How To Make Use Of Salary Packaging

Sometimes known as a salary sacrifice, salary packaging is a deal between the company and the employee where an amount of their every month salary is replaced by benefits such as a laptop, a mobile phone, or a company vehicle. Vehicles can also be purchased through a novated lease, where the corporation will rent the vehicle on the employee's behalf. In few cases, the employee also can wish to have their salary deducted during utilizing 'green' strategies of receiving benefits. The very last method of salary packaging is becoming mainly accepted with younger workers, who are worried about the effects of global warming and are keen to have a package which involves a focus on climate change.



There are a lot of things that can be acquired through the salary packaging system that it looks almost too good to be true. It is a particularly effective way for youthful people who don't own large expenses to meet sudden purchases with no risking a damaging effect on their credit scores. Employees could choose to purchase vehicles with or without a novated lease, buy a tabled computer just like an iPad, get benefits from the company they work for, get insurance, professional subscriptions to a society, choose education associated to their employment, or get new digital equipment, opt investment loans, or pay financial advice fees.



In fact, in some circumstances, there are even a lot of potentialities for the employee to get edges through the use of salary packaging. If the company is eligible for a rebate or an exemption, then the employer may additionally offer private health insurance, mortgage payments or rent, loan payments, personal school fees, or perhaps the final costs of living. All of these will be taken out of the salary.



The novated lease system is perhaps the foremost difficult, with the car being rented by the employer in their employee's name, and every one of the responsibility for the car and also the lease being the employer's responsibility for as long as the Novation lasts. The worker can also have all of the running costs paid through the packaging deal. If the employer opts for the green deal, they'll get savings on the car, whether new or second-hand, and they will also get savings on the lease. The green corporation can also help both parties to determine exactly what can be owed, for example by calculating the amount of fuel needed, or the distance to be travelled. There are several alternative edges to purchasing the car through the Novated system.

They can help employees structure their salary
packaging effectively - resulting in a pay rise for employees at no extra cost to employers PLUS a reduction in their ecological footprint. For more info please visit http://www.simplygreen.com.au

Misleading Myths on Home Business

There are some very common myths related to home business, especially online home business. As changes occur in online business planning is vital, however, some myths related to business ideas and home-based business have emerged making people confused and disillusioned. 

Reveal some of these common myths: 

Do not go for planning, instead opt a pitch presentation: Myth 1
Now, what is pitch planning? It actually summarizes the entire plan and brings out the vital points in the plan. In a home business pitch you can never find market focus, sales forecast, service and product messaging, milestone etc. thus, basically it has very few things that can help you in business growth. However, a pitch plan is not always bad. Before you make a pitch plan you must go through detailed planning and get all the figures right. Thus, if your investors are not convinced of the plan and have several queries in queue, you must be ready to answer them. 

Business plans are not read by investors: Myth 2
Some are of the view investors never read your online home business plan. However, this is not always true. Numerous investors today are taking extra interest in business ideas of clients and business plans ensuring that these are rewarding enough. At times several online businesses plans are rejected as the pitch is not pleasing or appealing. Thus, if your business product and home business plan is not good enough you cannot bag a loan. It is not the investor who directly reads the plan he leaves the task to his analyst. 

Planning is not supported by research: Myth 3
Statements like these often crop up time and again. A home business plan can never be successful without proper research. According to some this is a traditional way of creating a business plan and is not considered as workable today. Thus, some online home business owners get disillusioned and often walk towards the wrong side. 

Planning is a waste of time: Myth 4
If you have a perfect carved out business plan, with suggestion and tips from the best planners in the industry, then creating the plan can never be a waste of time. Consider this; what if you get up every morning and have no idea where to start the day from you will end up wasting time planning each day. You will lose several hours. Thus, a plan at the very start of the week or month will help you get your days into the right track. Same goes for your online business. If you have your planning done in the right manner you can do wonders. In fact, a good planning helps you to gain success and earn easy investment. 

However, among all this there is some truth that must be mentioned. A business plan is not just the end; you must incorporate points into in with time. This will help you to move forward with time. Make sure you have plans that give you good returns on your online business. 

Profitable home business ideas

The generation today is blessed with the internet which offers loads of opportunities. It is common to find people making some good cash straight from their home, (you can do this while on bed). Below is a list of profitable home business opportunities you may want to try. 
Writing articles: Have you a knack for writing? Have you ever sent stories or features to newspapers or magazines? If yes, you can earn a lot from this job. The success in this field depends on your creativity and skill. There are companies who look for good writers. They are ready to pay a good amount for writers. You can also start your own blog because if it gets popular, agencies will pay you for giving their ads on your blog site.

