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5 Tips for Starting a Property Maintenance Business

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There’s plenty of money to be made in property maintenance, and going into business for yourself can land you the job of your dreams. Be your own boss and work on your own terms. Many businesses enlist the help of property maintenance services in order to stay on top of general maintenance tasks without a dedicated full time staff. You could start your own business to fill this need, and these helpful tips can show you the way.

  1. Work Out Your Legal Concerns
    Going into business requires more than blind ambition and creative effort. The legal side of business is not typically on entrepreneurs’ minds when they start planning out their dreams, but it is an important step in establishing a business of any kind. Make sure that your business is licensed and registered in accordance with state and federal requirements. If you plan to take on employees, make sure that your insurance complies with legal requirements. Give your business a strong foundation by starting off on the right foot.
  2. Decide On a Service Plan
    After your legal matters have been settled, you’ll need to consider just what kind of service you’re going to offer your customers. You might offer your services for painting, plumbing, cleaning or any other property maintenance concern. Figure out what your business will be doing, and come up with reasonable rates for your services. Research the prices of competing property maintenance companies and similar services, and base your service plan on rates that the market can afford.
  3. Promote Your Business Actively
    Once you’re in business, you need to start marketing. Tell the whole world about your new service and try to gain as much exposure as possible. Optimize your business website to generate more web traffic. Use social media as a promotional platform. You might even want to visit potential clients in person to advertise your services and secure accounts. You can never expect customers to come to you; on the contrary, you need to go to them. Constantly brainstorm new ways to promote your business and draw in new customers.
  4. Solicit Customer Feedback
    As your business starts to grow and bring in new clients, always be concerned with optimizing your service to meet the customers’ needs. There could be glaring flaws in your work that you’d never notice yourself, so try soliciting customer feedback as a means of gauging the quality of your service. Listen to what your customers have to say, and make changes in your business that will better suit their needs. This will make your business highly desirable in the industry.
  5. Learn from the Best
    Established professionals in the property maintenance industry can teach you lots of things without ever telling you anything. Look to them as your examples. Emulate their good qualities and seek to improve on others. Check out professional websites like AndyOnCallTampaBay.com to see what the pros are doing. Remember that you don’t simply want to imitate your competitors; you want to surpass them and become the shining example yourself.

How to Build a Career on Wall Street

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There are a lot of us who have watched movies like Wall Street and wondered about what it would be like to actually have a career in the field. However, if you’re someone who is seriously contemplating getting a job in that particular marketplace, there are a few things that you should know; things that can help to prepare for being a strong contender in that particular industry.

If having a career on Wall Street is something that you’re passionate about, we have five tips for you on how you can prepare to get your foot into the door so that you can become a true success below:

You need to have the right kind of personality. Although certain films probably give you the impression that you need to be ruthless in order to thrive on Wall Street, that’s not necessarily the case. The main characteristics that you need to have are that you’re professional, tenacious, focused, good with numbers, a clear communicator and a quick thinker. You need to be able to be extremely solutions-oriented and the kind of person who is not quick to take “no” for answer. (This means that you also need to have a pretty thick skin and not take rejection too personally.)

Be sure to get a quality education. There aren’t a ton of successful people on Wall Street who do not have some kind of college education and preferably a degree. Some ideal degrees to have are ones in the field of business, economics, accounting, finance or marketing. Also, according to many business experts, it can also be highly beneficial to have an MBA too.

Start with the basics. A lot of individuals who work on Wall Street now did not get their start there. They actually worked at a bank or with some kind of finance company so that they can gain some experience and also make some solid connections. Without a doubt, when it comes to working on Wall Street, it’s not just about what you know but who you know, so from the school that you attend to your internships to your first job, make a point to share what your goals are with the people around you and see who can help you to reach them.

