Everyday English, every day, With English Now!

August 2 – damage

August 2 – damage

August 2, 2019      =========

☆  damage 損害

============================

Today, we have another of the useful phrases for the week: How bad was the damage? This was one of the questions the insurance company asked us when we asked for the money to replace the running stroller I mentioned yesterday. The company wanted to know if the damage was so bad that we needed a replacement, or whether they could just buy a replacement wheel.

In fact, the damage wasn’t so bad that we needed a new stroller, it could still be used… however, in the end, it was the same price to replace a wheel and axle from the US as buying a newRead more about August 2 – damage[…]

August 1 – insurance

August 1 – insurance

August 1, 2019     =========

☆  insurance 保険

============================

This month our topic is “Troubles while traveling” and the useful phrase is “You should definitely get travel insurance.” What do you think about this? Do you usually get travel insurance?

I very rarely buy travel insurance – it seems like an expense for something I never need… however, one time when I was flying back to Australia, for some reason, we decided to get insurance. We were lucky we did! On our arrival at Sydney airport we discovered that Qantas had damaged our expensive running stroller wheel, so we couldn’t use it anymore. Luckily the insurance paid for a replacement stroller.  

How about you? DoRead more about August 1 – insurance[…]

July 31 – modify

July 31 – modify

July 31, 2019 =========

☆  modify  修正する

============================

Continuing on from yesterday, if the fortune teller had told me it was bad timing to move back to Australia, then I would definitely have modified my plans. That might sound crazy, to adjust my plans on the basis of what “might” happen, right? But, I do really trust this person, and I had consulted her many times before this time in 2011.

If you were given insight or advice about your future, and it was different to what you were planning or thinking of doing, would you modify your plans? Would you take different actions? Or would you just thank the person for the information andRead more about July 31 – modify[…]

July 30 – complicate

July 30 – complicate

July 30, 2019 =========

☆  complicate 複雑にする

============================

If you complicate something, you make it more difficult to understand or deal with. In some cases, knowing the future might actually complicate things, right? For example, if you were planning to move overseas for work, and a fortune teller told you that you should stay in Japan for the next few years… what would you do? Would this complicate your decision?

For me, it definitely would! Of course, I would want more information about exactly why moving to another country was not a good idea at that time… but if I believed in the accuracy and integrity of the person telling me, then it would definitelyRead more about July 30 – complicate[…]

July 29 – conceptualize

July 29 – conceptualize

July 29, 2019 =========

☆  conceptualize (将来を)思い描く

============================

If you conceptualize something, you form an idea of it in your mind. In other words, if we conceptualize our future, we visualize our future. When we conceptualize something, it involves lots of ideas and elements. So, it is not simply wanting to live in a big city, or wanting to be an author – it involves conceptualizing all of the different parts of that idea – what city? What kind of dwelling? Who with? And so. Or for the author – what kind of genre? Who is your ideal reader and publisher?

Interestingly, conceptualizing the future is something that marketers need to be good at –Read more about July 29 – conceptualize[…]

July 28 – accuracy

July 28 – accuracy

July 28, 2019 =========

☆  accuracy 的確さ

============================

The accuracy of information is the degree to which it is true, even in the small details. So, a fortune teller could be rated on their accuracy for example. Naturally, if you are going to spend time and money to hear about your future, you want a high degree of accuracy, right?!

The quote from this week is by Sir Terry Pratchett, an English novelist; “Ordinary fortune-tellers tell you what you want to happen.” I think this is true of many fortune tellers – without thinking about accuracy, they ask a few questions and learn enough about the person to tell them what they want to happen.Read more about July 28 – accuracy[…]

July 27 – incident

July 27 – incident

July 27, 2019 =========

☆  incident 出来事

============================

An incident is something that happens – usually just one time, and it is often unpleasant. When we use this word, it is generally a formal situation, such as a news report. However, it can be used in any personal situation too, especially when you don’t want to mention exactly what happened. Here are some examples to illustrate that:

The incident didn’t change her plans.
Their relationship was never the same after the incident.
He was worried that everyone knew about the incident.
She couldn’t get the horrible incident out of her mind.

