Inspired by her passion to support others on their own personal growth journey, Carolee Laffoon founded Affirmations To Go, a company which encourages people to create lasting personal affirmation products to carry with them daily to keep them focused on their goals, hopes and dreams. Carolee publishes a monthly newsletter “Affirmation Inspirations” to share her favorite affirmations, inspirations, and product specials. Visit Affirmations To Go and sign up to receive her newsletter as well as participate in her special monthly Affirmations product giveaway.
Anxiety Attack Help – Important For a Healthy Lifestyle
June 6, 2012 By
Anxiety Attack Help – Important For a Healthy Lifestyle
Anxiety attacks is one of the most difficult conditions one can experience, with sudden occurrences of intense and irresistible fear triggered off for no evident reasons whatsoever. Case study and analysis of a large number of anxiety related cases has revealed that anxiety cure is not only about plummeting general anxiety levels; in actual anxiety attack help is more about going in depth into the very heart of the matter.
Before opting for anxiety attack help, it is very necessary for you to know what is causing you to panic and pushing you to the level of falling prey to anxiety attack. You will have to understand that anxiety cure is possible only if you can seek the reason that is leading to this terrible condition. The saying goes perfect here, that you will have to find the root cause of your anxiety in an attempt to uproot the vice that is causing the upheaval in your life time and again.
Do you…
Fear leaving the house just in case you face an anxiety attack.
Fear getting stuck in traffic and face attacks like anxiety driving.
Fear having an anxiety attack in a social gathering or event, and thereby make excuses of not attending it.
Put off holiday plans or business travel fearing anxiety and panic attacks.
Fear to speak when asked to during business meetings or seminars.
Once you know the reasons that lead to anxiety attack, the solution is not to analyze and ponder over it; but to adhere to self help anxiety methods and break free from the vicious cycle of anxiety and panic attacks. It is appropriately quoted as the ‘vicious cycle’ because anxiety and panic situation sort of moves you round and round like a whirlpool till you are completely devastated.
Methods for anxiety self help and break-free solutions
One of the most dangerous consequences of anxiety attack is the disastrous effect it has on the patient’s health and psyche. There are several self help anxiety methods that can play an effective role in anxiety cure, from cognitive and behavioral therapy, to relaxation techniques, breathing techniques and finally medication as the ultimate option if all other techniques fail in curbing anxiety attacks.
Research in this area has revealed that medication are in many cases chosen as the anxiety treatment, because doctors dealing with the condition consider it the most easiest way to gain control over the condition. However, what you need to know at this point is that, medication is never a solution to anxiety cure; it only makes you numb to the condition but never really takes you out of it. Moreover, medication also comes along with possible side effects.
Some other prominent and proven self help anxiety methods are relaxation techniques that includes meditation, yoga, aerobic exercises, etc; regular and scheduled exercises apart from eating right and healthy i.e. a balanced diet. Probably, these are some of the most popular solutions you might have already tried to tackle anxiety. However, it seems you are still in the quest for a unique anxiety self help method that can transcend anxiety cure to new heights.
Effective Anxiety Release Method
The pain and trauma of anxiety attack is evident in the face, mental condition, health and even the personality of those suffering from anxiety and panic attacks. Many of you might be suffering in silence, compromising against various odds. However, modern and innovative methods of anxiety release has been able to lit up their faces with hope that they too can pursue a normal, quality life by keeping panic at bay. Just remember that anxiety attack help is important for healthy lifestyle
Anxiety Attack Help – Important For a Healthy Lifestyle
Charlotte Wilson is a relationship researcher dealing with anxiety and panic attacks issues. If you are looking for the ultimate guide to teach you that anxiety attack help is easily available, check out her website on How To Beat Anxiety.
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3 Expert Fundamentals About the Condominium Lifestyle
May 14, 2012 By
3 Expert Fundamentals About the Condominium Lifestyle
“All my life I have lived in a single-family home. I’m thinking about downsizing and I hear all this talk about how great condominium living is. There must be some bad things too. What can you tell me?”
