The Triple Threat of Sures

The Triple Threat of Sures The Triple Threat of Sures The Triple Threat of Sures By Maeve Maddox Brad Stolzer wonders about ensure and insure: Am I the only one who struggles with these? Not at all. And while we’re at ensure/insure, let’s throw in assure. All three words are close in origin and meaning. Both assure and ensure came into English in the late 1300s, assure from Old French asseurer, â€Å"to reassure, calm, protect, to render sure, and ensure from Anglo-French enseurer, â€Å"to make sure.† The word insure appeared about 1440 as a variant of ensure. It took on the sense of â€Å"to make safe against loss by payment of premiums† in 1635. Before that, assure had that meaning. In modern usage, insure has won out as the word that has to do with compensation for financial loss. The violinist insured his hands with Lloyd’s. This use of insure applies on both sides of the Atlantic. The confusion that arises with insure vs ensure stems mainly from another definition: â€Å"to make certain that (something) will occur.† For example: We wish to ensure the safety of our passengers. Some speakers of American English would use the spelling â€Å"insure† in this context, but others might, like speakers of British English, write â€Å"ensure.† The AP Stylebook offers these guidelines: Use ensure to mean guarantee: Steps were taken to ensure accuracy. Use insure for references to insurance: The policy insures his life. According to the Chicago Manual of Style, â€Å"we ensure events and insure things. But we assure people that their concerns are being addressed.† Sources: The Associated Press Stylebook The Chicago Manual of Style The Online Etymology Dictionary The Oxford English Dictionary The Penguin Writer’s Manual Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Apply to, Apply for, and Apply with16 Misquoted QuotationsHow to Address Your Elders, Your Doctor, Young Children... and Your CEO

Audrey essays

Audrey essays Title:''Life Is One Big Long Catwalk''. Madame Toastmaster , Madame Topicsmaster and fellow students. ''Life Is One Big Long Catwalk''. As endorsed by the Clarks' Footwear advertisements , this line has become synonymous with modern society , in a world ruled predominantly by image. In my speech to - day I would like to discuss the ambivalent nature of image and beauty in society , as well as providing an insight into a great idol of mine who possessed this ambivalence throughout her life and career - Audrey Hepburn. I don't think that anybody could doubt it , you or I , beauty is a virtue. It always has been , as far back as the time of Venus , the Roman Goddess of love and beauty. But it seems like to - day only physical beauty is taken into account. This type of beauty is a matter of chance. In fact it is amatter of fate whether you turn out to be physically beautiful or not. This type of beauty is impure , doesn't come from the heart. And who are we to try and describe what exactly physical beauty is? Everybody has different facial features , different shapes and sizes and diferent statures. It is all a matter of preference and taste. There is excrutiating pressure being applied on both sexes nowadays to look good and to conform to the media's idea of beauty. Every week of the year we see emaciated models walk the catwalk , wasted away by their starvation and malnourishment , yet snapped up by the paparazzi and considered ''beautiful''. The role of image , branding and beauty is obviously a huge talking point in modern society , as my sister managed to do a 20 page thesis on this Topic for her degree in Graphic Design. And besides , most of us do feel beaut...

Alexander Gorsky Russian Choreographer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Alexander Gorsky Russian Choreographer - Essay Example The end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century were characterized by a recovery period of the arts in Moscow, only ballet didn't experience any advances. The Moscow Ballet suffered the longest decline in its history. The theatre didn't have a position of choreographer, even in the staff list; the popularity of the theater was so low that hall was seldom filled to a one-third, and the company of the theatre included only 70 dancers. The only functioning department of the Moscow Ballet was the ballet school, for the most part, due to the talents and enthusiasm of V. Tikhomirov and I. Nikitin. Nevertheless, the Moscow Ballet required strong manager-director to change the situation with attendance and the theater repertory.Alexander Gorsky started on the position of the Moscow Ballet' choreographer with famous ballet Don Quixote". Actually, it wasn't a new development but a revision of Petipa's version. Alexander Gorsky spent 18 months to prepare the ballet for staging. He invited the famous painters Korovin and Golovin to develop the design and produce scene settings and dressing for dancers. Gorsky managed to revive the atmosphere of Spain in the ballet. Although I must admit that Gorsky staging of Don Quixote" was quite different to Petipa's one, he left some sections without a change. Gorsky interpreted ballet as an instrument in understanding a unity of art and performance."Don Quixote" was staged in 1900 and it became the herald of the Moscow Ballet recovery.... Alexander Gorsky as a director. The end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century were characterized by a recovery period of the arts in Moscow, only ballet didn't experience any advances. The Moscow Ballet suffered the longest decline in its history. The theatre didn't have position of choreographer, even in the staff list; popularity of the theater was so low that hall was seldom filled to a one-third; and the company of the theatre included only 70 dancers. The only functioning department of the Moscow Ballet was the ballet school, for the most part due to the talents and enthusiasm of V. Tikhomirov and I. Nikitin. Nevertheless the Moscow Ballet required strong manager-director to change the situation with attendance and the theater repertory. Alexander Gorsky started on the position of the Moscow Ballet' choreographer with famous ballet Don Quixote". Actually it wasn't a new development but a revision of Petipa's version. Alexander Gorsky spent 18 months to prepare the ballet for staging. He invited the famous painters Korovin and Golovin to develop design and produce scene settings and dressing for dancers. Gorsky managed to revive atmosphere of Spain in the ballet. Although I must admit that Gorsky staging of Don Quixote" was quite different to Petipa's one, he left some sections without a change. Gorsky interpreted ballet as an instrument in understanding a unity of artistism and performance. Don Quixote" was staged in 1900 and it became the herald of the Moscow Ballet recovery. In spite of the mixed comments of ballets critics, the theatre attendance began to increase. The next great

