Juice Up Your Life!

INJURED EMPLOYEE

admin — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 18:07:02 +0000

Our business takes injury prevention very seriously, and we have worked with outside experts and consultants to minimize the occasion of the filing of an injury report. We regard it as a profit failure if one does get filed, because ultimately it costs our firm revenue and profit. If it is an employee who is the injured person, then that employee is off of work and costing the company money. If it is a customer who is injured, they may not complete the purchase, will have ill will against the company, and may suffer physical hardship. Both may cost additional profit if they decide — for whatever reason– that legal action may be necessary. The ultimate goal is no injured person and no injury reports.
It is the right thing to do to become more compliant in regard to injury prevention for any business today. Many sources exist — some free– on the internet, in books, through government pamphlets and information, and with the expert help of those trained in the industry.
Speaking of industry, if a business is to choose an expert, be sure that the expert is one that has a track record in the industry that your business operates. It does make a difference. Our first choice to advise on injury prevention was a consultant outside our industry, and while some very good recommendations were made, they didn’t comply with the way our company had to operate to remain competitive. It took some shopping and a lot of interviews, but we found the right consultant to help our business.
That’s a major expense, many will say. One that, especially in these hard times, can’t be justified.
The counter is, a business can hardly afford to not seriously look into injury prevention. Not if it wants to survive. Often, injuries and the results that come from them — be it employees off of work, or litigation — result in bottom line stress and, sometimes, business failure.
The consultant hired by our firm broke the business into segments and proceeded to examine each and every aspect of those segments, including interaction with suppliers and customers. There was a type of matrix that the consultant used to gauge to probability of the risk, and then this was cross referenced with the actual statistics produced by the government. Though the government figures were for several years back, the consultant adjusted mathematically for possible error, both positive and negative.
What we found is serious issues in several sectors of our business. Mostly through no fault of our own, we were complicit in the probability that our firm was causing an accident. That is correct. We were innocent in the matter, but innocent can still cost plenty in employee pain, employee days off and in further legal action sometimes. Our business was also negligent in some areas where there was customer exposure.
We set aside a special line in the budget to become more compliant, and we have re-duced the injury report and the injured person to obscurity, thus increasing our profit.

Technology Growth

admin — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:37:43 +0000

There are still some very good prospects for online stock trading in the technology sector.

This takes a bit of homework today, especially with the market riding up and down nearly daily, but anybody in online stock trading owes it to do some research.

Some of the technology stocks show great promise, while others are clearly past their prime.

Some of the “old” technology players: IBM, Hewlett- Packard, Dell and Apple have some very clear value, though demand for their individual products and services might be sluggish in the months to come.

The newer technology stocks, such as the internet ones, Google and Yahoo, are each unique case studies. Some see nothing but accelerated growth for Google, which owns a huge share of the search market, and see a decline and eventual buy out of Yahoo. Should I allocate shares for both, is the question. Or pick the winner based on today’s knowledge and conditions.

There are some others that are stand alone cases. Microsoft is a unique situation. They still have huge cash reserves. Sun-Microsystems has its own position.

Even other sectors of technology include telecommunications and wireless. It’s hard to get a grip on some of them, considering the question of how much expansion to the upside they will have, considering the credit situation and the uncertain demand.

Cable and satellite will represent an uncertain level of demand, too. Once again, so much is dependent on the markets, demand and credit.

No matter how the Dow settles, there will always be demand for technology, especially technology that saves money for their users and enables them to do things easier.

BASEBALL FIX

admin — Mon, 19 May 2008 20:53:01 +0000

I have to admit that when I want to get my baseball fix in person I go to see the Chicago Cubs. Wrigley Field is still magic. I’ve been going there since I was a kid. I used to go to Sox Park, the old Comisky Park, until they built then new monstrosity on the South Side. I have never stepped foot inside that place. I know they have made some improvements, but it’s just not a place I want to visit. Even in 2005, when the Sox won, I couldn’t go there. So here I am, a South Side guy, and when I want to see a baseball game in my town I have to travel to the North Side. And for those who don’t know, it’s like crossing a border. Tara is from the North Side, so she really enjoys it when we go to see a game. I used to go to school at Loyola, and I can remember blowing off afternoons to go sit in the bleacher seats, having a few beers, and just enjoying watching the Cubs lose. They always seemed to lose, but that was — and is not — the point of going to a Cubs game.

SOLID FOUNDATION

admin — Thu, 01 May 2008 22:09:24 +0000

Oh man, I really like this woman. I hang onto just about every word she says. I notice it doesn’t even matter what she’s saying. She could be talking about Pittsburgh Chapter 7 and I’d still find it all fascinating! Ha! My buddies are giving me a hard time about it. They’re telling me that I should just ask her out already. I don’t know. I’m really shy when it comes to that type of thing. I obviously recognize that she’s a catch and if I don’t work up some courage soon somebody else is going to ask first. I just know I will be really upset if that happens. I haven’t been this excited about someone since my ex-girlfriend. I also don’t want to ruin what we do have. We have a nice friendship blossoming. It’s kind of perfect right now. It might drive other guys nuts, but I actually like that we’re moving at a snail’s pace right now. I’m not in a rush. I don’t want to ruin what’s happening between us by making a move too soon. I think there’s a lot of wisdom to that saying about being friends first. I’d like for us to build a solid foundation that way first and then take it from there.