Stock Market Turmoil Leaves Many Australian Retirees Worried

The turmoil in the international stock markets is having a tragic impact on the retirement plans of many retired Australians.

For example, during September 2008, it was estimated by Super Ratings, a company that tracks the performance of super funds, that Australian super funds lost as much as 6% of their value. During the past year they lost 12% of their value.

The reason for the massive decline is the current superannuation rules which effectively place the Australian superannuation system in a virtual stock market strait jacket.

Over the years, The Investors Club has argued strongly that Australians should have greater flexibility in using their superannuation to invest directly in property and also to help pay off their mortgages.

This stock market strait jacket has been highlighted by a recent report from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) that tracked the performance of superannuation funds in Australia during the period 1997 to 2006.

Super woes highlighted

The report showed that the ten-year average annual return for super funds with assets more than $100 million was around 6.7% before they imposed fees and charges.

During the same period, figures produced by the Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) show that the annual average returns (taking into account capital growth and weekly rents), for a three-bedroom residential home in the major capital cities varied from 11.2% to 16.8%.

The heavy investment in the stock market by super funds is underlined by the APRA report which showed that during 2006 nearly 60% of investments were in Australian or international shares.

The current superannuation rules virtually prohibit the use of superannuation for residential real estate and goes against the basic investment tenant of not putting all of your eggs in one basket.

By allowing Australians to use their super contributions to pay off their mortgage, this would encourage additional super contributions. For example, someone has to earn $150 and pay $50 tax before paying $100 off their mortgage.

It would also allow more first home buyers to enter the housing market at a time when Australia is recognised as having among the most expensive real estate in the developed world and the worst housing shortage.

Interestingly, financial advisers and stockbrokers are the prime beneficiaries of this share market splurge and it is no coincidence that they are major contributors to both political party’s election funds.

It is now time that ordinary Australians were given a greater say in where their superannuation is invested and this should include the option of investing in residential real estate which is a proven long-term investment to create wealth.

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Further information available from :

Kevin YoungThe Investors Club Kevin YoungThe Investors Club Kevin YoungThe Investors Club Kevin YoungThe Investors Club Kevin YoungThe Investors Club

Cairns Tourist Attractions

Fun, sun and photographs of a relaxing tropical vacation, these are ideal components for a holiday of a lifetime when you come to Cairns and the Tropical North.

Blessed with an ideal climate most of the year, boasting temperatures in the Summer months (October-April) of 29-33 degrees C, and Winter months (April-October) 25-29 degrees C, Cairns boasts some of the world’s most interesting natural tourist attractions, the reef, the rainforest and the Australian Outback, and they are all here awaiting for you to discover.

The very friendly locals of Tropical North Queensland will show you the kind of friendly and courteous hospitality that has become the standard to aspire to for other tourism destinations. Adventure tourism, night life, dining and shopping add to the charm and attraction of this unique place.

If you have been here before, welcome back. If you are here for the first time, bathe in our tourist offerings and enjoy your vacation.

Queensland’s premier regional city, Cairns is the international front door to Tropical North Queensland. It is a vibrant cosmopolitan destination with warm, sunny tropical days balanced by cooling onshore breezes. Enjoy a stroll along the central Esplanade or satisfy your tastebuds in one of Cairns’ many multi-cultural, diverse and prize-winning eateries.

Cairns provides entry to the World Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics Rainforests along with the Australian Outback. Cairns, with its international and domestic airport, is the first stop for most visitors who want to see the authentic Australia.

Relax on the glorious beaches, dive on the reef and experience the unique tropical rainforests that date back to when Australia was part of ancient Gondwanaland, many thousands of eons ago.

Take a swim in the modern Cairns Esplanade lagoon, then look across the calm waters of Trinity Inlet and you will see coastal ranges and mangrove areas that have not changed since the site was branded by Captain James Cook in 1770.

The beautiful Esplanade Lagoon is the perfect place to spend a lazy day basking in the sun and dipping in the lagoon’s cool and seductive water. There are many shaded spots to escape from the sun in the heat of the day, as well as barbeque facilities. The boardwalk has unique displays of Cairns’s local history and has many exercise facilities for those keen on getting a bit more active.

Cairns is extremely well suited to walking, or travel by bicycle. Well trodden routes and dedicated walking tracks are abundant or a visit to the Cairns Botanical Gardens is not to be missed. 38 hectares of native Australian gardens are maintained to big city botanical garden standards, and many plants found here cannot be seen elsewhere. Located among the plants is a coffee shop and restaurant, it is open every day for breakfast and lunch. Admission to the gardens is free.

