Did you wear clothes to your last job interview? Silly question, right? As unthinkable as it would be to arrive nude to an interview, you are essentially committing the same faux pas when you send your resume to a potential employer unaccompanied by a well-written cover letter.

Three Indisputable Truths About Cover Letters

Whether we’re talking about a cover letter or your best interview suit, three indisputable truths apply.

First, like a good interview suit, a cover letter is essential. At some point in your life before you embarked on your career, a wise person advised you to purchase a quality business suit. And you did just that. Somewhere in your closet hangs the black, navy blue, or gray suit you’ve reserved for your interviews. No employer needs to tell a rational candidate that professional dress is expected for the interview. Even in creative industries, it is understood that the candidate should wear a business suit, although more latitude is given for color and style choices than in traditionally conservative fields. Similarly, unless the job announcement indicates otherwise, a potential employer expects that the applicant will provide a cover letter. Although the announcement may not explicitly state that a cover letter is preferred, it is always good practice to include one if for no other reason than to demonstrate how effectively you can communicate your ideas and thoughts in writing.

Second, a cover letter complements your resume. One goal of any interview is to project a confident demeanor and a polished appearance. In preparation for your interview, you’ll have your suit dry cleaned, the hems mended, and any loose buttons secured. You may also starch your shirt or blouse and polish your shoes. To complete your ensemble you’ll carefully select the perfect accessory, perhaps a gold watch, pearl necklace, or leather attache´. Just as the right accent piece can enhance your interview attire, so, too, can a well-written cover letter add to the attractiveness of your resume. When you lay out your wardrobe for your upcoming interview, you would not plan to wear two shirts, two suit jackets, and two pair of pants. Likewise, your cover letter should not merely be a duplication of the information included in your resume. Think of your cover letter as the finishing brushstrokes on a painting masterpiece.

Third, a cover letter is tailored. Your interview suit is tailored to fit you perfectly. The pants are neither too short nor are the jacket sleeves too long. You could lend your suit to a friend, but it wouldn’t look nearly as wonderful on him or her because it has been tailored for you. In like manner, the most effective cover letters don’t read as though they could fit any and every position. Instead, they are individualized to fit the specific position for which the applicant is applying. In other words, if you are submitting your resume for ten different positions, you need to write ten different cover letters. Nothing signals a questionable work ethic more to a potential employer than receiving a generic, cookie cutter cover letter where it appears the applicant did little more than change the date and cut and paste the addressee’s contact information.

The COVER Formula to Writing a Cover Letter

Writing the perfect cover letter doesn’t have to be an ordeal. In fact, it can be as easy as spelling C-O-V-E-R. COVER is an acronym for a five-step paragraph-by-paragraph approach you can use to write an effective cover letter. Over the next few pages, I will show you how you can use the COVER formula and the announcement for the position for which you are applying as a handy guide to craft the perfect complement to your resume.

To illustrate how this works, we’ll use an actual job announcement that was recently posted on a popular online job site. The entry level position was for a human resources assistant at an Atlanta consulting company that, for purposes of this article, we’ll refer to as ABC Consulting. Assume you’ve read the job announcement and wish to apply for the position. Your resume is ready. Now, let’s write the cover letter!

Step One: Cultivate a CONNECTION in the first paragraph. The C in the COVER formula stands for connection. Step one in creating the perfect cover letter is to establish a connection in the first paragraph. When you are introduced to someone, you engage in conversation to get to know the person better and discover what the two of you have in common. The same principle holds true when cultivating an authentic connection with a potential employer.

To build a connection with an employer, you need to conduct what I call intelligence. Intelligence is conducted on three distinct levels: (1) the company or organization at which you would be working; (2) the specific department or division in which you would be working; and (3) the individual(s) for whom you would be working. Doing your homework on a prospective employer serves a dual purpose. First, educating yourself about a company will help you better assess if the company’s mission, values, and culture are compatible with your own goals and working style. Second, if you decide there is a good fit, the person reading your cover letter or sitting across the desk from you during the interview will be impressed that you took the initiatve to investigate the company for which you aspire to work. I suggest creating a file (as simple as a manila folder) for each company you research where you can organize your notes, store your printouts, and save your correspondence. This way all your vital information will be in one place for quick reference and easy retrieval later.

Let’s return to the sample job announcement posted by ABC Consulting. Here is the basic job description for the position:

“ABC Consulting located in downtown Atlanta, GA is currently seeking a professional, bright, savvy, and hard working Human Resource Assistant for our corporate office. If you are a bright individual who is seeking to work in the HR field in a great entry-level position and likes to work in a fast-paced environment, this could be the experience for you!!”

The first crucial piece of information in the job description we are given is the name of the hiring company. Armed with that information, your initial step is to visit the official corporate website. Pay particular attention to those pages detailing the company’s philosophy, culture, core values, vision, and mission statement. While there, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the company’s history and the names of its officers or executive board members. I also suggest that you visit the media page to read recent press releases. This is an excellent resource to learn about any community service initiatives with which the company may be involved. After you review the company’s website, head over to its Twitter or Facebook pages to continue your research. Thanks to the fluid nature of social networking, you can find the most current news events there. The final front of research on the company level can be conducted using internet search engines such as Google and Bing.

The second level of intelligence you’ll need to conduct is on the department level. While on the corporate website, look for a link for the department where you would be working. There you may find a personnel directory, an explanation of newly instituted programs, links to online newsletters, and other valuable information.

