Today at Techie Youth, I learned about how to price one's products and how to build a good/reasonable inventory. Ideally, the costs of making/shipping a product should be lower than the cost you would charge for it (break-even point), and this would help you make a profit. One significant thing to know is that you should really never put a significantly lower price on your product compared to the prices of similar products of your competitors, because this would make customers suspicious of your quality, and less willing to buy. This would in turn greatly decrease any profits. In terms of inventory, it is reasonable to be ready to ship items in the beginning immediately when your business is only starting out, but you should have your items in some sort of bulk amount further down the road.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the art and science of laser-cutting. Laser-cutting is a great way to craft immaculate and detailed 3D objects, whether it be for yourself or for your aspiring business. A laser cutter is computer controlled and uses a laser beam, or highly concentrated light, to engrave something into a material. The laser beam would be created in a tube filled with CO2 gas, and with the help of mirrors and lenses, it can be directed to the laser head and focused on the material's surface. Electronically controlled motors move the laser head to cut or engrave the desired shape into the material, thus creating a unique object for your use.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the various ways in which I could earn money with a personal 3D printer, besides the making of 3D products. One such lesser known is rapid prototyping, which involves making a scale prototype that professionals can use it to show their designs, give a conceptual presentation, or test the viability of an end product. You can also make homemade 3D printed products and crafts, which is popular with interior design and jewelry companies. Finally, a 3D printer could be used to expand and learn more in the process of 3D design courses, given at plenty of nationally recognized colleges.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the various platforms that one could use to make 3D models, and various sources that could be used to then print this product if you don't have your own printer. For the former, these platforms could range from free to expensive (like AutoCad), but these more costly softwares tend to be more sophisticated. In terms of outsourcing, I learned that there are different types, from additive manufacturing platforms (which do 3D printing only) to hybrid digital manufacturing platforms (which do not only 3D printing, but also CNC milling, laser cutting, and more). There are also different advantages to these; for example, additive platforms are best for printing specific products in small quantities.
Today at Techie Youth, I started learning about how to make money through creating 3D-printed products. Since 3D printers are becoming much more accessible, it has simultaneously become more possible for a regular person to start a business creating these products. Plenty of free software like Blender can help you make these products initially. In terms of products that sell well, these include cosplay clothing and accessories (which can be very lucrative, since plenty of people are involved in fandoms and popular culture), figurines (also popular, since officially licensed ones for pieces of pop culture tend to be very expensive), and even plant pots (introduces a product that is lightweight and won't break in comparison to real pots).
Today at Techie Youth, I started learning about project planning and how to create a marketable product. Some steps include creating a product description, which would explain the components of your product. Another includes a resource list would explain the things you would need to create your product, including tooling (items that you need to purchase once in order to create your product) and consumables (items that need to be purchased continuously). A sales channel would have a plan of how you and where you would be selling your products. Finally, budgeting would be also important to include, as this will help you anticipate profits and costs.
Today at Techie Youth, I started learning about the steps which should allow you to make and sell a product or craft as a business. I learned that the first steps one should take all about brainstorming. For example, you would want to identify need, as in what is it that people want to buy, what is something that you could solve, or what is something that would draw people in. This would help you decide what to initially make. The next part would be to assess the risk of this product, including analyzing whether your idea is already being marketed/sold, who would you be selling the product to, and other factors that could make business more difficult. This is important to know before you jump into production.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned more about the various types of things that a person who is planning to be involved in the art world should know about, namely communities and scams. I learned that there are plenty of very convenient companies and websites that allow artists to sell and market their works on the internet, and many of them are free to join. Good examples of this are Redbubble and ArtPal, although they may take a portion of profit to pay for print-on-demand orders. In terms of scams, these are very important to avoid, because these (coming oftentimes in the forms of emails or text messages) may force an artist to give up their personal or financial information, which could lead to many security issues.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the role of art consultants and what they could do to help someone grow their art business. Art consultants are extremely important in the financial and connections field, since a business cannot thrive on the artist's creativity alone. So for example, an art consultant would help an artist grow contacts in the art world, bring together collections or galleries with the most relevant pieces, and source existing works and commission new pieces according to the specifications of clients, even in the corporate field. Overall, art consultants can be very useful and their services should be considered when someone starts an art business.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned more about how to manage your social media (Instagram in particular) in such a way as to gain more engagement. One tip I learned was that one should leave keywords in the headline of one's Instagram profile, and usually omit your own name, since people will be searching up for keywords rather than our name (if you aren't already well known). Another tip is to attract attention to your profile by going into specific hashtags related to your content and liking a few posts from another creator. Finally, it is important to actually engage whatever audience you have, whether it be by writing relatable captions to your posts, sharing polls and asking questions of your audience.