Every time you drive down the freeway in big cities, near suburbs, resort areas, or small towns, you see condominium developments sprouting up. They come in all sizes and shapes—luxury versions, low cost models, and those in between. What makes condominiums so popular?
Let’s start with the definition of a condominium association:
Membership in the condominium association is mandatory and automatic upon purchase of a unit.
The condominium association’s governing documents mutually bind all owners.
Mandatory assessments, called maintenance or condo fees, are charged to each owner to operate and maintain the condominium’s property.
Use and enjoyment of the property are for all owners.
What are the advantages of condominium living?
Owning your own home is a wise investment. Why pay rent when you can be building equity?
Interest on your mortgage loan may be an allowable income tax deduction.
You can enjoy freedom from performing exterior maintenance.
The cost of recreational facilities is shared. Many condominiums offer amenities that you may not be able to afford on your own.
Security systems are “built in.” Because of the proximity of your neighbors, when you take a vacation, just lock your door and go!
Organized social activities may be planned for all ages and occasions.
You may have a voice in the management by offering your services to the board of directors or special committees.
Property values normally increase because condominium living is a very popular lifestyle, and the association makes sure the property’s appearance is professionally maintained.
So What’s The Downside?
The lifestyle takes some “getting used to.”
There are restrictions about what you can do.
There can be disagreements with your neighbors.
You may not have any control over the assessments (maintenance fees) and special assessments charged to all owners.
The board controls colors and styles of the building exteriors and choices of landscape plantings.
Parking may be limited or inconvenient.
The handicapped may have difficulty navigating the environment.
Because the decisions in a condominium association are made by the board of directors, you may not be able to have a direct influence on those decisions. This means you will have to let other people make them, and they may make ones that you do not like. Letting go of that control can be difficult for some people.
How different is living in a condo from living in your own single-family home? “Good-different” if you buy a condominium to reap the benefits you know it can offer. “Bad-different” if you are unaware that there are differences or you have no intention of conforming. Depending on your attitude, you can enjoy your new condominium or you could be annoyed on a daily basis.
Once you understand that you are sharing the operation and maintenance of your home with all the other owners in the condominium association, you can appreciate that you don’t carry the entire burden. You have time to explore your other interests.
Do your homework by reading, or having your attorney read, the governing documents and rules. Then you will know the advantages and disadvantages of living in your particular condominium before you buy it.
3 Expert Fundamentals About the Condominium Lifestyle
Kay Senay
Kay is the author of CONDO BUYING & OWNERSHIP MADE SIMPLE: TIPS TO SAVE TIME & MONEY. This book is full of Kay’s secrets for solving difficult condominium issues. She is available to speak at conferences and to advise condominium and homeowner associations’ boards of directors. Visit her website at the link above for FREE TIP SHEETS, books, and more expert articles.
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Budget Your Way To A Better Lifestyle
April 10, 2012 By
Budget Your Way To A Better Lifestyle
Introduction
The average per household debt in the U.S., not counting mortgage debt, is about $14,500. A typical credit card purchase ends up costing 112 percent more than if cash were used. A $1,000 charge on an average credit card will take almost 22 years to pay, and will cost more than $2,300 in interest ($3,300 total) — if only 2 percent minimum payments are made. There are many families that, if faced with a sudden $1000 bill, would find it difficult to come up with the cash to pay for it.
This report will explain the hows and whys of setting up a budget that you can live with, putting together a structured savings plan and reducing your debt. I call my household budget “The Marriage Saver” because I honestly believe that it went a long way towards saving my marriage. Before budgeting our money, we would deposit our paychecks into our checking or savings account and buy what we needed or wanted. We knew that at the end of every month, we would have to pay the rent, so we kept enough in the account to take care of that. But when (notice I said when and not if) an unexpected car repair or appliance breakdown came up, we always ended up fighting about where the money would come from. After setting up the budget (and this is without any increase in our family income) the emergency money was always there. By now, some readers are going to be thinking that they can’t afford to set up and maintain a budget. The fact is that you can’t afford NOT to. The principles that will be explained here apply whether your family income is $10,000 or $100,000.
