Rants and Raves of a Bum: July 2019

Do weekday's mornings always seem like a race against the clock for you? Preparation and organization are the key things to all parents and kids morning sanity. Getting organized can make your life as a parent and that of your kid easier. So, summer is coming to a close meaning that back to school time is approaching. The school year comes with so much stress and responsibilities for parents. But that should not be the case. You can start the school year out organized by following these tips:

Establish a Daily Routine

Creating a regular daily routine and sticking to it will help your child learn what to expect and do right from morning to evening. Having a household schedule will determine when your kids shower, eat, do their homework, complete other house chores, and know when it’s bedtime. A good idea is using a picture schedule and a clock for better time management skills.

Make Checklists and To-Do Lists

Creating a to-do list and referring to it will help your kid organize their time. A to-do list can be as simple as what to carry to class or things to do before bed. Teach your child how to use checklists and post their assignments and house chores there. Upon completion of a task, they should mark it. This will make your child feel a sense of achievement. You can buy a notebook or a small pad for noting down their to-do list. A dry-erase board can also work better.

Alternatively, apps can help you create a shared checklist with your child. By this, you will track which assignments your kid is finishing fast and which ones are taking longer. This way, you will know the subjects they need help with.

Break Tasks into Small Chunks

Help your kid break school projects and assignments into smaller and manageable portions. Let them number their assignments in the order in which they should be completed. This will make assignments feel less overwhelming. If they have a project that is not to be completed right away, show them how to organize it into bits so that it is done smoothly in the given time.

Designate a Study Space

Your child should have a study space where they carry out their homework. The place should be comfortable, have adequate lighting, and quiet with fewer distractions. Also, have all school supplies and any materials needed nearby.

Have a Master Calendar

Have a large wall-sized calendar at your home. Encourage your kid to list down important tasks. They can be exam dates, extracurricular activities, major events at home and school, and due dates for projects. As a parent, include family commitments and your important dates here. This will help you to keep track of your kid's activity and it will help avoid a scheduling conflict.

Keep Organized Folders

Help your kid organize and keep track of their papers by arranging them in a binder or on a folder. A great way is to assign colors for each subject. Buy brightly colored folders where assignments for each subject will be placed. Also, have separate folders for to-do and completed projects. Folders will help your kid organize all their worksheets and items in a central place. When there is a place for everything, staying organized is easy. Your kid will find items easily and also keep them neat.

Designate Areas for Backpacks, Shoes, and Clothes

Where do your kids place their backpacks, lunch boxes, shoes, coats, and gloves when they get home in the evening? Having a place for each item will help keep your home clean and organized. Also, your kid will know where to get what they need.

Carry Out a Weekly Clean Up

It is good to sort out book bags and notebooks weekly. Old assignments, tests, and papers should be sorted out and kept in a separate folder at home. Other things like wrappers and debris should be thrown in the trash. Help your kid clean up and organize their backpack to keep it always neat.

Get Ready the Night Before

This may be a tough one for both the parent and the kid. However, when you get used and make a habit of preparing at night, your mornings will be easy ones. Let your child help you lay out clothes, shoes, and accessories for the next day. Also, their books should be packed the night before and any devices that need to be charged plugged in the charger. By getting prepared the night before, you cut any possible morning confusions. Also, your kid will prepare quickly. And you will sleep peacefully knowing that everything is packed and ready for the day.

Final Note

As summer wanes, it's good to get ready for the new school year. Make the school year less stressful by applying these tips that will help you start the school year out organized.

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It can seem like one of those essential things in life that we need to know about, but what we end up doing is avoiding ever talking about it. Our credit score is one of those things that we can very easily bury our heads in the sand over. But when you want to make the big purchases in life, and find your dream home, perfect car, or even if you just want to redesign your bathroom but you don't have the funds, your credit score can seem like the obstacle standing in the way. But is it really something that we need to worry about?

Knowing What Affects Your Credit Score

Because it's such an intimidating thing at the outset, we can feel that we're not able to move without our credit score being affected negatively. This is not the case. It's far better if you understand the major issues that can affect your credit score. There are so many credit reports out there, but the major culprits are paying bills late, applying for too many credit cards, having too many open accounts, or if you've had any problems with the courts. Another problem in your credit score being impacted is if you take out too many credit cards. This is something that you need to be aware at the outset. So many people think that having a credit card is free money, when in fact; it's the equivalent of being given a loan, but the lender putting quite a hefty amount of interest on it!

Making Those Big Purchases

If you need to make big purchases in life, then when you should remember that you need a decent credit score in place. But there's always a way around the issue. If you're looking to buy a certain item, but you think that your credit score could get in the way, there are external companies that can provide loans. There are guarantor loans from Buddy Loans, where, if you are unable to repay the money, someone who is acting on behalf of you is liable for the money. But on the other hand, when you are looking to improve your credit score, it's about showing that you are responsible with money. It all depends on the purchase you want to make. Do you want to make it now, or do you have time to make yourself look better in the eyes of the lender?

