Monthly Archives: February 2018

Money is a powerful thing. It is necessary to enjoy and sustain a quality life, regardless of whether or not you are working. You want to plan for the future and for any eventualities and life events that might happen along the way. All of this means that you need to have a laser like focus on your money, and that is not always possible to accomplish on your own. You need help. Consider the following four reasons why you just might want to work with a financial planner.

Plan for Retirement

There will come a day when even the most abled bodied individual will want to stop working and enjoy what they have accumulated through the years. For some professions, this day may come sooner than for others. Financial planning for professional athletes, for example, will involve developing a strategy for the future. Money accumulated today may need to last for decades, so it is important to have a comprehensive plan in place that is effective and conducive to one�s lifestyle.

Expect the Unexpected

Even if things are going great for you financially today, that does not mean you are not in for some rocky times ahead. A financial planner can help you by developing a strategy to effectively deal with the unexpected events in your life, such as sudden job loss. This will benefit you and your family in the long run, and help you to weather the storm.

Long Term Investments Accumulate Wealth

You do not want until it is too late to start accumulating wealth. Starting today will allow you to build up assets over time, as long term investments tend to gain momentum at time goes on. Again, a financial planner will help you in the regard.

Develop Financial Literacy

Using a financial planner will help you to develop a better understanding of complex terminology associated with the accumulation of wealth. The more you know, the better the decisions you will make regarding your own financial position. You will also be able to call upon your financial planner when you have any questions.

These are just four of the many reasons why you will want to consider using the services offered by a financial planner. It is important to treat money with the respect that it is warranted. This is how you will better take care of yourself and your family, both now and in the future.

One of the best things that you can do to improve your home and garden, increase your property values, and make your home an environmental success is to build a garden that hosts native species. While this may sound like a big project, it can actually be an easy way to totally transform your space. The good news is that native species already want to be in your yard. You don’t have to spend a lot of money buying exotic or expensive plants or other equipment. You just have to set your yard up in such a way that it attracts the animals that already belong there.

The biggest change you’ll need to make in your yard is to add a water feature. This step is absolutely essential since all animals need access to fresh water at all times. Luckily, it’s easy to install a very simple pond, birdbath, or other aquatic feature. If you don’t want to do it yourself, look for a qualified local professional to help guide you through the process. For example, if you need advice on pond aerators and fountains, talk to a company like Lake Doctors. These experts can help you find the perfect water source for your yard.

Next, make sure that you have native plants throughout your yard. This will attract the insects, birds, and wildlife that are native to your area. For example, if you’re trying to attract the native monarch butterflies to your garden, you will need to plant the appropriate milkweed for your area. Talk to an expert at your local garden center, or read up on native plants at your local library. Most towns and counties also have a nonprofit group in the area that can give you advice on choosing the perfect native plants for your ecosystem. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from experts in your area.

Finally, remove items from your yard that will discourage wildlife from stopping by. That means discouraging your dog or cat from roaming freely in the native area, as most larger wildlife will avoid spots that are home to domestic animals. It also means minimizing loud distractions such as idling cars, stereos, and screaming children. If you can’t get rid of these distractions, move them away from the native plant area. Soon, your yard will be full of life.

Your job isn�t complete as soon as you become an entrepreneur. In fact, the hard work required to sustain and grow your career is just beginning. Don�t sell yourself short or become too comfortable in one place.

You should always be challenging and stretching yourself, so you develop your skills and abilities as a business owner. Be humble and understand that your work is never going to be over. Your career is a journey, and if you want to be successful, you should work on improving yourself each and every day. Get excited about all that�s ahead of you and that you have yet to absorb.

Learn A New Skill outside of your Industry

Stay sharp by expanding your knowledge outside of what you already do best. For example, learn what it takes to start fixing cars and working with your hands by visiting best-automechanicschools.com. Take up a challenge like this on the side of what you do and see how this type of adventure can truly expand your horizon and allow you to appreciate a completely different trade and career. It�s healthy to have hobbies and interests outside of what you do for your day job.

