Author: Alex

Can You Really Use Netflix’s Global Smash Hit Series Squid Game To Teach Economics??

Posted on by Alex

First-year business and economics students all over the world may soon be using Netflix’s global smash hit series Squid Game to learn complex economic theories.

A new paper by the Monash Business School has revealed how integrating the strategies of the smash-hit dystopian series Squid Game can revolutionise the way students learn game theory, one of the most challenging concepts of introductory economics.

Researchers from the Monash Business School have developed a range of innovative and interactive teaching tools based on insights from Squid Game to provide educators and students with a fresh approach to teaching and learning one of the most demanding topics at the introductory economics level.

And from semester one, first-year microeconomics students at the Monash Business School will use the Squid Game insights.

“Game theory is important because it helps us understand decision making in strategic situations,” says Associate Professor Wayne Geerling from the Monash Business School and co-author of the paper “Using Squid Game to Teach Game Theory”.

“The players in Squid Game are a metaphor for companies, and we have examined the strategic interactions of Squid Game in comparison to real-life business. How do players, ie companies, interact. Game theory has a lot of real-world applications, analysing how actions influence others and the strategic implications of such.”

Associate Professor Geerling has identified a number of scenes from the immensely popular television series that can be used to teach game theory principles. He has developed a series of teaching guides that can be adopted or adapted by any instructor anywhere around the world.

The economics profession has been notorious for its continued reliance on ‘chalk and talk’ to deliver lectures. Still, a significant amount of research pioneered by Associate Professor Geerling and his colleagues has focussed on innovative ways to teach economics concepts.

“Many students struggle to think in a strategic manner when the material is taught through traditional methods alone. Pop culture, such as Squid Game, can be used as an effective medium to break down barriers to learning because it taps into everyday life and allows students to see connections between abstract theory and real-world applications,” he says.

Squid Game revolves around 456 players, all of whom are heavily indebted, risking their lives to play a series of six children’s games against each other – with a deadly twist. The reward for the winner is a sizeable bounty. For everyone else, the consolation prize is death.

In Squid Game the players are making decisions in real time without full information and to survive they must work out their optimal strategies to maximise their chances of winning.

Just like the cut-throat real world of business.

“The Netflix series focuses on six games, we’ve chosen three of those to represent the best practical applications of game theory for students,” says Associate Professor Wayne Geerling.

Using Squid Game to teach game theory reflects Associate Professor Geerling’s passion for revolutionising how we teach economics and promote active learning techniques in class using pop culture.

“Despite the growth in teaching resources and the ability for educators to integrate innovative teaching practices into their curriculum more easily, the vast majority of educators continue to teach using a traditional lecture.”

This article was sourced from a media release sent by Medianet

Editorial credit: DANIEL CONSTANTE / Shutterstock.com

Revealed: THIS decade Produced The Best Looking Cars

Posted on by Alex

A new study from Confused.com (Q4, 2021) has revealed that the 2010s produced the most beautiful cars, according to Fibonacci’s Golden Ratio – a mathematical symmetry ratio that influences perceived attractiveness. The golden ratio – which analyses the height and width dimensions of the ‘face on’ view of the car, was used to determine the scientific beauty of over 370 cars. Confused.com can now reveal all!

The results:

Decade

Decade’s average % match to the golden ratio

Most statistically beautiful car from the decade

Car’s percentage match to the golden ratio

2010s

90.18%

McLaren 720s 4.0 V8

99.73%

2000s

87.83%

Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe

99.20%

1970s

85.37%

Mercedes-Benz C111 – 11 D

99.33%

1990s

84.94%

Ferrari F355 GTS

95.61%

2020s

84.00%

McLaren GT

98.08%

1960s

79.49%

Bizzarrini 5300 GT Strada

97.99%

1980s

79.36%

Lamborghini Jalpa P350

98.08%

1950s

76.34%

Chrysler Plymouth Fury (KP31)

95.30%

1940s

74.48%

Ferrari 166 MM Zagato Panoramica

88.27%

2010s produced the most statistically beautiful cars

Confused.com can reveal that the 2010s is the decade which produced the most statistically beautiful vehicles. Cars released in this decade averaged an incredible 90.18% match to the golden ratio. Of the cars released during this decade, the 2017 McLaren 720s 4.0 V8 is the most attractive. With an almost perfect 99.73% match to the golden ratio, it’s also making the most stunning of all cars analysed. The decade’s high average is also down to the 2017 McLaren 570s Coupe (99.24% match) and the 2012 Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 Coupe (99.20% match). These beautiful models finished second and third in the decade, respectively.

