Though it may be early in the year, it is never too early to start getting ready for Christmas. If you are someone that has a lot of friends and family members, then Christmas can be difficult on your bank account, especially when you buy the majority of the gifts close to Christmas.

Though it can be tempting to just put it off until the end of the year, this will put a lot of pressure on you and you may not have as much time as you would like to decide on what to get everyone.

If you start getting the gifts much earlier, you have way more time to put thought into what you are buying and make sure that you get everyone a gift that they will like.

If you have a friend that is really into comedy, then you may be lost on what to get them. It doesn’t feel right to get such a fun and vibrant person a boring gift and so you are likely trying to put a lot of thought into what you can get them.

If you have come across this article, then you have probably found yourself at a loss and you are desperate for some inspiration. Here is what to buy your comedy mad friends this Christmas.

A Ticket to a Comedy Gig

If your friend is into comedy, it is likely that they have a few favorite comedians that they really enjoy. You will be glad to know that most comedians spend the majority of the year touring, as this is the main way that they make money.

A lot of comedians especially tour towards the end of the year, as this is when the weather starts to get a little colder and everyone would rather find indoor entertainment. If you do not want to get your friend some material possessions, you can instead get both of you tickets to go and see a comedian that your friend likes.

Seeing a live comedy show is a great way to burn off steam and have a good laugh. Going with a close friend only makes going to a comedy show funner, as you can both bounce off each other’s reactions and add your own commentary to the evening.

The best thing about comedy shows is that they are usually quite cheap, depending on who you are going to see. There are a lot of underground comedy gigs that only cost a couple of dollars to enter and it this is a great way to find new comedians that you may not have heard of before.

A Book of Pick Up Lines

If you have a friend that loves comedy, but has a pretty sad dating life, something that you can buy them is a book of pick up lines. If your friend is into comedy, they can probably take a joke and they will not be offended if you get them a book full of pickup lines.

You can find a number of different books with different styles of humor. If your friend is into cheesy jokes, then you can find a pickup line book that offers this. If your friend is into more risque jokes, you can buy them a pick-up line book that is full of up to 200 pick up lines from places like Amazon and other online stores.

Joke Set

Most people with a good sense of humor love a good prank. If you think back to your childhood, you probably remember all of the sets that you could buy which were full of pranks and fun props that you could use to fool people.

Though you may think that these sets are slightly infantile, they are good fun and they are bound to have your friend in stitches. Everyone likes to be silly every now and again and we all like pulling pranks on our friends.

If you do get them this gift, try not to peep at what the box has inside it. It won’t make it fun if you know all of the pranks that the box has and it will be much more exciting if you do not know about it, as this means that you could be caught out by the jokes.

The growth of a business is a continuous process and this depends on how you operate the business.

The operation technique of a business requires strategic planning to ensure that every area of the business is fully managed.

A business is made up of several areas. While all these areas contribute to the growth of the business, some areas are more essential than others.

These essential areas require more investments. Investment in this context is not just about the monetary aspect. Quality time investment is also required.

Read on to learn about the 6 key areas of business you need to invest in to grow your business.

Marketing

Having loyal customers adds greatly to the growth of the business, however, a steady inflow of new customers guarantees the growth of the business.

Marketing is a key factor in reaching out to your target audience. You are required to invest in the marketing aspect of your business to increase sales.

Pay for Ads and even invest in a good marketing team if you can afford to do so.

Finance

The financial aspect of a business is one of the major key players that determine the growth of the business.

A business requires significant financing to function. Ensure that your business is properly funded and operates on a strong finance system.

Get a qualified accountant to assist with the management of your finances, if you lack the skills to do so yourself.

Hygiene

As long as you have a business space with employees and customers walking in and out of it, you need to ensure that it is kept clean at all times.

Owning a business in an environment crawling with pests, requires more good hygiene maintenance. Pests are known to spread germs that can affect human health.

For more productive pest control measures, find exterminators for pests in Cheektowaga to help maintain a healthy work environment if your business is located in Buffalo, NY.

Staffing

This is under the human resource area. As your business grows, you are to ensure that you have capable hands to assist with running the business.

Understaffing is never a good way to operate a business. Doing so will only make the existing staff overwork themselves, which leads them to be less productive.

When your staff members are less productive, it affects the growth of your business.

Another great way to enable the growth of your business is by ensuring that your employees are qualified for their job roles.

Avoid being sentimental during your staff selection process. Employ only qualified and skilled workers.

Invest in improving the skills of your staff too. Organize staff training once in a while, to keep them updated on the current trends around your business. You also need to take part in the training sessions to enhance your skills too.

