HGCP 2021 Participants: Titilayo Taiwo on co-founding Africa’s leading one-stop talent marketplace
I sat down with Titilayo Taiwo, the founder and chief operating officer of Terawork.com to get to know her and how she co-founded Africa’s leading one-stop talent marketplace. Tell us a little about yourself. I’m Titilayo Taiwo, the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at TERAWORK.COM LIMITED. I oversee TERAWORK’s operations; strategic partnerships and I’m also involved in building exceptional teams and driving revenue. I am a Biochemist turned Operations/Human Resources expert with over 10 years of experience that spans Wellness, Oil & Gas, Software Design & Development. I am also a partner and volunteer in various charity organizations. I’m passionate about youth empowerment and I’m very committed to building tools to help people work better together and more effectively. I also enjoy wining and dining with families and friends for relaxation. What is your ‘why’ i.e. bottom line? My ‘why’ is all about the vision and the impact opportunity, I am doing my part by using digital technology to contribute towards solving the long age unemployment problem in Africa. My goal is to see freelancers on our platform earn billions of dollars while helping millions of businesses of all sizes to grow and achieve their goals. I wake up everyday to ensure that TERAWORK grows into a company that has real impact on the lives of millions of African sellers and buyers. On motivation I regularly review our goals and progress because I find that seeing progress is a great motivator in itself, and also goes a long way in improving my self-esteem. How has your entrepreneurship journey been so far? As a result of my hands-on experience, I’ve been featured on several entrepreneurship panels and master classes hosted by Enterprise Development Centre(EDC), Webtv, Churches, Schools etc. I was celebrated by Sterling Bank Plc alongside 5 other women nationwide during the International Women’s Day Celebration in February 2020, as a founder and a leader of a company that strives to give equal opportunities to women. I’m also in the 2021 Cohort of AWS Activate Africa for Africa’s inspiring women start ups founders and leaders. What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur? I’ve never wanted to be an entrepreneur, let alone a serial one. But I absolutely love it now and would never trade it for another occupation. I love the freedom of being able to be wherever you want, with whomever you want, doing whatever you want to. It’s truly priceless. I love a constant challenge, and the endless opportunities to learn and grow one’s mind. I also love that as my business grows and becomes more successful, it has different challenges and needs that require me to adapt yet again and grow too. But for me the best part about being an entrepreneur is being in charge of your own destiny. When we’re born, we’re placed into a custody of our parents. Then our society. Schools. Corporations. Entrepreneurs get to break free and take control of their own lives. It’s exhilarating and rewarding. Introduce your company the way you would to a potential customer. TERAWORK is a freelance marketplace that is helping small business owners by giving them the support and access to any competent talent they need to succeed. We provide businesses with on-demand affordable and quality freelancing services in legal, accounting, social media management, software development and 54 other service categories to grow. From the comfort of their homes and within a few hours, they can hire vetted on demand professionals which enables them to focus on building their businesses and save operational costs by 40%. Our Escrow system ensures that they don’t have to pay for substandard jobs any more. With TERAWORK value is guaranteed or you get your money back. You can learn more and sign up by visiting our website at https://www.terawork.com/. How have you carved a niche for yourself in your industry? We did so by focusing on just one pain point – the hassle of hiring cost effective quality talent. Our offering of on-demand quality and proven talent with an escrow system that guarantees value or money back is unique. What would you say has been pivotal to your growth and success so far? My growth mindset; my belief that skills are built, and that new abilities can be developed through practice and effort. I strongly believe in my capacity to learn and grow, and that my intelligence can be developed. I tend to persist in the face of setbacks, take on board and even invite feedback and find inspiration those around me. I see life as an endless opportunity to figure out new things and appreciate that failure is part and parcel of learning and progressing – it’s necessary and therefore not something to shy away from. I also understand that mastery of a skill takes persistence, practice and time. What’s the best advice you have received in business that you wish to pass on to our community? It’s actually a quote by Steve Jobs, ”Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you; the aircraft, vessels, etc. And you can change it, you can influence it…, once you learn that, you’ll never be the same again” What’s your number 1 tip for anyone struggling to overcome entrepreneurial overwhelm and keep going? Learn to do less; the first step to dealing with this is to accept that you’ll never get it all done. I know that’s hard to accept and say, but it’s a reality. Once we acknowledge that, we feel less stressed because we have less resistance to trying to do it to all. Remind yourself every day that it’s not about getting more done. It’s about getting results that matter. “Do three things well, not ten things badly.” Then outsource, that is why we created TERAWORK! Titilayo is currently on the High Growth Coaching Program hard at work to grow TERAWORK into a global talent marketplace where value is always guaranteed.
