INPUT ARTICLE: Article: To determine the winner of the bake off, you’ll need at least one judge to taste and evaluate the baked goods. Ideally, the judge(s) should have some baking knowledge and experience, but that doesn’t necessarily have to be as a professional.  The judges shouldn't have any personal connections to the contests to avoid any claims of bias. In general, the more participants your bake off has, the more judges you’ll want. A panel of three judges works well for most bake offs, though. If your bake off has five or less participants, though, a single judge is usually sufficient. For five to ten candidates, two judges work well. People who would make good candidates for judges include local bakery and restaurant owners, culinary teachers from local schools, or bakers who've won other bake offs. When you're talking to potential judges, you might say something like, "We're holding a bake off and would really like your expertise in judging the entries." If you're holding the event to raise money for a cause, provide information about the organization or group that will benefit to the potential judges. A bake off can’t happen if there aren’t bakers to participate. Ask friends, family, co-workers, and/or classmates who you know enjoy baking to take part. You can also create flyers with all of the details to post in your neighborhood, on your school or office bulletin board, or other locations to invite people to participate.  Make sure to get permission before you post any flyers on private property, such as a store window. If you’re active on social media, you can also post online about the bake off to find participants. For example, making a Facebook event for the bake off is a good way to generate buzz. You can also use Twitter and Instagram to do a countdown to the event as a way to keep people interested. It’s not necessary, but it can be fun to have an audience to attend the bake off. Once you’ve secured participants, create a flyer that advertises the event for anyone who might like to watch and post them in your neighborhood and/or school or office bulletin board. If you’re holding the bake off as a fundraiser, you can sell tickets to the event. You can charge however much you like for the tickets, but it's best to keep the price between $5 and $10.

SUMMARY: Select at least one judge for the bake off. Find participants for the bake off. Invite people to watch the bake off.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Each girl is different and has different needs than other girls. It can often be insulting to a girl to assume that she likes certain things just because she’s a girl. This implies that all girls are basically the same, which is not true. You have to understand that every girl has her own unique personality before you will be able to respect her needs and opinions. Think about the assumptions you make regarding girls, and work to overcome them. If a girl’s needs are unclear to you, ask her what she needs. You will not always understand the emotions of another person. This often comes to light when boys and girls struggle to understand each other’s perspectives and feelings. Even if she doesn’t feel the way you think she should, or you don’t understand how she came to feel the way she does, you have to acknowledge that it is how she feels. Her feelings are valid and do not need to meet your criteria to be important.  Ask her things like “How does this make you feel?” When she answers, listen and don't disregard her feelings by saying something like “Well, that doesn’t make any sense.”  Show empathy and provide emotional validation. For example, you can say something like, "It sounds like you had a tough day. It must've felt awful to sit through that meeting/class." First of all, when showing a girl respect, understand that she is her own person in charge of her own happiness. Her happiness is not in your hands. That said, when a girl decides to trust you or lean on you, try your best to meet her needs. Be supportive in tough situations, and encourage her every day. Again, you can always ask her what she needs if you are unsure.

SUMMARY: Avoid generalizing all girls into the same categories. Acknowledge that her emotions are valid. Attempt to meet her needs.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: In the early stages of your business, you will need to rely on small scale activities like fliers, or going door to door.  Advertising using social media can also be a good, cheap way to get some early advertising through friends and other acquaintances. Utilize social media to find new customers. You can establish Facebook page showcasing your work, and use business networking sites like LinkedIn and Google Plus. Look for sites where people search for services, like Angie's List and Yelp, and encourage your customers to post reviews there. These can be local groups like  the Chamber of Commerce, or larger trade organizations. Local business groups can keep you connected to local businesses that may need your landscaping expertise, or can provide additional services to your company. Regional and national trade organizations allow you to keep up to date with changes in the business, and can provide additional opportunities for education. Look for other kinds of design or installation you can do to expand your customer base. Continuing education courses that you take through maintaining your contractor license can be a good opportunity to learn new skills that your customers will want to take advantage of. One good niche to move into is "interior-scaping". There are opportunities available for businesses that can manage the greenery of indoor spaces, such as malls or office buildings. You will want to know the type of plants best suited to the environment and will be visually appealing with the building's design. There can be quite a bit of overlap in this kind of work with that of a more general interior decorator. To get bigger, you may consider branching out into more advanced projects through landscape architecture. If you don't have a bachelor's degree, you can get one in Landscape Architecture (BLA or BSLA). There are further programs for a Masters in Landscape Architecture (MLA), which will differ depending on your undergraduate degree.  The American Society of Landscape Architecture has a listing of accredited schools, both in-person and online, where you can earn these degrees. There is an additional MA/MS in Landscape Architecture, but that degree is better suited for someone who wants to do research in the field, not be a professional. The toughest part about growing as a landscaping business is that you will not be able to do all of the design and landscaping work. Instead, you will need to rely on your employees to keep up the quality that attracted customers in the first place. Make sure your business has design and work processes in place for everyone to follow, and perhaps a designated management team to help carry them out. Find ways to keep the best employees. Landscaping and lawn care are high turnover businesses. You need to find ways to keep your best employees, as they provide additional skills that allow you to attract more customers, and may not be easily replaceable. Finding ways for them to stay with the company, while still having room to grow, will help maintain standards and quality.

SUMMARY:
Advertise. Join business organizations. Add a new niche. Get a degree in landscape architecture. Develop processes to maintain quality.