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Showing posts with label Career. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Career. Show all posts

Sunday, 14 January 2018

Career Advice: A Letter to My 25 Year Old Self

00:00:00

An Ode to the article “The Career Advice I wish I had at 25”.
I recently came across a very catchy and thought provoking article on LinkedIn by Shane Rodgers titled “The career advice I wish I had at 25”. He said a bit about how we get to look back years from now and wish we had the opportunity to use a time machine once, go back in time to give our youthful selves a lecture or two on the things you should have done differently.
He said:
“In the future, when we turn 50, we will each be given a ticket to a time machine and, just once, we will be able to go back in time and talk to our 25-year-old selves.
Even then, time travel will be expensive and wreak havoc with frequent flyer programs. So there will only be one trip. So what if we could? What would we say? What advice would we give?
I often wish I could do this. Just once. So, just in case the time machine ever comes along, this is the career advice I would give my 25-year-old self.”
Since I know using a time travelling machine is an incomprehensible feat, at least not for now and in the foreseeable future and as a young rookie who belongs to the group that believes in the school thought that says “It is better to learn from the mistakes of others, You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself”.
Here are few golden nuggets of wisdom I picked from Shane’s article:
Take a Chill Pill:
Haha; yes he mentioned this but not in those exact words. Allow yourself get a breather, a career isn’t a race or a marathon affair. The prime of our lives comes with serious youthful exuberance and impatience but as we get older we realize that there is that life and the careerwe decide to pursue in it should be treated with a long term approach.
Take life in strides, allow yourself time to breathe and grow. Things will fall in place if you work hard and allow yourself time to get good at things but if you choose to overwhelm yourself with work, you end up empty and tired, wearing yourself out and lose all the joy it takes to do a good job.
Failure is not defeat:
As bizarre as it may sound, failure is one of the best ways to learn, it serves as a part of the process to eliminate unsuccessful options. Richard Branson’s first venture was a magazine run by students. He visualized the brand would eventually include banks and travel companies. He obviously failed at this first attempt in business and several others but got his big break with Virgin Airlines.
Thomas Edison, the famous inventor once said: “I have not failed. cxI have just found 10,000 ways that don’t work.” Take some risk, do not let the fear of failure limit your reach and approach to all the wonderful opportunities around.
Sometimes failing spectacularly is the best evidence that we are alive, human and serious about aspiring to the extraordinary. There is no value in being ordinary when you have the capacity to be remarkable.
Several Real Successes come from Repetition, not new things:
More often than not, Real Success comes from repetition. You don’t have to wait for that mind blowing, ground breaking and never-heard-of idea. Most of the real success stories you have ever heard of were as a result of sheer persistence and determination to do old things in better way persistently.
Thomas Edison made a thousand unsuccessful attempts to create the light bulb, but his persistence paid off. The book Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell perfectly explains that you need to spend at least 10,000 hours on something to become a true expert at it. Perfect examples include; The Beatles who honed their performance skills through several gigs in Hamburg, a very important part of their success story and Bill Gates who, through a series of unplanned accidents, spent more time than almost anyone else on a computer.
“The lesson here is get good at things before you try to move to the next thing. Genuine expertise belongs to an elite few. They seldom have superpowers. They usually have endurance, patience and take a long-term view. They also love what they do. If your find that, don’t let it go.”
Have a genuine interest in whatever field you find yourself:
A lot people complain about how their present career path has failed to provide fulfilment and they fail to spend time learning about the business. Here is a story of President J F Kennedy’s visit to NASA, he met a man who happened to be a cleaner and asked what his job was. The cleaner replied that he sent rockets to the moon. As mundane as his task seemed, he felt he was a part of something bigger. We should take a leaf from this and be a part of the big picture. Feel like a part of what organization do and be connected to the true objectives of your workplace.
A network of age-similar people is overrated:
Several intelligent young people are plagued with the whiz kid syndrome. They form series of network made up of smart young people who exchange ideas and social interest with members of the same peer. Beware of the smart young thang syndrome, building a youth only enclave can be totally restrictive.
Network and feed off the energy of the older generation as much as you can, as they are experienced and can serve as useful mentors who can help open doors and fast track careeradvancement.

