Home business Coaching Q&A: Creating a healthy and open working environment

Michael Heah June 1, 2012 1:00 am

--Uneasy Feeling

You read it well. Lack of conflict does not necessarily mean a healthy environment. When it appears smooth at the surface, it can mean many things: apathy, lack of commitment, boredom, fear to offend one another or even low self esteem of people who do not want to "rock the boat", etc. When conflict is not attended to, it can lead to (silent) resentment, lack of cooperation, lack of energy, avoidance of issues, indirect attack (or back biting) and later lead to violence.

The Bottom Line: The situation calls for a "change agent". You can be the champion of this cause. If possible, get a few accomplices who feel that the current situation needs a change. Meet and discuss with your colleagues on how to create an open environment. Look at major areas in the work environment where this can be done; for instance, at meetings, office communication, everyday dialogue and project work, etc. Agree on what every one of you will do in each of them. Continue to look for more areas where the change of culture can be slowly introduced.

Powerful Questions: What is the current situation like? What and where would you like to see changes? How can you be the champion to set up the right kind of office culture? Who can you rope into this Office Cultural Change Team?

--TAKING CHARGE TO MAKE THINGS HAPPEN

For almost 10 years now, our group human resource department has played the central role in the recruitment and training of our people in all our subsidiaries. Despite this, we feel that they are not doing a good job at it. We face long delays in getting vacancies filled up. Even when they are filled, the new recruits are short of the "quality" we are looking for. The consequence of this is falling workplace effectiveness and productivity, thus affecting the results we are looking for. How can we gear up the human resource department to do a better job in what they are supposed to do?

--Frustrated

Like everything in life, total dependence on something or somebody is not healthy. More so when everyone is depending on a single soul, which can be even more dismal. So the same is with your organisation for relying on the HR department to serve your needs!

See the rest here:
Coaching Q&A: Creating a healthy and open working environment

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITYNoIEeLDI

30-05-2012 20:50 Hello how are you I am on here to try to help everyone eat better and exercise If you need any help with that email me please do not forget to eat raw organic fruit focusing on the fruit vegetable especially dark leafy greens nuts and seeds and exercise two hours or two miles a day everyday huge hugs remember you are loved huge hugs dedicating all my videos to my mom who passed on to Heaven April 24, 2012 She will be enormously missed

See original here:
June-Marie Raw Food and Fitness Health Just a bunch of ironing

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/mjfgzm/icon_health_and_fi) has announced the addition of Canadean Ltd's new company profile "ICON Health & Fitness, Inc.: Consumer Packaged Goods Company Profile, SWOT Report" to their offering.

Canadean's "ICON Health & Fitness, Inc.: Consumer Packaged Goods Company Profile, SWOT Report" report utilizes a wide range of primary and secondary sources, which are analyzed and presented in a consistent and easily accessible format. Canadean strictly follows a standardized research methodology to ensure high levels of data quality and these characteristics guarantee a unique report.

Scope

- Examines and identifies key information and issues about "ICON Health & Fitness, Inc." for business intelligence requirements.

- Studies and presents the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities (growth potential) and threats (competition). Strategic and operational business information is objectively reported.

- The profile also contains information on business operations, company history, major products and services, prospects, key employees, locations and subsidiaries.

ReasonsToBuy

- Quickly enhance your understanding of "ICON Health & Fitness, Inc."

- Gain insight into the marketplace and a better understanding of internal and external factors which could impact the industry.

Read the original post:
Research and Markets: ICON Health & Fitness, Inc.: Consumer Packaged Goods Company Profile, SWOT Report - 2012

Amid all the gloom and doom about forced retirement, skyrocketing healthcare costs and nest egg-cracking financial markets, there's another threat facing baby boomers: future tax liabilities.

The generation that has depended solely on 401(k)s and tax-deferred individual retirement accounts may not realize how much of a tax hit it will take when it starts withdrawing the money and living on it.

With the prospect of rising tax rates after the Bush tax cuts expire, some retirees could find themselves paying even more in taxes than they did when they were working. "It continues to surprise our clients that taxes are that big of an expense in retirement," says Mark Davis of SunTrust Investment Services, Inc.

He estimates that clients who optimize retirement withdrawals to minimize their taxes can end up with as much as 33 percent more to spend in retirement years than they would if they ignored the impact of taxes.

How to do that? Here are a few options.

