Abuse of Power and Justice
Business owners have to keep a careful eye on the regulations put forth by the regulatory bodies in the United States. They also have to watch out to not become a target of the regulations, when those agencies are trying to prove self worth. One such agency, which needs a stronger over sight is the Federal Trade Commission in their enforcement on the franchise rule.Has justice ever really existed at the Federal Trade Commission, has it always been so blatantly fraudulent in it’s activities. Is this the Martha Stewart enforcement scenario, lying under oath or penalty of perjury to attempt to prove someone else has lied? Is this all it really is? I hereby question the motivation, person character and ethics of any and all persons working in that agency. I would appreciate a full internal review of this issue. Do Federal Trade Commission employees go thru a background check like other law enforcement agencies? Shouldn’t they?In the most recent report on the new franchise rule it lists the Federal Trade Commission’s law enforcement actions. How many people at the Federal Trade Commission are breaking other laws; laws such as abuse of power, unpaid parking tickets, sodomy, reading the newspaper or talking on a cell phone while driving here in DC? This should be fully disclosed and since the Federal Trade Commission deals with the franchising industry which accounts for 1/3 of every consumer dollar spent in our country, such a vital sector we need to have greater scrutiny over the employees who work there than a simple background check. One mistake at the Federal Trade Commission, one bad piece of legislation and 1,000’s of people can be out of work the next week. The Federal Trade Commission claims i

What to Look for in a Self Storage Company
With literally hundreds of local self-storage facilities in any given area, how is one to choose one from another? Are those with the big, flashy signs the best, or should you stick to the one close to home? Your friend’s cousin rented one last spring- maybe you should give her a call? How will you know if you are choosing the right self-storage company to suit your needs?For the majority of us, when it comes to purchasing something that we have never needed before, hind-sight is almost always 20/20. Our research is hindered by the bright and snazzy colors of bulletin boards, local newspapers and other ad sources in the community, making us easily forget what it is that we we’re actually looking for in a product or service. The self-storage industry is no different.For starters, do your homework. Your efforts on this venture will need quite a bit of forethought and a knowledgeable customer service associate to help you out. Making a couple of phone calls, paying a few visits to local companies, and asking a lot of questions are key to getting your ideal storage unit.First on our list (assuming that all companies are similarly priced and have the same size units available) is the location of your self storage company. No one knows better than you how easily accessible each location is from where you are (familiarizing yourself with the traffic situations during the day will also help your endeavors). Ideally, any ad placed by a self-storage company will have a street address and a map with a few common landmarks.Next topic: security. Is there 24-hour surveillance? Would you feel comfortable walking around alone after dark? Are there separate alarms for each unit? Fire protection/sprinkler

Hiring Questions: What to Ask and How to Ask it
Whether you are a trained interviewer or not, if you have done any interviewing for hiring at all you will know that some people interview better than others. You will know that some people are truthful and others lie and tell you whatever they think you want to hear.In addition to the honesty factor, interviewing, on the part of the job applicant, is a learned skill.Personality affects how well one interviews. A shy person will not shine in a interview the way a friendlier, outgoing type would.Confidence affects how well one interviews. The most talented applicant without confidence will pale in comparison with the “passable” candidate who has lots of confidence.And training affects how well one interviews. I know – I used to teach interview skills to unemployed! And though I say so myself, I turned out some darned good interviewees (although of course, not encourage to lie) who were not always particularly gifted for the positions for which they were applying.All in all, the best interviewee is not necessarily the best candidate for the job.What can help?Trained interviewers have a battery of aids which I won’t go into here, but one of the simplest is just to have a list of questions and ask the same ones to every candidate. Also to have a checklist to mark off regarding appearance, confidence and other impressions you get during the meeting.But one tool you may not have thought of is Handwriting Analysis. 90% or more of employers in Europe use this tool, and a growing number of North Americans.You don’t have to be a fully trained graphologist to use this to help your interviewing. If you just learn how to identify a few trai

