INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Your mother may try to control your life, who you spend time with, where you go, or how you do things. She may try to get her way with everything, and show her complete dissatisfaction when you go against her wishes. If you want to make your own decisions without the backlash of your mother, be resolute. When making a choice, don't allow her opinions to seep in.   If you're purchasing an item, say, “This suits my needs and it is what I need.” If you're doing something she thinks should be done differently, say, “I will do it this way, which works well for me.” Remember that just as much as you make mistakes, your mother does, too. When she is quick to criticize your boyfriend, living arrangements, or parenting skills, it's okay to admit that you are doing your best and that you will likely make mistakes. If she points out a mistake, it's okay to own up to it. “Yes, Mom, I did make a mistake. The important part is that I learned from it.” A succinct comment can put an end to the topic.   When your mom says something critical, respond with, “Thank you for your input, Mom. I'm doing my best to handle it.” You may want to have a discussion about her criticism if it really bothers you. “I don't know if you're aware of this, but I feel criticized by you often. I really want a relationship with you, but it is hard for me when it feels like you want to criticize the way I live my life.” Remind yourself that being a parent is hard work, and that nobody chooses to suffer from symptoms of anxiety. Regardless, it can be annoying and frustrating to be the object of your mother's anxiety. Remind yourself not to blame your mother for her anxiety; it's not pleasant to experience anxiety.  Talk to your mother and let her know how you feel. You can say, “I don't like it when you worry so much about me. It makes me feel like you don't trust me.” If you think your mother may suffer from an anxiety disorder, gently bring this to her attention in an effort to seek help. “Mom, I notice you spend a lot of time worrying. I want you to know what it feels like to fully enjoy your life, and I think that going to therapy can help you with that.” As a young child, you had no choice but to follow your parent's demands. but as you mature, you gain more and more control if you allow yourself to have control. Your mother may not want you to have more control, but ask yourself, “Am I in control of my life or is my mother in control?” It's unlikely you can end your mother's control while still pleasing her.   Changing the way you interact may mean that she becomes upset that she is no longer controlling you the way she would like to.   It's up to you to allow her the same interference and control or to adjust it.  If you are annoyed that your mother calls you multiple times each day, make the choice whether to pick up the phone or not. If it makes you unhappy to talk to her that often, make the choice not to pick up and know that while your actions may upset it, it's okay to have control of your own life. Consider saying, “Mom, I want to be a responsible and productive adult, and I'd like to do it on my own. I'd really like your support as I mature to be independent.”

SUMMARY: Refute her attempts to control your decisions. Ignore her criticism. Deal with her anxiety. Handle her over protectiveness.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Since this is a workplace activity, everything has to be approved by management. Before signing up contestants or starting any competitions, approach your boss and explain the idea. Make sure they give you permission to run the contest at work.  Having management on your side can also help advertise and fund the competition. Don’t hide any details from your boss. Explain the competition and all the activities you’ll be doing. This will avoid any potential problems as the contest goes on. If your boss doesn’t approve, you can still design a competition that takes place outside of work. Just make sure no activities happen at your workplace to avoid violating any rules. Some company health insurance plans include special stipends for health programs at work. Your HR rep should know the details of any plans like this, if they exist. After getting the boss’s permission to run the contest, ask HR if there are any extra funds or incentives in the company health plan to help. The company health plan may even offer some money to fund the contest or the prize money. Ask your HR rep if there is a provision like this in the company health plan. Most competitions like this offer prizes for the top losers. An easy way to fund these prizes is for each contestant to pay a small contribution as a sign-up fee. This contribution then goes into the prize fund. Make the contribution level something small that everyone can afford, like $10 or $20. Collect these fees at the start of the competition.  Some competitions offer prizes for weekly winners, and some offer a lump prize for the final winner. Decide if you want to do weekly prizes, a large final prize, or both. If someone can’t pay the entry fee, don’t block them from participating. They can still take part in the competition and activities. Just make them ineligible for the prize money. You could also ask the company to match the amount of money you raise for the final prize. If you make this request, have a good pitch ready. Explain how this will improve the health and synergy at the company, and that funding will make the competition even better. This time limit sets a good pace for contestant weight loss. It gives them enough time to get started on a new weight-loss regimen and drop pounds at a healthy speed. It also discourages quick crash dieting, which is unhealthy and unsustainable.  Healthy, sustainable weight loss goals are about 2 pounds (0.91 kg) per week. Encourage your contestants to meet this goal for a healthy weight loss pace.  Starting the contest around January is a good time because many people make weight-loss resolutions for New Year's. There are 2 main measurements that weight-loss competitions use. The first is overall weight loss, which is just the total pounds (kg) that a person lost. The second measures the percentage of bodyweight lost. Both are important for weight loss, so consider counting both measures in determining winners.  For instance, Michael may weigh 200 pounds (91 kg) and John may weigh 300 pounds (140 kg). At the end of the competition, Michael lost 20 pounds (9.1 kg), or 10% of his bodyweight, and John lost 25 pounds (11 kg), or 8%. John won in overall weight loss, but Michael won in percentage lost. Consider offering 2 prizes, 1 for most overall weight lost and 1 for highest percentage. With the organization and permissions in place, now start spreading the word and getting people interested. Hang flyers, send emails, and talk to your coworkers to get everyone excited about the contest. As people sign up, record their names and collect their contest fee for the prize fund.  Remember to set a start date for the competition so everyone knows when to start their weight-loss programs. Make email lists or social media groups for contestants to stay in contact and updated. Make any announcements about the competition on this platform. Never pressure anyone to sign up for this contest. People may be self-conscious about their weight, and you could create a hostile work environment by pressuring people. Some biggest loser challenges make teams, and the winners are decided by which team lost the most weight together. For an added layer of teamwork, consider making this a team activity. Take all your contestants and organize them into teams for the competition.  The best way to decide on teams is randomly placing people in their assigned team. This avoids arguments and accusations of favoritism for the contest. You can use the old-fashioned method of pulling names out of a bucket, or use software to randomly assign contestants to a team. Be aware that team weight-loss challenges could lead to resentments if one team member isn’t working as hard as the others. If you know your workplace has a lot of people who aren’t good sports, an individual challenge may be better.

SUMMARY:
Obtain permission from supervisors and bosses. Ask HR to make this competition part of the company wellness program. Determine contribution levels if you’re offering a monetary prize. Set the competition to last 2-3 months. Consider counting percentage of bodyweight lost rather than just pounds. Sign up contestants. Organize teams if you’re doing a collaborative weight loss challenge.