4 Fantastic Financing and Forecasting Methods for Your Craft Business

Posted on March 11, 2019 by John N. Frank

Getting crafty will always be one of your hobbies and dream business ventures. When you actually managed to turn this into a reality you couldn’t believe your luck. Although it took a lot of hard work and perseverance you have managed to turn your passion for arts and crafts into a full-fledged company.

Whether you run it full-time or on the side along your day job, your craft business needs a lot of tender loving care. You have mastered the creative side of your job; that element is second nature to you. However, you need to get on top of the number crunching and planning. Here are a few pointers to help you along the way.

  1. Get on Top of Tax

Every business no matter how big or small needs to stay on top of their taxes. If you have never been great with numbers this can come as quite a shock, so you might want to consider hiring an accountant. Alternatively you should definitely look into MTD for VAT, which entails the government’s new Making Tax Digital scheme. Using approved accounting software you might soon have to store your financial records digitally. Check out the details and see if your business might need to get on board with this initiative. This will not only help you to keep track of your monthly earnings within your craft business, but it will also help you to forecast your future income. Continue reading →

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Off Work After An Accident? Here’s What You Can Be Doing

Posted on March 8, 2019 by John N. Frank

If you are ever involved in an accident and badly injured, you will need to take a considerable length of time off work. This can be frustrating for a number of reasons. Not only will you fall behind on your work and could end up out of the office loop, you might also be off for so long that you are no longer eligible for statutory sick pay. That’s because your employee is only obliged to continue paying you a partial amount of your salary for a limited amount of time.

This could be a bad situation to end up in but, thankfully, there are a few things you will be able to do while off work with an injury to make things slightly better and more manageable. Read on to find out more!

Look After Yourself

First of all, you need to make sure that you look after yourself. Your health should be your number-one priority so that you can quickly get over your injury. Make sure you attend all your hospital appointments and listen closely to what your doctors and nurses tell you. It’s also essential that you carry on with all your courses of medicine until you have completed them in full. If you ever stop taking any medicine, then your recovery could end up going backwards and it’ll take you even longer to get back to work. Continue reading →

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The Top 5 Industries with Job Availability

Posted on March 1, 2019 by John N. Frank

Are you thinking of having a career change, but you don’t know which industry will have the best job availability? We’ve made a list of the top 5 industries who are currently hiring so that you can make an informed decision on where to look. You’re bound to find a job in one of these industries, so take a look at what they offer and see if you fancy joining them.

IT

In this new digital era where everything seems to be done online, the IT industry is booming. There is a big demand for IT experts in lots of areas, for example in technical support, programmers, web developers, computer systems analysts and network engineers. Take a look at these Security Information and Event Management tools by Tim Keary at Comparitech to see if dealing with challenges like cybersecurity could float your boat.

Manufacturing

The manufacturing industry is a crucial part of our economy and will therefore always be a great place to find work. It supplies all of our consumer products and you could find yourself working with a variety of different materials. For example, food, textiles, fuel, minerals or electronics. There is something for everyone in this industry, whether you’d enjoy working in a factory or in a management position. Continue reading →

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Develop Your Skills To Have Greater Career Satisfaction

Posted on February 15, 2019 by John N. Frank

Our careers can have a tendency to guide our happiness. You might tell yourself that you won’t let your life be dictated by the office, but when hometime rolls around and you’re still working on a report that mantra goes out of the window. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. You have a right to explore opportunities that give you a greater work-life balance and a happier mental state. So, let’s take a look at some the options open to you if you want to improve your career outlook or you’re just in need of a change.

Education

The first place for a lot of us to start is with education. You might already have qualifications and or you might not, that isn’t necessarily the point here. The aim when it comes to changing your career for the better is to look forward, not backwards. That means you should be projecting into the future what you want to get out of your working life and figure out what education that requires you to have. Continue reading →

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Great Hires Are Possible

Posted on February 15, 2019 by John N. Frank

You’ve grown your business even more than you thought possible and you need to consider taking on extra help. But that’s about as far you’ve got, just considering. Why? Because let’s face it the thought of advertising, interviewing and hiring is a daunting process. This is made even harder, of course, if you are a solopreneur and don’t have much in the way of experience when it comes to the matter of Human Resources.

But it can be done and by following a logical process it is entirely possible to make a great hire without too much drama or even effort. In this article, we take a look at the steps needed to kick-start your recruitment drive.

Before anything else…

Take a deep breath and create two documents: your person specification and your job description. These two things offer you two very different criteria. With your person specification, you’ll need to think very carefully about who is going to make a great fit into your team. Are you looking for someone who will follow your instruction to the letter and has an eye for detail or are you hoping that your candidate will be able to work on their own with little in the way of guidance? Continue reading →

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Keeping Track Of Everything Without Losing Your Mind

Posted on February 12, 2019 by John N. Frank

Whether you’ve decided to become your own boss or are set on impressing your manager to land the next promotion, keeping your mind clear and focused is part of the challenge.

