Traditional publishing can take a lot of time, and also includes a myriad of changes, additions, and edits. If you want to publish a book in a less traditional way, here’s a guide to self-publishing.

Decide How You Want to Publish

Even when you self-publish, you can choose between publishing your new book as an ebook, printed copy, or even both.

Deciding how you want to self-publish your book will help you narrow the tools and systems you need to use. While there is no wrong way to self-publish, this is typically the first step to take once you’ve created your book.

Hire a Freelance Editor & Freelance Designer

If you were to hire anyone to help you self-publish your book, your best bets would be a freelance editor and designer. While you don’t have to spend a small fortune, hiring a great freelance editor and designer can take your book to the next level when self-publishing.

Not only will a freelance editor check for mistakes, but they can also help make sure that your book flows well. Because first impressions are so important, especially when it comes to gaining the eyes of avid readers, a freelance designer is also a great choice.

While traditional publishing houses will have this price built into the price of selling a book, self-publishing is a different field. You can always find someone that is affordable, while also delivering great results. Asking for referrals, offering bartering services, and even a quick Google search can help you find the right freelancers.

Beta-Test Before Self-Publishing

When you are self-publishing your own book, you won’t have a lot of eyes skimming through it to make sure that it flows well and doesn’t have any grammatical errors. This is where beta-testing comes in.

You can find beta readers in places like Facebook groups, book clubs, or even by posting on social media that you’re looking. These readers will then go through your book, let you know what they think, and give you the opportunity to make it better.

Use a Self-Publishing Platform

While you are free to self-publish on your own website, a self-publishing platform can help you take your book to the next level. Not only do they help with formatting your book, but they also help market your book on multiple websites, including websites like Amazon.

Some of these platforms will charge monthly, and some charge when you actually sell a copy of your book. It’s important to choose the platform that works best for you and what you can afford. For example, if you plan on selling your book casually, a monthly payment service may not be the best option.

However, if you plan on marketing your book and selling quite a few copies, or if you plan on selling physical copies, a monthly service with lower book sale fees may be your best bet.

Use Social Media to Your Advantage

If you have a website and social media channels, now is the time to use them to your advantage. Post about your process, progress, and when your book is actually released. Build a hype around it. Network and have your friends, family, and colleagues mention your book too (if they’re comfortable with it).

Using social media to your advantage can mean your self-published book is a success, and also brings you more in sales over time. Social media can be your best friend, and it’s free marketing for your book, so be sure to use it.

Self-publishing doesn’t have to be a daunting and hard process. With technology, it’s now easier than ever to publish your first, or multiple, books.

The Smart Entrepreneur’s Guide to Self-Publishing is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

A third of Americans 55 and older

Assess Your Current Situation

A typical rule of thumb in the retirement world is that you will need 10 times the amount of money as your last full year’s worth of income from work (at least). So, if you made $40,000 in your last year of working, you’ll need $400k to retire comfortably.

Now, this is just the rule of thumb. When you’re investing after 50, that may not be practical. But at the very least, you can assess your current situation and know if you are on the right track, or if you have more work ahead of you.

Know What You’ll Need

The second part of investing after 50 is to know how much you can live off of. If 10 times the amount of your last year’s salary seems out of reach, could you live off of half of that?

Could you move to a country with lower costs, keep a part time job, or even sell your home and live in a cozy apartment? Knowing what you’ll need to live off of after retirement will be crucial in your decision making.

Play Catch Up

Did you know that after the age of 50, you can save more money in a 401k and IRA just because of your age? In 2017, investing after 50 meant that you could invest up to $24,000 into a 401k and another $6,500 in an IRA (remember that the new year may bring tax law changes, check here for more information. That’s $30,500 in just one year! Even if you don’t save all of that, it’s important to take advantage of the extra savings options.

You can also play catch up by making sure you’re out of debt, lowering your expenses (thus being able to save more money), and saving bonuses and raises that you may earn. Investing after 50 may be playing the catch-up game, but it can still be done!

