rileybook.com

In my mind, the true history of tennis does not begin until the 1850’s, when the first “modern” tennis balls were invented and used. Before this point, the history of tennis is the history of a completely different game – “real tennis.”

Real tennis is played on indoor courts. In fact, real tennis cannot be played outside – the players use the angled walls of a real tennis court to strategically hit and return the ball to their opponents. Yes, real tennis his very similar to today’s modern tennis, or “lawn tennis,” but only in the same way that handball, badminton, croquet, and racquetball are similar to lawn tennis!

That is why I choose to start my history of tennis at the point in which lawn tennis diverged from real tennis, and this happened in the 1850’s. It was in the 1850’s that Charles Goodyear, of Goodyear tire fame, invented vulcanized rubber. Vulcanized rubber is a process that prevents natural rubber from deteriorating so quickly (without the vulcanization process, natural rubber could deteriorate within just a few days.)

So, with the vulcanization of rubber came rubber tennis balls. The rubber tennis balls could be used outdoors on lawn courts. These rubber tennis balls were a nice change from the wads of wool, hair, wool, or cork wrapped in leather or string and cloth – these are what had been used in real tennis.

And because these vulcanized rubber tennis balls could be used outdoors, on lawn courts, without walls to bounce them off of, new rules had to be invented for this new game of lawn tennis.

Walter Clopton Wingfield is usually the man who is given credit for the invention of modern tennis, or lawn tennis. Around 1874, Wingfield actually patented the game. And the game became popular among the leisured classes throughout the end of the 1800s.

The popularity of tennis spread relatively quickly. Tennis clubs were set up around this time. The first tennis championships were held in 1877 in Wimbledon… a precursor to the Grand Slam tournament held in Wimbledon every year, even today.

The rules of tennis changed gradually throughout the later 1800s, changing the shape of the court and the height of net and thereby changing the history of tennis in the process!

So, as you can see, it makes sense that I choose to start the real history of tennis around the 1850’s when Charles Goodyear’s invention of vulcanized rubber made modern tennis possible.

Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for websites on gardening, parenting, fashion, and sports. Her background includes teaching and gardening. For more of her articles on tennis, please visit E-Tennis.

Market Availability Of Lawn Tractors

There are many manufacturers of lawn tractors . If you go to market for purchasing a lawn tractor you will be flooded with offers for sale and then there will be more offers from the markets like eBay and Amezon.com. It is really a difficult choice to make. However if you have your priorities clearly defined things become easier in selecting a lawn tractor.

Many Names A Lawn Tractor Takes

A lawn tractor may be referred by many names as lawn mower, garden tractor. All of them essentially do the same work and some of them do more work compared to others. The horse power may vary but essentially al of them help farmers in completing their work or a small householder maintain the garden.

Purpose Of Purchasing A Lawn Tractor

The purpose of selecting a lawn tractor should be made along with the area it is going to serve. Specialized lawn tractors of high capacity are available for large areas like a golf field or a horse racing area tennis court a cricket or even a football field.

If the intention is just to cut grass over a large area, then the type of lawn tractor you can select is the front bed tractor where you can collect the grass so you can dispose it off quickly.

On the other hand, if you wish to serve a small area and do some small things in your garden, you can go in for garden tractor with attachment for grass removal.

If you have a small area and all you require is just to cut grass, then you can go in for a riding lawn mower or a walk behind lawn mower

The Area Lawn Tractor Serves

The area served by a lawn tractor may vary depending on individual needs and the number of tractors available for serving the area. The same job could be done by more than one tractor if the area is large.

The maximum sweep of lawn tractor blades is about 48 inches and beyond that, the lawn tractor becomes unmanageable and cannot service in tight corners and this area is then required to be served by smaller machines increasing the workload and attendant problems. So for large areas two or more tractors seems to be an effective solution

Future requirements

If you can spare money beyond buying a lawn tractor, you can go for an upgraded version and purchase a garden tractor. With a garden tractor, you can do many things that cannot be done by a lawn tractor. If you can think of future requirement of your work, you may be able to get a better selection.

Driver Comfort In Lawn Tractor

Whether you are going to use the lawn tractor or your employee is going drive it, it is imperative that the lawn tractor should have driver comforts. Power steering, vibration isolation, and better control are some of the accepted norms of driver comforts and most of the manufacturers incorporate it in their lawn mowers.

Hence, while selecting a good lawn tractor, you will have to take many things in considerations than just the money you are going to put in.

Andrew Caxton is a journalist who has written more articles and newsletters on the subject for www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com [http://www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com] . If you would like more information on this topic please checkout his website and read further articles about lawn tractors [http://www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com/lawn-tractors.html]

It is a different game and rules when you go warm water fly fishing as the species will attack and respond to reactions differently than the fish typically caught on flies in colder water. The techniques that use for fly fishing trout or salmon are similar, as trout or salmon are generally very violent feeders. Regardless of what type of tackles you have, whether new or old, fly fishing in warm water is definitely a different experience that you have come across.

When going for warm water fly fishing, the best technique for catching bass, is to keep the tip of your rod pointed at the fly at all times. A straight pull is the best technique to set the hook on bass mouths, even though raising the rod tips works with traditional casting equipment, with flies this will only succeed in giving the fish a grip with it mouth, enabling it to merely let go and swim away at any time. The type of files use is also very important, deer hair tied flies, a muddler or a wooly bugger minnow are the best to use and increase the rate of success in fishing.

Fun and Excitement during Warm Water Fly Fishing

While many argue that bass of any variety can provide a good meal, pan fish such as blue gill and black crappies not only taste good, there are excellent sport fish and are highly regarded by bait fishers and artificial-lure anglers alike. They are very easily caught during prespawning periods when the fishes are congregated in large schools. Crappies prefer a diet of minnows and using streamers can easily catch them. They will also strike subsurface flies, tiny crankbaits, small spinners and jigs. Crappies like to suspend in midwinter, so you may have to experiment to find the correct depth. Fly Fishing from the shore can be done if there is sufficient room for casting but considering the deeper waters you will be fishing for crappies wading will probably be out of the question. Casting from a boat is also maybe your best choice.

Saltwater Fly Fishing

Saltwater fly fishing has become one of the growing sports. Whether you’re looking to fish on local shores or to enjoy some fly fishing in a more exotic location such as the beaches of Caribbean or Mexico, saltwater fly fishing can be just as fun and rewarding. The problem is you may have limited amount of money to spend setting up the sport. The following is intended as a guide to tackling up on a limited budget and preparations to make for your saltwater fly fishing trip possible.

Get a New Rod

In general, the rod use for saltwater fly fishing is heavy than in freshwater fishing. Start looking with 9-weight rods, or a 15-weight rod and line for deep water to catch something big. Generally, the rods specifically designed for saltwater come with a higher price. We can saved money by looking at rods designed for Trout reservoir fishing, this type of rod also have saltwater proof fittings. Try to purchase from a fishing store, so that you can have a direct feeling of the rod before you buy.

Buy an Appropriate Reel

The Salt water has corrosive properties, so if you don’t want your reel to rust then look for reel with a level of saltwater resistance, all parts composed of materials such as titanium, stainless steel, or anodized aluminum. This is mostly important if you’re intending to go saltwater fly fishing in warm waters, where the corrosion will happen even faster. If you prefer a large arbour reel then there a several manufacturers who produce suitable reels. Okuma is a name well recommend on U.S. websites about these reels.

Lines

This is probably one area where it really pays to buy the best you can. Personally, I do most of my saltwater fly fishing with a 15 ft Sink tip line, so I would recommend buying a fairly decent line and then saving money by purchasing a cheaper intermediate and / or sinking line. Certainly line selection will be reflected by the areas you will be fishing, so seeking advice from others who saltwater fly fishing in the area or posting a query on an online forum will help you select the right line for you.

Flies

One source for the cheapest flies is those you tie yourself. However this can be very time consuming and the initial outlay on tying vice, materials and tools can be expensive. There are many fishing stores selling saltwater flies. I would recommend purchasing from Ocean Flies. You can let them know which areas and what type of species you’re attempting to catch and they will be able to recommend you on which flies are most suitable.

Leaders

If you ask the saltwater fishers what leader they use and you probably will get all different answers, but none will be wrong. But one area where there seems to be common agreement is the use of Fluorocarbon, rather than Nylon monofilament line, especially during daylight. It’s not cheap, but it can make the difference between catching fish.

Rent a Boat

You need to rent a boat for saltwater fly fishing, unless you already have one. The boat don’t have to be very fancy, a simple rowboat will do if that’s all you have. You should look for something that is inexpensive but very useful and safe; a 15-foot sailboat with some sort of protection again bad weather will look great. So, with the purchase of above items and a corrosion-resistant reel, and the rental of a good boat, you will have some of the basics for your saltwater fly fishing trip that may possible.

Cindy Heller is a professional writer. Visit Fly Fishing Women to learn more about warm water fly fishing and south florida fly fishing.

Although the aroma of fresh popped popcorn and a darkened theater with a towering wide screen lures us to new released films, most of us still view far more movies at home than at the theater. With the introduction of online movie rental and movie downloads nearly ten years ago, the selections offered by the local video store are not the only options viewers have for their home entertainment.

Aside from the improved affordability, movie fans enjoy watching movies at home because of convenience. With busy lives that keeps us at work and on the road, time spent relaxing at home is at a premium and any service that allows us to enjoy that time without additional complexity or effort is highly prized. With this in mind, which of these movie services provides the most value for the home viewer?

Traditional video stores can be convenient for some last minute movie picks; or at least convenient if a person lives within a few blocks of the store. If someone suddenly decides at 5:30 pm. that there is time to squeeze in a showing of the most recent Harry Potter flick with the kids, then it is certainly easy to get to and from the store and be ready to view within a half an hour. This assumes of course that the store will have a copy of the DVD available in house at the time it is being sought.

If Harry isn’t at the local video store, then browsing through the remaining films and examining the DVD cases may provide a hint as to what the family might enjoy. After the movie, the viewer will then have at least a couple of days to shuttle back to the store and return the movie before incurring any late fees.

Movie downloads are one of the newer options. Certainly, downloading a movie can allow viewers to decide at the last minute to view Harry Potter, or some other movie, as well. Just a quick 5 minute visit to the download site on line to select and initiate the download allows viewers to remain at home throughout the process. Most films require approximately an hour to download depending upon connection speed. The good news however is that many movie downloads are capable of allowing viewers to begin watching the movie only a matter of minutes into the download process.

There is no worry about returning rented movies that are downloaded or any late fees. Upon download, viewers have a specified period of time in which to watch the movie before it expires. Movielink for example allows movies to be stored for up to 30 days. Perhaps the one drawback for many movie downloads is that they often must be viewed on a PC rather than a television unless viewers have a connection between their PC and TV. The future however, may provide greater flexibility as legal movie download services may be better positioned to allow burning movies to DVD as some of the digital rights management issues are being addressed with movie studios.

Online movie rental services can certainly ease the process of selecting and obtaining movies. Users can go online and select from over 75,000 titles, nearly five times the number of titles offered in a local video store. Here users can create a list of movies in advance that will automatically arrive at their door. Movies requested generally arrive within 1 to 2 business days after they are requested. Users merely stick the DVDs in an envelope for the mailman to pick up when they are ready to return them; and only when they are ready to return them. There are no due dates and no late fees either. The most evident drawback to this system is for those viewers who don’t decide they have the time to view a movie until earlier that same day. Mail delivery does not allow such last minute decisions.

Online movie rental services are evolving however to better accommodate those last minute choices. Netflix, the largest online movie rental service, announced in early 2007 their service can now provide a “Watch Now” feature which allows customers to stream movies directly to their PC rather than waiting for the DVD in the mail. Although not all movie titles are available for streaming at this time, it does provide a potential solution for the occasional last minute movie craving.

