Search For Secret Shoppers' Jobs, etc.

Saturday

Gas Mystery Shopping

One of the more rewarding mystery shops I ever did was deemed "Gas Shops." This meant that I was paid to go to various gas stations, fill my car with gas and evaluate the service. For the "trouble" I was paid oh 10 bucks or so. And, I was reimbursed for the gas and received a stipend for mileage.

That's as close one can get to easy money, fast cash. Anything faster is probably a scam.
 
So, if you get involved in the mystery shopping arena, be sure to inquire about the available gas shops.
 
Chris James, Editor
Mystery Shopping (and surveys) Newsletter (free)
 

Sunday

Getting the name of the person in charge of hiring.


Getting the name of the person in charge of hiring.

One sneaky way is to call up and say:  "I had an interview for the ___ job and, wellllll... (sound folksy, drag out a word or two, non-scripted) I wanted to be surrrrrre I got the spelling of the person doing the interview, right because I am going to be sending them a thank you note. Please tell me how to spell their name so I can do just that!
 
I recomend NOT ending with your "command" but adding some filler just after. It softens it up.
 
Become a mystery shopper - free ezine (and all companies are free to join).
 
 

Monday

Making A Go Of It With A Home Business

For many, it has become increasingly difficult to cover costs with one source of income. As such, many ambitious people are looking into coming up with a extra income business generator.  Perhaps the best place to make a go of it is from home.
 
*** Please bookmark our blog and come back for more!
A Comparative Analysis of Equity Loans
 
When considering equity loans, borrowers are wise to weigh out the difference in rates for
refinancing, equity loans, and credit lines. Loans are often based on fixed rate, adjustable rates,
prime rates, and so forth. If the equity has dropped below market value, then refinancing the home
may be a better option than home equity loans or credit lines.
 
Refinancing is a source of releasing "further money," so that the borrower has extra cash to spend.
Furthermore, the refinancing presents a scapegoat for recovering the equity on the home value. In
other words, if the market value dropped, refinancing is your ticket to increase the equity on your
home. Thus, if you want to remodel your home, roll your bills into one, payoff tuition, or else make
new purchases, then the home equity loans are most likely choice.
 
On the other hand, if you feel that you will need extra cash over the next ten years, then you may
want to consider the lines of credit offered. The lines of credits are prime rate loans with stipulations,
but for the most part, if you need money it is available. Most lenders provide their own types of
checks to the borrower when taking out credit lines.
 
Thus, it depends on your needs, but reviewing your different options can help you decide. If you
need to rebuild the equity on your home, then refinancing is the better option; while, if you are
considering debt consolidation, then home equity loans are your best bet. On the other hand, if you
need ongoing cash, then credit lines are the best choice.  Finally, reviewing each option is the best
solution for finding the right loans; no matter what option you choose, you should spend some time
reviewing your different options to ensure you are getting the best possible rates from a respected
company.
 
 
 
 

Friday

Get paid to shop local stores. Free ezine provides links to over 185 mystery shopping companies.
 
 

Thursday

Different online businesses

There are many different online business that you can create and in this article today we are going to look at a couple of different types.  This article focused on creating online businesses and the different types that you can create.
 
The first kind of businesses that you can create when looking to create an online business would be a website which serves a particular niche in the market.  Many people have done on this and this is often done by trying to find an underserved niche, building a website, and then profiting off of this small but profitable match.  A great place to find more information on this particular topic would be www.findhotniches.com. Here the author has created a website which finds underserved niches which you could potentially build a website around.  When you're building a website, you're going to want to find cheap keywords that you can use to help build your business as well as create good content.  By creating the content and then creating back links between yourself and other websites, you'll be setting yourself up to have a high page rank with Google.  By using AdWords to bring traffic to your website and then also developing your natural search engine traffic through building up a website, you will have built yourself a very solid business.  This is just one way of creating online business.
 
