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Best Ways Small Businesses Can Tap Fintech Opportunities

By Calendar | Business Tips | No Comments

Businesses have, in the last couple of years, become increasingly digital. At the onset of the global pandemic, many business owners quickly realized the value of utilizing fully integrated digital systems.

As businesses grow, so does the technology that helps to fuel their expansion.

But, again, the narrative here speaks for itself. The more businesses require the right set of digital tools to help them remain relevant in a highly competitive market; the quicker certain technologies will be developed to help cope with the increasing demand.

One specific category of tech tools that have genuinely captivated and helped advance how businesses interact and connect with their clients is financial technology or fintech.

Experts have found that fintech now encompasses more than the traditional applications and products it was initially designed for.

Fintech has become a key player in the overall success of small b businesses against the backdrop of an increasingly competitive marketplace and how they can successfully organize their finances.

In a Forbes Advisor article, journalists covering the topic suggest that fintech refers to as “platforms enabling run-of-the-mill tasks like depositing checks, moving money between accounts, paying bills or applying for financial aid. However, they also facilitate technically complex concepts, including peer-to-peer lending and crypto exchanges.”

Tools and apps help to enhance the digital financial experience.

Today, it’s clear how these tools and applications have helped to enhance the digital financial experience for billions of consumers. And research shows just how quickly fintech has been adopted across consumer markets.

In 2019, around 64% of the global population was using fintech applications, according to an Ernst & Young Global FinTech Adoption Index Report. The same report found that back in 2015, roughly 16% of global consumers were using fintech-based technologies. Today, 3 in 4 consumers use digital money and online payment solutions.

With the growing digital population, and the developing world rapidly coming online in droves, fintech will help catapult both consumers and small businesses into the next generation of technology and digital mobility.

Slow Digital Adoption

Despite the positive growth the fintech industry has experienced in the last couple of years, mainly during the height of the pandemic, research by the Center for Financial Inclusion showed that some small businesses have been slow in transitioning to digital.

In countries such as India, Indonesia, and Nigeria, small and medium enterprises have been slow to adopt essential digital and fintech tools. Across some countries, such as India, there has even been a decline in recent years towards digital adoption.

Are you educated enough to see the vast span of technologies in fintech?

The issue with the slower adoption of fintech and other tech-related products or services is that small business owners are not aware or educated enough of the potential these technologies can bring to their businesses.

Additionally, many small business owners are unsuccessful in implementing the right set of tools due to a lack of digital literacy or financial challenges restraining them.

While there is proof that some small businesses have been actively working to improve their adoption and utilization capabilities of fintech tools, there’s still a lot that business owners will need to learn in terms of how these tools work and how much of a facet they can become for their business.

Fintech as an Inclusive Industry for Growth

As more and more people come online, whether, through mobile devices, or the transition into the virtual workplace, small businesses will need to start looking at ways to tap deeper into the pockets of financial technology.

There are many ways to enhance and improve their business activities, simply by looking towards tech and software for the answer.

Although it’s not an easy task, as not all small businesses are in the same financial position to opt-in on high-tech payment and banking tools, owners and entrepreneurs should remain open to the growing market of opportunities that await them.

Going forward, there will still be an immense amount of challenges that small and medium business owners face outside of their traditional operational problems.

The fast pace of the digital economy needs resources to take off.

The digital economy is only starting to take off, but at a rapid pace, and unfortunately, those with limited access to resources and related tools will be left behind. Therefore, it’s important for the industry – fintech – to look towards broadening its efforts to become more inclusive in financial and social dynamics.

For small business owners, it’s essential to look at ways in which they can create more opportunities for improvement, both within their businesses and for those who are only now learning to adapt.

Through a more community-driven approach, it’s possible that small business owners, regardless of their level of digital literacy, or access to high-end fintech tools, will learn new ways to become more resilient in the face of economic uncertainty and find technological tools that can help with small business protection.

Tapping into the Opportunities Provided by FinTech

To make better sense of the economic pyramid, which sees a slew of consumers and small business owners at its base adopting digital payment tools, we can take a closer look at how small and medium-sized businesses can start tapping into these opportunities.

Digital Payments

Digital payments are perhaps one of the most essential and biggest buckets captured under the umbrella of fintech. Research by the World Bank found that roughly two-thirds of adults now make or receive digital payments. Moreover, in the last couple of years, digital payments have become the go-to for many consumers, both sending and receiving payments.

For small businesses, accepting digital payments puts them in a position where they can serve more customers, both in-store and online, through digital payment options. As a result, digital payments have become a safer and more suitable replacement for many small businesses looking to grow their client base but also pivot towards the future of successful business innovation.

Above and beyond is the notion of how digital payments have helped to increase efficiency among team members and to help narrow the digital gap between the consumer and the business.

Digital Lending

On the opposite side of digital payments is the captivating innovation of digital lending. While the concept is still somewhat new in terms of what it is and how it will work, some businesses, more so those in the financial services sector, have already seen significant growth in consumer usability for digital lending.