HGCP 2021 Participants: Bethel Bekee, the founder of Whip-Smart Service Providers Limited on working everyday to improve families.
I sat down with Bethel Bekee, the founder of Whip-Smart Service Providers Limited to get to know her and find out more about her business. Tell us a little about yourself. I was born in River State and then I relocated to Lagos about 3 years ago. I am the last born of 5 siblings. I am very passionate about family because family is the basic unit of life and I have great affection for children. I love to travel, I love studying and enjoy cooking. I am the kind of person that jumps into every available opportunity and sometimes I create my own when I need to. I worked with international organizations for over 5 years before I started my company Whip-smart Service Providers Limited. Tell us a bit about your background – how did you get to this point? I’ve always been resilient and persistent, a go-getter. As soon as I graduated, I made sure that I became independent. I started working at a hospital where I would get referrals from consultants. I have had the privilege of working in one of the best pediatric hospitals in Abuja. It was such an amazing experience because my love for kids is just enormous. It was while I was working there that I got another referral to enter into the NGO space. It took about 2 years for me to finally take the bold step of resigning my good paying job where I was close to getting promoted to start my business. It was a tough decision but I am glad that I made it. What is your ‘why’ i.e. bottom line? The fact that I’m helping families is so fulfilling, I am driven by the knowledge that I am helping young women to better themselves and families to thrive and groom their children into adults that will one day contribute positively to society. In my line of business, everyday you get to see a different version of yourself, and seeing a better version of myself everyday is one thing that motivates and drives me to go out there each day to conquer. Describe a typical day for you? I start my day by praying as soon as I wake up, then I’m ready to go. At the office I start by reviewing work from the previous day to ensure that tasks are completed as they should be. Once that’s done I look through my to-do-schedule made the previous night and ensure I carry on those activities diligently. I show up every day motivated, and I reward myself for jobs completed. I like to surf the internet every day to learn something new. My work involves a lot of creative problem solving and leadership skills. After work, I go home where I take a little nap to rest before I begin planning for the next day. In the evenings I either read a book, watch tv, or take an online course before I sleep. What do you feel are your biggest achievements? In 2017, I got two certifications from University of Washington, which was a big deal for me. I now also have certifications in sales and marketing. Starting up my company in 2018 was one of the bravest steps I ever took and one of my greatest achievements. In the last 3 years, we have served over 400 families and we’ve mentored over 400 staff and helped build their professional skills. I am also proud of the fact that I’ve built a strong team responsible for following up, staff management and supervision. We have developed better strategies to meet our weekly and monthly targets, and it’s been tremendously encouraging to meet those numbers. We’ve advocated for a number of domestic staff and have pretty much done everything possible to dignify the profession. What or who has been your greatest influence in business and why? My dad, he is an engineer whose job is dedicated to solving problems and improving lives on a daily basis. He has a great work ethic which I admire very much. What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur? The best part of my job is client satisfaction, just seeing the gratitude and knowing that I did something that will change someone’s life for the best. My least favorite part are the endless activities that form part of the journey to client satisfaction. There are so many things that have to be put in place for a customer to be satisfied. It is a tough task especially if you’re like me and you’re always striving to be the best at what you do. Introduce your company the way you would to a potential customer. Whip-Smart Service Providers Limited is a domestic staffing recruitment company. We help families and homes recruit skilled, experienced domestic staff and caregivers. We carry out background checks and medical checks. We train, supervise and monitor our staff, then outsource them to clients in need. We offer our services for the least amount of money, and we do this by offering different packages for different clients. Our mission is to help our clients get the right help for their family. You can see more about us on our website at https://whip-smart.org.ng/ or like our Facebook Page. What would you say has been pivotal to your growth and success so far? Consistency, remaining consistent makes all the difference. Every entrepreneur must stay consistent in their journey, they must be patient and resilient. Give your best everyday to your business and someday you will see your business grow and all your dreams come true. What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur a) Critical thinking (b) Customer service and C) Analytical problem solving skills What’s the best advice you have received in business that you wish to pass on to our community? You must realize that being a business owner can be a lonely journey. It is all about rocking the boat. You have to consistently and
HGCP 2021 Participants: Ruth Agbasimalo birthed her skincare brand, Omari Skin, from a place of frustration.
