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Serving People
Since 1992!
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Quotes of
the Month
I
think holidays create so much pressure because people feel they should
be having a good time. But you shouldn't.. -- Craig
Ferguson
You
know, if the U.S. Government wanted to boost the economy, there's a
simple solution: make Black Friday the refund date for your federal
and state taxes. -- Stanley Victor
Paskavich
The
best and most beautiful things cannot be touched or even seen--they
can only be felt in the heart. -- Helen Keller
New
Year's Day is everybody's birth-day! --Charles
Lamb
Sharing
the holidays with other people, and feeling that you're giving of
yourself, gets you past the commercialism
--Caroline
Kennedy
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This
year, Hanukkah and Thanksgiving fall on the same day--a rare event,
indeed! The next time this happens will be in more than 500 years!
20-40%
of yearly sales for small and mid-size retailers take place during
November and December.--National Retail Federation
40%
of shoppers begin their holiday shopping before Halloween.-- National
Retail Fed.
55%
of consumers plan to visit stores on Black Friday or Cyber Monday
--Accenture
Holiday
sales are expected to increase by up to 11% this year.-- Experian
The
National Retail Federation expects holiday sales to increase by just
3.9% this year.
Nearly
half of shoppers plan to buy holiday gifts online this year--Google
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Persons of
the Month:
Toronto
Mayor
Rob Ford
and
Florida U.S.
Rep.
Trey Radel
A
contrasting tale of two politicians has played out recently in the
media. Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has finally admitted to crack cocaine
use and drunken binges. His other bizarre behaviors have also been on
full display and made him and the city of Toronto a laughing
stock.
Mayor
Ford reminds me of Charlie Sheen: he appears to be in deep denial
about his substance issues and how this and his other bizarre
behaviors are affecting others. Full of hubris and narcissism, he has
lashed out at others and refused to even take a leave of absence to
get help. As a matter of fact, he's recently suggested he might run
for Prime Minister!
Contrast
Rob Ford's case with that of Florida U.S. Rep Trey Radel who recently
was caught in a sting trying to buy cocaine from an undercover
officer. Whatever you think of his politics or his sincerity, he had
the common sense to own up to his problem, apologize, get into
treatment, and even offered to donate his salary to a charity while
he's gone. Interestingly, members of his own party are asking him to
resign immediately.
Cases
like these provoke laugher and amazement but they are also sad--for
the person and those they affect. Politicians are human, of course,
but I believe that holding office means they should be held to a
higher standard than the average Joe.
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Book of the Month:
Talk with Your Kids:
Conversations about
Ethics.... (2012)
by
Michael Parker
I'll
be giving a talk locally on February 18th at the Annual Michigan
Fathers Conference. I'm still finalizing a title. It's either going to
be "Cultivating Honesty and Integrity in Kids in an Ethically
Challenged World" or "Raising Kids in a World of Liars,
Cheats and Thieves."
This
little book is a gem. Written by a British author, it is applicable to
all cultures. Full of stories and examples of ethical dilemmas for
kids and adults, it also includes scripts and tips for communicating
with your child about ethics, honesty, rules, and morals.
This
book is both fun to read and very insightful in its analysis of why
its hard to always do the right thing and why its important for
parents to adopt the best and right approach in response.
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Film
of the Month:
Nebraska
(Starring
Bruce Dern and Wil Forte)
My
wife and I recently saw a free preview screening of this small,
low-budget, black and white film by Director Alexander Payne
("Sideways," "About Schmidt," and "The
Descendants") and found it to be both very funny and
very touching.
Actor
Bruce Dern won a Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor as 80ish
Woody Grant--an old fart and alcoholic who believes he's won $1
million and has to travel from Montana to Nebraska--his boyhood
home--to claim his prize. He and his son embark on a road trip that
leads to some very interesting situations and revelations.
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END-OF-YEAR
THERAPY TUNE-UPS and SPECIALLY PRICED COUNSELING PACKAGES AVAILABLE
NOW!
NEW
2-MONTH PHONE GROUP THERAPY SESSIONS FROM DECEMBER 2013 - JANUARY
2014.
DONATE TO C.A.S.A., LLC FOR
2103 TAX DEDUCTION!
CONTACT US NOW at 248-358-8508!
