Posted by admin on May 27th, 2008 — Posted in Beautiful You
In the mid east, there is the custom of wearing hijaab among women. It is a kind of veil that covers the entire face. Though it has taken many a connotations with time (largely controversial), the very basic purpose of it was to protect the facial skin from the sun.
Skin care, as can be seen, has been accorded wide importance at all times. In addition, it has been an ubiquitous phenomenon as no part of the world is unaffected with the concern for their skin. Skin care with herbs and plant extracts is finding growing popularity in recent years. This is termed as aromatherapy skin care.
Aromatherapy skin care is not a recent concept. Only that we were so engrossed in artificial and synthetic products that we forgot the huge resource of our nature. Artificial skin care products are easily available. This was the primary plank on which these became the order of the day. For the natural remedies for skin care, one had to visit their source, i.e. the forest. This was an impossible task for a common person. So, artificial moisturizers, artificial lotions, artificial sunscreens, and several other artificial skin care products almost enveloped the market.
It was because of constant research on the subject that people understood the adverse effects of artificial products. Now, people who are concerned about their skin and are willing to spend that extra buck for the correct remedy for their skin, have voted for natural skin care products and aromatherapy skin care.
If seen from the point of view of cost, then aromatherapy skin care will turn out to be the cheapest. If one wants then he can prepare an all-natural skin care preparation at home. Does this demand time? No! Devote your weekend to skin care (your skin truly deserves that). Many preparations last for a few days to certain weeks. So, one may keep them for use during the weekdays. This will ensure that you do not get late for office while readying your skin for the day.
Simple techniques are involved in aromatherapy skin care. While taking a bath, sprinkle two drops each of lavender, bergamot, and cedar wood. This will keep you refreshed all day. If you are feeling nervous, then use of essentials oils of geranium and basil is recommended. Similarly, there are baths aimed at relieving people of insomnia or fatigue.
If using a skin softener, look for sweet almond oil in the product. Being rich in Vitamins A, B1, B2, and B6, your skin will glow. Exposing ones skin to steam is also helpful. This helps open the pores in the skin and thus prevents skin inflammations. A cleanser too works in the same manner. It helps keep the skin clean. Always use a chemical free and soap free cleanser. One may have a vast choice from natural cleansers available in the market.
All these attempts to keep your skin healthy and glowing will go waste if you are stressed. Stress shows on your face (unless you are a master deceiver). Go for a spa and rejuvenate yourself.
Bryan Josling is working with the Horticultural Research Station in Adelaide. He has also been involved with research on plants. To find romatherapy essential oils,Aromatherapy Skin Care,essential oils wholesale visit http://www.ndaroma.com
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Posted by admin on May 25th, 2008 — Posted in Self Improvement
As a certified NLP trainer, I am often asked, “What is NLP?”
The term NLP stands for neuro-linguistic programming and was coined in the early seventies by John Grinder, an assistant professor of linguistics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Richard Bandler, a student of psychology at the university. They began their work by studying Fritz Perls, a psychotherapist and originator of the Gestalt school of therapy, Virginia Satir, a well-known family therapist and Milton Erickson, a world-famous hypnotherapist. Their intention was to model outstanding therapists and identify patterns in order that other practitioners could use these patterns to generate similar results. It may be said that NLP is about identifying excellence through an exploration of patterns, and then devising means for others to use those patterns to achieve similar results.
NLP also draws on earlier work, such as Ivan Pavlov’s conditioned reflexes (1904). In NLP this is called anchoring. NLP takes theoretical results developed by others and makes them available to you and me so we can improve our lives and well-being.
NLP is more than just techniques. It is a curiosity about how people who are high achievers accomplish what they actually set out to do. It is also a methodology that assists you in discovering those thinking and communication patterns that prevent you from being successful and shows you how to achieve the results of successful people. That is, NLP is a process of discovering the patterns of excellence of experts, and it makes these effective ways of thinking and communicating available for others to use for their own benefit or to assist others.
NLP had its origins in therapy and is now applied in all areas of human endeavor - education, health, sports, business and, perhaps most importantly, interpersonal relations.
