Design & Policy Support For Delivering Financial Awareness

Understanding how to manage money, use credit responsibly, maximize our investments and minimize our expenses is not something we do with a lot of enthusiasm. In fact it is a frequently avoided issue. If we are asked to rank taking informed financial decisions in our priority list, I am sure it will rank somewhere last in the list. Even though money is somewhere top in our importance list.

That's why; a workshop on financial literacy (where the Union Finance Minister was present along with Governor, RBI, and its Deputy Governors and the OECD Deputy Secretary-General Ambassador) was of interest to me.

You cannot argue against the need of spreading financial literacy. But I have a few basic questions that need to be answered at the planning stage for any policy:

How do we achieve greater financial literacy? How do we measure the success of the programs? How does a public policy on financial literacy help?

I did not attend the high profile workshop where issues like the above must have been discussed. However if I was asked to share my views on the subject, I would present those under two heads: One, Training Program design and two, Policy support.    

A.  Training Program Design:

The weaknesses of financial decision making are universal and afflict everyone. But the solution for me is different from the solution for you and is unique for everyone. That's why; designing the financial literacy training program is not an easy task. Remember that our money competencies do not just depend on our knowledge but also depends on our various skills and attitudes. For example, a Professor of Finance may know a lot about investing but doesn't have the risk appetite or an aptitude, may still be making bad financial decisions.

The program design will have the following elements.

1.  Identification of required knowledge, skills and attitudes to make better decisions.

To start with, we need to identify the best practices for good money management. The knowledge part may be easy to identify. But we also need to identify the money management skills like risk profiling and asset allocation decisions. We also need to articulate the attitude required for taking optimum financial decisions.

2.  Classification of target audience according to demographics as well as geographic classification

This can be done to understand the adult learner; design programs around personal preferences of learners;

3.  Identification of teaching techniques for various types of learners.

Individual learners have preferences for audio, visual and kinesthetic style of learnings and a combination of the styles. The training design need to factor the individual styles and build effective content.

4.  Design and use of activities, games, videos and case studies

Based on the three steps above, this is the crux of a good program. A lot of effort has to go into designing these activities, games, videos and case studies to make the learning interesting, useful and effective.

B.  Financial Literacy Policy support

The Government has an important role in policy formulation and providing a framework where the financial literacy efforts can take roots and prosper. Here's a starting list which can get this gigantic project off the ground:

Financial Literacy month: Let us have a widely celebrated Financial Literacy month to get started with. March is too late as it is the end of the financial year and April is the beginning. Can we have September as the Financial Awareness Month?   Competition for training program design: RBI and other Regulators like SEBI & IRDA do have a financial education portal. But as I mentioned earlier, a complete training programme needs to be designed for this purpose. Can we have a national level competition for the best training programme design among our talented HR Consultants and Trainers? Awards for best corporate implementing the training program: After the training program is ready, they need to be implemented across the country. It may be a good idea to involve the Corporates to help their employees make better financial decisions. After all, this may lead to better employee engagement for the Corporates. The Corporates who run the best financial literacy drive in their company can be recognized and rewarded. Awards for the best educational institute (schools, colleges, professional institutes) for implementing the training program. This will help in taking this topic more seriously by the educational institutes and get the students started on the learning trajectory. Awards for the best trainers imparting the financial awareness program will help in recognizing significant effort by the individual trainers. Empanel Trainers/Consultants/ NGOs: A directory can be created by the Government  about the NGOs, Trainers and Consultants who are willing to work in this area. Project Champion: Even when all of the above is put in ink, we need a passionate leader who can drive the change. He/She needs to have the full authority from the Government, be an able Administrator while being passionate about the project. Somebody like Nandan Nilekeni.

For implementing the financial literacy project, it is important to recognize the various stakeholders who can contribute in this gigantic project. And the Government will do well to empower them to do their best.

This is in continuation to my earlier post.

The Best of the Old Country: Ireland Guest Homes and Accommodations

Ireland is the perfect place to visit any time of the year. It is a land of history, mystery and of course, the best whisky in the world. Different activities are available for you around the country with one thing in common everywhere, excellent accommodations for the duration of your stay. Whether you want to see the modern or the historic Ireland, they surely know how to take care of you.

Budget is not a problem while traveling in Ireland; there are accommodations and activities for every budget and need. Guest Homes are one of the options tourists and visitors favor. They are mostly large country or city homes owned by nobles that have been modified and turned into small hotels. Most have them have between eight and twenty rooms, which permits them to serve and attend to all their guest's whims and desires.

