Franchising how to get started

Franchising how to get started by Michael Cheary Interested in franchising, but dont know where to start?If you think owning your own franchise business might be the right career move for you, it can be difficult to know exactly what you need to do to get the ball rolling.To help you get started, heres a quick step-by-step guide of what you need to know:Step one: Choose the right type of franchise for youFirst things first: its time to choose which type of franchise business best suits you.There are a wide range of options available, including:Investment franchisesExecutive franchisesRetail franchiseDistribution franchiseDepot franchiseJob franchiseLifestyle franchiseManagement franchiseDeciding the type of franchise which youd be most passionate about will go a long way to determining your success.Step two: Research franchise opportunitiesAfter youve found a franchise you think fits, its time to back it up.The aim of researching a franchise opportunity is to understand as much as you can about the market, and minimise the risk involved. If done properly, your research should be able to provide you with a tried-and-tested formula that you know is likely to succeed in your chosen area.Your research may include:Studying the sector youre looking to move intoIdentifying the market for your product or serviceIdentifying the need for that type of business in your chosen locationFocusing on three or four franchises as case-studiesSpeaking to as many franchisees as you can to hear about their experiences first handIf you think youve suitably prepared a good business case around starting your franchise, the most important thing left to consider is whether it is a financially viable option for you.Step three: Think about financeThe investment needed from you will vary depending on the type of franchise opportunity you choose. For this reason, its always important to gain a comprehensive understanding of all of the costs involved.Firstly, it may be difficult to draw a wage at first. Consider ho w much money you will need for personal commitments and living expenses to make sure youre not overstretched.In terms of outgoings, starting/ongoing costs could include:The initial purchase price of the franchiseAmounts for professional feesWorking capital to run the businessA management service fee or royaltyA contribution to advertising costsA small percentage of salesAdmin feesIn terms of the amount you need to get started, all franchise businesses work different, but as a general rule you should have somewhere in the region of 30% of the total funds available (as finance can often be arranged for the rest*).If youre struggling with costs, there are many banks with specialist franchising finance divisions to help support you. They can provide budgeting tools and a range of other expertise which could be an invaluable resource to anyone seriously thinking about franchising.Step four: Make your moveAfter sorting out the financial aspects of franchising, its time to choose your oppo rtunity and make a move. Contrary to popular belief, just because you have the capital to purchase the franchise, it doesnt mean that you will automatically be accepted.Franchisors have invested time and energy into building a successful franchise model, and part of this can be put down to working with the right people. Driven and self-motivated individuals will be top of their shortlist, so always ensure youre able to demonstrate these qualities enthusiastically during your application process.Step five: Set yourself upOnce your application has been accepted and the relevant checks have been made, the next step is to make everything official and sign the contracts.As a franchisee youll be leasing a business system from its owner, the franchisor. This will usually involve signing a comprehensive legal agreement setting out the terms of the business partnership, and paying a licence fee to the franchisor for the right to set up in business for a specified term.As soon as everything i s signed sealed and delivered, you officially own your own business.* Dependent on your personal circumstances, background and financial history.Find out about the latest franchise opportunities Find a job What Where Search JobsSign up for more Career AdviceSign up for moreCareer Advice Please enter a valid email addressmessage hereBy clicking Submit you agree to the terms and conditions applicable to our service and acknowledge that your personal data will be used in accordance with our privacy policy and you will receive emails and communications about jobs and career related topics. What job suits me?

Blogger frustration Deloittes great data that I cant link to

Blogger frustration Deloittes great data that I cant link to When I discovered Deloitte has someone in charge of figuring out how to recruit and retain the new workforce, I knew I had to talk with him. Its Stan Smith, and his title is Director of Next Generation Initiatives. I was amazed to hear how forward thinking he is in an industry known for being old and stodgy. Based on his research, he wrote a paper called Connecting Across Generations in the Workplace. I could reference that paper every day. Here are some gems: Gen X will finally have their moment: The shrinking workforce actually creates more demand for Gen-X than Gen-Y. The baby boomer retirement will create a 2% drop in the workforce among 24-34 year olds, and a 31% drop among 35-45 year olds. Women will drive change in the consulting business: Women have more consulting-oriented skills than men do, they will make up the more than 60% of the workforce by 2010, and they will only work at companies that accommodate their need for flexibility. Deloitte backs up the revolution with data: Deloittes data shows it is men and women in Generation X and Y. The real revolution is a decrease in career ambition in favor of family time, less travel, and less personal pressure. I wrote about Stan in Time magazine, I wrote about him in the Boston Globe, and I put the articles on my blog, and every time Id mention him, there was no link, which is so annoying to me. I scoured the web for a link to his paper, and I looked for his bio. Nothing. I am not the only online publisher who is annoyed. I wrote about his study for my Yahoo Finance column that runs tomorrow, and my editor emailed me: Why are you linking to Deloittes home page? Wheres the study? Nowhere, of course. Well, on Stans desk, probably. And in a lot of CEOs in boxes. But not online. And to a significant portion of the world, if its not online, it doesnt exist. So Ive solved the problem. You can now download Connecting Across Generations in the Workplace right here. And I think this encapsulates where we are in the publishing world: A blogger publishing a document from the Fortune 500 in order to be able to link to it from future blog posts.

