I Want to Start a Business

Well, this is a wide open subject. The statement "I want to start a business" leads to the obvious question, what kind of business? Believe it or not, I've had conversations with people who have no idea what kind of business they want to be in, they just know that they want to be their own boss and control their own destiny. Though I admire the entrepreneurial spirit that drive this dream, I know what the real story of business ownership is.

You certainly need to know what kind of business you want to own/operate, there is a foundation to lay and things you can do that will be a strong base for any business. Let's jump in and look at Business Basics 101.

Take Quick & Easy Classes

There are craft stores and bakery supply stores that teach cake and cupcake decorating classes. The classes in the craft stores are usually your basic skill classes and the bakery supply stores often offer not only the introductory classes, but advanced classes dealing with techniques like decorating with fondant, and marzipan. If you really want to get into the industry, take some wedding cake classes! It's all fun!

I suggest these classes for initial Orange Roads because they are typically very inexpensive and take just a few hours in the evening or on a Saturday. If you find you like where you're going, I would say the next step would be to look into community college classes, certificate programs and even culinary schools with an emphasis on pastry. It may seem premature at this point to think of going to culinary school, but why not? Dream big and you just might find the Orange Roads rising up to meet you!

Orange Road: Employer Pays!

This is a great way to get your education, work in your field and let your employer put you through school. There are still companies who do this and many different ways programs are structured - from you having to commit to a specific number of years that you will stay employed after your get your degree to no real commitment at all, you just have to stay employed to stay in school (on their dime).

Nursing is a field where this practice is common. With a basic education in nursing, hospitals hire their staff and them put them through the full fledged nursing program while on the job. The military is also great about paying for college while on active duty. This could be a dual win in that you could be learning one skill while active duty and studying for a completely different degree in college. The point here is that there are many different ways to get that degree, you just have to be willing to look at as many as you can find!

Education - Private Money

This is a less thought of Orange Road to financing your education. Private money could be family money, a personal loan, a gift or grants or scholarships offered through families or organizations.

There is more of this money out there than you think. you have to ask and you have to snoop around. Look into ethnic organizations, service clubs (I know I mentioned this already, but it's worth repeating), and community organizations. Finally, ask people you know, you will be surprised at how many resources are out there for the taking!

Paying Cont. Orange Road - Scholarship Contests & Sweepstakes

Being a winner of many contests myself, this was one avenue I was glad to find! It's free money if you can get it and for me, it's fun trying. From what I can tell, this Orange Road varies from the standard ways of evaluating applications for other scholarships - this is more random and depending on the contest marketing and length of the contest, your odds may better or worse. It is my way of thinking that you can't win if you don't play so put your entry in and if you win, whoo-hoo!

*Scholarship contests and sweepstakes typically won’t ask for your academic achievements, standardized test scores or financial needs, but they’re also more competitive because they’re so easy to apply for and winners are usually chosen at random. Your chances of winning in a contest or sweepstakes vary widely, based on the number of applicants who enter each drawing. Requirements may be as simple as sending off an email or completing an online form, and you won’t be asked to come up with an essay on why you’re deserving of the free money.

The more specific you are in your search, the better your chances of landing scholarship money because the pool of applicants gets smaller as your search gets more specialized. But someone has to win in these scholarship contests and sweepstakes, so if it isn’t too time-consuming, you’re feeling lucky, and the site you found is legitimate, consider applying for a chance to land one of these awards. Remember, however, to beware of scholarship scams. While many contests and sweepstakes will ask you to fill out online forms in order for you to be eligible for the awards, you should never have to pay a processing fee to win money. Check out our examples of scholarship contests and sweepstakes that we think may we worth a shot.

* This information was taken directly from Scholarships.com Visit their website for a wealth of information.

Paying For College - Orange Road Scholarships

The biggest obstacle for most people to go back to school is how to pay for it. I know making time is a big factor, too, but I suspect if you had the financial resources you would find the time.

