Welcome to Spending Notes, where we do a weekly deep dive into how our readers spend their cash.

Today: a social media specialist who makes $50,000 a year

Occupation: social media specialist

Age: 27

Location: Northwest Indiana

Salary: $50,000 (approx. $1,574 per pay period)

Day One

I’ve been working remotely for an out-of-state social media agency for the last year, but I am currently living in Northwest Indiana. I work from my laptop and utilize an extra screen from time to time because there are a lot of platforms to use when publishing posts online. My agency assigns clients to me, and we go back and forth on the best direction for their brand. Today, I just worked from home and ordered pizza via Postmates.

Total: $16.50

Day Two

Now that the temperatures are getting lower, I wanted to make sure that my heat will work throughout the winter without any issues. So, I searched up “heating and cooling in Northwest Indiana” online and found King Heating. They offer everything from furnace repair to air conditioner maintenance services. The best part is that they offer 24/7 customer service and can send a technician to my house in case something goes wrong. I decided to call them about a maintenance check for my heating system. They were really good about sending a technician at my convenience.

Total: $0

Day Three

Some of the things I do to prepare for winter include buying candles and sprucing up my home. I’ve been thinking about getting some live house plants delivered. Indoor plants are a really great way to feel like you’re outside when it’s snowing and windy. I love getting a new plant delivery. This time around, I’ll be getting a low-light plant from Lively Root. I usually get pet-friendly indoor plants because of my cat, S.

Total: $30

Day Four

One of the clients I manage social media for is a furniture store based out of Los Angeles. Today, the owner, G., sent me a box of cupcakes in the mail. I devoured two out of six of them in one sitting. I was hoping to work at a coffee shop today, but the weather wasn’t great, so I decided to stay home.

Total: $0

Day Five

The weather was a lot more bearable, so I went to one of my favorite cafes to work for a few hours. Then, I went home for a proper Zoom meeting with my coworkers. We all gave updates on our clients’ analytics. As a social media specialist, I also had to give some insight into the campaigns I am currently running for my clients. Some of my coworkers gave me suggestions for narrowing down my audience on the ad manager for a popular social networking site. After work, I went out to an Italian restaurant with a friend, where we shared three different kinds of pasta and ate way too much garlic bread. He paid for dinner. Who says no to a free meal?

Total: $8.25

Day Six

Every couple of months, I get my hair touched up. Today, I went into the salon to see my stylist, P., and we talked about going darker for the season. I have light brown hair and get highlights in the summer for some dimension. My stylist suggested adding some darker tones this time, and she really sold me on it. I always walk out of the salon feeling like a shiny new person.

Total: $120

Day Seven

Before the workweek begins, I like to tidy up the house and do a little bit of work to start my week off right. I spent some time engaging with online audiences. I also started brainstorming some posts to send over to our agency’s graphic designer for the upcoming week.

Total: $0

Total for the week: $174.75

Taking out a loan is not easy because there are many steps you need to take before you can get the money. One type of loan that’s pretty to apply for, but asks for many requirements, is a personal loan. It’s ideal for consumers who need money for emergencies, such as paying for medicines, house renovation or repairs, paying for your car, and so much more. It can be the ideal way to get your money fast, but you need to meet your requirements. It will be easier if you have a good credit score too.

If you think you’re qualified for a personal loan and want to know some of the initial steps to take to apply for one, then you can read on below. Here, you’ll learn how you can qualify for a personal loan and know how you can be approved. It’s not a walk in the park, so you should put your best foot forward before making a decision.

Find Out How Much Money You Need to Borrow

The first thing you need to think about will be how much money you’re going to borrow. When it comes to taking out loans, you won’t only be paying for the original amount you owed. You will also be paying for the interest or the rent of the money you borrowed. The interest rates are usually not that high, especially if you have an outstanding credit score. But it depends on the offers of the lenders or the bank. So only borrow what you need, nothing more and nothing less. Or else you’ll have a hard time paying off your debt.

Ensure that Your Credit Score Passes with Flying Colors

One of the things that lenders will always check is your credit score. They’ll do a hard check on this one, so you should make sure that your credit score is at around the 600s. In addition, you must obtain updated credit reports from major credit reporting agencies. That’s because lenders or banks will rely heavily on your creditworthiness. It’s like their basis if they can trust you to pay for your loan on time. Don’t worry because obtaining your credit reports is just a soft inquiry. The hard inquiry happens when the lenders are the ones who ask for it.