Interested in Cairns attractions? Check out what’s available at http://www.attractionscairns.com.au

Tips for Cheap SEO

SEO (search engine optimization) is not optional for any business that wants to enjoy the benefits of an online presence. You need not spend a fortune on SEO – there are several cheap SEO tips that you should consider.

There are several no-cost and cheap SEO tactics that you could try out. If you have enlisted the services of an SEO company, pick a package that has such SEO tactics because it will be cheaper. Blogging is one of the most effective no-cost post-Panda SEO tactics. Blogging allows you to create unique content and to create links. Search engine bots love fresh content and natural links. You are able to incorporate ‘long tail keywords’ that you might not have thought of when you blog. A new URL on the sitemap emanating from your blog brings in search engine robots. The more you are crawled, the greater the possibility of your ranking being adjusted. The uncomplicated URL structures of blogs make them easy to find. Blogging is also advantageous in that it brings you out as an expert in your field, the comments and trackback in blogs encourage interaction, the RSS and links help increase traffic and the feedback helps with product development.

You could publish in guest blogs. You are allowed to leave a link to your website in guest posts. Guest posts in established blogs are also advantageous in that they help you establish authority and credibility.

Create a social profile on Google+, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and other social media sites. Establishing a social media profile on the leading social media sites is free of charge. Social media optimization is important in link building and it helps you create unique content.

Press release distribution not only helps you achieve cheap SEO, but it also helps with brand awareness, it brings you referral traffic, it helps with citation-building for local search engine optimization, it helps with reputation management, it helps you to make important announcements, and it is social proof.

Generate such content as articles, helpful troubleshooting ideas, and tips for social Hubs like Squidoo lenses and Hubpages and write articles for article directories like EzineArticles.com. Other than helping your SEO campaign through link building, such content also helps bring you out as an expert in your niche. Other cheap SEO techniques include sitemap creation, social bookmarking, and local SEO (such as placement on Google Places).

You will save money with an SEO service because maintaining an in-house IT team costs more. This is because you have to pay salaries and other benefits even when there is no SEO work being done and you have to pay for office space and to pay administrative costs. Different SEO companies have different rates and you should search carefully to pick the one with cheap SEO services without compromising on quality. Consider the SEO packages on offer and pick the one that best suits you. Go online for your SEO service because you get to compare more options. There are many comparison sites that you could use to pick the company with the best rates. Do not shy away from asking for a discount. Read independent reviews and customer testimonials to ensure that the company with the cheap SEO services is not using Black Hat SEO tactics.

Links Between Our Goal and Our Thoughts, Feelings, and Actions

Achievement situations in which players have an opportunity to display physical competence (i.e., in training or matches) activate their task or ego centered goals. They might be either highly task involved or ego involved in that situation, or they might even switch between the two, because their perception of what they need to feel could change from moment to moment.

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For example, imagine yourself as a young football player in a grudge match. You’ve felt great during the game because you’ve worked hard, made some great tackles and accurate passes, and your work on your concentration skills has paid off by allowing you to refocus quickly. You’ve spent most of the game in a highly task-involved state of mind and have received praise from your teammates.

The game is tied and goes to a penalty shoot-out. You are the last player of five selected, and the score is 4-4. As you make that long walk to the penalty spot, how does the situation and its potential consequences affect your view of success and competence? Will your feelings of competence depend entirely on scoring or missing? And, if you do become ego involved, how might it affect your chances of getting that winning goal?

All athletes have an innate preference for task or ego involved goals in sport. These predispositions, referred to as task and ego goal orientations, are believed to develop throughout childhood largely due to the types of people the athletes come in contact with and the situations they are placed in.

If children consistently receive parental praise that’s contingent on their degree of input and recognition for personal improvement from their coaches, and are encouraged to learn from their errors, then they are likely to engender a task orientation. It becomes second nature for them to believe that success is associated with mastery, effort, understanding, and personal responsibility.

The behavior of their role models in sport also affects this development. Such an environment is far different from one where kids are rewarded by rewards for winning (alone), praise for the best marks, criticism or non-selection despite making their best effort, or coaches whose style is to hand out unequal recognition. This kind of environment helps an ego orientation to flourish, along with the belief that ability and talent, not effort and personal endeavor, earn success.

Goal orientations are believed to be somewhat stable and enduring characteristics that are largely formed by mid to late adolescence. Therefore, coaches and parents should attempt to shape a child’s development as early as possible during the 6- to 14-year-old phase.

