Is Capitalism And Cutthroat Competition Killing Our Environment

Writen by Lance Winslow

Some believe that Rapid Industrialization and cutthroat competition causes a killing of our environment. Does it? Or is mankind simply to blame? Native Indians are known to have burned down forests to chase their prey out of the tree lines or move neighboring tribes out of their territorial perceived regions. However this topic did come up recently in an online think tank.

One Thinker Karishma States regarding issues of capitalism and environment the following; "In this world of cutthroat competition and rapid industrialization, sometimes I tend to wonder on how the importance and relevance of environmental effects is completely lost."

Actually I take exception to these comments. Personally I feel they are attacking me. I am an entrepreneur. I win markets, I participate in free markets, I deliver the goods and services that you as a citizen desire. You want it; I produce it. Yes I am competitive and yes I as an entrepreneur compete and yes I win. Now in my retirement I moderate this Think Tank Online Forum; but during my reign in my Industry that cutthroat competition propelled my to help the environment and compete. And do it more efficiently as well; let me give you some examples. As you trash verbally everything I am about and condemn me the entrepreneur. I believe you should read Ayn Rand. Here are just a few things I brought to the common good in the "Environmental Realm" in my industry;

First we helped develop the Environmental Policies in my Industry, now used nationwide and copied by other nations too. We also were constantly up on the "Research on BMPs to Comply with NPDES Permitting for Mobile Washers." My company is a Mobile Carwash Franchise and we wash all sorts of other stuff too and always have strong environmental policies and cleaned up our industry as well. We always complied with all EPA and local NPDES Permitting.

So I very much take exception for your broad-brush painting of competition as "evil" as competition brings lower prices, efficiencies and abundance to markets. It delivers everything you see everywhere you go. Who do you think build all this anyway? We did, entrepreneurs and capitalists! And the USA is a competitive market, but we also have clean water here and a clean environment and it is the same innovative spirit, which will keep our environment strong. Your statement sounds Anti-American, Anti-Capitalism, Anti-Free Markets and I ask you to retract it, as you have offended my life's work. - The Entrepreneur

Lance Winslow - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

Lean Manufacturing Processes

Writen by Kent Pinkerton

There are several processes that organizations apply to implement as a part of their lean manufacturing initiative. Some of the most famous ones are discussed below.

Kaizen Rapid Improvement Process:

The basic idea of Kaizen or continual improvement is that small, incremental changes routinely applied and sustained over a long period result in significant improvements. The focus of Kaizen is on eliminating waste in the targeted systems and processes of an organization in order to improve productivity and achieve sustained continual improvement. One of the important aspects of the Kaizen strategy is to involve workers from multiple functions and levels in the organization in working together to address a problem or improve a particular process.

Just-in-time Production:

Just-in-time production (JIT) helps reduce inventory and work in process (WIP). JIT enables a company to produce the products that customers want, when they want them, in the amount they want. JIT techniques spread production evenly over time to foster a smooth flow between processes. Varying the mix of products produced on a single line provides an effective means for producing the desired production mix in a smooth manner. Many companies implementing JIT signal their suppliers, using computers or delivery of empty containers, to supply more of a particular component when they are needed. The end result of JIT production is typically a significant reduction in waste associated with unnecessary inventory, WIP, packaging, and overproduction.

Six-Sigma:

Six-Sigma draws on well-established statistical quality control techniques and data analysis methods. The term ?sigma? is a Greek alphabet letter that is commonly used to describe variability. A sigma quality level is an indicator of how often defects are likely to occur in processes, parts, or products. A Six-Sigma quality level equates to approximately 3.4 defects per million opportunities, representing high quality and minimal process variability. Six-Sigma consists of a set of structured, data-driven methods for the systematic analysis of processes to reduce process variation. These methods are used to support and guide organizational continual improvement activities.

Given the competition faced by companies and the external business environment, it is becoming increasingly important for companies to adopt lean manufacturing processes to stay competitive.

Lean Manufacturing provides detailed information on Lean Manufacturing, Lean Manufacturing Training, Lean Manufacturing Seminars, Lean Manufacturing Consultants and more. Lean Manufacturing is affiliated with Laser Cutting Machines.

Soap Box And Rants From Lance From Days Gone By Part Ii

Writen by Lance Winslow

Continuing now. . . My ancestors died to protect this land and her people and you guys sit in rooms posturing, with not a clue as to how life on Earth or the free economic system works at all. Not even a little bit. I have only met a handful of congressmen that I did not get bored talking to in five minutes due to their lack of intellect and contrived rhetoric. Now we see the extent of those carefully worded politically correct academy awards winning speeches written by pollsters and practiced in mirrors are doing. They are not accomplishing the task at hand. We need results not blame; we need leaders not words. We need action not promises. If you cannot do the job dismantle the system, simplify it and start over. You are not needed. This is so obvious to those on the street, to our team, to our customer to the millions of small businesses that have put blood sweat and tears into this great nation. If you turn your backs on us whom can we trust?

The Xers already don't trust you, and now you are about to lose the whole generation of boomers and alas the matures who built this place are dying off and watching all they built die slowly like their health, which we were suppose to fix with technology, science and pharmaceuticals. We have alienated all the generations for the sake of none. We have turned our backs on the warnings of our grandparents mostly all dead now who grew up in the depression. They would roll over in their graves like Ray Kroc founder of McDonalds if they could see the way we are treating this recession and how McDonalds lack of QQC has permeated its outlets. Only a few McDonalds today still have the quality envisioned and eventually became its hallmark around the world. Many blame hard work ethic, education, economy, but few really blame themselves and Congressmen should be able to concur with me that the buck stops there. But no we are to blame an administration, whom has only been in office only a short time considering the time it took to get into this mess?

Why can't these agencies see the big picture, why can't they be run more efficiently, why is no one fixing the obvious? I watch TV and listen to Donald Rumsfeld dodge questions by the media, questions they should not ask and he should never even discuss with outsiders, some things you just do not talk about for the safety of the troops and the security of our nation. After all war is hell. It is and when you fight one, you bring a little hell to the enemy with as much efficiency and precision as possible. Yet we are asking about the prisoners in Cuba? We should be torturing them until they turn over the truthful information. Why not? They kill innocent Americans and we treat them with a gated community and fresh clothes good food and hot showers? We should bath them in Fluoride like we do our own population.

We should be attacking the enemy, not small business. Do you think our ancestors would have approved of this? The Japanese, Germans in WWII tortured us, so did the Vietnamese; Viet Cong. We are so nice to everyone, no wonder the Chinese government calls us the paper tiger and they would probably enjoy running their horse this year over us. We attack our own citizens and our own team, when we have a clearly defined enemy. Why? Why are we being nice to the bad guys and mean to those who are going to save us from economic ruin? Wars cost money and we had better all get on the same page ASAP. We need to stop attacking small business and help them expand using my idea called New American Bombs. You can search it on the Internet if interested. Make things simple and easy.

I read in Business journals across the country that many are trying to get into a franchise or small business of their own yet, as soon as they do we attack them? We are sending the wrong message to those who may want to start their own businesses. We are clearly deserving of a "C-" or worse on this project. Although I do not have time to run this myself, certainly any franchisor or small businessman turned big could fix this problem faster than debating in congress about what to do, forget when to do it or why we are doing it. We are watching everyone talk, no one do anything and no trigger in the gun once they do decide and by that time the recession will be over, valuations of corporate America will be tanked and quality of life and standards of living in many areas will be that of nations 5% our economic size now. The wake up call is over and it is time to get up and stop hitting the snooze button. You are paid to make things happen not watch and wonder what occurred and then blame everyone else. I know it is Cleo's fault at 1-900 psychic for misleading information and economic forecasts, and really bad accounting practices, even though she knew they were going to get her. Maybe we can blame Enron, Global Crossing, Kmart did it to us, damn blue lights, wait we saw OJ running through the airport, no let's blame Condit, no we can blame Jerry Springer, Yah, Jerry, Jerry, Jerry. I am very sorry if you do not see the hypocrisy of this entire fake, made up society and façade.

Perhaps you think that it is okay for government to run a muck and attack the foundation of America and to make laws so complicated that no one could follow them even if they knew them all. I guess some assume that everything is cut and dry, but reality shows it is all gray matter that created it (pun intended). Laws upon laws. Lawyers make money arguing areas of gray, over worded and definitions rather than real intent. They make up what they cannot get in proof and run like the dickens to the judges (paid in full by the election process) to render a decision about nothing to help someone else get their will. Very similar to Von Clauswitz theory of war where a state tries to enforce its will over another by attack or threat of.

