Always Be Better

Hello, and welcome back to "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham. Today, I'm breaking away from my planned schedule to talk about an upcoming change with YouTube ads. Next week they will start showing ads on more videos, which may even include some of mine, and I will have no control over this. Check this out ... From an email I received in November and again this past week, YouTube announces the following change: YouTube has the right to monetize all content on the platform and ads may appear on videos from channels not in the YouTube Partner Program. So, let's talk about this and discuss what we can do about it. Up to now, I've had little problems with YouTube ads. It's what makes YouTube possible. Without the ads, there would be no way for me to post my videos for free.  Through the YouTube Partner Program, the creators can also share in the ad revenue. They can choose which videos have ads, how many ads to show, what kind of ads, whether or not there are ads...

Hello, and welcome to "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham. Today we're going to talk about depression -- probably the hardest topic for me to discuss this year. I definitely don't have all the answers, but we can certainly try our best, and try to figure this out together. I think we all suffer to some degree. In my case, I have a small to moderate amount of depression. On the whole, I have what one may call an annoyingly bright vision of humanity and of our potential. I'm told by many people, "You must be the happiest man on the planet." But every now and then I get hit by something and then I can't get anything done. I don't want to talk to anyone, and I just want to play video games or do puzzles. One of my favorite comedians growing up was Robin Williams. He played some of the funniest characters and with so much energy, and I've always wondered how anyone could maintain such talent. But then we learn that he had terrible depression. So ...

Hello and welcome to "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham. Today we're going to look into two different kinds of debt and discuss ways of getting on top. Are you ready? First is financial debt. If we have a lot, then interest is going to work against us. Imagine a $100 loan at an annual rate of 15%. If we pay nothing, then after 10 years, interest upon interest upon interest will grow our debt into almost $450. Check out this graph: Yeah ... we end up paying for the same thing more than four times over, and that's not a good deal.  Also, imagine -- if we could turn this around such that our debt becomes savings, then the bank, or investments, would pay us instead of us paying them. Now, we want to pay off our debts as fast as we can so we can enjoy more freedom and choices with our money. So, how do we do this? Step 1 -- make sure that our monthly expenses are less than our income. This may be difficult, but it's imperative to our success. It's all about survi...

What does taking a shower, driving a car, and mowing the grass have in common? We're about to find out here on "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham. So, you want to see something cool? Come over this way and I'll show you.  [Mel walks to piano.] Okay, I'm going to demonstrate something -- oh, I almost forgot. [Mel's son appears from nowhere playing video games. He looks confused.] [Then Mel reappears wearing a tux.] Hey. This is better. So, now I want you to watch my right hand. Here goes nothing. [Mel plays the beginning of Chopin Etude #5 -- his right hand fingers are moving like crazy.] Okay. Did you catch that? My right hand was moving faster than I can think. How is that possible? Some people call it muscle memory, but really, it's the brain. I'm training my brain to memorize these movements. Instead of thinking one note at a time, I am simply telling my brain, "Execute Chopin Number Five." And it goes. You want to see how this works? We...

Hello, and welcome to "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham. Today I'm going to talk about religion. All around the world, religion brings a lot of comfort to a lot of people. It can also cause a lot of grief, so many will ask, "Do we really need religion?" I am, myself, a strong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So, I definitely know what it's like to believe in a religion. Several of my viewers share this same religion. A larger chunk believe in other different brands of Christianity. Yet others are Muslim, and some are Asians with religions I've yet to understand. And there are even a large chunk who don't have a religion -- most of whom are agnostic, but also a few atheists. So why bring up religion at all? Can we skip all this talk while ignoring religion? I don't think so. Religions exist, and they play a large role in many people's lives. Being a better person means getting along with others, and learning about ...