Setting Up A Budget
A budget is nothing more than a way of setting aside money now for expenses in the future. This can be accomplished with a loose-leaf notebook, or if you have a computer, either a spreadsheet program or a commercially available program. Plan on spending 1 to 2 hours per week maintaining your budget.
The first step is to break down all of your spending into categories. Make a list of what your money is spent on. Go through your checkbook and look at old receipts for ideas. Remember, you are not interested in what store you made your purchase in or where you bought your last hamburger. You are interested in breaking your spending down into categories. Great care should be taken to get a complete list as these are the categories that you will be saving for. If you miss one, an unexpected bill will result! Some sample categories are listed below:
Automobile Payments
Automobile Insurance
Food
Gasoline
Entertainment
Gifts
Hair care
Home Improvement
Homeowners / Renters Insurance
Property Taxes
Life Insurance
Medical
Misc. Household Expenses
Mortgage / Rent
Savings
Telephone
Utilities (Gas & Electric)
Vacation
Water
Clothing
Auto Repair
Fuel Oil
Dentist
Once you have your categories set up, you need to assign a dollar value to each. This is the amount that you will put away each week for every expense. Note that some of your expenses are paid weekly, such as food; some monthly, such as your rent or mortgage, and some quarterly, such as water bills and property taxes. With each, you will calculate the expense at a weekly rate. The weekly expenses are easy. For example, weekly food purchases can be calculated by looking through your checkbook and getting an average cost. This will become your food budget. Monthly expenses, such as rent and auto payments are a bit more work. Because some months have four weeks and some have five, you will need to use the following calculation: Take your monthly expense, multiply it times 12 (the number of months in a year) and then divide that number by 52 (the number of weeks in a month). Here’s an example. Say your mortgage payment is $1200.00 per month. Multiply 1200 times 12 and you get 14,400. Divide that by 52 and you get $276.92. Round this up to the nearest dollar, which would be $277.00. This would be your budgeted amount for your mortgage. Note that on five week months, you will have some money left over. It’s not really left over, though, so don’t take the family out to dinner with it. It will be used during the four week months. Do these computations on every monthly expense that you have. On your quarterly bills, you will do a similar exercise. Take your quarterly expense and multiply it by 4 (the number of quarters in a year) then divide that by 52 (the number of weeks in a month.) Let’s take a quarterly water bill as an example. Say your water bill is $110.00 per quarter. Multiply that by 4 to get a yearly expense of $440. Then divide that number by 52, and your weekly budgeted amount, rounded up to the nearest dollar is $9.00.
Notice in the sample categories listed above that “Vacation” and “Gifts” are listed. There is one big advantage of budgeting these yourself, as opposed to Vacation and Christmas Clubs at your local bank. With the clubs, you can’t always get to your money when you need it. Vacation clubs mature in May, while Christmas clubs mature in October. That’s fine until you want to take a vacation in December or you see a gift that you would like to buy for someone and it’s only July. By budgeting for these items yourself, you have the control over your money.
A similar situation occurs with budgets to heat your house in the winter. Whether you use gas, oil or electricity, most fuel suppliers and utility companies allow you to set up a budget with them. They calculate your cost to heat the house over the winter months and divide that up over the entire year. This is exactly the same process that we went through calculating weekly budget amounts. You then pay the gas or oil company a fixed amount every month. That’s great, except that for eight or nine months out of the year, they have your money, and are earning interest from it. By you budgeting your heating bills yourself, you earn the interest. Even if it only comes out to a few dollars in interest over the year, it’s better in your pocket than someone elses.
For those who purchased their car (new or used) rather than leasing it, your loan may run for between three and five years. Once this is paid up, don’t stop budgeting for it. Continue putting away the same weekly amount. This way, when it comes time to purchase another car, you will already have a sizable amount of money saved towards a down payment. Remember that the larger the down payment, the lower the amount that you will be financing. Two things are actually happening here. The first is that the money that you are saving towards your next car is earning you interest. That’s free money. The second is that by reducing the amount of money that you will be financing on your next car, you are cutting the amount of interest that you will be paying towards it. More free money!