Flexibility in Education in order to cut cost in college. E.g allowing Essay

Flexibility in Education in order to cut cost in college. E.g allowing students not to take classes not related to there major and still graduate - Essay Example Community colleges also have a reduced cost of tuition, as they charge a fraction of what regular colleges charge thus the debt incurred by students is low. Another way of reducing the cost of college education is allowing for dual enrollment programs where students do not have to go through all their classes in college. It also reduces the workload on the students by removing unnecessary requirements that only bloat their duties as students. This can be done by colleges cooperating with high schools in order to accumulate credits and higher placement in college. With this option, students will not have to go through the burden of classes as some of the courses will have been covered in high school. Joining college with early credits, cuts costs by an enormous margin and the advanced placement cuts the number of classes that one has to attend (Vedder et al. 8). Furthermore, colleges can offer reduced time to students to complete their degree programs. This is by offering 3-year programs instead of four by streamlining the curriculum significantly (Vedder et al. 26). Reduced amount of time in completing a program can be done by offering online courses, summer sessions and taking increases credit hours per semester. As a result, students will end up saving their finances and time for other productive purposes. This is unlike having a 4-year program in which students pay dearly for each semester, and the cost at the end of the 4 years is enormous. In addition, eradicating unnecessary programs also cuts the cost of college education by removing courses that bloat the curriculum.

