What Is It Like to Die?

                                             Donald E. Unzicker, 1 June 1956 - 19 October 2022

What is it like to die?

We lost our brother this past week. He died on a Wednesday morning. It was a heart attack, or so they believe. He’d had two heart attacks before; his heart was in such bad condition that he needed a new one, and he was on the transplant list for a while. But he also had severe kidney issues which made a transplant more dangerous.

I don’t know all the details about his health issues or anything else about his life. The last contact I had with him was at my mother’s funeral four years ago, and even then, he wouldn’t speak to me. Everyone at his funeral talked about what a wonderful guy he was, and how kind, caring, and helpful he was. That was not my experience with him. I never met that man.

There must have been a time when we were children that we got along. I have a picture of the two of us when I was two and he was four. We are standing next to each other with his arm around my shoulders, smiling. But I don’t remember that. The only memories I have are of him either beating on me, teasing me unceasingly, or…other things I don’t care to mention. He made my otherwise happy childhood a living hell.

I don’t dwell on the idea of dying. But I sometimes wonder what it feels like and how the transformation from a living being to the separation of spirit and flesh takes place. I remember a night when I was somewhere between sleep and wakefulness; I found that I could not move and there was only darkness around me. Silence filled the room and I felt as though I was lying in a void I could not escape. I began to wonder if I had died and that this darkness and silence were really all there was in death. I wasn’t afraid, but I felt something was wrong. Then I realized that I was still aware of myself, and I thought, “If this is all there is after death, will I spend eternity in this state? Is there nothing else?”

I began to pray, asking God if I had done something so wrong that I deserved to lie in this state of nothingness. Was this what hell really is – spending eternity in utter darkness? As I prayed, the tears began to roll down my face unbidden and I begged for forgiveness. “Please don’t let me spend the ages here all alone. The darkness does not frighten me, but being alone with no family and no friends is my worst nightmare.”

Suddenly I was able to rouse myself from my half-sleep state and realized I was still very much alive. And I rejoiced and cried again – not bitter tears, but with gratefulness at being alive and given another chance to make my life more meaningful.

So, was this what death is really like – an endless awareness without light or love? Or can death be what we have been promised in scripture – eternity with our loved ones in the presence of Christ and our Heavenly Father? I choose to believe that death is what we make it to be in our earthly state: a place full of joy and happiness, or an endless darkness, tortured by the memories of a meaningless existence full of hate and indifference.

I forgave my brother a long time ago. I know not everything that happened was his fault. I sometimes took advantage of the times I could avenge myself with payback. And his worst offenses against me were influenced by others; and yet, he was responsible for his own actions. Perhaps the memory of those events is what caused him to be the kind of man all those who spoke at his funeral testified of him. We cannot know what is truly in another's heart; whether he confessed and received forgiveness from our Heavenly Father for his offenses is not for me to know. What my prayer is and should be is that he knows that I forgave him and still love him no matter what. My prayer now is that he is greeted by our father and mother and that all is forgiven. I pray that they will teach him what they have learned, that his heart is changed for the better, and that he will be there in the end and we can be a family again with our arms around each other’s shoulders and big smiles on our faces.

Would You Pay to Work? by Cheryl Blackburn

What would you pay to get a job??

There are some jobs you may need to “pay” for before you can work there. Sometimes it’s a training fee. Sometimes you have to buy your uniform. And sometimes it’s a processing fee. Are there any jobs in this world that are worth paying out good money to have?

Before you answer, let’s take a good look at some “hidden” fees or expenses that people don’t usually consider when asked that question.

For instance, say you want to be an attorney. They make lots of money, right? Thousands, hundreds of thousands a year sometimes. So, is it worth the $150,000+ price tag for the education you have to buy to be an attorney – more when you consider $75,000 or more for four years of undergraduate work? (https://www.goodfinancialcents.com/average-cost-law-school-tuition-is-it-worth-becoming-lawyer /) Perhaps. What about all the hours, the years, you have to sacrifice just to get that law degree, and the time away from your family to earn it? Would you consider that an expense? What about the hours…years…spent in class and studying for exams?