The third level of intelligence is on the individual level. If the job announcement lists the name of the person to whom you would report, or if you can find this information out, check to see whether the person’s biographical details are included on the company’s official website. You’ll also want to check whether the person maintains a profile on social networking outlets such as LinkedIn and Facebook. Bear in mind that your ultimate goal is to discover what things you have in common with your potential boss. For example, you may be alumni of the same college, belong to the same professional group or club, or share a unique hobby or interest.

After you have completed and compiled your research, give some thought about how you can incorporate one aspect of what you learned into the first paragraph of your cover letter to cultivate a connection.

For instance, suppose that your research revealed that ABC Consulting’s employees helped construct a Habitat for Humanity house last month. If you are a regular volunteer with Habitat for Humanity, you can make a connection with the company by explaining your personal commitment to working with Habitat on previous projects and expressing the enthusiasm with which you look forward to working with the company on its future projects.

If you conducted research on the human resources department and learned that it would be launching a software program for the first time next month and you have used that program successfully in a previous position, you can use this commonality as a basis for a connection:

“Please accept this cover letter and the enclosed resume in application for the Human Resources Assistant position with your company. I had an opportunity to visit your official website. I understand from reading the December 2009 newsletter that the human resources department plans to transition from its current software system to the PeopleSoft system in March. In my previous position, I helped train 10 people in my department on how to use PeopleSoft.”

Through your research on the individual level, you may have learned that person for whom you would be working graduated from your alma mater’s arch rival. If you were composing a cover letter to that person, your first paragraph might include the following connection:

“I read in your online biography that you are actively involved in the University of Alabama’s Alumni Association – Atlanta Chapter. I can assure you that this Florida Gator harbors no ill feelings about last year’s SEC Championship Game.”

Cultivating a connection is all about beginning to form a relationship. People want to work with other people they like and with whom they share similar interests and values. It follows that if you can cultivate an authentic connection in your cover letter and you have the requisite skills the employer is seeking, there’s a much greater likelihood you’ll be called in for an interview.

Step Two: Give a brief OVERVIEW of who you are in the second paragraph. The O in the COVER formula stands for overview. While your resume gives great insight into what you have done, it is equally important to devote a few sentences in your cover letter to describe who you are. Ideally the connection you made in the first paragraph was enough to encourage the person reading your cover letter to read further. Now you must seize the moment to heighten that connection in your second paragraph.

One way to do this is to elaborate on your personal brand statement, if you included one on your resume. In my article entitled Is It Time to Rethink Your Resume’s M.O.?, I wrote about the importance of including a powerful brand statement on your resume. An effective brand statement weaves your key strengths into tangible benefits you can provide a prospective employer. You can use the overview section of your cover letter to explain some aspect of your brand statement in more depth. Another option is to explain why you chose to pursue a particular career path. Perhaps you are passionate about promoting green issues, advocating for children with special needs, or writing advertising copy. Infuse the enthusiasm you have for pursuing your professional passion into your cover letter to show a potential employer you will bring that same degree of dedication to the position.

Step Three: VOICE your interest in the position in the second paragraph. The V in the COVER formula stands for voice. In the first two or three sentences of the second paragraph, you told the person reading your cover letter more about who you are. In the next few sentences, you want to connect who you are with why you are interested in the position. Consider what prompted you to respond to the job announcement or explain how you felt when you learned about the job opening. Incorporate some of the intelligence you conducted under Step One to list two or three strong reasons why you want to work for this particular employer.

Returning to the ABC Consulting job announcement, here’s an example of how our cover letter looks so far, including the second paragraph:

“Please accept this cover letter and enclosed resume in application for the Human Resources Assistant position with your company. I had an opportunity to visit your official website. I understand from reading the December 2009 newsletter that the human resources department plans to transition from its current software system to the PeopleSoft system in March. In my previous position, I helped train 10 people in my department on how to use PeopleSoft.

Up until five years ago, I ran a small internet-based business from my home. A chance encounter at a friend’s dinner party changed my career path forever. It was there where a mutual friend introduced me to Jane Doe, then-Chair of the Board for the Society for Human Resource Management – Atlanta. Our conversation ignited a longstanding desire to work in the human resources field. I was excited to learn of this opening with ABC Consulting because of its ongoing partnership with local area charities including the Atlanta Community Food Bank, where I have been a volunteer for the past ten years. I was also impressed to read on your corporate blog that ABC Consulting has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Atlanta for a third consecutive year.”

Step Four: Include specific EXAMPLES of your experience and skills in the third and fourth paragraphs. The E in the COVER formula stands for examples. In the previous two paragraphs, you cultivated a connection with your potential employer and explained why you wanted to work for the company. Over the next two paragraphs, you need to make your sales pitch, explaining the concrete value you can provide the employer. The cues provided in the job announcement are the blueprint for your sales pitch. Most job announcements include a description of the position’s duties, essential functions, required and preferred education, work experience, skills, and abilities, or any combination of these. This is where we’ll start.

To understand how to approach your sales pitch, let’s return to our hypothetical Human Resources Assistant position at ABC Consulting. The expanded job description appears below:

“HR Assistant performs a wide range of personnel duties within the procedural framework set forth by the Human Resource Department. Assists in the hiring and termination process, the company’s recruiting and orientation programs. Compiles, keeps and maintains all aspects of the company’s personnel records. Supervisory reports on disability, and date and reason for termination. Compiles various HR Reports. Oversees HR recognition programs, files employment records, searches employee files and furnishes information to authorized persons as requested. Oversees Payroll function adhering to payroll guidelines, acts as liaison between HR department, its managers and PEO as necessary.”