Prepare for interviews. As you start to gain the right kind of experience and meet the right kinds of people, in time, you’ll probably be able to set up some interviews. One very important thing to keep in mind with Wall Street jobs is that the interview process can be quite extensive. As a matter of fact, it’s not uncommon for some of them to last 3-5 days if it happens to be at a high-powered firm. During the interviews, be prepared to answer questions about everything from your educational background to what you know about how to trade stocks to what your short and long term goals are. Companies want to be sure that they’ve gotten the absolute best person when hiring on Wall Street.

Know that it’s a lot of hard work. Although people on Wall Street usually dress up for work, make no mistake about it, it’s not easy street. Those individuals work long hours and it can take a few years before they start to see any real fruit of their labor. But, if it’s something that you are passionate about and you stick to it, you can make a name for yourself. Wall Street can be a place where you can thrive and excel, for sure.

5 Tips for Landing a Marketing Job Without a Degree

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Landing a marketing job without a degree is completely possible, but it takes some panache and a little creativity. In today’s complex marketplace, with digital and internet startups taking the lead as giants of industry, getting a job in the marketing field takes some bravery, and you also have to be prepared to be let down once in a while. Right now, there are thousands of graduates around the world vying for jobs at companies with marketing positions. In most cases, a business will take someone with a degree over someone who does not, but there are some cases where if you can stand out from the rest, you have a much better chance of being hired. Here are 5 tips for landing a marketing job without a degree.

  1. If you don’t have a degree you should at least have an impressive resume. This doesn’t mean a long list of companies you have worked for, but it should also show that you can talk the talk and walk the walk. If you can show certifiable numbers and proof that your ideas have increased revenue for prior employers, you might even have a better chance than the candidates with degrees. The more companies that you have helped the better your chances. An employer would much rather see results and real world experience than an actually degree.
  2. You must also be confident. In your job interview with a potential employer you need to know what to say that will impress them enough to hire you. You could possibly get hired simply by speaking confidently about your ideas and visions for their company. Craft a custom marketing initiative for the company where you are applying for and wow them in the interview process.
  3. While you are in the interview, you can always blow them away with an interactive, visual presentation. Bring materials, like stickers, labels and graphs – you can typically find label printing online for less money, which will save you a lot of money in the long run, especially if you have a lot of interviews to attend.
  4. Next, get your foot in the door by asking your friends or family if they know of any companies that might need a hand in their marketing department. It is a lot easier to secure a position without a degree if you know someone in the industry. The less degrees of separation are better, but you don’t to risk getting a job based solely on nepotism alone. If you want longevity, you should at least be right for the job.
  5. Lastly, you can always work your way up. If you don’t have a degree, you might find it easier to secure a lower position that doesn’t require going to college for 4 years. In most cases, provided that you are ambitious and have great ideas, you can usually work your way up to a marketing position in less than 2 years. Remember, it doesn’t usually happen like it does in the movies – you have to be prepared to take dejection and to work extremely hard.

How to Become a Land Surveyor

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When’s the last time that you asked someone “So, what do you do for a living?” and they responded with “I am a land surveyor.” Aside from the fact that it’s rare that it comes up in conversation, the reality is that it’s the kind of profession that a lot of people don’t tend to give much thought to. Yet ironically, we see evidence of people who work in this field on a daily basis because they are the ones who are professionally trained to measure and map out land surfaces and establish land boundaries as well. They are the ones who help to provide the data that goes into the maps and atlases that we use to get from one destination to another.

So, if you wanted to become a land surveyor, what would you have to do? That’s a really good question and we have provided you with three tips on how to become a professional one below:

Make Sure That You Like Math (and Have the Required Education)

There are some people who consider becoming a lawyer until they find out that it consists of a lot of reading and writing. There are some people who consider becoming a teacher until they find out how much paperwork (outside of grading papers) id involved. Along these same lines, you cannot be a successful land surveyor without having a great love for math because you will be applying a lot of it daily. In high school, you’ll need to have done well in subjects like algebra and geometry. In college, it’s best to have a bachelor’s degree in something like mathematics, surveying or geography although some companies will still consider hiring you if you have a two-year degree in surveying or you have many years of experience in the field (although you usually need some kind of degree in order to gain the experience).