The Reading Process Essay Example for Free

The Reading Process Essay When a child is speaking many words and using them as an integral part of his personality, he is ready to read them. In teaching reading to young children, word selection is often the first place where we go wrong. We pull words from thin air and try to put them into the child. Often we make matters worse by putting these strange words into printed context outside the realm of the childs experience and expecting him to readand he cannot. Children can learn to read any word they speak. One of the greatest hoaxes in all of educational pedagogy is that which says that reading vocabulary must be developed in a predeter ¬mined logical sequence. This simply is not the case. Linguists tell us that when a child comes to school he has all the language gear he needs in order to learn reading and all the other skills of lan ¬guage. The trouble is that we do not use his gear. We manufacture artificial systems of language development and methods of teaching reading, and we impose them on children. It is almost as though the child has to learn two languages in order to be able to read-one for communication and one to get through his reading books. More study has been done in the area of reading than in any other area of the elementary school curriculum. This is justifiable because reading is an important skill needed for learning. But it is not the most important method of communication. It is important only to the degree that it communicates. Much confusion exists about this research. It is the sec ¬ond place where we go wrong. We have built up a vast store ¬house of knowledge about reading, but all the needed knowledge is not yet known. And, because there are great gaps in that knowledge, we have turned to the next best source-the opinion of the experts in the reading field. Many experts have advocated their systems of teaching reading, basing them on known truths but filling in the gaps with their own ideas. When gaps in knowledge are filled in with opinions, we often confuse the two. As a result, schools have often adopted a reading system so wholeheartedly that teachers are not permitted to skip one page of a basal reading book or omit one single exercise in the reading manual that accompanies the text. Many teachers have simply become intermediaries, transmitting the ideas of the authors of a basal series to the children and not daring to use their own ideas to teach reading as a communication skill. This course of action takes all the sense out of language skill development and reduces the role of the teacher to that of a pawn. Undoubtedly, no imagination can break through such rigid orthodoxy. Teachers are teaching experts. Their training has made them this. Reading experts can help with a multitude of ideas, but they cannot possibly know the problems of any one teacher with any one group of children. Basal readers and teachers manuals work only if they are tailored to the group of children using them; they can be invaluable when used this way but are almost useless when they are not. Teachers should endeavor to do activities, which relate to the experiential background of the children they are teaching. In fact, doing activities that are foreign to the child’s background is like teaching another language in order to get them to read. Every reading programme needs to take first into account the particular group of children and each child within that group. If this is not the case then the approach is pseudoscientific. Only a teacher can know and understand the needs of the children he or she teaches. If any significant progress is to be made in any reading programme, then the teacher indeed must know his or her children. Reading is most effectively taught when the teacher becomes the source of the plan of the teaching and when he or she is able to make use of the experts books, resources, learning aids, procedures, and ideas to help her devise her own plan for her own particular group of children. Since teaching is a creative role, the teaching of reading must be a creative process. Linguistic research over the past forty years has given us greater insights as to how reading should be taught. Reading is the active process of constructing meaning from words that have been coded in print. Printed and spoken words are meaningful to the young child only to the extent where his field of experience overlaps that of the author of the printed text. The reader learns from a book only if he is able to comprehend the printed symbols and rearrange them into vivid experiences in his mind. A child’s ability to think, to rationalize, and to conceptualize makes it possible for him or her to accept new ideas from a printed page without actually experienc ¬ing the new idea. He or she must however, possess the knowledge of each symbol that helps make up the new idea. Ideally, the teacher would show a picture of an object and, through discus ¬sion, build the understandings necessary to give children a correct visual image of the object. Because of the unusual shape of some words (e. g. kangaroo) chil ¬dren memorized them quickly, but nothing is usually learned until the words take on meaning. The teacher should give the words meaning by using the childrens experiences. Experience combined with the power of imagery will make it possible for children to acquire new understandings, concepts, and learn ¬ings from their reading of each new word. Reading is not word calling; it is getting the meaning of the printed word from the page. The teaching of reading means assisting children to obtain those skills needed to get the meaning of the word from the printed page. However, the gaining of all the skills is of little or no worth without the experience with the words to make them meaningful. This is a basic component to all reading. It should now be clear why young children, before they can really learn to read, must have a wide range of expe ¬riences to which they have attached a multitude of oral symbols. It should be clearly understood too, why the primary program in reading must be loaded with experiences to which children and teachers apply symbolic expression. This will permit the children to be constantly building up new words in their oral vocabulary so that they will be able to read them. The children’s ability to read is a skill or tool that makes it possible for an author to communicate with them. Children read because they are curious about what is on the page. The reading process itself is not sacred. It is what the reading communicates to the child that is crucial. Reading is not the only important means of communication nor is it the best. To assure the successful development of a good primary literacy program, children must have a large background of experiences, the ability to listen well, and a good oral vocabulary that labels their experiences meaningfully. With this background, almost every child can be taught to read, provided, of course, he also has the required intelligence and has no serious physical, so ¬cial, or emotional problem. Teaching reading as a subject rather than a means for communication can be boring and tedious for children. No one reads reading. The child reads something, be they letters, books, poems, stories, newspapers — and he reads with intent. Each reading experience with chil ¬dren should have meaningful content, obvious purpose, and pleas ¬ant associations. The wide socioeconomic and experiential backgrounds of children, combined with their physical development and intellectual ability, will determine the points at which children are able to begin the formal reading process effectively. The teacher is responsible for the continued development of the child as a whole, and to deprive him of a rich variety of experiences so that he may spend time reading from books is the quickest way to insure reading difficulty among children, in both ability and attitude. When a first-grade teacher sees the teaching of reading as her most important objective and allocates a major part of the childs day to reading, she is capitalizing on the exceptional experiences the home and the kindergarten have provided for the child. For, after all, these give meaning to his reading stories, which, at the first grade level, are based on his first-hand home and school ex ¬periences. She may flatter herself on the excellent reading ability of her children and be smug in her knowledge that she can teach any child to read! What she fails to realize is that unless she continues to provide suitable additional experiences in social studies, community contacts, literature, music, and so forth, she is depriving succeeding teachers of their privilege of doing a good job in teaching reading. This explains why, too often, children start out as good readers but experience reading difficulty by the time they reach third grade. They lose meaning in their reading because planned background experience stops when formal read ¬ing begins. Their real first interest in reading lies in their joy at dis ¬covering they can read. To exploit this joy, and to use it for need ¬less repetition, means to soon destroy the only motivation children have.

The Search for Christian America: History’s Echo Essay -- Christianit

In The Search for Christian America historians Mark A. Noll, Nathan O. Hatch and George M. Marsden address the recent insurgence of desire to return to the American nation’s â€Å"Christian Heritage†; a call to revisit the solid and revered foundations of the colonial period (15). This premise frames the authors’ two-part thesis: first, that America was never a Christian nation and secondly, that the very concept of a Christian nation, after the time of Christ, can be harmful to Christian action and effectiveness within society (17). This assertion, and the evidence which surrounds it, proves that Christians find great value in elements of the founding. When considering the reason behind this assumption the authors suggest many possibilities: love of a glorious myth, preaching and identification with the Mosaic prophecy, a â€Å"city on the hill† mentality, and or nationalistic necessity (108-116). However, these points still with standing, the author s do not fully develop the possibility that Protestants doctrinally resonate with the ideals of the founding. The authors do assert that many use the past as a mirror simply reflecting one’s already established views: â€Å"by a subtle and often unconscious process we pick out . . . those strands which reinforce our point of view† (145, 148). This paper will attempt to bring these two concepts together: asserting that the ideals of the founding, mainly liberty, freedom and individualism, are mirrored in Protestant doctrine itself, providing an echo American Christians can identify with, allowing reverence to be felt toward the founding and urgency to drive the search for Christian America. Toward the end of the text the authors set out to explain the difficulties and the necessity of â€Å"openi... ...ce of similar values or familiar echo, only uphold â€Å" a high regard for our country and its heritage. But . . . not, in the words of the Psalmist (118:9), ‘put confidence in princes’ instead of taking ‘refuge in the Lord† (102). Bibliography Luther, Martin. â€Å"The Appeal to the German Nobility.† In Documents of the Christian Church, edited by Henry Bettenson, 192-197. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. --------------------Concerning Christian Liberty. Vol. XXXVI, Part 6. The Harvard Classics. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909–14. Bartleby.com, 2001. www.bartleby.com/36/6/. (accessed Jan. 21, 2012). Calvin, John. "John Calvin: Institutes of Christian Religion." Translated by Henry Beveridge, Esq. Center for Reformed Theology and Apologetics. http://www.reformed.org/master/index.html?mainframe=/books/institutes/. (accessed Jan. 21, 2012).

