Brand Loyalty: Why I Stick With My Favourites

Posted on by rosie

In the marketplace with seemingly similar offerings from different brands, I am drawn to certain favorites with unwavering allegiance. You might ask why someone would stick with one brand loyalty over another given the variety available. Allow me to take you through my thought process as I reveal all of the quirky reasons for which I remain loyal to certain ones.

Photo by Di Weng on Unsplash

The Comfort of Consistency

Life can be unpredictable enough without risking new products when my tried-and-tested options are right there waiting for me. From morning tea to my nightly face cream application, the comfort of knowing exactly what to expect every time is invaluable. I know Yorkshire Gold will deliver deliciously smooth cups of tea and my skin will thank me for choosing its reliable moisturiser. These brands have become like old friends – always there when needed.

Nostalgia 

My relationship to certain brands runs deep: As a child, my family held dear a certain chocolate brand as a treat on birthdays and other celebrations. Now as an adult I honor this tradition partly out of sentimentality but mostly because no other chocolate can compare in my view. Plus it reminds me of simpler childhood days filled with laughter and happiness, how quickly a simple taste or scent can transport us back there.

The Thrill of Choosing My Dream Car

Walking though car dealerships or browsing online listings offers me great pleasure as I explore the vast world of available cars for sale. Decision-making can be both taxing and exciting given all the brands offering distinctive experiences. Which will I choose, the sleek lines of a luxury sedan or the rugged charm of an off-road SUV? BMWs provide that perfect blend of performance and refinement I admire, while Toyotas provide assurances of dependability and efficiency. Each brand represents an aspect of my personality and lifestyle, making the choice feel deeply personal. While browsing car sites and specs lists, I get the sense that purchasing one of the cars for sale represents investing in an experience.

Superior Customer Experience

Nothing earns my loyalty like exceptional customer service. Over the years, I’ve experienced polite staff and pleasant online shopping experiences that left a positive impression on me. Like when my favourite clothing brand quickly resolved an issue with my order promptly and offered their sincerest apology, earning their continued patronage while solidifying my allegiance as an advocate of their commitment to providing superior service.

Experience Exclusive Perks 

Who doesn’t enjoy a good loyalty program? Since budgets can be tight, I have come to appreciate brands that reward my purchase history with special discounts, early access to new products or birthday bonuses, making me feel valued and special. These little acknowledgements deepened my connection to them and encouraged repeat business as well.

Conclusion

My brand loyalty is defined by various factors, ranging from practical to sentimental. In an increasingly big market, I find comfort in returning to brands that never falter in delivering quality, consistency and familiarity. Through exceptional customer service, attractive perks or innovation they have become integral parts of my life rather than mere purchases.

7 Simple Tricks For Financial Success

Posted on by rosie

 

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When it comes to finance, we’re only ever as organized as our intentions. When we want to save more money, make more money, or reach our goals in life, we often need to ensure that our finances are in the right place. However, that isn’t always easy to do unless you know where to start. It’s safe to say that we all long for financial success, but it’s all about putting in the work to make that happen. This all begins by having more visibility over our finances and driving them in the right direction!

 

Whether you have ever found yourself in a less-than-perfect financial situation before or you’ve just decided that you want to be able to build your wealth, you have to start somewhere. That all begins when you set the right intention and look to grow from there. So if you’re interested in seeing more success in your financial life, you’ve come to the right place. In this blog post, we’re going to walk through the seven steps that will help you to do just that!

1. Set Financial Goals

First of all, you’ll want to begin by setting a financial goal. This helps you to know what you want to focus on and from there, you can then go on to work out what steps you need to take to get there. It could be that you want to pay off debt, save more money, purchase a property, or even look to grow your income overall. When you have decided what it is you’d like to do, you can then start to work towards it.

2. Budget Everything

From here, the next thing that you’ll want to look to do is create a budget. Now, many people feel as if a budget is something that you need when you’re struggling. However, it’s a smart financial tool. It’s something that will help you to get a lot more clarity on your current financial situation and make the right decisions going forward. You’ll want to allocate different amounts of money to the various areas in your life to make this happen.