Obtain a License

In order to be an official land surveyor, you have to have a license. There are two tests that are administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying organization (NCEES.org) that can get you the kind of licensing that you need. If you have a college degree, you will be required to pass the Fundamentals of Surveying test. If you don’t have a degree, but you do have years of experience under your belt (which for them means that you have accomplished at least four years of professionally supervised work), you will need to pass the Principles and Practices of Surveying test. Once you have your license, you might also want to get a Certified Survey Technician (CST) certification from the National Society of Professional Surveyors. It is something that will make you that much more of a contender in such a competitive field.

Seek Out Employment

Once you are licensed and certified, it’s now time to seek out employment. Whether you would prefer to work for a company like Arthur Howland & Associates or you would prefer to have more of a government job, it’s important to keep your options open to working in mining, architectural and even utility agencies. While land surveyors are paid fairly well (between $31,000-47,000), reportedly, there are only about 55,000 people in the United States who are employed in this field. So, it’s important to be willing to work in a certain industry, even if it’s not your “one of choice”, just so you can get your foot into the door. Once you have the experience, you will definitely have room to grow in the land surveyor industry.

How to Find Temporary Health Insurance When You’re in between Jobs

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Going without health insurance is always a bit uncomfortable. It’s one of those things that isn’t a big deal until it suddenly becomes a major problem. Not everything is a worst case scenario catastrophic accident. But even the flu can feel like a major trauma if you don’t have the support of a quality health insurance policy behind you. Over the next few years changes in the laws will require everyone to have health insurance, but these days the majority of people who have insurance get it from their employers. That’s probably where your coverage comes from. But what happens when you leave that job? Some people move right into another position. Others have a gap of a month or two before starting in on the next venture. The unlucky ones face an uncertain future and unemployment. But you don’t have to face a lack of health insurance as well. Here are a few ways to find temporary health insurance when you’re in between jobs. Continue reading →

Where to Look for Virtual Accounting Jobs

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One of the best things about the growth of the internet and mobile communication platforms is that it has allowed so many skilled professionals the option to telecommute and work from home. And if you happen to have a fair head for numbers and an accounting degree or CPA to back it up there’s no reason why you can’t do away with a lengthy commute in order to take on virtual accounting jobs from the comfort of your home office. The only real issue for most people when it comes to taking this route for employment is finding the jobs needed to pay the bills. So if you’re on the prowl for work-from-home opportunities, here are just a few venues that could offer you the virtual accounting jobs you seek.

When you’re just starting out as a virtual freelancer you might find it useful to get some help and advice from colleagues who have been in the trenches, so to speak. For this reason, it’s not a bad idea to start your online sojourn by signing up for industry forums. These virtual gathering places provide an excellent place for those seeking information, and you can use them to connect with other accountants in order to get the skinny on the best ways to find good jobs in the online arena. You might even get in tight enough with some of your peers that they push their overflow work your way when you’re in need (provided you’re willing to return the favor down the road should you find yourself swamped). In short, these collectives are a great springboard for anyone seeking remote accounting opportunities.

Of course, you might also sign up for a professional social networking site like LinkedIn as a way to both connect with colleagues (and by extension, their networks of contacts) and find jobs. You can peruse the job listings if you like, and the site sends out weekly updates with jobs in your area (and area of expertise) that might interest you. But the major benefit is that you can see how you’re connected to clients offering jobs through your vast network of links. And if you know someone who knows someone you can likely get a referral that could give you the boost you need to nab the position you’re interested in.