In this developmental period, children’s cognitive abilities start working overtime as they begin to understand that effort isn’t the sole reason for success at a sport. At about 11 or 12 years of age, they begin to realise that regardless of effort, some kids simply have more talent than others. That’s when the fantasy of being the next super-star comes under obvious pressure for some children.

The strength of a goal orientation influences whether an athlete will adopt a task or ego involved goal in a specific sport scenario. It is also perfectly reasonable for growing athletes to develop both high task and ego orientations if they have been exposed to an assortment of task and ego oriented situations and people. However, never underestimate the power of a particular situation.

The evolving athlete might be quite high in task orientation, but in a competition with a high degree of public evaluation, judgment, criticism, or comparison based on who’s best, with rewards and benefits for winners and negative consequences for losers, he or she may become ego involved. Competitions accompanied by high perceived expectations and consequences arguably form the natural basis of sport.

Factors such as the stage of the event (e.g., final or qualifying match), whether selection is at stake, previous head-to-heads, financial rewards, age of the opponent (e.g., playing a talented younger player), representing the team or country for the first time, and the support of the audience can make a match a natural ego-involving laboratory.

Nevertheless, not all sport is like that; in fact, some sport situations offset the natural importance of superiority by emphasising participation and publicly reinforcing or rewarding personal effort, improvement, and problem solving rather than focusing on comparisons.

An example is a swimming club that encourages all standards of swimmer, with a coach who gives recognition solely based on individual improvements in time or technique. These scenarios increase the importance and number of task-involving cues. The key message here is that the availability of task-involving cues in sports that are naturally ego involving allows the athlete to develop a more task-involved approach to competition.

If you’re looking for Australian FIFA Agent, a Football Academy or Australian Football Tours, contact the Football Management Group.

Social Media for Brisbane Businesses Explained

On-line social media has totally revolutionized not only the way we interact, but more importantly the way that customers interact with businesses.

With more than 800 million people using the internet worldwide, Facebook alone is a colossal marketing body, and of course there are many others such as Twitter, Youtube, Google Plus and Linkedin. While there is a lot of media hype and hysteria, social media sites have fundamentally changed the way that any type of company that has a public presence operates, and are now as necessary to businesses as an email address and a website.

But along with all of the clear differences that social media has made to marketing, it is necessary to gain a realistic perspective of its capabilities and results.

Sadly, with any kind of new marketing bandwagon comes a multitude of dishonest or ill-informed fly-by-night firms and “social media experts” which focus on new businesses by over-hyping the possibilities but being unable to deliver.

Many millions of dollars and incalculable time is wasted on useless social media ventures every day. But social media is not magic. Without proper marketing and business basics behind you, an online social media presence will fail and simply be a waste of time and money.

Despite creating the illusion of “free” advertising with ‘zero’ start-up and hosting fees, social media must have a constant presence, fresh content and site maintenance in order to be successful, which means valuable time spent on it that most businesses can’t afford to spare. This is where Social Media Brisbane can do the work for you, while welcoming for oversight and approval by clients.

Examples of how companies often go wrong with social media include:

• Bad Content
Dreary or plagiarised items, outdated suggestions, and embarrassing attempts to be groovy are all too common when it comes to content published online. Admit it, people who do business on the internet are fairly shrewd, and can recognise deviousness and condescension a mile away.

• Impatience
Building a strong online social network takes time and diligence. A successful network won’t just sprout up in a day, it takes time and content in order to grow. Often a business will start up a social media profile, watch their results for a couple of weeks and then give up with frustration when they don’t receive the unrealistic results they wanted.
This also ties into:

• Consistency
Spacing content out on a regular schedule over multiple platforms is a lot better than using up all your content at once or not updating at all. Nobody likes a spammer, but with the overload of information that we receive all the time, if there isn’t a steady reminder of your brand’s presence you will very quickly be left behind. Just a fortnightly update can be fantastic for maintaining and increasing relationships with customers.

We here at Social Media Brisbane understand exactly how social media operates, and deal with it as a interrelated part of your marketing strategy rather than the one and only tactic.

We also integrate revolutionary Search Engine Optimisation methods into our work, which is something no other social media group does.

Choosing consultants that value gimmicks over content and who endlessly throw around buzzwords such as “viral” or “Web 2.0” instead of offering strategy and goals can only end up as an exercise in frustration.

If you are looking for a social media consultancy based in Brisbane, contact the Brisbane SEO Company today on 3166 9622.