Check the Details of the Loan

If you’re sure you want to go through with your personal loan, you must check all the details. It’s not only the lenders who can do the prequalification. You can do it to them too by going through the letters and disclosures in the preapproval letter. So first, you have to look at the expected loan amount, APR, monthly payment, and loan term. Aside from that, don’t overlook the fees and penalties. Next, check the type of interest you’re offered. Then know if it’s secured on an unsecured loan. And most importantly, read the fine print through https://www.ecommbits.com/getting-bad-credit-cash-advance-loans-with-simple-terms/!

Conclusion

As long as money is involved, you have to be thorough and know what you’re getting into. Personal loans are some of the most popular loans available, but you also need to know your rights as the consumer. So if you think you’re qualified, make sure to read the list above to make an informed decision.

Globally, the sales force constitutes a huge percentage of the workforce. Whether it’s food, homes, or luxury services like massage and spa visits, there’s always something to sell.

From your first job to your first sales executive job, a career in sales can be important for long-term stability and prosperity.

Think Positive

You can avoid feeling defeated when you don’t reach your goal right away, or at all, when you think positively. Positive thinking affects your goal setting, your attitude toward your job and what you sell.

Positive thinking can also result in better physical and mental health. In a sales career, which is often fast-paced and quite challenging, the ability to think positively is important not just for achieving and exceeding sales goals, but also for self-care. In the sales field, you should not be absent from too many meetings due to pessimism.

Skills

For a sales job, interpersonal skills are more than just chatting with customers at the door. You need to be able to actively listen to what your client or customer needs in order to match your product or service with their requirements. Active listening is a crucial skill for sales success.

A high level of communication skills is also necessary for sales executive jobs. It is extremely important to learn how to speak effectively with customers, clients, and staff members, as well as with superiors and subordinates, in order to maximize your staff’s efficiency and to lower your turnover rate. Having the ability to negotiate, both on the sales floor and behind closed doors, is critical to the long-term success of your business.

Great Confidence

From makeup to motherboards, you must have confidence in what you sell.

You should vet what you do from the beginning if you are seeking a long-term career in sales. When a customer feels confident in your company and product, it will translate well to them, especially if they are making a large purchase.

Being knowledgeable about your product can help you develop confidence with sales, but it is also a personality trait that you must cultivate on your own. Seek out resources that can help you develop confidence, or search online for articles and books about developing confidence and sustaining it.

Business travels involve various reasons why they take place. Firms often do this to close a business deal. Aside from that, it is a way to create a good partnership with another firm. But then again, these trips need proper planning. Some trips may be out of town or out of the country.

Given this point, you have to make sure that everything’s settled. This post will provide a guide on how you can achieve hassle-free business travel. It is best to prepare to avoid travel mishaps that can affect the purpose of the business trip.

Ways to Secure a Smooth Business Trip

Keep in mind that you have a good reason why this trip has to take place. Its success will mean something for your business. In this case, the tips below can help you ensure smooth corporate travel:

Check the company’s corporate travel policy.

It is best to read the policy before you depart for a business trip. In this case, the policy includes how reimbursements will take place. That includes repay for the following items:

• Hotel stays
• Rental cars
• Meals
• Work-related incidents
• Wi-Fi’s connection

You have to ensure that your travel arrangements follow what’s written in the policy. This way, you will not deal with any issues once you come back. For this reason, it is best to clear things up before you leave.

Create a detailed itinerary.

It is best to have a clear schedule of how your business trip will go. In this case, an itinerary is your number one option to make your travel successful. You can type it using Word or Excel, then print a copy that you can have along with you. In effect, you can prevent stress upon arriving at your destination.

Prepare business cards.

This business trip can open up more opportunities to expand connections. Various firms from the industry will come as well. For this reason, it is best to bring a stack of business cards with you. Handing these cards out to everyone you meet may require effort. However, you are helping your company grow its relationship with other business sectors.

Organize your documents.

Be sure to keep all the vital records in one place. It is best to keep a scanned or photocopy of these documents. That includes the following items:

• Plane tickets
• Passport
• Visa (if there’s any)
• Confirmations from the hotel
• Car rental receipts

Keep in mind that losing any of these items can get you in trouble. So, put everything in a safe place for your travel.

Think about safety and security during your business trip.

You have to act accordingly while on the trip. It is best to keep yourself and your colleagues safe at all costs. The following can help ensure safe and secure corporate travel:

• Use a digital wallet or e-wallet instead of bringing too much cash with you.
• Always let others know your whereabouts and provide details of how they can contact you.
• Don’t engage yourself in any criminal activity or violence. Instead, choose to walk away from it.
• If you traveled as a team, make sure to account for everyone in case of split-ups. Be sure no one’s left behind.

During your trip, keep in mind that it’s not for leisure. It is a corporate trip. You are carrying the name of your company, so act accordingly. This way, you can prevent putting yourself and the company at risk.