Digital lending can help speed up the process, help banks make more accurate decisions, and help both parties to seamlessly collect and compile information or data more quickly.

Between March 2020 and late 2021, commercial banks in the United States saw a surge of 34% in deposits from corporate clients due to the ongoing pandemic at the time. What this means for businesses, both small and corporate-sized, is that the lending and borrowing process is becoming more streamlined and less complicated altogether.

WealthTech

Wealtech is a category frequented by individuals and small businesses looking for simplified and convenient ways to help them manage their money and savings.

Perhaps the most common feature of wealtech is robo-advisors, which in recent years have become a significant player in the world of investing and trading on the public market. It’s all part of the simple tasks businesses can now fully automate with the help of technology, the internet, and other software-based tools.

Besides this, wealthtech branches into the world of small-medium enterprises (SMEs) to help business owners better control their cash flows and help build a safety net of savings in case of any sudden economic downturn.

This could mean that wealthtech tools and platforms can help business owners generate more micro-investments and build their understanding of digital brokerage applications. Digital wealtech has not yet been fully explored by businesses or their owners, but it does carry the potential to become an important facet of business in the coming years.

Digital Capital Raising

For business owners taking a step towards expansion, digital capital raising has become the best way to help deploy your business into the minds of potential investors and stakeholders.

Transformative digital tools have now enabled many business owners to become more connected with investors. Digital capital raising has plenty of perks, and there are different ways in which business owners can leverage the possibilities to help expand their ventures.

Today, business owners can share insightful information with investors faster and more seamlessly. Financial contributions can be in the form of fiat currencies or digital currencies through the use of the blockchain. In addition, rewards and interests can now be transferred to clients and investors via the internet or digital platforms.

Whatever it may be, the growth potential isn’t limited only to a few online services but also to how it can become a financial asset to the business. As a result, digital capital raising can become part of the broader business map that can help business owners find a suitable path for their business.

Digital Custody

Businesses and organizations often have to deal with a slew of legal and custodial regulations related to the ownership of financial assets held within the business. And while these regulations are all argumentative, the need for more digital custody could be the key driver to helping businesses unlock the potential of the digital economy.

While there are many different branches of digital custody, it’s often closely tied to the ownership of traditional financial assets, where a custodian will take responsibility for securing investors’ assets.

For small businesses, digital custody could mean that financial assets can be transferred between owners, investors, or stakeholders. It also helps make these financial assets more accessible by helping business owners tap into the growing market of cryptocurrencies.

Digital custody comes with its own set of challenges and will need to be explored further in the coming years. However, despite the burdens, digital custody is already proving itself a valuable asset for many business owners.

Final Thoughts

Although fintech encompasses a broad spectrum of categories, the growing need for digital innovation in the financial services sector has only meant that small businesses can now benefit from the key facets brought on by fintech.

As the world becomes increasingly digital, business owners will help to find that fintech solutions are not only an advanced alternative but also a financially sustainable solution for their businesses and their customers.

There is a lot that business owners can do to improve their experience and assist those that have limited access to the right tools and resources. However, some of these challenges may require that business owners look towards a more community-driven approach to mitigate high levels of digital illiteracy among owners, entrepreneurs, and consumers.

The bottom line is that businesses need financial technology, not just from an operational point of view but also in terms of how the business can grow, expand and play a key role in its marketplace.

Best Ways Small Businesses Can Tap Fintech Opportunities was originally published on Calendar.com on Sept. 27, 2022, by Carma Khatib. Featured Image: Nappy; Pexels.com. Thank you!

6 Ways to Utilize the Weekend to Prepare for the Work Week

By Calendar | Scheduling, Time Management | No Comments

The workweek can be tough. Life asks much of you, and it can feel like the important things are slipping away. While the weekends are traditionally a reprieve from the workweek, more and more, they seem to blend together. So it’s important to make sure you’re using your weekend wisely to prepare for the work week. Here are six ways to use your weekend time to make your next week a bit smoother.

1. Schedule the Week Ahead

Scheduling is one of the best ways to start making good use of your time. It’s easy to meander through the week with a vague idea of what you need to get done each day. You spend more mental power than you might expect when you need to reorient yourself every day.

By scheduling your week in advance, you increase your clarity and precision throughout the week. So start scheduling your week on the weekend if you aren’t already. Spend 30 minutes to an hour on your weekend, blocking out the most important items for every day.

Timeboxing is a skill where you limit the amount of time you allow yourself to spend on a certain task. By limiting the amount of time you allow yourself on a task, you’re more likely to end up finishing it faster. That way, you won’t allow scheduling itself to be another annoying part of your weekend.

2. Budget

A great way to make money is to save it. Budgeting may sound a bit tedious, especially as a weekend activity. But it enables you to be confident in your spending and stretch your money further.

Start by investigating your spending. Take a look through your most recent month of credit card transactions. Get a pen and paper or open up a spreadsheet and start tracking them. Then break them up by order of importance: essentials, need-to-haves, nice-to-haves.

