Monthly Archives: April 2017

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The Ultimate Home Gym Studio: Sweat With A Smile

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Staying fit and healthy is a priority in everyday life. Not only does it matter for your self-esteem – who doesn’t want to like what they see in the mirror? – but it is also a basic health requirement. With gym memberships increasing regularly, it seems that gym is the way to go to stay on top of your health. However, recent surveys have found that almost 75% of gym goers are guilty of bad gym etiquette. Not bringing a towel, grunting loudly as your exercise, and showing off your muscles are only some of the regular complaints about the gym. In short, while it’s a practical place to get fit, it is also the most dreaded place for most people. So why not look at a way to get your own gym studio at home and without breaking the bank?

 

The Practical Gym Room

When you decide to exercise at home, you will need more than just motivation – although the motivation is essential to it. You’ll need a space that is dedicated to your workout. While most people try at first to accommodate a gym bike or a treadmill between the sofa and the TV, you need, to be honest from the start: If you want to exercise at home, you need to take it seriously and to start a home improvement project. The preferred solution to get your home gym is to use a steel building _ which is easy and quick to build, and extremely energy-efficient. The main reason why most homeowners turn to steel gym buildings is that it is the most practical use that they could make of their backyard. While this can sound a little lame, it is in truth a great way to make the most of your space for a good cause.

A home gym studio by the pool

Fitness Gear That Doesn’t Break The Bank

Building your own gym gives you one advantage: You can focus on your workout, and you don’t need to spend a lot on your fitness gear. Why not? Because making use of the space that a room gives you is a great way to exercise. For example, using only a kettlebell, you can burn up to 800 calories per hour. You can even find workouts that don’t need any equipment, but that you wouldn’t have been able to do easily in a crowded gym. If you are into tracking gear, you might want to try the health tracking functions of your phone before investing in specialist gear. When it comes to fitness, motivation matters more than having the latest gadget. And motivation is exactly what a clean and private gym studio gives you.

Fitness Weights Training Kettlebell

Kettlebells

 

Why It Works

You may wonder why working out at home should be better than at the gym. The reasoning is very human. Your home offers a place for exercises that fits into your daily program, and that helps you to concentrate. You don’t need to suffer from any of the usual lack of gym etiquette: There is nobody to flex his or her muscles in front of you and destroy your mojo; the equipment might be sweaty as you use it but it’s your own sweat. So, beat the 75% of bad gym goers and get your own studio!


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Does Your Small Home Leave You Feeling Claustrophobic? Changes Things Today Without Moving House

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Are you starting to feel like your home is a little too small and compact for you? Maybe your family is expanding and you’re not sure whether the space you have available to you is enough. It can be tempting to start thinking about moving house, but who wants all that hassle and hard work on their plate? It’s not ideal for anyone to have to move.

 

There might be an alternative, though. There are actually lots of small steps you can take to make your home feel a little more spacious and a lot less claustrophobic. You just need to think logically and understand the tricks that really do make a difference. It’s not necessarily as difficult as you might imagine it to be either.

 

Below, you will find 12 ways in which you can make your small home feel bigger. Each of them will be discussed in-depth, and then you decide whether they could work for you and your situation. So, without further ado, read on and start learning how you can fix your home and avoid the trouble of having to move house.

 

Start by Rearranging Your Existing Furniture

 

Sometimes, changing things around and rearranging the furniture in your home can be a really big deal. It can have more of an impact than you imagine. When you have a small space to work with, you have to be prepared to think outside the box and come up with unusual ways of making it work for you. That means arranging furniture in a way that gets the most from the space that you have on offer. It could mean switching items around, pushing things back and testing completely new arrangements until you find one that seems to work well.

