The year has caught on already, so thinking about your annual leave, however far off that may be, is completely justified. The pressures of career work and domestic responsibilities are draining, and holiday breaks help us rediscover whatever energies we might have lost.Travelling is perhaps the best thing you can do when you have a couple of weeks off from work. There are significant emotional and psychological benefits gained from it. You learn more about yourself, and you are able to appreciate the immensity of the planet.Travel has evolved with the times, and now it’s much more convenient. The interconnectivity of the globe is to thank for this expediency. There are of course some less desirable changes that will occur this year- such as the elevated air fair prices and the increased costs of hotel accommodation. But the gains made far outweigh these trivial disadvantages. Here are 5 travel tips that will make your traveling more enjoyable and comfortable.Plan Ahead
The better you plan, the greater the chances of your vacation going well. Planning enables you to have an objective look at your finances, and this helps you know what you can afford and what you cannot. It doesn’t matter how many months precede your travel; start making the plans on paper right away.Use Technology
Unless you plan on travelling off the grid, make use of technology to serve you. There are many travel apps to help you plan an itinerary, and many applications that can help you overcome the challenges of travel such as currency exchange rates, local languages, points of interest, accommodation and so on.Use Low Cost Carriers
Unless your flight is across continents, opt for low cost carriers. They have their shortcomings and inconveniences, but the savings they make you are significant enough to offset these other concerns.Don’t Go It Alone
A sunset is never quite as beautiful when you watch it alone. For travel, you need someone to share the adventures with. Besides, you’ll find awesome deals for couples, so there really isn’t any good reason to go it alone.Remember the Stills
Every moment you experience in your travel is a moment you will want to hold on to. Most mid-segment to high end phones offer enough in terms of photography and should suffice for quick snaps. But for the best photos, consider a DSLR. The resolution achieved by these is always more desirable.Stick to these tips and your 2014 holiday travel plans should unfold nicely.
5 Insightful Travel Tips for Your Holiday Break
Assessing a Development Site Part 1
The essence of pre-planning viabilityOften you notice a development site advertisement may be for 3 units accompanied by the initials STCA (subject to council approval), but when you seek the agent’s opinion, they suggest that you might even get 4 units. Could it be their knowledge of planning laws is weak? The fact is agents are rarely adequately experienced to offer a judgment on the development prospects of any potential site.Many second rate developers go to council offices to consult with planning personnel, unfortunately they are told to present an application since the council will not offer an opinion on highest possible development prospects as different council workers will give you different opinions.Why is expert pre-planning necessary?In locations like Victoria, each piece of land is subject to the Res Code planning policy guidelines by the state government as well as the decisions and policies of the council which include its development plans, tree policies and at times some environmental management policies. Other authorities such Melbourne Water and Vic Roads also affect prospective developments.Apart from considering the above, you need to be conversant with recent property and planning law changes as these constitute often change. In addition every site has unique characteristics that deserve a developer’s attention. Land terrain, drainage and accessibility to transport will also contribute to limiting the number of residences to be constructed on a site.As with other types of investments, precise information of city planning increases the chances for achieving great financial returns. Pre-planning advice from a seasoned real property manager will tell you of prospective planning hitches early.Often, an application which most developers regard as simple, for example the nature of occupancy, can be delayed in the council for more than a year because of an objection by neighbours or councilor’s general opposition to the project.Using a planner with your project architect will tell you in advance of any chances of an objection to the development by the neighbours. Such knowledge allows you to organize a plan with high chances for rapid assessment.The importance of the above cannot be overstated. Developers have gone bankrupt waiting for applications to be dealt with by council officialsSetbacks and the building envelopeThere are a myriad of things to look for and consider when choosing a property for development and each type of development will have different criteria to meet; i.e. if your aim is for a 5 unit site there will be different setbacks required to those for a dual occupancy site. Setbacks relating to existing homes, where you want to put another dwelling, are usually different again.Definition of setback as per Legislation.vic.gov.au – “setback” from a boundary or building, means horizontal distance from that boundary or buildingBut firstly, what is the building envelope? This term refers to the area of land within the boundaries of a site that a building can be constructed