So, as you can see, there is no specific information about the incident, so if someone said thisRead more about July 27 – incident[…]

July 26 – mood

July 26 – mood

July 26, 2019 =========

☆  mood  気分

============================

Your mood is your state or frame of mind. Your mood can change often, so it’s important to have some adjectives to describe the mood you are in. Here are some commonly used ones:

good mood
foul mood
aggressive mood
positive mood
unhappy mood
bad mood
festive mood

Do you think your mood affects your life in a big way, or are you able to be in control of your mood in general, and not let it change your day?

Bye,

Chris

July 25 – fantasy

July 25 – fantasy

July 25, 2019 =========

☆  fantasy  空想

============================

One of this week’s phrases is “It’s just a fantasy, it’ll never happen.” What do you think about this statement? Do you think that it’s true, and the good luck you are hoping or wishing for won’t happen because it is just a fantasy or dream?

Or are you more likely to believe in the Law of Attraction (LOA) style of thinking? In other words, it might be a fantasy or a dream, but you feel positive that it might happen, and that you can attract it?

I heard a good comment about the LOA: the law of attraction doesn’t work if you don’t. In other words, justRead more about July 25 – fantasy[…]

July 24 – sense

July 24 – sense

July 24, 2019 =========

☆  sense 感覚

============================

If you have a sense of something, you have that feeling. For example, you think that something is true, without having clear evidence for this belief. So, fortune tellers work a lot with “sense”… they might read our palm, or do a Tarot card spread, and get a sense of what might happen to us in the future.

They have no real evidence, it is based on their sense or feeling. In fact, I tend to make a lot of decisions this way! A few years ago, when I was flying back to Japan, I had a feeling or a sense that something was wrong, so IRead more about July 24 – sense[…]

July 23 – attitude

July 23 – attitude

July 23, 2019 =========

☆  attitude 心構え

============================

Your attitude is the way that you think or feel about something. So, if you think that fortune tellers are all fake and you don’t believe in them, then this would show in your attitude toward them – you wouldn’t visit fortune tellers, you wouldn’t believe it when others tell you about what they learned or heard from one.

On the other hand, if your attitude toward fortune tellers is more open, and you are prepared to believe what they tell you then, then your attitude would be quite different. You might own your own Tarot cards, or you might visit a fortune teller every so often.Read more about July 23 – attitude[…]

July 22 – turn of events

July 22 – turn of events

July 22, 2019 =========

☆  turn of events 物事の節目

============================

A “turn of events” is a new development or a change in a situation.

This week’s useful phrase is “What a happy turn of events” meaning that there was a new development or a change in the situation which was happy or pleasant for the people involved. For example, maybe someone who was sick got better when they weren’t expected to. Or maybe you got a new job or a pay rise, when you were feeling down about your work situation. So, the “happy” part means that there was a change from the sad or negative situation you were in.

You can also use adjectives suchRead more about July 22 – turn of events[…]

July 21 – unexpected

July 21 – unexpected

July 21, 2019 =========

☆  unexpected 予想もしない

============================

Every year, there are festivals for various things in my city. Just like in Japan; food festivals, music festivals, art festivals and so on. One of the funniest things I’ve seen regarding a festival was the sign for the Psychic and Fortune Telling festival. There was a big poster advertising the festival, and then over the top of the poster, there was another small poster saying that the festival had been canceled.

It had been canceled due to “unexpected circumstances.”

Ha ha! Do you see the funny side of that? If they are really true psychics and fortune tellers then they should have known about the circumstances, soRead more about July 21 – unexpected[…]

July 20 – miraculous

July 20 – miraculous

July 20 2019 =========

☆  miraculous  奇跡的な

============================

Last month, we had to put down our 16-year-old dog. He had lived a long, and miraculous life, but it was time for him to rest. You might be wondering how his life was miraculous… well, he was a dog, but it was like he had nine lives, like they say a cat does.