Dear
Friends,
Looking
to make a meaningful tax-deductible gift? Please consider writing a
check to C.A.S.A., LLC (Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous).
Since
starting the first nationwide C.A.S.A. support group in
metro-Detroit in 1992, we have seen this group expand both in
metro-Detroit as well as across the U.S. We also have online and
phone support groups, too!
Nearly
10% of Americans shoplift, approximately 75% of Americans engage in
employee theft, and many more engage in other forms of
addictive-compulsive stealing.
People
need various resources to confront and deal with their problems with
stealing. The holiday season is a particularly difficult time for
many.
In
2009, I registered a non-profit wing--C.A.S.A., LLC--of my company
The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending and Hoarding. I
have received occasional requests to donate over the last three
years and this is the first time I'm actually putting it out there
myself.
If
you are interesting in donating any amount of money, I will provide
a receipt that can be used on your tax return. Donations to
C.A.S.A., LLC help me better serve various individuals in the
following ways:
1.
Mailing of information, meeting lists, and my books (notably:
"Something for Nothing: Shoplifting Addiction and
Recovery" and "Biting The Hand That Feeds: The Employee
Theft Epidemic") to indigent persons and/or those currently
incarcerated;
2.
Making phone calls and visits to jails, prisons, or mental health
institutions to educate about addictive-compulsive stealing and
treatment/recovery options;
3.
Assisting individuals nationwide in starting C.A.S.A. support
groups;
4.
Offering reduced-fee or free counseling services to those who cannot
afford it;
5.
Offering court-evaluations for those who cannot afford it;
6.
Offering free public talks on addictive-compulsive stealing and
treatment/recovery options; and
7.
Offsetting fees I pay to my website designer to update various
C.A.S.A. support group listings and other info online. See: www.kleptomaniacsanonymous.org
So,
we encourage you to donate to this cause, especially if our work,
books, or any C.A.S.A. support group has helped you or someone you
know in any way.
Pay
it forward and help someone else. We can only keep what we give
away.
Donations
may be made payable to "Terrence Shulman/C.A.S.A., LLC"
and mailed to PO Box 250008 Franklin, MI 48025 U.S.A.
Thank
you for your consideration!
The
Shulman Center on the move and in the news...
December 5, 2013--Mr. Shulman will be
co-presenting on hoarding disorder to the AAA-1B Agency on the Aging
in Southfield, MI.
December
5, 2013--Mr. Shulman will be presenting on hoarding disorder
at the West Bloomfield Library in West Bloomfield, MI.
February
8, 2014--Mr. Shulman will be presenting on teaching kids
honesty and integrity at the Annual Michigan Father's Conference in
Pontiac, MI
February
11, 2014--Mr. Shulman will be co-presenting on hoarding
disorder to the AAA-1B Agency on the Aging in Southfield, MI.
February
18, 2014--Mr. Shulman will be presenting on hoarding disorder
at The Community House in Birmingham, MI.
March
1, 2014--Mr. Shulman will present at The Betty Ford Treatment
Center in Rancho Mirage, CA on compulsive theft, spending and hoarding.
May
14, 2014 --Mr. Shulman will be presenting
on hoarding disorder to the Oakland County (Michigan) Employee
Wellness Program.
July
14-16, 2014--Mr. Shulman to present on process addictions at
the 13th Annual Leadership in Faith Conference in Chicago.
September
16, 2014--Mr. Shulman to present on compulsive stealing,
spending & hoarding at the Thelma McMillen monthly professional
medical lecture series in Torrance, CA.
NOTE:
If you're a therapist, please consider contacting us to enroll in
our brief, affordable local or virtual training to become more
proficient at assessing and treating compulsive stealing, spending
and/or hoarding disorders. See Training
A
recent testimonial from November 2013:
"Thanks
Terry for providing a supportive educational environment that helped
my understand and learn more about kleptomania and shoplifting
addictions. I look forward to using the tools, resources, and
treatment approaches with my clients. This training has helped me
gain a better understanding and provided everything I need to treat
individuals diagnosed with this disorder."
