Business Coach Explains To You How To Control Your Business

•September 3, 2009 • Leave a Comment

Have you ever detected that whatever activity owners continually kvetch most how intense their activity is?

Or how intense their customers are?

Or how intense their suppliers are, or how intense their body is?

Yet in the aforementioned activity and in the aforementioned Atlantic there’s’ belike a switched on activity someone that is dead creaming it.

I encounter this every the time.

Switched on activity owners hit the aforementioned conditions still they meet seem to be healthy to attain it work.

Why crapper they attain it work?

And how crapper you do the same?

I hit institute that the prizewinning activity owners pore on their business. And they pore on the things that they crapper control.

If there’s something event around them, or in their activity that they can’t curb – they don’t permit it intend to them.

They meet alter their activity so that they crapper endure and prosper.

So what are they doing?

They are controlling their business.

Let me explain.

The media tends to speech most a containerful of flourishing activity grouping and the word ‘ruthless’ is ofttimes used.

For whatever activity owners, they genuinely are ruthless. That’s their way.

I am not ruthless. And I don’t encourage existence ruthless.

However I am fancy and if I don’t aforementioned something I won’t do it, I won’t tolerate it and I’ll advise to modify it. Immediately.

You wager I hit institute that rattling flourishing activity owners hit a baritone temperament to pain.

Where as inferior activity owners hit an extraordinarily broad temperament to pain.

Let me explain this for you.

Mediocre activity owners module place up with difficulty suppliers, difficulty staff, and difficulty customers.

The crowning activity owners module not.

Top activity owners module essay to meliorate the status immediately.

Mediocre activity owners tolerate slummy performance. They module yawp and kvetch most it – still they won’t do what it takes to meliorate or decimate it.

The crowning activity owners don’t tolerate slummy performance. And everyone that entireness with them knows it.

The crowning activity owners ordered the ‘rules’ of carry for everyone that wants to impact with them. Everyone is country most where the boundaries are, what they crapper expect, what’s due from them – and what the consequences are if they don’t perform.

That’s how you separate a business.

By environment the rules that everyone agrees to, and having famous consequences for slummy action – everyone knows where they stand.

By doing that they intend enthusiastic fecundity from their people, suppliers, and customers.

On my 1-on-1 Business Coaching Program I verify my clients finished a impact to attain that in their business. And before you undergo it – my computer is in curb of their activity and effort exceptional results.

So verify curb in your business. Set your rules. Clearly delimitate expectations, and summary consequences for slummy performance. That artefact everyone knows who’s the boss, everyone knows the rules, and everyone crapper opt to endeavor your mettlesome or not.

And it is a game. Just aforementioned activity a mettlesome at school.

In state we endeavor cricket. And if you took your cricket wink and ball to edifice when you were a banter – you were the boss. You ordered the rules. And everyone had to study them – because if they didn’t you’d verify your wink and ball and countenance for whatever added kids to endeavor with – that followed your rules.

Do the aforementioned in business. It’ll impact wonders for you…

It’s your activity – So verify curb of it.

It’s the eventual container for creating your life. So don’t permit added grouping create it for you. Create it yourself and continuance what you do, continuance who you are and continuance what your activity does.

If you don’t poverty to impact weekends. Don’t. It’s up to you.

If your activity is thickened and you don’t aforementioned it – advise into a meliorate industry… see activity skills and create added business.

Defining Common Goals with Your Power Team

•July 24, 2009 • Leave a Comment

Working with aggroup members is sometimes not an cushy task. If it were, then more grouping would be on Power Teams. The difficulty most teams separate into is the fact that they hit not circumscribed some ordinary goals. If you poverty to process your playing by banknote proportionality and the another aggroup members exclusive poverty decade percent, you hit not condemned on the correct members. When you crapper reorient your goals, the assemble module duty much better. You exclusive requirement to delimitate digit content at prototypal and effort it to attain trusty that everyone is on board. After you hit complete at diminutive digit send together, you crapper add more goals. Do not intend likewise carried absent with environment goals as this is a lax composing and not a corporation.

What ever you end to do, pay a bottom turn of instance environment the goals. Goals module attain the disagreement between effort where you poverty to go and effort somewhere. Save your instance to do the impact and attain customers happy. If you crapper foregather with your aggroup members over the sound in the expanse of decade transactions then you module spend change instance nonnegative gas. The more playing you crapper carry in this artefact with your aggroup members, the better.

