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Leash training your dog can be a “walk in the park” if you know the right things to do. On the other hand, it can be a grueling ordeal if your dog continually fights the leash and misbehaves. Walking your dog can be a great way to establish and maintain a positive relationship with your dog if you follow some simple steps.

We’ve all seen dogs dragging their owners down the street at the end of the leash, desperate to get to their favorite bush, fire hydrant or park bench so they can read the p-mails left by other dogs – and, of course, leave one of their own!  And if you’re the owner of a dog that has a mind of his own when walking, you’re no doubt frazzled and frustrated, and you possibly dread this daily event.

Don’t “push and pull.” Refuse to walk with your dog if he insists on pulling you down the walkway. Plant your feet firmly in the ground, lean back to get leverage, and refuse to budge until your dog gives the leash some slack and comes closer to you.

Make walking by your side a positive experience. Screaming “heel” or “pull” at your dog does not work and is certainly not fun.  Instead, some experts recommend randomly rewarding your dog with a tasty treat when he’s by your side as you reinforce his behavior with the word “close.” Don’t use the word “good dog” because your dog has no idea what he did that was good so how can he repeat it?

Once your dog begins to walk consistently at your side you can begin dishing out a series of 5-7 random treats along the way.  You could also bring his favorite toy and reward him when you get to the park by allowing him to play with it.

Most experts agree that choke collars and collars with prongs do not belong in dog training. These devices can cause your dog pain. Using painful tactics only teaches a dog to be fearful of you rather than strengthening your relationship. Instead, use a normal flat collar and exercise control through verbal reinforcement and treats.

Keep the same length of leash at all times. To keep your dog from pulling on his leash, you must teach him that he only has a certain length available and that you’re in control of it. It’s also a mistake to use a retractable leash while you’re training him and you should save it for use once he has learned how to walk correctly by your side and not you pull you down the street.

When you hold the leash with only your hand, it’s easy for your dog to pull away by forcing you to extend your arm.  To avoid this, keep both hands free, which will assist you in planting your body when he’s pulling.  Slipping the end of a sturdy belt through the loop end of the leash, and fastening it around your waist will assist you in holding your dog near your side.

Remember to hold your ground when your dog pulls on the leash. Stopping, planting your feet and lowering your center of gravity will help you to hold your ground. Your dog must learn that the walk will only continue if he is not pulling on his leash and on you. Resume walking only after your dog stops pulling on the leash. As soon as he backs up – even a little bit- creating some slack on the leash, resume the walk with the phrase “let’s walk.” Continuing to hold your ground each time he pulls and continuing to walk only after he has backed up and allowed slack on the leash will eventually result in correct walking.  As your dog walks correctly down the street with you, remember to repeat the word “walk,” reinforcing his behavior.

Talk to your dog and praise him constantly along the way. This is a great way to keep him in tune with you and your pace.  If you don’t pay attention to your dog, the message he will receive is that he’s on his own and can do whatever he pleases. Ignoring your dog when he’s walking correctly and only giving him attention when he walks incorrectly will only lead to more unwanted behavior just to get noticed by you! So, remember to give your dog undivided attention during your daily walks. Cell phones will have to stay at home!

By following these recommendations consistently and patiently, you’ll soon experience increased pleasure in walking your dog and the two of you will look forward to these walks with enthusiasm!

Then the day comes when hes ready to put down the money for the ideal house which needs an urgent make over. Remembering the business card, he takes it out in order to contact the architect and ask some questions about pricing and schedules. And then he finds out that whoever designed the architects business card left off the website address and phone number

Now admittedly this is an extreme case but is it beyond the realms of possibility What this example does is to illustrate the central law of business cards, however imaginative their design, dont let yours, or your designers creativity get in the way of your goal. Your goal isnt to design a great business card; its to let people know about your business and they can quickly and easily get hold of you.

Business cards  most entrepreneurs have them but have you ever thought what makes a successful business card Of all the key considerations probably the most important and least exciting is that of clarity.

Im sure you have received Business Cards and had to stare at it for a few seconds just to find the contact details amongst all the glitzy design work

To see why clarity is so important imagine this case. An architecture firm designs a business card for their services, and does a good job of making cards available to ideal contacts. One such contact gets a copy of the business card. The card features a bold typeface, a beautifully photographed image of one of the architects more famous buildings, and a memorable slogan. Excellent, thinks the prospective client Ill keep them in mind and put it in a safe place for when I need it.

Any good business card, in order to be clear, will include the following information

• The business name even if its just your name.
• A brief description of the business, or the services offered.
• Contact information such as your telephone numbers, website, email and even your Facebook or Twitter details

Although this sounds fairly straightforward, two caveats apply. Resist the temptation to get too fancy with the description of your business: youre designing a business card, not writing a resume. Something like Jeffrey X, Designer of Images To Fuel The Imagination Of A Newborn Millennium is more likely to confuse your potential contact than delight him or her, and can possibly make you look less like an effective artist and more like a flake. Something like Jeffrey X, Artist works perfectly well  simple, clear and straight to the point.

Secondly, make sure that you not only include your contact information, but that you prioritise the information so that youll be able to make the best use of. For example, if your email account is set up to automatically process enquiries from clients via say an autoresponder a request to fill in a more details form, dont place your phone number above your email account on your business card. The email is more important to you, so put that first.

In fact, if you dont particularly want to be contacted through certain channels for example, if your only phone is a family line or if your only email account is also the email account you use for Mailing Lists and online forum updates, don’t include it at all. Its better to remove any chance of potential customers being disappointed with their first contact experience with you.

These ommissions might turn away one or two people over the course of your business cards life, but its unlikely that itll put a momentous dent in your business success path As long as you either have a phone number, a website address, or an email address for your contacts, theyll be able to contact you on the terms you set.

Dont feel compelled to include each of these three types if you cant effectively respond to enquiries for each not offering your clients a phone number is much more professional than offering them a phone number that you never answer or your five year old picks up

So, you can see that there is a lot to consider when you are designing your perfect business card.