Let us break down and analyze the terms neuro-linguistic programming.
Neuro refers to your neurology - sense organs. It is about how you absorb information. For example, you use your eyes to see things in your world. You also experience or perceive events through your other senses: aural (hearing), kinesthetic (tactile touch or emotional feeling), gustatory (taste) and olfactory (smell).
Linguistic refers to the language - pictures, sounds, feelings (kinesthetic), tastes, smells and words - that you use to remember and make sense of a particular experience (or to forecast a future experience). For example, can you recall your breakfast this morning? When you remember having breakfast, can you see a picture in your mind, or can you hear sounds (perhaps a radio was on or you were engaged in a discussion with your family)? What about tastes and smells? And how were you feeling - happy, tired, excited?
Think about a significant event in your near future. Do you envision yourself being successful? Or failing? The pictures, sounds, feelings, tastes, smells and words that you use to describe future experiences have a bearing on what actually happens. You do create your own reality!
Programming refers to your habits, patterns, programs and strategies. If it is a workday, do you follow a particular routine as you get ready for work? Perhaps you like to lie in bed an extra five minutes after the alarm goes off. Do you shower or bathe right away or have breakfast first? If you take time to look at what you do, I am certain you will see a pattern that you follow in getting ready for work. If for some reason you do not follow that pattern, do you find yourself feeling that something is missing?
You have patterns, habits, strategies and programs for everything you do. Some of these patterns serve you, but others do not - resulting in unwanted outcomes. You may be fully aware of some of your patterns. You may become aware of others only when someone else brings them to your attention. And you may choose to quickly forget about these patterns because you want to avoid addressing that part of your life. And there are still other patterns that you are not aware of at all, yet they continue to influence how you look after yourself, communicate with others and perform your daily tasks. If the patterns serve you - that is, generate positive results in your life - great! However, if you find that some patterns do not serve you, would it not be useful to identify those patterns and to change them so they work to your advantage?
Question: Who put your patterns, habits, strategies and programs in place? Of course, you did. So who can change them? Only you. But first, you must become aware that you run these patterns. This is one of the biggest benefits of NLP - becoming aware of the patterns, habits, strategies and programs that you have been running unconsciously and then using NLP techniques to change them in order to achieve the outcomes you desire.
About the Author: Roger Ellerton is a certified NLP trainer, certified management consultant and the founder and managing partner of Renewal Technologies Inc. (www.renewal.ca). He can be reached at info@renewal.ca. This article is an extract from his book Live Your Dreams - Let Reality Catch Up: NLP and Common Sense for Coaches, Managers and You (www.live-your-dreams.biz).
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Posted by admin on May 25th, 2008 — Posted in Traveling
My first mother’s day gift was the birth of my baby boy, Zachary. He was scheduled to be born on mother’s day last year but has chosen to come out earlier. Zachary was born on 25-04-2005, exactly two weeks before mother’s day.
My whole family were joyful over the birth of Zachary. He was weighted 2.98kg and I thank God for the smooth delivery and for protecting him inside my womb as the umbilical cord was around his neck when he was born. Thank God that Zachary was born earlier on my 38th weeks of pregnancy as the umbilical cord was loosely around his neck.
Unfortunately, Zachary had jaundice. Apart from the photo-light therapy, the nurses were taking blood sample everyday to ascertain his jaundice level. It was painful to see the little baby crying each time when they took his blood sample.
On the 8th day of birth, my husband and I decided to consult another Paediatrician to ensure that our child is fine because we were not comfortable with the first Paediatrician that we consulted who was arranged by the hospital on the day he was born.
Everything looks fine according to the 2nd Paediatrician and no worries over the jaundice level. However, the breaking news came when our baby was diagnosed by Dr. Lim, the second Paediatrician we consulted who is also a Paediatric Cardiologist, for having a single large perimembranous inlet Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) and a small secundum Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) (commonly known as holes in the heart). In fact, the Paediatric Cardiologist was surprise to find 2 holes in the heart as my baby does not show any symptoms. The holes were detected only via ultrasound scan.