Five years ago, our friends looked after him while we were away, and he escaped – he was blind in one eye, but he managed to run across a very busy road and not get killed! Miraculous!
Four years ago, he had a stroke and couldn’t walk… the next day, when we were aboutRead more about July 20 – miraculous[…]

July 19 – lucky

July 19 – lucky

July 19, 2019 =========

☆  lucky 幸運な

============================

Someone who is lucky seems to always have good luck. Do you think you are lucky? If a fortune teller told you that you were going to be very lucky in the future, would you believe them?

I remember a client of mine talking about his mentor who was in the business of “Luck management” … it was an interesting concept – that you could manage your life and determine events so that you could be lucky in the future. Of course, it wasn’t talking about being lucky and winning the lottery, but more about attracting happy and lucky events in to your life.

I want to beRead more about July 19 – lucky[…]

July 18 – underlying

July 18 – underlying

July 18, 2019 =========

☆  underlying  潜在的な

============================

This week’s useful phrase is “What is the underlying problem?” The underlying features of something are not obvious, and it may be difficult to discover them. However, without revealing the underlying problem or underlying cause, it can be difficult to solve the problem or change the situation.

For example, if you want to work in a company where you can use English, but you haven’t been able to find a job, you might feel like the underlying problem for you is a lack of English skills. However, the interviewer might think the underlying problem is a lack of experience. So, as you can see, you need toRead more about July 18 – underlying[…]

July 17 – present

July 17 – present

July 17, 2019 =========

☆  present 現在の

============================

We can use the word present to describe something that is existing here and now, for example this present moment, or current moment. You probably know this word from learning English grammar, talking about the present tense, however there are many other ways to use it:

Our present method is not working, we need to make some changes.
We are still looking for her; her present whereabouts are unknown.
Our present life is all that matters.
I don’t want to discuss it while you are in your present frame of mind.
The present moment is all we have.
If you are not happy with your present situation or present life, then it’sRead more about July 17 – present[…]

July 16 – memorable

July 16 – memorable

July 16, 2019 =========

☆  memorable  忘れられない

============================

Something that is memorable is likely to be remembered because it is special, or there is something unusual about it. For me, my visit with the fortune teller during my university days was memorable just because she said I’d visit Spain… and I still haven’t! Ha ha.

I think it is kind of interesting what our brains choose to remember, don’t you? I wonder how we decide what is memorable and what is not? I have some events in my life that I remember very well, that I don’t consider to be special or unusual, and yet my brain remembers them clearly! Strange!

How about you? What kindsRead more about July 16 – memorable[…]

July 15 – specific

July 15 – specific

July 15, 2019 =========

☆  specific 具体的な

============================

Do you think that a fortune teller than can give you more specific information is more believable? For example, if they said “you will move house in the future”, this is not very specific and could easily come true. However, if they said, “you will move house before the end of the year” and it is already the middle of July… that’s much more specific and if you weren’t thinking about moving house, this might be shocking to hear!

I think I’d prefer to get specific information. Anyone can give out vague and general information about “the future” but information that is specific to me, would beRead more about July 15 – specific[…]

July 14 – insight

July 14 – insight

July 14, 2019 =========

☆  insight  洞察

============================

So, it might sound like I don’t really like fortune tellers, but that is not true! And if you do or don’t like them, that’s OK with me too! What I don’t like is the fake ones that try to scam people out of their money promising to tell them their future.

However, even the fake ones can have some insight, I think. If you seek help from anyone, a fortune teller, a counselor, your boss, or a friend, just having a chance to talk about the situation, can help you think things through – and from that chance, you can gain insight into your situation muchRead more about July 14 – insight[…]

July 13 – relationship

July 13 – relationship

July 13, 2019 =========

☆  relationship  人間関係

============================

So, once you’ve heard about your love, your career, and your success in the future, it’s only natural that you’ll want to ask about your relationships, right? Ha ha. This might be a tricky one for fortune tellers to answer.

Imagine if they told you that your relationship with your spouse will come to an end. Or that you will have a big fight with your best friend and the relationship will be over. It would be devastating to get this kind of information from someone who says they can see the future!

Bye,

Chris

July 12 – success

July 12 – success

July 12, 2019 =========

☆  success 成功

============================

Another popular question for the fortune tellers! Will I have success in my life? This might actually be a difficult question to answer, because really, success is different to each of us, right?