The essentials are non-negotiable fees you have to pay like rent, utilities, and insurance. The need-to-haves are needs with potentially negotiable fees. Need-to-haves are things like groceries or your cell phone bill. These are basically necessities, but unlike your rent, you could find ways to cut down on their costs.

Finally, the nice-to-haves are things that do enhance the quality of your life, but you don’t really need. For example, Netflix is fun, but maybe it’s not exactly the most necessary thing you bought this month. Nice-to-haves are the easiest things to cut.

With a budget in mind, you can approach your week feeling confident about your spending. You’ll know whether you can really afford that extra candy bar while waiting in line.

3. Meal Prep

Feeding yourself can be incredibly time-consuming. You have to decide what you want to eat, go shopping, prepare the food, eat, and then clean up after. Do this three times a day every day, and the hours start to add up. Now, you could circumvent this issue with take-out or frozen meals. But these are often less nutritious and hurt your health in the long run. So why not try preparing your meals ahead of time?

Meal prep is a tried-and-true method of saving time that its enthusiasts swear by. Pick a weekend day, usually Sunday, to get the majority of the work out of the way. While you won’t be able to finish everything ahead of time, you’ll save yourself tons of time each week. The best part is you won’t sacrifice your nutrition while doing so. In fact, you might actually end up eating even healthier than before!

4. Tidy Life, Tidy Mind

An untidy space can hamper productivity. A cluttered desk, for example, is simply less functional than a tidy one. It’s also an indication and reflection of your internal mentality. The same goes for your living space. So if you’ve been meaning to clean up for a while but just haven’t gotten around to it, do it this weekend.

Laundry is also a big part of this equation. It’s one of the first elements of your household that can get out of hand. Make sure you have a dedicated space for collecting dirty laundry, like a closet hamper. Once you establish a routine, laundry can become a weekly or bi-weekly weekend habit, saving you time.

Now that you’ve got your laundry tidied up — apply the meal prep approach to your clothes. Go through your wardrobe and choose which clothes you’ll wear for the coming week. This cuts out the time you spend deliberating on it each morning. You can also go one step further and make cuts to simplify your wardrobe. Steve Jobs famously wore the same outfit to reduce “decision fatigue,” and you can do the same.

5. Take a Step Back

Scheduling, cleaning, meal, and clothing prep are all great ways to frontload work so your week goes smoother. But they’re largely task-based activities that require you to do active problem-solving. Simply put, if you’re always working, you’ll start experiencing burnout before too long. Preparing for the workweek isn’t just about completing tasks ahead of time. It’s also about making sure you’re prepared, and that includes resting.

Now, what’s restful for someone may not necessarily be restful for you. Some people need to charge up to wind down by playing sports or otherwise engaging in rigorous activity. Others may recuperate from the week by finding a quiet coffee shop and reading a new book. It’s important to find what works for you and then to make sure to actually do it.

In a world that values output, it can be easy to write off self-care as a waste of time. But if you’re too burnt out to do work, then you’ll end up wasting your time anyways. Self-care is essential to maximizing your output during the workweek. If you’re a workaholic and just can’t seem to relax, schedule time into your weekend to not work.

6. Connect with Loved Ones

Unfortunately, it’s too easy to let your connections with those you love most slip. Of course, you want to spend time with them, but the world is demanding, and so they’re pushed back endlessly.

Connecting with people who are important to you is crucial for your well-being. This is another form of self-care, but one that focuses on the longevity of your relationships. Humans are social creatures, and by neglecting your relationships, you effectively neglect yourself. Engaging in healthy social relationships boosts your physical chemistry in the short term. Robust relationships also increase your long-term resiliency and life expectancy.

So visit your parents. Go on that date you’ve been wanting for a while now. Text that friend you haven’t seen in years. Time spent with others is time well spent when it comes to your physical and mental health. And regularly scheduled social activity will help you prepare for the work week. It will give you something to look forward to when the workweek gets you down.

It’s Your Time

The traditional work weekend of Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday lends itself well to scheduling, prepping, and self-care. Friday and Saturday are great times to build relationships and take time for yourself. Sunday is perfect for scheduling, planning meals, and other workweek prep. Treating Sunday as the first day of the week with Saturday as the last is a framework for invigorating productivity.

Ultimately, find what works for you and stick to that schedule to cultivate habits that help you better prepare for the work week.

6 Ways to Utilize the Weekend to Prepare for the Work Week was originally published on Calendar. com on Sept. 29, 2022, by Matt Rowe. Featured Image: Ekaterina Belinskaya; Pexels.com. Thank you!

5 Tips for Waking Up Earlier

By Calendar | Time Management | No Comments

Not everyone is a natural morning person. Some like to sleep in and get a few extra Z’s. Ever heard of “beauty sleep?” Getting some extra rest is definitely okay unless your schedule no longer allows for it and you need to start waking up earlier.

Maybe it’s a new job, or you’re returning to school after the summer break. Whatever the reason, if you’re not used to waking up early, making the switch can be difficult.

Most people don’t enjoy getting less sleep. Fortunately, there are ways to get around this that don’t involve missing out on much-needed rest. There’s more to it than just going to sleep earlier.

