Taking a Job for the Benefits

Money isn’t everything. Yes, it’s very important, but benefits are arguably just as important when you’re looking at a compensation package. Don’t dismiss a potential job just because the salary isn’t quite right - especially if there are other perks.

Unemployed? Yeah, you’re not alone. As of July, 2012, 12.8 million Americans are in the same boat - and that only counts those who are still looking. It doesn’t count those who have become so demoralized they’ve given up, or those who have accepted part-time or low-wage jobs to help bridge the financial gap until they find a "real" job. Depressing, yes.

As you search, you probably have a salary range in mind - usually comparable to your last job, or even less if you’ve been looking for a while. You’ve probably discounted jobs that offer less, saving them for when you’re really desperate - but that may not be the best move. Some employers are offering lower pay but more benefits, and those benefits may actually be better than a slightly higher salary. Since wages have been essentially stagnant since 1970 while productivity has risen 154%, you may as well consider perks as your due.

Health Insurance

Health insurance can get incredibly expensive if you have to pay for it  yourself. If you had insurance through your former employer, your COBRA payments probably came as a shock - and just imagine if you had to buy your own plan from the start. The average cost of health insurance is around $140 per person per month, for healthy people with no pre-existing conditions. Not astronomical, but if you’re forced into a low-paying job, it could easily eat half a week’s salary - to say nothing of the typical $3,500 deductible, you would have to pay if you actually needed to use it.

Employers recognize the need for comprehensive health insurance is a bigger issue now than ever before, so many companies are offering medical, dental and vision plans even to part-time employees. The job itself may pay slightly less, but not by much.

Paid Time Off

You may not think you need paid time off - after all, you go to work every day, sick or not, right? But what about when your kid gets sick and you can’t get a babysitter at the last-minute? If you were assured an average of six days throughout the year where you would be paid for not showing up to work, it would take the burden off staying home to take care of your kid. In fact, it would make more financial sense to not hire a babysitter.

And what about paid vacation? Sure, we’ve not yet caught up to the European standard of four to seven paid weeks per year, but the average American job offers two weeks, which is nothing to sniff at. Employers recognize the need for workers to de-stress and recharge every so often - take advantage of it. The cost of a family vacation is a bit easier to bear when you don’t also lose income during that time, and if you join the growing trend of the "staycation", it’s all money in the bank.

What about volunteering? You don’t have time to volunteer - you work for a living, right? Well, companies are seeing the value in encouraging their employees’ altruistic sides, so many are granting the equivalent of two paid days per month to be spent on volunteer work. Not enough time to go build schools in Africa, but plenty of time to help out at the soup kitchen or animal shelter.

Flex Time

Flex time has been around for a while now, but it’s becoming more common in industries that aren’t time-sensitive. For instance, allowing waiters to show up "whenever" as long as the work gets done would result in a lot of angry diners. Graphic design, on the other hand, can be done any time, anywhere. Telecommuting goes hand-in-hand with flex time at many jobs, and liberates your schedule in a similar way.

Flex time and telecommuting can help minimize child care expenses by allowing you to work around your spouse’s schedule so someone is always home with the kids, and it allows you to get non-work stuff done during the week as well so you can spend time with your family on the weekends. That, my friends, is worth its weight in gold.

Education Reimbursement

The interesting thing about this particular recession is that experienced workers are getting the shaft in favor of inexperienced workers. Employers would rather hire someone whom they can mold into what they need rather than a fully formed employee who commands higher pay. Kinda stinks. But the upside is that they may pay for any additional education you may need to perform the job. If they see you as reliable, capable and driven, but lacking a particular certification, they just may pony up. And that certification will follow you to future jobs, too.

Reimbursement doesn’t just apply to new education, either - if your field requires CE credits or periodic re-certification, the employer might pay that as well. They may send you to conferences and retreats as part of your CE - some of these events practically qualify as vacation, so it’s like getting a bonus getaway on top of your paid vacation time.

All said, the benefit package can really spice up a job offer - study it carefully. While you should never take a job you hate just for the perks, don’t turn down one you might like simply because the actual salary isn’t quite there. Look for the benefits.

DIY Logo Design Guidelines

Sometimes the budget just doesn't allow for a professional job, and that’s okay. Learn how to design your own logo without ending up with an amateur mess that actually drives clients away. Hint: You have to know your industry and your audience first.
Whether you’re starting a business or rebranding an existing one, your company’s logo is likely taking up a lot of mental space lately - with good reason. Your logo is your company’s handshake, first impression and lasting symbol all rolled into one. Think about the logos of some of the most successfully branded companies like - Nike, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, NBC - you could immediately identify the logos even if the name wasn't attached.

That’s your goal in designing your own logo. You want something that encompasses your company’s mission so completely that the two are forever linked in customers’ minds. Now, this is a very detailed, complicated process based on psychology - entire degree programs are focused on perfecting the process. It’s always better to hire a professional for just this reason. But if your budget doesn't allow for designer fees, you can at least design your own logo using the same process experienced designers use.

Do Your Research

Too many people make the mistake of immediately sitting down and picking out fonts and colors. A professional, on the other hand, knows the value of research. Look at other companies in your field who target your chosen demographic. See what’s out there. The goal is not to copy these logos, but to make your own design different enough to stand out while still fitting in.

You really have to know your demographic for this to be effective, so research that too while you’re at it. Understand when to be flashy and when to be understated, when to be edgy and when to be sophisticated. Not only does the feel of your logo have to appeal to your audience, but it also has to accurately represent the "personality" of your company.

Sketch

Your brain will be full of ideas at this point, so get them all onto paper. Sit down with a pencil and a ream of copy paper and just brain dump everything that’s in there, no matter how stupid it might seem at first - sometimes you have to get the trash out of the way before you can see the gold.

Don’t worry about your lack of drawing skills - these aren't sketches for clients, these are just rough ideas. As long as you know what they mean, you’re fine. Don’t worry about recreating fonts or perfect lettering, just fill in rough shapes and suggest the overall look of each design. The more you do, the better - pros might sketch a couple of hundred designs in this stage.

Once your brain is totally empty, step away for a bit. Come back the next day, look through your sketches and set aside the ones that immediately catch your eye. Narrow the field down to the three best, and it’s finally time to get to the computer.

Fonts and Design

Refine your sketches in your software of choice - Adobe Illustrator is practically made for this, but whatever illustrating app you have will probably work. Keep it black and white for now, just focus on choosing fonts and refining the shape of your logo. Work on all three finalist sketches, and analyze them when you’re done - often, a clear favorite will emerge during the refining process. When you think you have all three to the point of being as perfect as they can get, choose a winner. It’s usually helpful to step away from the project for a day or so to clear your perspective before choosing your final design.

Add Color

Choose a color scheme for your brand - work with color swatches before you fit them into your logo. Don’t just choose your favorites, pick your colors based on psychology and color symbolism (Google is your friend). You’ll need a dominant color plus one to three others that can be used for contrast or harmony, depending upon the mood you’re looking to create.

Once you have your colors down pat, fit them into your logo - don’t go overboard, sometimes simplicity is best. You don’t even have to use all of your colors in the logo, because there will be plenty of room for the "leftovers" in other branding applications like signage and collateral. Do as many different combinations of color and design you can think of, then choose the very best one.

Tweak It

So, you have your basic logo at this point, but there’s always room for improvement. Experiment with font size and placement (not all letters have to be the same size), spacing, negative space, and just generally tighten up the design. Keep scalability in mind - your logo must be legible, clear and cohesive whether it’s in 6-pt. type or on a billboard.

Once your logo is perfected, create alternate versions for other applications. Professionals usually create both horizontal and vertical orientations, plus full-color, black-on-white, white-on-black and two-color versions. These come in handy for print applications, collateral, etc.

See? You just created your very own professional logo, and it only took about three days out of your life and added a few dozen gray hair. Now you understand why graphic designers charge what they do, and that professionals of all stripes only make it look easy.

How to Start a Shrimp Farming Project

Owing to the high demand for shrimp in the market, owning a shrimp farm/starting one is considered to be nothing less than owning the goose that lays the golden egg. What are you waiting for then? Let's find out what it takes to set up a shrimp farm.

Shrimp farming essentially involves the cultivation of shrimp or prawns, mainly marine shrimp. Mostly cultivated for consumption basis, shrimp farming invariably has a commercial side attached to it. The concept of shrimp farming originated as a small-scale business idea, but has now grown to be a full-fledged global business. Commercial shrimp farming began in the 70s and has since then, become a rage, making it nothing less than a gold mine. So, if you are among those entrepreneurs who wish to earn a decent living with shrimp, then 'project shrimp farming' is just the thing you should take up.

