Project Management - How to Plan and Schedule More Complex Projects
Gantt charts are useful tools for analysing, planning and controlling complex multi stage projects.
Gantt Charts can;
Assist in identifying the tasks and sub tasks to be undertaken
Help you lay out the tasks that need to be completed
Assist in scheduling when these tasks will be carried out and in what order
Assist in planning resources and needed to complete the project,
Assist in working out the critical path for a project where it needs to be completed by a particular date.
When a complex or multi task project is under way, Gantt charts assist in monitoring whether the project is on schedule, or not. If not, the Gantt chart allows you to easily identify what actions need to be taken in order to put the project back onto schedule.
An essential concept behind project planning is that some activities depend upon other activities being completed first. For example, it is not a good idea to start building the walls in an office block before you have laid the foundations; neither is it a good idea to put the cake mix into the tin without greasing the tin first.
These are dependent activities which need to be completed in a sequence, with each stage being more-or-less completed before the next stage can begin. We can call such dependent activities sequential.
Non sequential activities are not dependent on the completion of any other tasks. These activities may be done at any time before or after a particular stage in the project is reached. These activities are called are nondependent or parallel tasks.
To create a Gantt chart;
1. List all activities/tasks in the plan
For each task, show the earliest possible start date, how long you estimate the length of time it should take, and whether it is parallel or sequential.
If tasks are sequential, show which stages they depend on.
Head up a sheet of graph paper (using pencil and a ruler) with the days, weeks or months through to task completion on the top X-axis. The y-Axis can be used to itemise each task in its order. You may want to use an Excel Spreadsheet for this instead of graph paper if you prefer.
2. Plot the tasks onto the Plan
Next list the tasks in the first column on the left hand side of the page. (The Y-Axis) To draw up a rough first draft of the Gantt chart; Plot each task on the plan, showing it starting on the earliest possible date. Draw each task as a horizontal bar, with the length of the bar being the length of time you estimate the task will take. Above each task bar, mark the estimated time taken to complete the task. At this stage there is no need to include scheduling - all you are doing is setting up the first draft.
3 Schedule the tasks/activities
Now on a fresh sheet redraw the Gantt Chart to schedule actions and tasks. Schedule these in such a way that sequential actions are carried out in the desired sequence (e.g. dig holes, lay foundations, begin construction).
Ensure that these dependent activities do not start until the activities they depend on have been fully completed.
Where possible, schedule parallel tasks so that they do not interfere with sequential actions on the critical path. While scheduling, ensure that you make best use of the time and resources you have available. Do not over-commit resources and allow some time in the schedule for holdups, overruns, quality rejections, failures in delivery, etc.
Once the Gantt chart is drawn, you can see how long will it take to complete your project. The key steps to be completed to ensure successful completion of the project should be clearly visible.
In practice professional Project Managers use sophisticated software like MS Project to create Gantt charts. Not only do these packages make the drawing of Gantt charts easier, they also make subsequent modification of plans easier and provide facilities for monitoring progress against plans.
Tables and spreadsheets can also be used to create simple and easy to change charts without MS Project. Spreadsheets with coloured bars are most useful for the simplest projects.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Cordless Radar Detectors
The demand for convenience has lead to an impressive market of cordless radar detectors. A cordless unit does not have to mean a less impressive gadget, as manufacturers continue to develop new technology that rids drivers of the hassle of cords while still giving them superb radar detection.
One of the most popular cordless radar detectors under $200 is the BEL Express Model 946. A clip-on, 90-degree deflector and earphone come standard on this model, which can deflect both incoming radar and laser beams. Further, the Express has proved exceptional in many tests; it is often the only detector tested that can reliably detect Ka band radar. It is equally proficient in detecting lasers. A drawback to this unit is its audio quality, which is less distinct than many might prefer.
For anyone interested in paying more than $200 on a cordless radar detector, the Escort Solo S2 is a good option. It has a low-profile compact case and features all but one of its controls on the front. As for radar detection, this style detects X, K, Ka, and laser bands, and announces their strength via a highly perceptible audio alert and flashing bar graph.
More and more companies are adding cordless models to their radar detector line-up. As this feature increases in popularity, the increase in models should create a competitive market, resulting in higher-quality cordless devices that continue to offer excellent radar and laser detection.
The demand for convenience has lead to an impressive market of cordless radar detectors. A cordless unit does not have to mean a less impressive gadget, as manufacturers continue to develop new technology that rids drivers of the hassle of cords while still giving them superb radar detection.
One of the most popular cordless radar detectors under $200 is the BEL Express Model 946. A clip-on, 90-degree deflector and earphone come standard on this model, which can deflect both incoming radar and laser beams. Further, the Express has proved exceptional in many tests; it is often the only detector tested that can reliably detect Ka band radar. It is equally proficient in detecting lasers. A drawback to this unit is its audio quality, which is less distinct than many might prefer.
For anyone interested in paying more than $200 on a cordless radar detector, the Escort Solo S2 is a good option. It has a low-profile compact case and features all but one of its controls on the front. As for radar detection, this style detects X, K, Ka, and laser bands, and announces their strength via a highly perceptible audio alert and flashing bar graph.
More and more companies are adding cordless models to their radar detector line-up. As this feature increases in popularity, the increase in models should create a competitive market, resulting in higher-quality cordless devices that continue to offer excellent radar and laser detection.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Simple Steps To Finding The Right Mattress
According to Better Homes and Gardens, most of us replace our mattresses every 8 to 10 years. Trying to pick the right mattress for you, one that you want to sleep on for the next 10 years, can seem like a daunting task. You spend 1/3 of your life sleeping, make it a comfortable 1/3.
As we're about to show you, it can be as easy as choosing the next show to TiVo.
The first question you may be having is, do I need a new mattress? This one is probably the easiest. Ask yourself if you are sleeping well at night. Do you feel rested in the morning or do you need five cups of coffee before even thinking about getting ready for your day? If so, chances are you do need a new mattress.
The age of your mattress could also be a factor. Chances are you have dust mites, and dust mites can actually double the weight of your mattress in ten years. We won't go into detail about that here, but you get the point. This along with mold and mildew can create havoc on allergies and asthma.
Some of the most common indicators of needing a new mattress are:
mattress is too lumpy
mattress is too soft/hard
mattress is too old
mattress is just not comfortable
Ok, so you decided that you do need or want a new mattress. The first thing you need to do is decide on what size you want. If it's the same size as you already have, you're ahead of the game.
If you have decided to move up in size, a simple way to see how your new mattress will fit is to move the old bedding and mark the area where the new bed will sit. You can do this using towels, sheets, or even an outline in string.
If you want to really get creative, buy yourself some graph paper and organize all of your bedroom furniture. Draw out your bedroom dimensions and on another sheet cut out your furniture to scale. Then you can organize your whole bedroom without lifting anything heavy.
Here are some of the more popular mattress dimensions to help get you started.
Twin: 38" x 75"
Extra-Long Twin: 38" X 80"
Double/Standard/Full Size: 53" x 75"
Queen: 60" x 80"
King: 76" X 80"
California King: 72" x 84" (Recommended for people over 6'4")
Important Tip: Remember these sizes can vary by manufacturer and don't forget headboards and foot boards can add several inches to these dimensions.
When it comes to beds and mattresses, the softest are not always the best. This almost always comes down to personal preference. Your going to have to test drive your mattress. Don't be shy, and don't be afraid t ask the sales staff to leave you alone while you try out the mattresses.
If someone will be sleeping with you, bring them along. Above all, the mattress should support your spine and should not interfere with your pressure points.
Check the number of coils the mattresses has. The higher number of coils the better the mattress will wear. Generally, 300 coils for a double and 350-800 for a queen. A king size mattress can range from 400 to 900 coils.
You'll also want a few fabric and padding layers and a pillow top.
Many recommend going to a local mattress store and test the ones you like, then go online to stores like were you can find better deals.
When you've found the perfect mattress, you need the perfect frame. You want a good solid frame. One that will sufficiently support the mattress and box spring.
Now, go buy yourself some nice new sheets to go with your brand new mattress!
According to Better Homes and Gardens, most of us replace our mattresses every 8 to 10 years. Trying to pick the right mattress for you, one that you want to sleep on for the next 10 years, can seem like a daunting task. You spend 1/3 of your life sleeping, make it a comfortable 1/3.
As we're about to show you, it can be as easy as choosing the next show to TiVo.
The first question you may be having is, do I need a new mattress? This one is probably the easiest. Ask yourself if you are sleeping well at night. Do you feel rested in the morning or do you need five cups of coffee before even thinking about getting ready for your day? If so, chances are you do need a new mattress.
The age of your mattress could also be a factor. Chances are you have dust mites, and dust mites can actually double the weight of your mattress in ten years. We won't go into detail about that here, but you get the point. This along with mold and mildew can create havoc on allergies and asthma.
Some of the most common indicators of needing a new mattress are:
mattress is too lumpy
mattress is too soft/hard
mattress is too old
mattress is just not comfortable
Ok, so you decided that you do need or want a new mattress. The first thing you need to do is decide on what size you want. If it's the same size as you already have, you're ahead of the game.
If you have decided to move up in size, a simple way to see how your new mattress will fit is to move the old bedding and mark the area where the new bed will sit. You can do this using towels, sheets, or even an outline in string.
If you want to really get creative, buy yourself some graph paper and organize all of your bedroom furniture. Draw out your bedroom dimensions and on another sheet cut out your furniture to scale. Then you can organize your whole bedroom without lifting anything heavy.
Here are some of the more popular mattress dimensions to help get you started.
Twin: 38" x 75"
Extra-Long Twin: 38" X 80"
Double/Standard/Full Size: 53" x 75"
Queen: 60" x 80"
King: 76" X 80"
California King: 72" x 84" (Recommended for people over 6'4")
Important Tip: Remember these sizes can vary by manufacturer and don't forget headboards and foot boards can add several inches to these dimensions.
When it comes to beds and mattresses, the softest are not always the best. This almost always comes down to personal preference. Your going to have to test drive your mattress. Don't be shy, and don't be afraid t ask the sales staff to leave you alone while you try out the mattresses.
If someone will be sleeping with you, bring them along. Above all, the mattress should support your spine and should not interfere with your pressure points.
Check the number of coils the mattresses has. The higher number of coils the better the mattress will wear. Generally, 300 coils for a double and 350-800 for a queen. A king size mattress can range from 400 to 900 coils.
You'll also want a few fabric and padding layers and a pillow top.
Many recommend going to a local mattress store and test the ones you like, then go online to stores like were you can find better deals.
When you've found the perfect mattress, you need the perfect frame. You want a good solid frame. One that will sufficiently support the mattress and box spring.
Now, go buy yourself some nice new sheets to go with your brand new mattress!
Blogging: How to Get Started
If you wish to start blogging, the process is probably
easier than you might have thought. I have helped a
number of people get started, and often they are very
intimidated and seem to let the slightest obstacle
upset them to the point where they almost give up. But
in reality, you can learn how to be a blogger in a
very short period of time, typically a few hours or
less depending on the level you wish to proceed at.
Your first step is deciding which kind of blog, or web
log, you wish to launch. You will generally want a
business, news or personal blog. If want the latter,
then one of the blog freebies' services such as
blogger or myspace will be adequate.
In this case you simply sign up for a free account,
choose the name for your blog, choose a template (this
part is self explanatory. Generally you just point and
click your selection among several possible choices)
and perhaps choose a "skin" which is sort of like a
background or wallpaper.
Then you simply start posting. Although this is one of the easiest steps, some people have difficulty here because they cannot find the button. It is different on a lot of different blogs but it often is identified as 'Creat Post' or 'Create Blog' but it can occasionally be different. You will know you found it when a blank screen with a subject line pops up, much like an email form.
If you are starting a business web log, and you would like to use a free blog, you may want to go with Blogger because they are easily integrated with Google Adwords and you can post your blog entries directly to your website if you choose. They also allow for an unlimited number of posts. If you don't mind spending a little bit of money for your business blog then I would probably recommend Moveable Type or Type Pad but there are several other good ones depending on your specific business needs. These services generally offer another level of flexibilty and sophistication, elements which are not always needed by the novice blogger.
If you are planning on starting a news blog, there are a number of free services which will probably be adequate for most beginners. http://www.blogeasy.com/ has many of the same flexible features offered by blogger, and I really like http://www.blogsome.com/ as well. Some of these and other free blog services will allow you to have newsfeeds connected to your blog while virtually all of them will allow you to publish your own RSS (Really Simple Syndication) Feed, which is the one essential ingredients for a news sites and for many business blogs as well.
If you wish to start blogging, the process is probably
easier than you might have thought. I have helped a
number of people get started, and often they are very
intimidated and seem to let the slightest obstacle
upset them to the point where they almost give up. But
in reality, you can learn how to be a blogger in a
very short period of time, typically a few hours or
less depending on the level you wish to proceed at.
Your first step is deciding which kind of blog, or web
log, you wish to launch. You will generally want a
business, news or personal blog. If want the latter,
then one of the blog freebies' services such as
blogger or myspace will be adequate.
In this case you simply sign up for a free account,
choose the name for your blog, choose a template (this
part is self explanatory. Generally you just point and
click your selection among several possible choices)
and perhaps choose a "skin" which is sort of like a
background or wallpaper.
Then you simply start posting. Although this is one of the easiest steps, some people have difficulty here because they cannot find the button. It is different on a lot of different blogs but it often is identified as 'Creat Post' or 'Create Blog' but it can occasionally be different. You will know you found it when a blank screen with a subject line pops up, much like an email form.
If you are starting a business web log, and you would like to use a free blog, you may want to go with Blogger because they are easily integrated with Google Adwords and you can post your blog entries directly to your website if you choose. They also allow for an unlimited number of posts. If you don't mind spending a little bit of money for your business blog then I would probably recommend Moveable Type or Type Pad but there are several other good ones depending on your specific business needs. These services generally offer another level of flexibilty and sophistication, elements which are not always needed by the novice blogger.
If you are planning on starting a news blog, there are a number of free services which will probably be adequate for most beginners. http://www.blogeasy.com/ has many of the same flexible features offered by blogger, and I really like http://www.blogsome.com/ as well. Some of these and other free blog services will allow you to have newsfeeds connected to your blog while virtually all of them will allow you to publish your own RSS (Really Simple Syndication) Feed, which is the one essential ingredients for a news sites and for many business blogs as well.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
10 Things You Should Be Monitoring On Your Website
Every business needs to know how it is doing. That's the idea behind exit surveys, customer feedback forms, suggestion boxes and other devices. Without feedback from the customer, monitoring inventory, expenses, revenue and other benchmarks, a business can take a quick slide down a slippery slope, without the owner ever seeing it coming or being able to stop the slide.
Webmasters also have things they should be monitoring on their websites. Most of these can be classified as traffic related or server performance related. Here is my top ten list.
Traffic totals. You want to know how much traffic you are generating. If the line on the graph is heading down, you know you have to find out why.
Referrers. It's not enough just to know how many visitors you are getting. You need to know where they are coming from. I discovered I was getting a lot of visitors from a Thanksgiving site. They were all being funneled into my Thanksgiving Happiness article. Suddenly I knew I should get more links from other Thanksgiving sites. Valuable information.
Searches. Much to my surprise, my happiness site started getting a ridiculous number of hits from the search for "hairdressers". It just so happens I wrote a humor column on a hairdresser experience. I was surprised to see it getting so much traffic for such a generic, competitive search term. If that had been a term of a little more relevance for me, this information would have lead me to properly optimize the page and get even more traffic.
Pages viewed per visit. If people visit only one page per visit, you have some work to convince them to visit more pages, like those that make you money.
Pages visited. So you threw up on your site something cool as an add-on. How were you to know that other webmasters would link to it and send a whole bunch of traffic your way? Well, now you know, so add some copy to the page to pull visitors into the rest of your site.
Forms. Are they all functioning? A good website monitoring service can keep tabs on them for you. The last thing you want is to have lost hundreds or thousands of subscribers because a sign-up form stopped functioning
Shopping carts. Slow and complicated shopping carts are responsible for an estimated $25 billion in lost sales. Make sure yours is functioning properly. A good website monitoring service can watch this for you, too.
Download speed. Clear your cache and test your pages. Hmm. Maybe those images are a bit large. Time to compress them, or even remove some. Remember that some people are on a much slower connection than you are. I use a satellite connection sometimes, but when I don't, my connection speed is 28K.
Server speed. Are there problems with server speed? Maybe not where you are, but on the other side of the world. Global website monitoring can alert you to a transatlantic connection problem, so you can take it up with your web hosting service.
Server accessibility. All the web hosts promise 99% accessibility. But is that for real? Who monitors them? By one estimate, 75% of inaccessibility is not on the hosting server, but rather on the Internet's backbone network and in global routing. A global website monitoring service can help identify the problem, so that you can work with your web hosting company to resolve it before too many sales are lost.
Fun. If you are not having fun, audition for that drummer position in the local band. There is no point spending your life doing something that bores you. Webmastering should be fun.
Every business needs to know how it is doing. That's the idea behind exit surveys, customer feedback forms, suggestion boxes and other devices. Without feedback from the customer, monitoring inventory, expenses, revenue and other benchmarks, a business can take a quick slide down a slippery slope, without the owner ever seeing it coming or being able to stop the slide.
Webmasters also have things they should be monitoring on their websites. Most of these can be classified as traffic related or server performance related. Here is my top ten list.
Traffic totals. You want to know how much traffic you are generating. If the line on the graph is heading down, you know you have to find out why.
Referrers. It's not enough just to know how many visitors you are getting. You need to know where they are coming from. I discovered I was getting a lot of visitors from a Thanksgiving site. They were all being funneled into my Thanksgiving Happiness article. Suddenly I knew I should get more links from other Thanksgiving sites. Valuable information.
Searches. Much to my surprise, my happiness site started getting a ridiculous number of hits from the search for "hairdressers". It just so happens I wrote a humor column on a hairdresser experience. I was surprised to see it getting so much traffic for such a generic, competitive search term. If that had been a term of a little more relevance for me, this information would have lead me to properly optimize the page and get even more traffic.