Start Passive Income

Passive income is great for everyone, especially those investing after 50. Great passive income options include having rental properties, selling digital products (books, courses, etc.), and buying businesses like laundromats and car washes.

By building up your passive income, you’ll be able to supplement your retirement and social security income. Plus, this may help you if you’re unable to save enough to reach your retirement goal.

Use The Right Tools for Investing After 50

With a multitude of apps and websites, investing has never been easier. You can monitor your investing progress on various websites, invest extra money using apps, and even check on your estimated benefits with a social security calculator.

Using these tools not only helps you start investing after 50, but they allow you to take control of your money and watch it grow. So keep your spirits high and watch your money grow.

Hire An Expert

Even if you think a financial advisor or expert is too expensive, it may be worth it to see one anyways. Not only do they know the ins and outs of investing after 50, but they can also help you grow your money if you’re starting with very little.

Just make sure that you aren’t paying someone more money than you should be, and make sure they have your best interest at heart. While not all advisors work just for the money, there are a few that do. Don’t get taken advantage of.

Focus On You

Are you still trying to put your kids through college, take care of your grandkids, and spending money on family members? Stop! Your life is yours, and you should be prepared to live it to the fullest after retirement.

No one wants to see their child struggle, but you may be doing yourself a disservice if you are focusing on making the best life for them and not yourself. Will your child let you move in with them and will they take care of you for the rest of your life? Probably not. So set yourself up for success now and focus on you.

Investing after 50 doesn’t have to be difficult, and it is possible to save up for retirement in a short amount of time. Don’t be afraid to play catch up, and remember that retirement is right around the corner.

How to Start Investing After 50 is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

But some people still seem to prefer working a 9-to-5 job. In terms of security and a happy life, should you work a 9-to-5 or start a business?

Keep Your 9-to-5 Job

A 9-to-5 job provides structure, benefits that entrepreneurship doesn’t (like a 401k, insurance, paid days off, etc). It’s also nice when you prefer having a work/life balance and being able to meet with people on a regular basis. 9-to-5’s do offer the opportunity for growth, and many can help you utilize your college degree if you have one.

Also, a 9-to-5 job can help you build your skills, like communication, marketing, and more. It’s a great way to get your foot in the door, build your network, and start your career.

The con of working a 9-to-5 job is that you only have one stream of income, and if you lose it, you’ll have to find a way to replace it quickly, even with an emergency fund. It’s hard to build passive income when you’re working a 9-to-5 unless you’re side hustling as well.

Are many people happy working the traditional 9-to-5 job? That can be up for debate. Three out of five workers feel like the traditional 9-to-5 is becoming obsolete, and companies are starting to embrace a 32-hour work week versus 40.

However, a 9-to-5 doesn’t have to be an end-all to making more money and following your dreams.  For some, the corporate life is a dream come true. And that’s okay.  Also, you can pursue a career where you can work in an office on different working hours. Some tech companies offer high-paying salaries to their employees and allow a flexible schedule as long as they guarantee to meet the weekly deadline.

Here are some jobs with flexible hours in the tech industry:

1. Software Engineer
2. Web Developer
3. Project Manager
4. Web Designer
5. Database Administrator

Start a Business

If you are a creative and don’t like to do things by the book, then pursuing entrepreneurship may be more your speed. The perks of starting your own business can include working at your leisure, choosing the type of work you’d like to do, and working from anywhere. You could also build multiple streams of income all at the same time, without worrying about adding yet another task to your plate.

However, being an entrepreneur doesn’t come without cons. You’ll have to pay for everything outright, startup costs can be high, and work hours can be long as you start building your business. Many entrepreneurs have discussed going back to work after trying entrepreneurship for a while. However, don’t let the cons make you feel as if you can’t pursue entrepreneurship. It’s possible to build up a business, and succeed when you put in the work.

