Business

Last year we moved from Florida, USA to Alberta, Canada and in the year leading up to us selling the home we knew that we had to do something to help us make our home more appealing. Back in the US I used to work for Investar USA, who acted as a lender to help people renovate their homes, and improve communities.

As a result of this I knew a little about how to add value, but I’d be a fraud if I told you that I knew it all. I used my contacts from my old job to give me some advice on what people are looking for in homes, and we were able to make some small, budget touches which you can make that will increase the salability of your home. 

Gardens

House hunters want gardens which are tidy and which require minimal work on their part. This is not to say that you have to completely renovate your garden of course, there is no need for such an expense, but you will need to give it a look if it isn’t already in good shape. For the most part a good clean up and a weeding session, as well as some simple additions can really give your garden a new look at may it much more attractive to a buyer. 

Details

One of the easiest ways of giving your house a nice new look and make it far more appealing is to deal with some of the details in the home, small touches which may not seem noticeable, but can make a big difference. The details which we are talking about here are the light switches around the home, the door handles, painting the skirting boards and changing up the plug sockets. You may think that these details aren’t important but I can assure that they make a massive change once you have completed them.

Paint

Giving your home a new coat of paint will really make it stand out and it will add a bit more of a wow factor to people who are coming to visit it. Remember that you only get one chance to make a first impression and as people arrive to your house to view it, the first thing that they will notice is a clean and fresh coat of paint on the outside of the home, which will instantly make them feel positive about what they are about to see. 

Entrance 

In line with this first impression theme, it is really important that you focus on the entrance to the home, as this will be where many decisions are made, you won’t get a buyer based on this, but you could easily lose a buyer if the entrance isn’t up to scratch. Give the area a new coat of paint, add some artwork or a new rug, whatever you need to do in order to make people feel right at home. 

Anyone who moves in investment circles will have heard about both private equity and venture capital and you can be forgiven in thinking that these two investment vehicles operate in the same way. Once you scratch beneath the surface however you can see clearly that whilst both have similarities, there is in fact a lot of difference in terms of approach and the strategy by which each vehicle operates. To help us understand the difference between private equity and venture capital, we have the financial guru that is Tyler Tysdal on our team to help us separate the two. Tyler has been on both sides as both a fund manager and an investor, making him the perfect person to help us out. 

Types of Business

The key difference between these two strategies of investment comes down to the business which is being invested in. In the case of venture capital this is an investment fund which focuses on smaller business and new businesses, whereas in the case of private equity these are investments which are made into long standing businesses, usually private. There are some cases where a public company will be invested in with a view to turning it private but these are in the minority. 

Stage of Investment 

For venture capital the investment comes at a very early stage and usually takes place at the initial stage of a company’s operations. Though investing at this early stage the vehicle can impact opportunities and ensure that the business reaches its goals. In the case of private equity we see investment in companies which are already established, meaning that the investment will come at a much later time. 

Ownership 

It is extremely rare that a venture capital investment will occupy more than 49% of the business which they have invested in whereas in the case of private equity investments these usually involve a full 100% takeover of the company which is being invested in. 

Desires

When a private equity investment takes over a company they are looking towards both the growth and the expansion of the business in order to see heavier returns on that investment. When it comes to venture capital however the focus is very much on establishing the business and scaling up operations in order to launch the young enterprise. 

Risk 

There are of course different levels of risk with each type of investment which both the vehicle and the investor will have to take into consideration. The private equity route is of course far less risky given that the business and its existing reputation can be viewed and used to strategize. In the case of venture capital there is no telling just how successful this investment will be which is why it becomes high risk. Generally you’ll see those with both money and expertise investing into venture capital, because this way they can lend both experience and investment to the young business. 

Not all of us are natural born leaders and the majority of us have to work hard on our leadership skills in order to be a great leader. Leadership skills can help you in all walks of life and no matter whether you want to be a better supervisor, manager, CEO or even parent, there are ways in which you can greatly improve your leadership skills.

Today we had a chat with fashion industry leader Misha Kaura, who was not a natural born leader and had to work hard on her leadership skills in order to get to where she is today. If you want to increase your leadership ability, here are some tips on doing so. 

Self Evaluate 

One of the keys to increasing your leadership abilities is to be aware of where you are in the process. This is why you must always perform a self evaluation every now and again, to be honest with yourself about what you are doing well and what you can do better. The worst type of leaders are those who think that they have it all figured out and that they don’t have any weaknesses, the reason why is because we are all a work in progress, even the very best leaders. 

Two Way Street

The key to being a great is learning how to command respect but far too many people believe that they are entitled to this respect because of who they are or the position which they hold. This however could not be further from the truth and respect is very much a two way street. If you don’t give respect to those who you are leading then you simply cannot expect to get any in return. 

Understanding Differences

Great leaders are those who can both inspire and motivate those who they are leading. In order to do this well you need to be able to recognize that not everyone is inspired and motivated in the same way, and your challenge as a leader is to understand how each person ticks, and how you can speak to them in a way that motivates them. For example some people like to be incentivized and that is what gets them working at their best, others need to have a fire lit underneath them and the pressure turned up in order to be at their best. Identify who needs which kind of motivation in order to be a better leader. 

Listening

Everyone knows that communication skills are a key part of leadership but unfortunately many misconstrue this to mean that they have to be better talkers. Talking and clearly communicating is of course essential as a leader, but so too is listening and this may be something which you need to work on. Listening to the right people when making a decision, listening to the concerns of your team and listening when people want advice are key parts of being a great communicator, remember this when you are working with your team.