Pages viewed per visit. If people visit only one page per visit, you have some work to convince them to visit more pages, like those that make you money.
Pages visited. So you threw up on your site something cool as an add-on. How were you to know that other webmasters would link to it and send a whole bunch of traffic your way? Well, now you know, so add some copy to the page to pull visitors into the rest of your site.
Forms. Are they all functioning? A good website monitoring service can keep tabs on them for you. The last thing you want is to have lost hundreds or thousands of subscribers because a sign-up form stopped functioning
Shopping carts. Slow and complicated shopping carts are responsible for an estimated $25 billion in lost sales. Make sure yours is functioning properly. A good website monitoring service can watch this for you, too.
Download speed. Clear your cache and test your pages. Hmm. Maybe those images are a bit large. Time to compress them, or even remove some. Remember that some people are on a much slower connection than you are. I use a satellite connection sometimes, but when I don't, my connection speed is 28K.
Server speed. Are there problems with server speed? Maybe not where you are, but on the other side of the world. Global website monitoring can alert you to a transatlantic connection problem, so you can take it up with your web hosting service.
Server accessibility. All the web hosts promise 99% accessibility. But is that for real? Who monitors them? By one estimate, 75% of inaccessibility is not on the hosting server, but rather on the Internet's backbone network and in global routing. A global website monitoring service can help identify the problem, so that you can work with your web hosting company to resolve it before too many sales are lost.
Fun. If you are not having fun, audition for that drummer position in the local band. There is no point spending your life doing something that bores you. Webmastering should be fun.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Picture Your Heart's Health With EKGs
Each time your heart beats, the contractions and relaxations of the heart muscle emit electrical current. An electrocardiogram (EKG) is a medical recording of the electric impulses from the heart. Electrodes that send impulses to the EKG machine are attached to the patients skin at various points on the body. Those recorded currents are displayed on a computer monitor and can be printed out on special graph paper. Your hearts electrical currents are recorded on the graph paper as an EKG. Qualified medical staff interpret the graphed results to determine any irregularities.
Most EKGs are performed in a critical care facility, telemetry or any place that a particular patient needs to be monitored. EKGs can help your doctor determine the status of your heart health. By graphing the electrical impulses of the heart, doctors and other trained medical staff are able to see the presence of any abnormalities. The EKG recording often reveals the scars of past heart attacks and other heart damage. Although the test cannot predict future heart attacks or other heart problems, a combination of family history and additional examinations may give your doctor a good idea of what to expect.
Individuals experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness or heart palpitations will likely be referred for an EKG by their doctor. An EKG is a rapid and safe way to determine if a heart attack is occurring. Those reporting these types of symptoms will likely be referred to the nearest Emergency Room for further evaluation. If your doctor does not think your symptoms indicate a life-threatening situation, you may be asked to make an appointment with an EKG specialist for further observation.
An EKG is a very simple and painless procedure. The patients are instructed to lie face up on an examination table while electrodes are strategically placed at various points on their body. The electrodes are attached to cables and the cables are attached to the EKG machine. The electrodes send electronic impulses to the machine and results in a printed graph, which is a picture of your heart function. The procedure usually takes 15 to 20 minutes but may require a longer visit if the technician needs additional testing data. A stress test is a normal EKG procedure that requires the patient perform moderate exercise while recording heart rhythms.
Each time your heart beats, the contractions and relaxations of the heart muscle emit electrical current. An electrocardiogram (EKG) is a medical recording of the electric impulses from the heart. Electrodes that send impulses to the EKG machine are attached to the patients skin at various points on the body. Those recorded currents are displayed on a computer monitor and can be printed out on special graph paper. Your hearts electrical currents are recorded on the graph paper as an EKG. Qualified medical staff interpret the graphed results to determine any irregularities.
Most EKGs are performed in a critical care facility, telemetry or any place that a particular patient needs to be monitored. EKGs can help your doctor determine the status of your heart health. By graphing the electrical impulses of the heart, doctors and other trained medical staff are able to see the presence of any abnormalities. The EKG recording often reveals the scars of past heart attacks and other heart damage. Although the test cannot predict future heart attacks or other heart problems, a combination of family history and additional examinations may give your doctor a good idea of what to expect.
Individuals experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness or heart palpitations will likely be referred for an EKG by their doctor. An EKG is a rapid and safe way to determine if a heart attack is occurring. Those reporting these types of symptoms will likely be referred to the nearest Emergency Room for further evaluation. If your doctor does not think your symptoms indicate a life-threatening situation, you may be asked to make an appointment with an EKG specialist for further observation.
An EKG is a very simple and painless procedure. The patients are instructed to lie face up on an examination table while electrodes are strategically placed at various points on their body. The electrodes are attached to cables and the cables are attached to the EKG machine. The electrodes send electronic impulses to the machine and results in a printed graph, which is a picture of your heart function. The procedure usually takes 15 to 20 minutes but may require a longer visit if the technician needs additional testing data. A stress test is a normal EKG procedure that requires the patient perform moderate exercise while recording heart rhythms.
How To Write More Powerful Reports
There is one key difference between reports and most other forms of business writing, and we get a hint of that in the word, "report." Whereas with many other forms of written comms you can be a little creative and put your own slant on your words, in a report you must not. Not in theory, anyway.
In a report, you're supposed to report - not embellish, embroider, influence, etc. Just the facts and nothing but the facts.
This does not, however, mean that reports need to be dull and boring. It does, however, mean that you can't make the content more interesting than it really is. Impossible? No, it just takes some good organization and clear writing.
Before we go any further, there are numerous books and training courses on the market that teach you the formalities and practicalities of report writing. Some are more long-winded than others. Most of them are good.
Here in this article I can't do what other writers do in a book, so if you need to write reports a lot, I recommend that you buy one or two of the most popular books and study them. What I'm doing here then, is to highlight the points I think are most important to help you make your reports more readable, and the information in them come across more vividly.
If you work in a larger organization, there will probably be set formats for reports, at least for the internal variety. Whether you like them or not you're normally obliged to stick to them. However the way you roll out and write your content is still up to you.
So what are the key points to focus on?
1. Write for your reader
Don't allow yourself to fall into "businessese" jargon and phrasing no matter how much you or other people may feel it's more appropriate. It isn't. Use language and tone of voice that your key readers will feel comfortable with. If you don't know what they feel comfortable with, find out. It's well worth taking the trouble, because it will make the report much more enjoyable for them to read - a good reflection on you.
If your report is to be read by a wide variety of different audiences, focus your language on the most important groups. Ensure that less topic-literate readers are catered for by using discreet explanations of technical terms or perhaps a short glossary of terms as an appendix within the report.
2. Organize your information sensibly
Start by writing yourself out a list of headings which start at the beginning and finish with the conclusions of your information. If you must include a lot of background information before you get into the "meat" of the information, section it off clearly with headings that say that it's background ("Research Project Objectives," "Research Methods Used To Collate Information," "Personnel Involved In Questionnaire," etc.) so those who know it all already can skip straight to the important stuff.
Make sure your headings "tell the story" so someone glancing through those alone will get the basic messages. (You'll find that busy executives will thank you for doing this, especially when they have 16 other, similar reports to read in a crowded commuter train on the way into a meeting to discuss all of them.) Then fill in the details under each heading as concisely as you can.
3. Use an "executive summary" to tell it in a nutshell
Depending on the nature of your report you may be expected to include an executive summary, or at least an introduction that captures the key points of your information. The objective of this is to give the reader the key issues as quickly as possible. Write this after you've done the body of the report, not before. Use your list of headings as a guide.
Keep strictly to the facts - this is still part of the report, not your interpretation of it. Strip each sentence down to bare bones with minimal adjectives and adverbs. Use short words and sentences. Don't just get to the point - start with it and stick to it.
4. If your interpretation is called for, keep it separate
If part of your remit is to comment on the report and/or its conclusions, keep this separate from the main body of information. (Blocked off in a box or under a clearly separated heading will do.)
Naturally as you're professional you will be as objective as possible. But if you do feel strongly one way or another, ensure that your argument is put as reasonably as possible without going on for pages and pages. Remember, brief is beautiful, although it's harder to write briefly (and include all the important points) than it is to produce words in abundance.
5. Don't get carried away with illustrations
Graphs and charts are great to illustrate important issues and like the man said, "a picture is worth a thousand words." However ensure that those you use are of a level of complexity that will be understood by the least topic-literate of your readers. There's nothing more irritating than a graph that takes you 20 minutes to decipher. It's not so much a case that readers are too stupid to understand a complex graph, as it is that they don't want to spend too much time working it out. The easier/quicker you make it for readers to understand and assimilate your information, the more successful your report.
Try, also, to keep graphs and charts physically adjacent to the text that talks about the same thing. There's nothing more irritating for the reader if they have to keep flipping from front to back of a document. (When in doubt, think of someone reading your report on that crowded commuter train.)
6. Cut the clutter
Still on that topic, try to avoid including too many diverse elements in your report, no matter how long and involved it is. If you do need to include appendices and various bits of background material, research statistics, etc., make sure they're neatly labeled and contained at the back of your document.
As I suggested earlier, don't ask readers to skip back and forth, directing them with asterisks and other reference directing symbols. If you're writing a medical report or paper then you're obliged to include these when quoting references from other papers, but please keep even these to a minimum. They're very distracting and can break your reader's concentration.
7. Take some trouble to make it look nice
I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but people do. Like it or not. According to UK Image consultant Tessa S, when you walk into a meeting, 55% of your first impression of someone is reflected exclusively in the way you're dressed. Documents fall into the same hole. So how your document looks goes a long way to creating the right impression of your work, and of you.
Obviously if a report is due to go outside your organization and particularly to clients or customers, you will be careful to ensure it's polished and clearly branded with your corporate identity and all that. However, how an internal report looks is important, too, although your Head of Finance might have apoplexy if you bind it in expensive glossy card. Be sensible with the internal variety - neat, understated, groomed looks don't have to cost much but they "say" a lot about the value of your report (and you.)
8. A minute on minutes
I think minute-taking is a horrible job, having done so for 6 years while on a charity fundraising committee. And being useless at handwriting (thanks to decades of computers and typewriters) never mind shorthand (was thrown out of secretarial school after 3 weeks) I struggled for months to scribble everything down to prcis later, until I realized that my brain was a far more efficient filter of information.
At the end of each agenda item, I asked myself the classic reporter questions of "who, what, where, when, why, how and how much." All I had to do was jot down a few words and when I got home to my trusty PC, I could expand those into realistic summaries of what went on. As much of the dialogue in meetings is either unnecessary, repetitive, or both, simply use your brain as a filter. That's what it's trained to do for you in your day-to-day life, so it works for meetings too.
One word of warning though; don't wait too long before your work up your minutes. Another trick the brain does is to forget after a few hours or a day or so at most...
There is one key difference between reports and most other forms of business writing, and we get a hint of that in the word, "report." Whereas with many other forms of written comms you can be a little creative and put your own slant on your words, in a report you must not. Not in theory, anyway.
In a report, you're supposed to report - not embellish, embroider, influence, etc. Just the facts and nothing but the facts.
This does not, however, mean that reports need to be dull and boring. It does, however, mean that you can't make the content more interesting than it really is. Impossible? No, it just takes some good organization and clear writing.
Before we go any further, there are numerous books and training courses on the market that teach you the formalities and practicalities of report writing. Some are more long-winded than others. Most of them are good.
Here in this article I can't do what other writers do in a book, so if you need to write reports a lot, I recommend that you buy one or two of the most popular books and study them. What I'm doing here then, is to highlight the points I think are most important to help you make your reports more readable, and the information in them come across more vividly.
If you work in a larger organization, there will probably be set formats for reports, at least for the internal variety. Whether you like them or not you're normally obliged to stick to them. However the way you roll out and write your content is still up to you.
So what are the key points to focus on?
1. Write for your reader
Don't allow yourself to fall into "businessese" jargon and phrasing no matter how much you or other people may feel it's more appropriate. It isn't. Use language and tone of voice that your key readers will feel comfortable with. If you don't know what they feel comfortable with, find out. It's well worth taking the trouble, because it will make the report much more enjoyable for them to read - a good reflection on you.
If your report is to be read by a wide variety of different audiences, focus your language on the most important groups. Ensure that less topic-literate readers are catered for by using discreet explanations of technical terms or perhaps a short glossary of terms as an appendix within the report.
2. Organize your information sensibly
Start by writing yourself out a list of headings which start at the beginning and finish with the conclusions of your information. If you must include a lot of background information before you get into the "meat" of the information, section it off clearly with headings that say that it's background ("Research Project Objectives," "Research Methods Used To Collate Information," "Personnel Involved In Questionnaire," etc.) so those who know it all already can skip straight to the important stuff.
Make sure your headings "tell the story" so someone glancing through those alone will get the basic messages. (You'll find that busy executives will thank you for doing this, especially when they have 16 other, similar reports to read in a crowded commuter train on the way into a meeting to discuss all of them.) Then fill in the details under each heading as concisely as you can.
3. Use an "executive summary" to tell it in a nutshell
Depending on the nature of your report you may be expected to include an executive summary, or at least an introduction that captures the key points of your information. The objective of this is to give the reader the key issues as quickly as possible. Write this after you've done the body of the report, not before. Use your list of headings as a guide.
Keep strictly to the facts - this is still part of the report, not your interpretation of it. Strip each sentence down to bare bones with minimal adjectives and adverbs. Use short words and sentences. Don't just get to the point - start with it and stick to it.
4. If your interpretation is called for, keep it separate
If part of your remit is to comment on the report and/or its conclusions, keep this separate from the main body of information. (Blocked off in a box or under a clearly separated heading will do.)
Naturally as you're professional you will be as objective as possible. But if you do feel strongly one way or another, ensure that your argument is put as reasonably as possible without going on for pages and pages. Remember, brief is beautiful, although it's harder to write briefly (and include all the important points) than it is to produce words in abundance.
5. Don't get carried away with illustrations
Graphs and charts are great to illustrate important issues and like the man said, "a picture is worth a thousand words." However ensure that those you use are of a level of complexity that will be understood by the least topic-literate of your readers. There's nothing more irritating than a graph that takes you 20 minutes to decipher. It's not so much a case that readers are too stupid to understand a complex graph, as it is that they don't want to spend too much time working it out. The easier/quicker you make it for readers to understand and assimilate your information, the more successful your report.
Try, also, to keep graphs and charts physically adjacent to the text that talks about the same thing. There's nothing more irritating for the reader if they have to keep flipping from front to back of a document. (When in doubt, think of someone reading your report on that crowded commuter train.)
6. Cut the clutter
Still on that topic, try to avoid including too many diverse elements in your report, no matter how long and involved it is. If you do need to include appendices and various bits of background material, research statistics, etc., make sure they're neatly labeled and contained at the back of your document.
As I suggested earlier, don't ask readers to skip back and forth, directing them with asterisks and other reference directing symbols. If you're writing a medical report or paper then you're obliged to include these when quoting references from other papers, but please keep even these to a minimum. They're very distracting and can break your reader's concentration.
7. Take some trouble to make it look nice
I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but people do. Like it or not. According to UK Image consultant Tessa S, when you walk into a meeting, 55% of your first impression of someone is reflected exclusively in the way you're dressed. Documents fall into the same hole. So how your document looks goes a long way to creating the right impression of your work, and of you.
Obviously if a report is due to go outside your organization and particularly to clients or customers, you will be careful to ensure it's polished and clearly branded with your corporate identity and all that. However, how an internal report looks is important, too, although your Head of Finance might have apoplexy if you bind it in expensive glossy card. Be sensible with the internal variety - neat, understated, groomed looks don't have to cost much but they "say" a lot about the value of your report (and you.)
8. A minute on minutes
I think minute-taking is a horrible job, having done so for 6 years while on a charity fundraising committee. And being useless at handwriting (thanks to decades of computers and typewriters) never mind shorthand (was thrown out of secretarial school after 3 weeks) I struggled for months to scribble everything down to prcis later, until I realized that my brain was a far more efficient filter of information.
At the end of each agenda item, I asked myself the classic reporter questions of "who, what, where, when, why, how and how much." All I had to do was jot down a few words and when I got home to my trusty PC, I could expand those into realistic summaries of what went on. As much of the dialogue in meetings is either unnecessary, repetitive, or both, simply use your brain as a filter. That's what it's trained to do for you in your day-to-day life, so it works for meetings too.
One word of warning though; don't wait too long before your work up your minutes. Another trick the brain does is to forget after a few hours or a day or so at most...
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Career Success: Take Charge of Your Career
People react very differently to the waves of change that suddenly flood the work and marketplace. Some, who feel confused or unsettled struggle to keep their heads above water gasping for air. By contrast, others, who may not even like or agree with the changes, nevertheless accept them, get on with their lives and swim forcefully to their new destination. The following three tactics will help you mobilize your resources to take charge of their careers.
Fuel the Fire In Your Heart.
Live your life and career with intention. The key to sustained peak performance is discovering who you are, what you want in life, and then confidently pursue it. Remember, if you dont have your own mission or purpose get one, or otherwise, all you can do is sign up for someone elses. Remember, if you dont know where youre going, how will you know that youve arrived?
Start by develop a career line. Prepare a graph that outlines your career highs and lows from your first job to the present. What kinds of activities were you involved in during your highs - during your lows? Continue this getting to know yourself process by locating your inner energy source. What really gets the juices flowing for you? Is it challenge? Helping other? Being creative? Having authority? Making an impact? Whatever motivates you, write it on a card and look at it every morning.
During times of change and uncertainty, you must realize that its often your outlook or your attitudes--- what you bring to work, not what work brings to you---that determines your career success. Can you look at whats happening in the workplace and not take it personally? Can you accept the luck of the draw and move on? Can you bounce back on your own rather than allow yourself to wallow in negative emotions? You must learn to accommodate adversity. It can either break or build character. Which is it doing for you?
Forget Being the Lone Ranger.
Are you familiar with the saying: Its not what you know, .but who you know. Well in todays changing work world, the new saying is: Its not only what you know, its not only who you know, but, as important, its who knows you and your work.