I sat down with Ruth Agbasimalo, the founder and managing director of Omari Skin to get to know her and find out more about the inspiration behind Omari Skin. Tell us a little about yourself. My name is Ruth, I am the founder and managing director of Omari Skin. I am a former software developer who loves learning and doing research as I’m always looking more information to increase my knowledge. I am passionate about skincare and business. Tell us a bit about your background – how did you get to this point? I studied Computer Engineering at Covenant University and it was during this time that I got to know myself and figured out that I had a knack for business. I started my first business when I saw a need, I saw that a lot of students wore shoes that were worn out during the rain. So I asked my dad to get me stock and began selling umbrellas and shoes. After I graduated, I went on to work for Andela and during this time I started selling wig making tools and make-up brushes. I am now running Omari Skin while working for a corporation as a product manager. What do you do for fun? For fun and to wind down, I love to go out, clubbing and hanging out with my friends. Now that I am a mother, I have become somewhat of a homebody. When I’m at home I make clothes and watch Netflix, I enjoy detective shows such as Lucifer, Criminal minds and Hawaii Five-O. Describe a typical day for you? First thing I do when I wake up is my prayers, then I have a cup of tea and workout before I go on with my day. I start at work by checking my emails, then I tackle my day which I typically have planned from the day before. At around 2:00 pm I hang with my kids and afterwards I either finish my work or take a nap. I like to have everything planned ahead and ready to go instead of moving from one task to another haphazardly. What is your ‘why’ i.e. bottom line? and how do you stay motivated? I birthed Omari skin from a place of frustration. I developed boils over my body right after giving and I kept taking antibiotics that did not help at all. The Nigerian skincare industry is saturated with skin lightening product and has no other product offerings. I didn’t set out to start a business but wanted to learn more about skin. When I started doing research, that’s when I finally figured out that I was using products that damaged my skin. During the time I was learning more about skin I got my certifications and began making my own products to address my skin issues. About 6-8 months after the whole ordeal, I started the business. My biggest goal was to help people to understand their skin so they could make sure that whatever they put on their skin is good for them. I wanted to help people make educated choices. What do you feel are your biggest achievements? My biggest achievement is my attitude towards work. I love what I’m doing which is something not everyone can say for themselves. I love that my business allows me that space to care about the customer, which is also one of our biggest achievement. What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur? Funny enough, this is my most favorite and also my least favorite. and that is the fact that business is so unpredictable. I’m constantly moving and changing with the climate of things, I love it when it plays to my strengths and hate it when it doesn’t. What or who has been your greatest influence in business and why? My dad, I grew up knowing he was an entrepreneur. He has a pharmaceutical company and I learnt a lot watching him grow from having a shop to having his own factory. He encourages and inspires me. How did you come up with the name for your company? Omari is derived from an Ibi word Omaricha which means beauty. We wanted people to feel beautiful in their own skin. So our business is literally called beautiful skin. Introduce your company the way you would to a potential customer. Omari skin is a brand that focuses on educating millennials about their skin. We provide research backed skincare products for millennials. We are fully remote at the moment because the company started during the pandemic although we do have a factory where we do manufacturing, testing, production, packaging, quality control, and storage of our products. You can see our product offerings at https://omariskin.com/ or follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/omariskin/. What has been a make or break moment in your entrepreneurial journey? For Omari Skin, it was when we got our first customer. I sat down, looked at them and cried and that was when I knew I wanted to keep doing this. Every time we get reviews from clients about what our products did for them, it touches a part of my heart. It’s one of the best feelings in the world. What’s been your favorite mistake that you made in your business and what did you learn? Undervaluing my business. I put more value on what the customer’s opinion of my brand was instead of the value that my brand brings to customers. After a lot of explaining myself , we ended up totally rebranding. I learnt that you cannot put a price to the value your brand brings to your customer. The most important thing you can do is to communicate that value to your customer. How have you carved a niche for yourself in your industry? Our competitive advantage is that we focus on something that other skincare brands aren’t focusing on – which is skin education as well as being customer centric. We offer a 30-day money back
HGCP 2021 Participants: Founder of Jasmine Ultra Blue Solutions Susanne is motivated by seeing people around her succeed.