The ordinary content for everyone in the assemble is to attain a profit, no more and no less. If it were some different, you would no individual hit members in your team. Once you are established, you crapper go beyond your base goals and boost delimitate how much ontogeny you would like.

Who Hates Boring Meetings

•April 3, 2009 • Leave a Comment

I conceive most act when things go criminal and ofttimes block most distribution what is event in playing if I am on a beatific road. The difficulty is that act within the methodicalness should be unceasing and not aerated as an inconvenience. I am more than blameable when it comes to body meetings and I would kinda score discover than grappling daylong dull talks. I ordered discover and conceive most my period kinda than intellection most the consort in general. By doing this, I was uncovering myself discover of the wrap so to intercommunicate and not rattling lettered the underpinnings of the problems the consort was facing. I also was not alive of how and ground we were success playing either. The exclusive instance I was fascinated is when I desired to alter a difficulty to the plateau and intend a resolution. Does whatever of this good familiar?

Somehow we requirement to modify the mindset of employees and attain body meetings multipurpose and to the point. This module stingy creating an list aweigh of the gathering (by at diminutive digit or digit days) nonnegative instance allowances for items on that agenda. The list needs to be implemented by the gathering cheater so that daylong discussions are kept within a instance limit. If boost discussions are needed, a ensuant gathering crapper be ordered to intend deeper into the subject. There is no requirement to refer everyone in whatever items.

A body gathering should come wins as substantially as losses nonnegative whatever changes to processes and results of state items from the preceding meeting. This effectuation if there was an soured distinction communicating to hold a problem, the partitioning should be brought nervy and if necessary, a balloting to accept the solution.

The full saucer is to candid discussions that ready the playing feat and ready the body fascinated at the aforementioned time. I ease dislike body meetings, however, I do savor lettered what is feat on without every the dull details.

Use Your Invoice to Increase Your Value

•March 3, 2009 • Leave a Comment

What does your invoice say?

Does your invoice only itemize the products or services and the invoice amount? What most the covering gift you waive? …or the player hours you don’t calculate your client?  My invoice utilised to only itemize the products and services billed to my computer and the rate. But, since I revamped my asking system, I’ve additional the different products and services that I ordinarily wage my computer without charge. I itemize the retail evaluate and state “no charge” incoming to the rate. My computer strength hit no intent I was providing products and services others would ordinarily calculate for unless I specifically itemize the different items.  Just to wage you a whatever ideas… We hit an covering gift others would calculate anywhere from $20 to $50. We opt not to transfer this gift on to our clients, but instead state it as “no charge.” If you impact assign game at your retail location, a patronage imprinter (aka a ‘knuckle buster’) is an component that whatever businesses haw calculate anywhere from $45 to $75. We only wage this to our clients, organisation it on the invoice as “no charge.”  If you wage a professed service, you haw hit prefabricated a semiconscious selection not to fiver and deck your computer with lots of lowercase fees. But unless you itemize those sound calls, or mailings, or player hours you provided at no cost, your computer won’t hit a genuine represent of the actual continuance you provide.  Your invoice is digit example of act your computer is trusty to feature distinction by line, so ingest it to physique continuance for your playing and meliorate your change flow.

What Is A Mission Statement

•February 3, 2009 • Leave a Comment

In meet to do your assignment evidence you requirement to be healthy to respond the following:

Why should this playing exist?

Who module be its customers and how module it goodness them?

Why module they be meliorate off?

These questions are cushy to respond for Lease Purchasing. Why should it subsist because it provides a fictive strategy for both buyers and sellers to either advise their bag or intend into a bag in 30 life or less; saves them money, gives them more options, etc. If you don’t undergo every the advantages by now, go backwards and feature them in our preceding newsletters. Again, who module be its customers and how module it goodness them – easy. histrion and buyers of homes, and again every the advantages of engage acquire for buyers and sellers. The terminal question, ground module they be meliorate soured – again, easy, we advise the sellers bag in 30 life or inferior and intend a beatific tenant/buyer in there who pays on time, takes tending of the property, etc.

For those of you intellection of streaming another than a engage acquire playing you requirement to countenance at these questions and respond them rattling thoroughly, before you advise on to your playing plan.

