As inflation is surging, it is putting pressure on mortgage rates. The Federal Reserve is likely to keep raising rates this year with the goal of containing consumer prices. While the Fed doesn’t control mortgage rates, its policies have an ancillary effect. 

Think Solar

At times like this, homeowners have to use every tool in the toolbox, and solar installation is a vital one to contain/reduce monthly costs.  Buying a home that has a solar energy system, or having one installed upon purchase is a savvy financial move that also benefits the environment.

Home appraisers, who review property for mortgage companies, understand that that the installation of solar panels and solar batteries can increase a property’s market value. In fact, a Zillow study indicated that homes with solar panels sold for 4.1% more than those without.

“The sale premium varies substantially by market,” reports Zillow.  “In Riverside, Calif., for example, homes with solar-energy systems sold for 2.7% more than comparable homes without solar power—a markup of $9,926 for the median-valued home in the metro. In the greater New York City metro, solar-powered homes have a premium that is double that of Riverside. At 5.4%, that’s an extra $23,989 in value for the typical home in New York. In three other coastal metro areas—Los Angeles, San Francisco and Orlando, Fla.—homes with solar power can fetch a premium of around 4%.”

Getting a solar system installed is like creating your very own power plant. Homeowners make energy right on their own property instead of relying completely on the utility company to do it for them. While you can’t disconnect completely from the grid, homeowners have the ability to generate their own power every time the sun comes up.

For homeowners paying $70 or more on electricity bills each month, there are programs available that could permanently lower electric bills up to 75% with no upfront costs.

Smart Solar Financing

According to the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency And Renewable Energy, the average cost of solar PV panels has dropped nearly 70%. Markets for solar energy is economically competitive with conventional energy sources in most states.

A solar system is either leased or purchased. Whether you buy a system or lease it, the use of solar energy will significantly decrease monthly energy costs and increase the value of the home.

Increase Purchasing Power

An energy-efficient mortgage or green mortgage allows borrowers to finance energy-efficient improvements under advantageous loan terms. A green mortgage offers added funds with the mortgage purchase or refinance that can be applied to energy-efficient home upgrades. To qualify, applicants must meet the standard mortgage requirements of credit and debt-to-income ratio and an energy consultant develops a home energy rating report to estimate potential energy savings.

Tapping into a green mortgage can increase purchasing power and allow home buyers to qualify for a larger mortgage. And, for those people buying a home that already is energy efficient, the monthly bills will be lower.

Other ways to increase purchasing power are reducing debt, reviewing credit scores to see where any improvements can be made, and stash as much money away as you can for the down payment and closing costs and eliminate the need for mortgage insurance.

Explore First-Time Home Buyer Programs

For those who are buying their very first home, there are a variety of homebuyer assistance programs available at the national and local level. On the national level, there are Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration, a government agency that sets standards for the construction and financing of homes in the United States. With a FICO® credit score at least 580, home buyers are required to put down a 3.5% down payment vs. the 20% that is industry standard.

Home buyers should also investigate their state and city level options for first-time home buyers. In New York City, for example, “the HomeFirst Down Payment Assistance Program provides qualified homebuyers with up to $100,000 toward the down payment or closing costs on a 1-4 family home, a condominium, or a cooperative in one of the five boroughs of New York City.”

Set a Budget

Before starting the housing hunt in earnest, it is important to understand how much house is affordable.  Generally, keeping housing costs to 30% or less of after-tax income is the recommendation. Getting pre-approved for the mortgage is recommended so that the house-hunt can proceed with confidence.

Consider that while mortgage rates today are on the rise, they are still relatively low on historical standards. In 1981, according to Fannie Mae data, the annual average interest rate was 16.63%! There are many benefits that come along with home ownership including tax deductions, financial stability, a permanent home and sense of belonging in the local community. 

The post Why Home Buyers Should ‘Think Solar’ in Post-Pandemic Climate appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Photo by Vlada Karpovich: 

Use technology to make your apartment more energy-efficient.

One of the best ways to incorporate technology into your apartment living is to use it to make your home more energy-efficient. You can do this in several ways, from using smart thermostats to controlling your lights and appliances with your phone or voice assistant. By making your home more energy-efficient, you’ll save money on your utilities and do your part to help the environment. If you want to take things a step further, you can install solar panels on your roof or balcony. This will make your home more energy-efficient and help you generate some of your electricity!

Use technology to stay connected with your neighbors.