Proactively Request Feedback

It�s easy to forget that you�re not perfect when you work for yourself. Running the show may have you convinced that you�re managing a flawless business. Step back and decide that you want to get better at what you do by seeking out feedback from others. Be honest with yourself about what you do well and the areas you need to work on improving. Feedback is the best way to get an outside viewpoint about how you�re truly maintaining your company.

Always be Setting Goals

You aren�t going to get too far if you stop setting goals for yourself. It�s human nature to forget about what we set out to do if we don�t write it down. Document your objectives and plans for achieving results. When you meet one goal, set another and so on. This way you�re always working toward improving yourself or a part of your business. Set personal and professional goals to get the most out of this type of exercise.

Socialize & Network

Always remember that other people are great teachers and you can learn a lot from them. This is why it�s so important to socialize and network whenever possible, especially if you�re in a small office all day. Engage in conversations, challenge others and remain open-minded and listen to what those you�re conversing with have to say. Reach out to other entrepreneurs who you admire and pick their brain about how they achieved so much success. It�s always beneficial to expand your mind.

Conclusion

You should never feel like your work or job is complete. Always be striving to improve yourself from a personal standpoint and as an entrepreneur. It�ll be time well spent once you�ve built a thriving business and you notice how much you�ve grown and matured over the years.

When you start a business, you think about profit and loss, stock control, marketing, and hiring the right staff. Unless you are incredibly well-prepared, the thought of coping with natural disasters won�t be something you�ve spent very long planning. Sadly, homes and businesses across the USA are affected by extreme weather every year and being aware of the dangers and what to do in an emergency could turn out to be a skill you�ll be grateful for.

Precautions

Whatever the cause of your situation, you should follow some basic safety precautions to keep everyone as safe from harm as possible. Your emergency kit should be checked and kept replenished as a matter of routine. You should always be aware of where your employees are and who is on the premises, so you can gather everyone together and do a roll call to make sure no-one is trapped outside and that you are all accounted for.

Floods

Rapidly rising water levels can cause sudden flooding of buildings, and the force of the water can cause a great deal of damage. If you have had a flood warning, listen to your local radio station, check where your nearest emergency shelter is and be ready to leave immediately in case you have to be evacuated. If you have anything valuable or irreplaceable and there is time, you can move these items to a higher level of the building. When the floodwaters approach, keep back from doors and windows and move to a higher part of the building. Don�t let the water touch you if you can help it, as it is likely to be contaminated with sewage and could be dangerous. Don�t try and use any electrical equipment that comes into contact with the flood water, or you could get a shock. If you are in an area that is more likely to flood, industrial pumps could be useful for helping to clear the water.

Hurricanes

If you get caught by a hurricane at your workplace, you will be much safer inside, preferably away from any glass walls, windows or doors. If possible, get everyone into an internal room on the ground floor, or at least into a central part of the building. Keep away from electrical equipment and power sources, and if it�s safe to do so, you could turn off the main power breaker. Don�t let anyone go outside until you�re certain the storm has passed. There could be falling trees or power lines, and even small objects can be very damaging when the force of extreme winds projects them. There is also the possibility of a lightning strike. If it seems like the hurricane is calming, wait until you can be certain that it isn�t just the eye of the storm passing over you. Hurricanes are a primary cause of torrential rain that can lead to flash floods and storm surges, so listen out for flood warnings.

Although unlikely, natural disasters can and do happen, so it�s worth allocating the short amount of time necessary to make sure your workplace is prepared for the worst.

As a first-time house flipper, you may mistakenly consider flipping easy. After all, how many times have you seen some random person on TV buy a house, renovate it, and sell it at a handsome profit? Anyone could do that, right? That�s where you�re wrong.

Remember, even decrepit houses do not come cheap and nor do the loans with which to buy them. Also, you face stiff competition, and renovations sometimes cost more than you thought. Here are a few useful tips for those beginning in the field.

1. Approach the Right Lender

Before you start flipping houses, you have to think about approaching a mortgage lender for a loan. But, as you do, note a few things. On the one hand, traditional lenders always demand a 25% down payment, and this is after checking your credit.