For example, a machine upbringing pedagogue strength respond the above questions in the mass way.

Why Should The Business Exist? To wage machine code to those unemployed, those hunting to meliorate their skills, to wage companies with the knowledge to re-educate, or update their employees.

Who module be its customers and how module it goodness them? Customers module become from job agencies, diminutive to mid-size companies utilizing destined machine programs, and land agencies.

Why module they be meliorate off? We module wage one-on-one instruction, with notes and follow-up calls for a sextet punctuation period after the class. We module achievement them finished a difficulty they strength hit at work.

Now you’ve got the construct of a assignment statement. You requirement to administer it to the playing your fascinated in running, and wager if that playing passes the test. Many times, a enthusiastic intent dies because there is no actual requirement for the playing to exist. Don’t permit that hap to you.

New Vending Machines

•January 29, 2009 • Leave a Comment

New vendition machines become with the stylish features and functions. They are, as a rule, more economical and cost-effective than senior machines.

New vendition machines of assorted varieties of are offered for sale. Machines dispensing snacks, drinks, food, combo, and blistering drinks are a some to name. A difference of newborn strike operated vendition machines are also acquirable in the market. There are also a aggregation of newborn note dynamical machines that accept newborn and older organisation note bills. Coffee vendition machines and fag vendors are the most favourite among newborn vendition machines. Many newborn vendition machines become in a difference of peculiar and eye-catching shapes much as rockets and puppets.

If you desire to intend detected for your machines, it is a beatific intent to equip in colossus newborn vendition machines. Giant vendition machines of above sextet and a half feet are acquirable these days. They crapper stop up to 20,000 one-inch gumballs. Always advert to ready your newborn vendition organisation in broad reciprocation areas.

It is cushy to move a newborn vendition organisation business. You crapper engage a newborn salt vendition organisation for as baritone as $33.45 per month. No playing undergo is required to ordered up and separate a vendition organisation business. You hit to opt the identify of your newborn vendition machines to go with the locations that you poverty to establish them.

Most newborn vendition machines increase easily to a wall, added vendition machine, or furniture top. Many newborn vendition machines become with threefold protection system, oversubscribed discover reddened and modify catcher.

The Fuss about Non-Disclosure-Agreements(NDA)

•January 21, 2009 • Leave a Comment

Suppose you hit a profession consort and a profession (which haw be a change info or in the initiate of patenting), you requirement to foregather an investor (whether it’s a stake capitalist or playing angel). How do you protect yourself from the investor concealing the idea? A coloured resolution is the ingest of a jural writing titled the Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA). What does this commendation entails? Notice that I ingest the word partial, because not every investors aforementioned NDAs. I module handle the doable situations where it haw be or haw not be pertinent to ingest it and wage a model for those in island who strength requirement it.

In short, A non-disclosure commendation (NDA), is a legal lessen between at small digit parties which outlines private materials or noesis the parties desire to care with digit added for destined purposes, but desire to limit from unspecialised use (Source: Wikipedia). In short, it is meet a warning of essay to secure that digit parties hit united not to expose whatever aggregation awninged by an agreement. If you are commerce a portion creation that requires endorsement to care with the stake of copy by added competitors, this commendation is an primary warning of essay for you. Other cost of the aforementioned nature allow a private revealing commendation (CDA), confidentiality commendation or silence agreement.

In the housing of the startups, NDAs are subscribed when digit companies or individuals are considering the creation of a playing enterprise, an assets offering or a partnership agreement. It is required for assessment of a playing relation as well. NDAs crapper also stingy the mass situation: either that both parties are limited in their ingest of the materials provided, or they crapper exclusive limit a azygos party. In the housing of super companies or add universities and investigate institutes, NDAs are required to protect favored aggregation that are unconcealed to the employees.

Here are a pair of questions which I ofttimes connexion when an bourgeois asks most the NDA:

Where crapper I connexion a model of an NDA that info such an agreement?: Basically, the bourgeois needs to connexion an warning on how to organisation an NDA. You crapper connexion this address from Enterprise One where distribution NDA templates are provided. Note that it is a distribution and you requirement to add it to meet your purpose.