Another great way to incorporate technology into your apartment living is to use it to stay connected with your neighbors. If you live in a large apartment complex, chances are there’s an app for that! Many complexes now have an app that residents can use to communicate and stay up-to-date on events and happenings. If your complex doesn’t have an app, there are still plenty of ways to stay connected using technology. Several social media groups and forums are dedicated to apartment living, and you can even star a blog or vlog about your experiences!

Use technology to make your apartment more secure.

One of the most important ways to incorporate technology into your apartment living is to use it to make your home more secure. You can do this in many ways, from installing a security system to using apartment key fobs on your door. You can even get creative and use technology to deter burglars by setting up motion-sensor lights or a fake TV that turns on when someone enters your home. By making your apartment more secure, you’ll not only deter burglars but also give yourself peace of mind knowing that your home is safe.

Smart home solutions.

Incorporating technology doesn’t just stop at making your apartment more energy-efficient or secure. You can also use technology to make your life easier and more convenient with smart home solutions. For example, you can use a voice assistant to control your lights, music, and appliances. You can also use smart home devices to automate tasks like turning off the lights when you leave the house or setting the temperature of your thermostat. There are endless possibilities when it comes to smart home solutions, and chances are there’s a solution out there that can make your life easier!

Use technology to make your apartment more comfortable.

Last but not least, you can use technology to make your apartment more comfortable. This can be anything from using a smart thermostat to control your home’s temperature to using a noise-canceling device to reduce outside noise. You can even use technology to create a more relaxing environment by installing an aromatherapy diffuser or setting up a salt lamp in your living space. By making your apartment more comfortable, you’ll not only improve your quality of life, but you’ll also be able to relax and unwind after a long day.

Wi-fi enabled lightbulbs.

You can get LED bulbs that you connect to your home’s Wi-Fi. Then, you can use an app on your phone to control the lightbulbs. This is a great way to save energy and money.

You can also get Wi-Fi-enabled outlets. You can plug your devices into these outlets and then control them with an app on your phone. So, for example, you could plug in a lamp and then turn it off and on with your phone. Again, this is a great way to save energy and money.

Wi-Fi enabled thermostats are another great way to save energy and money. You can program them so that they only heat or cool your apartment when you need them. So, for example, you could set it so that it only turns on when you’re home.

There are many ways that you can start incorporating technology into your apartment living. Wi-Fi enabled lightbulbs, outlets, and thermostats are just a few ways to save energy and money. So, start integrating technology into your apartment living today!

The post Here’s How to Start Incorporating Technology Into Your Apartment Living appeared first on Grit Daily News.

There are at least one-and-one half billion internal combustion engine-powered motor vehicles used solely for land transportation globally today. The equivalent of 100’s of millions more of such vehicles sail the oceans and fly in the skies.

Can all of this be replaced by vehicles powered by electric motors using on-board battery storage?

The “laws” of nature are logical and experimentally “proven” and reaffirmed by computational rules, not just by observations of behavior by selected groups of human beings. Laws of nature can be replaced with improved computation rules that give results more closely aligned with observed data; Einstein’s gravitational theory has replaced Newton’s for that reason.

The “rule” of supply and demand is not a law of nature; it is an action guideline that takes into account how much human beings will give up of their time, possessions, and promises of future actions (aka, money) in order to obtain a physical good or a service. It is NOT a law of nature, but rather an observation of the most common reaction of human beings to shortages of goods and services, which human nature deems important.

Human desire may create a demand for, but it does not create a supply of natural resources. Technology, the engineering of science, is necessary for obtaining supplies of natural resources, but it is not sufficient.

The availability of natural resources for use by the human race is a function of:

1. The logistical accessibility of deposits of those resources, i.e., can they be reached by road (or rail), or ship,
2. Are they of sufficient grade (concentration) so that available mechanical and chemical engineering technologies can SELECTIVELY extract the minerals containing them and concentrate them ECONOMICALLY enough to be AFFORDABLE for intended use,
3. Is there a downstream processing regime (group pf technologies) that can economically transform the mineral concentrates produced by mining into forms necessary for mass production of the resource into an end user product or necessary part of a product?
4. Is the above regime ECONOMICAL or AFFORDABLE (e.g., the transformation of U3O8 into enriched U-235, which is only necessary if you wish to build nuclear reactors or weapons, and which would never have been affordable other than through the driver of war allowing massive “investment” in the processing regime, and, most important of all
5. The recognition that there is a grade limit below which the resource is not available to contemporary human economically deployed technology.