 

Cut Back on Non-Essential Furniture Items

 

Another thing you might want to do with your furniture is cut back on it a little. When you’re willing to do this, you can find that you get rid of the things that you don’t really need and keep the things that are actually useful. You’ll be surprised at how much extra room can be created simply by cutting back and getting rid of a few things that you don’t really need or want anymore. Take a very pragmatic kind of approach to this. If you’re not getting any use out of an item, why not make use of the space that it’s currently taking up? It makes sense.

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Think Vertically

 

You might be running out of floor space in your home, but have you thought about how the home’s vertical space could be put to use? This is something that many people don’t even stop to think about, but they really should if they want to make the most of the space that they have in their homes. You could use storage fixtures that attach to the wall in order to free up floor space. There are all kinds of creative ways in which you can use the vertical spaces in your home to your advantage.

 

Try to Get Double Usage Out of Furniture

 

If you have one item that can do two things, it will save you space because you won’t have to own two separate items. When you’re organising your furniture and trying to get as much out of your home’s space as possible, this can be a really positive move to make. You could have a chair that also doubles up as a small storage space, for example. And there are many other examples out there that you can find too. It makes perfect sense to make the most of this, so don’t limit the usage of the furniture you own.

 

Expand Into the Outside

 

If you can connect the inside of your home to the outside space you have, you can make the whole home feel a little less compact. You certainly won’t feel claustrophobic anymore if you do this. If you have some money to spend, you could think about installing some new patio doors at the rear of your home. They can then open out onto the garden, creating a point of easy access for the garden. During the summer months, the home will feel much more light and airy. And that can make a really big difference when you’re trying to make it feel like enclosed and dull.

 

Open Up the Space by Not Enclosing Rooms

 

Are your rooms too enclosed and shut off from one another? If that’s the case, don’t worry, there are some simple things that can be done to save the situation. For example, you could keep doors open more often; you can get simple items from superiormaker that can help with this. Or you could even come up with a more open plan design and knock down some of the dividing walls in the home. If you choose to do that, just be careful and ensure you’re not knocking down any supporting walls. It might be best to hire professional help.

 

Swap Curtains for Blinds

 

This is one of those small changes that really can have an impact on how big or small a home feels. When you have curtains covering your windows, they tend to be quite big and cumbersome. They make the room feel a little smaller and more cramped. That might not be such a big deal for some people. But if you want to make the room feel more spacious, it makes sense to embrace blinds. They are much smaller and they don’t hang down as far, creating the appearance of more space being taken up. That’s exactly what you want when you’re trying to make the most of every square inch.

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Unify Your Colours

 

Chaotic design choices can really hold you back when you’re trying to make your home seem bigger and more spacious. The small homes that looks biggest are the ones that have a clear and unified approach to design. And most important of all is the colour scheme that you choose for the home. If it’s all over the place and there is no clear through line, it will simply look messy, and the home will feel even more cramped and uninviting. That’s not what you want, so make sure that you think carefully about the colours you choose for the home.

 

Choose Artwork That’s on the Smaller Side

 

Do you like to have some works of hard hanging on the walls of your home? If so, it might be a good idea to choose works of art that are on the small side. This will help to make sure that you don’t take up too much of the wall space and make the room feel smaller and more cramped than it is. Art can definitely add something to your walls and your home, but you need to make sure that you make your choices carefully. Big portraits are fine for big homes, but smaller pieces should always be used when the space on offer is smaller.

 

Make the Most of Mirrors

 

Next, you should try to make the most of mirrors. We all know that mirrors create the illusion of more depth in a room, even if we know that they are not actually showing us ma reality of more space. They also help to reflect more light around the room, helping it to reach every corner. You should try to use at least one mirror in each of the rooms that you want to make feel bigger. That way, you can be sure that you make the room appear as large as it possibly can.

 

Change Up the Lighting

 

The lighting arrangements in your home might need to be tweaked as well. Darkness is linked to a perception of limited space. If you can’t properly see every part of the room lit up, it will appear smaller in our minds. That’s simply the way in which our eyes and our brains work. So, if the lighting you currently have in place is a little dim and doesn’t offer as much coverage as it could, you need to think about changing things. Buy more lights, choose LED bulbs and make your home brighter.

