June 2023 - TODAY INDIA

Thank You Letter – A Letter of Thanks to Julius Caesar

Many great leaders have graced and conquered the world with their courage and power. I, however, would like, in this letter, to single out a man whom I truly admire and has earned the reverence of many others, both when he was living and dead. This is a thank you letter to Roman general and statesman Julius Caesar.

Dear Julius Caesar,

You are certainly one of the most famous leaders in all of history. The fact that you played such a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire speaks volumes of how effective your leadership was over Rome during those days. Even today, the idea that rulers of other countries still bear the title “Caesar” shows how your reputation and name has achieved an unprecedented amount of respect.

The reality that even up until today so many individuals all across the world admire your ideals and reforms is what I admire the most. I believe that a person can only be truly noteworthy, a leader only truly effective if many hold that individual in high esteem, and respect and follow him. That is the definition of an effective leader–something you certainly were. With this in mind, you have been a great source of inspiration for me. I may have never had political aspirations like you but in many other situations that required me to step up and take the lead, I drew insight from you. For that, this thank you letter is for you.

I recall how even Shakespeare referred to you as “the foremost man of all this world” and to this sentiment of his I really can’t help but agree. Some criticize your choice of creating a dictatorship and yet the successes that your nation achieved under your guidance were undeniable. Furthermore, your approach to life, wherein you were temperate in all things, complete, evenly balanced, and self-controlled are traits, I believe, are admirable and should be emulated.

And let me just add that the Latin language has always fascinated me. I believe that it was integral in the development and evolution of English and proof of this is seen in the many terms and phrases of the English language that has its origins in Latin. This is actually something I’ve felt strongly enough for to write an article about. And in relation to you, what makes me even more impressed is that in your time you stood in the first rank of most orators. Certainly an inspiring feat for you to have done in such a captivating language!

I hope this thank you letter conveys my gratitude enough, Caesar, for all this.

Most sincerely,

Raffy Chan

Intimate Fundraising Events – Parlor Meetings, Political Fundraisers and Investment Parties

Great ideas often lead to big things, but somewhere along the way investments and fundraising are often required. Non-profits, political causes, and commercial startups all need cash to expand and grow. Although many groups may dream of a mega grant or super venture capitalist, support from small donors and individual investors are often the foundation from which all things grow.

One of the most successful ways of attracting these individuals is through small gatherings. These “house parties” are a popular and successful way to raise money for nonprofits, political functions, and business ventures. Although the reasons for these gatherings are always to raise funds, the purpose for the money creates subtle differences in the structure and style of the events.

Let’s take a look at all three types of events and see how they vary.

Nonprofit events are called by many names including a parlor meeting, house meeting, house party, or round up. The purpose can vary from funding for social programs or religious organizations, support for the arts, humanitarian outreach, environmental awareness or assistance for dozens of other charitable causes.

• These small charitable parlor meetings are usually hosted by two or more people commonly referred to as co-chairs.

• Successful house parties need two or more months advance notice.

• As a practice, the host does not ask for money. Instead, one of the co-chairs or the featured speaker will speak about funding needs and the benefits of supporting the organization or cause.

• One popular way to increase donations is to offer matching dollars. This is a popular incentive. A major funder agrees to make a specific donation as long as his or her amount is matched by other supporters.

Political Fundraising can be focused on a single candidate, group of candidates, or local political party. Small group fundraising accounts for a significant amount of dollars for both minor and major candidates.

• Political house parties usually begin with a committee led by a chair. In most cases, all the members are responsible for bringing in guests.

• The purpose should be defined. There can be more than one goal, but each goal should be very clear.

• Unless it is a general fundraiser, a target audience should be defined at the beginning. Food, location, and activities should be geared to target audience.

Investor Meetings also go by several names including networking house parties or Angel events.

• Although these small parties are often held in homes, informal settings in business or prestigious locations are also OK.

• Incentives, perks and well known speakers are often used to attract attendees.

• A few commercial groups are available to organize events.

Although the three types of small events have some differences, successful events share many of the same elements.

1. Prestigious location – Private homes are fine, and sometimes the best choice. Setting the event in a prominent neighborhood or in a notable home can attract guests and set a financial tone.

2. Organizers set a realistic financial goal with a specific amount they plan to raise.

3. The budget should be set in early planning and should be paid for in advance. (Dealing with last minute fees or unpaid bills creates a negative atmosphere.) A flawless event reflects on the organization, candidate, or company.

4. Leadership should be clear and defined. Jobs and roles need to be written down and understood by all members of the team.

5. Time management is very important. If the event is listed as two hours, don’t run over time. Running overtime makes potential donors angry.

6. Aggressively Market target audience. Make sure to budget for marketing campaign which may include personal contacts, mailed invites, direct mail, and entertainer contacts.

7. Thank you letters (or calls) should be sent to all attendees who attended parlor meetings or investment parties, whether they immediately invested or not.

The Juniorization of the American Workforce

A friend of mine, Tom recently commented on this obvious trend. At 51 years of age, Tom works as an IT (1099 form) consultant for a medical tech start-up. Tom shared recently that he had just come back from a reunion with his friends from high school. Many of those Tom referenced had been in leadership positions in large companies, and had followed long and distinguished career paths to attain their career objectives. So, Tom saw it as more than a coincidence that the only individuals currently employed among his friends were those who were self employed / owned their own businesses. All of the individuals in Tom’s group who had risen through the ranks of corporate America were currently “displaced due to circumstances.” It doesn’t take a lot of looking around to see this phenomena infiltrating the lives of an entire generation.

The contemporary application of the noun “juniorization” references the “elephant in the room.” It’s the now common practice of “displacing” senior employees who “don’t have as much runway left.” This is HR speak for an illegal practice engaging in age discrimination through a strategic deployment of rationalized hirings, forced retirements, displacements, and firings.