First thing to do is to inventory your network. List all the key people in your career world. Are your contacts mostly within your area? Or are there linkages into different departments, divisions, subsidiaries? What about outside your company? What kinds of relationships do you have? Hi and Good by? Or Hi! What have you been doing? Develop relationships with a whole array of people. Its your ticket to career advancement and success.
Know and be known. Work groups or teams, not hierarchies, are now doing the real work in todays workplace. How are you going to find out about the latest hot project? How are key people going to know about you and your talents? An active network is the most effective tool fin this age of uncertainty. Realize that contacts are the bread of career life. In times of change, information and relationships are a source of power.
Dont Just Stand There, Do Something.
Recognize a successful career in not a spectator sport. Opportunities do not just get placed on your desk. Organizations will no longer provide you with clearly defined career paths. Dont be an absentee landlord and neglect your personal career management. Know what you want and actively seek it out. Take charge of your career. Remember, if you dont control your own destiny, no one else will.
Start by doing a career check up. Ask yourself: Where am I? Where do I want to go? What are some paths to get me there? What are possible barriers? What are my supports? What resources am I going to need? How will I get these resources? Failure to take charge of your career leaves you a victim of your own neglect and the changing workplace.
Always have several options in your back pocket. Focus on career contingency planning. Do you have a Plan A, a Plan B, and even a Plan C? What conditions could possibly change in your job; your company; or your industry? Do you have a clear idea where you could jump if unexpected roadblocks arise? Where else can you apply your skills and showcase your talents? A successful career is not fixed in stone, but is fluid and subject to change.
Remember, the Name of the Game Is Action.
Make sure your career goals are not stranded on a island called: Someday Ill........... If you want something, dont just think or talk about it. Figure out a way to make it happen. Set specific goals. Develop action plans. Have realistic timetables. Find the resources you need. Keep alive in todays rough seas and begin preparing for tomorrows raging waters.
People react very differently to the waves of change that suddenly flood the work and marketplace. Some, who feel confused or unsettled struggle to keep their heads above water gasping for air. By contrast, others, who may not even like or agree with the changes, nevertheless accept them, get on with their lives and swim forcefully to their new destination. The following three tactics will help you mobilize your resources to take charge of their careers.
Fuel the Fire In Your Heart.
Live your life and career with intention. The key to sustained peak performance is discovering who you are, what you want in life, and then confidently pursue it. Remember, if you dont have your own mission or purpose get one, or otherwise, all you can do is sign up for someone elses. Remember, if you dont know where youre going, how will you know that youve arrived?
Start by develop a career line. Prepare a graph that outlines your career highs and lows from your first job to the present. What kinds of activities were you involved in during your highs - during your lows? Continue this getting to know yourself process by locating your inner energy source. What really gets the juices flowing for you? Is it challenge? Helping other? Being creative? Having authority? Making an impact? Whatever motivates you, write it on a card and look at it every morning.
During times of change and uncertainty, you must realize that its often your outlook or your attitudes--- what you bring to work, not what work brings to you---that determines your career success. Can you look at whats happening in the workplace and not take it personally? Can you accept the luck of the draw and move on? Can you bounce back on your own rather than allow yourself to wallow in negative emotions? You must learn to accommodate adversity. It can either break or build character. Which is it doing for you?
Forget Being the Lone Ranger.
Are you familiar with the saying: Its not what you know, .but who you know. Well in todays changing work world, the new saying is: Its not only what you know, its not only who you know, but, as important, its who knows you and your work.
First thing to do is to inventory your network. List all the key people in your career world. Are your contacts mostly within your area? Or are there linkages into different departments, divisions, subsidiaries? What about outside your company? What kinds of relationships do you have? Hi and Good by? Or Hi! What have you been doing? Develop relationships with a whole array of people. Its your ticket to career advancement and success.
Know and be known. Work groups or teams, not hierarchies, are now doing the real work in todays workplace. How are you going to find out about the latest hot project? How are key people going to know about you and your talents? An active network is the most effective tool fin this age of uncertainty. Realize that contacts are the bread of career life. In times of change, information and relationships are a source of power.
Dont Just Stand There, Do Something.
Recognize a successful career in not a spectator sport. Opportunities do not just get placed on your desk. Organizations will no longer provide you with clearly defined career paths. Dont be an absentee landlord and neglect your personal career management. Know what you want and actively seek it out. Take charge of your career. Remember, if you dont control your own destiny, no one else will.
Start by doing a career check up. Ask yourself: Where am I? Where do I want to go? What are some paths to get me there? What are possible barriers? What are my supports? What resources am I going to need? How will I get these resources? Failure to take charge of your career leaves you a victim of your own neglect and the changing workplace.
Always have several options in your back pocket. Focus on career contingency planning. Do you have a Plan A, a Plan B, and even a Plan C? What conditions could possibly change in your job; your company; or your industry? Do you have a clear idea where you could jump if unexpected roadblocks arise? Where else can you apply your skills and showcase your talents? A successful career is not fixed in stone, but is fluid and subject to change.
Remember, the Name of the Game Is Action.
Make sure your career goals are not stranded on a island called: Someday Ill........... If you want something, dont just think or talk about it. Figure out a way to make it happen. Set specific goals. Develop action plans. Have realistic timetables. Find the resources you need. Keep alive in todays rough seas and begin preparing for tomorrows raging waters.
Levitra - Gaining Quick Popularity
Your blissful life has suddenly turned topsy-turvy. Your partner cannot satisfy you the way you became so used to! The
sexual bliss that you took for granted suddenly seems elusive and transformed into a sexual problem. A thousand unpleasant thoughts crossed your mind in a second.
Halt! Give your mental horses a break. Everything is not lost. Your impotent husband can still make you feel heavens!
Erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence does not generate the awe it used to when the prescription pills were not invented.
Levitra (vardenafil HCl) has managed to capture the imagination of most of the ED sufferers. Approved in 2003 by the US FDA as a prescribed oral pill for impotence treatment, Levitra has grown from strength to strength. Manufactured by Bayer Corporation of Germany and marketed globally by Glaxo Smith Kline, Levitra became only the second approved drug for the treatment of ED.
ED is not only a male sexual problem, but it also has contributed a great deal in wrecking the long and blissful
relationships besides causing many depression related diseases in the couple. But since using Levitra, the couples have reported satisfaction at large scale. Many couples have vouched for its efficacy.
Levitras sales graph is reporting northwards growth since the time of its coming into the market. The multiple growth of Levitra is attributed to the fact that it is equally effective in smaller dose where Viagra requires a larger dose. Thus, a
small intake of Levitra is sufficient to achieve the desired results of a full dose of Viagra. Moreover, the results of
clinical trials suggest that Levitra works faster than its counterpart Viagra. Some of the patients showed positive results
within 15 minutes of its intake.
Levitra is a prescription drug and must be taken only after proper diagnosis and prescription by a qualified doctor, which
is generally not the case when you are buying Levitra online.
Your blissful life has suddenly turned topsy-turvy. Your partner cannot satisfy you the way you became so used to! The
sexual bliss that you took for granted suddenly seems elusive and transformed into a sexual problem. A thousand unpleasant thoughts crossed your mind in a second.
Halt! Give your mental horses a break. Everything is not lost. Your impotent husband can still make you feel heavens!
Erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence does not generate the awe it used to when the prescription pills were not invented.
Levitra (vardenafil HCl) has managed to capture the imagination of most of the ED sufferers. Approved in 2003 by the US FDA as a prescribed oral pill for impotence treatment, Levitra has grown from strength to strength. Manufactured by Bayer Corporation of Germany and marketed globally by Glaxo Smith Kline, Levitra became only the second approved drug for the treatment of ED.
ED is not only a male sexual problem, but it also has contributed a great deal in wrecking the long and blissful
relationships besides causing many depression related diseases in the couple. But since using Levitra, the couples have reported satisfaction at large scale. Many couples have vouched for its efficacy.
Levitras sales graph is reporting northwards growth since the time of its coming into the market. The multiple growth of Levitra is attributed to the fact that it is equally effective in smaller dose where Viagra requires a larger dose. Thus, a
small intake of Levitra is sufficient to achieve the desired results of a full dose of Viagra. Moreover, the results of
clinical trials suggest that Levitra works faster than its counterpart Viagra. Some of the patients showed positive results
within 15 minutes of its intake.
Levitra is a prescription drug and must be taken only after proper diagnosis and prescription by a qualified doctor, which
is generally not the case when you are buying Levitra online.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
By This Time Tomorrow You Could Be Making Thousands!
The Human Mind is characterized by two natures; the force that tends to pull you forward and the other one that repels you. Our personal choice of the two human natures described above, will go a long way in determining what we will become. It is all about how you can change your whole career and achieve miracles; this simply means we can be easily controlled by our concentrated thought.
Communication has proven to be one of mans greatest assets, which he has used in mastering all other aspects of his environment. From contemporary history, the graph of mans advancement took a sharp turn, when he discovered the power and skill of communication, which he started initially by signs and latter modified to using letters, numbers and sound. Many thanks and credit is due to the ancient Greeks, because they helped in working on the civilization brought from Ancient Egypt, in Africa, and continuously improved on this for the benefit and advancement of the Human Race, one name that cannot be easily forgotten in this great human endeavor is AMURABI the wise.
Communication has undergone series of advancement over the years; man has always been concerned about making the world a global village where information can easily be passed across over a large distance, within a considerable, small frame of time. From the age of disseminating information by physical means, man has advanced to a level of information dissemination using machines, from the Postal Mail to the Telegraph and from there to Telephone and Faxes, and currently, we are into a new world of information dissemination technology, which is the Internet. The internet has proven to be a very viable means of information dissemination, and over the years man has fallen into romance with the internet that he now wishes for every thing to be done on line, even if, it can be possible for him to have his bath online, there would have been no hesitations.
Mans romance for internet has taken various turns, and this is dependent on the area of interest of the internet surfer. Some persons enjoy using the internet for fun and leisure; others may use it as a means to shop for all their daily requirements without necessarily going to the mall, better, still some may take it as a means to get the most recent and vital information, I for one, I describe the internet to be a complete society online, where you can get virtually all what the physical world represents in its entirety. If we are all in agreement with the last sentence, then it will be wise to consider, how we can utilize the internet to its fullest in actualizing financial success that can measured with that recorded in any physical business transaction, since we all agree that Internet is a complete online society, then it will be wise, to note that, one can realize a very prosperous online marketing career in little or no time.
The world of e-commerce or better still online internet marketing is so rich that one cannot estimate the benefits he stands to reap from becoming an online internet marketer. The most interesting aspect of this venture is that it does not disturb your normal day work, as you need very little time to access your business online. You dont need an office in this regard, from the comfort of your living home; you can start earning as much as $1000.00 +++/month.
How do you need to get started? it is very easy to start up your online internet marketing career, because there are already prepared write ups, that will take you by the hand, showing you how you can become a very successful internet marketer, you will be guided step by step on how to make money from your home with superb affiliate programme, work at home packages, and lot of information and motivational tips to move you forward in your online internet marketing career, that in little or no time you will be smiling in the world of internet marketing.
Every man that is willing to put forth the necessary effort can be a success. Those who really desire to attain independence, have only to set their minds upon it, and adopt the proper means, as they do in regards to any other object, which they wish to accomplish, and the thing is easily done, as you enforce the right vision and will power. According to Dr Franklin the road to wealth is "as plain as the road to the mill".
For more motivational tips and ideas on how to move forward on internet marketing and all work at home packages, feel free subscribe to our mailing list.
YOUR NAME:
YOUR PERONAL EMAIL:
YOUR NATIONALITY:
Subscribe to global-vision2@yahoo.ie
The Human Mind is characterized by two natures; the force that tends to pull you forward and the other one that repels you. Our personal choice of the two human natures described above, will go a long way in determining what we will become. It is all about how you can change your whole career and achieve miracles; this simply means we can be easily controlled by our concentrated thought.
Communication has proven to be one of mans greatest assets, which he has used in mastering all other aspects of his environment. From contemporary history, the graph of mans advancement took a sharp turn, when he discovered the power and skill of communication, which he started initially by signs and latter modified to using letters, numbers and sound. Many thanks and credit is due to the ancient Greeks, because they helped in working on the civilization brought from Ancient Egypt, in Africa, and continuously improved on this for the benefit and advancement of the Human Race, one name that cannot be easily forgotten in this great human endeavor is AMURABI the wise.
Communication has undergone series of advancement over the years; man has always been concerned about making the world a global village where information can easily be passed across over a large distance, within a considerable, small frame of time. From the age of disseminating information by physical means, man has advanced to a level of information dissemination using machines, from the Postal Mail to the Telegraph and from there to Telephone and Faxes, and currently, we are into a new world of information dissemination technology, which is the Internet. The internet has proven to be a very viable means of information dissemination, and over the years man has fallen into romance with the internet that he now wishes for every thing to be done on line, even if, it can be possible for him to have his bath online, there would have been no hesitations.
Mans romance for internet has taken various turns, and this is dependent on the area of interest of the internet surfer. Some persons enjoy using the internet for fun and leisure; others may use it as a means to shop for all their daily requirements without necessarily going to the mall, better, still some may take it as a means to get the most recent and vital information, I for one, I describe the internet to be a complete society online, where you can get virtually all what the physical world represents in its entirety. If we are all in agreement with the last sentence, then it will be wise to consider, how we can utilize the internet to its fullest in actualizing financial success that can measured with that recorded in any physical business transaction, since we all agree that Internet is a complete online society, then it will be wise, to note that, one can realize a very prosperous online marketing career in little or no time.
The world of e-commerce or better still online internet marketing is so rich that one cannot estimate the benefits he stands to reap from becoming an online internet marketer. The most interesting aspect of this venture is that it does not disturb your normal day work, as you need very little time to access your business online. You dont need an office in this regard, from the comfort of your living home; you can start earning as much as $1000.00 +++/month.
How do you need to get started? it is very easy to start up your online internet marketing career, because there are already prepared write ups, that will take you by the hand, showing you how you can become a very successful internet marketer, you will be guided step by step on how to make money from your home with superb affiliate programme, work at home packages, and lot of information and motivational tips to move you forward in your online internet marketing career, that in little or no time you will be smiling in the world of internet marketing.
Every man that is willing to put forth the necessary effort can be a success. Those who really desire to attain independence, have only to set their minds upon it, and adopt the proper means, as they do in regards to any other object, which they wish to accomplish, and the thing is easily done, as you enforce the right vision and will power. According to Dr Franklin the road to wealth is "as plain as the road to the mill".
For more motivational tips and ideas on how to move forward on internet marketing and all work at home packages, feel free subscribe to our mailing list.
YOUR NAME:
YOUR PERONAL EMAIL:
YOUR NATIONALITY:
Subscribe to global-vision2@yahoo.ie
Financial Projections in Business Plans
One of the most difficult sections to write in a business plan is the proforma and financial sections. After all it is most difficult to what exact costs you will incur or what level of sales volumes are actually achievable. So often businesses are faced with excess government controls at all levels which take thousands of dollars in fees, additionally legal fees, delays and lawsuits often ensue and slow the project. You cannot know in advance what roadblocks or brick walls city planners, country agencies or Federal Regulators will come up with, as they often change their minds and add new laws in the middle of your already delayed project. These are only a few of the problems facing entrepreneurs when writing financial projections. Other issues occur from an over enthusiastic entrepreneurial positive attitude and business plan writers should double the money needed and triple the time to complete the project to be on a reality based plain. Thus if you beat your projections everyone is happy. Including bankers, investors and yourself. If folks are not happy you may find yourself in court defending yourself and making excuses, many of which many not be your fault, but in the end you are hung out to dry as the buck stops with you.
To assist you in writing your financial projections section of your business plan, I have prepared a sample. This sample is from a most simple business model; a mobile car wash, which is part of a franchise system. Please feel free to print this article out and make notes in the margins and then take a legal pad and sketch out your own financial projections and start-up capital needed. I sincerely hope this sample helps you.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Financial Projections
We will follow our business plan to keep us in a profitable situation at all times. We will try to keep our car wash truck busy at all times. We will stay on top of collections and make sure all invoices go out on time and are directed to the person who authorizes payment. We will treat cash flow as a primary objective in order to reach our financial projections. We will be sure to have the right mix of services.
Gross Revenue Percentage Breakdown
Personal Car Washing 60%
Graffiti, Industrial, Concrete 20%
Fleet Washing 15%
Other 5%
Gross Revenue:
Insert Graph or Pie Chart Here.
* Note: Car washing of personal vehicles will be 60% of our business. Over 80% of these monies will be collected at the point of sale by either:
Cash
Check
Credit Card
Some will actually be paid in advance on credit cards thus keeping us on the proper course to achieve positive cash flow at all times. Very few customers will be allowed to be billed monthly.
** Note: Fleet washing and industrial (graffiti, concrete, etc.) will only account for 35% of gross receipts. Twenty-five percent of this will be collected at the time the work is done, leaving only 26.25% of gross receipts to be billed at months end.
Billing
On fleet accounts, all invoices will be net due in fifteen days. After fifteen days they will be considered late and 2% will be charged. If, in the future, our mix of percentages of services performed changes, we may offer a 2% discount for payment in ten days and a 1% discount for payment between ten and fifteen days. We dont anticipate changing our mix. However, if our city awards us a graffiti contract for $75,000 a year we will definitely accept it.
Anticipated Gross Sales From Services
In the appendix there is a first year pro forma of projected sales. We believe these figures are attainable. For various reasons we will take a 70% scenario for budgeting purposes in case everything doesnt go as planned. Just to be on the safe side. We project a conservative gross sales dollar amount to be:
$124,630 Projected Gross Revenue X .70 70% Of Projected Dollars = $ 87,241 A Conservative Safe Number To Project As First Year Gross Receipts
Anticipated Business Expenses
We project costs of $56,112 for our first year of expenses. Please see spreadsheet in the appendix. We will add in a 20% fudge factor just in case we have any unanticipated expenses in year one. We project a conservative business expense dollar amount to be:
$56,112 Anticipated Expenses X .20 20% Fudge Factor = $11,222 Possible Additional And Unanticipated Expenses During Year One
$56,111 Anticipated Expenses +11,111 Unanticipated Expenses = $67,334 Total Anticipated And Unanticipated Business Expenses For Year One.