Melissa
Oliver, MA, NCC
Pittsburgh, PA
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Financial Literacy and Compulsive Shopping
on Internet Radio
"Matters Of The Mind" Wed Nov. 27,
2013 @ 8p ET
As
we head into the holiday season, Dr. Peter Sacco and Todd Miller
chat with Maya Corbic from Dinarii Financial Academy, about the
services they offer to teach kids and teens healthy money skills by
giving them the tools to thrive financially instead of floundering.
Dinarii offers on site workshops at various locations.
We also talk with Terry Shulman of The Shulman Center,
about compulsive spending and overshopping which only seems to
get worse around the major holidays. Terry has been a guest on
Oprah, Ricki Lake, Nightline, The Today Show and many more, and is
considered to be an expert on compulsive behaviours such as
overspending, hoarding, kleptomania and employee theft. He and his
team work both in person and via Skype. See below link for tonight's
broadcast:
http://talk-radio.ca/2013/11/26/financial-literacy-and-compulsive-shopping-on-matters-of-the-mind-wed-8p-et/
HOLIDAY SEASON IS BEST OF TIMES, WORST OF TIMES AS
SHOPPING, SHOPLIFTING & EMPLOYEE THEFT INCREASE
Are
you one of those people who love the holiday season or hate it? Or a
little of both? A combination of difficult memories, stressful
family gatherings, the winter blahs, and pressures to buy, spend,
shop and "be cheery" take a toll on many of us. Research
shows that addictive behaviors and relapses increase during the
period between November and January. Eating, drinking, drugging, and
gambling all escalate.
But
three other pitfalls which are less seriously noted also reach
epidemic proportions during the Holiday Season: compulsive
shopping/spending, shoplifting, and employee theft. Of course,
they also occur each and every day. At their core, as with all addictions,
are misguided beliefs around happiness, satisfaction, abundance and
fairness. I ought to know. I've been in recovery from shoplifting
and employee theft behavior since 1990 and have counseled hundreds
of clients over the last 10 years engaged in these behaviors and
other clients who were "shopaholics."
Kohl's
store recently announced it will open at 8 p.m. Thanksgiving-- the
department store chain's earliest Black Friday kick-off ever--and
will stay open for 28 hours continuously! Not to be outdone, Macy's
announced it, too, would open at 8pm Thanksgiving eve. As will J.C.
Penny.
About
10% of Americans suffer from compulsive buying disorder. You don't
have listen to Oprah, Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman to know there's a
problem in our midst. Even our nation is $17 trillion in debt.
It's well-known that early 50% of marriages end in divorce but it's
less known that conflicts around money and spending are the leading
contributing factor. The average American carries nearly $10,000
worth of credit card debt-most of it due to shopping-related or
non-essential purchases.
Shoplifting-compulsive
shopping's "secret" cousin-has outpaced the technological
advances of security systems and the trend of harsher penalties in
courts. Nearly 90% of Americans have shoplifted at least once
and about 10% shoplift regularly resulting in over $13 Billion
dollars in annual losses to retailers. Who's doing all the stealing?
Not just plain criminals but anyone and everyone. The typical
shoplifter is not impoverished, drug-addicted, or a professional
thief.
Employee
theft is even more pervasive. According to the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce, 75% of employees steal from their work place and most do
so repeatedly. The FBI calls employee theft "the fastest
growing crime in America, costing U.S. retailers $37 Billion in
losses per year. "Time theft"-loss of productivity due to
talking on cell phones, surfing the Net, long breaks, and falsified
timecards-costs U.S. companies around $500 Billion annually.
With
the Holidays upon us, our spiritual center may either wobble or
expand to fully appreciate the joys and true gifts our holidays may
bring: a time of wonder, thanksgiving, appreciation, love, miracles,
celebration, generosity, rebirth and renewal.While we all like to
get something for nothing-a bargain, a discount, a freebie, a
"real steal"-most people who resort to stealing or
compulsive shopping are actually "crying for help." There
is something amiss, wrong, unresolved.
So
how do you want your Holidays to go? What is the key to embracing
the miracles? You are the gift. I am the gift. We are the gift. No
amount of money or things-whether bought or stolen-can truly bring
us peace. Give, but don't overdo it. If you do have problems with
rewarding yourself-or others-in a pure and sound manner, give
yourself the gift of asking for help. This may be your best Holiday
yet!