How To Stay Motivated When Faced With Monkey Work

How To Stay Motivated When Faced With Monkey Work Motivation can be tough to come by most of the time. If you’re lumbered with a task that is boring, tedious or completely mindless, motivation levels are most likely to be at an all-time low. While everyone dreads having to do things, in most cases the said “things” that really paralyze us tend to be the boring and repetitive ones â€" data entry, sorting, filing or tidying being right at the top of the list. The fact is, any task that is not creative or challenging can be difficult to carry out in the long term. Do you have the classic symptoms of struggling to remain focused when faced with monkey work? Rest assured, it’s a common experience and one that can be swiftly resolved with the right approach. The main issue is that there’s no way of getting out of these humdrum tasks â€" even if you’re a boss. And no matter what the reason, they have to be completed. Read on for a few tips to help boost motivation levels and keep you sane while having to tackle them. Remember Why They Have to be Done Whatever task you have been given, there’s a “why” behind it. In some cases, focusing on the why can help you feel more motivation to do a great job â€" even if the work itself is. Some examples of the “why” include getting your paycheck, doing something good for someone else or advancing work to avoiding having to do more in the future. Take Stimulating Breaks The benefits of taking short breaks while doing mundane tasks are endless, but rather than just flicking through Instagram, it can be highly beneficial to spend breaks learning something new, whether it’s reading a stimulating article, taking a few Sudoku puzzles over coffee or engaging in an activity that challenges your mind such as poker. Learning the basics takes about the length of a break but you can really sink your teeth into learning all about strategy, bluffing and the math side poker apps are ideal for this as you can stop and start the action whenever. You’ll find by staying sharp and pushing yourself during breaks that you’ll have renewed vigor to get through the monkey work. You can also take this relaxation time to escape the space where the task is being done. Turn on Some Music There are many reasons why music may distract you if you are doing an intense, thought-provoking task. However, for boring tasks that require little to no brainwork, listening to music  is a great way to get you through. Choosing something with a bit of a faster tempo, such as rock music, will get your blood pumping if you’re feeling lethargic. But if music isn’t your thing or you work in an environment where playing music is not appropriate, try putting that spark of vitality back into your system by listening to audio books while you copy and paste. You may even find that your dull task is rather relaxing â€" and you discreetly get to enjoy some quality entertainment at the same time. Work with a Partner While this may not always be an option, working in pairs or groups offers a great way to make a rather dull task much more entertaining. Find someone to complete the work with and turn a boring job into a potentially meaningful bonding experience, making the time pass much more quickly. One way to do this is by simply asking a co-worker to give you a hand if they have half an hour to spare. On a lazy mid-week afternoon, people will appreciate the distraction especially if it is actually work-related. If you are in a management position, you may have the ability to delegate some of the work. Just remember, be fair about how much you’re giving away and to whom, and always be on hand to oversee the job that was originally allocated to you. Get Friends or Co-Workers to Hold You Accountable Regardless whether you are facing a task at home or work that you really don’t want to do, you can try getting someone you trust to hold you accountable. While it may be easy for you to put it off until tomorrow, avoid doing this by asking someone to check in with you every few hours to get status updates. When you know someone is coming around to see how much you have done, you will feel more obliged to get yourself in gear and finish what you’ve started. Reward Yourself for a Job Well Done Chances are, if you know a reward is waiting for you once the mundane task is completed, you will be much more motivated to struggle on through. Try making a deal with yourself: once the task is done, promise yourself a tasty treat, a divine half-hour in the sunshine, or a spa treatment to relax. The thought of a reward for doing an otherwise unappealing task may be enough to help you get through it. While no one wants to have to do monkey work, it is a situation that most people face from time to time. With the tips here, you have plenty of material to cultivate the motivation you need and get the work done without going crazy or putting it off forever. So start implementing your tactics for keeping your head above water when dull times abound and go get ‘em! Image Source; Image Source; Image Source; Image Source