What other advice would you add to this list? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts in the comments below.
Written by: Mariam Banwo Barry

Sunday, 15 January 2017

Understanding Your Saving and Investment Options

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  You are never too young to start saving and investing. People that start investing when they are young are more likely to develop habits that will last a lifetime. The earlier you start investing, the more money you’ll accumulate over time. To find additional dollars to invest, you might start your own business. Everyone can find money to invest if they analyze and change their spending habits.

Use a savings account or buy a certificate of deposit. A savings account gives you access to your money at any time with very low risk. This option, however, offers a low interest rate on your investment. A certificate of deposit (CD) offers a slightly better return, but with less flexibility. You must leave the money with the bank for a period of time ranging from months to years.
  • These investments have several benefits. They are easy to set up, and they're typically insured by a government agency, meaning they're very safe.
  • The downside is that these investments pay very little interest. Without much interest, you don’t generate as much compounded interest. As a result, CDs and savings accounts are suitable only for holding small amounts of money for very short periods of time. They may improve as savings vehicles in times of high interest rates.
  • Smaller banks and credit unions will sometimes offer higher interest rates in order to attract customers away from larger institutions.
Invest in government or municipal bonds. When you buy bonds, you are loaning money to a government or municipality. You can also invest in bonds issued by corporations.
  • Bonds pay a fixed rate of interest on your investment each year. You can reinvest your interest in more bonds and allow compounding work for you.
  • Payment of your original investment (principal) and your interest is based on the credit rating of the issuer. Government bonds and municipal bonds are often guaranteed by tax dollars that the issuer collects, so risk is low.
  • A corporate bond’s payments are based on the creditworthiness of the corporation. A company that generates consistent earnings will have a better credit rating.
  • You can buy bonds through your bank, or using a financial advisor.
  • There is a downside to bonds investing. When interest rates are low, returns can be small. Even in times of higher rates, bonds usually offer lower returns than stocks. Bonds, however, are normally considered less risky than stocks.
  • The average return on bonds since 1928 (including compounding) is 6.7% per year, compared to 10% for stocks.
Buy stocks. When you buy stocks, you are a company owner. Stock investors are also referred to as equity investors. Investors buy stocks to earn dividends and to benefit from an increase in the stock’s price.
  • Stocks offer better returns on average than most other types of investments. While stocks offer higher returns, they also involve more risk. The longer you are able to invest in stocks, the more time you have to recover from a stock price decrease.
  • If the company generates earnings, they may elect to pay a share of those earnings as a dividend to stockholders.
  • You can purchase stocks by opening a brokerage account. You’ll be asked to complete a new account form. Once your account is open, you can deposit funds and purchase stock. Consider using a financial advisor to invest in stocks.
Invest in a mutual fund. A mutual fund is a pool of money contributed by many investors. The funds are invested in securities, such as bonds or stocks. The mutual fund portfolio can generate bond interest or stock dividend income. Fund investors may also benefit if a security is sold for a gain.
  • Mutual fund accounts are easy to open and maintain. Investors pay fees to the fund for money management. You can add to your investment regularly and reinvest your earnings, if you choose.
  • Funds allow you to invest in a variety of stocks and bonds. This provides the safety of diversity, protecting you against losing money when just a few securities decline in value.
  • Most mutual funds allow you to invest with a small initial amount and to add small, periodic investments. If you don't have much to invest, this will be important. Some funds allow you to begin with as little as $1,000 and add in increments of as little as $50 or $100.