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Try to Keep Your Surfaces as Clean as Possible

 

Keeping things clean and tidy can make it much easier for you to make it seem like your home is larger and more spacious. You just need to make sure that you keep surfaces clean and clear. Don’t let things pile up on them because this is an immediate sign of a lack of space in the home. Instead, you should make sure that every item in your home has its own place where it can be stored when it’s not in use.
Your small home might not seem like it’s ideally suited to you. But your fears and worried could be allayed if you make some of the changes discussed above. They’ll make your home feel a little more spacious, and that could be enough to make all the difference.

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Great Living At Home Made Easy

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We all want to live a life at home which is as happy as possible, and yet this can often seem surprisingly hard to achieve. If you are someone who is very keen on being happy in the home, you will probably also be keen on finding as many ways as possible for how to do this. In this article, we are going to look at many of the major elements which can easily lead to a more fulfilling, comfortable and happy home life. As long as you bear the following in mind, you should find that you have a much happier home life, and probably in no time at all. Let’s take a look and see what you can do to make your home somewhere you will enjoy living in much more.

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Take A Look At The Design

 

If you have the opportunity to actually the change the overall design of the home, then it is well worth making the most of that opportunity and doing so. Often, doing this will bring up a surprising array of differences which you can apply, and usually these can be altered to make for a much better home to live in. Something that is always going to help the way in which you live in the home is the nature of the floor plans. If they are craftsman house plans, for example, they will be well designed for easy living, and you will really notice the difference in your day-to-day life. Of course, in general you will need help with these kind of aspects of the home – but as long as you have it, you will find that this makes a huge difference to how you feel in your own home. It is well worth looking at this before you move on to any other aspect of the home.

 

The Comfort Levels

 

When it comes to enjoying life at home, one of the first thing that people generally think of is the level of comfort, particularly in the main living or shared areas. Achieving comfort in these spaces can often be surprisingly challenging, ut with the right approach you will find that you can easily make your home considerably more comfortable in no time at all. Let’s take a look at some of the main functions of achieving comfort in the home.

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First of all, you want to make sure that you have a decent amount of comfortable furniture, and that it is spaced well enough apart so as to create the feeling of comfort in the air as well. This is something which can take a lot of trial and error, but it is definitely worth putting all your effort into trying to make it happen. As long as you have the right furniture, there is no reason that you can’t feel comfortable in your home for as long as possible. Of course, it’s not all about the furniture, and there are many other elements which go towards making a space more comfortable. If you really want to feel more comfortable in the home, you should also make sure that you have the ability to control the temperature in your home, otherwise you might not be able to find the level of comfort that you’re really looking for. As long as you can control temperature – and ideally, humidity – you will find that you feel much more at home and much more comfortable in your own space. This is something that it is well worth looking into if you are not entirely comfortable in your home at present.

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De-Stress Areas
Something that every home should have, but which relatively few actually do, is a decent de-stressing area, or several de-stressing areas. We all know how stressful everyday life can be, and having a space at home in which to unwind can be hugely important as a part of achieving peace at home. The truth is that it is relatively easy to find a decent space for such a purpose – all you need to do is set aside a specific area and make sure that it contains nothing which might stress you out or trigger you. Then you can fill it with comfortable furniture and so on, and perhaps make sure that it is as light and spacious as possible. You might be surprised at what a difference it can make to the feel of a home when you have this kind of space to unwind in. Try it out in your home and see how much of a difference you feel.

