Motivate Staff and Consumers With Gift Vouchers

If you're considering the various options for boosting your staff's performance and encouraging clients to buy your products or use your services, consider schemes that use gift vouchers. To find out why these are so popular and how they could help your business, read on.
Gift vouchers can be harnessed for a variety of purposes - and it's this that forms a large part of their appeal. Whether you plan to launch a consumer-focused scheme or something for your staff, you'll find gift vouchers are an effective tool to have in your arsenal.
There are a number of ways they can be used to improve your engagement with clients, for example. If you plan to launch a new product, why not offer a gift voucher with each purchase to encourage more sales?
Or, you could simply use them to acquire more customers - or encourage existing clients to keep choosing your services. Indeed, the latter could prove particularly beneficial if you operate in a competitive marketplace, as it will help to differentiate your business from your rivals - and even potentially gain some of their client base.
When it comes to staff performance, meanwhile, you'll find reward schemes and incentives can be an incredibly effective motivational tool.
For example, you could boost employee morale by offering rewards for long service or loyalty. Alternatively, you can encourage workers to meet their full potential by offering sales incentives, such as gift vouchers for meeting targets.
Of course, different people are interested in different things, which means what is considered valuable by some may not be by others. This brings us to the next benefit of vouchers and cards - their wide appeal.

Unlike other forms of reward, vouchers can offer tangible benefits for everyone. Should your client base be broad or your staff have a wide range of interests, consider multi-option gift vouchers that can be redeemed at an abundance of familiar names on the high street.
Alternatively, vouchers catering for travel services, leisure attractions and spas - to name but a few - are also available should you be happy to go with something a little more specific.
In addition to these great benefits, such schemes are typically simple to implement and wonderfully cost-effective - something most companies will be concerned with during the current troubled economic climate.
So, why not consider harnessing the power of vouchers to help achieve your business goals today?

Help Clients Start a Business Right by 8 Tips

When clients fail to plan, they plan to fail

Starting and running a profitable business is not rocket science. The 1st reason many people fail is they fail to follow a well-established business development process. Below are 8 tips to business development that, when followed with purpose, will significantly help your business clients and customers improve their chances for growth and long-term success:

1. Test the Waters: Encourage client so close a sale. While this is not possible for all ventures, making a sale validates the business idea on multiple levels, such as who will buy, why they buy, what they'll pay, how much it costs and how much profit will be made.

2. Research, Research, Research: Encourage clients to Web surf and shop the competition to learn how similar businesses define, price, market and sell their offerings. LIttle is new. Take advantage of what works.

3. Connect Clients to Experts: There are over 33,000 "volunteer" business mentors in the U.S. that offer all types of expertise, such as tax, funding, marketing, import/export, govt. contracting, etc. Introduce and help clients to connect.

4. Write the Business Plan: Require clients to write their own plan and invest the time, hard work, learning and focus that will be the keys to their future success.

5. Fund Innovatively: You well know, banks are rarely lending. Get creative. Will customers invest or prepay? Is joining forces an option where client have "x," someone else has "y" and together they're better off? Is contracting for a service versus buying equipment an option, such as a delivery service instead of buying a truck.

6. Recordkeeping: Require clients to demonstrate that they understand and have arranged for reliable expertise for maintaining breakeven, forecasting, cash flow and bookkeeping records. Business success lies in the details of managing the numbers.

7. Defeat Fear Through Knowledge: Asking for the sale is scary. Maintaining financial records can be intimidating. Investing in ones future is risky. Yet millions of people are doing this every day with success. Help clients connect with no-cost business assistance networks to learn how they can do it too.

8. Focus, Focus, Focus. Profitability is the first objective in business. Focus on a sales cycle where revenues exceed expenses. Assist clients with refining and repeating this process before they start something new.

Like most things in life, the more purposefully you engage, the more likely you'll get the results you seek. Good luck!

Should You Have a Business Partner?

Here at the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), we work with all types of  businesses — from sole proprietorships, to partnerships, to corporations with several owners. We’ve seen partnerships work exceptionally well and we’ve seen disasters.
A Successful Partnership
We’ve counseled many small businesses with more than one owner. In a great many of these cases the owners are also a married couple. As one couple said, “We want to continue to stay married to each other and therefore make the business partnership work!” Their marriage is the “glue” that keeps the business partnership working. But what if the partners aren’t married? Several years ago we worked with a non- married couple that started a business that was unique for this area. Soon their personal relationship ended. They separated their living arrangement, but both wanted to continue to work in the business. They did and were successful at it because they both believed in their business idea and wanted it to be a success. Later, one partner married and moved to Seattle. She couldn’t work in the business anymore and wanted her partner to buy out her half. She said “I want to be fairly compensated, but I also want the business to succeed.” Her partner agreed. We worked with them to come up with a buy-out plan that accomplished both goals. The business grew and did succeed.