One of the categories listed is Entertainment. This is an important one. Just as all work and no play makes you a dull person, you can budget yourself out of all of your fun. Set aside a little bit each week to go out to dinner, movies etc.
Pay Yourself First
A very common practice is to make the decision to pay all of your bills first, then take what ever is left over and put that towards your long-term savings. The reality is that more often than not, there is nothing left over! By using the “Pay Yourself First” method, you incorporate a fixed amount into your budget to go towards savings every week. It’s very important that you don’t try to over-extend yourself here. If you budget an unrealistically high amount for savings, you will constantly be short on the rest of your budget, and will “borrow” from your savings. Borrowed money from your savings will never be repaid! It is better to set a realistic, affordable budgeted amount that you can afford, even if it’s only fifty dollars a month (that’s twelve dollars a week). The idea here is consistency. As your savings grows, you will want to transfer it out of your passbook savings or checking account into something that has a higher interest rate. CD’s, mutual funds, stocks and bonds are some choices.
An easy way of adding to your savings is with pocket change. We all come home with some coins in our pockets, but who knows where that change ends up. Get an empty 2 litre plastic soda bottle and cut a small slot in the top. At the end of each day, deposit your change into the bottle. Don’t break it open till it’s full. A full 2 litre bottle can hold more than $300 worth of change. That’s a nice weekend getaway, a new TV or whatever you want.
Conclusion
There’s no big mystery to setting up and maintaining a budget. It’s easier than you think, and doesn’t take a lot of time. Give it a try. You have nothing to lose, and a whole lot to gain.
Budget Your Way To A Better Lifestyle
Stockton Ellsworth writes for http://www.My-Personal-Finance.com, a free web site dedicated to personal finance information and education.
Our helpful personal finance articles can assist you in home budgeting, finding or selling a home, savings and investments, passive-income ideas and many other topics!
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The 4-Hour Workweek Business Book Review – A Virtual And Alternative Lifestyle
March 29, 2012 By
The 4-Hour Workweek Business Book Review – A Virtual And Alternative Lifestyle
The 4-Hour Workweek offers readers a completely different perspective on the working world as most would perceive the nine to five grind. Tim Ferris changes the rules of the 40 plus hour work week and offers a glimpse into a much more abbreviated work schedule centered on a new lifestyle design. He changes his own lifestyle from an obsessive 12 hours a day workaholic to a globetrotting, virtual 4-hour work week of the “new rich”.
The author proposes that we empower ourselves with a new perception on the working world. He suggest that people embrace a “New Deal”, changing the rules of the game, outsourcing mundane task, automating important aspects of businesses including cash flow and enabling a more mobile and flexible lifestyle. This was conceptually inspiring for this reader, though pragmatically challenging. Read on about Ferris’s concept of the “New Rich”.
The New Rich live for today, abandoning deferred retirement with the creation of luxury lifestyles here and now. In other words, why wait until you retire to travel Europe for three months, plan the trip now and ensure your lifestyle can accommodate these mini-retirements. This is “Lifestyle Design”, a way to embrace opportunities now rather than working your entire life to wait to fulfill these retirement goals.
Ferris is not the average Joe, his life seems pretty amazing with extended trips to South America, the Far East, and other exotic locales. Ferris boasts some incredible stories, he hosts a TV show in China and of course becomes fluent in that language. He wins a national kickboxing championship by leveraging rapid dehydration before the weigh-in and rapid hydration after the weigh-in. He then pushes his smaller competitors out of the ring to ensure his victory. He is also a motor cycle racer, cage fighter and becomes a Guinness world record holder. Clearly, he is an individual of abundant energy and willing to try almost anything while enjoying his abbreviated work week.
Ferris has created an interesting read, and I concur with the general theme that a virtual and flexible working environment translates into a better and more empowered lifestyle. Though I’m not ready to embark upon three month vacations (mini-retirements), my home office based virtual position does allow me the opportunity to take advantage of a few of the “Lifestyle Design” changes Ferris proposes. For those who read or intend to read Ferris’s book, I would strongly recommend a complimentary book, Your Virtual Success published by Career Press, as a practical companion guide to The 4-Hour Work Week. Your Virtual Success offers clear, pragmatic advice on creating a virtual and abbreviated work week style company, similar to the concept proposed by Ferris, but with more practical hands on guidance.