Another way to you can build and create an online business is through eBay.  This is an area which was particularly hot several years ago and still remains a solid business proposition.  Many people are able to make a full-time income on eBay.  You will need to find a wholesaler where you can get products at a discount to sell on eBay.  The general idea when working on selling on eBay is to find a drop shipper.  A definition of a drop shipper is a wholesaler sells you a product and will ship the product to a customer.  You will buy the product at the wholesale price and then make money on the difference between what you buy the product for and sell the product for on eBay. Using the wholesaler allows you to focus on selling the product without worrying about stocking the product.  You do not need to worry about any sort of shipping or backend but you will want to make sure that everything gets sent out.  If there are problems with shipments, the customer will be coming back to you and not to the wholesaler to.  If you go to worldwidebrands.com, you will find the best wholesale shipping directory on the Internet.
 
These are two of the different ideas in creating an online business. There are many ways to make money on the Internet but these are two proven methods. You will not have to use a lot of money up front to create these particular online businesses and these businesses can be something that you will have great deal of success with.
 
 
 
 

Sunday

No two people are alike in the MLM business

No two people are alike in the MLM business
 

But there are some shared personality traits that are common to those who have started and operated in MLM already.
 
One of the most common personalities inherent among MLM business people is their entrepreneurial spirit.
 
What are some of these traits that make up an MLM entrepreneur?
 
Self-starter.
 
Self-starters are the type of people who do not just sit around thinking about something over and over again. Yet no action is taken to get things done. They decide on what needs to be done and simply do it.
 
Take this example. You are in need of your own MLM website but income limits you from just hiring a web design company to make that site. As a self-starter, you would go to work about gathering all the information pertinent to web design and development.
 
Then you would develop and design your site. In the end you would have a website that you have developed yourself.
 
One vital trait of a self-starter it to know their strengths and weaknesses and be able to accept them.
Self-motivated.
 
The self-motivated MLM individual has a lot of motivation and drive. Because each person is a unique being, one person's motivations may be different from everyone else's.
 
For example, your motivation for starting your MLM business could be to earn $500 or $1,000 per month or $10,000 or $20,000 per month. Or it could be that you want to home school your kids, and that requires earning an income working from home.
 
Your level of motivation to a large measure will be dependent up on your purpose and level of commitment. It depends on how big your dream is.
 
Creative.
 
The creative individual has a lot of great ideas. They are usually able to come up with good ideas and problem solving solutions. Many of their ideas are often the results of listening and observing other business that is related to MLM.
 
They focus on finding solutions, rather than dwelling on the challenges.
 
For example, if you have a limited advertising budget, you would get to work finding all the available free advertising avenues instead to thinking over and over how limited your budget is.
 
Your creativity would result in expanding your MLM advertising program. You would also have the knowledge from research. Thus, resolving the problem and creating an additional income.
 
Self-disciplined.
 
The self-disciplined individual is one who does not need someone standing over. Or having someone tells them what, how and when to do. They do not need anyone telling to get something done. They are able to determine what needs to be done, then set aside time to do it.
 
An MLM business may fail, many do first time around. But the self-disciplined individual does not accept that they are a failure. They simply learn from the mistakes and use them as a tool to attain success.
 
As an entrepreneur in MLM you should be able to adapt. You will find yourself playing different roles such as: marketer, promoter, public relations, motivator, sponsor, Webmaster...and so forth. You are not afraid of chance and are opened and flexible to them.
 
Successful businesses are not built over night but over time. As a MLM entrepreneur you are willing to go the extra mile, put forth the time and effort needed to build a successful business organization.
 
http//surveys.hothere.com
 
 

Friday

Basic Accounting Principles

Basic Accounting Principles
 
Accounting has been defined as, by Professor of Accounting at the University of Michigan William A Paton as having one basic function: "facilitating the administration of economic activity. This function has two closely related phases: 1) measuring and arraying economic data; and 2) communicating the results of this process to interested parties."
 