The fact that there haven’t (yet) been a rash of age discrimination suits, doesn’t mean that the problem hasn’t reached a crisis state. It only means that these illegal practices are difficult to prove. Exiting employees are extorted with severance packages that have been significantly vetted in terms of fiscal financial savings for the company. Either you sign, agree to keep your mouth shut, and accept what you’re being offered, or you take the boot, and face a long and expensive litigation process.

Even as you read this article; HR teams are working feverishly to provide proof that they aren’t employing juniorization practices. They will publish lists of displaced employees that illustrate the age diversity of the individuals who are about to join the ranks of the unemployed. Although, there’s a pretty good chance that the company will turn around and rehire younger staffers in newly defined positions, or replace the displaced senior staff with “more economically favorable” options including outside “1099 form consultants,” and less experienced, and cheaper employees.

Hiring Managers are strongly discouraged against hiring teams of older individuals – even when the senior employee candidate has a particularly advantageous history as a leader, or as an innovator.

There is no denying that senior employees may not be as technically up-to-date as their rising-young-star counterparts. But, that’s not an acceptable (or legal) reason to put them out to pasture. They still have a lot to offer in terms of historical knowledge*, and leadership** (more on that in a minute).

An interesting analogy can be drawn from the definition of juniorization provided on the web site ‘BrickWiki which is a wiki intended to cover all aspects of what is coming to be known as the LEGO hobby. ‘BrickWiki defines juniorization as:

“A term used by Adult Fans of LEGO [AFOLs) to both describe and criticize the inclusion of a few highly specialized elements in sets instead of already existing elements that could be assembled into the same configuration. A BURP (Big Ugly Rock Piece) might be considered a juniorized element but it is more common to refer to pieces such as which is simply an element that reproduces five of stacked together.”

The ‘BrickWiki continues: “The major complaint is that the use of juniorized pieces reduces the possibilities to build alternate models, a cornerstone of AFOL activity.”

So, as the Lego analogy portrays: companies are dismissing senior employees who have finely honed, specialty skill sets, and replacing them with cheaper, younger employees who have less evolved, but more diverse skills. As analogized in the Lego world, the employment of the less specialized, less senior employees will eventually result in long term organizational shortfalls in flexibility, and adaptability.

*Historical knowledge is something in which those employing juniorization processes are placing no value. They are willing to forfeit years of experience for short term savings.

“We learn from history that we do not learn from history.”

• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.

“Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.”

• Edmund Burke

**Leadership isn’t a talent that can be taught in grad school. It is an acquired skill set. And, guess what. Not everyone has the propensity for leadership, That’s why it takes years and years to vet good leaders. So, throwing less experienced employees into the management pool to see who sinks, isn’t the best leadership development process. It will result in the loss of valuable talent through burn out and frustration.

The term juniorization is not a new one. In an October 2004 article in the Columbia Journalism Review (“Letter From Johannesburg: The Trouble with Transformation” by Douglas Foster in Cape Town, S. Africa) the term was credited to the online source: Double-Tongued Dictionary as:

“n.- The survey spawned a terrible new word: juniorization. It covers a multitude of sins. When more experienced reporters left the profession because they were traumatized by covering the political violence that swept the country in the 1980s, or crime or AIDS in the 1990s; when talented reporters get snatched up at double their salaries by government or corporations as spinmeisters; when someone gets promoted beyond his abilities, and even when a reporter gets a story wrong, “juniorization” is the one-size-fits-all label used to shame newsroom denizens without mentioning explicitly that most of the “juniors” are black.”

So, the term juniorization has long held a negative connotation. But, the contemporary issue at hand is threatening an aging populace that is already struggling to set retirement plans with no promise of social security subsidies.

A recent blog entry on theSkimm defined the term Juniorization as: “The term for why your office happy hours keep getting rowdier. It’s when a company fires older employees to replace them with younger ones. Because 40 is the new 30 is the new 25. Is the new not so legal.”

In theSkimm ‘s coverage, they referenced an article from Business Insider entitled Wall Street is gripped by something called ‘juniorization,’ and it is freaking some people out in which the practice of firing senior traders and salespeople and replacing them with younger talent was cited as a major cause for concern. But, this trend which has been recognized in the financial services world, is not confined to that sector.

None of this is meant to put the full blame for these juniorization practices on the Human Relations professionals. Obviously, these directives are coming from a higher level. But, the level of complicity being exercised by the HR folks is amazing. They are smiling in the employees’ faces and kicking them in the ass on the way out the door.

The days of working for one corporation for your entire career are at the endangered level on the extinction scale. But, don’t show me a rat and call it a puppy. You might be “just following orders,” (think war crime trials) but don’t tell us that you’re making fair and non-discriminatory business decisions. Because we’re just not that stupid.

How Movies Can Help You Deal with Romance at the Workplace

Mixing business with “pleasure” has never been a recipe for a “happily ever after” and sex in the workplace seems to cause pain more often than satisfaction. Every year, an average of 15,000 claims are filed for sexual harassment in the workplace; news headlines about sexual scandals between prominent bosses and work subordinates provoke public contempt and outrage; more families and couples split as a result of an extramarital affair that one of the spouses began in the workplace; and more psychotherapists treat patients experiencing the aftermaths of a workplace romance gone sour. Such aftermaths may range from feeling angry, confused, humiliated and depressed to having been fired from the job, sometimes without even a letter of recommendation.

More companies today are enforcing work dating policies, providing training about work romance, or choosing to show lenience toward romantic involvement among employees, so long as it doesn’t threaten productivity and team effort. And yet, so many people are not clear about the rules of romance at work. Still a taboo and a subject for tabloid gossip, sex and romance at work is considered a thorny issue most of us wish would go away.

