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Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:41:51 GMT

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault’s personal life

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:34:32 GMT

Michel Foucault was born in Poitiers, France, in 1926. His father was a doctor, and the Foucault family were, in material terms, secure and had a fairly comfortable middle class existence. During World War II, Foucault was a teenager in Poitiers, and this must have been a time of uncertainty and some anxiety for him. His parents expected Michel to follow in his father’s footsteps and to become a surgeon. However, he wanted to pursue an academic career, and expressed a wish to attend the Ecole normale supérieure in Paris. Foucault was eventually successful in obtaining a place at the Ecole normale and studied philosophy. During his undergraduate period, his developing homosexuality became evident. It was also during this time that he was under psychiatric treatment for a period. He was known as a brilliant student and after graduation obtained a number of academic and cultural posts both in France and overseas. His books gained him a growing reputation. He became known in particular for his studies of the way in which knowledge in various fields changed throughout history. He eventually became a professor at the prestigious Collège de France. In later life, he was a visiting professor at the University of California, and participated in the gay scene in the United States. He died of a complex of illnesses related to AIDS in Paris in 1984.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and knowledge

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:27:59 GMT

Foucault was not simply interested in the way knowledge in different subject areas accumulated throughout history, and changed during different historical periods, but in the mechanisms by which this happened. In particular, he was interested in the way in which one way of looking at the world changed into another. He considered that history was very much connected with the nature of human thought at a specific period. According to Foucault, each historical period was characterized by a set of intellectual rules that helped to decide what would be regarded as valid knowledge at that time. He called these sets of intellectual rules ‘epistemes’. Foucault thought that the ideology that was prevalent during a period in history greatly affected the lives of people and determined the way in which they thought about the world. Foucault tended to suggest that he did not want to change the way in which people thought about their surroundings, but to encourage them to think about the processes in society that affected them. He was sometimes described as a structuralist, but he preferred to avoid being associated with a particular school of thought.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and power

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:29:55 GMT

Foucault was very interested in the way in which power and authority was exercised in the world. He investigated the power exercised by institutions, organizations and the state, and in particular the way in which this affected the lives of ordinary people. Although large organizations were capable of exerting power, Foucault also argued that power could be demonstrated on the micro level. He argued that groups of ordinary citizens could be powerful entities in society if they used their influence to the best advantage. In fact, he argued that power as a phenomenon in society was often localized rather than centralized. He noted, for example, the capacity of students and workers in 1968 to influence the French government, through a range of strikes and street protests. He took part of some of these demonstrations and was a leading figure in some of the educational reforms that resulted from the 1968 student action. Foucault argued that power in society was related to the type of dominant knowledge at the time, and also to the types of discourse used. For example, the types of discourse used in professions such as medicine helped to sustain the power of doctors, and in particular the power that their specialized knowledge gave them.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and politics

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:29:05 GMT

In general terms, Foucault appeared to have some reluctance to be a member of an organization such as a political party, which implicitly required him to have a specific ideological view about certain subjects. However, in the early 1950s he was for a short time, a member of the French Communist Party, perhaps influenced by one of his philosophy lecturers, Louis Althusser. Foucault appears to have become engaged politically, particularly after the 1968 student protests. As a professor at the University of Vincennes, he became immersed in the student protest movement. Subsequently, he was involved in a number of movements designed to draw attention to social issues. He established, for example, the Information Group on Prisons to publicize the conditions under which prisoners were kept in French prisons. Also, in the 1970s he helped to draw attention to the proposed execution in Spain of opponents of the Franco regime. He also publicized the conditions of the so-called ‘boat people’ who were trying to leave Vietnam. In 1978 he was employed for a short time as a journalist to report on the Islamic revolution in Iran. He generally expressed himself in favour of the revolution, but some people claimed he had not given sufficient attention to the human rights situation in the country.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and punishment

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:30:34 GMT

Foucault was very interested in the way in which punishment had changed in different historical periods. He particularly compared and contrasted the type of institutionalized punishment that had existed in the early eighteenth century with that which developed in the modern era. He pointed out that, in the pre-modern era, punishment was designed to demonstrate the power of the sovereign and often involved severe physical punishment. However, in the modern era, punishment involved much less physical cruelty, but was more psychological in nature. It was generally designed to observe and control the individual, to limit their movements, and in effect to take over all aspects of their lives. The modern era was characterized, according to Foucault, by detailed record-keeping, so that the state was informed of all aspects of the individual’s life including those occasions when they had behaved contrary to the law. In the modern era, people were often disciplined, according to Foucault, by making them adhere to a series of detailed rules. The prison system now concentrated on the rehabilitation of prisoners, so that they could make a useful contribution to the economy. The emphasis in the modern era was upon ensuring that, as far as possible, people adjusted their lives so that they complied with the accepted norms of society.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and the Panopticon

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:33:19 GMT

The Panopticon was an architectural design for a prison. It was developed initially by the philosopher Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832) in the late eighteenth century. The principle of the Panopticon was that prisoners could be observed night and day, without realizing that they were being observed. The structure consisted of tiers of prison cells, arranged in a circular design. In the very centre of the circular structure was an observation tower, tall enough for the observer to be able to see the interior of each cell. The windows of the observation tower were masked so that it was not possible for prisoners to know if anyone was in the tower. An arrangement of blinds was suggested to hide the presence of any lights inside, so that prisoners could not guess whether the observation tower was staffed. The psychology of the Panopticon was thus that prisoners would never be certain whether or not they were being observed. The Panopticon later became the inspiration for a number of different prison designs. Its significance for Foucault was that it reflected much of the philosophy of observation that has become a guiding principle of policing in the modern state. The use of video cameras both in cities and on roads employs the same principle of observation, so that the citizen is never entirely sure whether or not they are being watched.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Madness and civilization (Foucault)

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:44:59 GMT

Foucault noted that the contemporary use of the term ‘insane’ describes people in a number of different categories, ranging from those who have committed extremely violent acts to those whose behaviour might simply be described as eccentric. Foucault thought of the term ‘insanity’ not as reflecting a single characteristic, but rather a complex variety of psychological responses and reactions. He did not think that insanity could be defined in absolute terms, but rather that it was defined in relativistic terms, depending upon the perceptions of society at a particular time. The term was thus a social construction, defined by society according to a flexible series of criteria. Foucault did not necessarily regard insanity as a negative characteristic because he felt that those defined as mad often possessed insights into the human condition that could be useful and productive. He studied the way in which insanity was viewed at different periods in history and noted the expansion of the incarceration of the insane at the beginning of the nineteenth century. He was also interested in the modern study of insanity, but felt that the science of psychiatry was not necessarily as supportive of the insane as was often claimed.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and institutions

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:22:54 GMT

Foucault devoted considerable time to researching the impact of institutions on society and the lives of individuals. He was interested in the power and influence that they exerted, and also in the fact that some people simply could not avail themselves of the services provided by institutions because they could not understand the systems within which they operated. In such cases institutions can deprive people of their personal freedom and autonomy. In circumstances where individual citizens cannot successfully interact with institutions, then they can easily become alienated from them, and moreover alienated from society in general. Institutions are often set up ostensibly to provide services to individual members of society, but there can often be a mismatch between the needs of individuals and the services provided by the state. Foucault felt that there was an implicit contract between the individual and the state, such that the individual would be loyal to the state, while the latter, via its institutions, would protect and provide for its citizens. He noted in particular the conflicts in the provision of health care, where the aspirations of patients could not always be met by the state. This was particularly so where the knowledge and technology existed to help patients, yet the finite resources of the state meant that choices had to be made in terms of making different sorts of treatment available.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault and sexuality

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:32:32 GMT

Foucault’s work on sexuality parallels, in a sense, his research on knowledge. He was rather less interested in themes such as the simple history of sexuality, and more in the process by which human beings think of themselves in sexual terms. Foucault specifically considered that there were a range of different ways in which human beings discussed sexuality, in other words, a variety of discourses concerning sex. He noted that, during Victorian times, there had been a sense in which sexuality was repressed, and that people were encouraged to only think about sexual activity within the confines of marriage. He was however, less interested in Victorian attitudes to sex per se, and more in the reasons for this particular viewpoint becoming the predominant perspective for the interpretation of Victorian sexuality. He also noted that throughout the Victorian period there existed a range of other different approaches and discourses concerning sexuality. However, far from being a subject that was not discussed, Foucault notes that sex was a topic of discussion in different areas of society. There was a gradual realization in the modern period that sex was linked to demographic trends, and as such needed to be considered within government planning. The economic productivity of society was linked to population growth, which in turn was closely connected with society’s approaches to sexuality.

Foucault - The Key Ideas: Foucault’s legacy

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:33:54 GMT

It is worthwhile considering the reasons for Foucault remaining one of the most cited academics within the social sciences. First of all, his writing and scholarship was so diverse that it is very difficult to place him within a particular school of thought. His work thus has very wide application in many different fields. He tended to oppose the idea of large-scale theories or ideologies, and looked for more specific explanations of phenomena. He was therefore interested in the mechanisms by which social processes occurred. Foucault was also, particularly in later life, involved in a wide range of social issues. These social questions largely concerned people who suffered some form of disadvantage in society. For example, he campaigned for the rights of prisoners, for the Vietnamese boat people, and for the right of homosexuals to be treated equally in society. In general, he emphasized the importance for people to retain their own autonomy and freedom, and argued against the expansion of the powers of the state, and of large organizations, because he felt that they sometimes tended to threaten personal autonomy. He encouraged ordinary people to make their voices heard because he believed that it was possible for ordinary citizens to exert power and influence within society.

Be Your Own Life Coach: Life Coaching - Success

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:24:53 GMT

Success is always within your grasp and is attainable with just a little effort applied in the right direction. Everyone aspires to be successful but only a few people spend time considering what success means to them. Is it success with money, successful relationships, a big house, a great job? To achieve true success you need to be clear on what success is. And it is different for everyone. To analyse what success means for you is to isolate what really matters in life and focus your efforts here instead of spending a lot of time on activities that don’t actually lead you to where you want to go. Achieving success means planning your desired results for every key area of your life and plotting out how to achieve these results quickly and without fuss. If you have a clear plan for success you simply need to follow it day by day and you will reach your chosen destination. Knowing what you want to achieve and then regularly visualizing success and acting in a way that consistently drives you forwards towards success will fast-track your results with everything you do. Success is a triumphant feeling and one that we all deserve to experience. Teach Yourself Life Coach contains everything you need to ensure you achieve the success you deserve.

Complete French: Biography - Gaëlle Graham

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:03:52 GMT

Gaëlle Graham was born in Brittany, France, and attended the Paris-Sorbonne University where she studied English. On completing her studies, Gaëlle moved to London where she spent 25 years teaching French at various comprehensive schools and now works for the National Union of Teachers. Gaëlle has also obtained a Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics from the University of Kent and is a regular contributor to France Inter, a French national radio station, on the subject of English educational news.
Gaëlle enjoys travelling back and forth from London to Paris and to her beloved Brittany. She never travels without her camera and tries to capture the changes she observes during the course of her frequent visits to France. She believes the Vélib, a system of bike rental using a swipe card at bike stations dotted all over Paris, is the best way to appreciate the capital. Gaëlle’s other great loves are cinema and reading. She sticks to a very strict self-imposed reading pattern, alternating between French and English books.
Gaëlle has been contributing to the Teach Yourself French course since 1984 and is always searching for new ways of making the course more accessible and informative for learners. She endeavours to share with the readers the latest cultural, political and social developments of her country and hopes, therefore, that you will enjoy having her as your guide as you embark on your study of French.

Complete French: French American

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:53:20 GMT

Francophonie
A Francophone is a speaker of French and Francophonie is the term used to describe the community of French-speaking people all over the world. French is spoken as a first or second language on all five continents and North America is no exception. Thirteen regions of America have joined the Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF), which was created in 1961. These are Alberta, Canada, British Columbia, Haïti, Louisiana, Maine, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchevan, who share a common desire to affirm a certain French cultural identity. Throughout North America at present there are 8.6 million French speakers and 3.3 million people for whom French is a second language.
History
France began the colonization of America in the seventeenth century with the establishment of three colonies: Acadia in 1604, Canada with the foundation of Quebec in 1608 and Louisiana in 1699. The French immigration to ‘New France’ continued throughout the eighteenth century and extended from the Gulf of St Lawrence to New Mexico, including the Great Lakes and the Mississippi Valley. In 1763 at the end of the Seven Year War, France surrendered most of its colonies to Britain, including Canada and eastern Louisiana. In 1803 Napoleon sold the whole of Louisiana the United States for 15 million dollars to.
Strong links remain between France and its former colonies, and in particular with Quebec.
Famous American people of French descent
The following are just a few:
Actors: Patricia Arquette, Lucille Ball, Charles Boyer, Leslie Caron, Claudette Colbert, Joan Crawford (father’s side), Robert Duvall (father’s side), Mickey Rourke, Frank Sinatra (French and Italian).
Authors: Jack Kerouac, Marguerite Yourcenar.
Sports: (Basketball): Joakim Noah.
Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (father’s side).

Complete French: French dialects

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:50:12 GMT

When referring to French dialects it is important to distinguish between variations of ‘standard French’, which are spoken in various parts of France as well as other parts of the world, and the regional or minority languages, which are spoken in other parts of France and are linguistically separate from the French language.
The historical linguistic background of the French language is based on the languages referred to as the Langues d’Oïl, which were the Gallo-Romance languages and the languages of the Gauls of northern France, as opposed to the Langues d’Oc – the Romance and Occitan languages of southern France, Spain and parts of Italy.
Modern standard French is mainly based on the Langues d’Oïl, as are the French variations, which are spoken in French overseas territories such as the French Caribbean and French overseas départements, such as Réunion, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyane and also in the former French colonies of Africa.
The Langues d’Oïl are also the basis for the French languages and dialects spoken in North America, for example in Canada (Québec, Montréal) and in the former French territories of the southern US states, especially in Louisiana.
French minority languages are regional languages in their own right. Most can be linked to other European languages or minority languages except for le basque, which is spoken on both sides of the French–Spanish border but whose roots are unknown. Other minority languages are le breton, le catalan, l’occitan, le corse, l’alsatien, le flamand and various créoles.
In addition, elements of old languages have survived in most French regions in the form of dialects or patois.
For a map of the French linguistic divisions visit the Lexilogos website:
http://lexilogos.com//france_carte_dialectes.htm

Complete French: French hobbies and recreation

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:46:49 GMT

On 1 January 2000, the French government introduced new employment legislation to fix the working week of French people at 35 hours (La loi des trente-cinq heures). This was to enable work to be spread out more evenly across the potential workforce and reduce unemployment. More incidentally than by design it has improved the work–life balance of French people. People like to ‘take the time to live’ (prendre le temps de vivre). A recent study showed that manger et dormir, les passe-temps favoris des Français (sleeping and eating are the favorite activities of the French).
Key words for leisure activities are: passe-temps, loisirs, hobby, récréation, temps libre, divertissement.
At the top of the list of hobbies in France comes DIY (le bricolage), gardening (le jardinage), cooking and eating, fishing (la pêche), shooting (la chasse), watching TV, camping, beach and sea activities in the summer (jeux de plage), surfing, windsurfing, kite surfing and canoeing.
There is a fierce love of sports – cycling, football, basketball, rugby, and tennis – but for the majority this enthusiasm takes the form of armchair support and lively discussions in cafés. For many, however, it means joining a club to practise a favourite sporting activity: le cyclisme, for example, has an active participation of mainly men, who belong to a local club and can be seen cycling along small country roads in colourful packs on Sunday mornings. Le Tour de France has an enormous following, with entire families lining the roads of ‘La Grande Boucle’ (the big loop) in July each year.
In recent years, Paris has become known for its cyclists and blade runners.
To find out more about leisure time in France, visit the following websites: http://www.hku.hk/french/dcmScreen/lang2043/tempslibre.htm
http://www.20minutes.fr/article/324145/France-Manger-et-dormir-les-passe-temps-favoris-des-Francais.php

Complete French: French journals, magazines and reviews

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:44:06 GMT

A wide selection of major French publications are available to you at: www.press-annuaire.com.
Under Toute la presse en ligne you will find newspapers and magazines grouped according to areas of interest listed below – almost as satisfying as browsing in a newspaper shop! (Maison de la Presse)
Quotidiens (daily papers). The three main daily national papers are: Le Monde, Libération and Le Figaro. Some local papers also have a wide distribution: Ouest-France, La Voix du Nord, Le Midi Libre, Le Républicain Lorrain.
Hebdomadaires (weekly magazines or papers) include categories such as people, economy, sports, TV magazines, news magazines. A vast spectrum of such publications spans from the serious Le Nouvel Observateur and Le Point to the satirical Canard Enchaîné.
Féminins include many magazines familiar to the British reader, such as Vogue, Marie-Claire, Glamour and Cosmopolitan.
Famille magazines cover family issues, but also health and consumer interest. 60 Millions de Consommateurs, for example, advises readers on best buys.
Jeunesse magazines serve a broad range of young people. All those listed in Toute la Presse en Ligne, including L’Etudiant and Phosphore, focus on education and information about education.
Maison includes cookery or wine magazines such as Cuisine Actuelle and Cuisine et Vins de France, DIY and gardening magazines such as Maison et Travaux and L’Ami des Jardins and also a property magazine: De particulier à Particulier.
Sports/loisirs includes magazines ranging from walking in Balades en France to motorcycling in Moto Revue, and even includes the specialist car magazine, 2CV Revue.
Nature/voyages includes magazines and reviews on nature and travel, such as Terre Sauvage and Geo, but also magazines specialising in dogs, such as Le Chien Magazine
Culture /Arts covers history, art, cinema and music.
Sciences/ informatique about science and information technology, such as Science et Avenir and the oldest French science magazine, Science et Vie.

Complete French: French language learning - online learning

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:42:00 GMT

TV5MONDE will enable you to keep in touch with world news as well as access language learning exercises: www.tv5.org
Under Accueil (homepage) go to Langue Française and you can listen to the teacher, play games or practise tongue twisters.
France Gazette is a daily online magazine with a wide range of topics: www.francegazette.com
You can access other websites with related interests directly and also read the online Metro, a free daily newspaper.
French newspapers can be found online at: www.corumcle.edres74.ac-grenoble.fr/presse/pressefr.htm
The main daily papers are les quotidiens nationaux.
Other sources of online learning
To supplement your Teach Yourself French course and find interesting facts about the language you can get free access to material simply by using a search engine or following the recommended links below:
For vocabulary: www.french.about.com/od/vocabulary/ss/mostcommonwords.htm
For verbs: www.dudziak.com/verbs.php
Idiomatic expressions and proverbs are a good way to acquire a general feel for the language, as long as you remember that they will rarely provide you with a word-for-word translation:
For idiomatic expressions: www.french.about.com/library/express/blexdico-a.htm
For proverbs: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/French_proverbs
Online games are a fun way of learning and are ideally suited to beginners. Some have the added bonus of an audio option: www.digitaldialects.com
L’Institut Français de Londres
This is the official centre of language and culture of the French government. Here you will find language teaching courses and support and an extensive cultural programme, including a cinema. It is an ideal place to go if you want to immerse yourself in French culture.
L’Académie Française
Over the centuries this old institution (established nearly 400 hundred years ago) has seen its role as the keeper of French language. For linguists, the ultimate accolade is to be elected by its members to the rank of Academician: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Académie_française

Complete French: French literature: La littérature français

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:35:12 GMT

There are three ways of finding information about French literature with the help of the web:
A chronological approach across the genres, starting with medieval literature and ending with contemporary authors and their works.
An approach by genre, for example plays, essays, fiction, poetry, etc.
A personal approach – looking up authors you know or that you would like to discover.
There are two essential websites to aid you in your search – both are accessible in English as well as in French.
1 Histoire de la Littérature française des origines à nos jours:
http://www.la-litterature.com/dsp/dsp_display.asp
This site gives a historical background and a résumé of the main literary trends for a given period of history, leading on to specific texts. For example, if you have chosen Le Moyen Âge (the Middle Ages) go to La chanson de Geste and to La Chanson de Roland. At the bottom of the page you can continue on to extracts of the text.
2 The second page of interest is the Wikipédia entry which offers a range of approaches.
As with the previous site you can choose a historical approach, century by century, and then select a school of thought. For instance, for twentieth-century examples choose Existentialisme and select Albert Camus to read about his life, his philosophy, and his work.
3 The eclectic approach
From the twelfth century bard and poet, Chrétien de Troyes, to twenty-first-century controversial novelist Michel Houellebecq, French literature offers a wealth of experience which will guide you through centuries of history and contemporary literary trends.
4 Prix Goncourt
From 1903 to the present day, the winners of this prestigious literary prize represent some of the most revered authors of the last century.
5 Nobel prize of literature
Many French authors have won world recognition. Jean-Paul Sartre notably declined the prize in 1964.

Complete German: German people

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:57:58 GMT

Unlike Britain and many other European states, Germany for centuries had no centralized power holder. It was not until 1871 that the first unified German state was established. Up until then Germany had consisted of a large number of territories under the overall authority of the Holy Roman Empire. The larger territories such as Bavaria and Prussia were ruled by kings. There were also principalities, ecclesiastical states and free cities.
Germans were also divided by religion. Not only were Catholics set against Protestants, but the two varieties of Protestantism – Lutheranism and Calvinism – were set against each other.
For these reasons, people historically felt very attached to the region in which they were born and bred. This is still fairly widely the case today. Regional differences and loyalties can still be quite marked, especially in the South. For instance, the signs as one enters the Land of Bavaria say Freistaat Bayern (Free State of Bavaria) first and foremost and only in second place Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Federal Republic of Germany).
The regional differences show themselves in various ways, including language, cuisine and clothing. Of course, in everyday life, people tend to wear the kind of clothes worn all over the western world. But for special occasions they will take out their Trachten (traditional costumes), just as a Scotsman might wear a kilt at a wedding. In the South, part of these Trachten will often consist of some kind of Lederhosen (leather trousers) for men and a Dirndl (traditional dress) for women.
Germans from different regions are said to have different characteristics. For instance, people from the Münster area are said to be stur (stolid, obstinate) and people from Swabia are supposedly sparsam (thrifty). Whilst stereotypes can be dangerous, there is often a grain of truth in them.
Since the Second World War the Federal Republic has experienced large-scale population movements, including the arrival of economic migrants from Italy, the former Yugoslavia and Turkey and asylum seekers from various parts of the globe. These factors, together with a higher mobility of German people, especially from the former East Germany, have to some extent broken down regional ties and loyalties. But for many Germans they continue to be important.

Complete German: Recent developments in German vocabulary

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:56:24 GMT

Despite resistance from more conservative German speakers, the influence of English on the German language has continued apace in the twenty-first century. This phenomenon is particularly evident with people who regard themselves as members of the so-called Szene (lit. scene, in-crowd).
Many of the new words and expressions are not yet firmly established in the German language, but are nevertheless widely used. For instance, verbs connected with using the internet include chatten, copypasten, downloaden, googlen, skippen and tracken.
Some such verbs add a German prefix and behave like a normal separable verb, e.g. einloggen (to log in/on) – ich habe eingeloggt (I have logged in/on), runtervoten (to vote down – the process of rating performances, on YouTube etc., as poor, irrespective of their quality, in order to boost one’s own position in the ratings).
Examples from beyond the internet of verbs borrowed into German include: chillen, clubben, coachen, joinen, sharen, shoppen.
Sometimes German verbs are created from English nouns. Their meanings might not be immediately obvious to an English speaker, e.g. beachen (to relax on a beach), couchen (to laze around on a sofa), soapsen (to watch soaps).
Occasionally verbs are created from English acronyms, e.g. simsen (to text, to send and SMS) and – less frequently – mimsen (to send an MMS).
German can be very imaginative in coining new verbs, for instance chillaxen (to chill and relax) or flaterate-saufen (to drink large quantities of alcohol at a flat rate price).
For many more examples of recent developments in the German language see:
http://szenesprachenwiki.de/words/neuste?page=30

Complete German: Undergraduate and postgraduate study in Germany (Com.Ger)

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:49:28 GMT

Germany is an excellent country in which to study. There are at present over 500 institutions of higher education offering a very wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, a number of them of world-class ranking. Some universities, such as Heidelberg, Cologne and Erfurt were established as long ago as the fourteenth century. So far nine universities have been designated as having ‘elite’ status: the TH Aachen, the Free University of Berlin, the Universities of Freiburg, Göttingen, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Konstanz, Munich and the TU Munich.
Each of the 16 Federal German States has a considerable degree of autonomy in the provision of education. Following a decision by the Federal Constitutional Court which allows the levying of fees for HE study, some – though not all – Federal States have introduced tuition fees. The overall costs of study are, however, still lower than at most UK and US institutions. There are also a few private universities at which the fees are much higher.
To study at a German university you will generally need to have fulfilled a university entrance requirement and to have a good command of academic German. There are many intensive German language courses that will help you reach the required standard. Several universities also teach certain undergraduate and postgraduate courses in English.
For those who prefer a combination of degree study and gaining a professional qualification with on-the-job experience, there are over 40 HE institutions that offer Duales Studium (dual study): http://www.duales-studium.de/
Though not traditionally part of the German system, BA and MA courses are now widely available with the aim of creating interchangeability of qualifications across the EU.
For those considering studying in Germany the German Academic Exchange Service (Deutscher Academischer Austausch Dienst) has a very helpful website: http://www.daad.de
Other useful links:
http://studieren.de/study-in-germany.0.html
http://www.studentenpilot.de/studium/
http://www.academics.de

Biographies: Paul Coggle and Heiner Schenke (com.ger)

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 09:06:48 GMT

Paul Coggle graduated from Queen Mary, University of London in German and French and completed his teaching qualification at King’s College, London. After a year teaching German at Cornell University, New York, he returned to the UK to teach at one of the first comprehensive schools to be established in London.
He was later appointed as Lecturer in German at the newly founded University of Kent, where he continued to develop his interest in technology-assisted language learning. He taught German at all levels and postgraduate courses in Translation Studies and Applied Linguistics.
In the early 1980s he established guidelines and selected authors for the Teach Yourself language courses in French, German, Italian and Spanish. He also assisted in the production of audio and video-based courses, such as the BBC’s Deutsch Plus.
In the 1990s Paul attracted media interest by drawing to the attention of the general public the phenomenon of Estuary English.
In more recent years Paul has been assisting with the development of online German materials as Senior Language Advisor at the University of Cambridge Language Centre.
His interests include reading, film and the applied arts. He lives in the South Bank area of London.
Heiner Schenke studied German literature, German language and philosophy at the University of Hanover. After his graduation with a First class degree he worked as a free-lance author in Hamburg and taught German as a foreign language to immigrants.
In the early 1990s Heiner went to London to attend an English course. He fell in love with London and started teaching German language, literature and business at various institutions to students at all levels.
Heiner was offered a lectureship at the University of Westminster where he coordinated the German language section and was instrumental in setting up an online learning programme for students. Currently, he is the Director of the university’s open language provision.
Heiner has always been interested in writing. Since the late 1990s he has co-authored around half a dozen language and grammar books, some of which have been translated into French, Romanian, Polish and Spanish.
Apart from teaching and writing, Heiner enjoys music and sports. On a Saturday afternoon you will probably find him playing football with friends and his two sons in a park near Greenwich, where he now lives.

Get Started in Franchising: What is a franchise?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:12:26 GMT

A business format franchise is a blueprint to business success with permanent back-up thrown in for good measure. Initially, the franchisor – the grantor of the franchise – offers individuals a ‘business in a box’. This ‘box’ contains a tried and tested blueprint for the establishment and ongoing operation of the business that enables the franchisee – the person who makes the investment – to operate the business successfully.

Because franchises operate in many different industry sectors, support varies; serious franchisors provide at least some of the services listed below.

Initially:

● Careful selection of applicants;
● The right to trade under the franchisor’s brand name;
● Assistance with site selection and lease negotiations;
● Introduction to preferential sources of supply;
● Help with the fitting-out, equipping and stocking-up of the new business;
● Extensive initial training for the franchisee in all facets of operating and managing the business;
● Help with staff selection and training;
● Grand opening followed by a short period of intensive operational support.

On an ongoing basis:

● Product development and marketing support;
● Experienced trouble shooter on tap;
● Periodic support visits to bring the franchisee up to date with developments in the sector, review performance and offer motivation and training;
● Access to bulk deals in product sourcing and advertising;
● National and regional meetings and training events.

Get Started in Franchising: Why become a franchisor?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:19:04 GMT

Entrepreneurs who have built up a business that is ready for expansion have several options available. Broadly speaking these range from setting up company-owned branches to appointing established businesses as agents or distributors.

Expansion through branches offers the entrepreneur the highest level of control and all profits stay within the business. On the downside, it is highly resource intensive. In addition to a substantial investment, it requires an ever-expanding pool of experienced managers who may or may not be loyal to the business. Both these commodities are generally in short supply.

On the other end of the spectrum, appointing agents or distributors requires few resources but offers little operational control. And unless the entrepreneur can enforce exclusivity, the brand tends to get overshadowed by others handled by the same distributor.

Franchising the business takes care of all these problems and more. Because franchisees operate under the franchisor’s brand name using the network’s tried and tested methods and procedures, brand uniformity is ensured. Best of all, because franchisees make a substantial investment and operate their businesses hands on, they are committed towards making them successful. This grows the brand and helps to achieve sector leadership much faster than would otherwise be possible.