Large bedrooms with huge fireplaces that once were used by the rich and famous of Ireland, today serve visitors and tourists. The buildings are all original and many are more than one hundred or two hundred years old. Expert engineers and designers have made it possible to keep the old beautiful constructions and have only added today's commodities. WI-FI is available everywhere, cable television, heaters and air conditioning units are discreetly hidden so they will not interfere with the historic grand designs.

Many of these are found in the country where you can enjoy the peace and quiet of farm life or in small towns and villages where you can sit with the locals before a glass of Irish whiskey and enjoy the tales of leprechauns and fairies. Beautiful sunsets over the ocean and the sounds of the breaking surf are free and always present. Ireland is a place of contrasts where you can go to a bar and enjoy modern music and share with the younger generations and two, three blocks away enter an Old Inn where you can sit with the older generations and talk about the weather and the wars.

There is a little of everything where ever you go, if you go east you find rivers and mountains where you can fish salmon and cook it yourself, if you go south you have beautiful beaches and amazing landscapes, north takes you to a cold water ocean that changes the coast line every day. Finally a trip west will take you through rolling hills besides the ocean where golf is played every day and Irish whisky is made for the world to enjoy.

A place where you can find accommodations fit for a king with spas and eighteen hole golf courses and rooms in an operating farm where you can get the healthiest and grandest breakfast you will ever eat. There is something for everyone to enjoy in Ireland and it can be done with a large or small budget, from rolling prairies to cliffs overlooking the ocean, Ireland has it all. Visitors are welcome all year round. The Irish are proud of their land and their history, they want to share it with you and with anybody else who cares to visit them and listen to their never ending stories.

So What Makes Good Recruitment Consultants?

Specialist recruitment consultants are:

For many businesses a specialist recruitment consultants are essential in order to help companies with their long term business goals. The quality specialist recruitment consultants will seek candidates for permanent and contract positions either within their local area or nationwide.

Specialist recruitment consultants offer

Agencies are able to offer great value to clients, adding great benefit to their business. Expert agencies will act as you internal human resources department and recruitment consultants we can help you with interviews.

Many will operate in a niche recruitment consultancy field that offer a forward thinking and innovative approach to recruitment and will offer longer term as well as immediate requirements for your business. When selecting a recruitment company you will need to assess the specialist skill you require and what distinguishes them from other recruitment agencies.

The recruitment company you instruct are specialist recruiters who specialise in a particular field, function or sector. Recruitment agencies are independent companies that specialise in matching the right job for the right candidate and should be available on hand for your support.

Specialist recruitment consultants are your outsourced human resources

All qualified consultants with general experience, resource and expert knowledge will not only help fill the position but also give advice on latest HR issues.

Professional consultants are highly skilled and have a wealth of information that can assist your company in all human resources and recruitment related matters.

Specialist recruitment consultants are capable client services in finding the right staff and can save you time and give your business with exposure to a particularly tricky and expensive task.

Candidates supplied by this specialist recruitment services should be pre-interviewed and a likely fit for your business and the agencies are extremely capable and are keen on developing an ongoing business relationship to fulfil jobs in the future and you have impending that a recruitment consultancy delivers every time.

Specialist recruitment companies could make your business money

Ensuring your recruit and sustain high quality staff is important because staff are normally the businesses highest cost and in the current economic climate it is key to make right decisions.

As the press keeps predicting there is a looming recession in the UK but like many industries in a recession the good ones survive and the weak ones disappear.

Title Loans Backed by Your Vehicle is a Good Instant Loan Option

Title loan is very famous among the residents of the UK as a loan for a short term. Add to this the instantaneous approval that borrowers can have, and title loans form the best available option.

A title loan is a secured loan with the title to the automobile serving as the collateral. The use of automobile as collateral is not limited to title loans itself. Many lenders accept the automobile as collateral to back the loan repayment. However, home reigns supreme in the preferred list of collaterals. Vehicle or automobile, which is considered a secondary asset in secured loans, is used specifically to back title loan repayments.

The loan provider retains the title to the vehicle and not the vehicle itself. The borrower thus has the freedom to use the vehicle in the manner he chooses, provided efforts are made continuously to keep the vehicle in good condition. A basic prerequisite for the loan is that the borrower must have a clear title to the loan. The borrower will be required to provide documents proving the ownership of the automobile at the time of approval of loans.

In regular loans, borrowers have to wait for several days for the loan to be approved. Title loans are different. Within 30 to 45 minutes of the application, you can find your title loan application fully processed. Thus, title loans are also used as instant loans.

