I'm going on a diet....a Financial Diet!

I want to travel the world, learn about new cultures, history and what the world has to give! In order for this to happen I NEED MONEY! I have been giving this a lot of thought, thinking that if I cut back on this or start saving more etc, money will start accumulating! WRONG! If I really want to save money, travel the world and enjoy its beauty I have to get FIT! FINANCIALLY FIT!

Just like everything else you work hard at you need a goal, a strategy and an execution plan! Five years ago I found myself weighing 142 lbs after my second year in college. This was an additional 22 lbs from the year I graduated high school. Refusing to accept this change in my life I went on a diet! More than a diet it was a mix between a good balance meal and lot of exercise! I was an athlete all my middle and high school years - being overweight and out of shape was not an option! 

I am now very satisfied with my weight and appearance. Through continual healthy life-styles I'm able to continue to hold my ideal weight! This is my optimum goal with my finances.  I consider myself a good ‘saver’ yet I am a very impulse buyer, if I like something and am able to purchase it I will do it- even if a year later it will end up in my garage sale bucket!

As I see myself closer to 30 in my timeline of life, I am beginning to think of ‘real’ necessities like buying a home, having enough in savings to move cities and of course travel the world! So after a few hours of brainstorming I have created a goal, a strategy and an execution plan for my financial diet!

Goal: Buy a home in March 2012

Strategy: Eliminate unnecessary purchases by creating realistic budgets and making smarter purchases.

Execution: My execution plan is simple; in order to make my strategy a success I will break it up into the 2 parts:  

1. Before making a purchase I will ask: ‘Do I NEED it? Or do I WANT it?’ If the answer is want it, than I don’t need it! If the answer is “need it”, the next question will be, ‘Is there a more cost effective alternative?’ 
2. Use mint.com to track my expenses, set budgets and goals.

Just like in a good weight-loss plan, you have to watch your calorie intake, find healthier yet satisfying alternatives and of course measure your success. I believe these 2 tactics will help me achieve my goal by March 2012! 

Why do I have to learn this? I'm NEVER going to use it again...

As I waited to get my hair done today I read through some of the WSJ articles I had put aside to eventually read when I wasn't doing work-work, home-work, or involved in some kind of community/volunteering activity!

So among them I came about an article by Scott Adams, the creator of "Dilbert". The article's headline read: How To Get a Real Education. Being I'm in the education publishing business I wanted to read Adam's opinion on education.

Mr. Adam's article question why we had our B students in classes with A students who enjoyed physics, chemistry, calculus and classic literature? Why not have them learning something useful, like entrepreneurship?

Adam's shared stores of his college years with the reader and explained how these life lessons have made him a successful business man.

Important learning points I took away from this article were:

• The importance of interviewing skills. Adam highlights this is what helped him get the job that changed his view of business. 
• If there's a loophole, someone's going to drive a truck through it. And the person who does will get PAID BETTER!
• If you are leading a project, work on your ideas first (create an outline), invite people to give you feedback and then incorporate those people's ideas into your initial outline. People will buy into a project or new procedures when they feel they had some saying in the process. 

As Adam's began to look at the world through an entrepreneur's eyes- he began to see the importance of:

• Combine Skills: Make yourself valuable
• Fail Forward: Take risk! The trick to this is to get paid while you're doing the failing and use the experience to gain skills that will be useful later
• Find the Action: Distance is your enemy! Move to where the action is (in your job or desired career) 
• Attract Luck: You can't manage luck directly, but you can manage your career in a way that makes it easier for luck to find you.
• Conquer Fear: Learn to mask nervousness in public
• Write Simple: Simplicity makes ideas powerful. (Check out Made-to-Stick on this topic)
• Learn Persuasion: Learn the art of persuasion in all its forms; psychology, sales, marketing, negotiating, statistics and even design

Source: WSJ, How To Get a Real Education, April 2011

A day in the life....

Hey fellow bloggers! I am back and more excited than ever to write about the things I am going through! Since my last post, I have gone back to school to continue my MBA degree. I am commuting 6 hours twice a week (sometimes 3 times a week) to attend a school where I can get a MBA in Marketing.