A Disaster
While we hear more tales of disastrous partnerships than we’d like to, one short example may be illustrative. Two couples, in their late-thirties, fulfilled their dream of moving to the Olympic Peninsula and buying a business. The women were childhood friends. The men were friends as well. The four of them planned to run this business. Within 6 months after buying the business the personal and business relationship between the two couples was destroyed. They found out too late that being friends doesn’t mean you have the same goals for a business or the same values that guide operating it. We offered to mediate, but one couple refused, demanding to be bought out at double what they put into the business a mere six months ago. One couple did buy out the other and the lifelong friendship between the two women was gone.

How to Avoid Disasters in Partnerships
Before you take on a business partner, ask yourself some important questions:
• Why do you want a business partner?
• What financial contribution can your potential partner make to the business? Does your potential partner have access to credit and what is his/her financial situation?
• Do your skills complement each other?
• Do you both have the same vision for the business?

If you do decide to enter into a partnership, it is best to have a written partnership agreement. Although we advise seeing an attorney to assist you with it, here are some issues to discuss with your partner. Your answers will form the basis of your agreement. The first section deals with issues involving “getting into the partnership”:

“Getting Into the Partnership”
~What are the mission, vision, and goals of the business? Of each partner?
~What are each partner’s expectations of the business?
~Will the partners be equal?
~ What is the initial capital contribution of each partner? Are the contributions true investments or loans?
~What commitment of time, equipment, and other resources will you each make?
~What is the value of “other equity” such as “sweat equity”?
~What level of income will you each expect or need from the business?

Once you’ve worked out the issues to get into the partnership, turn to the actual running of the business and how you will do that in partnership:

“In the Partnership”
~ What are the roles and responsibilities of each partner? Who will do specific tasks? How will day-to-day decisions be made?
~Will partners make additional financial contributions?
~How will each partner share in profits and losses?
~What salaries, if any, are to be paid to partners?
~ Will you prohibit outside business activities that would be in competition with the partnership business?
~ How will disputes be resolved? Is there a “managing partner” who will make final decisions?
~Will new partners be added? If so, what procedure will be followed?
~Who can make commitments or expenditures on behalf of the company?

Since partnerships do end, now is the time to discuss how this will happen:


“Getting Out of the Partnership”
~ How will a break-up of the partnership be handled? What if one partner wants to keep the business? What if both partners want the business but no longer want to work together?
~ How will you determine the value of the business in case of death, incompetence, or withdrawal of a partner, or dissolution of the partnership for any other reason?
~Is a partner allowed to sell his or her portion of the business?
~ What happens in the event of the death of a partner? Is it specified in a legal will for each partner?
~ What happens if a partner gets divorced? What legal and financial impacts will that have on the business?

Getting Help in Forming a Partnership

Bringing a partner into your business is a key decision that will either help or hinder the business. We recommend reviewing the issues presented in this article and perhaps making an appointment with the SBDC to guide you and your potential partner in this task. We also recommend getting advice from your accountant and having your attorney assist you with the final agreement, typically referred to as a Buy-Sell Agreement.

The Two Keys to Learning Mental Arithmetic for Kids

Parents ask me what they can do to improve kids' mental health. They are surprised when I mention outdoor play. Oh, sometimes I recommend a parenting course for the parents. Other times I suggest spending more time with the kids... and, at times, I'll suggest encouraging uniqueness or cultivating a spirit of independence in a particular child. For kids with ADHD, I may suggest more structure at home or in the classroom. But... What is the single most powerful and urgent suggestion I offer?

Simple... Grab your kid, go and play outdoors!

Out Of Shape and Stressed Out Kids

We have a nation of obese, play-starved kids who are growing up on video games and living life with cell phones plastered to their ears. Most of the children I see in my counseling practice are in need of more physical activity. And physical activity is good for body, mind and soul! Our kids need to play more and to play outdoors. What a terrific way to combat childhood obesity!

Play-starved kids want and need more time spent in the great outdoors, especially city kids. I saw an eight year-old girl yesterday. When asked what she wished she could have or do more than anything else in her life she replied, "I want to go to the park more often!"

I'll go over the benefits later in the article, but allow me to say the benefits of more outdoor play are fantastic! Think about your kids' mental health... Consider that the average child spends less than 10 minutes a day outside. And allow me to say that our kids absolutely need more unstructured play time outside! Why? Because it is essential for their healthy development and maturation.