On the other hand, hard-mortgage lenders couldn�t care less about your credit, so they�ll loan you as much money as you need. However, they�ll charge you as much as 10 to 15% more interest. For this reason, before approaching any lender, you should check mortgage company reviews on a site like dollar cents for instance to get a clearer view.

2. Buy the Right House

Once you have access to credit, you can buy the right house. Even though this sounds straightforward, it isn�t. See, when you buy a house at retail price, any improvements you make on it only add to your final retail price. So, what�s the problem with that?

For one, you might struggle to sell the house. And when you eventually do, you�ll make a loss. As a general rule, buy houses selling below retail price, add value to them, and sell them for more for more than you spent on them.

3. Make the Right Estimates

The question now begs: How much value do you add to a house before selling it? To answer this question, you must make the right cost estimates. This means calculating every cost in detail.

Besides the buying price, figure out how much it will cost you to renovate and market the house. Also, throw in the cost of retaining and maintaining the house before you sell it. What�s more, remember to include property insurance, property taxes, mortgage payments, and the realtor�s commission.

4. Get the Right Contractor

Now you�re ready to hire a contractor. Although there are plenty of good contractors out there, you must do your homework before finding one. Before hiring, ask for references and then call these references. And, if possible, also look at the candidate�s completed projects before hiring.

5. Don�t Overdo the Renovations

With the contractor hired, it�s time to get to work, but here�s a cautionary word. Don�t go overboard with the renovations. If you do, your house will cost more than other houses in the neighborhood, making it harder to sell. Instead of expensive additions, add a few special but cheap touches here and there.

Conclusion

If you want to be successful as a home flipper, you not only have to know how to spot a good catch but learn how to deal with financing as well. Make sure you�re well informed about every aspect of house flipping and ownership before you even think about buying your first house.

 

 

 

 

Every successful business person and entrepreneur needs some downtime. They need to shut off their brains for a while and do something completely different to their day job so that they can have the chance to relax and unwind. If you are busy all the time with work and never take a moment to do something just for yourself, you�ll quickly burn out. We�ve come up with some of the very best hobbies for busy business people to stop that from happening.

Cooking

Everyone has to eat, even when you�re super busy at work. So why not combine that need with a new hobby and learn how to cook? You�ll get a lot more enjoyment out of your meals if you aren�t simply slamming them into a microwave or taking them from the freezer to the stove and setting a timer. If you think about the ingredients you want to use, the way you�re going to prepare them, and see the act of cooking itself as the enjoyable part as well as the eating, then your food will even taste better. There are thousands of different recipes online, and you can filter them using budget or ingredients to come up with something that suits you perfectly.

Trading

Although trading could be seen as work � you are (hopefully) making money, after all � it�s not quite the same as sitting in your office all day working hard to make a living. The money that you make from trading should be considered �fun money,� and as long as you�re not relying on it and you only trade what you can truly afford anyway, then it can be an exciting hobby to try. Before you begin, you need to learn as much as possible about how to trade and what is happening in the market through sites such as prodigiousnews.com. Understanding how trading works will give you an edge and should make you more successful.

Coloring

Adult coloring books are extremely popular right now and for a good reason. Have you ever wondered why kids get so much enjoyment out of simply coloring in pre-drawn shapes? It�s because they can focus on it entirely, they can create something beautiful, and it relaxes their minds and bodies too. Of course, they don�t understand all of that, and neither do they particularly care; all they know is that they love coloring. The same could apply to you. For a cheap, easy, yet utterly satisfying way to unwind after work, invest in a coloring book for adults and some coloring pencils or even crayons and see where your imagination takes you.

Listen To Podcasts

Podcasts are fantastic, and there is sure to be at least one (but probably many more) that you enjoy. You can download podcasts to your smartphone or tablet and then listen to them when you have a bit of free time, or you need to take a break from the screen for a while. You can listen to comedy, learn a language, hear interviews with your favorite stars, and much more.

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