Whether you are an employer or employee, here is how to prepare your personnel and yourself to deal with Cupid striking at the office:

Know The Definition of Sexual Harassment. Sexual harassment occurs when one employee makes continued, unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, to another employee, against his or her wishes. This unwanted behavior affects an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with this person’s work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

The film “Disclosure”, illustrates how sexual harassment is the abuse of power that violates another person’s moral, ethical and emotional boundaries. The films shows how a computer specialist is sued for sexual harassment by a former lover turned boss, whose purpose is to incriminate him and destroy both his career and his personal life.

If you are being sexually harassed don’t stay silent hoping it will go away. This behavior usually escalates if you don’t stop the harasser with a firm, proactive stand. Call the person on their behavior immediately, ask them to stop and warn them that you will report them if they continue. If it continues, report the harassment. Your employer has the responsibility to take each complaint seriously and investigate.

Deal Appropriately with Sexual Advances from Coworkers. A sexual advance may be a straightforward expression of sexual attraction to a coworker, a blunt invitation for a physical relationship, or flirtatious behavior that has gone overboard.

In the movies, Andy, the central character of “The 40-Year Old Virgin”, neutralizes his female boss’s advances by staying loyal to his values. His boss understands. When he gets promoted, it is not because of sexual favors but because of his job performance.

Real life often resembles the movies. If you stay loyal to your values and keep your work priorities straight, you too can achieve success without losing your integrity.

Honor Your Work First, then Your Sex Fantasies. In the film “A Time to Kill” a young and handsome Mississippi lawyer is handling with admirable strength a tough criminal case and a very attractive assistant. Even though the sexual chemistry between them sizzles, he chooses to channel his passion into the case, which he wins.

If you ever feel irresistibly attracted to a coworker, before you give into your fantasies do a reality check. Examine how it would affect your work if you consummated your sexual attraction. If you realize that it would jeopardize your work–and your relationship with your colleague–then you should honor your work and look for a different outlet for your fantasies.

Don’t ever Start An Extramarital Affair in The Workplace. In “The Firm”, young attorney Mitch is the victim of a corrupt law firm that throws its employees into extramarital affairs and then blackmails them to extort their loyalty. He has a company-induced affair that costs him his marriage and his sanity. The movie has a happy ending only because Mitch fights very hard to recover the love of his wife.

In real life, extramarital affairs in the workplace never have a happily ever after. Besides the agony of being discovered at home, the parties involved live with the constant stress of being discovered at work. When this happens be prepared to cut your losses. And those losses may include your reputation, your family, your job, the person you have the affair with, or all of the above.

When You Date A Colleague, Set Post-Breakup Rules from The Beginning.In the classic film “The Apartment” C.C. Baxter climbs the career ladder by lending his apartment to his boss for his extramarital trysts. He’s also falling in love with his coworker, Fran. All seems to work fine, until he discovers that Fran is also his boss’s mistress. How will they all emerge from such perplexed dynamics and keep their jobs?

In real life, a romance with a coworker always has some impact on your work life. Once you know each other intimately, you become more vulnerable to each other. This is why you must draw up a contract in which you specify how you will preserve your working relationship, should your personal relationship not last. Sign it and honor it, in case you break up. It’s a smart thing to do. You don’t want a situation like Baxter and Fran’s.

Stay Away from Office Sex Gossip. In the French comedy “The Closet”, the main character François spreads false rumors at work that he is gay, hinting that he will sue the management if they fire him for sexual discrimination. As sex gossip spreads in the office it creates havoc in his coworkers’ careers and personal lives with consequences that vary from hilarious to severe.

In real life, you should avoid office havoc by staying away from gossip about your coworkers’ sexual orientation and sex life. When a coworker confesses to you an affair with another coworker, politely decline to become their sounding board. Protect your self and your job. You never know how office sex gossip may backfire or used against you, whether you have generated it or not.

When Cupid Strikes at The Office, Keep Your Romance Private. In the movie “Kindergarten Cop”, tough guy detective Kimble goes into a school undercover as a kindergarten teacher to investigate a case. He ends up falling in love with Joyce, another school teacher who is also the very subject of his investigation. But this is true love and it changes Kimble’s destiny. Leaving the police force, he returns to Joyce and her school as real kindergarten teacher.

In real life, if you have found your soul mate in a certain coworker and you want your budding romance to have a happily ever after, you must keep it private until it becomes a serious, mutual commitment. Never transfer in the workplace personal conflicts with the person you date. Always respect each other as coworkers. Make your romance public only when it’s a solid relationship that you know will last. Then, it’s a time to celebrate. Congratulations! You have shown discretion and good judgment!

Knowing how to navigate successfully the dark waters of romance in the workplace, should be part of your job training. Follow these guidelines as rules of conduct to ensure your career and safeguard your personal life, every time Cupid’s arrow threaten to pierce your bubble at the office.

Online Copywriter Vs Offline Copywriter – What’s the Difference?

Being an online copywriter is becoming a much more lucrative profession as more and more Internet business ventures pop up all over the web. Everyone has something they want to sell online, it would seem – and copywriters are the people with the skills to make things sell.

But is there really a big difference between copywriting for the web, and copywriting in the offline world? In some respects, yes. In many ways, successful online sales pages resemble successful offline sales letters. However, there are some important points to bear in mind when it comes to online copywriting that can have a big impact on the success of your copy.

The Way People Read Online

One of the biggest issues a copywriter must consider when writing for the online space is that the way people read words on a computer screen is completely different from the way they read a printed page.