How to Help Your Child Live a Happier, Healthier Life

1. You are the key to your kids' mental health, well-being and success. You can be a great role model. Just turn off the TV or put down your electronic gadget and go outside (with kids in tow) and do something! You can take an early morning walk. Shoot hoops, toss horseshoes or go for a bike ride. Get your family MOVING! Outdoor play will make your children happy! And it will keep 'em moving. That is the key to raising a healthy, fit and happy child... more outdoor play.

2. If you want to make a change in a child's life you have to do something different. Otherwise you'll keep getting the same results. So... Visit your local neighborhood, city, state or national park more often. Outdoor play is very helpful for children with ADHD.

3. Teach (by doing) your children to enjoy nature in skillful ways. In other words, take them swimming and canoeing, fishing and rowing, bird watching, hiking and skiing, target shooting and rock climbing. Arrange for them to get good, safe instruction and supervision, and frequent practice, so they can develop the skill set needed for each outdoor activity. And they will learn to love being outside engaging in their favorite sport or activity. You'll find their self-confidence and happiness index growing with each activity they master!

4. Here's a big key to your kid's mental health. Give time for unstructured enjoyment of the outdoors, such as sitting on a blanket, watching the clouds, skipping stones, rolling in the grass, listening to waterfalls and playing tag. Kids really need this kind of stress busting time in nature. Learning to do nothing in a beautiful outdoor area is a lifelong value and skill you'll be imparting. Nature is healing and restful, challenging and stimulating. Kids who are nature-savvy are healthier and happier than others. So get those play-starved kids up and running in the great outdoors!

5. Get friends, family and other kids involved, too. You'll add a nice social component and you'll build strength in the group ethic. You can take your group to the park today and your neighbor can take them tomorrow. Draw upon your support system, consisting of relatives and friends, to help you get your children and adolescents out of the house and into the sunshine. You can find creative ways of setting up an environment for fostering health, success and well-being in your young family members. Outdoor play will fight childhood obesity, too.

The Benefits of Outdoor Play

Greater self-confidence, better attitude, improved mental and physical health, enhanced cooperation and teamwork, opportunities for spiritual growth, a deeper understanding of and respect for wildlife, a healthier brain, improved problem solving skills, and greater happiness, to name a few!

Outdoor play will bring the family together and reinforce all-important family values to guide and protect your child throughout his/her life.

Plus, outdoor play is a wonderful outlet for excess energy for all children and teenagers, especially those high-energy kids or those with ADHD. Outdoor play and time spent in nature can reduce depression, anxiety and anger. Outdoor play can give ADHDers an opportunity to blow off some steam and gain valuable experience stretching their legs, building their muscles and gaining coordination. Also, remember more outdoor play will help your kids fight childhood obesity.

In Closing

Get your kids outside doing, playing and exercising... and having fun doing nothing. You'll give them one of the greatest gifts you could ever give. And you'll help them build a foundation for a great life, full of meaningful endeavor, happiness and success! The key? More outdoor play!

Richard Hamon is a professional therapist and coach with over 30 years of experience. Richard helps people to solve their problems, enjoy truly extraordinary relationships and find meaning, value and success in all areas of their lives.

Five Ways to Simplify Your Life As a Small Business Owner

Most small business owners decided to start their own business because they believed it would allow them the freedom and flexibility to set their own schedule, make their own decisions, and only work as much as they wanted to. They might have thought that running a small business would give them more personal time and the opportunity to explore other activities outside of work. However, the nature of running a small business is such that most small business owners quickly discover that their business is controlling their entire life, and that they are working much harder than they ever did at any previous job. This is why it is always crucial for business owners take a step back and consider ways in which they can simplify their lives, practice better time management, and be more focused on the issues that are truly pressing at their business.
Here are five tips that will help you if you find yourself in this predicament:

1. Quit Sweating the Small Stuff
Don't let the minutia of owning and operating a business get in the way of you working effectively to achieve larger goals. While the small details of your business are certainly important, you can't let them hold you back from the more large-scale projects and tasks that you must accomplish. The lesson applies to perfectionists too: you will either have to let the small details and problems wait, or you will need to expand your staff to take care of them for you.

2. Set Concrete Goals
One way to deal with the issue of having too many projects to deal with at the same time is to set concrete goals and follow timetables. Once a week on Monday mornings, or every day - if necessary - write down a list of the goals you hope to accomplish that week or day. Keep your goals realistic.
Remember how much time you have and who is helping. No matter what issues may arise, ask yourself a few times every day, "Am I doing what I need to to accomplish my goals for the week?"