ALL of the deposits of natural resources, upon which human life and leisure depend, were laid over hundreds of millions and billions of years ago. Those resources are not organic; they do not grow back in mines.

The easiest deposits to work are those of the highest grade of the desired element which also have the least “contaminants” of other related elements that must be removed to purify the desired resource into a form useful to mankind.

The only factor to be considered when planning for mass producing a consumer good that requires a specific natural resource is the cost of that resource in the form necessary for the intended use. There must be a strong indication that the capital deployed to recover and process the natural resource will be repaid by the sales of the product into the general or, in the case of the military, specific, market. Capital must be repaid through wealth creation. It cannot just be wasted in a rational society, because if it is, it will eventually run out.

Note well that subsides by government are merely a way of socializing waste of capital (aka in government as “investment”). Note also that American elites always benefit from the subsidies through the ownership of the perpetually non-going concerns the losses from which are covered by the subsidies.

There is no scheme in the green universe to repay the capital; it’s use is intended to impoverish the mass of mankind to enhance and preserve a static world (fantasy) to be enjoyed only by elites.

There is NOT sufficient lithium accessible or available, economically, to replace more than a fraction of today’s transportation fleet, much less tomorrows. Deglobalization is a necessary concomitant of less availability of cheap fossil fuels. This is already happening in the guise of protecting “democracy’ from the evil scheming of those Chinese leaders who recognized the West’s propensity for cultural suicide long ago and can think of nothing better than granting the green wishes. China now has all the lithium it needs for its domestic use of reducing urban pollution. And China uses its monopoly of the necessary critical materials to dominate the global solar panel manufacturing and wind turbine industries.

Only those transportation vehicle makers who continue to make, improve, and market internal combustion engines (ICE’s) will survive the cull as electric vehicles (EV’s) get increasingly expensive and the infrastructure to support their use with power and service fails to appear. The price for lithium itself is already too high to sustain the mass production of affordable EVs. I predict that lithium prices will come down, but, of course, that will extinguish unsubsidized low-grade production, so that an ICE/EV equilibrium production will be reached, in this decade. Oil prices will also decline as production resumes, so that the energy economy recovers it normal path.

The law of supply and demand can be applied to money, but not to wealth or value. Their creation is limited by the supply of resources, productivity, and innovation.

The post Lithium, Electric Vehicles, and the Law of Resource Availability appeared first on Grit Daily News.

The lawsuit prompted a string of unflattering press hits, which overwhelmingly highlighted the existing fashion brand’s side of the story, at Bieber’s expense. Bieber’s case highlights two principles of crisis management that we champion.

Be prepared and proactive

If you don’t tell your story, others will tell it for you ― including the good, the bad, and the ugly. We advise companies and individuals to get in front of the news cycle with a clear, compelling, and honest narrative.

Bieber could have made a strong case for calling her skin care line Rhode. It’s her middle name, after all. She had previously sought to secure the name Bieber Beauty but was rejected due to potential confusion with trademarks registered by her husband, Justin Bieber.

She was undoubtedly aware of the potential for conflict over the Rhode name, too: Bieber attempted to purchase the naming rights from the fashion brand years earlier and was turned down. By proactively telling her story ahead of the brand’s launch, Bieber could have preempted some of the public backlash in the crucial early days of her new company. 

The communications landscape is shifting 

We believe that traditional PR is dead. The media environment is rapidly changing; anyone with access to a smartphone can be a publisher, reaching millions of viewers across the globe with just a few clicks. Online forums like Twitter have diluted the ability of powerful companies and individuals to leverage their influence among major media platforms to quash threats to their business or reputation. 

Upstarts understand that there is currency in conflict, and they can leverage the public spotlight surrounding celebrities like Bieber to boost their own brands. Consultants and lawyers are more likely to join their cause, seeking the star power that now comes with taking on and defeating an established brand.

In this new environment, half-hearted PR efforts don’t cut it. Bieber appeared unprepared for the burst of attention that played out across social media platforms following the June lawsuit. The founders of the fashion startup were able to frame the dispute as a powerful celebrity swooping in and trampling on their hard-earned brand.

Bieber’s side of the story was notably absent from prominent coverage of the lawsuit, with several articles noting that her team did not respond to a request for comment.

These major missteps could have been avoided with a better understanding of the new communications landscape, in which big players can no longer appear to steamroll their smaller competitors without consequence.

