Category: Career Page 2 of 5

Tips to Launch Your Side Hustle

On February 6, 2021

In Career, Finance, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight

It seems that every year, the marketplace becomes more amenable to side hustles. With the digital revolution democratizing many industries, you can make some money on the side without quitting your day job. This ability to pad your earnings without sacrificing your main source of income represents a truly irresistible opportunity. If you’re lucky, your side project could even become more lucrative than your current job, allowing you to focus on the new venture exclusively. You never know when an entrepreneurial venture could be the start of something truly special.

Launching a side hustle is an appealing option, but it certainly isn’t easy. Keep these tips in mind to maximize your chances of success.

Make Sure You Have A Profitable Idea

Before you actually start your business, you need to make sure your idea can actually make you money. Do some market research to see if the product or service you’ll offer is really in demand. Then, do a quick analysis to determine whether you’ll be able to consistently cover your expenses.

Identify Your Potential Customer Base

Once you’ve got your general idea in place, it’s time to determine who you customers will be. If you’re planning on running a food truck, determine what sorts of people would be most interested in your food. After you’ve developed a general buyer persona, you can build your marketing strategy accordingly.

Approach Potential Clients In A Professional Manner

When starting a business from scratch, you need to be aggressive about pursuing potential clients. If you hope to be a freelance writer, for example, you can’t simply wait for companies to reach out. You’re the unknown entity, so it’s up to you to initiate contact.

Don’t Fear Failure

Nothing paralyzes a new entrepreneur like the constant fear of failure. In order for your business to succeed, you’ll need to remain an optimist through thick and thin. Only by keeping your eyes on the prize will you overcome obstacles and resist the urge to quit.

Avoid Burnout

Starting a business is a lot of work, and it can be especially taxing when you’re working another job at the same time. Give yourself plenty of time to relax, and prioritize the maintenance of a proper work/life balance.

Overrated Business Tips to Forget

By Nicholas Fainlight

On January 28, 2021

In Career, Education, Finance, fitness, health, Investing, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology, Uncategorized

Wherever you go, people provide unsolicited guidance on how to grow, run, or start a business. Out of the pointers they offer, some are valuable, and you must observe them. However, others are misinterpreted, outdated, or just plain wrong for the business you’re running. Here are some overrated business tips to forget.

1. Your Service or Product Must Be Unique

Businesspersons are often advised to outline what makes them stand out. However, it is not necessary to find an exclusive approach to achieve corporate success. A subtle change may improve the entire experience.

2. Customers Are Always Right

Do you need to make the customers happy? Yes. However, if your main goal is to please people, you may end up in a world of unnecessary suffering. It’s best to pay attention to the things that bring you a long-term profit, not the things that take your energy and time.

3. Do Not Start a Business With Your Friend

Many people think it’s a bad idea to start an enterprise with a friend, but that’s not true—friends whose expertise supplements each other may build a thriving business. Establishing a company may be straining to the relationship; however, the benefits of operating with a person you trust may be worth it.

4. Promote Your Business on Facebook

Companies have acknowledged that paid advertising is the only path to increase your Facebook image, which is still one of the world’s best social platforms. However, it is not always the top place to use up your advertising budget. There are other more effective means to reach your audience for a much lower price per lead, for instance, on platforms like Pinterest.

5. Concentrate on Your Site Instead of Building the Brand

It is important to have a brand that reverberates with ideal customers. However, investing all energy and time in the “perfect” site is not how to make it.

6. Never Reject an Opportunity

It is tempting to “do it all” and take all opportunities that cross your path at the beginning of your business. Saying “yes” to all opportunities in your corporate encounters will stifle your time and dilute your brand.

7. Gather as Much Cash as Possible

Each business needs cash to start and grow; however, not all businesses must seek that through financiers. While funding may help some companies grow significantly, other lifestyle corporations are at an advantage without it.
Finally, despite all the advice that entrepreneurs receive, they should filter what is right for their business.

How To Balance Profit And Purpose In Business

By Nicholas Fainlight

On January 28, 2021

In Career, Education, Finance, fitness, health, Investing, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology, Uncategorized

Entrepreneurs need to build business empires while still staying committed to their purpose. A significant number of business people struggle to commit to their purpose while still keeping their enterprises profitable. Businesses need to demonstrate their contribution to humanity while still growing their profit margins. Here are ways businesses can balance profit and purpose.

Go Green

In the past few years, many businesses have shown their commitment to adopting more sustainable production methods. No matter the size, every organization can play a role in reducing its environmental footprint. Surprisingly, the current generation prefers to buy green products. Therefore, companies that will demonstrate high sustainability credentials will gain numerous customers who want to buy green.