Data entry: Data entry job can be a profitable alternative for starting home business. At present, it is one of the most popular and practiced online earning choices. You should have a very good typing speed and an eye for detail to get success in this sector. Data entry work is often offered by renowned companies that are looking to build their databases.

e-book and mailing products: Rewriting or writing an e-book can be a good alternative to earn a handsome amount. You can also try out mailing of service brochures and products. The company for which you work provide you a mailing list or ask you to create one. You just have to put the brochures into envelopes and mail them to clients after stamping.

Paid surveys: Paid surveys have already been proved as a trusted means of earning online. The affiliate marketing program is the latest one under this category. Using this, you will be able to bring more traffic to your website.

Follow the advice below before starting home business

You will find a lot of information on the web for starting home business. There are companies asking you to pay a monthly membership fee for the right to sell their products while others will tell you that you have to purchase a fixed amount of products every month in order to get the right to sell their stuff.

There are several scam companies who have great advertising online as well as in magazines and on television as well. Before starting home business online, you should at least know how you want to sell the products. You have to be sure whether you want to sell your products to family, friends and co-workers offline or you want to sell online.

I suggest you to sell such a product which you love to use and have a vast knowledge on. You should also learn how to sell online even if you are selling products offline to your friends and family members.

 Outsourcing your home based business

As it is next to impossible to do the entire task alone, outsourcing has become quite popular among the home based business owners and entrepreneurs. It is a cheaper option than hiring a person and the quality of work is also much better. You can try out this option for starting home business and making profit.

Making Money Online: Simple Steps To Consider

People of this generation are fortunate enough to be blessed with Internet. Internet has opened the door to earn money working from your own residence and also allows it to access from almost any location in the world as long as you have access to the Internet. The Internet has become a multi billion-dollar industry where the advantages of trading are virtually endless. Internet also opens a whole new world of options of making money and living life lavishly.Among the various advantages that you can enjoy are: 

1. Firstly you are your own boss.
2. The working schedule is your own.
3. Your earning potential is endless.
4. It gives you motivation to work more because you know your efforts are not going to get wasted.
5. There is a surety of expansion in your business with the application of the right tools.

Network Marketing is preferred by most at least those who have PC and Internet connection and believes in Internet marketing. It will give the advantage of huge savings in costs from sending the product direct from the manufacturing plant to the consumer without involving middlemen that comprise about 75% of the price of the product. The marketing depends on the consumers and then the agent like friend, family and associates carries the necessary information of the product away. Even the amount needed to invest in Network Marketing is smaller when compared to any other business offline where you have very little to lose. It should be kept in mind that expecting to earn huge revenue in no time will get you nowhere.

Therefore to skill yourself you need to be smart. Always keep your common sense in play. Remember that you are dealing with potential customers and competing in the global market. Reaching the potential customers is really tough but you can drive them to your sites with your skill and implementing Marketing Tools available in the market presently. Marketing Tools are effective in motivating individuals who are already interested in your products and or services, which you offer.

To start a Network Marketing venture you need target your aim. You can adopt the Turnkey solutions developed by the Network Marketing gurus that contains solutions on how to grow their business and at the same time providing tips to on how to grow your business. You can also rely and invest substantial tools, which claims to bring profit to your site.

Making Sense of the High Return Investment Options

The promise of high returns on investment can seduce even the most conservative of all investors. Why settle for the safe 6-10% presented by a bank fixed deposit when you can earn near double from other investment options? This prospect is attracting small investors to innovative investments, ranging from the rather safe corporate fixed deposits to the complicated forex trading, even exotic opportunities like art.

Most of these investments were in the past being recommended only to the super-rich, who could afford high risk involved. Nowadays, however, they are being aggressively sold even to small investors.

Adverts on prominent websites tempt inexperienced investors to start trading in forex and earn big cash within no time. Bank executives push you into trying their highly flourishing portfolio management scheme (PMS). Brokers press you to consider experimenting in commodities futures, sharing sure winning tips that can make you rich. You are promised double-digit return on investments. In some instances, the returns are even 'guaranteed'.

Prospecting investors have been repeatedly warned that high returns come with high risk. I’m not going try to challenge this belief, because it is always true. Therefore, I would like to examine some of these investment options to explain the risks they involve and the expected returns. Here are some of these Investments:

1) Forex Market Trading

Fluctuations in foreign exchange rate are good news to daring investors who can gain from the volatility by trading in the forex. However, don't fall victim of forex trading portals, which promote their services with promises of huge returns within no time.

