Home Articles Posted by Izy Berry (Page 45)
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Simple Ways to Save Money Fast
Saving money is one of those life skills that I think doesn’t get enough attention. After all, if you want to do anything big in your life finances wise, you’re going to need to have savings. I’m grateful that I really enjoy savings and it somewhat comes naturally to me now, but it wasn’t always that way. When I left home in my teens, I knew I would have to learn how to save in order to have some cushion in case an emergency came up, and also to be able to buy my first car. Little by little I learned some simple ways to save money fast that really help me, so I want to share them with you too:
1. Bulk Cook
I find that food is one of the ways that I spend most of my money. Whether it’s eating out, or cooking meals that are kind of expensive, I realized early on that bulk cooking would be a great way to save money. I’ll cook meals that freeze well and make a number of servings so I can just defrost it and heat it up. Cooking for one is really expensive and wasteful, so I’ve found bulk cooking helps me save money so I have more money left for savings!
2. Cut Out the Drinks
Drinking outside of the home can be really expensive. Whether your vice is coffee or alcohol, both have incredible markups in restaurants and cafes, meaning you can easily spend a ton of money without realizing it. If you want to have a few drinks with your friends, there’s no harm in that, but now the weather is nicer why not host some friends over to your home for a BBQ and enjoy some cheap supermarket drinks instead of shelling out a fortune in a bar.
3. Get Extra Income
Having extra income is going to mean that you have more money available to save. This can be a little challenging to do, depending on your lifestyle and how much free time you have. If you’re able to pick up extra hours at your work, that might be the easiest way to give your income a little boost. But if that’s not an option for you or not something you’re interested in you might want to consider working an extra job or getting a side hustle. I think if you do get an extra job, it can be nice to get something a little more casual and something that you enjoy. Having an extra one or two hundred dollars a month can make a big difference in how much you can save over the course of a year or two. In terms of side hustles, it can really be anything, from babysitting for friends for a bit of extra cash, right through to investing in a bond or launching an online business. There are so many options, you’re just going to have to find one that fits your lifestyle.
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3 Tips for Saving on Your Next Family Vacation
Family vacations are some of my favourite vacations – they’re an opportunity to create memories with your family that will last a lifetime. I’ve gone on quite a few trips with my husband, as our own little family, but I’ve also taken my sisters on a few trips. I flew three of my sisters out to Guatemala for my wedding and on the way we decided to meet in Mexico for a few days to enjoy the delicious food and beaches. I also took one of my sisters on a trip to South East Asia. I paid for the majority of these trips, so I know how challenging it can be saving and planning a holiday for a small group of people. Whether you’re planning to head away on vacation soon or hoping to go away next year, I hope these 3 tips for saving on your next family vacation helps you find some deals. If you want to learn more about saving on a family vacation, feel free to check out that link!
1. Choose a Cheaper Destination
I personally think that it’s better to spend a little more on flights to go somewhere where your money will go further, rather than saving on flights and going somewhere really expensive. This is even more true when you’re planning a trip for a family, as costs can add up quickly when multiplied by 3 or 4 people. Some of my favourite best value destinations include Mexico, Nicaragua, South East Asia and Eastern Europe. I really enjoy going somewhere where we can eat out without pinching pennies and worrying about how much everything costs.
2. Be Flexible
If you can be flexible with dates and even locations you fly in and out of, you’ll save so much money. You might find cheap flights from your local airport to Singapore, for example, but you actually want to head to Bangkok. I suggest looking into the cost of flying from Singapore to Bangkok, versus flying direct to Bangkok, and if there’s a considerable flight price difference it might be worth going this non-direct route. I personally love turning things like this into stopovers, as it gives me the chance to visit another country I might not otherwise visit. If you can also be flexible with your dates you will be able to save a lot of money. Travelling during peak time can be a lot more expensive, so if you can travel in the offseason or less common times, you can save a bunch not only on the airfare but also on the accommodation when you’re there.
