Saturday, February 20, 2016
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Anonymous
"Start by doing what's necessary, then what's possible and then suddenly you are doing the impossible."
Monday, February 15, 2016
Sunday, February 14, 2016
I support our country
I am an avid supporter of the United States Military and is committed to assisting those returning home from military service. Join me in supporting the Wounded #Warrior Project which has been one of my favorite charity to support. #US
Saturday, February 13, 2016
Ralph Marston
"What you do today can improve all your tomorrows." - Ralph Marston
http://bit.ly/1MJV1IK
Friday, February 12, 2016
Have a great day everyone
Good morning everyone. Hope you have a great start to your day.
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Thursday, February 11, 2016
Which one is your fav?
Looking to buy a new motorcycle. Click the link below & tell us which one is your favorite? http://bit.ly/1KD8d0B
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Why a business owner will make the best presidential candidate
Why a business owner will make the best presidential candidate | Financial Content | Miami Herald.com
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Alex Figliolia jr. social media helped my construction company
How Social Media Boosts Trading -- Without Helping Traders - http://bit.ly/1OD66le Alex Figliolia jr.
Why a Business Owner is the Right Person to Lead America
Anyone who knows me knows that I revere God, Family and Country. While I don't usually wear my political heart on my sleeve, I do have strong opinions regarding the upcoming Presidential election which I will share right here, so if you're one of those people who don't believe in talking sex, politics or religion, I suggest you abandon right now.
If you are someone with an open mind who wants to hear all sides of things, then hang in so I can tell you why I think America needs a business owner to be President.
The field of Presidential candidates is crowded on both sides of the aisle. Let's consider the Washington insiders and their positions first:
Hillary Clinton (D) Former First Lady, US Senator and Secretary of State: Simply put, Ms. Clinton comes off less than trust worthy after the Bengazi email scandal. She also has a problem with some women who feel that her decision to overlook her husband's multiple infidelities (Jennifer Flowers, Monica Lewinsky and who knows who else) reduces her credibility as a feminist. Moreover, Ms. Clinton is presumptive and dismissive of the American people; she was the original architect of Obama Care and other programs which have wrecked havoc on the American economy.
Bernie Sanders (D) US Senator Vermont: Sanders is a Socialist who has stated that he wants businesses to pay 90% of their income in taxes. NINETY PERCENT - In what business model does that make any sense?
John Kasich (R) Governor Ohio: Kasich has spent more than half his adult career serving as an elected official. People who spend that much time in government have a distorted value of money and little idea of what it takes to run a small business.
Jeb Bush (R) Former Governor of Florida and Secretary of Commerce: Let's face it, Jeb Bush grew up inside politics. Yes he is a Real Estate Developer but his training has always been government.
Chris Christie (R) Governor of New Jersey, former federal prosecutor: Christie spent most of his adult career in government as well. He talks like an outsider but in fact most of his paychecks have been derived from taxpayer dollars. CNBC ranked New Jersey 43rd out of 50 for business development. You don't need an Atlantic City bookmaker to tell you that those odds stink.
Marco Rubio (R) US Senator Florida: Rubio is a businessman and first term Senator. He is a great orator and has a good understanding of government and foreign policy. He is a freshman who admits that he doesn't like Washington and the way it runs and has actually boycotted procedures and votes. He is a lawyer who has admitted that he lives above his means which makes me nervous. His "path to citizenship" is unclear and that makes me uncomfortable.
Ted Cruz (R) US Senator Texas: Cruz has spent most of his adult career collecting pay checks from the taxpayer therefore he has no idea what it means to run a small business.
Then there are the outsiders.....
Dr. Ben Carson (R) Neurosurgeon: Carson's caring, gentle demeanor and the fact that he saves lives for a living makes him easy to trust. He is definitely conservative. He is definitely religious, his problem as I see it is that he is a surgeon and because he deals in life and death decisions he may have a bit of a God complex. While physicians do run their own businesses, they deal with insurance companies who have an overinflated sense of what things should cost. They are big business and not in tune with small business.
Carly Fiorina (R) Former Chief Executive Officer of Hewlett-Packard and nominee for US Senate in California 2010: While Fiorina did run a business, she managed to get herself fired despite her claim (which I do believe) that she saved the company. She also managed to lose her election for US Senate. What this tells me is that Fiorina is lacking branding and marketing skills, both of which are necessary when you are negotiating foreign policy or trying to gain confidence in your product.
Donald Trump: (R) Real Estate Developer, television personality, casino operator: Donald Trump is a New York City icon. He was launched in business by his family and he grew that investment into a fortune. He took advantage of every loop hole in government to make sure his businesses succeeded so he has a real understanding about what is right and wrong with the system. He has relationships with big businesses both at home and overseas and he knows how they operate. He is a branding genius taking himself from a bankrupt developer to a household name. He knows how to sell himself, his product and America.
In my opinion, these business people (even the quasi successful ones, are the only people who can truly turn our country around. Here's why....
Let's think about the President of the United States as the CEO of a large public corporation (America). Like all corporations, the CEO's responsibility is to create a quality product that will sell and make money for the shareholder (taxpayer). This particular corporation has 50 franchises (states) Each of those franchises have representatives (congress and senate) and all of them together have one large complaint department (Supreme Court).
The shareholder expects a return on his/her investment and it's up to the President to make sure all the franchises are delivering. The larger the return on the shareholder's investment, the happier s/he is and the more likely s/he is to work hard to make more money to reinvest in the corporation. Happy shareholders are also the best marketers for the corporation and soon they will encourage others to invest.