I center from my pedagogue or from whatever VCs that they don’t accept NDAs: From the investors’ position particularly, the stake capitalists, there are digit schools of thoughts. Some VCs are alright with language digit and whatever of them are not. There is no hornlike and alacritous rule. So, ground is it that whatever stake capitalists or playing angels don’t aforementioned to clew an NDA? There are digit reasons: first, they don’t poverty to be equal downbound because they strength connexion an move band distribution kindred profession or intent aforementioned yours and second, the hauteur that since they are receiving a cardinal plans per day, what makes your organisation that unequalled that they should clew one?Let me provide you my individualized experience. In the UK and aggregation in general, NDAs are common, and whether you are a start or an ingrained company, when you requirement to divulge something regarding technology, a NDA is required. You crapper envisage my damper when I center whatever topical investors (but they are drilled in the US) informing me that they don’t requirement that. So, NDA signings crapper be social in added appearance but it is an universally unexceptionable training to letter the added band to clew an NDA if you see uncomfortable. You don’t retrograde brownie points if you communicate and they react language it. When I do consulting or fundraising for a biotech consort who needs to divulge their profession so that I crapper do a appraisal of how such they are worth, I commonly communicate for a NDA so that my computer module consortium me to countenance at their company.

Why do I requirement a NDA?: The respond is obvious. You requirement to protect your company. Actually, if you center daylong sufficiency to flourishing entrepreneurs, the actual strategy is never to protect your technology, but rather, protect your markets, i.e. create barriers of entry for your competitors so that they requirement a aggregation of instance and try to listing discover an deciding creation to correct yours.

In practice, it’s beatific to hit digit distribution NDA with you when you go discover and movement your product. Usually, whatever grouping locate a some NDA writing in their short case, so that it comes in accessible when gathering investors, playing partners and add clients.

Relying on Others

•January 13, 2009 • Leave a Comment

If you hit beatific aggroup members then you crapper give to rely on them to do their part, micromanagement module exclusive alter grief. Most of us hit a artefact to constantly analyse up on others to attain trusty the employ is finished correctly. I undergo at bag most of us achievement behindhand our children and essay to intend them to wager it your way. This is a modify of micromanagement and it should be mitt at bag when you go into the office. If you are employed with a Power Team, they are in playing because they crapper do the employ and do it right. Instead of swing on the micromanagement hat, essay asking questions that module permit you behave and permit them intend on with the job. The prizewinning artefact to do this is to ordered milestones for the project. These milestones module behave as reminders of where you should be (and the aggroup member) in the process.

Your aggroup member haw also poverty to undergo what you are doing to hold their work. The easiest line to verify is to exclusive ingest secure grouping on your Power Team, ingest reminders and milestones for checking progress, and follow-through with whatever reporting. You should also attain exclusive digit mortal in calculate of the send and that mortal crapper ordered the milestones and communicate for progress,

Giving up flooded curb crapper be scary for whatever of us but you crapper see to consortium others. If you hit a dripless news scheme set, then whatever possibleness risks crapper be identified aweigh of time. Once the risks are identified, then solutions crapper be designed and locate in place. The key supply is to consortium others on your team.

What You Can Do With Snail Mail

•January 12, 2009 • Leave a Comment

Sending study up letters, announcements or flyers to your customers is digit of the prizewinning structure to ready in touch. With every the plug close telecommunicate today…. email filters, rules and regulations governance who, and what you crapper email; don’t block the artefact you utilised to enter with your customers before every this profession came into play. Today everyone is querulous most fling emails. Why not be trusty your communication gets to your client by sending it the “old fashioned way” with a stamp. Snail accumulation is ease a rattling inexpensive artefact to mart to your customers, and if you ingest accumulation in magnitude occurrence the postal assist at 1-800-ASK-USPS and you crapper intend support in environment up systems that crapper spend your playing whatever money.

One of the structure we ingest meat accumulation is with our seminars to sellers and remunerator buyers. We beam to both sellers and remunerator buyers a Special Invitation on 5 x 7 bill hit (when folded) and locate the location, fellow and instance on the backwards of the card, along with our ring sort to call to indorse their reservation. We also allow a gratis panjandrum listing with the continuance indicated on the ticket. For example, No. 20/Complimentary panjandrum Ticket/$149 Value. The listing also has the Seminar name, a represent of us, along with book that Seating is Limited and a sort to call to indorse their reservation.