Customer service

This is a significant area of business. Customer service includes;

• The quality of products and services provided for your customers
• The way and manner you attend to your customers
• Your response speed

Poorly rendered customer service will reflect negatively on the business. Try to keep your customers satisfied and happy with your services at all times.

A satisfied customer is likely to refer family and friends to your business. More customers equals more sales.

Technology and equipment

Investment in technology and equipment to enhance your business performance. In today’s world, the need for technology is almost unavoidable in the business space.

Invest in having a strong online presence for your business. With this, you can reach out to prospective customers from various locations.

Enhanced equipment and technology enable you to work smart and work less. You do not need to invest in anything overly expensive, invest in what your company can afford.

Conclusion

If you have limited resources to invest in the areas of your business listed above, you can try to manage the available resources.

One way to go about it is by going for cost-effective options. Avoid putting your business through any financial strain.

Some areas do not require financial investment, all they need is your time and focus. Use those areas to make up for your financial shortcomings.

Your business is sure to experience growth if you follow the above guidelines.

Over the past three years, the coronavirus pandemic has affected every aspect of life in our society. Whether it be because of government lockdowns limiting social interactions or COVID itself forcing isolation and restricting the possibility of in-person activities, the pandemic is still causing problems. Most of the coverage regarding the social damage caused by COVID-19 focused on businesses but another group of people has been profoundly affected by the changes incurred by this worldwide pandemic, students.

Lockdowns, coronavirus symptoms, and online learning are some of the many changes that both students and teachers have had to learn to live with. Though the question remains, what are the real impacts of these life changes on students, learning, and specifically how does it affect academic performances ahead of exam seasons?

While vaccination rates have increased the possibility for in-person learning, the first three years of the pandemic have been a massive challenge for students and educators all around the world. COVID-19 has not only created massive gaps in learning for large groups of students, but it has also exposed the massive gap in learning when it comes to different income brackets all across the United States. These gaps did exist before the pandemic, but they have been massively widened.

Low-income schools, which already had to deal with inflated dropping-out rates, have seen these statistics increase especially for high schoolers and specifically high school seniors. A lot of the issues that students have to deal with often aren’t only at school. The impact of COVID at home also reduces the opportunities for students. The death of family members, medical issues caused by a coronavirus, and the lowering of income due to reducing in-person work also affect the dropout rates.

Drop-out rates are part of the large problem of unfinished learning which leads to fewer eventual work opportunities. The effect on students is then shown to not only be affecting their grades or attendance but their work prospects in later adulthood. The worry becomes not only the lack of professional learning but also the reduced general household income of the current generation of students. Lower household income leading to lower quality of life also increases the income gap, especially for schools and communities that are already at a financial disadvantage.

From a human standpoint, the fear is that this will push back the progress done in general education rates but also create a vicious cycle of ever lowing opportunities for those that were once already disadvantaged before the pandemic and face even more challenging times now that the pandemic has left its mark on these communities.

In 2021 studies were conducted at the elementary school level to compare the performances of students in the spring to the average performances recorded in the years before the pandemic. Unsurprisingly, students of the previous years had significantly higher scores. The 2021 student sample showed a decrease of 10 points when it came to math learning and a decrease of 9 points in reading.

According to that model, comparing the learning rate of the two cohorts, the 2021 group would be behind by 5 months when it came to mathematics and 4 months in reading. The study shows once again that low-income students also have bigger gaps in learning and on average would be around 6 months behind in math and reading. Showing once again how the pandemic has put students at all levels at a disadvantage when it comes to overall learning.

When it comes to college students many studies both in the United States and Canada have shown an increased risk for mental health issues. The pandemic caused many students to grow fatigued and feel isolated from their peers. These feelings of loneliness and isolation lead many young adults to increase their alcohol and drug consumption often to treat symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Additionally, academic pressure and increased screen time have been found to worsen sleeping patterns, increase feelings of fatigue, and exacerbate mental illness symptoms. In some of the worst cases, some students have also shown symptoms of PTSD after dealing with high levels of stress or living through the loss of friends or family to COVID-19.

The pandemic has affected students from elementary school to high-level university and caused many delays in usual curriculums. At all levels, students have been put at a disadvantage especially when it comes to exams and general performances. To close your learning gap, you can look for support online.

There are many ways to contact tutors, may it be through your schools or private means, you can find a NYC LSAT tutor here or someone who can help your elementary school-aged child with their math exams or reading assignments. Tutoring is an option for all levels of learning. So, whether it be academic difficulties or mental health issues, there are always ways to seek out help to close the learning gap or make learning easier.