Friday, January 30, 2015

Cheap Project

What inspires you? 

Found these little toy cars with house plants in them! Talk about cute and $$ saving! Take an old toy and get a plant from a friend or even the grocery store, Home Depot, or try (if your feeling brave) to revive one from your garden! Totally cheap and joyful. It's important to keep green life around you in dark gloomy winters. Plants can help! Get creative, get happy!


Thursday, January 29, 2015

Ziplock Tip

Fun craft/tip of the day! 

DIY (do it yourself) pencil case/wallet/compartment!

All you need is a ziplock bag and some duct tape (which I know most of you have or can find at Family Dollar!)


Take your zip lock, cut across the bottom and line the whole bag with duct tape to keep it sturdy...voila! You have a new case that cost you only a couple of cents to make! Enjoy!

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Stand.

Here's a quote for you all that we've been thinking a lot about today:

"Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up."

We found the Chinese proverb today. What do you think it is saying about failure?? Let's take little kids learning how to walk as our example today. Maybe many of you are parents or aunts and uncles or even God parents. Imagine that little child in your family learning to walk. When they stumbled and tripped or fell to the ground was that a failure? Or would the real failure be if they fell down and refused to try walking again! Does that make sense? 

It's not a failure to fall, but it is a failure not to try again. So get up, hold your head high and try, try, try again!


Look at this beautiful house plant trying to grow, grow, grow in this frigid winter! You can do this.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

You Can Do This.



What do you think this picture is?

Before you sign off and exit out of this blog, look at it! You might think I'm crazy, and maybe I am but I've got a message here today. 

This is a fallen tree. The roots beneath. This is what a tree looks like when it's fallen to the ground. 

FACT: Storms make trees grow deeper roots. 

Did you know that?

How can we take this and apply it to your life? Well, all of the struggle, hardship, pain, and suffering you are going through is not for nothing. It's all building you into a stronger more resilient person. All of the chaos in your life, helps you plant your feet in the ground just a little deeper.

Keep your head up. Remember, storms make trees grow deeper roots. You can do this.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Help Us Out!

Happy Friday everyone!!

Here's the deal readers: 

WE NEED MORE PEOPLE. 

We need to serve more Detroiters and we could really use your help. Please, please spread the word about ECHO to your family, friends, coworkers, neighbors!! We want to help our community FIND JOBS and get your life RESTORED. If you know anyone who might be in need of our services please, please leave a message on our Facebook, Twitter, Blog, or come into our sites! We're here for you.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

5 Tips for Getting Rid of Negativity

1. Move around! Go for a walk, run, or even hustle up and down a staircase a few times. Moving your body will help release endorphins (happy brain chemical) and rid the negativity!

2. Mediate, pray, or take a moment of silence. Sometimes a quick break and deep breathing can really help get rid of yucky energy!

3. Listen to music with a great vibe! Music is a very powerful link to our emotions and sometimes listening to a favorite positive song can help!

4. Spend time with your pets! Animals have a peaceful impact on our emotions and love unconditionally. Snuggle up with a dog or cat and you'll definitely feel happier!

5. Get it out. They key to ridding yourself of negativity is getting it out of you. I do this by writing, lots of other people rid negativity by painting, reading, playing an instrent. Using your creativity is the best way to rid yourself of negative vibes!

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Passing Storm

How are you passing through the storm? 

We all go through rough times, rocky waters, cloudy skies... How do you make it through?

We're calling out to all of our readers out there, how do you get through the rough times?

Family? Friends? Faith? Let us know in the comments below!




Tuesday, January 20, 2015

5 Tips for Waking Up On Time

One of our staff came up with a great idea for those of us that have trouble waking up in the morning in these dreary, cold days. 

1. Place your alarm clock or phone on the other side of the room so you actually have to get out of bed to turn it off!

2. Set multiple alarms. My little sister sets so many alarms that it sounds like a carnival in her room in the morning!

3. Take a shower or stretch first thing when you wake up! Moving your body (even if your still asleep) will help! 

4. Set goals. It's easier to get up if you have somewhere to be at a certain time. If you are not working right now, make a plan for yourself! For example, I will get to the library by 9 am to work on my resume. This way you will give you a reason to get up and start your day right!

5. The battle of the snooze. Try this, set up a reward system. For every day you don't use the snooze button, you can earn and save that snooze for later in the week as a reward! How awesome is that?

We're here with you guys on this one. It's hard to do anything but sleep in the winter, but you are not alone. ECHO is here to help. Give us a call or stop in to one of our sites anytime and we will do our best to help!

Friday, January 16, 2015

Eat your vegetables.

Don't forget to eat your vegetables! We know your mama told you to eat them when you were a kid and guess what? She was right! Vegetables are the cheapest, cleanest, healthiest food group out there! Take advantage of Detroits AMAZING produce and head to eastern market this weekend or Dearborn for some cheap produce!