Starting a Shrimp Farm

Before you even think of venturing on to 'project shrimp farming', you would have to get yourself a permit that will allow you to start the business. And yes, you would have to specify the strategy you would be employing; that is whether it would be extensive, semi-intensive or intensive. Extensive, as the term suggests, is a farm covering a larger area where the cost of production and maintenance would be relatively lesser compared to intensive farming. If your concern is larger production, you would definitely want to go in for the intensive farming project, rather than extensive farming, where the total production is low.

Choosing a Right Location

When you decide to start a shrimp farm, it is essential that you consider the following points, which include proximity to marine water, climatic conditions of the area and ease of access to shrimp larvae.

Warm, brackish water is required for the cultivation of shrimp; hence, the proximity to ocean water is a prerequisite for starting a shrimp farm. Shrimp farms located in warmer climatic conditions have longer cultivation periods than those in colder regions. Remember: the warmer the area, the longer the growing season will last, which means that warm conditions are favorable for shrimp cultivation.

Creating a Clean Ecosystem

When constructing a shrimp farm, you would have to remember to construct two interconnected farms or ponds to conveniently transfer the mature shrimp from one farm to another. One of the most important factors of a shrimp farm is to keep a check on the drainage facilities. In the case of an extensive farm, which is located along a coast or a mangrove, the tides will provide with the required water exchange, but in case of an intensive farm located away from the coast, care needs to be taken to keep the water aerated at all times. Most intensive farming practices employ the use of pumps/paddle wheels to keep the oxygen level in the water constant as well as remove impurities, thus ensuring a better yield. Building a gate system for the exchange of fresh ocean water if your farm is located near the ocean, makes sense, and it will save you a lot of maintenance headache. For sustainable shrimp ecosystem, stock the farm with algae and phytoplankton.

Regulating the Feed

Post larval shrimp purchased from a hatchery is used to stock the ponds. Fertilized phytoplankton is used to accelerate the growth of the shrimp in the case of extensive farms; however, in the case of intensive farms, artificially formulated feeds are used for shrimp growth. The shrimp need to be fed minimum twice a day. The feeding can be done either manually (use of boats) or through mechanized feeders that are well-distributed around the pond.

Harvesting the Shrimp

This is the last stage of shrimp farming - ideally done in October - just as it begins to get cooler; thus, stopping the growth period of the shrimp. Draining the pond to harvest the shrimp is ideally the right method; you can even opt for catching the shrimp in nets or using special pumps to harvest the shrimp.

If you have a farm/pond, do keep all sorts of predators away; you wouldn't want your shrimp catch to be affected by predators. Shrimp farming has its share of ill effects too; constantly worrying about the dangers of consuming farm-raised shrimp won't help you in this profession. Besides, cultivating shrimp in unhygienic conditions could also land you into serious trouble; other than having your entire field wiped out, your permit too will be at a risk. Better be safe than sorry, especially, when it comes to venturing out into a lucrative option like shrimp farming.

Economic Impact of Hurricane Sandy

With the amount of destruction it caused, Hurricane Sandy is undoubtedly one of the costliest hurricanes to have ever hit the United States. However, it is being speculated that its impact on the U.S. economy will be short-lived, and eventually it will end up doing more good to the economy than causing any harm.
On 29th October, 2012, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) officials decided to shut down the exchange for a full of 2 days in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The last time something like this happened was way back in 1888, when insane snowfall resulted in NYSE being shut down on the 12th and 13th of March (the Great Blizzard of 1888).

Hurricane Sandy has been one of the most devastating hurricanes of the recent times. It affected more than 20 states, right from New England to Florida, in some way or the other. The state of New Jersey, where this 'superstorm' made its landfall, was one of the worst-affected places. Subways and tunnels were submerged, thousands of flights were canceled, power outage left millions in dark... in short, the entire East Coast was brought to a standstill by this hurricane. Overall, Hurricane Sandy had a greater impact as it was huge (in fact, the largest Atlantic hurricane on record), it affected the most populous region of the U.S., and lastly, it hit on weekdays (Monday and Tuesday). Image Courtesy: NASA GOES Project

The Economics of Hurricane Sandy
While the researchers estimate a loss of $20-$50 billion, they do agree that the impact of such events on the economy cannot be gauged in such a short time. A large part of the estimated loss is attributed to property loss (both insured and uninsured) and lost business days - with airlines, retail, trade and transport... virtually every business sector having to bear the brunt of this hurricane. It also resulted in immense damage to the public infrastructure - flooding transport facilities, damaging transformers and power lines. While conservative estimates put the total loss at $15-$20 billion, some sources put it at a whopping $50 billion.

The economic research team of Barclays puts the total financial loss caused by Hurricane Sandy at $30-$50 billion, which is more than what was caused by Hurricane Irene, but less than what was caused by Hurricane Katrina. The catastrophe risk modeling firm, Eqecat, had initially estimated a loss of $10-$20 billion, but their revised estimates hint at a loss of around $50 billion. This loss was largely a result of lost business due to power outage and damage caused to public infrastructure. With an estimated loss of $50 billion, Hurricane Sandy was the second most costliest hurricane in the United States' history.

New York was the most affected city; and, according to Eqecat, accounted to 34 percent of the total loss suffered by the nation. If the estimates put forth by Moody's Analytics are to be believed, the loss caused by Hurricane Sandy in the city of New York alone accounted to $12 million.

Temporary Rise in Gas Price
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, the oil refineries on the East Coast remained closed for some time as a result of which gasoline supply was hampered. Even the transportation of fuel from refineries to the service stations was affected as the transport network was recovering from the impact of this hurricane. The resultant shortage of fuel caused the gasoline prices to rise in New Jersey, New York, etc. On the brighter side, this price rise is only expected to last for a few days as Hurricane Sandy only affected the refineries; and not the drilling sites as in case of Hurricane Isaac.

GDP Decline and Positives of Rebuilding
Except for a slight decline in the GDP growth, which was of 2 percent in the third quarter, no other notable changes are expected in the last quarter. However, a drop in the economic activity for the month of November is well on the cards as it will take some time to get the damaged facilities back on track. On a positive note, it is expected to make consumers and the Federal government spend more, and much of this expenditure will go into rebuilding, thus providing a much-needed boost to the economy. More importantly, the $500 billion collected in the form of insurance premiums last year will now be injected in the economy in the form of payouts.

Second Term for President Barack Obama
The damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 had put the Bush government under scanner for its inefficient handling of crisis, and had virtually marked the beginning of its decline. In contrast, Hurricane Sandy seems to have provided a new lease of life for the Obama government. President Barack Obama's handling of this crisis was praised by everybody, and the same might have just given the democrats that much-needed edge. With President Obama securing another term, it is highly unlikely that we will get to see any major changes in the economic policies.

Speaking purely of economics, any loss that occurs because of natural disasters is unintentionally made up for in the subsequent weeks with people and administration injecting money in the economy on the pretext of rebuilding. It wouldn't be much different this time around, as the financial loss incurred by Hurricane Sandy will be offset by recovery efforts.

Ways to Increase Productivity at Work

Stop bringing work home with you - get it done between nine and five with these productivity boosters.

We’ve all had days where it seemed like there just weren’t enough hours. Too much to do, not enough time to do it in - it’s a common complaint. If you find that most of your days are like that, it’s time to brush up on your time management skills.

Since the beginning of the recession, when companies laid off massive numbers of employees, the remaining (lucky?) few have had to shoulder the burden of their own workload plus the workload of the pink-slipped. Companies are expecting to do more with less, and dismissing those who can't handle it. The good news is, it can be done. Usually.

Stop Multitasking
When you're crunched for time, doing multiple things at once is the natural response - but it won't save you time, really. It may even slow you down. You'll be more productive if you focus on one task at a time, moving steadily through the pile of TPS reports on your desk.

The human brain just isn't built to section itself off, so when you try to do too much at once, you do it all poorly. It also takes longer, because as your attention turns from assignment to assignment, it takes you a second to get back into the "groove" of each piece. The result is a mediocre pile of barely completed tasks that took you way too long to do.

If you do things one at a time, you're able to ride the groove from beginning to end, devoting your full attention to each project in turn. If you move from one to the next without getting distracted, you may be surprised how quickly - and well - things get done.

