Mohit Tater's Blog, page 679

For the Mind Wanderers: Concentration Building Tips

The world inside your head is always more interesting than the one in front of you. But isn’t it frustrating that just when you sit down and decide to start studying with your most sincere intentions, your mind starts cooking up stories and you are virtually flown off to the distant lands of pointless thoughts.

Let us discuss some concentration building tips which would help you to focus on your task rather than your thoughts.

To begin with, it is important for you to examine your environment and look for disturbances. You have to create an environment which is calm and productive. Stay away from TVs, laptops and mobile phones- these distract you and destroy you! And if you have noisy neighbours, you could study in a nearby library.

Distraction will not allow your attention and retention powers to study at the most conducive levels. So it is important for you to separate out from the crowd and sit in a relaxing environment.

Some people have this habit of listening to music while they are with their books.

YOU.ARE.NOT.SUPPOSED.TO.DO.THAT.

There are studies which prove that listening to music can improve your concentration power and help you remember more. But the common mistake each one of us makes is that we choose the wrong kind of music, we end up listening to songs that set our feet tapping. Not more than two of your senses should be activated at the same time. So try listening to classical instrumental music. It has a soothing effect on your mind.

The next thing that you have to make sure is that you haven’t placed your study table in front of a window. Sitting right in front of the window would make you keep looking outside which is obviously a much brighter and better world.

Have a plan. Instead of a general goal, have targets to be achieved on daily basis. Decide what you have to finish during the day and then further divide the hours. Be specific and have a schedule with deadlines. The human brain tends to recognize specified targets instead of random thoughts.

Choose a mixture of subjects and prefer starting with the subject or topic you dislike or find difficult. This way you would be done with the difficult ones right in the beginning, reliving you of the major stress.

Don’t study for long hours. Try not to sit for more than 1 hour at a stretch. Have recreation breaks in between. Short breaks refresh your mind.

The last things I would want to mention is that drink lots of water and keep your body hydrated. Also get a 6-7 hour sleep at night so that you wake up fresh in the morning. And prefer taking a bath as soon as you wake up; that will definitely freshen you up.

Don’t worry. Stay happy and focused.

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Importance of Cloud Platform For Training Purposes

Cloud computing environment is one of the easiest ways to help people share the database and applications throughout the globe. It is one such hassle free system where people can access the required information from any corner of the world. For e-learning, cloud training is highly preferred these days. Communication, sending and receiving information through cloud environment is extremely easy and seamless at the same time.

Be like a training coordinator for any IT firm or any other business enterprises, most of the training providers have to plan a lot before they conduct training. It has been seen many times that training needs to be conducted across the globe, where different time zones prevail at the same time. Also there are hassles regarding onsite training providing sessions. The platform of cloud training eliminates your worries as it connects the employers and employees, the teachers and the students with the help of web. The environment is extremely user-friendly as it is cost effective with a simple user interface. With no expenses related to installation, maintenance, buying or installing, cloud based platform is considered to be one of the effective training platforms.

Providing cloud training is also easy as it does not require anything apart from a PC with internet connection. Students and instructors share the common web browser from where they can access information as per their needs. There is no complexity of software installation which is difficult to understand. Be it any IT firm or a financial based organization; everybody prefers cloud based e-learning methods for training purposes. The instructors and the students share the common medium of database to access and exchange information. Thus students can also access the course content later if they somehow miss the classes. Even if the students and the teachers are geographically dispersed, cloud training platform helps the students to reach their goals.

The best thing about cloud training environment is the flexibility and the speed at which students and teachers can access information with the help of web. Without buying any software of server, the best thing about cloud is that one can store large volumes of data with the ability to filter spammed content. With no cost for travel and accommodation, companies prefer to provide cloud training that run smoothly. Most of the employees are finding this medium of training quite convenient when compared to other traditional training methods. The students can access the course content any time they want as per their convenience. The feature of 24/7 accessibility of information is one of the best features of cloud training environment. Even if somebody is late by some minutes, he or she can access to the information as per their needs. The flexibility and the mobility to execute the training program is smooth when it comes to cloud computing program. It has been seen that most of the companies these days prefer online cloud training platform to reach out their employees located across the globe.

So it can be said, the low cost of the setting up cloud, the ability of connect people across the globe, the feature of 24/7 accessibility of data and information and the flexibility of the platform makes it a quite popular medium for training.

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Challenging the Norm: Top Ten Signs It’s Time to Start Your Own Business

Venturing on your own professionally can be a daunting, but at the same time, rewarding experience. There are few people who decide to take the plunge and leave the comfort of a 9 to 5 job in order to pursue their own ambitions and even less those who actually succeed at creating a thriving, lucrative business.