These issues are so simplistic it makes the game not seem as fun as it actually is. We use the same methods of engagement to attack our own infrastructure, businesses and people through taxation, meaningless laws all of which hurts us all. Everyone gets caught up in it, as if it matters at all. You are all going to live breath, produce waste and the next generation (sometimes the same) and then die. Yet somehow it is a life and death matter to attack an independent businessperson or entrepreneur that has created everything we have that is of any value at all. (besides maybe the theory of love for thy neighbor, which is an innate characteristic of our species even though you would never know it by reading any of the laws made by a government whose own doctrine states it is one nation under god, what are we really getting accomplished). One nation under god, oh really, what ever, sure does not resemble anything of the sorts anymore does it? A god of that stature would never have created such a mess. Is this really one nation under god still today? Don't answer that; fix it. Now is a good time. Then you can rest. Think in it.

End Part II "Soap Box Time; Rants from Lance" To be continued at a later date on another subject, you can count on it.

Lance Winslow - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

Actions Are Louder Than

Writen by Bette Daoust, Ph.D.

You have heard the saying that "actions speak louder than words". It is so true, especially when it comes to business relationships. We talked about places to keep in contact with the Power of Ten in the last chapter, as a basis for doing business. This chapter is more concentrated on doing the work through commitment and follow-up. You cannot expect to keep a customer unless you provide them with excellent customer service. You may argue that price is also an issue but I believe that a person will not mind paying a higher price (providing it is not too high) for the best customer service they have ever experienced. Look around you and you will see that you can buy the same types of clothing from a number of locations such as Wal Mart, Target, Sears, Nordstrom's etc. Wal Mart offers unbelievably low prices and their customer service is good as well but Nordstrom's offers unbelievable customer service with higher prices. You may say that the quality of the clothing is a big part, but the point is we are willing to pay more if the customer service is there.

Nurturing a business relationship therefore has to do with providing customer service. I know a car dealer that gets business not only from the local area but his customers come back to him once they have moved. The reason is that he bends over backwards to give customer service. If they have to bring their car in for a tune-up or servicing, he makes sure he is there in the morning when they drop their car off and takes them to work, no matter where it is. He also goes back to pick them up when the car is ready.

This person is totally committed to customer service and even though his customers can buy elsewhere at a lower price, they do not. They prefer to deal with him. He has taken on a motto to "Thrill the Customer" at every point along the way.

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. is a speaker, author (over 170 books, articles, and publications), and consultant. She has provided marketing, sales, business development and training expertise for companies such as Peet's Coffee & Tea, Varian Medical Systems, Accenture, Avaya, Cisco Systems to name a few. Dr. Daoust has also done extensive work with small businesses in developing their marketing, training, and operational plans. You may contact Dr. Daoust at http://BizMechanix.com You may also view her latest publications at http://BlueprintBooks.com Dr. Daoust also writes for the National Networker http://theNationalNetworker.com

Dangers Of Credit Cards

Writen by John Gibb

Credit cards can be very advantageous to the smart consumer who uses them wisely by giving you credit to buy what you need without having the needed up-front cash, and letting you make payments over time. But if you are not mindful of the terms of credit cards, there can be dangers of credit cards. If you do not watch your budget and charge without having the ability to make monthly payments, money problems can result which can affect you emotionally and physically. If you do not make gains in paying off your principle balance, the credit card can take a long time to pay off. You can be paying for a purchase you may not even use anymore for years.

If you are unable to pay your bills, you may find yourself filing bankruptcy which can affect your financial future for years, leaving you unable to obtain future credit, affecting job prospects, and causing higher car insurance premiums.

To protect yourself, you need to have a budget which will enable you to make adequate credit card payments. You need to also closely look at the terms of the credit card so that you are informed of what the interest rate is, the grace period, and any penalties for late payments. Also, the dangers of credit cards can affect you if someone gains access to your credit card information and makes fraudulent purchases. You need to watch your accounts carefully to make sure that someone else has not stolen your credit card information.

If you don't have some sort of income from a job, self employment, or a business, then it is not very wise to apply for a credit card. If you do have some form of monthly income and you do use your credit card, be sure to make the monthly payment when requested. If you fail to do this, your credit rating will be major affected. If you do this for a few months you will end up having some serious credit problem. This can take months of paying on time to establish a good credit rating again.

So in conclusion, use your credit card wisely and only use one if you have some form of income to at least meet the minimum monthly payment.

John Gibb manages http://www.credit-card-guides.net An updated blog dedicated to educating people on credit cards.

Medical Billing Gu0 Record Fields 63 Through 65

Writen by Michael Russell

If you read our last installment on medical billing, you probably noticed that it took an entire installment just to cover field number 62 of the GU0 record. If this surprised you, it shouldn't. The GU0 record is probably the most complicated CMN transmitted to a carrier of all the CMNs. In this installment we're going to try to get past one field, but don't hold your breath. We continue with field number 63.

GU0 field 63, positions 270 - 273, is Reply NUM L04 N02. This field is the reply to the second question on any DMERC certification requiring a four position numeric response. The following forms are supported for this field. For forms 01 and 08, the valid responses are 0000 - 9999. For form 10, the valid responses are 0000 - 0999. For form 04, the valid responses are 0001 - 0099. Forms 05 and 09 are reserved for future use.

Form 01 is the maximum length in centimeters of the ulcer. Form 04 is the number of months prior to getting the device that the patient had fusion, other than spinal fusion. Form 08 is the number if times per day the patient receives drug infusion. Form 10 is the grams of protein per day.

Form 01 is question number 21.B. Form 04 is question 7.B. Form 08 is question 1.C. Form 10 is question 4.C.

GU0 field 64, positions 274 - 277, is Reply NUM L04 N03. This field is the reply to the third question on any DMERC certification requiring a four position numeric response. The following forms are supported for this field. For forms 01 and 10, the valid responses are 0000 - 9999. For form 04, the valid responses are 0001 - 0099. None of the other forms are supported.

Form 01 is the maximum width in centimeters of the ulcer. Form 04 is the number of months prior to getting the device that the patient had fusion. This is only for spinal fusion. Form 10 is the milliliters per day of dextrose.

Form 01 is question number 21.C. Form 04 is question 9.B. Form 10 is question 4.D.

GU0 field 65, positions 278 - 281, is Reply NUM L04 N03. This field is the reply to the fourth question on any DMERC certification requiring a four position numeric response. The following forms are supported for this field. For forms 01 and 10, the valid responses are 0000 - 9999. For form 04, the valid responses are 0001 - 0099. None of the other forms are supported.

Form 01 is the maximum length in centimeters of the ulcer number two. Form 04 is the number of months prior to getting the device that the patient had repeat fusion. Form 10 is the milliliters per day of lipids.

Form 01 is question number 21.C. Form 04 is question 9.B. Form 10 is question 4.D.

In our next installment of medical billing, we'll continue our review of the GU0 record, picking up with field number 66.

Michael Russell Your Independent guide to Medical Billing

Mental Vs Physical Activity In Marketing

Writen by Marilyn Jenett

This article addresses the issue about whether one can attract or magnetize circumstances without taken "action." Its intention is to create better understanding in your minds about the use of mental and spiritual laws for success and the relationship between mental and physical action and work.

Let's Get Mental

Yes, indeed, marketing your business is an activity. But that does not mean that the activity is necessarily "physical".

Mental activity is thousands and thousands times more potent than physical activity. In fact, mental activity is a precursor to the right physical activity that gets results. However, physical activity is not necessarily required if you understand and apply mental activity. It is not magic. It is law. As I like to say, once you understand how the laws work, the "supernatural" becomes quite natural. You realize that the Universe is indeed magnetic and thought and feeling has more vibratory pull than any magnet you could imagine.

So I think it behooves anyone who wants to be successful to become aware of the relationship of mental and physical activity and know when either is indicated. There is the right mental activity, which can in and of itself attract without the need for physical activity AND there is the right mental activity that inspires a corresponding right physical action/activity that produces results. If the right mental activity is not included, then one will end up like the majority of the population - doing and doing, acting and acting but not succeeding.

You are using these laws all of the time whether you realize it or not. Only you are most likely not using them for the purpose and intention that you desire consciously. How many things have you attracted into your life that you feel you did nothing to deserve and asked, "Why did this happen?" You didn't "work" for those things. Yet they happened. Why? These results were the outcropping of the thoughts and impressions that were established in your mind subconsciously.

Now, the laws I am presenting to you do not indicate that you are to spend all of your time sitting around doing nothing. I won't even address that because it is just plain ridiculous. I believe I am articulate enough in my writing to get my meaning across - if you will read carefully.

However, the absolute truth is that yes, we can attract circumstances to us without physical action. I have lived my life accomplishing that way. When you understand fully that thoughts are things and all physical things are in motion and vibrating at the molecular level, you will understand that it is indeed a magnetic Universe and we can vibrate to our good and it can vibrate to us. I know without knowledge in this area, if may appear fantastic, but that is why I attempt to speak in simple terms to create understanding and acceptance in your minds.