Computer screens tend to cause a strain on the eyes if you read from them for too long. For that reason, people naturally start to skim and scan when they read copy on the web. Add to that the fact that web surfers in general are an impatient breed, looking for the information they need right now. When you understand these factors, you can see why online sales copy needs to lend itself to skimming and scanning.

This means having plenty of headlines through the sales copy is particularly important. Ideally, a reader should be able to scan through the page reading only the headlines, and pick up a good idea of what the whole page is about.

As for the body copy itself, short sentences tend to work best online. The language ought to be as simple as possible, so anyone can read and understand it. No one is going to get out a dictionary to understand your sales copy.

Another factor of making sales copy easy to read online is breaking up the writing into short paragraphs. It’s not uncommon to see sales page with a bunch of one-sentence paragraphs. The ellipsis (…) is also a common feature of online copywriting, because it helps draw the reader’s attention towards the next line and create a sense of anticipation and suspense.

Creating PPC Friendly Landing Pages

One of the methods typically used to drive traffic to an online sales page is PPC (Pay Per Click) advertising, using a network such as Google AdWords. If you’re going to be using PPC as part of your plan to drive traffic to your product page, you need to ensure your site copy lines up well with your ad copy.

There are several reasons for this. One is that the relevance of your web page to the keywords you bid on can affect the price you pay per click. But the other is simply your conversion rate. If your ads aren’t in sync with the copy on your sales page, you’re not likely to get the conversion rates you could potentially get if your PPC campaign and your sales page copy were working in harmony.

Search Engine Optimization

Another major method of traffic generation to a sales page is search engine optimization (SEO). This involves optimizing your sales copy for particular keywords, so that your page will show up in organic search results (as opposed to paid results) at the major search engines like Google, Yahoo! And Bing.

A good online copywriter will know how to approach optimizing your sales page, is SEO is a big part of your traffic building plan.

To get a marketing experienced copywriter to handle writing or rewriting your sales page, simply visit Premium Online Writing and hire an online copywriter.

Technical Writing – The Difference Between a Flyer and a Brochure

These terms are sometimes used interchangeably, but it’s pretty well established in the tech writing business that there’s a difference. It’s not that one is better than the other, but, generally speaking, they have different uses.

Flyer (also leaflet and handbill)

A flyer is a single sheet of paper, usually 8 1/2 x 11 (A4), used to get information to a large number of people inexpensively. Flyers are popular for small scale advertising.

They’re often, quite literally, throw-aways because they’re handed out at random or posted in public places in the hope they’ll be read. If they’re intended to be posted, such as on a bulletin board or put up in a window, they’re printed on one side only. If they’re going to be hand held or mailed, they can be printed on both sides.

The purpose of a flyer is to provide a limited amount of information for a limited time at relatively low production costs. Some common uses are:

announcements of social or commercial events
product information such as a spec sheet left in new cars
fact sheets distributed at a press conference

While desktop publishing has made it easy for non-professionals to produce quite sophisticated flyers, many businesses rely on professional writers and graphic artists for the copy and layout of business flyers.

There is some disagreement on whether a flyer and a flier are the same thing. The preferred usage in Standard Written English is that a flier is someone or something that flies.

Brochure (also pamphlet)

Brochures are normally more sophisticated than flyers and more expensive to produce. As much time, effort, and expense can go into producing a quality brochure as producing a short video. Businesses produce millions of brochures every year, and a skilled brochure writer is well paid.

Brochures are used as sales or information resources that may be retained and read a number of times by a specific audience. They’re commonly displayed in racks at airports, hotels, and doctors’ offices, but as random as this seems, it’s expected that only the people interested in the subject of the brochure will take one.

They’re not intended to be throw-aways. They’re widely used as follow-ups to initial sales contacts and as supplementary information sources. An insurance company, for example, might use one brochure as a sell-piece and later mail a different brochure to provide details of its policies to a person who has indicated interest.

There is no limit to the size or shape of a brochure, but the most common format is a single sheet of paper folded once – to create four panels – or twice – to create six panels. The first format is most often called one-fold or bi-fold. The second one is usually called tri-fold or tri-panel.

HDTV – 720p, 1080i, and 1080p?

It seems that everyone is buying a new HDTV set this year. Conversation around the water cooler is full of techy buzzwords. When the HDTV standard in the U.S. was originated by the ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee), they defined eighteen different standards, but not all of the standards are in common use.

The standards that you should be familiar with for HDTV (High Definition TV) are 720p, 1080i, and more recently 1080p. The number in the format (for example “720”) is the vertical lines of display resolution and the letter in the format (for example “p”) stands for the display technique. The letter “p” means “progressive” scan, and the letter “i” means “interlaced”.

HDTV (both 720p, 1080i, and 1080p) has a wide screen aspect ratio of 16:9 (width: height). EDTV (enhanced definition) is a standard definition TV (SDTV the format before HDTV), but with some software “interpolation”. EDTV delivers a picture that is superior to that of SDTV, but not as sharp as HDTV. EDTV uses progressive scanning. EDTV sometimes has an aspect ratio of 16:9 (wide screen).

For reference, standard definition TV (SDTV, the format before HDTV) has 480 lines of vertical resolution and has an aspect ratio of 4:3. The SDTV signal is the U.S. has historically been an interlaced signal. This means that your TV set draws each frame in two passes: once for the even horizontal lines and a second pass for the odd lines. The specification is a maximum resolution for the technology, but often, the signal sources are less than the maximum. For example, VHS tape has approximately 240 lines of vertical resolution, over the air broadcast SDTV has approximately 330 lines of vertical resolution, and a SDTV DVD has approximately 480 lines of vertical resolution.

The televisions in Europe and Japan have been (and are) progressive format. A progressive format makes a single pass for all of the lines. Progressive pictures look a bit smoother than an interlaced image, especially when there’s a lot of movement on the screen, like sports.