I sat down with Susanne Onuminya, the founder of Jasmine Ultra Blue Solutions to get to know her and find out more about JUBS. Tell us a little about yourself. My name is Susanne. I am a Biochemist, Safety professional and public health enthusiast. I was born in Lagos and I am married with a beautiful daughter. I worked in clinical health, oil and gas and sales industries before I became an entrepreneur. I love networking, meeting new people and making friends and my passion is helping people. What motivates you? I am motivated by seeing people around me succeed, knowing that I’m providing a solution that impacts a lot of lives is what drives me. I love knowing that my daughter will be proud to call me her mother one day. Describe a typical day for you. I’m usually awake up by 6:00 am, then I make breakfast and get my daughter ready for school and drop her off. After dropping her off , I watch a live motivational video while doing my morning exercise. I usually start my word day with meetings, then I do my work for the day and courses on my HGCP curriculum. Around 2:00 pm, I pick up my daughter from school and continue working. After work I bond with family, and then later I do more HGCP courses. What do you feel are your biggest achievements? My biggest achievements …, I don’t feel like I have achieved them yet. I’ll say being part of HGCP 2021 and Future Females Business school. My biggest achievement will be when we finally open a physical JUBS center. What do you do for fun/relaxation? I hang out with my friends. I also read books – mostly business books, motivational books, medical books or books written by women. I also enjoy watching movies. If you had to write a book, it would be on what and why? Oh, I’m definitely going to write one, on transitioning from your 20s to 3os. Your 20s are Smooth, your 30s are not and nobody tells us these things. What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur? I’d say being able to see your vision for your business come to life. Introduce your company the way you would to a potential client. JUBS is a health solutions provider. We have an Ultra Blue Women Support group where we give support and educate women on living a healthy lifestyle. We also offer convenient health services to our clients such as vaccinations, diagnostics, and medical services. We have full time and locum doctors that provide services to our clients. We also sell health products such as supplements on request by customers as part of our packages. We sell to upper and middle class millennials. We started with women but have expanded to sell to men and also corporate organisations. You can read more about our services at https://jasmineultrabluesolutions.com/ What was the inspiration behind JUBS, what led you to taking that first step and setting up your own business? I saw a need and decided to provide a solution. After I had my daughter, I needed to lose weight because of health complications. I tried many different things that just didn’t work. This experience helped me realise that a lot of women have a need for convenient health services to meet their needs with ease of access and minimum disturbance to their daily schedule. I started with Ultra Blue Women Support Group and then expanded to all our present products and services. What’s been your favorite mistake that you made in your business and what did you learn? I’d say winging it instead of properly structuring the business, foe example believing that an aspect of the business is too small to structure and set up standard processes for. We are now at a point where we are almost restarting the entire business because we have to establish standard processes to make sure that it’s structured properly and running efficiently. What challenges have you faced first as a founder and then as a female founder? I have actually been extremely blessed in my journey as a business woman. I have received access to a lot of resources as a female founder. There are also a lot of opportunities to network and for growth. What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur? Innovative, networking (charisma), handle many things at the same time What entrepreneurial tricks have you discovered to keep you focused and productive in your day-to-day busy schedule? Delegating is very important as it allows you to stay focused on your vision. One must also maintain a healthy balance between optimism and realism. What’s the best advice you have received in business that you wish to pass on to our community? You need people everywhere – inside and outside the business. Having the right people around you makes all the difference. What business-related book has inspired you the most? (or, what is your favorite book) ? Hmm, I’ll say Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. This is a book by Nell Scovell and Sheryl Sandberg. Susanne is currently on the High Growth Coaching Program hard at work preparing JUBS to grow and scale to being a household name in the health industry. You can stay tuned to JUBS on Facebook at https://web.facebook.com/ultrajasmine?_rdc=1&_rdr and follow Susanne on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the_health_aficionado/.