The post How Rhode, Hailey Bieber’s Brand, Should Have Handled Her PR Crisis appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Spend to Earn

Customer loyalty is the key to any successful business. Loyalty leaders growing their revenue roughly 2.5x as fast as competitors and peers lacking loyalty. A loyal customer is someone who is willing to stick with a product or service through thick and thin. They are also more likely to recommend a product or service to their friends and family.

An essential tool for building customer loyalty is to offer a rewards program. In fact, according to Bond, the average consumer belongs to 14.8 loyalty programs and is engaged in 6.7 of them. Rewards programs engage customers and give them an incentive to keep coming back and refer new business. They also serve as an analytical tool providing businesses a way to track their customers’ behavior and preferences. 

There are many different types of rewards programs, but the best ones share some common features. They are easy to use, offer a variety of rewards, and allow businesses to customize the program to fit their needs. A bold player in the space with a distinguished vision, Numi3, provides a novel rewards platform for modern businesses that understand the importance of customer loyalty and are looking to differentiate themselves.  

Brand loyalty the Numi3 way

Numi3 is a crypto-agnostic Web3 rewards SaaS platform that offers a unique solution for small to medium businesses looking to offer exceptional customer loyalty programs. For businesses, Numi3 boasts a full suite solution that is well thought out and executed using the latest technologies to provide:

• easy onboarding and integration
• secure and reliable infrastructure, and
• the lowest fees on the market.

Businesses can create reward campaigns, referral programs, or giveaways to reward their customers. Numi also provides the ability to validate and process crypto rewards transactions in real-time. So this means you can earn crypto at the checkout of your grocery store. This technology is considered feasible for future use cases to process crypto transactions in real-time. This is where a consumer pays a business for a product in crypto and the payment is validated immediately.

On the customer-end, attractive features of the loyalty program include earning crypto rewards as determined by the offered rewards program. Numi3’s user-centric solution helps businesses cater to the 79% of Americans that say they are more likely to join a rewards program that doesn’t require them to carry a physical card.

The user-friendly and navigable interface offered by Numi3 allows the utilization of crypto rewards to be simple. Apart from providing a seamless experience, the platform adopts a high level of security with several layers of defense. There is also a dedicated team of security professionals who understand the intricacies of keeping digital assets secure. Numi3 provides a simplistic journey for users regardless of previous experience with cryptocurrencies.

With large-scale Web3 adoption, businesses need to grow together with their users and increase their engagement in a maturing market. Seamless implementation will allow businesses to launch an innovative reward program without the headache associated with creating novel solutions from scratch. 

Staked rewards

Another special feature Numi3 will offer to businesses is their state-of-the-art crypto wallet solution, allowing consumers to stake, save, or withdraw their rewards.

Staking their rewards will allow users to earn rewards for holding their tokens over a set period of time, as chosen by the business, giving them even more of an incentive to spend money to add to their compounding pool of points. Additionally, implemented QR code systems prevent connectivity or network service providers from ever being an issue when registering purchases during the point of sale.

The combination of several differentiators could be a game-changer for businesses looking to increase customer engagement and prevent frustrations associated with the previous generation reward programs.

Future of brand loyalty programs

The customer loyalty market is anticipated to increase four-fold by the year 2028, with most growth projected to be led by loyalty management companies implementing and integrating advanced technologies (Fortune Business Insights). Key players are introducing personalized features, demonstrating the opportune moment for Numi3 to build their market. 

Emerging trends in the reward program market include customer willingness to engage with brand loyalty programs. Bond says 95% of consumers prefer loyalty programs using emerging technology like chatbots, AI, VR, and smart devices. Additionally, 75% of consumers say they would engage more with loyalty programs they can easily access from a smartphone. (Source: Code Broker)

Inefficiencies and inconveniences riddle the current state of brand loyalty programs on both, the business and customer end. Considering that over 90% of companies have a loyalty program, there is a major opportunity to improve the reward landscape. (Source: Accenture)

Customers are unable to keep track of and transfer rewards across different platforms. Simultaneously, businesses are not seeing their reward programs benefiting them to the fullest extent. Numi3 offers a refreshing solution for businesses and customers in both revenue and user satisfaction.

There are still a lot of uncharted waters in how cryptocurrency can play a more major role in everyday lives. Consumers are starting to understand this economic landscape better. Incentivizing their participation is a step closer to pushing cryptocurrency to the economic forefront.

The post Web3 Brand Loyalty Programs Will Funnel Millions of New Users to Crypto appeared first on Grit Daily News.

This means that, naturally, there’s a lot to be gained economically from investing and innovating within the eyeglass industry. Consumers spend, on average, $173 on a pair of glasses. For those with prescription lenses this is a consistent purchase that must be made every few years at the least. 

