Tipper2010

Everyone says it’s important to follow your dreams, but taking a leap into the unknown can be a terrifying prospect when you have a steady job in hand. Working in a traditional and stable job has undeniable benefits, both financially … Read More

The post Overcoming the Fears of Freelancing appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

Entrepreneurs can’t be too specialized. They need to have knowledge and capabilities in multiple fields in order to keep their business growing. When an entrepreneur encounters a task that they don’t know how to complete, they approach the challenge with … Read More

The post Tips to Keep Developing Yourself and Your Business appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

(BPT) – America’s unemployment rate recently hit its lowest level in seven years. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, that’s just in time for 2.8 million graduates with bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees to enter the workforce.

However, a college degree does not always lead to gainful employment. Millennials make up 40 percent of the unemployed in the United States, according to Anthony Carnavale, a director and research professor at Georgetown University’s Center on Education and Workforce.

Now, more than ever, it is imperative that students select a college or university with the resources to land them a job. While it is important to consider proximity, cost, accreditation and atmosphere, you also want to keep the end goal in mind – a career.

So what else should you look at when researching a school?

1. Make meaningful industry connections.

It’s all about connections in today’s job hunts, and it’s likely the same will be true for the class of 2020 and beyond. In fact, 80 percent of jobs aren’t advertised according to Steven Rothberg, founder of CollegeRecruiter.com.

A search on a university’s LinkedIn page will reveal the cities, companies and industries in which alumni work. Access to a strong alumni network will help prepare students for a career by opening doors to internships and jobs.

A network of trusted and connected professors is equally as important as a network of successful alumni. During the campus visit, students should ask about the faculty’s experience and reputation and make introductions early.

2. Gain real world experience.

Today’s employers are on the lookout for students who have found their niche and demonstrated leadership skills in real-world scenarios.

For example, students thinking about a career in engineering should look for schools with programs like EcoCAR 3, a premier collegiate competition grooming the next generation of advanced engineers trained across disciplines — from engineering to marketing. Public relations majors can participate in the Bateman Case Study Competition, where college teams create and implement a full public relations campaign to raise awareness on a selected topic. The National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition offers students interested in information assurance or computer security the opportunity to defend a commercial network against common outside threats.

“More and more we’re seeing today’s top companies request students from our program because they’ve gained the hands-on experience that the classroom doesn’t offer,” says Kristen De La Rosa, EcoCAR 3 program director at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory. “We give students the opportunity gain access to millions of dollars of cutting-edge technology and top industry experts to solve complex engineering and marketing challenges. For this reason, almost 100 percent of our participants land a job immediately after graduation.”

3. Position yourself close to the action.

While a beautiful campus is nice to look at, that alone isn’t enough to justify years of time and money. It helps to be close to an industry hot-spot where internship and volunteer opportunities are plentiful and easy to access.

Studying near industry hubs will help students gain access to mentors, networking events and international conferences, furthering their competitive advantage and adding value to their degree.

Tech-savvy students who dream of launching the next big start-up should position themselves near the action in Silicon Valley, Boston or Austin. For those looking to create the next head-turning design it is best to study fashion and design in New York City or Los Angeles.

Physical proximity to an industry, participation in extracurricular activities and third-party recommendations can help make a student’s dream career a reality. Parents and high schoolers should keep these tips in mind throughout the college application process to make the most of college and hopefully land that first job.

 

(BPT) – This tax season brings changes you should know about as you’re preparing your 2015 return and planning for 2016 and beyond. Here are five areas to keep in mind.

There’s a delayed filing date.

If you’re a procrastinator filing at the last minute, this year you have more time. Because Friday, April 15 is a federal holiday, your 2015 income tax return is due the following Monday, April 18. This is also the due date to file for an extension until Oct. 15 or to make an IRA contribution for 2015.

“The due date to file your return or for an extension may also be affected by state law,” says Robert Fishbein, a vice president and general counsel at Prudential Financial. For example, if you live in Maine or Massachusetts, Monday April 18 is a state holiday and you don’t have to file returns until the 19^th. But be careful, Fishbein warns, as the delayed filing date for the 2015 returns may not delay when you must make estimated tax payments.

There are new steps for fighting fraud and ID theft.

Tax return preparation software may now require you to provide your driver’s license number for the IRS and state tax agencies to combat tax return fraud. “The rules here are tricky,” says Fishbein. “You have no legal obligation to provide that information or to have a driver’s license to file a tax return. But depending on your software, you may need to provide information to file your return. It’s possible that withholding your driver’s license will slow the process.”

Another new anti-ID theft/fraud measure is a 16-digit verification code for online filers. If the code is on your Form W-2, you’ll need to enter it when prompted by your tax software program. If you fail to provide the code, you won’t be able to e-file your return. “Not all Form W-2s will have the code,” Fishbein notes.

Note health care reporting changes.

Again this year you must report “minimum essential coverage,” or MEC. If you indicate so on line 61 of your Form 1040, you won’t be subject to a penalty tax. This is the first year employers are required to report if coverage qualifies as MEC, and they must send the applicable form to you by March 31, 2016. “Of course, for early filers this means you may not have evidence of your coverage qualifying as MEC,” Fishbein says. “But assuming you know that you have MEC, you can still complete line 61 and file your return.”

If you do not have MEC, you must pay the penalty tax — currently $325 per adult and $162.50 per child, up to a maximum of $975 — for each month you weren’t covered, unless you can demonstrate you’re eligible for an exemption. Examples include if coverage is considered unaffordable (more than 8 percent of household income per person), if you had a short coverage gap (fewer than three months), or if your income is below the tax return filing threshold.