While there are many advantages that go along with starting your own company, such as flexible working hours, financial freedom and a higher social status, there are also a great deal of risks and sacrifices you need to consider before making such a move and often times it is those uncertainties that deter people from doing it in the first place.

Here are the top ten signs that will tell you if you have what it takes to go down this path or if you are better off with someone else calling the shots.

1.    You’re a leader first and a team player second

If you often find yourself taking charge of all group tasks and coming up with a unified vision for the projects you are working on, then you are most definitely a natural-born leader and you probably don’t belong in your current setting.

This, however, translates into a lot more than just flexing your muscles and showing who’s in charge. You need to be an excellent communicator in order to get your ideas across and have a unique skill for bringing the best out of people.

A true leader is able to identify the core strengths of his/her employees and position them in the right department, making it easy for them to reach their full potential.

You have to give them room to grow, be open to their suggestions and let them know that they can turn to you when they are facing a difficult situation at work.

2.    You’re not afraid to take risks

According to recent statistics, about half of all the new small businesses manage to go past the five-year life span and only 1/3 of them actually survive past ten years.

In face of such negative figures, it’s no wonder so many people feel safer staying in a regular job and take comfort in the idea that every month they have a steady paycheck coming their way.

However, if you are one of those people who care more about independence than financial security and have a nagging desire to bring your idea to fruition even if that means you won’t have as many financial resources for a while, then that qualifies you as a risk-taker and you might just have the right material to be venturing on your own.

3.    You know the best way to achieve anything is through trial and error

Often times when we’re in a corporate environment, we’re taught that things must be done in a certain way, with very little room for changing or trying out a different approach. This leaves many people feeling stuck in a repetitive type of job, with no space to set out creative goals for themselves or try unique methods.

If you are one of those unique people who enjoy experimenting and believe that in order to be successful, you have to try out as many different approaches as possible, than perhaps starting your own business might be the right call for you, as it will give you plenty of testing ground in order to expand upon your ideas.

4.    You no longer see yourself in someone else’s organizational culture

As an employee working in a private company or even a national institute, you have to adhere to a certain organizational culture. In order to fit in, you have to be in tune with all the values, beliefs and regulations inside that organization. Sometimes this can turn you into a different person altogether and make you lose your sense of identity.

If you find yourself in a total state of disconnect from your current company, no longer relating to their environment, but you envision what it would mean to create your own organizational culture down to the very last detail, then it might be time to start packing your bags and putting your own flag somewhere.

5.    The idea of having a boss completely and utterly frustrates you

If you hate answering in front of a supervisor and having someone else decide your schedule and what your daily tasks should be, then being an employee probably isn’t for you.

Have you been working in a company for five straight years and hating every breathing minute of it? Then it might be time for a drastic change. Be very careful, though, when it comes to distinguishing between “hating the boss” and “hating the idea of a boss.”  You might not be so fond of your supervisor’s personality or managerial style, but be perfectly content with working for someone else.

If this is the case, then you might want to find a new job and not necessarily start your own company. You need to consider the fact that there are situations where you might be perfectly qualified for a certain industry, but find it nearly impossible to create your own business in that niche.

The banking industry is the perfect example for this. If you are currently working in a banking institution and you’re completely unhappy with your supervisor, but still want to work in that domain, then the next best thing is to try and find another job in that field and make sure it will be the right fit for you.

However, if you do decide to go for a different bank, you will need to do your homework well and find out everything there is to know about their job application process, their working environment and the values they try to instill in their employees.

Make sure to accurately assess your preferences in this regard before you start going on your own and decide that you’re really not cut out for it and that you don’t particularly enjoy calling all the shots and having all the responsibility on your shoulders.

6.    You want to leave your mark in the world through something that is truly yours.

Do you find your current job unrewarding and feel you are not given the chance to show your full potential? Perhaps you’ve obtained some great results for your employer and managed to increase their profit by 20%, but then you went home and started wondering where you fit into that equation.

Knowing you’ve set out an objective and then going out and achieving it is an incredibly satisfying feeling, but it’s always more satisfying when you do it for yourself rather than for somebody else. If you identify yourself with this scenario, then launching your own start-up might be the right solution for you.

Make sure to do it for the right reasons, though. If you are not truly invested in the idea and you are simply doing it for the money or the status, then you will reach neither of those. Passion is the key to obtaining any kind of success and if your heart and mind are not fully committed to this process, then you might as well stay in your current job.

7.    You have a marketable idea that you can’t stop thinking about.

Most entrepreneurs have this burning desire to solve a problem. Sometimes it’s an unconventional approach, other times it’s something extremely simple that no one has ever thought of before. Once they’ve identified a solution, they spend every waking minute figuring out how to bring it in front of people and how to turn it into a profitable, win-win solution for both parties.

