Fort Myers Trip Travel Guide | ECHO Farms

Have you ever heard of the saying “ give a man a fish and he will eat for a day or teach a man how to fish and he will never go hungry again”?

Well, that’s a little bit of what ECHO farms is all about, but instead of fish, they provide farmers all over the world with the knowledge and techniques they need to become self sufficient.

As described by the organization, ECHO is a Christian non profit organization that equips small scale farmers, missionaries and developmental workers worldwide to combat hunger , malnutrition and poverty. Their vision is to honor God by empowering the undernourished with sustainable hunger solutions.

The organization’s headquarter sits in North Fort Myers and what started as a 5 acres farm is today 57 acres of land that is used for training and demonstration for students, workers and even visitors.

A tour of ECHO farms takes approximately 2- 2:30 hours and it is packed with great information, rare plants and trees from all over the world. You will be accompanied by a tour guide who is knowledgeable and trained in everything that grows in the farm. They are able to name plants and trees and give you tips and tricks on how to grow them. So, if you see something of interest during your tour, don’t be afraid to ask your guide, they are there to share their knowledge with you and are happy to do so.

Our tour guide, Danielle Flood who’s been with ECHO farmsfor 11 years, explained why spinach is highly marketed as a high iron leafy green when there are other plants containing higher amounts of iron and other vitamins available in nature. She goes on to say that spinach is easier to store and transport and its shelf life is longer compared to other greens but it’s definitely not the only option.

Take the moringaas an example, it contains vitamins A, C, E, Iron, folate, protein as well as antioxidant properties. The seeds of the moringa can also be used to reduce particulate and bacterial contaminated water. What’s even more wonderful about the plant is its ability to be easily cultivated and how well it responds to pruning. Moringa is also used in smoothies as a plant based protein powder.

As you walk the farm you will find many other interesting plants. Take the jaboticaba tree, it is known to thrive in the lands of Brazil but rarely cultivated anywhere else. This tree produces delicious fruits and can be harvest several times of the year. Another one is the tropical tree passion fruit which requires especial soil and tons of care considering Florida isn’t the most suitable location for its growth.

The animals you will see during your trip at ECHO farms are not only residents but also a great asset to the farm. Danielle explained how the pond on the property serve as a habitat for the ducks who defecate in the water, turning the water into a natural fertilizer to all plants and trees surrounding it.

You may also find interesting to know that ECHO has replicated 8 different small farm settings such as rainforest, hot humid low lands, semi arid tropic, tropical highlands , community gardens, urban gardens, tropical monsoon, and appropriate technology. Each setting mimics the vegetable and fruits cultivated in that area as well as farming techniques that are used by farmers from different regions of the world such as Asia, Africa, and Latin American countries.

Rare plants are everywhere at ECHO, amongst them is the shampoo gingerwhich is a kind of ginger that gives out flowers that when squeezed let out a mild yet wonderful fragrance. It received this name for its ability to make shampoo. Now, if you are a peanut butter lover, you will be excited to know that mother nature has created a delicious fruit that tastes just like it, hence, the name peanut butter fruit.

As our tour arrived to an end, we encountered Dr Martin Price, one of the CEO’s and founder of ECHO farms. “I’ve been here since 1981”, he said. He goes on to mention that ECHO grew by accident and that people would find out about what he was doing at the farm and ask for a tour of it.

Consequently, the farm grow and so did their ability to help more people. ECHO now has expanded not only here inSouthwest Floridabut all over the globe, with centers in Thailand, Tanzania and Burkina Faso. Each center helps reduce hunger by providing farming families with agricultural resources that improves crop production.

Now if you are interest in starting your own garden, then ECHO farms is most certainly a place you want to visit. The tour will give you an insight on how to grow your own urban garden. 

At ECHO you will learn that as long as you want grow your own greens, you will be able to. Regardless of where you live, ECHO has many solutions that can help you become more self sustainable. You’ll learn how to save water from the rain to irrigate your garden, how to use natural resources to feed your animals and other great ideas you can implement in your own home.