How Do I Know?

What is my experience? In 20 years I have never looked for a client (and my clients are the largest corporations in the world). I never advertised, never actively promoted. And yet I became renowned in my field and received all the exposure and publicity I could want - not as a result of anything I did physically, but as a result of the mental activity I learned to do. The physical part comes AFTER I receive the clients and the opportunities - that's when I fulfill the creative vision of the client's projects. I attract all of the ideas and elements necessary to do the perfect job. It's easy. It flows. I don't have to struggle or push or try or waste energy. The right answers truly "come out of the blue" for the most part. You can find some pretty amazing stories on my website with details of my results from using these laws over the years.

But the actual marketing of my business - always receptive, never active, except to walk through the doors that opened as a result of the mental activity.

You will see several cover newspaper stories on my website (those were only a few of several hundred articles worldwide). The articles began within six weeks of starting my business and continued for years. There were numerous television and radio segments also. You will have to believe me when I tell you that I had no publicist and did no work to get any of that publicity. Physical work, that is. The work was done on a mental level.

Cruise Control

So when you apply these laws, whether from a purely mental standpoint, or spiritual basis, you are guided to the actions that are necessary because the law has to produce what you have mentally accepted. You are no longer spinning your wheels - you are now on an automatic path to your results and to your success.

You establish, impregnate the thought and feeling of what you want in your deeper mind. You are intuitively guided to DO all of the things necessary for the result. You follow the leads. You do the outer work as you are guided to do. You also ATTRACT all of the things necessary for the result. The result may indeed come without physical outer action on your part or it may require action, but the action will be shown to you. You're in the flow.

There is a sense of connection to a source of wisdom that knows all the answers and you can tap into that source anytime you want. You will know when to be still and do the mental work and wait and when to take outer action and do the work that results in your success.

The alternative? You work and work and struggle and struggle and you don't get there. And wonder why you don't succeed.

So...to pooh pooh the idea of attracting and magnetizing your good, even "out of the blue", whether in your personal life or your business, just reveals a lack of awareness and a mind that is not open to the infinite possibilities that surround us. It indicates a mentality that is not up with the times or open and receptive to the great discoveries of our times that can further our success.

My point...you can close your mind and limit your ability to succeed. Or you can open your mind, expand your vision to include both the physical/active world and the mental/magnetic world and....be really successful!

© Copyright 2004 Marilyn Jenett

Marilyn Jenett, an accomplished business owner in the corporate arena (http://www.MarilynJenettLocations.com ) founded the Feel Free to Prosper program to mentor and teach others to become aligned with Universal laws and accept their right to prosper. Her students, from around the globe and from all walks of life, are enjoying remarkable success using her lessons and participating in her telephone group sessions. For more information, check out her website at http://www.FeelFreetoProsper.com You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print as long as the bylines, URL and copyright are included. Please print the article in its entirety, unchanged and send a copy of the publication to marilyn@feelfreetoprosper.com

A Business Lesson From Baseball

Writen by Rix Quinn

Few personalities dominated the American scene like basball slugger George Herman "Babe" Ruth. He entered the major leagues as a pitcher, but also won fame with the Boston Red Sox as a powerful hitter.

Since a pitcher can't play every day, somebody recommended Babe be placed in the outfield. This may have been one of baseball's greatest decisions.

Babe was traded to the New York Yankees in 1920, and became a superstar, media personality, and a hero to millions. He played 22 years, compiled a lifetime batting average of .342, and slammed an amazing 714 home runs.

In 1927 he also set a season record for homers with 60. That mark stood until 1961.

Babe was a large, powerful man. When I watch him in old newsreels, it appears he's swinging to hit the home run. He once said, "If I just tried to hit singles, I'd bat .600."

The Babe knew his fame came from power hitting. It's what the fans came to see, and he seldom disappointed them.

One time somebody asked Babe if he ever felt guilty that he made more money than the President of the United States. Asked Babe, "How many home runs did the President hit last year?"

Even back then, Babe symbolized a publicity secret we sometimes forget: recognition often comes to (a) the first to accomplish something, (b) the best at it, or (c) the first one to tell the world about it.

Rix Quinn is a specialist at short writing. His book on the subject, "Words That Stick" is available at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580085768/qid/ To reach him for consultation, e-mail mailto:rixquinn@charter.net

Beware The Chicken Little Consultant

Writen by Mark Meshulam

Paying for expertise is an inherent part of business. How else can we make the best decisions in specialty areas without informed help?

Unfortunately there can be conflicts of interest on the part of your expert which can be subtle yet extremely powerful.

Ask yourself one question: Would your consultant benefit by prolonging your issue or project? If the answer is yes, you may be paying more than you should.

Paid experts have the power to prolong an issue or project thereby stuffing their pockets with more of your money, simply through their presentation style. If you have a Chicken Little consultant, fire him or her immediately.

For those to whom Chicken Little is unknown or a fog in the distance, here's the scoop: Chicken Little is a storybook character who would periodically run about crying, "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!"

The townspeople were initially frightened and would run for cover similar to how our government expects us to, when one of their multi-colored alerts are issued.

After a while they realized that Chicken Little was really a turkey - the disparaging term type - and came to ignore him.

Miraculously, after they completely tuned him out, he actually had something important to say. Needless to say, they ignored him and got creamed.

Now we come to your paid expert. Does he try to prey on your insecurities? Does he disparage everyone but himself? Does he present his ideas with emotionalism rather than researched fact? If the answers are yes, save yourself a bundle and get a new consultant.

Better yet, take some time to study the subject yourself. The internet and a good search engine is the best consultant you will ever have. If some sites utilize scare tactics, there will be plenty of others to balance the message.

Copyright 2005 www.poingo.com

Mark Meshulam offers hotkey keyboard shortcuts, small business articles, and a powerful email tickler system.

Industrial Metal Detectors

Writen by Damian Sofsian

Industrial metal detectors offer maximum protection against ferrous, non-ferrous metal, and stainless steel metal contamination. Industrial metal detectors are used in a variety of applications. The typical areas covered are food, dairy, pharmaceutical, paper, rubber, medical, cosmetics, plastic, textile and chemical industries. Industrial metal detectors are highly successful in preventing downstream equipment from damage. These are also very useful for detecting weapons and bombs in packages or on people.

Different types of industrial metal detectors including underwater metal detector, airport metal detector, walk-through metal detector and handheld metal detector are available in the stores. Underwater metal detectors are widely used to locate metallic objects under water. A walk-through metal detector can detect concealed weapons at security checkpoints. It checks the whole body for metallic objects. Handheld metal detectors are an ideal solution for metallic screening applications. They are mainly designed and manufactured for security sensitive areas such as schools, airports, prisons, courtrooms and customs. They help to pinpoint miniature metal objects. An airport metal detector is also very useful for detecting weapons. Other types of industrial metal detectors are also available in most of the stores.

Industrial metal detectors function in different ways. Handheld metal detectors are light weight, radiation free and highly sensitive. Little maintenance is required in most of the cases. Besides metal detection, a walk-through metal detector includes operator interface and/or controls, electro magnetic compatibility, environmental tolerance, quality control and assurance.

Industrial metal detectors are designed and manufactured to meet the industrial requirements of individuals. Most of these help to reduce downtime and avoid catastrophes, thereby increasing productivity. In order to meet the growing competition in the field, some of the reputed manufacturers offer discounts, free shipping services and guarantee programs. Used industrial metal detectors are also found.

Some of the leading manufacturers in the industrial metal detecting industry are Compass Metal Detectors, DetectorPro, White's Electronics, Super Metal Detectors and CEIA USA Ltd.

Metal Detectors provides detailed information on Metal Detectors, Used Metal Detectors, Walk Through Metal Detectors, Hand Held Metal Detectors and more. Metal Detectors is affiliated with Material Handling Systems.

What Is Your Hearts Desire

Writen by Eija Lapinleimu

I used to believe in scarcity. All I wanted to do was to have freedom for writing and expressing my soul, find the way to support my dream and make my dream come true.

Life is not all about making money but it does make life more comfortable.

What is Your Heart´s Desire?
Would you like to stay at home and paint?
Would you like to take long walks in the nature and then go swimming in the clear lake?
Would you like to go fly-fishing?
Would you like to go on the safari?
Would you like to pamper yourself in the spa?

I was raised up in the religious family with twelve siblings and learned to believe in scarcity. I wanted to find abundance which is not only material wealth but also abundance in all area of life.

It is creativity.

It is sexual fulfilment.

It is spirituality.

It is health.

It is intimacy.

It is healthy relationship.

It is connection with the nature.

It is not only freedom from the life style which is not satisfying – work, commuting to work, addictions, difficulties in the relationships – but also freedom for doing something that you always dreamed of.

