Tag: business

Manage Solo Work Time Nicholas Fainlight

How to Manage Your Time When You’re Working Alone

On January 3, 2019

For people who create their own schedules, it can be challenging to figure out how to use your time in the most effective way possible. You may have occasional scheduled meetings or calls, but the majority of your work comes from a running list of projects with distant deadlines and it’s up to you to figure out what gets the highest priority and how much time you must allot to each task. This type of work schedule can be particularly challenging if you’re working from home or alone at a coworking space or somewhere else that can be distracting. Follow these pieces of advice to better manage your time and get more done.

Create a schedule

The first step to take to effectively manage your time is to create a schedule for the hours you’ll be working (or even your entire day, if you’re ambitious). You may already have a schedule or to-do list, but if you feel like it isn’t working well for you, scrap the whole thing and start from scratch. Plan out each hour of your workday and allot enough time for each task so you can clearly see what you need to do when. This schedule helps you stay on task and gauge where you are throughout each day.

Learn your productive times

This step takes some trial and error, but by consciously paying attention to how you work and when you get the most done, you can figure out what times of the day you’re the most productive. Once you learn these times, you can plan to get your most important and urgent tasks done then and push lesser projects to different times.

Time yourself

As you work on your different tasks, start timing how long it takes you to do every item. Knowing you’re being timed can push you to stay focused and avoid distractions. If you do get distracted, you can clearly see how much time was wasted; let it serve as a wake-up call. You might also be underestimating how long it takes you to get something done, so timing yourself allows you to create a realistic schedule.

Eliminate distractions

If you work on the computer, you can easily access an endless number of distractions. With cell phones, we have hours of distractions in our pockets. When you work at home, you might get distracted by what needs to be done around your house. In order to best manage your time, you must eliminate distractions; put your phone in a different room or turn it off, block specific sites on your computer while you’re working, or isolate yourself somewhere that people won’t talk to you and you won’t be distracted by what’s around you.

Craft a workspace

No matter where you’re working, you need to create a workspace for yourself that you find relaxing and helps you focus. At home, create a specific room or area where you work so you can keep your work and home life separate. In your office, personalize your space so you enjoy being there, but also in a way that’s conducive to your productivity. If you work in more public spaces, consider investing in good headphones to ignore outside noise and get materials that best fit your needs and make your job easier.

Create Strong Client Relationships Nicholas Fainlight

6 Tips for Creating Strong Relationships with Your Clients

By Nicholas Fainlight

On December 5, 2018

In Career, Finance, Nicholas Fainlight

No matter how much experience you have in your industry and working with clients, you should constantly be improving how you interact with your clients. There are always ways to strengthen the relationship you have with your clients, especially if you’re a financial advisor or in some similar position where you’re closely working with clients to meet personal goals and make plans that affect their daily lives. If you’re some kind of a consultant with clients, you want to have as strong relationships as possible with them in order to best meet their needs and keep them happy. Here are some great tips on how to create strong relationships with your clients, regardless of your career.

Discuss their specific goals

When you first start working with a client, you need to clearly establish what their goals are and how you’ll work together to meet those. Your entire role revolves around how well you can help clients work toward their goals, so you need to understand what those goals are before you can make a plan to achieve them.

Keep your promises

If you tell a client you’ll get back to them by a certain date or that you’ll send them useful information or a draft of something you’re working on, stick to these promises. While sometimes situations arise where you may not be able to keep this schedule, be sure to communicate as quickly and clearly as possible. Clients appreciate this treatment and will trust you to do the best for them.

Be honest and authentic

In your dealings with clients, be honest with them. If they’re asking for a service or focusing on a goal you aren’t sure is realistic or you don’t have much experience with, tell them that. Never try to sell a client something they do not actually need. Whoever you work with will appreciate this type of integrity and you’ll create a close bond with your client.

Stay consistent

When you tell a client how your business operates or what you’re going to do for them, stay consistent with what you say. Do not change your tune from conversation to conversation; clients notice that. Remain consistent in how quickly you respond to their emails or calls and make sure all your communication is on a regular basis.