Online help is also available for those who live far from a center but still want to benefit from all the knowledge and training ECHO can provide. You can join echo community.org for free and connect with professionals in your region, find practical solutions to farming challenges and even have access to trainings and seminars.

However, if you are in Southwest Florida or just passing by and decide to stop by the wonderful farm where the desire to help others meets the passion for nature, you can find their address and other important informationhere.

Finally, if you found ECHO’s mission and vision to match yours and would like to make a contribution to help fight world hunger, you can visit echonet.org to make a donation. Also, keep in mind that all tour, nursery and bookstore purchases directly supports their cause. So a trip to ECHO isn't just a simple tour but it is hope for a better world.

Enjoy the sweet side of life.

JujuG

Watch the full tour on youtube here

How to find a simple mental frame work to simplify your life 67 steps review

Man on the Moon Contrast & Keeping Easy Things Easy

 

As a child I wanted to be an astronaut and as a every kid, I also believed that I could be and do whatever I wanted to. But then I grew up and realized how hard it actually was to even become part of the Nasa team and I quickly gave that up. When you think about what it took for man to get to the moon, how many minds had to work together to arrive at one final goal. It takes such a tremendous amount of time, effort, patience and knowledge to send humans to the moon that the task is almost impossible yet we have achieved it.

Now, if you analyze all the elements needed for man to go to the moon, it seems almost absurd when you hear the phrase" I have tried everything" for a situation which people seem to not find success in. Truth is, they know and you know that they have not tried everything, not even 1/3. You see, once you start saying you have tried everything, your brain goes into "I have tried everything and no longer needs to try anymore" mode. Your brain is a powerful tool that can act in your favor or against you if you don't know how to use it. 

This67 stepsis very important, especially if you don't know how to trick your brain and is constantly letting it trick you. For example, if your goal is to make a $100,000 this year but you think that's going to be really hard, you can then compare that to going to the moon. Going to the moon is way harder but it was done,suddenly, making a $1000,000 seems easy to your brain. So, scale down and shrink every problem or goal and then play a trick on your mind by contrasting it with something super hard. Your brain is going to ecstatic because you have now given it the power to go above and beyond to find a solution! 

When picking the contrast make sure it is a big one. In this 67 steps, Tai Lopez recommends to pick a person or situation that is 10 times bigger than yours, that's why the man on the moon analogy works so well. However,  you should create your own contrasts. If you are into body building, for example, pick Arnold Schwarzenegger, who figured out a way to work out 6 hours per day. I know, 6 hours is a a lot of time but can you find maybe 15 to 30 minutes per day? 

Consequently that questions brings me to next subject on this 67 steps: Focusing on making things simple so you can do the things that really matter.

We waste too much time doing things that can be done by others or over doing things that can be kept simple. My husband used to mow our own lawn on the weekends. He hated it, spent way too much time at it and didn't do as good of a job as a professional would. We then decided we needed to hire someone to mow our lawn, we couldn't afford all of the time my husband was wasting. We calculated how much time he spent, how much his time is worth and let the numbers point out the obvious decision: it cost less to hire a landscaper, so we did! 

Tai also explains that we only get 3 bursts of glycogen (google it, if you don't know) per day and that should be spent only on our main goals. We should never spend time thinking about what we are going to wear everyday to work, instead, we should have a wardrobe with outfits that we like and are basically the same. Mark Zuckerberg does that a whole lot, he is always wearing t-shirt and jeans and most of the time the shirt is blue. You may ask why does he do that? Because he knows if he takes the energy to make decisions on things that are unimportant in his chosen field ,he will end up not having the energy to make the right decisions for the things that really matter.

Finally, use all of your brain power to focus on the big things. Don't let the little things linger in your mind. You must have courage to face your fears and not let your own brain sabotage you. Remember, sometimes we are our own worst enemy.

Enjoy the sweet side of life.

JujuG.