Being a business owner means you’ve identified a niche where you can contribute and do it successfully, without having to worry that your company will go under the next day. If your business idea pursues you throughout your day, from the moment you wake up to the minute you fall asleep, that means you’re truly passionate about your project and are one step closer to venturing on your own.

8.    You’ve developed a solid business plan.

Even though you have a promising idea, that doesn’t mean you are ready to launch your start-up tomorrow morning. In order to maximize your chances of becoming successful, you need to develop a solid business plan, detailing all the major elements you will need to incorporate in order for your company to become operational.

This means identifying a physical or virtual location, figuring out the resources and equipment you’re going to need along the way, the licenses and permits required by law, the financial costs associated with all of this, along with a clear image of how you are going to make your business profitable.

9.    You’re not afraid to surround yourself with people who are smarter than you

All of this may sound incredibly overwhelming and in reality there are very few people who can figure out all of these things on their own. A true entrepreneur does not think he holds all the answers and isn’t afraid to partner up with smart people in order to get his/her idea across.

10.    You’re not reluctant to put in the extra hours.

Last but certainly not least, you have to be prepared to work harder than anyone else. The first few years of your business are vital for determining if it’s going to survive or not. This requires making an awful lot of decisions, researching and planning until the wee hours of the morning and then repeating this process 24/7/365.

If you are not ready to bun the midnight oil in order to achieve this kind of professional acclaim, that means you need to take a minute and reassess your decision to quit your job until you are mentally prepared to take this kind of initiative.

Overall, becoming an entrepreneur can be a challenging and thrilling experience and one that needs to be given a serious amount of consideration before attempting anything in this direction. Nevertheless, if you completely identify yourself with all the points mentioned above and you’ve got an undying passion for your project, then it’s safe to say you possess all the right material to venture on this journey and all that’s left to say is: good luck and shoot for the stars!

Image source: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8

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9 Tips on How to Launch a Successful Startup in 2016

Do you know how many US adults become entrepreneurs only in the last year? The Kauffman index shows that:

Over half a million adults (0.31% of the adult population in America) started a new business in 2015.

If this is the statistics of one country, imagine the number of young entrepreneurs around the globe. This trend is expected to take even more pace through 2016. You must be thinking that if you wanted to be yet another entrepreneur out there, what will make you tick in the ocean of startups.

The point to ponder here is that not only great and unique products/services will differentiate you in this burst of fierce competition, but the path you took in order to make your business surface, survive and thrive also matters a lot.

That’s what has compelled me to come up with these few significant entrepreneurial tips that will help you improve your odds of success in 2016.

1. Learn to embrace risks positively

Once you launch your startup, one of the best things to help it succeed is to develop a risk appetite. You will encounter risks on every step of the process – from the idea phase up till the execution phase.

In order to succeed, you need to learn how to tackle these risks positively and convert them into opportunities. These opportunities can benefit you beyond imagination only if you know how to capitalize on them.

Someone wise once said:

The riskier the path gets, higher are the chances of success.

Here lies the cliché, although risks get you to success, but they also make you susceptible failure. You need to learn when to take these risks and when to just let go.

2. Bring continuous innovation in your business

Be creative, not once but always! Don’t think that your task is over once you launch your business or startup. Your journey just begins here.

Bring in new ideas in your business on timely manner, or your consumers will start moving over to your competitors.

Think of crazy, but relevant ideas, formulate business plans accordingly, and execute them. Consider different perspectives regarding your plans, take criticism positively and imply that optimistically to the devised plans.

Don’t just follow the trend, observe the catalysts behind change.

Use your research and study, imply the results on your business and be ready for breakthroughs.

3. Resort aggressively to your social network

Many entrepreneurs avoid utilizing their personal network for their business promotions. They are in denial somehow, much to their own dismay. In fact, the best place to start advertising of your newly launched business is your personal social networks.

Your social networks can provide you with appraisal & boost.

Don’t be afraid of reaching out to people. There may be hundreds of connections right there for you to tap on; for instance, family, friends, friends of friends, community etc,.

Spend time with people who are already doing what you are planning to do. Observe how they deal with success and how they take criticism and failures. Always find positive aura, even through hostile situations you come across.

4. Plan the whole route with set standards & policies and then expect the best outcome

Set your standards and follow them no matter what. It is necessary in order to attain a high level of personal and professional satisfaction.

What you do must be what you desire in a way you plan.

Right from the start of your business, build your own set of policies and methodologies, so as not to deviate from the path while striving to achieve the goal. Once you have established the route, the rest is easy execution.