There are other options, as well. You might try signing up for freelance sites like Guru, Sologig, and ODesk, for example, which allow you to create a profile and then start applying for jobs. This type of work is a good option for those just starting out because it allows you to build an online reputation that will help you to get better and better jobs over time. But you may also want to consider longer-term options provided by sites like Career Builder, Monster, and even Craigslist. Whether you have a degree from Harvard or accounting.businessdegrees.uab.edu, you may be eligible for longer contracts and better pay thanks to your qualifications. And if you get in good with more prestigious clients you may see repeats and referrals that relieve you of the burden of chasing down jobs.

The Pros and Cons of Physically Demanding Jobs

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It’s pretty obvious if you check the available job boards these days that the careers most Americans pursue are far different now than a half century ago. In today’s business world, when people think about ‘working with their hands’ it’s most often to type on a keyboard or scroll with their mouse. The middle class is built on white collar jobs, and the vast majority of the workforce make a living inside, in a sedentary environment. Yet there are still those jobs that leave you grimy and sweaty. Finding work in construction, as a house mover, in farming, in machine shops or manufacture is still possible, and as with any career each position brings its share of upside and downside. Here is a quick look at the pros and cons of physically demanding jobs, that should hopefully help you during your search.

Americans today are fatter than ever before. Juvenile diabetes is becoming an epidemic, and the percentage of people who qualify as obese is constantly on the rise. You can point to the high sugar and fat content in foods as one of the culprits, but another is our sedentary lifestyle. Office jobs and commuting will see you sitting on your rear end for ten hours a day, and many people then go home, watch television on the couch for a couple of hours and go to bed. All told, the time you spend in physical activity each day is minimal. If you work in a physically demanding job those numbers are switched. You’ve got built in exercise, which helps your overall health and could lead to improved wellness and longevity. When you’re on your feet all day hauling gear and building up a sweat you don’t have to worry about squeezing in gym time. You can relax after hours knowing you’ve put in your work. And you’ll reap the benefit with a slimmer waistline and fewer trips to the doctor.

That physicality has its dark side, however. These strenuous jobs vastly increase your chances of getting hurt while at work. You can throw your back out, pull muscles, break bones, and even lose limbs depending on the danger inherent in your career choice. That’s a much longer list of issues to worry about than an office worker faces. And as you age, the toll these careers take on your body will add up. You’ll notice it in increased joint discomfort and issues of chronic pain. Taking care of yourself will be that much more crucial, and the older you are the easier it can be to hurt yourself. The last thing you want is to have to rely on worker’s compensation pay because you’ve been handicapped on the job.

Another negative inherent in physically demanding jobs is that they often don’t pay very well. Even when the work involves a high level of skill it is still considered ‘blue collar’, and you will be limited by an earning ceiling much lower than in specialized fields. If you’re trying to support a family these limits can be incredibly stressful, and potentially lead to emotional pain and substance abuse issues. Physically demanding jobs aren’t easy, and you’ll work incredibly hard. Doing so for a low hourly wage can be seriously demoralizing over the long term.

However, you will find no shortage of these jobs. Since many people aren’t up to the challenge a physically fit worker will almost always be able to find employment, even during a recession. Construction continues, fields need to be farmed, and people don’t always reach out to places like www.townmove.com when they relocate. If you’re looking for part time work, or work while you finish school these positions can help you meet all of your goals. And you don’t often need a specialized degree to find work. You can get started earning right away, and if you do a good job you’ll always receive recommendations that help you land the next gig.

Could Your Online Reputation Hurt Your Chances of Finding a Job?

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We live in a time of incredible interconnectedness. It wasn’t that long ago in the span of human evolution when you might go your entire life never leaving the small town where you grew up. Before flight, traveling to far off lands took weeks or months. Now you can hop on the internet, open up a video conferencing program and speak to someone across the world in real-time. Boundaries are dropping, and friends and families separated by distance can now stay in touch as easily as if they live across the street from one another. The prevalence of social networking has only increased the scope of this engagement. Miss an old friend? Hope onto their Facebook profile and check out the latest photos of their dog, where they went for dinner last night, and the exact location of their new home. It’s an incredibly powerful tool, and hiring managers frequently use it when deciding between a couple of candidates for an open position. And the rub is, you cannot always control what is there to be discovered. So could your online reputation hurt your chances of finding a job?