I travelled all around the world and lived in twelve different countries And was taught by several appreciated guru's but finally found a half a guru inside of myself.

She knew that all she wanted to do was to have freedom for writing and expressing her soul.

I needed to find the way to support my dream and commit myself to change the outer circumstances in my life so that they would help me to make my dream come true.

I moved from the city apartment to the countryside close to the nature, forest and a big lake. I go walking every other day and do stretching and Pilates every other day. I eat healthy food but also indulge myself every now and then with chocolate and glass of wine. I allowed myself finally to have a loving husband and stopped running away from all the good things in life.

WONDER AND START FOLLOWING YOUR INNER GUIDANCE

Do you want to live like everything is a wonder or nothing is a wonder to you? Do you want to stay living familiar, numbing and safe life, which is similar with everyone else's life or do you want to walk on your own path, full of miracles?

As children we all were fully alive and present. We were curious and wondered our surroundings, we found constantly something new also in the familiar things, something that make us enthusiastic and made our imagination fly. I lost our sense of time, when we plundged to count the points at the back of the ladybird or made conecows or swam happily on the swimming ring made from tractor's inner tube. Whn we grew up we rejected new experiences, landscapes and insights. We isolated ourselves into our small world and asked where did we lose our playfulness and imagination. We miss them, because without them we do not feel fully alive. We need to be children and adults at the same time and move towards our dreams regardless of our fear. We do not feel alive unless we dare to search and experiment our uniqueness despite of the fact that our uniqueness makes us sometimes also lonely.

Deep inside we all remember what is the flowing life and passion of existence like, because we were all born to this world fully alive, ecstatic beings. Our soul, body and mind were all one. We were perfectly beautiful beings, and did not question our beauty. But then already in our early years our mind, body and soul were torn apart, the suffering caused by separation started. We lost the connection between our mind, soul and body, and lost the connection with our inner being. Because that connection is the foundation of our happiness, we suffer if we are missing it. The separation of our body, mind and soul is the origin of all suffering, our deep wound. All of them are meant for one body, oneness, divine being that from its own perfect oneness reaches towards the oneness of the university, and becomes one with it. This oneness we miss. We search for it everywhere outside of us without knowing, what we search for. Searching ourside of us is futile, because oneness is already within us. We only need to see and understand that in order to let go of the illusion of separation.

Our mind is only storage of the learned opinions and beliefs, which our body moves around. When body and mind do not communicate with each other, our body functions only as a vehicle for our intelligence. It has been taken away its original purpose to give us pleasure and intepretate our feelings. Then life juice compresses our a drop by drop and body gets pale and dry, until there is only a pile of bones and flesh left, body where nothing moves, no emotions, thoughts or spirit.

Without a connection with our soul we live dry and unnourished life. Soul is a channel for love to come to our life, so without sonnection with our soul we do not experience live and have feeling of the deeper meaning of life. We miss the taste of life: we miss emotions and their nuances; we miss ecstasy and joy of existence. We live numb and melancolic, our life is flat and nothing touches us. Nothing gets us to ecstasy and nothing makes us cry from pain. Our being is stagnant, musty and heavy. With the oneness of all our parts we live in the hell on the earth, anxious and sad. We have bottomless hunger and enourmous longing, which cannot be satiesfied by the biggest amounts of food, alcohol, sex or drugs. When we are split on ourselves, we cannot experience oneness with the universe. Then we miss both its wisdom and limitless resources.

It is possible to bring our soul and body back to life, because we already have all the knowledge needed for that. We have bottomless wosdom, although it might not feel like that. By quieting down and listening to our delicate inner whispering, we can get answers for all our questions. We get guidance, if we promise to follow the instructions we receive. If we do not listen to delicate whispering of our inner being, it may start screaming. Our subconscious may create a situation into our life, where we are forced to stop listening and cahnging the direction of our life or we may lose our chance to happy life. Though we lost everything tangible – as I did -, we get much more instead, when we find ourselves. When we win our resistance and reject the misleading outside information, we get to dig into our inner being, and we will always have a refreshing, healing spring, unstoppable babbling of cleaning water. There we can go to rest whenever we like to. Our soul is more valuable than all the treasures of the world all together. It is delicate and untouched, pure and deep part of our being. In the roots of the inner rainbow of emotions there is unmeasurably valuable treasure: our deepest being, we ourselves. It is our connection with the infinite wisdom of the universe and all the unvisible. It does not cling onto thoughts, objects or people but lives purely from joy and beauty. Its lifeforce is love and its fuel is emotions, from which it can create limitlessly whatever we can imagine. Our body is a doorway to the secret garden of our being. If we submit our body to be only a vehicle of our brains, we close the door to our secret garden and prevent us from finding a valuable treasure.

We have to find the key to the door of our secret garden, and we may find it while weeding the grounds of our heart. We have to have courage to make our hands dirty and start digging the ground of our heart, because before it has been plowed and weeded, new seeds cannot be planted. We need to get rid of all "Yes, but..." and "If we are realistic..." and "Let's be reasonable...." – weeds frm preventing our dream to grow. After that we need to take care of the sprouting seeds and growing plants and provide tehm with sufficient light and nourishment.

All the doctor's diagnoses lead us further away from the truth that our pain is longing for our true being. The answer has existed all the time in our heart and it is so simple that it has been difficult to believe. Our inner voice leads us away from fear and anxiety. It guides us and tells us to let go off our desperate clinging to the past. Gradually we understand the nature of the reality: constant change.

Every one of us has an opportunity to express our divine beauty in our daily life, because we are spiritual, divine beings, who are trying to learn to live in the human world. We are not fallen, sinful people trying to be spiritual. It is a big sin to deny our divine origin and our uniqueness; it is as if we refused to recive life the universe gave us. The universe gave us life as present and at the same time it made us responsible to create our life into a unique one. It also gave us skills and means to make our life into the most beautiful possible. Our gesture of gratitude for the universe is to celebrate our uniqueness and brighten our light the brightest one possible, our colors and dance the most passionate and deepest ones possible. Then we can feel fully alive.

When we find a connection with ourselves, we find the connection with our creativity, from which we are born. We get friends and guides on our path, and they bring joy to us. We get support for our way towards the fulfillment of our heart's desires. We see the wonders in us and around us maybe for the first time. We understand the real purpose of life: love. When we embrace fully ourselves, we offer home for all parts of our being: mind, spirit and body, all what there is in us. Then we are not fighting against ourselves or trying to repress some part of us.

We realize that we are walking on the path meant for us, when the things start to happen in the right order. First small and then bigger miracles start manifesting in our life. There is a spark of magic in our life. We may for instance think of our friend who we did not hear for many years, and then the very same day she calls us. The misracles take place if we do not pass them indifferently but wonder them and thank the universe for creating our wishful thoughts into the physical form. We have to sniff and investigate everything curiously like a poppy, and continue even if we sometimes push our nose into a spiky bush. We know that the treasure will be found, when we just keep our eyes and ears open and keep looking. We need to wonder and celebrate everything we see, and thank, thank, thank for all the miracles.

Don't we ever grow so big that we stop wondering the perfect beauty of raindrops, clear tone of birdsinging and smell of cut grass? When we invite our wondering child gently back to our life, our life is funnier and colors of our days brighter than in the role of a serious adult. Do you still remember what was the favorite game of your childhood? Did it happen to be "Ten sticks on board" as mine? I still remember how it felt when I out of breath and heart beating managed to hide in the middle of the bush so that nobody could find me.

One lifetime is not enough for discovering all the wonders inside and outside of us. In the movie "The Last Samurai" the only samurai alive guessed that his time to leave this world was not far away. Still he serene, because he had lived his life following his standards: he had served the Emperor, practised fencing, meditated in the temple, taken care of his dead brother's family. He held a pink flower of a chrerry tree in his hand, looked at it ans said: "If I had all my life just been watching this flower, it would have been enough to make my life complete, as complete as this flower."

A single flower is complete and hundreds of flowers blossoming together are complete, and not the splendour of one flower makes another flower any dimmer. We too are perfectly beautiful when have opened to fully blossom, and nobody else's splendour dims our splendor. The only way to know what our journey could be like is to embark on the journey. It is better to talk less and do more, because already a single act os more powerful expression of our intention than a thousand wise theories. Idleness and indifference are abandoning God's generosity and undermining our skills, and they will kill us alive before we have begun to live. That's why every crisis, which we survive, is better than stagnancy. Our crises strengthen us and help us understand, how rich and beautiful life is, and what the waste is to worry about meaningless things.

