9 things no one tells you when youre starting a business

9 things no one tells you when youre starting a business9 things no one tells you when youre starting a businessThink you can cut it on your own?Here are nine things to consider before you take that leap of faith and start your own business.1.Begin with revenue.Its nice that you have a dream, but the reality is that you will need to make money. Whether you are planning on pitching to investors or building a customer-funded business, you will need cash flow. Cash flow is the heartbeat of your business. Author and entrepreneur Seth Godin writes, It pays to have big dreams but low overhead. Overhead are things such as rent, payroll and other monthly expenses. Make a plan and write specific goals for how you are going to make money.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and more2.Protectyour IP.IP stands for Intellectual Property. Trademark your work and spend time on your privacy policies from th e beginning. Talk to a trademark lawyer and make sure you are covering all your bases in the legal sense. Have a designated spot for organizing all paperwork, legal documents, and trademarks. Trust me, you will get a lot of paperwork mailed to you and you want to make sure you dont throw away something important because you thought it was spam.3.Market yourself.Free absatzwirtschaft on social media is the key to growing your start-up with low overhead. Research social media marketing ideas, and do your homework. Study businesses that are doing what you do. Know your target audience and study CRM (customer relationship management) within your company. Where is your ideal customer currently spending their money if not on you? Connect with like-minded small business owners, and learn from each other. I am currently in a mastermind group with seven female, small business leaders in Nashville. We get together every other week to discuss various aspects of running a small business. Be pro active and curious. Ask questions.4.Know your why.If cash flow is the heartbeat of your business, the why is the actual heart. If you cant write down the internal, external or philosophical problem your company is working to solve, your business wont have a backbone.He who has a why can endure any how. Frederick Nietzsche5.Understand yourself so that you can make great hires.Organizations are never limited by their opportunity. They are limited by their leader. Dave RamseyYou are the leader. You need passion, integrity, humility, courage and self-discipline. Know your strengths, weaknesses and leadership capabilities so that when the time comes to make a hire or seek support, you know where you are lacking. Become self-aware and discern in what areas you need to improve. Start by taking personality tests that give you insight into your tendencies. My go-to test for myself and my team members is the DISC profile. Every bewerberinterviewee that we are seriously considering hiring ta kes this test before we offer a position. Your interview process should be EXTENSIVE. Turnover can kill a start-up.6.You are NOT the boss.Your customers are the boss. Your customers are the hero. Its ALL about your customers. The story about how and why you started your company isnt as important as how and why your customers need your product. Learn how to serve your customers, but know that once in a while your customer might be wrong.This articletaught me about the freedom to occasionally fire a customer. Embrace the concept that your product is not for everyone.7.Build structure and find balance.Professionals show up and do the work when they dont feel like it. Become obsessed with time-management or you will begin drowning in chaos. Build structure for your business so that you can find healthy work-life balance. Read time management books and find a routine.8.Build a tax savings account and an emergency fund savings.Finances and managing cash flow are two of the biggest distrac tions for any business. If you dont have a CFO from the start, hire an accountant and/or bookkeeper, and build your savings. An emergency fund for your business can be anywhere from three months to a year of overhead expenses you have saved in the case of sudden disaster. Move money into your tax savings account every month and dont touch it. Every quarter, while millions of business owners are scrambling to move around money for taxes, youll be able to stay hyper-focused on developing your business.9.Embrace change and challenges.Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between the obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both into their advantage. Seth GodinYou will face many obstacles, ups and downs. I could spend all day telling you about all of the bumps Ive experienced in the brde three years, but then I would be talking the problem - not the solution. Seth Godin says, Youre going to do your best work, and its not going to work. Taki ng it personally will cripple you. Its ok to be unprepared when you start. There are many variables you cannot control no matter how organized you feel. You will be much more stress-free if you learn to embrace change and dont grip your business by the throat.This article originally appeared on Create Cultivate.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