No Energy Vampires Allowed
I’ll never forgot the time I called my father from the restaurant I owned to tell him that I found my calling and was going to pursue a career as an author and speaker. His response was less than enthusiastic. “What the he_ _ are you going to do that for,” he said. “That will never amount to anything. It’s a load of junk. Just focus on your restaurant.” I hung up the phone and thought two simple words “Thanks Dad.”Believe it or not, I didn’t get angry at him for saying this. I knew he was just one of many negative people; I call Energy Vampires, that I would have to face on my journey through life. Unfortunately energy vampires don’t just exist in our families but they also lurk in our businesses, social organizations, churches and neighborhoods. They are real. They are everywhere. And they will suck the life out of our goals, dreams and plans for success if we let them.If you're like most people, it has happened to you. You were talking to someone and before you knew it, they drained the life right out of you. You looked for fang marks on your neck but they were nowhere to be found. Then you realized Energy Vampires don't have fangs. They have other means to suck your energy. Here are a few:Negative comments -"Did I tell you how much I hate my life and work? Did I tell you what so and so did to me? Did I tell you why nothing goes right?"Dream snatching - "You can't do that. You’ll never succeed at that. Are you living in fantasyland? You should do this instead."Shrinking devices - "What is wrong with you? Can you do anything right? Why did we hire you anyway?”Team Destruction – “We’ll never make it. It’s Joe’s fault. Everyone is clueless.”In other situations the words

Why Hire a Security Consultant
I have often been asked, “Why should I hire a security consultant to tell me what security measures my business needs?” I guess the biggest reason is if you know little to nothing about security, then you need to hire someone that does know the ins and outs to get the most benefit!There is a lot more than just looking at your doors, windows and locks or alarm systems to figuring out what security measures are need to protect your entire business. The main goal is to look at all your liabilities on security issues and reduce or eliminate them. This saves you time and money in the long run and keeps you out of a possible court situation in the future.To this end, you need to do a physical site security survey. This will identify the most pressing of your security issues that can get you in trouble. By looking at the entire company, those issues can be identified, measures to protect you implemented and your liabilities reduced!There are measures that only need to have policies and procedures changed or implemented that will reduce your liabilities. There are other measures that you will need to put in place to protect your hiring process that can save you from a lawsuit. Then there may be other measures that contain a security presence on site or after hours that will protect you.The thing with competent security consultants is, they know what to look for when identifying security issues and they know how to deal with them with cost effective reductions/eliminations. They know what does and does not work for a variety of business types and your particular area of location.Security measures do not mean that it has to be a major expense outlay every time. But, it can come to a major expe

Career Advice- Dreams Don't Make The Car Payments
It’s very difficult to get there if we don’t know where we want to go.Do you know of anyone who disagrees with the common sense wisdom of setting a final destination and having a plan for the journey before beginning a trip? Dreaming about it won't make it a reality.Then why do many of us act as if we can drift along day to day, thinking somehow we can achieve our dreams of career success without defined personal goals, as well as plans to reach them?Five Excuses For Not Setting GoalsIf you are stymied in setting personal goals, a look at five of the excuses people use when they fail to make plans for their futures should help.1. Goals are not necessary. Research conducted by Yale University of one of its graduating classes found that only 3 percent of graudates had taken all the steps necessary to set career goals and plans; 10 percent had done some of the necessary things; 87 percent very little or nothing. A study 20 years later, revealed the 3 percent had accomplished more than the remainder of the group combined in terms of career positions and financial rewards.2. Fear. We are afraid that if we set goals and don’t reach them, we will be seen as failures. We are afraid to commit ourselves for fear we will go down the wrong path to a dead end of frustration and unhappiness from which there is no escape. Or we dread the accountability inherent in a stated goal.3. We simply may not believe it is possible to plan ahead. We tell ourselves, “There are just too many variables and imponderables in life. Besides, successful people are just lucky or have 'pull'."4. We have so many options and can’t decide among them. We are like the proverbial blind dog in the