It is never easy to run a business if one does not understand some of the important cash terminologies. For any business to succeed, it is wise to keep an account of what cash flow is all about and why it is important.  Without cash, it is not easy to run a business and it will be hard to control the will of employees as some may become irritable when they know there is not enough money to pay them. Without money, suppliers will cut off their supply. Generally speaking, a business owner can run out of cash while his or her business is still making money.

This happens to many business owners out there and an individual has to understand what cash flow entails and how it can change the growth of a business. Cash flow is simply the way through which money moves in and out of a business. When there is an increase in cash flow, then that is what is referred to as positive cash flow. When the amount decreases, that is negative cash flow. With this in mind, a business owner should, at all times, keep his or her cash tank full and know what is coming in and out of the organization.

Reasons Why a Cash Flow Statement Is Imperative

Get to know where the money went

A well-executed cash flow statement will not say anything about what a business owner pays to the bank.  A business owner may be making good profits but the amount he or she is paying to the bank is vast and this could be putting him or her out of business. With a cash flow statement, the business owner will know where they spent their money. From the statement, a business owner will know whether he or she spent the money to increase the stock or to buy capital equipment.

Helps business owner to focus on creating extra cash

It is a great feeling and motivation for any business owner to know their business is making profit. With good profits, it also becomes easy to create extra cash. But to make more money, a business owner has to spend less on capital equipment. He or she has to collect payments from customers as fast as they can.

Provides better key performance indicators

With key performance indicators, it becomes easy to create value for a business entity. Knowing what makes it easy to create more profit is part of any business development story. A business that concentrates on making extra cash always gives the company value with time.

Helps in making financial decisions

It is never easy to make financial decisions. With the cash flow statement, one will figure out where the money is going and make the right decision. A business owner has to figure out whether his decision will help the business grow financially and stand above his competitors.

The Bottom Line

When running a business entity, it is wise to take into account where the money is going. Invest wisely and seek help when you are facing cash flow problems.  A cash flow statement is a great tool for financial analysis. Therefore, in order to maintain a healthy and profitable business, one should understand what cash flow financing is all about. Cash flow financing allows businesses to improve its working capital by releasing immediate cash from accounts receivables. Businesses can access up to 80% of the invoice value in as quick as 4 hours, allowing them to get on top of operating expenses and grow.

When an individual seeks to optimize their personal and professional obligations – achieving work-life balance – they enjoy a sense of flow and euphoria. When an individual has trouble finding work-life balance, burnout will eventually rear its ugly head. In fact, job burnout has become increasingly rampant in corporate America and, if you haven’t already, you may experience it in the future. Knowing how to escape unscathed is a skill you’ll need if you want to enjoy sustained success.

The Signs and Symptoms of Work Burnout

According to a local clinic, “Job burnout is a special type of job stress — a state of physical, emotional or mental exhaustion combined with doubts about your competence and the value of your work.” Common symptoms of work burnout include:

•     Cynicism at work
•     A trend of getting up later and later each morning
•     A feeling of uselessness or lack of purpose
•     An inability to motivate yourself to start your workday
•     A lack of energy to accomplish basic tasks
•     Unexplained health issues, such as chronic headaches
•     A lack of focus and clarity in your life
•     A feeling of haze and fogginess over your workday
•     A feeling of uneasiness the night before starting a new workweek

These aren’t the only signs and symptoms, but if you’re experiencing a few of these, you can bet you’re on the verge of burnout. Learning to identify it early on will help you develop a plan of attack.

According to a property management company, Green Residential, burnout is most common when individuals fail to purposefully prioritize work-life balance. And while you may never achieve perfect work-life balance, you should aim for it.

4 Tips for Avoiding Burnout

Sometimes the only answer to job burnout is to pivot or switch careers, but you shouldn’t let it get this far. If you spot burnout in the beginning stages – or even before it sets in altogether – you should be able to ward it off.

1. Understand Why You Work

It’s not enough to know what you’re doing at work, or what your job responsibilities are. You need to understand the why behind your work. You need to attach your work efforts to something of practical value. For example, you might work so that you can pay for your child to go to college debt-free, or maybe you work in order to help people who are less fortunate.