The risks: Like speculation in stocks, forex market trading is more of a “zero sum game’’. (The quotes should remind you that investment should never be confused with gambling). One trader's gain is another trader's loss. Therefore, before you venture into foreign exchange trading I would advise you to learn the basics first. Even when you think you understand forex trading, you need to be extra careful. The positions are leveraged and, so, the risk is inflated 10-12 times. You may also consider buying forex derivatives, like put and call options, on the New York Stock Exchange, which limit the risk to the premium paid.

Still, these are complicated financial instruments, so be sure on what you are putting your money on before placing your order. The forex market is impacted by a number of factors, many of which cannot be easily tracked by the retail investor. Enter only if you are aware of the dynamics of the currency

The Beauty: The only tempting bit of forex trading is its prospective high return on investment. Do it right (plus a bit of luck) and you can double your investment in no time. The trade is also flexible as you can go for either long-term approach or short-term once depending on your risk tolerance and confidence level.

2) Foreign stocks

Just like you buy stocks of companies in your country, you can also invest in foreign equities. Nevertheless, very few investors try this option. There are numerous brokers providing an online platform to get access to global equities.  For example, a Kenyan investor can easily purchase stocks listed on the NYSE.

The risks: Equities are intrinsically risky investments, but foreign stocks are way riskier than domestic equity. The biggest danger in investing abroad is the ever fluctuating foreign exchange rate. If your investment country’s currency depreciates against that of your country, your returns will be eaten into. You will receive a lesser amount upon conversion of the foreign currency back to your domestic currency. Again, if your domestic currency strengthens, for instance against the dollar, your investments in the US stocks would suffer.

The beauty: If your country’s economy was to sputter at 5%, the domestic stock market won’t be able to generate very high returns. However, your global market investments will be cushioned against the decline in the domestic market. This advantage of diversification is multi-branched because you are investing in another country, with a different currency.

3) Penny stocks

Some investors prefer buying a large number of low-priced shares over a small number of high-priced shares. They trade in penny stocks (a stock with a value of $5 or less per share) in the hope of making it big one day. Since these stocks cost less, one can buy a large number of shares.

The motivation is that the low-priced stocks can easily offer huge returns because of their low base. If, for instance, a $ 5 share rises by even$ 1, the investor pockets a cool 20% return.

The risks: Penny stocks may be lowly priced but the mistake of investing in them may be too big to bear. There is high risk of losing your entire capital. Most penny stock issuers are small, obscure firms about which little or no information available. No analyst will spend his/her time researching these stocks. Very low liquidity and capitalisation also make them easy targets of price manipulation. Unscrupulous agents keep pumping up the price even as operators entice unsuspecting investors to these stocks. Their lack of trading volumes also makes it impossible for one to exit to exit when he/she really wants to.

The Beauty: If luck is on your side, you may find a penny stock that turns into a giant stock.

4) Corporate Fixed Deposits

If you are not satisfied by the 6-10 percent interest offered by the banks on fixed deposits, you can go for corporate fixed deposits (FDs) that give 2-3 percentage points higher rates for comparable tenures. However, unlike bank fixed deposits, which are insured and guaranteed, corporate fixed deposits offer no guarantee. Your sole lifebuoy is the credit rating given to the deposit, which point out the degree of safety or the confidence in the issuing company.

The risks: Corporate fixed deposits offer higher interest rates because they are riskier compared to bank fixed deposits. These deposits are unsecured and there is very little an investor can do if the issuer is incapable of returning his money. The return of the principal and timely payment of interest depends fully on the financial health of the issuing company.

The Beauty: A few, well researched corporate fixed deposits will provide that extra juice to your portfolio. The higher return is good for those who want to get rich first but be careful not to jeopardise your entire principal for the sake of higher rates.

5) Portfolio ManagementServices

Not many years ago, only the ultra-rich were offered portfolio management services (PMS). Nowadays, however, even upcoming investors are being lured to these products. The PMS providers invest in a mix of stocks, derivatives, debt, and commodities. Every investor is allocated a professional fund manager to handle his investments. A fee is charged in return. It's more like a mutual fund only that the investor has a say in the investment portfolio. The PMS scheme can be tailor-made to suite the investor’s needs. A PMS can either be discretionary, where the manager takes decisions on behalf of the investor or non-discretionary, where the manager only gives suggestions.