Get Started in Franchising: Why become a franchisee?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:18:16 GMT

Even those people who used to think that serving the same employer for a lifetime was the way to go have come to realise that this is little more than a pipedream. Modern-day companies merge, down-size operations or even close down. As a result, people lose their jobs and with it their trust in the corporate system. Even those who can secure another job will feel frustrated and insecure. Chances are that their ideas won’t be appreciated and even if they manage to achieve targets, their bosses will take the credit and the resulting rewards.

These realisations prompt a growing number of people to start businesses but they soon find that the free enterprise system can be a cruel taskmaster. To begin with, it is difficult to raise finance for an unproven venture and even if they manage to do that, it will usually take longer than expected for the business to take off. No matter how good the concept is, if funds run out before the business begins to make a profit, what started out as a dream may come to a sticky end.

Franchising to the rescue! Because the franchisor has developed the concept and popularised the brand, franchisees’ success chances become more predictable. This prompts bankers to grant larger loans at competitive interest rates. Best of all, customers will frequent the business more readily because they know the brand name and what it stands for.

Get Started in Franchising: About franchise opportunities

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:12:37 GMT

Many people associate franchising with fast food but this is an outdated notion. It came about because the fast food sector was the first to expand through franchising but in the meantime, many different sectors have adapted franchising to their needs. This means that prospective franchisees have a host of available options waiting for them.

When selecting a franchise opportunity, the first thing to look for is the track record of the business and the people that operate it. If the business is new, say less than two years old, alarm bells should ring. Systems and procedures may be less than perfect and the mere fact that the business trades successfully from one location does not guarantee that it can be franchised successfully.

Prospective franchisees need to look at the business and ask themselves at least three pertinent questions:

1. Will the concept work in other locations, for example in other parts of the country?
2. Can its success be sustained for at least 10 years or longer?
3. Will I be happy working in this business?

Because nobody has a (reliably working) crystal ball, it is virtually impossible to predict any of this with accuracy. A realistic assessment of the likely scenario is the best you can hope for. I advise you to undertake market research, talk to other franchisees and consult with professional advisors.

To sum up, you need to satisfy yourself that the franchise has a profitable future and that you will enjoy being part of it!

Get Started in Franchising: Financial aspects of franchising

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:39:06 GMT

The financial aspects of franchising can be divided into two categories affecting franchisees and franchisors respectively. The focus of this article is on franchisees’ financial obligations but closes with a brief explanation of the investment new franchisors need to make.

Franchisee
● Initial fee: Fixed amount payable once only. It gives the franchisee the right to receive comprehensive initial assistance and trade under the network’s brand. The amount varies depending on the extent of initial assistance and the popularity of the brand.
● Capital investment: Cost of purchasing equipment and fitting out the business for trading.
● Working capital: Money required to fund operations until the business’s cash flow covers ongoing expenses.
● Management services fee: Usually calculated as a percentage of the franchisee’s sales. It is payable monthly in arrears for the duration of the franchise arrangement. The percentage figure varies from 1-12%.
● Marketing fee: Calculated either as a percentage of the franchisee’s sales or as a fixed amount. It is used towards funding product marketing initiatives carried out by the franchisor.

Prospective franchisors
Before a franchise can be rolled out, the prospective franchisor needs to invest in a professional franchise package. This entails professional fees, printing costs and research expenses. It is also necessary to budget for operational losses for the first 2-3 years until franchise fee income covers operating expenses. Beyond that point, franchising can be highly profitable.

Finance for Non-Financial Managers: What shouldn't I put on my CV?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:27:04 GMT

This could make for a very long list...
Obvious things not to include are personal details, such as age, marital status, sexual orientation, race, etc. as these do not affect your ability to do a job and could be used, consciously or unconsciously, to discriminate against you.

Whether you mention details of any disabilities to an employer is up to you, but this is usually better done in a covering letter. Your name and contact details are all that any employer needs to see at the top of your CV.

Unless specifically asked, you should not include in your work history anything relating to salary or – and this is a real faux pas – your reasons for leaving any previous jobs. If details of your salary are specifically requested then put them in your covering letter. Your CV should remain tightly focused on how well you could do the job in question and what you offer an employer.

Excessive education details aren’t needed either. Primary school details are never relevant, and the longer you’ve worked the less important your education becomes.
A good rule once your work history starts to take up CV space is to include details only of the highest level of education you attained.

This list is by no means comprehensive, nor does it cover every circumstance, but there is a theme running through all of the above. If you are ever unsure whether to include something, go back to this basic question: is it directly relevant to my ability to do the job I am applying for? If it’s not, then it has no place in your CV.

Get That Job With The Right CV: Should I include all of my exam results on my CV?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:08:49 GMT

The answer depends on two things:
- how relevant your exam results are to the job you are applying for, and
- whether they will help or hinder your chances of getting an interview.

For recent school leavers or graduates, education carries more weight than for someone who has been working for ten or twenty years. Experienced people may even delete their education completely in favour of more relevant and recent information.

Whatever stage you’re at, aim to mention only those exam results that benefit your application. If you got straight As or A*s at GCSE or A Level, make it clear. To hide a flush of Ds try listing the number of GCSEs you got and the subjects studied, without listing each grade. If you have a mixed bag of grades, and scored highly in subjects relevant to the job you want, try putting something like ‘7 GCSEs, including As in Maths and Science.’

University and college students should give a predicted result if it’s positive. If it’s not, keep it to yourself. Graduates should of course show actual results – it looks very odd if you don’t – but once you have a few years’ experience you could leave out your actual degree class if it doesn’t do you justice or isn’t in a relevant subject.

There are some exceptions. In the legal profession for example, you would normally include all exam results from GCSE upwards: an applicant’s entire academic performance is considered strongly relevant. The same is often said of the medical profession, although one could question the relevance of a Home Economics GCSE grade to a surgeon.

Get That Job With The Right CV: In what order should I show information?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:07:20 GMT

Every CV should start with your name, followed by up to date contact details.

Summaries (like Profile, Key Skills or Objective) should go near the top as well, because these help readers to get a feel quickly for who you are and what you offer.

After that, everything else should appear in order of relevance. So, school leavers and graduates should list Education before Work Experience, because their education is the most relevant indicator of their ability at this point. More experienced workers would normally put Employment History before Education, if they include Education at all.

Relevance may also be influenced by the CV format you choose. In the UK, the most common is a ‘chronological’ CV, in which sections containing dates are arranged in reverse chronological order. In this case your Employment History would start with your current/most recent job.

Chronological CVs are predictable. Readers are familiar with the format, can quickly find what they need to know and can compare you easily with other applicants. However, a downside is that key details can still get buried even when using summaries at the start – and employment gaps may stand out more.

Less common is the ‘functional’ CV, which highlights the skills and abilities you’ve shown, irrespective of date. In place of a full Employment History you would normally have a Key Competencies/Skills section, where you list your key skills or competencies and provide the best proof of each one from any of your roles. You can’t get away from dates completely: you’ll still need to include a short Employment History summary, showing whom you worked for and when.

Functional CVs strongly highlight your suitability for a job, even if your past roles have been many or varied. The format is often less familiar to readers though, and they may struggle to pick out key details or to compare you easily with others.

Whether you use a chronological or functional CV, or combine them into a so-called ‘hybrid’ CV, order it in terms of what’s most relevant to the job you are applying for.

Get That Job With The Right CV: What sort of paper should I print my CV on?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:36:25 GMT

Good quality paper. First impressions count.

When someone’s hand closes on good quality paper, its thickness, texture and weight will count positively (within reason!) towards the image they will build of you. It is worth spending a little extra to ensure that the CV you have slaved over is presented as well as possible.

A lightly textured paper improves perceived quality, as does a heavier paper stock. In order to make it as readable as possible for everyone, print in black ink on a pale (not white) background such as cream, pale grey or pale blue paper. Use the same paper for both your CV and your covering letter. Don’t worry about matching envelopes: you should ideally use an A4 white or manila envelope so that you don’t have to fold your CV.

You may be thinking ‘How can I afford posh paper for hundreds of CVs when there’s a credit crunch/I’m out of work/I’m not made of money?’
On the whole, if you are properly researching and targeting your CV carefully for every job you apply for, to give yourself the best chance of getting an interview, then you’re unlikely to be sending out hundreds of CVs.

Job hunting is not about statistics: sending out 100 standardised, cheaply-printed CVs will not increase your chances of getting a job. Spending more time, effort and a little more money on fewer, carefully tailored, quality CVs is a far better use of limited resources.

Get That Job With The Right CV: How far back should I go with the information I put on my CV?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:05:37 GMT

It depends on how relevant any older information is to the job you are applying for. Recent information tends to carry more weight, but relevance is essential for a powerful CV.

Education:
In most industries, the longer you have worked since finishing school or university the less important or relevant your academic history becomes.

With two or three jobs (or a professional qualification) under your belt, it is okay to include only the highest level of education completed – unless you have reason to specify A Levels or GCSEs in relevant subjects. School leavers and graduates would normally include everything from secondary school (GCSE level) onwards. Leave out primary school.

Employment:
You can give a good overview of even the longest career by summarising effectively experience that isn’t directly relevant and giving details only for experience that is.

Past jobs that show off the most relevant skills you possess are your priority. If a past job is unrelated to the job you are applying for, or is simply a more basic/lower-level version of a more recent role, then summarise: list only the date, job title and employer, leaving out any details.

If your employment history is quite varied or you moved frequently, try clustering older jobs together as if one. E.g.:
1988-1995 Insurance sales roles for Sava Life, Paynow Ltd & Lightning Insurance.

Other:
When it comes to Achievements or Further Training, the same rules apply as above.
Under Interests, you should really only list activities you currently or have recently done.

The general rule applies: keep it relevant. And if everything seems to be relevant, focus on the most recent.

Profit and loss accounts

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:51:58 GMT

A profit and loss account, sometimes known as an income statement, states the profit an organisation made, with some detail as to how it has been arrived at. The level of detail depends upon which version of the P&L account is being looked at – the one given to management in the monthly management accounts pack will have more than the one that has to be included in the statutory accounts. The latter is produced annually, so only contains the results for the year. The standard format is sales (excluding VAT), less the cost of sales, to give the gross profit. From this is deducted overhead expenses, including depreciation. The management accounts version might stop here, but there are further adjustments for interest paid/received, tax and dividends to arrive at the final (retained) profit figure.

Balance sheets

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:40:41 GMT

The balance sheet is also one of the three compulsory financial statement that must be submitted as part of the annual statutory accounts to Companies House. A monthly version may also be included as part of the management accounts pack, but many managers mistakenly think that the elements of the balance sheet have little to do with them. The balance sheet has three main parts, where the assets will equal the sum of the liabilities and the equity (hence it balances). The assets consist of stock, debtors, cash (together called the current assets) and fixed assets (capital items). Trade creditors and other debts due within a year (eg VAT) make up current liabilities, and are deducted from current assets to produce ‘net current assets’. Liabilities are what the organisation owes on a longer term, so this includes loans, and amounts due for leased capital items. The equity section is the amounts due to the shareholders, essentially the capital (the initial and any subsequent investments by the shareholders), the cumulative profit, plus elements such as revaluation reserve.

Ledgers

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:49:17 GMT

Ledgers are the places that hold the basic financial data, which is used to create the financial reports. There are three main ones, the sales ledger, the purchase ledger and the general ledger. The sales ledger, (also known as the debtors ledger or accounts receivable) has two main entries – invoices for sales made, showing how much customers owe, and payments received from those customers. From these, the current outstanding amount by each customer can be shown, the total of which is the debtors figure that appears on the balance sheet.
The purchase ledger works in a similar way, only showing what is owed to suppliers, by reducing the amount on invoices received with payments made.
The general ledger is the source of all financial reports, since it contains entries for all financial transactions which the organisation makes. Each and every transaction will have at least two entries (hence the term double entry bookkeeping), one a debit, the other a credit, so that the entries always balance. Since they balance, then the general ledger will always balance, and since that leads to the production of the balance sheet, that will always balance too.

Creating budgets

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:47:36 GMT

In practice, the whole process is likely to have started up to six months prior to the financial year end, with the actual results for the year so far, and an estimate of how the current year will finish. This itself is a lot of work, mostly pulled together by the Accounts department. A common, and fairly simple way, to get the new budget is to add x% to the current year’s full forecast and tweak it a little. After all, the Directors aren’t going to be impressed if sales are budgeted to fall, and it’s easier to put everything else up in line. Another way is Zero base budgeting, whereby management are given a set of objectives eg 12% market share, 48% gross margin, and asked to come up with what they would need to do to achieve those objectives, and that detail forms the budget. This takes even longer. Either way, come the start of the new financial year, the budget is already months old, and undoubtedly based on information now out of date. It is better than having no plan at all though.

Capital Gains Tax

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:47:10 GMT

As income tax is a tax on earned income, the capital gains tax is the tax paid on capital gains, which is profit made on the sale of capital items by an individual. The most common capital item is shares in companies, but could include properties (although a person’s primary residence is exempt from CGT), a Van Gogh or diamonds. There is also an annual allowance (in 2010/11, £10,100) , in the same way individuals have a personal income tax allowance. So the profit made in a year can be reduced by this amount before being taxed at the current rate (2010/11 – 18%).

Depreciation

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:46:37 GMT

Depreciation is simply a way of charging the cost of an acquired fixed asset (usually defined as something tangible costing more than £1,000 and which will last longer than a year) to the profit and loss account. If a company bought a shrinkwrap machine for £12,000, that would be large expense to set against profit all at once. The argument is that the machine will last five years, so a fifth of the cost is charged each year, as depreciation. After two years, the accumulated depreciation charge is therefore £4,800, so the net book value of the asset (the original cost less accumulated depreciation) is £7,200. The important thing to note that no cash is involved in the depreciation charge – how the item is paid for in the first place, whether all at once, or in instalments, is a different decision. To simplify things, such fixed assets are normally placed into categories eg plant and machinery, and the company depreciates all items in that category at the same rate (unless it knows for sure a specific item will be used for a different period) – so plant and machinery might be depreciated over ten years, and vehicles over four. It is usually on a ‘straight line’ basis – the same amount charged to profit every year for each asset.

Finance for Non-Financial Mangers: UK Accounting Bodies

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:14:17 GMT

The ’profession’ is represented by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (there are separate bodies for Scotland and Ireland) – mostly these are auditors, but experienced Chartered Accountants will seek to become partners and may specialise in specific financial matters eg taxation, mergers, or even move into industry. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants’ members tend to work in business, although some can audit if they have done the right part of their professional examinations. The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants’ members can usually be found in commercial organisations, and do not audit accounts – they are usually the ones who prepare them. Accountants working in the public services sector (eg NHS, local government) often choose to study/join the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. The exams of each of these bodies are similar, so distinguishing qualified accountants is probably better judged by their knowledge and experience rather than which particular qualification they have. There is also the Association of Accounting Technicians, an underrated body, but having this qualification gives the holder some exemptions in the examinations of the others. Attempts to merge the major accounting bodies have progressed little in the last thirty years.

Cash Flow

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:47:23 GMT

A profitable company can go under by having a poor cash flow. If sales are on credit terms longer than it suppliers grant it, then cash is going to be flowing out of the company until the customers settle their accounts. The company may have sufficient cash reserves or an overdraft to see it through. The cash flow cycle involves buying stock, paying creditors, selling the stock to customer, and getting paid by them. By managing stock levels, credit terms to both customers and suppliers, and chasing late payers for the money, cash flow can be properly controlled. It is easier in some industries than others – supermarkets are good at generating cash, because shoppers pay in cash (or near cash, with plastic), yet the supermarket may not have to pay its suppliers for 30 days or more.

Budgeting

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:38:23 GMT

The budget is a set of figures to cover an organisation’s activities for a financial year. It will have sales and production quantities, head counts and other non-financial data, but will culminate in a budget Profit and Loss Account, a budget Balance Sheet, and a budget Cash Flow. As the organisation gets into the new financial year, the actual accounts are compared with the budget to see how it is doing.

Problems arise partly because the budget is prepared months in advance, and may be based on assumptions and data now known to be wrong. A customer may have gone bust, a currency exchange rate moved unexpectedly making an imported material more expensive. But also – what is the budget used for? Is it a plan of what was expected to happen, and then when the actuals differ, investigations can be made? Was it prepared by individual managers, to motivate them into achieving it? Or was it imposed upon them, and is now a control tool, with targets set which individuals are obliged to meet? One document, multiple demands made upon it.

Going self-employed

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 14:48:25 GMT

One of the decisions of being self-employed is whether to be a sole trader, a partnership, or formed a limited company. A sole trader operates as an individual, with responsibility for his or her own debts, to the extent that their personal assets can be used to settle with creditors. Profits from the business are taxed by income tax. A partnership differs in that the partners are jointly responsible for the actions of each other, so all their assets are at risk if the partnership defaults. Again, profits are taxed individually by income tax.

A limited company affords the protection of limited liability – the individuals who own the company are not liable for the company’s debts. The price paid for this is a legal requirement to submit annual accounts to Companies House, and profits assessed under corporation tax – in addition, any salaries paid to the owners are taxable as their individual income. Such a company must use the phrase ‘limited’ or ‘ltd’ after its name on its official documents, quoting its registration number.
A public limited company (plc) is similar in protecting the owners with limited liability, but because it has shares which can be publicly traded, it is obliged to disclose more information.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Marketing

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:54:14 GMT

Marketing is about letting people know you exist and keeping your name in front of them. Do your marketing when you're busy, not when you're quiet. You're probably quiet because you didn’t do your marketing when you were busy! You may need a variety of marketing methods.

Advertisements: Advertise in the local paper or on local radio. Your local paper sometimes runs features on new businesses so that you get free editorial. They also run themes pages, such as wedding ‘fayres’, which might suit your business. Even postcards in shop windows or small ads in the parish magazine can be a good marketing method.

Letters, flyers and brochures: These are excellent for small businesses. Make sure they are well designed and project the right image. Check the spelling and the legibility, and that they say what your customers want to know.

Mailshots: Targeted mailshots to a specific group of customers, particularly if you have something new to offer, do work. Put your main point in a PS, which is what people read first.

Trade shows and exhibitions: These are good for craft-based businesses.

Networking: One of the best methods of marketing a small business. Join local business clubs and be prepared to stand up and talk about your business.

Your website: Almost every small business needs a website. If you need to, get yours professionally designed and set up. Then make sure it is properly maintained.

Never travel without your marketing material.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Selling

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:59:04 GMT

Each potential customer is different, so you need to find out as much about the person or the company as you can. Set yourself a target for every meeting. You will usually be entering your customer’s territory, so note the environment and adapt your approach to the circumstances.

Establish your customer’s needs by asking questions; then you can match your product or service to their needs. Describe the features (facts) about your product or service, showing a model or marketing material. But most important, sell its benefits – what's in it for the customer? People buy benefits, not features: they want things easier, quicker, more fashionable or more modern.

You may have to counter objections. Look upon these as opportunities, not barriers. If there is a genuine misunderstanding, clarify and explain what you meant. If the customer is sceptical, prove your product or service can do what they want. You may have to negotiate a price, but know your bottom line. You might be able to ‘sell up’, selling something slightly higher priced than the customer intended.

When you get a buying signal, stop selling and close the sale. Do not introduce new features or benefits at this stage, but you might be able to ‘sell on’, persuade your customer to buy a little extra something.

Analyse whether you achieved your target and put into action anything you have promised to do.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: E-commerce

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:35:15 GMT

You may decide to expand your business into e-commerce or sell online from the start. You won’t know who your customers are, but you might be selling worldwide. Look at your competitors’ websites and note the good and bad points.
If you are new to e-commerce, start by buying and selling small items yourself, perhaps on eBay. It helps you get to know your way around an e-commerce site and what others do about payment (usually through PayPal), deliveries and returns.

The next step might be to open an eBay shop, just to try out your own e-commerce.
Eventually you will probably need your own website. Do get professional help if you need it. You will need a ‘Home’ page, introducing customers to your company and products, with good key words a search engine will grab. Then attractive photographs and descriptions of your products, with measurements, catalogue numbers, if applicable, price etc. This
process takes ages.

A good ordering and payment system is a must. E-commerce sellers often include postage and packing in the price for the UK, but ask buyers from overseas to contact you so that an appropriate price can be agreed. Have a sensible returns policy.
An ‘About us’ page can describe your company and its contacts. Add human interest, by including things such as photos of the people involved.

You will have become an international entrepreneur!

Improve Your Project Management: What is a project?

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:09:37 GMT

Projects certainly aren’t a new ‘thing’– they‘ve have been around for a long time. The Pyramids, Hadrian’s Wall, the Parthenon and Stonehenge – all of these were, once upon a time, projects. Contemporary projects include the Channel Tunnel, the 553-metre high CN tower in Toronto and the 3910-metre long Akashi- Kaikyo bridge in Japan. But what do these and the millions of modern-day projects that we see in our lives have in common?

The answer is that they are all about change – about creating the new or even changing the old. When this happens it’s usually because of a project.

But that isn’t all what a project is about. For it’s also a mechanism, a process that:
• is transient
• has both a start and an end date
• has a specific, defined and unique outcome
• is planned, often in detail
• has a budget
• involves many people with different but defined responsibilities and tasks.

Managing a project isn’t easy. In its fullest form, it involves creating, defining, planning, monitoring, controlling and delivering – all undertaken in such a way that the defined project outcomes are realized to time and to budget. When this happens it becomes obvious that the project not only enhances our ability to create change – it also enables us to do that efficiently and effectively.

Improve Your Project Management: Activity on Arrow networks

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:42:54 GMT

A project network is a flow chart that sets out to show the sequence in which a project's activities are to be completed. One of the two main project networks in popular use, the Activity on Arrow (AOA) network, uses arrows to depict activities. The direction of the arrow indicates the direction of time and the activity durations are attached. Here is a simple example:
[02_01NAW]

A simple Activity on Arrow network
Here are some of the definitions associated with this sort of network:
• Float is the amount of time that an activity can be delayed without delaying the project completion.
• A dummy activity is an activity in an AOA network which has zero duration but indicates activity interdependency.
• A critical path activity is an activity with zero or negative float, or any activity on the critical path.
• The critical path is the sequence of activities which determines the earliest project completion.
• The EET, or earliest event time, is the earliest time by which an event can occur.
• The LET, or latest event time, is the latest time by which an event can occur.

The AOA network, in its computer-driven form, can be used on large and complex projects and, in its manually or computer-generated form, on the small projects of our homes and workplaces.

Improve Your Project Management: Activity on Node networks

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:47:42 GMT

A project network is a flow chart that sets out to show the sequence in which a project's activities are to be completed. One of the two main project networks in popular use, the Activity on Node (AON) network, uses nodes to depict activities. It’s also often called a Precedence Network. When this is used to generate a full AON network what you get is the sort of network that’s shown below.

The advantages of the AON network include:
• its ability to cope with change – since information rather than the network has to be changed
• its ability to provide the project manager with trade-off related information
• the speed – relative to AOA networks – of its computer-driven versions.
Its disadvantages include:
• complex calculations are involved
• network diagrams are not easy to understand or follow
• considerable training and experience are needed for effective use.
Because of these factors, AON networks tend to be used in a computer-driven form and on large and complex projects.
[03_01NAW]

Activity on Node network
Here are some of the definitions associated with this sort of network:
Float is the amount of time that an activity can be delayed without delaying the project completion.
A critical path activity is an activity with zero or negative float, any activity on the critical path.
The critical path is the sequence of activities which determines the earliest project completion.
The EET, or earliest event time, is the earliest time by which an event can occur.
The LET, or latest event time, is the latest time by which an event can occur.

Improve Your Project Management: Building a project management team

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:50:22 GMT

Project teams are unusual. Unlike most of the other sorts of team that you’ll see in your organization, they are transient and short lived – they only exist for the duration of the project. Nevertheless, like other teams, they consist of people who provide a variety of specialist services to the team leader – the project manager. In order to do that – and do it effectively – they need to work together collaboratively and in ways that involve negotiated answers to conflict, decision taking and problem solving.
Achieving this isn’t easy. It involves making sure that your team has :

• a clear goal that’s accepted by all the team
• a specific and well-defined performance challenge
• the ability to develop consensus decisions and agreements
• the ability to work together participatively
• effective and efficient communication
• a clear definition of success (and failure).

Working like this doesn’t happen overnight. Your project team will need to grow through the four stages of team building called ‘forming’, ‘storming’, ‘norming’ and ‘performing’ – as you’ll see in the figure below.
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Four stages of team building: forming, storming, norming and performing.
Doing this is hard work, but it is worth doing. For when it works, it’ll give you a project team that’s capable of moving mountains.

Improve Your Project Management: Leading a project

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:55:40 GMT

All project managers are leaders. They lead teams of people who are involved in a project. These people are in the project team – on a part-time or full-time basis – because of their particular skills, interests and abilities. But they will only stay in that team for as long as their skills and knowledge are needed. On small or medium projects, these team members will often have a ‘back-home’ location outside the project and will have a career investment in that ‘home’ location.
Because of these and other factors there are a number of ways in which this leading can take place and the figure below will give you some idea of the dimensions of these.
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Dimensions of leadership
You’ll see that this range of leadership styles runs from the ‘autocratic’ or ‘do as I say’ style through to the opposite extreme of the ‘democratic’ or ‘what shall we do?’ style.
The way that you choose to lead your project will depend upon a number of things – such as the project’s nature, its importance and timescale, who’s in the project team and your past experience.

Improve Your Project Management: PRINCE2

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:58:41 GMT

PRINCE is an acronym that stands for Projects In Controlled Environments. It’s a management method that covers the management, control and organization of a project. PRINCE2 refers to the second major version of this method and is a registered trademark of the UK Office of Government Commerce (OGC).
Initially developed in 1989 and used as a UK government standard for information systems (IT) project management, PRINCE was soon in regular use outside the IT environment. PRINCE2 was released in 1996 as a generic project management method and is scheduled for review in 2008/09. [?]

PRINCE2 breaks the overall project process down into eight processes which in turn contain a total of 45 separate sub-processes. These processes are:

Starting Up a Project (SU)
Planning (PL)
Initiating a Project (IP)
Directing a Project (DP)
Controlling a Stage (CS)
Managing Product Delivery (MP)
Managing Stage Boundaries (SB)
Closing a Project (CP).

The PRINCE2 process is described more fully on the website of the UK government’s Office of Government Commerce (www.ogc.gov.uk).
PRINCE2 practitioners are required to take (and retake at five-year intervals) an accreditation examination. These are administered by the APM Group and a register of successful candidates is available on the web (www.apmgroup.co.uk/examquery.asp).

Improve Your Project Management: Project Management Institute

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:00:49 GMT

Founded in 1969 with the aim of advancing the practice, science and profession of project management throughout the world, the Project Management Institute currently has over 260,000 members in more than 171 countries. From its ‘Global Operations Center’ in Pennsylvania, USA, and offices in China, Singapore, Belgium and India, the PMI also supports some 250 member chapters in over 70 countries.

As a not-for-profit association for the project management profession, the Project Management Institute has been recognized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as an accredited developer of standards. As such it:
provides accreditation of academic degree programmes in project management
publishes practice standards in a wide range of subjects such as Earned Value Management, Project Configuration Management, Work Breakdown Structures Scheduling and Portfolio Management as well as the Project Management of Knowledge (PMBOK®)

Offers five professional certifications:
- Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
- PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP)
- PMI Scheduling Professional credential (PMI-SP)
- Program Management Professional (PgMP)
- Project Management Professional (PMP)

The Project Management Institute also publishes a number of periodicals including PM Network and PMI Today. Further detail of all of these and other PMI activities can be found on the PMI website (www.pmi.org).

Improve Your Project Management: Project management qualifications

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:03:48 GMT

The idea that project management is a profession has been gaining increasing recognition for some time now. As a result, there are a number of formal project management qualifications that you can study for.
The qualifying bodies that validate these qualifications include:

The Association for Project Management (APM)
This UK-based independent professional body (www.apm.org.uk) validates a number of qualifications ranging from an introductory certificate up to a Certificated Project Manager qualification.

Project Management Institute (PMI)
This American-based not-for-profit association provides five professional certificates, the highest being that of the Project Management Professional (PMP).

Information Systems Examination Board (ISEB)
The Information Systems Examinations Board (ISEB) is a division of the British Computer Society (www.bcs.org) and validates three certificates in IS project management.

National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ)
There are several NVQ awarding bodies using the UK National Standard in Project Management and offering project management qualifications. These include [?].and training provider Edexcel (www.edexecel.org.uk).

The consensus seems to be that an APM validated qualification is best if you are working in the UK and Europe on non-IT industry projects, a PMI validated qualification if you are working for a US multinational and an ISEB validated qualification if you are in the IT industry.

Improve Your Project Management: Project management software

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:04:31 GMT

There’s a wide range of computer software available to help you manage your project. The sorts of things that these programs do range from scheduling project tasks through to project administration systems. They also include software designed for cost control and budget management, resource allocation, collaboration software, communication, quality management and project documentation.