One of the hardest aspects of getting a new pair of glasses comes in the frames. Finding a new pair of frames can be a cumbersome, frustrating, and expensive process for sunglasses and prescription glasses alike. This is where the idea of replacement lenses comes in.

Instead of finding the perfect set of frames with the perfect set of options, replacement lenses allow any frames to be turned into exactly what the consumer needs. This started as the simple concept of allowing anyone with an old pair of glasses to update them, but has now become so much more.

Replacement Lenses are Innovative

Using any pair of frames, sunglasses lenses, prescription lenses, tinted lenses, transition lenses, and any other innovation around lenses can be applied. This means an old pair of prescription frames can be sunglasses. It means an old pair of vintage frames can be made into modern prescription eyewear, and it can mean so much more.

Looking at some of the other options, lens coatings are an incredibly practical option for those with specific issues. Lens coatings can work to help with fogging, scratching, harsh light, or blue light. Similarly lens tints help with more specific issues. 

A World of Lens Options

Purple lenses, for example, help with vision in foggy lighting and reduce glare off of reflective surfaces. Other benefits that come with various colors are less eye strain in bright lights, more contrast in low-light, more depth perception, less migraines, and all colors are generally thought to help with dyslexia over normal lenses.

Moving to look at sunglasses, several options also reveal themselves. Polarized lenses are the industry standard, and for good reason. They effectively block and reflect any harsh light or reflection, but this also means that they are far less effective indoors and with LED screens.

While of course many people opt to have both glasses and sunglasses, transition lenses bridge the gap. Transition lenses become dark when exposed to sunlight and lighten in all other contexts. This means that they’re only truly effective outside, and while they definitely need time to adjust,  it allows an individual to buy just one pair of glasses for all purposes. 

These are all great options but it’s also important to look at the physical industry around replacement lenses. As the concept has grown it’s become the fastest and cheapest way to get a new pair of prescription glasses. After sending in a pair of frames coming back as fast as five days for a pair of standard plastic prescription glasses.

Also, the obvious benefit of not having to purchase new frames is massive when it comes to price. This is especially true for anyone who tends to go for more high end and name-brand variety frames. You can now search anywhere for a pair of frames before turning them into exactly what they need.

In Conclusion

Replacement lenses, while still a relatively small market, are quickly becoming an innovative and cost effective choice for the consumer. Perhaps you have an old pair of frames you want to try again. Maybe you’d like to save money or expedite the process, this is the way forward.

The post Replacement Lenses: Startup to Industry Innovator appeared first on Grit Daily News.

While there are many things that a typical LMS can do apart from internal learning and drafting developmental programs, the following are some key points that make it more customer-centric:

•  Regular posting of educational videos
• Quick learnings through quizzes, assessments, and exams 
• Offering a wide variety of learning courses which covers topics from different ambits.
• Analyze the customer’s performance and give them proper feedback
• Awarding them credits and certifications at the end of the completion stage.

LMS platforms are used globally, across various industries, and for different learning purposes. Hence, the primary motive is to keep the customers engaged and satisfied. For that, some attributes can be of help.

 Let’s look at some important features in LMS which can be helpful in customer training-

Saves time, money, and efforts

A good LMS saves a lot of time. If we have to do the onboarding according to traditional methods, we would be burying our heads under piles of paperwork. Also, the customers can come from any part of the world. Hence the training is not restricted to any geographical setting. Customers should be able to learn from the content at their own pace.

 Information is made available anytime anywhere.

All the information stored in an LMS can be assessed from anywhere and at any time. It can be viewed from a laptop, tablet, or a smartphone, for that matter. You can have access to calendars, various courses, etc. Also, it provides the flexibility to update the content and to delete and add files as and when needed. 

Customers are not our employees, so we cannot schedule training sessions for them, nor can we assign a particular time for them to learn from the information given. It has to be truly self-paced so that they can refer and learn through it in their time of need.

Award them certificates at course completion

The customers can come from any part of the world, so it becomes impossible to conduct a single workshop and sharpen their skills; hence training is done with the help of e-learning platforms and through e-learning courses. At the completion stage of the course, digital certificates are issued, which hold equivalent value to physical certificates. Awarding them certificates makes them feel good value; also, who doesn’t like a little appreciation, right?

Evaluate the success of your customer training programs 

An important feature of customer-friendly LMS is that it provides feedback and insights on the learning performance. How much growth can be expected from the customers in the stipulated time frame? What can be done to fill in the gap if there is some lag between the expectation and performance? Answers to these features improve the learning programs drastically and ensure customer success in a short period.