New bill wants to give employees the right to ignore email after-hours

New bill wants to give employees the right to ignore email after-hoursNew bill wants to give employees the right to ignore email after-hoursDo you dread answering work emails long after you have left work? A new New York City bill wants to help you ward off demanding bosses who expect answers at all hours of the day and night.Proposed by New York City Councilman Rafael Espinal, the local bill would make it unlawful for private employees in the city of New York to require an employee to check and respond to email and other electronic communications during non-work hours.If the bill passed, New York City bosses with at least 10 employees would no longer be allowed to expect and demand an online response from their employees after-hours.Employees would be able to disconnect from work emailsThe bill aims to buy back employees the personal time they lose when they are not allowed to put their phones away at home. While technology has increased access to people and ideas, its also made it possible for employees to be on-call 24/7, Espinal said about why he welches proposing it. We need to establish clear boundaries for employees so they can maintain a healthy work-life balance and live without fear of retaliation for not answering work communications after work hours.Espinal said he was inspired by similar bills which have passed in Europe. In France, for example, employers with more than 50 employees are required to guarantee them the right to disconnect from technology after they clock out from work.Employees physically leave the office, but they do not leave their work, French politician Benoit Hamontold the BBCabout why a government intervention was needed. They remain attached by a kind of electronic leash like a dog.Technology has made it easier to work all the timeThats the gift and curse of technology When we can work anywhere, we can always be working. And that has a cost on our home life. It can makeus resent our partners.One study found that when your par tner looks at their phone at home, it creates relationship tension that affects your job performance. And those long hours of emailing back and forth dont even help our careers. One five-year survey found that employees performances would sharply decline if they worked more than 65 hours a week.The rise of right to disconnect bills recognize that technology has blurred the boundaries between work and play. They want to help employees by drawing a clear line on to what extent technology can intrude on our personal lives.

How to Find a Side Hustle That Works for You

How to Find a Side Hustle That Works for You How to Find a Side Hustle That Works for You If youre between jobs or feeling unfulfilled in your current role, you may want to consider taking up a side hustle - a flexiblegig that allows you to manage your own schedule and explorenew creative or business avenues while earning money.Many people are dissatisfied or, frankly, bored with their current jobs. Side hustles can provide a creative, and even social and emotional, outlet. You can finally pursue that dream you had in college. No excuses.Similarly, whether you just moved to the area or have recently graduated, a side hustle is a good way to earn some cash while you search for a full-time job. You could bring in thousands of extra dollars annually to help make ends meet, pay student loans, or just have a little extra cash on hand. Additionally, your side hustle can refineyour hard and soft skills, which will help you in your primary career as well.Need some help deciding whether a side hustle is right for you - or which side hustle is worth your time? Check out the following infographic fromSelf Lenderfor some ideas

Administrative Assistant Top Needed Skills

Administrative Assistant Top Needed SkillsAdministrative Assistant Top Needed SkillsAdministrative Assistant Top Needed SkillsWriting your resume with a target job in mind requires having a clear understanding of the jobs skills and proficiencies.A well-crafted resume skills section, highlighting your relevant skills for an administrative assistant position, will help your resume beat the Applicant Tracking System (ATS), which is the first step to getting your application noticed. Use the administrative assistant top skills and proficiencies below to help you effectively write your resume.Administrative Assistant top skills proficienciesReporting SkillsAdministrative Writing SkillsMicrosoft Office SkillsAnalysisProfessionalismProblem SolvingSupply ManagementInventory ControlVerbal CommunicationOffice Administration ProceduresTyping SkillsAttention to DetailAccuracyMultitaskTelephone SkillsTeamworkDiscretion and JudgmentPatience