Prioritize
This one's easy. Everyone knows to do the most important thing first, but how often do you really do it? Is checking into Facebook really the most important thing you need to do today? So why is it the first thing you do when you sit down at your desk?

Plan your work day according to what's due when, and how long it will take you to do. Aim to get things done ahead of schedule, so you have a built-in time cushion for when emergencies arise.

Deal with Things
The easiest way to explain this productivity rule is as follows: When you check your mail, do you just drop it on the table and go about your day, planning on going through it later? Stop it. When you bring the mail in, go through it immediately. Ditch the junk, stack catalogs on the coffee table, in the bathroom, or wherever you'll look through them. Open bills and write out the check, stamp it, seal it, and put it back in the mailbox. Get it? Deal with things. Approach your whole day this way, and you're less likely to have a stack of work waiting for you at the end of the day.

Set Alarms
Of course you wake up to an alarm, and you probably set alarms for important meetings and such. But using alarms to time your work tasks can keep you on track all day. Knowing you have a finite amount of time to get things done forces you to concentrate, and makes you less likely to end up browsing YouTube instead of working on that expense sheet.

The thing is, you have to stick to your alarm. When it goes off, move on to another task. Don't just ignore it, because then you lose the entire benefit of the mini-deadlines it creates.

Take Care of Yourself
If your body isn't running at its optimum level, your productivity will never reach its full potential. Get enough sleep, eat healthy foods, and exercise every day. Oh, and those productivity tricks we just talked about? Take one day a week and throw them out the window. This should be a day you don't have to work (obviously), so just do what you feel like doing when you feel like doing it. Schedule nothing. Don't look at a clock. Nap in the sun, curl up with a book, play tag with your kids. Whatever you do to recharge, do it.

Come Monday morning, you'll be refreshed and ready to go. Blazing your way through the mountain on your desk, you'll be done by happy hour.

Importance of Product Packaging in Marketing

In the highly competitive world of retail marketing, one can never stress enough on the important role that product packaging plays. Although the quality of the product will ultimately determine sales, interesting packaging certainly gives your product that initial edge...

The flashy orange of Hermès, the legendary aqua blue of Tiffany & Co. or the deep red that defines Cartier packaging elicits sighs even before one opens them to discover the plush contents they carry. The containers of these iconic brands have their devoted section of fans who, believe it or not, even source them from online auctions, knowing that they can't afford the expense of actually buying something luxe in order to obtain those coveted boxes. I'm aware that this might sound completely far-fetched to those who view the concept of packaging with nonchalance, but marketing experts are sure to tell you otherwise.

Unlike advertising, where you'd have to scream from the rooftops to get the consumer's attention, innovative packaging just sends out sublimely effective pick-me-up signals that are irresistible even to the hardest of cynics. You could also call it a final sales pitch, especially because it is common knowledge that emotions play a massive role when it comes to buying. Therefore, it isn't a coincidence when brands with the highest recall value (Nike, Apple, Coca-Cola) are those who invariably invest a great amount of thought behind their packaging.

Brand Association
As a consumer, entering a supermarket and finding endless aisles of similar brands can be assaulting to the senses. What do you think happens next? The vast array of goodies on display compels the consumer to remember and associate a certain kind of package with the brand of their choice. Recognizable brands have a definite edge, no doubt, but think... who will possibly pick up a Coke that's packaged in a steel-gray can with black lettering instead of the regular, flashy red and white? Innovative packaging, with the company logo emblazoned across it makes an established brand stand-out. A perfectly legal attention-grabbing tactic, it tests the consumer's loyalty to the brand and reinstates a recognized brand's presence.

Simply Outshine!
There is no denying that we humans are a judgmental lot, and we take great pleasure in creating preconceived notions based on appearances. As a seller, it would be a crime not to cash in on a golden opportunity like this one. Have you ever wondered why a Barbie doll always comes in a pink box? Or that men's deodorants are mostly packaged in black cans? Science does have a role to play here, but the simple explanation is that companies stereotype, and customers willingly succumb. You see, there is a reason why Tiffany & Co. use that special aqua blue box with a white ribbon to pack their jewelry in, and Nike made that special stadium shoe box for football crazy kids.

Practicality Scores
Product packaging is not limited to appearances, mind you. It goes beyond wrappers and ribbons when it comes to certain wares, perishable commodities in particular. In such cases, freshness rates above everything else and packaging standards must comply. The USFDA has specific rules regarding packaging of edible products, and manufacturers have to adhere to those. Having said that, sellers need not necessarily shed their creativity to accommodate practicality, (there are some very funky juice cartons which prove my point).

Go Green!
Environment friendly packaging never fails to impress, moreover, it helps you establish an image that is austere and conscientious. Reusable, environment friendly containers are usually a big hit with the consumers who will appreciate your concern for planet Earth. Green initiatives spruce up a company's image in no time, and as a brand, you end up doing your bit towards undoing environmental damage to some degree. It is also the need of the future, as most governments are more or less likely to enforce strict rules regarding usage of environment friendly packaging.

Bait the Customer
When it comes to luring customers, nothing does the job better than the manner of packaging. Shopping is a multi-sensory experience and manufacturers must view it that way. New products looking at making a breakthrough can edge out complacent competitors solely on the basis of attractive packaging. With certain products like cosmetics, customers appreciate the company's attention to aesthetics. Be it gourmet chocolates or garbage bags, beautiful packaging matters, and it is sure to give you results.

Don't Get Too Excited
It's time to curb the enthusiasm a bit, because it is very easy to get carried away with creativity. Packaging, ultimately, has but one aim - to get the consumer to buy the product in question. It is not an avenue for product designers to showcase their creativity by thoroughly neglecting the primary purpose which is product sales. Designers have to possess the sensibility to refrain themselves from viewing product design as a contest. After all, a good product package is the one that sets the cash register ringing.

To sum it up, product packaging is serious business, and it calls for attention. As a manufacturer, you need it to be adequately enticing without making it ridiculously over the top. Though it's hard not to cross the fine line that separates the swishy from the trashy, it's totally worth the effort once you get it right.

Financial Capital of the World: New York or London?

London and New York are two of the busiest centers for international trade and commerce. These cities have the infrastructure, government support, and a skilled workforce to play host to some of the biggest financial institutions of the world. In this article, we will try to know which of these cities has a better claim to be called the world's financial capital...

An article published in New York Times a couple of months ago went by the title, 'London is eating New York's Lunch.' The article went on to explain how London was fast becoming the financial center of the world. It wasn't as if this article was revealing anything breathtakingly sensational; a report by McKinsey in 2007 had warned the then Mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, that London was treading on its way to become the global capital of the world. Today, there is a wide consensus among analysts that London has the upper hand over New York when it comes to being the global financial center of the world. Beijing, Tokyo, and Shanghai - the other economically powerful cities of the world may need another couple of decades before they can be considered as serious contenders for the title.

London has traditionally been the global capital of the world. It was the city which controlled half the world in the imperial days. It was the place of inventions and innovations, and the famous Industrial Revolution. In short, London was an economic powerhouse until Britain took part in the First World War. In the ensuing period of 1914 to 1945, which saw the world fight two wars, Britain's economy weakened, and London lost its premiership to New York. But, in the early 1980s, it worked in the right direction steadily to once again become one of the preferred destinations for trade and finance.

New York, on the other hand, emerged on the global scene notably after World War II. From thereon, Moscow rivaled New York for a bit, but it would be apt to say that the Cold War era was more about America Vs the Soviet than New York Vs Moscow. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, America became the lone superpower of the world, and New York went on to reap the benefits of this new-found status. But, over the last decade or so, New York has had to face stiff challenges from other global cities of the world, and London has emerged as a credible alternate for foreign investors.

Financial Powerhouse - London or New York?

If we go by recent reports, the news isn't all that great for New Yorkers. A city which was once unanimously the preferred choice for banking and investment companies, now finds itself competing with London in wooing foreign investors. Companies are listing themselves up on London Stock Exchange, taking a lion's share away from the New York Stock Exchange, and hedge fund investors and oil-rich Sheikhs from the Middle East are giving JFK a miss by descending upon proximal Heathrow for investment and partnerships.

The World Economic Forum's Financial Development Index named London as the world's top financial center in 2009. The city outdid 55 other countries to claim the top spot. In 2011, UK had dropped to be placed second after Hong Kong. The index takes into account the financial structure and gains on a yearly basis, something which fluctuates with economies over a period of time. In the longer run, London still is the preferred destination for conducting business, something which has been substantiated by the Global Financial Centers Index. The study observed that London is ahead of other rival cities on the basis of 'regulation, tax and lifestyle'.