Friday, 30 December 2016

Establishing Your Goals and Expectations

07:44:00

Make a list of things you want. To set your goals, you’ll need to have an idea of what things or experiences you want to have in your life that require money. For example, what lifestyle do you want to have once you retire? Do you enjoy traveling, nice cars, or fine dining? Do you have only modest needs? Use this list to help you set your goals in the next step.
  • Making a list will also help if you are saving for your children’s future. For example, do you want to send your children to a private school or college? Do you want to buy them cars? Would you prefer public schools and using the extra money for something else? Having a clear idea of what you value will help you establish goals for savings and investment.
Set your financial goals. In order to structure an investment plan, you must first understand why you are investing. In other words, where would you like to be financially, and how much do you have to invest to get there? Your goals should be as specific as possible, so that you have the best idea of what you’ll need to do to achieve them.
  • Popular financial goals include buying a home, paying for your child’s college, amassing a “rainy day” emergency fund, and saving for retirement. Rather than having a general goal such as “own a home,” set a specific goal: “Save $63,000 for a down-payment on a $311,000 house.” (Most home loans require a down payment of between 20% and 25% of the purchase price in order to attract the most affordable interest rate.)
  • Most investment advisers recommend that you save at least ten times your peak salary for retirement. This will allow you to retire on about 40% of your peak pre-retirement annual income, using the 4% safe withdrawal rule. For example, if you retire at a salary of $80,000, you should strive for at least $800,000 saved by retirement, which will provide you with $32,000 annual income at retirement, then adjusted annually for inflation.
  • Use a college cost calculator to determine how much you will need to save for your children’s college, how much parents are expected to contribute and the various types of financial aid your children may qualify for, based on your income and net worth. Remember that costs vary widely depending on the location and type of school (public, private, etc.). Also remember that college expenses include not only tuition, but also fees, room and board, transportation, books and supplies.
  • Remember to factor time into your goals. This is especially true for long-term projects such as retirement funds. For example: John begins saving at age 20 using an IRA (Individual Retirement Account) earning an 8% return. He saves $3,000 a year for the next ten years, then stops adding to the account but keeps the IRA invested in the market. By the time John is 65, he will have $642,000 built up.
  • Many websites have “savings calculators” that can show you how much an investment will grow over a given length of time at a specified interest rate. While they’re not a substitute for professional financial advice, these calculators can give you a good place to start.
  • Once you determine your goals, you can use the difference between where you are today and where you want to be to determine the rate of return needed to get there.
Determine your risk tolerance. Acting against your need for returns is the risk required to earn them. Your risk tolerance is a function of two variables: your ability to take risks and your willingness to do so. There are several important questions you should ask yourself during this step, such as:
  • What stage of life are you in? In other words, are you near the low end or closer to the peak of your income-earning potential?
  • Are you willing to accept more risk to earn greater returns?
  • What are the time horizons of your investment goals?
  • How much liquidity (i.e. resources that can easily be converted to cash) do you need for your shorter-term goals and to maintain a proper cash reserve? Don't invest in stocks until you have at least six to twelve months of living expenses in a savings account as an emergency fund in case you lose your job. If you have to liquidate stocks after holding them less than a year, you're merely speculating, not investing.
  • If the risk profile of a potential investment does not conform to your tolerance level, it's not a suitable option. Discard it.
  • Your asset allocation should vary based on your stage of life. For example, you might have a much higher percentage of your investment portfolio in stocks when you are younger. Also, if you have a stable, well-paying career, your job is like a bond: you can depend on it for steady, long-term income. This allows you to allocate more of your portfolio to stocks. Conversely, if you have a "stock-like" job with unpredictable income such as investment broker or stock trader, you should allocate less to stocks and more to the stability of bonds. While stocks allow your portfolio to grow faster, they also pose more risks. As you get older, you can transition into more stable investments, such as bonds.
Learn about the market. Spend as much time as you can reading about the stock market and the larger economy. Listen to the insights and predictions of experts to develop a sense of the state of the economy and what types of stocks are performing well. There are several classic investment books that will give you a good start:
