Taking The Long View On How To Enhance Your Home’s Setting

Striking views and stunning landscapes are, in many ways, the golden ticket of housing. Forget looking out at parking lots and city streets; we’re talking ocean vistas, riverside settings, and even countryside as far as the eye can see.

It’s a reality that can make any home for sale more appealing, as is evidenced by the fact that fantastic views, particularly of water, can enhance value by 15-80%. And yet, as is often the case when we take things for granted, those of us who have access to such views often neglect them. It’s all too easy to shut the doors on the outside and entirely forget about location. Before you know, you may have gone months without even glancing up at those rolling hills or lapping waves.

As well as being a crying shame, this is a significant waste of money. Remember, you’re likely paying for that view, and you should get the most for your buck by taking the time to enjoy it in the following ways.

The more windows, the better

A view has the undeniable ability to take your house to the next level, but you first need to make sure that you can see it. Otherwise, there’s nothing giving your property an edge over any other on your street. Unsurprisingly, then, we’re starting this list with mention of windows. Look at getting custom windows for your home.

Large bay windows that look directly out onto whatever view you have access to are guaranteed to make a massive difference to your property. As simple as that, you make it impossible to ignore the fact that you live in such a fantastic vista. Instead, those windows will act much like a feature wall in truly drawing the eye, and adding a touch of interest that you’d struggle to achieve any other way.

Even better, these windows in themselves will add a modernist and futuristic aspect to your home that’s guaranteed to go down well with any looking to improve interior and exterior style in one hit.

Reflections can enhance a space

As much as you want to open that view up, you also want to make sure that you’re bringing it into your home as much as possible. And, mirrors offer a fantastic opportunity to do that. According to Phillip Thomas of Phillip Thomas Inc, “Not only do they [mirrors] help to push natural light into a space, but they also help to amplify the landscape/view outside the house by allowing you to see straight ahead and from the sides.”

You don’t have to go mad with this, but incorporating mirrors on the opposite wall to your windows, for instance, is guaranteed to enhance the natural beauty outside. Even better, this addition means that you needn’t look directly at those new feature windows to get the most from this benefit.

Let your view inform your home style

Even if you’re keen to bring a view firmly to the forefront at home, you might not consider it in relation to decor. Yet, this can often be the best place to truly tie things together in a way that works. And, when you remember that a well-framed waterfront view, for instance, can add up to 80% value, that’s a quest well worth undertaking.

Something as simple as tying color schemes together with your outside vista could work wonders here. Or, you may want to go all out with a full-on sea theme for your waterside location. You could even use wallpaper or painting styles that mimic the landscape your view centers around. Or, you could simply highlight a countryside setting with natural wood furniture and accessories. The world is your oyster, so have fun playing around. Then, sit back and enjoy a room that’s guaranteed to enhance even the best view.

A shifting furniture focus

Often, we arrange furniture towards key features such as a fireplace or television. But, if you want to make your house great, then you could benefit from shifting that focus with your view in mind. After all, a lakeside setting is guaranteed to beat even the most elaborate fireplace or TV you could think of.

As such, you should focus your pieces towards those new, view-worthy windows instead. By merely turning seats to face this way, you can finally draw the eye here as soon as you enter the room. That’s going to make a huge difference, not only for adding a sense of space to the area but also for ensuring that your view gets the attention it deserves at last.

Expanding Your Business: 4 Things To Consider When Your Workforce Is Growing

Transitioning from a small business into a larger operation has lots of positives. Fundamentally, you can expand your customer base, increase the number of services you provide, hire specialist employees, and make bigger profits. However, there are also new legal, financial, and organisational considerations to take into account before you take this leap. If you’re not properly prepared for the expansion of your business, the process may be messy and certainly a little stressful.

So if you’re looking for some key advice on taking your small business to the next level, check out the pointers below.

Legal Considerations

Hiring employees (or operating with a larger workforce) comes with legal guidelines that you need to be in line with at all times. The law may vary in different states, and depending on how many people you are taking on, but more often than not there will be guidelines on hiring processes and equality, interview processes and training. So make sure you are up to date on all the latest legal obligations in your area, and plan your hiring process carefully.   

Resources And Equipment

It’s no use having a bigger workforce if they don’t have the equipment and resources to do their job well and – just as crucially – safely.

So make sure you can afford to invest in all the safety equipment needed to keep your new employees protected, as well as practical tools, specialist equipment and transport. All-in-all, these investments can amount to a major investment, especially when you take the new salaries into account too.

If buying new equipment outright is not an option, look into rentals. This is especially useful if you’re hiring seasonally, or for a few bigger contracts. Rather than splashing out on a new truck, try commercial truck rentals from Flex Fleet, for a more affordable, short-term alternative. You can find rental companies for most specialist equipment.

Management & Restructuring

In a small business, the business-owner and existing managers often take control of managing the team, training, dealing with admin and payroll. You’re essentially doing the job of multiple people until you can hire others to take the responsibility off your hands. However, when you expand your workforce, you will want to consider restructuring your management approach. You may need to hire additional managers, and set-up a separate training system to help newbies settle in.

Hidden Costs and Expenses 

Hiring new staff will help you generate a great profit in the long run. But the process of bringing new people into the team has a number of hidden costs that can amount to major expenses. In some cases, the costs may actually outway the benefits, so careful financial planning is necessary before you get started. To begin with, advertising for new employees costs money. It then takes time to read applications or conduct interviews, and then your new employer will need training. This all uses up time and resources that previously would have been making you money.

New salaries will also likely increase the tax your business pays, although there may be tax breaks and benefits to be found too. You may need more space, perhaps new office premises, equipment and transport vehicles. If your business has enough demand to warrant expansion, you very likely will have the resources to cover these costs if you plan carefully. But be sure to prepare yourself for these initial losses.