Borrowers who are wearied of the large number of refusals will find title loans different. No credit check is required for the approval of Title Loans. Bad credit people will find these loans especially helpful because it is only in this loan that they will not be treated on dissimilar terms. Bad credit scores owing to County Court Judgements, Individual Voluntary Arrangement, etc. do not count much in the approval process. Title loans have a sizable positive effect on the credit status of the borrower.

For approval of title loans, a borrower needs to present his/her pay stub, four personal references, and a verifiable address proof. As soon as these documents are presented, the loan can be sanctioned for use.

As mentioned above, title loan is a short-term loan. The term of repayment may be about a month. Similar to other short-term loans, the rate of interest chargeable is very high. The annual rate percentage counts up to 300% - 900%. This is an expensively high rate of interest.

Inability to pay the title loan in the month it is due, will require payment along with interest. In the subsequent month, the borrower will have to pay double the amount that was actually due, plus the interest for the first month. This is because interest in the second month costs equal to the actual amount.

There is a fear of being trapped in title loans because of such an expensive rate of interest. For instance, if the borrower fails to pay the title loan in the specified repayment period and the following months repayment burden doubles, the borrower will choose to repay only the interest. This means that the principal is again carried over to the next month. Once again, the borrower will accrue an interest equal to the principal. This becomes a vicious cycle, making it difficult for borrower to extricate him/her out of the quagmire.

Borrowers can however, minimise the drawbacks of the title loan by discussing in detail the entire methodology of title loans. The various issues involved in title loans must also be discussed, especially the provisions related to expensive rates of interests. Borrowers must decide accordingly if the urgency of the need is dire enough to accede to such higher rates of interest.

Leaking Fuel Oil Tanks - Avoiding Costly Problems With Oil Spills and Leakage

The Dangers

A leaking fuel oil tank can become a serious fire and environmental hazard. Whether the tank is located inside or outside the home, a spill can contaminate groundwater affecting private wells or other nearby drinking water supplies.

One cup of fuel oil can contaminate enough water to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool, and in many cases hundreds of litres of oil seep into the ground before a spill is discovered.

Fuel oil that has spilled into a residential basement can also pose a serious health hazard, threatening indoor air quality.

Anyone who owns a fuel oil tank has a legal responsibility to properly maintain it and to clean up any spills or leaks that may occur. Homeowners are also responsible under the Environmental Protection Act for reporting any leak or spill from a tank that could cause property damage or health, safety or environmental problems.

Cleaning up a spill from a home heating oil tank is an expensive exercise. The removal of oil from a basement, or the cleanup of contaminated soil and water can often cost more than the property is worth, and damage may not be fully covered by the homeowner’s insurance.

Avoiding Problems

Having a tank installed only by a registered contractor and inspecting it regularly can help avoid the problems associated with oil spills and leakage.

Homeowners are required to ensure their tanks are CSA or ULC approved, properly installed and accessible for inspection.

Taking the following steps can help avoid problems and ensure safe usage of a fuel oil tank.

* Inspect tank at least once a year.

* Replace tank periodically.

* Empty any unused tanks

Inspecting an oil tank Typical 1000 litre fuel oil tank

1. Are the tank legs unstable or on a shaky foundation?

2. Are there any signs of rust, weeping, wet spots or dents on the tank?

3. Is the tank blackened at the low end, around the drain? (This may be an indication of water in the tank, and resultant corrosion inside the tank.

4. Are there any drips or signs of leakage around the fuel line, filter or valves?

5. Is there danger of snow or ice falling on the tank?

6. Is the vent clogged or restricted because of snow, ice or insect nests? (Screened vents can help prevent insect nest problems.)

7. Is the vent whistle silent when the tank is being filled? (Ask the fuel delivery person.)

8. Are there signs of leakage or spills around the fill pipe or vent pipe?

9. Is the fuel-level gauge cracked, stuck or frozen? Are there signs of oil around it?

10. If mounted outdoors, is the tank rated for outdoor use?

11. What is the age of the tank? (Not usually indicated until after 1998.)

REMEMBER THESE FUEL OIL FACTS

More than 40% of all oil spills reported annually are from domestic oil tanks at private homes. One cup of fuel oil can contaminate enough water to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool. Homeowner insurance may not cover all costs of a cleanup. Cleanup of contaminated soil and water can often cost more than a property is worth.