Pack efficiently.

Don’t pack too much. Excess baggage can incur additional costs. In this case, it is best to limit your outfits, not unless the itinerary requires you various attires. This way, you can prevent over-packing. You can also avoid the need to pay for it.

Always have a backup plan.

Sometimes, things may get out of the way you planned them. In this case, it is best to have a contingency plan if things go wrong. These issues are often beyond your control, so you need to come prepared for these scenarios. One of the usual issues is a flight delay. You have to make it up with your client, such as a virtual meeting or sending a proxy.

Business trips are essential to make your firm expand its connection with other firms. But then again, preparing beforehand is a vital aspect to ensure smooth corporate travel. Aside from that, your preparedness can save you from stress.

Meanwhile, if something goes wrong, keep your calm and don’t panic. You have to think of a way to solve what’s wrong. Panicking can’t help you at all in your situation. So, if you target to have the best business trip, make a concrete plan for it.

No matter how much we ruminate about what has passed, the pandemic has already happened and its damage cannot be reversed. Looking back should not be the only option, though. Here is how your business can charge forward from the destructive effects of the pandemic:

Revisit the Vision Board

For the past two years, your team might have been too caught up with putting out day-by-day fires to the point of obscuring your vision of the bigger things you have laid out for the immediate and distant future. Still, with all the challenges you have never encountered before until the pandemic, it should be no surprise that those market analyses and strategies your team has consolidated in the past would barely even be relevant in today’s business climate.

The pandemic accelerated industrial change in speeds we not once imagined possible. The global supply chain being stifled in the earlier stages of the pandemic, for instance, pushed logistics companies to bridge the automation gap. And, businesses that for so long relied on the brick and mortar retail model were pushed to get over their e-commerce resistance.

That is why, if you’re set on mending the damage caused by the pandemic, it is best to go back to your business’s core. Perhaps, there are elements in your vision and mission statements that are already outdated and need some tweaking to better guide people down the lines about how your clients today prefer to be approached and what it takes for a company today to compete in the advanced playing field.

Then, you can proceed with drafting more concrete marketing, sales, product development, and training objectives and their corresponding measures of success based on current industry averages. Nevertheless, there’s no right time to revisit your vision board as the pandemic is not the only problem to be worried about.

Clearance Sale

After you’ve revised your company’s vision and subsequent strategies, it must be tempting to jump onto rebranding or launching new products. But, if your company has incurred major losses in the past months, appearing larger than life should be the least of your priorities. Rather, it is saving what is left when things have calmed down.

You may have stocked surplus after intermittent interruptions to your store operations. With the help of your quality assurance team, separate those items that are still good for sale and consumption and announce a clearance sale. You lost a significant amount of time, but before you can make up for it, at least realize that other resources can still be maximized.

Besides, a clearance sale is a perfect channel for you to reconnect with your patrons. Through this event, you can make it known that you’re coming up with greater and fresher things and that they should anticipate. You can drive the hype and, in turn, bank on this for your upcoming releases.

Downsizing

At this crucial point in your business, most of your efforts should be dedicated to your audience. Right now, you are not exactly in a position to expand or invest a lot of time on big-ticket purchases even if these would help your machinery to move more efficiently. Make sure that your team is on the same page, and so decisions like downsizing would be easy for them to process.

If so, moving to a smaller office or plant should not be an issue. The sooner you can hire a moving company, the more you could save on rent or amortization. Having done so, you could now redirect your precious funds into boosting production, marketing campaigns, or up-to-date training, whichever you think is of the highest priority.

Cost Consciousness

Strategically speaking, the easiest to control when the business is at threat are operational expenses. Enjoining employees in saving office supplies, energy, and water would help a lot.

Printing could be limited to documents that require physical signatures and notarization by legal representatives. You could also require that all lights and electronics be turned off during lunch breaks. Limiting company vehicle use for travels categorized as important could also help you save a lot.

A Grand Comeback

A high budget allocation for new product launches does not necessarily produce an outstanding outcome. Likewise, just because you underspent for a new product does not mean it would not be met with massive support. The key is to thoroughly plan your comeback plan considering your limited resources at the moment.

Sometimes, promoting a product idea before it is produced in bulk could be the most practical idea because you get to gauge audience response before you even spend on raw materials and production expenses. Think of this particular product conception phase as your last to prove to your audience that you’re still very much up for the challenge of innovating and adapting to their changing needs.

The pandemic leaves businesses with many questions but also reveals a lot of new ideas. For your business, recovering may seem like a lost cause but, if you can look past the seemingly insurmountable problems you can get a hold of opportunities.