-- Build a tax-diversified portfolio going in. If all your savings are locked away in a 401(k) or tax-deferred IRA, you will end up paying income taxes on all your withdrawals. It's better to have other accounts to pull money out of.

To really optimize your post-retirement withdrawals to minimize taxes, it would be good to have a tax-deferred account, a tax-free account (such as a Roth IRA or a healthcare savings account) and a regular taxable investment account. You can use the taxable account to take capital losses as they occur, and to keep income taxed at lower capital gains and dividend rates.

-- Consider taxes as you decide when to start your Social Security benefits. That's a complex consideration, so it's best to have an expert with a spreadsheet help you. The basic issue is this: Many advisers recommend that you delay starting your benefits as long as possible, to maximize the monthly payments you'll ultimately receive. But if you have to withdraw money from a tax-deferred account to live on while you're waiting to start Social Security, that could backfire. If your combined marginal state and local tax rate is 35 percent, and you're deferring $20,000 in Social Security, that could conceivably cost you as much as $7,000 a year to defer those benefits.

-- Know your limits. It's good to know your tax bracket and whether or not you are on the verge of being in a higher or lower bracket. For example, the 25 percent federal tax bracket starts at $35,350 in income ($70,700 for couples filing jointly)and runs all the way up to $85,650 for single filers and $142,700 for joint filers. If you have multiple accounts, you can finesse your withdrawals to keep your marginal income below a bracket line.

-- Don't forget Social Security taxes. It is likely, though not certain, that you will have to include a portion of your Social Security benefits into your taxable income. If your income, including 50 percent of your benefits, exceeds $25,000 for singles or $32,000 for couples, then half of your benefits will be taxable. Once that figure exceeds $34,000 for singles and $44,000 for couples, 85 percent of your benefits would be taxable. That means you could end up giving back as much as 21 cents in taxes for every dollar in benefits you collect.

More:
Stern Advice: Tax apocalypse in your retirement account

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q4XnKAu1xk

30-05-2012 08:05 this is my personal performance of belly dance. I feel a little gypsy! The costume was designed by me and also the choreography. I hope you like it!

View post:
My belly gipsy - Video

WESTFIELD, NJ--(Marketwire -05/31/12)- American Athlete Magazine, which launched its premiere issue in early March, has quickly gained popularity among athletes and industry professionals to become one of the dominant digital sports and fitness publications in the United States. Issue 1.2 London Olympics Edition continues the magazine's mission of Mind, Body and Spirit by exploring elements common across all competitive sports: improving strength and endurance, developing positive nutrition and conditioning habits, building mental toughness, preparing for game time and learning to live with personal performance results.

The cover story, "Heart of Gold" features Magic Johnson who reflects on his Olympic experiences and giving back to the community by having his success drive the success of others. American Athlete Magazine shows what it is like, and what is required to compete at the most challenging levels by presenting the true portraits of athletes like Johnson so readers can achieve their personal sports and fitness goals.

Other features in Issue 1.2 of American Athlete Magazine include:

David Fink, founder and publisher of American Athlete Magazine shares, "We are extremely excited and pleased with the response from our premiere issue -- and what seems to be a product that is filling a void in the sports and fitness industry by bringing athletes the content they desire through an unprecedented interactive experience."

Lead sponsors for Issue 1.2 include Parisi Speed School and Nogii gluten-free protein bars from Europa. American Athlete Magazine Issue 1.2 is free to download in the Apple App Store and Newsstand from an iPad. American Athlete Magazine continues to educate, entertain and inspire readers to become their personal best -- with two issues released and a rapid download rate, Fink adds, "We're confident that American Athlete Magazine will continue to have a tremendous impact on the fast-growing network of sports and fitness communities."

More information about American Athlete Magazine can be found via its active social media presence on Facebook (www.facebook.com/americanathletemag) and Twitter (@aathletemag). The American Athlete Magazine media kit is available through the American Athlete Community Site at http://www.americanathletemag.com. For more information, call (800) 310-8250 or e-mail info@americanathletemag.com.

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=1998736

See original here:
American Athlete Magazine Issue 1.2 Released in App Store and Newsstand for iPad -- London Olympics Edition Featuring ...

By Andrs Cardenal - May 31, 2012 | Tickers: ITW, KMT, NUE, TKR, X | 0 Comments

Andrs is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.