Should we worry about a credit score? Technically, yes, but we have to look at it in terms of the big picture. If we're not making massive, life-changing purchases right now, then we can look to play the long game and build our credit score up. On the other hand, if you're looking to blow a lot of money on a holiday, you may want to think twice, especially if you want to make those important purchases. The big mistake that people make in their twenties is that they think they don't need to bother with those things just yet. But if you are considering joining the property ladder, buying a car, or even getting another credit card, you need to have your credit score at the back of your mind.

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It’s a situation that is all too familiar for most of us. We get into a rut at work and what was once the perfect job quickly turns into something that is boring and not very inspiring. As you lose your motivation, you start to wonder whether you will be stuck in this dead-end job forever.

Well, thankfully that won’t be the case! No matter how much of a rut you might be in, it will actually be very easy to start to progress in your career if you follow all of the right kinds of steps. Before you know it, you will have been able to turn your career rut into the perfect job again!

Here are the things you should do to start progressing in your career.

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Carry On With Your Education

One thing you should never do is stop learning. Even though your school and college years might be far behind you now, there’s no reason to stop pursuing a good education. There will certainly be plenty of courses that you could use to help you progress in your career. For instance, you might want to try for your real estate licence if you have your sights set on opening your own real estate business. There are so many industry-specific courses and qualifications, so it’s worth taking a look to see which are most relevant to your career.

Find A Mentor

It could also be worth finding a mentor as well. This should be someone who is in the same industry as you but has a lot more experience than you. Ideally, they should be at least ten years ahead of you in their career. They will have plenty of knowledge and wisdom to tell you, which should help you to get a leg up the career ladder. As well as that, they will be able to put you in touch with their contacts so that you have plenty of people who you can reach out to in your network whenever you need any further advice.

Be Sure To Speak Up

If you think that you are ready for a promotion, then you need to let your managers know. Not speaking up and being vocal about your desire to progress might lead to them thinking that you're not that bothered about moving up. They could overlook you and hand the promotion to a much more vocal co-worker.

Listen To Your Appraisals

Your employer should be giving you at least one appraisal a year, although it is more common for these to be carried out every six months. During these sessions, you will be given feedback on your strengths and weaknesses within the workplace. Make sure that you take note of what is being said, especially when it comes to your weaknesses. You can then learn the things you need to improve on to become even better in your line of work.

As you can see, it is perfectly possible to progress a lot further in your career!

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Renting and buying are two very different things, and often people find themselves deliberating over the two. Figuring out which one is right for you is imperative. Buying might be the best option for some, but that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do for everybody. Here we’ll take a look at the benefits and drawbacks of both so you know what’s best for you.

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Buying A Home

Buying a house is a long term investment and should be looked at as such. It can work out cheaper than renting, however, you will need to be able to get a mortgage. You can try availing private money mortgage to help you with buying a home. You must be able to afford the monthly payments - bear in mind that just because you are told you can borrow X amount doesn’t mean you should borrow the full amount if it’s going to mean you will struggle. You’ll need to have a deposit, too. You may also need a guarantor who will agree to cover any mortgage payments that you miss (but it shouldn’t come to that). Benefits of buying include:

You could make a profit if house prices rise
You will own your home at the end of the mortgage term and live rent free
Monthly repayments will go towards purchasing the home, not to a landlord
You can live without needing your landlord’s permission for things, such as getting a pet and redecorating
Buying can be cheaper sometimes
You won’t have to suddenly move because your landlord wants to sell up

There are downsides to buying too. Getting a mortgage or private money loans can be a headache. There are upfront costs like mortgage fees and stamp duty, which can make it more expensive than renting. It can be complicated to sell the property if you get a joint mortgage and split up, too. You will also need to repair anything that goes wrong, which is a further expense on top of everything else. Plus, moving can take a lot longer if you decide you want to live elsewhere. Getting advice from a company like William Pitt or simply browsing the properties may be able to give you a better idea of whether buying is right for you. Try out real estate bridge loans in case you are having difficulty in buying your own home.

Renting A Home

Many people turn their noses up at renting as they believe it’s ‘wasted money’. However, there are lots of benefits:

It’s a quicker process than buying
Moving is no problem
Your landlord pays for renovations and repairs
You don’t risk money if property prices go down
It is often cheaper than buying, and your payments will rarely change so you can budget.
You may be able to rent out a bigger, nicer home than you could afford to buy.

Of course, the biggest downside for many people is that they will not own a home at the end of the day. You will pay rent for your whole life if you never buy a house, even after you retire. Plus, if your landlord decides to sell up, you will have to move out. Improving the property is pretty much a no-go situation too, as it only benefits the landlord.