Additionally, the announcement listed 19 essential functions. I’ve listed the first five below:

1. Conduct New Hire Orientation; explain company personnel policies, benefits, and procedures to employees or job applicants.2. Examine employee files regularly to respond to state and federal compliance requirements on behalf of company. Responds to managerial and state inquiries providing information for personnel actions. 3. Answer questions regarding examinations, eligibility, salaries, benefits, and other pertinent information. 4. Process, verify, and maintain documentation relating to personnel activities such as staffing, recruitment, training, unemployment claims and appeals working with outside vendor by supplying information timely. Upkeep of company job descriptions, assists in comp studies as requested. Maintain performance evaluations and classifications. 5. Gather personnel records from other departments or employees.

Job duties and functions are generally listed in order of importance. In applying for a position, endeavor to address the first three duties and functions in your cover letter. If your experience doesn’t match the top three, descend the list chronologically until you identify three. Using the keywords and phrases in the job announcement, provide quantifiable and specific examples of your work experiences. For instance, in applying for the Human Resources Assistant position, you might detail in this paragraph your experience conducting new employee orientation, maintaining personnel records, and answering employees’ HR-related questions. Here’s an example of how the third paragraph in your cover letter to ABC Consulting might read:

“In my present role at XYZ Company, I am intimately involved in every phase of our employees’ life cycle. I assist in the hiring process, including coordinating career fairs, creating job advertisements, screening resumes, and preparing offer letters. I conduct a two-day orientation and on boarding program to familiarize new hires with company benefits, policies, and procedures. I also maintain accurate payroll and personnel records for the 125 employees in our office. During a typical day, I interface with employees, all management levels, and outside agencies, as authorized, to answer personnel questions and furnish requested information.”

The ABC Consulting job announcement also listed numerous preferred skills and attributes a candidate should possess. These included active listening, speaking, time management, critical thinking, writing, and proficiency with Microsoft Office products and HRIS software. In paragraph four of your cover letter, you would describe particular instances when you used two or three of these preferred skills. More importantly, though, you should be able to articulate how you will use these skills to make a valuable contribution to your potential employer. Here’s an example of how the fourth paragraph in your cover letter might read:

“If extended an offer to join your company, I am prepared to make an immediate contribution in three ways. First, I have used the PeopleSoft software program for two years and have a high degree of proficiency. As ABC Consulting will be transitioning to this software in March, I can assist in training your employees on the system. Second, because I am comfortable speaking in front of any size group, I will be able to represent your company effectively in offsite recruiting events and succinctly convey information during new hire orientation. Last, my current position involves working on several projects at one time and generating reports under strict time deadlines. These tasks have enabled me to sharpen the kind of time management and prioritization skills that will be an asset to your company.”

Step Five: REQUEST an interview in the fifth paragraph. The R in the COVER formula stands for request. In the previous paragraphs, you made your sales pitch by giving specific examples of your relevant work experience and skills. In the final paragraph of your cover letter, it’s time to close the sale by requesting an interview. First, you’ll want to state how and when you will follow up with the person to whom you are writing to arrange an interview. Second, provide your own contact information in case the addressee is so impressed by your resume and cover letter he or she wants to call you first to arrange an interview. Last, by all means, you should thank the person who read your cover letter for his/her time and consideration. Here’s an example of how the final paragraph in your cover letter to ABC Consulting might read:

“I look forward to speaking with you in greater detail about how I can benefit ABC Consulting. I will follow up with you by phone in a few days to arrange an interview. Or, you can reach me at (555) 555-5555. Thank you for your time and consideration.”

Now, let’s see how each of the elements in the COVER formula come together…

Sample Letter

Please accept this cover letter and the enclosed resume in application for the Human Resources Assistant position with your company. I had an opportunity to visit your official website. [CONNECTION] I understand from reading the December 2009 newsletter that the human resources department plans to transition from its current software system to the PeopleSoft system in March. In my previous position, I helped train 10 people in my department on how to use PeopleSoft.

[OVERVIEW] Up until five years ago, I ran a small internet-based business from my home. A chance encounter at a friend’s dinner party changed my career path forever. It was there where a mutual friend introduced me to Jane Doe, then-Chair of the Board for the Society for Human Resource Management – Atlanta. Our conversation ignited a longstanding desire to work in the human resources field. [VOICE] I was excited to learn of this opening with ABC Consulting because of its ongoing partnership with local area charities including the Atlanta Community Food Bank, where I have been a volunteer for the past ten years. I was also impressed to read on your corporate blog that ABC Consulting has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Atlanta for a third consecutive year.

[EXAMPLES] In my present role at XYZ Company, I am intimately involved in every phase of our employees’ life cycle. I assist in the hiring process, including coordinating career fairs, creating job advertisements, screening resumes, and preparing offer letters. I conduct a two-day orientation and on boarding program to familiarize new hires with company benefits, policies, and procedures. I also maintain accurate payroll and personnel records for the 125 employees in our office. During a typical day, I interface with employees, all management levels, and outside agencies, as authorized, to answer personnel questions and furnish requested information.