The 2000s comes in second place, with releases in this decade averaging an 87.83% match to the golden ratio. The 2003 Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe can be thanked for assisting with this high average, due to its 99.20% match to the golden ratio. The second best from this decade is the 2000 Ferrari 360 Modena Challenge Stradale F1 (99.07% match), followed by the 2008 Aston Martin One -77 in third (98.85% match). When it comes to the 17 Aston Martins analysed, the One -77 is the most beautiful, beating iconic models such as the 1963 Aston Martin DB5 (76.96% match).

It was the 1970s which produced the third most statistically beautiful cars, with an 85.37% match to golden ratio for the decade on average. Confused.com discovered that the 1970 Mercedes-Benz C111 – 11 D is the most mathematically stunning car released, with a 99.33% match to the golden ratio. This places the Mercedes as the third most beautiful car overall, and the oldest car to make it into the top 10.

In fourth place is the 1990s, with car releases averaging an 84.94% match to the golden ratio. With a 99.20% match, the 1994 Ferrari F355 GTS is the most stunning car to come out of the 90s, and the second most beautiful car overall. This is followed by the 1996 Lotus Esprit V8 32V Turbo as the second-best car of the decade (98.96% match), and the 1994 McLaren F1 in third (98.67% match). The F1 is also the second-best of all McLarens analysed.

40s and 50s: the least beautiful decades for cars

With a 74.48% match to the golden ratio on average for the decade, it’s the 1940s that produced the least statistically beautiful cars. The 1949 Ferrari 166 MM Zagato Panoramica came out as the most stunning, with an 88.27% match to the golden ratio. However, despite being the most statistically beautiful of the decade, the Ferrari falls short in the overall rankings. It places just 112 out of the 372 cars analysed, and 22 out of the 29 Ferrari models considered for the research.

The 1950s produced the second least statistically beautiful cars, with a 76.34% match to the golden ratio on average. With a percentage difference of 95.30%, the best car to come out of the 50s was the 1957 Chrysler Plymouth Fury (KP31). Of the five Chryslers analysed in the study, the Plymouth Fury takes first place. This beats younger models such as the 1997 Plymouth Prowler (92.11% match) by 3.19%, and the 1970 Plymouth Superbird (89.27% match) by 6.03%.

Alex Kindred, Car Insurance expert at Confused.com, comments:

“Although car design and technology have evolved throughout the decades, many classics from the 70s and the earlier years are clearly still popular today, with enthusiasts desperate to get their hands on them.

If you’re fortunate enough to own one of these classic beauties, keeping it secure should be a priority, as many classic cars don’t have the security systems more modern cars do. And it doesn’t have to be pricey. If you have a garage, keeping it stored away overnight might be a safer option than leaving it on the driveway.  Or you can invest in security devices, such as a steering wheel lock or a GPS tracker, which both help in keeping your car more secure. Our guide to car security highlights some of the most effective ways to keep your pride and joy safe.”

Please Note

  1. Confused.com sought to determine the most scientifically beautiful car from each decade according to the golden ratio (a mathematical symmetry ratio that influences perceived attractiveness) of the front view of the car.
  2. A list of a maximum of 50 iconic cars of each decade from the 1940s to 2020s was obtained from reputable sources using in-house metrics. Please access the full list of sources in this Google document.
  3. The width and height dimensions of each vehicle within the dataset was extracted from each vehicle’s manufacturer’s official website. Any model specifications not found on the sites were alternatively sourced from one of the following sources: Conceptcarz.com; carfolio.com; autoevolution.com;  auto-data.net/en/; supercars.net; fastestlaps.com/; dimensions.com ; allcarindex.com ; carsopedia.com; carsguide.com.au ; automobiledimension.com; ev-database.uk. Cars with no data available were omitted from the study.
  4. Following the collection of data, the ratio of width to height was used to calculate the difference against the golden ratio dimensions (1.61803398875). In total, 372 cars were analysed.
  5. Subsequently, percentages were calculated to express the difference from each car to the golden ratio.
  6. All vehicles were ranked in ascending order, deeming the most beautiful cars as the ones closest to the golden ratio proportions; therefore, determining the most statistically beautiful cars from each decade.
  7. All data was collated in November 2021 and is subject to change.

Source: https://www.confused.com/car-insurance  

Photo by Broderick Armbrister from Pexels

 

Meet The Entrepreneur Behind The Cover Of The January 2022 Issue Of MoneyCentral Magazine: Scott Hughes

Posted on by Alex

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A veteran entrepreneur, Scott Hughes is the founder of OnlineBookClub.org. He is also a highly sought-after author of four books; Justice: A Novella, 10 Step Plan to Promote Your Book, Achieve Your Dreams, and The Banned Book about Love. He recently announced that he finally finished the first draft of his next book “#InItTogether: The Beautiful Struggle Uniting Us All.”