Profit Per Truck
Please see the graph on the following page of the Net Profit One Truck. This graph is based on the spreadsheets Anticipated Gross Sales From Services minus Anticipated Business Expenses.
We realize that if a conservative approach is taken, we must use the 70% scenario for Gross Sales and add 20% to Business Expenses. We project a conservative net profit for the first truck in year one to be:
$ 87,241 Gross Receipts - 67,334 Expenses = $ 19,907 First Year Profit. $ 19,907 First Year Profit divided by 12 Number Of Months = $ 1,659 Per Month Profit, A Good Conservative Number.
One of the most difficult sections to write in a business plan is the proforma and financial sections. After all it is most difficult to what exact costs you will incur or what level of sales volumes are actually achievable. So often businesses are faced with excess government controls at all levels which take thousands of dollars in fees, additionally legal fees, delays and lawsuits often ensue and slow the project. You cannot know in advance what roadblocks or brick walls city planners, country agencies or Federal Regulators will come up with, as they often change their minds and add new laws in the middle of your already delayed project. These are only a few of the problems facing entrepreneurs when writing financial projections. Other issues occur from an over enthusiastic entrepreneurial positive attitude and business plan writers should double the money needed and triple the time to complete the project to be on a reality based plain. Thus if you beat your projections everyone is happy. Including bankers, investors and yourself. If folks are not happy you may find yourself in court defending yourself and making excuses, many of which many not be your fault, but in the end you are hung out to dry as the buck stops with you.
To assist you in writing your financial projections section of your business plan, I have prepared a sample. This sample is from a most simple business model; a mobile car wash, which is part of a franchise system. Please feel free to print this article out and make notes in the margins and then take a legal pad and sketch out your own financial projections and start-up capital needed. I sincerely hope this sample helps you.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Financial Projections
We will follow our business plan to keep us in a profitable situation at all times. We will try to keep our car wash truck busy at all times. We will stay on top of collections and make sure all invoices go out on time and are directed to the person who authorizes payment. We will treat cash flow as a primary objective in order to reach our financial projections. We will be sure to have the right mix of services.
Gross Revenue Percentage Breakdown
Personal Car Washing 60%
Graffiti, Industrial, Concrete 20%
Fleet Washing 15%
Other 5%
Gross Revenue:
Insert Graph or Pie Chart Here.
* Note: Car washing of personal vehicles will be 60% of our business. Over 80% of these monies will be collected at the point of sale by either:
Cash
Check
Credit Card
Some will actually be paid in advance on credit cards thus keeping us on the proper course to achieve positive cash flow at all times. Very few customers will be allowed to be billed monthly.
** Note: Fleet washing and industrial (graffiti, concrete, etc.) will only account for 35% of gross receipts. Twenty-five percent of this will be collected at the time the work is done, leaving only 26.25% of gross receipts to be billed at months end.
Billing
On fleet accounts, all invoices will be net due in fifteen days. After fifteen days they will be considered late and 2% will be charged. If, in the future, our mix of percentages of services performed changes, we may offer a 2% discount for payment in ten days and a 1% discount for payment between ten and fifteen days. We dont anticipate changing our mix. However, if our city awards us a graffiti contract for $75,000 a year we will definitely accept it.
Anticipated Gross Sales From Services
In the appendix there is a first year pro forma of projected sales. We believe these figures are attainable. For various reasons we will take a 70% scenario for budgeting purposes in case everything doesnt go as planned. Just to be on the safe side. We project a conservative gross sales dollar amount to be:
$124,630 Projected Gross Revenue X .70 70% Of Projected Dollars = $ 87,241 A Conservative Safe Number To Project As First Year Gross Receipts
Anticipated Business Expenses
We project costs of $56,112 for our first year of expenses. Please see spreadsheet in the appendix. We will add in a 20% fudge factor just in case we have any unanticipated expenses in year one. We project a conservative business expense dollar amount to be:
$56,112 Anticipated Expenses X .20 20% Fudge Factor = $11,222 Possible Additional And Unanticipated Expenses During Year One
$56,111 Anticipated Expenses +11,111 Unanticipated Expenses = $67,334 Total Anticipated And Unanticipated Business Expenses For Year One.
Profit Per Truck
Please see the graph on the following page of the Net Profit One Truck. This graph is based on the spreadsheets Anticipated Gross Sales From Services minus Anticipated Business Expenses.
We realize that if a conservative approach is taken, we must use the 70% scenario for Gross Sales and add 20% to Business Expenses. We project a conservative net profit for the first truck in year one to be:
$ 87,241 Gross Receipts - 67,334 Expenses = $ 19,907 First Year Profit. $ 19,907 First Year Profit divided by 12 Number Of Months = $ 1,659 Per Month Profit, A Good Conservative Number.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Measure It First, Then You Can Manage It
If you cant measure it, you cant manage it. Companies may be able to survive for a while if managers arent using data to make decisions, but they will eventually see their demise; likely sooner than later. Those companies to benchmark off are the ones who are not only surviving, but thriving! Pick your favorite phrase: TQM, Process Management, Quality Circles, Improvement Teams, Standards and Measurement departments or any other title you prefer. The function is the same. Look at baseline data percentages, dollars, hours, quantities and continuously monitor the performance.
There should not be any task that a supervisor or staff members perform that cannot be measured. If you cant measure it, you cant manage it. Take a fast food restaurant for example. There are a plethora of areas that can be measured such as days without an accident, customer wait time in line, length of time burgers are in the warmer, amount of money off in the drawers, customer complaints, etc. Graph it out and keep a spread sheet of your figures. Clearly youre looking for improvement. If there was a decline, brainstorm, find the root cause and then fix the problem.
The process is the same no matter what industry youre managing. Whether you manufacture widgets, if you are the CEO of an internet marketing firm or if you sell cookies, take a look at all the steps involved in day to day operations. Assign values to the process. Set goals. Review the results on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Remember, if you cant measure it, you cant mange it. Charts and graphs are an excellent tool to visually remind you of where you have been and where you plan to go.
In the midst of measuring your subordinates performance, dont neglect to measure and manage your own operations. Dont think for a minute that your boss isnt looking at your performance. And if youre the top dog, you had better be managing yourself well, or you will never succeed at managing others
If you cant measure it, you cant manage it. Companies may be able to survive for a while if managers arent using data to make decisions, but they will eventually see their demise; likely sooner than later. Those companies to benchmark off are the ones who are not only surviving, but thriving! Pick your favorite phrase: TQM, Process Management, Quality Circles, Improvement Teams, Standards and Measurement departments or any other title you prefer. The function is the same. Look at baseline data percentages, dollars, hours, quantities and continuously monitor the performance.
There should not be any task that a supervisor or staff members perform that cannot be measured. If you cant measure it, you cant manage it. Take a fast food restaurant for example. There are a plethora of areas that can be measured such as days without an accident, customer wait time in line, length of time burgers are in the warmer, amount of money off in the drawers, customer complaints, etc. Graph it out and keep a spread sheet of your figures. Clearly youre looking for improvement. If there was a decline, brainstorm, find the root cause and then fix the problem.
The process is the same no matter what industry youre managing. Whether you manufacture widgets, if you are the CEO of an internet marketing firm or if you sell cookies, take a look at all the steps involved in day to day operations. Assign values to the process. Set goals. Review the results on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Remember, if you cant measure it, you cant mange it. Charts and graphs are an excellent tool to visually remind you of where you have been and where you plan to go.
In the midst of measuring your subordinates performance, dont neglect to measure and manage your own operations. Dont think for a minute that your boss isnt looking at your performance. And if youre the top dog, you had better be managing yourself well, or you will never succeed at managing others
Condo and Small Space Living
Whatever the style of your new condo development or your own personal style - Designing for a condo begins with some self knowledge, a critical evaluation of how you live or aspire to live, your new floor plans and an understanding of the importance of flow in small spaces.
Adapting to a smaller condo unit (or a small space in general) means that you need to rethink the volume of your furniture, storage and room sizes - BUT as they say "Big things can come in small packages". I have been to many truly amazing and inspiring small space homes and condos. But that is getting ahead of ourselves; First is the difficult process of Downsizing - the design buzz word for editing down your possessions to what is truly important and organizing them in a clear, stylish and efficient manner.
Downsizing is often one of the most difficult processes of moving into a condo, but it is also one of the most freeing, letting us adapt to our new spaces and lifestyles. This means throwing out the boxes of paperwork from 20 years ago.......the boxes of lamps to repair that you put away 5 years ago........everything that doesnt have importance and frequent usage. This is also the time to dispose of things that wont fit or work in your new homes design - such as overstuffed-oversized sofas and chairs. This is the opportunity to live out your dream in your personal style......to create an environment that completely suits you now and who you want to be.
Once you have your floor plan and precise measurements in hand, the fun part can begin - take a pad of graph paper and a bunch of pencils and carefully plot out all the different scenarios for the placement of your furniture - remember to leave breathing room around your furniture and if something doesnt work or is to large - it has to go. Oversized dark furniture that once looked rich and inviting in your home library or study probably isn't going to work now. Decide which pieces you are going to sell and which you will give to family.......and those that need to simply go.
Moving into a condo is actually a wonderful time to reevaluate your lifestyle and redesign it to who you are now and how you desire to live, relax and entertain.
What you need to do when shopping for and designing your new condo is to always keep the scale and size of your home in mind. That oversized sofa that looks good in the 5000 sq. ft. furniture showroom is going to look like a car in your condo. It looks to scale in that setting but once you get it home its a completely different story.
The reality of Canadian Condo dwelling is that most will have somewhere in the neighbourhood of 600 to 1250 sq. ft. of space. This requires you to make the best of every square inch of space and something that I always stress - Making rooms multipurpose and your furniture multifunctional. For example - A dining area can be both a dining room and a library.......a coffee table can have hidden storage......ottomans can have lift top lids for extra storage and seating......the list is endless. As well, think of your furniture in terms of human scale.
I always prefer to scale down the larger pieces of furniture as much as possible so that it is very comfortable BUT there is no waste.................So if you are going for an eclectic look (and by this I don't mean anything goes........this is actually the most difficult style to pull off and requires well thought editing and placement) - you need to make sure that the contemporary pieces you introduce complement the scale and proportion of the antique pieces(which usually have a smaller and lower scale).
When moving into your condo only keep the antique pieces (if you have them) that are the most cherished - your prize possessions.......sell the rest or give them to your family........by having just a few good pieces you give them breathing room......allow them to be seen more clearly and allow them to function and flow better in your condo space. By mixing some antique and vintage with clean lined modern you will create a dynamic and sexy space in which the characteristics of each piece brings out the best in the others.
Another important process to do before you move in is to make a list of the ways you want to use each room and the number of pieces you want to put into them - using your floor plans and graph paper for reference. Start plotting out the various components - sofa, chairs, art, tables, lamps, ottomans, coffetables, etc. SEE what gives you the best grouping based on your scale. Its a quick and efficient way to see how many things you can fit in from your priority list.
ALWAYS avoid sofas with giant oversized rolled arms - the DEATH of most condos - they can easily take up 9 inches on either side which means you are dedicating 18 inches to the arms of your sofa - simply bad design. For small spaces a good rule of thumb is for your sofa to be 7 feet long and approx. 36 inches deep
The design of your condo should allow for easy flow of purposes, whether its work....daily living...entertaining. That means every piece needs to be easily moveable and that as many things as possible can work double duty.
Many homeowners find it difficult to understand scale and proportions - if you go oversized on your main pieces - everything else will need to have similar proportions - You can't have a giant rolled arm sofa with small streamlined teak chairs. BUT you can have sleek scaled down modern furnishings with oversized accessories to create drama and a sense of grandeur - Such as an oversized floor mirror or a massive painting. It is better to have a few larger dramatic pieces then a sea of little collections and knick knacks.
And remember, dont be afraid of colour! Use it to your advantage by Colour blocking walls and accessories - Add some depth and warmth. Set up your condo to who you are now and who you want to be. Its time for you to start living your life the way you envision it.
Whatever the style of your new condo development or your own personal style - Designing for a condo begins with some self knowledge, a critical evaluation of how you live or aspire to live, your new floor plans and an understanding of the importance of flow in small spaces.
Adapting to a smaller condo unit (or a small space in general) means that you need to rethink the volume of your furniture, storage and room sizes - BUT as they say "Big things can come in small packages". I have been to many truly amazing and inspiring small space homes and condos. But that is getting ahead of ourselves; First is the difficult process of Downsizing - the design buzz word for editing down your possessions to what is truly important and organizing them in a clear, stylish and efficient manner.
Downsizing is often one of the most difficult processes of moving into a condo, but it is also one of the most freeing, letting us adapt to our new spaces and lifestyles. This means throwing out the boxes of paperwork from 20 years ago.......the boxes of lamps to repair that you put away 5 years ago........everything that doesnt have importance and frequent usage. This is also the time to dispose of things that wont fit or work in your new homes design - such as overstuffed-oversized sofas and chairs. This is the opportunity to live out your dream in your personal style......to create an environment that completely suits you now and who you want to be.
Once you have your floor plan and precise measurements in hand, the fun part can begin - take a pad of graph paper and a bunch of pencils and carefully plot out all the different scenarios for the placement of your furniture - remember to leave breathing room around your furniture and if something doesnt work or is to large - it has to go. Oversized dark furniture that once looked rich and inviting in your home library or study probably isn't going to work now. Decide which pieces you are going to sell and which you will give to family.......and those that need to simply go.
Moving into a condo is actually a wonderful time to reevaluate your lifestyle and redesign it to who you are now and how you desire to live, relax and entertain.
What you need to do when shopping for and designing your new condo is to always keep the scale and size of your home in mind. That oversized sofa that looks good in the 5000 sq. ft. furniture showroom is going to look like a car in your condo. It looks to scale in that setting but once you get it home its a completely different story.
The reality of Canadian Condo dwelling is that most will have somewhere in the neighbourhood of 600 to 1250 sq. ft. of space. This requires you to make the best of every square inch of space and something that I always stress - Making rooms multipurpose and your furniture multifunctional. For example - A dining area can be both a dining room and a library.......a coffee table can have hidden storage......ottomans can have lift top lids for extra storage and seating......the list is endless. As well, think of your furniture in terms of human scale.
I always prefer to scale down the larger pieces of furniture as much as possible so that it is very comfortable BUT there is no waste.................So if you are going for an eclectic look (and by this I don't mean anything goes........this is actually the most difficult style to pull off and requires well thought editing and placement) - you need to make sure that the contemporary pieces you introduce complement the scale and proportion of the antique pieces(which usually have a smaller and lower scale).
When moving into your condo only keep the antique pieces (if you have them) that are the most cherished - your prize possessions.......sell the rest or give them to your family........by having just a few good pieces you give them breathing room......allow them to be seen more clearly and allow them to function and flow better in your condo space. By mixing some antique and vintage with clean lined modern you will create a dynamic and sexy space in which the characteristics of each piece brings out the best in the others.
Another important process to do before you move in is to make a list of the ways you want to use each room and the number of pieces you want to put into them - using your floor plans and graph paper for reference. Start plotting out the various components - sofa, chairs, art, tables, lamps, ottomans, coffetables, etc. SEE what gives you the best grouping based on your scale. Its a quick and efficient way to see how many things you can fit in from your priority list.
ALWAYS avoid sofas with giant oversized rolled arms - the DEATH of most condos - they can easily take up 9 inches on either side which means you are dedicating 18 inches to the arms of your sofa - simply bad design. For small spaces a good rule of thumb is for your sofa to be 7 feet long and approx. 36 inches deep
The design of your condo should allow for easy flow of purposes, whether its work....daily living...entertaining. That means every piece needs to be easily moveable and that as many things as possible can work double duty.
Many homeowners find it difficult to understand scale and proportions - if you go oversized on your main pieces - everything else will need to have similar proportions - You can't have a giant rolled arm sofa with small streamlined teak chairs. BUT you can have sleek scaled down modern furnishings with oversized accessories to create drama and a sense of grandeur - Such as an oversized floor mirror or a massive painting. It is better to have a few larger dramatic pieces then a sea of little collections and knick knacks.
And remember, dont be afraid of colour! Use it to your advantage by Colour blocking walls and accessories - Add some depth and warmth. Set up your condo to who you are now and who you want to be. Its time for you to start living your life the way you envision it.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Interpreting an EKG
EKGs can assist doctors in diagnosing and determining any current or past heart abnormalities and are often a regular screening for those with heart disease. Through electrodes attached at various strategic body points, the EKG machine records the electrical impulses of the heart. The results of the impulses are displayed on a computer monitor and then printed onto graph paper. The attending physician or EKG technician interprets your heart health by reading the graphed EKG image.
EKGs are a critical tool for medical professionals to diagnose and treat heart ailments. The EKG reading of your heart is compared to the reading of a standard/normal heart in order to get an idea of your heart function. Abnormalities in the heart rate, heart rhythm or contractions and relaxations can signal the presence of past heart attacks, heart disease or coronary artery disease. If any of these symptoms are present, your doctor will refer you for further testing.
There are literally dozens of different methods for interpreting EKGs but most begin with a search for recurring patterns. One of the first things EKG technicians look for is heart rate. Electrodes are used to stimulate the heart into contracting and then relaxing. The first spike in the reading (the P spike) represents the impulses from the upper chamber of the heart. A flatter line called the PR interval represents a bridge between the contracting and relaxing of the atria. Each EKG has various other spikes and dips representing heart electrical waves; each spike or dip is referred to by an alphabetic letter.
Most normal hearts have a pattern with a slightly varying rhythm. This is called sinus arrhythmia and is considered normal and healthy. The absence of sinus arrhythmia may indicate other problems with the heart. In EKG interpretation, the lack of sinus arrhythmia has been seen to predict the occurrence of sudden death from heart attack or heart failure. The results of an EKG may become the basis for additional treatment. Your doctor will decide if further evaluation is needed. EKG technicians are highly trained and skilled medical professionals; many physicians consider these technicians to be the first authority in interpreting the EKG results.
