Many people feel that getting a daycare or childcare license is not necessary for childcare providers. Legally you only need a license if you are going to care for children from more than one family. It’s true that going through the process of obtaining your daycare license can be time consuming and sometimes stressful. However, the truth is that obtaining your childcare license can actually help you make more money! There are three ways that a daycare license increases your cash flow. They are: 1. Charging higher rates and bringing in new clients; 2. Income from food programs; and 3. Grant money.

Let’s take a closer look at item #1. Charging higher rates and bringing in new clients. Parents searching for childcare look at both quality of care and cost of care when making a decision. Believe it or not, childcare rates can vary greatly even in the same geographical location. So it pays for parents to shop around. However, most parents are willing to pay a little more for childcare if they know the quality of care will be outstanding. Obtaining your childcare license shows your dedication to top quality care. Also, many parents aren’t willing to place their child in an unlicensed childcare because there are no inspections done and no one is monitoring the childcare provider. So having your license can actually help your bring in more business!

The second way a daycare license helps increase cash flow is from income through the food programs. Food programs are systems set up to help educate childcare providers on serving healthy snacks and lunches to the children they care for. As a provider you must submit a monthly menu of what you serve for monitoring. It takes a little more work, but you are actually reimbursed a portion of the cost for each meal and snack you serve! These reimbursements aren’t huge but they certainly help defray the cost of feeding multiple children several times a day. These food programs are only available to licensed providers and they can certainly increase your cash flow!

Finally, getting your daycare license allows you to apply for the many grants that are available for home daycare providers. There are a lot of grants out there from local, state and federal government as well as from private sources. Some grants stipulate how the money is to be used; for example for play equipment, books, or facility improvements. Other grants are more open-ended and allow you to use the funds however they are needed for your childcare business. These grant monies are like pennies from Heaven and can really help financially! But these grants are only available to licensed childcare providers!

As you can see, getting your childcare license can really help boost your business financially. Even though the licensing process may be cumbersome, it can really “pay off” in the end!

Eileen Michalczyk opened A Teacher’s Touch Childcare in 1998. She has recently closed her daycare doors and now runs a successful marketing business from her home. To get more information on running a home childcare visit her blog at http://runningasuccessfulhomechildcare.blogspot.com

This article is an introduction as to how the power of true self-hypnosis can be used for self-improvement. I say true self-hypnosis as opposed to so called “self-hypnosis” which is really the use of hypnotherapy CD’s or MP3’s.

Self-hypnosis can be a fantastic instrument for goal setting and self-improvement. The majority of people are amazed at how simple it is to pick up self-hypnosis. And self-hypnosis, successively, makes many things much easier.

Self hypnosis is commonly believed to be somebody listening to a tape recording, mp3, or other mass-produced media, designed to cause a willingness to take in hypnotic suggestions focused on a particular issue such as losing weight, or smoking cessation, etc.

Regrettably, somebody who has never even met the individual being hypnotised, often-presenting unwelcome, or even objectionable mental imagery and suggestions more often than not creates this type of hypnosis.

For instance, if you sunburn easily, the last thing you would like to imagine is a long walk along a sun drenched beach. In this event, the “self” in self-hypnosis merely implies that you listen to it by yourself.

How do you integrate self-improvement with hypnosis?

To embark upon a course of self-improvement, there are definite facets in yourself that ought to be covered. Using hypnosis, the damaging facets that are acting as hindrances to improvement are eradicated.

A real self-hypnosis session would consequently by necessity be designed and produced by the one and the same person who will in the end use and benefit from it.

As opposed to the mass-produced “self-hypnosis” audio recordings, real self-hypnosis is created for the precise aim the individual desires, including the exact words and phrases that convey the most meaning to that specific individual.

Therefore an individual to accommodate his or her own needs would create a genuine self-hypnosis session. The benefits attained can exclusively be accomplished with such an individual, made to measure self-hypnosis session. In this instance, the “self” in self-hypnosis genuinely does signify that you are indeed hypnotised by yourself for your own specific needs!

The following is a brief description of the self-hypnotic procedure. Although many variants of these process’s have been applied, this is the basic formula you would need to go through in order to hypnotise yourself to attain self-improvement.

1. Arrange your goals from the most significant goal to the less significant goal. Whenever practical, your goals ought to be quantifiable.

2. For every goal, you ought to create suitable suggestions, which means you have to translate your goals into specific directions to your subconscious mind to follow in order to accomplish your goals.

3. Relaxation. The first few minutes of your self-hypnosis session should be spent becoming as relaxed as possible. Try to put all your worries and problems aside for the time being.

4. Begin your hypnotic induction stage by reciting aloud the hypnotic suggestions you have decided upon, or thinking of these suggestions or even listening to a custom recorded hypnotic tape or CD designed for your own self-improvement goals.