These are not easy times for companies in the industrial or steel sector. The economic crisis in Europe and the slowdown in China are producing lackluster demand for many firms in the industry. However, you couldnt tell that by looking at the financial and operating performance of The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR) which reported better than expected results over the last quarters.

The company supplies anti-friction and power transmission components to an ample variety of industrial clients. Its products are used to reduce frictions in planes, trains and automobiles. Timken is also in the steel business, manufacturing specialty alloy steel bars, tubes and precision components. Although the company is quite diversified, we could say that its markets are also very exposed to the economic cycle, and for that reason it sounds reasonable to expect some weakness in times of economic uncertainty.

But that is not the case at all: In fact, Timken reported record earnings per share for the last quarter, and also increased guidance for the rest of the year. Management sounds quite optimistic about performance in the following months, form the press release:

Our record performance, as well as our confidence in our improved full-year earnings outlook, stand as further testimony to the companys ability to execute at a structurally higher level of performance, said James W. Griffith, Timken president and chief executive officer. Around the globe, our company is operating very well, leveraging momentum we see in our target markets, earning new business through our expanded product and services portfolio, and successfully driving those gains to the bottom line.

The last quarter was not an isolated event; Timken has a solid track record at performing better than estimated by Wall Street analysts and last year was another historical record in terms of sales and earnings, fully recovering from the last recession and challenging the adverse economic scenario.

Management has been moving away from low margin operations and into businesses with higher profitability. In 2009 for example, Timken sold its needle roller bearings business to JTEKT for $330 million reducing its presence in the light vehicle market. From 2007 to 2011 Timken has made several acquisitions in the aerospace and industrial sectors, and those deals have provided the basis for above average performance in the current environment.

Read the original:
A High Quality Industrial Company

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The following interview appeared in the June-July edition of The New Europe magazine:

In the current economic climate the importance of working with a financial advisor has taken renewed importance.

Davos Financial Group is an independent advisor offering clients a universal range of products and services to make safe and transparent investment. The New Europe spoke to the Wealth Management team, David Osio (CEO), Gustavo Rivas (VP Asset Management) and Leopoldo Martinez (Davos Consulting), to find out more about the Davos methodology and strategic approach.

The New Europe: How can the risk management strategies Davos Financial Group provides enable clients to mitigate risk in their investment choices?

Davos Financial: The risk management model provided by Davos Financial Group guarantees transparency and a differentiating factor based on diversification and optimisation of investment strategies. This model evaluates return on investment expectations in terms of customers' interests. Based on different portfolio limitations, placement of financial assets can be made either with the highest return expectations or with the minimum risk levels, utilising a universal range of products and services available in the current financial market. Additional to this main advantage, Davos Financial Group, also enables clients to consolidate the appraisals of multiple investment portfolios, providing a unique, complete and exact understanding of the current financial summary of the placement of their financial assets. The diversifications, optimisation and consolidation factors also assist our clients in structuring a professional decision-making platform including: 1) Advise in the preparation of strategic investment models by using structured scenarios with the widest range of asset types. 2) Assistance in the active/passive decision-making process as well as in the definition of protection policies for currency fluctuations.

TNE: Davos Financial Group has a well-established international presence. How can the service you provide benefit high-net worth clients who wish to expand their business operations internationally?

DF: The international presence allows our customers to network in different jurisdictions, structuring their business under a legal and financial umbrella that ensures the efficiency of its results according to the different locations where we are providing all our services. Davos Financial Group assists to take a step forward toward what may be the international expansion of the business of any client.

TNE: How can the Trust services Davos Financial Group provides, enable more efficient estate and tax planning for clients?

DF: Davos Financial Group, through its subsidiary company Davos Trust Limited, can provide Trustee Services under New Zealand Foreign Trust Law. Among several tax and estate planning advantages, these services allow our clients to control assets or companies situated in different jurisdictions around the world while providing a tax efficient asset protection and planned succession mechanism, with all the advantages offered by New Zealand favourable tax treatment of foreign trusts, and its Tax Treaties Network. According to New Zealand Law, a foreign trust will not be taxed on income or gains of foreign source, nor will it be subject to estate taxes. On the other hand, with appropriate structuring, the trustee will qualify under most limitations of benefit provisions provided by the OECD Model Tax Treaties.

See more here:
Davos Financial: The Personal Touch – Interview in The New Europe Magazine

The Texas Space Alliance proudly congratulates SpaceX and their partners at NASA for achieving a true first in the history of the space program over the past seven days. The successful launch on May 25, 2012 will forever mark entry into a brave new world, and the evolution of the private commercial space world into the workings of US and government space activities.