For instance, manufacturers can reduce carbon emissions by sourcing closer to home. When raw materials are transported for short distances, it helps cut both transport costs and carbon emissions. Besides, leaders who have a passion for conserving the environment can shift to renewable energy sources.

Find an Inspiration

Walk away from your comfort zone and start doing something new that challenges you. Learn from these things and find inspiration in them

Leverage Technology

Technology is changing every aspect of life, including how consumers interact with brands and how they buy products and services. For example, online sales have doubled in the past five years. Additionally, organizations are using machines to understand customer needs better. This means that businesses must stay on top of the latest innovations to remain competitive in their respective industries.

Share Your Success

Entrepreneurship is a murky journey characterized by ups and downs. Therefore, successive entrepreneurs should consider sharing their experiences with novice business people. When you balance profit and purpose, your impact is significant and tangible, and more consumers will want to be associated with your business.

Understand Your Purpose

Purpose goes beyond providing high-quality goods and services to consumers. It also means that your business prioritizes the common good of the community. For example, some companies such as Unilever have already developed a unique living plan to track their progress of minimizing their environmental footprint. Business leaders should devote time to learn about societal impact and how to improve it.

To change business operations to meet new expectations requires exceptional and visionary leadership. In today’s versatile business world, leaders who will adopt agility will be in a better position to achieve long-term success.

Leaping Across A Professional Rut

By Nicholas Fainlight

On January 7, 2021

In Career, Nicholas Fainlight

Everybody has hit a rut from time to time. Any length of professional practice of any activity will result in hitting physical and mental walls. How do we break through those walls? How do we climb out of our ruts? As professionals, we must be capable and aware of recognizing ruts and how to respond to them.

One of the first ways of leaping across the struggles of daily performance is to mix up how you may do things. Mixing up your schedule, figuring out new ways of looking at the same issues, or even integrating new technology into the routine — these are all effective and efficient ways of getting through a tough spot.

Realize in the midst of our professional careers, we are not alone. There have been a multitude of others that have come before us who also have struggled with the same issues. Utilize their experience! Read up from experts who have suffered burnout, been stuck in ruts, and somehow figured their way out of them. Start by reaching out to friends, family, or colleagues, when comfortable, and try to see how they would approach the problem. Recognizing those who have gone before us, and those that go through it with us, is integral in breaking out of ruts.

An outline, game-plan, or goal sheet is another productive way of breaking old habits or worn patterns. It allows you to chart out big ideas and see the whole picture in a way that might have not been seen before. Try putting new ideas into your outlines and see how that changes things. You won’t be able to break out until you’re ready to break in new ideas and thoughts. Take an active effort in seeing things from a new perspective.

Recognize that life works on a spectrum. What you may consider “bad” other individuals consider “great” — it is all relative. Use that relativity as your jumping point across your rut. Start small, and do what you can do at that moment. Take small steps, and steps that you know will lead you to your end-goal, no matter how long it may take. Leaping takes a bit of faith, however, that’s exactly what getting out of a rut takes. A leap of faith.

6 Communication Skills of Influential Leaders

By Nicholas Fainlight

On January 7, 2021

In Career, Investing, Leadership, Nicholas Fainlight

Excellent communication skills and impeccable leadership go hand in hand. Influential leaders connect with their audience at an emotional level. Their words are full of encouragement and inspire people to unleash their full potential.

Here are the secrets of effective leaders.

1. Know Their Audience

You can only communicate effectively after identifying who you are speaking to. Influential leaders know their audience, which helps them to choose the most suitable communication style. Identifying their audience doesn’t mean telling them what they want to hear. It means they relay essential information that the audience ought to know.

2. They Have Mastered Body Language

Effective leaders can tell people’s reactions to their message through body language. They are experts in picking on cues such as body language and facial expression because they understand that this is the only feedback they will receive from their audience. Great leaders use feedback to tweak their communication style.

3. They Are Listeners

Great leaders devote time to listen to the grievances and concerns of their audience. They listen and come up with the best response to their queries or grievances.

4. They Are Clear

Being precise in your communication increases the chances of the audience understanding faster. Great leaders explain things in detail to eliminate room for assumptions.

Whenever great leaders are delegating duties or asking for help from someone else, they strive to provide actionable, simple, and clear instructions. It is imperative to prepare thoughts in advance to provide essential details. Additionally, deliver these instructions in a friendly, calm way.

5. They Are Optimistic and Respectful

Everyone expects leaders to be respectful, but that is not always the case. Focusing on respectful, transparent, and fair communication within a team is an effective strategy for cultivating loyalty and enhancing team performance.

Don’t be tempted to use your status over your team or use fear or coercion as motivators. Instead, be honest and humble even when dealing with your juniors. Desist from being an autocrat and instead be a cheerleader who inspires people to be creative and quick problem solvers.