Okay, so maybe you don’t want to be an attorney after all. Or a doctor – those years spent in school and the expenses can reach six to ten years and hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on the practice you want to go into.

Instead, you want to be a teacher. That’s a worthwhile profession. First, you need a bachelor’s degree in education. According to US News and World Report (2021; https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/what-you-need-to-know-about-college-tuition-costs) the cost of a teaching degree (BAEd) in the United States, a four-year degree, has increased nearly eighty percent in the last two decades. The average tuition can range from just under $12,000 in a state college for resident students to almost $45,000 in a private college. That’s per year. It takes at least four years to complete a bachelor’s degree and another two years to earn a master’s degree. If you want to specialize in a particular subject or teach at the college level, you can pay nearly double that.

Then there are the licensing fees and required professional development hours each year. In Illinois for instance, a Professional Educator License (PEL) requires 120 hours of professional development (PD) each year. Registration for PD offered by the state averages $10 per hour. Registration for licensure is $10 per year. Over ten years, the average teacher in Illinois pays out 1200 hours in PD and $12,000 or more in fees beyond what they paid to obtain that license in the first place. (https://www.isbe.net/Pages/Professional-Development-for-Educators.asp).

The average pay for classroom teachers in public schools in Illinois is $27,008 per year, or $13 per hour (https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Teacher-Salary--in-Illinois )

Let’s look at a truck driver’s salary. As reported by Indeed, an online job-search site, truck drivers, especially if they are independent, can average more than $180,000 per year. That sounds great until you consider that expenses – truck maintenance, fuel costs, and fees - run around 70% of that gross income. After expenses, the average truck driver makes about $50,000 a year.

Even nurse’s aides, who can receive their certification in less than six months, have to “pay” to work. First, it costs between $600 to $2000 for their training. The exam can average anywhere from $60 to $150 depending on the state. Consider the fact that they have to buy their uniforms and shoes. And like doctors, nurses, teachers, and other professionals, aides must re-up their license every 24 months, again depending on the state, at an average cost of $80 per exam. Other expenses include equipment such as stethoscopes, medical scissors, oxygen (O₂) monitors, etc. Their average pay is about $15 per hour; that comes to around $31,200 before taxes for a full-time schedule.

So, you see, everyone “pays” to work. The average person just doesn’t stop to think about how much money and time they are actually paying out to work for someone else. Once you realize how much your job costs YOU, you may decide that the little bit you get back is not as substantial as you originally thought.

Don’t get me wrong; some of those jobs are worth what you have to put into them if you love what you do and the pay versus expenses isn’t a problem for you. On the other hand, people are paying out a lot in sweat and money to work a job they hate, for a boss they can’t stand, for a salary that barely pays their bills and keeps them away from their family and friends. So, you have to ask yourself, is your job worth it all?

When I was teaching, I convinced myself that what I was doing was well worth the little bit of pay I earned, the hours I had to put in, and the lack of recognition I received. I was teaching children (and later adults). I was broadening minds. I was living from paycheck to paycheck with no savings or retirement plan. But I loved it.

I did. The teaching part, anyway. I still do. But the money and the time spent did not compensate me for everything I put into it for the past thirty years. Not by far.

So, what is the alternative?

I am here to tell you that I have finally found a job – a business of my own - that is worth every effort I put into it and any money I spent to start this career. How much did it cost me? $100. What is the potential income? Virtually unlimited. My earning power depends solely on the effort I put into it. And that requires only the minimum if I so choose. I work the hours I want. I work where I want, whether that be from my home or at the park. And I have an entire company with the best system, the best products, and the best people behind me, supporting me, encouraging me.

What is this wonderful opportunity and where can you find it? It is LegalShield. To describe the benefits and support you receive from the amazing people you work with would take another thirty pages. But I don’t need to. We have a complete system at the ready, with videos that explain the services we provide and the income potential for anyone who wants to join us. We have wonderful success stories from both members who have used our services to successful associates earning income beyond anything they thought possible.

The potential to earn is limited only by what you are willing to put into the business.