One of the final conveniences of online movie rental is that the sheer number of movies offered makes it more likely that a movie of choice will be available. In situations where viewers aren’t sure what they want to see, the Netflix service is even able to provide recommendations based on the comments and ratings of other viewers and the actual viewing pattern of the user. The accuracy of the Netflix recommendations has been applauded within the industry and certainly offers a better option than merely reviewing the information provided by production studios on the sleeves of a DVD.

Each movie service offers different convenience advantages for home movie viewers. Determining whether movie downloads, online movie rental, or use of the local video store is best, may be dependent upon the preferred viewing patterns of a user and their access to a computer or the proximity of a local video store.

The author and webmaster of http://www.homemedias.info, Christine Peppler invites readers to discover more information about home entertainment including, movie downloads, online movie rental, and satellite TV through information available on her website.

Internet marketing is still a complete mystery to a large

majority of Internet users. For many net users, online

marketing is seen as some foreign area of the web, populated

with silly get-rich-quick schemes and unsavory characters

ready to rip off the innocent and uninformed consumer at

the click of a mouse.

In fact, Internet marketing could not be further removed

from this unfaltering picture. In reality, Internet marketing

is populated mainly with hard working professionals promoting

and selling high quality brand products by many of the world’s

Top 500 companies.

Worldwide there are now over a billion Internet users,

representing one large global consumer base or marketplace.

The total amount of goods sold online has been steadily

increasing each year as the Internet gains in both popularity and

familiarity. Studies have shown people shop online because of

lower prices, a wider selection of products, easier comparison

shopping, and many just prefer not having to travel to stores

to make a purchase.

Handling all this online e-commerce is a whole sector of

companies, hosting providers, web designers, advertising

agencies… and so on. All this online commerce has also

given rise to a relatively new creature — the professional

Internet marketer. Someone who makes a lucrative living

helping facilitate, in one form or another, all this online

activity.

Still Internet marketing has gotten a raw deal.

If you mention to any group of professionals that you’re

an Internet Marketer and that you work full time on the Internet;

you will receive some very skeptical looks and more than one

arched eyebrow of disbelief.

Regardless of this lingering skepticism, Internet marketing

has become a viable alternative for many disgruntled professionals

dissatisfied with their working hours or conditions. It has become

a viable alternative for many people from all walks of life, from

the college student to the bored housewife to the retired doctor…

all are enjoying a part time or full time income from the comfort

of their homes.

And since the Internet is now practically available to everyone,

anywhere in the world — Internet marketing is a level playing field.

Anyone can make a full time or part time income from the web if

they truly desire it.

There are many forms of Internet marketing. There are many online

business models you can follow. There are countless ways to earn

a good honest income from the Internet. Which path you take

will be largely determined by your own work habits, your background

and what marketing style you’re most comfortable with.

Here’s a quick rundown of the most popular forms of Internet

Marketing:

1. The Brick and Mortar Store Online

Most major companies and retail stores have created online

versions of their brick and mortar businesses. Even if

consumers don’t buy online, many use these sites for

gathering product information before buying in the

real world. A factor many savvy businesses are exploiting

in their overall marketing strategies.

2. Online Services

Many service industries have moved online, everything

from travel to banking to dating! Again, the Internet

can be a profitable extension for any service company.

3. Internet Products/Internet Gurus

Internet marketing has a whole history of pioneers who

have forged the methods and techniques of marketing online -

opt-in lists, mini-sites, article marketing, pay-per-click

advertising, joint ventures… a brief history populated with

such names as John Reese, Marlon Sanders, Ralph Wilson,

Yanik Silver, Corey Rudl, Ken Evoy and countless others.

A whole new industry has grown around ‘How-to’ market online,

info products, workshops and web seminars — teaching

people how to market on the Internet. A marketer creating

his own product can prove very productive; as seen

by John Reese’s 2004 launch of Traffic Secrets, which earned

over a million dollars in one day. (Without a penny of paid

advertising!)

4. Online Advertising and Promotion

Pay-Per-Click advertising such as those offered by Google

Adwords and other companies presents another viable marketing

route. Keywords (the exact words typed into a search engine)

fuel a large portion of the web’s activity, keyword marketing

has become a major driving force behind most of the economic

transactions on the web. This is a very lucrative sector for

those Internet marketers who know exactly what they’re doing.

Then there is the whole section of SEO experts and consultants

who command high prices for positioning companies or products

in the top positions on the major search engines. Acquiring

organic Top 10 search results (SERPs) will greatly determine the

profitability of your online product or company.

5. Affiliate Marketing

One of the least understood, yet one of the most profitable

forms of Internet marketing is affiliate marketing. An online

marketer can join any affiliate program and promote its products

or services on the Internet. You market the products, find

customers for the company and receive a cut or commission

for each sale you make from your marketing efforts. These

commissions can run anywhere from 2% to over 50%. One affiliate

click can earn you anywhere from a few cents to several

hundreds of dollars.

Major third party affiliate programs or companies such as

Commission Junction, LinkShare, Amazon, Shareasale…

acts as a brokerage or go-between representing thousands of

Top Brand companies such as Sony, Apple, Dell… to online

affiliate marketers. Marketers can join a program such as

Commission Junction or LinkShare and be able to promote and

market hundred of top quality products or services online. They

can consolidate their affiliate marketing through these

third party programs.

Perhaps the most common business model for the majority

of online marketers is the last example, or a combination

of advertising and affiliate sales. Many work-from-home

professionals have adopted this business model. They have

created site or sites on the topic that interests them and

of which they have or have gained some expert knowledge.

Once these sites become established and gathering a large

amount of targeted web traffic each day, making a nice income

can only be a matter of putting the Google Adsense code on

their pages and placing a few appropriate affiliate

links on their sites.

The more traffic these marketers deliver to their sites,

the more income they earn. The more unique content they create,

the more income they earn. The more web sites they design,

the more income they earn.

What many people outside of the web marketing field fail

to realize, the Internet is a 24/7/365 business. The Internet

is always on and working for you. It is automatically producing

income for you 24 hours of the day, while you’re sleeping, while

you’re enjoying a nice meal with friends, or even while you’re

on vacation.

Internet marketing can provide you with a lifestyle that is totally

liberating — you can live and work anywhere in the world. You can

be your own boss, set your own hours and work from the comfort

of your own home. Plus your whole online Internet business can be

automated so it basically runs itself.

Internet marketing is totally flexible. You can adjust your workload to

suit your own work habits. Internet marketing is scalable, once

you have learned how to make your first dollar, it is only

a simple matter of repeating and scaling up what you did to

earn that dollar. Computers and the Internet makes it just as

easy to handle a thousand sales as it is to handle one sale.

As Internet marketing becomes better known, it will gradually earn

more and more respect. It will become a well recognized profession

that many will aspire to and follow as a life long career. Mainly because

Internet marketing will give you the freedom rarely seen in any other

profession.

It offers you mobility, a high standard of living, and a working

environment that can’t be beat. It gives you the freedom to follow

your own interests and hobbies; all the while turning those interests

into viable revenue streams that supports the lifestyle of your

own choosing. When it is all said and done, earning a living just

doesn’t get any better than this.

…
The author is a former teacher who now works full-time online operating numerous websites, including two sites on Internet marketing. For the latest web marketing tools try: Internet Marketing Tools

For the lastest trade information in your own industry try: Free Industrial Magazine Subscriptions

Copyright © 2006 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Managing the Human Being Behind the Business

It’s a common problem and we’ve all seen it – business owners that are just ‘too busy’ all of the time, and as a result, do not enjoy the success in business they had hoped for. Let’s not kid ourselves, there is a lot to focus on: technology, employees, sales, marketing and so on. These functions are essential and need to be well organised and managed. But there is a second aspect to business success that is often overlooked – the effectiveness of the person running the show. Businesses are a reflection of the people who run them. If those people are ‘too busy’, stressed, or poorly organised, then these characteristics are reflected back in the business. The underlying behaviour and values of the business owner drive how much control they need, how they will delegate and how they use their time. Growth of the business and the business owner need to match up
If the business is to grow, then the owner has to take the necessary time to learn the new roles and skills that a growing business will demand. Imagine for one moment where you would like your business to be in 5 years time. Then ask yourself: “Is it possible that I can be exactly the same person in 5 years that I am today and fulfil that growth strategy for my business? The answer has to be no. Business owners need to be prepared for new learning and taking on new, different, and bigger responsibilities – without fear or hesitation. The reality is that the owner is usually the limiting factor in growth – the business can only grow to the extent to which the owner grows. When owners feel out of sorts, overworked, and like they are running on a treadmill, it is almost always because they have fallen victim to the reactive “let’s go faster” management approach. They are forced to live from problem to problem, and may fail to see their own (lack of) self-management as part of the problem. So why aren’t we better at managing ourselves? There’s really four reasons:

• Being comfortable – we all do what we are comfortable with – it’s human nature. So we keep doing what we have always done
• Not knowing what else is possible
• Not knowing that there are other ways to do what they are doing
• Actually getting energy (and maybe some identity) from being stressed and overworked

There are 5 steps to take on the road to better self-management: 1. Clarify personal goals for the future.
Many business owners lose sight of these as they get immersed in the day-to-day running of the business. Articulating your personal goals can reveal any issues about whether these support or conflict with their business goals. These goals need to cover both the immediate and future plans. What do you want to achieve personally in the next 1 to 2 years. And where do you want to be in ten years time?
2. Clarify the business goals.
Having spent some time expressing personal goals for the future, take a look at your business goals and rethink them. Are your personal and business goals working together, or are they working against each other? If they do seem to be mutually exclusive, what choices will you make next? Putting the business goals ahead of your personal ones will inevitably lead to stress and feelings of overwhelm. Determine instead whether the business goals can be re-oriented or modified to support what you would like to achieve personally.
3. Identify the owner’s ideal role 3 years from now.
Think about who you want to be – what role you want to have in the business – in 3 years time. Will you still be doing the majority of work? Will you have others doing the work and your capacity is more advisory? Or perhaps you would like to remove yourself completely from the operational parts of the business and focus on product or business development? Thinking about what you want as an owner in the future can give you great insights into what strategies you may need to put in place now. 4. Conduct a detailed personal time analysis for a one-week period.
This is where the rubber hits the road. If you really are true to yourself when you do this exercise you will learn a lot about where the potential lies for making changes. How are you really spending your time? Break your day down into at least half hour slots and write down exactly what you do in each 30 minutes. 5. Create a plan of action for the next 30 days.
Based on the data from steps 1-4, create an action plan to cover the next 30 days. Your plan should include:

• steps to align personal and business goals
• strategy for moving to the role the owner wants to play in the business in the future
• analysis of the results of the one-week detailed monitoring exercise
• deciding which activities add the most value and planning to spend time on those
• identify how much time is spent on low value activity and planning to delegate or stop doing those things

There is never a better time than right now for planning to do things differently. Take charge of yourself and your business by choosing a direction that allows you to meet both your personal and business goals, and still retain your sanity!

Megan Tough, Director of Action Plus, is passionate about helping people enjoy their businesses. She works internationally with business owners to systematically remove the stress points from their business, giving them more time and space for – well -whatever they want! Visit her at http://www.megantough.com for more information on taking the stress out of your business.

All those who use a vehicle are well aware how important it is to change the oil and fluids in the car at regular intervals. It is not so difficult to change the oil and lubrication of the entire vehicle but the problematic areas are the brakes usually. You have to take lot of precautions and then carefully perform everything. It is not only the question of disassembling or reassembling them but you have to regulate the brake fluid as well as keep air out of the brake lines. There is this vacuum necessary when you perform the work because if the air seeps out into the system, the brake might become sluggish and there is probability that it might fail also.

The brake bleeders simplify this process of changing the brake fluid and save you from getting into any other problem. These brake bleeders are not only easy to use but also are pretty inexpensive and you will get these without any difficulty. Even if you do not know much about mechanics, you can manage with the help of this kit. There is no need of any experience or mechanical expertise to use Brake Bleeders. Although the price is very reasonable, it is worth paying for it than taking the risk of doing the work on your own. It is always better to take precautions when it comes to the brakes of any vehicle.

