Category: Business
The garden metaphor for business has been done to death, but it does apply. If you’ve recently started an at-home business or plan to do so in the near future, keeping the “growth” idea in mind is a good idea. The concept can be wonderful, and with constant attention, your new business will thrive.
Running your business from home has so many benefits. You have no commute; you can work in your pajamas, and you can set your own hours. For instance, I can work on my freelance writing career at any time of day or night. That freedom is very enticing to most of us, so we need to focus on making our at-home endeavors profitable. This means to never quit, work your home business as consistently as if you were reporting to the office job, and find something that works and you can enjoy it.
Many people try to “reinvent the wheel”, when there are so many opportunities that are proven and if that formula is followed, it works!
If you want your at-home business to blossom, you must spread the word to the world beyond your family and friends. Even a tiny advertising budget is better than none, and an ad that is carefully targeted at your customer base is more than worth the expense. I live in a very small community, so potential customers in my immediate area are few, but an ad in the local paper can bring in a small number of clients. However, advertising on specialty writing sites is more productive.
Social media may be overdone, but it still works. Create a Facebook page for your business and use Twitter. These methods can bring in some new clients, and, once you’ve done wonderful work for them, word of mouth will bring in even more. I advocate this approach over plastering your neighborhood with flyers. Several times a month, I pull one from under my wipers. I have yet to use any of the at-home businesses who advertise this way.
I’m not a joiner, but belonging to professional organizations does help bring in leads. The old “who you know” adage is correct to a degree. You still need to know your stuff, but talented people can watch their businesses fail if they don’t utilize their connections.
Growing a home business is like tending a garden, but I won’t belabor the point. Just make sure the ground is fertile and that you water it regularly. Then you can harvest a comfortable living.
Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.”
Sam Walton
In 1962 Sam Walton opened the first Walmart in Rogers, Arkansas. By 1970 it became a chain of stores across the country.
From Walton’s Biography, Made In America: My Story, he outlines what he believes to be the ten commandments of business management.
1. Commit to your goals
2. Share your rewards
3. Communicate all you know
5. Value your associates
6. Celebrate your success
7. Listen to everyone
8. Deliver more than you promise
9. Work smarter than others
10. Blaze your own path
Walton firmly believe that “individuals don’t win, teams do.” When Walton died in 1992 he was the richest man in the world.
For a lot of foreigners, retirement does not mean not doing anything. You can find individuals that open a profitable business Philippines venture in order to keep busy and make money as well. Most of them come into the region flush with cash from having retired and so are aiming to build a new start in a country where the living costs is a lot more affordable. That is why you will notice plenty of small startups all over the country that are owned by foreigners. If it is your first time to work within the Philippines and want to prevent the stress of dealing with day-to-day operations, landlords, employees, inventory, as well as other such matters, allow me to share several opportunities that might be definitely worth your while.
One great place get started on if you want to open a company Philippines venture is to buy fixer-upper properties, renovate them and then sell them off. You’ll find numerous properties that are in a condition of disrepair and in case you’ve got experience in building homes and doing repair work, you will see that this is one opportunity where you could generate a nice profit. It might be advisable though, to get your own licensed Philippine broker in order to navigate the market as to what properties are worth renovating and selling.
The next thing listed where you can do good business within the Philippines is to build an apartelle. This is something that is uniquely Filipino and can be found all all over the country. An apartelle happens to be an apartment building where all but one of the units is rented out long term. Operating one of these can be done on a nightly or weekly basis, similar to a normal hotel, hence the combined name. Getting yourself into this will require heavy capital investment on your behalf, but with the right property together with a focus on rural areas and smaller cities, you can construct a small 4 unit building for about 3 million Philippine pesos, excluding the price of the land.
The third item that is also worth mentioning is farming. Considering the halt on the Agrarian Land Reform program (CARP), the private sector could have renewed confidence to invest in agricultural production once again. For the longest time, CARP has held back purchase of both production capacity along with farm acquisition. Now that it’s ended, land prices will go straight back to being valued for their own higher income producing potential.
For individuals who want to open a profitable business Philippines venture that is passive yet will yield a fantastic ROI, right here is the one. Farming has long been structured via the developers (all foreigners) to be an actual one turnkey investment price, which includes the buying price of the land, in addition to the clearing, planting, cultivating, and harvesting for the first few years. It has a price that’s intended to fit the capital investment budget associated with an average foreign retiree, and all landowners are going to be members of the co-op that can share in the usage of farming equipment. Farming operations will likely be handled by the developer’s management team.
Business within the Philippines is one thing that you should consider, especially if you really are a foreigner with a nice retirement fund. There are lots of opportunities around, however these three are some of the ones which could help you to get started.
Receiving orientation to a new organization or assignment, acquiring knowledge and learning new skills, and building workplace -connectedness- are all valuable benefits of a strong mentoring relationship. As many as 70% of employees credit one or more mentoring relationships as being instrumental in their career success and job satisfaction. The mentoring relationship can be formal or informal, short term, or can extend over the length of a career. In many cases, a mentor only learns of his or her valuable contribution as a career coach upon hearing retirement banquet tributes.
Benefits of a mentoring relationship for the organization, mentee and mentor include increased productivity, strengthened relationships, shared wisdom, knowledge and organizational history, and the personal satisfaction of perpetuating a legacy of service.