Analysts point out that London is gaining on New York because of several factors. First, there is a widespread perception that regulatory scrutiny is more stringent in New York vis-a-vis London. The post-Enron economic structure definitely calls for a tighter regulation, but, it also ends up putting potential investors off. Second is the growing economic might of the Asian and Middle East countries. Hong Kong, Beijing, Mumbai, and Tokyo are some cities who have started to have a say in world economics, and being geographically closer to these economic centers helps London in grabbing deals which otherwise might have gone to New York.

Summing up, London is at the top of the table right now, be it financial exports or revenue generation from its financial institutions. It leads the international bank lending, and issues the largest number of international bonds, year in and year out. The volume of global currency traded is the highest in London with an approximate 35% market share. London has the most number of foreign banks and 65% of Fortune 500 companies are based in London. These statistics tilt the balance in its favor. New York City is not too far behind, and there is every possibility of a shift in paradigm in the years to come.

Pros and Cons of Mobile Banking

The findings of a latest survey show that Mobile devices account for nearly 25% of visits to a bank website. The reason is simply the convenience and portability that the cell phone offers. But this comfort comes with a price. Given below are the pros and cons of mobile banking that you must know before accessing your account from your mobile phone.

According to a new database released by the World Bank in April this year, nearly 2.5 billion people, almost one half of the adult population around the world, don't have any formal access to our complex financial system, let alone, its simplest format - the banking system. This leaves a major fraction of the poor population dependent on private money lenders, who charge very high interest rates contributing to the vicious cycle of exploitation and poverty. Moreover, financial exclusion of a major part of the world population has also occurred because of several other reasons that include, poor bank infrastructure, long travel distance to banks and the amount of paperwork required to open a bank account. These glaring issues have been now realized by financial institutions. The central banks of almost all developing countries are pushing reforms on a mammoth scale to bank the unbanked poor and in this massive endeavor, technology is turning out to be their greatest hope.

The most famous among all the measures adopted to bank nearly half of the unbanked adult population is mobile banking. The surge of optimism surrounding this latest technology that has the immense potential to alleviate billions of people from poverty, has been fueled by the exponential increase in the number of mobile subscribers all across the globe, with developing economies like India and China, leading the way. To just give you a perspective, Cisco's recently published "Visual Networking Index (VNI) Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update" stated that by the end of 2012, the number of mobile devices in the world will exceed the World's population! If all goes well, it may be possible for mobile banking to transform the world's financial landscape and redefine the relations of banks and its consumers, not only in developing countries but also in the developed ones. While we look forward to mobile banking revolution shape our lives, we need to understand both sides of the coin, to get a larger perspective. Here we analyze what's so perfect about this form of banking and what's the issue we may encounter in its execution.

Benefits of Mobile Banking

There are a lot of benefits of banking using mobile phones. The obvious is that this is a time saving, no-queue method of banking wherein almost all banking related services can be accessed through the mobile. It also offers services like ATM locator, remote deposits as well as mobile payments to the users. The biggest boost to this technology is the availability of smartphones that have simply made our lives easier.
The mobile banking service offered by almost all banks is free of cost. This means that the customer can handle hassle-free transactions without extra charges.
There are three ways in which the services can be accessed from the mobile depending upon the cell phone compatibility and its make. This makes mobile banking available for everyone. The first one is through SMS wherein the balance information and banking passwords are sent to the user via SMS. Secondly, some banks have dedicated software applications that can be downloaded on the mobile for accessing the bank account. Thirdly, the mobiles that have Internet browser facility can access the banking applications easily like a computer.
The bank servers are encrypted for wireless transactions. This means that this mode of transaction may actually be better secured than transactions through wired connections.
The account information along with the account number is not displayed on the wireless connection. This helps more towards data security.
Risks of Mobile Banking

As with any new technology, the mobile banking too, has its disadvantages. Listed below are the major ones.
The biggest security risk in mobile banking is the non-encrypted servers of cell phone service providers. This makes it relatively very easy for an expert hacker to obtain account information or debit and credit card information of the users.
The messages that are received from the banks are not encrypted. This means that, that information could easily have been breached while being transmitted through mobile carrier.
If the mobile gets stolen, the information stored in messages can be used easily by another person.
Mobile phones that use Internet browser but do not have an antivirus are at a very high risk of getting hacked for sensitive information.
With the increased usage of smartphones and accessibility to high-speed Internet on cell phone, mobile banking was the obvious next technological step. Without any doubt, it provides the comfort and hassle-free account accessibility. But as far as information security is concerned, it definitely leaves much to be desired. If you ask me, unless banks come up with a 100% secure way of mobile banking, it is best to use mobile banking only when absolutely necessary.

Market Analysis for Small Business

The market analysis is the most intimidating part of writing a business plan, but it’s the part that has the most potential to get your business off to a strong start and adjust to a changing marketplace down the road. You get out what you put in, so make it thorough.
When you’re starting a business, it’s important to take a good, hard look at the market you are trying to enter. This helps you plan your approach to marketing, pricing and general operations, and as such, should be included in your business plan. Once your business is established, periodically re-analyzing the environment in your industry can help you adapt your business to changing attitudes, economies and regulations, and help you sidestep potential roadblocks.

Although the term "market analysis" sounds technical and intimidating, it’s rather simple, if involved. You don’t need an M.B.A. to do this. It’s all about examining your industry, target demographic, pricing structure and competition.

» Industry

Research your industry. Find out how it’s been doing, and where it’s going. Has it dropped off recently? Is it due to economics or new regulations? Is it projected to resume its previous levels? In how long? Is it growing, or is it stable? Get a feel for the difference between steady and stagnant - one is characterized by slow but steady growth, the other by inactivity. Find out if your industry is changing - if everyone else seems to be branching off into niche markets, positioning yourself as an all-around provider may not be the best idea.

» Target Demographic

Who is your ideal customer? Know everything about them. Know who they are, where they live, how much money they have and how much money they spend. The Census is handy for this. If your business is locally-based, it behooves you to know how much of your target demographic leaves the area every year, and how many move in. Once you know the facts, start looking into the intangibles. What do they like? What do they buy? What level of customer service do they expect?

Once you know your target market inside and out, explore other potential markets - they may not be your main source of revenue, but they could prove valuable down the road when you’re trying to eke out every last drop of profit to fund expansion.

» Pricing Structure

In your business plan, you’ll have to justify your prices - your market analysis helps with that. Look at your production costs, overhead, labor, etc., but don’t stop there - look around and see how much everyone else is charging, but focus on those who serve your target market. Does perceived value play a role in your industry? What else affects sales, price-wise? Do you plan to offer discounts? How will that affect your bottom line? How deep will the discounts be, and will they more than make up for themselves by effectively driving sales?

You can’t set your prices arbitrarily. If you plan to charge substantially more than everyone else, what about your product or service makes it worthwhile to the customer?

» Competition

Finally, analyze your competition. Ideally, you will look at what the competition is doing throughout your market analysis, but here is where you put it all together. What makes you think your business will be superior to them? Where are they failing the market? How do you plan to fill that gap? Become intimate with the way your main competition does things - you might learn something, even if it’s what not to do.

Your market analysis can go as deep as you want it to - the deeper, the better. Be prepared to rethink some of your ideas as you find out what’s going on out there. Your business may look great in your head, but it has to survive in a real economy.

Cottage Industry Laws

Cottage industries are tiny businesses with tons of regulations for the newbie. Research first to avoid regret.

So you knit an awesome afghan/bake a great cake/whittle a beautiful headboard. Wanna start a business? Sure! Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day again in your life, right? But starting a business requires money. Which you don’t have. Or you wouldn’t need to start a business.

There exists, in the good ol’ U.S. of A., a business type called a 'cottage industry'. It’s basically a sole-proprietorship that you run out of your home. Sounds perfect, right? Let’s roll! I’ll start today!

Not so fast. Business in this country is regulated, heavily in some cases. There is a set of laws involving cottage industries, and pleading ignorance will not keep you from being heavily fined or shut down if you’re found in violation. Laws vary from place to place, so check your state, county and city websites for the particulars. But the most common issues concern what you make and where you make it.

Your Home
As mentioned, cottage industries are run from the home. But that’s not all there is to it. First, you have to check with the city to make sure your home is zoned for cottage industry (which is entirely separate from being zoned for business or residential use). Then, you have to check with your neighborhood association to make sure they’ll allow signage, the expected traffic, and everything else that comes along with business.

