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Personal Development: Help Yourself and Your Employees Grow

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StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Personal Development|Personal Development: Help Yourself and Your Employees GrowPersonal development is crucial in building a holistic workforce made of leaders and employees who have the skills to succeed in all areas of life. This is because it looks beyond just job qualifications to include mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical development. This can be achieved by encouraging activities that build skills to reach the goals and full potential for you and your employees. The result- better, fulfilled and satisfied individuals, with improved strengths and talents for career advancement and personal and career goals achievement.

There are many benefits to gain from pursuing personal development in the workplace. You all are happy when you feel accomplished. When your employees know that you value their personal development, they become more engaged and committed, which leads to a low turnover rate and high productivity. You also become a good leader who can lead a team to achieve high results.

Here are ways that you can help yourself and your employees take on a personal development journey.

1. Encourage learning

Continued learning of new skills is very crucial in the journey of personal development. You can encourage your employees to learn new skills by offering incentives to sign up for classes or reimbursing part of their tuition fees. You can also plan for training such as the latest technologies in the industry. Invite key speakers in different facets of life to give talks in the workplace. This can be a good place for you and your employees to spot opportunities that can be beneficial to your lives. This should be inclusive of all employees. If you have employees in other countries, in Japan, for instance, hired through a Professional Employer Organization (PEO), such as NH Global Partners, or other providers, be sure to use their services to extend the incentives and training opportunities.

2. Allow flexible schedules

The traditional 9-5 work schedule is one of the biggest hindrances to personal development. People have to wake up early to beat the morning traffic, work throughout the day with little time to rest, and get back home late and tired to do anything else.

Allow a more flexible time where all of you can work in your most productive hours. You can also allow them to choose their best place to work from. This way, you all have the rest of the day to carry out personal development activities like attending a class or hitting the gym.

3. Encourage healthy lifestyles

Leading a healthy life is crucial in improving the physical fitness of a person, which is part of the larger personal development. You can encourage healthy meals at work by offering healthy snacks and drinks. If you have given a contract to a restaurant to provide lunch, ask them to serve healthy meals. In addition, encourage physical activities for you and your employees. For instance, you can start biking to work so that your employees can follow suit. Help them pay for gym subscriptions or even have a mini-gym at work complete with showering facilities.

4. Work on more challenging tasks

If a person spends a lot of time in his or her comfort zone, it can be very hard to move forward and grow to the level that one desires. Mostly, it is fear of the unknown that keeps people at the place that they feel comfortable. However, you can break this cocoon by encouraging your employees to take up challenging tasks. Be there to help them through by giving them timely and honest feedback. You can also assign another employee who is skilled in that area to help others through such tasks. Be sure to also take up such tasks from time to time.

5. Foster open communication

People thrive in places where there is open communication. This is because they are able to express themselves without fear of intimidation or punishment. They have no room to bottle up negative feelings, if issues or concerns come up in the workplace, they are able to table them and solve them amicably.

For starters, you can start by encouraging interactions in the workplace. Everyone in the office becomes confident with one another when they know each other better. During meetings, encourage everyone to participate in airing their ideas, opinions, or concerns. This goes a long way in developing public speaking skills.

Conclusion

A lot can be done to encourage personal development for you and your employees. Be sure that your workplace is built on a positive culture. Positivity yields so many other good results, and that is how you will have you and your employees shining all through.

Business Sectors to Invest in That Offer Higher Chances of Success

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Business Sectors|Business Sectors to Invest in That Offer Higher Chances of SuccessWith about 20% of new companies failing every year, investing in the right business sector is challenging. That is why every budding entrepreneur or potential business owner needs to identify which industries offer them a higher chance of success, and that’s the information which this article provides. However, it’s essential to note that the sectors mentioned are part of the fastest growing and not necessarily the largest business sectors. So, are you planning on venturing into a new business? Are you looking for the right industry to launch your business with higher chances of success? Then consider these sectors before you begin.

1.Hospitality industry

The hospitality industry includes restaurants, hotels, and leisure facilities and offers a wide range of opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs. It is a sector that keeps evolving to meet the new and changing demands of its consumers – a situation that also offers new business opportunities. As the potential consumers’ spending power continues to grow, it creates more avenues for as many future investors interested in this sector. Start-ups with innovative ideas can find many businesses in this sector ready to enter a partnership with them. You’ll have a higher chance of success investing in this sector if you first have a better understanding of what the hospital industry is.