Born and raised in Manchester, Connecticut, from 2006-2014, he worked at various modest jobs on the side, including being a server and bartender at various local restaurants. In late 2014, Scott eventually decided to give up his side jobs and focus working full-time on just one thing – OnlineBookClub.org. OnlineBookClub.org is a bibliophile’s heaven and one of the best websites around for booklovers. It has it all; free books, daily contests, book discussions, and so much more. OnlineBookClub.org will even pay people to read and review books plus; it’s free to use, hence why it grew at such a rapid pace.

Since 2014, OnlineBookClub grew from strength to strength, and, as of November 2021, OnlineBookClub has garnered over 2.7 million registered members. Its development team recently released an OnlineBookClub e-reading app which is supposedly meant to compete with Amazon Kindle, called OBC Reader – it’s now available on both the Google Play Store and the Apple Store.

MoneyCentral magazine recently caught up with Scott to discuss his journey as an entrepreneur, and here’s what went down:

What are you currently doing to maintain/grow your business?

Fundamentally, I grow the business exponentially with a simple formula: I delegate whatever and as much as I can, hiring new people as needed. Then I take the time of mine that’s been free to do extra work or new projects that I wouldn’t have had time for otherwise. I also push that pattern down the chain as much as possible so that the other people I have working for me delegate what they can to others, especially new hires, freeing up themselves to take on more work.

Essentially, when I hired my first full-time assistant, it doubled the output. Then I eventually hired two more people, one for me to delegate to and one for my assistant.

For me, it comes down to crucial ingredients: Delegation and leveraging the power of exponents and exponential growth.

What social media platforms do you usually use to increase your brand’s awareness?

My Social Media Director, Beth Jackson, leads our social media team. To be properly active on multiple social media platforms requires an entire team of people. Off the top of my head, we currently primarily use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Minds.com, and MeWe.

What is your experience with paid advertising, like PPC or sponsored content campaigns? Does it work?

It depends on what you are advertising. PPC on search engines like Google can provide highly targeted leads at almost unlimited volume, fairly easily. But it only works if you have a way to monetize those targeted leads in a way that exceeds the cost of obtaining them at volume. For instance, I don’t feel that it’s a good strategy for advertising a single $3 book because the profit per book sale will not be enough to cover the cost of obtaining an initial lead and a $3 sale from the ads.

If the cost of your product or service is high enough and converts well enough with targeted leads, it can work. But another factor is whether you are using those leads to create long-term relationships. So, for instance, it could work great for a subscription service, such as one of those weekly subscription boxes for prepared food in the mail.

What is your main tactic when it comes to making more people aware of your brand and engaging your customers? How did your business stand out?

My main tactic is making the best product I can or in other words, ensuring customer satisfaction. I follow this motto: Great advertising only makes a bad product fail faster. And, in a competitive commercial setting, anything less than great or amazing is a bad product. In a competitive commercial setting, merely good is not good enough.

What form of marketing has worked well for your business throughout the years?

Viral marketing is the only thing that has ever really worked for me. You make a great product or service, and then as needed, find a way to encourage your customers or users to spread the word. The more important part is the former, and depending on the business and product the latter may do itself.

What is the toughest decision you had to make in the last few months?

Personally speaking, my wife and I chose to get divorced in early August. That’s not really business-related, but it definitely comes to mind when you mention tough decisions.

But it speaks to this point: business decisions aren’t really ever tough for me. It’s the common cliché from movies and such that someone says usually before doing something seemingly mean “It’s not personal; it’s business.” Business is often just math. Which one makes more money? Which one costs less? Which one takes less time? What’s the bottom line?

What mistakes have you made along the way that others can learn from (or something you’d do differently)?

When I first went full-time working on my business without any side jobs to pay my rent and put food on the table, I was working 70-80 hours a week. My profit—meaning what I paid myself—the first year doing that was $20,000. I worked 70-80 hours because I had to keep the business from going under and pay my rent and bills. I was scraping by the pennies some weeks—literally; I remember taking my jar of coins to the Coinstar machine on the 10th of the month because rent was due and I literally would have been short unable to pay it without cashing in the $5-$10 in coins I had.

I prefer the term learning experience to mistake, but what I would have done differently if I knew what I knew now is this: Once I got in that habit of working 70-80 hours a week, I kept going for years beyond what I had to. The company and business became very successful, I became very successful financially and professionally. About a year or two ago, I started cutting back and working a lot less per week. I could have afforded to do that much sooner.

And giving myself more free time personally made me more creative and thoughtful, so I think it’s actually been helping the company and business grow even more, ironically.

Sometimes the best ideas for the company come to me while I’m sitting in my hot tub looking up at the moon and stars.