The 4-Hour Workweek Business Book Review – A Virtual And Alternative Lifestyle
John Scranton is an insurance agency lead generation and insurance agency marketing specialist who works from his virtual home based office in Saratoga Springs, NY. For more information please visit: http://startupselling.com/blogs/johnscranton/
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Mississauga Condominiums and the Condominium Lifestyle
March 28, 2012 By
Mississauga Condominiums and the Condominium Lifestyle
Downtown Mississauga has a growing condo market, and something special is happening right now in the Square One shopping center area. Mississauga Condominiums seem to be sprouting out of the ground everywhere in the Square One City Centre neighbourhood. With several projects planned, and many already off and running, become part of the most vibrant community in the Greater Toronto Area. Between the years 2000-2008 Mississauga’s population has grown 13.2%. This translates to a population growth from 631,000-714,000 residents, and this increase in the local population has warranted the increase in Mississauga condos being built.
With the city’s growing population has come a growth in the core infrastructure. This includes improved transit systems, expansive parks and recreation, widening of major roads including the extensions to main arteries by the City Centre, and improved access to schools and hospitals. Mississauga is also known for housing some of Canada’s Top 100 Employers including many large corporations in the Technology Sector, Health Care Sector, and Pharmaceutical Industry. Mississauga is made up of many different communities including Clarkson, Cooksville, Erindale, Erin Mills, Lorne Park, Malton, Meadowvale, Port Credit, and Streetsville and each district offers residents functional, and distinct Mississauga condominiums.
Square One Condos
With so many new Mississauga condos on the market, the city of Mississauga will certainly be the city of the future. The Erindale District in Central Mississauga is identified as Downtown Mississauga, and is surrounded by City Hall, the Living Arts Centre, Mississauga Library, the YMCA, Square One Shopping Centre, and Coliseum Theatre. The most notable landmark of Downtown Mississauga, is the array of Mississauga Condos that are popping up everywhere near the City Centre. New Condominium Communities such as the Daniels Corporations development between Burnhamthorpe to Rathburn, and Confederation-Living Arts Drive are lighting up the Mississauga Condo market. Mississauga’s first master planed condo community by Daniels includes the “Twin Towers” that feature spacious high-end suites, with 14,000 square feet of luxurious amenities. It also includes a retirement community at ‘Amica’ City Centre that caters to the retired crowd. There is also the architectural masterpieces One Park Tower Mississauga dubbed the ‘Gothic Tower’ because of it’s medieval architecture with 8 stone carved Gargoyles standing guard around the tower. Chicago is Daniels final phase in the development, and is inspired by turn of the 20th century Chicago architecture defined by a three column skyscraper comprised of a base column of condo units, the middle column of condo units, and the series of condo units found at the top of the skyscraper known as the crown. Other master planed condo communities include Absolute Condos Mississauga a five tower masterpiece by builders Fernbrook and Cityzen featuring the ‘Marilyn Monroe’ towers. Dubbed the Marilyn Monroe towers because of their curvaceous winding appearance, these two Square One Condos will be landmarks of Downtown Mississauga once completed. The largest master planed condo community in the Square One neighbourhood is being brought to life by a West Coast developer Amacon, and will feature 18 high-rise towers on 30 acre’s of land surrounded by parkland and retail. For more information on Mississauga Condominiums, visit our Mississauga condominiums directory.
Mississauga Condominium Lifestyle
A condominium lifestyle is great for those that would like to live care free. In a condominium you do not have to cut the grass, change your shingles on the roof, maintain the garden, shovel the driveway, or even change the windows. The condominium corporation will look after all the maintenance work, the owners just have to pay a condo maintenance fee. Mississauga condominiums have one of the greatest benefits which is that most if not all utilities are included under your monthly maintenance fee, and all the common elements and amenities are included as well. Most Mississauga condominiums have well appointed amenities areas including such luxuries as fully equipped gyms, indoor swimming pools with hot tubs, full size party rooms, guest suites, media centres, and private theatre areas with games rooms. Many of the top Mississauga condominiums builders have developed landmark projects in Mississauga including Tridel, Conservatory Group, Daniels, and Amacon just to name a few. Many new Mississauga condominiums such as Tuscany Gates, One Park Tower, and Solstice are award winning condo projects within the Greater Toronto Area, and they can all be found right here in downtown Mississauga!