Overall, becoming an entrepreneur is a great way to boost your income (without an income ceiling), do what you love and make money from it, and have the opportunity to give others the opportunity to work with or for you. Plus, entrepreneurship helps boost the economy.

Do Both

Should you work a 9-to-5 job or start a business? Why not both? It’s possible to start a business while you still work your 9-to-5 job. It takes some extra planning on your part, but it can be done. Many people who have pursued entrepreneurship have started so while working a traditional job.

If you choose to go this route, you could start off with a side hustle or two, or make an investment into something like a rental property to start earning residual income. You could also request to work from home so you have a little more flexibility in growing your business. There are many ways to balance both entrepreneurship and working a 9-to-5 job, that way you can get the best of both worlds. A business that is built to reflect you and your life can be managed and work around your busy schedule, no matter what it is.

Overall, the choice to work a 9-to-5 job or start a business are ultimately up to you. It’s possible to dabble in both and see which one is the best fit for you and your situation.

Should You Work A 9-to-5 Job or Start A Business? is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

If you have ever considered studying education, you must have thought about this a hundred times. With the long list of professional degrees that are available today, does it even make sense to opt for a master of education in learning program? Is it a waste of time?

The answers to those questions are yes, it does make sense to study education even in this time and age, and no, it isn’t a waste of time.

In order to properly understand the answer, you will need to go through the following points.

The Right Degree

Choosing the right degree is particularly essential here as you do not want to waste precious years on something that doesn’t help your career in any way. The online MELCD degree that is being offered at Rutgers Online is the kind of program that you want to enroll yourself into for a number of reasons.

A MELCD stands for Master of Education in Learning, Cognition, and Development program, it will teach you about the very core of how people think, learn, adapt, and develop in any given environment. This is true in any field of education, irrespective of who or what you are trying to teach.

Take the Course Online

This is a practical suggestion based on the fact that in order to truly launch your career in any given field, it is best if you also pursue a professional or specialization program on the side. For example, if you have an MBA as well as a MELCD degree, you will do exceptionally well as a corporate trainer and your salary will be significantly higher. I

f you want to teach subjects to children at school or young adults at a college, you will most definitely need education in the respective subjects. The flexibility of schedule which an online course offers to its students makes it possible for them to pursue two or more courses simultaneously, thereby saving years in the process. Also, the courses are cheaper and allow their students the time to hold a job on the side. It’s basically a win-win scenario in most cases.

Career Paths

In spite of what your peers may tell you, the value of someone who knows how to teach is always going to be there in every field. If you are looking for specific career paths or prospects that you can look forward to after completing your master’s degree in education, the following should help you get an idea of what to expect.

• School teacher and school principal
• Instructional coordinator/curriculum director
• Education administrator, athletics administrator, alumni director at a university
• Dean, assistant dean
• Adult educator
• Corporate trainer

In case you already have a bachelor in education, going for a master’s degree is a no-brainer. Not only will it increase your prestige and knowledge as a teacher but it will also add a substantial amount to your annual salary as well. Just make sure that it’s a good program from a well-known university.

Can a Master’s Degree in Education Really Launch Your Career? is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Are you still considering what career path to take? If so, a finance-related career could be the best option for you. If you can develop your skills and start working in this sector, the sky really is the limit.

Below are some good reasons why you should consider a finance-related career.

You Have More Career Opportunities

People who graduate with a finance-related qualification have a wide range of roles to choose from. The latest courses such as the online master of science in finance course from universities like Northeastern University will give you the knowledge you need to eventually work in a wide range of sectors, including non-profit organizations, healthcare, insurance, and many other business areas.

Thanks to the various modules included in a course like an online finance masters degree, you can work in different roles too, such as a financial planner, financial risk manager, director of finance, investment banker, or a wide range of financial consultant positions.

You Will Have a Better Lifestyle

When you work in finance, many more opportunities will come your way. A large number of finance-related roles come with a large salary and generous benefits, which means you can achieve much more in your life and have a much better lifestyle than many people who work in other industries.