What new business would you love to start?

I would love to start some kind of business that helps people achieve their goals and dreams, particularly in a way that focuses on self-discipline. For me, I use the term self-disciple interchangeably with the term spiritual freedom.

If you could go back in a time machine to the time when you were just getting started, what would you do differently?

I got started young. I created OnlineBookClub.org when I was still a teenager.

In one way, I made a ton of mistakes both professionally and personally. My values and priorities now as a 35-year-old man are so different. This 35-year-old Scott speaking to you now would do things much differently than teenager-Scott, but he did what was right for him. If he had done anything differently, the man speaking to you now wouldn’t exist. So I wouldn’t change anything. It’s the Butterfly Effect. I believe in the principle of Amor Fati, meaning love your fate, which in this context means seeing the past as being perfect just as it is. I wouldn’t change a thing about it. Another way of saying the same is to say accept what you cannot change. I believe strongly in that, and the past is something I cannot change, so I believe in wholly accepting it and embracing it with inner peace, seeing it as perfect.

What is the best advice you have ever been given?

I wasn’t given it personally, but my best advice comes from Ram Dass, as paraphrased by Mike Posner, and it’s only three words: “Just Love Everything.”

I have that tattooed on my right forearm, where I can see it every day.

What advice would you give to a newbie Entrepreneur setting up their first business?

You have to be driven by something other than money. In my anecdotal experience and just from watching the world around me, I’ve found that those who desperately chase money are the least likely to find it. In contrast, when you work hard on yourself and your real dreams, the money chases you. Money and even health and physical fitness are only really ever a means, not an end in themselves. Without some kind of vision or passion to be the real end, the real goal, the real dream, it’s like driving a car with no gas.

When someone overvalues money itself, that person often tends to end up getting paid to work on someone else’s dream in exchange for money.

Will The Omicron Strain Impact Property Trends??

Posted on by Alex

Pete Wargent, the co-founder of BuyersBuyers, Australia’s first national network of property buyer’s agents, says the Omicron strain of the coronavirus will have a negligible impact on the trajectory of the housing market.

Mr Wargent said, “to a certain extent, the last couple of years should have reminded us that making predictions is very hard, especially when they are about pandemics or the future. But, that said, there’s little to indicate that the latest strain of the virus will have any meaningful impact on housing market trends.”

“After an initial wobble, stock markets have been resurgent, and financial markets have been largely unperturbed, which is likely to be a better indicator than the latest alarmist headline.”

“Financial markets are possibly factoring in the various news about the lack of serious cases of the latest strain to date, with many reporting mild symptoms. However, case numbers seem to be increasing rapidly, which could delay the full reopening of the international borders into 2022”.

“Moreover, a look back at how the housing market fared through the past two years suggests that there are more crucial factors at play than the latest strain of the virus, such as the cost of mortgage debt and the supply of properties being made available for sale” Mr Wargent said.

Cooling naturally

BuyersBuyers co-founder Doron Peleg said that a cooling of the housing market was inevitable in 2022 after a storming year in 2021. Still, the latest virus strain wasn’t a key factor in his forecasts.

Mr Peleg said, “a range of factors combined will help to take the heat out of the housing market in 2022, such as gradually rising mortgage rates, more vendors looking to lock in gains, and more cautious buyers as affordability bites following the strong price gains of 2021”.

“The rate of immigration has not been a key factor in driving the market over the past couple of years, with the notable exception of CBD and some inner-city apartments, where the absence of international students has been felt particularly keenly.”

“Remember, though, that the closure of the borders didn’t lead the doomsday outcomes many commentators predicted, partly because corrective policy measures were taken” Mr Peleg said.

“All eight of the capital cities recorded double-digit price gains over the year to September, with most recording price rises of about 20 per cent or higher”.

Population growth to resume

Pete Wargent of BuyersBuyers said that buyer sentiment has been broadly unchanged by the latest virus developments.

Mr Wargent said “there is less fear of missing out in the housing market now. But the pattern of housing trends through the pandemic has taught more buyers to look through the short-term noise and to buy quality properties when they can while taking a medium-term outlook.”

“We wouldn’t be surprised to see employment surging towards a record high approaching 13½ million through 2022, with the economy likely to grow by about 5 per cent per annum for the next couple of years, in turn helping to push the unemployment rate down to 4 per cent for the first time since the mining boom go-go years”.

“There might be a delay in the rebooting of immigration due to Omicron. But looking through the noise, population growth should be back to over 300,000 per annum whenever travel does become easier, and potentially even nearer to 400,000” Mr Wargent said.