6 TIPS TO REDUCE EMPLOYEE THEFT
BY
JENNIFER GOFORTH GREGORY | November 21, 2013 at
www.entrepreneur.com
Storeowners
don't want to think their employees will steal from their store. But
every day merchants discover that their trusted staff members have
done exactly that. According to a retail theft survey conducted by
Jack L. Hayes International, a loss prevention consulting firm, one
out of every 40 employees was apprehended for theft by their
employer in 2012. The survey also found that on average, employees
steal 5.5 times more than shoplifters on a per-case average ($715.24
vs $129.12).
Thankfully,
there are ways to surround yourself with staff you can trust. Here
are six tips from our experts:
1. Weed out bad apples. Run a background screening and a drug test
on all potential hires. Employees with drug addictions are at higher
risk for stealing to support their habit. "I believe that past
behavior is a good predictor of future behavior," says King
Rogers, chief executive officer of the King Rogers Group, a loss
prevention and security management consulting company. "If
someone has been convicted of theft in the past, then you don't want
them handling your money."
2. Use the buddy system. Often theft happens when one employee is
alone in the store or at the register. Doyle recommends having two
employees work for both opening and closing to limit opportunity.
Always have refunds and voids witnessed by a second employee or a
manager as well, says Mark Doyle, president of Jack L. Hayes
International. Rotate the employees paired together and avoid having
close friends witness transactions for each other.
3. Keep a virtual eye on employees. People will be less likely to
steal if they know that you are always watching. A video
surveillance system helps deter employees as well as catch theft
after it happens. Be sure to include cameras in storage rooms and
loading areas as well as in the store. Use high-definition video so
you can clearly identify employees and transactions along with
allowing integration with facial recognition software. Another way
to keep an eye on your employees is to use an exception-based
reporting system at your point of sale, says Doyle. He says that the
systems will flag possible fraudulent transactions, such as
excessive refunds or voids, and excessive refunds or voids outside
of store hours. Review video daily and POS several times a week to
determine if there are any issues that you need to look into
further. Limit the access to your surveillance systems to as few
people as possible to avoid tampering.
4.
Monitor trash removal. Employees often steal merchandise by
concealing it in the outgoing trash and then retrieving it later
from the outside trashcan or dumpster. "It's trash. No one
wants to deal with trash, so dishonest employees will often take
advantage of this opportunity," says Doyle. He recommends
putting controls in place to reduce the opportunities, such as using
clear garbage bags, requiring all boxes to be flattened and locking
all dumpsters.
5. Have an
employee tip line. Set up a confidential way for employees to
communicate their co-workers' suspicious behavior and offer a reward
for staff members who provide information to prevent thefts. You
could set up an email address for tips as well as a locked-box for
tips in the break room. "If people know that their fellow
co-workers are watching out for theft, they will think twice before
stealing because there are higher odds they will be caught,"
says Terrence
Shulman, founder of the The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft,
Spending & Hoarding and author of Biting the Hand that Feeds:
The Employee Theft Epidemic (Infinity Publishing, 2005).
6. Get to know your employees. It's much easier to steal from
someone you don't know very well, but it is much harder to steal
from someone with whom you have a relationship. Shulman recommends
connecting with your employees and being aware if they are going
through financial difficulties or experiencing high levels of
stress, which can increase the impulse to steal. "You might be
able to give them extra work, point them in the direction of a local
food bank or help them connect with charitable services in the community,"
says Shulman. "A happy employee is a more honest employee. It
really does help reduce employee theft when your staff feels that
you care."
See: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/229816#ixzz2lo8iGW0
Spotlight: "In Recovery" Magazine
There's
a wonderful relatively new quarterly recovery magazine I want to let
you know about. It's called "In Recovery." Founded 2 years
ago by Kim Welsh, a recovering person herself, in Prescott,
Arizona--home to many treatment centers and half-way houses, this magazine
has something for everyone. I visited Kim in October 2013 and was
honored to be invited to write a regular column about
process/behavioral addictions--starting Spring 2014.
The
magazine is available in hard copy as well as online at:
3rd Millenium STOPLifting Online Education
Course!
3rd
Millenium Classrooms out of San Antonio, TX has been offering
high-quality online education courses for alcohol, marijuana and
shoplifting issues for many years now. I've been honored to help
them fine-tune and update their shoplifting course which many are
court-ordered to complete after an arrest.