Making some simple changes to your mornings can make a significant difference. Starting to make these changes might seem daunting, but in reality, it’s not so tough. Here are some tips to help yourself wake up earlier and conquer the day.

1. Draft a schedule.

One way to feel more prepared for the next day? Utilizing a schedule should be your go-to move. Scheduling is the perfect way to lay out what you need to get done, then plan your day accordingly.

Simply write down what you know you need to do the next day, and assign the tasks to different times of the day. It can make your days easier because you can visualize what your day requires. Also, you won’t have to figure out what task to do next at the moment. If indecision rules your days, adding this form of structure can help keep you on course.

You don’t have to go crazy planning ahead. Some people aren’t big schedulers, and that’s okay. That can be enough if you want to think ahead only the day before. There are no rules to break here.

When making your schedule, remember to allow enough time for each task. Additionally, be realistic about how many things you do in a day. The point is not to overwhelm yourself; it’s to make your life easier. One thing you can schedule ahead is a morning routine (see #2). Seeing what you need to do in the mornings can help give a sense of order.

2. Create a morning routine.

One of the secrets of waking up earlier is to follow a routine. A morning routine can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. If you’re new to the concept, going easier on yourself is your best bet.

Making a routine is simple — have an order of the activities you need to accomplish in the morning.

For example, the first thing you might do when you wake up is brush your teeth. Then, you might shower. Basically, you’re mapping out what you’ll be doing and giving it some order.

There are different aspects of morning routines. What kind of morning do you want? That might seem like a loaded question, but give it some thought. Do you want to exercise? Make a nice breakfast? Time to journal or meditate? These are things to consider when planning a routine for your mornings.

Perhaps most importantly, remember to make your routine realistic. If you’re not used to going on morning runs and coming home to a green smoothie, don’t expect this by tomorrow. It can take a moment to get adjusted, so start small. For example, go on a short run your first day, and maybe pre-make your smoothie the night before.

Whatever you choose to include in your new routine, make sure it’s not too much to handle. A routine is all about simplifying your time, not adding extra stress. If you’re lying awake at night, dreading everything you have to do when you wake up — it won’t help you. Go easy on yourself!

3. Avoid the snooze button.

When trying to make yourself wake earlier, it can be so tempting to press “snooze.” The extra five or ten minutes might feel like it would do you some good. However, this way of thinking is actually the opposite of reality.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, hitting snooze can be harmful to your sleep health. You might condition your brain to expect those extra minutes, which would be counterintuitive. The short sleep period is not actually restful, so it’s a waste of time. You might even feel more sleepy afterwards.

So how do you stop relying on the snooze button? A little self-control can go a long way. Do all you can not to be tempted to get those extra few minutes. Additional minutes that are not beneficial, if you remember. Try counting 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 — and hop out of bed.

Get up and do some jumping jacks. Splash your face with cold water. Anything to get yourself out of bed and feel a bit more energized. It can be hard at first, but your body will thank you later.

4. Have something to look forward to.

It might seem silly, but anticipating something you enjoy is one of the simplest ways to get yourself up and at them. If you have an activity you’ve planned, and you’re looking forward to — it’s less tempting to stay in bed. It’s some simple psychology, but it works.

Think about something that would motivate you to get up. Is it a yummy breakfast? Maybe a refreshing run outside? Or, perhaps it’s a delicious cappuccino that helps give you that caffeine boost. Whatever it may be, having something that gets you out of bed is great.

If you haven’t used this method before, it could be a good one to try. First, however, think about how much time this rewarding activity will take. You’ll need to factor that into your morning schedule. Or, you might have to adjust your wake-up time.

If you think a mouthwatering breakfast sounds like it would get you up, try that. And, there are steps you can take to make the process easier on yourself in the morning. Having to make a complete breakfast from scratch could take some time. Instead, prepare some things in advance to make cooking a quicker task (see #5).

5. Prep the night before.

Another step you can take to help yourself wake up earlier is to prepare in advance for your morning routine. The less you have to do right out of bed, the easier it can be to get everything done. This can help you feel less stressed about the morning time.

For example, meal prepping for breakfast can free up your mornings. By cooking breakfast the night before, all you have to do is reheat. Or, if you don’t want to make all of it in advance, just prepare some parts of it beforehand.

Let’s say you want an omelet, but don’t like the taste of reheated eggs — prepare to have a fresh omelet by chopping up any vegetables you want to add to the omelet. If you want to add meat, like bacon or sausage, cook those the night before. Now all you have to do is throw it all in a pan in the morning.

How about a little less of an effort? Even just laying out products you’ll use or clothes you’ll wear the next day can help. Picking out your outfit the night before can cut down on time in the mornings, especially if you’re indecisive.

If you wear makeup, lay out what you’ll use on your dresser or vanity. You’ll have less reaching and searching to do when using everything. This can really help with fuzzy morning brain, too.

Don’t be hard on yourself.

It’s important to remind yourself that making adjustments can be hard. Especially if you’re not a morning person, changing the time you wake up can be extra difficult.

