Small Business Philosophy for Mechanical Engineering

Small Business Philosophy for Mechanical Engineering Small Business Philosophy for Mechanical Engineering There are many opportunities for small geschftliches miteinanderes in mechanical engineering, but it comes down to financial and sales understanding as much as ability in the field. According to Mike Brown, vice president of marketing and sales for ZAPS Technologies, you better get number-crunching. Ive seen many engineers who were brilliant but didnt realize it comes down to profitability, he says. You should be able to forecast how much money youll need and how much you think your product will make. Its terrific if it serves a greater purpose, but financial backers are trying to make a living. Christopher Neils, a bioengineering lecturer at the University of Washington, Seattle, sees government agencies as a key to his areas small business opportunities. I see the field divided between those technologies/applications that require FDA approval and those that dont, he notes. I th ink that small business and inventors will pursue mora of the latter as biotech components become more readily available at moderate cost. The results would be things like biosensors for geoengineering and cool living materials like the bacteria that are designed to fill cracks in concrete. Neils believes that FDA-approval projects like gene therapies will get more of the press. There is some room for small companies in therapies that target specific cells or cell components, implantable drug-delivery devices, and inventive mechanical surgical devices. Much of the actual production of these technologies will eventually be by the big companies that buy out the small ones. There will continue to be exciting advances in imaging technology, too, but I expect that the associated equipment will be too pricey for most startup companies. Again...Those Other Skills Though engineers may fill some business skills, they have to be willing to admit when they lack in major and important areas. An swering a request for a proposal can lead to strong work but writing one properly is its own art, along with being time consuming. Honestly search yourself as to whether you can hit it in a strong way. Meetings for potential sales are also not everyones strong suit, so a small business owner cant be afraid to be trained in that area or bring someone else to sell, Brown says. Finally, negotiation can be highly stressful and an easy game to lose when you dont understand the ins and outs. If the topic of money makes you nervous, it may be a situation to defer to someone else with a steady hand. Eric Butterman is an independent writer. Ive seen many engineers who were brilliant but didnt realize it comes down to profitability.Mike Brown, ZAPS Technologies

What to do when youre distracted and cant focus

What to do when youre distracted and cant focusWhat to do when youre distracted and cant focusDo you struggle to finish your tasks? Are you always distracted by notifications, gossiping, or anything thats random?In that case, you and I are alike. Because focusing on a single thing is one of the hardest things at work.Theres always something that interrupts you, right?Another personA callA meetingA false emergencyYour catA strangers catNews about last nights NBA gameSure, you can blame those things - but thats weak. You and I both know that those things cant interrupt you without your permission.That means every time youre not focused youre giving someone or something permission to enter your mind.Scary, isnt it?Thats how I look at interruptions. But I have to admit that I cant maintain my focus all the time. Sometimes, I give in. Its not good.Your life doesnt benefit from gossiping, looking at Instagram 439 times a day, watching 49 YouTube videos, and reading negative news articles. So, what can you do to improve your focus? Here are 2 things that I always do when I find myself not being able to focus on what matters.1. Eliminate. Eliminate. EliminateEvery day, we accumulate stuff. Im not only talking about the stuff youre buying like clothes, kitchen equipment, house decorations, toys, gadgets, or whatever.We accumulate ideas.Have you ever thought about that? Were exposed to so many ideas that we adopt some of them, and make them our own.For example, many people have told me to create mora YouTube videos. My family, friends, team members, readers, students - everybody has ideas. And they want to help.Likewise, I also share my ideas with others. Ideas about how you can improve your life, career, business, or relationships. We all do it. And theres nothing wrong with that.It only becomes a problem if you dont filter the input you get from people. So after I heard from people that I should make YouTube videos, I thought to myself Hey I should make YouTube videos Ive been thinking a lot about that for the past six months. And I also invested a lot of time in creating a strategy. What should my videos be about? Where should I record them? How should I edit them? What music should I use?Ive been working on it a lot. And I recently published a video as well. The response was positive.Theres only one problem It consumes too much of my time and attention. As a consequence, I can spend less time on writing, podcasting, and creating new courses.And those are exactly the things that I want to do. I started a blog for a reason I love to write, and Im good at it. Therefore, the work is easier, compared to creating YouTube videos, which Im not that good at.Plus, I thoroughly enjoy writing articles, books, and material for my online courses. When the work gets hard, I dont mind.But when I was working on YouTube videos, I got frustrated a lot. And again, my focus and work suffered from it.What did I do when I lacked focus? I asked myself this questionWha t thing(s) should I eliminate to make my life so simple that its easy to focus?In this case, I stopped focusing on YouTube. Elimination is a key strategy that I use for many aspects of my life.We accumulate so much unnecessary baggage throughout the years that we consistently need to eliminateIdeasProjectsWorkObjectsAnd so forthIf you find yourself struggling to focus, try this strategy. Make your life so simple that its a breeze to live.And lets be honest here. Who wants to live a life thats impossible? Life is already hard enough. Dont make it harder.2. Think about past successThinking about past success and happiness stimulates the production of serotonin, a chemical nerve our cells produce.Serotonin is the key chemical that affects every part of your body. Serotonin plays a huge role in our bodily functions. But it also helps to reduce depression, increase libido, stabilize mood, control sleep, and regulate anxiety.Serotonin also plays a massive role in our general well-being.Bu t heres why serotonin matters to your focus. Serotonin also regulates delayed gratification. When your serotonin activity goes down, it can lead to a lack of focus on the long-term. You are less likely to act on your plans.When you lose focus, theres a big chance that your serotonin activity is low. Thats why you are giving into short-term pleasures like going out, drinking, shopping, having sex, watching TV, or anything else that gives you short-term pleasure.To improve your focus, boost your serotonin activity. Research shows that exercise can do that. But something else, thats equally effective, and a lot easier is a simple mind-exercise.All you need to do is remember positive events that happened in the past.Alex Korb, a neuroscientist at UCLA, and the author of The Upward Spiral, explains why remembering positive events helps you to focus on what mattersAll you need to do to increase serotonin levels is remember positive events that have happened in your life. This simple act i ncreases serotonin production in the anterior cingulate cortex, which is a region just behind the prefrontal cortex that controls attention.When serotonin goes up, your focus goes up. Ultimately, thats what you should do.I know that it sounds cheesy, but when something is wrong, you must fix it.When I cant focus, the first thing I do is to acknowledge that I have a problem that needs a solution. Some people go through life without even acknowledging that they have problems.No, its not normal to check your phone every 2 minutes.No, its not normal to gossip all the time.No, its not normal to be bored.Focus on your life. Think about what matters to you. Then, do those things and dont get distracted - stay on the path.Good luck.This column originally appeared on DariousForoux.com.