Today at Techie Youth, I continued to learn about the details of selling art online. One important thing that I learned about was the legal aspect of this. Since you would essentially be setting up a business, that means you would have to pay taxes. If you are self-employed, these taxes would be deducted every couple of months (although you would how to ration them out and pay them yourself) and the profit from the business would count as your personal income. This is why it would be very important to keep track of the expenses and profits of the business, and many creators recommend keeping Excel sheets or other such documents to bookkeep and keep track of your money.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about a possible job that a person could have as someone who sells art online. I learned that selling art online shouldn't just be limited to artists, which seems like the most obvious choice, and that curators, or people who sell others' art, could also make money this way. Some important steps that one should take is figure out how to print the artwork, whether it be through print-on-demand with a company or DIY printing. Images also have to be scanned and photographed qualitatively to create an attractive product. It is also important to build your brand as an artist or seller to attract buyers, and could be most easily done through social media.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the different types of strategies concerning options that investors should know about. For example, one such strategy would be a married put, in which an investor purchases an asset and then simultaneously purchases put options for an equivalent number of shares. This creates a price floor that would prevent a stock's value from completely losing value if its price drops, and therefore serves as a protection. Another strategy is a bull call, where an investor buys calls at a specific strike price while also selling the same number of calls at a higher strike price. A call is a contract between the buyer and the seller of the call option, to exchange a security at a set price. This strategy thus allows the person to limit their upside on the trade while also reducing the net premium spent.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the difference between options and stocks. This difference is important to know because you wouldn't want to foolishly throw away your money while investing. I learned that a stock is a piece of ownership in a company that is listed on an exchange. These pieces are called shares, and when bought, you become a shareholder. Meanwhile, an option is an asset class that belongs to a group of securities known as derivatives, which in turn is an asset with a price that’s dependent on the price of an underlying investment. Also, options are meant for short-term investing, while stocks become more profitable long-term, since option contracts last only a few months.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about forex trading, or the foreign exchange market. It allows for the exchange of national currencies and could lead to profit for yourself. There are plenty if important things that one must consider while trading, such as choosing a reputable broker and understanding their different policies, and how these could align to your practices. Also, it is very important to be able to calculate your expectancy, which basically measures the success rate of the system you're using to trade. The risk to reward ratio should also be considered, as this would determine how much money you are willing to lose in comparison to the money that you could gain.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about cryptocurrency and the importance of being able to understand how to properly earn money from it. Cryptocurrency, in simple terms, is virtual money that is bought and sold (trading) for real money, and can provide a profit if traded intelligently. Money can also be made from crypto mining, in which powerful computers run the process of solving mathematical equations to make, or mine, cryptocurrency. However, mining isn't for everyone, as this requires owning a truly powerful computer or being part of a powerful network. Many scams also try to take advantage of people's ignorance about mining, such as through advertising phone applications that claim to be able to mine crypto, but really don't work in practice.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the importance of being able to understand proper investing techniques. Investing could be a way to earn money, but it must be done properly to yield the highest reward possible. For example, some general tips include only investing in good businesses that have potential. Although it might cost more to invest here, the reward would be higher than it would be for investing in cheap, dying businesses. Also, one must only buy stocks that they understand so that they understand more about the market behind them. It is also important to take great opportunities when they come up, because these could be chances to make real, good money.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the importance of being able to closely understand your employees and their needs compared to your company's needs. I learned that, significantly, the majority of people will not change in their personalities or behaviors over the course of their life, and thus you, as the boss, would have to act accordingly. For example, you would have to make sure that the employee is doing only what they can handle and what they want to handle, because forcing an undesired job upon a person is going to make the person useless and unhappy. As a boss, you have to keep in mind that you cannot make other people change or expect them to change.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the importance of branding, and particularly the design of a logo for a company. I learned that a logo has to be timeless, simple and unique in order to be successful and memorable to lots of people. It is possible to design your own logo through a website such as Wix or hire a professional designer. However, it is important to ensure that the designer doesn't steal another company's logo and that you don't use that design for your brand accidentally, because that could result in you yourself getting in trouble with that company.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about how to set up a business. The prerequisite steps include formulating a business model and executive summary, which would briefly and concisely outline all the goals and missions of the business. It is important to also pick a target audience and run with it, as this is the group of people you’ll be selling to. After these and a couple other planning steps, one would have to designate this business as a legal entity with a EIN (not for sole proprietors), which would allow for the IRS to tax in the future.