Find out more about the 67 steps program here

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Elon Musk's 14 hour work day vs the 4 hour work week 67 steps review

The myths of our time

There is a book, you may have heard of , called the 4 hour work week.Once people read this book they completely change their mind set from working 8 hours per day at something they hate to now only working 4 hours! Amazing, isn't it? Well, yes, except for the fact I don't want to put any hours of my week into something I dislike.

Well, that's what most people in society strive for: To work less. Is it laziness? Tai Lopez says no! In this 67 steps, he elaborates on the fact that most people aren't lazy, they are simply doing something that they don't like to do, hence, it feels like work! Once you find something you truly enjoy doing, you will want to do more of it and won't be trying to figure a way out of it.

This 67 steps encourages the viewer to understand the myths of time, for example Tai used the analogy of someone who found their soul mate and is about to get married. The person says that he's found a way to only spend 4 hours of the week with their soon to be spouse and the rest of time would be spent doing whatever he liked. What would you think in a situation like that? Why would you marry a person you only want to spend 4 hours of the week with? You are marrying the wrong person!!!! Now, transfer that analogy to career, if you only want to spend 4 hours of the week doing it then you are in the wrong career. Don't get married, meaning don't make it long term.

The great entrepreneur and founder of pay pal Elon Musk has a great saying about time and effort:

"If you work 100 hours per week when everybody else is working 40 hours a week, you'll accomplish in 3-4 months what would take about a year."

Hence, the amount of time you put into doing something will determine the time and level of success you will achieve. If you only put about 40 minutes everyday and the other person is doing 14 hours, who do you think is going to succeed first? Obviously, the person who has put 96 hours over the other person! 

The suggestion in this 67 steps is not to become a workaholic but to rather deviate from the myths that society has about time.  Being an workaholic means having an imbalanced life but having a 4 hour work week means hating what you do which can cause an imbalance so you don't want either situation. No extreme is good, learn how to stay in the middle, balanced.

Finally, you must be excited about what you do everyday as one day when you are old you will look back and remember the days you had the energy to work and get things done! So, don't waste your time sitting down, watching tv and time pass by, you will have old age for that, get things done today, a lot of things!

​

Enjoy the sweet side of life.

JujuG.

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Why you must embrace controversy 67 steps course review

Step 16 - Rousseau, The Renaissance Man and Iron Sharpening Iron

Have you heard the expression that there is always three sides to a story: One person's side, the other person's side and the truth.So, technically speaking, you must listen to both sides and observe so you can safely arrive at a conclusion: the truth. Well, that works the same for knowledge. 

In this step, Tai Lopez argues the idea that every successful person is, after all, a renaissance man/woman. Being a renaissance person means being eclectic, exploring different views, cultures, languages and subjects. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the French philosopher and author of the quote " people who know little are usually great talkers, while men who know much say little', read about 200 books before writing his own. When you read and listen to other people's ideas, you activate the creativity in your mind, you are able to better discuss subjects.

In order to answer the hard questions in life you will need a variety of skills just like a recipe needs a variety of ingredients. Here are the basic ingredients you should have:

1- Speak more than one language

2- Know a little about music and/or playing an instrument

3- History and Geography 

4- Classical - Art, architecture, literature, poetry

You may see this as a waste of your time for it does not relate to anything you want to do or are currently doing. However, you never know when a key person will be around and nothing stands out more in a crowd then someone who is knowledgeable. A key person is someone who holds the key to everything you want  so you must be able to be noticed by that person.

It doesn't mean you have to be a know it all but you do have to know enough about a subject in order to have at least a 5 minute conversation with a person. If you are a republican, read democratic books so you can see what they see and stand where they stand. You already know what it means and how it feels to be a republican, so read something different than that. However, don't just go reading anything simply because is different but rather strive to read the best of the best so you can get, of course, the best information.

