Guest Post - Mike McRitchie | Resume and LinkedIn Profile Writer | Telecom Marketing Content Writer

Psychology of Advertising…Secrets to Boost Response

June 12, 2020 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

Did you know that by some recent estimates, the average person is exposed to up to 10,000 advertisements each day? In such a saturated market, only the very best ads are going to be able to really capture customers’ attention. To make sure you’re giving yourself every advantage, take a moment to learn about the principles of advertising psychology and how you can implement these tips and tricks into your own online ads. The guide from RentSpree below outlines which colors, fonts, and emotions you should be targeting to make sure your ads are making an impression.

Cybersecurity Trends to Know in 2020

May 30, 2020 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

In the 21st Century, online security is considered a key issue for individuals, businesses and government. As we move more of our lives online, cybersecurity has serious implications for the preservation of our privacy, data and financial assets. This is a worldwide priority with Gartner predicting that global spending on cybersecurity will reach $170.4 billion by 2022. Increasingly, making smart choices and staying informed about cybersecurity has individual and collective relevance as we saw when Travelex experienced a hacking breach in late 2019. Not only did their system recovery take days, many travellers were left without access to digital funds over the new year’s period as well as questions around personal data security. While legislation tries to keep up with tech advancements and the next wave of security threats, what should you know to stay ahead of the cybersecurity curve?

Five cybersecurity trends to know in 2020

Data Protection Regulation Goes Global

We’ve gone from limited regional data legislation to many countries working overtime to protect citizen data. It’s likely that this will become the default with the EU implementing this in just two years with its GDPR laws. As we become more globalized, staying across cybersecurity laws wherever you are is a smart precautionary measure.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Security Solutions Go Mainstream

AI is making a mark on cybersecurity with its ability to streamline processes with automation, efficient chat-bots, and logic-based resolution of data issues. It can also manage threats on a predictive rather than reactive basis with its analytical heft to identify issues before they evolve into risks.

Cloud Security Continues to Grow in Importance

Managing your cloud security is a critical component of 2020 data with nearly everyone storing personal and professional data on services like Google Drive, Apple iCloud, Microsoft OneDrive, Dropbox and more. Securing your cloud storage requires the same precautionary habits as locking the front door of your home every time you leave.

The Importance of Security for the “Connected Everything” Age

One of the leading lifestyle trends in tech is the proliferation of the Internet of Things seen most commonly with smart devices in your home. Integrating this tech into your existing cybersecurity is an essential part of looking after yourself on all devices connected to the internet.

The Emergence of Next-Gen Authentication Technology

Rather than be tricked out of your password, consider two-factor authentication so that even a ‘strong’ password is protected. The next wave of personal password security is already seen with fingerprints on many apps and phones so consider how you can implement sophisticated measures with all of your accounts.

Find out more to protect your online security

This infographic explores these trends and provides you with further analysis as a 101 on cybersecurity. Key information, statistics and explanations on the trends outlined above are an essential starting point of understanding how to protect your data. Read on to learn more with this graphic from Paradyn who specialize in managed IT services.

Health Tips for the Self-Employed

April 29, 2020 by Guest Post 2 Comments

Working for yourself often means your own health gets put to the wayside. Many may think that it’s easier to push through and work and deal with your health later, but this mentality can cause more harm than good. It’s crucial to keep an eye on yourself and your health to ensure you can continue to do what you love for a long time. If you notice you have reached a bit of a stalemate in terms of making healthy choices you can stick to, consider the following tips to help you navigate your journey to a better you:

Watch for burnout

Freelancing or being self-employed allows you the freedom to make your own schedule and thus work as often or as little as you would like. The former, however, breeds the potential for burnout. When you have unreasonable deadlines, are uninterested in the work you are doing, and are relatively isolated, it should come as no surprise that burnout will soon follow. Suffering from burnout will impact both your health and your job performance. Your mental, physical, and emotional health are at risk when burnout hits; you may suffer from increased anxiety and depression and have a poor diet and exercise habits. In terms of your work, you’ll become relatively unmotivated and hit a wall creatively. Recognizing the warning signs of burnout before your world turns upside down is important, and if that moment has come and gone, follow the tips located in this piece to help pull yourself out.

Maintain healthy habits

Being self-employed gives you a lot of autonomy when it comes to various aspects of your life; how much you work, how much you sleep, how often you take breaks for the sake of your sanity. With that said, ensuring that you develop a routine based on strong, healthy habits will help cultivate a schedule that works well for you. If you are working from home, getting dressed as if you are going to an office, or making your bed every morning can help put you in the right mindset for getting your work done. Additionally, your mental health can benefit from having a designated space for your work that you keep organized each day as clutter can negatively affect your mood, hinder your productivity, and increase stress and anxiety.

