Practice Real Profits

If you think of college as an investment, you are best off pursuing the least amount of education that you need for the highest paying job in that education range.

For example, take nursing.  You only need a two year associate’s degree in order to become a registered nurse, but you are looking at an average salary of about $60,000 annually — a much higher salary than most jobs offer for someone with a two year degree.

You may be able to maximize your investment even more by working for a company that will actually put you through nursing school.  Typically you work at a lower salary until you complete your education, and then you start earning a salary that is more competitive with what other employers would pay a certified RN.  The reason why this is possible is because there is a major shortage of workers in the nursing industry, so employers have to get creative about how they attract new nurses.

There are also other jobs in the industry that you can get with little or no training, or that will provide training.  For instance, home health care is become quite popular, and there is enough of a shortage of workers that many employers are offering home health care training for their employees.  This might include just some basic home care training, or you might get something very specific such as elder abuse training.  It is worthwhile to contact several different employers and see what hiring benefits or bonuses each one offers.

Education is expensive, but if you plan it right you can make sure that your investment goes a long ways — for as little of an expense as possible!

Technorati Tags: registered nurse, associate’s degree, home health care training, home care training, elder abuse training

While it’s fun getting paid to travel, business trips can often be tedious affairs that don’t really end up being as much fun as they might seem they’ll be.  Here are some ways to brighten up your business trip a little.

1. Pamper yourself.  Other than going to the spa or getting a massage, another way to pamper yourself is to stay in a vacation rental instead of a hotel.  Instead of the impersonal feel of an executive class hotel, you’ll get the cozy, luxurious feel of staying home… with the added luxury of it being really, really nice.  For instance, if you are going to Florida, be sure to stay in one of the many Orlando Florida villas — Florida villas are known nationwide for being really nice vacation spots, and there are many villas in Orlando to choose from.
2. Go shopping.  Whether you are window shopping, shopping for real, or shopping for souveneirs for loved ones back home, shopping can make you feel a whole lot better about a boring business trip.  Maybe you could even get something really nice to wear the very next day, and turn a tedious chore into a chance to wear something new and nice!
3. Be a tourist in your free time.  Luckily a business trip can’t take up all of your time with business affairs, so during your down time be sure to check out the local sights.

Most of us don’t get really excited about a business trip, but luckily that doesn’t mean you have to be bored out of your mind the entire time.  Find little ways to brighten your days, and you’ll leave realizing it wasn’t so bad after all!

Technorati Tags: business trip, Orlando Florida villas, Florida villas, villas in Orlando

Do you have a special events venue that you were thinking of renting out for weddings?  If so, here are some tips for determining your prices.

1. Visit similar wedding venues in your area.  Find venues that are of similar size and style, and see what they price their venues at.  You might want to undercut them by a little bit, but for the most part you should probably be in about the same price range.  Make sure you’re not comparing apples to oranges, though — for instance, venues that specialize in castle weddings aren’t in the same boat as, say, a Holiday Inn that does weddings in Michigan.
2. Add up all the expenses of running the venue for a night.  Usually you do more than just rent out the space: You provide staff to clean, set up the venue for the wedding ceremony and/or reception, and sometimes even wait on the guests.  Then there is cost of the electricity to light and heat or air condition the place during the wedding, the cost of the mortgage on the building, etc.  Your price needs to not only pay for all this, but also turn a profit for the business!
3. Is it a destination wedding?  Venues for destination weddings tend to be more expensive than local venues.  There are many reasons for this: Real estate is more expensive in popular vacation destinations, there is less choice and so all the venues tend to price a little higher, etc.

The general rule of thumb is that if you are booked solid, you need to raise your prices.  Your goal is to make the same amount of money with fewer bookings, which reduces your expenses and maximizes your profit.

Technorati Tags: wedding venues, castle weddings, Holiday Inn, weddings in Michigan, destination weddings

I sure wish I could be home every time I needed a contractor to come and fix something, but I can’t always be there, especially if it’s an extended repair.  Short of having a neighbor come over and babysit, which can’t happen because they’re all working, too, I was thinking of installing a wireless hidden camera.  I’d want it wireless so that I could move it around for other needs that come up, or move it to other rooms I might have work on some day. 

I know it sounds a little paranoid, but I’m so afraid they’re going to search through my things or else just sleep on the job.  It could even catch it if they come really late and try to bill me!  A nice camera would take care of that!  I could even give footage to Tom Martino or something!  Maybe I’d get a pinhole camera so it would have more flexible use throughout my life.  You never know!

I think this kind of thing should come standard with every house!  We could save on insurance, maybe, and then we could use them as nanny cams when we have children, or when our house is cleaned.

Technorati Tags: wireless hidden camera, Tom Martino, pinhole camera, nanny cams

When considering purchasing a franchise, most people will think of different restaurants and fast food chains and limit themselves greatly by ignoring other unique franchise opportunities.  It might be cliché to say, but sometimes you have to look outside the box if you want to succeed and the same goes when deciding which franchise to invest your time and money in.

With sports gaining more popularity each year and more and more young people striving for sporting perfection, a baseball franchise opportunity just might be the ticket.  And while you might love the idea of owning a professional team, this might not be a realistic goal to set.  But how about training the country’s next great player? By investing in a baseball school franchise, you could do just that.  You could help many children and teens learn the art of playing baseball and allow them to develop their talent. And wouldn’t it be great to spend all day around people who love what they are doing?  It almost wouldn’t be like going to work at all!  Much more fun and rewarding that serving burgers at the latest burger joint.

So if you are looking into purchasing a franchise,  make sure you consider all of your option.  And take a chance on something a little different.  Isn’t that what life’s all about?

Technorati Tags: new franchise opportunities, baseball franchise opportunity, baseball training business opportunity