When today’s fast-paced modern world overwhelms you with anger, fear and doubt, what do you do? Do you tend to focus on what is trivial that make you lose the confidence to make things happen? Or do you stop to center and align yourself with what matters to you?

Pia Nazareno-Acevedo, also known as “Coach Pia”, understands that many today are operating based on feelings of overwhelm. In fact, as a Certified Professional Coach, Gallup Philippines Representative, ASEAN Head of the International Institute for Coaching and Mentoring (IIC&M), and a certified member of the International Coaching Federation with expertise in Family Relationships and Personal Life Transitions, Coach Pia witnesses first-hand the damaging repercussions brought on by stress induced by today’s fast-paced lifestyle, and she talks about it in her third and latest book, Focus on What Matters which will be launched to the public on November 23, 2016.

The book is a practical guide that seeks to empower readers to maximize their time so they can do more, be more and live more through the Clarity Framework, a unique structured model that will simplify and transform how people deal with personal and professional stresses and confusion. Coach Pia is the first Filipino life coach who has developed her own coaching framework.

Through the books, readers are presented with a new paradigm that will allow them to see each life experience from a different perspective, leaving them with a focused lens that helps them perceive life differently and make more time for things that matter to them.

The principles found in Focus on What Matters leverage on the author’s first book, Born to be a Hero which provides concrete ways, tips, motivating stories and skillfully crafted, easy-to-do tools that will make it easier for readers to make a difference in the world.

“Stress is something that we have to live with. We can’t do anything about the increasingly fast lifestyle but we can do something about our response to it. Our response to the stimuli in our environment will make a huge difference to how we cope with the changes. And this is what my new book is all about – determining what is important so we can focus on that instead of being distracted by different things that may seem urgent but in the long-run, we realize, are not worth our time,” Coach Pia said.

Aside from the book, Coach Pia also offers her professional coaching services through her company, The OneCORE which has already helped thousands make better life decisions. Her work in personal development has recently led her to strike a partnership with research and global performance-management consulting company Gallup.

She’s also able to reach out to more individuals and help them make better life decisions on radio and TV through ABS-CBN, GMA, Teleradyo DZMM, TV5 on Relasyon and Metro Radio Plus Hong Kong.

Essilor, the world’s leading ophthalmic optics company, joins everyone around the globe in observing World Sight Day (WSD) by launching a campaign called “Love to See Change,” an online program that encourages everyone to commit to having their eyes checked within the year.

Essilor’s “Love to See Change” invites Essilor employees and the general public to pledge their commitment to have their eyes checked through the website, www.lovetoseechange.com/en/ starting October 13 through the end of 2016. For the first 100,000 users who will make a pledge, the Essilor Group will donate $1 on their behalf in favour of a local initiative that supports healthy vision for those in need.

Every year, Essilor actively participates in WSD initiatives for the promotion of good eyesight through various programs and events held across different countries around the world. In 2015 alone, the company has initiated an astounding 23,284 vision tests in more than 49 countries worldwide. This is in line with Essilor’s mission of improving lives by improving eyesight.

World Sight Day is organized by the World Health Organization and is observed annually every second Thursday of October. It is a part of a global action plan aimed at decreasing needless visual impairment, generating data about the magnitude and causes of visual impairment and encouraging nations to adopt eye health policies.

Be a part of this important global event. It starts with you taking a pledge: get an eye check-up before the end of the year and participate in the “Love to See Change” Campaign.

Learn more about “Love to See Change” at www.lovetoseechange.com/en/. For more information about Essilor Philippines, visit www.essilor.com.ph.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) seized thousands of counterfeit skincare products during a raid at Divisoria malls on August 30, 2016. The total cost of the seized items was estimated at 3.7 million pesos.

The move came following reports of counterfeit items sold both online and in physical retail stores in the country. Around 12,000 fake Cetaphil products sold at Binondo and Paranaque were confiscated by authorities after the brand owner, Galderma, filed a complaint.

“This puts consumer safety at risk, especially for skincare products that may cause allergic reactions and also long-term health risks such as exposure to harmful ingredients often left undisclosed by illegal manufacturers” said Atty. Edmund Jason Baranda, the counsel of Galderma, authorized manufacturer of Cetaphil.

Aside from branded high-fashion bags and products, cosmetics and skincare knockoffs are entering the market, even coming from local sweatshops. Based on research intelligence, fake products are manufactured both in China and locally. Aside from the retail stalls in Divisoria, a facility was also raided in Paranaque for illegally manufacturing Cetaphil products.

“As Cetaphil products are made especially for people with sensitive skin, the counterfeit products may cause skin irritation and flare-ups as they are not made in accordance with Galderma’s specifications. The sale of counterfeit products not only affects the reputation of the brand but also potentially puts consumers’ safety at risk” shares the Atty. Edmund Baranda.

“Product quality and safety are absolutely critical for our customers” he added.

“Galderma is committed to provide only quality products to consumers which is why we adhere to strict manufacturing protocols and quality controls. The safety of the consumers is of foremost importance to us, especially since we provide products that care for the skin. Galderma has open communication lines with its consumers so as soon as we received information about the counterfeit items, we promptly sought the assistance of the authorities for appropriate action” said Atty. Baranda.

The NBI urges consumers to remain more vigilant when buying items, especially from questionable sources. As cheaper price is no longer the sole indicator of knowing if an item is counterfeit and the counterfeit items are made to look almost the same as the original, the public is advised to be wiser consumers and to look for tamper-proof signs in the packaging.

To ensure the product is genuine, a consumer should check the product’s physical characteristics such as odor, color; inspect the packaging and the complete tamper-proof signs such as stickers and other trade-registered marks; and most especially, locate the production or manufacturing and expiry dates. It is also wise to check the product’s packaging and item on the company website, especially if it is a big name brand.

“It all starts with consumer vigilance—if a product is sold at a very cheap price, it must be too good to be true. So arm yourself with the proper information about the product or item you are buying. As we are committed to protect consumers from counterfeit goods, it is also the consumer’s job to protect themselves by not buying knockoff items and reporting cases for proper action” said NBI Intellectual Property Rights Division’s Supervising Agent Rodolfo Ignacio, Jr. who led the raid.