Remain thoughtful

Throughout your time working with your client, find small ways to be thoughtful in your interactions. These gestures could include checking in with them even if you do not have a specific reason to see if they have any questions or sending a card around the holidays. Letting clients know you’re available and think of them personally can help build a stronger relationship.

Regularly touch base

Finally, make sure you regularly touch base with your clients to discuss their goals and whatever you’re working on for them. Keeping them in the loop gives them agency over the project and creates a great relationship with lots of easy communication.

Address Workplace Conflict Nicholas Fainlight

5 Tips for Successfully Addressing Conflict in the Workplace

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 21, 2018

In Career, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate

Unfortunately, you can try your hardest to stay out of conflicts at work and remain a neutral party, but sometimes, no matter what you do, you could find yourself caught in the middle of work drama. This issue is particularly prevalent if you’re in some kind of management position and have to address disputes between employees or work with difficult people. Use these tips to find ways to successfully address conflict without losing your cool; with this advice, you’ll be able to resolve the conflict to the best of your ability and avoid exacerbating it.

Evaluate the situation

Whether the conflict is between you and someone else or between two other people and was reported to you, the first step you take should be to sit back and take time to reflect on and evaluate the situation. You’re going to have your view of the situation, but it’s important to think about whether you missed an important aspect of the issue or if there’s something valid in someone else’s interpretation of what’s happening. In order to successfully resolve, you need to carefully evaluate what’s happening and think about how to move forward.

Get all sides

You can wait to evaluate the situation until you get all sides of the story or you can take the time to think through it before talking to people if you feel the need to calm down about whatever is happening. You’ll eventually need to speak to the person or persons involved in the conflict and get everyone’s side of the story in order to effectively resolve it.

Remain calm

Whenever you talk to the people involved in the conflict or think through it on your own, you need to work on remaining as calm as possible. If you become too heated, it’ll exasperate the situation and make it much more difficult to reach a solution. Learn techniques to remain calm, even in the face of stressful conflict.

Find a neutral party

While you absolutely should not go around your workplace spreading news about the conflict, you should find a neutral party who can be involved in the resolution of said conflict. Human resources is often great for this issue, but if you’re in a management position, you might be the person someone else came to for the neutral party. You need to find someone who can listen to all sides of the conflict and help everyone communicate effectively.

Have a conversation

Finally, in order to actually resolve the conflict, you need to have a conversation about it. Gather everyone involved together and calmly talk out the issues. In some situations, it may be better to first talk to people individually and make sure it’s safe to have a group conversation. The key to effective conflict resolution in the workplace is to remain calm and communicate openly in order to reach a solution as a team.

How to Increase Your Network

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 8, 2018

In Career, Education, Nicholas Fainlight, postgraduate

Throughout your career, you’ll come to realize that people heavily rely upon their professional networks. Even if you’re only at the beginning of your career, you likely already have a fairly extensive network, from high school, college, and any jobs or internships you held during that time. In the professional world, your network is how you can find out about new opportunities, ask questions about an industry, city, or company you’re interested in, or even find a place to live. It’s beneficial to continuously work on strengthening and increasing your network of connections, so here are some tips on how to do so.

Create an online presence

As you start to increase your network, it’s time to create an online presence for yourself. Think of how you’d like to portray yourself online and what you want your personal brand to say about you. Create profiles like LinkedIn and Twitter and then make sure they’re professional; you don’t want a possible future boss or coworker to see the uninformed tweets you sent in high school. An online presence also provides you with a way to keep track of the people you meet as you enhance your network.

Attend lots of events

If you live in a city, there are going to be plenty of networking and professional development events around you. Many local governments organize events for professionals in the area in order to encourage them to connect. There are also plenty of groups that meetup that share a common interest or hobby. Find some of these groups online and then attend meetups to get to know new people. You can also try tapping into your alumni network in the area; colleges are usually more than happy to help with this step.

Learn to talk to strangers

As you attend networking events, you’ll need to learn how to talk to people that you don’t know very well. Make sure you do not spend too much time talking about yourself; learn to ask other people questions. While you are looking to enhance your professional network, do not write someone off simply because you don’t see a way they can help you. It’s important to be polite to people; you could strike up a friendship or you might be able to help them out in some way.