The Fight Against Basic Resume Format

The Fight Against Basic Resume Format Ideas, Formulas and Shortcuts for Basic Resume Format So you simply want a simple resume. Again, you wish to make certain that your resume is readable. So maybe you really need to observe some resumes. Basic resumes typically have an extremely classic and standard tone. How to Choose Basic Resume Format Delivery Driver Resume Objectives Delivery Drivers are relied upon for transporting goods all around the nation, and they will need to possess a particular set of skills so as to safely drive the vehicles needed for the position. Try to remember this specific template is perfect for those with some or significant work experience only. All information provided ought to be considered fictional. The Advantages of Basic Resume Format Anyway, checking and proofreading are quite necessary which can help you stay away from mistakes. In case essential documents should be proofread and copied through a human act, an individual can select from the b road array of services available online. Chronological resumes are the ideal distribution policy to highlight your accomplishments. There are lots of examples of resumes, but you need to remain certain to create your resume and cover letter with your very own personal touch. Remember also you have the cover letter to spell out why youre the suitable candidate. In reality these kinds of resumes and cover letters are extremely specific and may help demonstrate that you completely understand the organizations needs. However much or what kind of work experience youve got, theres a resume format that is likely to make your qualifications shine. If your resume format is disorganized and unclear, a possible employer has possibly hundreds of resumes from different candidates to check through therefore they wont waste time attempting to make sense of it and youll miss your opportunity for an interview. Thus it is vital to select the suitable font and size of the text. With 8 unique designs and 5 color choices, this template library has plenty to pick from. When you format your resume you wish to be certain your leave enough margin space to permit for printing. The fruchtwein suitable format ought to be there along with the model of writing. If youre confused because of the numerous fabulous designs its possible to download, dont worry Basic layouts are extremely simple to edit, even when you have never made a resume before. Choosing Basic Resume Format Save yourself from getting nervous and take advantage of the readymade resume templates that are obtainable for all sorts of job profiles. The practice intends to figure out the overall words which a typical individual can type in a moment. So for more resume help on the best way to compose a resume to obtain the job that you dream about, try out the online resume creator. Part of creating an effective resume is selecting the most suitable format to inform your private story. For those who want to crea te their career as typists, its again a fantastic deal as they get paid a great amount of money at established agencies. Its also an excellent format for highlighting well-developed abilities and talents which are relevant to a particular position. Its cool that youre trying to find a job to have some money, but you need some troubles with resume. Just make sure, whichever format you select, which youre targeting it for the job that youre applying to.Find out how to generate your own resume look easy and clean and boost your odds of getting hired The very last thing you wish to do is receive a job which you cant do. Theres no correct or wrong method to create your resume since, at the conclusion of the day, the primary purpose is to become hired and your updated resume is only one of many tools that could be utilized to impress prospective employers and big businesses. Dont be concerned about a scarcity of work experience. Lies Youve Been Told About Basic Resume Format There are many locations where youll get good resume examples. Check out the many methods by which objectives ought to be put down. While documents are usually generated in bulks from various varieties of machinery, they may possess lots of mistakes which arent visible if you dont read the entire document. Its no problem in any respect, we will attempt to explain you what an excellent student resume format is. The Demise of Basic Resume Format A basic resume template is the simplest version or variety of a resume template which could be utilized to produce resumes for any work position. Youre searching for simple resume templates. There are lots of totally different resume templates intended for different jobs. You will be able to select the template for the position you will need to apply. Its essential to choose the suitable resume template to spotlight all your attributes. Click a resume template that you wish to use. The template is given with all the basic headings and incl udes a pre-formatted structure also. Referring a sample template will thus help you in creating the the majority of the opportunity. Basic Resume Format - the Story Hiring managers are busy people and should they scan your resume and cant locate some information or skills fast you arent the one, whod secure a call today Whether youre applying for work, a grant, or using your resume to construct your own client base, a skilled and well-organized resume is suggested. Businessmen and business directors Bring evidence of your position in the business and remuneration. For some jobs, youre want to highlight certain abilities, while for others, youre want to demonstrate related experience. No one would like to get failed in applying for employment. Whats more, these creative jobs often need a portfolio, which is how you are going to offer tangible proof of your abilities. When youre working at your existing job youre not stressed, seems like everything goes smooth and with no trou bles.