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Quick and Easy Ways To Boost Your Income

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Unless you’re one of the lucky few who has all the disposable income you could ask for, you’re probably always on the hunt for opportunities to have a little bit extra cash in your wallet. However, although there is undoubtedly a lot of money in this world it’s not always the easiest thing to grab your fair share of it. However, with a bit of creative thinking and a dash of hard work, you might be surprised how easy it is to give your bank balance a top up. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

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Rent Out a Room

 

You probably have a space in your room that is worth hundreds of dollars each month, and it’s just sitting there empty! If you have a spare room, look at renting it out to a lodger. If you live in an area that is in any way popular you should have no problem finding someone to take the room. And of course, who you decide to rent your room to is completely up to you. You might find a lodger that you get on really well with and have a big chunk of your monthly rent/mortgage payment taken care of at the same time.

 

Being the Help

 

People always need help – you can be that help and bring in some much needed cash. If you’ve ever Googled ‘how much should cleaning cost’, you’ll know that it can a healthily profitable business: not so expensive that people shy away from using cleaners, but expensive enough to make it worth your while. Even working as a cleaner just a few hours a week can bring in hundreds of dollars each month. Elsewhere, you can ‘be the help’ by becoming a part-time Uber driver – you’ll be able to set your own hours and do it as and when needed.

 

Use Your Talents

 

If you’re a talented and/or knowledgeable, why not put your skills to good use and make money at the same time? For instance, if you’re a talented cook then you can turn your home into a temporary restaurant and host travellers to your area to a meal prepared by a local (you!) using sites such as https://www.bonappetour.com/ or https://www.eatwith.com/. Alternatively, if you’ve lived in your city for a long time and know it inside out, you can become a tour guide and share everything you know with visitors. Finally, creative folks should take a look at Fiverr.com and post their skills for others to buy.

 

Sell Your Belongings

 

Practically everybody has belongings in their home that they’re simply hoarding because they don’t want to throw them away. But those unused belongings can bring in plenty of money – the average home has something like $1000 of sellable belongings. Go through the home, make the tough calls about what should stay and what should go, then get to selling them either online or at a market. You’ll clear space and bring in money – win win!

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From Bedroom To Boardroom: Moving To Your First Commercial Premises

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Starting a new business often involves spending sums of money on expenses like equipment and staff. For many new companies, one cost that can be too high to bear at such an early stage is leasing some premises. The idea of paying a lot of rent for some commercial office space or an industrial unit can be a scary one. That is particularly the case for entrepreneurs that are “down to the wire” from a financial perspective!

 

With that in mind, many new startups literally create their enterprises from their bedrooms! However, as their companies grow and evolve, there is a real need to leave home and fly the nest! Moving to “proper” business premises can be an exciting time in any new entrepreneur’s life. Of course, there is the right way and the wrong way of doing that. Keep reading today’s article to learn how to do the former.

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Look for the perfect location

 

Before you start discussing color schemes, you first need to consider where is the best physical location for your first commercial premises. Does it make sense to be in the middle of the city, right at the heart of the action? Or would you prefer more rural settings that afford you the option of future expansion without a hefty price tag?

 

And, most important of all, which areas or region do you serve the majority of your customers? If you need to service your clients from a physical location, it goes without saying that your commercial base should be central to your target audience.

Negotiate a long lease in exchange for cheaper rent

 

You might not think it, but many property developers and real estate agents are happy to lower their lease asking prices if you decide to stay for a long time. That’s because they can guarantee their rental income from you and keep their operating expenses down.

 

When seeking out commercial premises to rent, never pay the asking price for your lease! Always talk things through with the property owner or manager so that you can come to a mutually agreeable price.

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Make sure it is safe for your requirements

 

The last thing you want to do is work in a dangerous building. Nor do you want to expose your employees and visitors to any safety risks that could potentially prove fatal! That’s why you need to carry out a risk analysis of your future commercial abode before you move into it.

 

For instance, if it has an accessible roof, do you need to install guardrails on the edges to protect people from falling? Or does it need the installation of fire extinguishers and sprinkler systems? Taking the time to carry out a risk assessment will ensure the safety of everyone that works at your premises.