Remember, restoring your life comes from the inside out! If you nourish your health your life will follow suit!! 


Have you ever tried beets? They are CRAZY cheap and beyond good for your body!

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Write your Life.

It's do it yourself Thursday.

Have you ever thought about writing your own story? 

Where would you start?

Your birth? Your first accomplishment? Your first failure? 

It's important to tell our stories to the world and to learn about ourselves, each other, and our communities.

You guys know how much I love lists...so start with a list! What are your major life accomplishments and events? What has made you the person you are today?

Stand up and do it for yourself. So what if it's Thursday and it's freezing outside ? No better time like the present to restore your life and WRITE YOUR STORY. 


Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Clean your space, free your mind!

Let kick unemployment in the butt!!!

Get up. Start the job hunt. Edit your resume.

RESTORE YOUR LIFE.

Your work space makes a huge impact on your brain and your ability to organize your life. Have you ever felt out of control in a messy room? Have you ever felt free after cleaning it up? 

Think about the workspace that you want to be in when you get that job! We've all got busy lives, but just take s moment to stop. What do you need around you to get focused on thy resume? Clean space? Good food? A cup of coffee? A fresh notebook? Think about the details and get EXCITED to bang out that resume. 

Here's a pic of my desk. I personally find little trinkets inspiring and meditative, but do what works for you. 


Let's do this 2015.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Resume 101

Who is out conquering the world today in the snow and freezing cold?

RESTORE YOUR LIFE. 

This week we're focusing on employment. 

Do you know how common it is to find spelling mistakes on your resume?

Do you know how common it is to give an outdated resume to an employer?

Do you know how common it is to have incorrect contact information on your resume so the employer cannot call you back?

ALL TOO COMMON.

Set yourself apart from the rest:
1. Edit your resume for all spelling errors
2. Keep it updated with recent experience
3. Provide correct contact info 
4. Keep the paper clean and unwrinkled 
5. Make sure your name is in a BIG font at the top of your resume


We know you can RESTORE YOUR LIFE and we're here to help. Let's start 2015 off with a bang. Brave the cold, we're here for you. #DETROITECHO

Friday, January 09, 2015

Dream Big, Start Small

One more personal story to kick off the year! Remember yesterday when we were talking about New Years resolutions? How I almost got to 50 books? Well, I've been debating about my own 2015 goals...which reminded me of your developing 2015 goal lists!

So often we see people make outrageous goals and resolutions that only last for the first few weeks in January. I encourage you to DREAM BIG but START SMALL. Start with a list of dreams. Go wild. Go big. Then pick one or two and break those dreams down imp the tiniest steps. Maybe your dream is to start your own landscaping business. How can you break this into smaller steps? How about focusing on equipment costs, researching local competition, and is any lisencing required? See how we can take a big dream and turn it into achievable stepping stones?

So I've been thinking about my own 2015 goals and following my own advice. I'm aiming this ear for 50 books again and I would like to read the classics that I avoided because I was intimidated by the advanced reading level required! So I'd say it's a fair amount of pushing myself with realistic expectations. 

Any thoughts? What are your wild dreams and baby steps?

Wednesday, January 07, 2015

Story Time!

I thought I would share some personal inspiration today (hope that's alright with all of you!) Since January is all about goal setting and new beginnings, I thought I would take some time to share one of my goals from 2014. 

I love to read, but I always found myself making excuses - my life is too hectic, work is too stressful, etc etc and reading always got pushed to the back burner. For me, reading is more than just filling time, it's a way of loving myself. Giving myself permission to sit in silence, grab a cup of tea, and treat myself to some relaxation. This time last year I decided to prioritize myself and finding moments to do what I love: read. I set a pretty high goal (50 books!) which was challenging and totally fun. 

Today I thought I would share with you my book list. Notice anything?


I'm 3 books shy of 50! At first I really best myself up about not completing my goal in time for the new year, but I caught myself. Look how much I accomplished! I prioritized my hobby and myself and I read 47 books in 2014 which is pretty amazing! 

It's all in the way you think about things. YOU choose to look at your life or goals and a failure or as a success!

Tuesday, January 06, 2015

Show your MIND

We can't stress enough the importance of CLOTHING during an interview. We have big goals for 2015 and we're sure you do too! One of our goals is to get even more Detroiters employed in 2015 than we did last year (we would love to double that number!!!) so, let's start with a basic interview tip: dress. 

It is so important to look professional for a job interview, even if the job is working in a factory or casual atmosphere. How you dress shows the world how you view yourself! If you wear pajamas or pants down to your ankles it will show your employer that you are not tidy and timely with your appearance and life. 

Check out one of our favorite graphics for some simple, straight forward advice on appearance:


Thursday, January 01, 2015

Sales & Discounts!

Now is the time to pick up discounted holiday chocolate and goodies from Dollar Tree and Meijer and all of the local stores!!! Now is a great time to purchase discounted clothing and decorations too for next year at an extremely low price!