Author: anwaryusef

Anwar Y. Dunbar is a Regulatory Scientist. Being a naturally curious person, he is also a student of all things. He earned his Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Michigan and his Bachelor’s Degree in General Biology from Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU). Prior to starting the Big Words Blog Site, Anwar published and contributed to numerous research articles in competitive scientific journals reporting on his research from graduate school and postdoctoral years. After falling in love with writing, he contributed to the now defunct Examiner.com, and the Edvocate where he regularly wrote about: Education-related stories/topics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Financial Literacy; as well as conducted interviews with notable individuals such as actor and author Hill Harper. Having many influences, one of his most notable heroes is author, intellectual and speaker, Malcolm Gladwell, author of books including Outliers and David and Goliath. Anwar has his hands in many, many activities. In addition to writing, Anwar actively mentors youth, works to spread awareness of STEM careers, serves on the Board of Directors of the Friends of the David M. Brown Arlington Planetarium, serves as Treasurer for the JCSU Washington, DC Alumni Chapter, and is active in the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace Ministry at the Alfred Street Baptist Church. He also tutors in the subjects of biology, chemistry and physics. Along with his multi-talented older brother Amahl Dunbar (designer of the Big Words logos, inventor and a plethora of other things), Anwar is a “Fanboy” and really enjoys Science-Fiction and Superhero movies including but not restricted to Captain America Civil War, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Prometheus. He is a proud native of Buffalo, NY.

Improve your Body Image and Rocket your Confidence with These Guide

A key focus of my blog is Health/Wellness. Something many people struggle with is self-esteem and body image. There are reasons for this, but the key is finding your comfortability. The following contributed post is entitled, Improve your Body Image and Rocket your Confidence with These Guide.

* * *

Body confidence can be tough to say the least. It’s safe to say that we now live in a world where you are constantly being told that you are not good enough. It may be that you don’t have washboard abs or a defined jawline, and with the rise of social media, it’s becoming more evident that this is having a huge impact on your confidence in general. If you are sick of this and want to make a positive change, then now is the time to take that next step.

Accepting Yourself

You have to make sure that you focus on your values as well as your morals. You have to think about how you treat people, and you also need to look at how you treat yourself as well. Self-acceptance really is the best gift that you can give yourself. If you can, you need to make sure that you are comfortable in your own skin. If you can get to this point, then you will soon find that you experience liberation as well as a complete life transformation. If you believe that this is possible for you, and if you are ready to accept this, then the only thing that you need to do is take a look below.

Source: Pexels (CC0 License)

Stop Looking at Other Bodies

The main thing that you need to do is stop looking at other bodies. This is absolutely pointless, and it won’t do you any favours. You have very different DNA to every single person out there, and you also work in a different environment. You are never going to look like everyone else because if you did, then you wouldn’t be unique. Stop the comparison, and also make sure that you embrace how you really are.

Recognise Social Media

This cannot be stressed enough. Every image that you see on social media is most likely retouched or even filtered. The person in the photo probably doesn’t look anything like the person in real-life. You have to try and stop comparing, and you also need to make sure that you really focus on being who you are, which is a genuine person.

Identify What you Love

Focus as much as you can on the positives and do away with the negatives. You also need to make sure that you focus on the good points about your body and not just the negatives. If you love your eyes, take note of this. If your hair is styled nicely on a particular day, take a selfie and appreciate your good points. This will help you to build the foundation for what will eventually become body confidence.

Focus on your Values

At the end of the day, focusing on your values will also help you to feel better about yourself. People will remember and respect you if you can do this, not to mention that it will help you to see past your body.

Diversify your Instagram

Unfollow anyone who may make you feel bad or anyone who makes you feel as though you have to be somebody else. Don’t worry at all about hurting people’s feelings. At the end of the day, your mental health should always be your priority, and you have to make sure that you give yourself the chance to be happy when on social media. If you have removed anyone who may be toxic, you then need to go ahead and follow a diverse range of people. The more bodies you see on social media, the more you will realise that not everyone is perfect and that you do have a place in this world.

Accept who you Are

Stop thinking about what you could be. It is time-consuming, and it will have a huge impact on your self-esteem too. You need to realise that you are truly good enough as you are, and if you can do this, you will be able to put negativity to one side for once.