For some people, success might mean lots of money, for others success might mean travelling the world and living in different places. And for others it might be a happy family, with a few children, and good friends. Or it could mean all of these things!

I guess that is actually why fake fortune tellers can be believable – because although the small details of success are probably very different, the big picture of successRead more about July 12 – success[…]

July 11 – career

July 11 – career

July 11, 2019 =========

☆  career  キャリア

============================

This week’s useful phrase is, “Will I have success in my career?” What would you do if the reply was “no”? Would you ask for more information, such as “should I change careers?” or “Why not? What will go wrong?”

Or maybe, you’re not in a career that you like right now, so a “no” would be a good result, because it would mean that you could focus on changing careers.

When the fortune teller I saw years ago said I should go to Spain, I went to Japan as an English teacher instead… I wonder if I would have had the same career if I had goneRead more about July 11 – career[…]

July 10 – family

July 10 – family

July 10, 2019    =========

☆  family 家族

============================

Another popular topic for the future is family. Will I have a family? How many children will I have? How about my parents and siblings, will they be healthy and live long lives?

What sorts of questions would you ask a fortune teller? If you knew they were authentic and not fake, what sorts of things would you want to know about your family’s future? About your love life? What topics interest you for the future?

Bye,

Chris

July 9 – love

July 9 – love

July 9, 2019   =========

☆  love 愛

============================

I think love is probably one of the most common questions that people ask fortune tellers! Will I find love? Will I be successful in love? What is my love fortune?

Did you know that instead of paying money for advice from a fortune teller, you can look online for free fortune tellers on any topic? I found a funny one, which was a “fortune cookie” like the Chinese fortune cookies, except it was just an image of a fortune cookie, and you click on it, and it gives you a fortune about your love. Mine said, “Open your mind and your heart to good things.”Read more about July 9 – love[…]

July 8 – future

July 8 – future

July 8, 2019      =========

☆  future 未来

============================

The future is the period of time that comes after the present. This can be the immediate future, or more long-term, but anything that is not “now” or in the “past” is technically the future.

If, like last week’s phrase, you believe that your actions can influence your future, then it is important to actually take time out to think about what the future holds for you, and what you want from the future. Once you have done this, you can make plans for your future – and become your own fortune teller! Take action and see how accurately you can predict your own future!

Bye,

Chris

July 7 – evoke

July 7 – evoke

July 7, 2019 =========

☆  evoke 喚起する

============================

To evoke something, such as a memory, an idea, emotion, or response, means to cause it to occur. I once heard that fake fortune tellers evoke a sense of trust by telling us things that are true about ourselves, before they move on to telling us about our future.

For example, they “read” our situation and tell us we have a happy marriage, or are not happy in our job, and so on. These suggestions evoke a response from us – a nod of yes, or a shake of the head for a no. And this is the clue for the next thing for them toRead more about July 7 – evoke[…]

July 6 – take care

July 6 – take care

July 6, 2019 =========

☆  take care 気をつける

============================

Have you ever been to a fortune teller or psychic? Did what they tell you change how you acted or make you take care in a situation which you might not normally have taken care? That is definitely one benefit from seeking advice or counseling from this type of person, don’t you think?

If they suggest that you might get sick in the future, then you might take care of yourself better. Or if they say the house you live in is not safe, then you might do some work or renovations and take care to make it safer. And, then those actions will definitely influenceRead more about July 6 – take care[…]

July 5 – visualize

July 5 – visualize

July 5, 2019 =========

☆  visualize  思い描く

============================

Today is the beginning of winter school holidays for my kids. It’s just a short two-week break, but each year, we get a lot of rain and it’s hard to do anything outside. Visualizing is usually used for long-term visions and setting goals for your future, but I am going to use it for the short-term goal… I want to visualize the perfect weather for our school holidays!