If you are a new mechanic with little or no experience, you will require a lot of Engine Repair Tools. You would prefer and try to save some money on buying these tools and at the same time you would prefer to buy good quality and durable tools as well. If you are looking for both these things, try and follow precautionary guidelines and look for lifetime warranty before you buy.

Brake Tools at HandsOnTools.com. Best source for Brake Bleeders, brake lathes, Engine Repair Tools, brake testing tools etc.

So now its time to take that big plunge and be your own boss. Where will I start? What do I look for? And for that matter what business will I buy? Will I relocate? Can I get finance? Who do I go to for the right advise?

These are just a few of the concerns when you decide on buying a business and believe me its not an easy road ahead, but with the right advise and the right business for you there are rewards unlimited to help you on the way to building a bank and a good quality of life. This article will help you all the way.

Important Points when Buying a Business

Every day I receive emails from purchasers and business owners needing assistance in selling or buying. I use my many years of experience in business sales and running a chain of shops to assist them in the right decision for them. It’s a bit like a psychologist really. Its just not a sale for me, it’s a dedication.

The first thing to remember is you must get it right the first time because the business you buy you should be in for at least 4 to 7 years. I advise my vendors and purchasers to give yourself a 4 year plan. You may love the business so much you want to stay longer but the majority of people are burnt out after 4 years and are looking for a change, especially if it’s a café or restaurant, and if you feel it’s wearing you down the business will suffer if you don’t sell then and of course you won’t achieve a good price if the business is run down.

Finding a Business!

I find in my business newspaper advertising brings me very little sales. My statistics tell me a genuine purchaser will go to the search engines to find a broker and scan the listings. We do use the papers to get our website name out there and this works to our advantage far more than a long expensive add that lasts one day. Our site http://www.bestbusinessbuyes.com.au is the most valuable tool we have and our journal Best Business Buys gives you months of good reading to give a purchaser information on how to buy and where. So scan the net under search engines business brokers, if you can not find a business on our site there are other brokers listed that may be of assistance to you. Or better still tell us what you want and we will go find it for you!

Anywhere in Australia.

Problems with Newspaper Adverts

You will often see a private add in the paper and you may think this is great, we will cut out the agent and get the business cheaper.

DON’T BE FOOLED!

Now I am not saying all private adds are no good, some may work out, but in my experience those people who try to do it themselves do it because they have either been burnt by an agent not servicing their business, so they think they will do it alone, or the profit is low in the business and they need a quick sale, or of course the common one the agents fee offends the owner and he thinks he can do it better himself. Or he may think the advertising costs to sell his business is less if he dose it himself.

WRONG!

When you are dealing with a private sale you feel uncomfortable saying what you really think, and uncomfortable asking certain questions so as not to offend the owner. With a broker you can be open and tell us all your concerns. We will work them out with the owner and rectify them if possible. We as the agents should now the business as well as the owners, that’s our job. I look at a business when I list it as my own and sell it as if it was my own. A good broker should be there to help you with that sale to the end. Too many owners who try to sell themselves end up in conflict with their buyers.

And after a few months of failures TRYING to qualify buyers he finds out it’s not that easy & worst of it he has given out his figures all over town for all the clients to see, so the business you are looking at has been exposed to untold people who may be using that information to start down the road.

The poor owner ends up coming to us anyway. Remember if you stay with the broker handling the sale of the business he should be the one to assist you all the way, and if that business does not work out the best for you he most often then not will find you another.

You Have Found the Business you Want to Buy!

The first thing you will need is finance. Are you already cashed up? Or do you need finance. Are you on a redundancy package? These are all the questions your broker should ask before you plunge into a sale.

We are financiers and finance most of the businesses we sell without supplying figures to obtain the loan. Remember the majority of businesses do not always show the true figures of the business but if you look back at the ad backs of that business the business may be a very viable business. Most accountants will reduce the net profits for a business, so the tax implications are not so high for that business. If the adjusted profits are good the business is saleable and your broker will advise you of this at the time. But never, ever buy a business on hearsay of the takings, if its not in BALACK AND WHITE in the accountants formatted profit and loss statement then its not considered saleable. Never buy unseen profits.

Business Finance

For finance to buy the business you will need to complete an application. This way you will know how much you can afford to borrow on the business you are looking at. Not all Brokers are financiers! We are and sell businesses because of it. We use a financier who lends without looking at the figures of the business you are about to buy. But with other institutions such as banks or private lenders you will need the following.

We will arrange finance for you without an up front fee. Most finance brokers charge a fee of between $3,000 &$ 6,000 to get you your finance. We at Arwon Realty do this FREE because we are paid on settlement to sell the business by our vendors (owners). It is in our best interest to get the finance for our buyers so we in turn can get the business sold, and therefore offer a better service to our vendors when listing their business. We finance 90% of all business sold!

What will I need to supply to my Finance Broker?

- Profit and loss statements of the business you are purchasing

- Bank statements for your own personal accounts.

- Pay slips of your current employment or if self employed a profit and loss statement for the past three years of trading

- Mortgage documents for your existing home or properties

or sales contracts for freehold you hold in your and your partner’s name.

- Personal information, date of birth or passport (photo copy of drivers license)

- CRA credit check (you can do this yourself for a cost of $29.00)

- The rates notice of the homes in your name

- Liability and asset declaration.

- The amount you needed to borrow (You must include the cost of solicitors for advise and contracts.)

Accountants advise: Do it! That way you know you are covered. I have lost many sales from Accountants advising their clients not to buy and seen many unhappy buyers losing out on a sale because an account has breezed over the figures and said no don’t buy! But at least if you do take the plunge and buy anyway after you have had that advise you are assured you did get advice if something does go wrong. After all your accountant is paid to look after you and professional accountants will ring us or the vendor’s accountant to get the full story of the business!

There are good and bad accountants just like there are good and bad brokers. It’s important to check the licenses of all your professional people. Find out how long they have been in the profession and their experience in that field before engaging them.

We work with both the accountants while selling the business and are more than happy to answer all questions relating to the business in question. We will also arrange appointments for your accountant to speech with the vendor’s accountant if required.

It’s always wise to stay with the accountant who handles the business you are purchasing, that’s if he is a helpful accountant, if he knows that business well. It’s a big plus to continue on with him, after all he is the one that will advise you when you are ready to sell.

Many people use more than one accountant today. I find a good accountant who knows a business well is a must to stick with it till the end. I have dealt will some excellent accountants. Two that come to mind are in my local town and are as good as any on this planet they are dedicated to their clients and have help me evenly throughout my last two sales (MCW Accounting Tumut, Paisley’s Accounting Tumut and Steven Walker & C.O Tumut) These accountants are totally dedicated to their client’s businesses and have enhanced the sale of two of the best businesses in town by showing truthful and accurate accounting.

Your Business Broker

As Brokers we will supply your accountant a profile on the business so its easy for him to understand. Always insist on a profile when looking at a business. This will give you all the information you need to convince you this is the right business for you. It will include all the statistics of the business and a good breakdown of the figures the reasons for the sale price, etc.

Your broker may ask you to sign a confidentiality agreement. This is essential to protect the vendor under the confidentiality act. Sign it and send it back ASAP. It does not commit you to buying the business. It is a mandatory requirement before you look over the figures. You will find your broker will not send you figures if you don’t sign.

If you have made your decision to buy the business be sure you are proceeding before you commit! Put in an offer only when you are ready to proceed. Is this is the business for you can you see yourself in for the next few years? Is the family happy with the move and the change, and most of all is the business viable for you?

I sold a produce store in Tumut recently to a buyer from Magnet Island who owned a bed and breakfast (would you believe), and they are just loving it and doing very well, so don’t be scared to take the plunge and move on. Most of our buyers are relocating and the stories I have to tell are just amazing!

Look around be sure the area is where you see yourself for the next 5 years. If you are relocating ask your broker to give you the statistics on that area, home prices schools etc.

As Brokers and licensed Business agents we pride ourselves on relocating people and finding them the best business for them, but it’s a big plus if the buyer has some idea of what he feels comfortable working in, and after we produce the information to him and his accountant we expect if all is ok he will proceed. If you have doubts tell your broker. Its unfair to hold up the sale for another interested party.

You will then need to sign an offer to purchase the business. We have a standard offer to purchase, this will give you the rights to proceed. The time normally for the option is one week from agreeing to proceed and this also takes the business off the market. It includes a deposit normally of 1% of the purchase price. This deposit is not refundable should you decide to pull out of the sale, unless it specifies subject to the reasons why you have pulled out.

So do your homework first! Be sure your accountant is happy with the figures. Your finance is approved and you are confident you are 100% proceeding before you signed on the dotted line.

Your broker will then issue sales advice to the Vendors Solicitors with all the conditions included that you require, such as the lease terms and training requirements. After they have looked over the advice and done their investigations for the sale they will prepare the contracts and send them to your Solicitor for exchange of contracts. You will need then to pay a 10% deposit on the business. This is normally arranged by the finance broker, if you have applied for finance, and can be done in a deposit bond or cheque. This is deposited into your agent’s trust account until settlement.

You should have a Solicitor picked out before you decide to look around so you are confident with him when you are ready to proceed.

At Arwon Realty we stick tight with the Solicitors through out the sale keeping in contact with them throughout the progress all the way for a smooth settlement.

The contracts should take no longer than 2 weeks to prepare and when the exchange of contract takes place this means you now are totally committed to purchase this business. Any problems should be sorted out between the two solicitors in this time.

The contracts are exchanged between the two solicitors and settlement should take place in the next 2 – 4 weeks. Business sales are always longer than the normal residential sales as the solicitors are responsible to see you have a new or exchanged lease for the business. If the property is included in the sale a 149 certificate (zoning and compliance certificate) must be sort by the council to check out the compliances with council this take longer than normal.

Before settlement you have 2 weeks prior and 2 weeks after settlement for training. Your vendor must give you this time to help you understand the running of the business. We advise the training is done after settlement so both parties are not showing their nervousness while running the business. This could cause the customers to feel a little uneasy.

We advise our vendors not to inform the staff of the sale until exchange of contract for the same reasons. Your finance must be in the solicitor’s office 48 hours before settlement for a smooth transaction. Your agent will hold the deposit of the business 10% on exchange of contract and this will be in her trust account until she receives an order on the agent from the solicitors on both sides.

Settlement Day!

We will be there with you for the stocktake. Now some businesses advertise their business WIWO. That means whatever the stock is in the business when you take over is yours and we don’t count the costs of the stock on settlement. If the add states + stock then we have to stocktake before settlement and this is done before mostly the evening before, after close of the till, with both present and an independent person to help with the stocktake.

So now you are the proud owner of a business that should if your broker has worked for you be the best asset you now have and we wish you all the very best of luck and look forward to the day we can asset you in selling for a higher profit!

Cathryn Austin is Principal/Licensee of Arwon Realty – Property Business and Finance Brokers, Business, Real-estate & Stock and Station Agents, and owner of Australian Businesses for Sale. Visit her site at http://www.bestbusinessbuyes.com.au

Marketing – A Juggler’s Art:

Marketing, in more the one way, is like juggling. This strange analogy will become crystal clear if we take a close look at it. Just like the juggler the marketer too has to do these things to thrive in his business: first, he has to hook his audience; gain their attention through several jazzy tricks; and then hold their attention by still more innovative juggling. All this he has to achieve without losing balance, focus or steadfastness in the art, the industry, in the marketer’s case. In short, marketing is all about alluring, attracting and holding a collection of customers for your Company’s welfare.

The Purpose Behind:

To quote the American Marketing Association’s definition, it is “an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders”. If one dilutes all the verbosity and looks at it, marketing means “selling” a product. This is the prime purpose behind any kind of marketing. The “selling” is accelerated with the help of properly chalked out plans called marketing strategies.