Mississauga Condominiums and the Condominium Lifestyle
If you would like to see all the great condos Mississauga has to offer, click on the link below to register for the Square One Condo Showcase. Or alternatively if you would like a file sent to you with the entire inventory of Mississauga condos [http://mississaugacondolife.com/] currently available for sale you may contact us at MississaugaCondoLife.com and we will send you a file that matches your search criteria within 24 hours.
[http://mississaugacondolife.com/]
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Lifestyle Retailing For Entrepreneurial Retailers
February 22, 2012 By
Lifestyle Retailing For Entrepreneurial Retailers
How is it that retailers like Urban Outfitters, Anthropology, The Buckle, Aeropostale and Hot Topic seem to be able to defy gravity? In the last several quarters, each of these retailers have very positive posted results in an environment where very few publicly traded retailers posted a comp store increase of any kind. How are these stores able to do what seemingly nobody else can, particularly in the specialty store segment?
Each of these stores is testament to the fact that a strong, focused retailer can succeed spectacularly even in the toughest of economic times. Take Urban Outfitters Inc, which operates Urban Outfitters and Anthropology. Richard Hayne, founder and chairman of the company, has been widely quoted for his belief that “big is the enemy of cool”, and many observers have pointed out that the company would rather open a new concept in proven markets than saturate every last retail corner with new stores. They go on to note that no two stores are alike, that each store is given a great deal of autonomy, and that the company places a premium on execution.
All of these are valuable points to take away from the story, but there’s another lesson to be drawn that’s specifically applicable for any small, entrepreneurial retailer building a successful, sustainable strategy into the future.
Walk into an Urban Outfitters or an Anthropology store and you immediately sense that there’s something very different going on there. They are selling apparel and accessories, that’s obvious as soon as you walk in the door, but there’s also home furnishings and décor, as well as books and knick-knacks, even furniture here and there. Then you notice the store layout, fixturing and décor, the salespeople and the customers… the customers. The customers are the giveaway to this story. This store isn’t so much about stuff as it is about a mindset, an attitude, a lifestyle.
Building a store around an attitude or a lifestyle isn’t necessarily new, but seldom has it been done on the scale and with the impact that you encounter when you walk into these stores. Here you can glimpse the future of retailing in a niche driven, Long Tail world, and in these stores you can immediately grasp the immense potential for small entrepreneurial retailers to extend these concepts around their own particular niche and strategy. It’s been called lifestyle retailing. In fact, the very best small entrepreneurial retailers have been practicing lifestyle retailing for years.
Lifestyle retailing starts from a completely different premise than traditional retailing. It may seem like a bit of a cliché to say that lifestyle retailing is customer-centric, but, as you see when you walk into an Urban Outfitters or an Anthropology store, that truly is the differentiating characteristic.
Traditional retailing starts with the products and services to be offered. This may be the result of an entrepreneur’s particular product expertise, perhaps an entrepreneur’s background in a very specific market. It is product driven, and asks the question, “This is what we sell, who can we sell it to?” Growth is often defined as expanding the customer base, reaching a broader audience, finding more customers to sell to, and is measured most directly by transaction counts.
Lifestyle retailing begins with the attitude and lifestyle itself, and all that it represents. It is, by definition, narrow and exclusive, focused on a very clearly defined niche. It is customer driven, focused on a narrowly defined customer who identifies with the attitude and lifestyle, and aspires to be a part of it. It begins with the question, “These are our customers, what can we offer them that fully represent the lifestyle they aspire to?” Growth is achieved by offering these customers a broad array of offerings, in an almost infinite possible number of categories, and is measured most directly by units per transaction.