Will customers come to your home? Better have ample parking. Many places require that no more than 25 percent of your home’s square footage may be used for business purposes. Plan on selling food? Your kitchen usually has to be separated from the rest of the house and kept in Health Department-approved cleanliness.

Licensing
Depending upon where you live, you may have to get a business license for your cottage industry. At the very least, you’ll have to register a fictitious name, unless you are doing business under your full, legal name. Even if local laws don’t require a business license, some other sales outlets do - many trade shows, fairs and green markets require your business to be fully registered before you can purchase a booth.

Don’t forget insurance! Liability insurance is a biggie. If customers will be coming to your home, speak to your home insurance rep to be sure you’re still covered.

Your Process
If you are producing food, you need to run your home kitchen like a professional kitchen. That means that Fluffy and Fido are no longer allowed in, and anyone who even stands near a prep area must wear a hair covering. In some places, you may even need to install special equipment (like the triple sink) that is used ONLY for your business, not family-related cooking.

Even if you’re not producing food, you may need additional equipment or permits if you use hazardous materials in the construction of your product - and we’re not talking uranium, here. Spray paint? Spray booth. Smelly glue? Vent hood. Welding? Not in this neighborhood, buddy.

Your Product
If you’re producing non-hazardous, non-food items, you’re probably okay. But bakers beware - there’s a whole mess of laws that govern what foods can and cannot be sold from a cottage industry. Baked goods are generally okay, as long as they don’t contain dairy as the main ingredient. Jams and jellies are usually fine, but not if they’re canned - home canning requires a whole other set of permits and inspections, and usually requires special equipment to ensure sterility.

Suddenly, starting your itty-bitty business just got intimidating. And if you become moderately successful, cottage industry laws will no longer apply - that’s right, after all this work, if you make over a certain dollar amount in sales, you qualify as a 'real' business and must redo the entire licensing/insuring/equipping process over again to a new set of rules. Oh yeah, and you have to find an appropriately-zoned place to do it, too, because you can no longer use your house.

That said, don’t let the legal stuff scare you. Invest a bit of money to hire a CPA who knows cottage industry law - it’s worth it in the long run. And when you finally do succeed in launching your afghan/cake/furniture empire, it’s the best feeling in the world.

Merits of Bond Swapping

A very effective tool to get the best out of your investment portfolio, bond swapping has definite advantages, though cautious investors may lead you to believe otherwise. Let us examine the merits in detail...

Bonds have been a preferred investment for the more conservative lot. Being a fixed-income investment, most investors prefer to buy bonds and leave them untouched until maturity. The trading of bonds is certainly not as actively volatile as stock trading, but market conditions permitting, it can actually yield decent returns. It's time to start reviewing your long-term investments and begin to reap profits out of them.

Bond swapping takes place in two steps. First, you must sell a bond, and second, you must utilize the funds obtained from the sale to purchase a bond or bonds with different features. The idea behind it is to gain from interest changes or lower your tax, and boost your investment portfolio.

Advantages of Bond Swapping

Volatile markets force investors to reassess their investment policies. Very soon, wise investors begin to explore options which not only help them make profits, but also keep the losses restricted to a bare minimum. Bond swapping is one such strategy, and here are its benefits.

Reduce Taxes
Among the several benefits of bond swapping, the foremost one makes you save on taxes. When you own a bond that is currently trading below the purchase rate, it makes sense to sell it. The loss incurred by this transaction will help you write-off payable taxes on gains from other investments. The proceeds from the sale can be used to purchase other bonds. Let's say you have tax-free municipal bonds in your state of residence, and then decide to move to another state. A bond swap will seem logical in such a scenario, as you'd be saving on the out-of-state taxes that you'd have to otherwise pay if you decide to keep the bonds. The funds received can be reinvested in bonds in your new state. There are times when the tax laws are altered which affect your investments, and you must not waste the opportunity to reap gains or minimize losses from it. Make sure to discuss this with your investment advisor.

Increase Returns
The basic purpose of investing money is to gain returns, and bonds are no exception. There are several strategies of bond swapping that will help you make the most out of your investments, and increasing the term is one of them. Long-term bonds yield better returns, so swapping your short-term ones for these makes sense. Keep in mind that extending the maturity will make your investment susceptible to interest rate fluctuations. Similarly, bonds that have a low credit rating yield better. Although this could be risky, some investors do downgrade in order to make a quick buck.

Increase Call Protection
Investors are given the right to 'call in' or redeem their bonds before they mature. The period between the date of purchase and the redemption date is referred to as call protection. Selling a bond with a short call-in date to buy one with a longer call-in date will result in better call protection for the investor. The investor can thus be shielded from the risk of reinvesting in sluggish market conditions.

Resist Market Fluctuations
Anticipating interest rate changes will always keep you a step ahead of market fluctuations. If you sense an increase in the rate of interest, lowering the maturity will help. Short term maturities will protect your portfolio from any future declines. On the other hand, if the markets indicate a dip, investing in bonds with longer maturity periods will lock in the higher interest rates before the plunge takes place.

Improve Quality of Investments
The credit rating of a bond determines its quality. As mentioned before, long-term bonds rank high on the credit ratings list, and are certified safe investments. But, to keep up with the changing markets, investments must also be altered accordingly. Market rates should dictate investment decisions, so as to yield maximum profits. Of course, it goes without saying that any transactions involving low rated bonds must be conducted with caution.

Investments, as a rule, must be studied thoroughly before you actually put your money in. While bond swapping may seem as a decent solution to end your investment woes, as a crafty investor you must always consult your investment advisor before implementing any ideas.

Common Photography Mistakes to Avoid

Lack of knowledge about photography tips, tricks and pitfalls can lead you into clicking fail pictures! Find out about the common photography mistakes that you should avoid in this article, and make your photography foolproof!

Photography is an art. It is also a science - but it is more of an art. Even someone who doesn't understand the technique of photography, or the science behind how a picture actually gets captured on a camera, can still learn to click a good picture. However, for someone who is new to photography, the common pitfalls may prevent you from overcoming the initial roadblocks. This is exactly what I am going to throw light on here - common photography mistakes and how to avoid them.

How Do We Perceive Pictures

Before we begin, let me ask you - have you ever noticed how you look at a picture? Usually when you look at a picture, you first look at a particular point in the picture; then your gaze moves around the point (clockwise or anti-clockwise), so that you take in the entire picture. With some pictures (usually landscape pictures) you look at the entire picture at once, as you would at an actual landscape. With some pictures you tend to focus on a point and then 'zoom-out', just like a camera would (close-shots of flowers, insects). Finally, sometimes you look only at the main subject and your gaze kind of tends to cut out the rest (as in head-to-toe shots of people). You would have to be told there is a painting hanging on the wall behind the person; you wouldn't notice it on your own. And what when we cannot follow any of these patterns? We 'feel' like it is a bad picture.

This is exactly what constitutes a bad picture. Our brain is tuned into perceiving things in a certain way, and when something falls out of the boundaries of this perception preset, we cannot comprehend it, we do not understand it, and we call it bad. When you grab onto this fact, you will have already understood half of your mistakes on your own! These tips are common to traditional as well as digital photography.

Common Photography Mistakes

#1 - Composition
The composition of a good photograph lies in the content of the picture as well as the proportion of three main constituents of a picture - the foreground, the subject and the background. It is important that the subject occupy a bigger portion of the picture than the rest of the things. The foreground should be minimal. The background should be either plain, or it can be put out of focus; so that the focus of the viewer is drawn to the subject. There is no mathematical value to 'how much' portion of the picture should the subject occupy - but say about 85% of the picture is good enough. While clicking pictures where you also want to highlight the background, try experimenting with the position of the subject in the picture - the subject need not always be in the center.

#2 - Level Of Camera
The level of the camera should be at the level of the subject and NOT at your eye level! While clicking a puppy, go down on your knees; while clicking a flower, go closer to the flower, while clicking a tall person stand on a platform! Unless creatively intentional, changing the angle between the subject and the camera is going to make the picture look really weird. A short person may look towering if clicked from a slightly lower level than the face of the person. This would also make a slim person look a lot healthier. Sometimes however, the effect produced by playing around with the angle at which a picture is clicked can add to the aesthetic value. But unless it does, it is simply going to mess with a good picture. Avoid.