Moreover, stay positive about the outcome. The positive vibe will drive you harder to attain your objectives. It’s a psychological game, but once you learn it, it turns out to be a great influence on your profession.

5. Lookout for mentors

Accept help when offered. It is nothing but a myth among entrepreneurial community that one has to be a lone wolf. The truth, however, is quite contrary.

Swallow your pride. Be bold, reach out to people and accept what they offer.

Around the globe, there is an online community of mentors who can guide you through every phase of your business.

In addition, there exist separate institutions to serve the purpose. They are not only there to help the young entrepreneurs, but some of them are investors too, looking out for potential opportunities.

Find the right people.

By reaching out to such people, you kill two birds one stone.

6. Ready, steady and hustle

The term ‘hustler’ associates with negativity, but it is a significant trait in the business world.

Be a self-starter, be your own motivation.

Never look for a green signal from others. Get equipped with a groomed idea and do what you have been planning for so long.

Motivate yourself every morning to make it big. Hustle to get things done so as to achieve the end goal and succeed.

7. Take your mistakes positively by learning from them rather than feeling abashed

Mistakes can happen. Learn from them. Your failure in achieving one goal is not the end of the world. Re-work on your path. Improve the way you do it.

Make your mistakes your driving power.

Sometimes your risk-taking attitude ends up in failure. Start over.

Consistency is one other trait of a successful entrepreneur. If you fail once, take another route to achieve your goal. Keep changing paths until you reach your final destination.

8. Make startup your everything

Make your business your lifeline. In the start, don’t strain yourself trying to balance work-life and personal life, things will turn all your way once you achieve your goal. If you want to make it big, put in 100 percent of your efforts.

Consequently, you will see the results.

You reap what you sow.

You will be paid off for your investments. It can be frustrating sometimes and you might feel like giving up. Be consistent and overcome the hurdles that come your way. Only doing this, you would be able to pave your way from a startup to a successful business.

9. Lookout for self-improvement options

Improve your skills and expand your competencies. Find a secondary skill that will enhance your expertise, look for professional courses, trainings and workshops.

Focus on self-improvement. Introduce yourself with new business aptitudes.

Never miss an opportunity for networking even in this scenario. Socialize in the session you attend or classes you take. Build networks and interlink with the industry specialists.

 Conclusion

If you are planning to launch your business this year, thoroughly review the above tips. These will help you stand up on your feet. It all melts down to be a learner, a risk taker, a hustler, and your own boss. Research well about your community and take help whenever you could. Also learn from your mistake and never back down until you achieve what you have aimed for.

Author Bio

Specialized in ecommerce consultation, Khawar Zaman is cofounder of Technorian, a UK based startup offering Magento and WooCommerce support services. They also offer dedicated developers to other businesses.

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The Secret Behind Google’s Success: Case study on Google Business Model Based on Business Model Canvas

Have you ever wondered about the secret behind Google’s huge success? Let me tell you what it is. It’s all about business model. In this article I will walk you through Google’s business model and its patterns that made google not only an amazing company but an industry influencer that’s difficult to compete with.

Google aside, all successful startups have one thing in common: A decent business model.

By business model, I don’t mean a lengthy document with many pages and financial forecasts. In fact, the era of using old school business modeling is over. The new approach towards startup’s business plan which is based on the amazing business model canvas make business planning for startups easy and efficient.

In fact, One important element in Google’s business model that differentiates Google from other enterprises is the fact that Google is using the Multi-sided platform business model pattern. By providing a free platform for web surfers to search the internet, Google gain access to invaluable data about almost everyone.

Since Google, like every other platform, need to generate money their business model focuses on Advertisement. When you look at Google’s services and offering such as Gmail, Google Docs, Google Search, you can find a dedicated spot for advertisement.

The question is how could Google attract so many visitors and sell that many advertisement places?

This questions brings us to reviewing Google’s Business Model. Many people seem to believe that advertisement is the main focus of Google’s business, however, advertisement is not the only revenue stream of Google and its parent company, Alphabet.

In fact, the main factor that differentiates Google’s business model from other advertisement platforms is the insights and analysis of people’s online behavior. That data contributes greatly to Google’s value proposition.

What’s Google’s Value proposition:

Google’s business model is empowered by three Value Propositions. Although Google has different value proposition for its users, they all literally follow one single philosophy: providing very targeted advertising globally.

Value Proposition #1: Google for Webmasters.

The first group that Google targets is webmasters. Google’s value Proposition to those who have a website is about enabling them to monetize their content and earn money from content.

Google also provides services like Blogger.com, a free blogging platform to widen its reach to the content owners who don’t want to have a registered domain name or a separate website.