Factors that Influence:

With “selling” as the ultimate goal, marketing strategies are influenced by two basic factors: first, acquisition of customers; second, retention of the acquired customers. So every other strategy that is laid out will focus on the above two. A Company has to work closely towards achieving these two to attain the desired cutting edge over its competitors. There are also a few other objectives like creating awareness (informational and educational) about the product, brand-building and accelerating sales.

Traditional Marketing:

With the world changing at every nanosecond, marketing is also reeling under a whirlwind of change. New modes of marketing like e-marketing and online marketing have evolved. Yet traditional marketing still holds sway with many corporates. Traditional marketing operates based on the following strategies.

The Four Ps- Worship them:

The ‘Four Ps’ or the ‘marketing mix’ is a cliché with every marketer. Formulated by Jerome McCarthy, the ‘Four Ps’ refers to the four factors that a marketer has to consider before launching a product or offering a service. The marketing mix comprises of Product, Price, Promotion and Placement. In McCarthy’s assessment, first and foremost comes the Product-its production and management; second, the process of fixing an affordable price; third, the promotion of the product which includes advertising, branding etc and finally fourth, the placement or distribution of the product, its retailing and the process by which it reaches the customer. All these four elements have to be decided and well planned before pitching into any product launch.

Segmentation- Categorize your audience:

In traditional marketing, the market is segmented into many subsets or segments depending on geographic, demographic, psycho graphic and behavioral variables. Each segment is homogenous and responds in a particular way to a particular marketing strategy. Small segments are considered as ‘niche’ markets or ’specialty’ markets. A product is aimed at a particular segment and is launched only after thorough market research and consumer research on the segment. This assures the marketer that he is not bungee jumping but walking safely and securely on a well-laid road. Hence a product that is not needed by that particular segment is not produced. This deep analysis of the target segment is called ‘depth segmentation’. While the study of the target customer’s behavioral traits, nature, lifestyle etc is called ‘Buyer’s Profile’. With all these the marketer draws a marketing plan, which is fully geared to reach the target consumer.

Other aspects:

Traditional marketing, unlike New Marketing, is Company-focused and product-based. It intends only to increase the visibility of the Company and its brand. The message conveyed to the customer is Company-controlled and motivated unlike in new marketing, which is Consumer-focused and attuned to consumer’s interests. The Company becomes the active participant while the consumer fades into the inactive and passive zone. A marketer, adopting the traditional method, will use his product’s USP (Unique Selling Proposition) to market it. USP is that unique feature which is exclusive to a particular product from a particular brand. With less number of competitors, USP-marketing is a very novel method. But in today’s world every other brand has all the features offered by its competitor. Hence the glamour of USP-marketing is fading away.

Advertising and Promotion:

Marketing plans and strategies finally end in advertising. For it is advertising which exposes the product to the world and places it in a platform for the target customer to view. It gives the product visibility and helps boosts its sales. Advertising, in general, can be classified into two trends: Above-the-line (ATL) and Below-the-line (BTL). ATL covers all the advertising done through media. BTL stands for all the promotions- public relations, sponsorships, merchandising etc. In traditional marketing mostly ATL is practiced. The following media are the ATL modes of advertising:

Print Medium: Newspapers, Magazines, Yellow Pages, Posters and Billboards.

TV & Radio: All kinds of TV and Radio spots

Other Communications: All kinds of mailers and leaflets

Traditional Marketing – Is it valid today?

When the world shifts gears and operates in a faster pace, it is advisable for us also to follow its lead and take up the trend. Traditional Marketing, say many market analysts, fails to work in today’s world. The brand recall is very minimal as the customer is exposed to a variety of brands. Moreover, as every other brand is as good as its competitor, there is no particular reason for the consumer to opt for a particular brand. That’s why today’s marketer aims at 360-degree marketing – an all round marketing strategy covering all the available modes and aimed at constant brand recall. This is where online marketing offer a lot of hope for the marketer as the web reaches out to the prospective buyer in a fastest pace possible. With all these around, the question of whether traditional marketing is valid today rises.

Maybe one can nullify this question by a few well-grounded answers: Traditional Marketing is adjudged as the best method according to a national survey conducted in 2005 in the U.S. jointly by Harris Interactive and Public Relations Society of America. As per the survey, most of the general public, Fortune 1000 businessmen and Congressional Staffers voted the traditional method of marketing as the best method. Though the year 2005 belongs to a dead past now, the statement by the reputed marketer Mr. Wilson will put an end to doubting queries: ” Traditional Marketing helps because people still view them”.

Jeff Blackwell is the founder of http://www.SalesPractice.com, an online Sales Training community that assists sales practitioners in mastering the art of sales by providing professional sales training resources including a collection of leading articles, sales script book, industry source book, and sales forum.

One of the very best things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. And what a pleasure it must be to be able to touch peoples lives and please them with our cooking.

Now gourmet cooking does not really mean complicated dishes presented with extravagant grandeur. The beauty of gourmet recipes is in their simplicity, their freshness and of course presentation. It incorporates creating a subtle balance of flavours and taking your guests on a culinary experience that they will never forget.

I know you may feel that that gourmet meals are beyond your reach, what with all the skill involved in preparing the food and the fast paced lifestyle that we are now resigned to follow. Where will you find the time to learn the art that is gourmet cooking and then to prepare meals that require such careful preparation and precision in the jam packed schedule that you have?

So here’s something that will make you feel a lot better. ITS NOT ALL THAT DIFFICULT!

Daunting as it may seem, gourmet cooking is essentially making use of the best possible ingredients, creating a dish that pleases your senses (even if it is as simple as mashed potatoes) and presenting it with flair. There is a history behind every dish waiting to be explored. Every corner of this world, every culture, every country has something new to contribute to your food adventure. And knowing and exploring this uniqueness of each cuisine, understanding the key ingredients of every dish and just experimenting and trying new recipes is what makes you a gourmet cook. It doesn’t have to be about complicated techniques, expensive ingredients and pretentious plating. Regional specialties cooked slowly with care and attention are gourmet cooking. When most food is fast food, slow food is gourmet food.

You can join a course to learn the basic skills, or refer cook-books that will offer a wide variety of content on techniques, skills and recipes, but in the end just like any other art form, gourmet cooking is instinctive. You just need to widen your horizon in term of your food experience and begin your culinary adventure that will last a lifetime. In the end cooking is about the heart. It’s about love and pleasing people. It’s about your passion for food. And eventually its all about YOU.

For more of Mishi’s recipe picks, cooking tips and food thoughts visit her blog at http://cooking-gourmet.com/

These days, when you are travelling down the highway, you always see a number of different restaurants or signs that are advertising different restaurants. Although some people do not want to admit it, dining out has become a big part of American life. It used to be when the man of the house came home, the wife had already prepared dinner and it was setting on the table ready for the family to eat. Now, dining has completely changed because now when the man of the house comes home, his wife may not even be home yet because she is at work, and if she is, she is more likely to say; let’s eat out tonight.

Dining in restaurants has become second nature when families or busy, or if they want to dress up and go out to a fancy dinner and a night on the town. It is easier to get dressed up and drive to a place where they prepare all of the food for you and just set it on the table for you to eat rather than sit at home for hours in the kitchen trying to make a meal. Even if a family does want to eat in the comfort of their own home, many restaurants offer takeout and delivery to their customers, where a person can come in and pick up the food and take it home or a person from the restaurant will deliver the food right to your front door.

It is also easy for families to do research on restaurants because there are many dining reviews of different establishments available online for anyone to see. These are done by critics who go to the restaurant and have a meal and then write about the positives and negatives on the restaurant so people can easily decide if they want to eat there or not.

Restaurants have also helped boost economies all over the world, often accounting for a big part of the country’s revenue. Corporations like McDonald’s have brought large economic increases and stabilization to different third world countries who have little to no revenue.

Although most people have not realized and just gone on with their regular routines, dining out has become a big part of the world, and people are eating less at home and more in an eating establishment.

For dining out guide, visit JP Pepperdine now.

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There are many avid skiers who grew up skiing as young children that make those adults new to skiing feel quite inept. Everyone has to learn, even if it is as a child. When thinking about learning how to snow ski, it is important to seek lessons with a reputable ski resort or well known private company that gives skiing lessons for a reasonable fee. Learning how to ski takes effort and practice, but with perseverance, you will be swishing the bunny slopes and aiming for the intermediate slopes in short order.

When learning how to snow ski, the best lessons are the ones given at one of the many reputable ski resorts. Snow skiing is their business and often the best of the best in ski instructors are on staff as such places. At ski resorts, you can choose from group ski lessons or private ski lessons. If funds and circumstances permit, learning how to snow ski through private lessons gives you plenty of one on one time with the instructor at hand to help in the practicing. Here are a few things you should look for in private snow skiing instruction:

• Do you prefer the instructor to be male or female? It does not mean you are discriminatory if you prefer a male or female instructor. It is important that you will be comfortable learning how to snow ski with the private instructor, so pick one that will put you at ease.
• Do you want to learn quickly and hit the slopes with abandon or would you prefer to take it slowly? Some instructors will teach you quickly, getting you out on the slopes safely but quickly as they stand by ready to assist. Other instructors spend more time getting you ready and practicing moves with you before ever hitting the slopes. Both ways can be effective and safe; it is a matter of your personal preference and bravado.
• Lastly, be sure to check and double check your ski instructor’s qualifications. While trusting the ski resort to have done so in hiring the instructors, it is still a good idea to ask when you seek to sign up for learning how to snow ski lessons. Knowing your private instructor is well qualified will help ease your fears as a beginning skier.

Learning how to snow ski is something many aspire to do, to enjoy the crisp cold air outdoors during the snowy winter season. Those who love the outdoors will find ways to be out in the fresh air no matter the season. With so many avid skiers and great resorts, skiing is a fun pastime in which to spend time with friends and family-and meet new fellow skiers as well.

Jonathan loves winter sports. During the winter he sometimes picks up a second job driving snow plow trucks to earn him the extra cash he needs for his ski resort ticket.

Runaway children are regarded as serious social problem. For runaway children, the main problem is family matters like neglecting children, physical or sexual abuse, family violence and family substance (drugs or alcohol) abuse. However, it is not always that children who runaway are from an abusive home, sometimes it is simply because they don’t like the life style and regulation of family or it becomes boring for them. These all problems lead children to depression, anxiety and at last hopelessness and forced to runaway from home. Runaway children are not bad but the decision they make is bad that they usually take quickly without thinking about the future consequences. Because runaway children are unable to face the pressure of the problem surrounding them and to escape from it, they run away from home.

It is also necessary to know that not a single child runs away from home without having contact with other person who has already had experience about running away from home. This kind of company influences more over the mind of child and when condition comes into the life that leads them to depression and anxiety, that time influence makes them to runaway from home.

Other reasons that can make a child to runaway from home are following:

Constant quarrels of parents causes child to feel insecure.

Sibling rivalry or arrival of new child.

Fear of physical danger for wrong doing.

Failure or fewer grades in examination or test paper.

To accompany a friend in distress.

All children are naturally insecure and immature emotionally as it is a part of growing process. Each day they become more secure when family is a close knit one with proper freedom for communication and to express their emotions. But if family fails to meet the love for children, children become unstable and try to escape from that atmosphere to get freedom. However, after running away from home, they feel completely lonely and without support of family. They feel guilt for running away from home and then decide to come back to home. Usually period of running away from home doesn’t remain for long time. But when it becomes habitual then it is advised to consult with psychiatrics for psychotherapy.

Runaway can be of four categories.

Running to children are those who are running from home in search of excitement of life like limitless pleasures, instant gratification and freedom. These children leaves home without any reason mentioned above.