Cold weather is OK, just not too much rain! And I want us to spend time together as a family, but also for the kids to have playtime with their mates. I’m also going to visualize my kids goingRead more about July 5 – visualize[…]

July 4 – influence

July 4 – influence

July 4, 2019 =========

☆  influence  影響を与える

============================

This week’s useful phrase is, “Your actions influence your future.” I think this is a much better way of thinking about fortune-telling, don’t you? In this way, you know that you can influence and change your future.

In fact, if you think about it, your doctor could be called a “fortune-teller” too! Many doctors say things like, “If you keep eating in this way, you’ll get heart disease.” That’s like they are predicting the future! But, in a positive way – because they are giving you the information you need to influence your future – change your eating habits, stop drinking or smoking, or exercise more.

There areRead more about July 4 – influence[…]

July 3 – predict

July 3 – predict

July 3, 2019     =========

☆  predict  予言する

============================

In the article I mentioned the other day, the psychic said that it was not possible to predict the future, because there are multiple realities and futures that could come to pass. When she first started as a psychic, she told people what she saw – she predicted illnesses, and trouble with tenants, and so on. Amazingly, those things happened.

However, this was when she said that it wasn’t possible to predict “the” future, because there are so many. Instead she decided to focus on telling people about the power of the subconscious mind to anchor in suggestions about the future. Her main suggestion: don’t letRead more about July 3 – predict[…]

July 2 – mirror

July 2 – mirror

July 2, 2019      =========

☆  mirror  映し出す

============================

And the second part of the quote from yesterday is that fortune-telling “mirrors the present”. I read an interesting article that suggests this is true. The psychic or fortune-teller can gather information about us, from the way we are dressed, wedding rings and so on, and then they suggest ideas that might mirror or reflect that.

If we already have that belief in our subconscious mind, then being told it by a fortune-teller makes us believe it even more. And then similar to the Law of Attraction we end up making that “future” come true for us. So, is it really fortune-telling? Or just mirroring ourRead more about July 2 – mirror[…]

July 1 – reveal

July 1 – reveal

July 1, 2019     =========

☆  reveal  明らかにする

============================

This month’s topic is Fortune Telling, and the opening quote is “fortune-telling doesn’t reveal the future, it mirrors the present.” This is a quote by Charles de Lint, a Canadian author. Do you know the rest of the quote? It says that fortune-telling basically “resonates against what your subconscious already knows and hauls it up out of the darkness so you can get a good look at it.”

What do you think about this idea? Do you think it’s true that fortune-tellers are just revealing what we already know?

Once, when I was in university, I went to a psychic festival and saw a fortune-teller, she toldRead more about July 1 – reveal[…]

June 30 – disciplined

June 30 – disciplined

June 30, 2019 =========

☆  disciplined  訓練された

============================

Someone who is disciplined behaves or works in a controlled way. If you are running your own business, being disciplined is probably one of the most important things you need to be, I think. When you have a job, you “have to” get up and go to work. You “have to” listen to your boss and do what they say.

But what do you do if you are the boss!!??? If you’re not disciplined, then it might be easy to take a day off when the sun is shining. If you’re not disciplined, then you might be tempted to skip the deadline and do it later… allRead more about June 30 – disciplined[…]

June 29 – motivated

June 29 – motivated

June 29, 2019 =========

☆  motivated  やる気に満ちた

============================

I think one of the hardest things for running a small business is staying motivated. When you first start, everything is new and exciting, and you are learning new things, and being motivated is easy.

That is one reason I am interested in reading the book I mentioned by Paul Jarvis, Company of One. I haven’t read it yet, and I’m interested to know what he says about staying motivated. If you are in a company or have employees, then you have people to talk with and you can keep each other motivated. But what about a Company of One? How do you keep yourself motivated whenRead more about June 29 – motivated[…]

June 28 – frugal

June 28 – frugal

June 28, 2019 =========

☆  frugal  倹約的な

============================

A key to business success is being frugal, I think. Especially in the beginning, when you are just starting out. Unfortunately, this is one lesson I learned from experience! Oh no!! As I said, when I got my first client I celebrated, and when I got my first payment, I went shopping… I was definitely not frugal back then!

Now, even though my business is not new or just starting out, I am much more frugal. Not in a stingy or negative way. I just try not to spend more than necessary, and definitely don’t buy things the business doesn’t need… (mostly!)