6. They Don’t Blame Others

When things go south in an organization, effective leaders don’t blame their team. They admit their mistake right away and focus on rectifying it in the future. They are accountable for their words and actions and are always striving to be better versions of themselves.

4 Hard Truths About Business

By Nicholas Fainlight

On December 4, 2020

In Career, Finance, Investing, Nicholas Fainlight

In business, being honest is crucial to everyone’s success and prosperity. Having the truths laid out in front of you can be incredibly disheartening, but it can also provide you with excellent insights, preparation, and ideas for furthering your business yourself.

Being honest with each other is the first step to being honest with ourselves, and to that end here are some hard but powerful truths about starting a business.

Crazy is Good

Risk-taking is one of the most important things that entrepreneurs can do. Risk is something most people tend to avoid, but without a healthy risk there isn’t much to be gained.

What’s more, many entrepreneurs aim for ‘market disruption’ – flipping the table of industry standards in order to form a new standard. A new standard that they will be the leaders of. These are crazy things to pursue, but they are the foundation of good entrepreneurship.

Your Chances are Bad

Nearly every trust-fund baby with half a clue will be trying to do the exact same things that you will be doing. But these kinds of established or well-funded entrepreneurs likely have less risk because of their positions.

This makes your chances far worse – you won’t have as many chances at success as many others. And there are many, MANY other entrepreneurs out there.

Embrace Failure

Success will take time and effort, as well as a few attempts. The likelihood of achieving success with your first business idea, no matter how much of a golden goose it seems, is incredibly slim.

Embrace the experience of watching a business fail, and learn everything you can as you go through it. Learning from failure, embracing it, is the most important trait of successful entrepreneurs.

Money Only Means So Much

Hitting it rich shouldn’t be your only goal in business. Ironically, if you pursue other things while being an entrepreneur, you might be more successful than if money was your only drive.

Being driven, motivated, and dedicated to your business is absolutely critical, and you should focus on developing other motivations – whether it’s the business itself, the people it supports, or having something that allows you to exercise your brain.

Ways Working From Home Can Cause A Team To Be More Proactive

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 4, 2020

In Career, Nicholas Fainlight, Uncategorized

As technology advanced, companies began to question whether they should set up their employees to work from home. But, once the health of their employees became a national issue, many companies had no choice but to allow this arrangement. Although it may seem that employees will become less aggressive about their duties, that won’t be the case. Here are the ways working from home will make their team more proactive.

Increased Performance

Managers and supervisors often feel they have to make their presence and opinion known to their staff throughout the day. They do this in hopes it will keep employees from slacking off on the work that needs to get done. But, when employees are constantly observed and critiqued, it causes them to work in response to your actions rather than by their initiative.

Working from home gives them more opportunities to make choices for themselves. And, it empowers them to tackle issues without interference. With the weight of reaching their goals lying more on their shoulders than before, they will rise to the occasion and perform better. Also, because they will feel appreciation for your trust, your team becomes dedicated to efficiently handling their time and goals.

Increased Productivity

Whenever your staff can predict how every day, week, and month will go, they will become bored with their work. It can be hard for them to continue with proactiveness when there are no longer any challenges with getting their work done. Your team won’t maintain productivity when there is no variety with their responsibilities.

A home-based office takes away monotonous tasks like a daily commute and getting dressed, so more time and energy is given to genuine work tasks. Without being in a traditional office, employees may be able to use unconventional tactics to make their day more interesting. They will have to find their ways to keep themselves comfortable and motivated. Just the challenge of being productive while at home stirs up their creativity and problem-solving techniques to be more productive.

Increased Talent

In traditional settings, management can evaluate the skill level of their staff during performance reviews. The normal rhythm of the year will stay in place until that season comes about. But while working from home, supervisors can see their teams in a new way.

The unexpected curve-balls of a home setup will highlight what each team member is better at than others. Plus, the management team will have less distraction so they can better see how each team member behaves.

Boosting Sales Through Blogging

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 4, 2020

In Career, Nicholas Fainlight, Uncategorized

The world of social media is a big and broad one. However, there are some constants out there. One of them is blogging, which remains a highly useful and relevant way of boosting your sales.

So, what are the benefits of blogging, and how is it worth the time and investment? Here are some thoughts.

Expert Positioning

Blogging gives you a chance to discuss a highly relevant topic in your industry, share your expertise, and give advice on a particular topic. This is about much more than just showing off or looking smart, as it gives you a chance to subtly demonstrate your expertise. This means that you can position yourself as a leader in your field and ensure that people will return to you or your business if they require your industry’s services.

Search Engine Optimization & Social Network Placement

Here’s a simple truth when it comes to Google: Search Engine Optimization is critical. This means that you must do everything in your power to create content that is useful, engaging, and relevant to your line of work.