About BuyersBuyers

BuyersBuyers connects people looking to buy a property with some of the best buyer’s agents around Australia. We aim to level the real estate playing field to give first-time and experienced home buyers and property investors a personalised service with the advantage of having a property expert working for them, serving only the buyer’s interests. Our national network of top buyer’s agents is the largest in Australia and offers some of the most affordable buying solutions on the market.

All our buyer’s agents are licensed, experienced, and are committed to working in the best interest of our clients. We offer excellent value for money with very competitive and affordable fees and no commissions. What you see is what you get. Our bespoke property research and tools enable buyer’s agents and buyers to stay informed on market trends and our insightful property reports help determine the best places to buy. That’s why we are quite simply, ‘the better way to buy property.

This article was sourced from a media release sent by Medianet

Meet The Shepreneur Behind The Cover Of The December 2021 Issue Of MoneyCentral Magazine: Dr. Roya J. Hassad

Posted on by Alex

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Award-winning anti-aging physician Dr. Roya J. Hassad has taken the world of cosmetic medicine by storm with her first-class, innovative and ingenious approach to beauty and wellness.

Dr. Hassad, an Educator, Speaker, and the Founder of Hope, Life, and Dream Centers—the most prominent Anti-Aging medical centers in New York, has adopted a streamlined, highly-effective approach to her craft known as The Five C’s: Comprehensive, Cutting-edge, Compassionate, Connected, and Concierge, which we will break down one by one in the following five paragraphs.

Dr. Hassad’s rise in her profession can be adduced to her insistence on delivering a comprehensive service for her clients, which entails conducting a complete and thorough evaluation of each patient individually.

Dr. Hassad’s medical procedures are replete with advanced, state-of-the-art cosmetics and aesthetics. These are inclusive of anti-aging solutions, integrative medicine, preventative care solutions. Dr. Hassad and her team’s focus has always been on ensuring that each patient has an option that works for them.

Compassion is at the forefront of Dr. Hassad’s medical practices. The good doctor has a heartwarming reputation as one of the most compassionate, friendly, and amiable doctors in the field today, a quality she has infused in her medical team.

The world has since gone digital, with virtual connections helping to shape a new reality. Dr. Hassad and her team have harnessed this connection to build an ever-connected world powered by digital technology. She and her team have created an extensive medical network—extending deep into the international medical community—with some industry pioneers in medical health centers. These connections help Dr. Hassad and her team to share ideas with other brilliant minds in the medical field.

Dr. Hassad and her team offer concierge services for clients from beginning to end. The group helps to facilitate some of the more challenging aspects of preventative and aesthetic care, from acquiring previous medical records to scheduling appointments with sub-specialists for unique treatments.

“We approach every client’s health 360-degrees while testing and going over a complete evaluation that ensures our services are effective and safe,” said Dr. Hassad. “We then leverage the most innovative, cutting-edge advanced technology in anti-aging and integrative medicine, including aesthetic and preventative care that is award-winning in nature. While all of this is happening, I oversee a compassionate relationship with the client that acknowledges their personal well-being. It’s this exact arrangement that makes what I do so rewarding to me – I wouldn’t change my job for anything else in the world.”

Dr. Hassad has treated numerous patients with hormone deficiency disorders related to aging, such as menopause or diabetes mellitus in her New York City-based clinic. She has also developed incredible treatments like Bioidentical Hormones, which mimic hormones found in the human body.

5 Good Reasons Wealthy People Love Patek Philippe

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Patek Philippe, a traditional Swiss watchmaking brand, enjoys an aura of covetable glamour that originates from its lavish traditions of watchmaking and its exquisite polished, handcrafted timepieces.

In this article, we will walk you through 5 compelling reasons that make Patek Philippe an incredibly popular choice amongst rich collectors. Here, take a look:

A Symbol of Exclusivity

Research reveals that since 1839, Patek Philippe has made and sold less than 1 million watches, which allows this luxury Swiss watchmaker to enjoy an immensely covetable brand appeal. Patek watches take around nine months to be manufactured, while the more exquisite pieces are produced in a period of over two years. The growing demand and the sought-after models have given the brand an affluent status that allows rich people to set themselves apart in the crowd.

Hand-Finished Beauty

Philip Patek watches are known for their finesse and beauty. These intensely charming timepieces are admired because of their stunning hand-finished components. The Swiss watchmaker infuses each design with an iconic detailing that captivates the admirers with its distinctive and high-end glamour. From the dynamic batons to the hand-finished hands, and the overall design, it is the little details that allow a Patek watch to leave the onlookers struck by its sleek appeal.

It’s an Investment

Many savvy collectors invest in Patek watches as an investment, and both vintage and modern watches promise a spectacular resale value. History stands witness to the fact that Patek watches bought back in the 1950s or 1970s, for instance, the Calatrava, and the 5131 Cloisonné Enamel, sold twice more than their original retail price.