"With the subsequent successful capture and mating of the Dragon vehicle to the ISS, the U.S. once again leads the world in space, by showing how the commercial space world can be a reliable partner, beyond the traditional government contractor mold, to deliver goods and services in space that government paid efforts alone can no longer easily fund," said Wayne Rast, TXA Policy Director. "Today's successful reentry and return of the Dragon vehicle showcases SpaceX as a proven leader of this new industry."

But the benefits to taxpayers and the public at large are much greater. With limited funds for government programs for the foreseeable future, routine operations can longer be the province of government only spending, else NASA and other government space programs will never have the funds available to do what government's role should always be: to push the frontier in space, and spend limited funds to go boldly, explore, and discover. Except for the ISS and some unique satellites, government province in space should now routinely look out beyond LEO.

All this was made possible beginning today with SpaceX, and this new model for business. "It won't end there, but it was a remarkable beginning, and we should be proud, especially those of us that have worked at NASA and its contractor community for many years," said Rast. "This brave new world will likely also have its hiccups somewhere down the line. But all of us alive today can say that we were all there for the beginning. And what a beginning it was."

"Thank you, SpaceX, from all of us here in Texas. The Texas Space Alliance looks forward to your remarkable success becoming routine success as quickly as possible, and to having you become an integral part of the state which owns so much human spaceflight knowledge," said Bob Lancaster, TXA President.

The TXA also looks forward to building on the great work done by Gov. Perry and his team, helping SpaceX in their efforts to expand operations here with a commercial space launch facility. SpaceX and Texas; a pairing that destiny demands.

The Texas Space Alliance is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization of Texans who are fighting for Texas to move urgently and decisively to become a Space State, home to a new space industry including manufacturing, research and space flight, with Texas as a center of space exploration and science for the world. For more information on this issue, the TXA, our Texas Space Plan, or to become a personal or corporate member, please see the Texas Space Alliance website - TexasSpaceAlliance.org

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

See original here:
Mission Accomplished! - Congratulations to SpaceX for Historic Success Opens New Door to the Future

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire -05/31/12)- In a keynote luncheon speech to the Vancouver Board of Trade, Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) president Terry Campbell today discussed how banks have contributed to B.C.'s economic success.

He highlighted the central role that banks have played in financing some of B.C.'s growth: "Last year in B.C. alone, banks authorized $12 billion to the construction industry, almost $7.4 billion to manufacturing, $4.4 billion to mining, quarrying and oil wells, and $3.4 billion to agriculture. If you take small and medium-sized enterprises as a whole, bank lending totalled almost $12 billion in this province alone."

"Put simply, banking customers in British Columbia and across Canada are best served by strong and profitable banks, and that is best achieved when we get the balance right between regulation on the one hand and innovation and competitiveness on the other," said Mr. Campbell.

Maintain B.C.'s Competitive Taxation Regime

Mr. Campbell commended the B.C. government's decision in recent years to eliminate capital taxes and reduce corporate and personal income tax rates to make B.C. more attractive to businesses, which helps strengthen B.C.'s economy. He cautioned against any changes to B.C.'s competitive taxation regime that could hurt the province's productivity.

"Unfortunately, we're seeing some troubling trends in some provinces, and calls from some people in B.C., when it comes to taxing the capital of financial institutions - something that is both perverse and counter-productive for the growth of the economy," said Mr. Campbell. "Perverse because banks are required to have large amounts of capital for safety and soundness reasons, and it doesn't make sense to tax what is needed for prudential reasons. Counter-productive because capital supports lending and when you tax away capital you are reducing the availability of credit to other sectors of the economy."

The Continued Need for a National Securities Regulator

Mr. Campbell also discussed the continued need for a national securities regulator and Ottawa's evolving approach to securities regulation following the Supreme Court of Canada ruling last December.

"Ottawa's approach to securities regulation is evolving given the Supreme Court of Canada's opinion of last December," he noted. "We know that your government has been an active participant in the project, and we commend the government for that. We encourage them, along with all other provincial and territorial governments, to continue to work with the federal government to develop a common securities regulatory regime that has the capacity to support fair and competitive markets for all Canadians."

Strong Banks, Effective Regulation and Supervision

Read more from the original source:
CBA President Praises B.C.'s Economic Success and How Strong Banks Contribute to the Economy