We all know the feeling, searching for that perfect job and nothing seems to be working. The feeling of being afraid you are going to be stuck with your boring nine to five in a cubicle. But there is hope; there are ways to improve one's job status and your chances of landing that dream job. Writing that perfect curriculum vitae or CV can provide a future employer with a sense of professionalism and it gives one the ability to share all of their information with a tentative employer. The CV has often taken a backseat to the resume, many people think that they are the same thing but there are a few differences. First off, the CV is often times longer by 1-2 pages and provides more detail in a number of different areas like background and personal skills. The CV also includes information about a person's publications, experience in research and teaching and more in-depth detail on more parts of a person's life then a resume. A lot of people in the job market will attempt to write the perfect CV but with the changing job market finding CV advice is not always the easiest thing to do.

One of the best online sources for anything to do with writing from resumes to a simple citation is the Purdue University OWL system. And this system proves excellent information and up to date tips to provide anyone with the right ways to make a great CV. Another system that helps tremendously with is the popular website about.com that provides tips for nearly everything one needs to write a CV and even a free CV template.

The first thing that one must understand is that there is not one standard format for a CV; there are several different ways to write a CV. Most of the time, depending on the writer's discipline, they will conform their CV to provide information that is applicable to their own specific discipline. It is very easy to find an example of any discipline on multiple websites. It is common practice to include basically everything about one's schooling life including the obvious ones like name and contact info but when writing a CV, it is common to go well beyond the obvious. Including things like charity work, research experience, presentations and one especially would want to include facts and experience that makes them the best employee for the job. Usually, people will go over their strength's in detail and focus in on those as much as possible.

CV advice can be found anywhere, finding a virtual roadmap to the perfect CV is in the cards for anyone who makes the effort to do so.

If you’re looking to start a business as a private tutor, you’ve chosen a challenging but rewarding career path.  With today’s academic world growing more and more competitive, parents are looking now more than ever to give their children the edge they need to succeed.  As a private tutor, you are perfectly poised to fill this need.  However, there are several things you will need to consider before starting your own tutoring practice.  In this article, we’ll take a look at how finding a niche, dialing in your marketing, carefully building your credibility, and improving your business processes can help put you on the path to tutoring business success.

The first step to getting started as a tutor is to find your unique niche.   It might be tempting to attempt to offering tutoring for every type of academic need out there, but this is not a wise plan.   Instead, take inventory of your unique skills and interests.  What are you good at explaining?  What credentials do you have that might qualify you to teach a certain subject?  What are you passionate about?  Answering these questions and determining your niche will help you find people who are looking for exactly what you offer, and will be willing to pay a premium for it.

Once you have your unique niche in place, it’s time to get your marketing dialed in.  Consider the average buyer in your niche.  Where do they hang out?  How can you  get in touch with them?  The answers to these questions will help determine the core of your marketing strategy.  If your target market are affluent parents who need to help their children do well on the SAT so they can get into high end schools, consider advertising at the local country club.  If you are targeting young children who want to learn the violin, why not get in touch with the orchestra teacher at the local school and explain your services?  The more targeted you are with your advertising, the more success you will have.

Another key factor to success is establishing credibility.  Clients have many fears: the safety of their children, doubts about your effectiveness, worries about your background.  Do everything in your power to diminish these concerns in their minds.  Be ready to show credentials and testimonials showing your effectiveness.  Be prompt and reliable in every stage of your interactions.  Consider getting a background check done on yourself to show you are a trustworthy person.  The more credibility cues you can establish, the more likely you are to get hired.

Finally, once you have clients and are starting to see success, it’s time to get your processes nailed down.  It’s important not to get bogged down in time consuming tasks such as making and sending invoices, and sending reminders to students for their sessions.  Consider automating these processes with tutor invoicing and scheduling software, or simply create well defined procedures to cut down on time consuming tasks.  In short, if you’re not billing time for a task, think of a way to automate it.

This is just a quick summary of  a few ways to improve your tutoring business.  As with any business, you will be continuously learning and growing as your work, so be sure to be flexible and absorb these lessons as you go.  Best of luck with your business.