  • The Intelligent Investor and Security Analysis by Benjamin Graham are excellent starter texts on investing.
  • The Interpretation of Financial Statements by Benjamin Graham and Spencer B. Meredith. This is a short and concise treatise on reading financial statements.
  • Expectations Investing, by Alfred Rappaport, Michael J. Mauboussin. This highly readable book provides a new perspective on security analysis and is a good complement to Graham's books.
  • Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits (and other writings) by Philip Fisher. Warren Buffett once said he was 85 percent Graham and 15 percent Fisher, and that is probably understating the influence of Fisher on shaping his investment style.
  • "The Essays of Warren Buffett," a collection of Buffett's annual letters to shareholders. Buffett made his entire fortune investing, and has lots of very useful advice for people who'd like to follow in his footsteps. Buffett has provided these to read online free: www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/letters.html.
  • The Theory of Investment Value, by John Burr Williams is one of the finest books on stock valuation.
  • One Up on Wall Street and Beating the Street, both by Peter Lynch, a highly successful money manager. These are easy to read, informative and entertaining.
  • Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles Mackay and Reminiscences of a Stock Operator by William Lefevre use real-life examples to illustrate the dangers of emotional overreaction and greed in the stock market.
  • You can also enroll in basic or beginner investment courses offered online. Sometimes these are offered free by financial companies such as Morningstar and T.D. Ameritrade. Several universities, including Stanford and MIT, offer online investment courses.
  • Community centers and adult education centers may also offer financial courses. These are often low-cost or free and can provide you with a solid overview of investment. Look online to see if there are any in your area.
  • Practice by “paper trading.” Pretend to purchase and sell stocks, using the closing prices each day. You can literally do this on paper, or you can sign up for a free practice account online at places such as How the Market Works. Practicing will help you hone your strategy and knowledge without risking real money.
Formulate your expectations for the stock market. Whether you are a professional or a novice, this step is difficult, because it is both art and science. It requires that you develop the ability to assemble a tremendous amount of financial data about market performance. You also must develop “a feel” for what these data do and do not signify.
  • This is why many investors buy the stock of products that they know and use. Consider the products you own in your home. From what’s in the living room to what’s inside the refrigerator, you have first-hand knowledge of these products and can quickly and intuitively assess their performance compared with that of competitors.
  • For such household products, try to envision economic conditions that might lead you to stop purchasing them, to upgrade, or to downgrade.
  • If economic conditions are such that people are likely to buy a product you are very familiar with, this might be a good bet for an investment.
Focus your thinking. While trying to develop general expectations about the market and the types of companies that might be successful given present or expected economic conditions, it's important to establish predictions in some specific areas including:
  • The direction of interest rates and inflation, and how these may affect any fixed-income or equity purchases. When interest rates are low, more consumers and businesses have access to money. Consumers have more money to make purchases, so they usually buy more. This leads to higher company revenues, which allows companies to invest in expansion. Thus, lower interest rates lead to higher stock prices. In contrast, higher interest rates can decrease stock prices. High interest rates make it more difficult or expensive to borrow money. Consumers spend less, and companies have less money to invest. Growth may stall or decline.
  • The business cycle of an economy, along with a broad macroeconomic view. Inflation is an overall rise in prices over a period of time. Moderate or “controlled” inflation is usually considered good for the economy and the stock market. Low interest rates combined with moderate inflation usually have a positive effect on the market. High interest rates and deflation usually cause the stock market to fall.
  • Favorable conditions within specific sectors of an economy, along with a targeted microeconomic view. Certain industries are usually considered to do well in periods of economic growth, such as automobiles, construction, and airlines. In strong economies, consumers are likely to feel confident about their futures, so they spend more money and make more purchases. These industries and companies are known as “cyclical.”
  • Other industries perform well in poor or falling economies. These industries and companies are usually not as affected by the economy. For example, utilities and insurance companies are usually less affected by consumer confidence, because people still have to pay for electricity and health insurance. These industries and companies are known as “defensive” or “counter-cyclical.”