The company also helps bloggers and online content publishers to earn money through a very interesting content monetization service known as “AdSense”. AdSense allows content publishers to show google Ads on their site and earn money

Once content publishers apply for AdSense and receive their approved account, the arrangement will be as if you are a Google partner. Google will share certain percentages of the revenue made from your website. This way Google’s business model is not limited to showing ads on its search result pages. 

Value Proposition #2: Google for Advertisers.

Advertisers are business owners or individuals who want to reach out to customers faster, and indeed they are willing to pay for it.

Unlike Bing and Yahoo that could not capture the advertisement market as good as the Big G, Google is still being the world’s largest network for online advertisement.

According to the latest trend, these days Google is facing a big competition against Facebook and Instagram. Although achieving high revenue by Google is inevitable, the company’s business model and its value proposition to advertiser segment relies on quality and high quantity visitors it can attract.

To achieve that, Google had introduced a service called AdWords that encourages startups, small businesses, enterprises and individuals to advertise online and promote their services using Google ads.

Since advertisers are very concern about their ads price and return of investment (ROI), Google provide them with an option to optimize their online advertisement campaign and refine it based on a few important options such as: search volume, keywords, demographic, location, etc.!

Specific targeting features provided in Google AdWords helps to increase the chance of user engagement. This way Google’s business model ensures advertisers that only ads relevant to the search term are displayed.

Ultimately, Google Ads are regularly shown on search engine results as well as the other networks such as content publisher’s web sites that earn from AdSense service.

Google’s business model: Revenue stream?

As a multi-sided platform, Google designed its business model to have 1 revenue stream. In other words, the business model is about making money from 1 segment “Advertisers”. It’s obvious that the more ads it displays to web surfers; the more money google earns from advertisers.

Google’s business has a strong differentiation factor that put the company in a supreme position. Advertisers cannot buy advertising space from Google and they have to go through a bidding process set by AdWords.

AdWords looks into the popularity of the keywords and the narrowness level of the target audience, and then proposes a biding price per advertisement impression, cost per installation, cost per click, etc.!

The pricing mechanism is fairly simple: Keywords with Higher search volume and popularity has higher price.

On the contrary, Google’s revenue from AdWords enables the company to focus on continuous improvement of free offerings such as search engine, Gmail, and AdSense which motivates even more content owners to become AdSense partners and help google succeed in online business.

Author Bio:

Ehsan Jahandarpour is a globally recognized startup coach and inventor of the “Launch your startup in a heartbeat” framework. Ehsan has raised the bar by helping companies like Microsoft, PETRONAS, and many startups to take their business model, business operation and promotion strategy to a different level. Ehsan shares his strategies, and proven startup frameworks in his blog https://jahandarpour.com. Follow him on Twitter @jahandarpour or linkedin.

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Avoid the Bad and Embrace the Good: What You Need to Know About Debt

Debt is inevitable in business. Some forms of debt are bad whereas others are good for your bottom line. There are even some billionaire mogul business strategies that rely solely on leveraging debt and transferring it from one asset to another. When it’s not managed, debt can cripple a business, so understanding your company’s debt structure positions your organization for expansion, profit and success.

Identify Debt With Good Accounting

You cannot deal with your debt if you cannot find it. The cost of debt can be elusive. While loans are relatively straight forward because your business received a chunk of money and is now paying it back, separating out the principle from the interest is more complicated. And calculating how much money the original cash influx made for you is even more complex.

To truly understand your debt structure, you need a powerful online accounting program, such as Sage One, that keeps your bookkeeping up to date. With Sage One you can create financial statements and see an overview of your business that will be your first and foremost driving document in debt management.

Measure Your Company’s Health With Ratios

There are a dozens of financial ratios that are used to compare a company to industry standards and to indicate the health of the organization. The current ratio is the total assets divided by the total liabilities. This tells you whether or not you have enough assets to cover your overall debt. Anything less than one is a problem. The quick ratio is similar, but it only uses cash and short-term assets to cover the liabilities.

Use ratios to establish your debt structure and overall financial health. If your ratios are good, do not fix what is not broken.

Separate Good Debt From Bad Debt

The ratios should help you identify bad debt situations. Bad debt is anything that does not yield more income than its rate to pay it back. For example, a $100,000 loan at 10 percent annual interest needs to generate at least $10,000 per year to break even.

Once the debt is incurred, the basic rule is to bring the terms down as much as possible. Just like personal credit, you want to switch out high-rate loans and cards with low-rate options.

Manage Your Revenue and Expenses

There are only two columns on an income statement. On one side is revenue and on the other is expenses. To minimize your bad debt, you need to have greater revenue than expenses. It is common for businesses to cut expenses and then stop. Strategically cutting expenses is a good start; however, more importantly, increasing revenue may mean expanding your product lines or entering new markets. According to Entrepreneur magazine, your existing fan base can help you increase your revenue, which in turn increases your fan base.