3. Consider All Inclusive
I personally love all inclusive because you don’t have to worry about carrying around your cards or how much your trip will cost. When you arrive, you pay your bill and you’re ready to go. This makes it so much easier to budget and plan for your trip because you’ll know the majority of the cost before you even leave your front door. A cruise is also a form of all inclusive although depending on what’s included on the cruise you might find having to supplement alcohol and excursion expenses.
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3 Common Mistakes New Bloggers Make
If you’re new to blogging, or have been at it a while and are quite simply not seeing the results you want to see, then there might be a few reasons why. Blogging can be quite a challenging hobby or career, depending on how much experience and knowledge you have in the industry. If you want to make your blog an income source, then you’re going to need to put in a lot more effort than just writing whatever you want, whenever you want. Here are the three common mistakes I see a lot of new bloggers make so that you can avoid them:
1. Unrealistic Expectations
Most successful bloggers you see have been working at their blog for years and years. If your blog is new, then you simply can’t compare your success to theirs. The blogging market is also a bit more flooded now than it used to be and while there’s still plenty of space for new bloggers, it does mean there’s also a lot more competition. I personally don’t think competition is a bad thing – it will ensure that you have to work harder and produce even better content in order to make it to the top. I think having realistic expectations of how quickly you can expect your blog to grow will help ensure that you stay motivated when things maybe aren’t moving as fast as you’d like.
2. Trying to do it All
It can be tempting to try to do everything yourself, and even more so when the blog isn’t yet making any money. However, unless you’re a blogging expert doing everything yourself might hold you back. I think at some point, you need to decide that you’re really committed to your blog and to invest a little to ensure it grows as fast as possible. I have no skills when it comes to graphic design, so knew early on I wanted to invest in a nice logo that I would be proud of and happy to use for years to come. Another area that I have invested in is SEO – search engine optimisation. It can be quite hard to learn the ropes of SEO quickly, so sometimes it’s just worth investing in having an expert help you out. Check out https://www.cheapcomputerserver.com/how-seo-pros-help-rank-site-higher-google-search/ for more information on how an expert can help you rank better.
3. Not Planning
I’m a big believer in planning your content ahead of schedule. This has so many benefits – it means that you can spread topics and content out over a few weeks or months to ensure there’s a steady stream of interesting content. If you’re travelling intensively or have some family commitments coming up, then having content written in advance will be a lifesaver when you don’t have the time to update the blog on the road. Some bloggers find it helpful to have a regular schedule, meaning that every Tuesday and Thursday, for example, they’ll get a new post up. You need to decide what will work best for you and your blog. You’ll need to look at your life and schedule to gauge what editorial plan will work best for you.
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3 Tips for Growing Your Blog in 2019
If you’re a blogger, then you’re probably constantly thinking about ways to grow your blog and increase your traffic. Every year things change so much due to Google updates and changes in the way social media platforms work. However there are some things that have proven effective over the years in growing your blog, and I wanted to share my top 3 tips for growing your blog in 2019:
1. Invest in Social Media
Social media is huge, I mean if you ask your friends how many social media platforms they’re on, I would be thoroughly surprised if they have any less than two. Most of us check out social media first thing when we wake up, throughout the entire day, and then again it’s the last thing we’re looking at before we fall asleep. If you’re not investing time and energy on social media, then you’re really missing out on a lot of traffic for your blog. I personally love Instagram and find it to be such a fun platform to engage with my readers and followers. I also really enjoy that it’s so image focused, which I think is even better for a travel blog. No matter which platforms you choose to invest in, you’re going to want to spend a decent amount of time learning how your followers respond to your content and how to increase engagement. Many successful bloggers get a majority of their traffic from Pinterest, so this is another avenue to explore if you haven’t already.