Wednesday, 28 December 2016

Beating Specific Investment Fears

05:51:00

  There are plenty of reasons to have reservations about investing. However, succumbing to these fears also means missing out on proven opportunities to expand your personal wealth. Overcome investment fear by becoming more familiar with different investment options, addressing any specific concerns you may have, and developing a reliable investment plan.

Assess your personal finances. If you feel like you don’t have enough money to start investing, it’s worth taking the time to monitor your finances. You may be able to identify and curb unnecessary spending, and wind up with some discretionary investing money after all.
  • Monitor your expenses for a month or two, and consider categorizing expenses according to necessity. For instance, while you’ll likely want to continue buying groceries, those daily $6 lattes might not be so tempting when you realize you could be investing $180 a month instead.
Acknowledge the opportunity cost of investing. You may be thinking that you’d rather spend your discretionary income on experiences and entertainment. It’s hard to argue against rewarding yourself from time to time. That said, if you find yourself constantly splurging on possessions and vacations, take a moment to consider the practical trade off you’re missing out on. Namely, investments tend to increase in value over time, meaning you can get more for your money later on.
  • Diminish unnecessary spending by reminding yourself about the rewards of using your money to invest. For instance, talk yourself out of this year’s handbag by reminding yourself you can visit Italy instead, after a few years of patient investing.
Don’t postpone investing for later in life. One of the most common reasons people hesitate to invest is the belief that they can simply begin doing so when they’re older. While this is true, it also means you’ll miss out on some serious investment potential - if only through exponential growth of your savings.
  • The fact of the matter is that there’s never an easy time to buckle down and start investing. Making the decision to start now is one of the best ways to both overcome your hesitation and wind up with a successful investment portfolio.
Invest a fixed amount in regular intervals. One of the scary factors when deciding whether to invest is “when”. You can effectively eliminate this concern - and temper the actual risk involved in investing, by investing the same amount of money periodically.
  • It may seem too good to be true, but it’s a proven strategy. It’s called dollar-cost averaging, and helps account for the regular ups and downs of the market. For example, simply invest $50 every month, or $150 every quarter.
  • Investing in mutual funds is a good route to take if you intend to invest in incremental amounts. Mutual fund traders don't charge you each time you make a new investment, whereas you have to pay each time you purchase a stock.

Monday, 14 November 2016

Defining Career Success

07:02:00

   Defining success can be difficult as the term itself is so abstract. In order to define success, take a look at your own personal goals, interests, and passions. Then, formulate a definition of success that's personally meaningful for you.
Accept there are many ways to define career success. Career success need not have a rigid, set definition. While many insist on defining career success based on measurable qualities, such as salary and ranking, there are many ways to define success in your career based on your goals. #*Part of what makes it difficult to precisely define career success is that there are so many factors at play. Your relationship with your co-workers, your reputation in your field, your salary, your benefits, and more all play a role in whether you can consider yourself successful. A lot of people feel overwhelmed by the many factors that influence their sense of success.
  • To avoid feeling stressed about whether your successful in traditional terms, try to view your career success in a personal manner. Do you fulfilled by your job? Are you happy going into work in the mornings? Much of success is unfortunately beyond your control. You need to accept there are various definitions of success and what ultimately matters is your own sense of worth and fulfillment.
Define your passions. If you're looking to define success, first define your priorities and passions. Whether or not your career helps you fulfill your passions is a major determining factor in whether or not you feel successful.
  • Think about when you were younger. What did you want to be when you grew up as a child? What were your goals in college? Are you using your degree? Why or why not? Oftentimes, people fall into a career path and lose track of their true passions and interests. Conversely, people who feel stressed over their career feel successful when they realize their work truly reflects their passion.
  • Do not fear change. Sometimes, defining one's passions can help with a personal definition of success. Acknowledging what you're doing in the present moment is not, by your standards, successful is scary. It can also be an opportunity to grow. If you always wanted to be a teacher, for example, and work in marketing consider returning to school for a teaching degree. In some states, community colleges may allow you to teach with just an undergraduate education.
Examine factors that are important to you. What is really important to you? Do you crave prestige and honor? Does climbing the corporate ladder, making connections, and closing deals sound like an ideal career? Or are you more idealistically oriented? Does the idea of making a difference and helping others inspire you? There is no wrong way to crave success, but acknowledging what factors truly matter to you as an individual can help you define success.