Follow up afterwards

Finally, once you start meeting new people, follow up in some form. Whether it’s simply sending a request on LinkedIn or you decide you want to get coffee or lunch with someone, follow up within a few days. Networking events are great for the initial meeting, but you’ll need to take the initiative afterwards to further the connection.

Top FinTech Companies of 2017

By Nicholas Fainlight

On December 11, 2017

In Finance, Nicholas Fainlight, Technology

Financial technology companies are growing all around the globe, especially in the United States and Europe. Many of these companies make managing your finances much easier and help people get started with money management. So many fintech companies are startups seeing immense growth within their first few years of operation in the account management, payment processing, financial assets, capital, and lending markets. During 2017, there are some major fintech players that stand out way ahead of the rest.

Stripe

In the payment processing market, Stripe is becoming a major contender for the well-known PayPal. Stripe currently operates in 25 countries around the globe and allows for both business and personal transactions via the internet. With the addition of many major retailers adopting the use of Stripe for the first time in 2016, the business has grown to be a major market leader in the payment processing industry for 2017. Most people are grateful for anything that makes paying for purchases simpler.

Prosper

Prosper is a peer-to-peer lending platform that allows those in need of financing access to investors. This takes traditional bank funding and puts it on a new level. With Prosper, borrowers can find investors that are interested in funding them with unsecured personal loans for fixed terms and rates set by the platform itself. This makes lending simple for investors and borrowers alike.

Robinhood

As we see the numbers of individuals interested in becoming more hands-on with their financial investments rise, Robinhood fills the need for a free stock-trading platform. This mobile application is built with an easy interface that allows any average joe the ability to fund their account and trade stocks and learn a little bit more about investing. There are no maintenance fees or other agency costs that are traditionally required from brokerage firms.

Lending Club

Another leading fintech company in the financing market, Lending Club, has made its mark by offering both individual and small business financing options. This peer-to-peer platform assigns borrowers willing investors who can help them out. These investors can purchase notes backed by the payments made on each loan by the borrower. There are options to purchase a diverse portfolio of notes to ensure the best financial stability possible.

Fintech companies are becoming an essential part of our society’s new digital age. People want faster ways to manage their money and businesses want faster ways to receive their profits and technology has become a part of every industry. As technology continues to advance you can expect to see massive growth in the number of fintech companies popping up around the globe to satisfying the needs of individuals and businesses alike.

Laptop, cellphone, pens sitting on a desk, image used for Nicholas Fainlight blog on why you should get a side hustle

5 Reasons You Should Get a Side Hustle

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 29, 2017

In Finance, Nicholas Fainlight

No matter where you are in your professional journey or what your personal finances look like, there are plenty of reasons to start some kind of side hustle. If you’re young, it’s even more of a reason to find an additional source of income! When you’re young, you usually have less responsibilities than someone older does, such as family, an established career, or something else. If you have free time, use it to devote to generating additional income; your future self will thank you.

You can pursue a passion

For many people, their day job isn’t necessarily their dream or what they’d be doing if they could do anything at all. We usually pick our full-time jobs because they pay the bills and it was the best option at the time. A side hustle allows you to pursue your passion and do something that’s more fulfilling than your day job. Even if you love your full-time job, a side hustle allows you to be more creative and be your own boss.

You’ll meet interesting people

No matter what side hustle you choose, you’ll end up interacting with people you wouldn’t have met in your regular job. You’ll make great connections that could seriously impact the future of your career and the choices you make. You could find an incredible job opportunity or friend that changes the course of your life. Do not be afraid to talk to people and expand your network, especially in connection with your side hustle.

It helps cover expenses

If you’re in significant debt, a side hustle could be an answer to your financial issues. You can find an additional source of income that fits your income, even if it’s simply freelancing online. Use the extra money you make to put toward paying off debt or to cover your rent each month. It’s up to you to decide what to do with the extra money you’re making, but it’ll definitely help ease financial stress.

