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Free Agent: The Independent Professional’s Roadmap to Self-Employment Success by: Katy Tynan
There is a seismic shift underway in the employer/employee relationship that is redefining the nature of jobs and careers. Sole proprietors and independent contractors now represent more than 20 percent of the workforce, and that number is expected to reach nearly 50 percent within the next 10 years.
Despite the proliferation of people engaging in freelance and contract work, however, the path to success is not always easy. Free Agent: The Independent Professional’s Roadmap to Self-Employment Success details a pragmatic action plan to help you succeed in this new skills marketplace.
Supplying practical strategies to help you get ahead of the change and become an in-demand resource with a steady stream of income, the book describes how work is changing and what is driving the growth of freelancing. Next, it explains how to get your new independent venture off the ground, how to find your first client, and what you need to know to avoid common pitfalls.
To transition successfully from employee to free agent, you must have a plan to avoid the pitfalls and a support team to give you the expertise on complicated topics such as business structure, contracts, and accounting. This book is your guide to successfully navigating the transition.
Detailing the tools and practices that will enable you to succeed as a free agent, the book includes case studies and interviews with those who have already made the transition. The book concludes by describing how to optimize your new freelance work style to make the most of your time and energy, so you can focus on doing more of what you love.
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Risk-Free Technology: How Small to Medium Businesses Can Stem Huge Losses From Poorly Performing IT Systems by: Charles L. Nault
IT has now reached “utility” status everywhere, at least from an expectation standpoint. Just as the utility of electricity is required to power our lights and equipment, and oil or gas insures our heat in the winter, a firm’s network infrastructure MUST be always in place to maintain its Internet access, computerization, phone system and a host of other mission-critical applications.
Contrary to days passed, companies can no longer function without these. Their customers, employees and vendors expect business networks to be fully functional, expeditious, security protected and accessible around the clock.
This book addresses the implications of failing to insure that all your IT functions are “utility-status,” and tells non-technical executives what needs to be done from a managerial perspective to achieve true utility status, as well as how to pro-actively monitor such functions to make sudden catastrophes a thing of the past. The book will provide case studies of companies who have lost money and business because they failed to heed this message.
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Fresh Ink by: Chloe Lizotte
In 2007, Chloe Lizotte, then a student in middle school, wrote an “Historical Thoughtleader Profile” on Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the women’s suffrage leader, which she then published on a website. A few isableays later, she received a request from a professional women’s website called Women in Technology International (WITI) which wanted to re-publish it. That was the beginning of Chloe’s journey into professional publishing which, over the ensuring years, included a series of columns on still more historical “thoughtleaders” for The Concord Journal as well as music and arts reviews in her high school newspaper The Voice (which she also served as editor-in-chief) and various op-ed pieces, reviews, news reports and reflective essays in prominent journals like Teen Ink, The Real Musician, Booklore, The Pulitzer Center, CEO Refresher and Op-Ed News. The next step logically implied a book, resulting in “Fresh Ink: Published Writings,” a compilation of all her published content. Each chapter in “Fresh Ink” is a previously published work specifically selected for publication by an editor. No chapter content in “Fresh Ink” has been included that does not meet that requirement. “The essays in my book reflect where I’ve been, what I’ve seen, how I’ve reacted and what I’ve concluded,” Chloe explains. “They speak to my journey up to this stage in my life.” Chapter topics in the book range from music reviews (“The Suburbs” and “The King of Limbs”) to literary legends (Hemingway, J.D. Salinger) to political history (The 1920s youth culture, Martin Luther King) to Steve Carell’s leaving “The Office” to profiles of historical eccentrics, movie reviews, a report on the 2011 summer London riots and a self-reflection titled “The Thoreau Challenge.” A comment online of the website that published Chloe’s essay on Martin Luther King remarked: “(Chloe is) an amazingly cogent thinker, proving that age has nothing to do with intellect, discernment, wisdom, and that all-important passion for one’s subject matter — and for truth.” Another commenter confided: “I was about to give up on our youth but your wonderful writing has renewed my faith.” Now a member of Yale’s class of 2016, Chloe graduated from Concord-Carlisle High School in 2012 after serving as editor-in-chief of its student newspaper The Voice and music director of its radio station WIQH-FM. In addition to her column about “historical eccentrics” in the town of Concord’s weekly newspaper The Concord Journal, she also won the 2011 University of Virginia Book Award. Her twice-monthly radio show on WIQH achieved the station’s “Outstanding Show of the Year” award three years running. She is also an accomplished piano and guitar player, an avid snowboarder, kayaker and runner, and a talented videographer. Chloe’s reporting on the London riots for the renowned Pulitzer Center happened largely due to her love of all things British, including four trips to London and a summer study program at Cambridge College (2011). She has also visited Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Montreal and Paris. She lives with her family in Concord, Massachusetts.
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The Speaker’s Edge by: Ken Lizotte
Speakers for business and nonprofit events are sought out every day by meeting planners and program directors. Those who get the call are typically those who fill a specific need and can boast appropriate credentials and experience. The Speaker’s Edge shows you how to land these speaking engagements, especially ones that pay.
This comprehensive book covers all the conventional means for locating and winning speaking engagements as well as clever, innovative tactics practiced by the most successful veteran speakers. You’ll learn how to: Position yourself as the go-to thought leader in your field of expertise; Use effective tools to highlight your speaker value, including videos, speaker sheets, and speaker bureaus; Consider a variety of speaking opportunities, such as serving on panels, hosting events, and participating in webinars; Locate attractive speaking venues, and successfully use the proposal systems such venues require; Consider what volunteering for pro bono gigs offer as venues for practice and visibility; Negotiate great deals, including setting fees, requesting expenses, and offering options to meeting planners; Maximize your speaking experience, including selling products, arranging follow-up gigs, and soliciting referrals.
By employing the recommendations in this book, you will elevate your speaking career and and business to new heights.
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Injured Money: True Story of a Man Who Fought Insurance Companies and Won More Than a Quarter-Million Dollars, and How You Can Too! by: Dan Karr
If you buy insurance, drive a car, ride in a car, ride a bike or walk on roads where cars drive, this book is a must read. Exceptionally different than the books written by attorneys, this book is written by an injured person who recovered more than a quarter-million dollars. Based on a true story, the author takes you through the events immediately following an accident all the way to settling multiple insurance claims and a lawsuit. At every step along the way, there is a clear description of the pitfalls to avoid so that you too can maximize the money you receive.
And for those who haven’t had an accident – this book is a must read because it will give you the insight you need to choose the right auto and medical insurance companies so that you and your family members are protected when an accident occurs. Consumers have no idea what has occurred in the insurance industry over the last two decades. These changes will directly affect whether you will be compensated following an accident. After reading this book, you will be prepared to:
- Calculate the value of your injuries and determine if filing a claim is worth your time and effort.
- Take the four steps to file, negotiate and settle your claim.
- Represent yourself without an attorney to maximize financial gain.
- Hire, compensate and manage an attorney if you choose to do so.
- Know what to say to insurers, and when to say it.
- Know what not to say to insurers.
- Learn how to work with your medical insurer so they don’t cancel coverage.
- Select an auto insurance company that will honor the policy they sell you.
The final two chapters of the book analyze the insurance industry, documenting how insurance companies systematically delay and deny claims. Reading these chapters will create a shocking awareness that consumers are buying a product called insurance, but in fact are spending hard-earned money with companies that no longer honor the insurance contracts they sell. The final chapter lays out a clear plan for what consumers can do to protect them from buying insurance that won’t protect them.
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