In lifestyle retailing, the physical store itself most directly defines the lifestyle, in its décor and ambiance. The store is unique, distinctive and conceptual. It is not merely a presentation of merchandise, it is a carefully considered synergy of space, materials, textures, colors, sounds, and aromas meant to excite the senses. Stepping into the store is to fully immerse oneself in the lifestyle, to experience the lifestyle and all that it represents.
The salespeople extend the experience, with their knowledge, interest and enthusiasm, in the very way that they engage their guests. They are actors on a stage, except this is not acting; for them this is real life. Their dress, hair, manner, speech and vocabulary are an integral part of the experience, for they are the very embodiment of the lifestyle. They interact with customers as they would with intimates, for to be part of the lifestyle is deeply personal. Their customers are part of the group, in a profoundly sociological way.
And within this context, business is transacted. Price is not nearly as significant an issue as in other retail strategies, because customers aren’t merely buying merchandise, they’re participating in the community, in the lifestyle. Assortments are often broad and shallow rather than narrow and deep because the lifestyle is the driver, and new items are the key to frequent visits and units per transaction. The merchandise itself may seem to be highly discretionary, but in fact is as essential as bread and milk because it is so closely linked to the customer’s sense of identity. It is, by definition, a fashion business.
As the retail landscape fragments between large-scale corporate retailing descending further into price-driven commoditization of mass market merchandise, and each consumer’s desire for things they treasure as a reflection of their individual interests, lifestyle and identity, the opportunity for entrepreneurial retailers is clear. A retail strategy built and marketed passionately around a personally held, clearly defined lifestyle or interest is the path to building a powerful retail presence and a very successful business.
Lifestyle Retailing For Entrepreneurial Retailers
Ted Hurlbut is the Principal of Hurlbut & Associates, a retail consulting and business advisory firm based in Foxboro, Massachusetts. He is focused on helping his clients increase sales, margins, profitability, and cash flow, and is particularly attuned to the challenges facing smaller, independent, entrepreneurial retailers. You can learn more about Ted, and Hurlbut & Associates, at http://www.hurlbutassociates.com
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How to Live a More Environmentally Conscious Lifestyle
December 27, 2011 By
How to Live a More Environmentally Conscious Lifestyle
You know it, and you definitely have heard it on the news some point in your life that the planet is struggling to cope with the damage that we are causing it. The problems of global warming and other environmental issues are on the rise as the years pass and is something that is getting more of a concern for the people and the planet.
You must realise that we are the cause of all the different environmental problems that are happening to our world and that if you really want anything to be done about it, or if you want to see change then we as a people are going to have to live a life that is more environmentally friendly. There is no choice about this, really if you want to be a part of the damage that is being caused to this planet then continue what you are doing right now and keep on damaging the planet. But if on the other hand you are willing to make positive sacrifices so that the planet will be in a better condition then you are going to have to consider living a lifestyle that is more environmentally conscious.
Number 1 thing that you need to do, is to get rid of the car that you own. The car is something that an average American spends about 8 to 10 thousand dollars a year on, and is something that really costs a lot of money to maintain and causes a lot of damage to the environment. Get rid of it and you are going to be doing your pocket and the environment a lot of help.
Number 2 thing that you need to do to live a more environmentally conscious lifestyle is to spend less on consumer products. You really do not need to be spending so much money on things that you do not need. Really what is the point in purchasing things that you do not need or really particularly desire. All you are doing is contributing to the damage of the planet. So stop your excessive spending today to help make a positive difference to the world today.
Number 3 thing that you need to do, is to live a more minimalist lifestyle, one in which you are not an excessive spender or and excessive consumer of things but instead leading a lifestyle that is more pleasing to the environment. One in which you take regular walks instead of taking the bike etc.
How to Live a More Environmentally Conscious Lifestyle
Danny has been writing articles for nearly 3 years. Come visit his latest website over at www.lowvoltagelandscapelightssale.com/ [http://www.lowvoltagelandscapelightssale.com/] which helps people find the best Landscape Lights [http://www.lowvoltagelandscapelightssale.com/] to create the best light effects.
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