Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Journal.
Words Sales People Use to Close the Deal
The words that sales people use to close a deal can be simple solutions to boosting sales, whether you are dealing in physical goods or rendering services. This is the secret those marketing gurus will never tell you. Sales people who know this secret are gaining an edge over their competitors and taking home thousands of dollars in profit, while their business counterparts are struggling and crawling on the ground. We want your business to rise and shine.
By Leila Parker7 years ago in Journal
Beginner's Guide to Investing
You have to start from somewhere to build your riches. While some are born rich and stay rich, and some win the lottery, for the most part you have to make a smart decision somewhere along the way to become rich. If you have been able to save some money and you want to invest, it can be hard to know where to start. While $1,000 is a meager amount to most big-time investors, you have to start somewhere, so let's look at a beginner's guide to investing your first $1,000 to create a lifelong profitable endeavor.
By Patty Ramsen7 years ago in Journal
It's Harassment, Not a Friendship
I was a teenager, just finished working 3 years at a local fast food joint, and wanted to get my foot in the door at a place that would benefit my future. After an interview that went great, I scored the job of a lifetime; at 19 years old! I like to think of myself as an attractive woman. Then, and now. I was at a stage in my life where I wanted to be accepted by everyone. I wanted to be liked. My flirtatious personality is what got me in trouble... I didn't take a lot of things seriously at this point in my life, but my job was another story... I was hired as part time, yet I worked 40 plus hours a week. I worked HARD. I stayed late, came in early, whatever they needed.
By Brooke Rose7 years ago in Journal
Habits of Mentally Strong People
There are some people who just seem to have it all together. Even if they falter, they know exactly how to pick up the pieces. We may find ourselves admiring these resilient people in our lives, but it is important to remember that we can all strive to be more like them by developing some of these habits of mentally strong people.
By Richard Owens7 years ago in Journal
What It's Like To Be: An Entrepreneur
To put it simply, I am an entrepreneur. To get a little more specific, I am a creative entrepreneur. To get even more specific than that, I am a SERIAL creative entrepreneur. I constantly have new ideas bouncing around in my head, and sometimes I need to remind myself to just sit down, take a breath, and focus on the imminent task at hand. In those moments, I always remember something a mentor of mine used to say to me: “Hillary, you have all these plates up in the air, and they’re all just spinning! One falls, but you still have something spinning! Eventually, one of those plates is going to stop spinning, and that’s going to be the idea.”
By Hillary Gadsby7 years ago in Journal
Dumbest Things to Do with Your Money
Congratulations, you made it to your thirties, now you just have to make sure to avoid the dumbest things you can do with your money. Many people in their thirties have finally gotten to a point where they have enough cash to be stable, have a reliable job, and are starting to make longer term financial decisions. While you should celebrate your new place in life, you also need to make sure to that you are planning to have an even more successful future. In order to keep the good times rolling, be sure to avoid these dumbest things to do with your money.
By Patty Ramsen7 years ago in Journal
Qualities of a Great Company
"Leadership is the art of giving people a platform for spreading ideas that work." While there are many key elements that define a great company, such as hierarchy and setting defined goals, leadership is also an important installment in the things that set the foundation of a successful business. Like many things in life, there are great companies, and there are many more not so great companies. Opinions vary on what the key elements of building and maintaining a great corporate culture are. The truth is that there are thousands upon thousands of contributing factors to the achievement of a strong institution. Many of these are both technical and subject to the time and demographic they are part of. The following key elements are more than just mechanical or subjective. They are the timeless and classic aspects to a great company. True success is the realization of all of them, as no one particular aspect can overwhelm the collective process achieved through these things that define a great company.
By Leila Parker7 years ago in Journal
How to Effectively Give Constructive Criticism
Honey is bound to catch more employees than vinegar. A person who feels appreciated will always do more than what is expected. This saying has a level of truth when it comes to the business world. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of examples of corporations that don't follow this belief. Let's call her Joan. She's a secretary at a Los Angeles digital media company and, frankly, she's a problem. "My workers are complaining to me," relates Kim, Joan's boss and the content manager of the company. "They don't want to ask her to do their typing, but that's Joan's job—distributing important documents and sending emails in and out of the office. Even paperwork is backlogged. The department is in chaos."
By Richard Owens7 years ago in Journal
Companies That Control the Food Industry
Have you ever wandered the aisles of a large supermarket and been in awe at the sheer number of different food items available? The choice is often astounding; how many different kinds of dried pasta does one need? You may be forgiven for thinking that all these different brands of the same item shows diversity and good, healthy competition. Dig a bit deeper however and the dark truth appears. The food industry is actually run by a small monopoly of huge, global companies. It would appear that as we increase our choice with regards to the foods we buy, we decrease the number of companies that control the food industry.
By Patty Ramsen7 years ago in Journal
Writing and Onion Peels
A majority of writers, of any genre, continually tell interviewers that they consistently struggle with their craft. They are always looking for new ideas, new takes on old ones, and struggling to keep their message within the context of their audience. This problem is neither old nor new. Rather, it is a continual dilemma that affects the novice and professional, and in teaching college composition classes I have often used the analogy of a yellow onion to convey the writing process and purpose of a target audience. The onion represents the writing process because its layers and outer skin are symbolic to steps used to achieve clarity and consistency within an author’s text. These techniques and analogies are plausible for the new freelancer, as well as the advanced and professional writer, because everyone gets “stuck” or can not see past the surface of their subject matter. Accordingly, an onion analogy proves most poignant to the writer’s craft because its potency, pungent odor, sensual pull, and strong flavor conjure images and mental sensations that pull the mind and senses toward the central subject. Hence, the onion acts much like the words of a refined writer.
By Annessa Babic7 years ago in Journal