HGCP 2021 Participants: Victoria Ajayi founded Chow Noodle Bar from her drive to find her purpose.
I sat down with Victoria Ajayi, the visionary founder of Chow Noodle Bar to get to know her and find out more about the inspiration behind Nigerian’s Chinese food noodle bar. Tell us a little about yourself. My name is Victoria Ajayi. I was born and raised in Lagos. I later moved to the UK for my tertiary education, where I studied pharmacy and worked in the pharmaceutical industry for several years in the UK. I am married with 2 kids, which keeps me busy and really put things into perspective. I am a strong leader who is passionate about my own development as well as that of others around me. I am quirky with a weird sense of humor. I laugh easily, I love easy and I throw myself and all I have into everything I do. What is your ‘why’ i.e. bottom line? I have a purpose and agenda. I am motivated by the drive to find my purpose and live it out in all areas of my life. I want to die empty knowing I did my best and gave my best and lived my best life. What do you do for fun/relaxation? I enjoy going to the movies, hanging out with friends and reading. I read some fiction and a lot of books about self discovery, purpose and self-development. Fun fact about me is that I enjoy watching movies without sound (with subtitles of course). What do you feel are your biggest achievements? Having taken my business from inception to where it is today. I am also very proud of my volunteer work where we run community empowerment initiatives. We recently had a Children’s Drive for Valentine’s Day where we spent the day with children on the streets and gave them parcels with colouring books, food, devotionals and colouring pencils. We also held a Widows outreach for International Widows Day where the ladies came together to share their experiences with people who understand what they’re going through. We also gave the ladies makeovers. It was an emotional healing session. What is your favorite aspect of being an entrepreneur? My favorite part of being an entrepreneur would have to be learning the different aspects of running a business. Figuring out what needs to be done and getting it done. What was the inspiration behind your business and how did you come up with the name for your company? Chow Noodle Bar was birthed in uni. There was a restaurant/diner we frequented that had affordable generous portions and that is what I decided to go for and bring home. I am very passionate about this business and when I started I was very selective about my team so they can share my passion. I am constantly working on identifying areas of self-improvement for them and myself which will in turn grow my business. Well, there’s three parts to the name. Chow is a Nigerian & Chinese term that everyone associates with food, Noodle because we knew we were making Noodles (duh) and Bar because we were going for a casual bar setting as opposed to a formal restaurant setting. Introduce your company the way you would to a potential customer. At Chow Noodle Bar we are all about providing an authentic tasteful and vibrant Asian street food experience. We have positioned ourselves to cater for those with a fast lifestyle who eat out at least once a day because of long hours. What has been a make or break moment in your entrepreneurial journey? When I was pregnant with my first son, the business was still new and I was still doing everything myself. It was a very challenging time and I wasn’t in a position to hire anyone so I had to either carry on by myself or quit. I carried on and managed through the ups and downs of pregnancy and got done what needed to get done. How have you carved a niche for yourself in your industry? We’ve established and positioned our brand as a household name through packaging. Where do you see your business in the next 5 years? My goal is for Chow Noodle Bar to become a Franchise model with multiple stores around Africa. We also want to host a training academy for youth that focuses on skill acquisition such as offering internships in different industries using our franchises. What’s been the most significant thing you’ve done to grow your business? I’d say constantly asking and listening to what the customer wants and then changing and evolving with our customers. What would you say are the top three characteristics needed to be a successful entrepreneur? Having a spirit f persistence and determination, leadership and having a clear sense of purpose and self awareness, having values and staying true to them. What entrepreneurial tricks have you discovered to keep you focused and productive in your day-to-day busy schedule? Putting some system in place and automating and delegating as much as possible. What’s the best advice you have received in business that you wish to pass on to our community? Do not allow the state of things (in business, industry, economy etc.) to dictate your emotions. What is your favorite book? How to win friends and influence people by Dale Carnegie What advice will you give young entrepreneurs who are just starting out?’ Have a clear plan and persist to make your plan come to pass. You must also be flexible. Victoria is currently on the High Growth Coaching Program hard at work preparing Chow Noodle Bar to grow and become a franchise model all across Africa.
