Helping others, Helping yourself

I mentioned before in my posts about my daughter who is facing some serious eating issues. She is intolerant to gluten, lactose and dairy products. Although she has tested negative for any known disorders, her health continues to concern our family. Recently, her doctor suggested she try an elimination diet to determine the foods that are really causing her the most problems.

I am proud she has taken this step and hope she will discover what is causing her stomach issues. As part of the diet she has decided to blog about the experience. Her blog "galvanizedintoaction" is a daily accounting of her struggles to maintain an ordinary life while experiencing an elimination diet. Take a few minutes to read her blog. Hopefully this diet will help her and maybe even help others who might be experiencing similar eating/health issues.

Did I mention she is a senior in college majoring in Interactive Design, a catcher on the softball team and holds two jobs?

Here's a great idea for those poor, starving college students!

For all the college students out there, Valued Opinions, is looking for you. They are a legitimate survey company with a great reputation. You will not be spammed by them. They are owned by Research Now, a respected research organization used by well known companies to get your opinions. Many of their surveys are the kind of information a college student would know. They have numerous surveys on movies, movie going habits and such. Valued Opinions will send you survey invitations if one of their clients needs the views of someone who might live on the East Coast or has specific interests like going to the movies in their free time.

They also survey people on their electronic preferences, shopping habits, dvds and other items. The most important thing to do is to respond to their invitations in a timely manner. Once you start answering their surveys you will be invited to answer others that can be more profitable. They reward you based on a $20.00 system that entitles you to receive gift certificates like Visa Debit cards, Amazon.com cards, Blockbuster, Macy's cards, some book stores and other vendors . Most of the surveys are worth between $2 and $5. When you sign up you will be asked what your preferred reward is, just indicate that and when you reach the $20.00 goal they will use a pop up to let you know that you can redeem it.  Remember it may take up to 28 days to get the credit to your account after completing a survey. The reward is clearly stated at the beginning of the survey in the invitation. Most of the surveys will take you about 20 minutes to complete.

If you have any concerns about your personal data being shared don't worry. The business is based on two valuable concepts, trust and quality. They will never contact you to market something only to ask you your opinions for research purposes. If you only sign up for one survey company make it Valued Opinions! Plus, as a new joiner you will be automatically entered into the sweepstake contest to win an IPod touch.