Ralph Vs Jack Leader Essay

There are always people who prove to have better leadership skills than others. The strongest of these people can often influence the weaker people into following them. However, the strongest person is not necessarily the best leader as it is proven in William Golding’s novel, The Lord of the Flies. Although Ralph is the weaker person, he is still able to demonstrate a better understanding of people than Jack who is stronger. Ralph demonstrates his excellent leadership skills throughout the novel by keeping order among the group, treating everyone with respect, and having the sense to keep his focus on getting rescued. While the boys are under Jack’s control, they quickly turn into uncivilized savages. However, Ralph manages to keep the boys under control by holding meetings. At the meetings, a sense of order is brought on to the boys because the boys are not allowed to speak unless they have the conch. â€Å"l will give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking.† (p. 31) By enforcing this sense of order, he gains respect from the boys and becomes more confident as a leader. Ralph uses his power to make the boys feel more comfortable on the island.

Journal Entries for habit

Journal Entries for habit one and two Habit 1: Be Proactive According to Stephen Covey, being proactive is part of human nature and humans are responsible for their own lives. He indicated the details of a social map which consist of Genetic determinism (Ancestors), Psychic determinism (Parents) and Environment determinism (Boss or something in the environment). The proactive concept was explained further using the Stimulus and Response relationship and the catalyst story of Viltor Frankl. Between Stimulus and Response, man has the ability or freedom to choose.This means one can decide how to reactive to thing or how to handle each situation. What matters most is how we respond to what we experience in life. We need to take initiative and this means recognizing our responsible to make things happen. We need to act or be acted upon. In Covey’s own words, reactive people are also affected by their social environment, by the â€Å"social weather. † When people treat them w ell, they feel well; when people don’t, they become defensive or protective. Proactive people are still influenced by external stimuli, whether physical, social, or psychological.But their response to the stimuli, conscious or unconscious, is a value-based choice or response. Proactive people aren’t pushy. They’re smart, they’re value driven, they read reality, and they know what’s needed. Another important issue he raised in the book is for people to expand their circle of influence. Habit two: Begin with the end in mind According to Covey, â€Å"Begin with the End in Mind† is to begin today with the image, picture, or paradigm of the end of your life as your frame of reference or the criterion by which everything else is examined.It further means to start with a clear understanding of your destination. Using the principle that all things are created twice, Covey said the unique human capacities of self-awareness, imagination, and conscienc e enable us to examine first creations and make it possible for us to take charge of our own first creation, to write our own script. â€Å"Habit 2 is based on principles of personal leadership, which means that leadership is the first creation. Leadership is not management. † Stephen Covey said as he explained the second habit.He further in the book explained that, in business proactive powerful leadership must constantly monitor environmental change, particularly customer buying habits and motives, and provide the force necessary to organize resources in the right direction. Later in the book, Covey stated that, the most effective way he knows to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal/ family/ organizational mission statement or philosophy or creed. It focuses on what one wants to be and to do (contributions and achievements) and on the values or principles upon which being and doing are based.Visualization and affirmation were also talked about. Shairay Jones Journal Entries for habit three and four Habit Three: Put first things first. To Covey, we are responsible for our own effectiveness, for our own happiness, and ultimately for most of our circumstances. The third habit is the personal fruit of habit 1 and 2. In Habit 3 according to Covey, we are dealing with many of the questions addressed in the field of life and time management. He used an illustration of four quadrants to show the essence of this habit and time management.Quadrant I stood for both urgent and important things. Quadrant III stood for urgent but not important things. Quadrant IV – not important, not urgent things while Quadrant II which is the heart of effective personal management stood for not urgent, but important things. These things to him are what we should put first before any other thing. He also talked about ‘gofer delegation’ and ‘stewardship delegation’ (taking control and giving control out respectively). Part three: Publ ic Victory At this part, Covey talked about the Paradigm of Interdependence.He asked us to remember that effective interdependence can only be built on a foundation of true independence. Private Victory precedes Public Victory. In the same way, Algebra comes before calculus. To expatiate on this point, Covey noted that independence is an achievement. Interdependence is a choice only independent people can make. So the place to begin building any relationship is inside ourselves, inside our Circle of Influence, our own character. Stephen further recollected an incidence he had with his two sons to explain what attending to little things meant.To him, Small discourtesies, little unkindnesses, little forms of disrespect make large withdrawals in our lives. In relationship for instance, the little thing are the big things. Keeping commitments, Clarifying expectations, showing personal integrity, apologizing sincerely when we make a withdrawal from our emotional bank are important things to do to make deposits in to our emotional banks. Covey mentioned that, with the paradigm of the Emotional Bank Account in mind, we’re ready to move into the habits of Public Victory, or success in working with other people.Habit 4: Think win-win (Principles of Interpersonal leadership) Under this heading, Covey narrated his personal experience at work with a company and at the end he noted that, whether you are the president of a company or the janitor, the moment you step from independence into interdependence in any capacity, you step into a leadership role. You are in a position of influencing other people. And the habit of effective interpersonal leadership is to think win-win. In addition, I learnt from this book that, win-win is not a technique but a total philosophy of human interaction.The principle of win-win begins with character then moves to relationship. Everything else is built on character. Maturity is the second foundation for win-win. To Covey, Maturity is the balance between courage and consideration. To go for win-win, you not only have to be nice, you have to be courageous. You not only have to be empathic, you have to be confident. You not only have to be considerate and sensitive, you have to be brave. That’s why we need to be internally matured, according to Stephen Covey.The third characteristic of a win-win case is the abundance mentality, the paradigm that there is plenty out there for everybody. From the foundation of character, we build and maintain win-win relationship. Shairay Jones Journal Entries for habit five, six, and seven Habit 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Principles of Empathic Communication Stephen Covey began this session by saying this â€Å"if I were to summarize in one sentence the single most important principle I have learned in the field of interpersonal relations, it would be this: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood. To him this principle is the key to effective interpersonal communication. It shows how we have such a tendency to rush in, to fix things up with good advice. But we often fail to take the time to diagnose, to really, deeply understand the problem first. There is a link between character and communication. Communication is the most important skill in life. In addition to communication, Covey emphasized emphatic listening, another important factor aiding the fifth habit. We must always seek first to understand before seeking to be understood.Empathic listening means listening with intent to understand and that is needed for habit 5. Diagnosing before we prescribe is also needed for this habit. Habit 6: Synergy Principles of Creative Cooperation â€Å"Synergy is the essence of Principle-Centered Leadership. It is the essence of principle-centered parenting and it catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people. All the habits we have covered prepare us to create the miracle of synergy†. Stephen Covey. He defined synergy to mean that, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.He illustrated this in different scenarios and talked about synergistic communication. He explained that, when you communicate synergistically, you are simply opening your mind and heart and expressions to new possibilities, new alternatives, new options. He talked about synergy in the classroom and in business. Another important thing he talked about was what he called Negative synergy. He also talked about valuing the difference; this to him is the essence of synergy, the mental, the emotional, and the psychological differences between people.And the key to valuing those differences is to realize that all people see the world, not as it is, but as they are. Part four: RENEWAL Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw Over here, he spoke about the principles of balanced self-renewal. This final habit involves taking time to sharpen the saw and it surrounds the other habits on the Seven Habits paradigm because it is the habit that makes all the others possible. According to him, it involves preserving and enhancing the greatest asset we have. Us) â€Å"Sharpen the Saw† basically means expressing all four motivations (physical, spiritual, mental, and social/emotional). It means exercising all four dimensions of our nature, regularly and consistently, in wise and balanced ways. To do this, we must be proactive, according to Covey. He also used the physical dimension, mental dimension, socio/emotional and the spiritual dimension paradigms to explain this point. Furthermore, he noted that balanced renewal is optimally synergetic.The things you do to sharpen the saw in any one dimension have positive impact in other dimensions because they are so highly interrelated. He, at the end, talked about Inside out again by quoting the words of Ezra Taft Benson†¦ â€Å"The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment.The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature. † Shairay Jones Advance Reading Seminar The 7 habits of highly effective people Questions 1. What made Stephen R. Covey write the book? 2. Does he think the 7 habits are still relevant today? 3. Did he think the book would have the type of effect it had on the people? 4. Did the book influence him? How? 5. What habit had the most influence on him? 6. Where did he come up with the seven habits? 7. How does he fell to know that his book sold over 15 million? 8. Did he buy the book when it first came out?