The risks: Though PMS schemes have the same risk as the stocks in which they invest, their risk is compounded by giving a free hand to the fund manager.  The fund manager can easily use investor’s cash to play around with the market leading to massive losses. Another risk is that, unlike a mutual fund investment, there is no regulation of the fee charged by a PMS. Low liquidity, high entry barrier and high tax rates are some characteristics of Portfolio management schemes which turn investors away.

The Beauty:  If you are an investor looking for level of customisation then PMS is definitely the right investment option. Simply put, PMS are convenient.

6) Alternative investments

There isn’t any distinctive definition of alternative investments.  Therefore, any investment that is not conventional can fall in this group. These can include structured deals (gold-linked bonds, Nifty-linked bonds) or passion investing (stamps, wine, coins, and art). However, this is an option that only the superrich investors can take. The entry size is high and you require at least five different investments to make certain some level of portfolio diversification.

Also, Alternative investments will require very long holding periods to produce returns, particularly if you are buying artefacts or art. It takes more than one generation to realize any noteworthy appreciation in art value.

The risks: The low liquidity of alternative investments makes them very risky. While some investments like stamps, wine and coins can be done with relatively small capital, others like paintings and structured deals may run into hundreds of a thousand or even millions of dollars. With high entry size, diversification difficult, escalating the risk further.

The Beauty: If you are superrich and don’t mind the wait you can consider Alternative investment Fund (AIF). When he has landed a huge deal, an AIF investor can split his deal among willing investors hence reducing the ticket size and increase his diversification prospects. By allowing investors to move together, AIF gives them a better bargaining power.

7) Stock Futures and Options (F&O)

Equity investments are known to yield high returns for patient investors. For those of us who are impatient, there are some equally good equity derivatives. You can make up to five times the stock profit by investing your cash in the futures and options (F&O) market. In Future contract, the investor agrees to sell or buy shares at a given price on a future date. Options Contracts are slightly different, since the buyer has the right (but not obliged) to buy or sell the given stock at a particular price on a particular date. This high-risk market enables the investor to place highly leveraged bets on specific shares and indices. You are required to deposit a mere 15-20% of the transaction value as margin.

The risks: While the futures market increases your potential returns by about five times, the risk is similarly high. You can easily lose more than your invested amount. Options have a lower risk because your loss is restricted at the premium you have paid. Equity investments are risky because you are putting your bet (and safety your cash for that matter) on the future growth of the issuing company. And given the extra leverage of F&O, you are surely treading on dangerous ground.

The Beauty: The opportunities in F&O are genuine and can reward the impatient investor, but it can also quickly unravel.

8) Commodities

Buying and selling commodities has long been the realm of savvy and active investors. Nowadays, however, it has attracted even the interests of lay investors. Here, you bet on the future price movement of whichever commodity, including precious metals (silver, gold), industrial metals (copper, aluminium, nickel), or agricultural products (mustard oil, soya, chana, etc), and energy commodities (natural gas & crude oil). You just need to have a separate demat account for dealing in these items.

The risks: Just like stock futures market, commodities futures also amplify your investment gains and losses. In fact, commodity trading has higher leverage at 10-20 times. Such a high leverage can be very risky for the young investor, who is not very much conversant with the market dynamics

The beauty: Commodity trading is not for everyone. Try it only if you have a great understanding of commodities and can digest the daily volatility. If you feel you have the knowledge and the guts then you can try it out. You never know you may be the next billionaire.

9) Pre-launchproperty

Developers in Real estate often sell project units even before construction is initiated. Buyers are lured by projected returns of up to 50 percent. Rarely do they advertise these offers and so they travel via word of mouth among connected individuals. Once money starts flowing in from the real estate consumers and prices go up, the trader can sell the property for a cool profit. However, don't take the developer’s word for it because the anticipated returns depend on the future increase in property prices.

The risks: The riskiest part of a pre-launch offer is that the builder may not have obtained all the approvals. He may also be planning to sort out some legal issues beforehand. Another risk is that the developer may not be financially stable. Therefore, he may be selling a project at a discount to the get money to start him off. This is not a good sign. The other risk is delay in construction which can lead to huge losses on the side of the investor.

The Beauty: Though not meant for end users, Pre-launch investments can work well for investors with surplus cash and will give good returns.

10) Guaranteed Rental Returns

Developers are also enticing buyers with offers of guaranteed returns from their home investments. The deal is quite simple: the developer takes care of the maintenance of the property and rents it out to corporate clients. The investor receives post-dated cheques based on the expected rental returns from the builder. A maintenance contract can vary from 2 to 10 years. During this stage, the developer retains the possession of the property.