You’ll develop new skills

As you work on your new side hustle, you’ll develop and hone skills you didn’t have before. Maybe you’re working at a restaurant or doing something that involves writing; there’s a big change you weren’t using those skills in your full-time job. Maybe you’ll start a side hustle that requires you to learn completely new skills; many of these skills can benefit you in other areas of your life as well

You’ll feel secure

For many people, their side hustle is the start of a full-time business venture. Even if you’re only making a small amount of money with your side hustle, you still know you have some source of income if you’d lose your full-time job. You might not make enough to cover all of your expenses, but it’s at least something, especially if you can turn it into a full-time job.

Person skydiving in a clear blue sky, image used for Nicholas Fainlight blog on risk in finance

The Importance of Risk When It Comes to Finance

By Nicholas Fainlight

On November 3, 2017

In Finance, Investing, Nicholas Fainlight

Risk is involved in every aspect of life. The risk of taking your first steps is falling; the risk of asking a person on a date is rejection; the risk of interviewing for a job is failure; the risk of parallel parking is hitting another vehicle. So, it is guaranteed that creating a business or investing in something financially, as well as physically, involves considerable risk.

What is risk? According to Google, risk is the possibility that something unpleasant or unwelcome will happen. However, according to the business dictionary, risk is a probability of damage, liability, loss, or any other negative occurrence that is caused externally.

From a finance point of view, risk is the probability that an investment’s return will be less than expected. However, risk also offers the chance of reward. For example, a reward could be an increased return compared to a lower expectation. Financial risk is comprised of multiple categories: basic risk, capital risk, delivery risk, exchange risk, interest rate risk, political risk, settlement risk, underwriting risk, and much more.

Examining financial risk includes looking at daily finance operations, such as cash flow, transactions made by the business, and the business’ financial systems set in place. You may consider things like which clients owe the company, how the company plans to retrieve the money, insurance, and its coverage, as well as whether the business can extend credit to customers and how.

When calculating financial risk, external factors like interest rates and foreign exchange rates should be considered. Those factors can affect company competitiveness with services produced abroad; changes in interest rates and exchange rates can immediately affect debt repayments.

All businesses should extensively discuss risk management within the business’ strategic management. Doing so allows the company to identify and tackle any risks before they become an issue, which will in turn aid the chances of reaching defined business goals.

Once the risks have been pinpointed, there are several ways to address them: accept it, transfer it, reduce it, and eliminate it. Acceptance of a risk might happen if the costs are too high to handle it in any other way. The risk could be dealt with by transferring, which typically takes place with the company insurance. Reducing a risk is merely introducing safety measures to keep the risks from occurring, and eliminating the risk could be something like changing the production process. Once the risks have been determined and the type of management has been decided, take steps to put the measures into place.

Risk management is not a one time kind of deal; it requires consistent monitoring and should often be reviewed to ensure the management approach is successful. Set the plan in stone by creating a risk management policy that will identify the company’s approach to risk, and it’s management. The CEO’s and the board should all be on the same page before moving to the management policy phase.

All choices in life and business involve risk to some extent. By understanding what risk is and how to manage it, business and employees are more likely to meet their financial goals.

Two people sitting at a table, shaking hands, one man smiling, image used for Nicholas Fainlight blog post about how to prepare for job searching after graduation

6 Tips for Preparing for the Job Hunt after Graduation

By Nicholas Fainlight

On October 30, 2017

In Career, Nicholas Fainlight

Graduating college is a joyful, but also daunting time. You’re ready to take a break from constant homework and stress, but you’ll miss your friends. You want to start being an adult, but you might also not really know how to. Often, the most stressful part of the end of college is finding a job. You know you need to have some kind of job, ideally one that pays all the bills and allows you to rent an apartment, travel, and do fun stuff with friends. Maybe your first job isn’t the best, but you need to start somewhere. For many, the job after graduation is the first professional, full-time job they’ll have. Instead of feeling nervous about finding a new job, follow these tips in order to make job hunting easier.