Think about What Makes you Happy

Think about it, what makes you feel good about yourself? What makes you happy? Try and come up with a list of everything, as often as you can. If you love working out, write this down. If you want to make the most out of your workout routine, then remember that it’s more than possible for you to buy peptides online so that you can rocket your results without having to push harder or put yourself at risk of an injury.

Focus on What you Can do

A lot of people tend to focus on how their body looks, as opposed to what it can do. Forget about what it looks like. Instead, spend some time focusing on the amazing things that you can do. Think about how fast you can run, how you can lift or even how much power you have. If you don’t workout, then think about the skills your hands give you. How fast can you type? Can you crochet? What about gaming? Are you able to get a high score that beats most people? If so, you need to focus on the empowerment that this gives you, and you also need to think about everything you can achieve. Stop listening to yourself when your body is telling you that you cannot do things, and also make sure that you find a new respect for the body that you have.

Find out Who you Are

You are certainly not your body. At the end of the day, you are a person. Grab a pen and paper and write down everything that you are, whether you are a good friend, a mother, a whizz at maths or even if you have a great sense of humour. If you can come up with things like this, then you need to write everything down and then stick it somewhere you can feel good about yourself. You are truly a wonderful person, and the sooner you can see this, the better.

Don’t Focus on Numbers

Sure, it’s always good for you to be healthy, but at the end of the day, your mental health is important. If you know that the number on the scales is making you feel bad about yourself, then quit looking at them. You are far more than those numbers say, and if you want to improve your health, you can do so without looking at the scales themselves. You can run, walk, dance, eat well and go to the gym with your friends. If you can do this, then you can keep those bad feelings at bay. You can also begin to focus on the way that you feel when you do those activities, as opposed to the way that you feel when you look at the scales.

Be Kind to your Body

One way for you to greatly influence how good you feel about your body would be for you to start taking better care of it. You need to stop mistreating yourself by drinking too much or even by smoking. You also need to take the time out of your week to visit the spa. If this is not an option, then you can always run a bath, or you can pamper yourself by buying some nice nail varnish. If you can do this, then you will soon find that you are able to feel much better.

Dress Well

It’s very easy for you to hide a body that you don’t love in clothes that are drab. If you can, you need to throw open your doors and then pick out your most colourful and fun clothing items. Your body is unique at the end of the day, and you deserve to wear clothes that really do light up rooms. This may sound silly, but at the end of the day, the clothes that you wear can easily boost your general mood. If you dress confidently, this will help you to feel more confident in general. Wear whatever makes you smile when you look in the mirror.

Pose

It’s time for you to step in front of the camera and strike a pose. If you have low body confidence, then there’s a chance that you hate photographs. It doesn’t matter if you have rubbish clothes on or if you are not wearing make-up because you need to make the effort to be photographed more. Get in the family photos and jump in front of the camera on a night out. One day, when you are older, you will look back at these times and know how great they truly were. It will also help to give you a sense of youthfulness when you look back at them as well, so keep that in mind.

At the end of the day, it’s more than possible for you to really feel good about yourself when you follow this guide. If you need some more help, then it may be worth you hiring a personal trainer and a life coach, as they can guide you to more positivity on a mental and physical level.

Ways to Celebrate Dad

A key focus of my blog is Health/Wellness. In modern times, dads and father figures aren’t always celebrated and if they are, they arguable aren’t celebrated enough. The following contributed post is entitled, Ways to Celebrate Dad.

* * *

Photo by Kelli McClintock on Unsplash

No matter the time of the year, there is always a reason to celebrate your father. Between Father’s Day, other holidays, and his birthday, there are endless ways to show your dad how much you care about him. The most important thing to remember is to celebrate why your dad is special to you. This means focusing on what he likes, what you enjoy doing together, and things that remind you of him. Here are some ideas to help you get started if you are stuck.

Go on a Trip

If you have a favorite childhood trip you went on with your dad or someplace your dad has always wanted to visit, then you may want to consider going on a trip with your dad. This can be a great time to bond and spend time together and take a break from your busy lives.

You can go on a road trip to your destination to see more of the country and spend even more time together. Road trips are a great time to remember the past and talk about the future. If you don’t want to go on a location-specific trip, you can also plan a camping trip. If you and your dad enjoy the outdoors, then a camping trip can give you time to enjoy all the outdoor activities like hiking, boating, and fishing.