You Can Work Anywhere

You are not tied down to one place either because your services will probably be required all around the world. This gives you the opportunity to have a lucrative career, but it also allows you to live in amazing places anywhere in the world. The latest advances in internet technologies and mobile technologies also make it much easier to work anywhere, whether it’s in your own home office or at some exotic location, thousands of miles from home.

You Can Take Control of Your Future

Unfortunately, many people live their lives on other people’s terms and never reach their full potential. This is definitely not the case when you work in the financial sector. Your skills and experience will be in demand, so you can decide who you work with and under what conditions.

The fact that you work in finance also means you understand money and how it works, much better than someone who works in another type of job. This knowledge is invaluable because you can make much more informed financial decisions, such as what investments to choose, what insurance policies to take out, and what pension to pay into for your retirement.

Your Services Will Always Be Required

Money is the driving force behind every organization and the number of different financial roles available continues to increase. This means your services will always be required in one form or another. Knowing this will give you much more peace of mind because there is a certain amount of job security available, that does not always exist in other jobs and industries.

There are many great reasons why you should consider a career in finance. Those mentioned above are just some of the main reasons why this career path should be seriously considered by anyone wondering what career they would like to pursue.

Why You Should Consider a Finance-Related Career is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

There are many reasons you may need to find work abroad. You may be traveling and run out of cash.  You may just find that your savings aren’t enough to finance everything that you want to do and see while maintaining a decent quality of life. Or, you might be planning to live abroad for a substantial amount of time. In which case, you will be looking for a full-time job or perhaps even a long-term career.

However, finding work in a different country can be difficult, especially if you’re not familiar with their language or culture. Here are some top tips to help you.

Think about What You Need

Do you need a little extra cash or a full-time income? Are you looking for a career with plenty of room for progression or a job that lets you have fun and meet new people? All of these options are there, but knowing what you want and need will help narrow down your search and focus your efforts. If you are just looking to make a little extra money for the summer, look at bar jobs, holiday rep positions, and other jobs in the service industry.

If you’re aiming for a long-term career, you may want to consider further study to help you to secure a position.

Tailor Your CV

It’s important to tailor your CV to the job you are applying for instead of using the same one. Have a key skills section at the top and make sure they match the job description without embellishing. Focus on any transferable skills and relevant experience.

Use your travel to your advantage. To travel you must be organized, independent, great with new people, adventurous, and motivated. These are all great skills that employers are looking for in prospective staff.

Learn Some Language

If you are going to work in a different country, in any capacity, it’s important that you know at least enough of their language to be comfortable. But, as learning a language can be difficult and time-consuming, you may want to focus your attentions on the words and phrases you are likely to need in your industry. Then pick up the rest as you go.

Network

Networking is always one of the best ways to find work or advance your career. Get out there and meet people in the industry. Look at people you know: are there any potential connections there? Ask for introductions or referrals.

Go Online

There are many ways the internet can help you to find work abroad. These include:

• Online job sites
• Applying online
• Online courses
• Language courses
• Social media
• Joining groups and forums

If you plan to use social media for any networking, make sure your profiles are professional and your email address is sensible.

If you are looking to live and work abroad then studying an international relations degree from Norwich University could give you some fantastic options. A masters in international relations could lead to a career in international business, law, trade or diplomacy among others and could be a brilliant investment in your future which allow you to see the world.

Do you have any more tips? Let us know in the comments.

Top Tips for Finding Work Abroad is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Here are some handy tips to make that happen:

Start a Business For The Right Reasons

If all you want to do is develop revenue streams to supplement your income, this might not be the right move to make. A business takes time and patience—and plenty of sacrifices—to bring off the ground. You have to love what you’re doing. Be passionate about it.

You can’t let failures pull you down. If you thrive on meeting challenges and believe the service or products you provide fulfill a need in the market, then those are all great reasons to get started.

Manage it With Care and Caution

Poor management is one of the many reasons why companies fail. If you haven’t got enough managerial experience to fall back on, no worries. You can hire someone else to handle that for you. Don’t try to do everything on your own. You’ll need help. That’s where hiring the right people comes in.