In July, new legislation is designed to lower the interchange fees charged for card transactions to 12 cents. Banks and some legislators are attempting to slow the implementation of this new law, worried that it will hurt enterprise competitiveness. These limits, however, are precisely what could save smaller businesses. Source of article - A small business perspective on payment systems by MoneyBlogNewz.

Interchange fee primer

Card interchange fees are, in short, fees paid for the privilege of allowing customers to use a credit or debit card. These are called "swipe fees," also. They cost between 12 and 75 cents every time somebody uses the card. This "interchange fee" is in addition to a certain percentage of the transaction amount that is charged for use of the card. The business that provides the card machine, the financial institution doing the transaction and the card processor are all the things the interchange and percentage fees pay. A lot of money builds up with the fees. It added up to $50 billion in 2010. The U.S. interchange fees are twice and much as Europe’s interchanges fees. To be able to help United States businesses become less competitive, congress members try to push some legislation. This would make interchange fees go down.


Adding interchange fees can mean less business


Taking credit cards can hurt a business. Still, the small businesses have to make the decision on whether or not to take it. Credit card processors typically charge a monthly fee while a fee and percentage of every credit card transaction also has to be paid typically with credit cards. Some businesses don’t have lots of additional money. It's worse for these corporations. Even with accessible alternatives that reduce cost, any small business could have to eventually pass on the cost to consumers through minimum purchases, higher prices or additional charges on card payments. Consumers are going to make bigger purchases when there are credit cards while more individuals are willing to use your shop.


My small business perspective


I offer many services at a small business I own with my husband. Whether we should accept credit cards were never really a question -- it was a necessity. Without a physical location and relatively low monthly sales volume, the $20 to $100 monthly fee of a traditional charge card terminal simply didn't make sense. Start-up Square was used for our credit cards processing credit cards through smartphones and charging a flat percentage of every transaction. Sales are only at $300 a month. We only pay about $8 in charge card fees each month. Added on to $30 in company taxes and $26 in sales tax we collect, the amount accessible to pay our suppliers and make a profit gets thinner. Charge card interchange fees going down would help us a lot. We could hire employees and charge less. Either way, card fees may not sound like much to a consumer, however those few percentage points are what can take a small business from "surviving" to "competitive."



Information from


Market Watch

marketwatch.com/story/visa-mastercard-rise-on-swipe-fee-regulation-pact-2010-06-21

Shopping for a great pair of shoes that fit comfortably and look stylish is never easy. Shopping for shoes that fit comfortably with plantar fasciitis is even more of a daunting task. When shopping for the best walking shoes for plantar fasciitis, Kuru Footwear is one of the best options available.

What Is Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis is a sharp, stabbing pain in the heel of the foot. The pain is worse first thing in the morning. The pain will decrease as the plantar fascia warms up and stretches. The plantar fascia is tissue that runs the length of the foot. If sitting for a period of time, the first few steps may also be painful until that tissue gets stretched out again. Having an arch that is too high or no arch can be a cause for plantar fasciitis to occur in combination with obesity, sitting for too long, running or being pregnant. It is more common in women.

What to Do For Plantar Fasciitis

Wearing New Balance shoes for plantar fasciitis with proper arch support can alleviate some of the pain caused by plantar fasciitis. A podiatrist might also be needed to diagnose and treat the condition and surgery is a last resort. A podiatrist will mold the feet to create shoe inserts that are made specifically for each foot that are to be worn in any shoe. These inserts will provide the proper support for the entire foot so that pressure when walking or running will spread out over the entire foot and stop the plantar fascia from stretching and tearing.

Exercises and stretches can also be performed to help with the pain of plantar fasciitis. One exercise is to freeze a bottle of water and roll it gently back and forth with the bottom of the foot. This stretches and ices the plantar fascia. Another stretch is to put a towel around the foot and pull both ends of the towel, pulling the toes of the foot toward yourself.

Kuru Footwear

Kuru Footwear designs their shoes to custom mold to the foot. Each pair of shoes is built with an exclusive orthotic built into the shoe and reinforced arch support. Kuru sells dress shoes as well as running and walking shoes. All shoes have the built-in technology to help with plantar fasciitis. These shoes can also help with general foot pain and lower back pain.