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3. Track Everything

Alongside that, the next thing that you need to do is make sure that you’re tracking everything. By tracking your income and expenditure, you’re able to get a clearer picture of where you’re at with your finances. From there, you’re able to not only get more organized but make the right financial decisions. If you have a business, you can also do the same there and it might help you to maximize your profits too!

4. Use the Right Software

Another thing that can help your financial success is technology. In this day and age, we have so many tech options available to us to help with our finances. Whether you want to get more organized with your personal or business finances, you’ll find that the right cloud based software will help. That way, you can carry out all of the actions that you need efficiently and effectively. Anything that makes your processes easier and more organized will always be a winner!

5. Diversify

When it comes to growing your money, a smart approach will always be to diversify where you keep it all. If you save all of your money in one place, it will put you more at risk. However, if you’re able to spread things out, you’re more protected. Not only that, but it will also allow you to have different rates of return too.

6. Be Smart with Interest

Regardless of your goals, just remember to be smart with your interest. Not only does this apply to the interest you earn and looking to get the best return possible, but also any debts that you have. You’ll want to avoid paying too much interest that could be costing you a lot of money in the long term.

7. Explore Additional Income Options

Finally, you may also want to explore what other income options you might have. Sure, you’ll always want to think about how you can climb the ranks with your career, get a promotion, and earn more – but that’s not your only option. Instead, you’ll find that you can consider the idea of having a side hustle! There are so many ways to earn more money, it’s just about finding the one that feels right for you. Then, with diverse income streams, you will be able to build your wealth and not worry if one of them dries up!

How I Steer Away From Building Bad Habits In Life

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You don’t have to be an inconsiderate, foolish person to build bad habits in life. They can sometimes sneak up on us without us even realizing. They usually start small – maybe laying into sleep after snoozing one too many times, or grabbing fast food because cooking feels like too much effort, to the point where you’ve spent hundreds on working lunches instead of sandwiches you could have made yourself. Little creeping habits often come through convenience or short-term relief, like smoking.

Before we know it, these little choices become our default behaviours that take time to get away from. I’ve learned this the hard way, through years of promising myself ‘I’ll start tomorrow’ while watching my productivity slip and stress levels rise. It’s not a nice feeling to feel your habits getting away from you. I can relate. 

That’s why, from an entirely human-to-human point of view, I think some helpful advice could be given. If you need further help be sure to speak to a professional of course, but from someone with years of experience starting, stopping, supplanting, substituting, and feeling seriously annoyed with bad habits, I think there’s some insight below:

I Understand My Triggers

Most bad habits start as responses to specific situations, and triggers are often developed that way. So for instance, stress might lead to mindless scrolling through social media, boredom could trigger unnecessary spending just so you feel a little engaged and stimulated, or loneliness might drive excessive television watching or perhaps eating too much.

If you know what the feeling is like before you engage, you can prevent “the ritual” of engaging in the bad habit before it begins. So for instance, if you feel a little lonely, you could go to the local cafe and enjoy a green tea with a friend, write a letter to someone you appreciate, or perhaps write a journal entry to get your thoughts out. This way, you address the trigger, but direct it to engage with a new behavior.

Replace Rather Than Remove

Trying to simply stop a bad habit rarely works, because as I’ve found, behaviors tend to work because of momentum. Our brains resist that space where the habit used to be if you just stop cold turkey. I noticed an issue with late-night snacking, but it was mostly because I’d trained myself to get up at night instead of being disciplined and trying to drop off, so I’d turn my computer back on, sit there, and snack. What broke this was reaching for a book and reading it after my late-night bathroom trip. That means I felt tired and could more easily soothe into a sleepy mindset.

Watch Other People

Sometimes, learning from other people is worthwhile. Perhaps you have an acquaintance or know someone in your larger network of relatives who have struggled with gambling in the past. For that reason, you know that when looking for casino reviews, you’ll look for trusted brands, only set what you can afford to lose, and feel happy for the entertainment you enjoyed with a friend. That way, a bug that bites some people doesn’t have to limit you – the same way as limiting your drinking days can help you avoid developing an issue. I avoided smoking this way, by listening to my friends who continually struggled with quitting. If you don’t feed a problem before it begins, you save yourself plenty of trouble!

With this advice, we hope you can more easily steer away from building bad habits in life!