on. Building envelopes vary from council to council and from site to site depending on their size. It is not a standard size.Even though this hypothetical block may well be above 900m2 you will see there are four constraints marked on the site;1. “E-1 Easement” running parallel to the rear fence2. A significant “Average Front Setback” for this street3. An allowance for the driveway4. An allowance for “Private Open Space”These four constraints alone can effectively halve your building envelope. Victoria’s Planning Scheme for residential developments RES CODES, Clause 55, defines 34 such constraints, so be sure you read it thoroughly and understand it. If you discover the building envelope of your site is too small, you will need to make some compromises. You may discover the compromises you need to make dramatically affect the outcome of your proposed development or subdivision. One way of keeping your proposed building size is to reduce the car parking. But this can creates a problem too – reducing the number of bedrooms you are permitted to have for example.Let’s say you want your development to consist of 3 three-bedroom townhouses, and you want them all to have double garages but you discover the building envelope is too small to allow for this. You will then have to scale it back; i.e. to maybe 2 three-bedroom townhouses with double garages and 1 two- bedroom townhouse with a single garage. In the worst case scenario you might find you have to change your development so it consists of two townhouses instead of three.It might even affect the feasibility of the whole development as your return may be too low to make it viable.There is a rule of thumb that many planners and developers use when it comes to working out the site allowance for each dwelling. Before deciding to purchase they allow 250m2 per dwelling. If there isn’t that much space they don’t purchase. They use this rule this rule of thumb without paying for the assistance of professionals.As a result they can run into problems when it comes to what can actually be permitted. Assumption can be a dangerous thing, especially in development. It may be they have a 900m2 parcel of land, they do their figures and come to the conclusion they’ll be able to get a planning permit for three townhouses because purely on a square metre basis, the land exceeds the allowance of 250m2 per dwelling.Where they come to grief is in working within the constraints of the local Council’s planning requirements. If you ignore them and your proposed development does not fit within these constraints, your site will not get a planning permit.Of course, there are times when the building envelope is just simply too small to develop the number of townhouses you’d like, and as we mentioned earlier sometimes if you have to scale back too far, the project ceases to be viableFront SetbacksNow, let’s say the house to the left of our proposed development site has a 6 metre setback from the front boundary, and the house to the right has a 3 metre setback. If you study the street line and you discover 3 metres is the average setback, then you can usually start the new dwelling at 3 metres. If, on your site, there is an existing dwelling with a setback of 6 metres, and you’re going to demolish it and re-build, you will have 3 metres more to build on than what is already there. You’ll find that setbacks usually follow the street line. The front setback rule varies from Council to Council. The usual formula is the average of the setbacks of the properties on either side. However, the setback formula can extend to more properties on either side as well as those across the roadConnections – look underground firstIt is of the utmost importance to know where the assets are in order to connect such as a new sewage pipe or new storm water system. I knew of one development in an old low-key area where there wasn’t huge amount of profit to begin with and the underground assets hadn’t been looked into prior to purchasing the property. The developer had permits granted and contacted us about a problem when he wanted to subdivide.The water authority for the area conducted a search in order to give him the information he needed to connect. They discovered their sewage pipe was 6.2 metres underground. Unfortunately according to their rules and regulations, anything below 6 metres required a manhole to be placed to give access to the asset. In most cases, for anything less than 6 metres we are able to use what is called maintenance shaft which is basically a shaft that goes down to the asset so the authority’s workers are able to access the asset in the case of a blockage or for other work that may be required. In this case, because it was deeper than 6 metres, they required a manhole.The price of the manhole was $15,000. This client had a profit margin of approximately $45,000 and he stood to lose $15,000 prior to starting the labothe slab – just to get the sewage connected! It was not a good situation to be in. The water authorities wouldn’t budge so he lost over 25% of his profit to a man hole.From this you can see why it is so important to establish where the assets are. Once you know how far underground the pipes are, it’s probably a wise idea to check with the water authority to ask if there’s anything specific that affects them. If there are any pipes more than approximately 2.5 metres underground, then I would definitely be checking with the water authority as they may have rules about how to connect and the costs. Some water authorities tell you which plumber to use. You can’t go to your own plumber and to negotiate a better deal, you have to use their plumbers. It’s a case of, ‘their asset, their property and their way.’ Checking where the easements lie and having a good look into what affects them, is something you need to do before you purchase.Condition of Existing homesIt is important that when you are purchasing an existing home you check the normal faults that are likely to exist if it has not been well care for. These very basic checks that will ensure you buy a good property.First check whether the structure has decayed because of possible water leak, or has termites, or other pests that destroy the structure, if a given property has evidence of these, then more investigation is necessary. A good starting point is the power stumps because you can always tell the condition of the property by looking at the bottom. If it is dirty and decayed it is time to call a professional inspector to check all of these for you. A good starting point to look for a good industry professional is http://www.plansandpermits.com.au.Make sure you also check other important factors such as the area in which the property is located as it will tell you more. Finally however the final decision lies with you.Among the questions you should be able to answer before parting with your money is whether it is liveable, or is substantial cleaning required before you can move in as it will add to your cost not even counting time used cleaning. Also, is the style of the property suitable for incorporation into new development, or will it need to be demolished? As demolition will add more cost to the project, is it possible to make improvements on the existing property by adding new design? Does the property need an additional carport or can it be converted to a room? Will the extensions need to be removed especially the rear ones?If you answer these questions satisfactorily you will find you have purchased a great property at a bargain price. For example the back yard may not meet development criteria (size wise) yet by removing a car port or extension – sometime even part of the home – it can open the door to a new dwelling. Obviously you don’t tell the agent!I once purchased a home in Bentleigh that developers had knocked because of lack of room in the rear yard. I ended up with a great purchase and placed 2 units in the rear by removing the extra living room at rear. Of course costs have to be taken into account prior to purchase, if you are planning on removing a part of the home so please do your homework or you may end up throwing all you profits away. Most people don’t realise that the existing home is the key to the success of the rear dwellings. If the site is a battle-axe block then the new home in the rear must complement the existing home. I have seen many developers do up a great new dwelling at the rear of existing dwellings only to totally forget about the old existing home, they are still wondering why three different agents and six months later why they can’t get a sale for their new dwelling??Res Code Requirements on Driveway widthsYou should always observe driveway widths when developing property. The Res Code clearly states the acceptable average driveway width for battle axe and Multi units’ sites is three metres between boundary walls, with some exceptions. In order to be on the safe side, it is advisable to follow the established rule of thumb, by going for properties that have a driveway width of 3.1 metres. You should remember that the measurement is taken from the eve to the boundary. This seems to be one of the most misunderstood rules, as in the 14 years I have been in the property development industry, I have only encountered one planner who knew the rule existed and can be enforced. If you want to be on the safe side then observe the Res Code.You can get a good deal if you encounter an agent unfamiliar with the property development business, as it is possible to convince them that the property is not for further development and it’s for use as a home or as investment as this will keep the price down.North facing propertyIt’s important, but not essential to locate north facing property. At least the proposed development should be positioned with the entrance facing north. If the living area is facing north the property is likely to attract more buyers. Most buyers want to have sunlight during morning and then later have the sun while having good time in the garden. Too much sun can be problem however if you need to put blinds to block the sun.Vegetation – trees and other mattersNow we are going to look in the back yard; the thing we need to find out about here is the vegetation or the trees. Most councils are in favor of keeping as many trees and as much greenery as possible, so if your back garden has trees, you need to get an arborist to tell you if you can cut the trees down. It is important to do this before purchasing the property. I have seen many applications for permits rejected because one tree couldn’t be removed. Remember the majority of councils will not allow the removal of a tree until they have an independent arborist’s report, stating it is not important to the area. If it is it will be difficult to remove but it may be dying or dangerous, in which case the arborist will state this and it may be deemed necessary by council to remove the tree, something the arborist can then organise to do. An arborist’s report will cost anything from $500 to $1000 depending on how much work is involved and it is definitely wise to use one prior to purchasing a property that has trees.