As an example, a company's accountants periodically measure the profit and loss for a month, a quarter or a fiscal year and publish these results in a statement of profit and loss that's called an income statement.  These statements include elements such as accounts receivable (what's owed to the company) and accounts payable (what the company owes). It can also get pretty complicated with subjects like retained earnings and accelerated depreciation. This at the higher levels of accounting and in the organization.
 
Much of accounting though, is also concerned with basic bookkeeping. This is the process that records every transaction; every bill paid, every dime owed, every dollar and cent spent and accumulated.
 
But the owners of the company, which can be individual owners or millions of shareholders are most concerned with the summaries of these transactions, contained in the financial statement. The financial statement summarizes a company's assets. A value of an asset is what it cost when it was first acquired. The financial statement also records what the sources of the assets were. Some assets are in the form of loans that have to be paid back. Profits are also an asset of the business.
 
In what's called double-entry bookkeeping, the liabilities are also summarized. Obviously, a company wants to show a higher amount of assets to offset the liabilities and show a profit. The management of these two elements is the essence of accounting.
 
There is a system for doing this; not every company or individual can devise their own systems for accounting; the result would be chaos!
 
 

Saturday

Listing your experience - how far back should you go?

Listing your experience – how far back should you go?
 
One of the biggest concerns in creating a resume has to do with your professional experience. Before you begin your resume, consider the following questions.

- What is your career objective?
- Are you changing careers or looking for professional growth?
- What experience have you had so far that will help in meeting your professional goals?
 
To get started in developing your resume, list all of your previous experience, in chronological order, starting with your latest job on a piece of paper. List the dates of employment, your job title, the full company name and the location of your employment. Now, consider just how much experience you have had. In recent years, it has become more commonplace to change jobs more frequently and not build your career in one place. As such, it is possible that someone with ten years of professional experience following college has had over three jobs. That doesn't seem all that much to include on a resume, right? Consider someone with over 30 years of experience. It is important to set limits on what you include and what you can freely exclude from your resume under your professional experience.
 
Ideally, your resume should not exceed two pages. Depending on the type of jobs you have held and your responsibilities, having only two pages doesn't account for a lot of space. The best practice for listing your experiences is not to exceed the most recent five jobs you have held. Again, keep the mind the length of the resume when you are deciding on the number of jobs you will list – if your last five jobs and their accompanying responsibilities will take over one page alone, than consider narrowing the experience down to the three most recent positions you had.
 
Also, consider the time you spent at each organization you have worked for – list up to the last ten to fifteen years of experience. It is not necessary to list every job you've ever had to showcase your qualifications and years of experience. If you have a long professional career, focus on the last three to five jobs, but use the profile or summary at the beginning of the resume to highlight the number of years you have spent working, or the number of years you have spent in a certain industry, acquiring specific skills.
 
When listing your experiences, it is important that you do so in chronological order without skipping any of the jobs you have held. While you may feel that certain jobs are not particularly complimenting to your current career objective you should not avoid listing them on your resume. Work on highlighting the responsibilities that are transferable across various industries.
 
Leaving any unexplained gaps in your work history will raise questions by your potential employer – thus don't create those gaps on your resume by listing your experience out of order or by skipping jobs you have had. Finally, make sure that your cover letter accounts for any additional qualifications you would like to bring to the attention of your potential employer that you didn't include on the resume.
 
Your resume should be concise, well written, and sell you as the best candidate for the job. Just remember that it is quality over quantity that counts.
 

Friday

Methods Of Saving Money

Methods Of Saving Money
 
Saving is basically putting aside money or a way to utilize your present income for future use.
 
One saves for several reasons such as for a college education, buying a new car, for a new TV set you wish to acquire in three to four months time, for down payment on a home, or to provide for yourself when retirement comes.
 
As much as there are several reasons for saving, there are likewise many methods in which one can save. In most instances, the best method can be determined by whatever plans you have for the future.
 