4 Questions To Ask Before Buying A Vehicle

Posted on by rosie

Buying a vehicle can be surprisingly stressful, and it’s the kind of thing that you will want to make sure you are thinking about beforehand if you want to do it right. After all, it’s important that you are going to be happy with the vehicle you buy, so that means that you’ll probably need to put the necessary effort into the buying process. In this post, we will discuss what that might look like, by looking specifically at some of the questions you might want to ask yourself before buying a vehicle.

 

Pic Source – CCO License

Will It Be Your Only Vehicle?

This is quite important to know, because the kind of vehicle you opt for will depend a lot on whether or not it’s going to be the only one you use. If it is going to be that, then it will need to be able to do more and you’ll find that this changes how you are going to approach the buying process. Whereas, if it is going to be a run-around and you also have other vehicles, that changes things somewhat. So make sure that you are aware of whether or not this will be your only vehicle.

What Terrain Will You Drive On?

It could be that this is a really obvious question with an easy answer. After all, you might just need to drive on any necessary terrain – and that could just mean using the normal roads. But if you want to do any off-roading, for example, you are going to need something else altogether – a station wagon or something like it – so it’s something you need to think about. As long as you know what you’ll be driving on, you can know what you want to drive in.

 

Pic Source – CCO License

What’s Your Budget?

The amount you have to spend is always going to affect what kind of vehicle you are going to buy, so this is something that you should think about as well. As long as you know your budget clearly, that is going to help you to figure out what you’re going to buy and what might be beyond your range, so that is important for you to think about. All in all, it’s the kind of thing that you are going to find hugely important to think about early.

How Much Space Do You Need?

Some folk will need to drive their families around, and some will just need something they can use to go to the store and back. It’s up to you, but you need to make sure that you are fully aware – and honest with yourself – about what you are going to need. Think about the space you’ll need and make sure that this plays a role in choosing your vehicle, and that way you should find that you are more likely to end up with the right one.

Why I Love My Car (And Won’t Give It Up)

Posted on by rosie

The World Economic Forum’s statement that people will “own nothing and be happy” is now mainstream news. It’s the idea that we won’t have anything because the powers that be want to make a world where private ownership becomes a thing of the past. 

But I’m not so sure this world they envision for us all will ever come to pass. After all, why would you go to the expense and inconvenience of renting a car (which someone presumably owns) when you can just buy one and get cheap transport as standard?

Here are some of the reasons I love my car and won’t give it up: 

It’s A Memory Machine

I don’t know about you, but my car is something of a memory machine. So many important life events occurred either inside it or using it. 

I’m sure you can relate. Perhaps you used your car to go to the hospital to have a child or went somewhere unique on vacation. It wouldn’t be the same if you had a subscription to Uber’s fleet or robot vehicles. 

It’s A Bubble Of Freedom

Then there’s the fact that vehicles are a bubble of freedom in an increasingly controlled world. Most humans feel like they live in a zoo. But getting out in a motor vehicle reminds you that the globe is a gigantic place, and nothing is stopping you from exploring it in all its glory. 

Compared to public transport, owning a car is a joy. You don’t have to wait in the cold at the bus stop, and you can avoid squeezing into tight seats next to people with personal hygiene issues. 

It’s Reliable

There’s also the argument that cars are reliable. Now, I know that some aren’t. But for the most part, the motor vehicles we buy today just work and can drive hundreds of thousands of miles before conking out. 

Skoda approved used is a good example. These vehicles (and others like them) are engineered to such a high standard that there’s no need to replace them. You can simply swap out defective parts for new ones, keeping them in service for decades. 

It’s Special

But perhaps the ultimate reason I don’t want to get rid of my car and live like the World Economic Forum wants me to is because it is a special experience. While it might sound strange, getting into a car feels different from virtually any other form of transport, even the first-class cabin on an international flight. 

My car, like many, has a certain personality I love. I don’t want to change to a subscription service where a soulless autonomous vehicle collects me from my home and takes me to the store. I want to do it myself. 

I also don’t want to give up the fact that I own the vehicle. It isn’t the property of some vast corporation that can be taken away from me at any time. 

So there you have it: why I’m not going to be giving up my car any time soon. 