We have given only limited time on the earth and we cannot know when our time is over. That's why we need to live each day fully, as if it was the only day left. We have to use all our senses. We have to quieten to listen to whispering of our inner being. When we tune in to receive the message sfrom our angels, we can hear, how they remind us that the purpose of our life is to love and be compassionate toeards others and ourselves. When we have found our inner truth, we can always listen to its voice by praying or meditating. Our inner being and God have both always known a truth about us, because there is no untruthfulness in our being. While praying we can always relive our past the way it has been, we can be naked without selfdeception, rejection or lies. We can again need, feel and think the things we did not dare to need, feel or think earlier. In that way we free ourselves to live this moment.

We have to keep our energy body clean and avoid all poisonous things, which threaten our living space. We can do it by consciously avoiding negative people; the ones who cultivate anxiety, shame, anger, depression, fear, complaining, moaning, apathy, stress, worry or guilt. When we encounter with an angry person, we can breath deeplt, send him friendly and loving thoughts and leave without a clash. Part of our selfcare is that we allow into our energy field only those people who bring love, peace and higher spiritual energy into our life. When we live in a quiet and clean environment and foster pace, we protect ourselves from attacks of the persons representing the lower energy levels. Then we can concentrate on our growth. When we clean our environment we search for higher spiritual energy and invite God into our life. In that way all the communication between others and us is actually about relatioship between our God and us. And although we have rejected God and turned our backs to Him and often only in distress remember His existence, He is ready to help us always when we receive His help.

Our own energy is our connection with our guiding angel who speaks us through our intuition and sensations of our body. We can talk to her and ask questions and requests. We can turn to her always when we need more clarity into our life or always when we want company or creative inspiration. When we trust our ideas and let our emotions to guide us in our life, we do not have to try to control everything with our intelligence. Our lifes gets clearer and events, things and people just happen to us all in the right place and in right time. When we follow our own truth, we are real, powerful and freely expressive, divine beings. Life is not all about making money but it does make life more comfortable. And opens doors to different possibilities of self-growth and adventure. But one needs to find the way to cultivate his dreams Comfortably. So that one lives following his heart's desire Which certainly is not to work like crazy and wake up too late in life and Realize that life has gone without participating in it, without enjoying it fully, with all the senses, by seeing, smelling, feeling, hearing, tasting, using one's intuition.

I am happy that I am living in the time of internet which gives me possibility to work from home, to stay in touch with positive energy of energetic people and provide my living by working just an hour or two a day. I am a creative soul but I long to use my creativity in writing and dancing. I am grateful that other people have invented powerful tools to benefit from the power of the internet. It reaches millions of people all around the world. I do not need to travel to hear the teaching of others and spend my time in the airplane and crowded traffic. I am able to stay at home and use my vacations to go to the beautiful destinations where I can get pampered – I love spas!

What Is Your Heart's Desire?

Do You have time and money to do what You would love to do?

Let me share what works for me. www.searchestate.com/uws/mn327053.htm

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Raised with 12 siblings, studied master of economics, Humaniversity therapist, author, self-help therapist (taught by Shakti Gawain, Osho, Veeresh, Anthony Robbins, Sonia Choquette, Julia Cameron, Baba Muktananda, Gabrielle Roth). Lived in 12 different countries, background of anorexia and bulimia. I reveal the way to live balanced, healthy, yet abundant life.

Collection Agencies Not Just For Big Business

Writen by Ruben Soliman

One of the reasons small businesses write off a great deal of loss is that they don't realize how easy and affordably it can be to hire collection agencies to recover bad debt. Developing a success-driven mindset and taking action like your larger competitors is the first step to growing your business. Many of today's collection agencies are small business friendly and can improve your company's bottom line drastically with smart solutions for collecting bad debt.

Look for collection agencies that offer several collection tier levels Small businesses often don't utilize collection agencies like their larger competitors because they feel the debt owed may be insignificant to large collection agencies. Small businesses should look for collection agencies that offer different collection amount tiers. Debts as low as $1000, regardless of the size of the contacting business can be easily recovered by collection agencies.

Verify that the collection agency uses legal collection methods The days of collection agencies harassing friends and family and calling late at night in an attempt to collect unpaid debt is long gone. To comply with today's regulations, collection agencies must adhere to strict laws that require them to use more brains than brawn in an attempt to collect debt. Check to make sure that the collection agencies you're considering belong to either the International Association of Commercial Collectors or the American Collector's Association. Admittance to either requires that collection agencies adhere to the legal standards and ethics of third party collection agencies.

Collecting the debt yourself verses contracting a collection agency First party collectors (i.e. business owners) are not bound by the same set of federal regulations when it comes to collecting debt. However, attempting to collect debt if not handled properly can result in poor client relations at best and a hefty fine at worst. A systematic, proactive first party collection approach works well for the first 30-60 days of delinquency. If the client hasn't paid by that point, you're at risk statistically for losing a substantial part of the balance.

A timeline of diminishing returns

Statistically, the longer a debt becomes overdue, the less likely that you will ever recover the full amount from the customer. Figures from collection agencies show that after 3 months of non-payment you can expect about a 73% return on every dollar, 50% on every dollar after 6 months, and 25% after one year. If you've got bad debt that's piled up over long periods of time, your time may be better spent by hiring a collection agency to recoup some of your old debt and implementing a plan to prevent new bad debt.

Partnering with a collection agency

Some collection agencies offer an accounts receivable management program to help businesses manage their AR effectively. With this service, collection agencies print and send letters on your letterhead, contact clients under your name, handle disputes, and send the payment directly to your company. Most business owners don't enjoy trying to track down their payments. It's draining, frustrating, and most would rather spend their time working on creative ways to bring in new clients. For collection agencies, securing payments is what they do best.

Small businesses, perhaps more so than their larger competitors, can't afford not to have a solid plan for collecting bad debt. Small businesses often operate on much tighter budgets and just one or two delinquent accounts can stop a small business in its tracks. Fortunately, modern collection agencies are small business friendly and are often just what small businesses need to become more profitable and take their business to the next level.

Ruben Soliman is a freelance copywriter. For more information about what a collection agency can do for you, visit http://www.abusa.com

How To Start Your Own Internet Business For Under 100

Writen by Norman Dreamer

Yes, it is possible to start your own internet business for under $100. The only costs are a state reseller's license and a domain name. Everything else can be done free. A sub-domain name is free also.

It all started when I was watching a late night tv commercial for internet treasure chest. After sending in for their cd and spending $61 and knowing that I would be billed for hundreds of dollars for their services, I decided to do it myself from scratch. After getting a cheap website maker for $40,

I proceeded to make a 30 page website and it took me about 3 months. It only cost me $25 to open a business checking account and the rest was entirely free.

There are ways to advertise your website by joining link exchange programs and most search engine submissions are free also. There are resources at the library for free software and most of the software including the ftp uploader I got from the internet for free. I even found free webhosts that will give you 1-3 gbytes of bandwidth for a whole year free. As a result , it cost me less than $85 to build the whole site and put it on the web. Yes, it can be done for less than $100 dollars.

Norman Dreamer runs an electronic gift store at http://Mfe.awardspace.com

Romania Investing In A Land Of Unexpected Opportunity

Writen by Kevin Stillmock

I have to admit it. I had almost no knowledge of the country of Romania just five short years ago, when I came here for the first time. What came to my mind were images of Dracula, Frankenstein, and under-cared for orphaned children, the kind that were featured in fund-raising specials that appeared on television when I was a kid. At least I can say that I knew for sure that it existed, and so did it's province of Transylvania. That's partially contrary to what I was taught in elementary school, by the way, when our teacher assured us that Transylvania was only a storybook land and therefore we need not be frightened that the horrible creatures that inhabit it actually exist!

Today, five years later, I have a radically different and much more well-informed view of Romania. The things that used to come to mind about this country, rarely do anymore. When I think back about my old preconceptions of Romania, it never ceases to take me aback the great difference between the infamous legends and surprising reality about this country.

Now, instead, I am captured by many of the same things that ancient Roman emperors like Cesar and Napoleon found so alluring about this place. (Romania was a part of the Roman Empire and takes it name from the Latin word for Rome.) From incredible natural resources to majestic mountain and seaside landscapes, Romania is a place that has a little of everything you would find elsewhere and a number of things you can't find anywhere else. And as for Transylvania, my teacher was right on one point - it is a storybook land- but, on the contrary, for it's beauty and that of it's people.

Ultimately as concerns Romania though, the most important discovery I made in my search for the truth about this land of legends, is the tremendous real estate investment potential that exists here.

Romania presents the investor with an exceptional opportunity to benefit from the ascension of an eastern block country to the European Community. The timetime line this opportunity, however, is limited. Romania is one of the last European countries in ascension talks with the EU and it is projected to enter in either 2007 or 2008. The expectation around this hallmark event has resulted in much needed economic and government reform, making conditions more suitable for foreign investment.