Ask about parking

 

One final consideration to make is whether there is ample parking available for your staff and visitors.

 

It’s crucial that your future business premises are accessible, especially to those that require wheelchair access. If on-site parking isn’t available, find out whether you can do a deal with a nearby parking garage for your staff and visitors.

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That way, people don’t have to pay to park their vehicles when they visit your premises.
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Hotels From Hell?

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A job in a hotel can often seem like the perfect thing for someone who loves to travel. How else to share the love than by helping others enjoy their time away? You get to surround yourself in that fun holiday atmosphere all day, every day. But, that doesn’t mean it will be all fun and games. In fact, hotel work is a lot tougher than you might realize. We’re going to look at a few of the realities before you decide this is the career for you.

THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT

We’ve all heard this old saying. Most of us who have worked in a customer facing role know that it’s rarely the case. Even so, we’re providing a service, so we smile and agree to the most absurd accusations and claims. When working in a hotel, this phrase will come back to haunt you. Mainly because you’re dealing with customers for extended periods of time. They don’t enter your space for half an hour; they move in. Worse, everyone will have a different idea of how things should be. You’ll soon reach the stage where you realize that the customer is never right, but you have to please them anyway. Of course, some of your guests will be easy going. But, some will become your nightmare. They’ll expect you to read their minds, and will let you know if they aren’t happy. Some will take insult if their towels aren’t folded the right way. And, you’ll have to grin and apologize. If you want help preparing for this, it might be worth getting some experience. Browse hotel management courses to see if any suit. If you can’t beat them, you should at least know how to deal with them.

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DISCRETION IS ESSENTIAL

 

Hotel work may not seem like the juiciest career option, but you can guarantee you’ll see some sights. That’s why discretion is important for the role. It may be that you hear heated goings on in some of your rooms. You may even have to check in men with women who are quite obviously not their wives. But, you have to let it wash over you. Even gossiping about these things with colleagues is a risk. You don’t want the guest in question to overhear you! You need to let these things go over your head. You are there to serve, not judge.

 

THE WORK NEVER ENDS
To guarantee great reviews for your hotel, you will need to be on call at all times of day. It may seem unfair, but your guests are there all the time, and they won’t see why you can’t be. This is a full on job. Of course, just how full on depends on your role. But, if you’re in an important position, you’ll be expected to drop everything if a guest requests it. Even if it is your day off. Remember, the customer is always right. If they say you should be there, it must be the case.

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What Do You Need When Your Family Is Getting Bigger?

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We all have a pretty good idea of what to expect when you’re expecting, but there’s something of a lack of information for exactly what it is you need when your little bundle of joy actually arrives. The thing that a lot of books and movies seem to forget is that as hard, uncomfortable, and exhausting as pregnancy and birth can be, they’re the easy part! The hard part is when you’re suddenly expected to take care of this tiny, fragile person, often with absolutely no idea what you’re doing. It can be a terrifying experience that can often get in the way of what you really want to be doing, which is revelling in the joy of the new addition to your family. To help you avoid falling into a total panic, here are some things that you should think about before your new addition arrives.

 

Do you need a new car?

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You might be incredibly attached to your car. Maybe it’s one you’ve had for years and has always taken care of you, or maybe you saved up and finally bought the sports car of your dreams. Sadly, when you have a baby, your priorities are going to have to change a little bit. You beloved old heap of junk may not seem so charming when safety becomes a serious issue, and your sports car isn’t going to do much good if you can’t fit anyone into the back seat because the engine has taken up half of the car. An SUV is often the car of choice for many families because of the space and comfort it offers. Cars like the Ford Escape are perfect for families who want to be able to drive in comfort and style, with plenty of space for all the stuff that you need when you’ve got a little one. See if you can find any Ford dealers, or any other dealers with high-quality SUVs near you and give one a test drive. Hopefully, you’ll find one that is stylish enough to take away the pain of having to say goodbye to your beloved sports car.