A Closer Look at The Education in India
The Indian Education System is one of the oldest systems of the world. Even before the number and alphabet systems, Gurus or sages used to impart knowledge orally to their Shishyas or students. This information was passed on from one generation to the other in many varied forms, from folk tales to various physical activities and tasks. The Indian education system was rich and highly respected in its form so much so that the students used to rank their Gurus even above their parents. Later on, manuscripts and teachings were written on palm leaves, temple walls and later, on paper. The teacher-student was considered very pious and even poor students used to offer their teacher some form of contribution, be it in the form of money, fruits or even pledges.
Today, the Indian education has taken on a completely different form. With the rise of modern, globalised India, education in India has raced forward with huge and successful leaps. For those who can afford good quality education, there are hardly any hurdles in their paths. But even for the poor and lesser fortunate strata of the society, the government has launched various policies and initiatives. In order to promote free education among poor children till the age of 14 years, the government has banned child labor and fervently launches various schemes like the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA) to entice more and more children to take up books. Apart from these schemes, the youth of India is waking up to its responsibilities and carrying out various individual, non-profit activities to impart knowledge to these children. And not just children, even the elderly and the women are coming forward and becoming an active part of these initiatives.
The youth of today rising India has played a major role in bringing about this change. Education initiatives like the “Each One, Teach One” program encourage young people of urban India to come forward and teach children from the deprived areas of the society. Moreover, professionals from established universities and schools are called in to support vocational training programs. To promote secondary level education and to make these children aware of its importance, the SSA has been further extended into Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyaan. It is because of the youth of our country, equipped with global level education and the support of strong governing policies that the Indian education system has attained new heights. The country constitution states the Right to Education as a very fundamental one and makes it compulsory for every child to be educated till the senior secondary level.
The higher education of India is the third largest in the world after China and the USA and is equipped with better infrastructure and highly qualified and eminent teachers. The University Grants Commission is the highest governing body at the tertiary level and works along with government to promote and regulate various universities. In the year 2009, it was noted that India has 20 central universities, 215 state universities, 100 deemed universities, apart from many other colleges. With all these provisions, the country’s education system is sure to soar high.
The Secret of El Salvador – Terrific Beaches Just Minutes From a Major Airport
If airlift is the key to the second home door, then El Salvador is the best bargain on the street. It may look like a fixer upper because of the country’s history with hurricanes, earthquakes, war and poverty but its main airport – now the hub of all of Central America soon will be hosting more than 2.5 million passengers a year – is 20 minutes from the region’s Costa del Sol and some of the finest beaches on the West Coast. If there is one single amenity that drives second half traffic it is waterfront property and El Salvador has 200 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline that few North Americans have ever seen, let alone researched for a real estate purchase.
El Salvador, from the Spanish word “The Savior”, is bordered by Guatemala on the west, by Honduras at the north, by Nicaragua and the Gulf of Fonseca on the East, and by the Pacific Ocean on the South. It is the smallest country in Central America, and has the highest density of population in the region and has the second largest U.S. Embassy in the world. The distance between San Salvador and neighbor capital cities of Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua is about the same (4-hour drive). Approximately 70 percent of the regional commerce is concentrated in these four countries.
TACA International Airlines, owned by a Salvadorian family, operates about 65 percent of all the traffic in and out of the El Salvador International Airport also known as Comalapa International Airport. TACA, which is expanding its hub in El Salvador, provides non-stop service to San Salvador from Toronto, New York, Washington, D.C., Miami, Los Angeles and Chicago and recently purchased a string of regional carriers that will provide additional flights within Central America and the Caribbean. Delta (Atlanta), United, Continental (Houston) and American also provide direct flights to the country’s capital city.