Globalization 

The learning doesn’t end the day you step out of the county; hence a good LMS should not be geographically restricted. It should support global language localization, payment getaways, and a universal time frame. The knowledge should be accessible anywhere for all the learners, in the country or outside.

Social Learning 

Humans prefer learning through social media channels, it has changed the way we receive and share information. No doubt, learning through social channels can make it easy, but there is a fear of consuming misinformation. Social chat boards, online forums, or discussion panels should be available to the customers. They can be monitored, and any false information can be deleted and taken off the platform.

Conclusion

As the pandemic hit us, the value of the digital world has come floating on top. Customer-friendly LMS has become important, as when it comes to delivering content, no one can match a customer-friendly learning management system. 

Making multiple reports, sharing spreadsheets, or having the learning material ready at all times not only saves a lot of time but also enhances productivity and knowledge. 

The post How can LMS be of help in customer training? appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Photo by Alexander Mils

1) Have A Yard Sale

One easy way to make extra money is by having a yard sale. You can clear out your clutter and earn some cash at the same time! Be sure to advertise your sale in advance so that people in your community know when and where to find you. You can also post signs around your neighborhood or advertise in the local paper. If you have many items to sell, you may even want to consider renting a space at a flea market or setting up a booth at a local event.

Yard sales are a great way to declutter your home and earn extra cash! Just be sure to advertise in advance so people know when and where to find you. If you have many items to sell, you may want to consider renting a space at a flea market or setting up a booth at a local event. Don’t forget – you can also use online classifieds and auction sites to sell your items!

Here are some tips for holding a successful yard sale:

– Advertise in advance so people know when and where to find you. For example, you can post signs around your neighborhood or advertise in the local paper.

– Sort through your belongings and decide what you want to part with. Be sure to price everything ahead of time.

– Set up your yard sale in an easily accessible area with plenty of parking. Consider renting a space at a flea market or setting up a booth at a local event if you have many items to sell.

– Be prepared to haggle with customers. Yard sales are all about negotiating!

– Have fun! Meet your neighbors and enjoy the process of decluttering your home.

2) Start A Side Hustle

There are endless opportunities when it comes to starting a side hustle. You could create a blog, an Etsy shop, do odd jobs for people in your community, or even walk dogs! If you have a unique skill set or talent, there are plenty of ways to monetize that. The best part about starting a side hustle is that it can be anything you want if you’re willing to do the work.

If you’re not sure where to start, here are some ideas:

–Start a blog: This is a great way to share your passion with the world and make some extra money. You can monetize your blog through ads, affiliate marketing, or selling products and services.

-Start an Etsy shop: If you’re crafty or have a knack for making cool things, starting an Etsy shop is a great way to make some extra money. You can sell anything from handmade jewelry to vintage finds.

-Do odd jobs for people in your community: This could be anything from mowing lawns to walking dogs. If you’re handy, you could even offer your services for painting or minor home repairs.

-Start a pet sitting business: This is a great way to make extra money if you love animals. You can offer your services to pet owners in your community who need someone to watch their pets while they’re away.

No matter what you decide to do, starting a side hustle is a great way to make some extra money. Just be sure to pick something you’re passionate about so it doesn’t feel like work!

3) Start A Business

One of the most exciting ideas to make some extra money is to start your own business like Swiftdrain. This could be anything from a small home-based business to a larger company. Of course, starting a business takes time, effort, and money, but it can be very rewarding both financially and personally. Many resources are available to help you get started, so research and see what might work for you.

Starting your own business is a great way to control your financial future and make as much money as possible. It can be challenging at first, but if you are passionate about your product or service and are willing to work hard, it can be an enriching experience. There are many online resources and books available to help you get started, so do some research and see what might work for you.

If you have a unique skill or talent, you can also start your business offering services to others. This is a great way to make some extra money while doing something you love. Many online platforms allow you to offer services, so do some research and see what might work for you.

Whatever you decide to do, remember that starting your own business takes time, effort, and money. But if you are passionate about your product or service and are willing to work hard, it can be an enriching experience.

Photo by PhotoMIX Company

4) Invest In Real Estate

If you’re looking for a more long-term investment, then you might want to consider investing in real estate. This can be a great way to make some extra money, and it’s also something that can offer you a lot of stability down the line. There are a few different ways that you can go about investing in real estate, so be sure to do your research before making any decisions.