Make time for exercise

Incorporating exercise into your daily life will benefit you personally and professionally. Exercise is excellent for your health; it elevates your mood, sharpens your brain, enhances your quality of sleep, improves your heart and lung function, and so on. When you break up your workday by adding in a fitness regime, you can take a much-needed break from a task you may be stuck on or free your mind from writer’s block, for example.. It can be as easy as Including a run during your day to invest in the health of your most fruitful employee: yourself.

Learn to eat well

Developing a healthy diet is another key component of creating and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Nonetheless, it can also be an incredibly hard thing to do when you are working for yourself. It’s so easy to pick up whatever is convenient when you are racing to meet a deadline or to grab your comfort foods when a client is causing unreasonable stress. Having access to an individualized and interactive weight loss program can help facilitate a better relationship with your diet. Incorporating a nutrition regimen that lets you choose between plans and educates you on what foods will give you the most energy or the most nutrients will help you make more informed decisions regarding your food habits for the long term. This can prove to be a great option for the self-employed busy bees by taking the guesswork out of figuring out what you will eat each day and saving you time that could be put towards more pressing matters.

Practice self-care

Taking time to relax is sometimes easier said than done. However, there are many ways to escape from your worries and from your work for a little bit. Try to take time away from your phone and your computer when you aren’t working, exercise your mind by doing puzzles, pick up a hobby like painting or drawing—anything that will help you decompress. Self-care activities are a great way to reduce the stresses and anxieties that can accompany the busy lifestyle of the self-employed.

Nurture your relationships

Networking and creating relationships with potential clients is going to be a significant part of your life as a freelancer, but don’t let that be the only social interaction you have. Spending time with friends, family, and other loved ones will be helpful to your mental and emotional well-being. Taking the time to call or video chat a friend, a parent, a sibling, near or far, can help reduce the feelings of anxiety and stress you may be feeling.

Know when to say no

Being a part of the gig economy, the pressure to take any and every job that you can find becomes insurmountable. You need to take the jobs that you know you can do and you can do well. Taking on clients and content that aren’t in your wheelhouse may seem like a great way to dip your toe into new waters, but beware of getting in over your head. You know your limits, and you know when you have to take a break.

Know how to keep your schedule

Having a routine can help foster a sense of normalcy and structure while working for yourself. If you don’t have the luxury of an assistant or secretary, using calendars to manage your time will help organize your workload, which can help relieve the stress of not knowing what you should be working on when. Be sure to stick to your schedule when you make it; otherwise, it can be a very slippery slope from working just a little extra to working all night long.

Navigating the self-employment world is not always easy, particularly when it comes to balancing your work and your health. Give yourself some credit, though; you’re one man (or woman) doing the job of ten people. Just remember, to keep your business alive, you must, in turn, keep yourself healthy and happy. Making some tweaks to your life and implementing healthy habits wherever possible will make a world of difference.

Invest in health insurance
Investing in health insurance, including a vision plan from local brokers, is really important when you are self-employed because you are the only person who is responsible for your health, and that means you need to ensure you have access to the best healthcare you can afford when you need it most.

5 Strategies You Can Implement to Get Out of Debt

March 24, 2020 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

Photo by Artem Beliaikin from Pexels

Everyone has debt.

The right kind of debt is an indicator of your financial literacy and investment acumen. A car loan that enables you to get to work hassle-free and a mortgage to purchase your first home are both examples of good debt. The bad kind, however, keeps you from moving forward. What’s worse about bad debt is that it can lead to you sinking deeper and not being able to get out.

To successfully manage debt and eventually get out of it, you need to come up with a good plan and stick with it. Check out the following strategies you can implement so that someday, debt will become a thing of the past.

1. Calculate how much you owe.

There’s nothing like the cold, hard truth to know exactly where you stand, debt-wise. Make a list of your IOUs, including the creditor’s name, date of the loan, balance, interest rate, minimum monthly payment and the last payment made.

Gather all of your current bill statements (loans, credit cards, student loans). Include medical bills, family loans and monthly expenses. Check your credit reports to ensure everything is correct/accurate. Find out if your credit score makes you eligible for debt consolidation or lower interest rates.

Know your monthly take-home pay and set a goal. This means making a calculated decision to pay off all your debts within three years or more.

2. Find out if you can reduce your interest rates.

Monthly loan and credit card payments that are just enough to cover the interest rates can be frustrating as doing so hardly makes a dent on the principal. To address this problem, you may want to look at lowering your interest rates in the following ways:

Find out if you qualify for a credit card with a lower interest rate.
Try to negotiate a lower rate in a current card you’re paying off.
Apply for a balance transfer credit card with a zero intro rate or lower interest rate.
Look for a loan with a lower interest rate.
Consolidate all of your student loans.

Of course, in order to do these things, you need to do a bit of research, make calculations and use your negotiating skills to get the help you need.

3. Pay more than the “minimum amount due.”

By this time, you may already know that paying for exactly what’s due for the month (minimum) won’t make a dent on your total credit card debt or loan. So aim to pay more than what’s stated. If it says $150, aim for $250-300. But make sure there’s no prepayment penalty if you’re paying off a mortgage, and that any extra payments you make are going towards the principal, not the interest.