The risks: A builder may lag on his promise. Rental income depends on the type of apartment, facilities offered and the location of a project. These three vary a great deal, so it is not accurate to guarantee a specific rental yield at the marketing stage. There is also a possibility of the developer declining to renew his contract after some period. So you should be prepared to take over the management and maintenance of the property. 

The 3 Familiar Mistakes In Mutual Fund Investing

Effective diversification.....appropriate asset allocation.....proper fund selections. These are some of the basic objectives that every investor desire in a mutual fund portfolio. Irrespective of the investor’s stage (whether in asset accumulation stage or in asset withdrawal) these goals are essential for successful mutual fund portfolios. However, an investor can meet many pitfalls or roadblocks in their quest to achieve these goals. The article explores three of the most common impediments and offers suggestions on how to avoid them.

 Familiar Mistake 1: Lack of Investment Strategy 

This is perhaps the most common mistake in mutual fund investment. I am always surprised by the huge number of investors who select specific mutual funds devoid of giving any thought to an asset allocation plan. Many individuals may actually identify and define their investment goals, but then skip the next crucial step in setting up a successful mutual fund portfolio: crafting a detailed asset allocation Plan. With no suitable asset allocation plan that accurately echoes individual investment preference and objectives (return objectives, time horizon, risk tolerance, etc), the process of selecting mutual funds will haphazard instead of logical.

Pending very few exceptions, the result of haphazard mutual fund selection is improper asset allocation, which in turn leads to ineffective portfolio diversification -- with the end result being poor portfolio performance. True to the old men’s words, “Failure to plan is planning to fail.”

On the other hand, effective portfolio diversification is a direct result of an appropriate and detailed asset allocation plan that fits individual investment goals and preferences. Effective diversification spreads the assets among different mutual fund categories to attain both a variety of distinct reward/risk objectives and a decrease in overall risk. Appropriate asset allocation not only eradicates undesirable characteristics of under-weighting, over-weighting and inappropriate mutual funds, it accurately matches fund type and their percentage of investment assets to specified goals – simply put, it is the "blueprint" for effective fund selection.

Setting up a successful fund portfolio is a three-step process:

1.     Identifying your investment objectives, goals and preferences, e.g. return objectives, portfolio amount, risk tolerance and time horizon;

2.     Formulating a comprehensive asset allocation strategy by fund category to reflect preferred objectives;

3.     Appropriate fund selection to match each category.

The second step is the most difficult due to the plenty of asset allocation strategies and theories. Most investment asset allocation strategies fall into two main categories: one mainly treats risk as a bond/stock allocation, with risk tolerance varying the percentage of bond and stock funds; the other is basically a fund category allocation, with risk acceptance dictating the type of fund groups and their allocation quotas within a basic bond/stock allocation.

Regardless of the asset allocation method you prefer as an investor, the important message is clear: avoid, at all costs, the danger of haphazard fund selection, produce a detailed asset allocation plan which precisely represents your investment goals and preferences.

Familiar mistake 2: Over-Weighting in High-Risk funds,

This is a specific example of portfolio imbalance where a very large quota of your total investment assets are concentrated in funds with very high reward/risk characteristics, even though the fund categories may actually echo chosen portfolio objectives. The end result is too much volatility in the price movement of these funds which can cause disappointing investment performance because huge percentage of risk does not justify the impending reward. Over-weighting can happen with any type of risk acceptance, although over-weighting in high risk funds is more likely to be a problem.

High-risk stock fund categories include emerging markets, small-cap growth (both domestic and foreign) and sector funds; in bond categories, emerging market and some high-yield funds are also high risk. These fund categories can be suitable in many portfolios, so long as an investor sticks to the principles of effective diversification.

Is there a tolerable percentage of high-risk funds to own in an investment portfolio? Most strategists suggest between 5-30% of total investment assets, depending on the choices of conservative, moderate or aggressive risk tolerances and growth, income-oriented return or balance objectives. The key is to treat high risk mutual funds as an apposite portfolio supplement without significantly increasing your overall risk.

 Familiar Mistake 3: Duplicating of Fund Categories 

This is an example of inefficient diversification and arises when an investor has two (or more) mutual funds with similar objectives. For example, owning two large-cap growth funds, two small-cap growth funds, and one intermediate corporate bond in a five-fund investment portfolio is inefficient diversification due to the replication of fund objectives in the large and small-cap growth types; in this strategy they lack the diversity of distinct reward/risk characteristics of idyllic diversification. To evade duplication, it is good to represent a fund category in your portfolio with just one fund.