2. Don’t Skip SEO
Search engine optimization is such an important part of having a blog. If you don’t know what SEO is, then you’re going to want to spend some time investigating how SEO works and how best to use it for your industry. It can feel like a lot of work doing SEO on every post, but there are a few plugins that you can download to make this entire process easier. My favourite SEO plugin is Yoast and so many other bloggers enjoy using it too because it’s so simple to fill in all the information and it updates automatically. If you want to learn more about link building, check out this helpful link.
3. Make a Plan
I think it’s really important to make a plan and a set of goals for your blog from the get-go. If you want to hit 1000 readers a month, then write that goal down and figure out how you can reach that number. Setting clear goals is so important in any industry, but especially in blogging. When you are first starting out, chances are you feel like your blog is so small and not super relevant, but you need to remember all blogs started out this way! Having some clear, small, achievable goals that you can slowly tick off will help you stay motivated and on track. Click here for more information on a marketing toolkit to help you get started.
Blogging can be a fun hobby or an amazing career – you can choose how far you want to take it. Hopefully, these tips help you grow your blog in 2019.
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3 Tips for Being Healthy When You’re Traveling
If you’re planning a longer trip away, then you’re going to have to spend a little more time and thought to ensure that you stay healthy on the road. It can be tempting to get into the habit of eating and drinking too much, staying up late and getting up early, all of which can eventually cause your health to decline. If you’re heading away but want to be healthy even while you’re travelling, here are my top 3 tips for being healthy when you’re travelling:
1. Portion Size
If you’re eating out constantly, then it’s very easy to overeat. It’s also commonly known that restaurants will focus on how to make the food taste best, rather than how to make it as healthy as possible. Portion sizes in restaurants tend to be a lot more than we would serve ourselves at home and when you’re travelling you don’t have anywhere to take the leftovers home to store and heat up for later. I usually travel with my husband, so to combat the large portion sizes issue we decide to usually share our meals. We’ll order an entree and a main meal, and split them, rather than ordering two giant mains. We have pretty similar tastes anyway so it works perfectly for us and it also means we’re not spending as much money on food.
2. Keep Active
One of my favourite things about travelling is how much walking I do. I love exploring a new town or city on foot, you see so much more and at a slower pace than if you were taking public transport or in a taxi. While I’m at home I do around 10,000 steps every day, but when I’m travelling that number jumps up to 25,000 or 30,000 which just shows how much more active I am. If you work out regularly at a gym when you’re home, then why not make that a part of your travel habit? It can be a fun way to see how locals live and to burn off all those delicious drinks and desserts you’re indulging in.
3. Remember You’re not Invincible
I think that a lot of people take extra risks when they’re travelling. You see news stories all the time of people taking social media photos in crazy locations and actually hurting themselves or worse because they’re being so risky. I think there’s something about being away on holiday that makes people take risks that they might not otherwise at home. You have to take care of yourself when you’re travelling, and that includes regular doctor visits and checking up on yourself when you’re not well. If you’re a little older, you might want to consider palliative care or tinnitus treatment before you head off on your next trip away.
Being healthy when you’re overseas is just as important as when you’re home. Try to eat a balanced diet, keep your exercise up and ensure you’re getting enough sleep. If you take medicines or vitamins when you’re at home, don’t forget them for your trip. I find having good travel insurance to be such an important part of travelling so I have peace of mind that if I’m unwell I can seek medical treatment without worrying about the cost.
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3 Careers That Will Allow You Ample Travel Time
I spent a long time obsessed with travel – hence this travel blog. I set off from New Zealand back in 2010 and fell in love with South East Asia. Thankfully that region is relatively affordable, so I was able to spend months and months travelling around without doing too much damage to my savings account. At some point, I quickly realized if I wanted to travel to all the places I had dreamed of, I was going to need a way to make money so that I could continue to travel. While I was trying to figure this all out, I took an au pair job in the Czech Republic which gave me some play money and the opportunity to be in the middle of Europe.