Please Note: Professional EKG readings require a great amount of training and education. Since many methods exist to interpret these readings, it is often difficult for non-medical people to understand the terminology. If you are having an EKG performed, your technician will be glad to answer any questions regarding the EKG reading. If you notice something that seems abnormal to you, the technician may be able to calm your fears and by explaining the results in layman's terms.
EKGs can assist doctors in diagnosing and determining any current or past heart abnormalities and are often a regular screening for those with heart disease. Through electrodes attached at various strategic body points, the EKG machine records the electrical impulses of the heart. The results of the impulses are displayed on a computer monitor and then printed onto graph paper. The attending physician or EKG technician interprets your heart health by reading the graphed EKG image.
EKGs are a critical tool for medical professionals to diagnose and treat heart ailments. The EKG reading of your heart is compared to the reading of a standard/normal heart in order to get an idea of your heart function. Abnormalities in the heart rate, heart rhythm or contractions and relaxations can signal the presence of past heart attacks, heart disease or coronary artery disease. If any of these symptoms are present, your doctor will refer you for further testing.
There are literally dozens of different methods for interpreting EKGs but most begin with a search for recurring patterns. One of the first things EKG technicians look for is heart rate. Electrodes are used to stimulate the heart into contracting and then relaxing. The first spike in the reading (the P spike) represents the impulses from the upper chamber of the heart. A flatter line called the PR interval represents a bridge between the contracting and relaxing of the atria. Each EKG has various other spikes and dips representing heart electrical waves; each spike or dip is referred to by an alphabetic letter.
Most normal hearts have a pattern with a slightly varying rhythm. This is called sinus arrhythmia and is considered normal and healthy. The absence of sinus arrhythmia may indicate other problems with the heart. In EKG interpretation, the lack of sinus arrhythmia has been seen to predict the occurrence of sudden death from heart attack or heart failure. The results of an EKG may become the basis for additional treatment. Your doctor will decide if further evaluation is needed. EKG technicians are highly trained and skilled medical professionals; many physicians consider these technicians to be the first authority in interpreting the EKG results.
Please Note: Professional EKG readings require a great amount of training and education. Since many methods exist to interpret these readings, it is often difficult for non-medical people to understand the terminology. If you are having an EKG performed, your technician will be glad to answer any questions regarding the EKG reading. If you notice something that seems abnormal to you, the technician may be able to calm your fears and by explaining the results in layman's terms.
Mapping Software: Putting Data Visualization on the Map
Mapping Software Improves Data Visualization
From the outset, it is important to clarify exactly what mapping software is and what it has to do with data visualization. If you are looking for driving directions for your next road trip, this is not the article for you. If you are looking for a tool to organize and bring to life complex levels of information which revolutionizes tracking and reporting, then you have come to the right place. Data visualization used to be visual organization of data in simple bar charts, pie graphs, or some form of mapping until mapping software enabled data visualization to simplify complex levels of interactive information.
Mapping Software Tools
The reason why mapping software is able to make so much information interactive is that it interfaces with so many interactive mapping tools commonly used in the business world. Any report, map, chart, or graph used in tracking, reporting, presentations, or research will benefit from mapping software. The following is a brief explanation of many of the tools used in mapping software.
Flash
Flash technology streamlines information by making visible only what you are looking for. For example, you may move your map from the home link to the about us link of a website and see the home menu disappear and the about us menu pop out. What you are looking for appears, everything else disappears.
Java
Mapping software also interfaces with Java technology, allowing networks to benefit from mapping software. Each manager, employee, and customer will be able to interact with the company information they need.
HTML
Mapping software interacts with HTML in order to provide interactive information to the broadest number of businesses and consumers. Using HTML enables the entire World Wide Web to receive and convey interactive information.
JSP
JSP technology uses java for web page content, and when teamed together with mapping software, each web page comes alive. Interactive data is able to work with any server, from the WWW to the remotest consumer.
PHP
PHP technology is server-side coding which interfaces with HTML. ASP, Perl, and Cold Fusion technology interact similarly with HTML, which means they work similarly with mapping software to create dynamic pages.
.NET
Even WWW networks using TCP/IP network protocols using .net technology can interface with mapping software to bring .net charts, .net graphs, and .net maps to life both within the business and among clientele.
PDF
The concern of businesses using any of these networking or programming technologies is based on long experience of not being able to convert HTML, Java, JSP, ASP, Perl, Cod Fusion, .Net, PHP, or any other type of interactive information into a printable copy. Mapping software provides a solution by allowing any of these technologies to convert to PDF.
Mapping software has benefited companies as diverse as airlines and chambers of commerce and people as different as a 6th grader and a CEO. The diversity of mapping software lies in its interfacing with common business and educational technologies.
Mapping Software Improves Data Visualization
From the outset, it is important to clarify exactly what mapping software is and what it has to do with data visualization. If you are looking for driving directions for your next road trip, this is not the article for you. If you are looking for a tool to organize and bring to life complex levels of information which revolutionizes tracking and reporting, then you have come to the right place. Data visualization used to be visual organization of data in simple bar charts, pie graphs, or some form of mapping until mapping software enabled data visualization to simplify complex levels of interactive information.
Mapping Software Tools
The reason why mapping software is able to make so much information interactive is that it interfaces with so many interactive mapping tools commonly used in the business world. Any report, map, chart, or graph used in tracking, reporting, presentations, or research will benefit from mapping software. The following is a brief explanation of many of the tools used in mapping software.
Flash
Flash technology streamlines information by making visible only what you are looking for. For example, you may move your map from the home link to the about us link of a website and see the home menu disappear and the about us menu pop out. What you are looking for appears, everything else disappears.
Java
Mapping software also interfaces with Java technology, allowing networks to benefit from mapping software. Each manager, employee, and customer will be able to interact with the company information they need.
HTML
Mapping software interacts with HTML in order to provide interactive information to the broadest number of businesses and consumers. Using HTML enables the entire World Wide Web to receive and convey interactive information.
JSP
JSP technology uses java for web page content, and when teamed together with mapping software, each web page comes alive. Interactive data is able to work with any server, from the WWW to the remotest consumer.
PHP
PHP technology is server-side coding which interfaces with HTML. ASP, Perl, and Cold Fusion technology interact similarly with HTML, which means they work similarly with mapping software to create dynamic pages.
.NET
Even WWW networks using TCP/IP network protocols using .net technology can interface with mapping software to bring .net charts, .net graphs, and .net maps to life both within the business and among clientele.
The concern of businesses using any of these networking or programming technologies is based on long experience of not being able to convert HTML, Java, JSP, ASP, Perl, Cod Fusion, .Net, PHP, or any other type of interactive information into a printable copy. Mapping software provides a solution by allowing any of these technologies to convert to PDF.
Mapping software has benefited companies as diverse as airlines and chambers of commerce and people as different as a 6th grader and a CEO. The diversity of mapping software lies in its interfacing with common business and educational technologies.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Tracking For Profits
If you can't track it, don't do it.
Every high-performance venture needs a tracking system. A tracking system with well-designed metrics lets everyone know how well they are doing relative to their commitments. It is a guide to whether additional or extraordinary actions need to be taken.
It is one of the first things I set up with my business coaching clients because without a clear set of objective metrics it is hard for people to be clear about their results.
Establish intentions for your project, figure out the critical success factors, determine suitable measurements for each, and set performance targets for those measures.
For example, say your intention is to increase market penetration. The measure is your ventures sales divided by total sales in your market. Perhaps your current market share is 10% -- good, you have a benchmark, and your new target is 25% by the end of the year.
Thats objective, measurable, and thus... achievable.
Make someone accountable for your projects performance against each target.
Establish a timely tracking system for each metric, which easily gathers the necessary data.
Develop periodic interim performance targets, and a reporting structure to let everyone involved know how they are doing.
Your performance tracking systems can be kept with pen and paper, or they can be automated on your computer system. However you implement them, keep it simple and don't let the overhead of your tracking system become a burden of any kind.
Below is a very simple system I used to keep track of my page output while writing Faster Than The Speed of Change. It was kept on a computer spreadsheet, but could just as easily been pencil on graph paper. Whenever I was below the line I had catching up to do.
Start with 0 in the lower left corner, write units of measurement along the left axis, and dates of measurement along the bottom. Draw a straight reference line from 0 to your goal, and plot your performance against that goal. Of course the reference line need not be straight; set it up in whatever way reflects the time-relationship of your goals.
If you want to find out how you can set up a performance dashboard and completely systemize your entire business to make it "scalable and saleable" link to http://www.turnkeycoach.com
If you can't track it, don't do it.
Every high-performance venture needs a tracking system. A tracking system with well-designed metrics lets everyone know how well they are doing relative to their commitments. It is a guide to whether additional or extraordinary actions need to be taken.
It is one of the first things I set up with my business coaching clients because without a clear set of objective metrics it is hard for people to be clear about their results.
Establish intentions for your project, figure out the critical success factors, determine suitable measurements for each, and set performance targets for those measures.
For example, say your intention is to increase market penetration. The measure is your ventures sales divided by total sales in your market. Perhaps your current market share is 10% -- good, you have a benchmark, and your new target is 25% by the end of the year.
Thats objective, measurable, and thus... achievable.
Make someone accountable for your projects performance against each target.
Establish a timely tracking system for each metric, which easily gathers the necessary data.
Develop periodic interim performance targets, and a reporting structure to let everyone involved know how they are doing.
Your performance tracking systems can be kept with pen and paper, or they can be automated on your computer system. However you implement them, keep it simple and don't let the overhead of your tracking system become a burden of any kind.
Below is a very simple system I used to keep track of my page output while writing Faster Than The Speed of Change. It was kept on a computer spreadsheet, but could just as easily been pencil on graph paper. Whenever I was below the line I had catching up to do.
Start with 0 in the lower left corner, write units of measurement along the left axis, and dates of measurement along the bottom. Draw a straight reference line from 0 to your goal, and plot your performance against that goal. Of course the reference line need not be straight; set it up in whatever way reflects the time-relationship of your goals.
If you want to find out how you can set up a performance dashboard and completely systemize your entire business to make it "scalable and saleable" link to http://www.turnkeycoach.com
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Levitra - Gaining Quick Popularity
Your blissful life has suddenly turned topsy-turvy. Your partner cannot satisfy you the way you became so used to! The
sexual bliss that you took for granted suddenly seems elusive and transformed into a sexual problem. A thousand unpleasant thoughts crossed your mind in a second.
Halt! Give your mental horses a break. Everything is not lost. Your impotent husband can still make you feel heavens!
Erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence does not generate the awe it used to when the prescription pills were not invented.
Levitra (vardenafil HCl) has managed to capture the imagination of most of the ED sufferers. Approved in 2003 by the US FDA as a prescribed oral pill for impotence treatment, Levitra has grown from strength to strength. Manufactured by Bayer Corporation of Germany and marketed globally by Glaxo Smith Kline, Levitra became only the second approved drug for the treatment of ED.
ED is not only a male sexual problem, but it also has contributed a great deal in wrecking the long and blissful
relationships besides causing many depression related diseases in the couple. But since using Levitra, the couples have reported satisfaction at large scale. Many couples have vouched for its efficacy.
Levitras sales graph is reporting northwards growth since the time of its coming into the market. The multiple growth of Levitra is attributed to the fact that it is equally effective in smaller dose where Viagra requires a larger dose. Thus, a
small intake of Levitra is sufficient to achieve the desired results of a full dose of Viagra. Moreover, the results of
clinical trials suggest that Levitra works faster than its counterpart Viagra. Some of the patients showed positive results
within 15 minutes of its intake.
Levitra is a prescription drug and must be taken only after proper diagnosis and prescription by a qualified doctor, which
is generally not the case when you are buying Levitra online.
Your blissful life has suddenly turned topsy-turvy. Your partner cannot satisfy you the way you became so used to! The
sexual bliss that you took for granted suddenly seems elusive and transformed into a sexual problem. A thousand unpleasant thoughts crossed your mind in a second.
Halt! Give your mental horses a break. Everything is not lost. Your impotent husband can still make you feel heavens!
Erectile dysfunction (ED) or impotence does not generate the awe it used to when the prescription pills were not invented.
Levitra (vardenafil HCl) has managed to capture the imagination of most of the ED sufferers. Approved in 2003 by the US FDA as a prescribed oral pill for impotence treatment, Levitra has grown from strength to strength. Manufactured by Bayer Corporation of Germany and marketed globally by Glaxo Smith Kline, Levitra became only the second approved drug for the treatment of ED.
ED is not only a male sexual problem, but it also has contributed a great deal in wrecking the long and blissful
relationships besides causing many depression related diseases in the couple. But since using Levitra, the couples have reported satisfaction at large scale. Many couples have vouched for its efficacy.
Levitras sales graph is reporting northwards growth since the time of its coming into the market. The multiple growth of Levitra is attributed to the fact that it is equally effective in smaller dose where Viagra requires a larger dose. Thus, a
small intake of Levitra is sufficient to achieve the desired results of a full dose of Viagra. Moreover, the results of
clinical trials suggest that Levitra works faster than its counterpart Viagra. Some of the patients showed positive results
within 15 minutes of its intake.
Levitra is a prescription drug and must be taken only after proper diagnosis and prescription by a qualified doctor, which
is generally not the case when you are buying Levitra online.
Did You Check Your Confidence Level?
Would you like to be confident? Your answer may be - YES.
I do want to be confident.
However, this answer lacks the impact. It is too generalized.
Just like everybody wants to do well in life and be rich but not many ever realize this wish. This is because to actually get somewhere in life, you need to quantify your confidence. You need to define the task for which you need to be confident so that you can execute it successfully.
A mere wish to be confident wont take you anywhere. The dream must have a deadline as well!
Self Confidence might mean different things to different people groups.
For a child it might mean to be able to recite the poem to her teacher the next morning. For a business executive it might mean to be able to present the business report to the Board of Directors.
For a salaried person it may be the ability to be able to make a switch over from his secure job to a new independent venture and so on. To execute their respective tasks, these people need a certain level of confidence, which would see them through.
Every task requires a minimum level of confidence to be able to be executed. Do you have a task in your mind to be done? Do you have the level of confidence required? Let us check it out!
Following is a simple questionnaire. You have to answer to these in a YES or NO
1. Does it happen too often with you that you cannot take a decision all by yourself and you seem to look for your colleagues, friends, or your spouse to sort the matter for you?
2. Do you always seem to be in perpetual need of a support system wherein you can feel secure?
3. Do you just sit and listen all the times in your office meetings?
4. Do you feel difficulty in reporting a matter to your boss or you have an excellent idea that can improve your companys efficiency but you cannot muster enough courage to go and talk about it to your Boss?
5. Are you terrified to meet someone new? Is public speaking your worst nightmare?
6. Do you timidly accept orders from your superior even though you know that you are already overloaded and you need to say no?
7. Are you excessively concerned about what other people think of you?
8. Do you fear taking risks?
9. Do you feel dissatisfied about your appearance?
10. Are you uncomfortable in social gatherings being amongst lots of people?
If you happen to answer these questions with a Yes, you seem to have a confidence crisis that might become an obstacle in successfully executing your tasks.
Dont Panic, as it is good that you found out since now you are aware of a potential problem of your life. The very fact that you are aware of your confidence rating makes you ready to take further action and work towards eliminating the negative effects of low confidence levels and work towards building your self confidence.
Here are some more questions you may answer.
1. Have you accomplished anything in the past?
2. Are you the one to go ahead and break the ice at a new place or wait for someone else to initiate a discussion?
3. Do you feel you are well respected by others?
4. Do you think you have the potential to succeed?
5. Are you a happy and loving person?
6. Are you satisfied with your career graph?
7. Are you satisfied with your skills and qualifications?
8. Do you feel in control of your life?
9. Do you imagine yourself to be more successful five years from now?
10. Do you feel that you are a worthwhile person?
If you happen to answer most of these questions with a NO, you have LOW self-confidence levels.
However, a YES is never decisive and a NO is never final. One needs to constantly maintain the good points and work towards converting bad points into good points. And the good news is that it is very much possible.
Its important that you honestly answer the questions above, since only when you realize the present status of your self-confidence would you be working towards building self-confidence or maintaining and increasing your present levels.
Would you like to be confident? Your answer may be - YES.
I do want to be confident.
However, this answer lacks the impact. It is too generalized.
Just like everybody wants to do well in life and be rich but not many ever realize this wish. This is because to actually get somewhere in life, you need to quantify your confidence. You need to define the task for which you need to be confident so that you can execute it successfully.
A mere wish to be confident wont take you anywhere. The dream must have a deadline as well!
Self Confidence might mean different things to different people groups.
For a child it might mean to be able to recite the poem to her teacher the next morning. For a business executive it might mean to be able to present the business report to the Board of Directors.
For a salaried person it may be the ability to be able to make a switch over from his secure job to a new independent venture and so on. To execute their respective tasks, these people need a certain level of confidence, which would see them through.
Every task requires a minimum level of confidence to be able to be executed. Do you have a task in your mind to be done? Do you have the level of confidence required? Let us check it out!
Following is a simple questionnaire. You have to answer to these in a YES or NO
1. Does it happen too often with you that you cannot take a decision all by yourself and you seem to look for your colleagues, friends, or your spouse to sort the matter for you?
2. Do you always seem to be in perpetual need of a support system wherein you can feel secure?
3. Do you just sit and listen all the times in your office meetings?
4. Do you feel difficulty in reporting a matter to your boss or you have an excellent idea that can improve your companys efficiency but you cannot muster enough courage to go and talk about it to your Boss?
5. Are you terrified to meet someone new? Is public speaking your worst nightmare?
6. Do you timidly accept orders from your superior even though you know that you are already overloaded and you need to say no?
7. Are you excessively concerned about what other people think of you?
8. Do you fear taking risks?
9. Do you feel dissatisfied about your appearance?
10. Are you uncomfortable in social gatherings being amongst lots of people?
If you happen to answer these questions with a Yes, you seem to have a confidence crisis that might become an obstacle in successfully executing your tasks.