The pre-ascension excitement has also given way to a dramatic increase in real estate prices in recent years, especially in major cities and tourist areas. For example, a friend of ours bought a 2-bedroom apartment in central Bucharest in early 2002 for $25,000 USD. Today his apartment is valued at 75,000 EURO ($100,000 USD) and the amount of interested buyers is more then sufficient.So much so, that potential buyers have actually posted advertisements on the entry door to his apartment building stating that they are eagerly looking to buy an apartment in the building or a nearby one. This friend of ours can choose to sell his apartment today at a significant profit or hold on to it until closer to the actual ascension of Romania to the EU, allowing him to benefit from the greatest possible appreciation in value of his property. During the mean time, he could continue to rent out the apartment at 700 EURO ($890 USD) a month or get in on the burge oning short-term rental market which offers an alternative to the over-priced hotel room rates in the city, and with a pretty good occupancy rate, rent the apartment on a daily or weekly basis at 50 Euro per night.

Our friend is just one of countless foreign citizens and Romanians who have already profited greatly from investment in the Romanian real estate market. Yet, as you will soon discover in this article, there are still better deals out there to be had then the one he and others have so far benefited from. While the prices have already jumped significantly in recent years, the near-certain speculation is that they will continue to rise dramatically until the time of the ascension of Romania into the European Union. The certainty of this speculation is bolstered by the 10% rise in cost of houses, apartments, and property in Bucharest over the period of December 23, 2004 and January 5, 2005. With the amount of interested clients sufficiently high this means that an investor could have bought and sold a property and made a 10% profit in less then 2 weeks in the Romanian real estate market while he or she was celebrating the holidays with family or busy skiing.

. The amazing reality is that such opportunities for substantial profit continue to exist, for now at least, here in Romania. In the capitol city of Bucharest, deals can still be found for investors with ready cash from sellers looking for quick money. Another great speculation is office space in Bucharest. At 1.2 Euro per square meter, Bucharest is now close to the cost of office space in Vienna which is currently at 1.8 Euro per square meter. These prices continue to accelerate. Such opportunities though are only the beggining. While the general over-evaluation of real estate in Bucharest has caused prices to rise and made the average cost of entry higher then just several years ago, this very reality, gives clear indication that clever investors can continue to benefit from this over-evaluation of property value in the mayhem surrounding Romania's anticipated EU entry.

It is generally held that prices will continue to rise sharply until leveling off, or perhaps dropping slightly, after the entry of Romania into the European Union. This has created a short time period in which investors can yield serious turnaround on their investments and those wishing to relocate can do so while getting in at a good bargain.

The best bet for investment oriented apartment-hunters in Bucharest today is high-end luxury apartments. The potential for profit off of lower to middle end apartments has began to tweak off as prices have already risen closer their final expected levels. A luxury apartment however, which can currently be had for between 120 to 200,000 Euro (2-3 bedrooms), will likely climb in value 10-20% a year, over the next two years leading up to EU ascension. By looking at the price of luxury apartments in any European Union capitol city versus Bucharest, the capitol city of Romania, one can observe the great disparity in prices which still exists at the moment between the luxury apartment market here verses in EU capitol cities. While the investor waits for his investment to mature he can rent out his apartment for 1,500 to 2,000 Euro per month, further adding significantly to his overall profit. The number of multi-national companies present in the city makes this a relatively easy sum to get for such a place on a rather consistent basis. . At this point it stands to mention that any real estate purchase made by a foreign individual can be financed by leasing available through only one Romanian company, as long as a 20-30% deposit is initially made.

While Bucharest abounds with investment opportunity, the opportunities outside of the capitol are also ripe with potential for significant profit matching or exceeding that of Bucharest. Romania offers a diverse landscape ranging from a large stretch of seaside along the Black Sea Coast to the impressive Carpathian Mountain range in the fairy tale land of Transylvania. In between is just about a little of everything else, from natural healing springs, to flatlands highly suitable for agricultural use, to a host of medieval and modern cities such as Sibiu, Cluj, Brasov, and Timisoara, which is perhaps the most Westernized of all Romanian cities.

I spoke with a number of real estate experts about what the best speculations for the real estate investor would be, asking questions like cost of entry, minimum length of time for investment to mature, etc. All seemed to agree that land, all over the country, was the best bet. Only one problem though. Foreigners can't own undeveloped land without an attached dwelling

However, I discovered a loop-hole that not only allows the foreign investor to own land but also to diversify his investment portfolio, if he wishes, and invest in the the three hottest areas of Romanian real estate at the same time - land, homes, and office space. It's called a REIT- Real Estate Investment Trust.

A REIT is a security that sells like a stock on the major exchanges and invests in real estate directly, either through properties or mortgages.

REITs receive special tax considerations, and typically offer investors high yields as well as a highly liquid method of investing in real estate. The REIT concept is in action in Romania by a reputable American firm and is designed specifically for the purpose of enabling foreign investors to have the opportunity to invest in Romania's greatest real estate opportunity (land) and to diversify their real estate portfolio, even with minimum funds for investment. (The usual entry investment is 25,000 Euro.) Investors should be willing to hold there money in the portfolio for about 5 years. The yearly gains over that period of time are expected to be quite significant and investors who currently have invested in an REIT have already made considerable returns on their investment.

A more explanatory overview is available for those interested.

Another promising development for Romanian real estate is created by the construction of a new 2 billion EURO super-highway being realized with the financial backing of the EU. This new super-highway built with the technology of the American firm contracted to complete it by the year 2010-12 will dramatically change the face of Romania. It will cut the travel time between Bucharest and major European cities down significantly and literally create new major destinations in Romania, overnight. Cutting through the Western portion of the providence of Transylvania, numerous towns and potential resort districts abounding in raw natural beauty with mountains, springs, and rivers will suddenly be centrally located. Rather then remaining isolated, somewhat hard-to-reach hidden treasures, these gems of Mother Nature will now be as close as turn on the off-ramp. Truly, many of these locations surpass the potential found in the current tourist areas that are easier to reach. .

The ability to start an inn or bed & breakfast in one of these areas is ripe. We even know of a top Bucharest hotel chef ready to pack his bags and commit his energy to starting a restaurant in one of these new destinations for a small piece of the potential profit he believes it will yield. Those who are in Romania, know the market, and have seen what has happened thus far, have little doubt what the future will yield and are ready to do almost anything to get in on the action. For those who are looking to relocate, the opportunities likewise are great. This is the chance to live in the best of both worlds - old and new - and position yourself and your loved ones in what will be one of the biggest member countries of the European Union.

An American friend of mine owns a beautiful home in a lakeside suburban community with a wonderful view over the lake and 2000 meters of land. This two-story home with three bedrooms cost him about 150,000 Euro to build. The premises also contain an outdoor kitchen, orchards groves and gardens. In short, a dream home.

By deciding to build his dream home outside of the city, about 25 minutes downtown Bucharest, in what Americans would consider a nearby suburb, my friend not only saved on land costs, he also set himself up for a great growth in value.

As he put it, draw a circle around any Western European city of 25 kilometers and you have the city's suburbs. As Bucharest continues to expand this area will become a centrally-located, well-saught-after suburb, especially with the large lake and forest that it contains.

. There is still a limited amount of property available both in this and neighboring communities for construction of similar homes. The best bet seems to be the build your own home with a reputable construction firm, according to your tastes, and pocket the savings that this effort will yield for you.

A home in the suburbs, of course, is not for everyone. The true romantic may be more intrigued by a "conac" the Romanian name for a cottage of the aristocracy of the Country at the turn of the 20th century where gentry would spend their weekends and summers sipping wines from the surrounding vineyards as well as the basement vaults. .

These home often need a little fixing up, but are worth it as the lingering aroma of the wine harvested on their estates and spirit of days gone by continue to fill the premises with an air of magic. For the cost of an acre in the Napa Valley (or probably less) you can have a functioning micro-vineyard and getaway home located in the Romanian wine country, situated in the steppe to the Carpathian mountains, a short drive from Bucharest.

Another alternative would be a mountain home or getaway which be had from anywhere from 20,000 Euro and up. A superb villa in a choice location would be about 100,000 Euro. Most such homes come with spectacular mountain views and often with other natural beauty close by or on the grounds of the property, such as fragrant pine tree forests and meadows.

Romania offers excellent services and conditions for expats. The general cost of living is much less then in the European Union and allow the non-European the chance afford-ably stake his claim in the European Union and establish a life in what will be a flourishing European superstate. Whether one is looking for a short-term investment turn-around in an European capitol city like Bucharest or to start their own resort inn in the breathtaking wilds of Transylvania, opportunity is readily available for the serious-minded investor.

This opportunity which is available in the present is akin to that which was available in the Czech Republic 10-12 years ago. Many speculate, based on Romania's size and natural assets, the future yieldings will actually end up being much greater.