If I Could Turn Back Time, These Are The Plans I’d Put In Place Far Sooner

Posted on by rosie

Image Credit: Pixabay CC0 License

 

Getting older is an inevitability of life, changing our world and plans, in many ways. Whether it’s physical changes, a shift in priorities, or new financial statuses doesn’t matter. I know that these issues took a toll on me, and will probably do the same for you. However, the transition into retirement and beyond can be far smoother by putting the right plans in place.

I must admit, I think I’ve handled things quite well. Still, if I could turn back the hands of time, there are a few preparations I would start making far sooner. If you’ve yet to implement these plans, now is probably a good time to start.

 

Travel Plans

One of the great things about getting older is that you gain more free time. So, it is finally an opportunity to explore the world and enjoy vacations. There’s certainly nothing wrong with booking trips on a whim. Still, I do wish I’d taken more time to think about which destinations I’d want to visit most, as well as the order. While these travel tips for seniors promote maximum enjoyment, scheduling is equally key. You will want to explore the adventure holidays sooner rather than later as mobility could be an issue in a few years.

Similarly, planning out your next few trips in advance can help you determine the best times and travel companions. 

Funeral Arrangements

It could be decades before it comes, but death is an inevitability. Sadly, there is nothing you can do to stop this from causing heartbreak for your family. However, you can at least remove the stress of organising your funeral. Selecting and paying for memorial stones is an ideal choice. It is one of the most important purchases that they need to make at this time. Knowing that the design and sentiments are as per your wishes makes a huge difference to your loved ones. Removing the financial strain by putting money aside also helps.

Other arrangements such as the choice of hymns, outfit, or flower arrangements may also be taken years in advance.

 

Image Credit: Pixabay CC0 License

 

Financial Savings

Getting used to the reduced income can be tough. I feel fortunate that my financial situation has always been OK, but many others aren’t so lucky. Planning for the financial changes of retirement is essential. Investments and savings can build a bigger retirement pot. One thing I wish I’d done earlier, though, is embrace cost-cutting strategies. Finding ways to reduce monthly outgoing can transform a person’s financial situation. This will make the unforeseen expenses that surface from time to time far less problematic.

Moreover, you will have the funds available for home updates or other purchases that make life easier in retirement. Perfect.

Hobbies

I am lucky in that I have found this blog as a passion. Without it, though, filling my time effectively would be quite testing despite being blessed with great people and hobbies. If I was approaching my senior years today, I would be looking for activities that could provide freedom and enjoyment. Ideas that also offer the chance to earn a little money on the side are ideal. Activities that allow for deeper connections with your community and people within it are great options too.

As I get older, the value of time becomes more evident than ever. As such, boredom is simply not an option. For that reason, knowing how to stay busy is a must.

 

Travelling Tips For Seniors

Posted on by rosie

Whether it be a dream destination or a spur-of-the-moment getaway, travelling for seniors should be as freeing as it is enjoyable. Just a little planning and some practical advice will have seniors embracing travelling with confidence and ease. Let’s explore some helpful tips to make your travels hassle-free, comfortable, and filled with life!

Source: https://www.pexels.com/photo/gray-haired-people-bonding-together-8170253/ 

Senior-Friendly Destinations

Accessibility will be key to choosing a destination. Choose destinations that offer the most accessibility for all different needs and requirements, especially if mobility or assistance is crucial. Accessible locations, such as scenic rail tours throughout Europe, relaxing beach resorts, and accessible U.S. national parks, will afford tranquillity with ease of navigation. The cities and resorts with well-maintained paths, elevators, and available public transportation can make getting around easy as pie, so you can devote more time to the surroundings.

Plan for Mobility and Health Essentials

Packing for senior travel is all about practicality and preparation. Bring enough medication to last for the length of your trip, plus a few extras just in case. Compact travel organisers can help keep everything arranged nicely. If you use wheelchairs, notify well in advance airlines, hotels and tour companies using their services to ensure smooth assistance. Most places nowadays accommodate special needs related to mobility, but calling ahead lets you confirm that the accommodations will meet your needs. Likewise, make sure to have contact information for your doctor should a question pop up at some point on your journey.