HGCP 2021 Participants: Ibiwari Omoifo on how she used her love for Bole to start BoleBoxx with less than $100
BoleBoxx is a grill house located in Lekki, Lagos State. We embrace tradition and present local delicacies as we serve proteins such as poultry, seafood, roasted yams, plantains and sweet potatoes the local way. We also cater to events and large gatherings too.
The Winning Resume By Veronica Alfred
Writing a resume can be frustrating, especially when there are a zillion contradicting opinions about what works and doesn’t work. I recently figured why it was tough to write a resume by testing out resume types and personally applying to some companies. This gave me a huge opportunity to measure, analyze, and test the effectiveness of different resume types. In this article, I’ll share what I have learned as well as provide some valuable tips on the best ways to write a winning resume. Over the years, I have read various “how to write a resume” blogs, attended several employability workshops and I realized that most of the advice out there has not been proven against the actual end goal of getting a job. It’s easy to say “one page works best” when you’ve seen it happen a few times, but how does this hold up when we look at 100 theories against resumes from different industries, experience levels, and job titles. Based on my research, here’s what works and what doesn’t work: Quantitative Results/Achievements Most resumes lack them. The goal is to give the recruiter a solid reason to not only look over the full resume but also move you through to the next stage of the interview process. Many of us tend to flood our resumes with a list of job responsibilities/duties forgetting that the recruiter knows what you should have been doing every day on the job. Think about it, the reason for a role is to meet a need, your resume should speak to your knowledge of the need and how you have tackled these challenges successfully. This has been tried and tested by yours truly and I must say, the invitations came within hours of applying. Here’s an example: Executed in-house marketing strategy that resulted in a 15% increase in monthly leads along with a 5% drop in the cost per lead Simple Design These days, it’s easy to get carried away with our mission to “stand out.” I’ve seen colourful Canva resumes from graphic designers, video resumes, and even resumes with images of candidates in very unprofessional outfits. While those can work in very specific situations, we want to aim for a strategy that consistently gets results. The format I saw the most success with was a black and white template with sections in this format: Professional Summary/ObjectiveSkills/Interests Education Experience- focus on achievements) References (Available on request) According to research, hiring managers scan resumes for an average of 6 seconds. If your resume is in an unfamiliar format, those 6 seconds won’t be very comfortable for the hiring manager. Our brains prefer things we can easily recognize and digest so you want to make sure that a hiring manager can get the full scope just by glancing at your resume. Short and Concise Resume As times change, processes change too. Back in the day, we had 3-4 pages of resumes to prove that we had been successful or good enough for a role. We would even go as far as including volunteer, industrial attachments, and summer jobs just to make our resumes lengthy. Today it is the opposite with the introduction of ATS software and focus being on accomplishments and not job duties. As much as possible, you want to make your CV short, simple, straight to the point, and specific to the role you are applying for. Here’s what did not work: Grammatical Issues (typos, spelling errors, & grammatical mistakes) In my research and years of reviewing resumes, I found that close to 60% of resumes have some sort of typo or grammatical issue. Have your resume reviewed on three separate occasions – by spell-checking software, like Grammarly, by a friend and by a professional. Spell check should be covered if you’re using Microsoft Word or Google Docs to create your resume. Lengthy Resumes As earlier stated, recruiters spend an average of six seconds reviewing your resume and if it’s more than one or two pages, it probably isn’t going to be read. Increase your margins, decrease your font, and cut down your experience to highlight the most relevant pieces for the role. When you’re dealing with recruiters