Be part of a Legacy

Patek Philippe maintains an archive for every single watch made since 1839, and it allows watch enthusiasts revel in the confidence of being a proud member of the Patek community. The archives have meticulously documented the history of each and every watch that has ever been produced by the celebrated Swiss watchmaker, allowing the purchaser to be a part of a legacy shared with royal family members, heads of states, and celebrities.

Traditional Watchmaking Traditions

Rich people adore Patek Philippe for its rich legacy and its traditional watch and case-making techniques that date all the way back to the 1800s. This iconic brand continues to dominate the market of luxury watches with its meticulous preservation of centuries’ old watchmaking techniques, handcraftsmanship, and alluring designs.

Photo by Antony Trivet from Pexels

Australian Companies Win Big At 18th Annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business

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The Stevie® Awards for Women in Business, which shine a spotlight on female executives, entrepreneurs, employees, and organizations run by women, announced the 2021 winners.

The 18th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business is an international competition produced by the creators of the prestigious International Business Awards® and American Business Awards®. The Stevie is widely regarded as the world’s premier business award.

More than 40 Australian organizations and individuals have won the Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

The Audacious Agency from the Gold Coast submitted nominations on behalf of Stevie-winning clients. Their clients won 27 Stevie Awards overall including seven Gold Stevies, 10 Silvers, and 10 Bronzes. The Audacious Agency won the program’s highest honor, the Grand Stevie Award, for the success of their client’s nominations.

Kids on the Spectrum (Melbourne, Victoria) won two Gold and one Silver Stevie Award. Kids on the Spectrum-Australian autism directory was launched in 2019 to provide parents a free national online directory to assist them in locating inclusive services, products, and events for their autistic family members. The directory’s founder, Anita Aherne felt the urgency to provide valuable free information with an aim of improving autistic outcomes in Australia.

Aherne said “Being acknowledged for developing Australia’s first national autism directory is exciting and overwhelming. To have Kids on the Spectrum awarded three Stevie awards is definitely a highlight of our business journey so far.”

Natalie Brennan, General Manager of Muffin Break in Sydney won two Gold Stevies Awards for Woman of the Year and Most Innovative Woman of the Year – Franchising. Muffin Break first opened its doors in Queensland in 1989. In 2021, with over 200 stores in Australia, all stores are locally owned & operated by our franchise partners who are proud of the communities they serve and the products they offer.

More than 1,800 nominations from organizations and individuals around the world were submitted to the awards this year for consideration in categories including COVID-19 Response, Entrepreneur of the Year, Executive of the Year, Most Innovative Company of the Year, and Startup of the Year, among others. More than 160 business professionals working in eight specialized judging committees determined the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Stevie Award winners.

This article was sourced from a media release sent by Maggie Miller of Stevie Awards.

The Surefire Guide To Starting And Successfully Running A Home Business

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Some of today’s most prominent businesses were started at home, and many of today’s successful business owners are content to operate their businesses from their home office, garage, or on-site warehouse. 

A small business may be defined as a “privately owned corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship with fewer employees and less annual revenue than a corporation or regular-sized business.” Therefore, a small home business can be defined as such; only its operation occurs at the proprietor’s residence or in the residential setting of one of the employees. 

Many people decide to start a small home business to earn extra income or simply to go into business for themselves. Many small businesses are run from homes today, ranging from financial consulting and baking to salon services and tutoring. Whether you’re interested in selling products or providing services from your home, the following information will help you get started and probably answer some questions you might have and know some pros and cons. Of course, if you have little ones at home, starting a business alongside them can be a challenge – but not impossible! Parenting while working from home can actually be enjoyable, while also setting a positive example for your children to learn from.

Benefits and Advantages of a Home-Based Business

If you’re thinking about launching a home business, you’ll want to explore the many enjoyable advantages and benefits. In fact, many of these benefits persuade people to start a home business in the first place. 

Time with Family

Many people prefer to work from home so that they can be around for the family. Small business owners can be on-site to keep an eye on older relatives who may need occasional assistance. They can be at home when children are let out of school, and they can enjoy flexible hours to quickly leave home and attend kids’ events like after-school track meets or basketball games. Even if you are a “pet parent,” staying at home jobs or starting your own business will be ideal for taking care and sharing more time with the people you love or your furry loved ones. 

Zero Commute Time

The average American spends an hour per day commuting to and from work. That adds up to 20 hours per week. Many people spend even more time commuting, enduring the stress of heavy traffic, inclement weather, and crowded busses or trains. There is also the substantial cost associated with work commutes. Being at home will reduce these extra costs since you will be able to cook and eat at home, avoid traffic, lower your gas budget or any other transportation budget. This would be the perfect time to start eating clean and having a healthy diet, adding more activities that will keep you productive such as meditating instead of being stuck in traffic. 