By looking for employees that are a culture fit for your company, you’ll start to see your startup grow by leaps and bounds. That’s because the right hire can bring something else to the table. It’s not all about experience and skill. The first employees you hire basically form the cultural backbone of your organization. By hiring the right people, you set the kind of work culture and environment your employees will follow for years to come.

Have Enough Cash Flow

Operating costs can suck your startup dry. If there aren’t any angel investors in sight, you’ll need to keep a firm eye on the money to make sure you have enough to keep the company afloat. By opting for cost-effective solutions like video conferencing, you can get the job done—market your products, connect to possible clients and business partners—all without putting your capital at risk. With a video conferencing system like BlueJeans, companies can lower their operating expenses.

No need to travel for meetings because video calls make that a thing of the past. Wasting resources, looking for qualified candidates to fill up hiring vacancies? No need to wait till Kingdom Come.

With video calls, you can interview, hire and even manage remote employees with ease. That’s one way to get the right people on board without bleeding your capital dry. Whether they’re in a different state or country, you can easily reach out to anyone on your team.

Build Online Presence

Your site and social media pages help you establish online credibility and presence, two qualities that build consumer trust. The more trustworthy you are, the more likely it is for consumers to give your product or services a try. No one wants to be swindled. That makes customers extra wary of falling for scammers. With an established online presence, customers are sure to take a second or third look until they eventually pay for the service or goods you have on offer.

Video technology can help you establish that credibility. Posting promotional videos can boost traffic to your pages and lead to higher conversions and sales. Given the growth of video consumption in the past, that isn’t surprising. FB says it had a record of one billion video views in the span of a single day. When 2015 finally drew to a close, that figure had jumped to as much as 8 billion, Social Media Today says. By taking advantage of video solutions, you can expand your market reach and grow your business.

Expand Right

Don’t try to rush through your growth and expansion, though. Some companies make a mistake of expanding too soon and find out, the hard way, how rushing can lead to bankruptcy. However, that doesn’t mean repressing your company’s growth as well. Steady and slow is a good pace to follow.

If you think it’s time to expand, though, be sure to check your options. Find out what the costs will be then focus on hiring people to help you manage your business and keep it running without any problems. By expanding right, you have a bigger chance of surviving well beyond the first year.

It’s going to be tough. But these steps should help you get a better gauge on what you need to do if you want a thriving and successful business in the future. Don’t let lack of capital or poor communication tools get in the way of your freedom and success. Heed these tips to guide you through your first step toward starting and managing a business. 

5 Steps to Building a Thriving Business is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

This is the second of two posts by Ryan Bonaparte on negotiating salary. 

As we discussed in the first article, negotiating your starting salary (and all subsequent salaries) can be a huge factor in building long-term wealth. Even starting just a few thousand dollars more in the beginning of your career can net you an extra tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But how do you successfully negotiate a salary, when after a long hunt you finally have a potential job that is hopefully better off than where you are now?

It’s actually a very simple process, made even easier with today’s tools and technologies. Below are some do’s and don’ts.

Know Market Rate for the Position

It can be tempting to go into an interview process dreaming of make tons of money. But if the role is a junior one, you should expect to be compensated accordingly.

Websites like Glassdoor or PayScale can get you a sense of what a position at a specific company in your area might be pay existing employees. Use these as guidelines for what to negotiate toward.

Don’t Take a Confrontational Attitude

Although movies make negotiations seem like an intense battle where one party wins and the other loses, in the job market, negotiations are just a fact of life. Companies expect potential employees to ask for a little more than the initial offer.

However, if you come from a place of positivity, while still being firm with your request, you’re much more likely to see a positive result than trying to get them to bend to your will. Win-wins are always more desirable, especially when negotiating salary.