Be Vigilant

Most business owners are aware before they get into large capital debt. They discuss it in meetings and with family and friends. However, it is the small debt that can get you into trouble. A business line of credit here and a credit card there slowly add up. Create a quality assurance policy for your financial procedures that includes rules for debt acquisition. This prevents unwelcome surprises at the end of your fiscal year.

You must be careful when it comes to debt in your business. While not all debt is bad, you need to make sure that you can make more revenue than your debt is costing you. Understanding and monitoring your business’ finances is the key to successfully managing your debt.

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How Cybercrime Affects Businesses

Every day, the internet grows a little bigger. Every day, new numbers emerge in cybercrime, a trend that is sweeping the entire world. There are millions of great things to do with the internet. But with the good, as always, there is bad. Anyone who has a connection to the internet is exposed to the criminals lurking in the darker corners of the web. There are very common crimes on the internet that we all know about, such as spam, identity theft, pornography of an illegal nature, cyber bullying, DDoS attacks and so much more. This kind of attack isn’t only aimed at high-value targets either. It affects anyone with a connection to the internet and a device to browse it on.

Are you a helpless victim when a criminal attacks you over the internet? Definitely not! There are actually many different things a person can do to fight back against an attack when it is occurring, and to prevent such attacks from ever happening. Not a tech savvy person? Don’t worry. You don’t have to know all there is to know about computers in order to get away from a cybercriminal. All you need is the right set of simple, effective tactics and you have the capacity to defend and counterattack until the criminals have been scared off. If you want to find out more about how to do this, and the risks of letting cybercrime run rampant, check out this epic infographic below. Good luck out there.

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Business Trips: How to Plan and Execute your Next Adventure

When it comes to business trips, planning is an essential ingredient for success. Between preparing adequately, choosing the right mode of transportation and utilizing time as best as possible, it can be difficult to make sure everything is covered. Fortunately, there are a few easy tips to remember to make the most out of your next business trip. With a little bit of planning, anyone can make the most of their next business venture.

Getting Prepared

The most important step in planning a business trip is to be prepared. Once the plane has taken off, it’s quite difficult to make sure the dog is fed. In other words, there are certain, obvious elements that need to be taken care of first. People, plants, and pets must all be considered, as these things die if left in an unhealthy state. Other than that, paperwork, documents, payments, scheduling and any other critical social matters must be attended to. The penalty for forgetting these things can be quite steep, so it’s best to handle these quickly.

Taking Flight

The process of traveling means that there’s going to be some transitional points, and transitional points are dangerous. Whenever we are going from one place to another, we expose ourselves to various risks. What do we do if we lose our belongings? What happens if we get sick? What happens if we are lost? These questions should be addressed before it’s too late to address them.

Aside from that, matters of travel are also exceptionally important. There are certain necessities, like being with a trusted airline service, but there are also highly recommended conveniences. Everyone wants to be on a comfortable flight with lots of space, large seats and a huge menu to choose from, but people often don’t take the time to research their flight to that extent. Some companies even have standard and special menus available. Taking a little bit of extra time can dramatically improve the quality of the flight, and this is true for baggage, seating, airport amenities and other small beneficial aspects of travel that can vary from place to place.

Once the basics have been covered, all that is left is to execute the business plan. It should go without saying that while it can be enticing to be in a foreign place with lots of fun things to do, it is more important to put work first. The absolute most critical step in a successful business trip is prioritizing business and getting ahead of the work. It is almost always better to have more free time than less, but most people on business tend to plan for the opposite. Always remember that on a business trip, the number one rule is to prioritize doing business well. Once that’s taken care of, free time can be truly free, and the trip doesn’t ever have to feel the least bit stressful.

 

Bio: Rachelle Wilber is a freelance writer living in the San Diego, California area. She graduated from San Diego State University with her Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Media Studies. She tries to find an interest in all topics and themes, which prompts her writing. When she isn’t on her porch writing in the sun, you can find her shopping, at the beach, or at the gym. Rachelle recommends WayToFly   for more information on flights. Follow her on Twitter and Facebook: @RachelleWilber; https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009221637700

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10 Tips For Being Successful In Every Aspect of Life

We are complicated creatures in a complicated world. So let’s try to keep things simple: only a person who has managed to achieve a little bit of something in each of the fundamental areas of life can be called successful. The areas are four – in terms of personality, relationships, financial stability and health. It’s no coincidence that personality comes first – it is the most important aspect of our being. All the other goodness of a human life stems from this endless source.