To add to the confusion, BluRay DVDs do, and later this year, the satellite TV companies will, broadcast in 1080p. This standard has both the higher number of lines of vertical resolution, and the preferred progressive format. The Dish Network will begin satellite broadcast in 1080p in August 2008 with 150 HDTV channels, and DirecTV will begin both satellite and Internet broadcast by the end of 2008, with about 130 channels of HDTV programming. The satellite companies compress their signal with MPEG-4 techniques, which reduces the bandwidth needed for broadcast. Currently, the only source material for 1080p is movies, especially movies originally made for IMAX. None of the major networks (ABC, ESPN, etc.) has yet announced support for 1080p. In addition, Sony PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 have 1080p games.

HDTV Video Format: 720p, 1080i, and 1080p, the higher number is better, right? Even though 1080i technically has a higher resolution, it is not the obvious choice. 1080i has 1080 vertical lines of resolution and 1920 horizontal lines of resolution. 720p has 720 lines of vertical resolution and has 1280 lines of horizontal resolution. But the 720p system is progressively scanned. This compensates for the lower level of resolution. The 1080p signal is the best of both worlds, more picture information with a progressive format.

If your signal received, for example for a satellite receiver, is primarily standard definition, a 1080p TV will not significantly improve your picture when compared to a 720p TV. The picture quality is fundamentally limited by the source signal (480 lines of vertical resolution). Similarly, if your signal has a 720 source, then the 1080 TV will not improve your picture. All High Def sports broadcasts from Fox, ESPN, and ABC are broadcast in 720p.

Some networks have opted for the 1080i format because it provides the more picture information, while ABC, Fox, ESPN, and the National Geographic Channel have chosen the smoother pictures of 720p. HDTV programming on CBS, NBC, and other networks is broadcast in 1080i. The new 1080i or 1080p HDTVs will probably make this type of programming somewhat sharper than it would appear on a 720p TV. This becomes more important because as the TV screen gets larger, the visible difference in detail between 720p and 1080i and 1080p displays becomes more apparent. Because of this, most HDTV sets larger than 50 inches are 1080p or 1080i.

1080p HDTV System Capabilities:

A 1080p HDTV displays all inputs signals at 1080p, because this is the normal resolution of the unit. If the system is less than 1080i or 1080p, then a special purpose chip in your HDTV scales the signal. It will interpolate, like the EDTV does with a SDTV signal. If the signal is 1080i, the system will combine the odd and even interlaced frames and display the full signal as 1080p. The resulting performance should be similar to a true 1080p video source.

Cable HDTV:

More than 100 million U.S. homes can receive HDTV from their cable system, and all of the top 100 cable markets in the country have available HDTV programming. Unfortunately, most cable providers carry only a few of the 50+ available HDTV networks.

Satellite HDTV:

While HDTV local channel selection is generally better on cable than satellite, the major satellite companies offer more national HDTV channels than almost every cable provider. Both DirecTV and the Dish Network have promised to offer more than 130 HDTV channels by the end of the year. “Satellite’s going to be constrained not so much by how many channels they can carry than by how many they can get,” Bob Scherman, Satellite Business News.

By 2010, 60% of U.S. homes will use a Satellite signal, up from 15% in 2002.

Summary:

Screen resolution for HDTV has become comparable to microprocessor clock speed for personal computers. Even though clock speed is not necessarily a perfect indication of overall system performance, often the consumer thinks of it that way.

Interestingly, when an expert group, the SMPTE (Society of Motion Pictures and Television Engineers), recently ranked the importance of resolution, it came in fourth. The SMPTE ranked contrast ratio, color saturation, color temperature and grayscale ahead of resolution in importance. The Imaging Science Foundation reached a similar conclusion. However, most HDTV manufacturers bundle quality traits such as improved contrast ratio with higher screen resolutions into their top of the line HDTVs. So if you purchase a set with top of the line screen resolution, you more than likely will receive the top of the manufacturer’s product line for other important screen criteria.

Prices have dropped significantly the last two years, but it appears that the rate of price reduction has been slowing significantly recently. “Television shoppers who visit mass merchants may be more concerned with obtaining a low price and may not be seeking expert advice. However, television shoppers should be aware that the lower prices they find at mass merchants are primarily due to the fact that these stores tend to carry second tier brand TVs, rather than major brands such as Sony or Panasonic. When pricing for a specific television model is compared at each type of retailer, the prices are surprisingly similar,” J.D. Power’s Larry Wu.

And on a final note, be sure to account for the Audio side of your system. George Lucas (Star Wars) once said audio is half the movie viewing experience. It’s also true for a good football or basketball game.

How To Prepare A Business Plan That Guarantees Big Profits

It is always said “If you Fail to Plan, you Plan to Fail”

Success in business comes as a result of planning. You have to have a detailed, written plan that shows what the ultimate goal is, the reason for the goal, and each milestone that must be passed in order to reach your goal.

A business plan is written definition of, and operational plan for achieving your goal. You need a complete but success tool in order to define your basic product, income objectives and specific operating procedures. YOU HAVE TO HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN to attract investors, obtain financing and hold onto the confidence of your creditors, particularly in times of cash flow shortages–in this instance, the amount of money you have on hand compared with the expenses that must be met.

Aside from an overall directional policy for the production, sales effort and profit goals of your product–your basic “travel guide” to business success–the most important purpose your business plan will serve, will be the basis or foundation of any financial proposals you submit. Many entrepreneurs are under the mistaken impression that a business plan is the same as a financial proposal, or that a financial proposal constitutes a business plan. This is just a misunderstanding of the uses of these two separate and different business success aids.