The Foolproof Monster Resume Writing Service Discount Code Strategy

The Foolproof Monster Resume Writing tafelgeschirr Discount Code Strategy As an example, computer skills like the proficiency in some specific software programs ought to be listed together alongside other abilities which are related to the desired job position. You understand how important its to get a well-written application and resume when you start to look for work. The writing services make certain you find it possible to catch the eye of the recruiters so that you receive the interview call for your fantasy job. The site mainly, focuses on truly being a platform where it is possible to hunt for jobs and the recruiters can post jobs. The Downside Risk of Monster Resume Writing Service Discount Code Using resume samples can be exceedingly useful. Scannable resumes need specific page designs because computer scanners cant read certain products. To make ansprechbar resume or create online portfolio you will initially need to opt for a background template. When you are thro ugh choosing the template you will just have to stick to some additional actions to make online resume or create online portfolio. Following that, you will analyze that content to discover what aspects allow it to be perfect. If you locate a service that is quite affordable, then their work will be dependent upon standard templates. To guarantee the optimum outcome, there are some suggestions to follow to ascertain the best resume writing service. Lastly you need to consider the purchase price of the resume writers services. There are many quantities of online resume writers Australia that can be found on the web, however, its important to check whether they provide the ideal service or not. Nevertheless, you ought to read the stipulations of the service offered to be sure regarding the rates. After the code was applied, you may see the discount price on your final sum. The New Fuss About Monster Resume Writing Service Discount Code If you currently have a resume youve wr itten yourself, you are able to take advantage of their free resume review. The very first point to search for in the resume service is you need to have a look at a few of their prior work and samples. In nearly all situations, the reply is yes. There are some resume writing companies which do not provide expedited services. For the reason alone, it is rather important to pick a professional resume service that has experience writing resumes in your specific industry. Maybe, its what happens when you take service from a business who offer versatile services. In addition, the sample customer service resume can assist you in explaining what section you must concentrate on and how an ideal customer service resume should look like. The summary should make it possible for the hiring fete to set up a succinct impression on the sort of individual the candidate is and the kind of work ethic they possess. To avail better opportunities make certain your resume does not get eliminate d as a result of inadequate presentation. Checking out suitable examples about how to compose a resume is the very best method to acquire the understanding of how to put one together.