Handling spills and leaks

Homeowners should take the following steps as soon as a spill or leak is discovered.

a.) Eliminate all sources of ignition.

b.) Stop the leak, if it can be done without risk.

c.) Contact fuel oil supplier or heating contractor for assistance.

d.) Contain spilled oil using whatever materials are available (pails, rags, newspapers, peat moss, kitty litter, absorbant pads, sheets of plastic, etc.) Do not flush spilled oil or contaminated materials down the floor drain or sewer, nor into a septic system.

e.) Notify the Ontario Ministry of the Environment Spills Action Centre (SAC) if the spill causes or is likely to cause, adverse effects such as ground or surface water contamination, or damage to a neighbor's property. SAC provides 24-hour assistance for spill situations.

f.) Transfer any remaining oil from the leaking tank to a sound tank or other approved container, made of leak-proof material, such as a 45 gallon drum.

g.) Clean up spilled oil and any contaminated soild or materials and place in appropriate containers such as plastic pails and sturdy garbage bags. For large spills, a professional cleanup contractor may be required.

h.) Properly dispose of any recovered oil, contaminated soil and other contaminated materials and containers. Municipal works departments and the Ministry of the Environment can provide information on acceptable waste management practices.

i.) Homeowners should contact their insurance agent as soon as possible.

New regulations

When fully implemented, newly amended provincial regulations will ensure that fuel oil tanks are installed and inspected by licensed persons and tanks are replaced periodicall depending upon tank design.

Containment systems

Affordable and effective secondary containment to protect against leaking fuel oil tanks is available in the form of ULC approved geo-membrane bags, such as the S.Bag - a sort of oil tank diaper that will contain any spills during tank re-fuelling or from leaks.

Visit [http://www.sbag.web.com] to learn more about secondary containment retrofits.

Visit http://www.roth-canada.com to learn about double-wall heating oil storage tanks.

Visit http://www.tanktub.com to view decorative double-wall containment tubs.

For more information on residential fuel oil tanks and Ontario laws governing them, please contact:

Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA)

Fuels Safety Division

3300 Bloor St. W.

4th Floor, West Tower

Toronto, ON M8X 2X4

(416) 325-1615

http://www.tssa.org

To report spills or to obtain more information on spill cleanup procedures, please contact:

Ministry of the Environment

Spills Action Centre (SAC)

1-800-268-6060 (24-hours)

or (416) 325-3500

http://www.ene.gov.on.ca

In other provinces, check the government listings in the local telephone directory to locate the appropriate department. To obtain immediate assistance, contact your fuel supplier or heating contractor, or a licensed professional cleanup service.

Learn Street Magic - Voice Training

So, the best thing you can do for yourself is to get some training for your voice. You may doubt that voice training can be a great help, but have you ever tried it? Most people have no idea what voice training can accomplish. And most can improve their voice to an extent that they can be heard ten times as well! This is no exaggeration. One's voice really can be heard that much better given proper diction, breath control, projection and so on.

Most of us feel that our voices are fine, and this may be true for everyday purposes. Working in pandemonium, however, demands much more from our voices. My own voice is now far from perfect, but it was a lot better eighteen years ago and I have begun working on it again. If you have trouble competing with the band in the room or other sources of noise surrounding you, I urge you to take some voice lessons.

Provided that you have no physical problems and that you find a qualified voice-coach who is both medically and theatrically knowledgeable in what you need, you will gain a great tool. Take lessons weekly, train for half an hour a day and try your best. Then, after a maximum of two years you will be able to cope with the blasting rock band without stress or pain.

Look at voice experts, opera singers for example. Without amplification, they can sing and be heard over a complete orchestra, even when the musicians are playing full force! And they do not strain and damage their voices in the process. Their voices may become tired, but they are not hurt! Now, before you protest that most opera productions today use electronic amplification, consider those days when amplification was not there. It should also be noted that many opera companies today employ amplification for other technical reasons than to ensure that the singers are heard.

A few decades ago, amplification was not used, and the singers performed admirably. Those with trained voices can still do it. When dealing with the problem of being heard above noise, I strongly feel that you should avail yourself of professional assistance. Do not dismiss it without an honest try, simply because it may seem unlikely to help. Most people have no of what an enormous aid voice training can be. And you need not attain the perfection of an opera tenor or soprano, or put in the extensive training time such as artists do.

Circle of Assassins

A very unique, thought-provoking book and certainly not your every day mystery but one I will be thinking about for sometime.

An ad is placed in the paper entitled Revenge Is Sweet! The contact is A at a PO Box. After sorting through all the responses A comes up with five strangers that are willing to eliminate an unwanted person for another stranger. In return the assassin expects his unwanted person to be eliminated.