5. Apply the aforementioned hypnotic suggestions you have created for accomplishing the particular goal you intend to work with, say them aloud, and run them over and over again in your mind.

Prior to you starting your self-hypnotic exercises you should schedule a specific time to do them. Practice your self-hypnosis exercises each day, for at least five minutes a day. Repeat your hypnotic suggestions whenever possible throughout the day.

After a few weeks of daily practice you should evaluate your progression. Are you any closer to attaining your goals than you were before you commenced your self-hypnosis practice? If your answer is negative to this question, you should reconsider your hypnotic suggestions.

This is of course the only way you can truly evaluate if self-hypnosis is really helping you in attaining your self-improvement goals.

I hope this article has given you some food for thought as to how you can use the power of self-hypnosis in your life.

For further information about hypnosis click here.

David Regan is a stage hypnotist and hypnotherapist who specializes in
Providing comedy hypnosis shows. His insanely popular show “David Regan’s Hypnotic Experience” is now available. For more information please see http://www.hypnoticexperience.co.uk

What is your formula for writing effective advertising messages? If you’re like most people, you’ll say, “AIDA,” an acronym for Attention, Interest, Desire, Action. It’s a classic, perhaps the most quoted formula in advertising and marketing.

However, just as a skilled craftsman expands his or her creative abilities by collecting and mastering a variety of tools, a savvy marketer can expand his or her creative abilities by collecting and mastering a variety of formulas. Here are some less famous but highly inspirational formulas to add to your collection:

• ACCA. Awareness, Comprehension, Conviction, Action. This is similar to AIDA, but “Comprehension” stresses the importance of clarity, which is vital for any persuasive message. And “Conviction” is much stronger than “Desire.” It suggests certainty.

• Attention-Interest-Description-Persuasion-Proof-Close. This is another AIDA variation by Robert Collier. Intended for sales letters, it outlines what he thought was the correct sales sequence.

• AAPPA. The eminent Victor O. Schwab suggested this commonsense, clear formula. Get Attention. Show people an Advantage. Prove it. Persuade people to grasp this advantage. Ask for action.

• AIU. This is my own formula for envelopes. It stands for Attention, Interest, Urgency. Something about an envelope must get your attention, whether it’s teaser copy, graphics, or just blank paper. This should lead to an interest in the contents and an urgency to open the envelope immediately.

• PPPP. This is a formula by Henry Hoke, Sr. It stands for Picture, Promise, Prove, Push. In many ways, it’s easier to implement than AIDA because it shows you four basic tasks you must perform to make a sale. Picture: Get attention early and create a desire. Promise: Make a meaningful promise and describe what the item will do. Prove: Demonstrate the value and support your promise with testimonials. Push: Ask for the order.

• Star-Chain-Hook. This is Frank Dignan’s charming and surprisingly fresh way to approach an advertising message. Hitch your wagon to a Star with an attention-getting opening that is positive and upbeat. Create a Chain of convincing facts, benefits, and reasons to transform attention into interest and interest into desire. Then, Hook them with a powerful call to action, making it easy to respond.

• ABC Checklist. William Steinhardt’s formula is more detailed than most and very practical: Attain attention, Bang out benefits, Create verbal pictures, Describe success incidents, Endorse with testimonials, Feature special details, Gild with values, Honor claims with guarantees, Inject action in reader, Jell with postscript.

• The String of Pearls. This is a particular method of writing copy. The idea is that you assemble details and string them together in a long line, one after another. Each “pearl” is complete in some way, but when you string all the pearls together, their persuasive power becomes overwhelming.

• The Cluster of Diamonds. Similar to the String of Pearls, this formula suggests assembling a group of details under an umbrella concept. For example, an ad might have the headline “7 Reasons Why You’ll Save Money With XYZ.” The copy would then list these seven reasons. Each detail is a “diamond” in a particular setting.

• The Fan Dancer. The analogy here is perfect, though a bit racy. The idea is to tantalize with specific details that do not actually convey information. For example, let’s say you’re selling a book on reducing taxes. Part of your copy might read: “The one secret way to pay zero taxes and get away with it (page 32). How the IRS uses your mailing label against you (page 122). Three clever ways to turn a vacation into a business tax deduction even if you don’t own a business (page 158).” As with the forgotten art of fan dancing, you reveal little and leave your audience wanting more.

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About the author:

Dean Rieck is a direct mail copywriter, designer, and consultant who has helped over 200 leading direct marketing companies increase sales, generate leads, and raise funds with winning direct mail, ads, e-mail, sales letters, brochures, postcards, radio spots, and more. Learn more about Dean’s direct mail copywriting and design services and sign up for his free monthly newsletter at www.directcreative.com.

Copyright © Dean Rieck. You may reprint this article online provided that you keep the links live and keep all the content “as is,” including title, author byline, article text, and “about the author” information.