Compared to U.S. coastal communities, homes in El Salvador are an absolute bargain. For example, Joan Rich Mantecón, a San Francisco Bay-area Realtor who specializes in international second homes (www.internationaldwellings.com), had listed for sale a five-bedroom, three-bathroom home on the beach at Playa San Diego, south of La Libertad, in May, 2007. This fully air-conditioned house had been painted inside and out in 2004, had two swimming pools and Jacuzzi, a five-room servant-renter quarters, large gazebo for hammocks, outdoor BBQ and enough room to park five cars in the backyard. This property is 20 minutes away from the airport and also 20 minutes away from Santa Tecla where there is a Costco and various malls. There’s a seafood restaurant on the beach only steps away and the home’s caretakers live across the street. Price? $325,000.
5 Personal Fitness Tips to Follow After Delivery
Pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding take a drastic toll on your body. After childbirth, a woman’s routine becomes much hectic because of the newborn baby! A mother may at times, feel blessed to have even a few hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Nevertheless, personal training experts say that a proper fitness program and nutritious diet can help you get in shape quickly.
Be cautioned though. A mother of two and a personal training expert says that transformation does not happen overnight. However, with regular exercises she eventually had a body, which was better than she ever could have at her age! So, if you are planning to undertake some post-pregnancy exercises, now is the chance to get a body that maybe you dreamed of having, all those years!
1. Develop realistic goals
We know the first few months after having a baby are very special. Your baby is dependent on you for everything and you can’t leave their side for long too! However, you have to take out time for yourself. Do not exercise to fatigue. Take it slow but do not ditch exercises completely. Exercise when your baby is asleep and go for walks with your baby.
2. Exercises to do
Start practicing Kegel Exercises whenever you have spare time at hand. Take a deep breath and while exhaling, imagine your vaginal opening getting pulled up toward the inside of your belly button. Relax when inhaling. Repeat this procedure 20 times.
Another exercise to do is Tommy Toner. Inhale while expanding your belly. Pull your belly button toward your spine as you exhale. Again, repeat this 20 times.
3. Use dumbbells
Weight training is one of the most effective ways to have a better-shaped body. Even 2 or 3 sessions in a week, each of 20-30 minutes can bring some noticeable difference.
With weight training, you will have more lean muscles and less of body fats so not only do you lose weight but you also become stronger.
4. Don’t eat snacks or fast foods
With less time at hand and more tasks to do, some women may grab processed snacks and fast food without thinking about the damage they are doing to their fitness program!
If you are busy, have shakes instead. Eat healthy and more natural snacks such as nuts, fruits or a cup of low-fat yogurt. You could go to a nutritionist for some great snack ideas.
5. Hydrate yourself
Drink plenty of water, before, during and after your fitness training exercise. Lactating mother should have at least 8 ounces of water before and after their exercises. If your urine is clear or pale yellow in color, it means you are drinking enough water.
How to Create a Successful Marketing Video For Your Business
When it comes to creating videos for a small business, I typically find there are a couple of common thoughts going through the minds of most company owners.
1) Is video marketing really going to produce the results I want for my business?
2) How much time and money am I going to have to invest into creating a marketing video?
These are both very good questions and before getting into something like video marketing, you as a business owner should have a thorough understanding of exactly what you are going to get out of the process.
These uncertainties also boil down to a series of sub-questions. For instance:
- How much money is this going to cost me?
- Will I have to appear on camera?
- How do I know I’m not getting ripped off?
- How much time will this take and how much of my day is going to be interrupted?
- Will anybody actually watch my marketing video?
With all of this in mind, it’s no wonder that just about anybody would have to think twice before deciding to go forth with something as uncertain as video marketing! What it also means is that you should be as informed as possible about the video production process and know what competencies to look for when hiring a video marketer.
Here are a few things to consider.
First, successful video marketing is about a lot more than just putting together a nice flashy final product. In fact, having something that looks nice and flashy shouldn’t even be one of your primary concerns. Yes, having a professional looking final product is important but there are certainly other things you should be more concerned about. After all, if you have the absolute best looking video in the world but nobody watches it past the first ten seconds, how much value is it really delivering?
An excellent marketing video follows this process:
1) The video marketer(s) learn everything they can about your company.