Every situation is different, but try to dig beneath the surface. In doing so, you’ll realize that you have purpose.

2. Take Time Off

There’s often a direct correlation between high job burnout and a lack of time off. If you have a bunch of unused vacation days that you’ve been saving for years, go ahead and use them! Time away from work will allow you to return refreshed.

3. Know When You Work Best

Everyone has a unique personality and specific set of strengths. It’s possible that you’re working against yours, rather than with it. Find out when you work best – such as in the morning or late at night – and optimize your schedule and commitments accordingly.

4. Set Goals for Yourself

Burnout is typically tied to a lack of purpose. If you want to increase your sense of purpose, make it a point to regularly set goals– both of the short-term and long-term variety. They’ll keep you moving towards growth, rather than wallowing in stagnation.

Get Ahead of Burnout

The faster you can address the signs and symptoms of burnout, the less likely it is that you’ll have to switch careers or make a dramatic change. Use the tips discussed in this article to gain control of your situation and rediscover the flow that you once experienced on a regular basis.

Mobile phone technologies keep advancing everyday. To the point that we are now asking ourselves if a picture was taken with a phone or a camera. With Apple’s iPhone being the leader in mobile phone photography, it seems as if everything is continually changing, so much so it can feel difficult to keep up with trends. From new application updates to software updates, our phones hold a vital position in our everyday lives. It is the main point of contact for our loved ones. Many companies will now issue their employees a mobile phone only to be used to professional use.

Mobile phones, just like the internet, was originally created for military usage. In the mobile phone’s first stage, it was the newest form of military communication technology. As mobile/cell phones made their way into the consumer market, they started as a military bag phone. From there, there was the revolutionary Nokia phone. Then as cellular providers such as Sprint, U.S. Cellular, Verizon, and AT&T started popping up all over developed countries, they began to recognized the potential for financial growth and investment opportunities in the new market of mobile phone technologies. From the original versions of phones, they started advancing to be more compact. Something so large became a tiny little phone in two parts that was easy to flip and open with a tiny keyboard. The next came a Razor phone from Motorola. What was first just a means of calling another person utilizing cellular towers now became an text message device and camera. The first camera phones took very low quality pictures, but they were pictures on a mobile device nonetheless. As companies began to realize that mobile phones were becoming necessary to the everyday lives of citizens in developed countries, cellular providers and carriers started to charge users even more for texting and data to send pictures. Mobile phones began carrying internet on them where users were able to download applications for games or for email accounts. They could receive and view emails from others and send emails themselves, thus beginning a new area of mobile internet communication.

This new mobile technology quickly started to act a catalyst for brand wars. As phone technology became increasingly intelligent, companies capitalized on touch-screen phones. One of the first groundbreaking technologies was the Apple touch screen iPhone. It brought music listening, messaging, and linking to a computer full circle. Now Apple ID users were able to link all of their devices and have music downloaded directly to their phone. It brought the iPod and a phone into one device. Android smart phones were in early competition with Apple for differing features. Androids were much more customizable and powered by Google. Google is a driving force in search engines on the internet, so having something powered by google with a gmail account made it very simple to link everything. Linking devices is important to consumers that own multiple technologies that utilize data.

Mobile technologies are so integrated into to lives of consumers that now instead of a brand war, it has become the latest application must haves. Phone companies continue to capitalize on data usage from consumers by charging them for data/internet. Videos take the most data to load, but connecting to wifi doesn’t charge consumers against their data plans. Many companies have now come through with plans with unlimited data that allow consumers to use as much data as possible without being charged for going over their data limit. This can be beneficial to consumers that do not have the means necessary to connect to wifi constantly or are in continuous travels throughout their career.