Be realistic

When you first begin searching for a job, you might feel excited and optimistic. You’ll want to retain this feeling for as long as possible, so it’s important that you don’t go into your search thinking you’ll land the perfect job in the perfect place right away. No job is perfect and you’ll need to build your way up from an entry level position. For some people, this isn’t that path the follow and they do get a fantastic job right away, so don’t completely lose hope. However, there’s also nothing wrong with getting an entry-level job. You need to work and you can make the most of it.

Focus

Searching for a job is like a full-time job. You need to constantly check job sites and company pages to look for openings, fill out applications, exchange emails, and schedule interviews. If you’re waiting to hear back from an interview, keep applying at other places! Even if it’s taking longer than you anticipated, stay focused on finding a job.

Update your resume

A mistake many people make is never updating their resume and then sending the same copy to dozens of potential employers. Before applying to any jobs, update your resume. Include internships, volunteer experience, and jobs you had in college. Then, feature the most pertinent information depending on what job you apply for, such as relevant classes or volunteer work.

Create an online presence

Employers love to see that you have some kind of professional, online presence. Do a purge of your social media and get rid of any posts that you wouldn’t want your boss to see, then make your accounts private, unless you want to use them for professional purposes. Create a LinkedIn account if you don’t already have one and consider creating a website to feature some professional blogs you write while job searching.

Network

Most professionals will tell you about the incredible power of networking. Always take advantage of opportunities to build your network and meet new people. You never know who might have a connection that could turn into a future job or some other great opportunity. Make sure to take advantage of any career services your college offers or the alumni network.

Enhance your skills

While you’re searching for a job, you’ll have some free time. Spend this time productively. Consider volunteering and working a part-time job, but also make sure you enhance your marketable skills. Learn something useful, such as some coding or educate yourself on a specific topic by reading and keeping up with industry news.

Nicholas Fainlight: Blockchain for Businesses

Blockchain for Businesses: How Major Businesses Utilize Blockchain

By Nicholas Fainlight

On June 5, 2017

In Finance

Blockchain technology is becoming mainstream. In early 2016, more than 40 major financial institutions were experimenting with blockchain, as reported by Wall Street. What does this mean? And how can blockchain help businesses work more effectively?

To answer this, we first have to understand what blockchain is. In the past, transactions of wealth or property have always had to go through a third party middleman. For example, if you were to send someone money over the Internet, that money would be processed through your bank. But with blockchain, such transactions are possible without an intermediary. In addition to transferring money, blockchains can transfer online representations of other types of property.

Blockchain is still a relatively new concept, but if it is utilized widely enough, it can have many benefits. Here are a few:

More certainty in transactions

Transferring through a third party allows a certain amount of trust. If you are being paid for a product, for example, you need to trust that the payee has the necessary funds in their bank account. With blockchain, this is not an issue, because the transaction is immediate.

Records movement of assets

Businesses that deal in supply chains can see a detailed record of how assets move through those chains. Blockchain transactions are stamped with a time, date, and location. Companies can use this information to keep track of expenditures and profit, as well as verify the legitimacy of their product. For example, Walmart has been using blockchain to track certain food items. This allows it to ensure that the food is coming from where it is supposed to be coming from—increasing food safety.

Simplifying the stock exchange

Currently, exchanging stocks requires the verification of multiple parties, with no transparency between them. Blockchain can simplify this process, by providing a secure, accessible, and permanent way for transfers to be made over the Internet.

On a slightly smaller scale, crowdfunding sites suffer some of the same transparency issues as the stock exchange, and also stand to benefit from blockchain.

Voting

Sites such as Boardroom and BitShares allow people to vote in an easy, fair way using blockchain. These elections benefit from blockchain’s immediacy and transparency. Currently, blockchain is only in use for small-scale decision-making, within companies or other such organizations, but if it becomes widespread enough, it could present a promising new way to vote in governmental elections as well.

Currently blockchain hasn’t entirely caught on yet. Its novelty means that many companies are suspicious of it security. Some firms also worry that it will disrupt their current business models, precisely because of the way it eliminates the middleman. However, blockchain is still very early in its existence, and many of its potential applications haven’t been invented yet. So it’s a safe bet that, sometime in the future, blockchain will be a standard means of exchange for companies, and perhaps, for the world at large.