The fundamental common factor in keeping away from these three common mistakes is appropriate comprehensive asset allocation: it provides effectual diversification and eradicates the problems allied to haphazard fund selection -- it is the key in setting up a successful fund portfolio.

Laptops and Tablets in the Office: The Pros and cons

Most bosses are currently confused on which gadget to buy for their employees'office work. Some would want to stick to the old "grounded"desk top computers for their security. But let's for once leave this to the past. Therefore, two devices currently remain in contention and their use in the office mainly depend on preference rather than performance. So let's discuss the advantages and disadvantages of laptops and tablets for office work.
With the coming of laptops to the market, everybody hunted these small devices for computing wherever you go. Laptops got a lot of excitement because of their ease of use and definitely portability. This new computing technology took the whole world by storm dominating the computer scene. That is until the tablet entered the market.
The tablet has almost similar features as laptops but with additional portability. Some people would feel it is the new way to compute and they simply can't survive without their tablet, while others still insist that laptops will never be replaced. Now let's compare the advantages and disadvantages of tablets and laptops. Which one is better?
Tablets

Tablets are very much portable and give you complete control of the screen, applications and features. The direct use of your finger on the screen provides more interactive gaming experience, and the hands-on technique offers a more tangible experience than a keypad for illustrating and drawing. These products are usually smaller than laptops. The majority of tablets are anywhere between a 7" and 10' screen and weigh below 1 pound. They enables you capture videos or photos, video chat, store your music, and even use their in-built eReaders to read books.
Tablets are known to be very expensive. With that in mind, you still have to take exceptional precautions in their care. Their body may be durable; however, its exposed delicate touchscreen acts to its disadvantage. This is compounded by the fact that damaged touchscreen may render your expensive device useless. A protective case can be bought separately for the screen, this just adds up the device's cost.
At work, tablets are considered mostly as personal gadgets, just like phones, and the corporate market is yet to fully accept their use for office work.

Laptops

Laptops' hardware is highly advantageous. Laptops are usually purchased having large screens and with much higher resolution compared to any known tablet. They also have a full keyboard, a mouse pad as well as an option to connect a normal mouse and keyboard through USB ports. You will definitely type more accurately and much faster using a keyboard. The larger screen makes viewing photos, watching movies or even browsing the web much enjoyable. Apart from netbooks, a laptop's screen size is 13" or larger. Laptops will definitely last longer than tablets, and there is no need to worry about damaging your touchscreen. A laptop's internal storage can be as large as 500GB and still there is a possibility of expanding this using an external storage USB hard disk. This feature is not available with tablets whose highest storage capacity available in the market is 64 GB.
However, the fact that laptops are larger may also be their major disadvantage. Laptops were originally designed for portability. Even though you can do your work wherever you are with a laptop, they can be a heavy yoke to carry around. Most laptops weigh between 3 and 9 pounds. If carried for a long period, this heavy load may cause back pain.
Laptops initially faced rejection from the corporate society who found desktop computers to be more secure. However, the corporate world finally accepted their use in offices, thus replacing desktop computers.
The choice of which device to purchase do not usually depend on the above listed advantages and disadvantages of tablets and laptops, but on the intended user's preference.

Graduating From Collage? The 4 Main Reason You Shouldn't Move Out of Your Parents House Just Yet

Let’s face it, the issue of moving out of your home after campus has always been debatable. Men over 25 years are expected by the society to move out of the nest. If you hit 30 and still under your parents roof, you are considered weird and a parasite. Secretly, most guys move out because of peer pressure and more so if they have girlfriends always asking, “Utahama lini?” The common trend is to move out after campus or not even go back to your mum’s house after you join campus if you are staying within the campus. I tend to differ. I would advise all men to stay with mummy and daddy until there are comfortable enough to move out or comfortable enough to die. Here’s why:

It’s the Economy, stupid.

We are living in tough economic times where jobs are hard to come by. There are thousands of unemployed graduates chasing the few available jobs. It is particularly hard if the economy is in the ‘troughs’ and recession. A trough is a period of stagnant economic growth. It mostly occurs between recession and growth.  During this time everything is competitive. Trust me, you don’t want to put yourself in competition for resources. You are better off job-hunting without worrying if the house has been locked by the landlord or whether you have enough money to go to the interview tomorrow. It’s better to stay safe with mama.

Mama knows best

You are the grown man today because of Mum. She knows best. She always has. Life after campus is tough. All the tarmacking and hustling isn’t fun. Mums have a way of navigating kids through these tough times. Your parents can offer advice and encouragement. You can also tap their network in getting a job. There is nothing wrong with getting a little help from your folks. After a long day of job-hunting, you can go back home to be comforted. If you moved out before getting a job, it’s nothing but stress.

