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Anyone who says writing can’t be taught is speaking nonsense: inspiration can’t be taught, but writing certainly can. It’s a skill, no different from, say, cooking. Some people have a greater appreciation for food, a natural sense of how different tastes work together. But they’re not the only ones capable of whipping up a tasty meal. It’s exactly the same as wanting to write. Almost anyone can learn how to put words on the page in a clear, intelligent manner – they can even do so in a way that tells a story....

One thing a veteran will share with other veterans is funny events that occur during boot camp, basic training, or other intensive training sections of their career. Being able to laugh at yourself and others is a key to success while enduring stressful training programs. The Drill Instructors give you plenty of opportunities to make mistakes and laugh at yourself. The following submissions are actual events; funny drill-instructor incidents, submitted by our readers:...

This Week’s New Sweepstakes and Contests If you’d like to check out the newest sweepstakes added to TheBalance.com in the past week, you’re in the right place. Here, you’ll find the freshest chances to win the prizes you’ve been dreaming of. Every day, the best and most tantalizing new sweepstakes are rounded up and posted here. Check out this page as part of your daily sweepstakes routine to be sure you don’t overlook a prize you want to win, miss out on extra entries, or let sweepstakes with short entry periods pass you by....

A personality inventory is a self-assessment tool that career counselors and other career development professionals use to help people learn about their personality types. It reveals information about individuals’ social traits, motivations, strengths and weaknesses, and attitudes. Experts believe these factors play an important role in job and career success and satisfaction. People can use what they learn about themselves to choose a career or decide whether or not to accept a job offer....

When you are applying for jobs, employers want to see what skills you have even if you don’t have paid work experience. What kinds of skills can you include on your resume if you’re a high school student? Here are examples of the different types of skills students can use on their resumes, as well as in cover letters and job interviews. You’ll also find tips on how to include these skills in your job materials....

In surveys research, statistics are applied to randomized samples. These statistics represent the degree to which a researcher can be confident that the study sample is reasonably valid and reliable. Confidence Interval A confidence interval is the margin of error that a researcher would experience if they could ask a particular research question, say, of every member of the target population and receive the same answer back that the members of the sample gave in the survey....

Ready to do some business tax planning? It is never too early to start. The key to minimizing business taxes is to think balance. That is, balance taxes with your other business goals and consider different types of taxes so that you save on your total tax bill. Some tax planners think only of business income taxes, but there are other taxes businesses pay such as personal taxes. Here are some examples of tax balancing....

Whether you’re new to a field or have decades of professional experience, newsletters are a convenient way of keeping up with the day-to-day headlines and developments driving the industry. In no industry is it more important to stay on top of news and trends than in the tech industry. Technology is constantly outpacing other industries in developments. If you aren’t actively trying to stay current, you’re probably falling behind. Here are several information technology newsletters that can help you stay informed....

There was never a more important time for businesses to offer great customer service than today. Customer service is crucial to the growth of any business. It doesn’t matter whether you are a product or a service oriented company. It doesn’t matter if you are targeting consumers or businesses. If your customers do not get the service that they desire they will go somewhere else. We can all do things to improve customer service, so below I’ve listed ten tips that will help you improve customer service and gain customer satisfaction and loyalty....

Your rental property is your livelihood, so you’ll want to take the proper steps to make sure you’re hiring the best manager to oversee it. Hiring the wrong person can lead to increased vacancies and lost rent. You wouldn’t rent your property without screening the tenant first, and you should be just as thorough in choosing your property manager. Ask Friends and Colleagues for Referrals Talking to people you know and trust is a great way to begin your search for a property manager....

What are the yardages and pars of each hole at Augusta National Golf Club during The Masters? Check the chart below for the rundown. But first, know that the full, 18-hole, par-72 layout checks in at 7,475 yards total. The front nine and back are both par-36, and are almost equal in distance: 3,765 yards for the front nine and 3,710 yards for the back nine. The longest hole at Augusta National is the second, at 575 yards....

All the holes at Augusta National Golf Club are named after flowering shrubs or trees, and/or aromatic trees or shrubs. (Here’s something you might be surprised by: One-third of the holes at Augusta National were once named something else. Details on that below.) Why? It’s a nod to the heritage of the property on which Augusta National now sits. When the club’s founders purchased the land, it had been a plant nursery named Fruitland Nurseries....

One of the most common complaints from new eBay bidders is that they get outbid with frustrating speed and consistency. More cautious new users are often convinced that eBay is full of shill bidding, but in actuality, it’s very common to be outbid on eBay, and even to be outbid quickly, for several reasons. The simplest way to get outbid is because your bids are too low and eBay is a very popular marketplace....

A free wedding planning checklist should be the first thing you print off when you’re ready to start planning your wedding. A wedding checklist shows you tasks that need to be completed before the big day either as a timeline or by category. There’s no reason to buy a book or pack of checklists when you can download any of these wedding planning checklists for free. These wedding planning checklists can be printed right from your home computer....

A stern and unforgiving Oakmont Country Club was the site of the 2007 U.S. Open, which ended with the winner at 5-over par for the week. Only eight rounds under par were recorded in the tournament. That winner was Argentina’s Angel Cabrera, who claimed his first major championship victory. It was the first time any golfer from South America won a U.S. Open. Cabrera was the second-round leader, but a third-round 76 left him four strokes behind Aaron Baddeley at the start of the final round....

Iowa has a group of laws, referred to as Iowa’s Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Law, which spells out the rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants in the state. Included in these rules are the right to Fair Housing, laws for landlord entry and specific rent disclosure requirements. Here are five rights every Iowa tenant is entitled to. Iowa Tenant’s Right to Fair Housing §216.8, §216.8A Iowa tenants have the right to freedom from discrimination in housing....

Use these free save the date templates to create cards to send to your guests to announce the date of your upcoming wedding. Just because these save the date templates are free does not mean that you are compromising on style or quality. These look great and are created by some of the top designers around the Internet. This truly is a great way to save on your wedding budget without anyone noticing....

A business must continually adapt to meet the needs of consumers, and real estate is no exception. The traditional percentage-of-sales-price-commission model is being challenged by multiple other viable business strategies, thanks to consumers wanting to save money when they sell or buy a home. Paying for the “full bundle” of brokerage services is gradually becoming a thing of the past, replaced by a variety of other transaction options. 01 of 06...

The local Chamber of Commerce is a frequently overlooked resource for salespeople. Chambers of Commerce exist to help local businesses prosper, and for a modest annual fee, they’ll do everything in their power to help you sell. It’s usually possible to attend Chamber events and so on without becoming a member, but the benefits of membership are so great that it’s well worth the fee to go ahead and sign up....

How do you find the best tech company for your career? It all depends on how you define “best.” Are you looking for a company that offers great perks? Are you planning to start a family and want to work for an employer that is friendly toward new parents? Do you want to work for a large company or one that is experiencing a high rate of growth? Is diversity important to you?...