Some of these software packages – such as Artemis, MS Project, Merlin, Cresta and Open Plan - combine many of these tasks. But the ways in which they do that are different and it’s these differences that will lead you to buy one package or to reject another. This choice is important – here’s a checklist of some of the key factors that you’ll need to take into account when choosing the project management software that you’ll use:

sort of network/chart generated
range and detail of planning calendar
event/activity size limit and identification restraints
menu access and ease of use
software support
type and user definability of reports
project resources – type, range and ease of allocation
computer operating system needs
hardware needs

Use this checklist to make sure that you choose project management software that produces the results that you want. Above all, make sure that its software that you’re confident and comfortable with.

Improve Your Project Management: Project management training

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:05:34 GMT

When the word ‘training’ gets used in the workplace it almost always refers to the process that is followed when you or I set out to acquire the KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS and COMPETENCIES that we need to carry out our workplace roles. The ways in which we do that can vary enormously. They can, for example, involve on-the-job training that takes place in the workplace, or off-the-job training that takes place remote from normal work situations. Project management TRAINING uses both of these.

It can, for example, involve:
full-time study for university undergraduate and postgraduate courses in project management
part-time study for certificates and diplomas that are validated by the Association for Project Management (APM), Project Management Institute (PMI) and Information Systems Examination Board (ISEB).
It can also involve attendance at special courses that are aimed, for example, at turning you into a qualified PRINCE2 practitioner, or giving you and in-depth knowledge of project risk assessment and management.

But project management training does not always need to be as formal as this. You can also gain knowledge and develop skills by using blogs and podcasts about project management, reading books and attending the meetings of your professional project management association. And, of course, you can also expand and add to your project management skills and knowledge by actually doing it – being a project manager. Finally, project audits and post-project appraisals enable you to decide where you got it right and, just as important, where you got it wrong in your project management.

Plan A Secure Retirement: It’s not all over

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:00:22 GMT

Many years ago on Sunday afternoons I used to sneak next door and watch the Big Match in Uncle Jack’s house (they had a colour telly we didn’t!). Back then matches seemed to be played on energy sapping muddy pitches followed by a short period of extra time.

In many ways this reflected retirement, you worked hard of your life, had a bit of extra time and then faced the final whistle. However times have changed and more often than not retirement means a second half played in perfect conditions, followed by extra time and followed more often than not by penalties.

In other words retirement will tend not be single event but a series of changes in lifestyle, the second half will represent the early years of retirement, when hopefully you will be fit and healthy, may still be working, pursuing hobbies or carrying out some form of voluntary work.

Extra time represents the middle years, when the probability is you will still be reasonably healthy but beginning to slow down and not want to do as much as you once did.

Penalties align to the latter stages of our life when we have slowed down even further and may need help in some form or other.

All this means that when considering your finances in retirement you should look at the whole game rather than just the kick off.

Plan A Secure Retirement: It’s not the wrapper, it’s what’s in it that counts

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:01:32 GMT

Which of the following do you think is the riskiest investment?

• A stocks and Shares ISA
• An Unit Trust
• A Pension
• An Investment Bond

Answer; they are all the same.

These are all examples of investment types. In the jargon they are called wrappers or vehicles. They are like a box that you can place different types of investment. It is the investment, usually called the fund, itself that carries the risk and not the wrapper.

It is often possible to access exactly the same fund though all of these wrappers so the first question you should ask about an investment is not what is it wrapped in, but what are the contents.

There are literally thousands of funds, from protected ones where the aim is defined as “to provide a return of a set amount of capital back to the investor plus the potential for some investment return” to extremely high risk ones.

The wrapper determines how the investment is structured, in particular how it will be taxed. An ISA will usually give a greater return than an investment bond because the former is largely free of tax, but that has nothing to do with how risky it is.

So, as with many other things in life, decide first what the content should be and then the best way to wrap it.

Plan A Secure Retirement: No Risk – No Such Thing

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:02:11 GMT

Would you be attracted to a risk free investment that guarantees a higher return than a deposit account? Not vast by amount but just enough to make it worthwhile.

If you said yes to this question then I am sorry to say I have got some bad news for you, it doesn’t exist.

In fact not even the deposit account is risk free. Yes you have protection of up to £50,000 but often the only thing you can be sure of with a deposit accounts is that you will lose money. Why, because more often than not inflation is higher than the rate of interest you will receive.

All savings and investment carry some form of risk, it is just some are higher and / or different than others. At the other end of the scale to deposit accounts, investing in a Brazilian tin mine could make you a lot of money or you could lose your shirt.

There are three main risks you need to consider:
1. That your money won’t make as much as you want
2. You will lose some or all of your capital
3. The value will rise and fall

As so often in life it is striking the right balance is what is needed and yet so difficult to do.

So if anyone tells you about a risk free investment, tell them it doesn’t exist.

Plan A Secure Retirement: How to lose a fortune when taking your pension

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:57:43 GMT

You can lose a fortune on your pension? No surprise there then, you only have to watch a money programme on the telly to be confronted with tales of people who have been consigned to a lifetime of poverty because of their pension hasn’t performed.

But there is a less dramatic way that thousands of people lose out every year and that is by not shopping around when they come to take benefits from their pension.

If you have a final salary pension then it is unlikely you will be able to beat the benefits offered, but with most other types of pension the income you receive for the rest of your life could be severely reduced if you don’t shop around.

In case you think is not worth the effort, at the time of writing the difference in pension for 65year old man between the best and worst best provider showing on the FSA’s comparison tables was 18%. If he smoked the difference was 39%

But out of all the companies that offer pensions in the UK the FSA tables only showed 9 providers, presumably everyone else was too embarrassed to show what they would pay.

The message is clear shop around, or literally lose out for life.

Plan A Secure Retirement: The 1 minute guide to pensions – Part 1

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:03:23 GMT

Confused about pensions? Then join the club, after over 30 years I am still learning something new every day, but the basics are simple, honest!

Nearly every type of pension falls into one of two camps, defined contribution or defined benefit.

Final Salary pensions are the best known example of a defined benefit scheme and the amount of pension you will receive will depend on three things

• Your salary.
• The years you are a member of the scheme.
• The schemes accrual rate.

Don’t be put of by the last expression it simply refers to how much pension you will receive for each year you are a member. So if you are a member of a final salary scheme for 20 years with a 1/60 accrual rate and your final salary was £30,000 you would receive a pension of £15,000 a year,

£30,000 x 20 = £15,000
60

The scheme is then obliged to pay you that pension for life no matter what the cost.

Most private sector schemes allow you to exchange some of that income for a lump sum, most public sector schemes provide a separate lump sum that can be exchanged for a pension.

Plan A Secure Retirement: 1 Minute guide to pensions – Part 2

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:56:53 GMT

In the first part of the 1 minute guide to pensions we covered defined benefit pensions. In this we will explain defined contribution pension which include personal pensions.

The way to think about a defined contribution pension is in two separate parts:

1. Building up a pot of money
2. Using that pot to buy a pension

The amount that will be in the pot will depend on how much is saved into the pot and how much it grows.

How much it grows will depend on where it is invested. Years ago there was little choice over this, but now there is a wide choice meaning that it doesn’t have to be a risky investment.

When you want to take the money out of the pension you can take 25% as a lump sum that will usually be tax free and the rest must be used to buy an income. That income will be paid for life.

There are a number of choices about how you can have that income paid, but you decide this when you actually take your pension.

Plan A Secure Retirement: What choices do you have when you take your pension?

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:03:52 GMT

When you come to take your pension you will be faced with a number of choices about how your pension will be paid. As these will stay with you for the rest of your life and will be virtually impossible to reverse them it pays to consider them closely.

If you have a final salary pension whether or not to take the lump sum is likely to be the only decision you will have to make, but with most other forms of pensions including personal pensions you will be faced with a bewildering number of options:

• To take a pension that stays the same for life or pays less initially but increases every year.
• To take a pension that will die with you or continue to be paid to your spouse for the rest of their life if you die before them.
• To take a pension that will guarantee a minimum return if you die shortly after taking it out.

Of the choices shown here a pension that doesn’t increase and will stop when you die will pay the highest amount. One that increases, is guaranteed and will continue paying to your spouse will pay the most.

Plan A Secure Retirement: Why do older people pay too much tax?

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:07:11 GMT

An official government report estimated that between 2002 and 2009, 1.5 million people over state retirement age paid £250 million more tax than they needed to.

Three reasons were:

• Retired people are more likely to have the wrong tax code because they receive their income from a number of sources.
• They did not claim the age related allowances they were entitled to.
• They did not ask for interest on savings to be paid without deduction of tax.

To make sure you don’t pay too much tax:

• Keep a record of all of your income
• Ensure you complete any forms HMRC send you
• If you have money coming in from a number of different sources it may be worth asking for a tax return even if you don’t usually get one.

Finally there are a number of online income tax calculators that can give an indication of how much tax you should be paying. They tend not to go into the level of detail needed to give you a precise figure but they are certainly close enough to see if you should investigate further.

Plan A Secure Retirement: 10 tips to get the most from your deposit account

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:55:20 GMT

With interest rates at an all time low, you need to get the best possible rate on your deposit accounts. Consider the following:

1. Check to see what interest you lose when you make a withdrawal.

2. You can often find higher rates for agreeing to tie your money up for a certain period.

3. Check the rate you are getting on your actual account, not the one advertised in the newspaper.

4. Investigate consolidating different accounts into one for a better rate, but remember the compensation limit of £50,000.

5. Be prepared to shop around and be prepared be move your money to another institution if they pay a higher rate.

6. The best rates can usually be found online, by post or over the phone.

7. Use your ISA allowance. You can place £5,200 into a cash ISA every year.

8. Every person is entitled to a certain amount of income before they need to pay tax therefore if you can split your income with your partner it will often mean paying less tax.

9. Check the rates on 50+ and 60+ accounts.

10. Don’t keep too much in your current account. At best it will only pay a very low rate of interest

Plan A Secure Retirement: Is Equity Release a con?

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:59:19 GMT

Equity release can be a great way of improving your standard of living, especially in the later years of retirement. Unfortunately it suffers from a poor reputation. There are several reasons for this, not least when the product was first introduced over 20 years ago it often represented poor value, with interest payments sometimes exceeding the income it generated and people could die owing more than the value of their home.

More recently it has been confused with sale and lease-back schemes where a person sells their house and then have to pay a high level of rent if they wanted to stay in it.

Modern reputable equity release schemes don’t have any of these drawbacks as they:

• Contain a no negative equity guarantee so you can never owe more than your home is worth.
• Do not charge any rent, and any interest that is payable can be rolled on and repaid with the capital when you die or permanently move into care.

Reputable equity release providers belong to an organisation known as SHIP (Safe Home Income Plans) and you should only ever consider buying an equity release from a SHIP member.

Equity release is not right for everyone, but it no longer is a con.

Be Your Own Boss: Are you the next Richard Branson?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:19:12 GMT

Or perhaps you see yourself as more of a Donald Trump, an Anita Roddick or a Bill Gates? Or maybe you want to make your millions without building an empire, like Warren Buffett or John Carmack? The thing is it doesn’t matter. Whoever you favour as your corporate role model they all have one thing in common – at some point they weighed up their options, plucked up their courage and then took the leap to being their own boss. And it’s a huge leap requiring a huge amount of confidence in your own abilities as well as a lot of groundwork and planning to ensure a smooth and profitable transition. But remember, however successful they are now they were once just a one person outfit, someone who took the leap of faith to being their own boss, knowing that they would probably have to work longer hours than they ever had before but also knowing that they would be keeping all the fruits of their labours. So if you are prepared to work equally hard, and if you’ve got a vision for your business which are eager to put into action, then why shouldn’t you be the next big empire building entrepreneur?

Be Your Own Boss: Attaining – and maintaining – the best work/life balance

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:20:03 GMT

How many hours do you spend at work every week? How much of your time and energy are you devoting to your worklife and how much to those aspects of your life which matter to you most? Try this quick exercise to help you to see the current state of your work/life balance and the ways in which you would change it if you were able.

First, draw a pie chart mapping where and when you currently spend your time and energy. Notice how large is the portion attributed to work. Now draw a second pie chart to map all aspects of your life, inside and outside of work which give you the most energy and prevent you getting stale, the things you most enjoy, and on which you would like to be devoting most of your time? Now compare the two charts to see where you are currently focussing most of your time and energy and where you would like to be. Lastly, repeat the exercise but this time imagine that you are your own boss. If the balance changes in a positive way immediately (and the chances are it will, and drastically) then you know it’s time to look seriously at taking the leap to becoming your own boss.

Be Your Own Boss: Working from home

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:21:04 GMT

The majority of soloists begin their career as their own boss working from home, and indeed many choose to continue in the same fashion even when their businesses are well established and profitable. But how do you maximise the advantages of working from home while minimising the disadvantages? Partly this will depend on your available home set-up. Do you have the luxury of a spare room you can use as an office? Will you be able to convert it on a permanent basis or will it need to double as a spare bedroom, robbing you of your workspace every time you have guests to stay? Or will you have to make do with a corner of the living room or kitchen? Whatever your situation you will need to find as many ways as you can to turn it into a space which feels like an office, mentally putting you into ‘work mode’ as soon as you enter it – and crucially it must be somewhere which allows you to shut out your homelife during your working hours. You will also need to solicit the cooperation of anyone with whom you share your home. Having their support while you deny them part of their living space is vitally important to the long-term success of working from home.

Be Your Own Boss: Successful entrepreneurship

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:02:45 GMT

You’ve probably seen popular television programmes about entrepreneurs such as ‘Dragons’ Den’ and ‘The Apprentice’ but what does it actually mean to be an entrepreneur? And can anyone do it or is the ability genetic? Entrepreneurship is, quite simply, having the vision to see a great business opportunity and the courage to see it through. This can be on someone else’s behalf, while in gainful employment, but more often entrepreneurs are people who have become their own boss so that they get to call the shots and to keep all the fruits of their labours. As to whether anyone can do it or just the chosen few, the answer lies in the sheer number of people leaving their employer to make the leap to working solo. According to Paul Reynolds, entrepreneurship scholar and creator of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, "by the time they reach their retirement years, half of all working men in the United States probably have a period of self-employment of one or more years; one in four may have engaged in self-employment for six or more years.” And it’s a similar picture elsewhere, with the majority of developed countries boasting a sizeable – and steadily growing – workforce of entrepreneurs.

Be Your Own Boss: Working 5-9

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:20:08 GMT

What is working 5 to 9? It is a rapidly growing trend, appealing to people from all walks of life and with all manner of business interests; it is becoming your own boss in a safe and secure manner; it is a lucrative hobby or the first step to full-time self-employment. Working 5 to 9 is all these things, and more, because it means utilising the post-work hours of 5pm to 9pm to build a business, perhaps as a trader on eBay or as a cake decorator or a photographer or maybe making items for sale, locally or internationally through a dedicated website etc. etc.. There are almost as many types of 5 to 9 businesses as there are people to do them, and the number is steadily on the increase. A good many people who are their own boss with a thriving full-time business today started out in this way, taking baby steps to make sure that their idea was going to work and to be sufficiently profitable, or maybe to test their service, products and prices in the marketplace in order to fine tune their offer before taking the leap to working solo full-time. So if you’ve got a good business idea but aren’t quite ready to take the leap to becoming your own boss full-time why not become a 5 to 9er first?

Be Your Own Boss: Pros & cons of self-employment

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:56:35 GMT

Before taking the leap to being your own boss it is important to gain a realistic understanding of both the upsides and the downsides of self-employment. Try compiling two lists cataloguing all the things you think will be positive and negative elements to quitting your job and becoming your own boss. This might include such things as:

Pros
- leaving behind the office politics
- doing away with the commute
- working when and where best suits you
- self-empowerment
- increased flexibility
- achieving a better work/life balance
- keeping all the rewards of your hard work and success
- freedom

Cons
- no more guaranteed salary
- loss of a circle of colleagues who offer support
- fear of the unknown
- isolation
- loneliness
- loss of IT infrastructure/support
- financial insecurity
- loss of a pre-defined worklife structure
- risk

Now reorder them according to priority to help you to see those factors which are really important to you. Each person’s list will of course be different but it is a useful and important way of gaining a realistic understanding of the pros and cons of self-employment before you take the leap to being to your own boss.

Be Your Own Boss: Do you have what it takes to go solo?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:32:49 GMT

Are you cut out to be your own boss, a natural ‘go it alone’ person or is the truth that you need the support of fellow colleagues around you and an established workplace infrastructure in order to be able to thrive? Would working from home suit you or would your work rate plummet amid the myriad distractions and comforts of home? One good way to help you to determine whether or not you have the right sort of personality to make it as a soloist is to take a psychometric profiling test. This is the field of study concerned with determining an individual’s primary personality traits through the application of psychological measurement instruments such as questionnaires through which respondents’ attitudes and aptitudes are measured, qualified and quantified (according to the Guardian newspaper, more than ninety-five percent of the companies in the FTSE 100 regularly use psychometric profiling to select their employees and to evaluate their ongoing happiness in their jobs). Of course you may be determined to give it a go even if all the indications are that you are not ideally suited (hopefully the tests will have identified that you are stubborn, determined and wilful!) but at least by having taken them you can better prepare yourself for the journey ahead.

Be Your Own Boss: Are you ready to be your own boss?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:18:05 GMT

Walt Disney once said that “the way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” But before you take the leap to becoming your own boss are you sure you really know what is involved? There are certainly many wonderful reasons for making the leap to becoming your own boss - working your own hours, days, weeks; finishing work whenever you feel like it; picking and choosing your clients; keeping all the rewards of your efforts and so on. But these are not what becoming your own boss actually means, what it entails and requires in order to give it the best possible chance of succeeding. What it means is carefully thinking through all the myriad steps which you’ll need to take in order to have at your disposal all those things you take for granted in a ‘standard’ job: a defined work structure; knowing who you are working for and when, and what that work will entail; having a support system in place in case you get stuck and need advice, or fall ill and cannot work for a while and so on. Try thinking through all the implications of going it alone before you take the leap. Are you ready to be your own boss?

Be Your Own Boss: eBay trading for soloists

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:34:12 GMT

eBay has surely changed the face of trading for ever, and for many people they made it possible to trade where previously the opportunity simply hadn’t existed. For some people this has meant the ability to turn a hobby into a lucrative hobby while for others it has enabled them to quit work and trade full-time. By creating a global marketplace through which traders can reach the largest possible audience even those with a very niche offer can generate the necessary volume of sales to support their business and indeed this business model often suits those who have become their own boss better than it does large companies. All you need to begin is a computer, internet access, an eBay account and an offer with which your potential consumers will engage. So if you think you have something to sell which other people will want to buy, and you think the margins are sufficient to allow you to generate a decent profit, why not give it a go as a 5 to 9 trader and see how you fare? Are you destined to be the next eBay millionaire?

Be Your Own Boss: IT for going solo

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:46:50 GMT

In order to be your own boss successfully you will need to get yourself equipped with the necessary IT infrastructure. But what does this entail? The exact requirements will of course depend on the type and nature of work you undertake, and to some extent for whom, and can vary enormously from one person (and from one business) to the next so it is important you determine the specific needs of your company before opening your chequebook. It is a great temptation to everyone when they become their own boss to invest in all manner of IT equipment, either because they wonder if it might be necessary and don’t want to risk not having it or simply because they really want to have the latest Apple i-Phone or i-Pad or Blackberry or shiny new laptop or the latest offering from Nokia, Samsung, Sony... the list is almost endless. The thing is to try to determine what your company and your business need rather than what you would like to have. Ensure you know the purpose each piece of equipment serves and that you are clear it really is necessary and will pay for it itself, albeit over time. Only then are you ready to go IT shopping – and to enjoy it to its full!

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Managing cash flow for survival

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:51:22 GMT

Does your heart sink when you hear the words cash flow? Sink at the thought of managing cash, and also because you know it can be a serious problem and you ought to be on top of it....

If you are thinking like this it means you do not understand cash flow at all, because if you did, it would be top of your business priority list. Cash is all you have at this moment, and no amount of orders and promised cheques will keep your business going when a supplier insists that you pay a bill now, today.

Many people muddle along – they know roughly what’s to be paid out, and they manage to juggle cash to cover it. You can muddle too, until someone doesn’t pay you because they’ve gone bust, and a supplier wants their money now, to avoid going broke. You can end up as the bankrupt meat in two bankrupts’ sandwich!

Manage your cash in two ways. First, know what cash you’ve got, and how it is flowing: what has to go out and what’s due to come in.

Second, work on improving the flow, so that you have more coming in well in advance of less going out. Improvements can mean higher prices, or lower costs or better timing – taking longer to pay, and getting paid promptly.

80% of small businesses fail because of cash flow problems. Cash flow is not difficult, it’s simply that the problem just doesn’t feel important enough until it’s catastrophic, and then it’s too late.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Grow your sales

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:43:15 GMT

If anyone in business searches for a magic bullet, it will be most often for the secret of successful selling. Of course, there is no single bullet, but there are a number of critical pieces of ammunition!

Think of selling as solving a customer’s problem, not pushing them to buy what you have for sale. With services this is critical – their problem is a blocked drain, or a demotivated team. Products solve problems too – what to have for dinner tonight, or what to wear in the gym.

You can’t solve problems if you don’t know what they are, so ‘know your customers’ is another bullet. Asking your customers for feedback on what they buy is one thing, asking them why they buy from you may produce other answers, as will asking what they would like to buy.

Having a saleable product or service is a fundamental. Too obvious? It may not be so obvious when you had something that was right, and don’t notice the market changing. Asking for customer feedback and watching competitors like a hawk will keep you on track.

Investing time in growing sales is last but by no means least. Work at it, instead of just hoping that people will beat a path to your door! If you’re selling services, that may mean networking and making lots of contacts. If it’s product, then exploring new markets or routes to market may be fruitful. For both of them cold calling in some form will bring results. It is hard to do this, but it really works! Don’t find yourself doing other things which are really just an excuse to avoid having to pick up the phone.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Increase your profits

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:44:17 GMT

Every business would like to make more profit, and usually the barriers are internal, not external, though we often blame others: “I can’t charge any more because people will go to the shop down the road.” “My supplier has put his prices up and I can’t change mine.”

Generally people err on the side of pricing low, not high. Setting a price is a big decision. It’s easy, if you price too high, to bring the price down, so it’s safer to be more expensive. If you start low, you’ll be unpopular when you increase the price, and even more so if you do it more than once, whereas no one will complain at a series of reductions.

Selling more is an obvious route to increase profits, but do not let that blind you to your cost and pricing structure. How much better to sell more at a 40% margin than a 20% one!

Price is at one end of the margin, and cost at the other. Ask yourself how well you are buying, how tough a negotiator you are. Do you just accept a price increase or do you shop around and check on your suppliers?

Ask yourself also if your costs are all essential. Do you need a big office, a new van, a fancy PC or expensive stationery? Do not just carry on buying what you have always bought – do a purchasing spring clean and see what it can do to your profit level.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: The secrets of marketing

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:08:11 GMT

• The first secret is that marketing is not a magic wand, but more of a useful set of tools.
• The second is that marketing does not have to be expensive, but it can be hard work.
• The third is that you need to be ruthless in finding out what works for you, and do only that.

Let’s take two examples: first, selling a retail product, and second, doing business consulting.

If you are selling a product to consumers, then you can spend a fortune on advertising, but no small business has a fortune to spend, so you will be clever, and use the internet well. A good website, filled with active keywords, and some careful investment in Google’s pay per click may be enough. You might supplement this with PR. Can you draft an article for a magazine which would feature your product?

If you are a business consultant, the marketing picture will be very different. You’ll need a website and business cards, but they are just to establish your organisation’s identity. Your marketing will be aimed at generating a network of contacts and building business by referral. Networking can be very time consuming, but it will pay off.

The marketing approaches are very different, and it is vital to do what works, not what feels like glamorous marketing. Keep asking yourself the question: ‘Will this deliver more business?’ This is the acid test of any marketing activity.

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Credit – staying ahead of the game

Credit is about three things:
• Where can you borrow money from, if you need it?
• Can your customers pay you on time?
• Can you pay your bills on time?

If you have a good answer to these three questions, you have credit well under control. If you don’t, then you are likely to be at serious risk, particularly when times are hard.

In difficult economic conditions, banks are reluctant to lend, but banks aren’t the only source of funding: private investors may be a better option. Ideally have a source of funds in place before you need it, then there will be no whiff of desperation, the turnoff for any investor or lender.

Keep an eye on the credit status of your customers, particularly if you deal with a few large ones. Take nothing for granted, things can change and a good payer may suddenly become a bad debt. If you see trouble ahead, ask for payment upfront.

It is important that you are seen as creditworthy by your suppliers. If you don’t pay up, you might contribute to their demise, and then you’ll have to find a replacement supplier, which can create its own problems.

It’s a tough discipline to anticipate problems like this, but it’s what you need to do to stay ahead, and ultimately to stay in business!

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Credit – staying ahead of the game

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:29:50 GMT

Credit is about three things:
• Where can you borrow money from, if you need it?
• Can your customers pay you on time?
• Can you pay your bills on time?

If you have a good answer to these three questions, you have credit well under control. If you don’t, then you are likely to be at serious risk, particularly when times are hard.

In difficult economic conditions, banks are reluctant to lend, but banks aren’t the only source of funding: private investors may be a better option. Ideally have a source of funds in place before you need it, then there will be no whiff of desperation, the turnoff for any investor or lender.

Keep an eye on the credit status of your customers, particularly if you deal with a few large ones. Take nothing for granted, things can change and a good payer may suddenly become a bad debt. If you see trouble ahead, ask for payment upfront.

It is important that you are seen as creditworthy by your suppliers. If you don’t pay up, you might contribute to their demise, and then you’ll have to find a replacement supplier, which can create its own problems.

It’s a tough discipline to anticipate problems like this, but it’s what you need to do to stay ahead, and ultimately to stay in business!

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Sales cycles: feast or famine!

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:58:03 GMT

If you’ve experienced feast and famine, you will know that a feast is more like a treadmill, whereas famine is more like famine! This phrase is applied most often to service organisations, but it can happen to any business.

At feast time you are rushed off your feet, thinking only about delivery. You will have no time for building your pipeline and finding your next new customers.

When famine hits you may just have emerged from a busy period, with no prospect of an order in sight. It will be hard to cope without the pressure you’ve been used to. You may lose momentum, or worse, motivation.

The secret, of course, is never to stop growing your business; never to stop looking for the next opportunity, no matter how busy you are now. Either that, or plan positively for a period where you will survive on the proceeds of the feast, and not expect to earn much, instead putting a huge effort into marketing and sales. If you take this route, do it in the knowledge of how long it takes you to win business. For example if, as a consultant, you average 9 months before you close a big project, then with no pipeline, you might have to plan for a year of famine – can you cope with that, both personally and financially?

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Quality of service

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:57:20 GMT

Ask yourself what you most value about a purchase you have made. Of course it may be the features of a new mobile phone, or the performance of a new car – pure product characteristics. Almost invariably, though, this impression will be greatly enhanced if you received good service in the buying process. When it comes to obtaining services rather than products, such as good plumbing or financial advice, then quality is the very thing you are buying, and it becomes critical.

Everyone complains about call centres, about unhelpful responses or obstructive systems that make it hard work for you, the customer. Incredibly, we all seem to feel strongly about these things, yet many are happy to inflict them on their own customers!

The secret of good service is to know your customers, and if you can’t know them all, then know enough to give you a good sample of their views. Know them by talking to them, phoning them up, asking them what they think. Know them also by stepping into their shoes, and seeing and experiencing your service through their eyes.
In today’s world, excellent service makes you stand out a mile – it buys loyalty, recommendations and referrals, which translate straight to your bottom line.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Keeping your ‘edge’

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:47:52 GMT

Are you steering your business exactly where you want it to go, or is it going its own way, with you frantically busy in the back seat, nowhere near the wheel....

As you spend your day rushing from the computer to the post box, whilst on the phone to clients and trying to meet that deadline, it is hardly surprising that you have no time to think or plan. In fact it’s easy to be reactive, and easy to say that you don’t have time for all that planning stuff, because you are too busy doing real work!

The problem sits in those two words: ‘real work’. You may say that planning isn’t real work, it’s airy fairy stuff that bank managers ask about when they want to find a reason not to lend you money! If you disagree, that still may not mean that you actually do much planning, because planning is rarely urgent, merely important, and in a small business, there are almost always more urgent things to do.

But if someone said to you, are you in control of your business or is it drifting, you would surely not want to say yes? You’ll want to say you know where the market is going, what your competitors are up to, what new ideas you have for the future. In which case, find a way to give reviewing and planning the priority it deserves.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: Advice and advisors

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:31:01 GMT

Running a small business can be lonely. You may have a number of staff, but no one to talk to. You may be an IT expert, with not a clue about marketing. You may worry there’s not much money in the bank, and keep hoping for the best.

All of these situations are common, and can be solved with a good advisor. Some people don’t like asking for any kind of advice, in which case they are heading for trouble, along with the people who don’t know they need it till it’s too late.

One solution to these problems is a business buddy – a colleague or someone you know who also runs a small business, and has complementary skills to you. So the IT expert might pair up with a marketing specialist, for example. They can offer each other their specific skills, but just as important, they can be a sounding board for issues and problems. They can prompt you to seek professional advice when you both see a problem that neither of you can solve.

Professional advice does not have to be expensive, and can come free from any business organisation you belong to, or the government, for example. You have little to lose by asking, and what you gain could be as big as the survival of your business.

