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24 October, 2008 |
PROFITABLE HOBBY – SECOND HAND BOOK STALL
From time to time I put articles like this here. I justify this because mental health is very important to us all, particulary as we age. And what better way to keep the mind alert than by having a little hobby business on the side?
Anyone can easily run a second hand book stall at weekend markets.
You source the books you have for sale from charity shops.
You’d buy them for $1 then sell them for $5.
A simple fold-away table is all you’ll need initially for your stall.
Your major expense is the $25 fee that you have to pay to each market, each week, for your space.
In four hours, you should be able to sell at least 20 books (revenue $100).
Your expenses for the day would be $20 for stock, and the $25 fee.
Profit $55.
Over a year, your profits would be north of $3000. |
posted by Bernard Kelly @ 9:38 AM  |
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PROFITABLE HOBBY – RECRUITMENT AGENCY FOR SENIORS
Mary was a qualified nurse, aged 60.
However at her age, there are personal injury risks in that profession so hospitals tend not to hire seniors.
She needed income, and took on some part-time low paid work (from the local council) supporting the elderly in their own homes.
However she needed extra income and it occurred to her that she had ample time to start a hobby business.
Given her own experience, she realised that there must be a population of seniors out there who become “un-employable” at a certain age.
So she resolved to establish a recruitment agency for seniors, working from home with virtually nothing more than a computer.
Fortunately Mary had personality, and went out of her way to promote herself in newspapers that were read by seniors.
She also became passionate that firms could benefit from hiring experience, which helped her promote her hobby business.
Her fees were $25 per annum to be listed on her database, and $300 for a firm to look for suitable employees.
After the first year, she had over 300 seniors registered (revenue $7,500) and 15 employers had paid to look (that was an additional $4,500).
The key ingredients for this hobby to become profitable would be an abundance of personality, and loads of energy.
You would also need to find a large employer who was willing to employ seniors, otherwise you’d have an ethical problem with taking money from registrants without a genuine expectation of being able to match them up.Labels: leisure, profitable hobbies, retirement |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 9:04 AM |
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23 October, 2008 |
BECOME AN ADVOCATE VOLUNTEER FOR YOUR CITY
Ipswich, a major city in south east Queensland, offers residents the opportunity to be an Advocate for the city.
Basically Advocates help promote the city and surrounds. This model could be put in place in any town.
What's in it for volunteer Advocates?
· Participation in series of free familiarisation tours of your town and surrounds
· Invitations to selected events and product launches
· Free Advocate merchandise
· Priority advice about new promotional materials and tourism products
· The opportunity to make a real and exciting difference to your town
· Opportunities to participate in exclusive Advocates promotional prize draws
So what do you need to become a town Advocate? You must be 18 years or older, passionate about your town, able to advocate to others as well as being happy to speak about the town to groups of people if required.
So if that describes you, and you would like the opportunity to help promote your city, consider becoming an Advocate volunteer for your town today.
You will be helping to educate residents about the special experiences they and their visitors can enjoy.
If you want to learn more of this initiative, go to www.ipswich.qld.gov.au and search on “advocate”.
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| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 8:00 AM |
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22 October, 2008 |
SOCIAL NETWORKING FOR BOOMERS
BOOMj bills itself as the leading niche portal with social networking and e-commerce serving Baby Boomers and Generation Jones.
The portal integrates content, social networking, e-commerce, and advertisements for health, finance, politics, technology, entertainment, travel, and lifestyle.
Go to www.boomj.comLabels: baby boomers, e-commerce, lifestyle, retirement, social networking, social networks |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 7:00 AM |
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GO OVERSEAS FOR ELECTIVE HEALTH CARE PROCEDURES
With today’s high cost of hospital care, many Australians are boarding planes bound for exotic places -- not for sightseeing or vacation but for knee and hip replacement surgery, bariatric procedures and heart by-pass surgery.
Every area of business is moving toward a global marketplace and healthcare is no different.
Historically citizens from around the world came to the centres of excellence in the United States, Europe and Australia and that of course continues. However, the high cost of hospital care and the advances in medical technology around the world are encouraging citizens of developed nations to travel elsewhere for major elective health procedures.
If this appeals to you, a major provider of medical tourism is BridgeHealth International, Inc.
They say that they have assembled the most extensive provider network in the industry, with over 25 hospitals and 600 physicians, dentists and health professionals in more than 10 countries - and growing.
Their network of accredited facilities and world-class practitioners allows you to take advantage of the benefits of medical travel without the uncertainties and guesswork.
Labels: good health, healthcare, healthcare holidays, lifestyle |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 6:45 AM |
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21 October, 2008 |
IF YOU WANT TO VOLUNTEER
(a) For Professionals
www.volunteermatch.com.au
VolunteerMatch provides a personalised service for matching skilled professional volunteers and Not for Profit organisations.
The site focuses on matching professional volunteers such as lawyers, accountants, IT and marketing professionals with Not for Profit organisations.
VolunteerMatch assists with the introduction of skilled individuals, or teams of individuals, to volunteer opportunities in the community sector where they can use their professional skills to build capacity in Not for Profit organisations.
(b) For Non-professionals
www.govolunteer.com.au
If you are a volunteer seeking a non-professional opportunity (such as helping out at events or planting trees) we suggest you try sites such as Go Volunteer where the focus is not so much on skilled professional positions.
(c) For Students
www.ampersand.org.au
If you are a student, we would recommend the Ampersand Network as a great place to start your volunteering journey.Labels: lifestyle, retirement, volunteer |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 12:18 PM |
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PROFITABLE HOBBY – VENDING MACHINES
Peter Arnold emailed me about vending machines.