How about you? Do you thinkRead more about June 28 – frugal[…]

June 27 – long-term

June 27 – long-term

June 27, 2019 =========

☆  long-term 長期的な

============================

Another sample answer from the Q&A this month is, “Having long-term goals to keep you motivated.” In fact, I would say that this is good advice for a successful life, not just a successful business, what do you think?

In Australia, June 30 is the end of financial year, so June is actually good timing for businesses to start thinking about long-term goals. Many businesses have EOFY Sales – End of Financial Year sales, trying to get businesses to buy new machines or new cars, etc., to save money before they have to pay tax.

It’s a dangerous situation for a business! Without long-term goals, you might think,Read more about June 27 – long-term[…]

June 26 – consistent

June 26 – consistent

June 26, 2019 =========

☆  consistent  一貫した

============================

If you are consistent, you are constant, dependable, regular, persistent, unchanging. If you are consistent in business, you take action on a regular basis. The Q&A for this week is “What do you think is important for business success?” One of the sample answers is, “Taking consistent action.”

I think this is a great answer – it’s true you must take constant and consistent action. And you also much be dependable, and unchanging. One of the reasons McDonald’s is so successful is not because of the delicious burgers (because are they even delicious?? I don’t think so!). They are successful because they are consistent. No matter whereRead more about June 26 – consistent[…]

June 25 – immediate

June 25 – immediate

June 25, 2019 =========

☆  immediate 緊急の

============================

An immediate result or action is something that happens without delay. When I started my business and got my first client, my immediate reaction was to celebrate! And when I got my first payment for a huge amount of work I did, my immediate action after the money hit my bank account was to buy myself something! Ha ha! I was quite young at the time, so that is my excuse!

Not anymore, though! Now that I have a family, and other financial commitments, my immediate reaction to getting a payment from a client is to transfer it into my bank account and work out what “job”Read more about June 25 – immediate[…]

June 24 – calculated

June 24 – calculated

June 24, 2019 =========

☆  calculated  計算された

============================

If something is calculated to have a particular effect, it is specially done or arranged in order to have that effect. Other words you can use are deliberate, intentional, planned or intended.

The most common way you’ll hear this word used in terms of business, is that someone took a “calculated risk”. This means that the person is doing something that they think might be successful, but they know it is risky, and they have fully considered the possible negative consequences.

For example, if you decide quit your job to start your own business, you would hopefully say it is a calculated risk – you have considered theRead more about June 24 – calculated[…]

June 23 – stand out

June 23 – stand out

June 23, 2019 =========

☆  stand out  目立つ

============================

Continuing on from yesterday, and the idea from Paul Jarvis of staying small… he says there are over 152 million blogs on the Internet, over 12 million books on Amazon. Over 7 million products on Etsy… that is a lot of people trying to sell stuff and get our attention.

So, if you are a business owner, how do you stand out from these millions and get people to buy from you not one of the other million people? Paul Jarvis says you do it by having other people recommending you. The connections you make with other people are what make you stand out.

To do this,Read more about June 23 – stand out[…]

June 22 – grow

June 22 – grow

June 22, 2019 =========

☆  grow  成長する

============================

One thing that most people believe about business is that you need to grow and in order to grow, you need to hire staff and make the company bigger. Interestingly, a man called Paul Jarvis has recently published a book called “Company of One.”

His book is all about staying small! Instead of just growing your business by making it bigger, he says you should think about making your business better instead of bigger. His idea is that you need a rich life, not to actually be rich. He says the key to doing this is not to grow to a big scale company, but instead workRead more about June 22 – grow[…]

June 21 – analyze

June 21 – analyze

June 21, 2019 =========

☆  analyze  分析する

============================

If you do start a business, you’ll need to analyze it often; in other words, you’ll need to monitor and check internal and external variables to see where you are successful and whether you need to make any changes.