Dont Panic, as it is good that you found out since now you are aware of a potential problem of your life. The very fact that you are aware of your confidence rating makes you ready to take further action and work towards eliminating the negative effects of low confidence levels and work towards building your self confidence.
Here are some more questions you may answer.
1. Have you accomplished anything in the past?
2. Are you the one to go ahead and break the ice at a new place or wait for someone else to initiate a discussion?
3. Do you feel you are well respected by others?
4. Do you think you have the potential to succeed?
5. Are you a happy and loving person?
6. Are you satisfied with your career graph?
7. Are you satisfied with your skills and qualifications?
8. Do you feel in control of your life?
9. Do you imagine yourself to be more successful five years from now?
10. Do you feel that you are a worthwhile person?
If you happen to answer most of these questions with a NO, you have LOW self-confidence levels.
However, a YES is never decisive and a NO is never final. One needs to constantly maintain the good points and work towards converting bad points into good points. And the good news is that it is very much possible.
Its important that you honestly answer the questions above, since only when you realize the present status of your self-confidence would you be working towards building self-confidence or maintaining and increasing your present levels.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Wedding Loans: Perfect Finance Option for a Perfect Wedding
After seeing each other for years and being tagged as in love since eternity, you desire to bring this to a logical end. You are wrong if you think I am suggesting a divorce even before you are actually married. The end to every love is wedding -the wedding of two bodies and two souls.
Have you been planning wedding since a long time but have been hindered because of the huge cost weddings entail nowadays.
Worry not. Spend as much as you can, because wedding loans are there to pay every penny of the expenses.
Average wedding costs anywhere between $19,000 $27,000. This may go much higher if one is planning to have a gala wedding with all the pomp and show included.
And why shant one. Wedding is a once in a lifetime event. People would take all efforts to make the wedding truly memorable.
But the society and the customs have changed much. Just as the parents or guardians lost their say over the choice of bride or groom, they have little to do in the planning and financing of the wedding. So it is the couple who does all the spending on the wedding.
So how do the couples bear the expenses of wedding, in spite of being new to their professions and low on the income graph?
Wedding loans are an effective tool in their hands which they use to pay the entire wedding expenses. Wedding loans can finance practically every wedding expense right from the elegant wedding dress to the exquisitely beautiful engagement ring, from the lavish reception to the impeccable church decoration.
There are a number of other expenses which seem insignificant if seen individually, but become difficult to repay when taken in totality. These can be very easily paid through wedding loans.
Besides, wedding loans can be a much cheaper option to use for the payment rather than credit cards or past savings. Using a credit card can be simple if one goes by the immediate outcomes. But when the credit card debts are due for payment you find them to be much more than what you really spent. No, the credit card company is not indulging in any king of overcharging or cheating. This is only because of the accumulation of interest. Payment through credit cards is just like drawing a loan, but at a much higher rate.
Utilizing past savings for a one day affair like a wedding would be a waste. It could have been a lot better had the past savings been used for some productive purposes.
A wedding loan allows the customer to enjoy two benefits. The first benefit of wedding loan is that the customer will not have to pay an exorbitantly high amount. Most of the lenders offer loans at reasonable rates of interest.
The second benefit is regarding the timing of payment. Even though a customer has to pay more than what he would have spent, he accepts this because he does not have to pay the whole amount at one go. Monthly payments require to be made towards the payment of loan.
A certain amount of planning is necessary when taking a wedding loan. If parents are ready to be a part of the finances then they must be included in discussions. How much can they spend on the wedding needs to be decided well in advance. This will determine the amount of wedding loan that needs to be applied for.
Secured wedding loans taken against ones home will be much cheaper. A valuation of the home or property will be done. One can draw loan depending upon the worth of his home. However there are options for those who do not have a home or who do not want to put their home under any kind of obligation.
Next comes the choice of lenders. It is no longer necessary to depend on lenders in one particular locality or region. Almost every big and small lender is available online. An internet connection is what is needed. One does not even have to leave his home or office, and loan can be applied for instantly. Such a relief from the previous times when a customer had to go to each and every lender to just get the quotes. Few customers were ready to go through this grind, and hence accepted whatever offer was given.
These loans are very easy to approve. With the valuation of property and credibility check over, it is very easy to get loans approved. Filling up each and every detail with caution and accuracy can save enough of time in the approval process.
Did you promise your wife an impeccable wedding ring? You can keep on the promise since wedding loans are there to meet the expense.
After seeing each other for years and being tagged as in love since eternity, you desire to bring this to a logical end. You are wrong if you think I am suggesting a divorce even before you are actually married. The end to every love is wedding -the wedding of two bodies and two souls.
Have you been planning wedding since a long time but have been hindered because of the huge cost weddings entail nowadays.
Worry not. Spend as much as you can, because wedding loans are there to pay every penny of the expenses.
Average wedding costs anywhere between $19,000 $27,000. This may go much higher if one is planning to have a gala wedding with all the pomp and show included.
And why shant one. Wedding is a once in a lifetime event. People would take all efforts to make the wedding truly memorable.
But the society and the customs have changed much. Just as the parents or guardians lost their say over the choice of bride or groom, they have little to do in the planning and financing of the wedding. So it is the couple who does all the spending on the wedding.
So how do the couples bear the expenses of wedding, in spite of being new to their professions and low on the income graph?
Wedding loans are an effective tool in their hands which they use to pay the entire wedding expenses. Wedding loans can finance practically every wedding expense right from the elegant wedding dress to the exquisitely beautiful engagement ring, from the lavish reception to the impeccable church decoration.
There are a number of other expenses which seem insignificant if seen individually, but become difficult to repay when taken in totality. These can be very easily paid through wedding loans.
Besides, wedding loans can be a much cheaper option to use for the payment rather than credit cards or past savings. Using a credit card can be simple if one goes by the immediate outcomes. But when the credit card debts are due for payment you find them to be much more than what you really spent. No, the credit card company is not indulging in any king of overcharging or cheating. This is only because of the accumulation of interest. Payment through credit cards is just like drawing a loan, but at a much higher rate.
Utilizing past savings for a one day affair like a wedding would be a waste. It could have been a lot better had the past savings been used for some productive purposes.
A wedding loan allows the customer to enjoy two benefits. The first benefit of wedding loan is that the customer will not have to pay an exorbitantly high amount. Most of the lenders offer loans at reasonable rates of interest.
The second benefit is regarding the timing of payment. Even though a customer has to pay more than what he would have spent, he accepts this because he does not have to pay the whole amount at one go. Monthly payments require to be made towards the payment of loan.
A certain amount of planning is necessary when taking a wedding loan. If parents are ready to be a part of the finances then they must be included in discussions. How much can they spend on the wedding needs to be decided well in advance. This will determine the amount of wedding loan that needs to be applied for.
Secured wedding loans taken against ones home will be much cheaper. A valuation of the home or property will be done. One can draw loan depending upon the worth of his home. However there are options for those who do not have a home or who do not want to put their home under any kind of obligation.
Next comes the choice of lenders. It is no longer necessary to depend on lenders in one particular locality or region. Almost every big and small lender is available online. An internet connection is what is needed. One does not even have to leave his home or office, and loan can be applied for instantly. Such a relief from the previous times when a customer had to go to each and every lender to just get the quotes. Few customers were ready to go through this grind, and hence accepted whatever offer was given.
These loans are very easy to approve. With the valuation of property and credibility check over, it is very easy to get loans approved. Filling up each and every detail with caution and accuracy can save enough of time in the approval process.
Did you promise your wife an impeccable wedding ring? You can keep on the promise since wedding loans are there to meet the expense.
The Avoid Debt Secret
Financial talking heads on television and radio try to tell you how to get out of debt, stay out of debt, or what dance steps to use to avoid debt. Just about everything they say is the wrong thing. I don't mean they are lairs and you should ignore them. Actually, many of their ideas do make sense.
They are wrong when talking about debt because they say "live within your means". By focusing on this phrase, what they are not telling you becomes a secret - the true secret to avoiding debt. Do you want to know the secret? If you didn't, why are you reading this?
The secret to getting out of debt and avoiding debt again is
Living below your means.
I'm serious that this is the true secret to staying out of debt. If you live within your means you are spending everything you take in. While this avoids going deeper into debt, it will not dig you out of debt or keep you out. Living within your means is like walking on a treadmill, you work hard but you fail to go anywhere.
How do you live below your means? The best way is to create a spending plan. This can be a simple hand written graph listing your expenses or it can be as complex as a fancy computerized program tracking every dollar you spend through PDA and laptops.
Why is living below your means so important? When you live below your means you are generating a surplus amount of money each month. This surplus is money you use to pay extra on your debts until you are debt free. This surplus can be used to build an Emergency Fund, develop a savings plan for your children's college or prepare for your retirement.
Living below your means is the real secret to personal financial success. It also will not come easy. We people like to live as high on the hog as we can. However, this doesn't help us have a surplus each month. You might have to make some difficult decisions to produce a steady supply of surplus money each month.
How difficult of decisions? You may have to sell your house and move into a smaller rental. Perhaps you will sell one car, stop eating out except for special occasions, come home from work instead of stopping by the bar or even taking on a second job. Be careful of the second job, though. It comes with more taxes, stress and its own set of issues.
When you are done reading, I want you to think about what you can do to start creating a surplus this month. What plans are you going to make, and steps you will take to provide a surplus to pay off your debt and begin a regular savings program?
After you have thought about them, go talk to your spouse about creating a surplus. When you are done talking, writing the surplus creating plan down and hang it on your refrigerator. If the two of you work together, you will be able to conquer your debts and put your family back on a secure financial footing.
Financial talking heads on television and radio try to tell you how to get out of debt, stay out of debt, or what dance steps to use to avoid debt. Just about everything they say is the wrong thing. I don't mean they are lairs and you should ignore them. Actually, many of their ideas do make sense.
They are wrong when talking about debt because they say "live within your means". By focusing on this phrase, what they are not telling you becomes a secret - the true secret to avoiding debt. Do you want to know the secret? If you didn't, why are you reading this?
The secret to getting out of debt and avoiding debt again is
Living below your means.
I'm serious that this is the true secret to staying out of debt. If you live within your means you are spending everything you take in. While this avoids going deeper into debt, it will not dig you out of debt or keep you out. Living within your means is like walking on a treadmill, you work hard but you fail to go anywhere.
How do you live below your means? The best way is to create a spending plan. This can be a simple hand written graph listing your expenses or it can be as complex as a fancy computerized program tracking every dollar you spend through PDA and laptops.
Why is living below your means so important? When you live below your means you are generating a surplus amount of money each month. This surplus is money you use to pay extra on your debts until you are debt free. This surplus can be used to build an Emergency Fund, develop a savings plan for your children's college or prepare for your retirement.
Living below your means is the real secret to personal financial success. It also will not come easy. We people like to live as high on the hog as we can. However, this doesn't help us have a surplus each month. You might have to make some difficult decisions to produce a steady supply of surplus money each month.
How difficult of decisions? You may have to sell your house and move into a smaller rental. Perhaps you will sell one car, stop eating out except for special occasions, come home from work instead of stopping by the bar or even taking on a second job. Be careful of the second job, though. It comes with more taxes, stress and its own set of issues.
When you are done reading, I want you to think about what you can do to start creating a surplus this month. What plans are you going to make, and steps you will take to provide a surplus to pay off your debt and begin a regular savings program?
After you have thought about them, go talk to your spouse about creating a surplus. When you are done talking, writing the surplus creating plan down and hang it on your refrigerator. If the two of you work together, you will be able to conquer your debts and put your family back on a secure financial footing.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
What Your Competition Knows About Traffic
Need more traffic? There's a lot you can learn from spying on your competition. Your competition has traffic sources that you can easily swipe by following these steps.
Step One: Who should you spy on? You probably can name six to thirty online competitors. If not, you need to go through Google and Yahoo with the key terms you target. Who comes up? Write down everyone who has a business similar to yours, even if they aren't identical.
Now you need to figure out who you should spy on first. Begin with the most successful websites. How do you find them? It's easy with a couple tools.
The Google toolbar (toolbar.google.com) is essential for spying. The Google toolbar features a little bar labeled "PageRank." Depending on each site, this bar may be gray, white, or (usually) a combination of green and white. The more green, the higher Google ranks that page. To get an exact PageRank, put your cursor over the PageRank graph and hold it there. Your competitors with the highest PageRank are the ones you want to look at very closely.
You also want to spy on the competitors with the most traffic. To figure out the relative traffic position of your competition (compared to all web sites), go to alexa.com and download their toolbar. The Alexa toolbar will display a number for each website it?s traffic rank. The lower the number, the higher the traffic. (For example, Yahoo?s Alexa rank is 1, while Blockbuster?s is 2,220.)
Step two: Snoop through your competitor's log files to see which sites and search terms send them the most traffic. Is there a public stats tracker on your competitor's site? If so, check it out. If not, try typing in your competitor's URL with /stats.html and /stats/ on the end of it. Often times, web hosts put statistics here - without password protection. Still can't find your competitor's stats? Try Googling their URL and "statistics." It's a long shot, but sometimes statistics pages will turn up this way.
Step three: Look at who is linking to your competitor. The easiest way to do this is to run a backward link search in Google and Altavista. Simply type in link:http://www.yourcompetition.com (using your competitor's URL). You'll find most of the pages that link to your competitor this way. How do you know which links are the best? By using the Google toolbar. The pages linking to your competitor with the highest PageRank are the ones you should look to for links of your own.
To steal those links, email all the webmasters that are linking to your competitor without getting a link back in return. Figure out why they link to your competitor (good free content, subject fits site, etc), and give them a better reason to link to you. Chances are, most of these webmasters will give you a link as well.
Once you have these new sites linking to yours, positive changes in your Google ranking are likely. You may even overtake your competitor for your targeted search terms especially if you get links from spying on multiple sites. All from a little reconnaissance work and some emailing!
Need more traffic? There's a lot you can learn from spying on your competition. Your competition has traffic sources that you can easily swipe by following these steps.
Step One: Who should you spy on? You probably can name six to thirty online competitors. If not, you need to go through Google and Yahoo with the key terms you target. Who comes up? Write down everyone who has a business similar to yours, even if they aren't identical.
Now you need to figure out who you should spy on first. Begin with the most successful websites. How do you find them? It's easy with a couple tools.
The Google toolbar (toolbar.google.com) is essential for spying. The Google toolbar features a little bar labeled "PageRank." Depending on each site, this bar may be gray, white, or (usually) a combination of green and white. The more green, the higher Google ranks that page. To get an exact PageRank, put your cursor over the PageRank graph and hold it there. Your competitors with the highest PageRank are the ones you want to look at very closely.
You also want to spy on the competitors with the most traffic. To figure out the relative traffic position of your competition (compared to all web sites), go to alexa.com and download their toolbar. The Alexa toolbar will display a number for each website it?s traffic rank. The lower the number, the higher the traffic. (For example, Yahoo?s Alexa rank is 1, while Blockbuster?s is 2,220.)
Step two: Snoop through your competitor's log files to see which sites and search terms send them the most traffic. Is there a public stats tracker on your competitor's site? If so, check it out. If not, try typing in your competitor's URL with /stats.html and /stats/ on the end of it. Often times, web hosts put statistics here - without password protection. Still can't find your competitor's stats? Try Googling their URL and "statistics." It's a long shot, but sometimes statistics pages will turn up this way.
Step three: Look at who is linking to your competitor. The easiest way to do this is to run a backward link search in Google and Altavista. Simply type in link:http://www.yourcompetition.com (using your competitor's URL). You'll find most of the pages that link to your competitor this way. How do you know which links are the best? By using the Google toolbar. The pages linking to your competitor with the highest PageRank are the ones you should look to for links of your own.
To steal those links, email all the webmasters that are linking to your competitor without getting a link back in return. Figure out why they link to your competitor (good free content, subject fits site, etc), and give them a better reason to link to you. Chances are, most of these webmasters will give you a link as well.
Once you have these new sites linking to yours, positive changes in your Google ranking are likely. You may even overtake your competitor for your targeted search terms especially if you get links from spying on multiple sites. All from a little reconnaissance work and some emailing!
Read This Article If You Want To Protect Your Home
Every family wishes to protect their domicile and it is more than just a home where people like, it is much more than that and the need to protect your living space and territory is an innate characteristic of the species. Humans are a territorial animal like other higher mammals; we see in the wild the Great Apes, bands of chimpanzees even dens of Lions protecting their territories from predators.
Even at a time in this present period where we have few if any predators, we seem to have held this need to protect our homes. In fact we enlist government to do this and in trade we all agree to live by certain rule in trade the government protecting us. Yet they really do not protect our homes, after all there is no with the exception of some criminals and looters who might threaten our homes. In fact about the only real threats to our homes come from the government in imminent domain actions or lawyers suing us using the very law we agree to live within? Interesting isnt it?
Then there is Mother Nature namely; rain, flooding, snow, wildfires, locusts, Earthquakes or the wind from a Tornado or Hurricane. But even there we trust the government to tell us how to build thru building codes, such as no shingle roofs near forest fire prone regions, stronger foundations in known Earthquake areas and of course the government also provides storm drain rules for the 100-year flood to developers of virgin real estate.
But even with all these rules and regulations, nothing is guaranteed and you need to also consider what you can do to protect yourself. I suggest you draw out your house on some graph paper and take a look at every possible risk from mold and rats to rain and snow. Think of anything that could happen and the simple things you can do in the potential eventuality of such event. There are little things you can do, which do not cost much and as you do research you will learn more about what you can do to protect your home. Think on this.
Every family wishes to protect their domicile and it is more than just a home where people like, it is much more than that and the need to protect your living space and territory is an innate characteristic of the species. Humans are a territorial animal like other higher mammals; we see in the wild the Great Apes, bands of chimpanzees even dens of Lions protecting their territories from predators.
Even at a time in this present period where we have few if any predators, we seem to have held this need to protect our homes. In fact we enlist government to do this and in trade we all agree to live by certain rule in trade the government protecting us. Yet they really do not protect our homes, after all there is no with the exception of some criminals and looters who might threaten our homes. In fact about the only real threats to our homes come from the government in imminent domain actions or lawyers suing us using the very law we agree to live within? Interesting isnt it?