Save on Commercial Rent

When you run your business from home, you can save the cost of rent. If you operate your business in a commercial space, you’d be required to pay rent as well as utilities and insurance. You can avoid this type of overhead by operating your business online from your home. You can reinvest the money you save on commercial rent back into your business in some other form, such as digital marketing. 

Multitask between Your Professional and Personal Lives

While it may take some practice to juggle tasks associated with your business and personal life skillfully, you can undoubtedly multitask when running a home business. You can break from your work to throw in a load of laundry or prep for dinner on your lunch break. You can create a daily dynamic schedule that includes tasks related to your business and household needs. Moreover, you may easily fit a wide range of tasks into your day without the commute time, such as exercising.

Be More Productive

Because your business belongs to you, you’re likely to feel a tremendous investment in its success. So, you’re apt to work hard and be highly productive. Moreover, there won’t be any other employees (unless you decide to hire them) or a boss around to distract you from your tasks. Consequently, you can more easily stick to your workday plans. When you run your own business, you can set your own goals in terms of productivity and develop the strategies to achieve them that work best for you. You definitely are able to become your own boss! A great way to get started would be creating a schedule you know you will follow every day. It must have realistic metrics so you can stay motivated throughout this new journey. While making your schedule, you might want to add some household activities that might take around 15 minutes to complete or maybe just take an outdoor walk or read that book you have purchased and haven’t had the chance to open it—organizing your agenda and working at home will a great experience. It doesn’t matter if you are a morning or evening person.

Getting Started

Starting a business is an exciting prospect, but there are a lot of details to address. By staying organized and tackling all necessary tasks, you can set your business model up for a successful launch.

Define Your Business

Take time to define your business clearly. Will you sell products, services, or both? Although you may already have a good idea of what you want to do, you’ll want to think in terms of specifics once you’re serious about starting a small home business. Take time to brainstorm through some ideas and make a list of the possibilities you’re most interested in pursuing. Once you have a shortlist, you can research your options and take a look at the marketplace to determine if there’s a need for your offerings. Take into consideration also what are you good at, baking, cooking, singing, tutoring, numbers, dropshipping, etc. this will help you to keep motivated and have a business project that you will enjoy and won’t see it as a boring work task that you just have to perform. 

Brainstorm Your Business Name

Take time to choose a business name carefully. You’ll want to choose a name that’s easy for customers to spell and remember. It makes sense to select a web-friendly name in this digital age and nothing too similar to your competitors’ names. While there are business name-generating apps available that you can try, you might also want to make a list of possible names for your business and run them past family and friends to get their thoughts. You can even ask your close friends and family to suggest options as a way of helping you brainstorm.

Identify Your Target Audience

Who are you trying to sell to? Defining your target audience, whether it’s local homeowners or teenagers nationwide, will help you market your business effectively. When you have a target demographic in mind, you can create more targeted strategies for engaging potential customers. Therefore, you must identify your product or service’s target audience before you begin marketing efforts for the brand. The group will include existing customers as well as potential customers.  

Your target market does not necessarily consist of everyone who may be interested in your products. It’s important to identify the people you want to reach through your brand marketing efforts, whether you’re using digital marketing campaigns or advertisements or on social media channels.

Understanding your target audience and their pain points allows you to create content more effectively and target advertisements with the right marketing message for each segment.

Develop Your Business Plan

Creating a business plan is a crucial step for developing your home business. It can include every aspect of your business, guiding both its launch and operation. Some key elements of your business plan should include:

  • Company description: provide a summary of what your company does. Company descriptions give an overview of key aspects of your business, such as what you do and what sets you apart from the competition. Your business description should clearly explain what you do.
  • Breakdown of your products and services: The product or service section of your business plan should emphasize the value you offer clients or customers.
  • Executive summary: provide a formal business summary, one that could appear in professional business directories.
  • Marketing and sales plan: describe how you intend to market your company (i.e., digital and traditional sales measures)
  • Competitive analysis: analyze the marketplace you intend to operate in; know how you fit in and who your competitors are. 
  • Operating plan: describe how you plan to run your business and list company departments and managing personnel.

Financial Considerations

You’ll need to carefully evaluate your finances and develop a budget related to your startup expenses and business operation. Don’t forget to add in costs for items like marketing, insurance, and other necessities associated with the types of products or services you’ll sell. Determine whether or not you’ll need to apply for a business loan. For entrepreneurs who are starting new businesses, personally funded venture capital is often the first thing they consider. While this is common at the beginning, it is essential to separate your personal and professional funds when your business is growing and earning cash, not only for tax purposes but also to protect your credit and eliminate unnecessary stress.