Both my husband and I were very shocked over the news. We couldn’t believe that this is happening to us. We have consulted other specialists but the end result was the same.
Under Dr. Lim’s treatment, Zachary was given 6 months as monitoring period. Should the two holes in his heart shows no sign of closing up by itself, he would have to undergo an operation to patch up the two holes. Meanwhile, Zachary was given 2 types of medicine to be taken twice a day i.e. Lasix and KCL to reduce the heart’s burden as he grows.
My husband and I were praying very hard everyday for miracles so that our baby would not have to undergo a surgical operation.
It was not a pleasant experience to feed a baby with medicine especially Lasix and KCL. Both medicine were not tasty but it’s necessary according to the doctor. As a result, my baby had developed nausea. He was seen having nausea a few times a day.
Unfortunately on his 3rd month of birth, Zachary was suffering from fever for more than 2 weeks. The weird thing was that he only had fever from about 2 am to 7 am everyday. He would cry and cry for no reasons during these hours and non of us can explain what is going on.
Zachary was admitted to the hospital twice over this matter in July 2005. He seems ok in the hospital but when he came home, the same thing happens again.
Thorough check on Zachary had been done. The Paediatric Cardiologist had ruled out every possibilities of the reasons for such fever. Finally, he informed that the only explanation was due to the symptom of having heart failure.
We were really sad, scared and worried when we heard such news. Given no choice, my 3 months old baby was scheduled to undergo a surgical operation on 08-08-2005 to close up both the VSD and ASD.
The hardest moment I ever recalled was to hand over my baby to the hands of the Anaesthetist who would then send him into the operation theater. Tears were running down our face automatically and our hearts were beating very fast….We were just afraid….Deep in our hearts we were praying for our baby, the Anaesthetist (Dr. Tang) and the Surgeon (Dr. Lee). We prayed for the Lord’s protection and control over the smooth running of the operation.
The operation was 2 hours long. Thank God that it runs well. He was then placed in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) for 3 days, and thereafter in the HDU (Highly Dependent Unit) for a day and 3 days in the normal ward. The total cost we have spent amounted to RM26,000 of our currency for this operation and the stay in the hospital. This, however, is excluding the follow-up costs and other costs we have spent earlier.
During the first day in ICU, it was indeed sad to see so many tubes surrounding his little body. Zachary’s condition was unstable then as he was having fever. The surgeon had ordered to bring down his temperature. Hence, Zachary was not on clothes. He was only wearing a diaper. The air-conditioning was right above him and a fan was blowing directly towards him. He was on wet cloth as well in order to bring down his temperature.
Time has passed. Zachary has just turned one on 25-04-2006. He is such an adorable baby. He sleeps well at night, he smiles when he sees us, he is now able to call us “papa” “mama”. We are joyful and thankful towards those who had been praying for us and have extended their helping hands in any way (i.e. our pastors, friends and family members). I thank God for them and may God bless them many fold.
For those who have read this message, may God bless you as well. Treasure your family and show your love and care for them when they are still around.
For those who are going through similar situation, do not be discouraged. Be strong. Have faith. Though it was a dark valley that we were going through, please remember that there are always mountains.
As mother’s day is near, I wish all mothers a happy mother’s day!
Leng Pui Yee
My First Mother’s Day Gift
I am a working mother of one baby boy who has just turned one year old on 25-04-2006.
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Posted by admin on May 24th, 2008 — Posted in Sports Management
Almost half the world-wide market for athletic shoes is right here in the US. Thanks to an aggressive marketing plan and succession of shrewd endorsements, it has been dominated by the Nike “swoosh”. In a business saturated with players, Nike’s 36% market share represents a substantial margin over the competition.
How much is 36% of the market? Only sales in the neighborhood of $7.2 billion, that’s all. Enough cash to buy every franchise in the NBA. Isn’t it just a little ironic a company that propelled it’s period of rapid growth on a product launch and endorsement campaign grounded on the NBA’s brightest star, could on a whim, buy the whole league?
Not everything is rosy for Nike in the athlete’s foot market. Of the 50 or so “other manufacturers”, number two Adidas has completed a move to present a major challenge.