The best mentors have a record of success built on a foundation of academic preparation, practical experience and keen intuition. They are admired and well regarded within the organization for their accomplishments, integrity, positive attitude, qualifications, communication and interpersonal skills, patience and accessibility. Mentors are often natural coaches who enjoy sharing not only their knowledge, but the motives and analytical thought processes that drive many of their decisions and actions.
You may choose to approach a colleague or supervisor and discuss their willingness and availability to serve as a mentor. This overture may include sharing with them why you believe they could serve as an informative and inspirational model to you, and seeking a pledge of their time to work with you in certain ways or devote designated time for professional development counseling sessions. However, deriving the benefits of a mentoring relationship really requires little more than access to the right person, cultivation of a cordial working relationship, keen observation skills and a desire to learn.
There is no rule that limits you to a single mentor. Knowledge levels and subject matter expertise vary. Management, supervision and work styles may differ, as do personalities and perspectives, yet all may be effective in their own way, at certain times or under different circumstances. Broaden your exposure and become a well-rounded employee by developing mentoring relationships that are diverse.
Finally, regardless whether your mentorship is part of a formal program or informal arrangement, when appropriate ask questions to help clarify observations or information conveyed to you. Demonstrate enthusiasm and eagerness to learn, but avoid being overbearing or intrusive. Be generous in communicating your appreciation for the investment others are making in you and solicit periodic feedback on your development.
Predicting possible sales for your Fish Farm business is a very chief process; before you launch your business you must feel positive in future sales otherwise there is no point in setting up in the first place. It’s suspect you will be right on the money but if you don’t make a realistic attempt your Fish Farm business will likely not make the grade; forecasting is an important element to your business stratgey.
Your sales forecast is the fiscal projection of the quantity of turnover your Fish Farm business will make from the sales of its products or services. Your sales forecast can stand alone, but it will be closely connected to your Fish Farm business plan. It is an essential and fundamental element of the planning method and it will be a chief part of your profit and loss account and cash flow forecast.
Why bother with a sales forecast?
It is needed so you can
1. Predict your cash flow – your forecast might predict slow times of business where you may need a cash injection to pay for products or just to pay the staff for example.
2. Manage Cash flow – innermost to the success of your business, it is essential that you understand how sales forecasting contributes to the computation of the cash flow forecast.
3. Plan future resource requirements – for example, the quantity of staff considered necessary to manage your orders and provide a certain level of service.
4. Plan marketing activities – this will noticeably have a knock on effect to the sum of sales you make as well.
Quite clearly constructing a sales forecast for your Fish Farm business is crucial to your business success – you should continually re-evaluate your sales forecasts – by looking at concrete sales to your forecasted sales firstly you can measure if you have done well or not.
So what do you need to consider?
Your sales forecast should show sales by month for at least the next 12 months, and then by year for the following two years. Three years, in total, is generally enough for most business plans.
You need to consider
1. Are there any comparable products or services already being provided in the neighborhood?
2. What is the extent of the market?
3. Is the market growing or declining, and if so,by what % each year?
4. What are the major considerations for this market?
5. What might affect it in future?
6. How do cyclic factors affect purchases of your product or service?
7. Are there fashions in your business?
Who are your customers going to be?
1. What percentage will purchase?
2. Why will they cease trading from someone else to trade from you?
3. How much will you charge?
4. Can you in reality supply the products and services that you are predicting?
5. How many competitors do you have?
6. It is unlikely your business is the only one of its kind – what happens to your customers when new businesses enter the market?
The whole globe is your marketplace with the creation of the internet – but what products/services can you make available Virtually all business has a quantity of competitor(s) – how can you hoover up your competitors customers? How can you put a stop to your competitors taking your customers? Can you tweak your product prices up or down to match new customers – can you simply add or transform the services you offer to new and existing customers to mushroom your turnover and profits?
Preparing your Fish Farm business forecast
All Fish Farm businesses need to base their forecasts on certain assumptions regarding potential changes that may take place in the future. These can be quantified and could include:
1. Sector growth/decline by a certain percentage e.g. 5%.
2. Planned expansion in the number of personnel to generate an expected 20% increase in production.
3. A move to a better location that ought to produce a 40% increase in sales.
Preparing your forecast
If you sell more than one product or service, you should prepare a separate forecast for each item in your range,and forecast:
1. By volume
2. By value
3. By a combination of both value and volume.
So what are the pitfalls when forecasting sales?
1. Make sure your forecast is based on realistic, verifiable and unbiased info.
2. Do not be tempted to ignore your investigation if it showed negative results.
3. Do not make predictions only on the basis of historical performance. Keep examining at what else might change your sales in the future and alter your forecast in view of that.
4. Make sure you understand your capacity limits. Can you produce the amount of sales being forecast with the personnel, equipment and financial resources available to you?
5. Does the pricing policy you have used in calculating your sales forecast convey to what is really achievable?, or conversely, have the prices been set too low down or too high so that either way your forecast is potentially unrealistic?
6. Is your business brand new?, your business may take longer than you imagine to get recognized, and have you set accordingly realistic sales goals?
7. Have you permitted for the possibility that high sales based on an initial promotional rush may drop off, leading to a need for more intensive marketing and higher ongoing costs once initial interest has peaked?
8. When you give reasons for your sales forecasts to prospective backers – are they believable?