It’s important to look at your personal circumstances to decide what to do. Do you earn enough to get a mortgage? Do you have a deposit? Who will you live with? How long will you want to live in this property? Asking yourself these questions will help you to figure out the right thing to do.

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We are already halfway through the year and I am pretty sure you cannot clearly remember all of the goals you wrote down in your small diary. If you wrote them down on a piece of paper, by now you cannot trace where it is. The beginning of the year comes with a lot of expectations and goal setting which never materializes year in year out. This sucks big time, but hey, you are not alone and all you need is to do things in a different way. Some of the goals that prove to be most challenging are body fitness, managing finances, and getting over addictions. Let us look at some of the things you need to do differently to set and achieve goals.

Accept that you have a problem
The challenges that come along the journey to change will break your interest and the only thing that keeps you going is the image of what you want to become. If, for example, you want to keep fit by losing weight, you need to know why you don’t want to be overweight. Is it because it is interfering with your self-esteem or health? Answering such questions will help you have the energy to overcome the difficulties you will encounter. You can consider various ways of losing weight and getting fit like including steroids in your routine. Do not wonder where to buy them since you can easily purchase them online from reliable vendors such as steroids-evolution.com where you will find a wide range of products.

Have specific goals
The reason we don’t remember the goals we wrote down is that we were never specific in the first place. Always set SMART goals and this will make your journey towards change easy to attain. If it is about losing weight, specify that you want to attain a certain weight, and choose a specific date. This will give your mind the power to continue after seeing the results and you will yearn to keep on doing it to realize an even better result.

Write down your goals
Writing down your goals helps you keep track of what you are working on. You should include how you are going to achieve the set goals and how you will be measuring your achievements if it is a long-term goal. This is the roadmap that will take you to your goal without slacking by doing unnecessary things that do not help you achieve what you want.

Action
You need to kickstart your journey towards your goal for it to become a reality. You may write down a goal, but it will never come to be unless you start from somewhere. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step, and it is never too late to make a positive change.

Social support
When there is no one who knows that you have a goal to achieve, you may not have anyone to challenge you to keep on your toes. Try as much as possible to involve your friends who have the same interests as you and this will make things a little bit fun. The same friends will pick you up when you are giving up through sharing their experiences.

Having checked on what you need to do to break the merry-go-round of failing every year, it is also true that old habits die hard and this requires you to have a strong inner conviction that you need a real change.

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Eyes are an essential organ that should be protected by all means and cost. They help us see and distinguish things within our environment. We even go the extra mile and consume meals that help us keep them healthy and consult ophthalmologists to ensure all is well. However, this does not go as planned every time. However, it does not always turn out as expected. Occasionally, a person might suffer from infections, injuries, or severe eye conditions. Some conditions are easily treated using your eyes might itch due to infections or as a sign of an underlying eye condition. However, some conditions might prove hard to treat and even pose a risk of blindness if proper treatment is not accessed. One procedure that many patients seem to prefer LASIK eye surgery, and below are the reasons why.

1) Improved Vision

Lasik surgery is a laser surgery whose aim is to correct the patient’s vision by adjusting their focus. The focus is mostly affected, and it gets worse with age and after an illness. Patients around the world confess of better and improved vision after the surgery. This walk-in operation can be a one-time affair, and you do not need to make follow-ups. However, LASIK for nearsightedness requires to follow up procedures to ensure that it achieves the desired results. Patients can see better and for longer.

2) Less Invasive

This procedure is quick and can be treated as a walk in surgery. The surgery leaves little marks as compared to other types of eye surgeries. Additionally, the wound is small, reducing the chances of exposure to germs that leads to infections. The surgery focuses on the cornea, and this minimizes the scarring left behind. You do not need bandages once this procedure is performed, and this allows you to get back to normalcy as soon as you can. However, avoid dusty spaces. The surgery is ideal for patients who might want to skip the questions and stares. The surgery is also less painful due to the numbing from an anesthetic and makes it more comfortable for patients to undergo.

3) Affordable

This surgery takes with it the cost to buy and replace glasses and contacts, which helps you save in the long run. This surgery can be performed under cash or insurance, making it accessible to all. The price tags put on this procedure by different clinics is an amount that many can afford to pay for. The procedure can also be halted until the patient raises the amount since it is not an emergency for most. This allows the patient to work around their budget without pressure. Insurance patients require approval for the procedure can be conducted. To be on the safe side with the insurance, find out which clinics your insurance can be used too as some come with limitations.

4) No More Glasses and Contacts

Many patients who suffer from eye conditions use the artificial lens on glasses and contacts. The glasses can be uncomfortable. They require extra care to ensure that they are not damaged. Contacts, on the other hand, can get lost when you engage in several activities such as swimming or after inserting them wrongly. Some patients replace or collect several glasses and contacts to suit the current trends, outfits, and activities they engage in. This procedure promises permanent and long-lasting results, and you can do away with your collection.

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