4. Earn more money while spending less.

It’s easy enough to understand how one can earn more money. It doesn’t have to be a raise or finding a better-paying job. You can tap into getting a side gig or a weekend job to augment your income. This can be anything from walking dogs, babysitting or performing odd jobs on certain days of the week.

You should also consider downsizing your budget or spending less. This can be something as simple as giving up cigarettes, your morning cafe latte, or eating out less.

5. Set a budget and debt payoff plan you can stick to.

Now that you have a complete, detailed picture of your financial status, know how much money you need to cover your needs and monthly debt repayments. Having a set budget and debt management will help you stay on track, no matter your goal and timeframe.

Be patient and stick to your plans

Getting rid of debt is no mean feat. But with patience, diligence and determination, you can definitely succeed. Once you’re done, you can move on to fulfilling your other plans.

These can include enrolling in a business course and becoming an entrepreneur, learning a new language or traveling overseas. Whatever your future plans, you’ll be sure to accomplish them by taking control of your finances now.

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Oli Kang
Oli is a working mum who has a passion for teaching and all things educational. With a background in marketing, Oli manages the digital channels and content at Courses.com.au.

https://www.courses.com.au

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Preparing for An Office Move: 5 things you never thought of

March 16, 2020 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

Finding a new office, the moving process, and trying to maintain daily operations are just a handful of the tasks you may be juggling with an office move. Even if you are a seasoned mover that has jumped from home to home, it is important to note a commercial move is usually a much larger undertaking that presents different challenges. For this reason, it can be very easy to forget or simply not think of tasks that should be done during your office move.

Here are 5 things you may have never thought of:

The Timeline

Start searching for a new office lease 6 months before your move date. We realize that some circumstances may not allow this time cushion, but half a year is the ideal amount of time for you to find a great space, as well as make any necessary changes or upgrades before move-in day.

Office setup may include installing fixtures, running internet or phone wires through walls, and general furniture setup. All of which should be done before the move. Doing so will cultivate a more relaxed environment from the get-go, allowing employees to adjust quickly to their new environment. After all, who can work comfortably if they are constantly shuffled around for installs!

The Commute

Hopefully, you have considered if your new office area can accommodate employee parking, but what about those who rely on public transport? If a lot of your employees take the bus, train, or subway to work, we highly recommend that you look at how the move will impact their commute. If your new office is in a location that isn’t easily accessible, you may find employee happiness declines. Or, worse, potentially lose key team members.

If you are unsure of how your employees commute to work, be sure to ask. It is better to find out now than later.

The Communication

Like in many areas of business, communication is key to a successful office move. You need to set up an internal and external communications plan to keep clients and employees in the loop.

Internal: The news of an office move can leave employees with fear of the unknown. They want to know what this move means and how it will impact them and their job. It is best to schedule a meeting as soon as possible to let them know what is happening and field any questions. From there, be sure to keep them in the know with emails or subsequent meetings.

External: Letting your clients know you have moved should be a top priority. After all, your business probably relies on their patronage. Beyond sending out an email or a letter to inform them about the move, you may also want to update your address on:

Social media pages
Your website
Online directories
Marketing materials
Email signatures

The Clutter

It may be tempting to try to move your stuff to the new office as quickly as possible, but if you go with that method, you will be missing out on a huge opportunity. Moving your office is the perfect time to declutter. By decluttering your old office before the move, you can help make your new office more organized and efficient.

Here are 2 great places to start:

File Cabinets: While it is true that in some cases that technology can hurt your productivity, scanning your paper files to create digital copies can eliminate the need for filing cabinets. This can help ensure information is easily accessible to everyone in the office, which in turn can boost productivity. Not ready to go digital? At least shred files that are no longer needed.

Technology: Whether you have a technology graveyard stashed away in a supply closet or just have outdated and unused technology sprinkled throughout the office, now is the time to get rid of it. A good rule of thumb: if you have replaced it or haven’t used it in the past 2 years, donate it or toss it. This rule can also apply to any other odds and ends floating around the office.

The Professionals

There is no doubt that professional movers can provide you with the experience, resources, and manpower to move your office quickly and efficiently, but have you also considered using a move manager?

Hiring a move manager or office relocation expert can greatly reduce your moving to-do list. They are solely responsible for the move, and a good one will take on this responsibility while disturbing daily operations and other employees as little as possible. A few things a move manager can do is find quotes for moving companies, schedule installs, ensure access to the new building on move-in day, and keep employees informed. An absolute game changer—and stress saver—for those that already have fully scheduled days.

While an office move may certainly hold promise for your businesses’ future, there is no doubt that it can be quite a trying journey. Make sure to create a checklist and plan that details everything that needs to be done before, during, and after your move. With our list and a little careful planning, you should be able to get settled into your new office in no time.