This is no fly-by-night pyramid scheme. Don’t say to yourself, “Right. They start you in the business, have you sell their products, and they let you flounder on your own.” Not so. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It’s a company that has been in the same business for over fifty years, ranked the Best Online Legal Services in 2022 by Investopedia and the Best ID Protection by Forbes in May 2022. It’s a family of like-minded, ready-to-help people who, whatever level they have reached in the company, are ready to be there to help and support the newest associate to the highest earner. It’s a company that is constantly rewarding the people that work with them with bonuses, incentives, trips (they’re paying for a trip to Maui next month for more than 500 associates), and much more. Even many of our part-time associates have qualified for the perks this business can earn you.

There are no hidden costs, no yearly fees, and no need to buy any extra equipment, technology, furniture, or business attire,…unless it’s something YOU want. The company does not require anything but that $100 start-up fee to help offset the costs of setting you up with TWO free websites and all the training videos you could possibly need.

Still skeptical? Check it out for yourself. Follow the link below to a short video describing the company and the business. After the video, you can follow a link for even more information, or you can schedule an appointment with an associate who can provide you with more information and answer your questions.

It won’t cost you a thing to look into it. I am positive you will like what you see. 

Prospect information Request Website

Info.businessoverview365.com/130617996

 

 

A conversation with Ed and JoAnna Kromer

A conversation with Ed and JoAnna Kromer, managers in the LegalShield family, is a joy and an inspiration, and that’s putting it mildly. Their enthusiasm for the LegalShield program, both the benefits of being an associate and the membership itself, is contagious.

JoAnna was working as a mobile notary, driving many miles a day for her job, when she was contacted by Christopher Shepard, an Executive Director at LegalShield. She often shares at meetings (known as Meet and Greets) how quickly she decided after watching the initial videos that she wanted to become a part of this wonderful company. She rushed home and convinced her husband Ed to join the company with her. That was on January 24^th of this year (2022).

Within a week, they had advanced to Senior Associates. On day forty-six, they were promoted to Manager status.

“We’re looking to make Senior Manager by the end of May,” Ed said.

But Ed and JoAnna are not just associates of the company. They are customers as well. Each new associate buys into the program by acquiring their own account with both LegalShield and IDShield. And JoAnna has taken advantage of that membership, in a manner of speaking.

When a member of the program needs legal advice, they simply call the number on their phone and can speak to an attorney or have one call back within a few hours. But JoAnna didn’t even need to do that.

Shortly after becoming an associate, she was involved in an accident when a young man ran a yellow light and hit another car that was waiting to make a left-hand turn. That car was in turn pushed into JoAnna’s car which was waiting to make a left-hand turn from the other side of the intersection.

“The insurance company of the person at fault…had started harassing me, wanting me to go to my insurance company, file a claim, and have my insurance company fix my car, pay my deductible, and then they could go after my insurance company (to pay for their client’s car).”

She had just changed insurance companies and was unwilling to file a report with her new company for something that was not her fault.

“The (other) insurance company kept telling me it’s the law, you have to file a claim and give us the claim number, it’s the law.” They even told her she was 60% responsible for the accident, even though her car hadn’t moved until it was forced to.

Soon there were more calls and texts – “three to four times a day” she complained. After several more calls, JoAnna had had enough. During a final conversation, she told the woman on the phone, “I’m not going to call my insurance company, but I have LegalShield, so I am going to call them.”

Finally, she had the caller’s attention. After some hesitation, the woman asked JoAnna to hold on and disappeared for about fifteen minutes. When she came back on the line, her attitude had completely changed.

“She said to me, ‘Ma’am, we are going to fix your car one hundred percent.” JoAnna then explained to the woman that she worked as a Mobile Notary, and she put a lot of miles on her car for her job. She would need a rental car with unlimited miles. “Ma’am, we’ll give you whatever you want.”

Just the mention of having a membership with LegalShield, a highly respected company with over 50 years of experience and dedication to its members, got JoAnna what she deserved, no phone call required!

Both JoAnna and Ed said the best thing about being members of LegalShield is having the confidence and safety that membership provides.

“Many of my family members are contractors in construction, plumbing (etc.). They own their businesses and sometimes have problems getting customers to pay.”