 

Is your home ready?

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You might assume that baby proofing isn’t something that you’re going to have to worry about for a while. After all, when they’re first born, babies aren’t able to do much other than cry and look adorable. However, those first few months have a nasty habit of racing by and before you know it your little one is going to racing around causing all kinds of trouble. Even before they can crawl, babies are able to roll to where they need to be, and you’d be amazed what skilled climbers they can often be. For your own peace of mind as much as their safety, make an effort to baby proof all the cabinets, keep anything unsafe out of their reach and lock away anything that they might be tempted to put in their mouths. Spoiler alert: babies will be tempted to put everything in their mouths.

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Educating Yourself Without Spending A Penny

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Educating yourself is one of the best things you can do if you want to improve your life. By educating yourself, you could make sure you get that promotion at work, start your own business, and do a number of other things. At the very least, it’ll make you a wiser, happier person! But usually, educating yourself means spending a fortune on higher education. Not anymore! Now, there are so many resources you can use to learn without spending a penny. Read on to find out how!

 

Use Online Courses

Online courses are your friend when you want to educate yourself. Some of them can cost a bit of money, but this will be nothing compared to what you’d spend on a course at a college or university. Some of the courses online you can find for free. There are many different sites you can find these courses on, but two of the most popular are Udemy and Skillshare. With Udemy you can find free courses and buy courses one at a time, depending on what you want to do. On Skillshare you sign up and pay monthly, where you can then access every course on the site. It’s up to you how you want to do it! With many courses you get support and people who are also doing the course, so you can share ideas and things.

 

Make YouTube Your Best Friend

YouTube is another fantastic resource. Whether you want to figure out how to make something from scratch or build a business from the ground up, YouTube has some inspirational content that could help. Why not listen to a video while you get ready in the morning, or watch something while you’re on a treadmill at the gym?

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Read As Much As Possible

Make sure you read as much as possible to educate yourself, from self-help books to interesting current events articles that will keep you up to date with the world. If you struggle to read or you don’t always have time, downloading podcasts and audiobooks to listen to can be just as beneficial. You can listen to these before bed, in the car on the way to work, or while you’re running/walking. If you utilize this time to listen to a podcast or audiobook, you’ll improve faster than you realize!

 

Do Things To Support Your Learning

Make sure you do things to support your learning, and you’ll retain this information and improve at a much faster rate. There are lots of studies out there that can clue you in, but a few of the things you should be doing are as follows:

  • Sleep – getting at least 7 hours a night will make you more creative and productive the next day! Get into a good routine.
  • Mediation – learn how to observe your thoughts rather than entertain every one of them and you’ll be less stressed, as well as able to learn new things much faster. You might just find yourself brimming with new ideas too!
  • Eating – eating nourishing foods will strengthen your body and brain. When you eat junk, you’ll feel like junk. This will make you reluctant to sit and do what you have to do to learn!
  • Exercise – exercise will give you confidence and make you feel happier in everyday life. You can double up your exercise with podcasts and audiobooks, or you can just sit down to study after a sweaty session. You’ll likely feel more focused!

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When Tech Attacks! Is Your Home at Risk?

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The technological revolutions many of us are seeing in our home lives, or have seen over the past decade, have brought about a lot of benefits. But there are also a number of disadvantages. Your home safety may actually be at more risk than you think when you have a home with a lot of tech in it. We’re going to take a look at the most prominent risks in home tech and what precisely you can do about it.

 

Overpowering

 

The average home has more electricity running through it than ever. With strong technology cheaper and more accessible ever, many of our homes have several computers, at least one television, some games consoles, several smartphones… if you have all of these plugged in frequently, then you risk overloading your system. Of course, most homes have very sturdy electrical infrastructures. But you need to think of individual outlets, as well as the extension methods you’re using. Most people use very cheap multi-outlet solutions, as opposed to paying about $10 or so for a surge-protected one. If you’ve got a lot of electrics in your home, invest in good outlet solutions – or you risk overloading and causing fires.