Make Your Small Business a Winner: What is your winning formula?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:14:20 GMT

This is a good test of your business resilience: what do you offer that is special, that stands out from the competition, and meets the market needs? In other words, how do your strengths match your opportunities?

Asking these questions will enable you to focus on what your strengths are, and whether they constitute usps (unique sales propositions), or if they simply compare reasonably well with the competition. It will also show up your understanding of the market, which you will need in order to identify the opportunities it presents.

For example, if you are able to build a website at twice the speed and half the price of your competitors, you will have a great winning formula to sell to other small businesses in poor economic conditions, where a website is a ‘must have’ but cost is a big issue.

Some people have an instinct for the market and where it’s going, others need to work hard to get that information, but when you’ve got it you need to know how best to use your strengths to exploit it. The more tightly your offering is tuned to present and future market needs, and the more it distinguishes itself from the competition, the better your winning formula will be.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Self-sabotage – Overcoming our scripts

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:29:53 GMT

Many of us are driven by our unconscious behaviour to self-sabotage ourselves. It is as if we were handed a script of pre-ordained self-sabotaging behaviour in childhood and that we are compelled to act out our role – even though it does not serve our own purpose.

We can recognise and categorise other characters’ self-sabotage scripts more easily than our own. There is the person who wants love but whose words drive others away; the competitive person who must win no matter that it costs their relationships and other things they hold dear; the passive-aggressive character who seethes internally at a situation but will not challenge others or initiate change.

How do you recognise your own script? If the other characters, the location and scenery in your script keeps changing and the only constant in the scene is ‘you’ – then it is your personal script.

Being aware of our situation will not be enough to resolve it. We need to explore options and identify alternative behaviours that will get us better outcomes and then to put them into action.

Change your thinking and behaviour and you change your script and the outcomes you get become positive. (Chapter 18 – Who have you got on your team?)

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: NLP in a nutshell

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:27:55 GMT

NLP is a set of tools and techniques designed to help people reach their full potential. The original work developed from modelling how people with exceptional talents got their outstanding results. Once a skill can be described it can be taught and learnt.

You might want to become more confident when giving presentations, or in communicating with others, feel more in control of your thoughts and actions. Perhaps you want to perform a task, or feel more confident at what you do.

The trick is to notice the techniques that others’ employ to get their successful outcomes, and apply them to areas you want to improve in. For example, if you feel you don’t have the knowledge or behaviour to achieve the things you want, you can adapt other peoples’ ways of thinking about and doing these things and make them your own.

Using NLP techniques, we collect success strategies within a framework that is beneficial to us. We work out in advance which strategies would be most useful to have. What will having these skills let us do that we are struggling with now? We ask ourselves ‘where are these skills are likely to take us’? Then we plan how we intend to reach our goal. (Chapter 1 – Preparing a well-formed outcome)

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Negative thinking

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:27:03 GMT

Negative thinking is a form of self-talk we use to mentally beat ourselves up for our shortcomings. If our default setting is set to ‘negative’ then a small event that upsets us like missing a bus or forgetting to post a letter can be the trigger that sucks us into a spiral of negative thinking.

Every thought that follows discounts all the positive actions you have taken. If a solution is offered and you are in a negative frame of mind you will be incapable of recognising it. Negative thinking is pessimistic and often illogical because it focuses only on negative aspects.

We can all recall and associate into an experience that gives us bad feelings at will. All it takes to trigger peoples’ mental movie is to say ‘remember when that terrible thing happened…‘ And they take themselves back into a hypnotic negative state and do the rest.

If you can associate into negative thoughts at will – you can associate into positive thinking too. Why not choose a positive thinking ritual that is linked to success instead of failure? ‘Recall a time when you felt truly alive and powerful, when everything you did worked like magic…‘ Build beliefs that support your aims and install some positive thinking habits (Chapter 5 – Choose your patterns for success)

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Confidence building and raising self-esteem

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:22:20 GMT

Research in America indicates that 80 per cent of children enter school with high self-esteem, yet by the time they leave only 5 per cent still value themselves. Self-esteem, our opinion of ourselves, is what makes us feel good about ourselves, worthy of happiness, and capable of meeting life’s challenges.

We learn about the world via feedback, and so we learn about ourselves, who we are, what we can do, by the feedback we get from parents and people close to us. From this feedback, combined with our own observations we perceive what we are capable of and develop, or don’t develop, self-esteem.

How can we build self-esteem? When we put some structure to our own experience we can apply it to helping people to grow and develop and build their sense of having high self-esteem.

So how do you give people feedback in a way that encourages self-esteem? If a person behaves badly, criticise the behaviour not the person. When they do something well praise them unreservedly in a way that links their good behaviour to their identity and builds their confidence. Praise people in ways that make them think well about themselves.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Inspirational voices

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:26:19 GMT

Who are the people who inspire you most, the ones whose words still ring in your ears? Often their words reframe the way you have been thinking about your life and influence you to aspire to greater challenges.

For some the words of a twelfth-century poet called Rumi have been a call to action. Rumi said: ‘The same intelligence that created the galaxies and the universe also created me.’ It is so simple and technically inarguable. Yet why do so many of us choose to hide our talents when we are powerful beyond measure?

Similar words echo throughout the ages by those who have been called to action. Nelson Mandela at his inaugural speech, quoted Marianne Williamson’s poem, ‘A Return to Love’: ‘Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us.’

Is it really worth it to play small and hide your talents, to shrink so that others don’t feel insecure around you? These words really are a rallying cry, for those who really listen and reflect on them. Inspirational speakers are those who have the words to liberate us to be fully who we are.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Goal setting and skills-building success

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:24:49 GMT

Use NLP strategies for setting goals when you undertake new projects.

Decide what you want - (know your outcome at the start of the project)
Do something – (take an action)
Notice what happens when you take the action – (become acutely aware of what is going on)
Be flexible - (if what you’re doing isn’t working do something else. Be prepared to change your behaviour until you get your goal.)
Take action– an idea is only a notion, unless an action follows. Use strategies for successful goal-setting regularly in order to instil habits of reaching your goals. (Chapter 8 – The power of setting goals, Chapter 15 – Strengthen your completion drive)
W
hen you set increasingly more challenging goals then inevitably you will require additional skills. Many people can become ‘blocked’ and give up trying at this stage. It is important that you stay focused, because ‘Most people are only five or six skills away from achieving the successes they want in life’ says Robert Kiyosaki author of the multi-million pound New York best seller, ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’.

NLP has some brilliant techniques for identifying and modelling the strategies used by successful people. Learn to model specifically what they do, it will give you extra leverage to succeed. (Chapter 13 – Model success strategies)

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Work-life balance

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:33:54 GMT

You might dream of escaping a stressful work and travel situation and changing your lifestyle. But have you thought about how you might actually achieve it?

If you intend to change your career then it helps to know how others took the leap, especially if moving from paid work to self-employment, because mistakes or lack of knowledge can prove costly.

Knowing the variety of ways other people manage their transition hurdles helps you pick up ideas and develop a plan of your own. The trick is to find out what you really enjoy doing and then to work out how to make money at it.

Whenever you meet someone who has a really interesting job, one you would like to do, get into the habit of asking: ‘How did you do that?’ Then listen carefully and obtain their strategy. (Chapter 13 – Noticing successful strategies)

Vic Taylor, an environmental studies teacher was made redundant. He now runs Mynewt Enterprises, a one-man environmental road show for children. Vic takes roving animal encounter sessions to schools and libraries and teaches children about the world. He also runs popular children’s parties where animals are the guests. He is now happier than he has ever been because he has control over his life.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: The pink bubble meditation

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:32:49 GMT

We deal with stress by using imagery, and the movies we create in our ‘minds eye’ determine the quality of our lives. Before we succeed or fail at anything we run through scenarios for success and pinpoint possible crisis points.

Stress is an inside job. When you change the way you view a situation the situation changes. Guided meditation creates calm, aids relaxation and clears your mental landscape of the frustrations of the day.

The pink bubble meditation is a good way of calming yourself when you experience stress triggers. Close your eyes and sigh deeply. Become aware of your body and relax any tension you may feel in your neck, shoulders, forehead and down throughout your body.

Focus on your breathing. Note the air being inhaled then exhaled from your body. Imagine your mind as a glass full of pink bubbly champagne.

Fix your gaze on the champagne and allow any thoughts that come out of it to be encapsulated in a pink bubble that gradually floats away. The bubbles might be worries about a meeting, making changes, or a reminder about something you must do. Encapsulate each thought as it appears, then watch it float away. Gradually, your thoughts will become calmer and you will achieve a still, clearer mind.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Build energy and flow in your life

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:18:28 GMT

If you were doing all the things you really wanted to do – what would make your heart sing? If you have felt the presence of energy and flow in your life before you will know that the experience is exhilarating, yet often fleeting. When we work with a purpose in mind, make plans and set goals that stretch us to go beyond our boundaries then the feeling we get is one of energy and flow.

When we have no sense of structure, purpose, or achievement to what we do then often we can feel that our energy is ‘blocked’. If you are feeling blocked then plant some ideas that follow the universal principles of manifestation and abundance and recapture your feelings of ‘energy’ and ‘flow’.

Open up to your powers of universal intuitive guidance and listen. Ask yourself: ‘Whose purpose am I on?’ and ‘What would I have to do to feel more energetic and purposeful?’ Ask whether you have the support of your subconscious mind for your current actions.

There are only three ways that change happens: either (1) You make it happen (2) Someone else makes it happen, or (3) Time passes and the opportunity is gone. Use your energy to make things you want happen.

Motivate Yourself and Reach Your Goals: Question limiting beliefs

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:29:03 GMT

Much of the NLP change work is based on helping people to recognise their own limiting thoughts and to challenge them. Here is a tip on challenging your limiting beliefs. Think of a belief you hold that stops you from getting the achievements you want. It may be: ‘I am not good at…something’, ‘I am not meant to be…something. Reflect on the following questions and listen to what your inner voice tells you.

The precision questions to ask are:
‘How would you know if what you are thinking was not true?’
What would happen if you could do this thing you say you can’t do?
‘Why is it like that?’

These are powerful questions, because in each case they require you to take your thinking a step beyond any self-imposed limiting boundaries, and to imagine a new belief.

Once you can imagine the new belief then the door opens a chink, enough to sweep out the old belief and replace it with a more empowering one. (Chapter 9 – Challenging limiting beliefs)

Beat Stress With Meditation: Yoga

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:40:52 GMT

The word Yoga is derived from the Sanksrit, yuj, meaning ‘to unite, integrate or join.’ Yoga therefore connects and unifies moral, mental, physical and spiritual well-being, and the various branches of Yoga achieve this in differing ways. Western Yoga is mainly Hatha Yoga. Taking its name from the two Sanskrit words for sun and moon, Ha-tha Yoga unifies and harmonizes the whole person by working directly on the body using a series of postures called asanas. Hatha Yoga impacts deeply into the nerves, glands and vital organs; its purifying action improves mental skills, lifts awareness and awakens spiritual sensitivity.

Jnana Yoga is the path of spiritual knowledge through study and meditation. Karma Yoga is the path of union through action. Derived from the Sanskrit Kri, meaning ‘to do’, it is a way of selfless action without attachment to any outcome. Bhakti Yoga is the path of devotion and worship to God. Derived from the Sanskrit verb root, bhaj, meaning ‘to share in, to belong to, to worship’, Bhakti Yoga includes praise and song, offering service, meditation and the surrender of self in divine loving union with deity. Raja Yoga or Royal Yoga is primarily concerned with taming the mind, the king of the psycho-physical being through meditation as a means of discipline and purification. It is founded upon a moral, spiritual and practical code laid down by the sage Patanjali.

Compared with its broad and ancient eastern lineage, the modern western experience of Yoga is relatively narrow. Nevertheless its many benefits have contributed to a widespread popularity.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Practice

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:38:13 GMT

Meditation is a practical personal activity; it cannot be learned by reading a book even though informed reading can be of great value. Meditation must be experienced through personal practice, the daily and repeated exercise of entering into a particular meditative awareness. Sustained practice alone brings the many benefits that meditation brings.

To establish your own practice, start with a short daily period of between five and ten minutes and build up to longer periods of between 15 and 20 minutes. In the beginning don’t set unrealistic goals. In the early stages, practice tends to throw up many resistances. Mental obstacles such as boredom and distracting thoughts are quite normal; the only solution is to keep going. As practice becomes assimilated, the many traditional meditative techniques begin to show their depth and value. Since it is never possible to fully master or exhaust any particular technique, practice is always experiential and fresh; meditation is a lifelong journey.

Meditation takes many forms; those belonging quite specifically to particular traditions are part of a student-teacher relationship. However, since mindfulness practice is accessible and beneficial, it makes an excellent starting place for anyone. Moreover when mindfulness is applied to all aspects of daily living, practice spills over from the formal session into an informal few moments of mental collection during the day. The bedrock of meditation is daily practice but in time every moment and experience of the day becomes the fuel for practice so that life and meditation merge into one seamless garment.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Buddhism

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:30:23 GMT

Buddhism was founded on the experience of Siddhartha Gautama. Born a prince, he was determined to leave the confines of the palace where he saw death, sickness and old age for the first time. After eventually leaving, he travelled for many years seeking spiritual truth. Finally after six years, he settled into meditation beneath the shade of a tree where he attained enlightenment, a profound state of directly seeing into the nature of reality and in doing so became the Buddha, ‘One who is Awake.’ Buddhism was founded.

This founding story gives Buddhism two of its unique characteristics: the importance of meditation and the quest for enlightenment. After his enlightenment the Buddha attracted a small group of followers and gave his first teaching on The Four Noble Truths: life as we know it leads to suffering, suffering is caused by our attachments, suffering ends by reaching a state of enlightenment. The last of the Four Noble Truths sets out the Buddhist path to liberation. Called The Noble Eightfold Path, this is a practical guide for an ethical and aware life: Right View means to see and things as they really are. Right Intention brings commitment and energy to daily life. Right Speech orientates thought and conduct. Right Action grounds behaviour in an ethical code. Right Livelihood places a moral significance on how to earn a living. Right Effort is a prerequisite for personal development. Right Mindfulness is anchored in clear perception. Right Concentration refers to the development of mental faculties. These guidelines offer a gentle and simple yet profound view of life, not surprisingly Buddhism now has many western followers.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Retreats

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:38:59 GMT

Contemporary life is stressful: timetables and deadlines, continuous pressures, noise and the demands of home and work inevitably take a toll on mind, body and spirit; the retreat could be the necessary antidote. A retreat is not a holiday but an opportunity to step outside the working routine and join the gentler rhythm of a spiritual community. If you are thinking about looking for a retreat, the Internet is the best place to begin. You will easily find all the information you need to plan a retreat in the UK or somewhere more exotic in the world. Since the retreat has developed as part of the monastic religious life, modern retreats are commonly offered by Buddhist or Christian groups though non-affiliated spiritual communities also open their doors to guests. You will be made welcome wherever you go whether you are committed to a single tradition or just have an interest in finding more about a particular way of life.

The retreat provides a unique healing space in which ‘to be’ rather than ‘to do’. Its simplicity offers a glimpse into a different way of living at a slower and richer pace based around spiritual practices such as meditation, contemplative silence and prayer. Many retreats also include Yoga or Tai Chi, healing workshops, talks, discussions or walks into the surrounding countryside. On retreat you will have the opportunity to meet like-minded people, exchange ideas, share in spiritual companionship, review priorities and possibly discover life changing possibilities. Even a short stay can bring lasting benefit; going on retreat is a unique and special experience in today’s frantic world.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Vipassana

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:40:14 GMT

Vipassana means to see things as they really are. Vipassana meditation develops a knowing about the world based on direct perception, rather than the more usual reliance upon intellectual concepts of the world. In Tibetan, the term is translated to mean ‘superior seeing’, ‘great vision’ or ‘supreme wisdom’. In English the term is less effectively translated as ‘insight meditation’.

Vipassana meditation is intended to precipitate insight into the essential nature of reality; this existential and transpersonal goal will be unfamiliar to anyone just beginning meditation practice. The realization of supreme wisdom might be seen as an ultimate goal; the expert mountain climber has a unique view but the novice does not expect to stand at the summit. Insight meditation, supreme wisdom, the way of superior seeing cannot be self-taught; teaching takes place through residential intensive courses or from a personal teacher within a particular school.

Vipassana meditation is not confined to a single tradition and includes a wide number of techniques: contemplation, introspection, analytic meditation, experiential observation and meditations on impermanence and lack of independent essence, all designed to break down conceptual constructs and habitual thinking. For instance the concept, ‘tree’ describes a wide range of phenomena which share certain qualities, yet trees are not identical and a deeper analysis reveals that the tree consists of many interdependent functions each dynamically interactive, the concept is therefore a gross oversimplification of experience. The way to supreme wisdom via insight begins by replacing familiar conceptual ideas with the immediacy of direct perception; then the world will come to life.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Guided meditation

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:32:39 GMT

Meditation is most often a silent, internal experience. However a guided meditation is led and directed by a second person, usually a class teacher who describes a particular inner landscape in considerable detail. This type of meditation is now widely packaged in CD or audio form for a western audience; the voice provides a narrated description, the listener creates matching visual images. Although visualized meditations have a long and respectable history in both eastern and western traditions, this does not mean that visualization of itself has meaning and transformative potential.

Typically a guided meditation will invite the listener to create a pleasant scene. This form of directed reverie uses the natural image-making facility of the mind, so that even a novice will feel a sense of achievement and such inner journeys are useful as a means of relaxation. However, the transformative impact of visualized meditations is generated from skilfully developed symbolic images, not merely pleasant journeys in the mind. Detached from any particular lineage such as Tibetan Buddhism or the Western Mystery tradition which both apply specific visualized journeys, the freelance guided meditation has a limited value as an agent of personal transformation. Meditation presents challenges, poses inner obstacles, exposes thinking, reaches deeply into the psyche, rebuilds values, sharpens the intellect, and strengthens insight, among many other subtle and complex processes. Imagining pleasant mental scenes cannot accomplish such an in-depth, holistic and essentially spiritual rebirth.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Pig breeds

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:39:14 GMT

In the UK pig breeds can be divided into either native or commercial breeds. Native breeds tend to be fewer in number and are usually kept and fed naturally in an outdoor environment by smaller farmers, or those who want to know where their food comes from and how the pig is fed - the ‘self sufficient’ route. Commercial breeds are often imported and/or genetically cross bred to meet the supermarket demand for faster growing pigs. These pigs are often kept indoors and live under “factor farming” conditions to ensure they mature early. This is perceived to be ‘what the public want’ although in many instances this may not be the case.

Traditional and Rare Breeds include the following:

Tamworth Middle White Welsh
Large Black Gloucestershire Old Spots British Lop
British Saddleback Oxford Sandy & Black Berkshire
Mangalitza Kune-Kune Iron Age Pig
Wild Boar Vietnamese Pot Bellied Pietrain

Commercial Breeds include:

Meidam Large White Hybrid Sows
Hampshire Duroc British Landrace

Pigs are not solely bred to produce either top quality pork or outstanding bacon/ham/gammon. The breed is important but so too is the age of the pig. It is a myth that real top quality pork and bacon can be obtained at the same time from the one pig. It is like lamb and mutton. Top quality pork comes from a younger pig around 26 weeks and top quality bacon from an older pig around 10 to 12 months old. The old time pig farmers maintained that the best bacon came from a sow that had produced one litter at around 15 months old.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Pig courses

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:42:47 GMT

It is sensible to attend a course on keeping pigs before you start or as soon as you can. It will make you a better pig keeper and undoubtedly save you money in the long run,

The question is “Which course should I take?”

For those wishing to become full time commercial pig keepers then a full or part- time college course is recommended. These are run by your local agricultural college or university. Those with the intention of becoming a ‘Small Scale’ pig keeper should bear the following in mind when looking for an alternative course:

a. The course teacher should have long-term experience in teaching and pig keeping. Good pig keepers are not always good teachers and you need both.
b. All pigs are different so look for a course that corresponds to the pigs you will keep. It is no good attending a course for meat producing pigs if you want to have a ‘pet’ pig. If breeding interests you then look for a course that includes this.
c. There is no substitute for age when it comes to experience.
d. Learning is an ongoing process so look for a course that continues to offer help and assistance upon completion.
e. Ask the course administrator for the contact details of previous participants and speak to them about their experiences on the course.
f. The quality of the course is of the utmost importance, the cost and location are less so. A local course will be of little use if the content is not suitable or badly taught. In life you usually get what you pay for
g. Look for a course that covers a broad range of pig keeping information. You don’t want to have to pay to attend another course later.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Pig breeders

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:38:13 GMT

It is important to buy pigs (or piglets) from a recognised breeder, doing so ensure s that the pigs are healthy and meet all breeding standards. Furthermore, dealing with recognised breeders guarantees that you will have someone to refer to if and when you require assistance.

A good breeder will be more than a supplier s/he will also be a mine of information about that breed and pigs in general.

The best place to start looking for breeders of any particular breed of pig is either the British Pig Association or one of the recognised Breed Societies

1. The British Pig Association - www.britishpigs.org.uk - 01223 845100
2. Berkshire Pig Breeders Club - www.berkshirepigs.org.uk – 01989 750079
3. Gloucestershire Old Spots Breeders Club - www.oldspots.com - 01285 860229
4. Middle White Breeders Club: - 01753 654166
5. Tamworth Breeders Club - 01205 871792: - 07771 797613
6. British Saddleback Breeders Club - 01285 860229
7. Large Black Breeders Club - www.largeblackpigs.co.uk - 0161 976 4734
8. Oxford Sandy & Black Club - www.oxfordsandypigs.co.uk - 01722 718263
9. The Pedigree Welsh Pig Society - www.pedigreewelsh.com - 01656 724 914
10. Kune-Kune Pig Soc - www.britishkunekunesociety.org.uk 01981 240749

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Pig health

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:37:03 GMT

Pigs are usually very healthy animals and provided they are kept and fed correctly they rarely become ill. If your pig becomes ill or shows signs of sickness call your vet immediately because the longer you leave things the worse it can become.

Pigs require a dry, warm house (pig ark) to sleep in, a balanced diet and appropriate vaccinations to protect him against known problems such as Erysipelas and Parvo Virus. You should also be aware of the following signs which indicate your pig is unwell:

Not eating normally
Drinking or eating only sloppy food (toothache)
Straight tail when walking
Wheezing cough (usually lung worm)
Scouring (diarrhoea)
Scratching (lice or mange)
Diamond shaped lumps on the side or back (Erysipelas)
Hairy standing up on back – ‘hairy pig’ (often a sign of worms)
Lumps or swelling on joints (Joint Evil)
Temperature (normal 39ºC or 102.5 ºF)
Not drinking
Lethargic

If a pig shows little or no interest when you visit it is usually unwell. A healthy pig is bright and inquisitive. Spend some time watching for signs of problems such as limping, eating very slowly or picking at the feed and examine the coat for lice or mange .

Buy a thermometer and always have it close at hand in the pig ark. If you have to look for a thermometer you may well avoid doing so until the next day because it is too much trouble.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Traditional pig keeping

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:51:33 GMT

Unlike commercial ‘factory farming’ where animals are cooped up inside traditional pig keeping offers pigs the chance to live naturally. Pigs are animals that give rather than take and in return for sacrificing a small area of land the pig keeper is rewarded with a lifestyle that keeps the stresses and strains of modern day living at bay.

Small scale traditional pig keeping will not only enhance the quality of your life but also put better quality food on the table. As people become increasingly aware of what they are eating more and more people are turning to pig keeping as a source of nutrition. Provided they are fed and reared naturally, in a similar tradition to that of smallholders and cottagers, you will produce your own outstanding pork in just 17 weeks (from the time you buy your piglets at 9 weeks until they reach pork weight at 26 weeks).

If you take this advice, follow a few simple rules and employ traditional methods the time and effort required of pig keeping is minimal but the rewards will be huge.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Piglets

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:46:45 GMT

Adorable, fascinating, lovable, enchanting, amusing and captivating are just a very few of the adjectives used to describe piglets . There is hardly ever a bad word said about them although the phrase ‘time wasters’ does occasionally spring to mind.

Piglets are very independent animals. After 115 days inside their mother’ s womb they are delivered into this world with their only saviour being instinct, courage and a determination to survive. From the first shaky stumble to find the ‘milk bar’ they are alone, the mother (sow) makes no attempt to lick, clean, dry or touch them in any way.

A pig can have any number of piglets; an average of ten to twelve piglets successfully born and reared is good. It is not usual for a sow that is kept and fed naturally to have between fourteen and sixteen. Most pig breeds have a minimum of twelve teats although, again, fourteen or sixteen is not unusual so in such cases a mother can successfully rear a similar number of piglets.

A piglet, although still suckling, will start picking at solid food from about 10 days old and should be weaned (separated from mother) at about 8 weeks. Piglets kept inside require an iron injection within four to six days of birth as they lack a sufficient amount of iron in their bodies. If they are kept naturally and able to dig and eat the outside soil they will get all the iron they need from day one. Grass and soil in the piglet’s ark is the greatest gift you can give him.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Pig equipment

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:44:12 GMT

If you are an equipment freak then you are going to be sadly disappointed if you become a pig keeper. Luckily to become a successful pig keeper you do not have to spend a great deal of money on equipment.

The most important item is, of course, your housing. A pig ark should be dry with a floor and doors. The floor makes it easier to clean and saves the pigs sleeping on wet mud in the winter whilst doors are essential for separating pigs when necessary. An ark that is cool in the summer and warm in the winter is ideal.

Items of ‘equipment’ you should have from the outset are a thermometer, a ‘Slap-Shot Vaccinator’ for ease of injecting, a water trough and a feeding trough. While many of you may delight at the thought of having a Livestock trailer it is not necessary to buy one and it is certainly not ‘cost effective’ if you have a small herd. It is better to hire one for a day or borrow (or beg!) one from a local farmer. And, as exciting as a ‘Quad Bike’ might seem you do not need one for pig keeping.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Books on keeping pigs

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:35:59 GMT

Picking a specialist book on any topic is a daunting prospect. Although written specifically for pig keeping these simple rules can be adapted to any situation when in doubt:

1. Is this book up-to-date?
Make sure that the book you are considering is no more than 5 years old unless it has been revised.
2. Is the author experienced in the field?
Ensure the author is an established pig keeper. It takes more than ten years to really know any subject well enough to write about it
3. Is it right for what I want to do?
For commercial farming on a large scale you will need a technical book containing facts and figures with food conversion weights etc. If you are pig keeping on a smaller scale then you will need a book that takes a more ‘hands-on ’ approach.
4. Is it engaging?
Many pig keeping books make difficult reading so choose wisely. If you find an author with experience who has a sense of humour and a writing style that makes you want to buy it after a few pages then you have found what you are looking for.
5. Is it a Bible on the topic?
Remember that the book you buy should be like a ‘pig Bible’. Whenever you need help, advice or solace you should feel able to turn to it.
6. Is it practical and informative?
A large glossy hardback ‘coffee table’ book with hundreds of stunning photographs may look great on the table but will it be of use when you are farrowing in the rain and cold? A ‘pocket sized’ book you can read by the fire but also carry with you is what you need.
7. If you think it is a book you will read once and enjoy the pictures then think again. If it is a book that will become well thumbed – buy it!

Whatever book you ultimately decide to buy must be practical, easy to read and easy to use. Happy reading.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Rare breed pigs

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:48:14 GMT

Rare Breed pigs provide a link to the past and a source of hope for the future. The difference between keeping Rare Breed and Commercial pigs is vast . Not only are they easier to keep, with a temperament that encourages you to do something to save them, but they also produce meat that will make you think the future is bright after all.

It is difficult for people to understand that the only way we can preserve these amazing animals is by eating them but this is the case. On average the sex of half a litter of piglets is male and only one in every six of seven litters might be wanted for breeding (all the females can be used for breeding!), for this reason we have to find a market for the males or they will eat their keeper out of house and home.

The ‘Berkshire’ and the ‘Middle White’ (so ugly they are beautiful) were bred to produce pork whilst the ‘Tamworth’ (the aristocrat of the pig world) and the ‘British Lop’ are classic dual purpose pigs that produce excellent bacon as well as first class pork. The ‘Large Black’, sometimes called the ‘Cornish Black’ (the elephant eared pig), is long, lean and prized for its bacon. Originally from China it has become firmly established as a Rare Breeds. If you want great mothers then look no further than the ‘Oxford Sandy & Black’ or the ‘British Saddleback’ both of whom are dual purpose breeds producing pork and bacon of equal quality. The ‘Oxford Sandy & Black’ has a great temperament and makes a perfect starter pig.

Probably the best known of all Rare Breed pigs is the ‘Gloucestershire Old Spots’. Folk law tells us that it got its spots when it was walking through the orchards of Gloucestershire and the apples fell on it causing bruising that turned into spots.

Whatever breed you end up choosing treat it as something special and you can be sure that it will return the compliment.

Get Started In Pig Keeping: Showing pigs

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:50:46 GMT

Before showing your pig it is important to know what is required of him. Before you enter the ring there is a lot of work to be done but any effort you put in will be wasted if you have the wrong pig or if he does not meet the required breed standards.

Your starting point must be to contact the appropriate breed society or the British Pig Association and learn the very important breed standards. You can visit all the appropriate websites, learn everything about your breed and discover the showing requirements but it is better to have this officially confirmed before devoting yourself to preparation, otherwise your efforts may be wasted.