It’s a complex situation, that deals with issues of privacy and the true cost of technology. But the quick answer is that yes, it could certainly hurt you if you aren’t careful. Want to see how? Pick any famous person and search their name on Google. Do one search for news, and another for images. If they haven’t properly managed their online visibility you might find all sorts of gossip, damaging accusations and less than attractive photos. Imagine if they were looking to get hired by a company that has a very conservative reputation. Would they miss out on an opportunity because of it?

Think of the internet as a massive brain with a perfect memory. Anything that is uploaded to the web since its inception is still there, accessible by anyone with a bit of training and motivation. So if you have lied on your resume in some meaningful way, that lie can be uncovered on the internet. If you are applying for a job that would require some visibility with shareholders or the public, or a position with a great deal of responsibility you should always expect they will hunt down your resume details in advance of making their final decision. Things like lying about a previous job or a degree you received will always be uncovered, thanks to the internet.

Depending on your usage, social networks can also hurt your chances of finding a job. This is especially true for recent college graduates who have used their social networks as accounts of their various debaucheries. If your social media profiles are covered with images of binge drinking, drug use or other inappropriate behaviors you should not be surprised when you get passed over for your next opportunity. You should always look over your accounts prior to applying for a job and clean them up as best you can. Again, keep in mind that online photos can always be found if someone tries hard enough, and the best rule of thumb is to simply not post something that you wouldn’t want coming up during a job interview. But at the very least change your privacy settings so your photos can only be accessed by direct friends, and never ‘friend’ people you work with.

In the end, you cannot overstate the importance of reputation management. This is a difficult time for a job search. Opportunities are limited and you will always face steep competition. In many cases, over-qualified professionals are even making lateral moves or taking a step back just to have reliable employment. You never want a questionable online reputation to stand between you and your next opportunity. Be aware of the public nature of the web and always err on the side of privacy just to be sure.

Finding a Job When You Don’t Have Access to a Car

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These are tough times to be out of work. The economic recession that hit in late 2008 has begun to loosen up, but unemployment rates are still sky high and most companies are only recently considering new job applicants. That crunch has left millions of people to fend for themselves, burning through their emergency funds and picking up whatever random part-time or short term jobs that could be had, no matter how mundane or low paying. And the sad part is, even those jobs are tough to come by. So what can you do if you don’t have a car? Most jobs demand that you have a driver’s license and a car. But in these difficult times you may have had to drop that car payment just to make ends meet. As long as you are willing to work hard a be a bit creative you don’t have to despair. Here are a couple of tips to help you find a job when you don’t have access to a car.

First of all, consider any opportunity that allows you to work from home. Start off with jobs you can do if you have an internet connection and a computer. These are far-reaching, and often don’t require a great deal of experience. One simple way to get started is to sell things on eBay. It’s not a ‘job’, per se, but many people make a steady part-time living this way. If you have some experience in customer service you could get work as an outsourced employee for a call center, connecting with present or potential customers for a large number of businesses. If you are a strong writer you could pick up work writing articles for blogs and general information sites, or tutoring kids on essay writing. If you have experience as an educator you could teach online courses or exam preparation programs. Tech-savvy individuals could design and program apps for mobile platforms, handle outsourced IT troubleshooting for large companies or work as a freelance web designer. Millions of people make a great living working from home, so don’t forget about this option.

If none of the above work for you, consider options for public transportation. Regardless of where you live in the country, chances are you will have some sort of access to a population hub. If you have to spend extra time commuting by bus, train or subway it may feel like a hassle, but it’s far better than the alternative. This is also one of those situations when you may need to get a little creative. Do you have a friend who lives in the city you could stay with? It may be worth it to live with that friend during the work week and then go home on the weekends. You can take some of what you would have spent on the commute and contribute to his living expenses, making it a win for both parties.