The members of the Circle are identified by the letters A, B, C, D, and E. Each person receives a color code as well as detailed instructions on various ways of committing murder, how to be sure you have covered your tracks, and how to make sure no one will discover your identity.

Each chapter is identified by a letter or in some instances a name. You will be reading the instructions given by A as well as details regarding each individual in their own words setting forth their reason for wanting to rid the world of one person.

There are also some before and after chapters which explain the murders feelings before they actually commit the crime and after the crime has been committed.

Victims actually speak to you, prior to their demise of course, regarding their feelings about their life and their friends and loved ones if they have any.

I took a different approach to this book than I normally do when I read a book. I took notes. I had a little note pad listing all the letters and the colors and the names as I found them out in reading the book. I noted who the victims would be under the appropriate letter and color. This was not very time consuming and took up one small page but I thought it really gave me a handle on what was going on and who was doing what and that there would be no surprises for me.

Wrong again! As I got to the end of the book I had one surprise after the other. Things that I didn't see coming even though I thought I had everything lined out.

I totally enjoyed this book and loved reading about the different killers as well as their victims. The killer's reaction after their event took place was a real eye opener.

The conclusion was stunning as far as I'm concerned. This is Tales From the Back Page No. 2. I no more than finished the last page until I ordered Who Gets The Apartment which is Tales From the Back Page No. 1. I understand that Steven Rigolosi will have a third book out in 2008 and I can't wait to order it.

Test Preparation: Busting Through Test Anxiety

Perhaps you are approaching your senior year in high school, narrowing down your choice of schools, filling out applications and signing up for the SAT test. Most likely you are planning to take it more than once. Did your stomach just do a flip-flop thinking about the test? Are you worried about it because so much rides on how well you do?

Unfortunately, the presence of anxiety literally does make us dumber! Anxiety is fear about a future event. When you are in a state of fear there is a carefully and automatically orchestrated series of events that occur in the body. Long ago it was needed to ensure a human's survival. Today it can be more of a hindrance for most of us because it is rare that our life is actually in danger. Unfortunately, our brain doesn't know the difference between an actual threat (a tiger chasing us) and a perceived threat (not doing well on the SAT test).

In layman's terms, here is what happens when we are in a state of fear. The fear causes the amygdala in your brain to send out the message that it is fight or flight time! Cortisol, a stress hormone, gets released in your body, digestion is disrupted, and your heart rate increases to deliver more blood to the muscles in preparation for fight or flight. Finally, and most importantly, the functioning of the prefrontal cortex is disrupted. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain responsible for, among other things, decision-making and problem-solving. It is vital to test taking yet superfluous during flight or flight. Your subconscious mind which is in charge of this intricate system of survival does not know whether it is an actual or perceived threat. It just knows you fear and it responds accordingly. Overcoming anxiety is an important factor for doing well on the test.

If the usual suggestions for dealing with anxiety aren't relieving it know that you are not alone. Often these suggestions cannot overcome the source of the problem because the source lies within the subconscious mind.

If you have had any previous negative experiences in your past with respect to "performing", perhaps during a recital, sports event, or public speaking, it is probably affecting you today. Your subconscious mind "remembers" events that caused you concern. From that moment forward it has been constantly scanning the environment looking for the same "clues" in order to protect you from experiencing this pain again. When it finds one you know it because you experience it as "worry". These experiences also cause us to have limiting beliefs such as: "I'm not a good test taker" or "I just know I'm not going to do well". Chances are theses beliefs are residing in your subconscious mind and no amount of positive affirmations or talking yourself out of them is going to help. Unlike our conscious mind, the subconscious mind cannot be talked "to".

Can the subconscious mind be reached? Fortunately in the last 20 years there are new stress reduction techniques that can be highly effective with many issues including test anxiety. They are easily learned, have the ability to access the subconscious mind, and have been scientifically proven to be effective. Once learned the individual has a stress reduction tool he or she can use to self manage stress wherever it may appear in life.

One of these, EFT, Emotional Freedom Technique, founded by a Stanford engineer, Gary Craig, utilizes meridians, the energy pathways within our bodies. You may know them if you have ever had acupuncture. Another technique, Psych-K, allows us to test for and change sabotaging beliefs residing in our subconscious mind to beliefs in support of our goals.

If test anxiety remains an issue for you, I encourage you to explore and learn about these techniques. Wouldn't it feel great to go into the test feeling calm and confident? Wouldn't it be fabulous if you knew you were going to do well? As Henry Ford said, "If you think you can do a thing or you think you can't do a thing, you're right."

by Renee Meyers, CPC, EFT Int-1