As companies continue to fight for advertising revenue on mobile applications, they will have to be extremely intellectual in strategizing their marketing and advertising campaigns to consumers. Mobile phone technology used to be something that was targeted at the general public. Now with everyone owning a phone and a mobile data plan, the market share is targeted more at advertising revenue to get consumers to click on advertisements, subscribe to their newsletters, and turn on notifications. Companies and brand gain increase awareness when consumers sign up for mobile text notifications. This will send a text their way anytime they decide to alert them of information. Even insurance companies have mobile applications and text alerts to notify customers when their bills are due. Consumers have so many apps available from ones that allow them to play games to ones that show them football odds and have sports betting communities. With global network access, mobile phone owners are able to communication anywhere in the world. This creates tiny niche communities and large organization and networks. The entire communication process of mobile technology is ever evolving into the most efficient and fastest way possible to reach out to others.

As previously stated, mobile phone technology went from being a large military phone to something so compact, and then to a device with a touch screen. Now phone’s are reverting back to larger sizes for bigger screens. Some of the largest iPhones aren’t much smaller than a mini iPad. As marketers and brand managers research the industry, they will have to partner with software developers to provide the most advanced mobile technology for consumers to adopt and begin utilizing in their everyday lives.

The trends in marketing have changed over the last few years. These trends have had enormous impact on the collaboration, communication, innovation, and evolution of businesses, both physically and online. The ecommerce market is expanding relentlessly, and as a result the importance of remaining relevant cannot be overstated. Many businesses may find change to be a daunting prospect, but it is vital to the longevity of any business in this modern era. Some businesses tend to struggle to align themselves with the ongoing changes, most often because such changes are unfamiliar to them. While there is bravery in determination, businesses that opt to tackle new concepts on their own rather than invest in the appropriate marketing put themselves at a disadvantage. This is the story of a thousand businesses struggling to cope with digital marketing changes.

Inbound and outbound marketing should be combined, particularly now. Conversion rate optimization is one of the most sophisticated digital marketing tools available, but it is also one of the most necessary for a successful business. Aimed at improving website content to draw in more prospective consumers, CRO functions as the backbone of online marketing. While SEO is equally as important, it is CRO that houses all the strategies and concepts that SEO and other online marketing tools are built around.

The online marketing landscape is a fickle one, and it takes time, consistency, and innovation to keep it afloat. The nature of online marketing suggests to some that it is easier than running a business in the physical streets, but that could not be further from the truth. On-location stores are built with the understanding that they have a very specific demographic, a specific reach beyond their doors. Moving a physical store without literally relocating is virtually impossible, save for pop up stores, and so the expectation for consumer visitation is only set so high.

Online stores, however, are built with the understanding that their reach is not only immediately local, but global. As a result, the limits for consumer reach are practically non-existent, making it imperative that the business uses every marketing tool available to stand out among the competition. Online brands have a vastly larger prospective consumer base, and so there is vastly more competition. Online marketing tools like search engine optimization and conversion rate optimization coexist to bring a business to its best self, putting on a front that is not only important, but critical to an online business’ survival.

For each and every business model, there are marketing concepts that function as the basis of its success. It is impossible for an online business to thrive on its own without the use of marketing tactics for the simple reason that, like all industries, ecommerce is dependent on consumer engagement and loyalty – without the interest of the consumers, a business dies within a matter of months (sometimes even sooner). Marketing is the core of every business, no matter its platform, and it is crucial that marketing tactics are used in accordance with individual business goals to achieve maximum – and long-lived – impact.

Since the advent of civilization, humans have always been curious. Curious to see what lies beyond the world they inhabit. Whether it is early nomads travelling through desserts, forests and rivers or the pioneers that sailed across oceans with no knowledge of what them might find, people have continued to push forth into the uncharted. Today of course this same curiosity has fueled our exploration into worlds outside of our own. Space travel has become a real part of life as we know it. Modern day pioneers will very soon be making trips across our solar system and maybe even beyond. To boldly go where no man has gone before.

It is incredible to think that less than a hundred and fifty years since the first powered human flight, we are seriously considering habitation of worlds outside of our own. In the context of human history, the timeframe is miniscule.

With the development of civilization, one of the milestones that has led to the globalized world we live in is the advent of constantly improving means of transportation. Once people could travel safely across most parts of the inhabited world, we began to see the flow of people, culture and ideas across continents. Without this we could not imagine the culturally diverse societies that have formed across the world.

