FIRST RULES FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS

Entrepreneurship is the art of finding profitable solutions to problems. Every successful entrepreneur, every successful businessperson has been a person who has been able to identify a problem and come up with a solution to it before somebody else did.

Here are the five rules for entrepreneurship.

Find A Need And Fill It
First, find a need and fill it. Ross Perot, when he was working for IBM, saw that his customers who were buying IBM computers, needed help in processing their data. He went to IBM with this idea and they said they weren't interested, so he started his own business. He eventually sold it out for $2.8 billion dollars. He found a need and he filled it.

Find A Problem And Solve It
The second rule is to find a problem and solve it. A secretary working for a small company began mixing flour with nail varnish in order to white out the mistakes she was making in her typing. Pretty soon, her friends in the same office asked if she could make some for them. So she began mixing it on her kitchen table. Then, people in other offices started asking for it, and she eventually quit her business and worked full time creating what is today called Liquid Paper. A few years ago, she sold her company to Gillette Corporation for 47 million dollars.Look For SolutionsFind a problem and solve it.
Find a problem that everybody's got and see if you can't come up with a solution for it. Find a way to supply a product or a service better, cheaper, faster or easier.
Clemmons Wilson saw that there was a need for hotels that could accommodate families that were traveling, and he started Holiday Inns. And Holiday Inns has now become one of the most successful hotel chains in the world.

Focus On Your Customer
Here's the key to success in business. Become obsessed with your customer. Fixated on your customer. Think of the customer. Think of what the customer wants, what the customer needs. What the customer will pay for, what the customer's problems are. Thomas J. Watson, Senior, the founder of IBM, taught his people and built his company on this principle.

See yourself as working for the customer. Once you've come up with a product or an idea, then start to invest your time, talent and energy instead of your money, to get started.

The Source of Most Great Fortunes
Remember this, most great fortunes in America were started with an idea and with personal efforts. Most great fortunes were started with the sale of personal services. This is called sweat equity. In other words, instead of cash equity, put in sweat equity. Put in the sweat of your brow to begin your business. You can learn valuable lessons operating on a small scale.

Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action:First, find a need and fill it. Look around you and search for needs that people have for products or services that are not being met. One small idea is enough to start you on the way to business success.Second, find a problem and solve it. Look around you for problems that you or other people have that are not yet being solved. Look for solutions that nobody has thought of and give them a try. One good solution could change the whole direction of your life.

United Nations Headquarters Internship – Summer 2009

United Nations Headquarters Internship – Summer 2009,

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS:

18 Jan 2009 DATE OF ISSUANCE:15 Sep 2008

ORGANIZATIONAL UNIT:

Department of Management

DUTY STATION:
New York

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT NUMBER:

08-INT-DM-418981-S-NEW YORK

This announcement is for the Summer 2009 Session of the United Nations Headquarters Internship Programme in New York (June - August 2009). There should be no expectation of employment within the UN after an internship. UN interns must have a valid US visa. UN interns are not paid (please disregard the remuneration note below).

RemunerationDepending on professional background, experience and family situation, a competitive compensation and benefits package is offered.More Info

United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity
Responsibilities

The internship is unpaid and full-time, i.e. interns work five days per week (9am - 5pm) under the supervision of a staff member in the department or office to which they are assigned.

Daily responsibilities will depend on the individual’s background, the department to which he/she is assigned and the internship period.

Here are some examples: •

Assistance in drafting and preparing official documents

• Attending and summarizing conferences and meetings

• Document, legal and internet research

• Assistance during conferences

• Working on web-presentation

Evaluation of projects

Compiling statistics

• Media analysis

• Speech-writing.

Competencies

The United Nations Core Competencies are

Communication,

Teamwork,

Planning and Organizing,

, Creativity,

Client Orientation

Commitment to Continuous Learning

and Technological Awareness

Communication – ability to draft clearly and concisely, good written and oral language skills;

Teamwork – good interpersonal skills, ability to work collaboratively with colleagues from different national and cultural backgrounds to achieve organizational goals;

Planning and Organizing - ability to establish priorities, to coordinate one’s own work plan and meet deadlines;

Technological Awareness – good IT skills.

Qualification

EducationTo qualify for the United Nations Headquarters Internship Programme, the following conditions must be met:

1. Applicants are enrolled in a degree programme in a graduate school (second university degree or higher) at the time of application and during the internship; or

2. Applicants pursuing their studies in countries where higher education is not divided into undergraduate and graduate stages must have completed at least four years of full-time studies at a university or equivalent institution towards the completion of a degree.