3 Reasons Why Working for the CIA Isnt What Youd Expect

3 Reasons Why Working for the CIA Isnt What Youd Expect3 Reasons Why Working for the CIA Isnt What Youd ExpectHave you ever wondered if working for the CIA is really like in the movies? If youve ever gotten lost in a good espionage book, or watched a James Bond movie with excitement, then the answer is probably yes.When it comes to popularity, secret werbers easily surpass other cool professions like archeologists, (space) cowboys, and even (mad) scientists. No wonder- people tend to romanticise their exploits, access to classified information, even their love affairs. In reality, however, working for any of the worlds famous intelligence agencies is far less glamorous than you might think.That is, if the words of Scott Stern, an ex-CIA officer, are anything to go by. Over the past couple of years, Stern has been quite active on Quora, giving the public an inside peek at what it was like to be working for the CIA.In the end, working as a CIA agent has its perks and benefits. They jus t dont come in the form of exploding cigars and shooting pens. How does the reality of working for the CIA differ from its romanticised film portrayals? Lets find out.1. Working for the CIA means spending a lot of time doing boring office work.We used to joke that if there someone made a TV show or movie about what CIA officers actually do, Stern explains, itd be more like The Office than Homeland or 24.This one probably comes as the biggest disappointment, yet hardly a surprise. After all, the CIA is an enormous institution. For this reason, it faces all the problems of any large organisation, public or private. Departmental politics, bureaucracy, malfunctioning computers and empty toner cartridges, they have it all.If you become a manager at the CIA like Stern was, your day will closely resemble that of a manager in any company around the world. Youll be worrying about your employees schedules, editing reports, coordinating with other offices, etc.The only difference is that youll worry much more than other managers. When they overlook something, its a problem. When you do, people might die.Finally, most of the secret agent exploits you see on TV wouldnt happen because theyre illegal. The CIA, just like any large organisation, has built many preventive mechanisms to eliminate such rogue or unlawful behaviour.2. Having access to classified information isnt nearly as exciting as most films and conspiracy theories would lead you to believe.As Stern ironically puts it Why, yes, Ill get back to coordinating the secret world government thats somehow always 30 steps aheadright after I get someone from IT to reset my password because I hadnt had my morning coffee and managed to lock myself out of the system.Apparently, when you have a first-hand access to whats happening behind the curtains, you find most conspiracy theories so ridiculous you cannot even be offended. And when you consider the previous point, theories about 9/11 or chemtrails conspiracy, really do so und incredibly implausible.(Or maybe the CIA didnt take part in those? Suspicious)At the saatkorn time, Stern doesnt mean to say that no made up stories ever made him upset. The things that frustrate him the most are those that are plausible but off-the-mark. He says the only reason anyone would talk to a reporter is to push a certain agenda, so you only get that slanted perspective.Moreover, if you have a burning desire to impress your friends with your secret knowledge, working for the CIA probably isnt for you. In the end, its a place where you almost never receive credit from the outside word. Not only you cannot talk about it when you succeed, you mostly prevent bad things from happening. Its not as flashy as making something good happen.3. CIA agents are a more diverse bunch than you might expect.According to Brian Goral, a former CIA technical operations officer, the biggest misconception about working for the CIA is that theres no stereotypical agent. In the end, the organis ation has to accommodate a huge range of diverse personalities and political mindsets.For every gun-rights activist at the CIA, there is a coworker who wants reform right now. For every devout Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, or Hindu in the building, there is someone who prefers the scientific exploration, Goral explains. Most conflicts dont arise from ideological differences. On the contrary, youll mostly see normal disagreements on expense reports and petty non-issues.It would be foolish to believe that the CIA only employs thousands of near-identical copies of Agent Smith. We can only blame Hollywood for portraying an entire array of professions inaccurately- CIA agents notwithstanding. Unsurprisingly, life at the CIA is much more complex, personalities and emotions more diverse.In the end, both Goral and Stern cite the people they worked with as the best thing about working for the CIA. They were also the main reason why it was so hard for them to walk away.Do you want to know what s it like to work at other cool companies and organisations? Check out our Cool Offices series and enjoy stories from the worlds most interesting workplaces.Share Your Feedback or Ideas in the Comments

Time You are not a UPS truck. Stop avoiding lifes left turns

Time You are not a UPS truck. Stop avoiding lifes left turnsTime You are not a UPS truck. Stop avoiding lifes left turnsPerhaps youve seen this time-saving hack making the rounds UPS trucks almost never make left-hand turns Should you do the same?Or maybe youve seen thatkitchen time-saving hack pre-soak your pasta, so it cooks quicker Then theres my personal favorite DVR your favorite shows so you can fast-forward through the commercials. You save about eightminutes every half hour, so in the course of watching twohours of TV, you find 32 minutes to exerciseThis is true, but you know another way to find 32 minutes to exercise?Dont watch two hours of TV.Time hacks in general often miss the pointTime hacks maysave minutes here and there, butthose minutesare easily squandered on other things. Its betterto focus on the big picture and do the important stuff first, and the bits of time will take care of themselves.Lets start with those UPS trucks. It makes sense if you have thousands of t rucks making thousands of turns to optimize what you can, but the average person lacks this scale. Rather than reroute to avoid twoleft turns while doing errands, join Amazon Prime and get stuff delivered. That waythose UPS trucks are on the road (avoiding those left turns) rather than you.Youll save much more time by lowering your standards than by any particular strategyI collect old magazines, and one of my favorite time saving tips from a 1960s Good Housekeeping was to use a butter knife to spread wax evenly on your floor waxer. Most of us dont spend a whole lot of time waxing our floors these days,which turns out to save more time than any butter-knife technique. You can fold your towels more efficiently, but if you re-use your towels, youll be doing less laundry and hence less folding. Or you could find a wash-and-fold service that delivers.You can streamline your morning routine and get an app that sends your bestellung to the coffee place before you get there. But it might b e an even bigger win to negotiate to work from home once a week. Yes, you might need to make your own coffee, but youll have plenty of time with the twohours you save.As for the DVR, theres nothing wrong with fast-forwarding through commercials. But I suspect that most people use the eightminutes saved every half hour to watch more TV threeshows when once you only would have been able to watch two. This is certainly efficient, but its not very productive.Think about what you want to do more of with your timePlan the big stuff- the meaningful stuff, the fun stuff- first. Having trouble getting out of work by 7 p.m.? Try getting tickets to a sports event that starts at 7 p.m. You might surprise yourself with how efficient and motivated you are.I used to think I didnt have much time to read. Then I started getting some real page-turners, and wow I found all kinds of time. I didnt actually make more time, but it felt like it.When we build the lives we want, time saves itself.Laura Vande rkam is the author of I Know How She Does It, 168 Hours and What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast.