Define career success in your own terms. It's vital that you avoid outside definitions of success. Research shows the happiest, most fulfilled people across all careers are those who define success based on personal goals, passions, and desires.
  • Try to write down your definition of success and put in a place where you can see it each day. Reminding yourself of your goals can help you on your way to success.
  • Your definition of success should be somewhat vague. As so much of success is beyond your personal control, keep your definition all encompassing. Something like, "I want to feel fulfilled in my work every day and do a job that's intellectually stimulating for me."
View life as a continuous journey rather than a series of goals. Many people view success as a series of goals. You get your degree, then a job, then a promotion, and so on. Oftentimes, people find their measurable success to be somewhat hollow and disappointing. Once you've reached a goal, you may feel disappointed that you're not as happy or fulfilled as you thought. Instead, view your life as a continuos journey where you try to do a bit better each day. This will keep you stimulated and emotionally and intellectually active longterm.


Thursday, 10 November 2016

Preparing Yourself To Invest

07:06:00
investment
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Ensure investing is right for you. Investing in the stock market involves risk, and this includes the risk of permanently losing money. Before investing, always ensure you have your basic financial needs taken care of in the event of a job loss or catastrophic event.
  • Make sure you have 3 to 6 months of your income readily available in a savings account. This ensures that if you quickly need money, you will not need to rely on selling your stocks. Even relatively "safe" stocks can fluctuate dramatically over time, and there is always a probability your stock could be below what you bought it for when you need cash.
  • Ensure your insurance needs are met. Before allocating a portion of your monthly income to investing, make sure you own proper insurance on your assets, as well as on your health.
  • Remember to never depend on investment money to cover any catastrophic event, as investments do fluctuate over time. For example, if your savings were invested in the stock market in 2008, and you also needed to spend 6 months off work due to an illness, you would have been forced to sell your stocks at a potential 50% loss due to the market crash at the time. By having proper savings and insurance, your basic needs are always covered regardless of stock market volatility.
Choose the appropriate type of account. Depending on your investment needs, there are several different types of accounts you may want to consider opening. Each of these accounts represents a vehicle in which to hold your investments.
  • A taxable account refers to an account in which all investment income earned within the account is taxed in the year it was received. Therefore, if you received any interest or dividend payments, or if you sell the stock for a profit, you will need to pay the appropriate taxes. As well, money is available without penalty in these accounts, as opposed to investments in tax deferred accounts.
  • A traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA) allows for tax-deductible contributions but limits how much you can contribute. An IRA doesn't allow you to withdraw funds until you reach retirement age (unless you're willing to pay a penalty). You would be required to start withdrawing funds by age 70. Those withdrawals will be taxed. The benefit to the IRA is that all investments in the account can grow and compound tax free. If, for example, you have $1000 invested in a stock, and receive a 5% ($50 per year) in dividends, that $50 can be reinvested in full, rather than less due to taxes. This means the next year, you will earn 5% on $1050. The trade-off is less access to money due to the penalty for early withdrawal.
  • Roth Individual Retirement Accounts do not allow for tax-deductible contributions but do allow for tax-free withdrawals in retirement. Roth IRAs do not require you to make withdrawals by a certain age, making them a good way to transfer wealth to heirs.
  • Any of these can be effective vehicles for investing. Spend some time learning more about your options before making a decision.
Implement dollar cost averaging. While this may sound complex, dollar cost averaging simply refers to the fact that -- by investing the same amount each month -- your average purchase price will reflect the average share price over time. Dollar cost averaging reduces risk due to the fact that by investing small sums on regular intervals, you reduce your odds of accidentally investing before a large downturn. It is a main reason why you should set up a regular schedule of monthly investing. In addition, it can also work to reduce costs, since when shares drop, your same monthly investment will purchase more of the lower cost shares.
  • When you invest money in a stock, you purchase shares for a particular price. If you can spend $500 per month, and the stock you like costs $5 per share, you can afford 100 shares.
  • By putting a fixed amount of money into a stock each month ($500 for example), you can lower the price you pay for your shares, and thereby make more money when the stock goes up, due to a lower cost.
  • This occurs because when the price of the shares drops, your monthly $500 will be able to purchase more shares, and when the price rises, your monthly $500 will purchase less. The end result is your average purchase price will lower over time.
  • It is important to note that the opposite is also true -- if shares are constantly rising, your regular contribution will buy fewer and fewer shares, raising your average purchase price over time. However, your shares will also be raising in price so you will still profit. The key is to have a disciplined approach of investing at regular intervals, regardless of price, and avoid "timing the market".
  • At the same time, your frequent, smaller contributions ensure that no relatively large sum is invested before a market downturn, thereby reducing risk.
Explore compounding. Compounding is an essential concept in investing, and refers to a stock (or any asset) generating earnings based on its reinvested earnings.
  • This is best explained through an example. Assume you invest $1000 in a stock in one year, and that stock pays a dividend of 5% each year. At the end of year one, you will have $1050. In year two, the stock will pay the same 5%, but now the 5% will be based on the $1050 you have. As a result, you will receive $52.50 in dividends, as opposed to $50 in the first year.
  • Over time, this can produce huge growth. If you simply let that $1000 sit in account earning a 5% dividend, over 40 years, it would be worth over $7000 in 40 years. If you contribute an additional $1000 each year, it would be worth $133,000 in 40 years. If you started contributing $500 per month in year two, it would be worth nearly $800,000 after 40 years.
  • Keep in mind since this is an example, we assumed the value of the stock and the dividend stayed constant. In reality, it would likely increase or decrease which could result in substantially more or less money after 40 years.