Know When to Start Negotiating Salary

Although it might seem obvious, too many people start negotiating salary earlier in the process than they should. Negotiating salary should only start after an employer has given their offer of employment. Trying to negotiate before this event has two negative effects.

The first is that it makes you seem more interested in money than the actual job. The second is that in a negotiation the first number sets the stage for where the negotiating will start from. By waiting for the employer to put their number out, you can work up from that number, instead of down from where you want to start.

On the flip side, if you’ve already signed an offer letter, it’s too late to negotiate for more money. By signing the letter and accepting the offer, you have acknowledged that you are willing to start with the stated terms. By trying to back out after the fact, you have no negotiating power, and it comes across as very rude.

It Isn’t Only About Money

Although the focus on building wealth is around making more money, there are other factors to keep in mind when evaluating a job offer.

From a purely financial standpoint, if a salary is lower than you’d like, but you can negotiate working from home a few times a week, that might save you more money than what a small increase in salary might do.

Additionally, some companies have certain guidelines for the maximum amount a position may earn, limiting what the hiring manager can offer. If they can be more flexible in other areas, that might be a win-win.

Explain Why You’re Asking for More

Simply asking for more money because you want it is not nearly as compelling as giving a reason. Whether it’s to cover commuting expenses, to compensate for responsibilities above and beyond the job role, or because the employer is offering below-market rates, go to the hiring manager with a genuine reason and you’ll see better results.

Negotiating salary can be a very stressful situation if you let it, but following these tips, you’ll be in a good position to have a smooth process. And remember, if they’ve already given you an offer, they know that you can do the job.

So relax, give a reasonable counteroffer and know that the worst thing they can say is “Sorry, what we offered is the best we can do.”

Ryan Bonaparte is a long-time writer and author, delving into topics including personal finance, technology, and career pursuits. He lives in the Boston area with his wife and fiercely independent cat.

5 Tips to Successfully Negotiating Salary, Part 2 is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

This is the first of two posts by Ryan Bonaparte on how to negotiate your salary. 

Most pieces of advice about starting a career generally focus on the basics of putting together an awesome resume, utilizing your powerful network to get your foot in the door, and landing that critical interview to secure your dream position.

These steps are extremely important, both at the beginning and at any transition point during your career. Without them, you’re basically just throwing your resume into a void, never to get a call back.

What is often left out, however, is the incredible financial benefit of negotiating your first and subsequent salaries.

While it may not feel like it, especially when you receive your first job offer with seemingly little to offer to a prospective employer in return, you are in a position of power in the negotiation process to negotiate your salary. The employer has decided that above all other candidates, you are the best fit. Don’t forget that fact.

After (and only after) an offer has been presented, in nearly every case, a negotiation for a higher salary is expected. So much so, that often the first salary offered is reduced specifically to fall within the range that the company has decided for that position after a negotiation.

Start to negotiate your salary at 10%

If your counter-offer as you negotiate your salary is reasonable (except in extreme circumstances, I wouldn’t ask for more than 10 percent more than what was offered), the worst that will happen is your prospective employer will say they can’t meet that. After countless hours of recruiting, throwing out a perfectly good candidate because they asked for a little more money is extremely unlikely.

Following a negotiation, a few extra thousand dollars that year will feel great, but the true benefit of negotiating a higher salary really starts to appear as your career progresses.

Do the math

Let’s look at a little math and see how this truly plays out. If you were to start off with an annual salary of $45K and received 3 percent annual raises every year, and were promoted with a 5 percent raise on your fifth year, you would be making just under $60K by the end of your 10th year. Not too shabby.

However, if you negotiated a 5 percent higher salary to start, that first year salary would have been $47K and the final year would be up at almost $63K. Even better.

Here’s where things get interesting. Over the course of those 10 years, you would have made over $25K more from that first negotiation, than if you didn’t negotiate at all. On top of that, if you choose to move to a different company, your starting salary there will often be based on your previous salary. So when you negotiate that offer, you’ll see an even greater return.