Apart from carrying people over what once seemed impossible distances to cover, transportation has contributed to another large aspect of the way our world is built. The advent of the industrial revolution made it possible to produce goods at high volumes. All these volumes would have no value unless these goods could be transported to a large number of people that might not necessarily be in the same area. The transportation industry was critical to the boom of industrialization and its continued march into the modern day behemoth we have become accustomed to.

Even today, the large conglomerates in the field of transportation are testament to how dependent we are on its merits. Countries all over the world have invested heavily in highway infrastructure to aid the smooth movement of goods and people. The ease with which commercial vehicles can transport goods across the country is integral to its economic growth. This is especially relevant in countries whose economies are heavily dependent on manufacturing.  If transporting products to docks and ports is not cost effective, it often defeats the price advantage the manufacturers of the country, integral in an extremely competitive global economy.

The landscape of the transportation industry is deeply linked with industrialization. As one evolves, we see the repercussion flow through the other. Today with greater automation and dependency on technology becoming a theme across most sectors of business, from advice on car detailing to innovations in the transportation industry.

The ambition of large transportation companies like Uber and Hyperloop seem to be following the same path.

They are innovating rapidly, trying to make the transport of goods and people more efficient. One of the hallmarks of their innovation is the lack of dependency on human operators. Instead they aim to use technology and systems to make sure they optimize routes, consuming the bare minimum amount of time and fuel to complete the journey safely.

While there is an obvious push towards improving technology, there is another hurdle that stands in the way of the industry at large. Since its inception it has been dependent on carbon based fossil fuels to power it. In the recent past this has come under heavy criticism owing to the massive emissions that are a byproduct of the mass use of existing technology. Countries all over the world are aware of their carbon footprint and the need to control it. They are slowly but steadily bringing in legislature to curb the output and reverse the damage caused to the environment.

This has led to the need, for the industry as a whole, to shift to sustainable sources of energy. Like the energy industry, we see larger sums of money dedicated to research and development, dedicated to finding alternatives powered by eco friendly sources of energy. Whether the change is enforced or just natural evolution, the technology and innovation seen in the field is undeniable. Apart from the obvious environmental benefits, the use of such technology is making it easier and more affordable for an increasingly large part of society to adopt such means of transportation.

The human desire to see new places is a part of our programming. That coupled with the economic benefits of moving goods and people across distances efficiently will continue to drive the technology we adopt to do so. With the realms of possibility no longer restricted to our world, it is only a matter of time before people are making journeys that were once considered possible only in science fiction. As a species, we will always remain on the move, the only question is where we are going.

If you’ve been looking for a house, you may have noticed that finding a home that suits your needs can be a little tricky. You’re buying a home that wasn’t built for you but was built to appease the basic needs of the general population. But what if you wanted a more customized design for your home? Well, then why not build your own home? You may be all excited now, thinking that this is a much better idea than buying an already existing house and if you want a customized home, this is a better idea. However, before you start nailing up walls, there are some essential tips you need to know.

Know what it entails

Though building a house may sound easy, especially when you consider how many homes around the world have been built, you need to know exactly what this involves. Building a home is very time consuming and requires you to have a somewhat flexible, yet realistic budget. In addition, you’re going to need to effectively communicate with your partner and compromise if you both have strong opinions on the design.

Plan, plan, plan

You don’t want to get caught up with any last minute change of plans that’s going to cause stress and confusion but also add unplanned costs to your budget. Investing in an architect who can help put your designs on paper is a must. They’ll be able to guide you through the process and remind you of things you need to keep in mind such as space planning, storage, lighting, and room placement. Your architect should be involved right from the beginning as they’ll need the time to understand your concept but also see the flaws in it.

Hire the right people

You’re going to need to select the right contractors to do the job as this will be the team that’s going to take your home to the finish line. Though there are some areas where you can save money on, do not go cheap on the labour. If you do, this will only result in delays and additional costs which you didn’t budget for. In addition, you want your labour to be experienced and skilled so, take time to interview them prior. The last thing you want is to google ‘replacement windows pricing’, months after you realize that the windows installed in your home are letting in the cold air.