Support His Hobbies

It can also be a good idea to support your dad’s hobbies and do them with him. It can be a great way for him to teach you something new and for you to get to know him a little bit better. If he is into guns you can look into the top 5 rails for DPMS Oracle AR 15 and go shooting with him. If he is into animals, you can go horseback riding with him. If he is into cars, you can go to a car show or to a race. If he is into music you can go to a concert or a record store. The possibilities are endless, you are only limited by what you know about your dad and his hobbies.

Learn Something Together

Instead of supporting his own hobbies, you can always try a new hobby together. There are fun classes and workshops that you can go to in order to learn a new skill together. This new experience can work as a fun memory and give you more ideas of things you can do together in the future.

You can try fun things like martial arts, ax throwing, or learn to cook. Most cities have a variety of activities that you can go to in order to be exposed to new experiences and learn new skills. If you don’t want to learn a new skill, you can always just try something new. Try a museum you have never been to before. Or you can find a fun club that plays music you don’t normally listen to. Even if you don’t love it and never do it again, it is a fun experience that you get to share together and remember forever.

Why Is It So Easy To Make Mistakes When Investing In Bitcoin?

Two key focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Technology. An important part of understanding money is investing. Many investors now have their sites on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as lucrative investments to get into. The following contributed post is entitled, Why Is It So Easy To Make Mistakes When Investing In Bitcoin?

* * *

Making money is challenging. If it was easy, everyone would be rich. The key is to search for value, and to be decisive when you find it. Otherwise, the opportunity will slip from your fingers. With Bitcoin, investors feel as if they have the value they have been looking for their entire lives. After all, the price value is currently at record highs.

However, it’s easy to make mistakes with cryptocurrencies, and errors lead to losses. Why are mistakes so common? It’s because investors fail to research the entire fund before channelling their money into trades. When it comes to crypto, the smallest detail can have the biggest impacts.

The ecological element of Bitcoin is a prime example. Most people don’t understand how damaging the process is, and how mining for Bitcoin can lead to energy wastage that’s akin to the usage of nations. A single dollar of Bitcoin is equal to 17 megajoules of energy, which is an incredible amount.

Unfortunately, investors don’t recognise the links between Bitcoin’s carbon footprint and the effects it has on their chances of success. For instance, as mining for coins gets tougher, the need for specialist equipment is vital if you’re going to find enough currency to make it worth your while. And, expert tools don’t come cheap.

Thankfully, you can learn more about the ecological effects of cryptocurrencies via the infographic below. By doing that, you’ll be more aware of the potential drawbacks of investment opportunities, meaning you should take fewer risks and make fewer errors.

Boss Your Health in 2021 With These Awesome Tips

A key focus of my blog is Health/Wellness. A significant number of posts on this platform involve money and business but arguably our most important resource is our personal health. The following contributed post is entitled, Boss Your Health in 2021 With These Awesome Tips.

* * *

Taking charge of your well-being is essential for living a happy, healthy, and more fulfilled life, and this starts with your health. Many people are much more focused on mindfulness and a healthier way of life since the global pandemic hit, and this is a great opportunity for you to be able to make changes in your life that are going to help you come up with some excellent ways of improving health and wellness.

There are new fitness challenges you can take on, and plenty of dietary options to consider, but above all, this is about lifestyle changes. There are a lot of factors that are going to play a part in helping make the most of this right now, and you’re going to need to keep these in mind. Check out these epic tips to help you prioritise health and wellness as much as you can this year.

Picture

Keep Fit

Fitness is a massive part of getting (and staying) healthy, and there are plenty of ways you can go about keeping fit in 2021. Of course, going to the gym may not be viable, due to things like lockdown restrictions, but you can always work out from home, and get out of the house to go running or cycling. Having some kind of fitness routine is really important when it comes to keeping fit, and this is essential for your physical and mental health.

Tackle Your Diet

But, as well as exercise, it is also important for you to make sure you think about the way you look after your body through dieting. You’ve got plenty to consider here, and there are a lot of elements that you should keep in mind. Changing your diet and thinking about what you’re putting into your body is really important, and you can do a lot to improve this.

Stocking Up

You should also think about stocking up on medical care products and equipment that can help to improve your life and enhance the process of getting healthier. Check out sites like PharmaMed where you can find a great selection of medical material to help improve your life and the way you look after yourself these days. This is definitely an important step in the process that will help you improve the way you do things.