When Traveling Musicians Need Work Permits

When Traveling Musicians Need Work PermitsWhen Traveling Musicians Need Work PermitsWhether your band is getting ready to head out on its first world tour, or youve been eyeing a Canadian music festival where youd love to play, it is important to remember that like anyone visiting a foreign country for work, you may need a permit or visa. Whether or not you need a work permit or work visa for your tour obviously depends on where your tour is and what citizenship you hold. Keep in mind a work visa is different from a passport any zwischenstaatlich travel outside the U.S. requires at least a passport card (to Mexico and Canada) or a full passport (to anywhere else). Make sure your passport is up to date as well, obviously. When You Need a Work Permit Besides geography, there are other factors that will determine whether you need a work permit. How many shows are you playing? How much money do you expect to earn? How long will your tour last? In some cases, the group putting togethe r your tour may require you to have a permit to play. For instance, if youre a non-American performer traveling to the U.S. to perform in the Coachella or South by Southwest (SXSW) festivals, youd need a work visa. Likewise, American artists who want to play at international festivals or locationswill almost always be required to have a permit. How to Find Out What You Need to Apply for a Work Visa Your first point of contact in determining whether you need a work permit should be the embassy website for the country you plan to visit. The website should have information that applies directly to citizens of your country. Keep in mind that entertainment and music-related work permits or work visas are almost always handled in a different way than other work permits, so be sure to check out the information about these specific kinds of visas. If youre only playing at a one-time event, like a festival, you should be able to contact the festival organizers directly to find out what w ork visas may or may not be required. Youll also want to get familiar with any fees that are involved. How Long ItTakes For Paperwork to Be Processed Another thing you should remember about work permits Some countries have application fees as well as fees for issuing the permit, so they can represent an extra expense. And as anyone who has ever applied for a passport or work visa knows, it can take an excruciatingly long time for all the paperwork to be processed. Make sure you know what kind of identification youll need before you begin the application process, whether a drivers license, passport, or birth certificate. Many countries can take a very long time to approve these applications or may charge a priority processing fee to applicants who need their visas sooner rather than later. The U.S is a prime example of a country that has extremely high priority processing fees. If you know you will be touring overseas, figuring out your work permit situation should be at the top of your list of things to do. Absolutely do not wait until the last minute. Otherwise, you may find yourself forced to cancel shows when your paperwork doesnt come in on time.