I am still working for the same company, which I am extremely proud to be a part of. We have a wonderful mission and the accomplishments of the company are only the reward of everyone's hard work. I am still very involved with my sorority's alumnae chapter, Nu Chi Nu. When available, I try to make time to continue to volunteer at the East Texas Crisis Center and where my services maybe of use.

On top of work, school, sorority, volunteering and community involvement, I have begun consulting with companies around East Texas. This is more of a hobby then anything, I enjoy what I do too much to call it a side job! Eventually as my partner and I begin acquiring more clients I will share some of the work we are doing!

As you can see a day in my life is full of a little bit of everything- and I am loving every minute of it!

Anyhow, to kick off today's blog I will give you a short description of what you can expect this time around!

• At least one weekly post
• Business, primarily marketing and financial, learnings and opinions
• A monthly review of a business book

I look forward to you visiting my blog and providing comments or suggestions. 

Hello my fellow bloggers! :) ....

Sadly, I have some bad news. Because of the current work load I don't think I will have time to continue my blogging! :( Which really stinks for me because I was really looking forward to sharing some of the great reads from Ann Marie's book. I will continue reading the book and maybe I can come and update my blog once I've finished a chapter.

I have 2 book I need to be reading for work and I feel those take priority over this book. Anyhow, I will see you guys soon! :)

Have a beautiful week!

Handling Attire Problems in the Workplace

Ann Marie starts the second chapter with VERY important tip, 'Know when to dress up- or dress down'.

What can go wrong when it comes to professional attire? PLENTY!

Remember, you are working in a business environment and you should dress accordingly. Your attire should reflect both your environment and your position.

When dressing in 'business casual' dress just one notch down from what you would normally wear on business professional days.

Men: wear neat pair of pants, buttoned shirt, that has more texture or color in the fabric.

men's business casual by shopperdarcy on Polyvore.com

Women: wear skirts, tailored pants with blouses, blazers, and accessories that mean business.

Tip# 8 & 9

As we finish the first chapter of the book, "Opening Moves" we look at 2 key points.

In tip# 8, the author stresses the importance addressing other individuals by their first name only when granted the permission by that person. As a rule of thumb, if you are meeting someone for the first time, and the person is either prominent within his or her field or at least two decades older, you should address them as Mr./Mrs./Ms. (last name).

As a mental note please, refrain from asking someone permission to use a first name.

To conclude the chapter, Ann Marie explains the 101 on business card exchange! This is a very important tip for someone who is entering the business world! As a general rule, request a business card provided you've offered your own card first. If a person is of significant higher status, wait until they offer you their business card, rather than asking for one.

Hope everyone was able to learn something new within this chapter! Look forward to moving on to a very hot topic: BUSINESS DRESS 101!

Tip # 4-7

First of all I apologize for the missing days...

Tip#4: Manage the unconventional handshake:

What do you do when you are meeting someone who is clearly disabled? Avoid reaching for their hand and then pulling it back quickly. Issue a verbal greeting, pause, and observe the appropriate body language and act accordingly. Let the other person set the tone.

Tip #5: Turn a social gaffe into a positive experience.

Everyone experiences it at one time or another in their life. Most of oh so many times. We make a serious misstatement during an important presentation. Ann Marie's rule: Keep Your Composure!

Tip #6: Don't say "I'm Sorry" automatically

This is a very important tip I need to keep in mind. Every time someone gives me feedback and it's opposite of what I've done or presented I start off with an I'm sorry. Instead of jumping into an 'I'm sorry', I should thank them for their feedback and keep going. According to Ann Marie, a Thank you,is both appropriate and optimistic.

Tip#7: Handle name lapses gracefully

When you forget some one's name: Rule Number One: Don't ask, "Who you are." Instead ask kindly how that person has been and let them know it was great to see them. Hopefully, he or she will mention something that will trigger a name. If you still can't remember their name, be cordial and simply avoid using a name of any kind.