Get the proper permits

You just can’t build a house wherever you’d like, even though you have your own property. You need permits to allow you to build a home. Remember, depending on where you are building your home, permits can take months to process and are costly, so, don’t forget to add that to your budget and time-frame.

Relax

Building a house isn’t easy but at the end of the day, it is something you created with your own two hands. You’re going to have ups and downs during the building process, but as long as you’re focused, you’ll get through it. Relax! Though it comes with its own set of stresses, building a home is an exciting and fulfilling process.

Starting your own jewelry making business needs dedication and commitment. Before you start your own business, it is important that you know your competition, target market, and the ins and outs of the jewelry industry. Once you have done this part, you are ready to create your own jewelry line.

In this article, we are going to review the essential things on how to start your own jewelry making business, from the starting operation down to the capital investment needed to put up your own business:

There are several types of jewelry that can be manufactured, depending on the demand of the market. In some countries, jewelry is a part of their culture as some of these accessories are used on specific celebratory occasions such as rings and necklaces. Jewelry also depicts the status of an individual, and in most cases, portrays the way of living or fashion statement of a person. Hence, it’s not surprising that the jewelry industry is booming these days.

However, as a jewelry-maker, it’s imperative to you know how often jewelry is bought and what types of accessories are popular and on what occasions are they fitting these days.  

This idea will now help you determine the start-up cost of your business. Your knowledge of culture and jewelry will help you determine the initial cost and resources you’ll need. Plus, it can also help you determine the specific designs and raw materials that are thriving and cheaper today.  

Jewelry can be made from different kinds of materials. It can be from precious stones, fresh pearls, and precious metals. These materials are expensive, so before you start your jewelry-making business, it’s essential to scout out for several suppliers for your raw materials and ask for their price. In that way, you can easily get the best cost for your resources.  Aside from this, you also need to include the other expenses like rent for the physical store and its equipment. For online business shops, you need a website where your buyers can check out your products so consider this as well. You also have to cover the advertisement fees to attract customers if this is part of your advertising plan.

For the manufacturing cost, it is vital that you consider whether to start small or to mass produce. Most small-time jeweler often makes handcraft their jewelry before they mass produce because this allows them to explore without using big resources. But, if you plan to mass produce, it’s ideal that you consider hiring subsidiaries for lower manufacturing cost.

When choosing between a physical store or an online shopping site, you need to consider the cost of each option. If you opt for a physical store, it’s much more expensive. You’ll need a place to rent, equipment to buy, and manpower to hire to manage your store.  However, the advantage of a physical store is that you can interact, help them decide on which pieces to buy, and actually listen to their concerns and comments. Rapport building is a crucial step when you want to build a relationship with your clients. Moreover, investing time in rapport significantly increases your client retention and deepens your bond with them too.

If you choose an online shopping the site. You need to pay a respectable web designer so that your site can match with the current ones in the market today. You also need a good internet provider so that you can easily respond to your customers as this is the main basis of communication when you go online. Your website should be highly optimized and safe from malware as well; this is significant since you’d want to establish a reliable and competent atmosphere. Online stores can be as expensive as physical stores too. However, it is more accessible compared to physical shops, and you can actually create a site that is cost-effective than a physical one.

Both have are equally efficient, but the success of the shop would still depend on what your style is of selling is. In terms of cost, it would boil down as to how you handle your funds and what sellers you’re going to tap in order to save your capital as much as possible.

Before legalizing your company, you need to pick a name that catchy and suitable for your niche. Your company name should reflect on the kinds of jewelry that you plan on making as well. The name should not be too long but not too short so that clients will remember it. Once you’ve chosen a name, this will reflect on the official license, online website, and business cards, so you should consider the business name carefully.

Once the name is decided, you can start legalizing your business. When filing for a business license, make sure to visit your county clerk’s office. From there, they will ask you for several papers before you can register your LLC. Make sure that you are able to comply with all these requirements before the day of your business launching.

Social media marketing is one way of advertising your business. You’re encouraged to utilize this as it’s free and efficient to use as an advertising tool. For jewelry making business, you have to showcase your finished products visually. Pinterest and Instagram are image-based social media platforms, so you can make an account here and start marketing your products. You can also use Facebook and Twitter though they’re not as visual as Pinterest and Instagram. However, these are great platforms when it comes to video and blog sharing.