One thing to keep in mind is that investing in real estate is not always a quick process. It can take months or even years to see any return on your investment, so it’s essential to be patient. However, investing in real estate can be a great way to make some extra money if you’re willing to do the work.

If you’re interested in learning more about investing in real estate, several resources are available online. There are also plenty of books and articles that can offer you some guidance. Be sure to research before making any decisions, and always consult with a financial advisor if you have any questions.

5) Make Money From Your Hobbies

One of the exciting ideas to make some extra money is by monetizing your hobbies. If you are good at something, there is a chance that you can make money out of it. For instance, if you are good at painting, you can sell your paintings online or offline. Or, if you are good at playing a musical instrument, you can give music lessons to people who want to learn how to play that instrument. There are many ways to monetize your hobbies, so if you have a hobby that you enjoy doing, think about ways that you can make money from it.

Another way to make some extra money is by becoming a freelance writer. If you enjoy writing and have good grammar and spelling skills, this could be a great way to make some extra money. You can find writing gigs on many different websites, and you can set your rates. So if you want to make some extra money by writing, then this is definitely something to consider.

6) Participate In Online Surveys

Many websites pay you for taking surveys. You can easily make extra money by sharing your opinions on products, services, and current events. Most surveys only take a few minutes to complete, so this is an easy way to make some extra cash without putting in a lot of effort.

One downside of online surveys is that you usually won’t qualify for every survey. This means that you may have to take a few minutes to fill out a questionnaire only to be told that you don’t qualify for the study. However, if you don’t mind spending a bit of time on something with no guarantee of compensation, online surveys could be a good option.

There are many reputable survey companies to choose from. However, be sure to do your research before signing up for any survey company to make sure they are legitimate and that you will be paid for your time.

In conclusion, there are many exciting ideas to make extra money. Whether you want to start your own business, invest in real estate, or simply monetize your hobbies, there are several options available. Be sure to do your research and consult with a financial advisor before making any decisions. With a little effort, you can easily put some extra money in your pocket.

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Changes in the workforce

One of the most significant changes since the pandemic’s start is the increased incidence of remote work. The crisis prompted a sudden exodus from communal workplaces and offices, with millions of employees swapping their desks at work for their dining room tables or spare bedrooms. Some employers have encouraged employees to return to work, but others have embraced more flexible working models, including working from home and hybrid models. 

Changes in the workforce can offer opportunities for businesses, but they can also present challenges. There are chances to save money, reduce expenses and boost team morale through enhanced flexibility, but it can also be difficult to manage teams in different places. One of the most important factors for employers is the impact on individuals. Studies suggest that up to 80% of employees wanted to continue working from home after restrictions were lifted. For some employees, however, returning to the office presented opportunities to boost productivity and enjoy the social side of work. 

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Financial challenges

The pandemic was costly for organizations across multiple sectors. Businesses lost money through falling sales and venue closures, and since the pandemic, inflation has risen, and the cost of utilities, materials, and supplies has increased. A record number of corporate giants lost money in 2020, and small businesses were lost across all industries. For companies already struggling to stay afloat, balancing the books is one of the toughest tasks. 

Tackling financial issues involves two key elements. To boost profits, businesses need to be able to increase their income and keep expenses as low as possible. Running a successful business often relies on being flexible and adaptable. The Covid pandemic highlighted the benefits of agility, with forward-thinking companies and individuals able to capitalize on new trends and an increase in the demand for certain products and services. Being adaptable can help businesses to generate sales and expand their client base, but crucially, it can also open doors in terms of cutting costs. Switching to remote work, for example, reduces staff expenses and could lead to significant savings on office rental fees. 

One of the silver linings of the pandemic is the realization that businesses can operate more efficiently by streamlining operations and exploring new ways of working. Hiring financial planners and consultants is beneficial for company directors and team leaders who want to achieve more for less, keep their finances in check, facilitate growth and explore opportunities in terms of restructuring or investing. There is no quick fix for financial pressures in the aftermath of the pandemic, but there are ways to recover and prosper. 

Supply issues

The pandemic caused widespread disruption and delays for businesses and their customers. Covid restrictions, facility closures, reduced capacities, and travel bans meant that it was increasingly difficult to move goods around and deliver products from A to B. Studies suggest that around a third of businesses in retail and manufacturing experienced disruption as a result of global supply chain issues in 2020/2021. There have been improvements since restrictions were lifted, and it has become easier to travel around and transport goods. Still, it could take time to achieve pre-pandemic levels of performance and efficiency. There may still be shortages of some products and materials, especially as Covid backlogs have been exacerbated by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. 

