I’ve been having issues with my computer. First, is was crashing. Then email wasn’t working. Next it crashed again. I could only run one or two programs at a time, which didn’t work for me. I would fix one problem and then another one would occur. I even took my computer to the local store. First they said there was nothing wrong. Then they found a program hidden in the computer written in a foreign language. After removing the program, they were sure it would work. Less than one hour later, it crashed again. Finally, I had to take a step back and evaluate. Do I keep patching together issues and solutions for my computer or do I choose a new computer based on my ever changing needs? I choose the new computer. I am much happier. Clients are much happier. Work is getting done quickly and effectively.Does this cycle remind of your child or student’s IEP? All special education issues start somewhere. One program not working or one tool not being used and the student, family, and/or teacher become frustrated. A single element of the program is looked at and perhaps at first nobody can find the problem. Then the issue is found and fixed! All is supposed to be well and then CRASH! It happens again. Hmmm, let’s find the next issue in the IEP and try and tackle that one. Done! CRASH! Here we go again. We call in professionals to continue fixing the IEP, but maybe we need to step back.Most times when crash after crash is happening in special education, the entire IEP should be reevaluated. How to get started:…Someone on the IEP team must take responsibility to stop the cycle of “fixing and crashing” the IEP. You?…Team members (staff, parents and student) must talk with each other to find out what IS working throughout the program. Find the positives!…Team members must then communicate what IS NOT working in the program. Be honest because it might just be your piece that is not working.HINT: All team members must be aware of this process of stepping back to look at the overall issues, not just isolated incidents. Otherwise, you will still end up with patchwork fixes.Based on your lists of what is and is not working, how can you begin to restructure and re-prioritize the child’s day to meet their current needs? At this point, don’t worry about the formality of changing the IEP. Use the current IEP as a blueprint for making your lists, start the restructure for a new program and when success begins to happen, make the documentation in the IEP. HINT: You don’t need an IEP meeting to have elements of change in the program documented. Simply writing changes in a form letter and submitting a copy to the file will put it on record and may be good enough until your next IEP meeting. Bottom line- get it in writing and get it in the file. Example: You may find out that in the overall picture the child had too many transitions in the day. With team effort, transitions were minimized. Successful learning and minimal meltdowns were now occurring. The parent or teacher writes one page that states the situation, changes made and results seen. The one page document is addressed “To: The Team of (Student Name)” and CC’d to the FILE. All team members are now aware of the information it has been documented for long-term reference and accountability.Remember, not all changes are big. Not all students are going to need a brand new IEP, as I needed a brand new computer. But by taking a step back and evaluating current needs, what is and is not working and what can be changed in the child’s overall program, you may be amazed at the change in productivity by all team members, especially the child.
How to Find the Perfect Renters For Your Rental Property
You have opened your house for rental and have had couple of applications from some interested people. But now, you do not known how to choose the best one who can take care of your house and still provide you perfect remuneration each week. Well, if you are in such a dilemma then this guide will show you how to choose that perfect renter for your rental property.What kind of renters you are looking for?The very first thing to understand while leasing a house is that your potential applicants cannot afford a home mortgage because they might have bad credit, lost a job or might have lost a house even because of their financial problems. You should understand that most tenants do not have enough of financial ability to back home loans but might have just turned their table slight with a bit of financial help. They will probably have a good rental period for at least 6 months, might have got a new job and though they have had bad credit but they must be taking care of improving the credit with paying older dues and car payments.You should understand this situation and look out for tenants who are genuinely interested in the property and can pay the quoted rent per week mentioned in the lease agreement. It’s fine if they have had bad credit history but until they are able to pay the rental that should not be a big problem to the property owner.Will they buy your house?You can even ask the tenants whether they might be interested in buying the property few years down the line. You can lease out the property and rip the rental each week unless the tenant eventually looks at buying the house. But you can add the option for the tenant to buy the property whenever they want. So, in case they wish to invest in your property then you can sell it for a nice profit in few years time.The Gut CheckOne of the most important things to keep in mind is gut feeling. You may have feeling that a certain person might be the most suited candidate for the rental property. They might work hard to pay of their rental each week but do ask yourself whether you can risk your time and effort in working with each applicant for rental. An old fashioned gut checking can help you decide between two equally good candidates.Being a landlord can be extra burden and responsibility but it does bring in extra revenue each week. Its up to you to decide whether you should venture into the real estate property business or not. Even if you decide not to rent your property then you can always sell it and walk away without having to pay any extra money for gain taxes. If you are seriously looking for the rental business then do consult with your real estate agent to find more about the current rates and expense incurred in rental business.
6 Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Online Travel Business
Travelling is one thing that you may find common in everybody’s hobby nowadays. In fact, it is a passion for many. People are getting busier and stressed out with each passing day. And traveling is the only thing that can help them to cut off from their busy schedules and get a bit relaxed. As a result, more and more people are in continuous search of online travel businesses that can help them plan their dream holidays. This has led to a massive rise in the competition in the travel business industry. You have to be distinctive to make your online travel business a success.
A considerable amount of work goes into setting up your travel business, enhancing the showcase, and getting the desired number of customers. And a few mistakes here and there can ruin your venture even before starting.
Here, are the most basic mistakes that you must avoid or it might kill your online travel business even before it takes off:
1. Not offering complex travel services
People can easily plan their routine point-to-point tours or trips with the help of the Internet. What they need is someone to help them plan their trips with varied & complex requirement combinations. You must allow the customers to create and plan their travel packages as per their convenience. Providing regular travel packages will do no good to your online travel business but will instead lead the customers to continue planning their trip on other travel websites.
2. No prompt support
Customer satisfaction is the first & foremost requirement in the travel business. You should be within your customer’s reach at any point of time. Yielding prompt support to your customer’s queries & complaints can save many of your customers from moving on to other travel portals. Try giving quick solutions and clearly mentioning all the instructions can help your business from getting bad reviews on Google & other social media platforms.
3. Poor user interface
It’s very simple: “People buy what they look at and like”. So, it becomes necessary to have an attractive and engaging user interface. Customers should be easily able to traverse through your travel portal and get all the things they want. Your travel portal needs to have a simple yet classy design with an appealing call to actions, appropriate sorting filters and easy payment & checkout options. All these will help the customers to take up your proposal at the most opportune time.
4. Not having a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
There are numerous travel websites on the Internet. Following the same strategies like them won’t do any good to your business. It’s tough to beat them & move forward. At this point, you need to have a Unique Selling Proposition (USP). USP is the thing that differentiates you from the rest of the crowd. This means that you need to deliver something that none of the businesses from your niche does. For example, you can transform your business message to sell expert advice & personalized services rather than some deals, offers & discounts.
5. No promotions or marketing
Promotions or marketing is the best way of reaching out to your target audience. Most of the travelers start searching online or on the social media platforms before planning their trip. Lacking marketing and promotions will make you lose some of your potential customers. You can hire an Internet marketing company to do this task for you.
6. Lack of personalization
People don’t like to spend much time browsing all the options. They prefer websites that provide them with relevant suggestions as per their needs and interests. In this scenario, personalization can help you. Personalization allows you to learn about each customer so that you can suggest relevant solutions aimed at their needs and interests like What is their budget? What hotel brand do they prefer? Are they flexible with their dates? etc.
By doing just a bit more than your competitors, you are sure to stand ahead of all the other online travel businesses and guarantee that you have a continuous flow of travelers for quite a long time to come.
By evading these 6 mistakes, you are on your way to establishing an independent travel business.
Get an online travel portal developed by us for your online travel business. We, at Brevity have expertise in building custom software.