Funny thing about time, Dave said to me this morning about who would make lunches, "Let's both do what we need to do and whoever has more time will make lunches." Really? Do either one of us have more time than the other? No. We all have the same 24 hours in a day, 7 days in a week and 365 days in a year. It's how we utilize the time that matters. He ended up making the lunches I think just because he didn't want me to give him the above dissertation. I digress.

There are a number of ways to pay to go back to school; scholarships, grants, and loans are just a few of the obvious. Being obvious I believe makes them the most accessible but not necessarily the easiest to obtain. Let's start with Scholarships - there are many places to go for scholarships and an equal number of hoops you may have to jump through to get them. Some may require you to write an essay with your application, or you may have to be a specific nationality, or be a certain income level. If you are American Indian, look into your family background and see if your tribe offers scholarships, I bet the answer is yes!

Check out websites such as StudentScholarshipSearch.com, Scholarships.com, Fastweb.com,

Formally Or Not So Much?

There are many ways to get an education, simply learning something new by watching someone else do it is educational. In my earlier post, I asked you to clarify for yourself what kind of education you are looking for and what you want to learn.

You can learn on the job, through intern programs, by going to the library and getting a book or series of books on a specific subject, taking certificate courses at specialized school, even online schools are an option. All of this and more are ways to further your breadth of knowledge outside of attending a junior college or University. If you are eager to learn, you can see that there are many, many options.

Did you decide what you want to study and why? I did. I'm going to get back to school via a community college and I have declared my major as AA in Communication. Let's look at what I'm doing 25 years out of high school and how I'm doing it, in addition to as many other Orange Roads as we can muster this month!

Sailing As A Way Of Life?

Where does one start? I answer this question easily - Learn! Okay, maybe that's elementary but the fact of the matter is, even if you are already making your living on a sail boat, there is still something for you to learn. If you think this is what you long to do, find out.

It's no secret that I feel that two main components of making your dreams come true are to get educated and volunteer. I am not a Sailor but I am certain that there are many ways to be involved in the field of sailing. I've got some of those ideas up my sleeve for this month, but if this is your dream, you need to find out what exactly it is you want to do, and how you go about doing that.

Have some fun, take classes pertaining to areas of the profession of sailing including some that you feel you don't want to do, you may find there is more to it and you are interested. Either way, you will have learned something more or new and that will put you one step closer to your dream - in fact, you will have brought the dream to life by simply taking the class!

Through taking classes you are positioning yourself to have many opportunities present themselves to you. From meeting other people who share your love of sailing to finding out that there are jobs you could do that not only pay good money, but you would love to do! When was the last time you hopped out of bed excited to get ready and go to work? Even if you like what you do now, wouldn't it be great to love what you do? I say, "Yes!'

Let's get to it, Orange Road number one is learn all the avenues available to you in this field and get signed up for a class. It's the first step that will set you sailing into so many other navigable waters!

When Your Hands Are Tied

I consult with individuals who are facing financial difficulties. Many call me with regard to mortgages that are adjusting or credit card companies who are not working with them. It's heartbreaking when I hear one of my clients tried on numerous occasions to work out a payment plan when they had fallen behind due to their hours at work being cut, only to be told that they now don't make enough money to qualify for a hardship repayment plan! Does that make any sense? After three months of no payments, still making the same lower income, the big bank calls her back to offer her a 0% interest plan and offers to match every payment she makes toward helping her pay down her balance! Why wouldn't they help her when she asked for help instead of forcing her hand to fall 90 days past due on the account? She felt like her hands were tied. She couldn't make the payment, they wouldn't work with her and even if she made a lesser payment, her account would still be reported as delinquent, late fees charged, and credit tarnished.

This is my area of expertise so I know what I would do. With the information you have, what would you do if you felt like your hands were tied when trying to get a credit card company to work with you? Share with me what you think they can do to you if you don't pay. I'll be sure to comment and share with you what I know to be true.