Friday, 21 October 2016

How To Realize Your Skills

06:51:00

   Each of us has unique skills and abilities to contribute to humanity. Despite knowing this, it can be difficult to realize what those skills are and how to use them well. Whether you’re a numbers whiz, you do embroidery, or you excel socially, there are ways to put your skills to use and improve them along the way!
Recognize your skills. You can have many types of skills and not even know it. Skills aren’t just knowledge, but are ways of relating to information and people. Skill types can include technical, transferable, and personal skills. Technical skills are the “how-to’s”, such as fixing or creating things, and administering or following protocols, such as being a mechanic, nurse, artist, or racecar driver. Transferable skills are skills that can help in many situations, such as organization, customer service, teamwork, and leadership, and can be helpful across many professions or activities. Personal skills include being reliable, having initiative, listening to your gut/intuition, and being self-motivated.
  • Reflect on your skills and recognize that you have many skills. Remember how your skills have helped you in the past (like planning a wedding or doing well in interviews) and brainstorm ways to use your skills in the future.
Reflect on what makes you happy. There’s no use using and improving skills you don’t enjoy. Even if you have skills you excel in, don’t waste your time doing things that you don’t find fun. Remember that money cannot buy happiness. Instead, think about things that make you happy.
  • Perhaps you get along with everyone, are naturally charismatic, and love to make friends. You may want to work in sales or do activities that involve lots of people, like coordinating volunteer opportunities. Or perhaps you enjoy taking things apart and putting them back together. Maybe you want to be a mechanic or have a hobby fixing old toys. These are skills you can use! By knowing what makes you happy, you can pursue areas in your life to activate your skills and be happy while doing it.
Create goals. People who are goal-oriented tend to be happier and achieve more. Think about what you want to develop and what fuels you to want to improve these skills. When creating goals, make sure they are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and timely.
  • If your goal is to run, make it more specific by determining to run your first half marathon. Avoid general goals and be as specific as possible.
  • Make your goal measurable by setting dates and creating a timeframe. Pick a half marathon race in the future that will allow you to train and prepare for the race. Then create a training plan.
  • An achievable goal is one that challenges you, but is still within your grasp. Being the first person on Mars may be a bit of a stretch, but learning how to ride a motorcycle may be doable, even if you feel fearful.
  • By focusing on the result, you can stay motivated throughout the process. Think about the benefits of meeting your goal, and focus on the outcome of this goal.
  • A timely goal has an end date in mind. Instead of “I will hike”, a time-bound goal has an end date in mind, creating some sense of urgency, such as “I will hike to the top of Mount Timpanogos by August 16.”
Pursue an education. A formal university education is well-respected by many and serves to give credibility in many fields. If you’d like to use and improve your skills in engineering, computers, foreign language, psychology, etc., obtaining formal education is a beneficial route to take, especially if you’d like to hold a job in one of these fields.
  • If you’re interested in pursuing knowledge and not a career, community colleges offer more affordable options and offer classes for many interests.
  • You can apprentice someone to learn specialized skills. You may want to be surf instructor but not know how to teach surfing. By apprenticing a surf teacher, you can learn the skills to teach.
Make friends/network. Networking can be a beneficial business and personal skill. By having a network, you open yourself up to information, people, and power. Find ways to meet other people in your field of interest, whether it be events, social media, or through friends of friends.
  • Join interest clubs or professional societies to help you meet people with similar interests or career paths.
  • Take advantage of any opportunity to meet others who share your interest. Ask them questions about how they improved their skills, how they achieved success, and any things to avoid or re-consider.
  • If you want to learn a skill, such as welding, take a class. A class offers an environment to meet other people with similar interests, and it may open doors to pursue more ways to improve this skill.