However, in our hectic work environment, a clear mind can often sound like an impossible dream! There is always so much happening simultaneously that it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and pressed for time.

Those who can juggle increasing responsibilities and complex tasks begin with one simple mission: Keeping track of everything every day at the office and reducing confusion. Thankfully, this is no superpower you need to develop. On the contrary, it’s a matter of introducing positive habits into your routine.

Organize your work mind

Freelancers know it better than anyone else: If you want to make the most of your work, you need to ensure that it doesn’t crush your private life. There is a definite work/life balance that you need to establish, whether you’re working for yourself or for someone else.

Having a clear division helps you to compartmentalize your mind and focus on what is relevant in each situation. You don’t want to bring work at home as it can only increase your stress levels, without boosting your performance. Similarly, you don’t want to think about social matters when you’re working, as it can be distracting. Achieving a strict balance helps you to set goals for your professional progression, as an independent expert or an employee. Continue reading →

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Legal factors to consider for side hustles

Posted on February 7, 2019 by John N. Frank

Side hustles are easier than ever to get started. The gig economy offers a variety of ways to pull in additional income on your time frame.  Virtual markets have helped crafters turn their hobby into a small business. Freelancers can find work through a number of freelance job posting sites. The possibilities seem endless. Not to mention, side hustles are a great way to earn extra cash and test the waters for a new career path. Perhaps that’s why they’ve have grown so much in popularity.

While stating a side hustle can be relatively easy, it’s important to consider legal factors. If your primary job is similar to your side job, you might be at risk of violating a non-compete agreement. You might be missing out tax savings if you aren’t filing your side income correctly. Plus, each type of job has it’s own considerations. From blogging to driving rideshare services, it’s important to make sure you comply with the relevant laws.

For more information on what steps you can take to keep your side hustle on the right side of the law, check out the infographic from Lexington Law:

Graphic and post supplied by Lexington Law with this graphic.

Side Hustle Legal Considerations

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Career Highs: The Next Step Doesn’t Have To Be Daunting

Posted on February 7, 2019 by John N. Frank

All to often you’ll get into your career and before you know it, you seem to be coasting along with no real direction. Don’t worry, everybody does it; however, it’s always worth checking in on yourself, and considering if your happy with your development and progress within your job, and what you feel the future may hold. If yours is looking pretty similar to what you’re doing now, and you’re a little concerned about it; there’s no better time to start looking into the steps you’ll need to take to further your role, or find a fresh one.

There are always ways to give yourself a much-needed boost so that you can begin to pursue something that you’re passionate about. Whether it’s furthering what you already do, or starting afresh; it’s vital to your long-term happiness and career satisfaction to make the changes as soon as possible. The following are some things you might want to consider if you feel like you’re in a career-lull, and need a helping hand to pull you out and pop you on the right track again.

It Doesn’t have To Be The End Of Your Education

Just because you’ve already studied and found a job, it doesn’t mean that it has to be the end of your education, or your ability to gain new qualifications and skills. That’s what career development is all about; taking the next steps, and learning as you go.

It’s just that some of those steps might involve gaining a certificate and finding the right environment in which to learn. Whether you look into dnp neonatal programs because you want to specialize and hone your nursing skills, or you’re ready to take on a course that will ensure you get the promotion in your business environment; there’s no time like the present to start working out the logistics of it all. Continue reading →

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The Most Promising Careers Of 2019

Posted on January 7, 2019 by John N. Frank

2019 is your year. You need to go into the year with that mindset if you want to come out of it on top. Because for some of you, this might not have been the best year.

Not particularly because anything went wrong, but maybe just because you didn’t achieve any of the things that you wanted to achieve. Which is normal, as humans we procrastinate more and more every year, until eventually we get to the point where our lives have passed us by, and all we can do is look back on the past at the life we never had.

That was a pretty bleak opening, wasn’t it. So, we want to try to lift your spirits, and give you something promising to look forward to in the new year, and one thing the majority of you need is a better job! Continue reading →

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How To Launch Your Career As A Fashion Designer

Posted on January 3, 2019 by John N. Frank

Did you know that the global fashion industry is worth a staggering $3,000bn today? If you’ve always had a passion for following the latest trends in clothing, then there’s never been a better time than now to make your name as a fashion designer.

Study Fashion At University—Or Don’t

Studying at a university is a great opportunity to learn in depth about fashion. As well as improving your figure drawing skills and your penchant for finding eye-catching patterns, it can also help you learn computer-aided design, or CAD. In the modern age, computers have become essential to the fashion industry—drawing your ideas on a screen can be quicker, easier and much more accurate. Knowing your way around designing programs will make you a much more competent designer.

A degree in fashion merchandising might also be a choice for you. Dealing with the more logistical and entrepreneurial side of fashion, it’ll give you a lot of real-world experience in how the fashion industry works.

On the other hand—don’t. Versace studied Latin and Ancient Greek, not fashion. Gucci didn’t even go to university. It didn’t stop them from being successful, and it shouldn’t stop you either. But there are a few vital skills you’ll need if you want to make it to the top. Continue reading →

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