buy custom Cup Cake Business essay

buy custom Cup Cake Business essay Mission statement Our mission at Blue Cream Cakes Investments is to make social functions tasty, creamy and sweet experiences to both confectionery and passive consumers of the same. We pride in delighting cup cake enthusiasts with high quality products taking into consideration a variety and customized brands to satisfy a wide range of customer preferences. With our detailed survey report concerning the rising number of both active and passive confectionery fans; who would not mind having tasty but cheaper confectionery to match those moments of celebration, we intend to reach out to them at all convenient venues to satisfy their needs. Vision Statement Four years from now, Blue Cream Cakes Investments will be one of the best suppliers of cheap but quality confectionery especially cup cakes within the country with a fully satisfied customer base. This should translate to annual revenues of over one million by being consistent in timely delivery, reasonably priced products and organizing thrilling events for both active and passive confectionery enthusiasts. This should boost the societys interest in Bakery through encouraging more of the population to shift from passive to active confectionery enthusiasm. Executive Summary; management strategy The Blue Cream Cakes Investments is a small business venture that operates in the university. The venture is in its pilot state and run by Shneda Edgar an all round Confectionery enthusiast. He is an experienced Baker of quality cup cakes and other confectionery both as a hobby and occasionally provides upon request services to match specific occasions within the institution and interested external clientele. He is familiar with the citys community festivals and seasonal needs and has an advantage of an intensive network of all events within and around the institution. The current target market has no serious competition basing on a study that clearly indicates that no individual or institution had seriously considered institutional celebrations within the city except for the beverages and brewery industry (Cohen, 2006). This is with respect to their short notices and our need to market our Bakerys quality product with minimal advertisement costs. The niche is cut by the fact that consumers only consider a variety in confectionery long after confirming the price levels with regards to the quantity, size and quality on confectionery. Provision of cheaper but excellent quality cup cakes should encourage more active consumption thus an enlarged consumer market. This can also be seen as a forum of offering excellence personal training for confectionery enthusiasts the opportunity for good cake sampling techniques. Therefore they will be able to differentiate our quality products from other available products from possible competitors thus build on bran d loyalty (Kennedy, 2000). Through provision of high standards of staff training within the city, Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to command personalized customer attention at an affordable price hence a great business opportunity (Kennedy, 2000). The director has secured a central location in the city for easier correspondence with external customers. This should provide a collection point easily accessible from any part of the city through all available means of transport. Proper shop layout combined with Students knowledge and interest should make Blue Cream Cakes Investments a worthwhile and profitable venture. Situation Analysis (SWOT) Blue Cream Cakes Investments is a start-up business currently operating at a low level thus marketing is an integral aspect in its prosperity and subsequent financial gains in high revenues (Cohen, 2006). The venture provides a wide variety of confectionery with specialization being in cup cakes, randomly for new customers and on order placement by existing customers. The basic demand of the market is top quality and reasonably priced cup cakes for all round celebrations. Blue Cream Cakes Investments through extensive market research has information about common desires of the market base which consists of busy customers either studying or working that have serious time constraints to purchase desired confectionery. This is reiterated through our existing loyal customers hence Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to take advantage of this knowledge to fully exploit the untapped customer bases through expansion plans which includes door to door marketing and delivery networks. The acronym SWOT stands for Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats within any existing competitive market (Debelak, 2000). Our analysis highlights key strengths and weaknesses and further indicates threats and opportunities Blue Cream Cakes Investments is likely to face. Strengths A strong working bond with suppliers and producers of ingredients which enables us to meet our orders in good time. Exceptional location which is mre accessible through all mode of transport in the city (Kennedy, 2000). Properly trained staff members in customer service that are trustworthy and highly efficient in meeting deadlines, thus ensuring a huge chunk of our income comes from repeat business. Weaknesses Blue Cream Cakes Investments has a limited financial outlay to meet branding requirements which is important in our expansion program. It is costly to acquire quality cooking equipment used in mass baking and also train more employees with regards to our current target market. Opportunities An expanding market that is significant in terms of our financial projection that has limited knowledge about Blue Cream Cakes Investments existence. An increasing number of the citys population that are constantly hosting celebrations and social occasions with restricted and low budgets. There is a high profit margin with considerably static costs which makes it easy for budgeting and operational planning. Stiff competition that originates from web based companies who offer constant discounts. Struggle in always having fresh products for the expanding market. Threats Market Needs The venture intends to provide a wide variety of confectionery products which should be able to address most if not all the customer needs. We intend to also have communication options through our website whereby our customers can input their order specifications in good time for maximum satisfaction of their needs to be achieved. The store will be open for reasonable and fluctuating extended hours suitable for any prevailing social events. Further accessibility will be enhanced through our website for special delivery considerations. We intend to maintain and improve quality standards and from time to time provide