Athletic footwear is divided into two sectors. Competitive which drives innovation to set the mainframe, and fashion which spins casual wear market entries off from the mainframe. Around the rest of the world, Adidas has long been the leader in competitive footwear. It was Adidas that really started it all, sneaking their 3 stripe trademark past stringent Olympic and World Cup sponsorship regulations of the 1950’s to give birth to a whole new industry
Adidas has acquired number 3 Reebok for $3.8 billion, giving them a 21 percent US market share. Most significant about this deal is Reebok holds a much firmer grip on the fashion market than Adidas ever has. Each brand will keep it’s identity, but expect to see some new forms cross brand marketing invented to capitalize on the strenghts of each. The Reebok brand blended into the Adidas mix means a savvy competitor for Nike to deal with across the full market range. Expect Nike to dig deep and find creative ways to fight them off.
The big business of whose sport shoe they put on their feet assures consumers a new round of innovative choices will be soon on the way.
Sports Picks and Sports Handicapping at Maddux Sports
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Posted by admin on May 24th, 2008 — Posted in School of Home Improvement
Kitchen decor themes can turn a dull kitchen into a beautiful living space. Being the central gathering place for family and friends, the right theme can make any occasion a memorable event.
Kitchen decorating can be bright and simple or with a little more work can become a great conversation piece. Because you spend so much time in your kitchen decorating to suit your taste is very important for long lasting enjoyment.
One of the more important aspects of kitchen decor themes is creating areas of open space. Next, large counter tops with easy to clean surfaces are always a good idea. And picking materials for the floor which are both beautiful and durable belong in anyone’s modern kitchen.
Kitchen decor themes have many advantages but be sure you give plenty of time for careful planning and thoughtful consideration for a kitchen that is stylish and functions properly according to your families needs.
Kitchen design themes can be made to fit anyone’s taste and budget. Here are some of the more common themes:
Antique Kitchen Themes
Home Sweet Home Kitchen Themes
Bright Colors Kitchen Themes
Country Kitchen Themes
Italian Kitchen Themes
Grape Kitchen Themes
Rooster Kitchen Themes
Mexican Kitchen Themes
With today’s access to the internet shopping for kitchen decor themes has never been easier and can be a whole lot of fun creating yourself.
Curtis Miller is a successful author and publisher of Kitchens 4u. Your source for quality items for your kitchen.
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Posted by admin on May 23rd, 2008 — Posted in Legal Resources
If you are in a car accident and suffer an injury, you should consult with an attorney. Although most people would like to do the right thing and compensate your for your injury, it is rarely up to the person which caused the injury. In fact, it will more than likely be at the discretion of the other person’s insurance company. In addition, as we all know, insurance companies will do everything in their power not to offer compensation for your injury or offer a settlement to you way below what you would receive if you had hired a lawyer. If you did not know, insurance companies profit from this type of under compensation.
An experienced car accident or personal injury lawyer will know how to negotiate with the insurance company, build your case, and take your case to trial if necessary. It is not advisable for you to meet personally with the insurance company without your lawyer present. Insurance companies will do everything they can to take advantage of you and will obtain statements from you that could jeopardize your case if you should decide to sue.
Find the right lawyer can be a time consuming and challenging task. Usually people begin their search when they are in need of one immediately. A lawyer should be selected for their expertise and experience in car accident cases. The right lawyer will have experience in cases such as yours and will be able to take action immediately. The right lawyer will know what to do immediately without having to research your case or check court decisions, as he/she should be familiar with your type of case. Selecting the right lawyer will save you time and money in the long run.
Begin your search for your lawyer as soon as possible. A critical deadline called statue of limitations and other deadlines may give you a limited amount of time to take legal action. Do no rely on advice from friends and family in choosing your lawyer, doing so will limit your search for the right lawyer. However, if a family member or friend can recommend a lawyer that has work experiences in a case similar to yours, then act on their recommendation and make the appointment to meet him or her.
The most important factor in selecting your lawyer is that you are comfortable speaking with him or her and that you feel that a working relationship can develop. A good working relationship and communication can be a vital key to the success of your case.