While there, I began on my travel blog and also started freelance writing to earn a little money. Since then, my business has grown and allowed me to travel to over 60 countries all while earning a good income. If you’re like me and travel is your greatest priority, then you’re going to need to think about a career that will allow you to travel to your heart’s desire. Here are 3 careers that will make it easier for you to travel:
1. Mining
You might be expecting this list to contain only remote jobs, but the truth is mining can be an excellent way to have the money and time resources to travel. I have quite a few friends who work in the mines in Australia, and they tend to have a few weeks on and a few weeks off. This is because the mines are quite isolated, usually in smaller remote areas, meaning that in order to attract their employees they have to offer considerable work benefits like a decent amount of time at home with loved ones. However, many of my friends who are younger decide instead of renting a property back in their home city, to use their time off to travel to exotic places like Bali or Thailand. Check out rigs online for more information about this great industry.
2. Teaching
If you want to spend more time overseas teaching is a great option because there are a few ways you can do it. If you’re a qualified teacher back home, then chances are you can land a very well paying job in an international school almost anywhere in the world. Where you go, will depend on where you’re interested in going and what the pay is like there. It’s very common for English speaking teachers through TEFL to make their way to China, Japan and South Korea where there’s a huge demand for English teachers and excellent pay benefits. Another option is teaching English online, either through a company or by yourself through a site like iTalki.com. Teaching can be a lot of work, especially all the lesson planning that happens behind the scenes, so just be mindful of this before you get started.
3. Working Remote
It wouldn’t be an article about travelling more without discussing how great working remote can be for travelling. I read the book The Four Hour Work Week and instantly felt differently about how I wanted to work and travel. I didn’t want to wait to see the world until I was old and tired. I wanted to do it now. I personally found freelance writing to be a relatively lucrative industry to work in, but it definitely takes a bit of time to build up your portfolio and clients. If you want to learn more about working online, then you can find a ton of information online to get you started.
Over the last few years a lot more industries have become open to their staff working remote and customers have also become used to interacting online for different services. Pre-covid most people expected to be face to face but now a significant number of pupils get qualified training via the internet for fitness, music and more.
I much prefer working and travelling together because it means that I can move forward financially while seeing the world.
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4 Ways to Find a Healthy Work Life Balance
It can be hard to fit everything in – when you want to balance family, friends, work, travel and everything else, it can easily become overwhelming. I do think that work-life balance is something that always shifts. Sometimes you will have to focus a little more on your family and friends, due to a personal emergency or special time, and sometimes work will command a little more attention than usual. I think it’s about finding a balance that works for you and ensures that you have time for the things you love and the people you love. Whether you work with the best thermometer calibration services or in a high-stress industry like a hospital, finding a work-life balance is important. Here are my top 4 ways to find a healthy work-life balance.
1. Book in the Things You Love
We book in “important things” like our work hours, doctor’s appointments, things we have to do for others, but we so often forget to schedule in our own activities that we love. I find if I book something and put it in my calendar, then I make time for it. So you should sit down and think about the things you want to do regularly and start booking them in. We’re usually so much better at keeping our commitments to others than to ourselves, but it’s so important to make time for the things we love. Whether that’s time every night for reading a book, or going to a sports class once a week, make a time for it and commit to yourself.
2. Work Smarter, Not Longer
There are some truths about work that apply for most people. For most of us, our productivity is best in the morning and slowly fades as the day goes on, only worsening in the afternoon. If this proves true for you, why not use this to your advantage and do your most challenging work earlier in the day when you have more energy and concentration? You’ll need great work instructions to get started, but I find getting the boring or hard stuff done faster means by the time my work end time rolls around I’m ready to run out the day and shift into my personal time.
3. Be Realistic
There’s nothing worse than expecting too much of yourself, planning it all in and feeling completely exhausted. We all need to rest and I personally need at least 8 hours sleep a night otherwise other areas of my life become affected. I also know that I only like to have one social event per day, otherwise, I start to feel my energy levels become depleted. Work with yourself and be realistic as to what your limits are. You don’t want to burn yourself out.