Finally, consider some jobs where access to a car isn’t a requirement. For example, taxi drivers are given their vehicle for use, and then they turn it in at the end of the shift. As long as you can get there you won’t need your own car. The same goes for bike messengers or delivery people for UPS or any of the other major postal and shipping carriers. In most of these situations, as long as you can get there you’ll be fine. You’ll find similar opportunities working in public spaces such as museums, stadiums and concert venues.

Remember not to let the situation leave you defeated. After all, there are many perks to not owning a car. You don’t have the expense of monthly lease payments, or registration and insurance (regardless of the rates you may be offered at Cheapcarinsurance.net). You also won’t have to concern yourself with the rising cost of a gallon of gas, or how your hours spent driving are impacting climate change and the future of our planet. Certain jobs may be out of your reach if you don’t have a car, and you may need to relocate or face long travel time to find employment. But you will always have options, as long as you take the time to seek them out.

How to Evaluate Employee Benefits When Looking for a Job

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At long last the job market is beginning to turn around. While the economy as a whole is still in rough shape, unemployment numbers are trending in the right direction, and companies are hiring again. You shouldn’t have to take any job out there just because it is available and offered, but can actually pick and choose a little bit. And one of the aspects of a job offer you should certainly take a close look at is the employee benefits package. That’s all of the perks that don’t show up on your pay stub, but are often the elements that actually leave you most excited to get out of bed in the morning to head for the office. Of course, you have to know what to ask for and what to look for, and there are a lot of variables. So here is how you can evaluate employee benefits when looking for a job.

The first, and quite arguably most important benefit you may receive is medical insurance coverage. There are a couple of different ways to analyze this. First off, determine exactly what is covered. Most companies include standard medical insurance, but some of the better benefits packages will also include dental and vision care as well. Make sure you find out what type of plan you would receive, exactly what expenses it would cover as well as the specifics of deductibles, co-pays and exclusions. Obviously the less you have to pay each month the better, but any sized plan has an actual cash value you can calculate and consider a part of your overall compensation.

Next, look for other types of insurance the company is offering. Many larger companies will provide some amount of life insurance, which is always good for peace of mind. Depending on the type of job you might also receive travel, disability or accidental death insurance. Any of the above that are offered for free you should always take, but if they expect you to pay into it you probably shouldn’t. Disability insurance is probably the most important of the bunch. Look for specifics on how much of your salary the company would pay and for how long, and whether that percentage would raise or lower over time.

The next thing you should look at is probably the one you’ll ask about first, and that’s the holidays and vacation days you are allotted. Many companies will give you a specific amount of days off during your first year of employment, and that number will increase in coming years. Determine what your maximum number of days allowed is, and how it will grow over time. When it comes to holidays, you know you’ll get the six major United States holidays off, but many companies will take some of the minor ones off as well. Holidays and vacation days that are paid are a great benefit, especially if you can bank them for the future if you don’t use them all.

Now you should consider any reimbursements the companies are offering. These could be tuition reimbursements if you go back to school, money for gym memberships, commuting costs, parking, overtime, or your cellphone plan. These aren’t often offered, and definitely show that the company is considering your well-being and wants your experience there to be positive. Each one can be considered cash in your pocket, so in a way they make your paycheck go farther. Simply add up the dollar value and put it on top of your compensation.

Finally, look long and hard at the long-term financial offers included in your benefits package. These could include profit sharing, pension plans, stock options or a 401k. You might need a financial planner to review the details of each one with you, as understanding the 401k maximum contribution 2013 laws or the details of an employee stock ownership plan might well be beyond your expertise. These benefits are usually given by companies that want employees to stay for the long haul, and should certainly be a real consideration. But they will only help you if you stick in that job for years and years, so don’t take a job you aren’t enthusiastic about solely because of these benefits.