Not only must the pig you are showing be trained to walk by your side around a ring but it must also be trained to react to your commands e.g. responding to the touches you give it with your show board and paddle. Go to shows, observe and speak to those involved as they know exactly what showing is all about.

When you see a pig behaving well in the show ring you can be certain that the owner has spent many a long hour training that pig. Pigs are very intelligent animals and respond well to training provided they are encouraged by kindness, patience and the odd treat or two. This change does not happen overnight.

Equally important is how you look and behave in the ring. It may ultimately tip the scales and place your pig ahead of an equally good competitor. A spotless white show coat, clean shoes and an upright confident walk will definitely make a difference if your nearest rival is in old jeans and dirty Wellington boots. If you pig looks its best then so should you – don’t let him down.

Be a Great Mum: What is parenting confidence?

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 05:00:39 GMT

Bringing up children is a joy and a challenge and it doesn’t stop when they have left home. Wondering if you are doing what‘s best for your children and questioning your ability to know about everything from what to cook for tea to how to choose a school, or sorting out squabbles or running a birthday party is such a huge job. It’s not surprising it feels very overwhelming and knocks your confidence. The best kind of confidence that helps parents feel resourceful is built strongly within, and not dependent on external influences to help you feel you are a good enough parent. Signs of a confident parent would be that he or she can sustain a positive outlook, be happy with their parenting standards being good enough, (not perfect) and be willing to engage with their children through play and learning. It’s normal to have days when you feel more able to do this than others, but the trick is to recognize that you can take steps to boost your confidence from within. Instead of paying attention to opinions and attitudes that question your confidence, whether from your own internal critic or external friends and family, remind yourself that you are still doing an amazing job caring for your children and wanting the best for them when there are many pressures to overcome.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: What are your parenting values?

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 05:00:10 GMT

Our values constantly drive our thoughts, feelings and behaviour. As parents, values create a moral code for us based on how we want to bring up our children. This informs how to behave towards our children and make decisions about what we believe is right or wrong. We might think its important to be kind, to be fair or loving. They come from how we were brought up, and it is amazing how powerful our parents’ values still feature when it comes to raising our own family. Add to that your partner’s values and it’s easy to see why a clash of values in families causes conflict. You might think honesty is essential, and perhaps your partner is happy with the occasional ‘white lie’. If you can, agree with your partner what are the absolute core values you want to stand for as parents. They need to really matter to you – if they don’t, your children won’t believe it’s worth living up to these principles. It’s not just about saying them; your words need to match your actions. There is not much point in lecturing your children about the importance of honesty or punctuality if they witness you lying or being late. When our values are challenged it can be very hard to stay calm and rational. When our values are respected, we find it much easier to be the kind of parent we want our children to have. The kind of parent that will enable our children to make their own wise judgements and be able to cope with what life throws at them.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Budgeting

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:24:06 GMT

If you only have time to do one thing relating to your finances then do a budget plan. A budget plan is a way of recording all of your expenses and all of your income over a fixed period of time, usually a month. You can create a budget plan on paper or set it up on a spreadsheet if you are that way inclined.

Budget plans are made up of two sets of information – income and outgoings. The first stage is to itemise all of your sources of income per month. Typically this will be from your main job but may also include other income such as interest paid on savings, family allowance or other benefits. For most of us this will probably only be a fairly small list. Then add all of this up.

Now comes the harder part. You need to list all items of expenditure. This is all of the money going out of the house each month. You can get this information from recent bills or from your bank statements. This will be a long list and will include your mortgage or rent, utility bills, council tax, petrol and food. Make sure that you account for absolutely everything as many people underestimate how much they spend each month. Add all of this up and then add 10% as a contingency.

Now take the total outgoings figure from the total income figure and you will see how much you have got left or how much you overspend each month.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Children and students

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:32:03 GMT

According to recent statistics each child will cost approximately £180,000 to bring up. For the same money you could buy a typical 3-bed family home in Leicester or ‘his and hers’ Aston Martin DB9s. That aside, we all know our children are worth every penny which is why we try to provide for them financially from the day they are born.

Financial decisions about are children are difficult to separate from the emotional decisions that we also have to make. For example, many parents would like to send their children to private schools to give them the best possible start. If you are going to do that you need to plan for the entirre length of their school life. It could be very disruptive to get them to Year 8 and then run out of money!

Looking further ahead university fees are likely to rise again over the next few years. Currently they are just over £3200 a year, which means that you or your child will have a £10,000 bill for three years at uni. And that’s just the tuition. Depending on where you child goes to university, you can expect it to cost £10,000 per year.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Borrowing money

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:19:03 GMT

Attitudes to borrowing money have changed over the years. It is virtually impossible to go through life without having to borrow money. For example, most of us need a mortgage to be able to buy a house. Other ‘large ticket’ items such as cars might only be accessible with the aid of a loan.

The key to borrowing is to make sure that you can afford to repayments now and in the future. Many people have been caught out borrowing money when interest rates are low only to find they cannot afford the repayments when interest rates rise again. At the time of writing interest rates are at an all time low so there is only one way they can go which is up. Unless you get a fixed rate, you can expect your repayments to go up in the near future.

Another key factor when borrowing money is to take on the right kind of borrowing. For example, if you are borrowing money to buy a car and you expect to repay over five years, then a personal loan is probably the best bet. If you need a few hundred quid to see you over until pay day, then an overdraft may be more suitable.

The key thing to avoid is borrowing money to fund a lifestyle that you cannot afford. If you are borrowing money just to live, then you may be heading towards debt crisis.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Savings and investments

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:16:12 GMT

People save for different reasons. Some savings plans are short-term perhaps to pay for a big purchase like a holiday or wedding. Other people have long-term savings plans either for a ‘rainy day’ or for their retirement.

If you have spare money at the end of each month, then it makes sense to start saving this rather than just frittering it away. It is a good rule of thumb (if you can) to have about six months worth of money in a savings account just in case something unforeseen happens such as redundancy.

In common with all financial services, you need to shop around to get the best savings product and the best deal. Deals change all the time and banks and other providers often do special offers to attract new investors. Comparison websites and best buy tables in newspapers are good places to start.

Longer term, you should look at a pension. Assuming you have paid your national insurance contributions for long enough you will be entitled to a state pension but you may want to supplement this with your own scheme. There is some controversy over company and private pensions but the basic rule is that the earlier you start saving and the more you put in, the more you get later.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Household expenses

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:18:15 GMT

Examining the household expenses can be quite depressing. For many households it would not be uncommon for well over half the family income to go on the mortgage, council tax and utility bills. Younger people tend to be on lower incomes at the start of their careers so the proportion that they spend on keeping up the house can be higher. You would expect this to drop as the years progress and income increases.

Having said that there is also a great deal of scope to reduce your household expenses by shopping around. Utility bills are one good example particularly as the deals are changing so often and the market is quite competitive. You should look check out the possibility of switching at least once a year or if there is a bit of a price war as sometimes happen. The comparison websites are a good place to start.

Telephone and broadband charges are also highly volatile and you can get large discounts if you are prepared to tie yourself in for at least 18 months. Don’t be afraid to push for a better deal when you phone to ask about their packages. It seems that sometimes there is some flexibility in pricing and you may get lower than the advertised price.
Remember that you can switch almost anything these days so you do not need to be stuck with a bad deal.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Plan A Secure Retirement: Insurance

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:11:55 GMT

The principle of insurance is quite simple. You pay relatively small amount of money up front (a premium) so that you can claim a larger amount of money later if something goes wrong. You can insure almost anything but typically it will be your car, house, possessions, health, pets or yourself.

Insurance is all about probability and risk. If you are a healthy 25 year old with no adverse medical history you will get very cheap travel insurance because the chances of you making a claim are quite small. If you are 85 you might not even find an insurance company willing to insure you.

Premiums are calculated based on the chances of you claiming. With driving for example, you will get cheaper car insurance is you have not claimed for several years. This is because you have proved you are a safe driver. Life insurance gets more expensive as you get older, as quite frankly the older you get the closer you are to death!

Some insurance is compulsory. For example, third party car insurance. In most other cases, you can take insurance if you think it is worth it. This is really a matter of personal judgement and attitude to risk.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Banking

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:17:06 GMT

The banks are not the nation’s favourite institutions at the moment. To be fair to them if you pay your wages in every month and stay in credit you can currently enjoy all the services they have to offer for free. This means access to internet banking and 24-hour cash machines on top of having somewhere safe to store your money.

On the negative side, banking can get expensive if you do not stick within the rules of your account. Charges for unauthorised overdrafts for example may be £25 a day.

High street banking is competitive. This can mean good deals for us the customers. Banks are always trying to get new customers to switch to them from their existing bank. To entice you they may offer a particularly good savings rate. It is worth shopping around and switching particularly if you are not happy with the service you bank is giving you.

Online banking is becoming increasingly popular and although there is a risk of being defrauded, it is debatable whether this risk is any greater than any other type of fraud. Security is important and you do need to be aware of common cons such as ‘phishing attacks’ where convincing but bogus emails ask you for your account details.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Tax, NI and benefits

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:14:02 GMT

Income tax for most people is 20% of income. This is deducted from your pay at source from your wages and the amount will be detailed on your payslip. If you are on a low income of less than around £6500 you do not pay any tax and if you are on a high income (anything over about £38,000) the tax goes up to 40%. On top of this you will also pay national insurance contributions , which are mainly used to pay for your state pension. This means that anywhere between 30-50% of your salary may disappear in tax and national insurance before you even get your hands on it.

We also pay other forms of tax such as VAT which is a tax added to the cost of most items that we buy, Capital Gains Tax on the sale of second homes and other capital items and Inheritance Tax on the estate of our deceased relatives.

Many of our taxes go into paying for the benefits system that provides financial support for specific groups of people such as the unemployed, the elderly and people who are ill.

It is in your interest to check that you are paying the right amount of tax and that you are claiming any benefits to which you might be entitled. Some benefits are means tested which means that they are based on income, but some are related to other factors such as whether you have children, or how old you are.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Buying financial products and services

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:15:08 GMT

We know that buying insurance is not as much fun as clothes shopping or buying a new car, but it can be just as important. There is a tendency to make quick decisions about what financial products we buy because it’s just too boring and confusing to read all the small print. However, taking the time and effort when buying a new financial product could be time well spent.

Many of us end up buying all of our financial products from the same provider, usually a bank. The banks know this which is why they entice us with juicy offers, such as attractive savings rates. Once we have bought into that they know they will go to them for other things. This is not necessarily a bad thing for us as customers but it is always worth shopping around and considering switching from time to time.

With low value financial products you might consider that it is not worth spending that much time shopping around and you might be right. However, with larger value products such as mortgages, investment and pensions, you could lose or save thousands of pounds over the life of the product.

The advice for which company to choose is the same as it is for non-financial product. For example, you would probably only go to a mechanic if they have been recommended to you. You should try and do the same thing with financial products. Other sources of information and advice are at hand. There is a lot on the internet and you could use an independent financial adviser.

In summary though, take the time and effort because it is worth it in the long run.

Sort Out Your Family Finances: Dealing with debt

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 23:19:51 GMT

Debt is not necessarily a bad thing. For example, many people aspire to get a mortgage so that they can get on the housing ladder. This is a debt, but is seen as a necessary one and it should make you better off in the long run.

However, debt can be a bad thing once it gets out of control. Debt crisis is the point where you can no longer afford your monthly repayments. This can creep up on you. For example, you have a mortgage and then you take a loan for a car. At the same time your two credit cards are getting near their limit and you have a store card. All of these debts need servicing which means regular amounts coming out of your salary for the repayments. This situation can be perfectly fine. You borrow the money and pay it off and in the meantime you have the things you want.

However, it can turn bad, particularly if you get a change of circumstances. For example, if interest rates go up many of your monthly payments might well follow. Equally likely is a change in your personal circumstances. Perhaps you start a family and your income drops. Perhaps the worse happens and you get made redundant or have your hours reduced. If anything like this happens, you suddenly find that the monthly outgoings that you could afford are now too expensive.

The key to borrowing is to make sure that you can afford it now but also in the event of a change of circumstances. If you do get into debt crisis, tackle it straight away by contacting all the companies you owe money to and explaining the situation.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: What type of entrepreneur are you?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:15:52 GMT

You can learn, work hard, bounce back from failure, have a product that is quality and has a market and still fail in your own business. You need that extra ingredient that I call the Entrepreneur DNA. Yes, I literally mean DNA.
Some give-away traits are:

Regular job moves, never being happy.
Always wanting to do things your way.
Always challenging the existing ways of doing things, and thus becoming unpopular sometimes.
Frustration at not having your ideas listened to.

There are also sociological traits that are developed in us from early on. Often these help provide the motivation or type of entrepreneur that becomes our destiny.
There are different strands of Entrepreneur DNA. In fact we all have one of them or a blend. Finding out your make-up will put you on the right personal-success track. Giving you quite a head start.

Are you more creative or systems oriented?
Do you want an empire or to be free and independent.
Is money your main motivation?

Answers will determine your DNA type and where you should focus your energies.
See our entrepreneur profile quiz to know your DNA type.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: The power of negative thinking - "Never, Never, Never give up."

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:05:52 GMT

The idea of Nazis arriving at Dover boosted British motivation to its highest ever point. The thoughts of what would happen if we failed were just too horrible. We must not rest, wallow in pity parties or let near impossible odds weaken us. We must put every resource fully, everything else secondary, to stopping them, otherwise all, everything we value is lost. That is the power of negative thinking. Don't hide your worst fears let them empower you to move as far away from them as possible. To help sharpen your focus so much that you can achieve whatever you intend to. Goals and achievements will be the same thing.

The fact is a large part of the way we think is designed to protect us. So avoiding something negative will trigger far more personal resources than going for the positive. The drive will be so great that there will be no shortfall of motivation, confidence or desire. All those energies will be there for us.

So whatever your business dream, think of what would happen if things go wrong and harness it into a force that will make sure you succeed.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Beating the competition

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:22:55 GMT

Good marketing is about low cost, no cost or receiving an income for your marketing. It becomes, ‘Street Wise Marketing’ when it is producing leads that will buy off you.

The Street Wise Marketer starts by asking,
‘What do I keep hearing and/or observing people say that they want and will pay for, that I can provide?’
When you get answers you then match them to what you have a passion and enthusiasm to provide, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

The Street Wise Marketer then asks,
‘What is so special about what I offer in the eyes of the prospective customer?’
When you have a good answer ask,
‘How can I reach this market without spending money?’
You are now on the road to riches.

Keep asking questions and you will get answers. Ask your friends, colleagues, partners, customers. Ask Google.
Sell T-Shirts advertising your company.
Ask for referrals.
Pay commission on introductions.

So, if you have to spend all your money developing your ideas and products and come to launch time the coffers are empty, worry not.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Cash is King!

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:26:22 GMT

Whatever it is that you do, stop giving credit right now. If Lehman, Ford, MFI, Woolworths, Iceland, etc can default on their bills so can anyone, even the public sector.

Take a retainer, discount for cash up front, whatever it takes, but don't give credit. Anyone who wants it is using you to finance their business. Once you have delivered you can double your costs with all the time it takes chasing. You just cannot afford credit control! If your current clients have a problem paying up front, find new ones.

The days of credit are gone; you have to find customers with cash to spend and a need that you can satisfy. To get their cash you have to offer something special compared to their other choices. If you have to give credit, do not count it as a sale until it is received.

If your business model is geared towards giving credit, then change the business model. You need at least something up front. By paying something they prove they have cash. If they don’t have cash, they should not be shopping.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: What makes a happy entrepreneur?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:15:09 GMT

Live your future happiness today being who you want to be

You know the way the mind works; we have previously programmed ourselves to direct us to where we are today. So if today you have some goals and dreams for say a couple of years’ time I say, why wait?

Interviews of successful people time and time again showed that THEY ALL did this before they enjoyed success. They had a totally clear image of themselves in the future which was absolutely rock solid. It was as real to them as the floor we walk on.

So sit back for a few moments, close your eyes and visualise how you want to be and where you want to be two years from now. Make it rock solid.

Be that person in your mind's eye. See, feel and hear the future you and bring it nearer and nearer until you eventually immerse yourself as that person now. Live the dream, be that person.

The more you do this, the more you are setting up neurological paths to enable it to become reality. Literally to programme you for that success and happiness.

So be careful that you think of the future you really want.

Think I will take my own advice right now and make some good, clear images of where I want to take my business. Looking back from the future as to how I got over all the obstacles.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Work–life balance

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:22:01 GMT

When was the last time you:
had a fantastic night out with your partner?
spent some quality time with your family?
visited a gym?
moved cash to a savings account?
got a real buzz from your work?
took a weekend off?

To be a truly successful entrepreneur you need to answer, ‘recently’ to all of the above. When this is your answer you are at your pinnacle. The greatest place you can be.

You have to work hard as an entrepreneur and there are pressures. Business at the end of the day is only money. It is only paper. Even if you lost it all you can rebuild and totally recover in a short period of time.

Health and relationships can take more time to recover, they must be valued. You must own the business to serve your needs. Not let the business own you.

Obsession with business or money success can have a heavy price to pay. You may say that you are doing it for your family, but are you kidding yourself? Make sure you have holistic goals and involve those close to you in a meaningful way.
Go away this weekend with your family and get it sorted.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Business start-up

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:25:39 GMT

A start up is the hardest way to make money as an entrepreneur. It is also the hardest to finance, the hardest to raise first sales. A start-up, by definition is unproven and very high risk.

Have I put you off yet?

On the rosy side the wealthiest entrepreneurs, in fact wealthiest people generally, did it this way.
There are ten categories of entrepreneur according to my own profiling. Of these only four are appropriate for start ups. This means that the high failure rate is in part due to the wrong entrepreneur profile having a go! So that cuts the risk down considerably.

Most people wanting their own business only think of a start-up, they don't realise there are all sorts of options available to them. There are also lots of ways to reduce the risk and costs of start-ups. So pick something that is easy to manage and does not require much spending on it and has a well-defined, easily accessible market.

Start ups require creative people that can apply that talent to commercial opportunity. Additionally they have to have practical skills to make it all happen with extremely limited resources.

These talents are rarely in the same person but most start-ups only involve one person.

If your profile suggests you don't have all these skills, then joint venturing with a partner with a complementary profile makes sense.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Networking

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:55:42 GMT

Do any of the following apply to you?
Uncomfortable asking for money.
Hate prospecting or cold calling
Avoid selling if I can
Can get people excited about my offer but they never seem to buy from me.
Go to networking groups but never seem to get much from them.

Networking is developing the relationships you have in order to reach their contacts and their contacts’ contacts!
Everyone knows at least 100 people.
So each one of your 100 knows a 100.
And each one of them knows a 100, etc. So the reach is incredible!
That is why people get excited about networking.

Now, whether it is at a breakfast networking club, or online at say ‘Ecademy’, ‘LinkedIn’ or ‘Facebook’ most people want help with their goals. That is the path to networking success, that simple.

Whether you are selling or networking to build your business think, ‘what can I do for other people?’ This will get you further than, ‘Who do you know that I can sell my stuff to?’ It will send a growing wave around the networks and leads will come in from all directions.

People help me and I make a point to help them back. I will give them access to my network, which is vast and diverse.
So, what can I do to help you?

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Finance for business - finance raising the better way

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:38:09 GMT

If I said that you have to sell whatever it is that you do and make £10,000 and be paid in cash in the next four weeks, is it possible?

Note, I did not say can you do it? I said, is it possible?

If it is not possible?
Can you think of a business you could get in where it would be possible?
If yes, then why are you in your current business?
If no, then you are not ready to start your own business.

If it is possible?
Then do it, whatever it takes. Because sales is the only real way for a business to make money. That is your focus. Find a way.

‘We will either find a way, or make one’, Hannibal on crossing the Alps with a herd of elephants.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Managing risk as an entrepreneur

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:52:59 GMT

Property does go down.
Household name companies go bust.
Banks can and do run out of money
Base interest rates change (We have ranged from 17% to 0.5%).
Recessions happen.
Internet marketing that works today is obsolete tomorrow.
Competitors do call your clients constantly.

All the above problems are avoided or catered for by contingency planning.
My advice is don’t take risks unless you really have to. If you really have to, cover yourself with a ‘Plan B’. Then cover your Plan B with a Plan C.

Contrary to popular myth, entrepreneurs are not great risk takers.

They won’t take the risk of leaving their future prosperity in the hands of their employer for example.
Entrepreneurs play safe. They look for opportunities that work, ask how something would work, test the market and then get on with it. They go to great lengths to be negative (see negative thinking article) and look for ways that things might now work.
This knowledge leads to having a ‘What if X happened’ plan.
Don’t’ take risks unless the pay-off is worthwhile and risk is reduced.

Be a Great Entrepreneur: Selling your business

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:59:54 GMT

Register with a reputable business transfer agent and let them sell it for you. They will have a portfolio of current purchasers and those that are perhaps more passive that they can approach.

You can potentially save a fee by doing it yourself, however if they were any good the higher price they realise should cover this anyway.

Approach people within your industry that are potential buyers. Accountants in your local area may also have contacts that are looking to buy. Put it on your social media site, spread the word that you might be interested in a sale.
Customers and indeed suppliers often buy businesses as they both know something about the enterprise.
A common purchase group is the employees of the business, assuming you have someone as your number two who has the skills to take over.

Prices are really finalised on how much development potential the new owner thinks there is. Deals can be much more varied than just a price. You can offer ‘owner financing’ to help them purchase. So to get around the lack of credit out there you can finance the deal by a pay-off over time. You can also help them to arrange raising finance through factoring your current invoice book.

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: What is cash flow?

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:16:37 GMT

Cash flow is the simplest concept of all those that the person running a business has to cope with. It is simple to understand, if not to improve. Cash flow is the change in the cash position – effectively the bank account – that takes place as a result of decisions that are made in the course of a business day.
Everyone – or at least all those of us who avoid personal bankruptcy – will understand what cash flow means, even if we do not use that label. When you look at your bank statement and see that there is less money there than there was before, that is looking at cash flow. Cash flow for (say) a month is the net difference between the money you had at the beginning of the month compared to the end. If there is less money in the bank than last month, that is a negative cash flow; if there is more, that is a positive cash flow.
So it is with companies. If Tesco or Unilever have a lower cash figure – or a higher overdraft – in their annual balance sheet than last year, analysts will say that there is a negative cash flow. The management of the company would then look for the underlying causes and would try to do something about it. But that’s another story.

Improve Your Cash flow: Managing cash flow

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:10:45 GMT

Managing cash flow is the responsibility of everyone involved in running a business. Cash flow is the difference between the money in the bank account at the end of an accounting period compared to the beginning, and there are a few key drivers of this number.
The first and most important driver of cash flow is the making of profit from your day-to-day operations – selling your products for more than it costs to make them. There are then two other key areas of management that drive cash flow – keeping stock levels at the optimum level and collecting cash from customers as quickly as possible after invoicing. Many businesses have gone bust because they made profit but forgot to pay attention to these two key areas of management.
There are two more areas of cash flow management but these are double-edged. One is to keep capital investment as low as possible while still achieving your strategic goals – to spend no more than is absolutely necessary to deliver your long-term strategy.
The other driver of cash flow is how quickly you pay your suppliers; you should delay payment as long as possible while still maintaining good service and good relationships.
It sounds easy but it isn’t easy at all. That’s why so many companies go bust!

Improve Your Cash flow: Cash flow analysis

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:28:09 GMT

Companies go bust because cash flow is not planned and managed effectively but this is frequently because there is no ANALYSIS of the factors that can drive an adverse cash flow position. This is particularly so when – as often happens – a company goes bust despite the fact that it is trading at a profit.
Analysis is important and relatively easy because there are only a few possible reasons why a profitable company can go bust. These reasons are:
Offering credit terms that are too generous and are in excess of what is taken from suppliers.
Failure to collect cash from customers in accordance with credit terms.
Keeping stocks that are in excess of plans and reasonable requirements.
Spending money on capital expenditure that cannot be afforded.
A good accountant can take a set of books and produce a statement that itemises a cash flow between these factors. A good financial analyst can look at a set of published accounts and find out which of the above factors are causing the problem. Companies go bust because nobody thinks to look behind the numbers and take action to correct the problems.

Improve Your Cash flow: Cash flow forecast

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:53:53 GMT

A cash flow forecast is a cash flow statement that is planned ahead. It is most likely to be accurate if it is prepared in conjunction with an annual business plan and the other two financial statements – Profit & Loss Account (P&L) and Balance Sheet.
A cash flow forecast should follow from the planned P&L and the following additional questions should be asked:
What will be the changes in credit taken by customers and our ability to collect the cash?
What will happen to our stock levels as a result of our plans?
What changes will we be able to make in the way we pay our suppliers?
What major capital expenditure will we be investing in during the period?
The answers to these questions should enable a good financial analyst to produce a cash flow forecast for the year ahead but this will not be enough. Cash flow tends to be volatile and seasonal so the second stage will be to split the total figures for each heading month by month, what is often called phasing.
One point to remember about a cash flow forecast – both in total and phased – is that you will never get it exactly right because cash flow is so unpredictable: for instance will that big customer pay us on the last day of one month or the first day of the next? You can only make the best possible assumptions and, if in doubt, you should veer on the side of prudence. However difficult it may be, cash flow forecasting is a vital process if you are to present a credible proposition to your bank when asking for the finance required.

Improve Your Cash flow: Cash flow forecasting template

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:07:12 GMT

There are a number of ways in which a cash flow forecast can be structured and much depends on the nature of the business and the format of the information available. The following is a typical format for a manufacturing business using typical terminology:
Quarterly cash forecast
Month Month Month Total
1 2 3 quarter
£ £ £ £
Sales receipts including VAT 1,800 1,900 2,300 6,000
Other receipts 30 30
Total receipts 1,830 1,900 2,300 6,030
Cash paid to suppliers 1,080 1,100 1,150 3,330
Wages 400 400 440 1,240
Taxes on wages 100 100 100 300
Dividends – 250 – 250
VAT payments 80 110 130 320
Corporation tax – – 300 300
Capital expenditure 100 – 200 300
Other payments 10 20 – 30
Total payments 1,770 1,980 2,320 6,070
Net cash flow 60 (80) (20) (40)
Opening cash balance 250 310 230 250
Closing cash balance: 310 230 210 210
This forecast assumes a quarterly forecast period; in practice the time ahead will depend on the nature of the business and the extent to which there are cash flow problems. An alternative is an annual forecast that is phased monthly and regularly updated.
The key figures to monitor and to drive action are the opening and closing balances for each month because these are the surpluses or deficits that you will need to discuss with your bank.

Improve Your Cash flow: Debt collection

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:07:57 GMT

Debt collection is not the most attractive task for those running a business to carry out. It can be embarrassing, frustrating and often fruitless, but it is often the task that makes the difference between survival and bankruptcy. It is also a task that is often ignored or given to someone who has neither the skills nor the motivation to succeed.
There is usually little you can do to collect cash from the individual or company that is reluctant or unable to pay; the answer is to have a credit approval system that checks them out beforehand and ensures that they do not have credit in the first place. However, most outstanding debts are not with people or companies like that; debtors are often delaying payment because they have a temporary cash flow problem or an inefficient system of payment.
In these cases the answer is TO CHASE, politely and persistently. For this you need someone who has the time and the personality to do this effectively, while still keeping a good relationship with the customer. In most cases you do not need to threaten; just find out who is the person responsible for payment and keep communicating by telephone until they pay. They may pay just to stop your calls but that doesn’t matter; next time they will probably make sure you are the first in the queue!

Improve Your Cash flow: Investment

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:09:45 GMT

Political spats over the years have shown that much depends on the definition of money spent; one person’s cost is another person’s investment and the impact of cuts is seen as different in each case.
There is similar confusion in business because there is no clear understanding of investment; a simple accounting definition is that investment is what is taken to the Balance Sheet as capital expenditure – usually a combination of property, plant, equipment and vehicles – and it is normal for companies to be praised for making such investments for the future.
But what about the investments in research, training, marketing and product development? These go to the Profit & Loss Account as costs yet it could be argued that such expenditures are just as much investments as the ‘harder’ expenditure on tangible assets.
The answer is to forget the accounting conventions when talking about investment and making decisions about how much and where to spend. The right definition in this context is that an investment is any expenditure which produces benefits beyond this year. And even more important, no investment should be made unless these benefits are shown to provide value that justifies the cost involved.

Improve Your Cash flow: Discounted Cash Flow

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:09:01 GMT

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) is a technique that supports decisions to invest in projects that will provide long-term benefit. It is by far the most valid technique though it is relatively complex compared to other more simple methods, for instance the Payback technique which asks the key question – how long before we get our money back?
Instead DCF requires the investor to state how much cash will be generated over the period of the project, probably five or ten years depending on the nature of the investment. The future cash flows are then converted into their present values by calculations based on likely future interest rates; the more rates are likely to rise in the future, the more it will cost to wait and the less the future cash flows will be worth.
In days gone by, the analyst had to work out these numbers with a calculator but these days it is all done by Excel spreadsheets. You put in the future cash flows and out comes the complete calculation of the present values. If the net result is positive, the investment is value creating; if it is negative, value is being destroyed and the project should be rejected.
Does this produce perfect decisions? The answer is no, because all depends on the quality of the assumptions about the future cash flows. As with any analysis of this kind, it is rubbish in, rubbish out!