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about various techniques that are meant to boost my speaking and presentation skills. Speaking is one of the most important skills a person must have to succeed in life, and aptitude at speaking comes mostly from knowledge and practice, although talent may play a small role. In giving a presentation, some things that one needs to do is that your audience gathers at a reasonable time in a well-lit space, distracting devices are shut down and put away, and the speaker appears and behaves presentably. In a slideshow presentation, it is especially important to limit word count and clutter on a slide to maintain audience attention.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the possibilities that come with living a jet setter lifestyle. This term refers to a person who travels around the world and is able to make a living out of doing so. These people have remote jobs in that they are able to make entertainment out of their travels and make people interested in their lives. For a jet setter, it is important to be able to live affordably and also have good quality in the media that you upload to your audiences.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the importance of finding a mentor. A mentor is a person, usually a professional in some sort of field of interest, that is able to guide a person and teach them a lot of the significant information that comes with working in that field. Since mentors are usually busy working people, they must be regarded with respect and closely listened to. Mentors exist for guidance and advice, and should be reached out to in any case that a question from the mentored person arises, but they aren’t obligated to “spoon-feed” you information. This is a relationship that needs commitment from both sides.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the various things that could improve one’s quality of life. For example, physical health is incredibly important to one’s overall welfare and attitude. Ways to improve physical health could include daily exercise, which increases fitness and strength, healthy eating, which provides all the energy and nutrients a body may need, and sufficient sleep, which restores energy and lets you rest. Another thing to keep in mind when improving quality of life is time management. By being productive in such a way there is both plenty of time for leisure but also work, a person can ensure that they are working towards their goals in a reasonable manner and are on the path to progress.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the importance of managing your finances and the difference between gross and net income. For the latter, gross income is the amount of money you make in general, while net income is the amount of money that you keep after taxes or other deductions are applied. With utilizing net income wisely, I learned that one has to keep track of purchases, whether they be smart, not smart or consumables. Smart purchases (like real estate) is something you can resell later for a greater value and profit; non-smart (like clothes or devices) are something you can’t resell for greater value; consumables are purchases that usually cannot be resold at all, but are often necessities (like food) and thus are important parts of spending one’s money wisely.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned about the significance of looking out for scams and other lies in the world of employment. Scams are dangerous because they prey on a person’s desperation for easy money or a good job, and thus make it possible for someone to lose their personal information and time rather easily. I learned that some signs of a scam include someone offering unreasonably high amounts of money for a position. Another common scam promises people to reach incredible heights in a career in a short amount of time. Still others lure people with the promise to not look over an employee’s credentials or resume. The knowledge of these scams will help me avoid them in the future.
Today at Techie Youth, I learned all about conducting a successful job interview. I learned that the major components of getting a job and impressing an employer are all about presentation and your own usefulness. In an interview, I would have to look presentable and professional. Most importantly, I would have to prove to the employer that my skills are absolutely needed by the company. Therefore, using phrases like “I” isn’t preferable to phrases using “you”, because an impression needs to be made not about how great and talented the interviewee is, but how this could be applied in the company. This was very useful information and I’m sure it’ll help me in the future.
Today I learned the different steps that I should take towards securing a job. For example, I would first need to compose a resume and cover letter. A resume would contain a catalog of my experience, education, skills and achievements that would make me attractive to employers. A cover letter, meanwhile, is meant to be a brief glimpse into myself and what I have to offer to a company. After all, the cover letter is the first thing an employer would look at.
Another important part of getting a job would be to establish a good social media presence. Platforms such as Linkedin are a way to put yourself out there and network with other people. A LInkedin profile would detail your experience, education and title, thus establishing you as someone who could be hired. Besides this, it is generally important to regulate your personal social media as well, because companies tend to search up their prospective employees and ensure that they are people they would want to hire.
Today, I learned that the key to happiness in one's adult life is being able to do a job that you love. Many people are stuck working long and tedious shifts day in and day out because they're working in a place that doesn't have their best interests at heart and doesn't relate to their own passions and interests. This is why we must seek to have jobs where we can set our own terms, while still having a steady income.
Remote work is a great option for that. I learned that there are plenty of professions which one can do from the comfort of their own home or any place with an internet connection. This includes social media influencers, vloggers, graphic designers, proofreaders/editors and even bookkeepers. Most passions can be adapted into a remote job. There are plenty of benefits to a remote job, since one can set their own schedule, have more free time and still earn money.