3rd Millennium Classroom's STOPLifting is an online intervention
course designed to assist shoplifters in examining and altering
their attitudes and behaviors towards shoplifting. The course
incorporates evidential examples and related follow-up questions to
discover the student's motives behind shoplifting, reveal possible
patterns in his or her behaviors, and identify potential triggers
and ways to cope. Through STOPLifting's unique motivational interviewing
style, students are encouraged to evaluate the personal consequences
of shoplifting and how they affect the individual, his or her family
and those around him or her. See: www.3rdmiclassrooms.com
CLUTTER-HOARDING
CLEAN-UP NATIONWIDE SERVICES
See: http://www.clutterhoardingcleanup.com/
Honesty
is its own reward.--Anonymous
Walk
in peace.
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The Shulman
Center Events Calendar ...
Ongoing
...
The
Baton Rouge, Louisiana court system has a court-ordered, facilitated
educational program for retail fraud offenders. The program is
based on material from Mr. Shulman's book Something for
Nothing: Shoplifting Addiction and Recovery.
Mr.
Shulman created a 1-hour employee theft online course with360
Training. Learn why people steal from their jobs, how to deter
it, prevent it, and what to do when confronted with it. Enroll at: http://theshulmancenter.360training.com
Mr.
Shulman created an online continuing education course on
compulsive shopping and spending called Bought Out and
$pent! based on his book and Power Point presentation. The
course, CEs offered, through The American Psychotherapy
Association. at: http://www.americanpsychotherapy.com
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THE
SHULMAN CENTER THERAPIST TRAINING PROGRAM!
If
you're a therapist and wish to be trained & certified
in the
assessment/treatment of compulsive theft, spending and/or
hoarding, CONTACT THE SHULMAN CENTER NOW! See:
3rd
MILLENIUM STOPLifing ONLINE EDUCATION COURSE!
3rd
Millenium Classrooms out of San Antonio, TX has been offering
high-quality online education courses for alcohol, marijuana and
shoplifting issues for many years now. I've been honored to help
them fine-tune and update their shoplifting course which many are
court-ordered to complete after an arrest. Please check out their
courses on their website at:
IN
RECOVERY MAGAZINE CELEBRATES 2-Year Anniversary!
There's
a wonderful relatively new quarterly recovery magazine I want to let
you know about. It's called "In Recovery." Founded 2 years
ago by Kim Welsh, a recovering person herself, in Prescott,
Arizona--home to many treatment centers and half-way houses, this
magazine has something for everyone. I visited Kim in October 2013
and was honored to be invited to write a regular column about
process/behavioral addictions--starting Spring 2014.
The
magazine is available in hard copy as well as online at:
GET
A BOOST with MONEY LIFE-COACHING!
Tom
Lietaert of Sacred Odyssey and the Intimacy with Money programs
offers individual money coaching as well as various group
workshops on money. Check out Tom's two websites at:
www.sacredodyssey.com /
www.intimacywithmoney.com
CONSULTING
AND EDUCATION ON FRAUD
Gary Zeune of Columbus, Ohio has
been a friend and colleague of mine for nearly two years. He has
been a consultant and teacher on fraud discovery and prevention for
nearly 30 years. He is interviewed in my book Cluttered
Lives, Empty Souls: Compulsive Theft, Spending & Hoarding. I
recently saw Gary in action recently when he presented an all-day on
fraud to metro-Detroit accountants. See: www.theprosandthecons.com
RECOVERING
SHOPAHOLIC BLOG AND EDUCATION
Debbie
Roes is an educator and recovering shopaholic and offers a free
insightful blog and e-Newsletter to help you. See:
THE
FLY LADY ASSISTS WITH CLEANING & DECLUTTERING
I
recently was told about a website resource that lists strategies for
cleaning and de-cluttering and sells various books and products that
help with this; so, I'm passing it along... See:
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Mr.
Shulman's books
available
for purchase now!
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Contact The Shulman Center:
Terrence
Daryl Shulman, JD,
LMSW, ACSW, CAADC, CPC
Founder/Director,
The Shulman Center for
Compulsive Theft, Spending & Hoarding
E-mail: terrenceshulman@theshulmancenter.com
Call (248)
358-8508 for a free
consultation!
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