Why Do You Need an Employee Referral Program

Why Do You Need an Employee Referral Program Why Do You Need an Employee Referral Program In order to gauge the true impact and relevance of employee referrals, it is necessary to assess the larger role played by the referral program in both improving organizational climate and productivityandcontrolling employee attrition. A referral program is leid merely a recruiting tool, but an important driver of team dynamics within an organization. Referral hires tend to becomeproductive much faster than hires from other sources and are also able to adjust better to organizational culture.The need for an employee referral program becomes clearwhen an organization is unable to meet its talent needs viatraditional recruiting methods. Placement agencies, job boards, career sites, and the rest canconverge over time, comingup with similar databases. There are often repeated candidatesfrom multiple sources. These are typically time-consuming sources of hiring, with an average closing time of 45-6 0 days, and they tend to be very costly as well. They also carry a high rate of failure three out every seven candidates sourced from these channels choose not to accept an offer or simply do not show up for work.These drawbacks oftraditional recruiting sources have motivatedorganizations to turn toward employee referrals to solve their urgent talent needs. There are several benefits associated with implementing an employee referral program both in the short term and in the long term.Short-term recruiting benefits include1. Faster and Better HiringReferrals from employees tend to be of superior quality, compared to other sources. Because employees often brief theirreferrals on theorganization and the open position, recruiters do not need to spend time convincing referralsto consider the role, which speeds uphiring. Most of ZALPs clients have reported a 50 percent drop in the time neededto fill open positions since they started using the companys employee referral software.2. Lower R ecruiting Costs The cost of hiring a referralis much lower than thecost of hiring from other sources referral bonuses are generally pegged at a certain percentage of what the organization would normally pay an outside agency for hiring the same candidate.3. Stronger Sourcing Pipeline Not all employee referrals can be hired immediately those that are not hiredmake for a great reserve of potential candidates who can be tapped for future roles.Long-term benefits of referral programs include1. Value Addition to Employer Brand A big advantage of implementing an employee referral program is the positive value-add to the employer brand in the long term. When employees speak positively about their existing organization both on social media and to referral candidates they build positive perceptions of their employer.A good employer brand can be a great recruiting aid it acts as a motivating factor for many good candidates to seek employment with the organization, bringing down the need for active sourcing.2. Higher Retention Rate Employee referrals tend to stay longer with the organization than non-referral hires, reducing the amount of recruiting the organization will have to doin the long term. Lower attrition rates mean happier employees referring more people to the organization, who are again likely to stay with the organization for longperiods of time.3. Higher and More EfficientProductivity Referred candidatesalso become productive much faster, because they receive mentoring and guidance from the existing employee who referred them. Non-referrals, on the other hand, take a longer time to assimilate to theorganizational culture and processes hence, they turn productive much later than referral hires.4. Global Mobility For global corporations with talent needs across countries, employee referrals add tremendous business and recruiting valueemployees from one rayon find it easy to refer someone they know in the region or someone who is looking to relocate to the r egion that is hiring. As global teams increasingly work together across time zones, organizations findthat opening up positions for employee referrals across the globe can help close positions much faster and much more cost effectively.