Sleep Better

Making sure you sleep better is also a huge part of the process of improving health and well-being, and you need to make sure you get the right amount of sleep to allow you to function as well as you can. There are so many ideas that can play a part in helping with this, and it is essential that you get this right. Come up with a structured sleep routine to maximise the amount of rest you’re able to get.

There are a lot of key elements to think about when you are looking to improve health and wellness, and these are some of the things that you can use that will help you with this. There are a lot of ideas that play a part in helping with this, and you can use these ideas to help make better choices moving forward right now.

2 Easy Ways To Improve Your Business Appeal

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. While most people think that the most important part of your business is its profits, and important component is your business appeal. The following contributed post is entitled, 2 Easy Ways To Improve Your Business Appeal.

* * *

Photo by kaboompics from Pexels

Attracting and keeping the right customers to your business requires more than having the best products or services. The aura that your business generates plays a significant role in determining your future business.

If your space is untidy and rugged, it is challenging to lure the appropriate long-term clients. Improve the way people see and their experience by using these three easy ways to boost your appeal.

Improve Internal Conditions

When your business lacks the proper internal atmosphere, it barely maintains a consistent consumer base. One day you may experience a surge in customers and during the others have a problem landing any.

Quickly resolve this problem by:

Conducting Repairs

It is not enough to have the right equipment for operations; you need to conduct frequent maintenance for optimum functioning.

For example, if your floors wear out, sourcing for epoxy installation helps keep your flooring fresh and robust.

Other essential components such as air conditioning contribute highly to improving your indoor conditions.

Automate

Automating some of your business functions goes a long way in promoting the right look for your business. Apart from turning your business into a fortress, technology also gives your customers the best impression of your commitment.

Successful automation always relies on:

● Having a goal
● Using the appropriate tools
● Prioritizing the essential tasks

Keep Employees Happy

Customers always spot unhappy and tired employees from a mile away. When your workers lack the proper motivation to work, internal operations may not operate normally, and buyers hate this.

Instead, keep your employees satisfied and working by listening to their grievances, interacting with them, and organizing outdoor team-building activities.

Clean the Outdoors

The front of your business premises needs the most work as this is where clients see first before venturing further.

An unkempt space is often a deal-breaker for many potential customers. No one wants to transact in a dirty and toxic environment.

Instead, make the effort of not only cleaning your outdoor but also sprucing it up and keeping it in the best possible conditions.

You can achieve this by:

Nurturing Plants

If your front yard lacks different plant species to beautify it, you’re missing out on business because of this. Besides having health benefits, plants give your landscape an aesthetic look that captivates the eye.

While you may not cultivate a garden, you should have container plants at the gate and flowers by the porch for the place to feel welcoming.

Maintaining the Driveway

When clients drive into a driveway full of potholes and dirt, it is difficult for them to come back again because they care for the vehicle’s welfare.

Ensure your driveway is in mint condition by covering up the holes and cleaning the entrance to the parking area. The path leading up to the door of your business should also be spotless.

Lighting

Apart from improving your business’s security, lights also beautify the landscape, making it attractive to clients at night.

Final Thoughts

For your business to have long-term success, you must make it as attractive as humanly possible. Without the proper appeal, no one will take notice of your small business. Instead of losing business, improve your business appeal using the above tips.

4 Things to Consider Before Changing Your Major

A key focus of my blog is General Education. Many students launch off into their educations eager to study one major, only to find that they want to study something else. Changing your major can have long last ramifications though. The following guest post is entitled, 4 Things to Consider Before Changing Your Major.

* * *

You’ve taken STEM in senior high and fell in love with it, but now that you’re studying a hard science major in college, you’re thinking of shifting to something else, something that you know you truly want and would make you happier than your current major.

If you’re already decided that you want to pursue something else, congratulations. The hard part is over. However, there are still several things you should consider before rushing into the college secretary’s office. And putting more thought into these factors will help ensure that you’re making the right decision:

1. Timing

Most students can change their majors at any point in their college career, but it doesn’t always lead to making good use of one’s resources. For instance, if you’re thinking of changing your major in your third year, the huge changes in your academic plan may not be worth it. After all, you’re probably looking at adding four or more semesters of college, and that’s four more semesters of spending money on your education. Unless you’re made of money, changing your majors too late in your college career is not always a feasible option.