You may not like to hear the ideas of the opposing group and at times you will feel like a traitor but that will diminish once you read more and more and see that even the rivals can have great ideas and point of views. Do not be blinded by the media, they teaches us we should be separated from everything we do not agree with. If you are an atheist, go to a church, read a book about religion, see their point of view and what makes them think that way, you might even agree with some points.

Lastly, find out what your weaknesses are and start working on that. Is it health, music, language? What is an area in your life you know nothing about? Set a goal and make one of them to go to bed a little wiser everyday.

Enjoy the sweet side of life.

JujuG.

Find out more about the 67 steps here

Read other 67 steps course reviews here

Decartes & Solving Problems with a Calculator

Step 15 - Decartes & Solving Problems with a Calculator

When you seek for truth, it's the only thing that remains

As a child I hated math, I even failed 6th grade math and had to re take it during 7th grade. Honestly, I am pretty happy that happened. The school I was going to at the time was an elite school and my knowledge on math was absolutely not up to par. I failed horribly for the first 2 semester until my parents decided it was "tutor time every weekend for 4 hours for about 5 months". I hated it and at the time I saw no use for all that math. However, I learned to like it because I really became good at it and today I am so glad for that.

If someone tells you they aren't really good with numbers you can probably assume that their financial situation is not great either. I am not taking about calculus and geometry here, I am talking about your ability to quantify things. My mother says she is bad at math (which is the reason I had to go to a tutor, she has a phD but can't teach math for shit) but she is good with money. She is quick to calculate discounts and how much money someone owes her but yet says she is bad at math. Well, maybe she is bad at math but she is certainly good with numbers and you need to get good at that as well.

Descarte said that once you remove everything that is doubtful in your life the only thing you are really left with is numbers! There is no doubt that 2 + 2 is 4,! So, what you will need to do is acquire the ability to quantify things into something tangible so that you can make decisions around it. The purpose for doing that is to see what decision is more congruent, consistent and efficient with your goals.

If you had neglected the calculator app on your phone before, it should  now become one of your best friends. You see, in order to determine the best choice, Tai Lopez suggests that you use a calculator and factor in an assigned value and multiply by the odds of success. Here is an example, let's say a person is going to college even though they don't really know what they want to major in. However, they do have a great business idea that they are interested in pursuing. The cost for his entire college years will be $100,000. How does this person find out the option that will get them closer to success? Here's how:

College - $100,000 (assigned value) X 30% (odds of success considering desired area of study not yet established) =$30,000

VERSUS

Business Idea - $100,000 X 60% (odds of success are higher considering there is an idea and interest that correlate) = $60,000

Let's be honest, numbers don't lie, $60,000 is much better than $30,000!! Now you can make a more rational decision based on factual data. The answer, of course, would be different if the person wanted to be a doctor but had no business idea. You must take a close look at the odds of success and when assigning a number to it always be sure to be more critical than nice.

Once you learn this method you will be able to quantify and simplify things. If you have a friend and you are unsure whether to go on with the friendship or not, calculate the pros and cons of that friendship and out weight the final result. If the friend has more cons than pros, let it go, you don't need anyone or anything that isn't going to add positivity into your life. 

Also, you must be realistic and be careful when giving your assigned value a number. People tend to over value the circumstances which they enjoy the most, you must not do that! Be sure to factor in every variable like happiness, money, feelings, etc.

To conclude, always remember that a decision well made can change the course of someone's destiny but so can a bad one, so take time to do your calculations correctly and don't fool yourself!

Enjoy the sweet side of life!

JujuG.

Find out more about the program here

Why you must accept everything is your fault

 The Shaolin Monk & Touching an Electric Fence

So far, this is my favorite step. You may have a different view but I believe one of the reasons, if not one of the most important, why a lot of people don't succeed in life is because they don't take responsibility for what happens in their own lives. To those people everything is everybody else's fault: their boss, the economy, their parents, the guy crossing the street... It is a never ending blaming game.