Running from children are those who run away from home to escape from negative within home like physical and sexual abuse, financial hardship, neglect of alcoholic parents or stepparent. These children run away not to look for excitement of life but to look for a life that is tolerable. These children have no desire to return home to the same environment of neglecting parents.

Throw away children are not those who have run away from home because of their own desire or to escape from problem of family but they are forced to leave because of intense alienation with their family. These children are engaged more in antisocial works and criminal acts.

Forsaken children are those who are forced to leave the home because of inability of their family to support them financially and this kind is seen in the family with large number of members. These children have little or no emotional, social and economic support in family. These children feel themselves victimized and poor self-concepts.

Here we will be discussing causes, signs and symptoms related to psychological problems like depression, anxiety, drug addiction, etc. seen in runaway children. As we have already discussed above that children are emotionally immature and so they are sometime sad or depressed but it doesn’t mean that they have depression as disease. If symptoms persist two or more weeks and interfere with social life, school activities and family life, it can be said that a child may have depression. Usually, depression in children is diagnosed when there is evidence of change in behavior like anger or acting out. Depression in children has major symptoms like sadness, feeling of hopelessness and changes in mood. Sometime depression runs in family as genetical problem.

Signs and symptoms of depression can be as following:

Anger or irritability

Withdrawal of social life or activity

Persistent feeling of sadness and hopelessness or guilt

Feeling of rejection

Increased or decreased appetite

Insomnia (sleeplessness) or excessive sleep

Crying and or sudden outburst of inappropriate words

Fatigue or tiredness or low energy

Unable to concentrate in particular thing like study

Thoughts of death or suicide

Different complaints like stomachache, headache and these complaints are irresponsive to medicines.

Most children will manifest different symptoms at different time and mostly suffer from social life withdrawal, less interest in school activities or a change in appearance. Sometimes children suffering from depression may start alcohol, drugs or other things to get relief from stress especially when they are above 12 years. Children who have history of family violence, physical and sexual abuse and also suffer from depression are at risk for suicide. These children have unstable mood that makes them to runaway from home to be free from depressive thoughts and surroundings causing them to be depressed. When children runaway from home, they are not under the burden of certain regulations of the family and they are free to do anything especially drug addiction is the major problem in these children. They start to take drugs to calm their mind as treatment for anxiety and depression. After some period of time it turns into a habit that is drug addiction or abuse. At least half of children, who are drug addict, they are in depression, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress and other psychological problems.

Signs that may indicate about a child who is drug addict are of following but these are not limited to: change in friends, lying, stealing, long periods of staying away from home, problem with family relationship, confused and unable to understand or unconscious, drastic change in behavior and decreased school performance.

But symptoms of drug addiction are different depending on the drug being abused. However, some common symptoms can be seen like anxiety, depression (on drug withdrawal), instability of mood, nausea, vomiting, stomach cramp or diarrhea, tremor and hallucination. Some of them are seen on withdrawal of drug and some are seen at prolong use of drug.

When you find your child using drugs and alcohol, it is advised to act soon; longer the child abuses, there are high chances of addiction. Individual should be careful while holding child with drug abuse otherwise it may hurt their feelings and may runaway from home. It is better to consult with psychiatrist or to rehabilitation consultant.

There are many other consequences related to runaway as they need to survive and away from home they will do anything to survive from panhandling (begging) to prostitution and some get involve in drug supplying or pornographic movies. Due to these kinds of activities there are high chances of HIV infection, malnutrition, heart infection like infective endocarditis (especially in drug addicts who use injection for drug into veins), other sexually transmitted diseases, robbery and sexual assaults.

Some steps that can prevent or decrease chances of runaway are following:

Though, these steps are not working for all as it depends on the level of trust and they are only suggestions, these measures are preferred than a cure.

Never challenge to a child for runaway.

Never use negative feelings or thoughts toward child that may indicate that you do not respect child.

Never raise your voice when your child is raising voice.

Stay calm and quite, have eye contact and give no response when child is angry or shouting until child is calm.

Never interrupt when your child is saying or expressing something even though you are not ready to agree with them until he or she is done.

Never use negative words like liar, selfish, immature, childish, cruel, stupid etc. as these words will hurt them and make them to think worse about themselves and about you.

Never neglect them or scold when they are wrong but explain them in what way they were wrong and help them to correct their mistakes.

Never use any kind of drugs or alcohol in front of children as it may attract their thoughts toward it and make them to follow you even though you may not have thought.

Give children equal chance to speak and to express their opinion and if you are not agree, simply explain them what can be consequences for that and if you are agree, do not let them do what they want.

Get professional’s advice if your child is demanding and threatening that they should be allowed to do whatever they want.

Help your children to learn to be responsible for their deeds.

Protect your children from feeling of loneliness and isolation.

Make the situation where children are able to learn to take positive decisions.

Encourage your children to try to succeed even they fail to perform some activity or examination or test papers.

Seek counseling or treatment for any instability of emotion or mood (depression, anxiety etc) or change in behavior that may interfere with the social life.

Running away solves nothing and so many teens learn that they are not safer on streets than they were with their parents or guardian .Runaway children usually turn home after one or two days as they felt lack of economic and residential support. When they return home, it advised not to scold them or to be angry on them but receive them with love and have sympathy for them. Returned runaway children already have emotional trauma and feeling of guilt of running away from home. Ask gently what make them to run away, where they went, and so on to find out the mistake and to correct them explaining them difficulties that may come into their lives after running away from home. For such children who return home, the best treatment modality is TLC (tender loving care) and after sometime that trauma will heal and there won’t be any serious consequences.

But when this becomes habitual to runaway from home even in small matter, it is better to consult with mental health professional and help to evaluate the conflict they have. Or if there is any psychological problem like depression, it is advised to start medication with loving care and helps to change the atmosphere that makes them depressed. If it is because of drug addiction, it is advised to join rehabilitation programs.

It is always better to take preventive measures that may help to avoid unpleasant reality of running away from home and then to face the difficulties of this brutal world.

One simple way to help children to prevent runaway is to communicate, listen, help, understand and try to solve the problem.

Though runaway has become a serious problem, we as adults are able to control it by understanding the heart of children and giving them loving care. It is possible to change the way of thinking and behavior and emotion status of children while they are growing.

If you are looking more information about Runaway Children then feel free to visit Runaway Child

America is a mobile society. Extended families more often than not live hours or days away from each other, or if they do live close to each other, grandma or grandpa may still be in the workforce. Unlike 40 or 50 years ago, today’s parents are raising their children without much help from extended families. More households have both parents working or are headed by a single parent who works. How do these households find good childcare?

One option is to run a help wanted ad in the newspaper. This can be costly and time consuming. In addition to paying for the ad space in the paper, you will have to answer questions about the job on the phone, collect resumes, read through them and then interview potential candidates. Another option is asking friends to recommend a childcare provider to you. Or, you could answer ads in the newspaper advertising childcare services. All of these options require meeting with the prospective provider, but even at this point you cannot be sure that they are representing themselves truthfully unless you run a background check, which will also cost you money.

There is an easier, less costly, less time consuming way to find childcare. Thanks to the internet, childcare services have emerged to help solve the childcare problem. Childcare services act as a clearinghouse where childcare providers and families can connect.

Each childcare provider who signs up with the service completes a profile which includes a picture of the provider, availability, type of care provided (nanny, babysitter, au pair, last minute care, special needs care), experience with children, rate, age, gender, location and contact information. People looking for childcare can browse the providers and/or post a their own profile.

Information can be searched by zip code to locate providers who serve a given area. It is free to search and browse childcare providers, but the provider’s contact information will only be shown once the person searching for childcare becomes a paying member of the site. On becoming a paying member of the online childcare service, families gain access to provider contact information, can do free background checks through the service, as well as check the provider’s references.

Whether the childcare need is a live-in au pair, a regular babysitter or a babysitter who will take care of sick children, using an online childcare service streamlines the process of finding childcare and minimizes the risk for families and providers alike.

Are you looking for reliable & safe child care? For Mom-reviewed caregivers, FREE background checks, recorded references and job posting for sitters & nannies CLICK HERE! [http://childcaresearch.biz]

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What really makes a celebrity a true celebrity? Is it the news coverage? The pursuit of tabloids? Perhaps sheer popularity is what drives us to call movie stars, musicians, and politicians celebrities. If that is the case, are the non-traditional stars celebrities as well?

In order to find a satisfactory answer to this dilemma, one must look for a celebrity index. CelebrityContest.net has developed an algorithm to assign a value to a celebrity, much as stocks are assigned a monetary value in order for site visitors or members to build celebrity portfolio. The algorithm takes into consideration the amount and timing of news items pertaining to celebrities as well as the popularity of the celebrity as a portion of online portfolios. But does this adequately measure the amount of celebrity status an individual has achieved?

Celebrity

To determine this, we need to consider what celebrity actually means. The American Heritage Dictionary defines celebrity as “a famous person,” or “renown, fame.” That definition is very broad indeed. To be renown is to simply be well-known. Osama Bin Laden is well-known, but does not necessarily have the same following as Jessica Alba. By this definition, however, they are both celebrities.

Thus, to be a celebrity, one must be either famous or infamous, and the distinction is not relevant. By this same token, individuals who have developed a following in unconventional ways such as the internet or reality programming are certainly celebrities as well – albeit some have more global coverage than others. So to measure the amount of celebrity an individual has obtained, one would simply need to measure his or her popularity.

Measuring Popularity

Before the information age, to measure popularity would involve countless newspaper and magazine searches. Print resources as well as television and radio contained any and all celebrity news and gossip. With the advent of the internet, this changed, of course. In present times, the internet has not only opened countless doors to those aspiring to stardom, but has developed a multitude of news and gossip outlets as well.

Most of the conventional media outlets – magazines, newspapers, radio, and television have developed an online presence. Often these websites contain more information pertaining to celebrities than the original medium. Those interested in entertainment news now have almost countless methods to find the information they seek.

The fastest way to find information online, however, is through the search engines. Major search engines index all web pages and online news items as they are developed, and offer users a chance to hone in on the desired material. Searching for celebrities will pull up thousands, if not millions, of relevant results. It follows that by simply counting the number of searches and articles for each celebrity, one could understand the popularity of that individual.

Celebrity Contest

It seems the algorithm developed by CelebrityContest.net holds true. The algorithm assigns value to a celebrity based on the number and age of news items and searches, which is the best indicator of popularity. Of course, the algorithm also includes results from CelebrityContest.net, which are a valid indicator as well.

If a celebrity is popular, he or she will be included in many portfolios. If he is becoming blasé, he will be dropped from portfolios in favor of more popular individuals. If a celebrity is looking for a gauge of her own value, she can perform a complicated web analysis, or simply track her price changes on CelebrityContest.net to understand how her fan base is feeling. Of course, fans can search for the value of their favorite celebrity, and even cash in on the details only devoted fans are privy to – insider trading if you will.

celebrity. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved October 29, 2006, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/celebrity

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The Invention of Cable Television & Alternatives to Cable TV

There are many claims to the first CATV system, but only one thing is for certain; it originated in the United States and, according to one famous recollection, cable television had its beginning in 1948 in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania. Community antenna television, as it was then called, was invented by John and Margaret Walson out of a necessity to bring television to their customers. They owned The Service Electric Company, a company designed to sell, install, and repair appliances. When they started selling television sets in 1947 their Mahanoy City customers were reluctant to buy because of reception issues. This particular region of Pennsylvania had difficulties picking up the stations in nearby Philadelphia due to the mountains that surrounded them.

To solve this problem, Walson installed an antenna on a utility pole that he placed on a local mountain top. It allowed him to demonstrate that the televisions could pick up good broadcasts coming from some of the Philadelphia stations using modified signal boosters and cable to connect the antenna to his store. So, in 1948, he charged a small fee and connected the antenna to several of his customers’ homes as well, marking the beginning of the cable television business.