Unfortunately, every large, rich corporation has its share of enemies which is why the CEO must establish a strong security department (US Army, FBI, CIA) and why the shareholders must support these departments in order to protect their interests.
The above outline is a basic business model which, if followed loosely, could result in a positive outcome for the taxpayer. Unfortunately, our government operates more like a charitable organization than a corporation, redistributing money from those who produce to those who do not.
The United States tax code is in direct conflict with the philosophy upon which our country was founded. When the constitution was adopted and America was born it was based upon the principles that anyone could succeed as long as they worked hard and swore allegiance to their country. At the center of this new nation was the notion that an individual's wealth could not be taken from him/her without representation within the government.
In today's America, wealth is taken from those who work for it and is redistributed to those who do nothing to earn it. The more you work, the more you are penalized, removing any incentive to succeed.
Those who fight to protect our freedom are demonized for doing their job and are paid a salary just above minimum wage.
Our representatives run million dollar campaigns to win a seat that pays a fraction of what it cost them to get there then they spend endless hours speechifying about how we are mortgaging our children's future to pay for programs in place today. Worse still is the fact that only half of the eligible voters participate in these elections which determine who our leaders will be.
There was a time in American history when parents wanted their child to aspire to be President of the United States. Now they encourage them to be a basketball player or football star.
In today's America, political correctness has taken the place of common sense and entitlement has taken the place of responsibility. If we have any hope at all of returning America to its glory days, when hard work was revered and rewarded, we need to elect a leader who understands you are only entitled to rights if you are willing to accept responsibility for your actions.
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Discipline
"Once you have commitment, you need the discipline and hardwork to get you there." - Haile Gebrselassie https://www.facebook.com/AlexFiglioliajr1/
Monday, February 8, 2016
Alex Figliolia jr. how about this
Neel Kashkari to be Named New Minneapolis Fed President - http://on.wsj.com/1MJVf2x http://on.fb.me/1NJ0QLB
Sunday, February 7, 2016
Untitled
Where did Staten Islanders go on vacation? Check 'On the Road' to find out - http://bit.ly/1KFKXz0
Saturday, February 6, 2016
Untitled
Suffragette Director: 'You Can't Change the Game Unless You're in the Game' - http://ti.me/1KFUjL3
Friday, February 5, 2016
Thursday, February 4, 2016
Dealing With Labor Unions
When dealing with labor unions, the best advice I can give anyone in the contracting and plumbing industry who is thinking about signing up with a union is to make sure you are fully aware of all of their rules and regulations. I cannot tell you how many contractors I have worked, including myself, that have had problems with labor unions. Early in my career I was in a carpenters union for about five years. I was a pieceworker, which means that I got paid per section of the project. This is not what the union wanted. They wanted to pay workers by the hour.
One of the fundamental principles of a union is a better quality of life. They don’t believe their members should physically work as hard, or for long hours. I am not sure how it is today, but for a while there, in the 1980’s, the unions got really corrupted, and really out of control – So be careful and gather as much information as you can.
This does not apply to most contractors throughout the country. If you are a plumber working in Atlanta Georgia, with five or six people working for you, you’re not working with a union. This is a whole other deal. Unions are people who are working on hospitals, and civic center buildings who have the money to pay for this kind of operation. It cost a lot more to hire people in a union.
I can go on and on about problems I have seen with the union, but at the same time, they do serve their purpose. If you are a contractor and you think you may be able to make a few more dollars if you go into a union, by all means do so. Just make sure you know what you are getting into, because the last thing you want is to enter a union and not be able to get out.
Check my blogs weekly at Alexfiglioliajr.com, for more tips about contracting and plumbing or
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Untitled
Predict the Ratings for 'Wicked City' and World Series Game 1 - TV Media Insights - TV Ratings & News - Network TV Show Reviews and Daily Ratings « TV Media Insights - TV Ratings & News - Network TV Show Reviews and Daily Ratings - http://bit.ly/1KFTH8c
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Untitled
Jay Z & Blue Ivy Dedicate Songs to Beyonce on her B-Day | Angie Martinez on Power 105.1 FM - http://bit.ly/1iimAAP
Monday, February 1, 2016
If you have to ask how to estimate, you shouldn’t be in business
If you have to ask the question, how do I estimate, you shouldn’t be in the contracting or plumbing business. If you want to learn how to estimate, my response to that is that you should have gathered enough experience by now working for other contractors. If neither applies, I suggest purchasing books about the trade. Hopefully you will get enough information that will help you.
For me, it may take fifteen minutes or fifteen hours to give a proper estimate. It’s hard to go into detail about all the little things you need to know. For someone like me who is in general contracting and plumbing, doing home repairs, replacing windows, or pouring concrete, may be a little easier for you to figure out mathematically. Add up the cost of your materials and the time that you will need to complete the job, and use this information to bid the next jobs. After about four or five estimates, you will be able to develop an average price, or at least get a better idea of what you should be charging for your jobs.
If you are searching for answers to this question, it tells me that you do not have enough experience in the plumbing and contracting business, and probably shouldn’t be estimating. You are taking a big risk estimating without knowing what you are doing. It’s just like rolling the dice, not knowing what number you will land on.
With that said, read some books, get as many as you can. These books that are twenty dollars may have five thousand dollars worth of knowledge in them. The second thing is experience; If you are working with someone, see if you can go to a couple jobs with them to better understand the process. They might not be willing to teach. If that is the case, than gather as much information from the books as you can.
Read my weekly blogs, at alexfiglioliajr.com for more insider tips.
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