who see hundreds of resumes every day, you want to make their lives as easy as possible. Buzzwords It is important to not use too many buzzwords. Yes, you’re a hard-working innovator with excellent communication skills but so is nearly every job applicant you’re competing with – at least according to their resumes. Instead of using buzzwords, write naturally, use bullets, and include quantitative results whenever possible. Think about it, would you rather hire a salesperson who “is responsible for driving new business across various sectors to help companies achieve their goals” or “drove $15M of new business last quarter, including the largest deal in company history”? An example: ‘Creative,’ ‘outside the box,’ ‘innovative’ What you think it says: “I come up with good, new ideas.” “If you could think ‘outside the box,’ you’d be able to phrase it less blandly,” Scherwin says. These trite descriptors can undermine your case if you don’t back them up with specifics. In addition to the above, I have also found that resumes with a link to a comprehensive LinkedIn profile have a 71% better chance of hearing back, 76% of resumes are discarded for an unprofessional email address. Resumes with a photo have an 88% rejection rate. 58% of resumes have typos. Applicant tracking software typically eliminates 75% of resumes due to a lack of keywords and phrases being present. Now that you know every mistake you need to avoid, the first item on your to-do list is to comb through your current resume and make sure it doesn’t violate anything mentioned above. This experiment led me to understand that If you don’t know what consistently works, you can’t lay out a system to get there.
2 EASY WAYS TO MAKE SURE YOU DO NOT MISS YOUR SHE MEANS BUSINESS TRAINING
So… you register for She Means Business– all pumped and ready to learn how to dominate the online business world. You are looking forward to your training and all the amazing online business knowledge you KNOW you are going to leave the class with. But then two days later you get an email saying you were absent from your training…yesterday. You had totally forgotten. Believe it or not, it happens to the best of us. This article is going to show you two easy ways to make sure you do not forget to attend your She Means Business training. We want to see your awesome business grow and we are willing to do what it takes to make sure you get the knowledge you need. OPTION 1- Add the event to your calendar. Once you register for any of the sessions, you will get a confirmation email in your primary inbox. It looks like the image below. Please open it. Scroll down a bit and tap on the calendar option of your choice and it will automatically take you to that calendar. It will ask you to give Zoom permission to access your calendar. If you are fine with the terms, agree and your calendar will be displayed. Tap on “Save” and the session will be added to your calendar automatically. On the day of the training, you will get a calendar reminder with a link to your session. Click on the link and voila, your training will begin! OPTION 2- Join a WhatsApp Reminder Group When you open the confirmation email above, scroll down a bit till you see what is in the image below. Tap on any of the blue links to join a reminder group. Interaction is limited to admins on the group, so do not worry, you won’t get spammed. The only messages you will get will be session reminders. If you want to make super super sure that you do not forget, you can try both options. This way, you will get a reminder via the WhatsApp Group and also through your calendar. We can’t wait for you to gain the knowledge you need to run your online business like a pro so that you can strut into places like this: What is She Means Business? She Means Business in partnership with Facebook offers digital skills training and business finance sessions for entrepreneurs to learn how to effectively grow their business online and share strategies for success. Here is what you can expect from She Means Business- Practical courses on how to use Instagram, Facebook and Whatsapp to make more money for your business. Business finance training to help you stay financially healthy. A certificate to show you have successfully mastered the digital marketing skills from the training. (If you can score 80% or higher on our course quizzes?) You definitely do not want to miss out on this opportunity! Tap here to register today.