It might not be smooth sailing from the get-go, and that’s okay. Don’t put yourself down for any struggle you may feel during the process.

No one said being human is easy. Remember to give yourself some grace. Utilize the tools around you — make a schedule, have a reward ready, prep the night before. Whatever it takes to reach your goal, be sure to use it.

5 Tips for Waking Up Earlier was originally published on Calendar.com by Angela Ruth. Featured Image Credit: Los Muertos Crew; Pexels.com. Thank you!

How to Make Time for the Most Important Meal of the Day

By Calendar | Time Management | No Comments

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. People try something different, but the science keeps telling us breakfast is important.

We’ve all heard the advice before — “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” However, most of us laugh it off and do not take the notion seriously. And what about all of the intermittent fasting people? Is that a health fad that’s going to be a problem down the road for many people? So why would breakfast be more important than lunch or dinner?

Rush University Medical Center reports that the phrase actually stands true. Eating a healthy breakfast is an excellent start to your day. It can increase metabolism, improve your focus, and serve as a boost of vitamin and mineral intake. In addition, you’re less likely to be caught snacking throughout the day.

The Cleveland Clinic says that people who skip breakfast have a 55% higher chance of getting Type 2 diabetes. One reason you don’t want to skip breakfast is that eating a morning meal speeds up your metabolism, meaning you burn more calories throughout the day. So in other words, this means breakfast can actually keep you from gaining extra weight, provided you eat healthy meals.

Unfortunately, many adults say they skip breakfast simply because they can’t find the time in the mornings. However, you don’t need to have a fancy, sit-down breakfast every day. Even simple, on-the-go options can be nutritious.

So what can you do to make more time in the mornings for the most important meal of the day? Here are some tips to get the most out of your morning meal time.

1. Establish a morning routine.

Creating a morning routine is one of the most significant improvements you can make to your schedule. Adding some structure to the mornings can help you feel more rested, confident, and prepared for the day ahead. In fact, successful people are known to recommend a morning routine as a leading contributor to their success.

Start by figuring out the major tasks you need to complete in the early hours before work. Showering, getting dressed, and brushing your teeth should be priorities! If you like morning runs, make sure to configure that into your schedule.

Speaking of schedules, creating a to-do list for the mornings is a great way to keep yourself on task. You’re less likely to forget things or get distracted. Want a digital checklist? There is excellent scheduling software to choose from, and the ease of access will make you more likely to use it.

2. Meal prep is key.

Planning ahead is crucial if you want to maximize your time in the mornings. One way to do this is meal prepping. Sometimes it can be hard to wake up earlier to cook an excellent breakfast. But what if you didn’t have to get up extra early to have a nice meal?

Preparing your breakfast in advance can help with conserving your precious morning hours. You can prepare as much or as little ahead as you want. Depending on how much time you want to spend on cooking, you can choose to pre-cook elements of your meal. For example, you could cook bacon the night before and use it the next day in your omelet. Eggs are much faster to cook than bacon!

A great way to plan your morning meals ahead of time is to schedule your breakfasts. Decide what you will make on each day of the week. This way, you won’t have to decide in the mornings. As mentioned above, cook certain foods in advance so you can easily reheat them or incorporate them into more elaborate foods.

Meal prepping is also perfect for helping you eat healthier. You eat better when you’re not rushed in the mornings and grab your breakfast on the way out the door. Have you always wanted to make a fruit smoothie but never had the time? Make one the night before! Using fruits like bananas and strawberries are excellent sources of vitamins, and adding protein powder is perfect to keep you full and energized.

3. Go to bed earlier.

Benjamin Franklin knew what he was talking about when he said: “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” But seriously, how can you expect to be ready to go in the mornings if you stay up past midnight?

Creating a healthy sleep schedule is necessary for waking up feeling refreshed. The Mayo Clinic says adults need at least seven hours of sleep each night. So make sure you’re treating your body right by getting enough hours.

What if you’re so used to going to sleep late? There are many tips out there to help your body adjust to an earlier bedtime. These could include using lavender essential oils or engaging in a relaxing activity, like listening to calming music.

Without proper sleep, you can’t expect to feel great naturally when you wake up. So get to bed earlier and make time for a yummy breakfast!

4. Use a slow cooker.

Slow cookers are fantastic tools for making low-effort yet delicious meals. They do all the cooking for you while you sit back and relax. Or, maybe while you’re at work. Most people use them for dinner, but why not use them for breakfast?

Most slow cooker recipes require the food to cook anywhere from four to eight hours, which means you can cook breakfast overnight. This takes time off your hands in the mornings. Instead of making your meal when you wake up, all you’ll need to do is dish up your plate!

There are many slow cooker breakfast recipes out there to try. From breakfast casseroles, to oatmeal, to cinnamon rolls, there’s bound to be something you’ll enjoy. Not to mention, slow cookers can be purchased at a relatively low price. This is a great way to schedule your meals while also freeing up more of your time in the morning.

5. Do all you can the night before.

Another way to give yourself more wiggle room in the A.M. is to prepare your tasks in advance. It’s like meal prepping, but instead, you’re prepping yourself!