extra magical moments to our customers through bonus gifts and surprise prizes (Cohen, 2006). Apart from the normal profit pricing factors, our products will be priced according to the celebration atmosphere in the specific times of the annual calendar. This is a unique way of considering emotions in pricing thus a sure point of attracting and retaining clientele. Market Trends The prevailing trend in the confectionery industry is to acquire quality products at a good discount. Blue Cream Cakes Investments has the ability to exploit this because whether new or existing clients, we will provide for extra and free supplies basing on economies of scale that can generally yield high profits at any reasonable discounting rate. Competition At the moment there exists no known serious competition within the city. The bulk of competition arises from scattered general traders who do not specifically bake their own products but retail for other bakers existing outside the city. The competition further deals in bulk consignments that are majorly composed of products suitable for large scale consumption by institutions and large scale dealers like super stores. These products are mostly of uniform nature and luck much in diversity to suit the highly varied customer base in terms of taste. Marketing Mix Elements: Pricing Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to minimize expansion costs by selling through the consignment contracts whereby we will partially collect ingredients and only pay suppliers after sale of final products. This will fluctuate with the market demand. With proper savings and business establishment, we intend to also deal in a few beverage products to further address any new needs of our existing and most prized customers. Basing on our existing citys consumer base, our positioning in the market will highly rely on excellent customer care that will deliver quality cup cakes that are not common in the city. This is strengthened by the fact that our niche is not explored extensively and our pricing is negotiable between us and the suppliers and might change due to prevailing circumstances in the market. The consignment contract of ingredients gives us room to cover from any financial setbacks in the market hence only pay for storage before considering our suppliers. Pricing As discussed, our startup business has two major pricing objectives which include: To increase our customer base from the university by taking care of other city dwellers too thus increasing our market share. To increase the quantity in sales volume as we target a larger market share. Pricing constraints are those factors which hinder or control our process of setting prices (Debelak, 2000). These factors introduce boundaries and other limits which we have little or no power to decide against them. Some of the possible pricing constraints are: Customers demand will be a major determinant of the set prices because if it goes up we will raise our prices and if it goes down, cup cakes being perishable, we will have no choice but to lower prices in order to move sales volumes and avoid loses. Our Break-even point will determine our least price even in the wake of lower price demands by customers. The customers sometimes determine the price ceilings basing on prevailing market prices in the same industry. This will also affect any additional costs absorption incurred for quality thus controlling our pricing. Our 3 possible sales prices per unit will be; 1, 2 and 3 dollars. The variable cost per unit is 0.5 dollars. The total fixed expenses are 100 dollars. Break-even point can be computed by finding that place where the total sales are equal to the total costs of sale and therefore neither profit nor loss is incurred (Cohen, 2006). Therefore: Sales= Cost of sales. Sales= Variable expenses + Fixed expenses+ profit Sales @ 1 dollar/unit Sales @ 2 dollars/unit Sales @ 3 dollars/unit 1Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 1Q- 0.5Q= 100 0.5Q= 100 Q= 100/0.5= 200 units 2Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 2Q-0.5Q= 100 1.5Q=100 Q= 100/1.5= 66.7 which is 67 units. 3Q=0.5Q+ 100+ 0 3Q-0.5Q= 100 2.5Q= 100 Q= 40 units. 200 units 67 units 40 units Graphical Representation of the 3 break-even points Basing on my diagram, the fixed cost (F. C) is at $100 at all production units. The variable cost (V. C) is worth half a dollar for each unit. Therefore Total cost (T. C) curve is a combination of the F.C curve and V.C curve. It should be noted that the V. C is constant thus at the breakeven level for the: $1 sales price per unit, the value of total cost will be; $100+ 0.5Q. Q = 200 thus T.C= ($100+ 0.5*200). T. C= $ 100+$ 100= $200. Therefore for $1 price per unit, the BEP will be at the 200 units of sales and $200 sales value. The BEP is at P1. $2 sales price per unit will yield a BEP at 67 units of sales and a sales value of ($100+ 0.5*67) which is $ 133.50. The BEP is at P2. $3 sales price per unit will yield a BEP at 40 units of sales and a sales value of ($100+ 0.5*40) which is $ 120. The BEP is at P3. In case the prices adjust reasons being demand, cost, profit or competition oriented, the only way to stay ahead is to ensure we either minimize our expenses/costs or increase our profit margin thus our break even points will shift to the right side but upwards meaning an increase in sales volume but a decrease in prices. Discounts, allowances and geographical adjustments call for an increase in sales volume too, so as to carter for any dip in our current profits thus the BEP will shift to the right but upwards. Therefore my new prices will be: Sales @ 0.6 dollar/unit Sales @ 1.8 dollars/unit Sales @ 2.6 dollars/unit 0.6Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 0.6Q- 0.5Q= 100 0.1Q= 100 Q= 100/0.1= 1000 units 1.8Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 1.8Q-0.5Q= 100 1.3Q=100 Q= 100/1.3= 76.9 which is 77 units. 2.6Q=0.5Q+ 100+ 0 2.6Q-0.5Q= 100 2.1Q= 100 Q= 47.6 which is 48 units. 1000 units 77 units 48 units Basing on the change in environment considerations, our final price will be at $1.8 per unit. Controls The purpose ofBlue Cream Cakes Investmentsmarketing plan is to guide the venture into profit maximization and customer satisfaction hence proper monitoring of Revenues and expenditures on a monthly and annual basis. Conclusion Blue Cream Cakes Investments new market segment and small scale start up does not enable it to have constant financial projections but with the expansion vision we intend to establish a permanent finance and budgeting department. We have consequently established an office space in the City centre fully equipped with the resources to seriously embark on all our departments this year. Buy custom Cup Cake Business essay