He has 42 vending machines for sale as he is moving to the beach.
They are bulk lolly machines and they vend a handful of lollies such as M&M’s, Jelly Beans, Nuts, etc, into little white paper bags.
This is a genuine part-time small hobby business (where the hobby is making money) as a machine only needs servicing (re-stocking, collecting money) every 4-6 weeks. So if you only serviced 10 in one day, that’s only 4-5 days work every 4-6 weeks.
None of the machines are on location at the moment, but good sites should be easy to find. They do particularly well adjacent to kid’s playrooms in hotels, in video shops or in 24 hour convenience stores, he says.
Sales of $1000 per month is easily achievable, says Peter. One machine in a very good location can achieve $150-$200/month, so if effort is put into finding good locations then a return more than $950 is possible. It costs about $40 to fill a machine
The purchase price for the 42 machines is $28,500 with a discount given for site finding costs, and start-up stock. Full training, support materials, spare parts, and phone support is included.
You can obtain further details from Peter on (07) 3321 1107Labels: hobbies, leisure, profitable hobbies, retirement |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 10:19 AM |
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LOCAL COUNCILS UNPREPARED FOR SENIORS
FEWER than 10 per cent of local government authorities in NSW say they have prepared a strategy to deal with the ageing population despite a government report forecasting an explosion in the proportion of elderly people.
While the number of people aged under 64 is expected to jump by about 20 per cent, the over-65 age bracket is set to skyrocket by 111 per cent over the next 25 years.
The survey by the Department of Local Government says only 15 of the state's 152 councils have an ageing strategy in place.
The NSW Council on the Ageing, representing people aged over 50, said it was concerning that only a small fraction had planned for the needs of senior citizens.
The organisation's policy and communications manager, Anne-Marie Elias, said councils should have strategies that covered each age group over 50.
The Planning Minister and former minister for ageing, Kristina Keneally, said the Government would use the new forecasts to plan the locations of transport, housing estates and health services.
Labels: leisure, retirement, well being |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 7:23 AM |
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17 October, 2008 |
E-BAY AS SOURCE OF INCOME
There were 17,500 eBay members in Australia in 2006 who used eBay as their primary source of income, according to ACNielsen Research.
These members were classified as “full time merchants” who buy online then sell those same goods, also online.
Then there were a further 35,000 who used eBay as a secondary source of income.
Some of this second group sold their own surplus household items, while others used eBay as “part-time merchants”.
There are obviously major opportunities to supplement your income using this technology.
And what could be easier?
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| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 9:22 AM |
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16 October, 2008 |
| I'll be happy to make regular contributions (EE) |
| posted by Bernard Kelly @ 8:27 AM |
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THE NATURAL DIET
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14 October, 2008 |
THE NATURAL DIET
Boomers are increasingly concerned about their health because they know they will pay the price if they fail.
Publishers and food distribution companies see a good vein for this trend to "eat well" and it boosts the sales activity of booksellers, grocers, dieticians .
It could add fourteen years to your life if your daily lifestyle was dotted with zucchini, carrots, apples, bananas, grapes, grapefruit, says Dr. Michael Roizen, co-author of a book (You Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty).
According to Dr. Roizen, having a healthy lifestyle adds years to your life. He recommends:
eating five fruits and vegetables per day
have a physical activity
drink moderately
do not smoke
For him, "it is never too late, but better start soon."
In fact, "in the space of three years, we can erase the neglect of the past. Even better, after three months of change, we can already expect to have a longer life expectancy! " he says.
I’m Bernard Kelly of http://www.retirelaughing.com/ mobile 0414 778 518Labels: good health, leisure, lifestyle, retirement |
| posted by Retire Laughing @ 6:18 AM |
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WRITING YOUR MEMOIRS
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13 October, 2008 |
WRITING YOUR MEMOIRS
There are many ways to go about putting together this one-of-a-kind product.
The first thing to do is to think about the "tone" of the memoirs you plan to write. Would a straightforward collection of family history best fit, or would they be more appreciative of a collection of humorous stories? Perhaps a themed collection is more appropriate. Theme ideas include, but are by no means limited to:
- holiday tales
- family vacations
- love stories
- beloved family pets
- funny childhood tales
- a history of a particular family residence
- family ghost stories
Once you have decided on the type of memoir you would like to create, it is time to start pulling together stories. Start by writing out sketches of all the tales you remember. Flesh out your memory by talking to other family members.. Arm yourself with a mini-tape recorder so that you can listen to the tales again at your leisure.
Of course, the next step is to sit down and write. Allow yourself plenty of time to pull together a descriptive and creative collection of memories. You have plenty of choices as to how you want to capture the tales in writing. If you are focusing on events in one person's life, you can write the entire collection in first-person, from the viewpoint of your storyteller. Or you can write from the "voice" of several different family members. Finally, you can write out the memories from a third-person narrator's perspective. Let your intuition guide you.
Depending on the type of memoir you are choosing to write, your writing can flow in many different ways. You can write chronologically, from earliest to more recent events. If you have chosen to write a "themed" collection such as "holiday memories in our family," each individual tale can be a chapter.
Creating a memoir is a labor of love. But it is something that can be cherished by family members for decades to come. You can even set up the memoir in a format that allows it to be added to over the years, by yourself and other members of your family.
The most important thing is to use your imagination and recall how you felt when hearing the tales you are trying to pull together.Labels: memoirs, retirement, writing your memoirs |
| posted by Retire Laughing @ 9:31 AM |
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