Cube Escape

Self Employment - Entrepreneur Lifestyle - Business Tips and Tricks

Pursing the Entrepreneurial Dream

A couple of years ago, I decide that my pursuit of climbing the corporate ladder was fruitless. It wasn't for me...not what I wanted. I craved freedom. I've learned a lot about becoming an entrepreneur, and I'll share what I've learned with you. Getting control of your life again isn't a pipe dream. Financial, professional, and creative freedom can be yours.

Business Degrees Might Be the Most Useful Degrees Around

By Caleb Rogers

Business degrees are versatile. They might just be the best kind of degree you can get if you want to succeed either in the corporate world, or as an entrepreneur.

Imagine, for just a moment, a degree which can immediately give the you the basic qualifications for most entry-level positions in the non-labor work force. Some fields that immediately come to mind are: Management, Human Resources, Purchasing, Marketing, Sales, and even Accounting or Bookkeeping. When you think about, is there an industry that has no managers, sales force, or bookkeepers?

Whether you work in an office, a factory, in local government, or just about anywhere else, a degree in business can be very useful. This degree becomes even more useful when you realize that you can focus on particular aspects of business. Not only can you get a general business degree, most schools offer specialized business degrees as well. For example, business degrees can focus on management, sales, marketing, and just about anything else in business. The benefit here is that your degree choice will be more tailored to specific positions, making your chance for employment that much better.

Degrees don’t come cheap, but it’s important that you see this as an investment - an investment in your future. Like any investment, finding the right business degree for you is a matter of dedicated research. Unless your local community college has a stellar reputation, I would advise you to take your time and look at all available options.

Higher education typically gives you three routes from which to choose: Attend a local college, find an online school you can attend from anywhere, or relocate to the school of your choice. Research schools and programs, as well as online and traditional education campuses, and find a business program that is right for you. After you have found a few schools in which you are interested, find a way to make them work for you financially. Remember that government subsidized student loans are always an option.

When you decide on a school and a business program, whether it is generalized or highly-focused, make a plan that you can see through until the end. Then, once your degree is finished, doors will open, and your employment options will be great. Remember that just because you will have a business degree, you won’t necessarily have to wear a nice suit to work every day. You will have options. That is the value of a business degree. Options.

Find a business degree program in your area and create some options in your career.

. 21 Feb 08 | Business, Education, Employment | Read on | Comments (0)

I’ve been working hard, and need a rest

I haven’t written anything here for a while because I’ve been working hard on a project. Too hard, any observer would say, but it had to be done.

I’ve finished the first development milestone (which was also the biggest) of the redesign of my career education directory. All other projects went on hold until that milestone was reached. Now that I’ve reached it, I’m taking a well-earned break before doing any other work on anything else.

It’s taken me a couple of weeks of near-constant work, but I’ve managed to make some really good improvements to the site. On the back-end, I’ve made it really easy to get schools up and active. Now the directory will grow at a much faster pace than before. On the front-end I’ve made some cosmetic changes that were needed. The layout is wider so each page can handle more content with less scrolling. I’ve also introduced some better SEO practices. The pretty flash header is also gone, but that’s OK. Naturally, my current search engine rankings will get bumped a little here and there, but that’s OK, too. It seems every time you touch a site your rankings change. Of course, if you leave your site alone, the same thing will happen.

I’ve also improved the user experience. More details of each school will become known earlier in the search and browse process. This way, the user will have to read less to learn more. A handy thing for those people who prefer to read less. I also introduced some more search functionality and paved the way for a couple more to be added later.

There’s plenty more to do, and I’m tempted to just do it and get it out of the way. But…that would not be a healthy decision. I’m tired, over-worked, and need to spend some time with my kids! So I’m taking a break, and then setting a work schedule for myself that will be much more relaxing. I had to work extra-hard and really fast, and now it’s time to calm down and relax.

Go check out the new Education Finder, bookmark it, and tell all your friends about it.

. 06 Feb 08 | Business, Education, Goals | Read on | Comments (0)

Become a Freelance Web Designer

I’ve been where you are now… Stuck in a dead-end job just so you can get enough money to pay the bills (maybe not even that). You want out, but you don’t know what to do. Well, let me talk to you for a moment about becoming a freelance web designer.

Set your own hours, work in your pajamas, and enjoy the fact that your work is literally what you make it. You might have to work long, hard weeks, but you’ll also get to take a day off at a moments notice if you want to. Want to close up shop three hours early and go rent a bunch of B-grade horror movies? Go ahead.

You can do that with just about any freelance business, so you’re probably wondering why I mention web design. Well, I mention it simply because it’s easy to learn and there’s some pretty good demand for design skills. Web design falls into two broad categories: Graphic Design and Programming. I’ll talk about programming in another post.

There just aren’t enough good, trained designers out there. I can program my way around just about any database or system, but when it comes to graphic design, I’m just lost. That’s how a lot of the web is right now. Visually lost. If you have any design skills or a design eye — no matter how miniscule — get some design training.

If you have base skills and talent, professional training can put you above the weekend warrior web designer. Your work will look professional because you will be a professional web designer.

I’m a writer and a web programmer. I trained in those areas, and in those areas are where my strengths lie. Don’t just trust your insticts when it comes to design. You need to learn. Learn what works and what doesn’t, and what the design trends are now and will be in years to come. Do that, and you will be well on your way to a successful freelance web design career.

If you don’t know where to look for that kind of training, or if you don’t even know what’s out there, check out the art and design schools at Education Finder. There are traditional and online classes, so your chances of finding something are good. Find a school, learn more about it, and get started on your career. It sure beats working in a cube all day long.

. 15 Oct 07 | Regular Jobs, Business, Education, Employment, Freelance | Read on | Comments (0)

Going to Business School?

If you are going to start your own company, or move up within your employer’s company, you would do well to get some business training. The best way to get your feet wet is with a business school. Nothing beats experience, but getting good business training is the right place to start. So I’m going to point you at two schools, one online and one brick and mortar.

For online business training, look at Capella University. It’s where I did my graduate work, and they do a pretty good job. It’s flexible, there’s a lot to the degree programs, and they are professional about everything. Check out Capella if you’re looking for an online business school.

If you would rather have a live classroom experience, check out Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University. They have over 70 campuses throughout the country, so there’s a good chance one of them is close to you. DeVry University has a good reputation, and their graduate studies arm is no different. At Keller Grad, you’ll get the same type of training you would receive at a big-name college.

Your best option is to check out both schools, to see what each has to offer. So go to it.

. 21 Aug 07 | Business, Education | Read on | Comments (0)

Needing some education?

I know that not everyone reading this blog wants to run their own business. I’m sure that some of you simply want to improve your station in life. A better job is one of the best ways to do this.

Nothing beats experience, but education runs a close second. Get some education whether you want to change your career entirely, or just want to be more qualified for that promotion you’ve been eying. So get your experience by finding some quality education.

A good resource on the net for higher education and careers is Education Finder. From there you can find schools, programs, scholarship information, and even get some job hunting advice. So check it out and get on the road to your future.

. 26 Mar 07 | Information, Education | Read on | Comments (0)