That said, switching to a new major is best done in your first or second year (but some students in their second year may still be hesitant to do so). If you’re already past this point but not changing your major is simply not an option, make sure that you know the implications–which brings us to our next points:

2. Financial needs

Like we said before, changing your major can mean extending your stay in college, which, of course, comes with more semesters’ worth of expenses. Even if you have a full-ride scholarship, you still have to spend money for your other necessities as a college student. And if you don’t have a scholarship, extending your stay also means paying for more years of tuition.

Be sure to mull over this particular factor, maybe even more than the others on this list. If you find the extra costs of staying a few more years is worth it, then, by all means, apply for that major change.

3. Future career options

Many students change their majors with the goal of improving their post-college opportunities. However, many of them do so with poorly informed decisions, and some don’t even know that they can get into their target industry without changing their majors to something else. If you don’t want to make the same mistake, do due diligence as early as now.

Attend career fairs, do online research, and interview professionals who are in the industry or field that you want to pursue in the future. Find out what kind of credentials you need to be able to put your foot in the door. With that, decide if you still need or want to change your major to pursue your future career. And if the answer is yes, you have to be a hundred percent sure that that career is the one you want.

Many college students don’t even know what kind of job they want to apply for after graduating. Hence, it’s always a good idea to start figuring out what you want as early as possible. In this way, you can better plan your academic route toward this future career, which can make it easier to jumpstart it after you graduate. However, remember to keep your options open; a lot can change before graduation, including your career goals.

4. Academic capabilities

Classes between two majors can have stark differences, which means the ease with which you breezed through the courses in your current major may not be present in the next. However, the opposite can also be true, and you may have an easier time with academics in your target major.

Either way, it is important to evaluate your academic capabilities before changing your major. If you’re not sure what skills or knowledge you need to complete the courses in the major that you want to shift to, you may want to take introductory or prerequisite courses in that major to gauge your academic capabilities–as well as the things you need to work on to be able to succeed in that major. If you find that it’s going to be more challenging than your current major, you have to steel yourself and perhaps rearrange your academic strategies before making the transition.

Changing your major in the middle of college can set you on a completely different path than the one you’re on now. That said, it’s only right that you think twice before making such a drastic change. So, if you’re thinking of shifting to a new major, these are the factors that you need to consider first.

Your Business Is Growing: What’s Your Next Step?

Buffer

“It’s exciting when your business starts to grow, but you need to know what you’re going to do next.”

Buffer

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. Once your business is up and raining, and growing you have to think about future directions to keep your operations moving. The following contributed post is entitled, Your Business Is Growing: What’s Your Next Step?

* * *

It’s exciting when your business starts to grow, but you need to know what you’re going to do next. This can be particularly hard to do if your business is growing quicker than you expected or you feel uncertain about the future of your business. There are many things that you could do next, but you have to choose wisely if you want to support the growth of your business. If you’re not sure what step to take next, you have multiple options. One or more of them could work out for you, depending on where you want to take your business next.

Invest in Customer Experience and Service

Keeping your customers happy is a must for any business. Your customer experience and the level of customer service that you offer can be used to differentiate you from your competitors. If you can offer an amazing customer experience, you can stand out from the crowd and both attract and keep customers. Customer experience these days needs to take the digital world into account, offering various communication channels and convenience to customers. You should also think about ways to go above and beyond to deliver on your promises but also surprise and delight your customers.

Image from Pixabay – CC0 License

New Business Premises

As a business grows, one thing that can happen is that it outgrows its premises. If your business is getting too big for its current residence, expanding or moving might be necessary. It could be time to look for a new office, warehouse, or store to keep growing your business. Maybe you’ll even consider looking for the right commercial builders so that you can build new premises that meet the exact needs of your business. This might be a smart way to grow your business in the way that you want, with your own brand identity.

Put Money Into Your Staff

If there’s one thing you should invest in, it’s your employees. There are many excellent reasons to recognize the worth of your workers and reward them accordingly. When you invest in your staff, you can give them the skills they need to work better and harder. You can ensure they’re earning enough that they’re not worrying about their finances on the job. You can also reduce employee turnover, creating a better working environment and culture. Investing in your employees is good for their health and happiness, and therefore the growth of your business.

Keep Up with Tech

Technology is always changing and businesses need to be prepared to keep up. If you’re looking for the next step to grow your business, you should make sure you’re staying up to date with the technology in your industry and the tech that your customers demand. Come up with a technology strategy and digital strategy to define what tools your business should be using internally and what you should be offering to your customers too.

Set goals for your business to help you decide which step to take next, once your business has started to grow.