Pick out your outfit the night before. Set out any products you use to groom yourself (deodorant, hairspray, etc.). Prepare any work-related items that you’ll need for the next day. For example, if you’re a teacher, this could mean printing out worksheets or grading papers.

In other words, organizing your home in ways that make it easier to grab what you need in the morning is an excellent idea. Knowing exactly where everything is and having things visually laid out means you’re less likely to forget something you need. Additionally, you’re less likely to feel rushed, and therefore stressed, while getting ready.

Don’t rush yourself.

Remember, scheduling your mornings to be more efficient means you should be taking away from your stress. Planning shouldn’t feel like a nightmare. Make things easier, not harder, on yourself. Try out different routines until you find one that feels best.

Make sure you’re scheduling time for a nutritious morning meal. Even if you prepare ahead of time, without a good schedule, there might not be time to sit down and eat. You don’t want to have to scarf down that delicious breakfast in the car without being able to enjoy it.

Most importantly, don’t rush in the mornings. This adds stress to your life, and you want to eliminate it as much as possible. Mornings shouldn’t have to be hectic. Make that to-do list. Scramble those eggs before bed to reheat in the morning. Schedule your time wisely. After all, the first step toward success is enjoying the day’s most important meal.

How to Make Time for the Most Important Meal of the Day was originally published on Calendar by Angela Ruth. Featured Image Credit: Photo by Daria Shevtsova; Pexels; Thank you!

Better Content Management Using Your Online Calendar

By Calendar | Scheduling | No Comments

Whenever marketers talk about marketing and begin to construct a content calendar, there’s a phrase they like to throw out. And that phrase is “Content is king.”

It’s believed that Bill Gates coined the phrase back in 1996. And, it turns out, he was right. When you consistently create valuable content, it builds meaningful relationships with your audience. It also improves brand recognition and establishes you as an industry thought leader. Content is also crucial for SEO and marketing your products and services.

Here’s the thing, though. For content to reign supreme, you need to take a strategic approach. In other words, you can’t just wake up and wing it. For instance, by sharing random social media posts or writing a blog post for the sake of having content on your site.

Instead, it needs to be relevant. And more importantly, it needs to sync with your long-term goals.

While it is essential, this can be time-consuming. Thankfully, you can use your calendar for better content management.

Content Calendars: What Are They and Why Do You Need Them?

In terms of content planning, a content calendar is simply a spreadsheet or calendar that details the content you will be publishing over the next few weeks, months, or even years. Besides giving you a quick overview of your content schedule, your content Calendar can also be shared with your team to keep them informed.

Your blog probably doesn’t need a content calendar if it’s just a hobby. However, staying organized is crucial if you’re using content marketing to grow your business.

Your content marketing strategy can benefit from content calendars in the following ways:

Keeps you organized and saves you time.

You can compile your ideas with a content calendar whenever you have the time. As a result, you won’t need to multitask. As a result, you can spend your time on other things instead of wasting time on ideation and creation.

Ensures you post regularly and on time.

In social media and SEO, consistency is the key and is rewarded with better metrics. As well as keeping your audience hooked, consistent content can help you recall your brand more effectively. For example, to make your audience feel more personalized, you can select specific events, holidays, or seasons that are important to them and post accordingly.

Collaboration is made easier with your content calendar.

With most calendars, you can collaborate with the calendar and have multiple editors and creators on the same calendar by using team collaboration tools. Team members can stay informed and work together more effectively this way.

Errors and mistakes are reduced for you and your whole team.

It is easier to proofread multiple times when everything is planned and organized well before time. Furthermore, since numerous eyes are on the content calendar, mistakes are spotted quickly and corrected immediately.

You can develop your strategies for distributing content and using social media.

By keeping everything in one place, you can keep track of all the activities on your social media. By thinking long-term, you can devise strategies for what to do next.

It keeps you up-to-date on the latest trends.

A comment on a trending topic will always get you more traction than a non-trending one. You can make content according to all the trends when you use a content calendar. Instagram hashtag contests could be a simple example.

Tracking and improving content performance is made easier with it.

You can identify gaps and improve upon them quickly when you keep track of your daily or weekly activities. A/B tests can help you determine the content mix that gets your audience the most attention using your calendar.

Content Calendar Best Practices

Content management strategies can be made more successful by developing a content calendar. These tips will help you create steady content that meets your marketing goals and elevate your organization’s content calendar.

Pick a format you like.

For hosting your content calendar, you can use a variety of platforms. For example, you can use a spreadsheet, content management software, or a calendar app. It really depends on what works best for you and your peeps.

If you want to track more than just deadlines, a traditional calendar may not be the right tool. If this is the case, a spreadsheet might be a better alternative. Why? Because you can neatly organize everything into columns and rows. And this lets you include more information about each piece of content, such as the author, keywords, current status, and links.

Calendar and project management functions are included in content management software such as Asana and Trello. To improve your team’s efficiency, you can also use spreadsheets alongside these tools.

Come up with content ideas.