The early 1950s saw further development of the cable system. By then, the FCC had released its hold on a three year long freezing of new television station construction and had “assigned a nationwide television broadcasting plan”, leading to the fairly rapid development of new television stations. Department stores began to encourage television viewing by displaying several different models for sale. Of course, this meant that television antennas had to also be sold. At the time, each home or apartment required its own antenna, creating a somewhat unsightly “forest of antennas” on the roofs of some apartment buildings.

This prompted Milton Jerrold Shapp to create a system that used only one master antenna for an entire building. He did so using coaxial cable and signal boosters, enabling the cable to carry several signals at once. Not too long after that, another appliance store owner experiencing the same problem as that of the Walsons read about Mr Shapp’s system. Figuring that, if it could work for apartments and department stores, it could work for an entire town as well and he set up the first cable television system similar to how we know it today.

Because of Mr Shapp’s innovative new system, television spread like wild fire throughout the country, enabling remote and rural areas to receive a signal and “by 1952, 70 ‘cable’ systems served 14,000 subscribers nationwide”. But, of course, people would not remain content with allowing the cable system simply to be used as a means of providing better signal strength to rural areas.

Toward the end of the decade, cable operators began using technologies to pick up signals from stations hundreds of miles away, irreversibly changing the way the cable and television industry operated. This new found ability to import more signals from distant stations also allowed for more programming choices. Now, the cable systems that only allowed for three channels (one for each network) soon changed, allowing room for seven or more channels due to the fact that they could pick up programs from distant independent stations (2). This created more interest in cable as a provider for city television as well because of the variety in choices it allowed.

By the early 1960s there were nearly 800 cable network systems in business. Many of these cable network companies started expanding into multiple cities, causing the beginning of the multiple system operator (MSO). Yet, the local broadcasters were afraid of the competition that cable companies were creating so they asked the government to stop the importation of signals by cable companies. The freeze that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) placed on the importation of cable signals lasted until 1972.

In 1972 the service channels that people pay an extra premium for were started when Service Electric began to bill for Home Box Office (HBO). It had a minimal beginning with about a few hundred viewers the first night. However, it has become one of the largest pay cable services around. It is because of its success that so many others have followed.

In addition, the craving for more channels led the FCC to issue a rule in 1969 that required “all CATV systems with over 3500 subscribers to have facilities for local origination of programming by April 1, 1971″. Furthermore, in 1976, the FCC decided to require that new systems must have more than 20 channels to choose from and that cable providers that had more than 3500 must provide public channels for education as well as government access.

Thus, cable television has been divided into two different services: basic service and premium services. Basic cable generally includes the local television networks and a few other common channels that are not transmitted with any type of encryption method while premium channels scramble their signals. They include channels such as HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, and Starz and are generally paid for in various extra packages in addition to the basic service.

The fees for service, whether basic or premium, did not defer customers and by the 1980s the major three television networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) had all but lost their monopoly on viewers. “The era of network television” was coming to an end. Even other news networks began to emerge. “By 1985, 68% of all American households (60 million) had cable television service” . Cable News Network (CNN) first appeared on the scene in 1980.

With the emergence of all the new cable networks, cable television revolutionized the way Americans viewed television, and inspired many more changes yet to come. The invention of the VCR and, still later, the DVR would follow suit, yet again changing how American’s use their televisions.

In recent years technology has begun to produce alternatives to cable television. As internet content grows to out weigh what cable TV services can offer. Many people have begun to migrate from cable television to Internet television. (24% in the US, 40% either use Internet TV alone, or a combination of Cable and Internet TV together) Internet TV provides the user with an opportunity to view all their favorite programming, most commercial free, in High Definition and directly to the users television. Internet TV. Internet TV has the potential to replace cable television as the preferred method of home entertainment delivery.

Savings and selection are mentioned as the primary reasons to switch to a Cable TV alternative. The average monthly cable bill in the US is between one-hundred fifty and two-hundred dollars per month. Internet TV in comparison has a one time fee for the home component and no additional monthly viewing fees. Users who wish to use services like Netflix and Blockbuster online may now watch movies directly on their HD television. Internet TV does not bypass legal means of content delivery, you must still pay the fees associated licensing fee for movie rental sites like Netflix and Blockbuster.

Free Internet TV content currently licensed for viewing online in high definition. (Short list) All programming from the major television networks; ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, most cable networks (CNN, E!, etc) also broadcast their programming online for free. Some advance the broadcasts online before airing on their cable networks. Hulu, Fancast and Spreety are among a few providers available who collect all the legal content in one place for easy viewing by the user.

Join the Internet TV Revolution.
What is WhiteHatt?

Your Dog’s Nails

How to cut a dog’s nails is one of the most frequently asked question when it comes to grooming dogs.

Knowing how to cut a dog’s nails is so important and if you’re wondering how to trim a dog’s nails – you need look no further. As usual, we’ve done all the research for you and presented you with a step by step guide on this delicate procedure.

Knowing not only how, but also when to cut a dog’s nails is so important. Your dog’s nails grow constantly and how often they need to be clipped will depend on your dog’s lifestyle. If you dog does a lot of his walking on hard surfaces, he may very well need little or no extra help in keeping his nails short as his nails will be naturally worn away through friction.

However, if like our dogs, your dog mainly stays on grass, sea sand and woodland tracks, clipping dog nails becomes an essential part of his or her grooming and it becomes important that you know how to clip dog nails.

Not knowing how to cut a dog’s nails and failure in clipping dog nails will lead to crippling pain in your dog’s paws and could lead to permanent damage and malformation.

If clipping dog nails is really not your strong point, take your dog along to your vet or groomer. They know how to cut a dog’s nails – and it is amazing how much less of a prima donna your dog will be with total strangers!

When To Start

Dogs are often reluctant to have their nails clipped, therefore, starting the process at a very young age is a good idea.

Initially, get your dog accustomed to you simply holding and stroking their paws. Then progress to applying light pressure on their paws and nails – lightly pinching their nails between your finger and thumb. Reward them for allowing this.

Then, after a lesson from your vets in how to cut a dog’s nails, lightly trim a couple of nails a day. Just trim off the tips – this lessens the chances of you cutting too deep and frightening your dog off.

Talk to your dog in a soothing voice all the time and reward him with his favorite treat and a romp straight after. He will gradually grow accustomed to this unpleasant procedure and learn to at least put up with it.

Tools You Will Need

When you’re wondering about how to cut a dogs nails, there are a variety of nail clippers and trimmers on the market. The guillotine type is my favourite tool when trimming dog nails, though a strong claw cutter may be required for the bigger breeds and basset hounds – they have incredibly large claws!

Sometimes you may want to use a small file or a dremel tool to file down any jagged edges after trimming a dog nails, but frankly, my dogs can’t wait to get away from me, so I’m happy to let them round off any rough edges in the normal course of their everyday walks.

It is also advisable to keep a styptic pen handy just in case you clip into your dog’s quick – but we’ll discuss this later.

Anatomy Of A Dog’s Nail

Knowing how to cut dog’s nails is easier when you know the anatomy of a dog’s nail.

A dog’s nail is constructed of a hard outer cover, which protects the quick which is the inner soft part containing blood vessels and tender nerve endings. In dogs with light coloured nails, the quick can often been seen as being faintly pinkish in color and is thus easy to avoid cutting into.

In the more common black nailed variety, the quick it totally invisible. Therefore, knowing exactly how to cut a dog’s nails in this case is imperative. In these cases, trimming off little nibbles instead of large slices is more advisable.

Keep checking the clipped part of your dog’s nail and look out for a dark spot in the middle of the newly clipped area – this shows the start of the quick – do not cut too far into this. Taking just tiny nibbles, you will then start to see a pale third inner circle. Stop there – or else you are likely to hurt your dog.

Also, don’t forget your dog’s dew claws. Growing on the inside of his legs and not in contact with the floor, these do not get worn away and will sometimes curl completely over causing your dog to get snagged in undergrowth, his bedding, etc. This can be very painful, so do keep those neatly trimmed too.

Best Way Of Clipping Dog Nails

The best way how to cut a dog’s nails is to have the dog lying on a raised table or other surface. Do remember to put a non-slip mat for your dog to sit or stand on so she doesn’t slip and hurt herself. Having someone strong hold your dog in their arms while you quickly clip a couple of nails is another effective way of doing this.

However, your dog may be as good as gold and let you cut their claws with no fuss at all – in which case you are a very fortunate person!

Carefully read the instructions for the nail clipping tool of your choice. For example, with the guillotine, you need to cut from the underneath of your dog’s claw upwards. Never clip downwards.

Position the tool in the right place, wait for an opportune moment when your dog stops wriggling, double check that the clipper is in the right place and squeeze firmly and smoothly – the nail will just pop off.

When wondering when and how to cut dog’s nails, little and often is the best policy. Just nibbling off the ends of each claw will be less stressful for your dog – and yourself! The point to aim for is to trim off any bit that protrudes over your dog’s pad. Thus, when he stands, your dog’s claws should not touch the ground.

The good thing is, very much like our own nails, the more you trim your dog’s nails, the more the quick will recede. Therefore, clipping dog nails doesn’t have to be done all at once – take your time.

Oooops! You’ve Cut Into The Quick!

However experienced you are in knowing how to cut a dog’s nails, accidents will happen.

Clipping into the quick will cause your dog to yelp in pain – I hate it when that happens. And, just as would happen if you cut into your quick, a fair amount of bleeding will occur. As much as you try to not let this happen – it will at some stage – so it is best that you learn to deal with it.

Please, let me reassure you that it is not half as dramatic as it looks. Keep calm, deal with the situation and give your dog a big cuddle and his favorite treat when it is all over.

If learning how to cut a dog’s nails is all a bit much for you, take your dog to a groomer (some will even come to your home) to have her nails trimmed. It doesn’t cost very much and at least your dog wont hold it against you if her nails should accidentally be cut too deep!

If bleeding does occur, you have three options -

With years of experience in breeding, training and handling dogs, Marion Herbertson is first and foremost a dog lover. Visit [http://www.advice-on-pet-care-and-pet-product-supplies-online.com/Dog-Grooming.html] – for more of her practical, sometimes humourous advice on pet care.

“With public speaking, your audience will know if you didn’t rehearse.” Colleen Kettenhofen

All of us recognize that public speaking ranks among one of the greatest fears for most people. Whether speaking at a meeting or before a group of 400, many people get nervous just anticipating giving a presentation. A comment I frequently hear in my public speaking seminars is, “What’s the best way to overcome nervousness and gain confidence with public speaking?” Here are some proven secrets many great public speakers practice:

1. Your audience will know if you’re not prepared. They’ll pick up on subtle clues in your body language. 95% of your success is determined before the presentation. Rehearsing minimizes 75% of your nervousness. No one likes to rehearse. Instead, see if you can have a friend or colleague videotape you. Yes, I realize no one likes seeing themselves on video either! Still, the camera will be your most objective ally.

2. Once you’ve fine-tuned your presentation, rehearse and practice in front of family members, colleagues, friends, or a public speaking coach. Ask for honest feedback. What did they like most? What did they think of your energy level, passion and commitment to what you’re saying? What do they think could be improved? Also practice in front of a mirror. This will help you rehearse standing up and let you see what needs to be improved. The more you rehearse standing up, and the more familiar you become with your material, the more comfortable you will be with your public speaking. This one tip alone can dramatically improve public speaking skills.

3. Put your presentation as a “rough draft” on a micro cassette recorder. Listen to it while you’re driving to and from work, picking up the kids, or driving to the supermarket. I know what you’re thinking. “I don’t like how I sound on audio tape!” I realize that. But this is a convenient way to learn material quickly. Again, where do you sound convincing, passionate and interesting? What parts of your presentation do you think need work? The audio cassette recorder is another objective ally.

4. Visualize yourself giving a successful presentation. Better yet, if you know the exact room you’ll be speaking in visualize that, too. Olympic athletes practice visualization. It works for public speaking as well.