For more information, visit these sites: Car Accident Lawyer
www.personalinjuryattorneyinfocenter.com” target=”_blank”> Personal Injury Attorney and Personal Injury Lawyer
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Posted by admin on May 23rd, 2008 — Posted in Lifestyle Hall
So have you caught the knitting bug? Have you learned the basic stitches and are now wondering what to do? With a little practice and tips from experienced knitters, you can be creating awesome creations in no time.
Once you learn three basic techniques you will find that there are numerous projects you can learn to knit. The three basic foundations of knitting are casting on, the knit stitch and the purl stitch. Once you master these three techniques you can begin to add more advanced knitting skills.
You can learn the basic stitches from other knitters, online or from a book. You can truly only become a functional knitter from practicing as much as possible.
Starting out you will want to use medium gauge wool yarn which is the easiest yarn to start out with. It may not be the prettiest, flashiest novelty yarn, but it’s the easiest yarn to learn how to knit with. You do not want to use cotton since it has no give in it. Wool has just a bit of stretch so it is much easier to learn with.
Your local yarn shop is a great place for both beginners and veteran knitters. It is an excellent place to have your questions answered when you begin to choose your yarns and patterns.
Knitting has always been a social hobby. Similar to scrap booking where women meet to work on their scrap booking in gatherings called “crops”, knitters have sessions called “stitch and bitch”. Women bring their projects, knit together and chat.
These knitting groups are a great place to learn to knit from experienced knitters. They can give you advice and show you hands on skills. Advanced knitters are also able to improve their skills by watching the talents of others who can share various techniques.
Lessons are a great way to learn basic knitting skills. It is usually worth the money to have someone teach the knit and purl stitches. The local shop usually offers individual or group beginning knitter classes. It will take you just one or two classes before you feel confident enough to attempt an easy project. Of course, outside of class you will want to practice as much as possible.
When you start to knit you will not really begin with a project. Most likely you will learn by knitting a swatch about 2 feet long just for practice. Once you can complete that you will rip it all out, roll it up and start all over again. It is not necessarily fun but you will begin to feel comfortable with the knit and purl stitches. You should not start a real project until you can successfully knit the swatch with no dropped stitches or gaping holes.
The easiest first project is a scarf. It is simple and you really do not have to worry too much about gauge. It is the best project to begin with to practice your skill. If it is summer and a scarf does not sound too appealing, try a decorative scarf in a lightweight cotton yarn that can be used in place of a necklace, or used as a belt.
Knitting is a really fun hobby. You will find it relaxing and enjoyable. You will love all the colors and textures of fibers available. You will love to make things and give them as gifts. Knitting is a great hobby for all seasons and all ages.
Kelli is the owner of Monetina Creations, an online store showcasing her hand-made knitted creations. You can see her unique knitted purses at monetinacreations.com.
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Posted by admin on May 23rd, 2008 — Posted in Education + Training, Insurance Savvy, Living With Medicine
Medical coding coursework is available in many places. It is sometimes difficult to find a quality medical coding program, however. Essentially, nearly all of the training curriculum will focus on academic training. We realize the importance of this academic emphasis. However, hands on training is at the core of the most effective programs. This is a very important step in making sure that students are prepared for their future career.
Learning medical coding at home, and at your own pace, on a full or part time basis can be done without quitting your current job. It is something we strongly encourage you to do!
The most productive way to learn medical coding, and land a good job, is to invest your time and money into good training.
A medical coding training program can cost you a great deal in both time and money. If you change your mind after committing to one, it can be difficult and costly to cancel and start over elsewhere. This means that the choice you make is crucial. But how do you know what will make one program better than all the other medical coding programs available? What makes one school stand out among other schools?
Admit it … The main objective is to get a job as soon as you are ready. Learning to be a professional medical coder is the only means of obtaining the job. It all revolves around the fact that it is a reputable program, that possesses a large emphasis on realistic application.