Just make sure that you regularly post images on your social media accounts, and link your products to your website for a smooth marketing process. In this way, your customers will be able to access your shopping site with ease.

Lastly, patience is the key to a fruitful business. Just keep in mind that most businesses don’t always grow on the first few years, especially you’re a neophyte businessman.

Jewelry making business is no exception.  It might take years before your business will grow; so while you’re at it, learn as much as you can. Don’t just focus on the jewelry industry but in the overall field of business as well. Once you’re ready, apply what you’ve gathered, and see if it works for you.   

Starting your own jewelry business can be a big risk, but every one of us starts here. As long as we pick something at every turn, then we’ll eventually learn the ins and outs of the jewelry making industry and hopefully expand our mass produce our own designs in the future.   

For the last several decades, research into gene therapy has promised cures to devastating conditions caused by mutations and other chromosomal abnormalities. Until recently, though, such treatments remained hypothetical.

In 2015, however, following the first successful lab tests of CRISPR, a gene editing technology, such treatments officially entered the realm of possibility. Now, as scientists refine the technology, biomedical researchers, ethicists, and end users are grappling with the consequences.

What does it mean to modify any organism, but especially humans, at the genetic level and how does that practice reflect who we are as a society? These ongoing conversations relate to how central our genes are to our identity, and not just our biology.

The first major ethical issues relating to CRISPR came from work done on insects. Mosquitos are genetically uncomplicated creatures, and early in the development process Chinese scientists developed malaria-resistant mosquitoes.

On the one hand, suppressing malaria transmission in this way might resolve a serious public health crisis — more than 400,000 malaria deaths occur each year in developing countries — but the excitement was brought up short when scientists wondered what it would mean to release a genetically modified organism into the environment.

There are, at present, too many unknowable variables and potential consequences.

As unnerving as the unknowns with regard to the release of genetically modified mosquitoes into the environment might be, modifications to humans have to be even more worrisome. In an early discussion of the topic at 2015’s International Summit on Human Gene Editing, for example, participants considered the ethical impact of germline modifications.

These modifications pose an especial risk due to the fact that they would be passed to future generations. During these deliberations, biomedical researchers spoke with ethicists to think about when germline changes may and may not permissible.

Three years later, scientists have stayed in the moratorium phase. Essentially, until we can ensure the overall safety of the technology, it could be irresponsible to release it for wider use.

One of the strengths of the biomedical field is its ability to collaborate across disciplinary boundaries. The field itself is widely diverse, including specialists like biochemists, who are directly involved in genetic research, and epidemiologists, who study disease spread.

Bioethicists, who understand both the technical and philosophical concerns involved in research, also participate in these debates. The naturally collaborative nature of the field will be an advantage as CRISPR technology advances.

Though public applications of CRISPR remain years away, researchers are preparing to tackle the implications by emphasizing what the European Group of Ethics in New Technology (EGE) terms “triangulating science, ethics, and society” at every level of the development process.

This means, first, focusing on interventional cures rather than germline modifications. In other words, first-line use of CRISPR in humans will most likely be to treat and cure diseases, or to prevent genetic conditions from being passed on from parent to child. Particularly with regard to fatal conditions, there are few doubts about CRISPR’s ethical value and applicability.

Non-fatal conditions — particularly those with a cognitive or neurological component, but also many physical disabilities — pose much greater challenges for scientists and ethicists, because they raise the specter of eugenics. Many question whether such changes are ethical or even desirable, or they could be just a way of eliminating human differences.

When addressing the potential elimination of disability, many worry about the slippery slope that might lead to designer babies. As researcher Feng Zhang asserted at CRISPRcon 2018, we’re decades away from designer babies, but that doesn’t mean we’re equally far away from having to think about them.

It can take far longer to work out the ethical implications of a new technology than to develop the tool itself. We’ve experienced that firsthand with many other reproductive interventions in the past.

Now that scientists are keenly aware of how ethics and innovations intertwine, they’re trying to adopt a more proactive stance toward future technologies.