5 Mistakes That Can Lead Young Filipinos to a Financial Nightmare

A key focus of my blog is Financial Literacy/Money. Our overall financial health come down to a number of factors but decision making plays a major role. This is true for all ethnic groups. The following guest post is entitled, 5 Mistakes That Can Lead Young Filipinos to a Financial Nightmare.

* * *

Today, more and more young Filipinos are paying attention to their finances thanks to the increasing accessibility to financial tools and knowledge sources, something that their parents and grandparents were not lucky enough to have. However, there are still a lot of youngsters in the country that are committing the same mistakes that their predecessors did, as well as some new ones that came with modern technology.

Here are some of the most common ones, and how Filipinos, both old and young, can avoid them:

1. Taking out unnecessary loans

Whether it’s because of “petsa de peligro”, an expensive gadget, or an unexpected expense, many young Filipinos turn to payday loans to make ends meet before the next paycheck. While these types of loans may provide quick and easy cash, they also come with exorbitant interest rates that make borrowers pay more than half of the original amount. The result? Blown up debt that can make one’s finances even harder to manage.

The best way to avoid this problem is by establishing an emergency fund and practicing delayed gratification. With an emergency fund, one can pay for unexpected expenses without draining their main bank accounts and resorting to loans. And by practicing delayed gratification, one’s ‘wants’ won’t be a good enough reason to take out a high-interest loan.

2. Waiting too long to take out insurance

When it comes to insurance, many Filipinos display the “I don’t need it yet, I’m young and healthy” attitude, mostly because they don’t want to lose part of their income to something intangible or something that won’t immediately benefit them. However, no one knows when sickness, accident, or death can befall someone; health or life insurance plans and other types of coverage help protect the insured and their family in case something were to happen.

Moreover, insurance premiums increase with age. By waiting too long to take out insurance, young Filipinos are missing out on lower payments while they are still considered low-risk.

3. Spending too much on online shopping

With the massive popularity of online shopping platforms like Lazada and Shopee, it’s no wonder why so many Filipinos–both young and old–are finding themselves spending too much on their online purchases. Even with the frequent promotional ‘sales’ that these platforms offer, money spent is still money spent, no matter how big the discount is.

And that’s exactly the problem, too many online shoppers are blinded by sales, hefty discounts, and free shipping promos that they often buy things that they don’t even need. There’s nothing wrong with shopping online. In fact, it’s a safe and convenient way of shopping amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it may be causing shoppers to spend more money than necessary, and sometimes, money that they don’t even have.

4. Not planning for retirement

For the older generations, especially Filipinos, their children are their retirement plans. It’s a common tradition in the country to “give back” to one’s parents upon entering the workforce, and going against the grain is often seen as taboo or being ‘ungrateful’. Needless to say, this is a toxic belief that is putting too much pressure on young Filipinos and leaving them unable to prepare for their retirement at the same time. As a result, these young Filipinos will also depend on their children for their needs in the future, hence, a generational financial curse.

That said, it’s crucial for Filipino millennials and Gen Zs to break this cycle by planning for their retirement. This could mean taking out long-term investing plans, making contributions to pension plans, and building their nest egg as early as now. Contrary to popular belief, it’s never too early to start planning for retirement–even if it’s forty or fifty years away.

5. Succumbing to lifestyle inflation

Lifestyle inflation is a problem not exclusive to Filipinos, but it certainly is a common issue in the country, especially with a culture that makes people believe that when they move up in life, they should have something to show for it. For many Filipinos, this means buying a bigger house, taking out the latest car model, buying more expensive clothes, or going to high-end sources of entertainment when they start earning more money.

Lifestyle inflation, to a certain extent, is acceptable. However, when the expenses start equating to income, you’re probably spending too much and may be well on your way to debt.

These are just some of the financial mistakes that a lot of young Filipinos are guilty of, but are definitely some of the worst ones. If you’re still committing one or more of these mistakes, it’s high time to start taking more control of your finances for a brighter financial future.

5 Ways to Revamp Your Premises for Reopening

Two focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. If you’ve ever had to close down your operations for any reason, there are a couple of things to think about when reopening. The following contributed post is entitled, 5 Ways to Revamp Your Premises for Reopening.