2. Technology industry

The technology industry has become one of the main driving forces in almost every business sector- so it is with little wonder it makes it onto this list. Technology is at the heart of nearly everything we do. For example, a simple-looking electric cylinder can be used in different motors to power or run machines in various sectors. The growth of many online platforms has promoted the ease of doing business across physical boundaries. However, there is still a lot of room for improvement and even better innovations, as humanity keeps searching for ways to make life easier.

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3. Healthcare industry

The healthcare industry is growing at a fast pace and has led to several breakdowns in the sector. Despite that, the breakdowns in this sector also present entrepreneurs and aspiring business innovators an opportunity to fill the gaps with innovative tech solutions. This means that a person does not need to have a background or training in health to impact this industry. The healthcare sector uses different kinds of software and hardware technologies that need constant changes and upgrading. This situation offers vast opportunities for software developers and programmers prepared to think outside the box and create new ideas for the healthcare sector.

4. Construction industry

From construction technology to extensive infrastructure and residential housing, the construction industry has grown steadily over the past decade. For most people outside the industry, the construction sector comprises giant bulldozers and building equipment, which require a lot of financial investment. But the industry also has more than enough space for different kinds of technology and innovations that will make construction more manageable and less time-consuming. Furthermore, as populations continue to grow worldwide, there is always the need for residential and other housing needs.

Apart from the sectors mentioned, entrepreneurs can make a beneficial impact in any industry. If you have an innovative idea, do not be afraid to act on it- it would be a winning one.

Protect your Business From Cyber Security Threats: 4 Smart Ways

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StrategyDriven Risk Management Article |Cyber Security|Protect your Business From Cyber Security Threats: 4 Smart WaysIt seems as if cybersecurity threats are both sophisticated and ever-present these days, something that can indeed make those of us owning and running businesses incredibly concerned. The good news is that there are several strategies that you can use to protect your business from such threats. Keep reading to find out what they are.

Update your systems

Out of date systems provide weaknesses for hackers to exploit, that is why it’s hugely important to update your systems regularly. Indeed periodically updating your systems and software is a low-cost solution that can help you stay on top of the ever-evolving cybersecurity threat that hackers pose.

You don’t even have to update your systems manually, as you can use a patch management system to do it for you.

Make use of penetration testing.

Similarly, as well as updating your systems using penetration testing to identify any weaknesses in your IT provision is a brilliant idea indeed. The reason is that once you have found where the problems lie, you can have your team working on fixing them before they are discovered and used by anyone with nefarious intentions.

There are many different Types of Penetration Testing to consider as well, and it helps to know the difference between grey, white, and black-box testing if you want to perform the most useful tests for your business. The good news is it’s not hard to remember as black-box testing is all about external testing, while white is about internal, grey, on the other hand, is a mixture of them both.

Properly train staff in IT security

Sadly, people inside of your business can also contribute to cybersecurity concerns. In particular, employees not sticking to IT security protocol like using only secure networks, not bringing it USB sticks can be problematic.

Additionally, phishing emails are becoming more and more convincing all the time. Therefore you must educate your employees on how to spot these, and how to weed them out.

The most important thing to remember here is that if something seems off, it probably is and therefore it is worth checking up on through an official route. This means using a phone number other than the one provided in the suspicious email to check that the request for information or money is genuine.

Also, ask your employees to check the email address, and the link contained within any suspicious communication. If they do not seem official or legit, then you can direct them to take the advice above.

We also recommend that you send them on training courses that deal with more detailed and complex parts of IT security. For example, while not directly a security problem, your business should be looking into decentralized identities so that you are not beholden to a specific service provider, but rather manage this yourself. This is safer for your business, but you need employees who understand the process, and what this means.

Finally, do not forget to remind them to report any suspicious emails to your IT department. Then you can warn the rest of your workers to be on guard for them, and even have your IT folks protect against something similar in the future.

Always have a back up

Lastly, while it is better to be proactive when dealing with cybersecurity threats, it is also essential to have a backup plan. Indeed, a literal backup of your data and servers are what is required here. Although whether you choose to do this onsite, or via the cloud will depend on what will better keep your company safe.