After identifying the correct format and tools, the next step is brainstorming content ideas. In addition to being topics that fit your brand persona, they should address any concerns your audience may have and demonstrate your expertise in your field.

Looking for some inspiration? To get you started, here are some ideas:

Regular blog posts.
Videos, webinars, or how-to guides.
A recurring post, series, or theme, such as Motivation Monday.
Case studies.
Customer success stories.
Business-related infographics, statistics, press releases
Make use of popular culture, news, holidays, or trends.
Reading lists.
Product or service launches.
Interview with a leader in your industry or business.
Business behind-the-scenes.
Business-related infographics, statistics, press releases
Upcoming industry events

Also, to save time, look for ways to repurpose existing content. A blog post on how to use your product could be turned into a video, for example.

To schedule content as far in advance as possible, you should come up with enough ideas. At least a six-month supply of ideas is ideal for me. But, there are some content ideas that I can plan further out. For instance, I can map out a content marketing strategy for the holidays a year or so in advance since key dates are pretty much set in stone.

Identify the channels and frequency of your publications.

Decide where and when to publish your content once you’ve brainstormed ideas. After all, there will be a different purpose for each channel. Using varying content means your content is written and relevant, uniquely suited differently to each channel.

Blog

Your business and industry insights are published as “how-to” content. A blog post should be published every day, ideally. The best thing you can do is share 1 to 3 quality posts a week if this isn’t possible.

Website

Using landing pages, videos, and gated content can improve your credibility. In addition, it improves your search engine optimization. If your business or industry changes, this type of content only needs to be updated once it is created.

Social Media Networks

You can promote your new content on these channels, build brand awareness, and engage your audience through social media channels. Depending on the channel, the frequency changes; Facebook once or twice a day, Twitter three times daily, LinkedIn once per day, Instagram 1.5 times per day, and Pinterest five times per day.

Video Sharing Sites

YouTube has become a great chance to mix your content up a little. YouTube is used to upload explainers, training, and interview videos (or even something funny about your company or brand). You can publish videos as often as you feel necessary. Don’t start thinking you can do a video every day if you haven’t made these vids before. Making YouTubes are hard to keep up with every day. Choose a weekly or every other week schedule to start out — depending on your audience. You will need to plan long video sessions where you get several done for your upcoming calendar obligations.

Emails

Content such as newsletters, press releases, surveys, and seasonal content should be tailored to specific audience segments. Find the best time for your emails through A/B testing. Avoid annoying your audience by sending arbitrarily timed emails.

Develop a content marketing strategy.

A content marketing strategy will help you achieve the best results from your content calendar. The first step is to determine your goals each quarter or year. Then, if you’re stuck, ask the following questions:

What is a content creator, and why do you create content?
Do you want your blog to attract more traffic?
Are you looking for more leads?
Do you want to be a thought leader in your field?

It is crucial to identify your goals before creating any content, determining where and when it should be published and how often it should be published.

Next, determine who will be involved in the content. Setting up team roles will help you determine how much content you can put out based on your team’s capacity, whether you have a dedicated content marketing team or outsource. During this stage, a content planner can be helpful.

To determine your context mix: and the type of content you will create, you need to identify your goals and establish who will be involved in the process. In order to get the best results, you should set up a consistent posting schedule.

Map out your content calendar.

The next step is to create a content calendar based on your content creation process and content marketing strategy. Depending on your business, your calendar will differ. To keep everything cohesive, you should only plan 2-3 months ahead. It’s also possible for content ideas and goals to change.

Here are some things you might want to include in your content calendar:

Title or Topic
Due Date
Publish Date & Time
Writer/Author
Target Keyword
Content Description
Promotional Channels
Notes & Resources
Status
Links

A calendar may also help map everything out. As Choncé Maddox explains, “I like to set up days dedicated to brainstorming, outlining, creating/scheduling, polishing, and promoting. Yes, the content production process is pretty tedious, but having a solid plan laid out in writing can make all the difference.”

Additionally, you can use your calendar to “set reminders to hold yourself accountable for meeting specific deadlines and allowing yourself enough time to prepare what you need to complete the content.”

Schedule posts.

“Once you’ve organized everything in your editorial calendar, you have another useful tool at your disposal,” suggests Max Palmer in a previous Calendar post. “Most blog platforms allow you to schedule posts to go live at a specified date.” Content for the upcoming weeks and months can be created by your team and scheduled to publish at the appropriate time. You can schedule posts for social media as well.

“Dashboard services like HootSuite allow you to enter posts and schedule them to go live on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, or all three at the same time,” he adds. “By always working in advance, a team also has the opportunity to tweak posts as needed before they go public.”

Promote and measure.

The final stage of creating a content calendar is promoting the content. Again, the most effective way to achieve maximum results is to plan a consistent posting schedule. Also, figure out what promotional channels you’re using and when.

You can measure your content’s success in a variety of ways. For example, you might measure brand awareness, lead generation, or SEO depending on your content marketing goals. Then, to plan for the next quarter, track these metrics consistently every quarter.