Work Experience

Applicants are not required to have professional work experience for participation in the programme. However, work experience in relevant areas is an asset.

Languages: English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in spoken and written English and/or French is required for the Internship Programme. Knowledge of an additional official UN language is an asset. English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish are the official languages of the United Nations.

Other SkillsApplicants are encouraged to specify up to three main areas, which relate directly to their studies and/or skills and expertise.

Applicants are also encouraged to clearly indicate their preferences and highlight their specific skills and/or experience in their cover note. They are asked to do so carefully in order to enhance the value of the internship for both themselves and the receiving UN department. Applications of students from developing countries, underrepresented or unrepresented countries in the UN are encouraged.

The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. (Charter of the United Nations - Chapter 3, article 8). English and French are the two working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.

The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, TRAINING OR ANY OTHER FEES). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON BANK ACCOUNTS.PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE DEADLINE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

How to apply

All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply online as soon as possible after the vacancy has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the vacancy announcement. Because applications submitted by United Nations (UN) staff members are considered first, provided the eligibility requirements set out in ST/AI/2006/3 are met and the application is submitted in a timely fashion, staff members should apply within 15-day or 30-day mark. Online applications will be acknowledged where an email address has been provided. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received.

In such cases, please go to “My UN” page and check the status of your application by clicking on “View Application History”, and resubmit the application, if necessary.
To start the application process, applicants are required to register by opening a "My UN" account. Go to Login, and Register as a User. Fill in the form and choose a User Name and Password.

After opening the account, applicants may apply for vacancies using the Personal History Profile (PHP) provided. Once the PHP has been completed for a particular vacancy, it can be saved and used for future applications. The PHP may be up-dated, when necessary, for future applications.
In completing the PHP, please note that all fields marked with an asterisk must be completed.
UN staff members must submit scanned copies of their two latest Performance Appraisal System (PAS) reports at the time of application to the appropriate Human Resources Office (HRO)/Personnel Office (PO) to the email address below, clearly indicating the vacancy announcement number.

In case you have no access to the digitizing equipment, please submit hard copies of the two latest PAS reposts to the relevant HRO/PO via fax.

E-mail: OHRM_interns@un.org,
Please see the Frequently Asked Questions, if you encounter problems when applying.

GOAL SETTING FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS IN THE YEAR 2009

GOAL SETTING FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS IN THE YEAR 2009

How time flies, within a twinkle we were shouting and greeting each other "happy new year" amidst joy and happiness that we have crossed over to a brand new year with new hopes and aspirations. There is something about crossing over into a new year; it gives you a feeling of strength and hope that somehow things will be better than it was the previous year.
In as much as we want to reap all the benefits that the New Year will bring, there are congent and important steps we need to take if we want to be strategically positioned for personal and business success in the year 2009 of which Goal setting is vital.
A goal is a dream with a deadline and if you do not have dreams and plans for the New Year, how then can you have a dream come true.

A study of 1953 graduates of a State University clearly demonstrates this point. The graduates were interviewed and asked if they have clear, specific, set and documented goals for life after school. Only 3 percent had such written goals. Twenty years later, the researchers went back and interviewed the surviving members of the 1953 graduating class. They discovered that the three percent with written specific goals were worth more in financial terms than the entire 97% put together who left their destiny to fate. However, the researchers also discovered that the less measurable or more subjective measures such as the level of happiness, fulfillment and joy that the graduates felt also seemed to be superior in the 3% with written goals.

This is the power of goal setting, it helps you to focus and succeed faster. According to John M. Goddard "If you really know what you want in life, it’s amazing how opportunities will come to enable you carry them out"
To strategize and make the most of the New Year in both your personal and Business, you have to;

Decide exactly what you want in every area of your life

Deciding exactly what you want in every area of your life helps you to get focused on your goal and it gives you the necessary spur required for its accomplishment. It even helps you to decide what to pack for your Journey into the year. Deciding what you want will also help you scan your friends, past actions that do not add value, old habits e.t.c and remove extra luggage.
"If you really know what you want in life, its amazing how opportunities will come to enable you carry them out" John Goddard.
Personally, I will like to recommend the following areas where you have to decide exactly what you want for the New Year.