Then there is Mother Nature namely; rain, flooding, snow, wildfires, locusts, Earthquakes or the wind from a Tornado or Hurricane. But even there we trust the government to tell us how to build thru building codes, such as no shingle roofs near forest fire prone regions, stronger foundations in known Earthquake areas and of course the government also provides storm drain rules for the 100-year flood to developers of virgin real estate.
But even with all these rules and regulations, nothing is guaranteed and you need to also consider what you can do to protect yourself. I suggest you draw out your house on some graph paper and take a look at every possible risk from mold and rats to rain and snow. Think of anything that could happen and the simple things you can do in the potential eventuality of such event. There are little things you can do, which do not cost much and as you do research you will learn more about what you can do to protect your home. Think on this.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Website Statistics with Cpanel
If you own one or more websites, it is vitally important to know how many people are visiting your site and where these visitors originate from. Analyzing website statistics should become a regular habit for every webmaster who wishes to improve website traffic over time. You'll be able to test and track the popularity of your updated site content and even see how visitors find your site in the search engines.
There are many web statistics programs on the market, each one unique in price and features, but did you know that some of the best website statistic programs already come free with most web hosting plans?
If you have a hosting account for your website that includes cpanel, then you probably have a whole bunch of web statistic programs built in. Cpanel is by far the most popular control panel for web hosting accounts today. It is extremely easy to learn and use for regular website administration.
There are usually 3 different types of statistics you will find inside cpanel. These are known as Analog, Webalizer and Awstats.
Webalizer is a statistic program that shows you in a graph form how many visitors have visited your site month by month. This type of statistics is very basic and only takes a quick glance to receive your web site information. If you want more detailed information you will probably need to check out the other two statistic programs.
Analog and Awstats each offer different presentation styles. All the essential visitor information you probably wish to see is listed on Analog, but most people have difficulty finding it as it is primarily text based and requires close attention.
Awstats on the other hand, is usually the favorite web site statistic program on cpanel. Not only does it give you plenty of visitor information, from number of hits per day and month, it also tells you where they originate from, how long visitors stayed at your site, the country from which they are viewing your site, what browser they are using and much more. Basic colored graphs and simple to read layout make it a quick and easy task to find the information that you are looking for.
So if you have a website and would like to know more about your visitors check out your cpanel statistic programs inside your website hosting account. They can be extremely helpful in analyzing your site and drawing more traffic to it.
If you own one or more websites, it is vitally important to know how many people are visiting your site and where these visitors originate from. Analyzing website statistics should become a regular habit for every webmaster who wishes to improve website traffic over time. You'll be able to test and track the popularity of your updated site content and even see how visitors find your site in the search engines.
There are many web statistics programs on the market, each one unique in price and features, but did you know that some of the best website statistic programs already come free with most web hosting plans?
If you have a hosting account for your website that includes cpanel, then you probably have a whole bunch of web statistic programs built in. Cpanel is by far the most popular control panel for web hosting accounts today. It is extremely easy to learn and use for regular website administration.
There are usually 3 different types of statistics you will find inside cpanel. These are known as Analog, Webalizer and Awstats.
Webalizer is a statistic program that shows you in a graph form how many visitors have visited your site month by month. This type of statistics is very basic and only takes a quick glance to receive your web site information. If you want more detailed information you will probably need to check out the other two statistic programs.
Analog and Awstats each offer different presentation styles. All the essential visitor information you probably wish to see is listed on Analog, but most people have difficulty finding it as it is primarily text based and requires close attention.
Awstats on the other hand, is usually the favorite web site statistic program on cpanel. Not only does it give you plenty of visitor information, from number of hits per day and month, it also tells you where they originate from, how long visitors stayed at your site, the country from which they are viewing your site, what browser they are using and much more. Basic colored graphs and simple to read layout make it a quick and easy task to find the information that you are looking for.
So if you have a website and would like to know more about your visitors check out your cpanel statistic programs inside your website hosting account. They can be extremely helpful in analyzing your site and drawing more traffic to it.
ClickBank Questions
It would seem that Clickbank would provide more for their customers. Obviously, when it comes to internet marketing and affiliate programs, you could put it in your top 10 links. No other database of affiliate programs offers such a possibility for profit on either the affiliate side or the product creation site. And you can't beat the fact that the commissions from over 10,000 products get consolidated into one check. But there are still a few lingering questions that may get you thinking.
What is up with the site? I mean, a site shouldn't be overly complex. In fact, complexity can be a turn off. Then again, I have found more complex site templates from free sites. And it's not just that. How many of you Clickbank affiliates have found news about Clickbank or FAQ's about Clickbank on a forum, clicked the link and the FAQ is on the Clickbank domain. But, if you go to the Clickbank homepage, there is no link to the page you just visited.
I don't know about you, but if I were running a business, I would make sure that customers and vendors could get all of the information possible and not have to find out news through third party sources.
But, on the other hand, I can't complain. The checks do come in. I have never had to search for a customer service link on the site, because there has been no reason to. You make sales and you get a check. It's that simple and I have never found anyone who says otherwise.
Then you've got to wonder about the search feature. There is none. But why? For one reason, if Clickbank itself had a search feature, any internet user who is familiar with Clickbank clicking on an affiliate's hoplink could recognize this. They could then go to Clickbank and buy the product under their own affiliate ID at up to 75% off, which wouldn't matter much to Clickbank or the product seller, at least in the beginning. They still collect their cash.
But eventually, the product seller would notice a drop in sales. Affiliates would become less than satisfied with the results of all their hard work and stop working as hard to make sales that weren't coming in anyway. Therefore, there would be less advertising of the product in total. You can't underestimate the value of an affiliate army who are rewarded accordingly.
There are plenty of third party products available that will essentially build a search engine on a Clickbank affiliate's site for them.
Even without this, there are some out there who know what a Clickbank Hoplink looks like and just where to put their own Clickbank ID in order to make a commission for themselves.
Should the affiliates themselves be responsible for protecting their sales. I don't think so. Of course there are products that can help you protect your links, but shouldn't the responsibility rest on the product developer. Our heroes, the third-party software developers, come to the rescue again by providing software to do this for you, but only a few of the product developers selling through Clickbank rely on these products. This leaves a lot of affiliate out in the cold, relying on link cloaking to protect their sales.
I love when I sign up for an affiliate program and click the link assigned to me to test it out and I am delivered to the main page of the site. There is no "?hop=" behind the URL, just "www.mysite.com." This lets me know that my only job is to get the word out on the product and not become an expert on encryption just to make a sale. Just to let you developers know out there, it is also great not to create a link for affiliates from any page designed for sales. You've just defeated any work we as affiliates or you as a responsible marketer have done to save our commissions. Send the link after the sales if you want to but don't treat your affiliates like dirt by telling their lead that they can get a 50% discount by signing up for your affiliate program.
Another reason for product developers to check out link cloaking software: link popularity. If you use the conventional hoplink, Clickbank gets a link back to their site. If the affiliate has to encrypt the link himself, no one gets the link credit. If you buy one of these scripts, your affiliates will advertise a link that points to your site. Just something to think about.
Then there is sales notices. There are none. There used to be a time when Clickbank would send you an e-mail each and every time you made a sale. Spam? Only if you consider a check from the IRS junk mail. Personally, Clickbank could fill my inbox to the limits with notices like this. But this service is no longer there.
I don't want to even start with Clickbank's sales reports functions. Lets just say that they could be improved, a lot.
This is even another area where third party vendors lend a helping hand. You can create affiliate sales reports, profit reports, send e-mails to your customers, and even graph sales trends with such software. Some are scripts that you run on your site. These will send out a thank you e-mail, add the customer to your database and even activate an autoreponder to send out e-mails to your customers in the future. Others allow to have multiple products, multiple sites, and only one Clickbank account.
So what am I trying to say? Just that with the money you would think Clickbank is making, it seems that they could create a more elaborate, user-friendly site. Despite this, you can't beat Clickbank for high commissions and consolidated payments. In fact, some of the holes in the Clickbank system has allowed some innovative software developers to step in and provide very useful tools. Those who use Clickbank to sell their products should take notice and guarantee an effective affiliate sales force by at least checking these solutions out. In turn, they will be rewarded with more sales and affiliates who trust them.
It would seem that Clickbank would provide more for their customers. Obviously, when it comes to internet marketing and affiliate programs, you could put it in your top 10 links. No other database of affiliate programs offers such a possibility for profit on either the affiliate side or the product creation site. And you can't beat the fact that the commissions from over 10,000 products get consolidated into one check. But there are still a few lingering questions that may get you thinking.
What is up with the site? I mean, a site shouldn't be overly complex. In fact, complexity can be a turn off. Then again, I have found more complex site templates from free sites. And it's not just that. How many of you Clickbank affiliates have found news about Clickbank or FAQ's about Clickbank on a forum, clicked the link and the FAQ is on the Clickbank domain. But, if you go to the Clickbank homepage, there is no link to the page you just visited.
I don't know about you, but if I were running a business, I would make sure that customers and vendors could get all of the information possible and not have to find out news through third party sources.
But, on the other hand, I can't complain. The checks do come in. I have never had to search for a customer service link on the site, because there has been no reason to. You make sales and you get a check. It's that simple and I have never found anyone who says otherwise.
Then you've got to wonder about the search feature. There is none. But why? For one reason, if Clickbank itself had a search feature, any internet user who is familiar with Clickbank clicking on an affiliate's hoplink could recognize this. They could then go to Clickbank and buy the product under their own affiliate ID at up to 75% off, which wouldn't matter much to Clickbank or the product seller, at least in the beginning. They still collect their cash.
But eventually, the product seller would notice a drop in sales. Affiliates would become less than satisfied with the results of all their hard work and stop working as hard to make sales that weren't coming in anyway. Therefore, there would be less advertising of the product in total. You can't underestimate the value of an affiliate army who are rewarded accordingly.
There are plenty of third party products available that will essentially build a search engine on a Clickbank affiliate's site for them.
Even without this, there are some out there who know what a Clickbank Hoplink looks like and just where to put their own Clickbank ID in order to make a commission for themselves.
Should the affiliates themselves be responsible for protecting their sales. I don't think so. Of course there are products that can help you protect your links, but shouldn't the responsibility rest on the product developer. Our heroes, the third-party software developers, come to the rescue again by providing software to do this for you, but only a few of the product developers selling through Clickbank rely on these products. This leaves a lot of affiliate out in the cold, relying on link cloaking to protect their sales.
I love when I sign up for an affiliate program and click the link assigned to me to test it out and I am delivered to the main page of the site. There is no "?hop=" behind the URL, just "www.mysite.com." This lets me know that my only job is to get the word out on the product and not become an expert on encryption just to make a sale. Just to let you developers know out there, it is also great not to create a link for affiliates from any page designed for sales. You've just defeated any work we as affiliates or you as a responsible marketer have done to save our commissions. Send the link after the sales if you want to but don't treat your affiliates like dirt by telling their lead that they can get a 50% discount by signing up for your affiliate program.
Another reason for product developers to check out link cloaking software: link popularity. If you use the conventional hoplink, Clickbank gets a link back to their site. If the affiliate has to encrypt the link himself, no one gets the link credit. If you buy one of these scripts, your affiliates will advertise a link that points to your site. Just something to think about.
Then there is sales notices. There are none. There used to be a time when Clickbank would send you an e-mail each and every time you made a sale. Spam? Only if you consider a check from the IRS junk mail. Personally, Clickbank could fill my inbox to the limits with notices like this. But this service is no longer there.
I don't want to even start with Clickbank's sales reports functions. Lets just say that they could be improved, a lot.
This is even another area where third party vendors lend a helping hand. You can create affiliate sales reports, profit reports, send e-mails to your customers, and even graph sales trends with such software. Some are scripts that you run on your site. These will send out a thank you e-mail, add the customer to your database and even activate an autoreponder to send out e-mails to your customers in the future. Others allow to have multiple products, multiple sites, and only one Clickbank account.
So what am I trying to say? Just that with the money you would think Clickbank is making, it seems that they could create a more elaborate, user-friendly site. Despite this, you can't beat Clickbank for high commissions and consolidated payments. In fact, some of the holes in the Clickbank system has allowed some innovative software developers to step in and provide very useful tools. Those who use Clickbank to sell their products should take notice and guarantee an effective affiliate sales force by at least checking these solutions out. In turn, they will be rewarded with more sales and affiliates who trust them.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Building or Decorating Your Home Requires House Plans
There are some things to consider when creating plans for your home. There are two situations that call for plans or blue prints, either you are building a new home or decorating your present home. The types of plans required for either situation will vary depending on the extent of your project.
When building a new home, there are several things you will want to consider carefully. The most obvious is where you are going to build your house. The climate will affect where you build. You wouldnt build an icehouse in the middle of the desert. You will want to determine what material you will want to use. Brick, wood, and cement are popular. In the southern states clay adobe houses are the norm. In the north and other areas brick, wood, and stone are options. The climate will influence this choice as well. In areas where there is cold weather brick and cement are used because they absorb and retain heat. In the south wood frame houses are built. The size of your lot will determine the size and type of house you want. You couldnt build a mansion on say a quarter of an acre. On the other hand a one bedroom, single floor home would look strange on a lot that is two acres or bigger. Whether your home has a basement could be important and that would depend on where you live.
If you are lucky to have a basement, it can house the laundry room and your gym equipment or be a playroom/guest room.
Now that you know where and what type of climate you will be building in it is time to think about the plans. Blueprints are or have been used to draw a linear picture of the house as you see it. Now however there are computer programs that will allow you to build your house in 3-D. There are also web sites online that will also allow you to build your house and see it in 3-D. Not only that but some sites will allow you to place your furniture. There are several kinds of technical drawings that are used to create plans for a new home. There are site plans that address coding issues, landscaping, location specifics, drainage (land contours), trees, set backs, and property lines. A floor plan is a design plan of the house, the layout of the rooms, and where the windows and doors. Another type of plan is building sections, which is a cross section of the house. It helps determine any issues, visualize your finished house and floor plans using section marks. Wall sections show the construction of one exterior wall where sections are indicated with section marks. Exterior Elevations include such features as porches and decks. They also show furniture, window and door locations, eave heights and roofing. Interior elevations show the lighting layout and ceiling conditions. Porches are another very interesting option; they can be enclosed, go all the way around the house. They can also be half-enclosed and half-open. They can be reminders of times past. A huge porch reminds me of my aunts farm years ago. Porches are great for extending family time and conversation while still being protected from the weather.
Decisions to be made are the size of each room, the number of rooms and the number of floors to be built. Will there be a basement or a fireplace, and where is the house going to sit on the lot. You could have a front yard or the house could be in the front of the lot with a yard in the back. You could also put it right in the center and have land all around.
The next consideration is whether you will have a contractor draw up the plans which will be an expense, or you can do them yourself. To do them yourself you will need a pencil or pen, scissors, a measuring tape, and graph paper with 1/4-inch boxes.
You will draw rooms to scale; one box per foot is good. Measure your rooms, doors, windows, heat and air cooling appliances. Draw the outlines of the rooms according to scale.
Measure your furniture (you only need to worry about length and width here) next and take another piece of graph paper. Draw out lines of your furniture, label them and cut them out. Use these pieces to set up the rooms. When you find an arrangement you like, you can make a more permanent drawing. On another sheet of graph paper draw a box for each wall. Scale your windows, doors, built-ins and other features.
Picking a floor plan is a process of answering some very important questions. Will this place be big enough or too big in a few years? Does your design fit in with the houses in the neighborhood? Does the design of the house fit in with the lot size and shape? Will the windows provide the best view and what windows will catch the sunlight in the morning and afternoon? Will changes need to be made or can changes even be considered? Are the rooms that will be used most of the time of adequate size? Expanding your house size could mean you need to sacrifice amenities or storage space. Do you have specialty rooms such as a craft room, an office, or a gym? An office can double as a guestroom. The trend now is toward creating a family area where there is room for each to do his/her own hobby or to be together watching movies or playing games. When all the decisions are made and the plans are all drawn you will be ready to build.
Suppose now, that you are purchasing an already built home or renting an apartment. Plans can be done in these situations as well. Most places will offer a floor plan for you to look at with the measurements of the space in the rooms. If this is not available you can draw your own plan.
You would need the same materials and the plan is fixed, you are limited to what is already there. Draw the outlines of each room according to scale. Take another sheet of graph paper and draw the outlines of your furniture. Label them and cut them out. You can move these pieces around till you find an arrangement you like. You might be limited with your television set because the outside antenna is in a certain spot.
Take another piece of graph paper and draw the wall sections of each room noting the windows, doors, and any heating or cooling appliance might be situated. You will have already placed your furniture so you will have a good idea of what your new home will look like. You can now decorate according to your tastes. In a rental home however, you might not be able to change wall colors or in rare cases hang pictures.
Planning for your home can be very exciting. You could be buying new furniture but you might want to consider the color of the carpets or the floors when you are choosing your pieces. A blue couch on a brown carpet does not exactly match. When planning for your home whether you buy or rent should be done carefully. Keep in mind your preferences, your limitations and if you are building, local zoning ordinances.
There are some things to consider when creating plans for your home. There are two situations that call for plans or blue prints, either you are building a new home or decorating your present home. The types of plans required for either situation will vary depending on the extent of your project.
When building a new home, there are several things you will want to consider carefully. The most obvious is where you are going to build your house. The climate will affect where you build. You wouldnt build an icehouse in the middle of the desert. You will want to determine what material you will want to use. Brick, wood, and cement are popular. In the southern states clay adobe houses are the norm. In the north and other areas brick, wood, and stone are options. The climate will influence this choice as well. In areas where there is cold weather brick and cement are used because they absorb and retain heat. In the south wood frame houses are built. The size of your lot will determine the size and type of house you want. You couldnt build a mansion on say a quarter of an acre. On the other hand a one bedroom, single floor home would look strange on a lot that is two acres or bigger. Whether your home has a basement could be important and that would depend on where you live.