Travel Light but Smart

The less you carry, the more relaxed you will be. Packing light is one of the best tips for a traveller but becomes indispensable for seniors. Go in for a multi-use wardrobe that is comfortable and stylish. Wheeled luggage is invaluable, as are lightweight tablets or e-readers rather than books if you’re travelling with tech. Bring along a small daypack with essentials such as a water bottle, medications, and a map or travel guide. This would make excursions and sightseeing much easier and wouldn’t overload.

Keep Flexibility in Your Itinerary

As exciting as it may be to fill every moment with an activity, it is equally important to build in flexibility. Set aside “rest days” or time for leisurely activities and allow room for adjustments if necessary. A senior-friendly itinerary lets you embrace both the planned and the unexpected, savouring experiences without feeling rushed. Even if you are going to visit a busy city, seek out local parks or quieter spots to regain your energy amidst all of the excitement.

Embrace Technology for Convenience and Safety

Today’s technology can make many aspects of travel easier for seniors. Health apps let you easily track your medication, while travel apps offer accessible directions, local insights, and even dining recommendations. It is very useful for GPS trackers to find a way back to the hotels, especially in major cities or foreign countries where working one’s way through busy streets is problematic. And, of course, being able to keep in contact by phone means loved ones can reach you with much ease and put your and their minds at ease.

Senior travel is about fulfilling new experiences based on choices made with comfort and ease in mind. Taking the right approach to each trip means enjoying quiet retreats and city romps alike with ease and pleasure.

How To Improve Mobility Around The Home Easily

Posted on by rosie

When it gets time to start thinking about your home and how making small changes could improve mobility in your surroundings, there are a lot of important considerations that you might want to be aware of. It’s important that you can be mobile in your own home, as far as possible anyway, and that’s something that becomes increasingly important as you get older of course. As it happens, there are quite a few things you can focus on to ensure that you are easily improving mobility around the home, so let’s take a look at some of those right now.

 

Source – CCO License

Creating Space

You can often make the home easier to get around simply by creating a little more space. This is the kind of thing that you are going to want to think about and which you can easily achieve. Mostly it is a case of ensuring that the layout of the furniture and so on is in such a way that you are not blocked to get to any part of the home. If you can create a little more space between items, that is always going to make a huge difference here, so that’s a simple but effective thing that you can think about.

Installing Lifts & Aids

There are a number of aids you can think about installing in the home which are designed specifically to help with moving around it more easily. For instance, you might be in need of a stairlift, or maybe some platform lifts, in order to be able to access every part of your home easily enough. So this is something to look into when the time comes, and to make sure that you are making room for as well. It could make living in your home a lot easier.

 

Source – CCO License

Keeping Clutter-Free

As well as creating some space, as we saw above was important, you should make sure that you are doing all you can to remove and reduce any clutter in the home too. This is the kind of thing that is going to be really important for you to consider, and you’ll find that you are going to have a much easier home to move around if you have thought about this. So it’s a simple but quite powerful process that you might want to bear in mind and which should make quite a difference all in all.

Getting Help

From time to time, it may be that you require some help from someone else with some of this – perhaps to install a mobility aid or something else entirely. So you should make sure that you are asking for that help when you need it. This is going to ensure that you are much more mobile around the home too, and that you are in a much better position on the whole. It’s amazing what this can do for you, and it’s something you should certainly bear in mind.

The Downsides Of Car Financing You May Not Realise.

Posted on by rosie

 

The reality of getting a car isn’t as simple as it used to be. Not only are vehicles becoming increasingly expensive to buy, but they are also pretty pricey to maintain. This is why many people choose car financing as their most viable option, as it doesn’t involve paying for the car outright. Whether you want to invest your money into financing a car, or you’d rather look into options there are numerous considerations you need to make this commitment. Although there are many advantages of car financing, here are some of the main downsides you should also be aware of.

Not all Finance Deals are Legitimate

Unfortunately, some finance deals don’t always live up to expectations, especially when they seem too good to be true. Today, many vehicle owners are looking into PCP Refunds as they were mis-sold their car finance plan in the past. Some agreements may not have been clear about monthly instalments, restrictions on mileage and other stipulations. This could leave someone struggling to keep up with their monthly payments and in financial hardship as a result. This is why it’s so important to stay across legitimate finance deals and look into every possible flaw that you’re presented with. You may be able to take out a car lease that aligns with your expectations and monthly budget but be wary of deals that seem too good to be true.