The rebel always wins

History never lies. Rebels always win or at least end up as legends. The likes of Hannibal, Spartacus and the maji maji rebellion attest to this. People who do things differently than their peers always emerge as heroes.  So while you friends are moving out, stay at home and plan your life. Even when you get a job, you can still save up some cash for the Masters degree. Don’t succumb to pressure. It will be worth it.

Camouflage

While living at your parent’s house, you can hide behind the fact that you don’t have money so long as your parents have money. In future you will need a good wife and a good wife costs nowadays. You have to have some dough.  You can always ‘borrow’ your dad’s Range Rover from time to time to go and woo babes. You can also bring them home whenever your parents are away and claim that the house is yours.

By reading this, I hope you make a wise decision. The next time someone asks you ‘utahama lini?’ tell them you aren’t going anywhere. Personally, I moved out of my parents’ house in the first year of campus. So I am speaking from experience. Like I said, today’s world is very competitive and it’s sometimes wise to have an edge over the competition.

But the downside of staying with your parents is that you get accustomed to the comfort zone, laziness kicks in, and no matter how long you postpone moving out, you will eventually have to deal with issues the same way as the 22 year old that moved out years ago. So make your choice.

If you follow my advice, you will lag behind and hence competition will be reduced. By the time you move out, I will have built a mansion, sieved through all the hot babes and gotten a wife and live happily ever after. 

courtesy of capital fm

How to Land the Wrong Job and Sabotage Your Career

You are tired of hearing it. The job market, as you already know, is tight and competition is absurd. You are doing all you can to stand out to recruiters, build your network, dazzle interviewers and ultimately get a position.

But is the role you’re seeking the right one for you? Are you sabotaging your career by not looking past the objective of landing a job?

In the present job environment, it’s easy to focus on getting a job and forget that a new role should be a comprehensively assessed process in your career. Simply put: it’s easy to land the wrong job. Here’s how to do it:

Be 100% agreeable

It’s significant to resist the temptation to avoid topics or questions that are less exciting or which could probably push the conversation into not-so-strong-candidate territory. For instance, when it’s becoming clear the role will require significant teamwork while your preference is to work alone.

Everyone is better off, however, if you’re upfront about your personality from the get-go. The same is true for disclosing your actual strengths and weaknesses.

If you do manage to keep it honest, avoid glossing over the details if it means you’ll be, in the end, taking back what you just said. Don’t follow up an explanation of how a calm, quiet work environment is best for you with a contradicting statement about how you could be quite productive in a fast-paced office because you never miss a deadline. (That may be true, but will you be functioning optimally?)

An interviewer motivated to fill the position might latch on to the part of your answer that indicates you’d do well in the hectic environment and forget the rest in a subconscious effort to make you into the perfect candidate. If this happens, both of you lose.

Be a spectacular presenter

It’s no secret that communication skills are in high demand among employers, and for good reason: in many roles, it’s important to clearly articulate the value of your company’s product or service and to represent your organization professionally.

Hone those communication skills, but superstar communicators, beware: your talent could work against you. Presenting information in the best possible light seems like a smart strategy, and nowhere is this more applicable than in an interview. If you’re a fantastic presenter, you know how to read a room, how to get heads nodding and how to paint the picture of you as the perfect person for the job.

You could walk out of an interview having charmed the pants off of everyone in the conference room and influenced them to vote for your hire—but did you showcase your skills and talents accurately? Is your experience truly a good match for the job’s responsibilities? Did you sell yourself as the best candidate when someone with a different background would actually be a better fit?

It’s best for the employer—and you—to reign in the polish and carefully discuss the facts. Realizing you’re unprepared for the role after you’ve committed to each other is a disaster for both parties.

Be a “Polly Positive”

As you look over your notes after the interview and recount the conversation—the job responsibilities, company culture and anticipated organization and career growth—you must include the negatives in your evaluation. A new job can feel exciting, and it’s fun to look at all the pros associated with the role and imagine the rainbow-filled paths your career can go down.

But it’s crucial you weigh the cons of the situation, too. What seems like an insignificant factor can feel like a huge problem when the newness of a position wears off. As much as possible, try your best to be objective and see beyond the bright side.

Sometimes you don’t have much of a choice and life circumstances dictate how picky (or not) you can be about your next job. When you’re able to, though, move past the “score a gig” goal, and think strategically about your career. It’s exciting to land a position, but it sucks to later realize it’s the wrong one.