The business plan is a long range “map” to guide your business to the goal you’ve set for it. The plan details the what, why, where, how and when, of your business–the success planning of your company.

Your financial proposal is a request for money based upon your business plan–your business history and objectives.

Understand the differences. They are closely related, but they are not interchangeable.

Writing and putting together a “winning” business plan takes study, research and time, so don’t try to do it all in just one or two days.

The easiest way to start with a loose leaf notebook, plenty of paper, pencils, pencil sharpener, and several erasers. Once you get your mind “in gear” and begin thinking about your business plan, “10,000 thoughts and ideas per minute” will begin racing through your mind…So, it’s a good idea when you aren’t actually working on your business plan, to carry a pocket notebook and jot down those business ideas as they come to you–ideas for sales promotion, recruiting distributors, and any other thoughts on how to operate and/or build your business.

Later, when you’re actually working on your business plan, you can take out this “idea notebook” evaluate your ideas, rework them, refine them, and integrate them into the overall “big picture” of your business plan.

The best business plans for even the smallest businesses run 25 to 30 pages or more, so you’ll need to “title” each page and arrange the different aspects of your business plan into “chapters.” The format should pretty much run as follows:

Title Page Statement of Purpose Table of Contents Business Description Market Analysis Competition Business Location Management Current Financial Records Explanation of Plans For Growth Projected Profit & Loss/Operating Figures Explanation of Financing for Growth Documentation Summary of Business & Outlook for The Future Listing of Business & personal References

This is a logical organization of the information every business plan should cover. I’ll explain each of these chapters titles in greater detail, but first, let me elaborate upon the reasons for proper organization of your business plan.

Having a set of “questions to answer” about your business forces you to take an objective and critical look at your ideas. Putting it all down on paper allows you to change, erase and refine everything to function in the manner of a smoothly oiled machine. You’ll be able to spot weakness and strengthen them before they develop into major problems. Overall, you’ll be developing an operating manual for your business–a valuable tool which will keep your business on track, and guide you in the profitable management of your business.

Because it’s your idea, and your business, it’s very important that YOU do the planning. This is YOUR business plan, so YOU develop it, and put it all down on paper just the way YOU want it to read. Seek out the advice of other people; talk with, listen to, and observe, other people running similar businesses; enlist the advice of your accountant and attorney–but at the bottom line, don’t ever forget it has to be YOUR BUSINESS PLAN!

Remember too, that statistics show the greatest causes of business failure to be poor management and lack of planning–without a plan by which to operate, no one can manage; and without a direction in which to aim its efforts, no business can attain any real success.

On the very first page, which is the title page, put down the name of your business-ABC ACTION–with your business address underneath. Now, skip a couple of lines, and write it all in capital letters: PRINCIPAL OWNER–followed by your name if you’re the principal owner. On your finished report, you would want to center this information on the page, with the words “principal owner” off-set to the left about five spaces.

Examples: ABC ACTION 1234 SW 5th Ave. Anywhere, USA 00000

PRINCIPAL OWNER: Your Name

That’s all you’ll have on this page except the page number -1-

Following your title page is the page for your statement purpose. This should be a simple statement of your primary business function, such as: We are a service business engaged in the business of selling business success manuals and other information by mail.

The title of the page should be in all capital letters across the top of the page, centered on your final draft–skip a few lines and write the statement of purpose. This should be direct, clear and short–never more than (2) sentences in length.

Then you should skip a few lines, and from the left hand margin of the paper, write out a sub-heading in all capital letters, such as: EXPLANATION OF PURPOSE.

From, and within this sub-heading you can briefly explain your statement of purpose, such as: Our surveys have found most entrepreneurs to be “sadly” lacking in basic information that will enable them to achieve success. This market is estimated at more than a 100 million persons, with at least half of these people actively “searching” for sources that provide the kind of information they want, and need.

With our business, advertising and publishing experience, it is our goal to capture at least half of this market of information seekers, with our publication. MONEY MAKING MAGIC! Our market research indicates we can achieve this goal and realize a profit of $1,000,000 per year within the next 5 years…

The above example is generally the way you should write your “explanation of purpose,” and in subtle definition, why you need an explanation. Point to remember: Keep it short. Very few business purpose explanations justify more than a half page long.

Next comes your table of contents page. Don’t really worry about this until you’ve got the entire plan completed and ready for final typing. It’s a good idea though, to list the subject (chapter titles) as I have, and then check off each one as you complete that part of your plan.

By having a list of the points you want to cover, you’ll also be able to skip around and work on each phase of your business plan as an idea or the interest in organizing that particular phase, stimulates you. In other words, you won’t have to make your thinking or your planning conform to the chronological order of the “chapters” of your business plan–another reason for the loose leaf notebook.

In describing your business, it’s best to begin where your statement purpose leaves off. Describe your product, the production process, who has responsibility for what, and most importantly, what makes your product or service unique–what gives it an edge in your market. You can briefly summarize your business beginnings, present position and potential for future success, as well.

Next, describe the buyers you’re trying to reach–why they need and want or will buy your product–and the results of any tests or surveys you may have conducted. Once you’ve defined your market, go on to explain how you intend to reach that market–how you’ll these prospects to your product or service and induce them to buy. You might want to break this chapter down into sections such as..publicity and promotions, advertising plans, direct sales force, and dealer/distributor programs. Each section would then be an outline of your plans and policies.

Moving into the next chapter on competition, identify who your competitors are–their weakness and strong points–explain how you intend to capitalize on those weaknesses and match or better the strong points. Talk to as many of your “indirect” competitors as possible–those operating in different cities and states.

One of the easiest ways of gathering a lot of useful information about your competitors is by developing a series of survey questions and sending these questionnaires out to each of them. Later on, you might want to compile the answers to these questionnaires into some form of directory or report on this type of business.