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Starting up

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:01:37 GMT

What are the initial things to do when setting up your small business? First, write a profile of your likely customers, including their age range, spending power, location and how your product or service would match their needs. Then consider your competitors and decide where you differ from them and your own unique selling points (USPs).
Now, if possible, conduct a small market research project, perhaps at networking meetings, with friends and family, or in your local community, to define your local market need. If at all feasible do a small trial run, with feedback from your customers or clients. Allow them to try out your product or service, perhaps at a discount. Ask them to complete a small questionnaire and follow up with a phone call, if appropriate.
Finally, ask yourself whether you are the right person to run a small business. You will need motivation, organizational ability, good communication skills, good health, plenty of energy and the ongoing support of the people around you. Seek advice from an organization such as Business Link, and join local business clubs to network and share ideas. Above all, believe in your product or service and in yourself.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Small business advice

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:00:52 GMT

Many organizations are eager to advise small businesses, including:
banks
the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): www.dwp.gov.uk
the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS): www.bis.gov.uk
local authorities
local colleges.
The two most likely to help at the very early stage of your business are Business Link and The Federation of Small Businesses.
Business Link (www.businesslink.gov.uk) is a government-funded body specifically set up to help a small business start its working life. They are in most towns and will give advice on the likely viability of your proposed business, how to make a business plan and where to go for advice on legal and financial matters. Their personal adviser will visit your business, even if you work from home. They also run courses on such things as website design and marketing. Their services are free and could well be your first port of call.
The Federation of Small Businesses (www.fsb.org.uk) is the leading pressure group promoting and protecting the interests of the self-employed and owners of small firms. Membership benefits include 24-hour assistance and support on matters such as taxation, VAT, employment law, health and safety and insurance. They have about 230 branches, which often hold regular networking meetings. Membership fees depend on the size of your business.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Funding

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:41:37 GMT

If you need funding, first assess how much funding you can contribute yourself, perhaps through redundancy or from savings, without re-mortgaging your house. If friends and family lend you money, make sure the agreement between you is written up in a clear and business-like manner.
Banks normally want to lend money, but need to be certain that your business is potentially viable and that you will be able to repay the loan and eventually the capital. Gather starter packs from two or three banks, and use the pack provided by the bank you intend to approach, which could well be one where you already have a well-managed account. A bank will need to see a good business plan; your accountant or Business Link can advise you.
Central government or the EU often has grants available for new businesses in specific geographical areas, or for specific projects, such as setting up an e-commerce business. Visit the DWP or BIS websites. Local authorities, too, will sometimes wish to support new small businesses, or part of the business, such as converting to broadband. It is worth exploring your local and county authorities.
If you are between 14 and 30, consider approaching The Prince’s Trust (www.princes-trust.org.uk), which has a good reputation for helping young people set up their own small business. Likewise, Prime (www.primeinitiative.org.uk) is available to those over 50, a charity linked to Age Concern.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Methods of trading

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:54:46 GMT

Sole trader: This is for a one-person business. You do not need to register with any official body, but you do need stationery with your name and business address. You must inform the DWP that you are self-employed. You are personally liable for all your business transactions and debts.
Partnership. This is for two or more people working together in the business. You do not have to register your business, but you must have stationery with your business name and address and the partners’ names. All the partners are collectively and individually liable for the debts of the business. The partnership ceases instantly upon the death of any of the partners, so take out life insurance. A limited partnership combines the flexibility and status of a partnership with limited liability for its members.
Limited company: Your business liability is limited to the business. You must register with the Companies Registration Office (www.companieshouse.gov.uk). Your company’s stationery, including your outgoing emails, must show its name and address, place and number of registration and the names of all or none of the directors. Your accounts must be properly audited by a registered auditor. You also need a Memorandum and Articles of Association; ask your solicitor.
Other methods include a franchise, where you trade under a well-known name, but have less autonomy, or multi-level marketing, selling products in other people’s homes.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Law for small businesses

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:49:42 GMT

Most small business law applies if you employ other people. However, there are some laws you must obey as a small business entrepreneur. The Trades Description Act requires you to offer for sale products or services which are fit for purpose. The Data Protection Act might apply if you maintain a database containing more then just names and addresses.

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 must be followed if you work on other people’s premises.
To protect your own interests, you should employ a solicitor for such things as a Partnership Agreement, a Memorandum and Articles of Association for a limited company and for renting or buying premises.

When you employ others, many laws and regulations apply, some of which are: various anti-discrimination acts; regulations about National Insurance; income tax deductions; holiday entitlement; Statutory Sick Pay; Particulars of Employment; parental leave; the Working Time Directive and of course HASAWA (the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974). The Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963 may apply, as may certain hygiene regulations, and for shops the Sale of Goods Act will apply. Bear in mind, too, Consumer Protection legislation and fire prevention requirements.

Do seek advice on legal matters from the Federation of Small Businesses, Business Link, your local Chamber of Commerce, your solicitor and your accountant.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Book-keeping and accounting

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:24:29 GMT

Book-keeping and accounting are two different and distinct aspects of financial transactions. Book-keeping is about ‘doing the books’, keeping strict and accurate records of all day-to-day transactions, doing VAT returns (if your turnover is £68,000 or more – 2009 figures) and paying wages if you employ others.
Your book-keeping activities will include records of all moneys coming into the business, through sales invoices, cash, cheque and credit card transactions and capital introduced. Your outgoings will include all bills you have to pay to run your business, such as materials, items of equipment, rent, rates, insurance, travel, heating, lighting and phone bills. Petty cash items must also be accounted for. These transactions are most likely to be handled electronically, giving an automatic audit trail for your accountant and HM Revenue and Customs.
Accounting is drawing up your end-of-year Income and Expenditure Accounts, submitting these to Companies House if you are a limited company, and probably doing your income tax returns.
Your accountant will need all your financial transaction records for the whole of your financial year, including bank statements, receipts, copies of invoices sent out and paid and the drawings or fees you have taken out of the business for yourself.
If you are able to cope with this side of the business yourself, fine. However, most small businesses employ an accountant and many employ a book-keeper, particularly if they employ others or whose business affairs are complicated.

Set Up a Successful Small Business: Tax for small businesses

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 04:04:10 GMT

Let your accountant handle your tax returns and all correspondence with HM Revenue and Customs; it will save you a great deal of time and, probably, money. The tax year runs from 6 April one year to 5 April the following year, irrespective of your company’s financial year. Your self-assessment returns must be in by 30 September if you want HM Revenue and Customs to calculate how much you owe. In any case your return must be in the following 31 January, or penalties will apply. Be honest with your accountant.

If your turnover is £68,000 or more (2009 figures) you must register for VAT and add your VAT registration number to your stationery. You can claim the VAT you have paid on genuine business purchases and must pay the VAT you have charged your customers.

The amount of income tax you have to pay depends on the profit your business makes in any one year. The rules about what is and is not allowed for tax purposes are complicated. For example, basic costs and running expenses are allowed, while capital outlay on the purchase of machinery, vehicles and equipment is not; business insurance premiums are allowable, but your own life insurance is not.

You will have to pay your personal National Insurance contributions, as well as NI for employees. You will have to pay personal income tax (a separate return) on your own income for the year.

Be a Great Mum: Managing family relationships

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:58:22 GMT

Being a mother includes living in a family, not just bringing up children. Mothers are often at the heart of families, keeping tabs on everyone’s needs, running the home, and probably fitting in a job too. It’s easy for her own needs to come last when there is so much to do every day involving the heart, mind and body. Sometimes, tension and arguments arise because mothers are worn out by carrying this burden and maybe it’s time to share the load. It partly depends on the kind of parenting style you have. Are you cold and strict, or soggy and inconsistent, or firm and fair? Children thrive best when their parents are warm, loving and firm when they need to be. Wanting to give in to our children’s demands or challenging behaviour is understandable, especially when we’re stressed, but consistency is what will help them, and us, most.

One way to do this is to create a family vision and agree a back drop for all of you to live by. Consider together (bearing in mind the ages of your children) these questions:

1 What is the purpose of our family?
2 What kind of a family do we want to be?
3 What things are really important to us?
4 What kind of feelings do we want in our home?
5 How do we want to treat one another and speak to each other?
6 What families inspire us and why?

Having a family vision provides a safety net for any of you when times are turbulent and better still, something to aspire to.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Working mums

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 05:01:30 GMT

All mothers work, but this is about the mums who are doing a paid job on top of being a mother. This is not about how to find the right job to combine motherhood and a career, but more about the complexities that come from doing two jobs, more like three if you have a relationship with a partner to maintain too. I have yet to meet a mum that doesn’t feel guilty about something. If you have to, or want to work, then the single best thing you can do as a mum is to sort out guilt. Feeling guilty when you’re at work about missing out on your children, or feeling guilty when you’re at home that you have unfinished business at work is hardly going to help you thrive in either area. Working mums find the blurring of home and work life is what creates the most stress and leads to guilt. Focus on the benefits to you and your family about working, and not just the financial ones. Go to work knowing you have done all you can to leave your children in safe, kind and caring hands provided by the best childcare you can find. At home, draw your boundaries so you can leave work behind, and focus on your family. Stop juggling, start living, and make the most of being a working mum.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Taking care of you

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:59:40 GMT

Mothers are brilliant at taking care of everyone’s needs except their own. It’s perceived to be quicker, easier and more rewarding to stay in the hamster wheel of meeting the needs of children, a partner, the house, the extended family, the neighbours, colleagues and even the pet goldfish than putting your own needs into the mix. Living like this eventually means you simply don’t have enough resources left to service everybody else. Motherhood today is complex and demanding and the pressures to bring up perfect children in a perfect home are great. Taking care of your own needs requires time, organisation and the imagination to believe it’s worth doing. When you do find time for you, even five minutes with a magazine and a cup of tea it is worth it. I want you to really love these moments and not feel guilty for one second. My challenge to mums is to find a piece of everyday, every week and every month to treat yourself like you would a best friend. Choose something to do that is relaxing and preferably uninterrupted. Get back in touch with the part of your identity that is not connected to motherhood. That will give you the energy to carry on running a family – the most important job you do.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Children's behaviour - it always makes sense

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:56:45 GMT

Managing children’s behaviour is a large part of being a mum. Behaviour occurs to meet a need. A child is tired, the need is to sleep, but the behaviour might be obnoxious, and difficult to deal with. A child is bored, the need is for stimulation, but drawing on the wall or thumping a sibling is what the mother is left to sort out. A mother is anxious, the need is for reassurance, but what the children see is a mum who’s flapping, saying no and looking worried. How needs are communicated in families is vital to meeting the needs. One of the greatest things you can do for your children, any relationship in fact, is to develop the art of listening. Being able to listen without judgement, unasked for opinion and interruptions is a gift you can give to your children which they will value all their lives. Think about who you turn to when you want to talk something through. What is it about that person that makes it easy for you to talk to them? All families will go through a tough patch such as job problems, relationships struggling, illness or bereavement, and being able to listen and communicate effectively in these times will help your children most. Resource yourself by using the Internet, books and talk to those you respect who seem to know a thing or two about children’s behaviour. We might not always understand why our children are behaving in a particular way, but if it’s behaviour that is unacceptable or cause for concern, dig around and find out what’s going on and be prepared to listen.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Choosing childcare and education

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:57:20 GMT

When you give birth to your first child it’s hard to imagine that one day you’ll need to find someone else to look after her and she will eventually go to school. Finding childcare worthy of your most precious gift is at best straightforward, but more likely to be challenging. Mothers who go back to work report that the more time you give to researching childcare options the less stressful it will be when you hand over the baby. Your maternal instinct will be your best friend when it comes to deciding who is to be your child’s carer, or which nursery and schools will suit them. There are many practical and emotional decisions to work through, not just yours but your partner’s also, and these will vary according to which child you are considering. So take your time, decide what’s really important to you and what arrangements will give you peace of mind. If you are confident and relaxed about your childcare and education decisions, you will reassure your children. You are a resourceful human being and we are very lucky that information is a click away so do all you can to explore what’s available to you. Ask around, use the Internet, go and visit schools and nurseries on ordinary days, not just open days. Invite child-carers to spend some time with your family before you make your mind up. Ultimately, you are your child’s greatest teacher, so consider what your part is in their education and what you want them to learn from you.
Judy Reith.www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Running a family

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:58:54 GMT

In China they have a saying that no family can hang out a sign saying ‘Nothing the matter here’. Running a family is a very complex job, like sailing a ship, parts of it are controllable, but unforeseen elements can throw you off course, and it’s often the mum who is the captain keeping everything shipshape! There is no jumping overboard either as a family needs management every day. Included are repetitive tasks like meals and housework as well as nurturing and tending to unhappiness, frustrations or disappointments. Stress levels can soar, so wherever possible, delegate, ditch or just do it! Make your home easy to live in and not a battle ground or a rubbish tip. May it be a place of sanctuary from the pressures of work, school and social life. Families are the backbone of any society, and it’s where we learn to cooperate, to care, to resolve our differences, and to have fun. Sometimes the best laughs you will ever have will be over a family joke. On special days, like birthdays or Christmas, invest your energy in what really matters, not the perfectly tidy house or the expensive present, but an opportunity to celebrate the milestones together and create happy memories.
Judy Reith www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Be a Great Mum: Enjoy being a mum

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:57:49 GMT

What does it take to create a happy childhood? We know that we have more material goods than in any previous generation, but does all that stuff create happiness? When we consider what our own happy childhood memories are, it usually involves quite simple things like playing on a beach or flying a kite, not a day trip to a theme park. Parents are passionate about wanting to give their children a happy childhood, but in your family, what does that really mean? Imagine your children have grown up and perhaps have children of their own. How would you like them to be describing their childhood and what was good about it? It’s never too late to bring more fun and enjoyment into a family but it takes commitment and imagination to make it a priority when there are so many other things calling on our time. It’s not everyone’s style either to jump in and play with children but do you want them to remember you as being more interested in e-mails or tidying up than having fun with them? It’s not just a mother’s job to bring joy into a family. Involve your partner, extended family and friends, even pets, to create fun, especially for free. Ask the children – they usually have the best ideas when it comes to fun.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Writing success takes luck, talent, hard work and stamina

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:35:59 GMT

A plot needs a beginning, middle and end, and during the story, something must change. It needs at least two characters including the protagonist, who will need to experience conflict. It also needs an underlying theme to give it coherence. The classic plot shape is an eight-phase arc: stasis, trigger, quest, unexpected events, critical choice, climax, reversal and resolution. Most novels have one or more sub-plots.

To create believable characters you need empathy and sympathy. Characterization is external, visible attributes; character itself is internal and reflected through actions. Convey character through physical description, narrator’s statements, action, association with setting, revelation of thoughts, speech and other’s thoughts or comments.

Dialogue moves the story forwards, gives information, contributes to characterization and carries sub-text. Make dialogue significant and brief. A first person viewpoint uses ‘I’. A third person viewpoint uses ‘he’ or ‘she’. In god’s eye view the omniscient narrator tells the story.

The setting can be imaginary or real. Use all five senses to describe it. Choose words that are familiar, single, Saxon, short and concrete.

The first stage of writing is inspirational and the second stage is the craft of editing.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Starting out

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:07:02 GMT

If you want to write a novel then you will need imagination, hard work and stamina. You’ll need to be endlessly curious about people and their behaviour. It’ll help if you are a reader as well as a writer. There is no absolute test for quality in writing, all you can do is work at the craft aspect and learn as much as you can about the art aspect.

If you already have an idea, then be grateful and go with it, but if you haven’t got an idea then seek one out. Train yourself to see the story potential in everything around you: keep a scrapbook of interesting cuttings, a notebook to jot things down as they occur to you and to make a record of your dreams.

Once you have a few ideas, examine each one to see if it will make a novel rather than a poem, a short story or a film. It may even be more suited to a factual book rather than fiction. Next do your research so that the background is accurate. Don’t start writing too soon, let the idea build until you can’t resist any longer, and then sit down to write.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Plot

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:54:39 GMT

Plot and character are equally important and inextricably intertwined. The key to holding a reader’s attention is to pose interesting questions and then delay giving the answers. There are two types of question: suspense questions look forwards for the answers and mystery questions look backwards.

When you are working out your plot remember that it needs a beginning, middle and end, and that during the course of the story something must change. A plot also needs causality, which means that one event causes another event to happen.
You will need at least two characters, one of which should be the protagonist, and you should create conflict for your protagonist. Conflict can operate on three different levels – inner, interpersonal and against outside forces – and it should be resolved at the end of the story. Conventionally the protagonist resolves their own conflict in a final showdown with the antagonist.

The classic shape for a plot is an arc that has eight distinct phases – stasis, trigger, quest, unexpected events, critical choice, climax, reversal and resolution. Within the overall shape of the arc there is usually a series of small arcs, each with its own eight points. Save the biggest arc for the end otherwise there will be a sense of anti-climax.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Character

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:02:07 GMT

To create believable characters you need both empathy and sympathy, but do bear in mind that fictional characters are less complex than real people. Readers need to identify with characters so use both empathy and sympathy in their creation. Empathy is recognizing something of yourself in a character; sympathy is liking what you see in a character.

You will need to include a degree of characterization, which is the external visible attributes of the character – keep this limited and specific. Character itself is internal and is revealed through the choices made under pressure. You can convey character through physical description, narrator’s statements, action, association with setting or other physical aspects, revelation of thoughts, speech and other’s thoughts or comments.

Internal conflict makes a character more interesting. Characters’ reactions under pressure come from their motivation, so you need to know what this is. Get to know your characters in detail, but don’t expect to put all that knowledge into the novel – learn to edit and only tell the reader what they need to know. Don’t draw all your characters to the same degree – subsidiary characters can be flat, main characters should be fully rounded.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Style

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:13:57 GMT

Every writer has their own style which should make their work instantly recognizable. Style isn’t something that’s added to a work, it is the work, and finding your own style will be a journey of discovery. You might start by imitating writers you admire, but eventually you will have to let go of that and find your own way of writing. Don’t try too hard, straining for effect, instead use language that comes naturally to you.

There are a few basic guidelines that work well for most writers. As a general rule you should prefer words that are familiar, single, Saxon, short and concrete, unless there is good reason not to. Limit your use of adjectives and adverbs because they tend to be inexact. Avoid abstract nouns where possible, instead convey the concept you want through physical actions or with an image. Qualifiers (words such as ‘quite’, ‘often’ and ‘almost’) should be used with restraint. Images can convey powerful meaning but handle them with care, be sure that they are not confusing or so showy that they take the reader away from the story. Avoid clichés and sentimentality – they show a lack of respect for your reader.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Theme

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:20:32 GMT

At the very heart of your story is its theme. This is not the same as subject matter, which is the tangible reality of the story, something which changes with fashions in novel writing. Theme can be broken down into thread and thesis.

A thread is a unifying idea, such as ‘love’ or ‘greed’. A thesis is the author’s attitude to the thread, such as ‘love conquers all’ or ‘love always lets you down’.

A novel can have more than one thread, in which case they should be woven together, but the core thesis should underlie them all. At some point you will need to understand what your thesis is, although this may not happen until the first draft is written. A thesis can always be expressed in a single sentence, so if you can only manage a long waffling explanation you still have some thinking to do. Once you know what your thesis is, make sure it applies throughout the book, so that it can do its job of giving the plot shape and coherence, driving the choices that your characters make. Cut out anything that isn’t in harmony with the thesis.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Scenes

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:03:29 GMT

A novel’s scenes anchor it in physical reality, although they can be imaginary. You need to understand them in detail, either through imagination or research if you are using a real setting. Isolation and extreme weather are useful but not essential. Try to view scenes through your readers’ eyes and use all five senses to describe them. To make them more real use specific names for things (such as ‘poodle’ rather than ‘dog’). Be selective in what you describe – you don’t need to tell the reader everything you know, only those aspects that bring the scene to life or are relevant to the action.

Use close-up as well as long-shot and medium distance to give variety to the creation of a scene. Spend some time visualizing the scene, and let your imagination get to work on it – look for the dramatic interest in every scene. If the scene is essential for information but has no drama, then add something to it, for instance something that reveals character. It’s important to show the human reactions within a setting but don’t overwrite the emotional aspect. Respect the reader’s intelligence – you don’t have to show them everything.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Editing

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:27:09 GMT

The first stage of writing a novel is inspirational, when the ideas flow and you try to get them down without allowing your inner critic too much say. This is where the art of writing comes in, but the second stage is the craft of editing, where you shape and order your vision. It’s important to keep these two stages separate as the confusion of these two domains is the single biggest obstacle to most beginners. Allow time to pass between finishing one draft and starting the next so that you come to it fresh.

When you are ready to start editing, remember that it is of secondary importance to inspiration. Only rewrite where it’s absolutely necessary – leave some rough edges in your writing to give it charm and humanity. You should, however, be sure to check the basics, such as tense and characters’ speech patterns, for consistency. Also check that you do have an eight-point plot arc and check the pacing of the story. If your story is short, don’t pad it out with waffle, either develop it or leave it as a novella. And finally, learn when to stop writing and let go of the novel. Accept that it will never be perfect.

Write A Novel And Get It Published: Get help

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:29:29 GMT

If you are going through a hard time with your writing, start by talking to friends and family, although they won’t want to know the details they will probably be interested and supportive. For support and help with the actual process of writing, try to meet other writers through Writers’ Groups, Writing Courses and Internet forums.

There are several magazines for writers, and you may find the articles in them useful. They also carry adverts for writing services, including people who are willing, for a fee, to read your work and comment on it.

Writers’ block can be physical, emotional or psychological. Physical is all about your writing environment, or maybe your health – do what you can to improve these. Emotional blocks are caused when you don’t feel able to let your feelings out – while letting them out may not always be appropriate, simply acknowledging the emotions exist can unblock you. Psychological blocks come from negative beliefs about yourself – challenge these, and try to move beyond them. If the block persists, ask yourself whether the novel just isn’t ready to be written yet.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Characters

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:03:35 GMT

Generate characters from people you know, plays, films, novels, TV, and stock characters. Get to know your characters fully, even the minor ones. Understand the influences that made them what they are at the time of the play. You are likely to draw on your own background for this, because it is what you know best.

Work out their back-story – this is the events leading up to the start of the play.

Have strong contrasts between characters and understand their motivation and psychology. Know what binds them together, and what’s at stake for each one.

Your main characters need to experience conflict, within themselves, with other characters and with the world at large. One of these will dominate, although the other two should also be present. No matter how heroic the main character, they should have a flaw;, minor characters can be more one-dimensional.

Most plays have one central character, or protagonist, and the play is really their story. If you find they need someone to talk to, give them a sidekick.

You will probably have a strong idea of what each character looks like and how they dress. This is fine while you are writing, but don’t overload your final script with this kind of detail.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Dialogue

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:24:46 GMT

As soon as you have two characters speaking, you have dialogue. Even if they are talking at cross-purposes or not listening to each other, it is still dialogue.

However, dialogue is not the same as conversation, which can be rambling and pointless. Dialogue has specific functions. It can be used to give information to the audience, but it has to be done with subtlety. Don’t make characters tell each other things that they already know, and don’t give information in large chunks – your audience will be bored, and won’t absorb much of what they are’ve beingen told.

Dialogue is also used to move the plot forward even though actions and events are the main plot drivers.
The third function of dialogue is to reveal character. Make sure that everything your characters say is in the voice you have given them, and is consistent with their characteristics.

You also need to think about other aspects. Don’t have all dialogue moving at the same speed – vary the tempo. Keep speeches short unless there is a good dramatic reason for a character to speak at length. Where there are more than two characters on stage try not to have any of them silent for too long.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Musicals

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:44:15 GMT

Musicals combine drama with songs and dance routines. However, the latter two should not just be tacked onto a drama, but should be integral to it and enhance it. Musicals generally move at a faster pace than conventional dramas, and the plot lines are usually simpler to allow space for the musical element.

Musicals consist of three parts: the music, the lyrics and the book (or story line). All are important and all can be written by the same person. However, it is more normal for different people to be responsible for each element. Which comes first will vary from partnership to partnership. Musicals can have their scores specially written for them or can use existing music. Story lines can be written from scratch or be based on existing stories.

The same rules of dramatic construction will apply, with the plot being driven by conflict, crises, twists and finally a climax and resolution. Whether it is a happy or sad ending will depend on the musical. The songs should spring naturally from the dialogue and can heighten emotion as well as move the story forward. Most musicals consist of two acts and each act generally ends with one of the more spectacular or showstopping numbers.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Outline

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:51:52 GMT

An outline can be a detailed description of a play you are planning to write or a short description of a play already written – in either case it can be used as a selling tool to try and get the play commissioned.

Clearly it needs to be written in a sharp and engaging way and cover the whole plot. Don’t withhold information – if the play has a surprise ending explain what it is, and what impact you expect it to have on the audience.

You may be given an idea of what length is acceptable, otherwise keep it to one side of A4. It will probably only be successful if it’s accompanied by a c.v., showing you’ve already had some successes.

A proposal and a synopsis are similar terms to an outline, but generally a synopsis is a more detailed description of an already written play, although it shouldn’t normally be longer than a side ofn A4 page., while a proposal is generally usually put together before the play is written. Again both are selling tools to persuade theatre companies to look at the complete script. When you send out a scripts, include a synopsis at the front.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Performance

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:52:59 GMT

Plays are meant to be performed and there is no greater pleasure for a writer than to see (or hear) their work brought to life by actors. It is rare for new writers to see their work produced professionally, but there are other ways of having your work performed.

Local amateur dramatic groups are often on the look out for new plays, particularly if the writer is prepared to write something specific for them or to take into account that the group may have 20 women but only two men who want to take to the stage. Other avenues to explore are schools which that put on annual productions or local festivals, which sometimes incorporate a dramatic element.

Look out for competitions which that offer a production as a prize. Even script-in-hand performances will give a good idea of how the play will work.

It is also possible for writers to stage their own productions. This will means hiring a venue, finding the actors and a director and doing all the publicity to attract an audience. Keep costs down by doing as much work as possible yourself: tickets, programmes, publicity flyers and posters can all be done on the computer. The main point to bear in mind is to ensure it is financially viable.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Radio

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:57:55 GMT

Writing for radio gives the opportunity of writing about anything, set anywhere and featuring anybody. It is an intimate form of drama, allowing the listener to use their imagination, and, unlike stage plays, it can also allow the listener to hear the innermost thoughts of the characters. However, the more surreal the plot the more important it is to take your listeners with you and to give them enough information for them to imagine what is happening in the amazing world you are creating.

Radio plays should follow the basic rules of dramatic construction – the added element, which the writer must take into account, is that all the information received by the listener is through their ears. There are five ways of giving them this information: dialogue, sound effects, background atmosphere, music and silence. It is not enough, however, to write a stage play and then bolt on some explanatory dialogue and a couple of sound effects. The writer should embrace the medium and use sound to flesh-out characters, move the plot forward and set the scene.

It isn’t necessary to use all five elements in every play but it is the way these elements are woven together which allows the listener to create the pictures in their imagination.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: Reviews

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:02:41 GMT

Having your play reviewed can sometimes seem like a double-edged sword – you want a good review, but are fearful of getting a bad one. However, having reviews can, however, produce publicity for your play and bring in the auudience so it is worth trying to get them.

If there is a designated publicity person for your play, make sure they know about your local paper and any other publications that you have an interest in. With smaller productions, get every member of the cast and crew to contact every editor and journalist they can think of to ask for one.

When the reviews come in, take them with a pinch of salt. If they are glowing ask yourself whether the reviewer is being honest or kind. If it is the latter and they are less than complimentary then they won’t really be a lot of help, although you may be able to lift a sentence or two for your c..v.

If you get a bad review, don’t get upset but see what you can learn from it. If the writer has missed the point of the play, ask yourself if perhaps you failed to get the point across. In the early days you will always need to do a rewrite after a performance, and reviews are part of the information that you can use in the rewrite.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Confession

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:15:45 GMT

Confession is one of the seven sacraments of Catholicism. It is also known as penance, the sacrament of conversion, or more commonly by its modern name, reconciliation. It affords Catholics an opportunity to confess their sins to a priest and receive absolution. Sins can be either ‘mortal’ – the more serious – or ‘venial’ – the everyday. Confession of venial sins is recommended but not obligatory. Confession of mortal sins is required of Catholics in order to prepare them to receive the Eucharist.

Catholicism teaches that only God has the power to forgive sins, but the priest acts in his place. Penitents may be asked to say a penance – usually made up of several prayers – and/or occasionally to undertake works for the poor and needy. The priest can refuse absolution and is required to do so if he does not believe that there is true contrition.

There are different permitted formats for the sacrament. Traditionally it has taken place in a confessional box, with the priest and penitent separated by a grille and curtain, going through a set series of prayers and responses. In more recent times there has been a move to more informal, face-to-face conversations, or even services of ‘general absolution’. The Catholic Church regards anything said during the sacrament of reconciliation as private. The phrase ‘the seal of the confessional’ expresses the belief that what is said during the sacrament cannot be repeated elsewhere. Even if a murderer has confessed, the priest cannot reveal his identity to the authorities.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Jesus Christ

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:43:21 GMT

Jesus Christ, Christianity teaches, was born of a virgin mother, Mary, in Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, and only began his public life of teaching and healing in AD 30. Three years later he was crucified. He was, according to the Churches, the Son of God, and three days after his death rose from the dead before ascending into heaven.