5. To improve public speaking skills, do a dress rehearsal. Before I conduct a keynote speech or breakout session at a conference, I take a peek inside the ballroom. If the room’s empty, I’ll go in and practice a “dry run.” This is something I try to do in full dress rehearsal mode. If the ballroom is being used until morning, I go in that morning.

Rehearsing in the exact room will give you an edge in feeling more comfortable and conquering fear of public speaking. This is one of the biggest public speaking secrets of many great public speakers. Guaranteed! If you’re usually presenting in small meetings or groups these same techniques work.

6. Are your notes and visual aids large enough print that you can see them standing up? Your notes should be “fast food for the eyes.” Never read your presentation. You’re the presenter. Your audience expects you to be the expert. You want that connection with them. A secret to effective public speaking is bonding with your audience through stories, activities, appropriate humor and understanding their needs ahead of time.

7. Stand up when speaking in public. Even if only three people attend, it sends a signal that says, “You’re so important that I’m going to stand even for the three of you.” According to a University of Minnesota study, when you stand in presenting your ideas, you are more believable, credible and persuasive.

8. Stand “center stage” when presenting your most important point. It grabs the audience’s attention. The rest of the time you can move around as long as you aren’t nervously pacing like a lion. Again, that’s where the videotaping helps!

Visual Aids and Public Speaking: Less is More

9. With public speaking and visual aids, less is more. Don’t use more than three or four colors per slide. Otherwise, people start focusing more on color and less on content. Use graphs for sales figures or sets of numbers showing a trend over a period of time. Graphs are pictures that increase retention and comprehension. No more than two or three lines on a graph. Use pie charts for market share, budgets, expenses analysis, income sources and the like.

10. Avoid slides with yellow, pink or orange print. They don’t show up well. Dark blue, black or any other dark color is better. White is okay with a darker background. Red stands for negatives like “danger,” or “warning.” Only use red to indicate problems, your competition, stopping or something similar.

11. Public speaking and eye contact: Approximately three to five seconds of eye contact per person with a small or medium sized group. Many public speakers make the mistake of using their visual aids AS their presentation. A key point in persuading your audience is establishing connection and credibility.

12. What if someone in your audience doesn’t like what you have to say because they don’t like the product or service you’re selling? Or what if you fear public speaking because you often have to deliver bad news? Know and research your audience ahead of time. What will be their biggest objections? THINK AHEAD when planning your presentation how you’re going to handle those issues.

13. Never lose emotional control. Often, these difficult people are trying to rattle your cage. They want control. And they want it in front of others. What if they continuously discount what you’re saying? Tactfully respond to them at first. After a while, say something like, “You bring up a good point, and yet, due to time constraints see me at the break and we’ll discuss that privately.” Your audience will be looking to see how you handle the situation.

“When speaking in public, you are your own best visual aid.” Colleen Kettenhofen

Colleen Kettenhofen is a speaker, workplace expert, & co-author of “The Masters of Success,” as featured on the Today Show, along with Ken Blanchard and Jack Canfield. For free articles, e-newsletter, or to order the book visit http://www.ColleenSpeaks.com Topics: leadership, managing people, difficult people, public speaking. Colleen is available for keynotes, breakout sessions and seminars. 1(800)323-0683 http://www.ColleenSpeaks.com

Wiper, the hybrid striped bass/white bass, is gaining a lot of popularity in fishing circles across Colorado and surrounding areas that have wiper fisheries. The greatest excitement is probably found among the relatively small circle of fly fishers who pursue them. Once you find these fish, fooling them with a fly is not difficult. The powerful fight that entails is something that will almost make you wonder why you’d fish for anything else.

Now, wiper are fairly mysterious fish and volumes have not been written on the subject of fishing for them. As with any type of fishing article, authors offer information based on their experiences, leaving the door wide open for an array of other tactics, insights, and opinions. It seems everyone I talk to about wiper have their own thoughts that have been formulated not by magazine articles and fishing shows, but from their own personal quests. This article is nothing different. I have put in many hours behind the reel searching for these steamrollers, and the following is a compilation of my experiences.

Fly fishing for wiper can be humbling, but if you get that one trip under your belt where you really get into them and figure them out, you will be hooked for life. Having these hybrid-vigor fueled fish tear line out of your hands is an amazing feeling, and we should consider ourselves lucky to have this fish available to us. It’s like saltwater fishing in the Rockies.

Wiper will eat forage fish about the width of the gape of their mouth, entitling this 6-inch shad to be dinner for the big boys.

Finding the fish:

The most important thing in any type of fishing is locating the fish. If you’re fishing trout in a river you look for pockets and runs of the right depth, size, and water speed. When smallmouth fishing in a lake, you look for certain structure and depth depending on the time of year, or you survey with your electronics. Whatever the scenario, if you find the spots where the living is easy and the food aplenty, you will find big fish.

It is often assumed wiper travel constantly and randomly around the lake in schools at generally high speeds picking off whatever food they come across. My thoughts are that this is partially correct. I have witnessed their schooling mentality and their speed of travel. One moment they will bust near the surface 50 yards to the east, and the next you will see them flashing underneath your boat and onto the west. But I don’t think it is completely random. Those frustrated by this thought, hang in there. This may not be an easy fish to locate, but I don’t think it’s a crap shot.

Every fish has some level of energy conservation written into their DNA. If they did not, they would exhaust themselves swimming about freely all day long. Think about trout in a river – the biggest fish will take the best spots where current is slight but carries plenty of oxygen and food so they can keep growing big and fat.

Wiper are no different. They have spots and patterns on each body of water that provide what they need – food. With little current to speak of in general, forage is the key. They are not so much like bass that they need cover and structure to ambush fish. They are more effective schooling and taking a team-based approach to feeding. The best example of this is when they corral baitfish to the surface, bay, or other type of trap so they can perform their signature “busting” feast.

Wind blowing into any structure makes that structure better. This complex has plenty to offer wiper, especially traps for schooling baitfish.

But what about when they are not busting baitfish near the surface? I believe they are doing similar things subsurface. Here’s where experience with a lake, knowing structure and water temperatures on the lake, and understanding wiper movement comes into play the most. Wiper like other fish will use underwater structure, edges if you will, as their highways. Perhaps it is a depth breakline, submerged road beds, rocks, sunken trees, or humps. Perhaps it’s a weed line, mud line, or inlet/outlet channel. Whatever it is, these edges define a path for them. These fish travel in a route consistent with edges and the availability of food.

The “available and abundant” theory expressed by a variety of authors is alive and well. Wherever there is an abundance of food that is highly available to predators, you will find fish. So is the case with wiper. However, don’t expect the schools to sit still in one area for long. Instead expect the schools to travel paths between or with abundant food sources. That’s right, I said “with.” Wiper are ravenous beasts. They have been known to decimate forage populations. They are living vacuums. In understanding this, definitely consider baitfish schools structure. Wiper almost certainly corral and follow schools of shad and other forage fish when abundantly present. One of the best indicators in finding wiper is prevailing wind. Always check the leeward side of a lake which may harbor schools of baitfish.

Chasing wiper around a lake is not often considered a smart thing to do. It wears out trolling motor batteries and may tear your heart out. Don’t get me wrong, I do it myself all the time – especially when the busting activity is moving slowly in semi-predictable fashion. I am not the type to sit in one spot and fish for hours even if it is the best choice. My only recommendation is to find a happy medium.

Surface water temperatures are one important piece of the puzzle that will help you find wipers. These temps combined with knowledge of the fish’s movement and preferred forage will provide a good starting point to finding wipers on any given day. In the spring as surface water temps approach the 50’s, wiper will become more and more active. Optimal temps are relative to a body of water and strain of fish, but in general the farther away you get from the optimal range for any fish, the lower their metabolism and thus the less they are compelled to eat and the slower their actions will be.

One of the reasons we put the Fish Explorer website together is to provide information that will help you find fish in individual water bodies. Our focus on water temperatures is not simply a novelty. If you understand how water temperatures affect fish on a particular lake, you are one step ahead of the game.

As wiper become more active in the early season, they reportedly go into a false-spawn. At lakes with active, accessible inlet streams at the right time of year, as Jackson Lake in northeast Colorado often experiences, wiper will actually run up the inlets as if spawning. In other places such as Union Reservoir, we have seen hordes of wiper stacked outside the inlet in a typical pre-spawn staging. It is also possible that these fish are relating to the shad that are in spawn mode. Whatever the reason for this activity, it would be a good place to check these inlet areas early in the season and any time of year, especially when the water is flowing.

Outlets are also a good place to scope out wipers any time of year, especially when the faucets are turned on. At Jackson Lake it was reported that several hundred wiper escaped into the outlet river, compelling officials to put in a screen downstream to capture the AWOL and return them to the reservoir.

In both of these cases, one thing is for sure – food organisms up and down the chain are drawn to these areas at any time of the year, which may prove to be enough draw to concentrate these ever-feeding fish.

When surface water temps are in the mid 50’s to mid 60’s wiper fishing seems to be the best in Colorado. They will be active in the upper column of water meaning they are more readily available and recognizable to the fly fisherman. The upper column feeding means that fish will be in the shallows, or they may be over deeper water but up high. During this period, you will also witness good wiper fishing all day, as opposed to the oft-assumed theory that wiper are only low-light feeders. I believe wiper feed all day just like trout in a river, because they inherently like to expend energy by swimming around and thus must eat accordingly.

Analyzing satellite images can help you determine lake structure. In this image of Jackson Lake you can easily see where the “flats” are versus the main basin, which may lead you to warmer water areas in the early-season.

As water temps rise, the fish will typically move deeper to more comfortable water. The temps are better, the forage thinks so too, and sunlight/UV rays will be more dispersed. This is the most difficult time to find wiper, and you really need to put your time in and get to know a lake for its structure and tendencies. Often experimentation and time on the water will be the primary key to your success. During these times you may find wiper moving back to the surface column at night, dawn, dusk, and very cloudy days. This is the typical low-light feeding scenario aforementioned. Wiper will still be feeding mid-day, just deeper. If you’re like most people and like to see fish in the upper column or in close to shorelines, fish the low-light times.

As fall approaches and water temps lower, wiper will move back into the upper column and you will again be greeted with more optimal fishing conditions. As is typical with most fish species, the pre-ice season turns wiper into ravenous beasts. They will feed heavily. Catching this period will often produce larger fish due to the fact the fish have been growing all season and are eager to eat whatever they can before they slow down for the winter.

Two thoughts come to mind at this point as I run out of ideas to express on how to find these fish: non-standard structure and rise identification. As Dick Pearson describes so well in his book “Muskies on the Shield”, structure is not necessarily always stationary and permanent like points, humps, and weeds. Often edges can be defined in less physical terms. Other edges you may consider are baitfish schools, wind current, and my favorite, carp pods.

If you see a swarm of seagulls or diving birds congregating in the middle of a lake, go over and check it out, you might find a nice school of baitfish that has drawn not only flying critters, but wiper as well. If there’s a good wind, look for current or places where the wind makes a “spot” a better “spot”. Examples are wind blown vegetation edges, a wind-blown point, or a saddle. Current will concentrate forage into certain areas and the wiper will be there.

Regarding carp pods – don’t overlook them. We have fished around carp pods and hooked really nice wiper. Stay as far away from the slow-moving mud-stirring pods as you can so not to spook them. Cast right over their edges and off further to the sides, but not right into them. Spooking them may break up the pod and in turn you may lose your structure. We will often fish bugger or crayfish patterns in this scenario, as we think the wiper are taking advantage of the plethora of food items being stirred up by the scrounging carp.