It’s also advisable to contact the trade associations and publications serving your proposed type of business. For information on trade associations and specific trade publications, visit your public library, and after explaining what you want ask for the librarian’s help.

The chapter on management should be an elaboration on the people operating the business. Those people that actually run the business, their job, titles, duties, responsibilities and background resume’s. It’s important that you “paint” a strong picture of your top management people because the people coming to work for you or investing in your business, will be “investing in these people” as much as your product ideas. Individual tenacity, mature judgement under fire, and innovative problem-solving have “won over” more people than all the AAA Credit Ratings and astronomical sales figures put together.

People becoming involved with any new venture want to know that the person in charge–the guy running the business knows what he’s doing, will not lose his cool when problems arise, and has what it takes to make money for all of them> After showing the “muscle” of this person, go on to outline the other key positions within your business; who the persons are you’ve selected to handle those jobs and the sources as well as availability of any help you might need.

If you’ve been in business of any kind scale, the next chapter is a picture of your financial status–a review of your operating costs and income from the business to date. Generally, this is a listing of your profit & loss statements for the six months, plus copies of your business income tax records for each of the previous three years the business has been an entity.

The chapter on the explanation of your plans for the future growth of your business is just that–an explanation of how you plan to keep your business growing–a detailed guide of what you’re going to do, and how you’re going to increase your profits. These plans should show your goals for the coming year, two years, and three years. By breaking your objectives down into annual milestones, your plan will be accepted as more realistic and be more understandable as a part of your ultimate success.

Following this explanation, you’ll need to itemize the projected cost and income figures of your three year plan. I’ll take a lot of research, an undoubtedly a good deal of erasing, but it’s very important that you list these figures based upon thorough investigation. You may have to adjust some of your plans downward, but once you’ve got these two chapters on paper, your whole business plan will fall into line and begin to make sense. You’ll have a precise “map” of where you’re headed, how much it’s going to cost, when you can expect to start making money, and how much.

Now that you know where you’re going, how much it’s going to cost and how long it’s going to be before you begin to recoup your investment, you’re ready to talk about how and where you’re going to get the money to finance your journey. Unless you’re independently wealthy, you’ll want to use this chapter to list the possibilities and alternatives. Make a list of friends you can approach, and perhaps induce to put up some money as silent partners. Make a list of those people you might be able to sell as stockholders in your company–in many cases you can sell up to $300,000 worth of stock on a “private issue” basis without filing papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Check with a corporate or tax attorney in your area for more details. Make a list of relatives and friends that might help you with an outright loan to furnish money for the development of your business.

Then search out and make a list of venture capital organizations. Visit the Small Business Administration office in your area–pick up the loan application papers they have–read them, study them, and even fill them out on a preliminary basis–and finally, check the costs, determine which business publications would be best to advertise in, if you were to advertise for a partner or investor, and write an ad you’d want to use if you did decide to advertise for monetary help.

With listing of all the options available to your needs, all that’s left is the arranging of these options in the order you would want to use them when the time come to ask for money. When you’re researching these money sources, you’ll save time by noting the “contact” deal with when you want money, and whenever possible, by developing a working relationship with these people.

If your documentation section, you should have a credit report on yourself. Use the Yellow Pages or check at the credit department in your bank for the nearest credit reporting office. When you get your credit report, look it over and take whatever steps are necessary to eliminate any negative comments. Once these have been taken care of, ask for a revised copy of your report and include a copy of that in your business plan.

If you own any patents or copyrights, include copies of these. Any licenses to use someone else’s patent or copyright should also be included. If you own the distribution, wholesale or exclusive sales rights to a product, include copies of this documentation. You should also include copies of any leases, special agreements or other legal papers that might be pertinent to your business.

In conclusion, write out a brief, overall summary of your business- when the business was started, the purpose of the business, what makes your business different, how you’re going to gain a profitable share of the market, and your expected success during the coming 5 years..

The last page of your business plan is a “courtesy page” listing the names, addresses and phone numbers of personal and business references–persons who have known you closely for the past five years or longer–and companies or firms you’ve had business or credit dealings with during the past five years.

And, that’s it–your complete business plan. Before you send it out for formal typing, read it over once a day for a week or ten days. Take care of any changes or corrections, and then have it reviewed by an attorney and then, an accountant. It would also be a good idea to have it reviewed by a business consultant serving the business community to which your business will be related. After these reviews, and any last-minute changes you want to make, I’ll be ready for formal typing.

Type and print the entire plan on ordinary white bond paper. Make sure you proof-read it against the original. Check for any corrections and typographical errors–then one more time–read it through for clarity and the perfection you want of it.

Now you’re ready to have it printed and published for whatever use you have planned for it–distribution amongst your partners or stockholders as the business plan for putting together a winning financial proposal, or as a business operating manual.

Take it to a quality printer in your area, and have three copies printed. Don’t settle for photo-copying..Have it printed!

Photo-copying leaves a slight film on the paper, and will detract from the overall professionalism of your business plan, when presented to someone you’re trying to impress. So, after going to all this work to put together properly, go all the way and have it duplicated properly.

Next, stop by a stationery store, variety store or even a dime store, and pick up an ordinary, inexpensive bind-in theme cover for each copy of your business plan. Have the holes punched in the pages of your business report to fit these binders and then slip each copy into a binder of its own.

Now, you can relax, take a break and feel good about yourself..You have a complete and detailed business plan with which to operate a successful business of your own. A plan you can use as a basis for any financing proposal you may want to submit..And a precise road-map for the attainment of real success…

You just complete one of the important steps to fulfill of all your dreams of success.