1. Savings accounts. When saving for just a short period or for emergency purposes, consider opening a savings account passbook, as it is in this method that you can easily gain access to your funds.
 
Great for both long and short term savings, you can deposit and withdraw money to your account and earn interest, based on your average daily balance. A minimum balance is required to be maintained though, and you are charged with a penalty should you fail to maintain it.
 
2. Checking account with interest.  Here one can benefit from checking account conveniences, while your deposits gain interests. Generally these types of accounts grants privileges such as limitless withdrawal and check writing, access to ATM and bill payments that can be done online.
 
This method typically requires a daily maintaining balance of at least $2,000.
 
3. Money market insured accounts. For long-termed goals, this method is ideal, as it generally offers a much higher rate of interest compared to a regular or standard savings account.
 
The interest rate usually is dependent on the amount of money in your bank account; larger balance means higher interest.
 
4. "CD" or Certificates of Deposit.  This is a savings method requiring you to "loan" your money to your financial agency for a certain time frame, usually ranging from thirty days up to five years. Here, the longer the time span again, means higher interest.
 
Keep in mind that usually insurance companies offer better deals on interests compared to banks, so before you invest, compare rates first!
 
At certain times, when your goal is many years away, it can be a wiser decision to save money in a certain way that you are not drawn on using it other than the main reason for saving it. Deciding on the right financial agency such as a bank, credit union or insurance firm can bring about a lot of benefit in your finances.
 
 

 

Monday

"Quo Vadis, New Graduate?"

"Quo Vadis, New Graduate?"
 
According to a recent survey by Job Outlook, for the third year now there is a positive increase in hiring fresh college graduates for 2006.  Business owners plan on hiring more from the class of 2005-06 than they did from the 2004-05 class as well as offering higher compensation and benefits for the new hires.
 
In the annual survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, nine out of ten companies describe the new job market as good, very good, and excellent.  Public accounting and consulting firms narrated the brightest prospect for the future graduates, while engineering and construction firms supported the idea by saying they'll also be hiring.
 
There is a growing demand for new graduates in the job market as a result of the also growing products and services they offer and to keep up with the retiring HR staff. 
 
Who are in demand?
 
• Mechanical engineering
• Electrical engineering
• Accounting
• Business administration/ management
• Economics/finance
• Computer science
• Information sciences and systems
• Marketing/marketing management
• Computer engineering
• Chemical engineering
 
Mechanical engineering graduates topped the list and eyeing on them are aerospace, automotive, mechanical equipment manufacturers.  They also plan on hiring graduates with Ph.D.s in science and computer related courses.
 
Banking, transportation, financial, and insurance services are seeking Economics/Finance graduates.  The food and beverage processing companies, merchandisers, and financial services will need more Business Administration/Management degree holders.  One-third of business owners plan on hiring associate graduates categorized into three: technology, engineering and business related degrees.  Insurance and engineering/surveying companies appear the most in need of 2 year course graduates for they bear a productive kind of technical knowledge which does not require more training.  They belong to the hands-on work force who developed a good work ethic which is sadly observed by employers as missing in previous amateur graduates.
 
During the survey, only 23.5%, (mainly manufacturers) respondents planned on hiring international graduates in 2006. 
 
What qualities should a new graduate possess?
 
• Must have excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Must be honest and has a high regard with integrity
• Can easily relate to others
• Maintain strong work ethic
• Can work well with others –TEAMWORK
• Analytical skills
• Must be self motivated and initiative
• Adaptability to change
• Updated computer skills
• Observant to details
 
The standards of companies' ideal candidates are often higher than the last year's.  It is important that new graduates show good G.P.A.s as full time jobs come with good benefits coming from good revenues.  Salary, should not be the sole consideration when looking for a job, benefits are part of it.
 