These opportunities will not last long. As the EU accession gets closer and the new highway is paved, the potential for revenue-making that currently exists will clearly subside and diminish. For those who missed out on investment in the Czech Republic and Hungary and don't want to miss out again, the time is now in Romania.

Kevin Stillmock has been involved in real estate investment since 2000. He may be reached at kevin.stillmock@romaniareport.com or via his web site http://www.romaniareport.com

How To Avoid Being Taken Advantage Of On Free Consultations

Writen by Judy May

1. Limit the consultation to 30 minutes!

Remember: your time is valuable. Thirty minutes is plenty of time for the prospective client to get to know you, like you, be impressed by you, etc. and sufficient time for you to get a good feel for whether you would like to work with the prospective client. Make sure the prospective client understands that the consultation will last 30 minutes and, to the extent additional time is requested, your "regular rate" will apply.

2. Ask the prospective client to do some preliminary work prior to the consultation.

Although you're "giving away" 30 minutes of your time, the prospective client needs to understand your time IS valuable. One way to get this across is by asking the prospective client to do some work. This may be cutting our pictures of rooms she/he likes from home & garden magazines (explain that this will help you understand her/his style, color preferences, etc.). Or you may choose to prepare a brief Questionnaire, asking the prospective client to tell you more about the project she/he has in mind, her/his "design dilemma", her/his style preferences, color preferences, etc., whether she/he has worked with a professional [designer, decorator, redesigner, etc.] before and whether she is considering hiring a professional for the project. If the prospective client balks at your requested "work", impress upon her/him that the "work" will ultimately benefit her/him, given the limited timeframe available and your desire to make the meeting as productive as possible.

3. When you arrive, be sure to thank the prospective client for her/his time and remind

her/him that the consultation will last 30 minutes.

4. Then, ask the prospective client this question: "What is one thing you hoped to walk away with from our meeting? (Try your best to accommodate this…without, of course, giving away your services entirely)

5. Then, begin the consultation, asking the prospective client lots of questions about the project or dilemma, etc. During the consultation, be sure to do 2 things:

First, demonstrate your expertise, without giving away your services. (For example, if she/he says: "I just don't know how to arrange the furniture," you can say something like: "When designers design a room, we think about creating conversation areas. Here, the furniture is pushed back against the walls which can take away from a warm conversational atmosphere.")

Second, remind the prospective client of the "costs" in NOT working with a professional. (For example, you could ask the prospective client if she/he ever bought a sofa, chair, etc. and, when it was delivered, only then realized it was the wrong size, color or just "wasn't right". Tell her/him that those kinds of costly mistakes can be avoided by working with a professional.)

6. At the end of the 30 minutes, state something like: "I'm afraid our time is up!"

7. THEN, ask them this question: "Before we conclude, I would like to ask you: 'do you feel you've received value from our meeting?'" (Hopefully, they will say "YES!!")

8. THEN, depending upon whether you want to work with the prospective client, say one of the following:

"I would enjoy being involved with this project. Are you interested in hiring a [designer, decorator, redesigner, etc.] to assist you?" Then, BE QUIET! Let the "uncomfortable silence" exist……let the prospective client be the next person to talk. Give her/him time to consider what she/he wants to do. Then, deal with any objections or concerns raised by her/him.

"I've enjoyed our time together and your project sounds very interesting; unfortunately, at this time, our schedule is booked through [August or whatever the case may be]."

Judy May is the President of Show House Marketing, a business development and marketing firm catering exclusively to design industry professionals. She can be reached at 610.324.5240 or judy@ShowHouseMarketing.com. For FREE Resources, including the Weekly $uccess Secrets Newsletter and the New! 14-day Jump Start your Design Business E-Course, visit them online at: http://www.ShowHouseMarketing.com. Ms. May is also the founder of the DesignPreneur FORUM, an inspiring and informative community where design professionals learn how to become super-successful DesignPreneurs. 3 Membership Levels available to fit every budget. To learn more, visit them online at http://www.DesignPreneurFORUM.com.

Flow Meters How To Easily Choose One

Writen by Leon Chaddock

A flow meter is necessary for the task at hand. You know that. What you do not know is how to choose the right one for your task. But, there are some very good tools to help you decide. First of all, a flow meter is a device that is used to measure liquid or a gas in linear, nonlinear, mass or volumetric rates. Now, on to selecting the right flow meter for the task ahead!

Here are some things to consider about your needs that will lead you to choosing the proper flow meter.

• What type of fluid will you measure? For example, air or water? The flow meters will depend on this information.
• Totalization or rate measurement? It depends on what you need here.
• What is the viscosity of the liquid? This is assuming that it is not water.
• Will the fluid that you need to measure be clean?
• Local display or an electronic signal output? Which is the preferred choice here, or perhaps the necessary choice?
• What is the flow rate maximum and minimum for the flow meter?
• What is the max and the min for the process pressure?

From this point, you will want to make sure that the flow meter that you choose fits with the specification that you have listed. It can be quite simple to find the product that you need especially when you make your purchase through the web.

There are many information portals now devoted to the subject and we recommend reading about it at one of these. Try googling for "flow meter info" and you will be surprised by the abundance of information on the subject. Alternatively you may try looking on Yahoo, MSN or even a decent directory site, all are good sources of this information

For more info please see My flow Meter site

People Are Bad For Your Profits

Writen by Peter Stilgoe

After years of running various small businesses I have finally come to conclude that people are bad for your profits! What made me arrive at this conclusion? Well obviously it's a very broad statement & people are not always bad for profits. Of course they are not, as many businesses make all their money by selling to the end consumer. But I believe there are better ways for people looking to set up a small profitable business than dealing direct with customers to make their money.

When considering about 50% of small businesses fail within the first year you need to make your business as smooth & efficient as possible. Especially if there are only a few employees or you are the only employee.

This is where people are bad for your profits. Dealing directly with the customer in order to close a sale & then thereafter support the customer if/when any future issues arise will be a major drain on your very limited resources. How much time can you really afford to spend on each customer to make X amount of profit? Do you really have the resource to be able to provide the after sales service as well, which will enhance your reputation in the community & hopefully earn you more sales? If you don't provide a good after sales service you will soon get a bad reputation & your business will fail before it has even begun! I believe this is the mistake many people make when setting up their small business, the reality of the time required to deal with customers directly and still make a profit.

People are all different as are their requirements. This is the variable that makes it hard to automate any business where you have to deal directly with the customer. I believe that letting the companies already geared up with all the logistics of dealing direct with customers is the key in setting up a profitable new business with minimum overheads.

The key to making money in business is how can you serve more people & in turn generate more money? But after what I have just talked about we want to serve more people without draining company resources. Well if you are looking to set up a new business I would look at setting up an online business & sell other people's products or services through your website. This means you can concentrate on generating your online sales & let the company who you are representing deal with the customer. This way if you generate 10 sales a day or 1000 sales a day it makes no difference to the load on resources within your small business, let the company you are representing deal with the extra costs and you concentrate on making the sales & more importantly money!

If you are successful in this and start making good profits with low overheads then maybe you can look at expanding your business in to different areas but at least this way you are giving yourself a chance to beat the statistics.

Until you have established a cash generative & profitable business people ARE bad for your profits!

Peter Stilgoe runs his own forum about making money and a blog about business & entrepreneurs.

What Is Behind Googles Acquisition Of Dodgeballcom

Writen by Amitabh Shukla

Google acquired Dodgeball.com that brings social networking to mobile phones based in New York. However, there is no official response for the people at google but the site dodgebell.com posted a message at their site about the acquisition on Wednesday.

The service for Dodgebell works something like this: A person enters location on their mobile phones. A group of friends could receive text messages about the place where they could meet. In addition, friends of friends who are close also get the messages.

"Google realizes that expanding search to the mobile space can bring in a great deal of revenue," Yankee Group analyst Sui Li Walker said, "as opposed to offering a portal with a lot of free applications."

So the real question is, why did google brought a tiny company like Dodgebell.com, which was just started last year by two graduate students? Lets see what google has acquired recently: Picasa, blogger tool provider and recently Dodgebell. Is this aimed towards building of some type of portal in future like Yahoo or Google is thinking of using these services as the extension of its search engine? With the launch of Gmail, Google has made it clear that it understands the importance of communication tools and how it grabs people attention and time.

Google is quiet about its recent acquisitions. However, the interesting thing is that Google is slowly acquiring and developing best technologies, brands and a host of best services. In addition, for a company like Google, it is required to be on mobile phones too.

With the popularity of blogs, little is left for such social networking programs. However, if these social networking applications are combined with blogging, it makes a very powerful social networking package. In my opinion, this could be the reason for the acquisition. Yahoo 360, Blogger and Picasa, the war is on.