Staff shortages

The pandemic resulted in many employees losing their jobs or switching careers. In the hospitality industry, for example, employees left their jobs because cafes, restaurants and bars, and entertainment venues closed, meaning businesses didn’t need staff. The travel sector was also heavily impacted, with airports running very low capacity and planes grounded. Now, the demand for services is increasing, and organizations don’t have the employees they need to deliver to their customers. The challenge is to find staff as quickly as possible, provide training and offer services to customers before they lose interest and the demand falls. Solutions include recruitment drives, fast-tracked hiring and training processes, and offering flexible working arrangements and higher salaries, which make jobs more appealing to prospective employees. 

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The post-pandemic world is rife with challenges for businesses. There are obstacles to overcome, but there are also opportunities to capitalize on new trends and embrace new ways of working. 

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Copper is very much in demand now due its integral role in everything from key infrastructure to electric vehicle (EV) parts to renewable energy. As the world moves forward in the transition to clean energy, the spotlight grows on copper mining companies. The market is ripe with many inviting investing opportunities, from multinational mining conglomerates that mine for copper as well as other metals, such as BHP Group (NYSE: BHP), Vale (NYSE: VALE) and Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO) or copper producer specialists such as Southern Copper Corp. (NYSE: SCCO) and Ero Copper Corp. (TSX: ERO).

Junior Mining & Copper

For investors with a stronger stomach for risk and the upside potential of significantly higher rewards, the world of copper exploration and development companies awaits. These junior mining companies are focused on exploration, development and working to get the mine(s) permitted with the goal of producing upwards of 100 million lbs. per year.  Once production surpasses that, the companies move into mid-tier or major company status.

When reviewing junior mining companies, it is important to look at the management to ensure that the leaders have a strong record of transitioning from discovery to production with other companies they have led. It is also important to assess that the team has a unique skill to navigate the mining sector in the regions they are focused on, and that the companies have substantial capital market experience and broad-based shareholder and investor support. So, before making that investment in that junior copper mining company, attend and review shareholder presentations and review the team’s credentials to make an intelligent investing decision.

As the President & CEO of a company focused on the exploration and development of copper porphyry projects in the United States and Chile, I think it is also important for investors to look at the junior copper mining company’s geopolitical ramifications of its properties looking for friendly regions, particularly South America, North America and Australia, rather than China.

“If China’s dominance of rare earth element supplies is the global energy transition’s ‘elephant in the room,’ then copper is the 800-pound gorilla,” according to the Baker Institute. President Biden has invoked the Defense Production Act to expand domestic production of critical minerals, which includes copper, should facilitate ongoing efforts of mining companies to produce geopolitically friendly copper in the United States.

By investing in copper mining companies, you are investing in the future of clean energy.  Alternatively, investors can hold copper in physical form, just like gold and silver which can be done by purchasing copper bullion bars or coins which sometimes attracts the ‘Doomsday’ crowd.  Investors can also gain exposure to the value of copper through the purchase of exchange-traded funds (ETF’s), futures or by investing in companies that mine and prospect for copper.

Copper has been used for thousands of years and faces increasing global demand with the advent of new technology, while simultaneously forecasted to experience significant declines in supply. Given its attributes, copper is often used for electrical purposes such as power transmission and generation. Like its base metal sibling nickel, it has a major role in the electric vehicle (EV) revolution, with the CRU Group expecting consumption of copper to jump five-fold by 2030 due to demand from the green energy market.

Copper is the third most consumed industrial metal in the world, behind iron ore and aluminum, as per the US Geological Survey. With copper’s starring role in the electric vehicle (EV) revolution, some analysts predict copper consumption will jump five-fold by 2030 due to green energy demands.

In November 2021, CitiBank wrote that “decarbonization will drive consumption,” and “higher prices will be needed to draw in enough copper scrap to meet longer-term demand.”

President Biden is contemplating removing tariffs on some Chinese goods to ease trade tensions between US and China, which could result in upside movement for copper. The major factors contributing to copper prices are supply and demand, economic growth, inflation, and the value of the US dollar. The bullish fundamentals for copper are driven by supply shortages and low global inventories, and its starring role in green electrification, transport and infrastructure.

Copper has been a critical metal for the global economy since the Bronze Age and its importance is only set to grow in the future. A savvy investor stands to benefit from adding some exposure to this critical metal as its growing importance begins to be realized.

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