* * *

pexels

If you’re planning a grand reopening after a temporary closure, why not take the time to revamp your premises? Whether you can stretch your resources to anything from a lick of paint to structural renovation, it will definitely boost your curb appeal. Reopening is also the perfect opportunity to promote your brand, so get marketing online to draw more customers in to see your decorating efforts. If you run a catering business, salon, or brick-and-mortar store, it’s time to bring your business into the 21st century. Here are five ways to revamp your premises for reopening.

Refresh your decor

Refreshing your decor can be done on a budget. Give your property a lick of paint and decorate with your company branding. Invest in a couple of new plants and bring a bit of life into the place. Take a look at the interior design trends this year for inspiration. One thing that’s important is that your decor represents the personality of your brand. Brainstorm the characteristics that make up your brand personality, whether it’s luxury, artisan, sustainability, or minimalism, for example.

Expand outdoor space

If you have the option it’s the perfect time of year to expand your outdoor space. Make changes to the structure with the help of companies like https://jrcousa.com/sheet-metal/. Outdoor space is very valuable, depending on the type of business you run. If you own a small catering business or bar, find out if you can make use of the surrounding space.

Update your equipment

Bring your business into the 21st century with the latest software and tools. You could consider smart equipment for customers such as self-service kiosks and contactless options. It might be time to get some new tools for your staff as well and more modern appliances. These will improve productivity and efficiency in the long run, allowing you to provide a better service.

New security system

Another smart addition to make to your premises is a state-of-the-art security system. You can’t put a price on peace of mind and you need to ensure your building is always protected. You can upgrade your security with a full smart system including cameras, smart locks, and private access control. Don’t forget to follow cybersecurity best practices as well, as a data breach could be just as harmful to your business as theft or vandalism. Consider outsourcing your IT services to ensure you get access to the best resources and encrypted cloud-hosting options.

Make it a promotional event

Reopening your premises is a fantastic marketing opportunity. The important thing is to be consistent. In order to plan for your success, you need to use the same offers in-store that you’ve been promoting online. Invite your contact list through email marketing to come and take advantage of these offers. You could even host a small event or party to celebrate reopening. Choose the most fitting idea for your business. Reach out to as many customers as possible beforehand and spread the news about your reopening.

How To Improve Your Websites Speed

Three focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money, Business/Entrepreneurship and Technology. In today’s digital age where so much business is conducted online, it’s critical that your website is working at optimal speeds. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Improve Your Websites Speed.

* * *

(Image Source)

Whether you use your site for business, blogs, pleasure or a combination of all, it is important to consider the customer’s journey.

Bet you’ve been there, on a different site and due to the lag and delays with loading or navigating their site, you moved on pretty sharpish to a competitors page. Of course, when it comes to your business or blog you don’t want that to happen. This then has a very real knock on effect and will impact on your site’s traffic, building and maintaining a good service and customer satisfaction. All of which you want to avoid. With that in mind, it is always worth reviewing your site when you review and consider changes to optimize your business.

So Why Is It Running Slow

The first step is to run a site speed test to see the actual speeds that are being applied to your site currently.

As to the whys, there could be many reasons. It could be due to some of the links, adverts and widgets you have running across the site. It could be due to the size of images and videos that you have uploaded, or the number of links included.

This does mean that there could be potentially a few aspects to change. But, it also gives you a lot of ways to improve those speeds by making some easy changes.

Here are some different ways to ensure that you maintain great internet and site speeds to stop this happening.

HTTP requests

Consider what is on each page within your site. Every script, image, table, link and so on that requires a HTTP request to load each time, will influence your upload times. There are developer tools available online to help you identify these.

So, once you know how many you have, it is always worthwhile seeing which ones are unnecessary and where possible removing them to enhance your site’s speed.

Dedicated Servers

Where this is something that confuses you or you struggle to find the time to manage your site to ensure it runs at optimal capacity, you can always consider dedicated servers. A dedicated server will give you an instant support system to help you perform better with a knowledgeable team or dedicated support manager in place. Also, not only will they be able to support the speed of your site, they will also have the ability to assist with security.

Check Your Hosting Site

When you were completing the initial set up, you may have opted for free or low cost hosting options to keep your start up costs low. Initially this offered a great stepping stone when getting set up. However, now that your business has grown and developed you’ll find that they need reviewing to support your current traffic needs.

With this you’ll have different options available, such as shared hostings, VPS hosting or a dedicated server.

Each option comes with their women individual benefits and costs so it is worth spending some time to review the options and your budget to allow you the best route forward.