#3 - Using Flash
Always prefer to click pictures in natural light. The best time to click a picture outdoors in the morning is say about 2 to 3 hours after sunrise, and in the evening is about 2 hours before sunset. Why? The daylight at these times of the day is uniform. It is not directional, focal, too harsh or direct. Rest assured, your pictures will turn out lovely. As for night photography, make sure you turn on more number of lights in the room (at least for the duration when you will be clicking pictures) so that the place is adequately and uniformly lit. If that is not possible, you can play around with the exposure time for better results. But avoid using the flash. The simple reason is - flash throws light on only that part of the picture that the flash is pointed at, so that the already dark background appears darker, and fair people appear whiter, like they've just seen a ghost!

#4 - When To Go Black-n-White
The tips and tricks of black and white photography are far different from those of color photography. But one general rule that applies is - landscapes look unflattering in black and white mode, while portraits and macro focus pictures look equally awesome. Just because you like black and white photography does not mean any and every picture clicked in black and white mode is going to look good. Same goes for sepia mode photography. Architecture pictures look beautiful in sepia, but portraits not so pretty. Earlier photography was black and white by default. But black and white photography has now transformed into an aesthetic technique rather than being a mere limitation. It will take more experimenting than color photography to understand how it works. Give time.

Common Photography Misconceptions

#1 - A Good Picture Needs An Expensive Camera
FALSE! Even an ordinary 3.1 megapixel camera can be used to click a good picture. You need not necessarily have a digital SLR camera for that! Get rid of this concept as soon as you can. Yes a good camera will give you good picture quality, but just because the market now offers a 12 megapixel camera does not mean your 3.1 megapixel camera has lost its capacity to click good pictures!

#2 - Only A Professional Can Click Good Pictures
WRONG! I have seen pictures of amateur photographers that would put professionals to shame! No doubt having formal knowledge about photography helps you click good pictures, but not everyone wants to be a professional photographer, right? Some just want to be able to click good pictures at birthday parties and get-togethers; and you definitely do not need a professional for such occasions (although if you are getting married, hire the best one you can!).

#3 - Photography Is Not DIY
NEGATIVE! My brother is a self-taught photographer. He learned photography all on his own; and maybe he wasn't as good as an amateur as he is now as a professional, but he was still mighty good. He is now a fashion photographer, and has also worked as still photographer for a couple of movies. And all this started in our backyard with a basic camera. You can totally Do-It-Yourself - photography can be DIY too. Impossible is nothing.

#4 - There's Always Photoshop
BAD! Yes there's always Photoshop to correct a bad picture. But why click a bad picture to begin with? Using Photoshop creatively is different from using it to hide your inadequacies. Learn and develop on your skills before you master Photoshop. Like all things that makes stuff easy, Photoshop is heavily addictive! It's like learning how to use a computer because you hate writing. Avoid.

Like I said in the first paragraph - photography is an art. So do not learn it entirely by the book. My take on any kind of art - writing, sketching, music - is that you should first experiment with it. Explore it. Form a picture of it on your own through your experiences before you consult someone. For art learned like this is in its purest form. The minute somebody tells you a technique, or an approach to learn an art, you limit yourself to it. I am a writer, but I learned how to write on my own. If I had followed what my school-teacher had told me, each piece of my writing would have been all the same - technically correct, but aesthetically redundant. So first get the hang of what constitutes a good picture. And then go into the science of it. Approach any art like this, and you are sure to be revered as an artist one day! All the best!

Consider This Before Starting Your Own Business

Starting a company from the ground up is an all-encompassing endeavor that starts out intimidating and gets more complicated from there. Everyone wants their own business, but few of us can really hack it - give it some serious thought.

Let’s face it - working for someone else can really suck. Who among us hasn’t fantasized about having our own business? No overbearing boss, a team full of stellar talent, and customers beating down the door. You call the shots and you reap the reward - makes it much easier to get out of bed at 6:00 AM on a Monday morning.

The thing is, your fantasy sort of begins in the middle - it doesn’t include the extremely difficult start-up phase. It doesn’t include up to a year of little-to-no income, working 16-hour days, or appeasing difficult clients because you just can’t afford to let one go.

Starting your own business can be rewarding, and if the stars align, profitable - but it is not something to be undertaken lightly or on the spur of the moment.

Do A Self-Check

A business owner absolutely must be a self-starter, a decision-maker and the sacrificial lamb. Are you all of these things? Be honest. Are you willing to double the hours you work? Are you willing to make the tough calls and deal with the consequences when there’s no good answer? Are you okay with paying your creditors and employees first when it means you may not take home a paycheck that month?

Do you have enough savings to not only start the business, but also to pay your bills for up to a year (at least six months)? Will your spouse resent the extra burden of maintaining the home, family and income while you toil away at launching your business? These are vital questions - poor planning causes businesses - and marriages - to fail before any kind of stability is achieved.

Know Your Talents

Most people start a business based on something they happen to be good at - but make sure you’re really, really good. Good enough, in fact, that people will pay you to what you do. Your mom may love your cupcakes, but how will they go over with total strangers who are paying $4.00 each for them? Whatever it is you do, make sure you do it perfectly.

Your talent doesn’t have to be tangible, either. There is an entire class of entrepreneurs whose talent is starting businesses. Some specialize in a general field, but others take all comers - these people are very good at spotting trends and people with the talent to bring them to market. Once the business is solvent, they sell it for a nice profit and move on to the next project.

Look for the Money

Once you decide what you’re good at, figure out a way to make money from it. Building toothpick houses may be fun, and you may be the best toothpick carpenter around - but the demand for toothpick cabins is low. Perhaps you could apply your skills to general model making and market yourself to architects and designers, who pay top dollar for 3D representations of their designs.

Musicians are a dime a dozen, but very few make a living wage by playing music, so many give lessons. The market for great moms likely only extends to your kids - try opening a daycare to spread your skills around.

Look for a way to present your talent that will make people think they cannot live without it.

Do Your Homework

You’ve identified your talent and your product, now you must make sure it’s feasible where you are. Say you want to open a Mexican restaurant, but a quick Internet search shows that there are already a dozen Mexican restaurants in town - you’re almost sunk right out of the gate, because competing with already-established businesses that are so similar can easily kill a struggling start-up.

Do another Internet search - are there any good steakhouses? Seafood restaurants? What about bakeries? By shifting your focus slightly to one side, you’ve drastically reduced your competition and increased your chance of success.

As an entrepreneur, your homework also includes learning the business law in your state, county and city. Find out what licenses and permits you need, what zoning laws apply to you, what inspections and certifications are required, and the time frame for getting all these things together.

Once all this is finished, congratulations - you’ve taken your very first step in learning how to open a business. Now go find a building, design stationery and a website, write employee handbooks and job descriptions, create your business plan, find financing, hash out an advertising budget... and get to work.

Toothbrush Bracelet Making Instructions

Has it ever occurred to you that a toothbrush can be transformed into a pretty piece of jewelry? If not, then this article on how to make a toothbrush bracelet, is sure to take you by surprise. And if you think frugal fashion is cool, you're sure to love it too!

In today's times, when the environment is under threat due to the tons of plastic waste that is released into it every day, even a small "green" step from each one of us can help. And what better place to begin than our own home? But what can we do to contribute to the protection of the environment, you may ask. Well, the simplest and one of the most effective ways to go about it is recycling. If each one of us begins to recycle even a small percentage of the waste generated in our homes, especially non-degradable waste such as plastic that can cause harm to the environment, imagine how much safer and greener our planet's gonna be! And what better way to recycle than creating something pretty out of scratch that makes you look good! Making funky and stylish jewelry out of common discarded household items, is fast catching up as a trend, and when it comes to homemade jewelry ideas, people are getting more innovative by the day. In this article, we shall have a look at how a toothbrush can be transformed into an interesting piece of jewelry. Sounds great? Well, then read on...

How to Make a Toothbrush Bracelet

It is a fact that we change our toothbrush once every few months, but what we normally do is throw away the used toothbrushes. But what if I tell you that with a bit of creativity, you can transform it into a funky bracelet in no time? Will you be surprised? Probably yes, and curious too! So, here I bring to you the procedure of making a trendy bracelet using a toothbrush, in a series of simple steps. But wait, first let's have a look at what all things you need to get going.

Materials Required
A colorful toothbrush
Pliers
Cooking gloves
Saucepan
Food tongs
Big glass bowl
Now that you know what all things you need, let's begin with the steps.