[EXAMPLES] If extended an offer to join your company, I am prepared to make an immediate contribution in three ways. First, I have used the PeopleSoft software program for two years and have a high degree of proficiency. As ABC Consulting will be transitioning to this software in March, I can assist in training your employees on the system. Second, because I am comfortable speaking in front of any size group, I will be able to represent your company effectively in offsite recruiting events and succinctly convey information during new hire orientation. Last, my current position involves working on several projects at one time and generating reports under strict time deadlines. These tasks have enabled me to sharpen the kind of time management and prioritization skills that will be an asset to your company.

[REQUEST] I look forward to speaking with you in greater detail about how I can benefit ABC Consulting. I will follow up with you by phone in a few days to arrange an interview. Or, you can reach me at (555) 555-5555. Thank you for your time and consideration.

The sample letter provided above is simply that…a sample. Use the COVER formula explained in this article as a guide to draft a cover letter that best expresses your personality, qualifications, and desire to land the interview for the job you want. The time you invest to research a potential employer and craft a carefully worded cover letter will set you apart from your competition and pay dividends in the long run when your phone rings off the hook with interview opportunities!

Copyright © 2010 MARIGOLD CONSULTING. All rights reserved.

If your funny t-shirts are turning out funny-looking, the problem may be your text. No matter how awesome your cool t shirt designs are when you imagine them, if your text is poorly designed, your shirts will always look unprofessional. But don’t fear! With these 5 tricks of professional graphic designers, you can quickly turn those amateur custom t shirts into perfect and polished works of t shirt art.

T-Shirt Design Secret #1: Choosing the Right Font
When choosing a font for your t shirt text, make sure to pick one that supports your message. For example, if you’re designing a funny t shirt, choose a font that has a funny feel to it. If you’re designing a sexy t shirt, choose a font that has a sexy feel to it. And if you’re designing a t shirt for a serious, professional law firm, you probably don’t want to use that font with letters shaped like kittens.

While this may sound like common sense, many new t shirt designers and would-be t shirt entrepreneurs skip this step and just pick any standard font they might have lying around. Unfortunately, it’s obvious in their results; what could have been a fun t shirt design ends up being boring and amateur-looking. If you’re careful to choose a font that represents the content of your words, however, you can avoid this fate and your shirts will always be one step ahead of your competition.

T-Shirt Design Secret #2: Tracking and Kerning
Most of the time, when font text is typed into a computer program, the spaces between the letters and words are a little uneven, and often a little too wide. This extra and uneven space not only makes your text look a bit awkward and unprofessional, it also makes it slightly more difficult to read because the words don’t visually hold together as units. Even if the viewer doesn’t notice it, the eye and the brain have to work a bit harder and that extra bit of difficulty gives the viewer a subconscious feeling of unease.

Fortunately for the novice t shirt designer, this problem can be addressed by a combination of tracking and kerning, which are simply two methods of adjusting the spacing between letters.

Tracking has to do with adjusting the average spacing of letters across entire words, sentences, or selected ranges of letters. By adjusting the tracking, the t shirt artist can either decrease the average spacing between all the letters in the selected range (making the spacing “tighter”), or else increase the average spacing (“opening up” the text), depending on what’s needed. Since the raw, unadjusted spacing varies from font to font, you’ll have to decide which one is needed for your particular t shirt design. But a good trick used by professional t shirt designers is to start out by tightening the font too much (so the letters are too close together) and then slowly increasing the tracking until the words look right.

Kerning is very similar to tracking, but with one important difference: instead of adjusting the average spacing across an entire range of letters, kerning only adjusts the spacing between two letters at a time. This allows a greater degree of control than tracking, and allows a t shirt artist to fine tune the spacing between single letter pairs that still don’t look quite right, even after the text has been tracked.

In general, the best practice is to use tracking to get the entire range of letters in a t shirt slogan to look pretty good, and then use kerning to fine tune the spacing between letter pairs until your t shirt text looks perfect.

T-Shirt Design Secret #3: Word Spacing
Once the letters of a t shirt slogan have been properly tracked and kerned, the next important step is to adjust the spacing between the words. Adjusting word spacing is very similar to tracking and kerning — in fact, it’s done exactly the same way as kerning and is really just kerning the spaces between words rather than letters — but the rule of thumb for proper spacing between words is a little different, and so word spacing is a whole step unto itself.

In general, the best practice when adjusting spacing between words is to visualize the width of a lowercase “L” in the font that’s being used, and then make the space between each word that wide. This means that the width of the spaces between words will be different from font to font (because the size of the lowercase “L” is different from font to font), but it also means that the spacing will be custom designed for the font in question. Creating the proper amount of space between words will support the effects of your tracking and kerning, thus helping your words to hold together better as separate visual units and improving readability.

T-Shirt Design Secret #4: Leading, aka “Line Spacing”
Another place that new t shirt designers often go wrong is in the leading, or “spacing between lines of text.” Leading — which is pronounced like the metal “lead” rather than like a “leader” taking people somewhere — goes back to the days of the printing press, when a person would actually use small, thin pieces of lead to create vertical space between the lines of type. These days, of course, computers handle the leading for us. Unfortunately, when it comes to t shirt text, they often handle it poorly.

When a t shirt slogan is typed into a computer program, it often starts out with a little too much space between the lines. This helps make the text look very “fonty” rather than natural, as well as making the t shirt design (and the designer) seem very amateur. With just a small change to the leading, however, that same t shirt text can be made to look very tight and professional.