Amitabh Shukla (Personal blog for the author is at Seo Expert)

A Content Management Tool Provides The 5 Essentials Of Communication

Writen by Joe Miller

The five essentials of communication come as an answer to the questions left in the wake of ad hoc collaboration. Businesses do it, whether large or small. Sure, the ideal would be perfect control of documents as they get passed around and changed. But when deadlines fall due, or when something unexpected is called for by your boss or your clients, it simply needs to get done. The problem, however, comes when it's time to pull a document back together again after it has been passed around and pulled apart in the ad hoc editorial process. All that's left is questions.

That's where a content management tool comes in. Since all you were left with were questions, the 5 essentials of communication that a content management tool provides are simply answers. Answers to the questions "Where is version X stored?" "When was version Y created?" "Who created version Z?" "What changes were made to these versions?" and "How am I supposed to bring them together?"

Here is another question for you: Do these questions sound familiar? I thought so. But when answers are available, businesses want them. So, Adam Smith's invisible hand has reached into the market again to create the content management tool, often referred to as Groupware. Let's take a look at how exactly the content management tool provides the answers.

Where?

The content management tool, or groupware, needs to contain Digital Thread technology, which places information in the metadata of an electronic document--this includes the MS applications most businesses use--and tracks the document and its versions across email your desktop and servers, literally threading together the document versions. You will always know where a document is stored.

When?

You will find with a content management tool that as you open sent and received emails with attachments of changes made on a document that a Digital Signature will eliminate this question. It informs you exactly what the digital thread has tracked, including when the last set of changes were made.

What?

A good content management tool eliminates the monotony and pure tedium involved in copy editing a document, comparing it against its previous version, to find the changes. Tracking changes is already done for you with Digital Thread – you can easily compare one document against another.

Who?

Digital Thread has already done the genealogy of the document for you. Using Version History, the content management tool will now display for you the flow chart of the document version. You always know who received what version.

How?

This trickiest of all collaboration questions is also taken care of with the right content management tool. Merging the changes is simple as you view the changes and simply click. Copy editing and monotony are all eliminated while your precious time is restored.

A word of caution: The market understands the need for a content management tool. This is obvious to anyone who attempts to sift through the 20 million indexed pages under "content management tool" in Google. Not all of the content management tools are created to handle the ad hoc business collaboration process. In fact, most are created to manage, store, and file documents. The technologies and information mentioned in this article should simplify the sifting and introduce you and your business to a new way of answering the confusion of ad hoc with the 5 essentials of communication.

Joe Miller is an author of informational articles and online advertisements on business, technology, and health. Information on Content management tool is available at NextPage.com.

Start An Online Business Fast And Easy

Writen by Kum Cheng Liew

The fastest and easiest way to start an online business is to buy a turnkey e-commerce website. A turnkey website is a website that is ready to generate sales. The website is completely functional and provided with everything you need.

Where to buy a turnkey website?

There are many companies offering a turnkey website in web hosting business. These companies generally are web hosting service providers. You can own a web hosting business by joining a web hosting company's reseller program. Many of the reseller programs usually are free to join and you are allow to set your own price for each product you selected for reselling.

If web hosting business does not sound interest to you, you may consider starting an online store. You can buy an online store for less $100 from a website calls getestore.com. They allow you to choose from 3,500 items with brand name such as Sony, Xbox, Panasonic and many more for reselling on your store without paying upfront for inventory. The suppliers will also handle all the packing and shipping works for you.

If you are only interested to start an affiliate marketing business. Pluginprofitsite.com is your solution. The site will recommend you to join several popular affiliate programs. After you have joined their recommended affiliate programs, the owner of Pluginprofitsite will create a brand new professional e-commerce website for you to promote all the affiliate programs you have participated. The cost is not cheap; you need to pay about $50 per month for hosting your website and the affiliate membership's fee.

To generate sales, you need to drive targeted visitors/traffic to your site. The more traffic you get, the more money you will make. Here are some of the techniques you can use to drive traffic to your site:

Pay-per-click (PPC) Advertising-

PPC advertising programs offer an opportunity to advertisers to promote their websites by bidding for top-listings in the search engines on the keywords of their choices. PPC advertising can drive instant traffic to your website but they can be very expensive if you don't use them wisely. Here's a link to download a free e-book that will teach you how to use PPC advertising effectively for your online business:

http://www.googleadwordsmadeeasy.com/1

Search Engine Optimization-

Search engines can bring you a lot of free targeted traffic for long term if your website ranks top in their listings. To rank high, search engines optimization is a must. Search engines optimization involves optimizing your webpages for your targeted keywords and increasing the number of websites link to your site. It will take a lot of time and effort in search engine optimization. Here's a link to sign up for a helpful SEO tutorial:

http://www.seoelite.com

Post Messages on Forums-

You can find community forums of your niche from search engines like Google and Yahoo and join a number of them. After joining them, you can start adding a link to your website in your signature by going to the control panel of each forum. You can start posting message once you added your link. The more you post, the more people will read your message and thus the more likely your link will be clicked.

Article Marketing-

Writing articles and publishing them on article directories is another free way to drive traffic to your website. You will promote your business in the article's resource box by introducing yourself and your website. Your articles can drive thousands of visitors to your site within weeks if your content is impressive.

Alan Liew is the webmaster of online4income.com which provides information, tips and ideas of how to make money online. You can also visit his blog to find out more ways to make money online.

Why Quotthe Apprenticequot Is Good For America

Writen by Michael Levine

Donald Trump and executive producer Mark Burnett have a hit on their hands: "The Apprentice." This NBC reality series plays rather like Burnett's old CBS hit "Survivor"-- except that the contestants split up into teams face the challenges of the business world, rather those of untamed wilderness. If they fail, instead of being "voted off," they are fired by Trump, who brings his years of business experience to bear on the strategies of the newcomers.

Those who noted the silliness of "Survivor"'s various incarnations will note some of the same flair for melodrama here. And Trump's hairstyle is as shudder-provoking as some of the infamous highlights of "Survivor," like the contestants' drinking of cow's blood. Despite all the goofiness, the show's 20 million viewers also get a lesson in fundamental business principles-- more people, in fact, will draw valuable lessons from the show than from business school. The trappings of popular TV shows like "Survivor" provide a palatable packaging of principles of finance and leadership for the TV-watching masses.

What kind of lessons do viewers learn?

1. Sex sells, of course, and several of the female contestants have learned this rather quickly.

2. Results count; this sounds self-evident, but it takes failures of the sort witnessed on the show for the supreme importance of this idea to really sink in. In the private sector, one bears one's own costs; and it will be quickly apparent if one's achievements are inadequate.

Lessons like these are vitally important in a nation like America, since the goal of personal success constitutes a major part of the nation's history and founding ideals. America is a country of immigrants. Millions of people around the world have dreamed about moving to the United States to achieve the "American Dream"—to start over, work hard and achieve a life of success. The very basic foundation of America comes from the Protestant work ethic brought by Pilgrims in the 16th century. Prosecuted for their religious beliefs, they moved to the New World in search of a better life. In the span of only a

couple hundred years, America underwent a major transformation from being the colony of the British empire whose "sun never sets" to an influential, wealthy nation of its own.

It was American dollars and common sense that have made America rise from its status as a relatively new country. Business has always been the essence and core of America's intrigue to the rest of the world— the means to produce a comfortable living in a land of boundless opportunity, regardless of personal background. Andrew Carnegie, one of the nation's richest entrepreneurs, was an immigrant from Scotland and started working in a textile mill as a boy in the dawn of the industrial revolution. He later founded US Steel, the largest steelmaker in the nation to this day.

Many like him have done the same and moved up through the ranks to become highly successful. "The Apprentice" gives us one of the foremost modern-day examples: Donald Trump, who got his start in his father's real estate business and quickly moved up from there. A decade ago, he found himself in huge debt but managed to come back bigger and better than ever before. The unrelenting drive to succeed and to maintain that success especially in times of trouble is now dramatized in his own show.

3. Finally, "The Apprentice" fulfills the vital task of promoting entrepreneurship in women and minorities. Contestants like Amy Henry and the African-American Kwame Jackson provide positive examples with their ambition and intelligence. In these days, when so many college humanities departments teach students, minority or otherwise, to view themselves as victims of capitalism rather than its potential masters, "The Apprentice" provides encouraging and empowering ideas and information for the masses of people on their way to the top. While one can get a more in- depth training at business school, "The Apprentice," whose teams feature "street entrepreneurs" as well as contestants with college educations, demonstrates in an entertaining and accessible fashion that even without technical study, holding the right values can get one far in life.

Copyright 2005 Michael Levine

Michael Levine is the founder of the prominent public relations firm Levine Communications Office, based in Los Angeles. He is the author of Guerrilla PR, 7 Life Lessons from Noah's Ark: How to Survive a Flood in Your Own Life. GuerrillaPR.net is a resource for people that want to get famous in the media, without going broke. http://GuerrillaPR.net