Step 1: Removing the Bristles

The first step in making your toothbrush bracelet is removing the bristles. To do this, hold the toothbrush and using the pliers, pull out the bristles. Try to pull out as many bristles as possible. However, do it gently so that you don't end up with a broken toothbrush! If you find that some bristles just won't come off, relax! We can handle these during a later stage of the process.

Step 2: Softening the Toothbrush

Once you have removed the bristles from the toothbrush (again I say that it doesn't matter if a few remain!), the next step is to make it soft enough for you to bend it. How to go about it, you may ask. Well, it's simple. Take the saucepan and pour water in it. Now switch on the cooking stove in your kitchen and place the saucepan on the stove. Once the water starts to boil, place the toothbrush inside the boiling water in the pan and wait for at least 10-15 minutes for the brush to soften.

Step 3: Bending the Toothbrush

After a few minutes, remove the toothbrush using food tongs, but be careful not to touch the hot toothbrush with your hands. At this stage, you can pull out the remaining bristles, if any. Now, put on your pair of cooking gloves and try to bend the brush into a circular loop to give it the shape of a bracelet. If you find that the brush is still stiff, place it again in the pot of boiling water for a few more minutes, before you make a bracelet out of it.

Step 4: Cooling the Bracelet

Once you have bent your bracelet into shape, your next task is cooling it. For this, pour some ice-cold water into the glass bowl and throw in a few ice cubes as well. Place your bracelet in the bowl and allow it to cool till it hardens. Your toothbrush bracelet is ready!

The following tips will make your task of making a toothbrush bracelet easier.
Choose a toothbrush that when bent, can fit on your wrist. If you have a thin wrist, for example, go for a smaller toothbrush.
When heating to soften the toothbrush, make sure that the base of the pan is wide enough to accommodate the length of the toothbrush.
Remember NEVER to touch the toothbrush when it is in the pot of boiling water, because it would be extremely hot.
So, the next time you feel the urge to flaunt something unique on your wrists, grab a toothbrush or two in lovely colors and create a style statement of your own. You can even use your creativity to embellish your bracelet with ribbons, beads, etc. Have fun!

Instructions to Make a Bottle Cap Necklace

Never found that perfect pendant? Do you want to sport a personalized pendant, which is also very eco-friendly? Are you creative and like trying new things? If you answered yes to all the above questions, then you have landed on the right page, cherie! Let's find out how to make bottle cap necklaces.

Everybody to your right and left is obsessed with going green and you wonder how you can do your bit? Well, how about starting small? Save the bottle caps, and use them to make and sport cool, pretty, beautiful and funky necklaces. We'll see how to make bottle cap necklaces in a detailed step by step process. Let's get right down to some fun work.

Things You Will Need
Bottle caps, as many as you think you will need, depending the type of necklace you are planning to make.
Jumpers
Acrylic paints
Glue/ Adhesive
Resin/ Diamond glaze
Pliers and a hole punch
Glitter/ Collage sheets for bottle caps/ Personal pictures to paste inside the cap/ Charms, etc.
Chain/ Thread for the necklace
Rubber sheet
Candle/ Heating gun
Gloves, Newspapers
Hammer (to flatten the teeth of the caps)
Instructions for Making the Necklace

Removing the Glue Seal
There is a chance that the caps you buy have glue seal on them, so before you attempt to start decorating these caps, make sure to remove this glue seal. This can be done by using the candle or the heating gun. With the help of pliers, hold the cap on the candle flame for a few seconds till the glue seal comes loose, and then pull it off. Now the caps are ready to be used.

Decorating the Caps
This is the best part. You can just let your creativity flow and decorate the caps as you wish. I'll just give you a few ideas to get you started, and you can take it from there.
You can fill up the cap till the edge with clay, cover the surface with glitter, and press your charm into the clay before it hardens.
On a piece of paper cut into a circle to fit inside the cap, you can write your name, a quote, or whatever else you please, in your favorite font and stick the paper inside the cap with the glue or adhesive. You can either print out the stuff, or write it yourself if you enjoy calligraphy. Also, if you want to, you can add designs around the quote/ name, to make it look pretty.
If you want to personalize the necklace without words, pictures are the perfect way to do so. Take small printouts of your favorite photos - with your friends, family, alone, or your partner/spouse. Follow the same procedure as above and you have your own personalized necklace.
Use the acrylic paints, and make pretty designs on either side of the cap. Let the paint dry properly. You can paint whatever you wish - people, symbols, cartoons, flowers, animals, motifs...
Simply paint the caps in a bright color and leave them to dry. Stringing the caps of alternate colors together will give you a really simple and pretty necklace.
Punching Holes, Adding Jumpers, Flattening the Teeth of the Caps
This is the easy part. Just place a rubber sheet over the teeth of the cap, and beat gently with the hammer till the teeth have flattened out. Don't put too much pressure or you'll end up flattening the entire cap. Once you have put in your picture, quote, design, etc., hold it the right side up, and punch a hole at the top of the cap to put in the jumper. This is if you are planning to hang a single cap in your necklace. If you are planning to string the caps together, then punch a hole on either side for stringing them horizontally, and at the top and bottom for stringing them vertically - and then put in the jumpers. The jumpers should be carefully rounded and squeezed closed properly with the help of the pliers, so that the thread, or chain of the necklace doesn't slip out.

Applying the Resin/ Diamond Glaze
The resin/ glaze will be required for applying a coat over the paper, so that it stays and doesn't get ruined. Apply a light coat of the resin/ glaze, and make sure that the application doesn't look lumpy. You will have to read the instructions carefully for this step. If you mix the wrong quantities while preparing the resin/ glaze, the coating will not be clear, and it may block or ruin your picture/ words. After preparing the mixture, pour it into the cap till the cap is almost full. Since the thickness of the cap is not much, the layer won't be thick either. Make sure it doesn't overflow, else your cap will stick in that same place and will be difficult to get off. Use sticks to mix the resin/ glaze, and work on a spread out newspaper, in case of spills. Wear gloves to protect your hands.

Drying out the Resin/ Glaze
The resin/ glaze will take a good amount of time to dry out. This is the most frustrating part, but if you want to dry out the caps properly, best leave them in the sun for a day. Seems like a lot of time, I know, but try to muster all your patience. If you touch it to check if it has dried, then there is a good chance that you will get your fingerprints all over the resin/ glaze. Which in turn means you will have to start over, because the process of scraping off the resin is not going to be successful. You will end up ripping away the paper/ photo/ glitter and clay as well. So, let it dry out and harden for a day.

Stringing the Chain/ Thread
This is where you can be really innovative and depending on the look you want, you can string the chain(s)/ thread(s) accordingly. Here are a few things you can try:
Fold the caps in half to make semicircles, make sure the open ends are closed properly, and string the chain/ thread through them. Make a few strings in the same way, and then tie up the ends of the strings together so that you have a many layered necklace, like a halter necklace!
Arrange three caps in a triangle, and weave the chains through them in such a way that the triangle stays in place. Weave two or more chains between each of the caps loosely so that the perfect curve of the chain is seen.
String a couple of caps vertically, and then split up the thread, stringing the individual strands as well, so that you have a 'Y' shaped necklace.
Similarly, you can also make two simple 'U' shapes and tie the ends together so that you have a two string cap necklace.
Try macrame knots for single layered thread necklaces, as they look really pretty!
Try out various arrangements and experiment with the caps to get unique and funky necklaces. You can even make bottle cap necklaces with magnets. The whole process remains the same, the only difference being that once you string the thread/ chain through the magnet, you just have to fix the bottle cap over it and it'll stay. No need to punch holes in the cap. And if you are stumped wondering how to make these necklaces for kids, worry not. Pretty flowers, their names, their favorite cartoon characters, etc., will surely make them a hit with kids. Ask them what kind of design they want and involve them too, so that all of you can have fun and pool in your creative ideas.

Next time you get bored, just give this a try, and you will end up utilizing your time efficiently and adding to your jewelry collection. Now that you know how to make bottle cap necklaces, have fun, and be as creative as you can! You'll love the looks you get when you sport it!

Choosing the Right Software for Your Business

Business management software is a must, but just how much do you really need?

Whether you’re starting a new business or expanding an existing one, the software you use can make things much easier - or much more complicated. There are about a zillion different programs of varying function and capability, ranging in price from a few hundred dollars to a few hundred thousand dollars - but that doesn’t mean you should necessarily go for the most expensive one you can afford.