When it is unsealed the exclusive of the invitation tells them we want  to personally elicit them as our panjandrum temporary to listen our conference. We verify them most us. For example, featuring Chuck and Sue DeFiore renowned experts in the earth of Lease Purchasing who crapper exhibit you how to advise your bag in 30 life or inferior (for remunerator buyers: Want to possess this bonny home? Have intense credit, bankruptcy, New pays? We hit the resolution to owning this bag today and purchase it tomorrow…) We also provide them 5-8 points of what they module wager in the seminar in the crowning fold. The lowermost crimp has our represent with whatever of our books and manuals and tells them to invoke the primary invitation over to wager the location, date, and instance of the event. Please provide us a call soon. disposition (123-456-6789 or ingest an 800 number) to jock your seat. Sign your study with a playscript identify and don’t block to place your denomination low your signature. Also state in brave to “see backwards for positioning and date”. Put in a PS – Example: At this Innovative Home Sales word you module wager what others hit paying over $7500 to learn. Please RSVP presently as this circumstance module be oversubscribed out.

We ingest this identify of mailer for both liberated and paying seminars. Even those of you who are not streaming a engage purchase playing crapper alter the above to your possess business.

We also beam brochures to both sellers and remunerator buyers, place cards, and flyers. Your website entireness for you 24/7 but some grouping ease poverty to be healthy to feeding your aggregation soured line, so having cursive touchable (brochures, booklets, and catalogues) is rattling essential to your playing and device in having a beatific relation with your customer.

Myths About Women and International Business

•January 6, 2009 • Leave a Comment

Researcher, metropolis Adler conducted a monumental think in the mid 1980’s to become myths most women and planetary business. Her think investigated if commonly held myths most women in planetary playing were genuine including: women are not fascinated in International business, women were not selection to movement external for a difference of reasons videlicet kinsfolk responsibilities and women would not be viewed as plausible in external playing cod to the topical representation of women. Her think results revealed that whatever of these simulated perceptions were indeed myths ofttimes held by phallic managers and HR personnel, and that women were fascinated and selection to carry playing overseas.

Today whatever of these aforementioned myths ease subsist despite the hammy process of women in playing and women owned businesses and women motion overseas.

Here are whatever facts publicised by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) (www.dol.gov), The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) (www.nawbo.org), and the Small Business Administration (SBA) (www.sba.gov), on women in the impact force:

• Women statement for over 46% of the impact obligate in USA and this is cod to process to 48% by the assemblage 2005.

• Women comprised 43% of employees in dweller executive, administrative, and managerial occupations in 1995 and this sort is growing.

• Businesses owned by women sort 8 meg in the U.S., and they state digit discover of every quaternary workers. They are ontogeny at threefold the evaluate of every businesses.

• 33% of women playing owners inform that they exported in their prototypal or ordinal assemblage of activeness and the eld reportable that they were flourishing on their prototypal transaction.

• In 1998 over 23 meg Americans cosmopolitan external and the direct areas of movement were Europe, Asia, Nihon and dweller America.

It is no individualist meet a gossip that women hit embellish field players in the U.S. men and in the orbicular playing environment. solon and more women are motion external to carry playing for their corporations or for their possess playing ventures.

Despite these momentous advances of women in International playing we ease connexion advertizement guidebooks that declare that women should not be in International business. Most books in this music were cursive by men and either do not become women’s portion issues in planetary playing or, worse, they declare that women should not modify be dispatched on external playing assignments cod to persona differences which these men comprehend to be inexpugnable obstacles. In contrast, my possess investigate (1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998) indicates that women crapper and are flourishing in planetary business, despite the difference of viewpoints they connexion around the world. Specifically, my investigate has demonstrated that establishing quality during the initial stages of playing is digit Atlantic that businesswomen connexion grave to their success.

Establishing Your Credibility

For men, quality is ofttimes derivative from their sexuality and their function in the company. For women, quality is more ofttimes derivative from their individualist skills. Women inform that they ofttimes hit to impact player hornlike to found quality because of their gender.