3. Stop Planning, Start Doing
There is at least one new study, blog entry, book, or Podcast published every week to help small business owners achieve success. Especially when it comes to small business marketing - a rapidly evolving and expanding field - it seems like there is way more information out there than any small business owner could feasibly comprehend and follow. This is why it is more important to take a look at what has actually worked to produce money for your business, and to use this knowledge as your own framework for success. You know your own business better than any author does, no matter how reputable they may be.

4. Allocate a Certain Amount of Time To Your Personal Life Every Week
No matter how pressing the issues confronting your business may be, there is nothing more important than your own health and happiness when it comes to running a business well. Balance is extremely important. If you are feeling overworked, exhausted, or overly stressed out, your emotions might begin to affect the way you work and the people with whom you work. There is nothing worse than snapping at a staff member or a customer because you aren't tending to your own well being. Give yourself a certain amount of time every week to spend with people you love, or doing the things you love, to help clear your head from all the work-related stress.

5. Make Your Workplace Your Happy Place
Regardless of how much you choose to follow the preceding four tips, the fact remains that, as a business owner, you will be spending a very large portion of your daily life in your workplace. This is why it is crucial to make sure that you enjoy your surroundings as much as possible. Hang up pictures of the people you love, bring some of your favorite or most sentimental pieces of art from home, or decorate in whatever other way makes you feel comfortable and at peace. Buy yourself a comfortable chair or invest in a nice sound system to play your favorite album (if the nature of your business permits it). Personalizing your work space and making it somewhere you like to spend your time will reflect in your work ethic and attitude more than you may realize.

Children and Stress

It's after midnight and Naomi's mother hears her in the refrigerator searching for a snack. No wonder she is gaining weight. She can't sleep, again. Tomorrow is an important day at school. Her 4th grade class will be taking a standardized test required by law. Rumor has it, among her peers that anyone who does not score well on this test will not be promoted to 5th grade. Naomi is different. Her 1st grade teacher helped her to understand that she learns differently from most of her peers.

Not only that, poor Naomi has been the tallest kid in her class ever since she was in kindergarten. Her classmates often call her "The Family Tree", a name Naomi has grown to hate. There are two new kids in her class. They are twins and they are bullies. They have chosen Naomi as their first victim. Plus, Naomi was frightened out of her sleep by her parents' fighting three nights in a row. To top it off, Naomi's gym shoes are too tight, she can hardly run around the gym with the other girls at school, the call her slow. Because at least one of her parent's fights has been about money, she is afraid to tell them she needs new shoes.

Naomi has drifted off to sleep several times but keeps waking up with questions. Why won't mommy and daddy stop fighting? Do they know they are frightening me? How can I stay out of the new girl's way on the playground? What should I do the next time she pushes me in line? Why am I still the tallest kid in class? How can I avoid having to take gym class? Why do I new shoes again? Can mommy and daddy afford to buy a new pair? Will they be mad at me? What can I do to make myself stop growing? What if I don't pass that big test? What will happen if I can't do it?

Life can be complicated. It is perfectly normal for children to worry about complications that may occur in their families and at school. Naomi however, spends too much time worrying about complications in her life. She is overwhelmed, feeling overly anxious, and her thoughts and feelings are causing her stress. She has too many situations causing her to feel a sense of urgency and mental tension. Many things have occurred which have given her cause to place emphasis or make important. There are too many things causing pressure and demands on Naomi. She could very well be on her way to developing an anxiety problem or disorder. Naomi is not alone. Many children are stressed by complications of life.

According to the Webster's New World Dictionary of American Language, stress is distress, anxiety, and strain on the mind or body. It is force exerted upon a body that tends to strain or deform its shape. Stress is caused by a sense of urgency, mental tension, and placing emphasis of a thing or issue making urgent or important.

Stress is natural. We all experience it from time to time. Stress is a feeling that's created by the adrenal glands the hypothalamus gland, part of the nervous system, signals it. The signal is triggered automatically when we react to particular events of emphasis and importance. Stress is the body's natural way of rising to the occasion, to a challenge, and responding to a problem. This natural response is the body's way of preparing to meet a tough situation with focus, emphasis, strength, stamina, and alertness. Too much of it, though becomes anxiety. Too much of it, causes the body to spend an excessive amount of time feeling anxious, could cause difficulty sleeping, and often lead to anxiety disorders, even in children.