4. Make Fun a Priority
Spending time with friends and family is one of life’s biggest joys. You will quickly learn that if you don’t schedule things in, they simply don’t happen. Everyone around us is trying their best to juggle everything too, which makes it hard to find a time where we’re all available and can hang out. Schedule times to see each other or set up regular hang times so that you know you’ll see each other frequently, no matter how crazy life gets.
Finding balance will help you feel more relaxed in your day-to-day life and ensure that you’re having enough fun to balance out all the stress and commitments you have.
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3 Tips for Returning From a Vacation
Have you ever experienced reversed culture shock, where coming back home suddenly feels strange and you struggle to get back into a routine? Maybe you are just finding it harder to get back into the day to day grind after having such a wonderful trip. No matter how long you were gone for, coming home and sliding back into normal routine can be a shock to the system. Here are my top 3 tips for returning from a vacation:
1. Give Yourself Some Leeway
There’s nothing worse to me than arriving back on a Sunday night after a long flight and trying to get back into work on Monday. I always give myself at least a few days leeway in order to rest, recover, and get adjusted to being home. I also think it’s so important to get things sorted at home before you try to get back into a normal routine. Doing small things like restocking the pantry and doing laundry are basic things I like to do before I get back to it. I think it’s so important to avoid burn out and giving yourself a few days in between your trip and getting back to normal life can make a world of difference. Don’t forget to let your body rest, not only is long distance travel exhausting, but there’s a good chance you were super active on your trip, making the most of your time away. You might find it helpful to get some Xpress Grass and relax.
2. Get back to a Good Schedule
If you’re ever travelled across a few time zones, then you know how much it can mess with your normal rhythm. You might find yourself waking up at all hours of the night and failing to sleep at a normal hour. This can be so hard on your body, so I think finding a good schedule is so important. There are a few things I do before I even leave my trip to help me adjust back to my normal time zone. The first thing is acting and thinking like you’re “at home” when you’re at the airport. Check the time back home, if it’s time to eat, eat, if it’s time to sleep, try to sleep. Starting to adjust back on the time zone you’re from will help you slide back into things when you get home. I also like to take some natural supplements to help me get back into my normal rhythm. Check with your doctor before you take either, but I find melatonin or 5htp to be really helpful to help me get a good night’s sleep when I’m on the plane or finally back home. I take them 30 minutes before I want to sleep. Getting on a good schedule is so important and you might want to look into also getting your work on a smart schedule too https://www.sparkrock.com/scheduling/.
3. Get Outside
No matter how bad the weather is when you get home, if you arrive during the day it’s so important to get outside and get some sunshine. Even if it’s a cloudy day, your body will be absorbing some vitamin d and beginning to adjust to the time zone. I personally like arriving late at night so I can go straight to sleep, but the following day I ensure I spend extra time outside so I can help my body readjust to the new schedule.
Coming home can be a little challenging but with these three tips you’ll adjust as fast as possible.
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3 Tips for Caring for Your Pets When You’re Traveling
While I love travelling, one of the things that I find really hard about being overseas, especially on longer trips, is leaving my dogs behind. Thankfully I’ve found a great place for them to go that they love, so I don’t feel as bad, but when you’re going to be away for a while you really do need to keep your pets in mind. Here are my top 3 tips for caring for your pets when you’re travelling.
1. Don’t Shock Them
If you’re going to put your pets into a kennel or animal caring situation, be sure to start them off slowly. My dogs go to a kennel that they go to three times a week to play for the day, so they’re more than familiar with all the staff, how everything works and what their lives are like when they’re there. I started them off with spending the day there, then eventually a weekend and slowly moved onto longer stays as they got older. I think it’s really important to gradually get your dogs used to whatever situation they’ll be in while you’re away. If you’re planning to have some home care for your pets, then it could be a good idea to have the carers come over for a weekend first to ease your animals into it.