Saturday, 24 September 2016

8 Steps To Analyze Your Ambition

07:14:00

Ask yourself the key question. The respected philosopher Alan Watts said that the best way to find what you should be doing with your life was to ask yourself this important question: "What would you do if money were no object?" What if you won the lottery and you could do whatever you wanted to do with your life? Sure, you'd want to relax for a while, but eventually you're going to get bored. So what would you do to make yourself really, truly happy?

Break your dream job down into its most basic components. Take whatever activity or job you discovered in the previous step and break it down into its most basic parts. If you were explaining the job to a 3-year-old, how would you describe it? If that child asked you what was fun about it or how it made someone feel when they did it, what would you say? These basic components make up what you should be looking for in a career.

Think about what it really is that makes you happy. Think about the basic components of that career experience and decide which are the aspects that pull you. Realize what attracts you to that career. Do you find happiness in making other people happy? Are you more attracted to the art of acting and the process of creating the work of art that is a film?
  • You can do this for your current job as well, not just a theoretical dream job. If there's something about your job that you do now, factor that in as well.
Look into what jobs provide similar feelings and experiences. Look for jobs that mimic the feelings that you're looking for from that career. For example, if you were a millionaire and would rather travel, jobs which mirror the experience you have would be a tour guide, a teacher abroad, or a flight attendant position. If you would rather spend all day outdoors in nature, you could consider a job as a geologist, lumberjack, wilderness guide, or park ranger.

Consider the upsides and downside of that career. When you consider these more-attainable careers, make sure to do your research. Be well acquainted with what life looks like in that career path. You will need to know what the downsides of those jobs are if you want to make an informed decision.

Factor in your financial needs. If you're really in a job that fulfills you and makes you happy, getting rich off of it really won't matter to you. However, life is full of obligations that go beyond your happiness. If your dream career can't help feed your family or pay your student loans, you might need to look into other options. However, you should always keep your focus on jobs that provide similar feelings to what makes you happy.

Factor in what you're good at. Do you have an area where you really excel? Not just something that you do okay but something where you do it better than most people that you meet? This is something that you should factor in when looking for a career. You may not think that you enjoy it too much, but the fact of the matter is that you often won't get good at something unless you enjoy it on at least a certain level. You may be able to monetize your skill, or even home in on the aspect of it that you enjoy so much (for guidance).

Analyze your hobbies. Many hobbies can be monetized. This often means starting a small business and the headaches that come with it, but you may end up with a career that you really enjoy. Before you dismiss your hobby as being something that you could never make money off of, do some searching on the internet. You may be surprised.

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