Legal Business Structure

Take time to determine your business’s legal stature and structure. Do you intend to own your business as a private proprietor or to create a corporation? Learn about the different structures and decide which is best suited for you and your business.

Business Licensure

What type of license will you need to operate your business? Be sure to calculate the cost of your license into your startup costs. Although there are general business licenses, there are also specialty licenses that may apply to your business. Check here to learn more about specific types of business licenses.

Branding Campaign

Marketing is essential for any business but definitely a home business. You won’t have the benefit of being in a commercial area where you can post commercial signage. You’ll need to create a marketing plan that includes both traditional and digital marketing initiatives. Branding is the idea that if you display a positive message about your company to enough people for long enough, they’ll think about you when it’s time to make a purchase.

Source: Porch.com

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Three Blogs On Managed Funds Every Entrepreneur Should Be Reading

Posted on by Alex
By Michelle Baltazar
Investing your hard-earned money is a little bit like an organ transplant: the stakes are high and decisions are best left to the experts. It doesn’t mean however that you just close your eyes and hand over your piggy bank. Thanks to the internet, you can check out many websites to get handy tips on how to go about investing in so-called ‘managed funds’.

We know you’re time-poor so why not start out by just checking out three website links we’ve picked below? They’re worth the few minutes it takes to see whether they’re useful to you.

1. Paul Clitheroe, a financial expert who is big on financial education, writes about complex topics using simple language. See this link on his latest blog about investing in managed funds for as little as $80.

2.  For all of you hard-working career women out there, check out www.moneygirl.com.au, which, like Clitheroe’s blog, is financial education in basic English. On managed funds, there’s stuff to read via this link.

3. They call themselves ‘The People’s Watchdog’. Consumer body ‘Choice’ has a section on its website dedicated solely to investing. It’s disappointing that their last article on a buyer’s guide to managed funds was done way back in 2007 but the basic premise still holds to this day so it’s still worth reading. See this link.

Besides, it’s worth bookmarking www.choice.com.au because they’re quite good at naming and shaming those who do dodgy deals, whether it’s about the worst plasma TV to buy or a rip-off deal in property.

If you’re tight for time, read Clitheroe’s blog. It’s chockfull of easily digestible info on investing.

Source: The Australian Filipina

5 Ways To Keep Yourself Healthy During The COVID-19 Pandemic

Posted on by Alex

In the midst of a global pandemic, many want to know which ways are best to boost your immune system. However, it must be noted that there is no diet, supplement, or lifestyle modification that will protect against COVID-19 except for proper hygiene and social distancing. The tips listed below may support and boost your immune health, making it easier to fight off disease and infections, but they do not specifically fight against COVID-19

That being said, here are 5 tips that will boost your immune health and with time will help you feel healthier as well help your body to fight off illnesses.

Getting Enough Sleep Each Night

You may notice when you get a cold or start feeling sick, you start sleeping longer and deeper. This is your body allowing your immune system to better fight off the illness. Your immune system takes a lot of energy to fight off illnesses, likewise, it takes a lot of energy to protect against them. It’s important to get enough sleep for many reasons, among them is to have enough energy to give your immune system a chance to fight off illnesses.

Work Whole Plant and Fermented Foods into Your Diet

Whole plants, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes are incredibly rich in nutrients and antioxidants. These may give your immune system an upper hand in its fight against some harmful pathogens. It can cut down on chronic inflammation, provide fiber to promote gut health, and most provide the vitamin C needed to reduce the duration of a common cold.

While fermented foods may not be what many think is best for their diets (And in fact when done improperly can be dangerous so be sure to research fermentation before starting) they are often packed with probiotics and beneficial bacteria that promote gut health. In turn, this allows your stomach and immune system to work together to fight off illness.

Limit the Amount of Added Sugars in Your Diet

With many coming to the conclusion that added sugars and refined carbs contribute heavily to obesity, it is important to try to begin cutting these out of your diet. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease are all capable of suppressing your immune system. To maintain a healthy immune system it is vital to cut the risk of these by reducing how much-added sugar is in your diet to 5% of your daily calories.

Practice Moderate and Daily Exercise

Simple, daily exercises such as brisk walking, steady biking, jogging swimming, and light hiking are all great ways to stay in shape, as well as boost your immune system. An active body has a better chance of fighting off infections and illnesses.

Drink Enough Water Everyday

While drinking water does not directly protect you from germs or viruses, it does prevent dehydration and boosts your overall health. Preventing dehydration is important for everyone, as you are far more susceptible to illness while dehydrated.

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