2) The highly engaging script for the video is written.
3) The actual marketing video is created using visuals, voice-overs, animations and/or live footage.
Here is a summary of the process.
Learning about your business
In order to be effective, the video marketer must learn as much as they can about your business. Starting with questions like, who will the video actually be selling to? Who makes up your target market? What terminology does this demographic understand? The video script must be written in a way so that it speaks directly to these prospective customers.
Next, the video marketer must learn about your business entirely. What makes you unique? What problems do your customers come to you with? How do help them?
In order for the marketing video to be effective, it must be relevant to you and your company. This valuable information can only be obtained through in-person or phone meetings. Simply filling out a questionnaire cannot provide the video marketer with enough information to do a good job.
Writing your video script
Next, before any filming, animations or other work is done – the most important part of your video has to be created.
The sales script.
And yes that’s right – not just ‘the video script’. This highly engaging script must be designed to do two things specifically.
One without the other simply isn’t good enough. This is where many marketing videos fall apart and where business owners start to wonder if investing their time and money into a marketing video really was a good idea, because their video is not achieving either of these.
Make sure your video marketer knows how to do both of these things when inquiring about script writing.
Producing your marketing video
Finally, after a satisfactory script is agreed upon by both parties, your marketing video can start being created. The great thing about technology in today’s age is that your entire video can be created without a camera ever having to be pointed in yours, or anyone’s direction.
In fact, your entire marketing video can be created using screen capture software such as Camtasia with the image part of the video being nothing more than a colourful PowerPoint or Keynote presentation.
Of course, your video can also be a combination of this and live footage.
Overall, as long as you follow these three things, your marketing video is much more likely to be successful. The most important item to remember, is that you do not want your video to be a commercial all about you and your company. Make it about your customer instead. After all, they are coming to you because they want help solving their own problems. So let them know exactly how that is going to happen.
Las Vegas Shopping – THE Place to Shop
Many things come to mind when thinking of Las Vegas. Sprawling casinos, world-class shows, a hotel strip like no other in the world – and lots and lots of fabulous shopping. From the glamorous Forum shops with top designer names to the open-air Premium Outlets with great deals on brand-name merchandise, shopping in Las Vegas is as fun and unique as the city itself.
Some of the hotel shopping on Las Vegas Boulevard is an absolute must, as much for the surroundings as for the boutiques themselves. A great place to start on the strip is the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace (3500 Las Vegas Blvd S.) Even if you don’t spend a dime you will enjoy the architectural details of this famous shopping venue. Designed to reflect the grandness of a Roman street, this shopping arcade features marble statues, a massive atrium with a domed skylight, and the much-copied sky painted ceilings that make it feel like you’re outside even though you aren’t. The shopping is also pretty remarkable. There are over 160 stores including mall favourites such as Gap, Victoria’s Secret and Abercrombie & Fitch, alongside top international luxury brands like Gianni Versace, Louis Vuitton and Roberto Cavalli. Notable boutiques include the chic fashions in Nanette Lepore, the incredible bags by Balenciaga, and the trendy pieces in Intermix. You will find fashions for your home as well, from the handcrafted crystal at Baccarat to the sleek designs at Nambé. If you hit the jackpot, the Forum Shops are the place to splurge – and so is the extraordinary collection of boutiques at the Wynn Esplanade in the Wynn Las Vegas (3131 Las Vegas Blvd S.) Oscar de la Renta features classic couture and shoe lovers particularly will enjoy the sexy styles on display at Manolo Blahnik. If you REALLY hit the jackpot you could even treat yourself to a shiny new car at the Penske Wynn Ferrari Maserati dealership.