The 1940′s Housing Shortage

Sometimes described in the post-war years as `the housing shortage’, the nationwide effort to address a very troubling issue has in time come to be called `the housing boom’. Undoubtedly it was a boom in demand and activity. There was also a marked increase in home ownership, achieved in many cases through dogged individual effort and years of sacrifice.

Changing social conditions offered new opportunities, but also narrowed the choices. Emphasis in state housing plans was at first on rental accommodation; later there was a swing toward the ownership of low-cost dwellings. At a time when various factors had reduced the availability of rental homes, governments, banks, finance companies, building societies and housing co-ops were offering a wider range of opportunities for home ownership. Ironically this was at a time of a jump in building costs.

High on the list of factors linked to rising costs were the introduction in 1948 of the 40-hour working week, and drastic increases in the cost of construction materials. By 1948 an employer had to pay an unqualified building worker a higher wage than a tradesperson had received in early 1946.

To keep both labourer and tradesman rationally employed the builder needed a continuous flow of materials which was a rare occurrence in those times. A shortage of skilled workers also meant poor quality construction and a blow out in construction time.

Contract prices were loaded with an increasing profit margin as an insurance against unseen circumstances. Under commonwealth price control, builders were entitled to a 10 per cent `profit’ on the contract price. Above award payments were not recognised in price control and yet builders often found a need to pay above award wages to ensure building completion.

Unexpected costs could arise when, for example, timber flooring was suddenly unobtainable, and a higher price would then have to be paid for imported timber for flooring.

With locally made cement taking forever to turn up, a batch from across the border was sometimes purchased at nearly three times the price. When compared to 1939 prices hardwood flooring had, by 1948, doubled in value. Cement had risen by almost 20 per cent and terracotta roofing tiles by more than 25 per cent. A gallon of first-grade paint costing around 30s ($3) in 1939 had risen at least 40 per cent by 1948.

When added to rising costs and shortages of materials the government restrictions, limiting the area of a new home to 12 squares (111.48 square metres) for a timber house and 1250 square feet (116.12 square metres) for a brick house, completed the recipe for an imposed austerity.

The economical plan was essential; cost-saving and limitations on area made large single-purpose rooms a luxury. Verandahs and spacious porches disappeared, reducing the shade at the front of the house to a minimum area. Ceiling heights had been slowly reduced from the turn of the century and were now typically nine feet (2745 mm). Until the government construction restrictions were lifted in 1952 the acceptance of no-nonsense functionalism was as much a mandated state as it was a fashionable philosophy. This was the era of the great Australian Dream.

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Auction Ads Review – 3 month trial of AuctionAds

A friend of mine wanted to give some affiliate marketing a whirl so I suggest he try Auction Ads.

He runs an Australian Defence News site that gets between 70 – 130 unique visitors per day.

Auction Ads allows you to embed live ebay auction listings in your web pages and then get paid a share of the revenue generated from that auction. I quote from the FAQ: When your site’s visitors click on an Auction Ad listing and take an action on eBay you earn cash. Actions are defined as a Winning Bid, a Buy-it-Now or a confirmed user registration.

It will be interesting to see how much he makes in 3 months. I’ll update this post on the 4th November 2007.

The sign up process was very straighforward as was the ad creation. Just select the ad style, customize the colours, select your keywords and away you go.

Keyword selection can be problematic depending on your niche. I had originally chosen the word “navy ” as one of the keywords. Unfortunately navy is a very popular colour for many items on ebay. I removed that word and replaced it with RAN (Royal Australian Navy).

The only technical problem I had was getting the code to work in the Mambo content management system. I finally worked out I had to turn off the WIZIWIG editor in the global options for the javascript not to get screwed up. I also had to put <center> tags around the code to make it look balanced.

The other problem I had was in using the banner facility in Mambo. I had to settle on a half-banner because the javascript put in a space under the banner when the page was viewed in FireFox.

Here’s a sample ad (and I’ve throw a blog related ad in the header of this page) :

Laser Hair Removal

laser-hair-removalThere are now many different types of equipment to perform hair removal the best being genuine Quantum IPL machines.

Permanent hair reduction is performed by using a specific wavelength (colour) of light to destroy the hair follicle and to restrict the hair regrowth.

IPL uses multiple wavelengths of light to target the hair follicle. This means both the hair and skin are treated at the same time.

If the hair removal laser has only one specific wavelength of light this is why there are so many different types of lasers in the world today because each specific laser is built to do a certain type of procedure.

The laser most suitable for hair removal is either the 755 Alexandrite laser or 810 diode laser. These two types of lasers are pretty much equal. The Alexandrite is great for light skin and dark hair, whereas the 810 diode laser is better suited to a slightly darker skin tone.