Everything There Is To Know About Buying A House

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StrategyDriven Practices for Professionals Article |Buying a House|Everything There Is To Know About Buying A HouseBuying a property is definitely one of those things that is on many people’s bucket lists of things they want to do in their lives. At some stage, you may even start planning to do it yourself. But often you need that little push to make it happen and to take that leap of faith of actually buying somewhere. After all, it is one of the most expensive purchases you will ever make in your lifetime, sounds scary when you put it like that doesn’t it? But when it is your first time, how do you know exactly the right steps to take or what is needed when it comes to buying a property? There is so much to think about, and in many cases, it can be less than straightforward. So with that in mind, here are some of the steps involved when buying a property and everything that is to know about it. I hope it helps you in the future.

Finding the right house and considering what you want and need

One of the first things you need to think about is finding the right house and considering what you want and need from it. This is when it could be a real good idea to sit there with a pen and paper and writing down everything you need from your new place, everything you would want or like to have, and the non negotiables. This will help you decide on the best course of action and help you to research and search out the right place for you. Looking online will help you figure out some of the other aspects. It isn’t just about the house either, you could also do with considering the area you want to live in, the outside space and other factors like the commute to work, schools, and local shops and other amenities. A house is the main aspect, but everything else has to be right as well in order to be living exactly what you imagined it to be.

Knowing what your budget is and if extra funding is needed

The next thing you need to think about, now that you know exactly what you want and need from a house and location, is to figure out the budget you have. In some cases this can be the hardest and more emotional side of the decision making process as the financial side of things will indicate whether or not you can afford what you want. A good idea would be to look at mortgages and seek out the best home loan for your purchase. Once you know this important factor, you will be able to refer back to your wants and needs on your list and hopefully be able to keep things on there or perhaps make some changes to it as your budget dictates what you can afford to spend.

Having a plan on what you want to achieve

Having the right plan is so important. You need to make sure you plan every aspect of this house move from start to finish. This is so you are not left with any nasty surprises when it comes to moving. The plan can include everything, from how you plan to find the right property to how you intend on progressing through the process of buying and selling. Searching online is one of the most common ways to find properties these days, and many websites will show you a range of potential properties from different agents, saving you from having to look from one website to another. You might also want to plan for any contingency funds that may need to be spent such as fees for the legal side of things, or agent fees, as well as funds for anything works that might need to take place once the house sale has gone through.

Having a solicitor that is good

It is also important for you to have a good legal aid on your side when it comes to navigating the home buying process. There is a lot to think about, and there is also a lot of paperwork and checks involved to make sure that a house sale can go through. A good solicitor will be able to highlight these areas and also ensure that all paperwork is in order before the house sale completes. These people will also handle the money transactions and ensure all gets paid, so it is vitally important for you to make sure that you pick the right solicitor to help you with your house purchase. There are also fees involved so as mentioned earlier you may need to factor in these costs so that you are not left stuck at the final hurdle.

Allowing for the timescales involved with the process

There is a lot involved in buying a home. Once you have put your offer in and had it accepted you signify a chain of events that can take time. Initially, any mortgage company will want certain checks taking place on the property to ensure it is in good condition. This is to identify structure issues, damp or other aspects and tend to be very common on older properties. These checks can take time and some companies may ask for further checks to take place, or even certain works to be done before a full release of a mortgage can be had. A solicitor will handle this for you. You also need to think about other people involved, which brings me on to my final point.

Being aware of the chains you can end up in

In many home buying processes you are not the only one involved and this can mean that you enter into a chain. The chain needs to complete at the same time in order for one person to move from one place to another. If the person you are buying from can’t move into their home then you can’t move into theirs, if that makes sense. This is when it can get time consuming and the process can last longer than it needs to.

Let’s hope that highlighting some of these steps will help you when it comes to buying a property right now or in the future.

5 Sure-Fire Ways to Increase Your SEO Rankings

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article, 5 Sure-Fire Ways to Increase Your SEO RankingsNo matter what sector your business operates in, online visibility is essential to your success. As well as building credibility and gaining trust, online visibility enables you to acquire new customers and retain existing ones.
Having a functional, well-designed website is the first step to building an online profile, but this alone isn’t sufficient. In order to drive traffic to your site and facilitate brand recognition, you’ll need to rank highly on search engine results pages (SERPs) for keywords and terms that are relevant to your business.

