Financial Literacy for the Entrepreneur

Every time I open my mailbox, it is stuffed with advertising asking me to spend money on financial products from banks, investment firms, insurance or credit card companies. The disclosures would require an MBA to translate; and most of them are capitalized over a decade or more.

To create enticement to follow their advice, many of these companies offer free seminars, dinners, or brochures to gain your trust and access to your wallet. Given all the often conflicting and obtuse information, how does the average businessman or woman decide on the most profitable ways to spend money in today's business market?

Be aware that most of these financial literacy seminars, etc. do not work and the sponsors know it. They also know that an "informed investor" is often a less profitable one. Think about it. It is a rare naive thought that these financial literacy 101 seminars will produce a nation of empowered consumers who will consistently make smart choices, spend money wisely, and be able to see the innate abuse of the system. The banks know this and counts on people becoming over-confident and them taking risks that the banks would never make ... or be allowed to make.

Why? Because too little knowledge can be dangerous. These programs are meant to boost your self-confidence and make you think you understand the financial industry. The truth is most of these suspects only tell you one side of the story ... and completely disregard the downside of their investments.

If you were really going to make an informed decision, you would need to understand not only the terminology and the arithmetic calculations, but have excellent comprehension of probabilities, fractions and percentages. You would also need to be able to accurately predict the future. Crystal balls anyone ?!

Business entrepreneurs do need good business savvy and financial literacy; and / or a coach who has these skills. If they have taken time to do the research, they will see that spending money on their own opportunity makes far more sense than investing in an industry where payouts are less than 1% for savings accounts and CD's and the commodities and stock market are still a fairly unregulated and volatile mess.

The financial literacy you really need is how to capitalize your own business, how to drive more traffic to your door or opportunity, and how you can increase your profits, and decrease your tax implications.

When you opt to spend money on these things and to really understand your market, competition, and the growth potential of your niche market, you will have realized real and practical financial literacy.

A recent survey done by Loyola Law School followed a group of students for 10 years post high school. The results showed that students who had financial literacy courses in high school or college actually took greater risks, incurred great debts, and filed for bankruptcy more often than the students who did not take these classes, but relied on common sense and familial knowledge when investing . This second group of students was also twice as likely to be successful entrepreneurs ... by spending money on their businesses and their dreams!

Now is the optimal time to start a new business or to expand your existing business. Investing in yourself has never made more sense. Let me work with you to make your financial dream your financial reality.

6 Tips To Start Your Auto Repair Shop Business Today

So you want to start an auto repair shop business here are 6 tips to get you started off right.

1) First as with any business you need to write a business plan:

Businesses that do not write a business plan usually fail you must know what you expect for the business. Where is it headed? Will you some day have a franchise or will you only have one location? What type of advertising should you do? How much will it cost for shop equipment employees tools lifts etc. You must write a plan to know where your business is headed. You would not plan a trip with out looking at a map would you? Make sure to map out your business to see future plans become a reality.

2) Register for a business license:

Call your local SBA they are the best place to start. They can tell you about loans, free publications and so much more. You must register your business with the local city hall. You should call the court house to find out what business licenses you will need as they vary from state to state. In my county you do not need a fictitious name if the business is in your name such as David's Car Repair but if you want Elite Car Repair you must file with the state for a fictitious name which can be done online.

3) Open a business account:

This is very important you will need an account just for the business to pay for business expenses. This is where a lot of businesses fail they spend business profits on personal bills. In the first few years of business the business must keep 80% of income to sustain itself and grow. I know it is tempting but be careful. Contact your local bank and get a no fee checking account for your business.

4) Get insurance:

You must have garage insurance if you will have employees you will need worker comp insurance and you should check into whatever ever other liabilities there may be for your area fire, hurricanes, tornado etc. Insurance can make or break your growing business if you have insurance and the shop burns down insurance will pay to replace your shop. Or if you have disability insurance for just yourself if your a one man business. If you break your wrench hand you can sustain the business for months until you get well.

5) Pick a location:

The old adage location, location, location is true with auto repair shops. You should make sure to find a shop right by the interstate or the main highway. If you can put your shop in the middle of your busy town. If you can find a shop location by the highway it will be very lucrative for your business.

6) Advertise:

To me this is one of the most important things you can do for your shop. The old adage "when you do not advertise a funny thing happens" Nothing is true in the auto repair business. The first thing you do if your car needs repairs and you do not know any one to fix it for you. Most people would check the phone book go online check the newspaper. A good source of advertising is tow truck companies in you area. What do truck drivers see daily that is right broken down vehicles. Offer them a referral fee for every customer they send you. You could pick up 10 or more repair jobs a month from them alone. Marketing is very important in any business get creative have fun and always under promise and over deliver and you will be successful.