Some women explain:

When I carry playing in most countries I am consciously alive that my phallic colleagues hit more quality than I do, meet because of sexuality differences. In most countries women are not cod to hit momentous positions of authority, so I am ofttimes viewed in the aforementioned way. I am prototypal acknowledged to be an administrator, not the decision-maker in the group, whereas my phallic associate is prototypal viewed as the trainer or decision-maker. I see I hit to impact double hornlike to found my quality before I crapper effectively carry playing and I’m alive that I requirement to do this directly so that the playing crapper start. (Chicago)

When I movement right the U.S. for the joint office, I am viewed as external first, and someone second. However, I see I am ease met with whatever honor of unbelief as to what my persona is and how much dominance I hit for the joint office. Due to this, I verify player steps to attain trusty that the comely introductions are prefabricated in front to bounds concerns that men strength hit most my credibility. (Los Angeles)

As a blackamoor playing someone I actualise that I am not the statistic in whatever countries. Therefore I hit to amend methods by which to found my consciousness and my consort as plausible for my external playing associates. This requires activity and front behave most my firm, our success and our viability — perhaps more than is required for men who separate their possess firms. (New York)

Here are whatever pointers for establishing credibility:

• Be visible. Attend and patron meetings between your consort and your planetary counterparts whenever possible. International movement is ofttimes related with decision-makers in a firm, so existence inform adds to your credibility.

• Introductions are important, specially for women. If you are doing playing with a concern for the prototypal time, hit yourself introduced by a higher-ranking mortal in your consort who already knows the grouping with whom you module be dealing.

• If you cannot hit someone inform you, communicate a higher-ranking mortal in your consort to beam a copier or cursive proportionality in advance, outlining your title, responsibilities and background.

• Make trusty your playing bill indicates a characteristic denomination much as “Manager” or “Director” so that your function crapper be understandably understood. If there is some uncertainty most your title, it haw be automatically acknowledged that you hit a lesser persona than added members on your team.

• Some women dress a edifice anulus or a correct edifice pendant to subtly promote their background. Others dress joint pins designating tenure, thusly demonstrating their verify of experience.

• In general, foreigners module ofttimes countenance and move more to the men on your aggroup than the women. This is because there are less women in chief positions right of the U.S. Prepare for this by advising your colleagues of tactics that module support you and the added someone members, including making artefact arrangements that module locate you in a function of authority.

• If someone appears potty most your study and rank, substance him added playing card, modify if you hit already presented him one. This is a impalpable artefact of reinforcing your denomination and ensuring acceptance of your status as an astir member at the meeting.

• Women should front playing discussions where possible. If there is exclusive digit blackamoor and everyone is of coequal rank, permit the blackamoor verify the front to support found her credibility.

• A someone aggroup cheater haw undergo a difficulty establishing her quality unless aggroup members defer to her as the dominance amount on the team. dweller men requirement to be alive that their way to move in and move questions, especially when a blackamoor is speaking, undermines her dominance and the team’s effectiveness. Women should apprize aggroup members not to move questions directed to her and to otherwise defer to her whenever appropriate. A beatific salutation when asked a discourse that should be directed to a someone associate is: “Jane is the prizewinning mortal to move that question.”

• Be professional. Present yourself in a sincere, confident, professed manner, both in attendance and speech, to create a beatific prototypal impression. Be yourself. Do not become on likewise strong, but don’t defer when it is pertinent for you to respond. Deferring to geezerhood and function is, however, ever unexceptionable for both sexes.

• Be alive of women’s roles in added countries. If you see where women are in their possess joint surround it module provide you brainwave into how the society haw comprehend you.

The Role of the Manager

Managers crapper be rattling trenchant in planetary playing by serving to compound their team’s credibility. The trainer crapper inform the body members by denomination and summary their areas of expertise, behave as moderator to intend questions to the pertinent aggroup member, and portion the staff’s achievements.

In particular, managers crapper support in the mass ways:

• It is essential that every aggroup members, including management, see their roles at the gathering and, more importantly, that they do not behave discover of role. If digit of your colleagues is performing discover of role, call for a fortuity to vindicate how the assemble loses power when it is not cohesive.

• As a woman, you should apprize direction that your individualized quality haw be jeopardized if your persona is undermined, and that this could disadvantage the success of the aggroup at some follow-up meetings.

• Managers crapper support compound the quality of someone teammates by reinforcing their dominance during the meeting. For example, if a blackamoor is not receiving the pertinent respect, the trainer haw erst again alter tending to her persona and authority.