Your Relationship
Our world and how far we will go in life is determined by two things, the people you know and what you know. Of these two things, the former is of utmost importance. Your Network in life is determined by your network. Are there relationships or friendships in the past years that you have left idle or that you have allowed to go sour, do you have colleagues in your office that you have refused to talk to or have anything to do with? Or worse still, is your marital relationship taking a nose dive. You can decide to heal these relationships this New Year. A little text message, call, I miss you note or gift could help water that acquaintance again. Remember, every one that comes your way in life’s journey is somehow linked to either your success or your failure, but amazingly, the choice is yours. If there are strategic alliances that you have to make in order to achieve your goals this year, start making those friendships immediately. Some persons are your dream helpers, find them do not wait for luck or destiny to bring them to you.

Your Finance

Evaluate your self, were you in Debt last year, how did your savings go? Have you been able to instill the saving habit into your self or are you still struggling with it? I believe you do not expect to remain at the same level of income as you were last year. That would be stagnancy. You then have to create more streams of income for yourself and your family. Create your financial goals and start immediately at it.

Your Health
Though you might think very little can be done in this regard but you are getting it wrong. It takes just a little discipline to lose that tire around your middle. You know those things that you are allergic to; please decide to avoid them. Your spirit and your lofty Ideas need your body to succeed. It could be impulse eating, late night eating, excessive drinking, smoking, drinking cold things e.t.c

Your Education
Personally I think this is the most important area of your life where you have to devote more time to this year. Knowledge is what you know that gives you an edge over others. I call it the law of sharpening your axe.

A trader once went to a trade fair to sell his wares and included in his goods an old dusty violin. On getting there, he placed the old violi8n for sale ands he started off at a 100 cents but nobody wanted to buy from him his old dusty Violin. He reduced the price to fifty cents but still, nobody was interested. Disappointed, he got ready to go home when an old man beckoned on him for the Violin.
The old man dusted the Violin, wiped it clean and started playing a tune on it. The music flowing out of the Violin was so melodious that people started gathering around the 0ld man and the violin to listen to the melody. After playing for a while, the old man held up the Violin and screamed "300 dollars" and rich mans hopping for antiques paid for it; the same Old Dusty Violin.

Pause a little and ask your self what the old man did to the violin that increased its price tremendously. What he simply did was to Dust, Clean, tune the violin after which he capped it up by playing a melodious tune on it to attract possible and worthy buyers. Does this mean that we are paid in proportion to what we know? How true this is.

If you want to move to the next level and make enough income to secure your future and grant you FINANCIAL independence, then you must do a little dusting and cleaning.
Ask yourself these questions; What level am I now, what new thing or new skill, education or training do you think you can acquire that will give you the boost you need. It could be computer training, going back for your Masters Degree, attending a raining on a particula5r area of your weakness e.t.c.
Whatever it is that you have top do, make sure you do not remain at the same level of knowledge when the year closes as well. A word is enough for the wise.

Write Down Your Goals For The Year

Writing down your Personal and Business goals has a way of committing you to its achievement. It cements what is going on in your mind and whenever you set your eyes on your written goals, it drives a home the fact that it must be accomplished.
If it is a very large goal, break it down into sub topics or headlines and write them down in the right order. Then make a list of every thing you think you are going to do to achieve your ultimate goal and then add them to your list of priorities.

Set Reasonable Deadlines And Targets

"A goal is dream with a deadline" it is better to have realizable goals than large and vague goals. If your goals do have deadlines, it helps to awaken the fact that it is possible. All the times I have planned programmes and conferences, nothing falls into place until I fix a date for the Programme. Nobody, corporate body; guest speaker even knows when to help you if you do not know when you need help. If your goal is large, break it down into smaller and achievable goals with set deadlines for their achievement.

Discipline Yourself To Achieve Your Goals

The most frequent reason why most persons do not achieve their goal is procrastination. Procrastination is the grave where opportunities are buried. You have to decide to stick to your goals and more importantly your plans to achieve them.
The first show of discipline is to immediately as you drop this article pick up a writing pad and a pen and simply write down your goals and aspirations for the year if you haven’t. That is your first wrung on the ladder of personal and business success for the year 2009.
Till we meet again, I wish you a Fulfilling New Year as you commit yourself to becoming the solution to your world.

About The Author

Basola A. Victor is the CEO of BASH Concepts International, a Business Solutions firm dedicated to becoming a one stop shop for overall Business Corporate and Personal development.

For Consultancy, please Contact;

Basola A. Victor
P: +234 (0) 703-5121-346, 08078957783
E: bashconcepts@yahoo.com
W: www.basolavictor.blogspot.com