Web Based FTP Vs Client Based FTP

Traditionally, all interaction with an FTP server has been done through FTP clients such as CuteFTP, FileZilla and Transmit etc. These are all examples of client based FTP software. Basically, they let you upload and download files from your server, be it for a website or just off-site file storage. The only downside to them is that like anything else, they must be installed. Normally that is not a problem, but consider if you are far from home and need to access your site in an emergency, your hotel or cybercaf may not allow you to install software on their computers! This is where the first sparks of ideas for a web based solution came in, since every computer has an internet browser and can go online!

The rise of web based FTP applications has been fueled mostly by the need for mobile apps. Consumer hunger for apps for handheld devices like the iPhone and Android continues to rise and many more developers, webmasters and bloggers etc. are doing work while they are away from their main computer.

Initially the thought of connecting to your works FTP server wave some rise to concern over security, so naturally higher tier members of staff like senior developers and management were apprehensive about using a web based FTP program to work with potentially confidential and valuable data. This was quickly picked up by the online web FTP developers who started to integrate secure connection options into their web clients. This helped sooth fears over security leaks and soon many companies began to operate from out of office locations with regards to electronic data. Naturally the benefits of this are numerous. It may be that management wants to give a presentation, and instead of taking it on a USB drive or other form of media, they can simply send it over to their company's server, all ready to go. This method is much more reliable than having to have to remember to take your work on CD or external HD, and is often just as secure!

The fact remains however, that you are still sending your data through a third party. How do you know that the web based FTP client you are using is not sending a copy of all your data to an undisclosed location, or that the login information you typed to gain access to your FTP server was emailed to the admin of that site ? The simple answer is that you do not! That is why it's critical to read reviews about various web based FTP sites to find the most trusted ones so you do not get any nasty surprises.

iPad Vs iPhone

The web has increased our Society tremendously. We have things now that we before only dreamed about. Skype has got to be one of the greatest inventions of our lifetime. Yet, if you put it up against some of the other devices, it's not even in the top ten. Ladies and Gentleman, here are the top 2.

Number One is the iPad. Hands down this is one of the greatest inventions ever created. It is already causing schools to revolutionize their teaching methods. My youngest sister, Christine uses it to access her homework assignments. Could you imagine if we had this, just think about the possibilities. My generation would have had a field day with this, my iPad would've had mega-man and Super Mario Brothers loaded on it. Have you tried the encyclopedia application on it? If you are definitely missing out, it is an awesome piece of technology. I looked at the Geology section and was blown away at the picture, breath-taking.

Number Two is the iPhone. This invention is one of the best phones ever. Who knows? Maybe in 3 years there will be another phone that will be better, but for now it's the best. It can run so many applications it's like a small computer on the phone. One word sums it up: Incredible.

Both of these inventions are ahead of its time. They have only improved the lives of people everywhere. The fact they even exist is a testament to the ingenuity of humans everywhere.

Outsourcing Document Process Management

Businesses outsource their document process to service providers when they realize that they lack the knowledge required as well as the infrastructure required to manage documents effectively. Outsourcing lowers operational costs and ensures a higher level of security and the businesses are reassured as their documents are handled by professionals who will know what they are doing. These service providers will expertly deal with the customer-facing document process, technical documentation process, marketing and communication documentation process, regulatory compliance document process, and financial accounting documenting process. Outsourcing functions also comprise performing mailroom service, centralized reprographics departments, distributor copier, and printer fleet management.

Benefits of Outsourcing:

Outsourcing document process management will ensure that the business can utilize the extra time focusing on more important aspects such as growth and development and implementing plans to achieve the target goals. It also lessens the chances of error as experienced people are in charge and they will make sure that the process is error free to ensure that their service be thought in the future.

Thus, a business need not spend astounding amounts on document management systems, saving the capital that can be utilized to develop the business. These service providers will ensure that the documents are archived and stored properly and available when needed without wasting much time on searching, using a simple key word search can retrieve these documents. The service level agreements as well as key performance indicators have to be analyzed carefully. Key performance indicators have to be bench marked against industry targets in order to improve vendor performance. The businesses have to monitor the effectiveness of outsourcing and check if there have been any significant benefits. Businesses can, therefore, use performance management tools to help outsourcing document process management.

This can be achieved when a business establishes strong connections between the target goals of the business and the document strategy adopted. Outsourcing requires constant monitoring, managing, and measuring to ensure the process is cost effective. Since different vendors with different sets of key performance indicators and measuring metrics serve larger clients, outsourcing process has to be managed effectively to ensure that the service provider is worth investing in. companies have to make sure that the service provider adheres to government regulations as well as corporate governance.

Outsourcing document process management should use effective performance management tools that also help reduce outsourcing contract costs by monitoring and helping the company realize the effectiveness of outsourcing and identify areas that need improvements and establish ways to correct them. Thus, selecting a good vendor and utilizing management tools to judge their performance can help in outsourcing document process management.

Many firms offer services as well as products to help run a business successfully.

