Part of the Go-Getter Girl philosophy behind Expanding your Circle is that you never know when and where you’re going to make a meaningful connection with someone new.  For me last week, it was on a flight back to Atlanta from New York.  My neighbor had asked me to give up my beloved aisle seat to sit next to his wife, and I obliged, a little begrudgingly. Then, the woman in the row ahead of me, Iris, kindly offered to let me sit in the empty aisle seat next to her. Turned out she was from Atlanta, a successful businesswoman… and fellow author, too! We chatted about the publishing world, family, cooking (she wrote a cookbook for young adults titled Mama Says, No More Frozen Pizza), traveling, life in general– and the joys of using the new inflight wireless internet. She even Facebook “friended” me at 30,000 feet. Today, she wrote about our fun flight and the book on her blog, Mama Says. Check it out here!

Moral of the story: try to always keep an open mind. It can make life (and traveling) much more fun.

Modern negotiation scholars advocate  getting away from position-based bargaining  in favor of “interest-based” bargaining- that is, trying to find a ‘win-win’ situation by looking at what each party’s interests are. However, as I write in the GGGG, there are some situations in life where interest-based negotiation simply isn’t practical or the norm. One of those is the classic market haggling situation.

Case in point, we were just in Hong Kong, where there’s a pretty standard convention for how the market vendors bargain. First, you ARE expected to haggle. The vendors almost won’t respect you if you don’t. Second, the process is almost completely position-based. She offers a price, by typing the amount in the calculator and showing it to you. You say no, no, no– and type in another price on the calculator and show it back. This goes back and forth, you eventually threaten to and then begin to walk away.  Then the vendor comes down on price, typing a lower price into the calculator. You might ask if she’ll throw in something else (a smidgen of “expanding the pie”/interest-based bargaining here) for the quoted price.  You either come to an agreement or not– and move on to the next vendor, who more or less carries the exact same items!

The reason for the calculator is partly because there is a language barrier– English vs. Cantonese in our case. One savvy merchant at the Jade Market on Kowloon had these printed up cards in English, and she laid down one (in succession, the first card is at top) each time we punched a too low number into the calculator.  We thought this is was ingenious and had to laugh. Who knows if she meant to amuse us, or maybe, that was part of her strategy. Bottom line, she was a seriously shrewd, no-budging position-based bargainer. At her stall, we definitely overpaid for our “jade” tchotchkes– but the experience and photos were it worth it  :)

Sometimes, you can’t judge a book by its cover, but in the case of Farahad Zama’s The Marriage Bureau for Rich People, the richly-designed jacket is the perfect embodiment of the delightful story inside. This is the captivating, but understated, story of Mr. Ali, a restless retired government worker who, when his wife becomes fed-up with his meddling in her daily household duties, decides to open a marriage bureau. Add in Mr. Ali’s government-protesting son; the bureau’s assistant Aruna, whose quiet demeanor shields her wise and frustrated soul; and a colorful mix of clients, neighbors, and relatives– and you have a rich kaleidoscope of plots and subplots on the importance of making the “right match.” It is the kind of book that should be read on a summer afternoon,  relaxing on a porch or terrace, as a warm breeze coaxes your transport to modern-day India. 

Peppered with insights on a country still working through complicated issues of class, politics, and religion, the book will feed your appetite for something more substantive than summer fluff.  But at the core, it is a charming romance novel you won’t want to put down.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RG8vBTjzaNc]In the remake of The Thomas Crown Affair,  Rene Russo’s character, Catherine Banning — a high-class bounty hunter for stolen art– is shown in a few scenes drinking a special green juice.  It’s unclear what exactly was in the mysterious, gloppy concoction (her character swears by its curative properties for jet lag). But with her dark Jackie O sunglasses or, as in the scene here, perfectly mussed bed head, the gorgeous Russo makes downing the liquid greens– as one Go-Getter Girl friend of mine has observed– look impossibly glamorous!

Have your own morning boost, and channel your inner Catherine Banning (minus the whole art-thief-on-the-lam ending of course!), by mixing up a glass of green veggie juice. There are a few different brands on the market, but I like Amazing Grass Green SuperFood, available at Whole Foods, which has a slightly sweet, nutty taste and smooth texture. Take a one of the individual packages, and pour about half of the powder into a large glass, then fill with water and stir. Packed with ingredients like organic wheat grass, spirulina, spinach, alfalfa, and broccoli, it gives you concentrated dose of nutrients and vitamins. Particularly energizing before a workout or an early morning flight.

I know, it doesn’t look quite as glam as Russo’s drink– but you can use your imagination!

In Costa Rica, the sun rises early– and it makes you want to get up and go. At the hotel near San Jose, people were trotting away on the treadmill before 5:30 a.m, and the gorgeous natural surroundings on our weekend trip to the coast (shown left) inspired sunrise walks and jogs on the sand, beachside yoga, and morning swims.  Ah, pura vida, as the saying goes in Costa Rica.

Back stateside, working out in the a.m. can be more of a challenge.  Sometimes it’s just so hard to get out of bed! But, if morning workouts are your thing, it’s a great way to jump start your day– and metabolism.  Go-Getter Girl Bonnie Fuller, the former editorial director of American Media and also a mother of four, shared for the book that she currently works out five to six days a week– always in the morning, to “get it out of the way” lest a work crisis mess up her plans later in the day.

Thinking of taking your workouts morningside? Try these tips shared by GGGs*:

1. Make it a routine. There’s a theory that it takes 21 days to form a new habit– so make a commitment to working out in the a.m. for at least three weeks straight.
2. Try a morning boot camp. Whether it’s an “army-style” or yoga/pilates boot camp, having an appointment each morning will help motivate you– and also assist with making a.m. workouts a routine.
3. Make sure to eat something. Not a huge breakfast– just a carb/protien-rich mini-breakfast for some energy. Think wheat toast with natural peanut-butter, a small nutrition bar, etc.

*Of course, I’m not a physician, so check with your doctor before starting any new fitness program.