There May Be Limits on Mileage

As mentioned earlier, not all car finance options are viable and suitable for your needs, so you should be clear on what the expectations are in your contract. Many car finance loans are inclusive of mileage caps which means you’re not always able to use it as freely as you’d like to. This type of agreement is most common with PCP options, so a hire purchase may be a well-suited option for you.

Owning the Car Outright May Not Be Possible

If your end goal is to own your car outright, then you may struggle with many of the usual car finance options. Not only do you have to pay for all of your instalments before you’re close to owning your car, but you may also need to settle any additional costs incurred during your contract too. This is one of the biggest downsides of financing a car as you’re in a cycle of making large payments, but not actually owning your vehicle.

You May Be Liable for Damage

Accidents and general wear and tear is very common with vehicles, but when you don’t own the car, you could be liable for this damage. Anything abnormal after an inspection may be chargeable, from exterior scratches to interior damage, so you have to be extra careful when leasing a car.

You Can’t Make Alterations to the Car

Many vehicle owners like the idea of personalizing their car and making it their own, however, you won’t have the freedom to do this if you’re financing your vehicle. Changing the registration plate, upgrading the interior or altering the exterior colors are usually a strict no-no for car finance companies, so this is worth keeping in mind too.

You’re Tied to Fixed Monthly Payments

If your financial situation changes, you are still going to be tied to the same monthly payments until your contract is over. This is the risk you run with any car financing deal and it may not suit everyone’s work situations. If you’re self-employed this may be something you’re worried about when it comes to staying on top of payments.

There May Be Limited Options When Choosing a Vehicle

When it comes to choosing the best car for you, it’s always good to have a wide variety of options. If you’re looking for a finance deal, you may be quite limited on what brands and styles you can choose from. You often have to go with the options that are given to you by the lenders, which can be quite basic.

As you can see, there are several different downsides you need to consider when financing a car. Understanding the terms and conditions of financing a car is the most important aspect, but you also need to be careful not to get caught out by deals that are too good to be true. Hopefully, this gives you a transparent idea of what you’re getting into when financing a car so that you can make the most sensible option to suit your circumstances. 

 

 

What To Expect When Someone Dies

Posted on by rosie

When someone close to you dies, it’s one of those situations that are of course incredibly difficult to work through, and that’s something that you are going to want to be aware of, as it helps you to know that you are by no means alone. In this post, we are going to take you through some of the things you’ll need to know about when someone dies so that you can have a general sense of what to expect. This should help prepare you a little, though of course, there is only a certain extent to which you can feel genuinely prepared.

Image – CCO License

Grief

Of course, you should expect to feel grief, and this is not necessarily going to feel how you expected it to feel. It can feel like a range of emotions, like experiencing them all at once, and it’s something that you are going to really need to be aware of if you want to make sure that you are not going to deny your experience in any way. You might find yourself crying, laughing, and everything in between, and that is perfectly normal. So be ready for that, and don’t think that you have to fit a certain picture of what grief should look like.

High Emotions

There are going to be a lot of high emotions, though, that’s for certain – and you’ll find that this probably leads to some significant difficulties when it comes to some of your personal relationships. So you should make sure that you are ready for that – it might not happen, but if it does then you will prefer to have been prepared. The emotions can run high in the household for quite a while after a death, so it’s best to know that when it happens so you can at least deal with it effectively.

Image – CCO License

Getting Things Organized

One thing that people don’t realize about death is that there can be a surprising amount of admin you need to get through. For some people this can be really difficult, but for other people, it can be the kind of thing that helps. In either case, you will need to make sure you are as prepared for it as possible, and that you have a rough idea of what you need to do – from sorting out the will to finding the right funeral directors near you.

Giving It Time

All in all, it can take time for everything to be worked through and life to carry on as normal, so you need to make sure that you are ready for that too. It is often difficult and painful, and there might be times when you want to just curl up in a ball. But as long as you keep going, you should find that you come out the other end eventually, however long it takes – and there is no rush for how long it takes at all.