The only way to increase your rankings is with consistent search online optimisation. With an evidence-based SEO strategy, you can ensure your webpages are the first thing users see when they search for relevant terms. While there are hundreds of factors to consider, you can get started by using these five sure-fire ways to increase your SEO rankings:

1. Increase Page Loading Speeds

The functionality of your website is important in terms of user experience (UX), but it also has a significant impact on your SEO rankings. With loading speeds between 1-3 seconds, bounce rates average around 32%. However, just a one second delay sees bounce rates skyrocket to a staggering 90%. As loading speeds have such a significant impact on user behaviour, they’re a critical factor when it comes to ranking webpages on SERPs.

Remember – Google wants to deliver an optimal UX. Anything which detracts from this is likely to have a negative impact on your rankings. Conversely, improving UX via page loading speeds and other factors can boost your SERP rankings.

2. Publish Original Content

Your content marketing strategy is critical to the success of your overall SEO campaign. To achieve high rankings, your website needs to feature fresh content on a regular basis. Furthermore, this content needs to be fully optimised for relevant keywords and terms. This is how search engines can determine whether your content is relevant to a user’s search query, so it’s vital that you tell Google what your content is about.

Many businesses use blog posts and articles as a way of sharing original, unique and relevant content. While these are certainly an excellent way to increase your rankings, there are other types of content to consider too. Videos, images, infographics, white papers and podcasts can all be used to engage users and improve your rankings.

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3. Work with an Agency

Managing your SEO in-house can be a drain on your resources, particularly for start-ups and smaller enterprises. There are hundreds of ranking factors which are taken into account when determining where your webpages will appear on SERPs. To secure a place on the first page of Google, you’ll need to stay up to date with the ranking factors that matter most and gain access to the tools you need to modify your own position in the listings.

Fortunately, you don’t have to handle this yourself. Working with established SEO professionals, like this agency, gives you access to the expertise and experience you need. As the #1 Perth SEO agency, PWD is adept at devising and executing successful SEO strategies on behalf of their clients. From keyword research and content creation to site optimisation and local campaigns, outsourcing your SEO needs can be the best way to achieve your commercial goals.

4. Secure Backlinks

Every website has a score, ranging from 1-100, known as its domain authority. The higher your score, the higher your webpages are likely to rank on SERPs. Securing high-quality backlinks is one way of successfully increasing your domain authority and, therefore, your SEO rankings.

When your links are featured on an external site, it acts as an unofficial endorsement and tells Google that your content is credible, trustworthy and reputable. This encourages Google and other search engines to rank your content more highly, in order to deliver a better UX.

Of course, where your backlinks are placed has a significant impact on your own rankings. Securing backlinks on a website with a high domain authority will have a positive impact on your own domain authority score, for example. Conversely, low-quality backlinks can have a negative impact on your score and cause your rankings to drop. While backlinks are essential to SEO success, a strategic approach is necessary.

There are several ways on how to secure backlinks. According to the SEO management team at Invicta Agency, backlinks can be acquired on-page and off-page through various strategies including maximising the content of your website through its keywords.

5. Use Local SEO

Local SEO is a great way for businesses to target certain geographical regions. By modifying your keywords and terms to include locations, you can respond to search queries that are focused on a particular area.

Furthermore, local SEO enables you to achieve results more quickly and offers a more cost-effective SEO option. When you’re targeting the key term, ‘SEO Perth’, for example, there is going to be less competition than if you attempt to target the key term, ‘SEO’. This means you can successfully rank for the local term with fewer resources, thus lowering costs. Similarly, less competition ensures you’ll notice a positive impact on your rankings more quickly.

Many people assume local SEO is only beneficial for local business, but this isn’t the case. While local SEO is certainly essential for local firms, national and even international businesses should be capitalising on local SEO too. With the opportunity to target specific areas, raise your profile in particular regions, achieve results more quickly and increase your ROI, local SEO is a tool that all businesses should be using.

Grow Your Business with SEO

As you can see, there are many facets to a successful search engine optimisation campaign. This means you’ll need to consider numerous factors to create and execute a successful SEO strategy. Furthermore, you’ll need to monitor your SEO activities, measure your performance and analyse the results in order to maintain and improve your rankings.

Search engine optimisation isn’t a one-off activity. A consistent approach is required if you want to boost your online visibility, outperform competitors and grow your business. Due to this, it’s important to access the expertise and skills that can help your business to implement effective, long-term SEO strategies. By doing so, you can increase your market share, generate higher profits and gain unrivalled online visibility.