For just a few minutes of your time, you could earn an additional $25K over 10 years. If you’re able to get more than 5 percent during your negotiation, that number grows very quickly.

I know it can be a little uncomfortable the first time you try to negotiate your salary with the potential boss/hiring manager/HR of a company that you don’t even work for. However, it really is a pretty standard practice, and you stand to leave a large amount of money on the table if you don’t. That’s money that could kickstart a plan to save or to get out of debt.

Next week: The do’s and don’ts of negotiating a salary.

Ryan Bonaparte is a long-time writer and author, delving into topics including personal finance, technology, and career pursuits. He lives in the Boston area with his wife and fiercely independent cat.

Negotiate Your Salary and Win Big, Part 1 is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.

Use It to Create Motivation for Your Employees

According to some sobering statistics cited by Forbes, 70 percent of employees surveyed did not feel engaged with their jobs. However, there are a number of simple ways you can change that for the better. Have you ever received a personalized video message before? You may recall how warm and fuzzy it made you feel. With the right tools and equipment, you can do the same for your staff members, too. You can record a motivating video to welcome new employees, as well as cheer your current employees on. Nothing boosts company morale better than actually hearing from their own boss. If you can manage it, you could even make short, personalized messages for each employee. It will make you seem that much more genuine, which can really push your employees to do their best for the company’s interest.

Here’s a quick tip: if you find yourself really bad at writing your own scripts, try hiring a pro to do it for you. You could start off with a draft that you made yourself, and then have somebody else edit it until it looks perfect. You might even be able to ask a friend to do this for you, provided that person has the skills to pull it off.

Use It to Facilitate Online Brainstorming Sessions

Sometimes, your best people are out of reach, perhaps stuck in a conference all the way across the globe. This could leave your other staff members feeling lost, like they have nobody to guide them. It’s not a pretty sight, especially if you have to come up with some great creative solutions for an important project, and fast. But you don’t have to consider your top achievers completely out of reach, as long as you have access to BlueJeans business video conferencing. With a quick click of a button, you can set up a virtual meeting room and have anybody attend for a quick brainstorming session. You can even invite people who are based in other countries. Plus, these people won’t even need a dedicated computer to join the discussion. That is because these types of systems are accessible from pretty much any device. All anybody would need is a mobile phone, tablet, or laptop. With that in hand, attendees can join in at any time, anywhere in the world.

To help make things easier for everybody, make sure that everybody who has to attend the meeting already has an agenda to refer to a few days in advance. That way, the conversation won’t get derailed by small talk or other irrelevant side-discussions. The basic information that an agenda should contain include the logistics, the objectives, and the topics that have to be covered, according to Skills You Need.

Use It to Enhance Your Employees’ Current Skills

Having to step out of the office just to attend some training can be the last thing on your staff’s mind, especially if they’ve had a particularly hard day at work. But now, employees will not have to spend several hours commuting or driving from one place to another just to receive some additional training. They can now learn new skills and lessons all while sitting at their office desks. You won’t have to spend any money sending your best people out to your teams located in faraway locations, either. Now, all they’ll have to do is open up a virtual chat room and meet everybody without ever having to leave the company office. This can be a great advantage for your enterprise, since your staff will no longer have to waste any time on the road just to accomplish certain tasks. After training sessions are done, they can just switch off the conferences and go right back to work, since they are already right there at their own desks or cubicles.

To make things even more efficient, you can have several training videos created in advance. This gives the employee something to do while giving the trainer some extra time to accomplish more important tasks. That way, your trainer only has to step into a video chat for the more hands-on parts of the course.

The possibilities for using videos are nearly endless, as long as you keep your mind open to different ways of playing with the medium. Try to think of even more ways to utilize video so that you can maximize whatever systems you already have in place. You can even ask your employees to give you suggestions so that you can expand your horizons.

Using Video to Foster Creativity and Collaboration is a post from: When Life Gives You Lemons. Did you like the post? Follow me on Twitter, like me on Facebook, or hop on over to my blog and leave me your feedback.