Blogging is fantastic for that. Google loves frequently updated content, so the more content you can create, the higher your SEO will rank. This means that people who are looking for your line of work are more likely to find your blog, and this makes it more likely that they will find your website.

Furthermore, creating good content makes it more likely that your content will be shared on social networks by others. This is a great way of getting more exposure, and potentially increasing your sales.

Effective (and subtle) Calls To Action

When creating good content, you shouldn’t be overly sales-oriented. Indeed, broadly speaking, you shouldn’t sell too frequently on your blog, as this turns people off and makes them less likely to read your content.

However, that’s not to say that you shouldn’t have a Call to Action. This means that every blog entry should conclude with some sort of action the user should take, and an easy way to commit that action. It may be “read more” or “subscribe to our email list,” but every blog entry should conclude with a specific action that a user should take.

Social Media Marketing Through Instagram

By Nicholas Fainlight

On September 16, 2020

In Career, Investing, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology

Marketers using TikTok should consider switching to Instagram. The social media platform now offers Instagram Reels, which has many of TikTok’s features, including a way for new creators to find a following. Instagram’s Explore algorithm makes it notoriously difficult for marketers to have their Stories found. Brands can share their Reel to their Stories and their Profile’s Reels tab. Instagram users will also see Reels on their Explore page.

TikTok may not be around for long. A potential ban is leaving TikTok influencers asking their fans to follow them on other platforms. President Trump already signed an executive order barring U.S. companies from doing business with TikTok after Sept. 20th. American companies that violate the order could face a fine of up to a $1 million fine.

Marketers can get on Instagram Reels now and take advantage of new Instagram users influencers bring and the already one billion active users each month. Reportedly, Mark Zuckerberg is trying to lure popular TikTok influencers to switch to Instagram, which Facebook owns. Facebook has deep pockets too, deeper than TikTok, which is trying to keep influencers with incentives. Facebook’s rumored offer of bankrolling video clip production for influential creators to post their content exclusively on Instagram reels will be hard for TikTok to beat.

Only 28 percent of marketing professionals use Instagram. Expect this number to rise once Instagram Reels catches on as a way to reach a young audience with 15-second video clips with catchy music. Businesses have a chance to show off their fun side with authentic content on Reels. Humanizing a brand is an ideal way to build genuine relationships with their fan base. Features like Instagram Reels let brands showcase their personality.

Other marketers are considering educational content for their Reels. As Reels were released early in certain countries, brands have been sharing recipes and providing helpful tips. Sephora France already has popular makeup tutorial Reels. They encourage engagement by asking viewers about their favorite eye shadow color.

Marketers who start using Instagram Reels early on will find the competition is low in the U.S. market. With many influencers jumping ship from TikTok to Instagram Reels, it’s a great time for brands to find influencers to develop branded Instagram Reels.

Remote Leadership Mistakes

By Nicholas Fainlight

On September 14, 2020

In Career, Finance, Investing, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate, Technology

Just when you think you have the whole leadership process figured out, a pandemic completely changes everything. Today, instead of face-to-face interactions, you are forced to conduct meetings and catch-ups on video calls. The most important thing is adjusting to the situation and learn how to motivate and manage your team remotely. Understandably, there are new skills you will have to learn. However, many leaders are continuously failing their remotely-working teams by making the following mistakes:

Lack of clear priorities, goals, and directions

As a team leader, you have to set clear priorities and goals to improve team performance. It’s not easy to do this remotely; however, ensure you review your team’s priorities and goals from time to time. An effective team will quickly outline goals, and a good leader will give team members clarity on their roles. Use virtual meeting platforms to update your team about any changes and hold catch-up meetings regularly.

Being Extremely Rigid

Today, most managers are tracking team members’ hours and monitoring daily activities to determine if the employees are working the agreed number of hours per day. Everyone can benefit from a flexible work schedule. Having a better integration of personal and work life can lead to a healthier, more productive, and happier team. As a leader, you should stop micromanaging and tracking how many hours an employee has spent on their screens. Instead you should focus on their daily achievements Give your team some space to breathe and don’t be so rigid. They know what works best for them.

Unproductive collaborations and communication

When working face-to-face, most collaborations and communications take place through informal conversations and interactions. However, this is not there with virtual teams. You need to find ways to foster better communication. The best option is to take advantage of online conferencing platforms such as Zoom.

Unconstructive, inconsistent and non-existent feedback

Giving employees feedback will motivate and improve their performance. It also keeps the team members satisfied since it shows you have their best interest at heart. Be consistent, offer suggestions on how they can improve, and coach them. Let your team learn from you, accept their feedback, and act on it. You can offer frequent feedback to your team through short video calls and creating one-on-one time with individual team members.