For more great shopping and opulent settings, head to the Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian Resort & Casino (3355 Las Vegas Blvd S.) It has a canal complete with crooning gondoliers, cobblestone walkways and a re-creation of Venice’s famous St. Mark’s Square. Shoppers are serenaded by musicians, jugglers and various entertainers as they stroll along the canal. There are plenty of luxe labels to browse including Burberry, Jimmy Choo and the stylish and sexy designs at bebe. If you want to pamper your skin, the luxurious soaps, lotions and fragrances at Acca Kappa are simply divine. Other highlights include the one-of-a-kind porcelain designs in the Lladro boutique, and the acclaimed panoramic photography in the Peter Lik Gallery. Other notable shopping on the strip can be found at the bustling Miracle Mile Shops at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino (3663 Las Vegas Blvd S.) which offers hip stores like H&M, Marciano and Ben Sherman.
There are some gigantic malls in Vegas and shopaholics should prepare themselves for a shopping extravaganza at Fashion Show (3200 Las Vegas Blvd S.) At nearly 2-million-square-feet with more than 200 stores, this shopping centre is one of the biggest in the US. Located in the heart of the strip, this mall features an 80-foot retractable runway for the fashion shows that run regularly. You’ll find renowned department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s, and Bloomingdales, and cutting edge shops like Zara, Betsey Johnson and Ed Hardy. And there are plenty of popular chains like Hollister, J. Crew, and Ann Taylor. More in the mood for Old Navy than Emporio Armani? Then check out The Boulevard (3528 South Maryland Parkway.) Just minutes from the strip and downtown, it is the second largest mall in the city after Fashion Show, and features a Sears, JC Penney, and many other mall favourites.
Off the strip, head downtown to the Las Vegas Premium Outlets (875 South Grand Central Parkway.) This open-air shopping venue has over 150 stores with a mix of brands, many of which are unexpected for an outlet. The uber-trendy on a budget will love browsing through the fashions at Dolce & Gabbana, Michael Kors and A|X Armani Exchange. Need to accessorize? Head to Kate Spade, Coach or Cole Haan. From sportswear at Adidas to crystal at Swarovski, this is outlet shopping that really delivers the designer goods. There are also lots of upscale finds at the Fashion Outlets of Las Vegas (32100 Las Vegas Blvd S.) located about 40 miles south in Primm, Nevada. Shuttles are available from the MGM Grand Hotel, the Miracle Mile and Fashion Show (round-trip fare is $15.00 and includes a coupon book.) Highlights include Neiman Marcus Last Call and the Williams Sonoma Marketplace, which is worth the trip itself for deep discounts on high-end kitchenware.
Should You Work From Home to Make Money With the Internet?
With soaring gas prices, it’s no wonder that many American workers are dreaming about eliminating their commute and working from home. Recently, many companies have begun to allow their staff members to work from home for economic reasons.With recent advances in technology, the web, email, internet, modems, cheaper fax machines and voice mail, some people rarely go into the main office anymore. Working out of your home can be a mixed blessing though.There are certain benefits that any worker would love. If you are facing such a decision, take a look at a few pros and cons of working from your home. There is clearly a lot to consider before making this transition.Ask yourself these questions: Am I a workaholic and if so, would working at home worsen that problem? Would I feel isolated if I’m at home more than usual? Could I separate my business from my personal life if both were under the same roof?Be honest about your personality and think carefully about your work-life balance before you decide. Be realistic about potential feelings of isolation and true reasons for wanting to work from home. Make sure you are making this decision on a personal happy basis.Do you enjoy being your own boss? Do you work well without requiring constant feedback and direction? You also must be willing to stop work and not be chained to your desk 24/7 which would negatively impact your family life.Do you have good self-control and are goal-oriented? These two disciplines alone can help you make money as you desire with the Internet. And by working at home you have the freedom to fly with your own creatively.There’s extensive research that supports increased productivity among home-based employees. Also, that they are more dedicated, effective and positive towards their chosen employment.Working from home may be your idea of bliss, but those affected by your decision may not see it the same way. Be sure you have worked it out with your partner and/or your family, and that they are happy with your decision also.Your spending more time at home will affect their lives too. In most cases the effect will be positive, but you still may have family commitments and make sure that your plans do not conflict with other family members.More and more innovative companies have work-from-programs. All 1,100 of JetBlue’s reservations agents work from their homes and if that is your desire it certainly can be done.