Everything starts there, but then goes far beyond. So here we offer you a few pieces of advice that could help you become someone who brings joy to themselves as well as the people around them.

Personality

It matters. The reason for this is that you carry it with yourself everywhere you go. You might be a true professional at work but you still go home and do chores, you still interact with people outside of the work place. So if you do not like the person you are, you will be dissatisfied with yourself for at least a few hours a day. And we don’t want this, do we?

So here are three tips for you to consider:

Respect the school cleaner

This is a metaphor. What we mean is that you should respect every single human being out there. Sometimes the school cleaner cleans the toilets way better than the teacher teaches a lesson. Perhaps, the cleaner actually does what he/she likes or perhaps this is the best he/she can do, given all the conditions. We should respect people for that. Because if we ever come to talk to the school cleaner, we will soon see that she/he is just as much a person as we are.

Such an open attitude could do wonders to the way we see the world and interact with others.

Read books

Different kinds of books, we should add. Do not just get obsessed with books about self-help or how to become rich, or what are the best techniques you can use at work. Read a wide range of books; find some that can make you a better person.

Try fiction, literature has a long history and people have been writing for centuries, so you will certainly find at least one style to fit your taste. The more stories you read, the more you expand your consciousness and the more empathetic you become. Books open up your mind to new perspectives and this can make you much more flexible in our modern world.   

See yourself with the eyes of others

We are more than our intentions. Actions and results have a huge role in determining who we really are. This is why we should learn to evaluate our choices and behavior not only from a subjective, but also from an objective point of view.

We will give you a simple example. You go jogging in the park, you have almost broken your record as you are so close to reaching 5 miles, but you are so exhausted that you cannot see anything around you. A man is lying on the grass nearby but you never really take a closer look because right now it’s all about your record. But it turns out that the man has just had a heart attack and he needs help. It’s a wonderful aim – setting your bests and beating them. But try to see yourself from an external point of view as well. Are you an ambitious man, or are you a careless animal, blind for the suffering of others?

Being truly aware of yourself is of great importance. Eventually, you might find yourself raising some questions about the credibility of your thoughts and actions; perhaps, this could help you change certain aspects of your personality and become a better person.

Relationships

You cannot live without people. And it can’t be all partying and fun, sometimes things can get slightly more serious. It’s important to realize that no other human being is obliged to be an active part of your life. So in order to be happy, you should find the people who understand you and share your interests. And you should know how to keep them.

Now, three tips are certainly not enough to cover such a broad topic. We don’t really aim to be complete here. We just think that everyone should remember the advice mentioned below.

Avoid talking to people while you are mad at them

It’s impossible to always agree with everyone around you. You might have a better idea for a presentation, you might dislike the way your boss is treating you, or you might find the behavior of your beloved one disrespectful and ugly.

Sometimes disagreement grows into a strong negative emotion and that’s when instincts take over. Be more than your instincts. Tell the other person that you would rather discuss the issue later. Sit quietly for a while or walk out of the room. Give yourself enough time to consider the situation, decide what your final opinion is and find the right words to express it.

You want the other person to understand you, of course. But you don’t have to hurt them along the way. 

Don’t judge – understand

A wonderful quote from Scott Fitzgerald is always applicable: “Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone, just remember that all the people in the world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had”. As much as our lives are about us, we live with people who need understanding just as much as we do. Empathy is hard-wired in our brains; we wouldn’t have survived as a species otherwise.

A simple fact is that there is a reason behind everything that we do and everything that we are. And this applies to every human being. We should try to be less detached from others and see through their behavior. The reasons for a certain action are just as important as the action itself.

We shouldn’t give up on our ability to relate to others and accept them as they are. We could even help them change, but do so by using positive rather than negative methods. Do not tell them what they can’t do. Instead, show them how they could do things differently.

Be kind

‘Not caring about people, it’s the new trend’ – phrases like this are so empty it’s difficult to understand how someone could possibly be led by them.

A smile, a simple help with the door or the shopping trolley should be enough to make almost anyone feel better. It doesn’t take much effort but it could change the whole day of the other person – in fact, yours, too.

And when it comes to the people you care about, kindness saves whole relationships. The fact that we make so many mistakes and misunderstand each other on such a large scale shows better than anything else just how much we need kindness in our lives. Write your grandma a letter, buy your grandpa a new knife, sit down and tell your child a story. If there is something you like about the person next to you, tell them. If you enjoy someone’s company, show them. It doesn’t have to be that difficult.

Financial stability

It’s a fact that we live in a world, marked by the impersonal ruling of money. There is nothing we could achieve without having financial stability. Even if we ditch to the woods and live away from our civilization for the rest of our lives, we still need to start somewhere. And getting there is usually dependable on money as much as living in a flat that belongs to a skyscraper at the centre of New York.