Announcing my new company Quistic

Announcing my new company Quistic I am so relieved to be writing this post because Ive been scared for a really long time. It is complete BS when people jump up and cheer about their new companys launch, telling you how great they feel. Because whats really happening, to any sane entrepreneur, is that they are terrified. Quistic is an online learning site where people can build skills to create stable, fulfilling careers. Its the natural result of all the conversations and events weve had together on this blog. Heres what I want to happen: Every one of you should try a course, because I really think youll like it. At first I panicked that I was not doing online courses the way everyone else does. But I received effusive feedback about how much people love my video seminars, and then I realized I know how to make online learning feel like a party instead of a lecture.  Thats when I decided to make a company out of it. When I was testing if Quistic would work as a company, I had some of my friends sell Quistic-style courses to their communities, and it went really well.  I did this furtively, of course, because Im scared to do anything in front of you that will fail. I know thats lame. I know that rock star entrepreneurs say they embrace failure and failure is actually growth and all that. Its just that they are not saying it while theyre failing. Theyre saying it from their yacht in the Bahamas with their hot model wife crawling all over them. And also, let me just add that entrepreneurship is so overly glorified that all those hot model wives also have their own startups. Apps, usually. Just something small, to talk about at cocktail parties. In Vail. The time when I get mean is when Im scared. Thats how I know I need to launch. Because any minute now Im going to start naming names for all the apps of wives of investors I know. But I cant do that because if Ive done anything right so far its been to become the queen of fundraising. And also, Ive been the queen of hiring. Heres what I did. I coach all these people who are totally amazing but for various reasons they are underemployed. I keep a running list of them in my head and I hired a bunch of them for this company. Its been a great experience because I already know all their secrets because I coached them, and they already know all my secrets because they read my blog, so I have a company with no BS because we have nothing to hide. Well, there has been a little bit of BS. The BS in my company is me making excuses for not launching our site. First, I told the team that we are making good money anyway, with products that do not require a consumer web site. This is true. And also, were doing online events with impressive companies, like this one with Philips. So we are making good headway with no web site. So my co-workers left me alone about how we are not launching. Then I told them we had to not launch because part of getting to the next round of funding is having steadily building revenue from all the courses Ive been running as test cases. So we didnt want to have too much revenue in September. Trust me, I told them. So they did. Then, toward the middle of October there was sort of an intervention. It was as if I was not going to work and instead staying home shooting heroin. Except that really I was writing blog posts about not launching instead of launching. The team couldnt take it any more. Alex said, Ive seen a lot of startups launch and the ones that fail are crushed by the eccentric perfectionism of the CEO. Emily said, I feel like Im in a hostage situation. Cassie said, I think you need me to call you each hour today to make sure that youre on track to publish your launch post tomorrow. That last comment was particularly deflating because Ive spent pretty much the last month calling Cassie every day making sure her sales will come through. I keep telling her she needs to take more responsibility for hitting weekly revenue goals. So maybe the reason Im finally announcing the site is so I can go back to being the person who tells everyone else they need to get their work done on time. But I think the real reason Im finally announcing this site is that everything I do is more fun when I do it with you. I came up with this company idea because of all the ways I tried to make money from my blog, the online courses were not only the most successful but they also made the most lasting difference among community members. I have a grand idea that this community will lead the way for how to build skills and have fun in a career that does not destroy your life but rather makes it fulfilling. Our community has been forward thinking on a lot of levels, and I think online learning will be one of them. So, heres hoping I meet a lot of you in the classes. And heres the link to my new company: Quistic.

Resume Writing Course in Australia

Resume Writing Course in AustraliaOne of the best ways to get a job in your chosen field is to take a resume writing course in Australia. Australian schools specialize in writing resumes, cover letters and cover queries for job applicants in the country.The resume writing course in Australia is designed for both students and adults who want to learn more about how to write a great resume. The curriculum focuses on skills and content that not only identify you as a prospective employee, but help employers decide whether or not you are a good fit for their organization. A successful resume presentation begins with a clear and focused objective statement.Employers want to know what your career goals are before they will read any lengthy opening paragraphs or sentence fragments. They want to know where you see yourself in two years, three years, five years, and beyond. By knowing your actual goals, you are more likely to achieve them.If you are in high school or college, this school woul d be ideal. Adults can take a refresher class from an accredited program if they feel their current education is not advanced enough. Most resume writing courses in Australia are very similar to the basic courses provided by most universities. Since so many of these programs allow working adults to enroll, they also have a lot of hands-on opportunities to practice and perfect their writing skills.As an adult, it is important to determine if you really want to start a new career. Is your current job fulfilling your dreams? While there are some people who don't take a second look at a job offer after their first, there are plenty of professionals who decide that they would like to work for themselves or start their own business.One final consideration before you decide to sign up for a resume writing course in Australia is the cost. Some universities charge a tuition fee, but most do not. They provide a low-cost, quality education that they hope will lead to a successful career for yo u.In addition to learning various skills and writing strategies, your school will teach you how to use databases, computers, and Internet technologies. You will learn to improve your organization skills, develop communication skills, how to communicate effectively, how to organize and prioritize your time, and how to present yourself professionally.A resume writing course in Australia can help you get the results you want when you are just starting out in your job search. Having the opportunity to practice and hone your skills can help you be better prepared when the time comes for you to interview well.