How to Ensure a Debt Collection Is Legitimate

Your phone rings. Someone on the other end is claiming to work for a collection agency of some kind. He tells you that the purpose of this call is to collect a debt. A debt which you either do not remember owing or is so old that you thought it was gone. How do you ensure this is legitimately collectible?

The caller must identify who he is and who he works for. A legitimate debt collector will supply a phone number, business name and mailing address. A scammer will fudge around this or claim he does not have to supply this information.

The majority of collection agencies will send you a letter prior to calling you. Federal law requires them to send you a letter about the debt no later than five days after their first contact with you. Sending the letter first ensures they are following the law and eliminates the surprise to you when they call.

You have the right to have the collection agency verify the debt. You must do this in writing and I recommend you send the letter via certified mail with return receipt so you have proof they received the letter. A sample letter from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau can be found at consumerfinance.gov.

Though there is no federal definition of what constitutes a debt verification, the assumption is that if they can prove to a judge that you owe the debt, then that is acceptable verification. So you should receive one or more of these items:

A copy of the original, signed contract.

A copy of the charge-off statement from the original creditor.

A copy of at least one cancelled check paid from you to the original creditor.

Information from the creditor that ties you with the debt (the creditor’s name, an account number, the charged off amount, the current balance and the last four digits of your social security number).

The collection agency has thirty days to supply this verification to you. During this time period, the collection agency cannot attempt to collect this debt in any manner and they cannot report this debt to the credit bureaus (note the original creditor can still report it).

Some things you should do during this thirty day period:

Check your credit report to make sure the debt is truly yours. The original creditor will report this as “Charged Off” if it has been transferred or sold to a collection agency. You may also determine the debt is too old under your state’s statute of limitations for the collector to sue you.

Contact the original creditor to determine who they sold the debt to. They can tell you this information. If the debt has been sold numerous times, you will have to follow the “chain of title” to learn who the actual owner is. And if it has been sold numerous times, the chances of this collection agency being able to verify the debt drops dramatically.

If the verification cannot be supplied to you within the thirty days, then the debt is uncollectible. But if they do verify it, the debt is collectible and the collection agency will add this to your credit report.

According to Clearpoint Credit Counseling Solutions, only 51% of debts are verified by collection agencies ( FTC Data on Debt Verification ). So you have a 50-50 chance of this collection disappearing on its own!

If you have any questions about this debt not being yours, do not spend time on the phone with the debt collector. You do not want to give any hint of acknowledging the debt is yours. Just tell the collector that you will be sending a verification request, confirm the mailing address to send it to and politely end the call. Then get that letter sent out ASAP!

Japanese Gambaru – Literal Meaning and Cultural Impact

The word Gambaru in Japanese means doing one’s best and hanging on to the bitter end. This means that students gambaru study hard to pass exams, athletes gambaru practice hard to wins games, and company workers gambaru work hard to increase sales. It also means to work hard or patiently, to insist on having one’s way, and to occupy one place and never leave, as in relation to working on a job or at a place of employment. Gambaru is also rooted in the following proverb, “The monk who does not work should not eat.”

There is an imperative form of “gambaru, which is Gambare or Gambette. The imperative term connotes high achievement, motivation, and orientation to group harmony. The term is also used among members to encourage others in group activity.

The Japanese people use the term gambare quite often and for various reasons. They normally use the term at least once per day with saying good-bye and also at the ending of a letter. The Japanese also use this expression to encourage one another with the implication of “Please keep up your hard work until your goal is achieved.”

The term is also used in many situations as a form of expression. The Japanese may use the expression in the initial states of a project. For example:

a) After the earthquake in Kobe, Japan, the slogan Gambare Kobe was used to encourage the people of Kobe to reconstruct their city and rebuild their lives.

b) Japanese people also use the expression among group members to encourage one another in cooperative activities. For example, during track and field days at school, children can be heard shouting “gambare” or “gambatte” to encourage their friends in the race.

c) Japanese people also use the expression as spectators to cheer on their team. For example, in the 1998 World Cup soccer match held in France, the Japanese spectators cheered the slogan Gambare Nippon! During the championship, the slogan was used on TV programs and commercials every day.

The literal meaning of gambaru is “to adhere to something with tenacity.” It is a very popular term used when encouraging someone undertaking a very difficult task. Additional meanings are: Hang in there, Don’t give up, Do your best, and Give it your all! The term also means work hard and patiently. Additionally, it exhorts enthusiasm and hard work from others.

Gamburu also has some additional meaning, some of which could be considered as negative connotations. Based on the denotation form of the word, it also means “to insist on having one’s ways,” and “to occupy one place and never leave.” Additionally, the word is derived from ga-o-haru, which means “to be self-willed.” This expression originally had a negative connotation of asserting oneself against group decisions and norms.

One may ask if other languages have the equivalent of gambari. According to Amanuma (1987, pp. 51-53), gambari, which is derived from gambaru, does not have any exact equivalent in non-Japanese languages. Additionally, Amanuma states, “Even though both Chinese and Korean have the characters that make up gambaru (gambari is derived from gambaru), they do not have expressions that possess the same nuances. This suggests that gambaru is an expression that is unique to Japan and expresses certain qualities of the Japanese character.

There are various proverbs that may show a difference between Japanese culture and American culture as it relates to the virtues of Gambaru. One proverb based on Japanese culture states, “The monk who does not work should not eat.” This speaks to the fact that one must work and that through working one is able to live. The Japanese did not take into account play or free time in this proverb, unlike Americas in the following proverb.

Alternatively, an American proverb states, “All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.” This implies that one does not have to work but rest and play. It places play and work in the same category, and on the same level which equate to virtue. The account of play in this proverb gives the Japanese a feeling of uneasiness regarding the virtues of Gambaru in American terms.

Submitted by “Epulaeryu Master.”