Salary Negotiations: How To Get The Best Salary On Your New Job?

You have just landed the job interview, you impressed them with your skill set, credentials and enthusiasm, and now you've been called back for a second interview. You know they want to hire you. During the interview process we often believe, "You take what you can get." which is not a bad song, but there's another one that rings just as true, "If you don't ask, how do you know they would've said no?"

Most people always have a feeling that you would like more money than they're prepared to offer. How do you persuade the decision-makers to offer you a higher starting salary without taking yourself out of the running for the job? If you know how much you are worth, you should not shy 
away from negotiating the salary. It's all in the preparation, attitude and presentation. Here are eight tips to negotiate a higher starting salary.

1. Research your career. Take some time to see how much the company you're applying for pays their employees. Search the internet and find the average industry pay scale of your future position. You may aspire to a career in scheduling at a major airline, but if the company's practice is to hire from within, you might need to accept an entry-level position. As part of your research, you need to have a clear idea of what your minimum expectation on what you want to be paid. If the company isn't prepared to pay what you want then you're just wasting time attending the interview.

2. Don’t tip your hand- Leave the salary expectation question blank on application forms, and don't 

mention a specific salary level in your cover letters. If asked to quote your salary, you could say you are willing to discuss with them about it.  You want to get past the paper screening into the "to be considered" file without anyone thinking your anticipated salary is too high. You also don't want to lock yourself into accepting an offer of may be 600k per year if the decision-makers had budgeted up to 1 million to fill the vacancy.

3. Know how much you're worth. – Always try to understand your value. Determine your demand in other areas and consider that a selling point. Consider whether you are in a position of power. If you're in high demand elsewhere, you have leverage. Draw attention to it, but be careful not to emphasize it too much. Avoid acting overly confident or cocky. It might even help if you tell them some strong competitors in their fields, to see if that may weigh in your favor.
4. Practice, practice, practice the interview. You can never anticipate how an interview or negotiation will go, but that shouldn't stop you from checking all the angles. Think about different personality types and how they would react to your own, and prepare responses for each way these "bosses" may react. Making sure you're not caught by surprise will help you keep your head in the game. A famous boxing quote is, "Everyone has a game plan until they get hit in the face."

5. Don't be the first to bring up salary. Some people are not patient. Even if your first instinct is to jump at the chance to name your salary, avoid being the first to propose a salary figure. Tell them you're interested in a mutually rewarding career with the company and you're sure you can agree on an acceptable compensation package. However, if you're forced to say a figure, tell them a salary range but insist it's up for discussion. Don't go on too much, either. Say what you have to say then go back to listening.

6. Emphasize the benefits of your skills.  Make sure you tell them your achievements when they ask about your last job. Make sure you use facts and figures when you talk, so you sound more reputable. Make sure you list anything that saved your company money, increased efficiency, or anything else that would make a positive impact on your past employers. This will help the interviewers recognize the benefits of having you join their team, and will help boost the salary offer. If you earned performance bonuses or incentive awards, mention those so that you'll be viewed as an achiever, well worth some good money.

7. Don't blink- Listen to how the offer is presented. When the interviewer or prospective new boss states a salary figure, nod your head to signify you're considering it, but keep quiet. Your silence will speak volumes for you, and if they considered their offer low, they may bump it up to make you respond. Pat yourself on the back later.

8. Don't go overboard. - Be reasonable on the amount you are asking for. Your research is most important in this case. If you know they're shorting your salary, don't be afraid to just walk away. This is a calculated risk to walk away from a job offer. They might call you back with a revised starting salary or they might just close your file and hire someone else if they feel you've been greedy, arrogant or overly demanding.

9. Be flexible- If you want this job, consider agreeing to start at the salary level they're offering, so long as they offer additional benefits or bonuses for specific accomplishments. Be prepared to define them. Money is important, but consider the complete compensation package. For example, you may not get as much money as you wanted, but if you get a sweet parking spot and full health and insurances and other allowances, that may be just as good or better. Get anything they say you're entitled to in writing, and make sure you ask about how often the company raises salaries. As with any negotiation, your goal is to create a win-win situation. 

In conclusion, believe in yourself- Make sure you're confident and believe in yourself. Others will only believe in you if you believe in yourself. Sometimes the only way you can get a higher starting salary is by being actively sought for your position. 

Other times, you may have to demonstrate that you have the exact skills the company needs and, if you play your cards right, you may land the job you want at a salary level beyond your dreams.

In all cases be well prepared, awesome, and don't be greedy. using a little psychology, and practicing your marketing will help you get what you think you deserve for a salary!