Jesus’s life, suffering and death have been a hugely influential force in world history, yet he wrote nothing down – or nothing that has survived. There is independent evidence, unconnected with Christianity, that Jesus did exist. Two Roman historians, Tacitus and Pliny, and the Jewish chronicler, Josephus, record him as a religious teacher living in Palestine.

The main source for details of Jesus’s life and teachings are the four gospels (a word meaning ‘good news’) in the New Testament of the Bible. They form the rock on which Christianity was built and continue to inform both the pronouncements and teachings of Christian leaders and the images and other representations of Jesus created by writers and artists.

Though they describe the events of Jesus’s life, they are not, to take the word as it is typically understood today, gospel – i.e. infallibly true in every respect. For a start, they were written decades after Jesus’s death and the oldest manuscripts we have of them – other than tiny fragments – only go back as far as the third century. Moreover, they all offer different – often strikingly different – accounts of the basic details of Jesus’s life, even down to where and when he was born.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Mass

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:46:05 GMT

The Catholic Church obliges its members to attend Mass on Sundays. They can go instead on the previous (i.e. Saturday) evening. Exceptions are made in cases of serious illness or heavy responsibility for child care, particularly of infants, but absence otherwise is regarded as a grave sin. Despite this, statistics for many hitherto staunchly Catholic countries in the developed world (for example, Ireland) in recent years have shown a fall in the numbers attending Mass every Sunday without fail.

Though the term ‘Mass’ to denote a standardized liturgy is believed to date back to the fifth century, Eucharistic celebrations were recorded as early as the second century by Saint Justin Martyr (100–65). The standard modern Mass is said in the language of the country (Latin was dropped from all but special Masses many years ago). It consists of Bible readings from the Old and New Testaments, and then from the gospels, a homily (or sermon) by the priest and intercessions – together known as the Liturgy of the Word – followed by the offering of gifts, the consecration of the bread and wine, the kiss of peace, and communion (the Liturgy of the Eucharist).

As a whole, the form of the Mass imitates Jesus at the Last Supper, walking around the table (the altar in the Mass) explaining the scriptures to his Apostles, then breaking bread with them. The priest stands in the place of Christ. In recent years the laity (the congregation) has been encouraged to participate, as readers and in assisting the priest in the distribution of the bread and wine, the body and blood of Christ.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Monks and Nuns

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:46:56 GMT

Religious orders – for men and women – have been part of Catholicism since the third century. Members live in communities, based on the model of Jesus and his Apostles. Saint Antony (251–356) is regarded by Catholicism as the founder of monasticism. He gathered like-minded individuals to join loose-knit communities of hermits in the Egyptian desert. They would spend their time in prayer, study and hard labour, focusing on Jesus’s example when he spent 40 days and 40 nights in the desert and, like him, resisting the temptations put in their path by the Devil.

They attracted many admirers, including Benedict of Nursia (480–547). He was so appalled by the excesses of life in Rome, where he had been sent to study, that he lived first as a hermit and then within a community of monks. Around 529 he established a monastery at Monte Cassino, 80 miles south of Rome, and drew up his Rule – or guide to monastic living – which has become the bedrock of Western monasticism in the Catholic Church.

Benedict inspired the foundation of monasteries for women, who took vows of chastity, poverty and obedience and wore long, simple garments that covered their bodies and a headdress or wimple that left only their faces visible. Often male and female houses existed side-by-side though separate, both sometimes presided over by a female abbess like the renowned Hilda of Whitby (614–80).

Sikhism - An Introduction: The Pope

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:57:27 GMT

An aspect of Catholicism that sets it apart from the rest of Christianity is its loyalty to the papacy. Catholics believe that the Pope in Rome stands in a direct line back to the Apostle Peter and therefore has unparalleled spiritual and teaching authority. In certain matters of faith and morals popes can speak infallibly – without error.

The hierarchical model of Church government, with the Pope as Bishop of Rome at the top, was established by Christianity around AD 160. At first, the authority of the papacy existed more in theory than in practice, especially in relation to the great patriarchs of the Church based in Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem. It took until the middle years of the fifth century, during the papacy of Leo the Great, for the writ of the Pope to prevail to any wide extent in Europe. This Leo achieved by his personal dedication and example, a successful missionary strategy and alliances with powerful kings and princes.

Though Catholicism still holds dear to the notion of an ‘Apostolic Succession’ linking every one of Saint Peter’s 260-plus successors back through him to Jesus, the reality is that libertines, frauds and even (legend has it) a woman disguised as a man have on occasion held the office of pope. So, it should be added, have men of great intellect, humility, spirituality and moral courage. The failings of individual popes, Catholicism teaches, should not detract from the overall authority of the office.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Prayer

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:52:32 GMT

All religions have their prayers, ceremonies and rites of passage. Their purpose is to forge a link between humankind and the gods, to provide a forum for spiritual exploration, and to remind individual believers that they are part of something bigger than themselves, both in their own times, and throughout history.

For many believers, the prayers, rites and rituals of their faith give shape to their lives. The sacraments of Christianity follow the landmarks of an individual’s life from birth, through adulthood and on to death. For Muslims, praying five times a day is one of the five practices known as the ‘Pillars’ of Islam.

The time-honoured formulas of words found in prayers, said among fellow believers, in a familiar setting, are often as treasured as the theology or insights of a religion. Prayers and passages from sacred books, regularly read aloud to congregations, or chanted by those taking part in some Eastern religious traditions, distil the essence of the faith, and this was important in times when the majority of hearers were illiterate. As Christians intone the Apostles’ creed, or Credo, they state and absorb a compressed version of the key doctrines of their Church. Historically this process was known by the Latin phrase, Lex orandi, lex credendi, which translates as ‘the law of prayer is the law of belief’. More simply, what you say out loud in a rite or ritual is what you believe.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Priests

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:53:47 GMT

To become a Catholic priest, you have to be male and willing to live a celibate life after ordination. Study for the priesthood is undertaken in a seminary, either in the local diocese, under the control of the local bishop, or elsewhere. Some candidates, especially those considered to have great academic potential, are sent to study in Rome. The basic training takes six years and includes time spent in parishes and learning by working alongside older priests.

For more than half of Catholicism’s history, its priests were allowed to marry. Married men of proven virtue – viri probati – were prominent amongst the priests of the early Church. It was only in 1139, at the Second Lateran Council, that celibacy became mandatory.

Modern Catholicism teaches of priesthood in relation to both laity and clergy. All are seen as having a vocation, because all are called to be Christians. In that sense, all believers are priests. But the Church makes a crucial distinction, that some are called to be ordained priests. ‘The ministerial priesthood differs in essence from the common priesthood of the faithful,’ states the Catechism of the Catholic Church, ‘because it confers a sacred power for the service of the faithful. The ordained ministers exercise their service for the People of God by teaching, divine worship and pastoral governance.’ Catholicism believes that the priest stands in the place of Jesus during the Mass when, at the consecration, he turns the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, as Jesus did at the Last Supper.

Catholicism - An Introduction: Transubstantiation

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:02:36 GMT

Catholics differ from other Christians in their belief in transubstantiation: that, at the moment of consecration of the bread and wine during the celebration of the Eucharist (Holy Communion), Jesus’s body and blood are present in more than a symbolic way. ‘The mode of Christ’s presence under the Eucharistic species is unique,’ the Church’s Catechism instructs. ‘It raises the Eucharist above all the sacraments as the perfection of the spiritual life and the end to which all the sacraments tend.’ Catholics believe that contained in the consecrated bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ, as well as his soul and divinity, ‘truly, really and substantially’.

Transubstantiation caused disagreement between the Catholic Church and Protestant rebels (who rejected the belief) in the Reformation debates of the sixteenth century, and it remains a key point of divergence in inter-Church talks to this day. Other Christian faiths tend to emphasize the symbolic nature of the bread and wine in the Eucharist. Catholicism goes considerably further. ‘It is,’ the Catechism points out, ‘presence in the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a substantial presence by which Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present.’

The Catholic Church does not allow members of other faiths to receive communion at its Eucharistic celebrations, and it discourages Catholics from doing so at those of other Christian denominations.

Catholicism - An Introduction: The Vatican

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:59:53 GMT

When Christianity achieved official recognition from the Roman Empire in the fourth century, a basilica was built in memory of the first Pope, Saint Peter, on the spot where he had been executed. A century later, a papal palace was added. These sites form the core of what is now known as the Vatican.

Until the fourteenth century popes did not reside in the Vatican. They lived at the Lateran Palace, in the heart of the city of Rome, next to the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, the mother church of Rome. When they returned from exile in Avignon at the end of the fourteenth century, however, the Lateran Palace had fallen into disrepair and so popes made a home in the Vatican.

When Italian forces ended papal authority over the city of Rome in 1870, Pius IX (1846–78) retreated into the Vatican, vowing never to come out again until his sovereignty was restored. In 1929 the Italian government, under Benito Mussolini, resolved what had become an embarrassing impasse. It came to an agreement with Pius XI (1922–39), which created the Vatican City State as a new sovereign country, ruled by the Bishop of Rome. At 108 acres, it is the smallest sovereign state in the world. The resident population is around 900.

Catholicism - An Introduction: The Virgin Mary

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:00:48 GMT

Jesus’s mother, Mary, features only briefly in the gospel accounts of his life, yet she has become the object of special veneration in Catholicism. She has been exalted by leading theologians since Saint Irenæus, bishop of Lyons in France in the second century.

Since the Church believes that Jesus was at once both human and divine – son of God and a man – it argues that his mother must have been an exceptional human being. In Matthew’s and Luke’s Gospels – but not in Mark’s or John’s – it is told that Mary gave birth to Jesus without first having sexual intercourse. Jesus’s birth was a virgin birth.

If the Virgin Birth divides the gospel writers, Catholic teaching about the Immaculate Conception – the belief that Mary alone was born without the stain of original sin, a shared legacy for the whole of humankind since Adam and Eve’s fall in the Garden of Eden – receives an oblique endorsement only from Luke. He describes how the Angel Gabriel, on coming down from heaven to tell Mary that she is to bear God’s son (an event known in Christianity as the Annunciation), greets her as ‘full of grace’.

There is no scriptural basis at all for the third principal claim that Catholicism makes on Mary’s behalf – that she was assumed, body and soul, into heaven. For all others, Catholicism teaches that the body is discarded and only the soul endures.

Sikhism - An Introduction: The Guru Granth Sahib

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:56:15 GMT

This collection of hymns or shabads is the main scripture of the Sikhs and the focus of their worship. Printed versions are commonly used nowadays and are 1430 pages in length. The origins of the Guru Granth Sahib lie in the pothis or collections of the compositions, firstly of Guru Nanak and then of his three successors. These were finally put together under the instruction and supervision of the fifth Guru (Arjan), with Bhai Gurdas acting as amanuensis, and were formally installed in 1604. It was known as the Adi Granth until the tenth Guru (Gobind Singh) added to it the compositions of his father Guru Tegh Bahadur and installed it as Guru in 1708, shortly before his death. It is divided into three sections of unequal length, pages 1 to 13, 14 to 1353, and a short epilogue from 1353 to 1430. In addition to the bani of six Gurus there are compositions by non-Sikh writers; these are known as the bhagat bani and are spread throughout the book.

Sikhism - An Introduction: Gurdwaras

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:38:29 GMT

Strictly speaking a gurdwara is any place where a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib has been formally installed. It may be a room in a private house, often described as Babaji’s room. It may be a large ornate building in Delhi or Southall, England. It may even be a place such as a school room that is used temporarily for worship at times convenient to the community; in such circumstances screens or curtains may be used to seal off objects that might distract the congregation and so challenge the focal position of the scripture. In diasporas gurdwaras are social centres, while in a Punjabi village the building may be small and have only one room. So called historic gurdwaras are places usually associated with some event in the life of a particular Guru, for example, the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh at Patna or the martyrdom of his father at Chandni Chauk in Delhi.

Get Started in Songwriting: Genres (rock, pop)

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:15:34 GMT

Should a good songwriter be able to write in any genre? Or are the fundamental skills different in hardcore punk and, say, Christian soul? The answer is: a bit of both. On the one hand, music is music, and no matter what genre you're working in, you're still dealing with the basic ingredients of melody, rhythm and lyrics. On the other hand, every genre has its own conventions about what to do with those ingredients, and these conventions can be very detailed and very different. Some genres have also evolved around specific instruments or production techniques: you won't get very far writing death metal on the piano, or strumming a hip-hop track on your acoustic guitar.

One thing that's true for every style of music is that if you want to write good songs in a particular genre, you have to immerse yourself in that genre. Reading about the chord changes that are typical of country music is no substitute for listening to Hank Williams. You can learn all the theory you like, but to do things properly, you need to know your music from the inside. Only then will song ideas that are appropriate to the genre begin to flow naturally.

Get Your Articles Published: Travel writing

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:21:55 GMT

Travel writing is probably one of the more glamorous forms of writing for magazines and also one of the more difficult to break into.

There are basically two ways of getting published: being commissioned and writing on spec. As a newcomer, you are unlikely to get an all-expenses-paid commission, but you may get one to write a story at your own expense, which at least means you will help to defray the cost of your holiday.

The second way, writing on spec, means you will have to write your story first and find an outlet for it. However this is a competitive market and you will need to come up with something innovative. Remember, travel writing doesn’t have to be about exotic locations, you could come up with a rip-roaring article about your home town, provided you give it a unique twist.

Make sure you include plenty of background detail and relevant facts and figures and stick to the basic principles of good writing. Hone your skills by writing for free – there are outlets on the internet which publish articles.
Finally, get a good camera and learn to take brilliant pictures. Many magazines won’t accept articles unless they are illustrated with top quality photos.

Get Your Articles Published: The internet

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:17:05 GMT

For writers, the internet is an Aladdin’s cave, full of information, opportunities and an endless supply of ideas. At the touch of a fingertip, it is possible to find out virtually anything – from what the weather was like in March 1948 to the latest experiments in nanotechnology.

However, the information needs to be treated with a degree of caution. Most of what has been uploaded is genuine and accurate, some may be less so and a small amount may be deliberately misleading. In line with good research practice, try to find primary sources. Corroborate what you have found on one website by looking for the same information on several more, but be aware that the same misinformation may occur in all of them.

Use the internet to find new outlets for your material. These can range from e-magazines to competitions as well as specialist websites where you can register as a freelancer.

Also you need never run out of ideas for articles – just start browsing and see where the links take you.

Finally remember, just like books, information and photos on the internet are copyright and cannot be downloaded and used just as they are without permission. However, you can rewrite the information you have researched in your own words, provided it is in the public domain and not original research by the author.

Write A Play And Get It Performed: As a career

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:00:34 GMT

If you enjoy writing articles and have begun to have some success, then you may want to make it your full-time occupation. Before you take the plunge, there are various things to consider.

You will need to be healthy, motivated and willing to take on pretty well any writing work, however tedious.

You will also need to cope with financial uncertainty. Work out all your outgoings over the previous year and see how many articles you would need to sell in order to pay your way. Try to put some money by before you start, enough to live on for at least three months, and preferably six.

You will need to spend time establishing contacts, getting to know editors and generally making yourself known in the magazine world. Never turn down an invitation and always keep a supply of your business cards to hand. Whenever you make a new contact be sure to follow it up with a friendly phone call or email.

Don’t forget to organize yourself with regard to taxes, pensions and insurance. Make a business plan and create a proper system for invoices.

Above all, don’t lose sight of why you wanted this career – because you enjoy writing.

Get Your Articles Published: Interviews

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:38:40 GMT

The use of interviews in articles falls into three categories: 1) the interview as the whole of the article, such as writing about someone famous; 2) as part of the article where it gives not only background information but also a personal perspective from the interviewee, or 3) as part of your research.

The secret to a successful interview is preparation. Be clear in your own mind what you are hoping to learn from the interview and make a list of questions. These can range from gathering facts and figures to more personal or confrontational probing.

Setting up the interview is the first point of contact, so be professional, friendly and clear about what you wish to ask them. Whether the interview will be face to face, over the telephone or by email will depend on how much information you want, where the interviewee lives and what their personal preference is. Face to face is best, but if they live a long way away, or you only want a few statistics, telephone or email is fine.

If possible, record the interview as well as taking notes and make sure you spell their name right. Finally, remember the interviewee won’t know this is your first interview unless you tell them.

Get Your Articles Published: Proposal

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:56:29 GMT

Once you have an idea for an article and are sure you can collect enough information to write it, it is time to find it a home by preparing a proposal to send to magazines.

Firstly do your homework and pick the right magazine. Then check their guidelines. If they don’t have guidelines, ring up and ask how they like to receive proposals and who they should be addressed to – nothing gets binned quicker than a letter starting dear Sir or Madam. Some magazines take emails others will want hard copy.

The proposal includes: a) a letter containing a summary of your article in one paragraph, its length, why it will appeal to their readership, why you are qualified to write it and what illustrations you can provide; b) your CV; c) copies of cuttings from your portfolio. If they accept emails, create a montage of your cuttings which can be attached to your email along with your CV.

Some magazines prefer to see the written article rather than a proposal. Ask if they want email or hard copy. Make sure you include your CV and cuttings plus a stamped addressed envelope if you want the hard copy back.

Get Your Articles Published: Structure

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:08:10 GMT

An article needs an underlying structure to give it coherence – this is what leads the reader through your sequence of ideas and leaves them feeling satisfied. Usually it will seem quite obvious from looking at the material which structure is the most appropriate. Here are the most common ones – bear in mind that sometimes you can combine two, such as ‘chronological’ building to a ‘climax’.

Reader’s interest – this is the default structure, it answers the questions that the reader would ask.
Repetition – a series of points of increasing weight.
Chronological – telling a story in the order it happened.
Sequential – practical order, used for how-to articles.
Climax – building to a dramatic conclusion.
Reverse – starting with the conclusion followed by explanation
Logical – a problem followed by its solution.
News type – or pyramid shape. Put the most important items first in brief, then go on to explain in more detail. This is not often used in article writing.

If you can’t decide which structure to use, make a list of headings, each one describing one of the main points you need to make. It may be that you need to remove one or more, or add others, to achieve a more coherent structure.

Get Your Articles Published: Researching information

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:01:45 GMT

Most articles benefit from some background information or facts and figures and unless you are confident you have enough knowledge in your head then you will have to do some research. Even if you already have the information it doesn’t hurt to check its accuracy.

The first port of call will probably be the internet and researching that medium is dealt with elsewhere as is interviewing people. Other sources will depend on what you are researching but will include public libraries, national and local newspaper archives, PR agencies and press offices as well as personal contacts.

The first rule is to use primary sources wherever possible. These include original documents such as birth certificates, first person reports such as from witnesses to an event, or facts and figures from a reliable source. Secondary sources include reports or books based on original documents, articles based on hearsay or accounts written long after the event.

Bear in mind that information from secondary sources can be suspect or biased, so wherever possible cross check it against other sources. The same applies to information supplied by PR agencies and press officers who may have their own agendas, so again try to cross check it.

Finally, remember that most information will be copyright so it is illegal to make a straight copy into your article without permission.

Get Your Articles Published: Content

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:16:02 GMT

Once you have done your research you will almost certainly find that you have more material than you need for the article. Make a list of all the different types of information that you have amassed: interviews, facts and figures, background, explanation, technical information, arguments for and against and so on.

Now check your brief and decide which of the items on your list are absolutely essential to the article. Be ruthless about this – however interested you might be in a quirky piece of information, it can’t go in if it isn’t relevant – but it might form the basis for another article aimed at a different magazine.

Once you have made a list of the core elements for the article, double-check against a copy of the magazine it’s intended for. Ask yourself if this is really the kind of information the editor will want from you.

Finally, put your core list into an appropriate order – again, check against both the brief and the magazine itself. This will give you a template for the actual writing, so take the time to get it right.

Get Your Articles Published: CV (Resume)

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:15:42 GMT

Your CV is your calling card – it tells editors that you are professional, focussed and competent. Always include it when you email or write to an editor.

It should cover both your writing credits and the aspects of your life that are relevant to the articles you propose to write. Keep it simple, and short – one page if possible. Use white or cream paper and a simple font such as Arial or Times New Roman. Don’t use fancy gimmicks, complicated layouts or photographs – editors won’t be interested in your ability to play with software.

Put your contact details at the top followed by your writing successes in order of importance. You can include unpaid work, apart from anything you have sent to a letters page. Then add extra details such as relevant educational achievements, jobs or hobbies as well as any specialist expertise.

Once you’ve created a basic CV you can tailor it to each publication that you contact, by adding a brief sentence summarizing why you are the right person to write the article and including only the extra details which are relevant. Finally don’t forget to update it each time you sell an article or take on a new subject.

Get Your Articles Published: Summaries

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:16:19 GMT

If you have written your article, and found that it is too long use summarizing techniques to reduce the length without losing any of the meaning.

First look for any unnecessary words or phrases, such as ‘however it can be said that’ or ‘the fact of the matter is’ – you can nearly always manage without them.

Next look for any repetitions – you may have used them as part of the style of the article, but cutting them will reduce your word count.

Then examine the adjectives, adverbs and qualifying phrases. It can be a useful discipline to remove them all from the article (remember to save the original somewhere first though). Read it through, and only replace the qualifiers that are absolutely necessary.

Re-read your descriptive passages – they can often be cut down – and check that you haven’t written too much about yourself.

Finally, identify the key sentence for each paragraph and see if you can rewrite the paragraph in fewer words while still keeping the sense.

Of course if you have already written very economically then summarising won’t work, and you will need to cut down the actual material in the article – it need not be wasted as you may be able to use it in another piece.

Write Your Life Story And Get It Published: Successful life stories

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:15:37 GMT

To write a successful life story you don’t need to be famous or to have done something amazing – but you do need to be able to communicate with your readers and include the information they want to know about.

A good starting point is to think what you would have liked to have read about in your grandparent’s life stories. You would want to know the nitty-gritty details of their life as well as the broad brushstrokes.

Write as you speak, in other words have a conversation with your readers so that your voice comes through the words. Include your emotions such as how it felt when your first child was born. Describe events using all the senses: sound, smell and touch as well as sight.

Include anecdotes, particularly humorous ones. Be honest with your readers, although it is up to you how much personal detail you include.

Finally, you must have perseverance because writing a book is time-consuming. But if you break the writing down into manageable chunks and give yourself sensible targets such as 500 words or one hour’s writing a day you will complete it. Most importantly, give yourself regular rewards.

Be a Great Flirt: Body language

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:19:36 GMT

Body language is the key to flirting. Use it to give signals and learn to read the signals that people are sending.

Watch out for the five basic body language signals. If the person alternates between eye contact and looking at your lips (or lower) then they fancy you. Other signals are if they mirror your body language, point their feet towards you, raise their eyebrows or make strong eye contact.

There are other body language signs that someone fancies you. A man will play with his hair, show off his body, spread his legs, start undressing, put his hands on his hips, or touch himself. A woman will look at the man’s mouth, stroke herself, touch her own lips, preen, whisper and lean in, put objects in his space, flash her wrists, get undressed and stroke things. Look for four or more of these signs.

There are seven deadly flirting sins: melting into the pavement, looking at the floor, leaning away from the person, being too casual, turning away, fiddling with your collar or scratching your neck, and propping your face up with your hand. These all give the wrong message so avoid them.

Be a Great Flirt: Reading the signals

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:15:02 GMT

The most important flirting signal comes from eye contact. The trouble is, men often miss the moment because they tend to scan a woman from the feet up, so they reach her face last, by which time she may have lost interest.

Men need to focus more on women’s faces, and women need wait until the man is looking at her before giving eye contact. Then hold it for three seconds.

Eye contact is often given twice, the first time is an orange light and the second is a green light, although any sort of eye contact is an encouragement.

Learn to monitor body language, using your peripheral vision – you will see if the other person is checking you out. When someone fancies you, they look at your lips as well as your eyes, they mirror your body language, their feet will point towards you, they raise their eyebrows and above all they make eye contact.

Red light signals, where the person isn’t interested, include turning away from you and refusing to make eye contact by looking the other way.

Be a Great Flirt: Flirting myths

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:17:12 GMT

The biggest flirting myth of all is that men do the choosing. It has always been the woman who chooses, and it still is. A man has to wait until he receives the green light from a woman and then he takes over – it’s his job to make the first move, start the conversation, get contact details and arrange a date.

Another myth is that women need to play hard to get so that the man will value them more. Actually this just makes them seem unavailable. Better to come across as available but choosy, so that the man feels you picked him specially.
There is a myth that obvious flirting makes a woman look easy – in fact most men miss all but the most obvious signals and don’t feel able to approach a woman unless they’ve noticed a signal.
Finally, there is a myth that a man has to be gorgeous or rich to get anywhere with women. It’s not true – look around you and you’ll see all sorts of men who are successful while others get nowhere.

The answer is to let go of all these myths and simply give it a go.

Be a Great Flirt: Chat-up lines

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:18:41 GMT

Corny chat-up lines (‘Do you come here often?’) don’t work, and neither do over-the-top ones (‘Did you fall to earth from heaven?’). Keep your opening remark neutral – something about the weather (‘Better day today…’) or something about the situation (‘They should reschedule this train – it always runs ten minutes late’).

You can also use widgets, which are remarks that relate to the here and now. Impersonal widgets are safest since they don’t make your intentions too obvious (‘I love this song’ or ‘Try the dip, it’s really spicy’). Personal widgets are riskier but if you’re feeling bold, go for it (‘I love those earrings’).

Women can use the same chat-up lines as men but to avoid looking too assertive they should stick to neutral and impersonal remarks. Women can also ask for information (‘Do you know what time it starts?’), advice (‘Crisps or peanuts, what do you think?) or help (‘Please could you put my case on the overhead rack for me?).

In speed dating, where everyone is there for the same reason, you can be bolder. Try a quirky opening question (‘Would you rather be on Big Brother or I’m A Celebrity?’) and see how they respond.

Be a Great Flirt: Attraction

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:20:45 GMT

The basis of almost all attraction is similarity. Studies show that people are attracted to people who are similar to them and they tend to have longer, more successful relationships.

When you walk into a party and see someone that you fancy, your unconscious mind is matching them, their body language, facial features and gestures against all the other people you have met in the past. If they are similar to someone you have fancied in the past, ‘bang’, you get that feeling of chemistry. This is also tied in with various biological factors, like whether your immune systems are compatible, etc.

We have a ‘relationship template’ that outlines who we are attracted to. If you really understand body language, you realize that you can read an enormous amount about a person in the first few seconds that you meet. You can see if they are energetic or depressed. You can gauge if you are going to get on with them. Normally, when you meet someone, your mind matches their body language and facial features against the database of people that you have met in the past. If they match up with your ‘relationship template’, then you experience that chemistry.

Be a Great Flirt: Getting a date

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:15:46 GMT

Once you have broken the ice and spent some time flirting, it’s time to move on and get a date. It’s the man’s job to do this and his aim should be to get the woman’s contact details so that he can set up the date. The woman’s job is to signal absolutely clearly that she is interested, otherwise he might take fright and never ask for the date.

Don’t rush into this, take it step by step. Start by reminding her what a fun time you’ve just had – revisit some of your earlier exchanges. If she had mentioned any hobbies or interests, then pick up on that and suggest something fun to do together that is connected in some way.

If she says no, suggest something else, but if she says no again, it’s over, so bail out quickly. If she says yes, offer her your phone number and/or email address and then ask for hers. (Men and women can keep separate flirting phone numbers and email addresses.)

Taking it gradually like this avoids the possibility of embarrassment through misreading the signals – there are plenty of chances to withdraw.

Be a Great Flirt: Dealing with rejection

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:17:54 GMT

A tough rejection can really sting you for days afterwards. If it was from someone you fancied, the temptation is to run over it in your head, talking to yourself about where it went wrong, and then you are just re-living the pain over and over again.

Rejection is going to happen, it is part of the flirting game. Maybe the person you are trying to get eye contact with won’t fancy you. Perhaps you will get a green light, start flirting, and then find there is no chemistry. Possibly you only get a few replies from your internet dating. Often you might end up going out on a couple of dates and then things don’t go so well. Rejection is there, and if you are going to have any success in flirting, you are going to have to handle some rejection along the way.

We have pain for a reason. Emotional pain can warn us that we are doing something emotionally uncomfortable, and try to stop us from repeating the same thing over and over again.

For some things, a certain amount of emotional discomfort is part of the package. To look at it another way, it is something you have to go through to get what you want. After all, you will be meeting an interesting new person, you might even find a long-term partner, or a short-term fling. At least when flirting, you will make the other person and yourself feel good.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Meditation

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:33:58 GMT

Meditation may have developed when early humans stared for long periods of time into the flickering flames of their fires, in a dark cave, and fell into a state of relaxation. Although meditation often has spiritual or religious associations, this is not essential.

Meditation uses simple procedures, which can produce deep relaxation, and a very restful state of mind. It’s recommended that 15–20 minutes is spent meditating every day, sitting comfortably, in quiet surroundings. No special clothing or position is needed. Any relaxing music, words, pictures or sounds can be used to set a tranquil mood, and you simply allow yourself to stay in the ‘here and now’ and gradually let yourself feel quieter, more centred, peaceful and grounded, by concentrating entirely on a word, a sound, a picture or image, or other point of focus. If your attention wanders, you just notice it quietly, and then gently return to the point of focus.