2. Ensure They’re Entertained
Both of my dogs are very high energy animals, and that’s one of the big reasons we prefer to put them in the kennels than have someone come to our home. They need around two hours exercise a day and that’s a lot to ask of a friend or family member. Most dogs will actually become destructive when they’re really bored, so it’s a big help knowing our dogs will be tired while we’re away. If you’re choosing to have someone come in to care for your pets, be sure to leave plenty of toys and treats like Wonder Chews so that they can be properly entertained while you’re away. This will make a big difference and ensure that your pets are on their best behavior while you’re away.
Additionally, consider adding a nutritious dog food blend like Dr. Marty Nature’s Blend to their diet during this time. This blend is specifically designed to keep their energy levels balanced and promote overall health, further supporting their well-being while you’re traveling.
3. Have a Backup Plan
If you’re relying on someone to come in to care for your animals, make sure you have a backup option in case something goes wrong. Pet sitters have to cancel all the time for unforeseen reasons, such as a personal health emergency or something preventing them from travelling. Having a backup plan will mean that if something does go wrong, you have someone else who can help you with your animals so you can go on your vacation. Likewise, issues can crop up with kennels as well. If there’s an outbreak of Kennel Cough you might not be able to leave your dogs there for your trip, as kennel cough spreads and can be dangerous in older dogs. While it’s unlikely you’ll need to follow your backup plan, it’s so important to have some ideas just in case something goes wrong.
I hope these tips help you prepare for what you’ll do with your animals while away.
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4 Tips for Updating Your Home Office
I work from home most of the time, so having a good home office really makes a huge difference for me in terms of how productive I am. I sometimes work from cafes which I really enjoy because I’m a big coffee lover and it’s nice to get out of the house, but having a home office means I can cut down on my commute time and also save money. Whether you already have a home office and want it to update it, or are making one for the first time. Here are 4 tips for updating your home office:
1. Think About Your Posture
One thing I’ve noticed is that when my posture isn’t the best, my energy levels slump. Having good posture means that I can focus well and have a decent amount of energy to get through the workday. I’ve found that for me personally, I like to mix up my ‘seat’ in my office. I have a traditional seat, but I probably only spend about 30% of the time on my office chair. The rest of the time is split between standing at my desk or a pilates ball. I love sitting on the ball because it forces me to engage my abs and focus on how I’m sitting. Standing at my desk also allows me to have good posture and feel energized.
2. Get Organized
I think having good storage in your home office is so important. There’s nothing more distracting than a messy office. If your desk doesn’t come with some built-in drawers, then it might be worth investing in a storage system. The size of the storage will depend on your needs, but I like my desk to be completely clear except for what I’m working on as this allows me to focus more. If you’re looking for a new workspace, check out https://www.adventuresofariotgrrrl.com/2019/01/taking-next-step-with-your-business-and.html for some ideas.
3. Don’t Forget Some Plants
I think plants are such an important aspect of an office because not only do they help oxygenate and clear the air, but they bring the outside in. If you’re anything like me, then chances are you have to work long hours back to back in order to get through all your work. It can become tiring, but somehow some bright green plants help me feel more refreshed which is great when I have a long day ahead.
4. Make it Private
My husband and I both work from home and in the beginning, we found this really challenging as one of us would be in the mood to chat as soon as the other had settled down and started being really productive. We had to make a game plan to deal with ‘work time’ and ‘together time’ so that we could both be as productive as possible. We’re lucky enough to have a home office each meaning that we have our own spaces, where we can both shut the doors. Our new rule is that if the door is closed, then you do not interrupt unless there’s an emergency. This has helped both of us with privacy and ensures we can be as productive as possible! Check out here for a great analytical balance of the reasons to invest in industry.
A home office can be such a great investment for your business, I hope these tips help you make it as great as possible.
