Global Urban Symposium

Archive for November, 2009

Excellent communication skills are crucial to success in any kind of business. It is when business people get up and eloquently speak their mind that people take notice. Not everyone has the nerve to stand in front of people and speak though. It is well known that a lot of people have stage fright and public speaking is just about the last thing they want to do. However, since public speaking is such an important and vital part of business meetings and presentations, men and women involved have no choice but to improve their speaking skills.

Knowing your material backwards and forwards is one surefire way of making you feel much more confident while speaking. This is especially helpful if the topic is of interest to you. Read a lot about it to the point that you feel you can answer any question.

Practicing over and over is also a key factor in increasing the probability of success. Practice your speech or presentation in front of the mirror to see how you look during delivery.

It would also help if you become familiar with the venue of your speech. Arrive early to give yourself time to be familiar with the room or hall. Give the microphones and visual aids a run through to avoid unwanted interruptions or delays while you speak.

Impossible though it may be, try to relax. Read about and practice relaxation techniques that can help. Visualization techniques in particular can help you prepare for your speech. Now, go and get them.

We’ve all heard so many tips on saving but one thing most people do not know is that just having savings is not enough. You have to make your savings grow and multiply. This is where investing comes in. You invest so that your savings do not sit idly. Instead, they can be used so that you can have a more secure future because your next egg is continuously growing.

Getting into investments means that you have to identify your goals and your time frame. Beginning investors such as yourself must create a financial plan that identifies your goals and the length of time by which you want to achieve them. For instance, a beginning employee may want to pay off her student loan in five years, take annual vacations, and have enough saved in 20 years to retire. These outlined goals will help guide you. For instance, which goals would require short-term or long-term planning?

Then you have to determine how much risk on your money you can tolerate. A good formula for this is 100 minus your age. The number you come up with is the percentage of your investments that should be in moderate to aggressive growth investments. This could be a benchmark for the beginning investor.

After you have made these decisions, you have to commit to funding the investments you plan to male.  Limit your expenses and eliminate nonessentials to better save for your goals.

Lastly, it is time to jump right in and invest. Browse through financial publications and websites to educate yourself about different types of investments then go for it.