Budgeting Tips for the 2021 Bride (Nice-to-Have and Must-Have)
Are you overburdened with all the bills with no one to help you out? Or, are you worried about a long to-do list with numerous ‘advisers’ but no help in sight? This is one time to pause and breathe! Yes, Breathe in…Breathe out… Now that you’ve taken a breath, here’s what to do to get control of your wedding expenses three months before your wedding: 1. Make two lists; a Must-Have List and a Nice-to-Have List. Grab your fiancé to do this with you. Your Must-Have list contains things you know you need to make the wedding the most successful to you.Your Nice-to-have list is for anything else that will be good to have but does not determine your wedding’s success or your happiness. Let’s not deceive ourselves, not everything is a must-have so be true to yourselves as a couple and make that clear from the beginning. 2. Review your Must-Have list and put a timeframe to each item with the corresponding cost. Thankfully, I have created a wonderful Wedding Budget Template to help. 3. Make notes of when the next stream of income will come and plan for it. If you earn monthly, plan ahead on how much of it goes into your wedding. 4. According to priority, review your Nice-to-Have list and add the maximum you can spend on each item. 5. When money comes in, check off something on your Must-Have List. Repeat until everything is checked off. 6. Use extra income to start checking things off your Nice-to-Have list, in order of priority. 7. When help is offered, as long as you have items on your Must-Have list, channel all help to this list first before anything else. 8. Repeat as often as required. In my line of business, I’ve realised that the smartest brides are those who always stay on top of their finances. Remember, the whole essence of this is for you to take one day at a time. There is no need getting so frustrated about what isn’t available or living beyond you. You’re on your own budget! #NoComparison. Always remember, you’re not alone and I’m always here to help.
Investing Tips for the Millennial woman
Our 20s are hard, but being in your 30s presents a whole new set of challenges. Women in their 30s are expected to achieve more and therefore, they find themselves going down life paths differently. The great thing is, your 30s bring a greater level of self-awareness and since rethinking about the future tends to take a centre stage for most, this is the perfect time to choose the best investment opportunities. We’ve all heard the stereotypes: Women are shopaholics racking up credit card charges to add one more pair of shoes to an already overflowing closet, while men bring home the bacon and are savvy investors that understand how to manage money and take advantage of opportunities. These clichéd images have overtime been reinforced by the media and popular culture. When it comes to investing, a number of studies have revealed that men and women invest differently. Gender differences in investment approach, perspective and experience can enhance long-term investing success. Women have been classified as being less confident, not keen on investing in the stock market and massive spenders. Whilst on the other hand, the same women can be seen as being more open to seeking guidance, more patient and a trend has been seen on millennial women who are investing more than their predecessor. Well, to the millennial women in their 30s who are seeking to change the narrative this year and START, here are a few tips on investing: Before going big on investment: 1. Educate Yourself Before diving into strategies that claim to give you a better financial future, carve out some time to learn about money management and investments. 2. Set Clear Financial Goals If you don’t have a set goal to work towards, it can be hard to find the passion or drive to save. Whether it’s a house you’ve been eyeing or your retirement, carefully defining these goals and figuring out how much you’ll need to save can help you craft a better plan for getting there. 3. Make a budget and stick to it. The first step is to gather all your bills and pay remains, then plan your budget for the month according to your income and your expenses. 4. Save for Retirement: Let’s get real, we are all getting old, why not start saving now so that we are not drowned in worry later! 5. Avoid Consumer Debt Some debt like mortgages and student loans are OK to take on if they fit in with your overall budget. In a consumer-driven society, it’s incredibly easy to live beyond your means; a good rule of thumb is to try and save at least 15% of your income and always spend less than you make. 6. Use Missteps to Help You Learn and Grow As the famous saying goes, experience is the best teacher. Instead of being ashamed of past financial missteps, learn from them and make better decisions. 7. Put Your Savings on Autopilot Have your savings contributions automatically deducted from your paycheck and/or direct deposit into an investment account. If you put money aside before you even see it, you’ll tend to not miss it. 8. Always Take Free Money: You should never turn down free money—your nest egg will grow faster, if your employers march a percentage of your benefit contribution, take it up sis! 9. Don’t Let the Financial World Intimidate You A good percentage of personal finance is not financial education, but financial behaviour. If you can modify your behaviour with your finances, you can modify your financial future. Contrary to popular belief you don’t need to be a financial expert to start investing, budgeting or preparing for emergencies. All you really need to do is work on building a solid plan and committing to it. As the American poet Carl Sandburg said, “Money is power, freedom, a cushion, the root of all evil, the sum of blessings.” Have an investmentfull year!