If you are lucky to have a basement, it can house the laundry room and your gym equipment or be a playroom/guest room.
Now that you know where and what type of climate you will be building in it is time to think about the plans. Blueprints are or have been used to draw a linear picture of the house as you see it. Now however there are computer programs that will allow you to build your house in 3-D. There are also web sites online that will also allow you to build your house and see it in 3-D. Not only that but some sites will allow you to place your furniture. There are several kinds of technical drawings that are used to create plans for a new home. There are site plans that address coding issues, landscaping, location specifics, drainage (land contours), trees, set backs, and property lines. A floor plan is a design plan of the house, the layout of the rooms, and where the windows and doors. Another type of plan is building sections, which is a cross section of the house. It helps determine any issues, visualize your finished house and floor plans using section marks. Wall sections show the construction of one exterior wall where sections are indicated with section marks. Exterior Elevations include such features as porches and decks. They also show furniture, window and door locations, eave heights and roofing. Interior elevations show the lighting layout and ceiling conditions. Porches are another very interesting option; they can be enclosed, go all the way around the house. They can also be half-enclosed and half-open. They can be reminders of times past. A huge porch reminds me of my aunts farm years ago. Porches are great for extending family time and conversation while still being protected from the weather.
Decisions to be made are the size of each room, the number of rooms and the number of floors to be built. Will there be a basement or a fireplace, and where is the house going to sit on the lot. You could have a front yard or the house could be in the front of the lot with a yard in the back. You could also put it right in the center and have land all around.
The next consideration is whether you will have a contractor draw up the plans which will be an expense, or you can do them yourself. To do them yourself you will need a pencil or pen, scissors, a measuring tape, and graph paper with 1/4-inch boxes.
You will draw rooms to scale; one box per foot is good. Measure your rooms, doors, windows, heat and air cooling appliances. Draw the outlines of the rooms according to scale.
Measure your furniture (you only need to worry about length and width here) next and take another piece of graph paper. Draw out lines of your furniture, label them and cut them out. Use these pieces to set up the rooms. When you find an arrangement you like, you can make a more permanent drawing. On another sheet of graph paper draw a box for each wall. Scale your windows, doors, built-ins and other features.
Picking a floor plan is a process of answering some very important questions. Will this place be big enough or too big in a few years? Does your design fit in with the houses in the neighborhood? Does the design of the house fit in with the lot size and shape? Will the windows provide the best view and what windows will catch the sunlight in the morning and afternoon? Will changes need to be made or can changes even be considered? Are the rooms that will be used most of the time of adequate size? Expanding your house size could mean you need to sacrifice amenities or storage space. Do you have specialty rooms such as a craft room, an office, or a gym? An office can double as a guestroom. The trend now is toward creating a family area where there is room for each to do his/her own hobby or to be together watching movies or playing games. When all the decisions are made and the plans are all drawn you will be ready to build.
Suppose now, that you are purchasing an already built home or renting an apartment. Plans can be done in these situations as well. Most places will offer a floor plan for you to look at with the measurements of the space in the rooms. If this is not available you can draw your own plan.
You would need the same materials and the plan is fixed, you are limited to what is already there. Draw the outlines of each room according to scale. Take another sheet of graph paper and draw the outlines of your furniture. Label them and cut them out. You can move these pieces around till you find an arrangement you like. You might be limited with your television set because the outside antenna is in a certain spot.
Take another piece of graph paper and draw the wall sections of each room noting the windows, doors, and any heating or cooling appliance might be situated. You will have already placed your furniture so you will have a good idea of what your new home will look like. You can now decorate according to your tastes. In a rental home however, you might not be able to change wall colors or in rare cases hang pictures.
Planning for your home can be very exciting. You could be buying new furniture but you might want to consider the color of the carpets or the floors when you are choosing your pieces. A blue couch on a brown carpet does not exactly match. When planning for your home whether you buy or rent should be done carefully. Keep in mind your preferences, your limitations and if you are building, local zoning ordinances.
Are Your Affiliate Programs Eating Away Your Money And Time
So many times I have heard this. So many examples I do remember. People have left the internet business after being disappointed with their so called affiliate programs.
An affiliate program is an excellent way to earn money especially in the beginning. I said beginning because at that time one does not understand the market and is too nave to bring his own product out in right way.
Affiliate programs fill that gap nicely. You have got a readymade product and a readymade webpage too (though you can develop your own and you should be doing that).There is only one aspect left to make that money.
Making sales.
But you need to choose your affiliate program carefully.
An affiliate program should be free to join. You should be cautious of the programs that will charge you upfront to be able to become their affiliates. Sometimes you buy a product and get affiliate status as bonus. That is acceptable. But a good affiliate program should not charge you a membership fee monthly or yearly whatever the case may be.
There are some programs which charge you a monthly fee for becoming a member and you are expected to recruit more for getting a commission. These are not affiliate programs but MLM programs.
Be cautious when you join such programs. They do not offer a good product to sell. The only thing that you have to sell is the membership. Such programs may eat up a lot of your money before you realize their worthlessness. In such programs you sell a membership and your recruit is expected to sell the same in return.
This kind of sale is not only hard to accomplish but also associated with high attrition. That means the rate of members dropping out is very high.
Also you should get a good commission. Check the percentage offered. Good programs offer 50-60% commissions. Though high priced products seem quite lucrative due to apparent volume of money in commission but selling a high priced product may not be that easy task too. It is because the market for those may not be that large. So you need to select your product carefully.
One very important factor that is often ignored is your aptitude for the particular product. Select a product that you can associate your interests with. For example if you like gardening then a product that caters the gardening needs will be easier to sell than a selling a real estate product.
Because in sales first of all you need to be convinced about the usability and benefits of the product before you attempt to sell it. If the product is around the area of your interest you can easily identify the beneficial aspects. Then you will find it easier to convince your potential customers.
Study the market and demand for that product.
If the demand is high the sales are easier. To study the demand go to Overture or Google and look for the search made around the keywords of your product. It will give you a fair idea about the demand.
Plan your market strategies beforehand.
It is better if you make your own website instead of promoting the copy of the original page laced with your link. Having your own website gives you a unique identification and professional look. The other advantage is that you can promote multiple products on the same page rather than promoting different pages separately.
Web hosting is quite cheap now a days and webpage can be easily built in front page.
Try and give your full efforts into promoting what you have got. Affiliate programs are good way to learn the market tactics. Learn and try them best to your abilities.
Stick with the product you have chosen instead of jumping to the new offer of some other product. New products are being released everyday but being new does not mean that it is better and easier to sell.
Analyze regularly. Test regularly and keep working.
Your commission graph would definitely rise.
Wish you success.
Copyright 2005 Arun Pal Singh
So many times I have heard this. So many examples I do remember. People have left the internet business after being disappointed with their so called affiliate programs.
An affiliate program is an excellent way to earn money especially in the beginning. I said beginning because at that time one does not understand the market and is too nave to bring his own product out in right way.
Affiliate programs fill that gap nicely. You have got a readymade product and a readymade webpage too (though you can develop your own and you should be doing that).There is only one aspect left to make that money.
Making sales.
But you need to choose your affiliate program carefully.
An affiliate program should be free to join. You should be cautious of the programs that will charge you upfront to be able to become their affiliates. Sometimes you buy a product and get affiliate status as bonus. That is acceptable. But a good affiliate program should not charge you a membership fee monthly or yearly whatever the case may be.
There are some programs which charge you a monthly fee for becoming a member and you are expected to recruit more for getting a commission. These are not affiliate programs but MLM programs.
Be cautious when you join such programs. They do not offer a good product to sell. The only thing that you have to sell is the membership. Such programs may eat up a lot of your money before you realize their worthlessness. In such programs you sell a membership and your recruit is expected to sell the same in return.
This kind of sale is not only hard to accomplish but also associated with high attrition. That means the rate of members dropping out is very high.
Also you should get a good commission. Check the percentage offered. Good programs offer 50-60% commissions. Though high priced products seem quite lucrative due to apparent volume of money in commission but selling a high priced product may not be that easy task too. It is because the market for those may not be that large. So you need to select your product carefully.
One very important factor that is often ignored is your aptitude for the particular product. Select a product that you can associate your interests with. For example if you like gardening then a product that caters the gardening needs will be easier to sell than a selling a real estate product.
Because in sales first of all you need to be convinced about the usability and benefits of the product before you attempt to sell it. If the product is around the area of your interest you can easily identify the beneficial aspects. Then you will find it easier to convince your potential customers.
Study the market and demand for that product.
If the demand is high the sales are easier. To study the demand go to Overture or Google and look for the search made around the keywords of your product. It will give you a fair idea about the demand.
Plan your market strategies beforehand.
It is better if you make your own website instead of promoting the copy of the original page laced with your link. Having your own website gives you a unique identification and professional look. The other advantage is that you can promote multiple products on the same page rather than promoting different pages separately.
Web hosting is quite cheap now a days and webpage can be easily built in front page.
Try and give your full efforts into promoting what you have got. Affiliate programs are good way to learn the market tactics. Learn and try them best to your abilities.
Stick with the product you have chosen instead of jumping to the new offer of some other product. New products are being released everyday but being new does not mean that it is better and easier to sell.
Analyze regularly. Test regularly and keep working.
Your commission graph would definitely rise.
Wish you success.
Copyright 2005 Arun Pal Singh
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Scrapbook Ideas for Your Baby Album - Part 1
A scrapbook album of your baby's first year is one of the most special albums you'll ever complete. There are so many magical memories, beginning with the pregnancy itself and continuing right through your baby's first birthday. Below are a number of scrapbook page ideas to help you capture those precious moments.
Title Page
A great way to start the album is by matting a 5"x7" or 8"x10" of your baby's hospital photo on the first page. Then add the baby's name and birthdate as the title and subtitle respectively. This makes a very simple yet very beautiful page.
Baby on the Way
How did you celebrate the news that your baby was on the way? Maybe it was a quiet dinner just for you and your husband or a gathering with family and friends. Either way, remember to include some pictures of the celebration. Capture peoples' reactions to the annoucement in photos. In addition, you may even want to take a picture of the pregnancy test showing the positive results.
The Ultrasound
If you had multiple ultrasounds during your pregnancy, include pictures from different points in time so you can see how your baby was growing. You may also want to include one that shows the graph of the heartbeat. In addition to journaling about the ultrasound pictures, this is a great place to journal about any nicknames you may have had for your baby before it was born.
The Belly
Starting at three months, when the pregnancy "bulge" is just barely noticeable, have someone take a monthly side-view picture of you. Pose in front of the same background each time so that the pictures are consistent. Try to fit all of the photos on one page (or a two-page spread), so you can really appreciate the month-by-month progression.
The Nursery
Include photos of the nursery all ready and waiting for baby; take pictures from different angles to show everything in the room. Be sure to include pictures of anything that has special meaning such as a bassinet that has been in the family for multiple generations, a special blanket made by Grandma, etc. Also, if you have one, include a photo to show what the room was before it became a nursery.
Welcome Baby
Those first pictures taken of your baby after the birth are some of the most precious ones you'll ever have. Rememer to include your baby being weighed, having his/her footprints done, being examined, getting a bath, etc. You can put memorabilia such as the footprint card, bassinet name tag and baby id bracelet on these pages. Include key information/statistics in your journaling - baby's full name, date, day, time, weight, length, details about your labor, name of the doctor/midwife, etc.
Mom, Dad and Baby
It's wonderful to have a page with pictures of just the three of you - Mom, Dad and Baby - and then include siblings, grandparents, etc. on other pages. Journal about how you felt upon meeting your baby for the first time, whether your baby resembled anyone in the family, how your baby reacted to hearing your voice, etc.
The Rest of the Clan
Once you have a page or two of Mom, Dad and Baby photos, it's time to include the siblings if your baby has any. Capture how excited they are to meet their new baby brother/sister and how proud they are to be big brothers/big sisters. This is also a great page to put any little cards, drawings, etc. that siblings may have made to welcome your new baby.
Visitors at the Hospital
Your new baby is sure to have many visitors at the hospital such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and more. Include a picture of each one holding the baby and write an interesting fact and/or anecdote about each person in your journaling. Also, you may want to include pictures of the doctor/midwife who delivered your baby, the labor nurse and/or the doula.
Going Home
Going home from the hospital is a big event! On this page you can include pictures of leaving the hospital, a photo of the outside of the hospital, and the birth announcement. Journal about who took you and the baby home, what the weather was like for your baby's first time ever outside, what he/she was wearing for a "going home" outfit, and what he/she did during the car ride home.
The New Family
It's nice to have a couple of pages showing the new family settling in at home over those first few days. Be sure to include a picture of everyone (Mom, Dad, siblings) with the new baby, plus a picture of the whole family. Put some of the flowers and balloons received as gifts in the background of the pictures to add a special touch. This is a great place to journal about how the family dynamic changes when the new little one joins the clan.
Visitors at Home
In addition to having photos of the visitors that came to meet your baby at the hospital, you'll also want to have pictures of the visitors at your home. Again, include a picture of each one holding the baby and write an interesting fact and/or anecdote about each person in your journaling.
Siblings
If your baby has siblings, you can make a separate page for each sibling with lots of photos of the big brother/big sister with the new baby. Depending on how old the sibling is, he/she may be able to help you create the album page by arranging photos, picking out embellishments and providing input for the journaling (e.g., what is the best thing about being a big brother/big sister).
Heritage
If your baby is lucky enough to meet his/her great-grandparents, have a page or two with pictures of them holding the baby. Ask the great-grandparents to share some of their most cherished childhood memories so you can include them in your journaling. When your baby is older, he/she can read their stories to get a glimpse of childhoods long ago.
For additional ideas, please read part two of this article entitled "Scrapbook Ideas for Your Baby Album - Part 2."
A scrapbook album of your baby's first year is one of the most special albums you'll ever complete. There are so many magical memories, beginning with the pregnancy itself and continuing right through your baby's first birthday. Below are a number of scrapbook page ideas to help you capture those precious moments.
Title Page
A great way to start the album is by matting a 5"x7" or 8"x10" of your baby's hospital photo on the first page. Then add the baby's name and birthdate as the title and subtitle respectively. This makes a very simple yet very beautiful page.
Baby on the Way
How did you celebrate the news that your baby was on the way? Maybe it was a quiet dinner just for you and your husband or a gathering with family and friends. Either way, remember to include some pictures of the celebration. Capture peoples' reactions to the annoucement in photos. In addition, you may even want to take a picture of the pregnancy test showing the positive results.
The Ultrasound
If you had multiple ultrasounds during your pregnancy, include pictures from different points in time so you can see how your baby was growing. You may also want to include one that shows the graph of the heartbeat. In addition to journaling about the ultrasound pictures, this is a great place to journal about any nicknames you may have had for your baby before it was born.
The Belly
Starting at three months, when the pregnancy "bulge" is just barely noticeable, have someone take a monthly side-view picture of you. Pose in front of the same background each time so that the pictures are consistent. Try to fit all of the photos on one page (or a two-page spread), so you can really appreciate the month-by-month progression.
The Nursery
Include photos of the nursery all ready and waiting for baby; take pictures from different angles to show everything in the room. Be sure to include pictures of anything that has special meaning such as a bassinet that has been in the family for multiple generations, a special blanket made by Grandma, etc. Also, if you have one, include a photo to show what the room was before it became a nursery.
Welcome Baby
Those first pictures taken of your baby after the birth are some of the most precious ones you'll ever have. Rememer to include your baby being weighed, having his/her footprints done, being examined, getting a bath, etc. You can put memorabilia such as the footprint card, bassinet name tag and baby id bracelet on these pages. Include key information/statistics in your journaling - baby's full name, date, day, time, weight, length, details about your labor, name of the doctor/midwife, etc.
Mom, Dad and Baby
It's wonderful to have a page with pictures of just the three of you - Mom, Dad and Baby - and then include siblings, grandparents, etc. on other pages. Journal about how you felt upon meeting your baby for the first time, whether your baby resembled anyone in the family, how your baby reacted to hearing your voice, etc.
The Rest of the Clan
Once you have a page or two of Mom, Dad and Baby photos, it's time to include the siblings if your baby has any. Capture how excited they are to meet their new baby brother/sister and how proud they are to be big brothers/big sisters. This is also a great page to put any little cards, drawings, etc. that siblings may have made to welcome your new baby.
Visitors at the Hospital
Your new baby is sure to have many visitors at the hospital such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and more. Include a picture of each one holding the baby and write an interesting fact and/or anecdote about each person in your journaling. Also, you may want to include pictures of the doctor/midwife who delivered your baby, the labor nurse and/or the doula.
Going Home
Going home from the hospital is a big event! On this page you can include pictures of leaving the hospital, a photo of the outside of the hospital, and the birth announcement. Journal about who took you and the baby home, what the weather was like for your baby's first time ever outside, what he/she was wearing for a "going home" outfit, and what he/she did during the car ride home.
The New Family
It's nice to have a couple of pages showing the new family settling in at home over those first few days. Be sure to include a picture of everyone (Mom, Dad, siblings) with the new baby, plus a picture of the whole family. Put some of the flowers and balloons received as gifts in the background of the pictures to add a special touch. This is a great place to journal about how the family dynamic changes when the new little one joins the clan.
Visitors at Home
In addition to having photos of the visitors that came to meet your baby at the hospital, you'll also want to have pictures of the visitors at your home. Again, include a picture of each one holding the baby and write an interesting fact and/or anecdote about each person in your journaling.
Siblings
If your baby has siblings, you can make a separate page for each sibling with lots of photos of the big brother/big sister with the new baby. Depending on how old the sibling is, he/she may be able to help you create the album page by arranging photos, picking out embellishments and providing input for the journaling (e.g., what is the best thing about being a big brother/big sister).
Heritage
If your baby is lucky enough to meet his/her great-grandparents, have a page or two with pictures of them holding the baby. Ask the great-grandparents to share some of their most cherished childhood memories so you can include them in your journaling. When your baby is older, he/she can read their stories to get a glimpse of childhoods long ago.
For additional ideas, please read part two of this article entitled "Scrapbook Ideas for Your Baby Album - Part 2."
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