Here are three tips to consider in that aspect as well:

Make a plan

‘If you don’t make your own life plan, chances are you will fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you – not much’. When we say that, we don’t mean that you should make a definite plan and follow it so strictly that you forget everything else.

We simply mean that you should have an idea about what you want to do with your life. And then you should act accordingly and set aims that satisfy it. Study the things you like, take the right courses, read additional literature, do voluntary work to get experience if you can’t find anyone to hire you. Otherwise, you might end up as a 40-year-old man with a mid-life crisis and a bitter taste of disappointment. 

Interviews and proper courses

There are hundreds of tips for being a respectable interviewee; read some of them. Practice handshakes with friends, imagine possible situations, and answer imaginary questions in front of the mirror. As much as interviewers try to be objective, first opinion matters and they usually need less than a minute to form it.

Something else – there are many courses you could take in order to feel completely ready to work at a certain position. Whether you have graduated from university, or not, it could still be a great thing to mention in your CV. Such courses usually give you a chance to practice and even if you already know the things they offer to teach you, they still make you see things more clearly. So many courses can be done online for free nowadays that it’s a shame there are people who ignore them.

Chose something you would do with passion

It’s true that the financial aspect should always be considered when we make a choice. But it shouldn’t end there. If you go to work and do your job every day just so you don’t get fired, it’s a red flag telling you it’s time for a change. You will only work for slightly over 1/3 of your life (of course, that’s in case the retirement age stops growing already). Enjoy that time.

You might earn $20 less a week, but if that’s the price you should pay for going to work with that vibe of excitement, so be it. You will take a year longer to buy that house, but you won’t be getting home exhausted every evening. You would be getting home joyful and energetic, you would be feeling alive.

Health

Just one piece of advice here: seek the balance. This is the only way to be wholesome and to feel wholesome. Find the balance between healthy and unhealthy food, healthy and unhealthy habits. Try to live somewhere in between what’s empirical and what is slightly above. Turn sport and art into an active part of your life, but don’t just give up on everything else. Find the balance between giving and taking and reduce the extremes. Unless you’re into skydiving, of course – that’s the only extreme worth taking.

Let us know if you agree with us. Have we missed something crucial? Your opinion matters so feel free to share it with us.

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5 Tips and Tricks to Improve Staff Performance in 2016

While we’re still embracing the first few months of 2016, it may seem like it’s too early to review the success of our business for the year. Whether it’s March or September, taking a step back and looking at your businesses performance is always useful. Why wait until the end of the year to review your business, when making small changes now could help influence the year as a whole. Read our advice on changes you could make to help improve your business:

Team Building

Team building is probably one of the simplest and easiest ways to improve staff morale and bring your employees together. This can be done low or high scale, and budgets can depend on how far you want to stretch. Think paintballing, or bowling to get the team’s competitive side out, or, if you’re really wanting to push the boat out, there are plenty of retreats and weekends away that focus on bringing teams together.

       2. Training Courses

This is a ‘win-win’ – not only will your employees feel like you’re thinking about them, but you will also receive the reassurance that your staff are better trained. Training courses can be tailored to work to schedules that fit around your employees. Whether you want to send them on a one or two-day intensive course, or you’re wanting something more specific – make sure you take a look at what’s around to get the best course for everyone in your team. Take a look at what’s online, places like Global Knowledge Network have courses that are aimed at bringing your IT costs down, which will again, benefit both sides.

Bonus Incentives

It may seem like an obvious way to improve your staff performance as a whole by looking into bonus incentives, but the thing that matters the most is that they work. There are so many new and unique ways you can look at enhancing your bonus packages and its key to remember that they don’t just have to be cash related. Think day trips, spa breaks and restaurant vouchers as new ways to make your staff want to meet and exceed their monthly targets.

Ask For Feedback

The only way to know whether your current strategies are working, and how your staff are feeling is to ask for feedback. Whether this be internal meetings where you ask people to bring a few different points to raise, or whether you hold regular 1-2-1 sessions with your employees to allow them to raise their individual concerns privately.

Keep your workforce fit and healthy. 

It goes without saying that illness and sickness can have a knock on effect on your business’ sales and targets regardless of the industry you work in. Keeping your employees motivated and feeling fresh can help boost your overall performance. Think small scale things like having fruit delivered to the office, or, if you’re wanting to bring in bigger changes look at introducing gym memberships and cycle to work schemes to really get your staff thinking about their lifestyle choices.

Whatever you decide on doing this year, looking after your employees should be at the forefront of your 2016 strategy. Be sure to do your research and look into the different ways to look after your staff this year.

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