Watch for retroactive reinstatements.

Until the end of 2014, taxpayers had been permitted for some time to deduct the greater of their state income tax or their state sales tax. This helped residents of states, such as Florida and Texas, that don’t have an income tax. The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 retroactively extended this provision for 2015. For those who have not tracked their state sales tax payments, there’s a table that provides a safe harbor deduction based on income. Also, the sales tax from the 2015 purchase of a new automobile can be added to the sales tax from the table.

Also reinstated retroactively to the beginning of 2015 is a provision allowing distributions from an IRA to be paid directly to a charity and excluded from income. “The amount donated to charity will avoid income tax,” Fishbein says. Without this provision, an individual would have to include the amount in income and take a charitable deduction that might not entirely offset the income amount. This provision is available up to $100,000 of charitable donations in a calendar year. You must be 70 ½ or older and required to take IRA distributions.

Roth recharacterizations may affect you.

If you converted a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA in 2015, and if the converted investment has declined in value, you can recharacterize that amount and not pay income tax on an amount greater than the current value. “The law allows this type of ‘do over’ option when you convert to a Roth IRA,” Fishbein explains. “For a 2015 conversion, you must recharacterize on or before Oct. 15, 2016 and not convert again to a Roth IRA until 2017.”

Prudential Financial, its affiliates, and their financial professionals do not render tax or legal advice. Please consult with your tax and legal advisors regarding your personal circumstances.

Prudential Financial Inc. Newark, NJ
0288797-00001-00

Whether you’ve heard it from other people in your life, or whether it’s a worried voice in the back of your own head, the myth that anyone who follows their artistic passions is doomed to a life of financial difficulty … Read More

The post These 6 Artists Are Making Money from Their Talent appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

When you begin freelancing, your first job is cause for celebration. That feeling of honor that someone has chosen you from among all of the competition is priceless, and it’s a feeling that might last into your second, third, and … Read More

The post How to Say ‘No’ When Freelancing appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

Danilo Zanni aka logo_business is a professional graphic designer, Top Rated Seller, Super Seller and Ambassador on Fiverr.

Being a Super Seller and an Ambassador on Fiverr also means sometimes giving tips to other sellers in the same category. So … Read More

The post 5 Tips for a Logo Designer, by a Logo Designer appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

As a freelancer or entrepreneur, staying on top of trends and continuously growing your skill set to be as current as possible are crucial for success. We’ve put together this list of resources to keep you and your business growing.

… Read More

The post Gig Economy News: Tips to Keep Your Business Growing appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

Sarah, Shiftypop on Fiverr, is a high-spirited, high-energy and talented musician and songwriter living in the U.K. In addition to her Fiverr Gigs®, she works as a freelancer for a toy commercial company based in Italy.

On Fiverr, she … Read More

The post Sarah Created Her Dream Job in Music – Here’s How #SuperSeller appeared first on Official Fiverr Blog.

(BPT) – Your next tech-tastrophy could take many forms. Maybe it’s the quick flash out of your monitor screen, the smoke coming from your printer or that mysterious clunking sound your favorite device keeps making — just because you accidently dropped it one or five times.

If you’re a small business professional trying to manage the budget, the last thing you have lying around is extra money to replace what you already have. But breathe easily, because these terrible tech tragedies can be prevented. To help you keep your tech safe, Staples Tech Services has teamed up with tech and small business expert Ramon Ray for five tips you’ll want to upload into your daily lifestyle immediately.

Keep software updated

Software problems can render your devices unusable more quickly than hardware damage. To protect against malware and security breaches, your software should be updated regularly. This includes the definition updates for your antivirus software as well as your operating system, which has built-in protections against malware. Businesses with multiple pieces of equipment should make sure they update automatically rather than requiring administrators to manually update each device.

Line up emergency tech support

You rely on your equipment to be functional. So when it’s not, you need an affordable tech support service. For small businesses in particular, tech issues can impact productivity and the bottom line. Staples’ new Next Day Guarantee means that PCs brought in before noon are serviced by 5 p.m. the next day. Staples’ tech team will also handle problems like malware removal and PC tune-ups and select Staples stores will handle mobile repairs, including broken screens, poor batteries, and home buttons.

Educate your staff

Some of the biggest dangers faced by your organization relate to the behaviors of your employees. Poor password-management policies can lead to outsiders guessing your system passwords and finding a way into your databases. Employees can also let in malicious traffic by clicking on links in emails or on social media sites. Hire a technology expert to train your staff on responsible technology use and make sure you sit in on the class as well.

Keep it clean

Don’t discount the importance of keeping your PCs and servers clean. Over the course of multiple months, dust can build up inside desktop units and servers, and over time, that dust can cause components to work inefficiently. With a can of compressed air, cotton swabs and a cleaning cloth, you can keep the internal workings of your computer clean for as long as it’s in use.

Pay extra for quality

If you’re operating on a budget, as every business is, it can be tempting to opt for less expensive equipment, especially if you’re buying multiple items at once. However, less expensive devices can fail more quickly than some of the more expensive options. You’ll be better off for the long-term when you invest in high-quality equipment that will remain reliable for many years.

Your business depends on its technology every single day, so support your bottom line by employing the tips above to keep your tech running as long as possible. Because once you see the smoke, it’s already too late. For more technology help, see the experts at Staples Tech Services today.