With leading, the goal is to create enough space between the lines of text so they fit nicely together and don’t interfere with one another, without creating so much space that they look artificial or become difficult to read. The eye should be able to easily jump visually from one line to the next without losing its place, and without any effort at all. While there is no real rule of thumb for the proper amount of space between lines, a t shirt designer who begins adjusting the leading will quickly learn to “feel” when it’s right. In general, the best way to start is to decrease the amount of leading — tightening the space between the lines — and then keep tweaking it up or down until it feels visually balanced. When it looks natural and reads smoothly, your t shirt slogan is one step closer to the big time.

T-Shirt Design Secret #5: Phrasing, aka “Line Breaking”
Phrasing has to do with where a t shirt designer chooses to break the lines of text, and is yet another aspect of good t shirt design that’s often overlooked. Many new designers will just type in their text at the size they want, and pay no attention to which words the lines end on, and how those line breaks affect the t shirt’s readability. More often than not, this results in a t shirt that reads terribly and feels amateurish.

For example, a poorly line-broken t shirt slogan might look something like this:

I’m not a
doctor but I play
one in real
life

As you can see, it’s a little difficult to read this slogan because the semi-random breaking of logical phrases and groups of ideas causes both the eye and the brain to work harder to make sense of it all, and the result is the t shirt slogan ends up feeling choppy. With a little more thought and effort put into breaking the lines at natural points in the text, however, we end up with this:

I’m not a doctor
but I play one
in real life

Suddenly, the t shirt slogan flows naturally and is much easier to read. By keeping the logical phrases visually together, you can create a much more natural visual rhythm to your t shirt text, and the reader is easily able to process the t shirt’s message without having to fight against poor phrasing to understand it.

T Shirt Design Secret #6: A Bonus Tip (Because I Like You)
Once you’ve applied these 5 secrets of the t shirt design professionals, you’ll find that your t shirt text already looks much better and more professional than it did when you started. Unfortunately, you’ll probably also find that you’ve been staring at your text for so long, it’s become difficult to really properly judge its improvement. Such is the life of a t shirt artist! But don’t panic! The professional graphic designers have a couple more tricks up their sleeves that’ll help you overcome this professional hazard.

To check the spacing of your t shirt text and make sure that it’s truly perfect, you can:

• Look at your design upside down. If you see any spaces that look uneven or inconsistent, fix them.
• Look at your design reflected in a mirror. If you see any spaces that look uneven or inconsistent, fix them.
• Print out your design on a piece of paper, hold it up to a light source, and then look at your text from the back of the page. If you see any spaces that look uneven or inconsistent — you guessed it — fix them.

By doing any or all of these three strange things, you force your eyes and your brain to pay attention to the empty spaces between the letters rather than trying to read the words themselves. The words become abstract shapes to your brain, and you, the t shirt artist, are free to properly judge the empty spaces between the words.

And That’s It!
As you can see, professional t shirt text design is really just a matter of creating text that not only supports your message, but also presents it in a way that is visually balanced and nicely spaced. By properly applying these t shirt design tips, your t shirt text will be much nicer to look at, easier to read, and miles ahead of all those amateur t shirt designs hitting the market. And, most importantly, your funny t shirt designs will finally be funny in a good way.

When searching for the perfect housewarming gift for someone special, the money tree is a gift like no other. This is a very unique gift that will be a daily reminder of your caring and thoughtfulness. Sounds perfect, doesn’t it? That’s because it is!

The money tree plant is gaining popularity as the perfect gift for several occasions. A new home is the perfect time to celebrate with one of these beautiful plants! It seems that this plant was just about made for a new home.

There are reasons it is such a favored gift for celebrations such as these. The main one is that this plant is said to bring wealth, prosperity and good fortune to those who occupy the same space as the tree. We could all use some good fortune and wealth, right?

This plant is also beautiful. It usually has five braided stems forming one gorgeous trunk. It immediately draws the eye and a lot of attention. Most of the money tree plants have five long, shiny leaves. If you are lucky enough to receive a plant with a stem containing six leaves, that is thought to be even more lucky. A plant with seven leaves is said to be the luckiest of all!

Sounds like a plant that you would want to last a long time, doesn’t it? Well, lucky for you and your gift recipient, it is very easy to take care of. The money tree is actually very low maintenance. Once you understand a few basic principles of care, you are good to go. This sounds perfect for the busy new homeowner. Yet, when he or she has company, they will look like a pro with a very green thumb. They will also have an interesting story to tell about the tree.

This perfect housewarming gift just continues to get better and better. Why? Because it is also widely used by those who practice feng shui. A money tree can balance out a room that is lacking in one of the basic feng shui elements. These elements include water, fire, earth, wood metal. The five leaves on the pachira aquatica are said to represent these elements. It can, by it’s mere presence, balance any room that is lacking.

The money tree really does make a perfect housewarming gift. It is thoughtful and really shows that you care about the future of those you are giving it to. They will be reminded of your support every time they see it.

Self-Adhesive Wallpaper is a Brand New Way to Redesign a Room!

Self-adhesive wallpaper is searched over 6,000 times a month on search engines, but why are there few to zero manufacturers? For the first time in years repositionable wallpaper is available to consumers directly through Interior Place. Gone are the days of using room temperature water and pre-pasted wallpaper. With this new material, you simply peel and stick onto whatever you wish to decorate.

Self-adhesive wallpaper can be used on walls, doors, interiors, even mirrors! We recommend that when using this wallpaper to apply it to a good, smooth conditioned surface. For example, any surface with an:

• Egg Shell finish
• Satin Finish
• Semi-Gloss Finish
• Laminate Finish

Are great surfaces to use reusable wallpaper on! In addition to using it on walls, you can also use it on various pieces of furniture. If you want to spice up the design of a bookshelf, coffee table, nightstand, or whatever other furniture you can think of, repositionable wallpaper is just what you need.