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Posted by admin on May 22nd, 2008 — Posted in Lifestyle Hall
True story: A few years back I was working with a client who had recently moved to Los Angeles. She was single, did not know many people in the big city, and felt a little lonely. I innocently suggested she give online dating a shot. It seemed like an easy and pressure-free way to meet people, and I had other clients who enjoyed their experience and were in good relationships as a result.
“What kind of desperate person do you think I am?!?” she snapped.
She apologized, but explained that she felt “weird” about online dating. This perked my curiosity, so later I asked some of my other clients if they ever tried it. Some only confessed after their faces turned three shades of crimson. Since I am a strong proponent of online dating, I dispel any stigma or embarrassment when I recommend it to my clients. This is what I tell them:
For many singles, life moves like Richard Petty around the Talladega Speedway. We change jobs every few years. We relocate more frequently. We cannot remember the last time we answered a phone with a cord. Even if time is not the issue, some single people cannot shake the feeling that everyone else is happy while they are always alone. We may look at online dating as an act of desperation, because “normal people don’t need something like that.”
The simple fact is that you are not weird if you use an online dating service. We only feel weird when we think we are doing something outside the norm. Consider this: over 40 million people in the US access online dating websites every month. It is the fastest growing sector of online content. There is no reason to feel embarrassed, because if you date online you are actually part of a huge group.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to find someone special, or at the very least make some new friends, so why not use every resource available to you? You do not get extra points for meeting someone in a bar or while waiting for dry socks at the Laundromat. Does it matter to you how you met the important people already in your life? You probably barely even think about it.
By setting up a personal profile and a list of likes and dislikes, you invest time in yourself. More importantly, you are taking action by trying to improve yourself and your situation. You are putting yourself out there and taking control by refusing to be lonely and isolated.
I have found many advantages to the Internet. The anonymity of online dating allows you to roll out of bed, hair standing in ten different directions, breath smelling like Boston Harbor at low tide - then click! You stumble on a person you will be dating in a few weeks. The cost compared to going out and searching is next to nothing. You can learn more about a person’s interests to see if they mesh with yours. You do not have to deal with the harshness of rejection in person. You have a huge pool of people to explore (remember, 40 million!) from all walks-of-life, people you would never have the chance to meet within your neighborhood or small circle of friends.
There is also fraud and deception. You will probably come across a photo that looks eerily like Pamela Anderson - right down to the copyright in the lower corner. Clients tell me about married people posing as single. Nevertheless, these issues of honesty exist both on and off-line, so do not let that stop you from finding the partner you want.
With 43% of the U.S. population being single and with so many single clients asking me about Internet dating, I began to put a guide together to help my clients use this service effectively and safely and avoid these pitfalls. I want everyone to find the happiness they deserve and want to make this Tool book available to everyone for Free! To get your free E-Book, “Tools To Internet Dating” go to TheRelationshipTools.com and get your copy today.
Don’t be ashamed or afraid, learn the best and safest way to use the Internet to take control of your life and find the person you deserve!
Devlyn Steele (”America’s Leading Life-Coach”) has been a public consultant and a private counselor for over 15 years. A Cognitive Therapist, Radio host and Columnist, Devlyn also developed ToolsToLife.com. Devlyn maintains a thriving practice in Hollywood, where he counsels famous actors, musicians and captains of industry. Soon his new book will be available, Relationship Tools. You can hear Coach Steele live every Tuesday on LoveBeat Radio 1310 KXAM.com 7-9 PM. Arizona Time
coachsteele@toolstolife.com
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Posted by admin on May 22nd, 2008 — Posted in Living With Investment
Life is about decisions, whether they relate to your work, business or personal life. Often ignored is the interplay between all these areas, and the fact that a little interdisciplinary thinking can go a long way. This might sound obtuse, but many important decisions can be made easier by thinking simply, and a bit differently.
Before we do, a note about value, and ‘utility’. Business is about creating value. Our personal lives (according to economists) are about maximizing our utility, where utility is simply a measure of the happiness or satisfaction gained from a good or service.