Barnum Brown the Famous Paleontologist

Barnum Brown the Famous Paleontologist Barnum Brown Born/Died 1873-1963 Nationality American Dinosaurs Named Ankylosaurus, Corythosaurus, Leptoceratops, Saurolophus About Barnum Brown Named after, but not related to, P.T. Barnum (of traveling circus fame), Barnum Brown had a flamboyant personality to match. For much of his long life, Brown was the chief fossil hunter for the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and he participated in a huge number of digs, including one that unearthed the very first Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton in southeastern Montana (Brown, unfortunately, didn’t get to name his find; that honor went to museum president Henry Osborn). Despite the large number of fossil finds to his credit, mostly in Montana and Canadas Alberta province, Brown is remembered more as an energetic, tireless, well-traveled digger than as a published paleontologist (though he did write some influential papers). His techniques seem to have matched his personality: in the early 20th century, his preferred method for finding fossils was to blow up huge tracts of land with dynamite, scour the rubble for bones, and cart the resulting finds back to base camp on horse-drawn carriages. Befitting his name, Barnum Brown had his share of eccentricities, many of them recounted in a memoir published by his wife, I Married a Dinosaur. For publicity purposes, he insisted on being photographed at his fossil digs wearing an oversized fur coat, and he claimed to work as an intelligence asset for the U.S. government during World War I and World War II and as a corporate spy for various oil companies during his trips abroad. He was referred to by his closest friends as Mr. Bones.

CMI Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

CMI - Essay Example What can be seen in practice is various firms achieving competitive advantage in different ways. There is evidence, for example, that in industries where scale is considered to be very important, small-scale innovations have completely opened up the competition, This became clear in the stagnating steel industry, where mini-mills grew rapidly in answer to the demand for all kinds ÃŽ ¿f specialist products. In the Netherlands, large-scale shipyards were engaged in a struggle for survival--with all eyes focused on the government for subsidies--while at the same time specialist firms were successful in the fields ÃŽ ¿f yacht-building and dredging. The great differences in profitability between firms within the same industry are difficult to explain by resorting to neoclassical theory. (Rumelt 169-185) For these differences lie in the introduction ÃŽ ¿f innovative concepts, new combinations ÃŽ ¿f production factors and the smart use ÃŽ ¿f technologies. The internal side ÃŽ ¿f the firm pl ays a crucial part in this. Firms like Primark and McDonalds, for example, have developed specific routines and skills which are difficult for competitors to imitate. The existence ÃŽ ¿f this sort ÃŽ ¿f firm-specific competencies does not fit in very well with the cookbook metaphor ÃŽ ¿f neoclassical economics. The new insights indicate that a sustainable competitive advantage can only be attained by creating new organization-specific knowledge. On the cutting edge ÃŽ ¿f strategic management and evolutionary economics, a debate is currently taking place about new theories ÃŽ ¿f the firm in which the special qualities ÃŽ ¿f knowledge are incorporated. In these theories, static thinking is replaced by a more realistic process perspective. Concepts like limited rationality (or even trial and error), path dependency and heterogeneity are all embraced. The role ÃŽ ¿f soft variables like knowledge, culture and network relations is

Country Cultural Briefing for Business Associates Assignment

Country Cultural Briefing for Business Associates - Assignment Example There have been many sites that have been excavated the reversal the history of the country as a home of Australopithecus. The country was inhabited by Bantu speaking people who were originally iron smelters, agriculturalist and herdsmen. The country was discovered by Portuguese in 1487. Bartlomeu Dias was the first Europeans to the reach the region and he named it as the Cape of Storms from the stormy conditions that were prevalent in the area but his sponsor renamed it as Cape of Good Hope. This is because it gave a promise of viable sea route to India the Portuguese were desperately seeking for. (Thompson, 2001) From the discovery of the region, the Dutch settlers followed and colonized the country. It became an important slave trade center for the region and Dutch settlement expanded. But it was the British who made an impact on colonization of the region when they annexed the cape colony in 1806. The Britons found the country ideal for slave trade. The discovery of diamond and gold in 1867 and 1884 respectively was perhaps the beginning of serious trade in the region. This was followed by mass settlement of whites in the country. South Africa carries the history of one of the worst form of racial discrimination in the world by the name apartheid. Under apartheid, there were different settlement and different public facilities for the white and the blacks. The was followed by a long history of struggle for freedom which was led by Nelson Mandela, a renown world figure, and the ANC party. Eventually Mandela was released after serving 27 years in Robin Island and the country was granted independence in 1994. (Kalley, 1999) Business wise, the history spins since the aforementioned discovery of Gold and diamond in the country. This led to establishment of commercial centers and large white farms that supported the trade. Since then the country has grown its economy to become the largest in Africa. Size South Africa has an area of around 470,979 Sq mi which is approximately 1,219,912 km2 which makes the 25th largest country in the world. It has a coast line that stretches fro more than 2,500 kilometers across the Atlantic and Indian Ocean. The country is made up of nine provinces with 52 districts. It has 6 metropolitan and 46 municipalities. These municipalities hold about 231 local municipalities. South Africa has a population of about 44,819,768 people which is one of the highest populations in Africa. Political System South Africa has a peculiar political system in the sense that it is the only country in the world that has three capitals. Cape Town which is the largest capital in the country is the center for legislative. Pretoria is the centre for administrative while Bloemfontein is the judicial capital. This is a peculiar political arrangement in the world but which has been planned to give the country a kind of equal representation in the political and legal matters. The country has a bicameral parliament with ninety members forming the upper house. These members form the National Council of Provinces. There are other 400 members who make the lower house or the national assemble. These members are elected directed by the people and their representation is based on population basis. Ten members are elected to represent each province in the National council of provinces but which is not