This self-adhesive wallpaper is a vinyl-coated product that uses water based ink to remain environmentally friendly while at the same time providing you with a high quality product. Because it is a water based product, using it in bathrooms, kitchens, or other areas that may let off indirect steam, humidity, or other kinds of moisture will not cause it to bubble or deform in any way.

Reusing This Wallpaper is Simple!

This wallpaper has been made so it is easy for you to peel off and stick your repositionable wallpaper elsewhere. Simply pick a corner of the wallpaper, peel off parallel with the surface, and your wallpaper will be ready to be used again in seconds!

If you are renting an apartment or just living out your freshman year in a dorm room and want to spice up your living space, this wallpaper is perfect for you. Temporary wallpaper for apartments or temporary wallpaper for dorms used to be a difficult commodity to come by. Now, with this new repositionable wallpaper, you can finish your freshman year and take your wallpaper with you to your next living space. The best part about it is, it doesn’t leave any residue! Once you peel it off, that’s it! There’s no cleaning up the walls for your landlord! It does not damage the walls in any way! You won’t find traditional wallpaper leaving the walls in that same condition!

Maybe You Just Prefer to Change up your Decor Several Times a Year!

There are many different designs and styles, you can literally run through hundreds upon thousands of different wall decoration combinations! You won’t be bored with your rooms any more, especially with the Self-Adhesive Wallpaper by You! This is blank wallpaper for you to draw and design whatever style of art you wish! This wallpaper is perfect for kids to draw on and express themselves in their own room! The best part about it is, you don’t have any mess to clean up! Reusable self-adhesive wallpaper is changing the way people decorate the inside of their homes!

While you can have any snack when you’re camping, hiking or simply spending time outdoors, it’s ideal to choose yummy bites that are simple, mess-free and most of all, easy to prepare. It also helps that they are nutritious, because you’re going to need a lot of energy for all the outdoor activities you have planned out.

So the next time you’re going on a trip, try these quick and easy snacks that are perfect for the outdoors!

Cranberry and Dark Chocolate Trail Mix

What you need:

• 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups sliced almonds
• 1 1/4 cups dark chocolate chips
• 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup pistachios
• Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (optional)

Toss together all ingredients in a large bowl. Store in air tight containers or in Ziploc bags to bring outdoors. Trail mix can be enjoyed as is or with ice cream/ whipped cream. If with ice cream/ whipped cream, add cream to a bowl or plate then top with trail mix.

Easy Trail Tacos

What you need:

• 1/2 kg. ground beef
• 1 can (15oz) Ranch style beans (pinto beans is tomato sauce)
• 1 can (10oz) diced tomatoes and green chiles
• 1 small pack chili seasoning mix, preferably reduced sodium
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 5 packs (1 oz each) corn chips

Toppings of your choice like shredded cheese, sour cream, sliced onions etc.

Cook the ground beef in a large pan over medium heat until cooked through, about 6-8 minutes. Drain. Add the Ranch style beans, diced tomatoes and green chiles, chili seasoning mix and pepper. Stir ingredients together and bring to a boil.

Once boiling, lower the heat and allow to simmer, uncovered, until mixture has thickened, about 20 mins. To serve, open corn chip bags, then top each with beef and your toppings of choice!

Tasty Cracker Snacks

What you need:

• 2 packs (10oz each) oyster crackers
• 1 small pack salad dressing mix
• 3/4 cup canola oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dill weed

Whisk the salad dressing mix, canola oil and dill weed together in a small bowl. Place the crackers in a large bowl then pour dressing mixture over the crackers. Toss gently to coat. Allow to stand 30 mins to 1 hr before serving. Store in a Ziploc bag for outdoors.

Who says you can’t enjoy a good snack when you’re camping, backpacking or hiking? Try these quick and easy snack recipes perfect for the outdoors!

Get the holiday season off to a good start by planning your Valentine’s a little further ahead than most people do. By doing this you’ll save precious time and money.

1. Set aside some time when you know you won’t be distracted or have other obligations to attend to. Maybe this means getting up an hour earlier or staying up later. On a work day maybe you take your lunch to the car one day and eat and plan in solitude. Remember we are just doing this Valentine’s Day planning once. It’s not like it is going to be a daily occurrence!

2. Get in the mood to plan the perfect Valentine’s Day. If you are up at 5 a.m. make a nice mug of some hot beverage that you can sip on while you plan. Also turn on some quiet music if possible. Think of why you love your guy. What has he done to make your life special and more enjoyable. Getting into a positive, loving state of mind will do wonders for your planning. You will feel more excited and creative and this planning process will go off well.

3. Brainstorm a list of things that your guy likes as well as things that he does not like. Then as you think of ideas you can eliminate them quickly if it falls under the “doesn’t like” side.

4. Consider where you want to celebrate Valentine’s Day, what time of day it will be, how much time you will have and what the weather could be like. If you have kids, you will need to wait until they are in bed and do something at home or find a sitter so that you can go out, or have the house to yourselves while they are away. No kids, that will make planning easier for you! Will you have your dinner at a restaurant or at home on the patio or as an indoor picnic?