So, what kinds of things can you use to analyze your business? Customer research using surveys online or in-person, for example. If you have a product, you will want to analyze your production, and make sure that quality is high and consistent. If you are a small business with staff, then analyzing labor costs is very important. Salary costs can be quite high, so if you are notRead more about June 21 – analyze[…]

June 20 – implement

June 20 – implement

June 20, 2019 =========

☆  implement  実施する

============================

If you implement something, such as a plan, you ensure that what has been planned is done. Other words with a similar meaning are carry out, execute, or perform. Remember the detailed plan I talked about a few emails ago? Well, one problem with it was that it was not at all inspiring.

The other problem was that although it was well-thought out, it lacked a clear way to implement it. The goals and objectives were clear, but I didn’t take time to break them down into goals, so that I had actual tasks to implement. I wonder if I went back and looked at it again,Read more about June 20 – implement[…]

June 19 – sacrifice

June 19 – sacrifice

June 19, 2019 =========

☆  sacrifice  犠牲にする

============================

When you sacrifice something that is valuable or important, you give it up, usually to obtain something else. For example, the useful phrase is something that you see quite a bit in Australia with people who run their own businesses. “Don’t sacrifice your health for your business.”

Do you know anyone who does this? My sister did for a while. She and her husband ran a very successful phone installation company. Unfortunately, they both sacrificed their health while running the business. They were too busy, no time for relaxation or rest. Thankfully, they sold that business and now have a new business which doesn’t require them toRead more about June 19 – sacrifice[…]

June 18 – complete

June 18 – complete

June 18, 2019 =========

☆  complete  仕上げる

============================

If you complete something, you finish doing, making, or producing it. One common business strategy I see these days, is people marketing a product they haven’t completed making! This way, they get people interested in buying the product, and get them to give their email address to go on a list, so they can be notified when the product is completed and ready to purchase.

One way this works well, is using a website like Kickstarter. I really love this way of doing business. If you have an idea for a product, or a sample of your product, but not really sure if it’ll be successful, youRead more about June 18 – complete[…]

June 17 – avoid

June 17 – avoid

June 17, 2019 =========

☆  avoid  避ける

============================

If you want to start up and run a successful business, then you need to know what to do, but also what to avoid. One of the main things to avoid is undervaluing your product or service. So many new business owners think that a cheaper price is more attractive to the customer or they lack the confidence to charge the price they want or need to charge to be profitable. Try to avoid this mistake!

Another big mistake new business owners make is avoiding marketing. There are no rules on how to market your business. You can do word of mouth, or internet marketing, or evenRead more about June 17 – avoid[…]

June 16 – knowledge

June 16 – knowledge

June 16, 2019 =========

☆  knowledge  知識

============================

Many people think they don’t have enough knowledge to start their own business, but most people have a lot of life experience that can be used for their business. If you have employees, then you have access to their knowledge too!

If you choose to start a business in the area that you already work in, then you have a lot of knowledge already. The thing is though, thanks to the internet, you can access the knowledge of almost all the people in the world! If you want knowledge about your market, google it! Want to know what your customers are thinking? Google it!

So, if you’re thinkingRead more about June 16 – knowledge[…]

June 15 – reward

June 15 – reward

June 15, 2019 =========

☆  reward  報酬

============================

Ah, the reward! The compensation for running your own business. This is where it gets interesting! At a job, your reward is fixed, right? You might get a raise every now and then, but essentially, your reward doesn’t change much even if the company becomes very successful.

On the other hand, if you are the owner of the business, the success of the business greatly affects the amount of the reward you get. Firstly, any increase in profit is yours to distribute how you want to. It could be a bonus to yourself, or to your staff. But, best of all, I think is the non-monetary rewardRead more about June 15 – reward[…]

June 14 – risk

June 14 – risk

June 14, 2019 =========

☆  risk リスク

============================

The useful phrase this week is, “Sometimes it’s OK to take risks.” What do you think about this, do you agree or disagree? On the topic of business, when do you think it would be OK to take risks?

Leaving a paid job, to start your own business is probably the biggest risk of all, and I think that is why so many people never do it. They dream about starting their own business, but the risk of failure and then not being able to find another job is too scary. This is definitely true if you have a family to support or a mortgage to pay.

IfRead more about June 14 – risk[…]