Here are some of the lists of benefits:
 
• Life and Medical/Dental insurance
• Retirement plans
• Annual and semi-annual increase
• Employee counseling program
• Dress code
• Paid trainings
• Bonus and commissions
• Family benefits
• Flexi-time
• Performance updates
• Vacation and sick leaves
• On-site fitness and recreational facilities
• Day care center
• Company car/service
 
The best places to seek competitive employers can be on campus job fairs, during on-the-job-trainings, student organizations and clubs, Internet search job search engines, etc.  What's important is that you target the right employers.  Don't let an opportunity pass, get in the interview to know more about their career offers and don't forget to research about the company.  You must be able to discuss your career objectives and compose a list of relevant and creative questions you can ask yourself.
 
 

Sunday

Better Job Search Engines

Better Job Search Engines
 
Job search engines use state-of-the-art technology to assist people in their job quest.  Here you could enter all the relevant information to reduce the lists of sought after jobs to get more accurate results.
 
Because new jobs are being added daily or even hours after, the tendency to see the results you had yesterday may be different from what you see today.  This is where job search engines come in handy.
 
After some trial and error there are a few job search engines that could yield better results.  They allow searchers to see major job sites, companies and even its associations by entering a keyword and location.  Results can be seen in different ways, it could be in a browser list and some sent thru e-mail. 
 
SimplyHired.com, America's Job Bank, Jobster, and Indeed.com are just a few of the search engines that can give you more accurate results.  These sites include over 500 job listings with job boards, prime newspapers, and numerous companies with career pages. 
 
Indeed.com even has an advance search option that could be used to search company names, positions, and even the distance for commuters.
 
America's Job Bank let's you enter the job category you would like to search, then you can enter either the city or the zip code and state you would like to find the job and it gives the list of job openings.  If you're lucky, you can even get the quoted salary from each of the companies you're eyeing on. 
 
In SimplyHired.com aside from the list of jobs open, applicants are also given a short description of the job you're about to handle including the responsibilities to be met even during application.  It also includes the type of company, location and date when the job was posted.
 
Jobster provides the latest job postings from today up to the last 7 days wherein you can also choose the distance you prefer.  This site gives you the ability to see the list of the freshly posted jobs from a variety of sources.
 
How Well Are They?
 
These sites give listings that are relevant and timely, compared to other search engines that generate results a little longer than the others.  Some would even provide results that are far from the location picked out.
 
So far the best among the search engines used is the Simplyhired.Com.  It showed the job title, a link was also provided for posting, a summary of the job description, where the exact current location and where it originated.  The produced results are easy to read, non-confusing with bits and pieces more of information plus the getting around is user friendly
 

Friday

Why Should I Make a Budget?

Why Should I Make a Budget?
 

You say you know where your money goes and you don't need it all written down to keep up with it? I issue you this challenge. Keep track of every penny you spend for one month and I do mean every penny.
 
You will be shocked at what the itty-bitty expenses add up to. Take the total you spent on just one unnecessary item for the month, multiply it by 12 for months in a year and multiply the result by 5 to represent 5 years.
 
That is how much you could have saved AND drawn interest on in just five years. That, my friend, is the very reason all of us need a budget.
 
If we can get control of the small expenses that really don't matter to the overall scheme of our lives, we can enjoy financial success.
 
The little things really do count. Cutting what you spend on lunch from five dollars a day to three dollars a day on every work day in a five day work week saves $10 a week… $40 a month… $480 a year… $2400 in five years….plus interest.
 
See what I mean… it really IS the little things and you still eat lunch everyday AND that was only one place to save money in your daily living without doing without one thing you really need. There are a lot of places to cut expenses if you look for them.  
 
Set some specific long term and short term goals. There are no wrong answers here. If it's important to you, then it's important period.
 
If you want to be able to make a down payment on a house, start a college fund for your kids, buy a sports car, take a vacation to Aruba… anything… then that is your goal and your reason to get a handle on your financial situation now.
 
 
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