What does it feel like? The sort of way you might feel if you were out in the countryside on a sunny day, or out in the hills, or sitting on a quiet beach watching the waves slowly lapping in and out. Practice helps to develop your meditation skill, and you will gradually reap more and more of its considerable benefits.

Beat Stress With Meditation: Massage

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:33:10 GMT

From a full body massage lasting an hour, to a quick back rub given by a friend or partner, a massage is a great way to relax. Massage can loosen your muscles and ease tension.

You should feel calm and relaxed during and after your massage, be it Indian head massage, shiatsu, aromatherapy massage, Swedish massage, hot stone massage, chair massage, or any other type. Occasionally, there might be a mild aching in the muscles for a day or so afterwards. Chair massage, or head and shoulder massage, can be given fully clothed at work, or at the airport.

If you have a willing friend or partner, a foot or hand massage can help relax your entire body. Massaging the face, scalp, shoulders and neck, or back, can also be very relaxing, and remove tension in those areas. Start slowly with gentle, short, broad strokes, with flattened fingers, to warm up the whole area to be massaged. Then, still with flat fingers, use slow, gliding strokes, and light to medium pressure to release tension. If the pressure used could just crush a ripe grape under your fingers, you’ve got it about right.

Write A Children's Book And Get It Published: Writing Teenage Fiction

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:54:59 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Trial balance

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:53:01 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: The trading, profit and loss account

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:15:56 GMT

Basic Accounting: Balance sheets

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:32:29 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Ledgers

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:51:28 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Types of small business

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:50:37 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Book-keeping principles

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:34:52 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Value added tax

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:49:51 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Book-keeping for clubs, societies and charities

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:36:54 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Cash flow

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:38:27 GMT

Get to Grips With Book Keeping: Book-keeping history

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:39:06 GMT

The Internet and Email For The Over 50s: Simple word processing and spreadsheets

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:49:20 GMT

Two of the most common uses of computers are word-processing and spreadsheets. Word-processing is what you do when you want to produce something that is mainly text-based such as typing a letter, story or an essay. Spreadsheets are for working with numbers.

One of the most common programs for word-processing is called Microsoft Word. This is a good place to start if you have not used a computer much before. This is because you will start to learn many basic computing skills such as using the keyboard and mouse. When you use Word the main part of the screen is a big white space. You should think of this as a piece of paper onto which you are going to type your words. Once you have finished typing you can get it to check your spelling before you print out.

The most common spreadsheet program is called Microsoft Excel. This is used where you want to work with numbers and carry out calculations. Excel is particularly useful if you want to work on your finances. You can type in all of the figures and then set it up to do any calculations that are needed. When you update the numbers, the calculations are re-done automatically. For example, if you were recording your weekly expenses you type them in each week and it will automatically show you how much you are spending.

The Internet and Email For The Over 50s: Booking a holiday on the internet

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:43:17 GMT

Millions of people around the world now use the internet to search for and then book their holidays. There are a number of different ways that you can approach this.

One way is to find the web site of your favourite holiday company and then use their site to find and book the holiday that you want. You might choose to do this rather than going into a travel agent and you may even get a better deal on the internet than you would otherwise.

Another option is to use a search engine such as Google to do your own searching for your holiday. In some cases your search results will come up with well-known holiday companies, but you will also find smaller and more specialised companies and in some cases you will be able to deal directly with the hotel or resort where you want to stay. Again, it can often be cheaper than booking through a high street travel agent and you will be able to view a much wider range of deals.

In addition to the standard holiday items such as travel and accommodation you can also use the internet to find out about and book other services such as hire cars, excursions and even your holiday money.

The Internet and Email For The Over 50s: Social networking for the over 50s

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:49:55 GMT

You may have heard of MySpace and Facebook. These are what are known as social networking websites and are a relatively new and incredibly popular phenomenon on the internet. In simple terms a social network is a bunch of friends. In real life you might meet friends through work, social events or mutual associates. On the internet the same connections exist with the difference being that you meet them over the internet and may never meet them in real life.

Sites such as MySpace and Facebook are very popular with younger people and many use the sites to organise their social lives. However, they are not entirely the domain of young people and there are many older people using them too. In addition to these two well-known web sites there are thousands of other web sites where you can network with other people, many of which are specifically for older people.

The basics of how these work is that you set up a ‘profile’ of yourself which can include your personal details and maybe some photographs. You can then invite people to be your friend on the network and in turn you will be invited to be other people’s friends. You can then communicate with these people using text messages or even see and speak to them using a web cam.

Get Started In Creative Writing: Ideas

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:35:41 GMT

‘Where do you get your ideas from?’ This is the question most often asked of professional writers. There’s no doubt that ideas are troublesome creatures: elusive, slippery and prone to fading from view just when you think you’ve captured them. And some ideas turn out to have been time-wasters all along.

Ultimately, however, ideas come from paying attention. Keep a notebook and record everything that seems striking: conversations; images; places; people. Look and learn. Listen and learn. Talk to people. Ask them about their lives and note down the answers.

Be generous with your own stories and you’ll get back more in return. Go to the theatre. See foreign films. Go to a dance class. Accept invitations. Say yes to experiences, especially ones that you usually say no to. Be an anthropologist in your own life. Record meticulously and honestly.

And read. And read and read and read. And read some more. Become your local librarian’s best customer. Other people’s good ideas and good writing will help your own to flourish. Writers write and writers read. Those are the two most important things.

Try to have a life too. Cyril Connolly once said that the pram in the hall was ‘the enemy of promise’, but the pram in the hall – the chaos of family life – might be your material. So might your job in a bank, or your time as a security guard, or as a supply teacher. Or your divorce. Or your great-grandfather’s divorce. Or anything. All the ideas you could ever need are out there, but you’ve got to have your antenna switched on.

And if you still haven’t got enough material – make stuff up. Never let the facts get in the way of your story. This applies even if you are writing non-fiction. Perhaps especially then.

Get Started In Creative Writing: Treachery and other good habits of writers

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:24:28 GMT

The writer Julia Darling called her last published book of poetry Apology for Absence. She did this as an acknowledgement of the disregard writers often can’t help showing towards their family and friends.

At any family event a writer is only half there. This is because writers are also recording, shaping and moulding what’s going on around them – they can often seem ‘away with the fairies’ as my dad might have put it.

And, of course, there are worse treacheries than simple absence. Writers are ruthless. The life of a writer is a seam to be mined and a writer’s family and friends are fair game. They become material. Their habits, their work, their mannerisms, their views and histories are all possible novels, poems and plays. Their stories are your stories.

One of the things that you are doing as a writer is trying to make sense of the world around you. To lead a properly-examined life. And what a writer, like a forensic scientist, uncovers might well be unpalatable for those closest to them.
Martin Amis once wrote that snoops are ‘seekers of pain.’ He should know. Writers are the ultimate snoops. Nothing is off limits.

Get Started In Creative Writing: Seek critics not fans

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:06:02 GMT

When you’ve written something you feel is good, you’re going to want someone to read it. This is natural. A piece of writing that is never read might as well never have been written. And you’ve worked hard on it. You’ve sweated blood over it. There were moments when it felt like your brain was bleeding, so difficult was the struggle to put the right words in the right order.
If you want to feel good for a moment then show it to someone who loves you. But if you want your writing to improve show it to people whose literary judgement you trust. People who are notoriously hard to please.

And then ask them to tell you what is wrong with your work. Praise teaches you much less than criticism. It is always your work. You are always free to reject criticism once it’s been made, but the chances are that there is something in what the critics have to say. Especially if two or more say the same sorts of things.

So embrace criticism. Seek out that pain. It might make you angry. It might make you depressed. But it will definitely make your work better.

Fans are for having drinks with or for going to dinner with. Fans are your friends. But fans aren’t necessarily good for your writing.

Get Started In Creative Writing: Read modern poetry

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:59:36 GMT

If you are an aspiring poet yourself, then you might think that this is obvious advice. Apparently it isn’t. When most people think about poetry, they think about what they read at school, primary school usually. Despite the efforts of writers like the poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, the general population have a narrow view of what makes a good poem.

At least those beginning the craft of poetry know that they should read modern poets. Prose writers are often more dismissive. But poets often spend time thinking hard about things the rest of us take for granted. Working at their best, a good modern poet will make the familiar strange again. Make us see the ordinary and the everyday in a new light. Poets remake the world around them daily; with a few arresting images a poet can reshape our view of the world. And they can, if they’re any good, provide us with a guide on how to live.

If you’re feeling flat as a prose writer, or as a dramatist, or your film script is somehow lifeless – read a modern poet.

A personal collection of good modern poets: Fleur Adcock, Simon Armitage, Ros Barber, Anne Caldwell, Maura Dooley, Carol Ann Duffy, Bernardine Evaristo, Paul Farley, Louise Gluck, Seamus Heaney, Selima Hill, Tobias Hill, Matthew Hollis, Grace Ingoldby, Kathleen Jamie, Anthony Joseph, Thomas Lynch, John Lyons, Sinead Morrissey, Sharon Olds, Leanne O’Sullivan, Dan Paterson, Clare Pollard, Jacob Polley, Sheenagh Pugh, Robin Robertson, Neil Rollinson, Ann Sansom, Peter Sansom, Penelope Shuttle, Matthew Sweeney, Derek Walcott, Benjamin Zephaniah

Get Started In Creative Writing: When nothing is working, try something outrageous

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:25:59 GMT

John Cleese once said ‘High creativity is responding to situations without critical thought.’ In other words creativity is about play. It is about mischief. It is about surprises.

As a writer you are bound to feel blocked sometimes, and one way to free yourself up is to do something drastic. Kill off a main character. Strike out every other line. If it’s a third-person narrative, try it in the first person, or even the second person. If it’s in the past tense, put it in the present. Or vice versa. Read a poem, look at a picture, phone a friend and then take something from that and try and use it as the solution to your problem.

All writing is rewriting, and the process of drafting, changing and playing with your text is the fun part of the job. Writing is not meant to be a slog, it’s meant to be a joy, and anything you can use to keep yourself fresh and interested will benefit your work. Your outrageous ideas may not turn out to be the answer, but they might help you get there sooner and in a better humour than staring at the paper or the screen, trying to squeeze new solutions from the same old ingredients.

Get Started In Creative Writing: The recipe for a good story (short or long, true or made up)

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:18:13 GMT

If you are writing stories of any kind and you want people to read them, then you need to ask yourself some hard questions. Why should anyone read this story? Why should they choose my work over any of the other 100 million books already on the shelves? Why should they read me – an unknown author – rather than, say, the latest celebrity memoir?

And you should only go on to write that story if you can say to yourself these things:

This story is based on an original idea
This story contains interesting characters
This story slaps its readers in the face right from the start
This story contains conflict, heartbreak and/or laughter
This story keeps the readers guessing
This story contains believable dialogue

If, hand on heart, you can say these things then work at your story until you can’t do anything more with it. Then put it away and let no one see it. Go and work on something else. Take it out after a few days and suddenly the faults and flaws will be obvious. Now work on it some more. Repeat this process, and then – and only then – let someone else see it. And seek criticism not praise.

Close More Sales: Keep price breakdown information to yourself

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:42:21 GMT

Be a Great Mum: Being a full-time mother

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 04:55:47 GMT

All mothers are full time – it’s a 24/7 job as your children are always somewhere in your heart and mind even if you go out to work all day. For mothers who don’t have any paid work, the job of being the primary carer of your children brings with it great delights and varying amounts of challenge. One thing that you cannot change is the opportunity to be around your children in their early years but it’s a complex decision opting to stay at home. Some mothers find it boring being around young children and can’t wait to get back to work, and others find it totally satisfying. If you are a full-time mum, consider the benefits to you and your children if you can find something else to do, as well as raising the children and running a home. This might be voluntary work or keeping a hobby going or even having a regular slot in the week for you to spend however you wish. You deserve to keep this part of you nourished so keep guilt out of it. Above all, take pride in your decision to focus on family for now – spending time with your children is never a waste of time.
Judy Reith. www.parentingpeople.co.uk

50 Ways to Improve Your German: German daily life - customs and traditions around the calendar

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:41:50 GMT

50 Ways to Improve Your German: German and English - What’s the difference?

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:42:54 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and agreements

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:40:17 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and compound word formation

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:38:48 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and punctuation

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:37:56 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and the sentence

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:35:48 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and active/passive voices

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:32:18 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and cases

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:33:43 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and genders

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:31:00 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and pronoun

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:29:38 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and syntax

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:28:32 GMT

Essential German Grammar: German grammar and moods and tenses

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 03:27:11 GMT

Fast-Track Italian: Living in Italy

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:13:50 GMT

Fast-Track Greek: Living in Greece

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:12:12 GMT

Fast-Track Portuguese: Living in Portugal

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:17:21 GMT

Fast-Track Japanese: Living in Japan

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:15:15 GMT

Fast-Track French: Living in France

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:08:02 GMT

Fast-Track Spanish: Living in Spain

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:19:57 GMT

Fast-Track German: Living in Germany

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:10:41 GMT

Elisabeth Smith's Last Minute Mandarin Chinese: Visiting China

Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:01:24 GMT

Fast-Track Russian: Living in Russia

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 13:18:36 GMT

Get A Better Job: Biography - Rod Ashley

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:22:33 GMT

Get A Better Job: Changing labour markets

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:02:51 GMT

Get A Better Job: Transferable skills

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:02:04 GMT

Get A Better Job: Knowing yourself

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:06:36 GMT

Get A Better Job: Identifying your skill-set

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:28:21 GMT

Get A Better Job: Networking

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:46:06 GMT

Get A Better Job: Applying for a job

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:49:03 GMT

Get A Better Job: Interview skills

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:21:51 GMT

Improve Your Project Management: Motivation

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:54:15 GMT

Get A Better Job: Marketing yourself

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:56:38 GMT

Elisabeth Smith's Last Minute Portuguese: Visiting Portugal

Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:18:23 GMT

Elisabeth Smith's Last Minute Spanish: Visiting Spain

Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:24:27 GMT

Complete Babylonian: Biography - Martin Worthington

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:15:44 GMT

Complete Babylonian: The Babylonian language

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:19:52 GMT

Complete Babylonian: Babylonian literature

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:17:42 GMT

Complete Italian: American Italian

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:20:11 GMT

Complete Italian: Biographies = Maurice Elston and Lydia Vellaccio

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:21:42 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian dialects

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:26:47 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian immigration

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:25:02 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian language learning

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:30:01 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian opera

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:28:15 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian poetry

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:11:35 GMT

Complete Italian: Italian wine

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:17:47 GMT

Complete Italian: Italy North and South

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:15:36 GMT

Complete Italian: Popular Italian

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:14:27 GMT

Complete Italian: The Italian people

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:13:26 GMT

Complete Spanish: Biography - Juan Kattán-Ibarra

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 03:44:50 GMT

Complete Spanish: Dialects of Spanish

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 03:49:19 GMT

Complete Spanish: Geography of Spain

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:08:53 GMT

Understand Music Theory: Key terms

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:17:33 GMT

Music theory is all about exploring the fascinating mechanics of music. Like any creative work, certain basic elements are needed. In music, the terms used to define these elements are rhythm, pitch, melody and harmony.

Rhythm is broadly defined as anything associated with the duration or length of a sound. Most music has a regular pulse similar to a heartbeat. Notes of various shapes, held for different lengths, are joined together in patterns to form rhythm. A time signature is found at the beginning of a piece. It consists of two numbers similar to a fraction, and shows the number of beats per bar. Bar-lines are vertical lines which divide music into bars or measures. Each bar contains the number of beats shown in the time signature.

Pitch is used to indicate the lowness and highness of a sound. Musical pitches are given letter-names based on the first seven letters of the alphabet. They are written as notes on a staff of five lines and four spaces. The grand staff uses two clef signs, treble and bass. The distance between two pitches is called an interval, and may be large or small.

A melody consists of an organized series of different pitches. The notes are given time values and arranged in a time signature. Melodies are based on scales, an alphabetical succession beginning on a particular pitch called the key note. Sharps or flats written on the staff at the beginning of a work form the key signature.

Harmony involves the study of chords, a chord being three or more pitches played or sung together. Besides the individual structure of each chord, there are also different uses and functions when supporting a melody.

There are many other musical terms, some used for expression, which is anything about an individual performance. Examples include tempo (speed) and dynamics (volume). A musical work also needs to be organized by a basic plan called form.

Understand Music Theory: Skills

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:26:14 GMT

Music theory, like any subject, consists of certain basic elements. The terms used for these elements include rhythm, pitch, melody and harmony. To understand the theory of music, various skills need to be developed in all of these areas.

Rhythm is broadly defined as anything associated with the duration or length of a sound. Notes of various shapes, held for different lengths, are joined together in patterns to form rhythm. It is first necessary to understand and learn the various note values. You must also learn to count evenly when performing rhythms, otherwise you won’t recognize your music and will confuse other musicians if playing in a group!

Pitch is used to indicate the lowness or highness of a sound. Musical pitches are given letter-names based on the first seven letters of the alphabet, and written on a musical staff. Learning to read the pitches takes patience and time, but is necessary if you want to progress further. Proper notation is also important in writing down your music.

A melody consists of an organized series of different pitches. The notes are given time values and arranged in a time
signature. A knowledge of intervals, both writing and hearing, plus the understanding of the construction of scales and key signatures are needed for working with melody.

The study of chords, a chord being three or more pitches played or sung together, is harmony. You will need to learn about the various types of chords, their construction and functions. Your understanding of chords should include both writing and aural recognition. Although not a required skill for understanding music theory, basic keyboard playing would be an asset, especially when working with chords.

Understand Music Theory: Lessons

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:18:14 GMT

If you are interested in learning about some aspect of music, chances are you’ll be looking for instruction. Lessons come in many forms including private tuition, classes or self-teaching at home. Private teachers may be found in several ways. Word of mouth is probably best, but newspaper ads are also useful. Many colleges and universities keep a list of music students available for teaching. Group learning does not provide as much individual attention, but you will meet others with your interest and learn from their mistakes! Home study is becoming very popular as lesson times can be arranged around other activities. However, it can be a solitary experience, and without a teacher available to help, the student must learn to make good use of study time and set realistic goals. Whatever the style of instruction, a good quality music lesson should include ear-training, music theory and practical work. You also need to make sure that the lessons are designed to fit your learning requirements.

Practice between lessons is important if progress is going to be made. To make your practice sessions enjoyable, pick manageable pieces that interest you, if possible, in a variety of styles. Also, be sure to have an aim for each session. If you find you are having trouble with one particular section, isolate it! Don’t go back and start again from the beginning of the piece. The problem won’t get solved. Try to practice frequently. Short sessions everyday are better than one or two long ones between lessons. Good luck!

Understand Music Theory: Dynamics

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:11:45 GMT

In musical terms, the word, dynamics, is often confused with the term, expression. In a general way, expression means anything about the quality of a performance, including such things as phrasing, speed and volume. It is everything that gives individuality to a performance. Dynamics deal exclusively with degrees of volume of sound, or in other words, the loudness or softness of a piece. Words or signs are written below the staff at the beginning of a piece, with new instructions given throughout. They are generally indicated by Italian terms and individual letters such as forte or f for loud, and piano or p for soft. The word ‘mezzo’ is sometimes added before the words or letters, changing the dynamics to medium loud or medium soft. Examples are mezzo forte or mf, and mezzo piano or mp.

Some changes in volume are gradual, while others appear suddenly. The word ‘crescendo’ means gradually getting louder, while ‘descrescendo’ is the opposite, gradually getting softer. It is important that the music notation shows where the gradual dynamic changes both start and end. There are also various terms and signs to indicate a sudden change or emphasis in volume. ‘Sforzando’, meaning forced, and the accent mark are just two examples.

Dynamic marks are never exact indications of the volume. They need to be taken in context and judged in relation to the mood or style of the overall work and the previous volume levels of the music.

Understand Music Theory: Train your ear

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:05:46 GMT

Ear training or aural training is instruction designed to develop the sense of hearing and listening skills in music. It includes recognition of pitch, intervals, chords, meter and rhythmic patterns, and may be taught in several ways.

Sight singing involves reading and singing a melody without rehearsal or preparation. Material should be graded so that the learner is able to study one problem at a time, progressing from an easy rhythm and melody to more complex music. The tunes used should be written in an easy singing range.

As in sight singing, sight reading usually refers to the performance of music on an instrument without practice. A finished result is not expected, the goal being to produce a general impression of the work. Both in singing and playing a melody on an instrument such as a flute or violin, the main knowledge required is the ability to recognize intervals and count rhythms.

For an instrument like the piano, the performer must be able to play without looking at the keyboard, as all attention will be needed to read the various pitches written on the grand staff.

Dictation is the recognition and identification of the different musical elements without the use of a score. The sounds are analyzed by hearing, not seeing. Practice in dictation appears in different ways. It could involve listening to a rhythm tapped, then writing it down in notation. Other exercises might require recognizing intervals, chord types or entire melodies, then notating what is heard.

Understand Music Theory: Scales

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:25:26 GMT

A scale is the alphabetical succession of notes beginning on a particular pitch. The term comes from the Latin word ‘scala’, which means ladder. All music is composed using some sort of scale. Many different types have been used in music throughout the ages, from ancient church modes to the twelve tone row in the 20th century.

Scales sound different from each other due to the way the pitches are arranged. In medieval music, the various scale formations were called modes. Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian and Aeolian are all names used for the modes. For approximately the past 400 years, most music in the Western world has used major or minor scales, which are the old medieval modes of Ionian and Aeolian.

A major scale is a series of semitones (half tones) and whole tones arranged in a specific order. It is this arrangement that identifies it as major in sound. The notes for a C major scale are found by playing just the white keys of a piano from any C to the C one octave (eight keys) higher. Music using these pitches with C as the starting note or key note is said to be in the key of C major. The minor scale follows a different pattern of pitches, and unlike the major, is found in three forms. These are called the natural, harmonic and melodic.

Besides the major and minor, the names of other scales include whole tone, blues, pentatonic and chromatic. Some modern composers have even devised their own, referred to as synthetic scales.

Understand Music Theory: Time signatures and meter

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:03:57 GMT

At the beginning of a piece of music, you will find two numbers resembling a fraction. This is called the time signature or meter. The top number indicates the number of beats per bar. The bottom number gives the type of note which gets the basic beat. The most common time signature used is 4/4. The top 4 shows there are four beats in every bar. The bottom 4 states that the crotchet or quarter note gets one beat.

It is important to remember that the time signature shows the number of beats and not the number of notes per bar. Notes of various lengths are mixed together and must add up to the proper number of beats required by the meter.

The various time signatures each have a different feel. Music written in 2/4 is march-like, while 3/4 is waltz time. The first beat of every bar receives a slight accent or stress which helps define the meter. The time signatures of 2/4, 3/4 and 4/4 are referred to as simple time. There is another set of time signatures known as compound, the most common being 6/8 time. In this case, the quaver or eight note gets the beat. However, there is an underlying feeling of 2, with accents on the first and fourth beats.

In order to participate in making music, it is important to understand how to count in various meters. A melody is completely unrecognizable if the rhythm is incorrect!

Understand Music Theory: Bars and measures

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:03:48 GMT

A bar, also known as a measure in some countries, is the space between two vertical lines called bar-lines. Each bar contains a group of beats, the first usually slightly accented. Set off by the bar-lines, the groups of two, three, four or more beats recur consistently throughout the composition. This basic feel or scheme creates the time signature or meter. Time signatures consist of two numbers placed at the beginning of the piece. The top number shows the number of beats (not notes) in each bar. Music written in 2 time has two beats per bar. The emphasis on the first beat gives the feeling of a march. A piece in 3 time, with the accent on the first beat, resembles a waltz.

Bars also function as directions for repetition within a composition. Heavy double lines – a double bar-line drawn vertically through the staff – divide the work into large sections or indicate the end. Dots placed on either side of a double bar mean that some of the music will be repeated. This is called a repeat sign. Sometimes, a piece may begin with a bar containing fewer than the required number of beats stated in the time signature. The notes in the incomplete bar are often called pick-up notes. In this case, the last bar of the piece will also be incomplete. If the beats of the two incomplete bars, the first and the last, are added together, the total should equal the number of beats required per bar given in the time signature.

Understand Music Theory: Phrasing and articulation

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:22:51 GMT

Just as written words have punctuation marks like commas to help structure a section, music also uses a type of punctuation. A phrase is similar to a line of writing and is several bars long. In simple music such as a folk song, the phrases are usually two or fours bars in length. There is, however, no set rule about how long a phrase should last. Phrases are notated by a long, curved line starting from the first note and ending at the last note of the phrase.

Articulation refers to the way an individual note or group of notes should be performed. There are various marks to show articulation, some only being used for specific instruments. Directions for use of the sustaining pedal on the piano is an example. Other signs have a more general use. A dot placed over or under the head of a note indicates it should be played staccato, as short as possible. The slur marking is a curved line written above or below the heads of a group of notes, showing these pitches should be played smoothly. Slurs are found in vocal music, but are also used for bowing instructions of stringed instruments. The curved line is similar to that of the phrase, but is usually applied to a much smaller group of notes.

There are sometimes difficulties in knowing exactly how a piece of music is to be interpreted. Often the composers were careless in their original notation. Performance practices have also changed throughout the years. These problems need to be considered when deciding on the exact phrasing and articulation suitable for a particular performance.

Understand Music Theory: Music history

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:20:40 GMT

The study of music history generally refers to the development of Western music and is divided into various periods. The Monophonic period dates back from the ‘beginnings’ to about 1300 A.D. During this time, pre-Christian music was mainly developed by the Greeks. There is little surviving, although it is evident that music played an important part in Greek drama. The rise and spread of Christianity saw the development of liturgical music such as Gregorian chant and the use of the church modes.

From about 1300 A.D., the Polyphonic period began. Music was composed in parts called voices which supported each other, known as counterpoint. The period of music written in this style after 1600 is called Baroque. Two major composers of the time were Bach and Handel.

In music after 1750, there is a marked change in style to homophonic writing. Instead of interwoven melodies, a melody is supported by chords. This period is call the Classical era and includes such composers as Haydn and Mozart.

Yet a different style of composing began around 1820. It is called the Romantic era, the music being described as subjective and impressionistic. Key composers include Brahms, Schumann and Debussy.

Since the start of the 20th century, music has developed in a variety of ways, incorporating a wide range of ideas from the past and combining them in new, innovative ways. There have been new chord structures, hybrid scales and the mixing of folk or jazz elements with contemporary music.

Be a Great Flirt: Top flirting tips for women

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:13:06 GMT

Basic flirting rules are that women do the choosing, but once they have signalled their choice they sit back and let the man make the move. If you fancy someone, give them the green light by making eye contact for about three seconds. This can seem like a long time, so practise it with a friend. It can help if you say to yourself something like, ‘You are gorgeous!’ while you hold the eye contact. You can do this twice – think of the first eye contact as an orange light and the second one as a green light.

Bear in mind that men usually look at women from the feet upwards, so allow time for them to reach your face and register your green light.

Once you’ve given the green light, it’s up to the man to make the first move and open the conversation. You can make this easier for him by moving slightly away from the people you are with (do leave yourself an escape route in case it doesn’t work out!) and breaking off any conversation so that he doesn’t have to butt in.

Once you are talking, monitor his body language to see how things are going.

Be a Great Flirt: Top flirting tips for men

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:13:44 GMT

Basic flirting rules are that the woman does the choosing, but once she has signalled her choice she sits back and lets the man make the move. A woman signals her choice by making eye contact. Doing this once is an orange light, twice is a green light. Don’t miss the moment by focusing too hard on her body – look at her face so you catch the eye contact.

Once you have that green light it’s up to you to move things forward, but don’t invade her personal space – start flirting at about arm’s length. Remember that corny chat-up lines don’t work, so keep the first remark neutral – something about the weather for instance. Also use widgets. An impersonal widget is a remark about the place or situation you are in, for example in a bus queue you might say, ‘It was an hour late yesterday’. A personal widget is a little more risky as it moves things on quickly, but something like, ‘Love those earrings!’ is worth a try.

Your aim is to get contact details, but don’t push too hard. Chat for a while, then pick up on her interests and suggest doing something connected – if she says no, she isn’t interested, so bail out quickly.

Be a Great Flirt: Flirting techniques

Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:16:32 GMT

The most powerful flirting tool of all is listening. Most people think they are good listeners but very few of us really are. People love to talk about themselves – it makes them feel special and cared for – so give the person you’re flirting with your whole attention.

Men should avoid corny chat-up lines. Start instead with a neutral remark, such as something about the weather. Also use widgets, which are remarks relating to the here and now, either personal or impersonal.

Women can use the same techniques as men but that can make them look too sexually available. Instead they could ask for information or advice as a way of getting started.

Once the conversation gets going it is the man’s job to close the deal and his aim is to get the woman’s contact details. The woman needs to make her interest blindingly obvious, but even so men often misread the signals. Suggest doing something fun together, picking up on anything she’s already mentioned, and if she doesn’t seem keen then that’s a clear sign – time to move on, with no harm done.

Speak French With Confidence: Biography - Jean-Claude Arragon

Sat, 19 Mar 2011 15:22:08 GMT

Speak French With Confidence: French eating habits

Mon, 21 Mar 2011 12:51:06 GMT