By rise identification, I mean being able to look at a fish breaking the surface and determining what kind of fish it is and what it is doing. One calm day on Union Reservoir, we were looking for wiper and having a tough go at it. There were rises all over the lake that we initially determined were trout or bass taking insects. As we studied the actions more thoroughly we began to notice a difference in rise forms. One type of rise was different than the others – it was more of a quick “pop” than a quick splash or slurp. Soon we discovered these somehow transferred into wiper – although we aren’t sure if they were wiper eating insects or small fish near the surface, or perhaps a school of shad that were semi-frequently slurping the top. We spent the rest of the trip looking for this rise form, quickly casting streamers into the vicinity, and hooking into several wiper.

Observation is key no matter what sort of fish you are going after. Continuously observe everything around you such as water temps, lake structure, bird activity, insect activity, barometric pressure, weather changes, wind direction, wind speed, your partner’s headache, and anything else that could play into the overall puzzle you are trying to solve. Even the smallest things may trigger a thought process that could lead to success.

First, bring binoculars with you. When you have a lot of water to cover, extending your eyesight could give you the edge. They are an invaluable tool on the water when trying to locate busting fish. If you see or hear some splashing on a distant shoreline, break out your binoculars and see if they’re spawning carp, shore birds, or really wiper crashing bait in shallow water. Scan over the lake to see if you can find any surface disturbance or any birds actively feeding. One day a pair of binoculars might be the difference between boom or bust.

Second, it should be mentioned that we don’t always find wiper in large, tight schools. We often see sporadic wiper spooked by the boat jetting away from the boat. I don’t think these are necessarily solo fish, but I don’t think they’re in large schools either. If you see this happen, take some time to fan-cast the area looking for more. Take note of where you saw the fish and come back later. And more importantly try to find some other spots that fit the same makeup where you saw the fish, paying attention to wind direction, structure, depth, etc.

Now on to actually fly fishing for wiper…

Presenting Flies to Wiper:

Presenting to wipers with a fly is not rocket science. Consider the fly and setup you use to be a tool. When you are fishing to wiper in the upper water column, present your fly there. When fishing to wiper down deep, present there.

The type of fly rod you use is determined by what you’re throwing. You will often want to cast far, so I’d recommend not going lighter than a 6wt rod. If you’re finding wiper relating to the surface you will want to throw poppers or high-riding streamers, therefore a 6wt is adequate with floating or short sink-tip lines. If you want to fish a few feet down, throwing a 150-grain RIO 24-foot sink tip is the ticket, and again a fast 6wt rod should do the trick. When you need to get deeper, say 5-10 feet deep, throwing a 200 or 250-grain RIO sink tip would do the trick and you will want to be using a 7wt or 8wt rod simply to be able to handle the heft of these lines. Go to a 300-500 grain line to get deeper, upgrading to a rod between an 8 and 10 weight to carry the load. With a well-made rod with some backbone, you should be able to play even the largest wipers available in the state.

Having a fly rod with a strong backbone is essential for landing the biggest wipers Colorado has to offer.

The main factor with what tippet to use is strength. I am not a firm believer in leader shyness when fishing streamers to stillwater fish. As long as you’re not using telephone cable and you’re not fishing super slow, I don’t think wipers will be deterred by your tippet. I will most often use 15-20 pound fluorocarbon tippet which for me has not broken off on a strike yet. The worst mistake you can make is to go too light and break off on a fish. I’ll use a couple of feet of 40-pound mono looped to a couple feet of 20-pound mono looped to the fluorocarbon tippet. So typically my entire leader is not much more than 6 feet long. However when I fish on or very near the surface, I will go longer.

When you’re fishing to wiper, you will want to vary your retrieve until you find what works best. Typically you cannot strip fast enough through busting schools. But often you will find that quick short strip-strip-strip-pause retrieves work better in other conditions and to well-fed wiper. Vary the pause length….you may be surprised to lose hold of your line as you look up to say something to your buddy on one of the pauses and a wiper grabs the suspended fly and turns at Mach 1 in the opposite direction. One thought that should play into your technique is the belief that some of the biggest wiper will sit below schools of shad, waiting for easy pickings. If you drop your fly through and under the baitfish school you may find a heavy surprise down below. Experiment every time you go out, the mood of the fish seems to change daily.

Bait size is a factor. In some studies on bass feeding, it is proven that fish in certain bodies at a given time of year will have a preferred bait size. For wiper, I have been told that they like to eat baitfish that are as long as the width of the gape of their mouth when open. Experiment with streamer sizes if you’re having trouble locating and hooking fish. If you’re fishing with a partner, start off the day fishing different colors and different sizes until one of you has more success than the other, then switch over to the hot bait. We have had success with streamers as short as one inch to streamers as long as six inches.

Which color fly to use is opening a huge can of worms. As my good friend and perennial fisherman Phil Small says, “If it ain’t chartreuse, it ain’t no use.” That often may be the case, although we fish chartreuse very often which may skew the numbers. One theory I believe in is contrast….to use a fly that is two-colored, often with a light and a dark. The reason this may be effective is that fish see colors differently throughout the day, and therefore may pick up on the contrast if one or both of the colors is less visible at the time. You may try to “match-the-hatch” or go with more of an attractor pattern….and either may work, but I do not know of any tried-and-true pattern that works every time all of the time. It took me a long time to believe in any color theories, but I now believe color has something to do with the equation. So again, experiment daily with color, determine if one pattern is working more so than another, and run with it.

These are some of my most commonly used flies when fishing for wiper. From top, l-r: A saltwater popper, perch-colored Rainy’s CF Baitfish Streamer – unweighted, a home-tied big clouser-style shad imitation, chartreuse/white clouser, another big shad imitation, a streamer weighted body with wrap-around lead, and my favorite crayfish/bugger pattern with twist-tail.

Whether you use weighted streamers or not is another item to experiment with. We have had success fishing very light flies, lead-head or clouser-type flies, and weighted-body flies. Clouser-type flies work very well when using the strip-pause retrieve and when fishing a little lower in the water column. Weightless flies seem to work better when fishing high and fast especially on a sink-tip…but don’t fail to experiment fishing very light flies on floating line quickly right in the surface film which gives an injured baitfish kind of look. You may also try fishing clouser-type flies on floating line to fish just under the surface. If you’re looking for fish down deep, sinking lines and heavy flies will allow you to cover more water quickly.

Whether to use a sparsely tied or a very hairy fly is yet another option that the wipers will help you decide. To give some guidance based on my observations, try sparser streamers in water with good clarity, and thicker, hairier streamers in discolored water or mudlines. Flies that produce more water disturbance as they’re retrieved will appeal better to the lateral line senses utilized more so by fish in darker waters. This is also the case for night fishing.

One area I have yet to experiment with greatly is the use of surface flies, namely poppers. Definitely give poppers a chance, especially in low-light conditions or in busting schools. Vary retrieves from a pop-pop pause, to ripping the popper through the surface film. The typical rule of thumb in top water presentation is to create just enough disturbance to attract fish. You’ll want to try fishing larger poppers that make more noise in choppy conditions, and smaller poppers in still conditions.

And do not forget flies other than streamers. As I mentioned before, we’ve caught plenty of wipers on bugger and crayfish patterns, especially around pods of carp when we were most inclined to throw them. The rule of abundant and available applies anytime you fish. If there’s an abundance of crayfish available to wiper, you better give it a shot. One way to know for sure what the fish are concentrating on is to look for undigested food coming out of a fish you’ve caught. One weekend fishing on Horsetooth Reservoir for smallmouth, we noticed a small orange chunk of crayfish spewed from the mouth of a bass we had on the hook next to the boat. It had been a tough day finding any smallies that day as we rotated between a variety of streamer patterns and retrieves. Truth is the smallies had turned onto the molting crayfish much like trout key in on insect hatches.

Presenting crayfish with a fly rod is not as easy as fishing a tube jig on a spin rod. You want to fish them slow and low, preferably in areas with various sized rip-rap and boulders, even ticking the rocks. Doing so will often lead to plenty of hang-ups and lost flies. To improve your efficiency, fish a short sink-tip line with crayfish patterns designed to ride hook-point-up. The best crayfish patterns are those that are tied more like a wooly bugger, with short or no pincers (chelae), and in a color leaning more towards orange/tan than dark brown. In studies that relate to this subject, smallmouth bass preferred softer molting crayfish over larger hard-shell crayfish, the former tending to be of lighter color.

The jury is still deliberating on whether fishing insect imitations to wiper is effective. I myself have not tried this one lick. Whenever I have found wiper smacking the surface in a manner that might suggest that they are eating insects, a streamer always did the trick. But, perhaps this is a technique to consider. I believe all fish eat insects at some time or another – and I would guess that wipers may do so more than one might think.

For slower fishing, and when letting our fly drop below shad schools, I like to go with a shinier and more active streamer like this sparkly clouser-style streamer.

The Battle:

The wiper fight is what you came for. These fish take a fly in what was described by Dennis McKinney’s DOW Outdoor’s Journal article “Wiper Watch” as a U-turn fashion, which I completely agree with. The initial take is a hard thump, as if they hit it going 30 MPH in the opposite direction. Setting the hook should not be a problem as they tend to hook themselves.

Getting the fish to the reel, meaning picking up all the slack so your reel drag is activated, is not difficult to do with wiper. They will typically take all the slack line at your feet out with them on the first run. Just make sure you’re not wrapped around your feet, bushes, or items in your boat before the strike. Doing so may bring the fight to an abrupt halt and will cost you about one fly.

The fight can vary, but typically they will make a very pronounced initial run followed by a rest period and subsequent sharp runs. Do not overplay the fish to the point it is exhausted, and do not try to net the fish so green that it will injure itself flailing about. Take advantage of their “rest periods” by turning their heads gently, pumping your rod, and reeling in line to bring them closer to you. Let them take drag when they want to run. Do not put too much pressure on the fish as you may wear a hole in their lip that will make escape much easier for them. And do not, by any means, give them slack line.

After a few runs, if the fish seems to be losing some steam, put more pressure on the fish to bring it to the net. Once landed, if you plan to release the fish, handle it gently, support its weight fully when lifted for a photo, and return it to the water promptly. I have had no problem reviving wiper when handled in this manner. We always fish barbless and have not lost any fish due to this factor alone (if we do lose a fish it’s typically our own fault for allowing slack.) I encourage barbless fishing for any type of fishing you may try…hooks are easier to get out of your skin when the inevitable occurs, the hooks set deeper, and as long as you keep your line taught I do not believe you will ever lose a fish due to barbless hooks. But you will lose fish to weak hooks, so use strong saltwater hooks for your wiper flies or they might come back as straight as an arrow.

Smaller Wiper can be “thumbed” out of the water, but if you plan to release the fish, be sure to support their full body and don’t leave them hanging by the lip.

In conclusion, if you have not hooked into a wiper on the fly, you’ve got to give it a shot. But be aware that it may turn you into a wiper junkie. Finding wipers is a majority of the battle, so concentrate your efforts there, and when you do find them get ready for a battle! These observations are only from my experiences and a lot is yet to be written on this subject.

Matt Snider is an author, fishing guide and the founder and CEO of FishExplorer.com, a leading Fishing Report and Information website.

Ok, you have mastered the standard cooking, are you ready to undertake some gourmet cooking? Are you ready master the art and intricacies of gourmet cooking? Do you have the patience to spend more time and more care on your cooking?

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Many people who specialize in gourmet cooking will visit and train in other countries. Not only is it fun to visit other countries, but it is fun to enhance your skills as a cook and it is rewarding.

You will have to pay attention to detail if you are going to specialize in this form of cooking. Many people who eat these more expensive and labor intensive meals are rather picky, and will tell you what they think of their meal.

Not only will you learn to cook the food correctly, but you will also learn presentation, this is vital for people to really enjoy their meals. You will have to have an eye of an artist as well as their creativity.

While cooking good standard meals is enriching, cooking good gourmet meals while demanding they are also truly rewarding. Ask yourself whether you have the patience and the desire to master gourmet cooking.

Richard McDuff has been selling on the internet for 7 years. He has a website on cooking at #1 Meals on a Budget