Tai Lopezexplains that people fail because they aren't prepared. They blame the economy but never save any money, blame their boss for losing their job but never invested on themselves so they could acquire more skills. You see, it is very easy to blame everything that happens to you on others but that is also the easy way to failure. If you can't see that it's your fault, you will never take the step to prepare.

It is very often that you see a blind man leading blind people who are blaming the blind man for leading them astray. You cannot be in the blaming category, you are going to have to take responsibility for not being wise and following someone who can actually see and lead the way. 

Humans tend to live life for the moment. If health is good, we continue to eat poorly and not exercising but once we get sick we quickly vouch to eat better and only then take a healthier approach on life. Why wait until the dark days? Why not prepare before? Eat healthy everyday, exercise everyday as the only for sure thing is you will be pushed through time and changes will come with that. Changes such as getting old. Your body will need to be at its best before you get there, you can't wait to be healthy when you get to your elderly years.

Preparing is a skill you are going to have to achieve it in order to obtain success. Many will call you a pessimist as you take the time thinking about the darker days and preparing for them. It's okay, don't listen to the general population, most of them are just going with what the news and media tell them and will wait to take action when things are already bad. 

Sure, no one can deny the power of positive thinking, however, one cannot think positive when he is completely unprepared. I cannot recall there ever being a time in which I was positive about getting a good grade on an exam I did not study for. Whether you may be telling yourself with words that you can do it, you cannot bullshit your conscience for it knows the answers to the exam won't magically appear in your head.

Think about how nature made us to be physically attracted to each other so we can reproduce. Children is the product of nature preparing for the preservation of our genes after our death. If even mother nature,  the mother of all laws humans cannot break, prepares, then you need to prepare as well. Prepare for the next recession by saving cash, prepare for old age by taking care of your body now, prepare for your next promotion and invest on yourself.

In the end, the message is preparation is the key. Luck comes in the form of opportunity when you have been preparing yourself physically, financially and mentally. Don't wait to prepare, and understand that everything that happens in your life is your fault because you were not prepared for them to happen.

Enjoy the sweet side of life!

JujuG

Find out more about the program here

Want to see the review of previous steps? Click here

The Amish Vacation, Tap Dancing to Work & Avoiding What You Love

If I surveyed people around the world and asked them if they liked vacations, everyone would say yes but if I asked them if they needed vacation, the answer would depend on what each person does for work.

Take some time to think about the people you know, how many of them truly enjoy what they do and Monday’s and Friday’s are just another day of the week? Probably not that many. Most people you and I know go to work looking forward to vacation time. They hate what they do, they spend at least 11 months doing something they despise so they can have 1 month of happiness.

Step 13 out of the 67 steps is a great step especially if you are not happy with what you are currently doing. Tai discuss the time he spent with the Amish and how they never took a vacation. In fact, they found the whole idea of vacation pretty puzzling. They live such an integrated life that everyday is vacation for them. Work is not really work, is just something they do as part of their lives. On top of that, work is done amongst family and friends, there isn’t any separation.

Tai Lopez discusses how most people today believe that they will derive some level of happiness from vacation, believing that it is the ultimate end game. He also adds that a life where the end game is vacation is a pathetic life, as it is not possible for someone to be happy when they hate their everyday life.

Of course, everyone needs down time but as part of a integrated cycle. Down time as a ritual is great, for example, Christmas time. Holidays are not something you do because you need to be away from work but rather is a custom, a culture that your family has.

So, if you aren’t tap dancing to work every morning then what should you do? Well, you should find something that you like to do and not something you love. According to Allan Nation, people should marry someone they like rather than someone they love. Lust could be mistaken by love, and after you marry someone lust goes out the window and all you really end up with is another human being you have to deal with everyday. So, find someone you like, someone you have a level of friendship and comparability. Same goes for what you do for a living.

In the end, you have to realize that looking for something that has the potential to make money is a mirage. What makes you tap dance out of bed may not be a great opportunity at first but who cares? Live a life in which you are happy everyday and not just a couple of days out of the year.

Enjoy the sweet side of life!

JujuG