Running a successful home based business can give you tremendous joy, happiness and fulfillment. This will be more so if you had been working for a Boss before you started your own home based business. What is it that makes this huge difference in the lives of these entrepreneurs working from home?1. You are the Boss and the Lord of all that you survey however small your business might be. This will give you a lot of self satisfaction and pride. No longer will your Boss be breathing over the back of your neck. You can make your own decisions courageously and fearlessly.2. You no longer have to commute long distances. There are many who spend at least 4-5 hours commuting to work and back. It is a pity that such valuable time is lost day after day and now you can utilize this time in your home business. Furthermore you will save a huge amount on your gas bills.3. When to start work and the number of hours you will work are all decided by you. This does not mean that you will work only a few hours a day thereby neglecting your business. The fact is that you can make it flexible to look after the kids rather than send them to day care or transport the older ones to school.4. One of the main reasons for working at home is to spend more time with the family and your home based business provides this wonderful opportunity. You can reschedule your work whenever the situation demands and be of assistance to your family. Your physical presence at home will certainly be a morale booster to all the members of your family.5. Much money that would normally be spent on commuting to work, on daycare and other matters could be saved when you are based at home. In addition your spouse and the children could also assist you in your business when required thus enabling substantial savings.6. Office politics is pervasive in most work places. Some people know the art of survival in any situation whereas some cannot. Most people detest carrying tales to their Bosses, back biting and currying favor. For such people a home based business is indeed the opportunity they have been longing for to get out of such an environment.7. As an employee you never had the opportunity to give free play to some of your inherent talents. In your own home based business there are no limits or restrictions and you have the every opportunity to display all your skills. You will indeed be pleasantly surprised to see the talents and skills that have been lying dormant within you all these years.8. As the owner of a successful home based business you are no longer an ordinary employee eking out a living on a 9 to 5 job. You get recognized by the banks, small business organizations and by the community as a successful businessman. This boosts your pride and self esteem.There are bound to be stressful situations and ups and downs in running your home based business. If you work with dedication, commitment and continue to remain focused on your business the joy of being the proud owner of a successful business will outweigh everything.

I want you to think about the term “Fundraising Auction”.

A “Fundraising Auction” is an event where items of value are gathered, and then sold in a competitive bidding situation, either in a Silent Auction format, or in a Live Auction format by a Live Auctioneer. And since typically the best items are saved for the Live Auction, arguably it is the Live Auction that should generate a significant portion of the proceeds in any Fundraising Auction.

So why do so many non-profit groups consider the Fundraising Auctioneer to be the least valuable component in a Fundraising Auction?

The Hosting Facility gets paid.
The Printer gets paid.
The Caterer gets paid.
The Liquor Store gets paid.
The DJ gets paid.
The Florist gets paid.
But the Auctioneer … the individual who is expected to raise the lion’s share of the event’s proceeds… is expected to work for Free. And is usually under-appreciated for the professional services he/she provides.

I’m not trying to underscore the value of the invitations & programs, food, booze, music, and decorations. All are important in their own way. But each of these are “Expenses”. It is the Auctioneer who is going to bring “Revenue”… and thus, the “Profits”… into any event. Which is the ultimate objective of any Fundraising Auction.

Here is a real-life example of how under-appreciated the Auctioneer can be. In two comparable events we worked last year, during the dinner portion of the event one non-profit group sat the Auctioneer (me) at a table with the DJ, the Interns, the Volunteer Staff, and other event “Help”. The 2nd non-profit group sat the Auctioneer (me) directly next to the CEO of their organization, where we chatted about how important the pending revenue would be to their organization. Which group do you think valued the services of the Fundraising Auctioneer more?

Don’t ever under-estimate the value that a professional Fundraising Auctioneer can bring to your event. The Auctioneer adds value as a pre-event consultant. And the Auctioneer can change an event from a moderate to a huge success.

A Case Study Once I was scheduled to call an Auction for a major local non-profit group. They represented a very good cause and they had a strong and dedicated following. Their event was sold out, quality Live & Silent Auction items had been solicited, and the Special Pledge Appeal had been choreographed and was ready to go. The facility was first class, the appropriate caterer was booked, and the food was ready to cook.