Home Mole Removal Guide

There are many different ways you could try to remove an unwanted mole, such as:

Natural Remedies:

* Apple Juice
* Baking Soda and Caster oil
* Onion Juice
* Dandelions

Over the counter Treatments:

* Herbal Treatments
* Mineral Salts

Cosmetic Surgery

* Cut off surgically
* burnt off
* frozen off
* laser

However when it came to removing ugly moles / sun spots from my body I decided to use my own method of removal:

Burning off Moles with a Soldering iron:

Items:

* Soldering iron-Clean / Sterile, ensure it has a small tip as large tipped soldering irons may cause damage to surrounding skin.
* Alcohol wipes

I must however state that the moles / spots I chose to remove appeared 'normal' in that they were not irregular in shape or color and what I considered to be risk free of being cancerous.

Obviously, anything that appeared odd I would leave and have it looked at by a specialist.

I must state again that I am in no way suggesting that anyone else do what I do, I am not a specialist in this field and would recommend seeing a specialist before treating anything on your skin.

Procedure:

For the initial removal I will post here I used an assistant as it was on my head, and I obviously needed help to remove blemishes from my head / back / back of legs etc.

-Ensure the soldering iron is clean by using cloth / tissue soaked in antiseptic, steel wool may even be used if the tip has some old residue built up on it.

If the iron was too dirty I would then consider replacing it with a new one.

-Switch on soldering iron allowing it to warm up.

Place it on a heat resistant surface when not in use, eg I use a plate or saucer.

On this occasion I chose to remove a mole from my head:

-Ensure plenty of antiseptic wipes on hand, do not use tissue or toilet paper as some may be left on the wound.

-Wipe the area to be treated with an antiseptic wipe.

-Now all I was doing was removing the mole / freckle / sun spot which is basically on the surface of the skin or just under the surface, so I did not have to go too deep.

-What I simply did was give a few light taps to the mole.

The mole or surface of the skin kind of melts / shrivels away with the heat.

-This was only very fast and light taps on the skin, just to transfer some heat into the skin, if I was to hold the iron on the skin too long it would become quite painful and I guess could do some significant damage and cause significant scarring.

-Usually after a few taps 3-5 I would simply give the skin a wipe with the alcohol wipes and usually the top layer of skin would come off and generally the mole with it.

If a mole was not removed after around 10 taps, I would simply leave it as I considered it too deep to remove.

I would then clean the area and leave it to heal over the next 1-2 weeks, ensuring to keep the area clean as it healed.

-What I discovered many times was that even if the mole was not removed and I considered it too deep, as the scab fell off the entire mole would be removed.

I believe the heating process kind of killed the mole or in fact the scab that formed 'suffocated' the mole and it would then be removed with the scab.

What You Should Know About Holistic Feng Shui

Holistic Feng Shui is not to be confused with traditional Feng Shui which uses complicated astrological calculations.

The entire energy field of our planet is shifting at an unpreceded rate:

For example: The tectonic plates of the earth are shifting faster than they have done for a million years. The magnetic field around the earth has been thinning for the last 2000 years and the thinning has sped up considerably in the last five years.

Earth quake activity has been increasing, which also makes the mantle of the earth more unstable.

Add to that manmade energy toxins from EMF (elector magnetic fields), chemtrail spraying and many other unsustainable practices which are putting the earth's mantle under immense pressure we are having to look at new ways to return balance to our planet and to our lives.

The change that is obvious everywhere engenders much fear and insecurity. When our brains go into fear mode we lose sight the solutions: We focus on problems instead of focusing on the solutions.

It is impossible to pull yourself out of the negative funk.

In years of coaching professionals I discovered that by far the easiest way to create positive change is to improve your environment

Holistic Feng Shui is intuitive and can be easily implemented once you know the principles.

The effect can be felt immediately. Your body and mind are your greatest feed back mechanisms. Yet most people have not taught how to use their feelings and emotions to positive effect.

Holistic feng Shui brings out harmony in your environment creating a powerful resonance between you and certain objects. Unlike traditional Feng Shui Holistic Feng Shui only uses a couple of tools. You can make these tools yourself. I explain how to do this in the Holistic Feng Shui course.

Let's face it: Everyone wants harmony, peace and joy in their lives

The only reason why you have not got it is because you lack the knowledge on how to create it. You do not know how the universe works.

Universal law is not complicated, alas it is elusive and appears counter intuitive to the linear brain.

Old programming stops us from seeing reality and truth. Instead we see everything through a filter of "knowledge" which is at best only partly correct.

Today alternative science and research is opening up new knowledge of how we create our reality. You are way more powerful than you think. This is not just a popular catch phrase, but a deep inherent truth that once you get it, it will transform your entire light.

I can not make you learn new things

I can not change how you look at your life or the world. I can, however, bring you new information which can transform your life if you are open to it.

Holistic Feng Shui is just one of the ways in which everyone can create a better life for themselves. The more people make that choice the more our planet planet benefits.