Be sure to leverage both web and social analytics, as well as revenue data. With this information, you can optimize existing content, such as titles, introductions, outbound links, etc., to increase visits and engagement.

The Bottom Line

There is no one-step formula for creating a quality content calendar. However, to achieve the best results, you must plan, create, complete (along with the image and SEO), and post steady content regularly. With a content calendar, you will remain organized, facilitate team collaboration, keep on top of deadlines, and increase your content marketing success.

This article was originally published on Calendar.com. Image Credit: Judit Peter; Pexels; Thank you!

Face-to-Face Meetings are Important for SO Many Reasons

By Calendar | Business Tips | No Comments

You may ask whether face-to-face or in-person meetings are still vital in today’s digital era of communication. Yes, they are; let’s see why.

Despite technological advancements, many firms still prefer face-to-face meetings because they allow for more effective communication, the development of solid connections, and increased participation.

Learning how to hold an effective face-to-face meeting will help you reach your objectives to lead, organize, or contribute to improved workplace communication. This post will examine why face-to-face meetings are crucial, their advantages, and how to conduct them with your team, customers, and coworkers. Unfortunately, hybrid work models can be challenging to implement.

What are the benefits of face-to-face meetings?

Because we build our companies on connections, face-to-face encounters are essential. While digital communication has come a long way in recent years, face-to-face interactions are still crucial for fostering a strong culture, developing rapport with customers, and engaging with individuals on a deeper level.

Many organizations prefer face-to-face meetings over other kinds of communication — so knowing the advantages and how to manage a great meeting may help you succeed in your career.

Face-to-face meetings provide many advantages.

Because of the many advantages they give, face-to-face meetings remain a popular choice for organizations. Meeting with coworkers, customers, and colleagues face to face may help you increase your capacity to achieve the following:

You should watch for and interpret nonverbal indications.

People don’t always convey the most critical information via words. Meeting people face to face helps you analyze micro-behaviors like body language, facial expressions, and eye contact. Simple nonverbal communication may help you judge how involved other people are in the discussion and provide insight into how they feel. You may use these nonverbal clues to direct your replies and discussion.

For example, if you’re at a meeting with a customer continually checking their watch, you may employ a more exciting tone or change the subject to refocus their attention.

Come up with creative ideas.

When individuals can discuss their thoughts in person, collaboration occurs more naturally. Face-to-face meetings also simplify attendees to detect when someone speaking is complete. Consequently, allowing them to feel more comfortable contributing their thoughts.

It may also allow participants to graphically exhibit their thoughts on a whiteboard or piece of paper to ensure everyone is on the same page. Finally, consider scheduling a face-to-face meeting when you need to discuss challenging strategic or creative ideas with a group.

Limit the use of technology.

While technology has its advantages, having a meeting without dealing with a camera or audio problems, internet connection issues, or other technical issues may save time and reduce stress. In addition, make face-to-face meetings a priority for critical discussions so that everyone can hear and see what is going on.

Make new connections.

Long-term company success requires strong partnerships. Meeting customers, employees, and colleagues in person allows for more human engagement, which may assist in creating trust and make it simpler to form deeper bonds. Consider meeting face to face with a new customer or someone with whom you haven’t yet developed a solid connection over coffee or in the office to build your relationship.

Pursue meaningful small chat.

You can lose small chats in digital interactions. However, asking someone how their day is going comes naturally in a face-to-face chat. For example, asking what they have planned for the weekend may demonstrate that you care. Indeed, it helps you discover mutual interests that can enhance your bond. It may also assist you in gathering information for a future project or proposal.

Spend a few moments at your next face-to-face contact, getting to know the person.

Deal with delicate problems.

When dealing with a delicate topic, face-to-face conversation might help you convey the situation effectively and avoid misunderstanding. It’s also simpler to demonstrate empathy and understanding, making it easier to work through the problem together. Try to meet with someone face to face the next time you have to handle a sensitive subject with them. You can show them you care about them and want to assist them in fixing the problem.

Effective communication is essential.

Face-to-face meetings facilitate successful communication by offering nonverbal clues and the capacity to pose questions to participants. This reduces the chances of misinterpretation of messages, emails, and other communications. To improve clarity in your business, consider holding face-to-face meetings.

Do not allow yourself to be distracted.

It’s generally simpler to have their full attention when you’re in the same room as someone. Participants in face-to-face meetings are more likely to remain focused. Outside distractions are less apparent, and people resist the impulse to multitask. Schedule a face-to-face meeting for essential matters that demand everyone’s full attention.

Increase involvement and engagement.

Clients, employees, and colleagues may be more engaged and participate in face-to-face meetings by encouraging them to be completely present. When meeting attendees can see each other in person, they are more inclined to participate in the discussion.

Consider organizing face-to-face meetings if you want to enhance engagement and involvement in your company.

Face-to-face meetings will help your employees form tighter bonds and will help retain talent. Additionally, face-to-face meetings will benefit marketing efforts with client and customer efforts.

This article was originally published on Calendar.com. Image Credit: Helena Lopes; Pexels; Thank you!

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