 

Wires everywhere

 

Even in our supposedly wireless age, we’re still, well, using an awful lot of wires. These present a problem because they pose a fire risk if they get worn out or if you have way too many bundled together in the same location (which is something a lot of people do in modern homes), but also because they’re a tripping hazard. Where you can, you should look into wireless solutions for things. Even something as simple as finding the best wireless keyboard and mouse can help reduce the wire count to an important degree. Other peripheral items such as speakers are also becoming wireless, and even some PC monitors.

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Data breaches

 

You may have heard of ‘smart homes’. Not all of us have what some would call smart homes, but many of us certainly have items that are making our properties lean in that direction. The Internet of Things gives us more use for data than ever – but it also provides a lot of entry points for cybercriminals. If they can access your WiFi – and this is much easier than you may think – then they may be able to access personal information such as payment details or even medical information, should you have those on your computers. Make sure your home is properly protected against external cyber threats.

 

Heavy objects

 

A lot of us have pretty big televisions now. It used to be that only very rich people have televisions that were sized beyond the 28-inch mark, but these days more people have televisions in the 40-inch region – precisely because they’ve become more affordable than ever. It’s worth remembering, of course, that these present safety risks because they’re so darn big. If you have small children or pets on your property, then you really need to give this some very careful though. Making sure such items are properly affixed to their surfaces, and that those surfaces are themselves properly affixed to the wall or floor, is an absolute must.

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Why Businesses Are Going Green

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The environment has become a bigger and bigger talking point over the past few decades, and an increasing number of businesses are taking the hint. It seems that almost every brand in the world is exhibiting the fact that they’re “going green”, and as you’ve probably figured, it’s not always out of the goodness of the CEO’s heart! Here are some of the key motivating factors that are prompting businesses to be more environmentally friendly.

Great PR

The most obvious reason that pushes businesses towards a greener way of doing things is it’s a great method to help their PR. Any brand that makes a big point of how environmentally friendly they are can gain the sympathy and loyalty of like-minded customers. More and more, we’re seeing companies that are making green changes, like recycling and reducing their waste, using recycled materials in their manufacturing, and applying processes that are better for the environment. Additionally, many companies are making large, public donations to environmental causes, like conserving endangered species, or setting up sustainable farming projects in developing countries. Whether the higher-ups at these brands care that much about the planet or not is always debatable, but the pressure from consumers is certainly having a positive effect!

Major Savings

Companies that make a point to reduce their energy consumption, and make their processes easier on the environment, not only help the planet, but also themselves in the form of reduced expenses. If you were to tell a modern farmer about how much agriculture is straining the world’s water supply, many of them would be liable to shrug it off. On the other hand, if you offered a way to check your irrigation water usage, and save a small fortune on your water bills, they’ll be much more interested! Large manufacturing firms are jumping on this bandwagon more than any other niche, due to the huge amount of carbon emissions they typically have to produce. For these companies, billions of dollars can be saved each year by investing in eco-friendly changes within the organization. Even smaller businesses, which may be struggling to keep their profit margins up, can have greatly reduced energy costs, simply by using energy-saving light bulbs and turning off computers when they’re not in use.

Government Incentives

We may be hearing about it more now, but the biggest shift towards green business occurred in the wake of the recession in the late nineties. The Obama administration’s economic stimulus plan provided a range of incentives for businesses to be more environmentally friendly in the form of tax credits, which freed up more of their capital. While Trump has promised to roll back a lot of Obama’s green policies, there are still various tax credits available to businesses that show eco-friendly practices, such as using solar power, or using hybrid or fully electric vehicles for their fleets and outsourced logistics. The immediate future of these incentives is uncertain, with the leader of the free world taking a lot of the environmental pressure off. However, it’s very unlikely that we’ll see green government incentives totally disappear.

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