This is how stress works in all humans. Specific hormones are released in this natural stress response. They cause the heart rate to speed. There is an increase in the body's breathing rate, blood pressure, and metabolism. Next, blood vessels open wider in order to allow more blood flow to large muscle groups. This puts more muscles on alert. Then, the pupils dilate in order to improve vision. The liver reacts next as it releases some of its stored glucose allowing an increase the body's energy. The last physical reaction due to stresses is the production of sweat to cool the body. All of these physical changes prepare a person to react quickly and effectively to handle pressure caused by the stress of the moment. When working properly, the body's stress response makes it easy for a person to perform well under pressure. However, anxiety disorders are developed when the stress response constantly overreacts, fails to turn off when the stressful situation has passed, and regularly neglects to reset itself properly due to continuous stress.

Because it interferes with their abilities, children repeatedly fall prey to many health issues caused by anxiety disorders. Many children have feelings of fear, worry, panic, or intense stress that can sometimes make it hard to get through the day and even the night. It interferes their ability to concentrate at school. It could either increase or decrease their appetite as well as cause them an inability to enjoy life or to relax. A child suffering from an anxiety disorder may be irritable, feel tired excessively, suffer with an upset stomach, tight and trembling muscles, or even suffer with frequent urination.

Teens who suffer from anxiety disorders may be prone the temporary escape found in, withdrawal, overeating, smoking, drinking and substance abuse. Families report that some children resort to cutting themselves and even attempting suicide. Teens choose these negative behaviors because they don't understand that these are temporary and feel helpless to address the underlying problem they face. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, more than two-thirds of a child's visits to the doctor are stress related.

Unfortunately Naomi is joined by many children who are also overly stressed by family challenges, bullying, difficulty learning, or just being different. They may be sad, hostile, or even self-destructive.

There are positive methods for children to relieve stress.

· pray

· play or do something active

· listen to music

· watch TV or play a video game

· talk to a friend

· try not to think about it

· try to work things out

· talk to parents or someone who loves them

· cry

Parents can teach these methods to their children. These methods of self-discipline will help children learn to minimize stress and manage the stress that may be unavoidable.

Let Your Child Get Dirty! It's Essential for Physical and Mental Development

Are you still following your child around worrying that they might stain their clothes? Do you forbid playing outside because they might get dirty? Do you see germs and infections in every step they take? Are you trying to keep away friendly dogs or cute kittens because they might be disease carriers?

Do any of the sentences above represent your attitude towards your child? If yes, you must reconsider. Depriving your child of physical contact with the "Dirty, Outside World" is bad for its health. Sound unbelievable? How can something full of germs be essential for a kid's development?

First of all, your child, in the delicate years between childhood and puberty, develops its immune system. The immune system is designed to defend the organism against millions of bacteria, microbes, parasites, viruses and toxins. But it needs to be trained; just us muscles need exercise to function properly. In order to recognize harmful germs, it needs to meet them first. Then it creates an archive, where it is all installed. When the time comes for a fight, the immune system will be prepared because it knows the enemy. Pure exposure to various microorganisms and other environmental factors leads to pure immune resistance. That means, that the child will be less susceptible to disease later in life. So, don't exaggerate in hygiene matters. Let your child's immune system harden, with the help of dirt.

Your child needs also to be active, run around and feel happy playing outside. Worrying about stains will make the child feel guilty about activities that make it happy. You cannot replace that happiness with clean clothes, or with indoor inactive activities such us TV or video games. This is especially true during the school year. Imagine being seated in a chair while experiencing growth and energy spurts! Getting loose outside home will help the child deal with that pressure.

Don't underestimate your kids' explorative skills. By exploring -not the house of course- it discovers the world. Exploration boosts the imagination as well as creativity, social and physical skills. Well-developed physical skills result in a healthy body. Creativity will bring adaptability, and social skills will bring success and mental health. All those will eventually turn an active child, into a lively, successful healthy adult.

Let friendly animals approach your child. They won't hurt it; they will be of benefit. By keeping animals away you teach your child to do the same. Have you considered having a pet? Children raised with pets show many benefits. Developing positive feelings about pets can contribute to a child's self-esteem and self-confidence. Your child will develop trusting relationships with others much easier. A good relationship with a pet can also help in developing non-verbal communication, compassion, and empathy.

Finally, how important do you think memories are? Memories are moments of our lives, forming our personality. What would you like your child to remember from its childhood memories? Clean, germ-free clothes? Or shiny days outside, filled with laughter and a sense of adventure?

Are you still afraid of dirt? No need to be, after all, dirt is health! So, let your child go and play outside, loose in the dirt. Join in if you get jealous, you might want to get a little dirty too!