But quite unexpectedly, some unseasonably inclement weather forced the event’s cancellation. Despite all of the committee’s hard work, cancelling the event was the proper decision considering the circumstances.

So the Event Committee scrambled to re-schedule the event for the following weekend.

They confirmed with the Hosting Facility.
They confirmed with the Caterer.
They confirmed with the Liquor Store.
They confirmed with the DJ.
They confirmed with the Florist.
Since they already had the Mailing List of those scheduled to attend, no new invitations had to be printed as all were contacted by email or telephone. So with everything in place, the group went ahead and re-scheduled the event for the following weekend.

But guess who they failed to confirm? You got it… the Professional Auctioneer. They thought so little of the Auctioneer’s contribution that they “assumed” that the Auctioneer would be available and at their beck and call.

But the Auctioneer already had another Fundraising Auction booked for that date with another non-profit group. It was only hour away from the re-scheduled event, and things could have been easily worked out. All Group #1 had to do was start their event one hour earlier, or one hour later, than the Group #2, and the Auctioneer could have helped both groups on the same day.

But because Group #1 failed to anticipate a possible Auctioneer conflict, because they failed to confirm with the Auctioneer before re-scheduling their event, their preferred Auctioneer had to bow out and they had to scramble to locate substitute “Volunteer” Auctioneer only days before their event.

And it cost them.

Learning Points

The Live Auction is usually where the profits are made at any Fundraising Auction.
A Professional Fundraising Auctioneer can be vital to the success of any Fundraising Auction.
The better Fundraising Auctioneers usually get booked quickly.
You need to recognize the important contributions that a good Auctioneer can make to your event.
Michael Ivankovich is a Bucks County Fundraising Auctioneer based in Doylestown PA, and serves the Great Philadelphia PA area. He has been a professionally licensed and bonded Auctioneer in Pennsylvania for nearly 20 years, has been named Pennsylvania’s Auctioneer of the Year, and has considerable experience in conducting Fundraising Auctions. Michael loves helping groups raise needed funds for good causes and one of his specialties is the “Special Pledge Appeal” or “Fund-A-Cause Appeal” which usually enables clients to double their revenue in a single evening.

In recent years, it seems like technology has taken over our lives. Sometimes it’s hard not to wonder whether all this technology really does make things better, or is just technology for technology’s sake. But every now and then an improvement comes along that is clearly a big step forward from where we were before. The Roomba vacuum is such a step, and it’s unique design saves people a lot of time and energy.

There has always been one major problem with vacuuming your house – and that’s the fact that you have to do it at all! There are very few people who jump up and down with excitement at the idea of pulling out the vacuum cleaner. Most people would rather put their feet up and watch a movie, or read a good book. Wouldn’t it be great to have your floors vacuumed, without you having to do the work?

Well, that’s exactly what the Roomba vacuum is designed to do. It’s a huge leap forward in vacuum cleaner technology, making it an effective and smart way of vacuuming. The Roomba vacuum has a special robot inside, which is designed to make it move around and search for dirt on your floor. It will be able to negotiate its way around furniture and any other obstacles in your room. So you don’t have to worry that your precious furniture will get damaged when the Roomba vacuum bumps into it.

If you look around, you’ll find plenty of places that sell the Roomba vacuum. Most vacuum cleaner stores now sell them, and so do many electronics stores. Considering how advanced they are, they’re quite reasonably priced. That’s even more the case when you consider how much people would be willing to pay for a vacuum cleaner that did all the work for them!

A Roomba vacuum would make a great gift for someone who has difficulty moving about, or who struggles to push a vacuum around the room. It also removes the need to carry a heavy vacuum from room to room. They’re a great present for a grandparent, parent, or anyone else you know that could do with some help in vacuuming. Anyone who receives a Roomba vacuum will appreciate the care and thought behind your gift.

The directions are easy to follow, which makes it easy for anyone to work out how to use their new Roomba vacuum cleaner. So whether it’s for yourself or for someone you care about, take a look at the advantages of a Roomba vacuum and buy one today.