One family member was owed a great deal of money from a customer - $30,000 – they were unable to collect. Doing a great deal of the work, being on the road or a job site most days, there was little time to make the necessary phone calls to continue contact with the people who owed them.

When they complained about it to JoAnna, she would ask, “Have you called LegalShield?” It seems JoAnna and Ed have been quite busy since January, as most of JoAnna’s family has a membership now. After calling LegalShield, that family member was able to collect the money owed. A cousin was able to close a land deal he had been working on for months when he finally called his attorney through the company as well.

They are all now so grateful for their memberships. “It gives them peace of mind, knowing they have that membership to fall back on,” with zero out-of-pocket expense beyond their minimal monthly membership fees. “They can say ‘I finally have power; I finally have a voice.”

Membership, however, is not the only benefit of being a LegalShield Associate. When asked what he liked the most about being an associate, Ed said, “The compensation and the bonuses. (In just four months), we have made $4000 in bonuses and commissions beyond sales.”

This is not your average business with its basket of fruit or a minimal Christmas bonus once a year.

“It wasn’t expected,” Ed continued. “I didn’t realize how much we would be getting, but it’s welcome.”

“We didn’t expect that in the beginning,” added JoAnna. “We thought it would just be like a normal job. But then you tell me there is money on the table we can go for? We don’t leave money on the table.”

Ed continued, “We didn’t realize the amount of money it would be. If we just do this, this, and this, we get extra money for it?”

But beyond the financial benefits, both Ed and JoAnna feel the biggest benefit to being a LegalShield associate is family.

“Friendships and family, extended family,” Ed said. “I can’t wait to meet them all when we go to (the next retreat). They are all so loving and genuinely care about you.”

“I’m a hugger,” he continued. “I feel I could walk up to someone (on the team) and give them a great big hug, and they are going to hug me back. I know we are in business with them, and we should keep it professional, but it goes beyond that (with this group of people).”

Ed and JoAnna have some supportive advice for anyone wanting to become a LegalShield Associate.

“The most important thing,” said JoAnna, (is) your attitude. People in general think, ‘What’s in this for me? What can (this career) do for me?’

“A healthier attitude as far as what we do would be ‘What do I bring to the table?’ What can you do that will make a difference in how others see what we do? Your attitude shows people who you really are when you are trying to bring in new associates (and members); how are you projecting the business as well as yourself?

“This company helps us grow,” JoAnna continued. “I never thought (at my age) I could stretch and grow and learn more, but I was wrong. This company has helped me do just that.”

“We definitely try to be a reflection of the (Success) team,” Ed included. “We try to promote the system.”

The system Ed spoke of is the Success Team training and support system put in place by Mr. Mark Riches, Platinum Executive Director of Success Team, one of the fastest-growing and most successful LegalShield teams. It is a one-of-a-kind training system for new associates that have put the Success Team over the top when it comes to sales and recruits.

“Follow the system,” Ed repeated. “This is what the system is; complete satisfaction.”

What final advice do Ed and JoAnna have for anyone considering becoming an associate for the oldest company of its kind?

“You won’t always have a good day,” JoAnna warned. “But there is always someone available to talk to, get advice from. Don’t think you are alone because you’re not.”

Ed urges new associates to look at those who came before and are succeeding outstandingly.

“When you look at your upline and you see their success, and you’re having a bad week, reflect on those before you and the success they’ve had.”

JoAnna agrees. “You’ll have days when you feel that you’re struggling, only moving inches instead of miles. Look at the others who came before you, look at their success, how they got where they are, and keep moving forward, even if it’s only an inch.”

“Just keep going and don’t quit,” said Ed. “We are the type that anyone can call us, whether they are below or ahead of us in progression, and we will give them advice. And they will do the same for us. Perseverance. That’s what it takes.”

“And if you hear those negative words coming out of your mouth,” JoAnna concludes, “just pull ‘em back in.”

 

For more information on becoming a LegalShield Associate, follow this link:

https://businessoverview365.com/130617996  

 

For more information on the LegalShield and IDShield memberships, follow this link: 

https://www.planoverview365.com/130617996