an Envier or a Borderline Dangerous Jealouser, but not a hater.  I am not really sure what a Hater is.

I have decided to get prepared for the day I do have a Hater.  I think my Hater will be a young 20-something person.  I can't decide if it will be male or female, so for now I will just refer to them as Jordan. 

Jordan will at first be struck by my training skills.  Jordan will try to emulate everything I do, but will soon be frustrated that he/she can never truly be a corporate trainer of Cathy Gainer's caliber.  Things will get ugly, I will be tempted to sink to Jordan's level when the mud starts slinging, but ultimately I will prevail the winner.

Having haters was hard. T-Swizzle was right and in a weird way I am glad that Jordan came in my life.  It will teach me a lot about myself, if it actually ever happens.

Take Care Gang,

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer

Who's this TED fellow?

Hey Gang,

Fun fact about me, I am thinking about wanting to become an inspirational speaker.  I have been thinking about it for years now.  I have looked into it and it turns out that you have to have a message of inspiration in order to become an inspirational speaker.  There is always a catch, it seems.

I have noticed that a lot of speakers refer to a gent name TED and his talks.  I am not sure who this person is, but I am assuming his first name is Theodore, but he is totally cool with everyone calling him  by a casual nickname.

With all due respect to Theodore and his man admirers, I think there should be more than one lone dude inspiring the world.  What if many speakers would gather and discuss subjects like technology, or entertainment, or even design?  Can you imagine what insight and education that would be!  We could call something clever like "Uncle Teddy's Band Of Speech Givers That Really Make You Think".  If that's too long, maybe it could be shortened to something catchy and with alliteration.  Who knows.

Take care, I am going to be practicing giving a speech with a Janet Jackson headset in hopes of being struck by inspiration real soon.

Cathy Gainer Corporate Trainer