IPL was generally regarded as one of the better forms of hair removal until knock-off machines became available at ridiculously low prices. These machines are typical of the saying you pay for what you get and the results relate to this.

Though you will get some hair reduction with these knock-off IPL’S , most of the time the hair follicle is only made dormant, rather than destroyed, and the hair tends to regrow after about six months. That is why clinics who use this type of equipment will say that you will need maintenance treatments.

The latest technologies in laser hair removal are the IBL Alexandrite and IBL Diode laser. The reason these lasers are superior to the older types of laser is that the new lasers can change the pulse duration as well as the pulse power. This means a vastly superior hair reduction treatment on more hair types and more skin types.

The Alexandrite is a unique laser that can be customised to treat hair with different degrees of thickness and density. This is achieved through a large range of spot sizes. Another advantage of the Alexandrite lasers is that they are fast. With professional use, they can remove male chest hair in about less than 40 minutes.

Due to the specialised nature of laser equipment, professional laser hair removal clinics are required to be licensed with state health authorities. The strict regulations that clinics must adhere to and number of licenses that must be obtained means that there are very few genuine specialised clinics in the community.

Image by Laser has been in hair removal business since 1999 during this time we have treated thousands of happy clients. No-Cost, no-obligation consultations are available at Image by Laser Brisbane and Image by Laser Sunshine Coast. Our friendly, informed, and qualified laser technicians will customise a laser hair removal program to meet your individual needs.

Types of services provided by Dentist Coorparoo

If you are new in Coorporoo or you are searching for a new oral specialist, it is advisable to research extensively on the kind of services offered by various dentists in the area. The best dentist Coorparoo is capable of handling different dental procedures and complications. You can ask around for recommendations or check the internet for more information about these practitioners. Here are some of the services provided by dentists.

Routine checkups and examination
Dentists provide routine services including x-rays, fillings and cleanings. Your initial visit will probably include a comprehensive visual examination, diagnosis of any dental complication and x-rays. Your dentist will fill up any cavities present and ensure your gums and teeth are healthy. A good dental practitioner provides colored fillings to ensure that the patient’s mouth looks good despite the cavities.

Orthodontics
If you are considering straightening your teeth then ask for a dentist who offers orthodontic services. Invisalign is the latest technique in orthodontic where teeth are straightened without using brackets or wires. It is perfect for individuals who wish to have their teeth straightened invisibly. Therefore, look for a dentist Coorparoo who is experienced to provide Invisalign.

Teeth whitening
Another important service offered by a dentist is teeth whitening. Your oral specialist will recommend the best course of treatment to achieve desired results. Most specialists offer one- time treatment that leaves your teeth brighter and whiter after a single visit. In some cases, you may be required to continue with treatment while at home for about 2 weeks.

Oral surgery
Not all dental offices are well equipped to undertake oral surgery. If in need of oral surgery find an experienced oral surgeon, this way you will be in safe hands. There are many reasons why you may need oral surgery this includes dental implantation or wisdom tooth removal. Since most people are nervous about surgery, a great relationship with the oral surgeon will make the patient more relaxed.

Endodontics
There are dentists who are specialized in endodontic. This deals with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases affecting the roots. This service aims at saving patients’ natural teeth through restoring dental function and health.

Why are dental checkups important?
Most people are nervous about visiting a dentist. Nevertheless, having frequent dental checkups is essential for maintaining excellent oral health and hygiene. Regular oral checkups are economical in the long run since minor dental problems are cheaply and easily handled as they are diagnosed earlier.

Checkups will ensure you take proper care of your gums and teeth. A dentist will carry out an oral examination to ascertain whether you require cavity filling, cleaning or other corrective or preventive measures. Crooked teeth are examined and any compilation like halitosis can be treated.

When such routine checkups are performed, most major future dental complications are prevented. For instance, going for dental cleaning will make your teeth feel and look better and the risk of gum inflammation and recession is minimized. On the other hand, by filling a minor tooth cavity today, you are preventing sore root canal or tooth loss in future.

Finally, regular oral checkups not only give you a fresh smile but also help save life. Many oral cancer cases are diagnosed each year, early diagnosis makes treatment effective. A dentist will notice the early warning signs and notify you in case any cancer sign is detected. To have health teeth and a perfect smile you have to schedule regular checkups with your dentist Coorparoo.

Rosacea Treatment Brisbane

 


Rosacea Treatment Brisbane

 


Rosacea Treatment Brisbane