5. What’s your budget look like? Feeling a pinch? Then try to do something creative but easy on the wallet. Get out a package of construction paper and some markers and cut out dozens, if not hundreds of hearts! On each one write somethings special, funny or romantic. Then throw them into his car or scatter them in his office. He’ll be finding them for weeks! If you have more wiggle room in your finances, then buy some bags of chocolate and make them into words or hearts around the house.

Researching and identifying the perfect part time work from home job opportunity has become much easier with internet technology. A number of people are tapping the potential of the work from home market and now take care of their families in the process of earning a living. Most perfect part time work from home jobs are not really highly technical in nature or ones that require expensive or extensive training. The perfect part time work from home job opportunity comes in the form of using common skills like the art of sewing, writing or being able to tutor in a particular subject. The perfect part time work from home job opportunity enables you to control your hours of work and earnings, providing you with the option to switch to full time employment whenever you want.

There are a number of work-from-home companies that are tapping into the potential of home based employees. The choice to work from home is ever increasing and today, millions of people perform some type of work or another to generate income from home. The perfect part time work from home job opportunity has a number of advantages including:

o flexible working hours to take care of a new born, toddler or physically handicapped elderly member of the family

o controlling your earning capacity by switching from part time work to full time work whenever you want to

o saving on commuting costs, expenses from day care and babysitting fees

o spending more quality time with the family and ensuring your physical presence around them

o avoiding traffic jams, long bus and train queues as well as trying to find parking space

The perfect part time work from home job opportunity allows you to use and hone your inherent skills to help others run their businesses. Popular choices of part time work from home job opportunities you could consider include functioning as a medical transcriptionist, web content writer, wedding planner, computer programmer, online trader or even as a real estate agent. You could also choose to outsource sales for companies that design and manufacture handmade items that can’t find enough orders. You could help sell the products right out of your homes and earn hefty commissions with your social networking skills and communication ability. The perfect part time work from home job opportunities also include providing content, articles and photographs for small magazines and online publications and customer service for online real estate companies looking for home based agents-cum-customer service executives to help handle questions and help online customers. You could also consider a telecommunications job, where you answer telephone calls and e-mails for the company that hires your services.

As long as you are dedicated and passionate about the work at hand, success is yours. Like any other work, a home based business also requires you to dedicate a space and time to the perfect part time work from home job opportunity. It has to be treated with respect for all the advantages the job offers you and hard work pays great dividends. The best part, you save time commuting, save fuel expenses and use your time in a most efficient manner which is what makes the difference.

Whether you want to go on a golf trip yourself or take friends and family alone, you have a wide selection of packages to choose from. You can get everything you require in one single purchase. The great thing about golf vacation packages is that they are available all across the globe at various price ranges. It’s essential to do a bit of research and planning beforehand to ensure that your trip will be money well spent.

Here are a few tips to help you find the perfect golf getaway:

1. You can get started by thinking about your destination. Do you already have a specific city or region in mind? If others will be joining you, ask for their input. Make a list of at least 5 places you would love to visit for your golf trip.

2. Think about the budget. How much money will everyone be able to chip in? Everyone must be comfortable with the budget range. See if you can find golf vacation packages at your ideal destination(s) that are suitable for the agreed upon budget. The more flexible everyone is, the easier it will be to find a good deal.

3. You don’t necessarily have to invest in an all-inclusive golf vacation. You can simply book a rental condo or hotel suite at a resort with a golf course. Look into golf equipment packages as well. if you don’t feel like packing everything on a plane and having all of your equipment checked, you should consider a rental solution.

4. If possible, try traveling off-season; you’ll be able to find cheaper prices this way. Verify the peak season of the destinations on your list and book the opposite time of year. For example, summer golf prices in popular southern areas like Florida and the Carolinas tend to be a lot lower than they are during winter months.

5. No matter where you choose to go, make sure that you book a room as close as possible to the golf courses you’re interested in. If you’re staying at a resort with its own golf course, you’re all set. However, not all hotels have a good one nearby. Read up on golf course reviews in the areas you’re planning to travel to. Decide which one(s) sound the most enticing and look at where they are located in correlation to nearby hotels on street maps.

Final Remarks

These are just some tips to give you a better understanding of golf vacation packages. There are so many to choose from, but you can easily narrow your search down if you follow these steps.

With online discounts and coupons, you will find tons of deals on golf vacation packages in all price ranges. No matter where you want to go or how many days you want to spend playing golf, there are plenty of deals available.

I prefer to think about each day in my chiropractic clinic as a football game for 2 reasons.

1. It makes practice more fun when I relate it to something I love which is anything competitive and/or sports related

2. It makes it easier to explain how the office should operate to the staff since they typically all understand the basics of the game

I often have my chiropractic consulting clients approach their practice the same way just to gain a different perspective on their practice.

In this approach, each day begins a new game and each interaction with a patient or prospective patient is a play within that daily game. Maybe you have 20 plays a day right now or possibly you have 80 plays per game. As well, at any given time in your office, there may be 2, 3, 4 or even 10 plays running at one time.

There may be a person checking in, a person on the phone, a person getting an adjustment and someone getting a massage; that right there is 4 plays that are being executed at one time within your office. And while everyone has a role on the team to ensure each play is executed perfectly, in this article I want to focus on where every play begins… at the front office.

The front office is the ‘quarterback’ position of your clinic and just like that position is on any other team, it should be considered one of the most respected areas within any practice.

Each time the front office begins to interact with any person… that is the beginning of a play. And just like with any play in football, if you drop the ball at the beginning then there is a good chance the rest of the play will be broken.