Think of it this way, and business is considered first. If shareholders (either owners or investors) could create more value themselves using other means, why bother running or investing in a business? Assuming we don’t all have a perpetual income stream it comes back to this - if you don’t create value in today’s economy, you’ll be forced to do one of two things. Change how you do things, or cease to exist. For business the value question is rather important.
People have it a little easier in some respects. Creating maximum utility is an incentive in and of itself. In the end, we all want more, whether it is revenue and growth for business, or old-fashioned utility in our personal lives.
To get more, we return to the decisions mentioned earlier, as all the decisions we make have a direct impact on both value creation and utility maximization, in particular those related to finance. Successful strategic management (the direction you want to take the business) is supported by your investment policy (choosing which projects to undertake) and your financing policy (how you fund everything). Linked to all of this is risk management, or how you handle the risks associated with these financial decisions.
Personally, financial decisions influence your quality of life, and your ability to enjoy the things you want. Once again we are back looking at the study of incentives - how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In this case, it’s maximum utility.
One of the cornerstones of modern finance assists us in understanding which decisions to make, and it is equally applicable to business and personal finance. Its known as the time value of money. Simply put, $1 today is worth more to you than $1 received in the future. Why? Money has a time value because of interest rates, no matter how measly, making $1 today more valuable than $1 received at some time in the future because it can be invested today to provide a return. The income from the investment will in turn, make the dollar you get today worth more than the one promised you in the future. Perhaps an example best illustrates the point.
Anne is offered the choice between $100 now, and $100 in a year’s time. She takes the cash now, and invests it in a security (or bank) yielding 8%, and in a year has $108, which is clearly more than if she deferred taking the money at the start.
Again, this comes back to the incentives mentioned earlier. Interest rates are paid because someone else can use your money now, and they are prepared to pay you a return for the privilege of doing so, which is in truth a premium for taking the risk of giving your money to someone else. With business, this concept is part of what is known as the Sharpe-Lintner Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM for short), allowing people to work out, in today’s terms, the value of future cash flows on any project or decision requiring investment. Widely used, this concept varies in appearance and complexity, from sophisticated models developed by General Electric to the small business owner using the ‘NPV’ formula in an Excel spreadsheet.
There is another side to this discussion, and it’s slightly more personal. The time value of money can apply to you, and specifically, your utility. To understand how, we need to look at things the other way around and get a handle on the incentives of everyone involved.
Think of large personal assets you might have, like a structured settlement. The agreements reached in setting up the settlement left you with a sense of security for the future and continuing, dependable payments over time. Comfortable. Hmm. Let’s look at the incentives.
Think like they do. The illusion is that you will be better off down the track with the settlement. The problem is, they don’t want you to have all your money now because they understand the time value of money. Its worth more to them, and they bank on the fact that you haven’t given it a second thought.
Remember that structured settlements are designed so that the paying company get the maximum benefit from the time value of money. This doesn’t happen by accident or through some amazing act of benevolence driven by concern about your long term well-being. It’s pure market and negotiating power. Considering the time value of your settlement, the incentive is for them to keep your money as long as possible to maximize their value growth.
The intent of this discussion is to make you think. Consider the time value of money in your personal life. How much value is there for you in holding first-mortgage on a property for 20 years, compared with maximizing your utility? How much utility is your monthly settlement check going to provide you in 10 years? Just think about increases in the cost of living over the next fifteen years, and how the monthly check stands up.
Avenues exist in today’s marketplace for you to better utilize these high-value assets like structured settlements and real estate notes. Naturally, decisions to do so should not be taken lightly, treating your largest assets as whimsically as an ATM card. Whether in business or in your personal life, always consult a diverse range of industry professionals to increase the amount of information and knowledge brought to bear on any decision. As mentioned at the start, risk management is an important part of any decision making process.
Remember the time value of money. It can be used both for and against you. And find out which way it is being used, just look to which party has the larger incentives.
Jeremy Ballenger is a consultant for Sovereign Funding Group. Sovereign Funding Group is an experienced, reputable company that offers convenient, no-risk services to help you with the selling of your deferred payments and business financing including
structured settlements. Jeremy Ballenger is the webmaster of www.thinkmojo.com and www.constantfeed.com
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