Cost is always a factor in business management (though it may not be the leading factor), so the goal is to find software that does everything you need it to do without paying for bells and whistles or functions that don’t apply to your business.

Before you even start looking at individual programs, carefully evaluate your needs - then simply find the program that fits them (don’t ever alter your needs to suit the software).

Business Type

If all you need is general accounting, your business type doesn’t matter much when it comes to software. Heck, you could take care of that yourself with a well-designed spreadsheet on your existing software. More specialized programs, however, are designed with certain businesses in mind.

Restaurants may want a program that also handles recipe cost and allows front-of-house to back-of-house communication. Medical offices may need something that integrates insurance coding. Manufacturers could use materials tracking and supply chain info, while service-based businesses may prefer a task-timing option.

Business Size

There is software out there that will all but run your business for you - but they may cost several times the total value of your business itself. You don’t need an M.B.A. to recognize that as a bad investment. Chances are, that mega-software has entire areas of function that you just wouldn’t use.

The right software investment is one that doesn’t require a tremendous loan, and provides perfect functionality for your individual business. That means that there should ideally be no software feature that you’re not using, but it shouldn’t lack anything you need. Many smaller or mid-range programs offer add-ons at additional cost, which allows the software to grow with your business. This is the perfect scenario, as you can use the basic version for as long as it serves you, then pay for individual upgrades as they become necessary.

Features

Like any software developer, the companies that make business management software often load the thing with a bundle of tiny little features that inflate the price without adding any real value. If these are optional add-ons, avoid them. If they are bundled into the package and you cannot opt out, look for a more basic program.

Some of these features may seem like a cool idea, but they’re only worth paying for if you’ll actually use them. For example - smartphone synching - sure, it’s a neat idea and very technologically sleek. But do you really see yourself doing payroll from your phone? Mobile alerts and reminders are another - if you open the program everyday anyway (this is your business, after all), those very same alerts will pop up on your home screen. Do you really need them sent to your iPad?

Support

No matter how good software is, it’s always made better with good customer support. Your fancy new software is useless if you can’t figure out how to set it up in the first place. If you do try to set things up yourself on a wing and a prayer, pray that you don’t type anything in the tax info section - or the IRS may come calling. Mistakes have a way of screwing you down the road.

A company should stand firmly behind its product, and that means providing you with a rep who will train you and your staff to use the software to your utmost advantage, and set up any necessary networks, new terminals, etc. Larger software companies should have local reps that will actually come to you when there’s a problem, instead of forcing you to spend hours on the phone with tech support. This is part of what you’re paying for. Of course, these kinds of features don’t come with the cheaper programs - then again, the simpler programs usually don’t warrant that kind of hand-holding.

Now that you have an idea of what you need, start looking around. Do your own research before you even speak to the first sales rep, because the pitch is hard and will throw you off track. Take advantage of trial periods before you buy, and get feedback from applicable staff before taking the final plunge.

Types of Auctions

Selling of goods and services through auctioning can be dated back to 500 BC. Though initially uncommon, this practice has gained significant popularity, resulting in the development of various kinds of auctions...

When a certain item is sold in public through competitive bidding by the buyers, it is known as an auction. This term was derived out of the word augeo, which is Latin for 'to increase'. An auctioneer is a person who conducts the entire process on behalf of the seller. Auction professionals suggest the kind of auction suitable for a particular item so that maximum profit can be derived out of it. There are different types of auctions, each having their own unique format. Discussed below are the various kinds of auction a seller can choose from.

Depending on the Method of Conduction

» English Auction
Also known as an open ascending price auction, this method is highly used for selling real estate, antique items, paintings, and secondhand goods. At least two participants are required to carry out this auction. Before beginning the process, the auctioneer may or may not announce a minimum exceeding value for every higher bid. The seller may set a minimum price for the item to be sold, which if not reached, will render the item unsold. Participants openly call out their bids, and the one who bids the highest, pays that amount and takes the item home. Another variant of this method is the silent auction in which an auctioneer is not involved, participants write their bids on a sheet of paper placed beside the item to be sold. The person writing the highest bid takes the item along.

» Multi-par Auction
Land, farms, timberland, etc., are generally sold through this method. The seller may either sell the entire land to one person or sell portions of it to different buyers. The portions are decided beforehand so that the offer package is ready before the auction. On the day of the sale, the land is offered as a whole as well as in small portions. After the bids are submitted, the seller goes through each of them and decides how he wants to sell his property. If selling the land to a single buyer is more profitable, he may sell his property to him, or else he may choose to derive profit by selling portions of land to multiple buyers.

» Sealed First-price Auction
Also called first-price sealed-bid auction, it is a type in which the participants do not bid openly, but rather submit their bids in a sealed format to the auctioneer. This way no participant is aware of what others have bid. When the time frame for submitting bids is over, the sealed envelopes are opened, and the participant with the highest bid pays the price to enjoy ownership. This method gives the seller an option to secretly study the bids and decide along with the auctioneer the best deal for the item. Government contracts, tenders, etc., are usually issued using this method.

» Vickrey Auction
An auctioneer conducting this kind of session uses the same format as mentioned in the sealed first-price auction, with a slight difference in that the winning participant does not need to pay the amount he is willing to pay. Rather, the amount mentioned in the second highest bid must be paid. This is the reason why this method is also referred to as sealed-bid second-price auction.

» Dutch Auction
Items which can easily perish, like fish and other eatables, are sometimes sold by this method. Here, the auctioneer announces an extremely high bid which is subsequently lowered till a participant agrees to pay a particular bid. This is why it is also known as open descending price auction. It is not widely used for the purpose of auctioning.

» Commodity Auction
This multi-unit auction is used when similar items need to sold to consumers. It does not follow an open bid system, and the participants are required to follow the sealed envelope method. Auctioning is carried out either with a uniform and single transaction price, or varied transaction prices. Commodities like wool, fish, or livestock which can be sold in bulk at wholesale prices are usually auctioned by this method.

» No-reserve Auction
This type is also known as an absolute auction. A minimum price for the item is not decided by the seller, due to which more participants are attracted towards the bidding. The highest bidder wins, even if the actual worth of the item is not met. This may not be in the favor of the seller, therefore, not many auctioneers suggest this method.

» Reserve Auction
In this method, the seller has the right to decide a minimum price for the item, with or without disclosing it to the participants . If the final bid is lower than the reserved price, the item remains unsold. The reserved price is either discretionary or fixed beforehand. This form is suitable for sellers who do not want to take any risk of underselling. They can set their bottom line and exercise power on every aspect of the sales process.

» Multi-seller Auction
Here, items belonging to different sellers are auctioned in a single event. This kind of auction is beneficial for buyers as well as sellers. Buyers get the opportunity to bid for several items under one roof, and sellers get to share the cost of promotion amongst each other. This sort of event draws several participants simply because there is a wide range of choice.

» Minimum Bid Auction
This format presents a minimum bid value to the bidders before they actually come up and bid for the item. This way they are aware that if they bid below the set price, they will not qualify for the sale. The minimum value is fixed beforehand, and the seller cannot modify it on any occasion.

Depending on the Venue

» Ballroom Auction
Bidders are expected to check out the original property on their own, and come to a predetermined convention center or an indoor meeting place for the bidding. Highlights of each property and its pictures are only displayed during the bidding process.

» Online Auction
The Internet is now used for auctioning several products and services. Details of products and their images are available on the auction website. People can browse through them and bid on a desired product. Bidding continues till the deadline is met, after which the product goes in favor of the person who has bid the highest value for the product.

» Webcast Auction
Also known as live online auction, it is conducted via the Internet with the auctioneer at a remote setting and bidders scattered worldwide. Participants can place their bid through a bidding interface after going through live videos of the product and other audio clips on the Internet.

» Catalog Auction
When it is not feasible to gather the items for sale at a single place, simply because all are scattered in different locations, this method is used. Participants can inspect the goods by visiting respected locations before the event takes place at a hotel or convention center. A catalog containing list of goods to be auctioned is available there for the bidders.

» Caravan Auction
It is called so because the auction professional and bidders actually move from one property to the other located close by, so as to carry out auctioning on the site.

» On-site Auction
When sale of a real estate property is conducted in the actual premises of the property, it is known as an on-site auction.

Auctioning is frequently done for real estate, antique items, livestock, businesses, cars, holiday packages, etc. Each method mentioned above is different in terms of time required for conduction and pricing. When conducted properly, starting right from the first bid to the preparation of the binding agreement after the winning bid is announced, an auction can get the best deal for the seller and the buyer.