There are 3 basic plays that take place in every practice everyday and if we can ensure they start with a perfect snap of the ball through excellent customer service, then they are likely to result in a first down.

Play 1 – Incoming Calls

To ensure that every call coming into your clinic starts off as a perfect play, make sure that you are smiling while answering the phone.

Speak in an excited and almost a little bit faster than normal speed and tone of voice. That will ensure that the person on the other end that’s listening to you gets a good vibe or ‘feeling’ from you by preventing you from inadvertently sending them a bad vibe.

Additionally, use superlatives when speaking to a new or existing patient to again ensure they enjoy their interaction with you. Phrases like “Sounds GREAT (verses ‘Good’)” or “That is EXCELLENT (verses ‘Fine’)” used in your daily dialogue can have a huge impact on the success of the call and follow through from the patient.

Play 2 – New Patient Visit

You will remember from school that if your body temperature rises even slightly, it can thrust you into a fight or flight mode; in other words it can put your guard up.

When a new patient enters your clinic for that first time, you want to ensure that they are not made in any way to feel uncomfortable at their new chiropractic home. Leaving a patient in a state of limbo, confusion or tension because of inattentiveness or poor customer service is a broken play from the get-go.

To ensure an almost immediate bonding and smooth start for all new patients, make sure you…

· Call patients by their name

· Stand up and shake their hand

· Smile at them

· Offer them water

· Bring their forms out to them at their chair in the front

· Show them around the clinic

· Explain benefits and payment due so there is no uncomfortable stressing or ‘wondering’ on the patients part

Play 3 – Existing Patient Visit

Existing patients are actively on your schedule coming in every day, every week and every month; thus they are where most of your clinic volume comes from and hence where most of your clinic’s profits come from.

Because of their importance in your clinic’s stability and growth, you must continue to give existing patients the same high level of service as you give new patients.

For new patients I mentioned that to ensure they have a ‘wow’ experience you might give them a tour of the facility and bring their paperwork or water out to them. With existing patients however, you have to look for the opportunities to ‘wow’ them and give them an experience beyond what they expect.

For example, let’s say an existing patient comes in on a visit with billing or insurance questions they need help with – and you use an outside billing company. Rather than just saying, “Here’s the number to the billing company we use; give them a call and they can help you,” go to bat for them. Tell them that you’ll call the billing company on their behalf to give them a heads up and that the billing company will get a hold of them today or tomorrow. And then follow up with the patient to ensure their concerns were resolved.

Another example may be if they come in and they look like they may be a little bit under the weather or having a bad day, begin their ‘play’ in the office by bringing them a cup of water or just having a little extra dialogue with the patient to try to brighten their day just a little bit.

So you have to look for those opportunities; but considering that it’s less expensive to keep the patients you have than it is to find new ones, you want to ensure that you put in the extra effort to maintain a customer service level that A. Is beyond what patients expect and B. Is consistent day in and day out.

There are going to be broken plays at some point during the game… it just happens. However – and all my chiropractic coaching clients can attest to this – if you make the effort to start each play off with solid customer service, then there is a significantly higher chance that each game will result in a victory and that sends the whole team home each night feeling great about the day.

The bedroom is an essential part of the house. It is where a person can go to for his last resort of the day especially when he is tired and weary. It is actually the perfect place where you can relax well. So there is a need to make your bedroom comfortable and pleasant to the eyes. You must prioritize the items needed to make your bedroom a more pleasant and wonderful place to sleep in.

One of the items you need to have to make your sleeping comfortable is bed comforters set. There are certain points you need to follow when selecting the perfect set of comforters. Your personality will be determined by the style and color of the comforter. If you like to be creative or very resourceful, you can choose a comforter that is abstract and colorful in design. On the other hand, you may choose a comforter with flowery prints if you are a woman who likes nature or maybe just an ordinary girl who likes feminine styles. For men, they will prefer dark-colored ones. Whatever you choose, you ensure you are at ease to use it.

Knowing the difference between contemporary bedding and traditional bedding can help you in selecting bed comforters set. In contemporary bedding, you use clean and not fuzzy style comforters, while traditional bedding uses embroidery and fuzzy ones. It is up to you whether you go for contemporary or traditional bedding.

Cool colors like green or light blue is perfect choice for calm and relaxed ambiance. But if you want a brighter atmosphere, use yellow, lime or orange colors. But if you want sexy or vibrant mood, then select red or purple colors. Soft pinks are mostly picked by little young girls. If you want your bedroom to look elegant, add a touch of black and white colors to it. Remember that bright colors can add light to the entire bedroom. So, see to it if you like a more pleasant look for your room then you can easily determine the right color of comforter to choose.

The quality and the materials used in making bed comforters sets are also very important to be considered. The one that is made of good texture will surely last for a long period of time. Be very choosy selecting the best materials of comforters. Probably, everybody likes to get ones that are soft and cushy. Finding the right quality of a material is something you need to think about first before purchasing it.

Make your bedroom as a nice and comfortable area to sleep in. Create a lighter and more pleasant mood for your bedroom. Hence, you choose the best sets comforter for your bed that will match your cushy, huggable pillows. Your bedroom will consequently look a lot more elegant if you follow the tips provided below. Whatever ambiance you want to create for your very own bedroom, ensure that you are comfortable and content sleeping in it. For further assistance on what to select for your bed, you may ask the advice from a professional interior designer who can give you the information you need.