Winning NHS Contracts

Through his company Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett has averaged a return of 20.3% per annum since 1965. This may not sound like much, but when compounded (if you are not sure what compounding is, read about it here) over the years he has been actively investing, this is HUGE, in fact this is a return of 336,000% - yes you read that correctly. This phenomenal growth in his company made him the world's richest man in 2008, in 2009 he is now second, only to his mate Bill Gates. You can see Warren Buffet's performance in investing in detail here, in his famous annual letter to shareholders.

Warren Buffett's number one rule is "Never Lose Money". His second rule is, "Never forget rule number one!". Through such an approach to investing and buying businesses he has managed to beat Wall Street.

To read and learn about his other rules click here, they make interesting reading and watching.

But what does he do with his money? Well he appears to live a pretty frugal existence, going to the local diners, and playing online bridge, but also one of capitalisms most successful men, gives much of his money away. He has bequeathed around £19bn to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

If you look at his website for Berkshire Hathaway, interestingly it is very simple indeed. No fancy graphics or flash animation, just blue writing on a white background. You could call it pretty unimaginative or dreary, but from his perspective, he feels he does not need to spend unnecessary money on such detail, when he can deliver returns of over 20% per annum to his investors.

Now this is an interesting point that perhaps we could all learn from. Rather than making ourselves look nice and paint a nice veneer, perhaps we should all, myself included, look at how we manage our costs.

Warren has certainly mastered the art of how to manage his costs, not just on his website but across his entire organisation. He still answers the phone in his office and has no computer in his office. What could you do in your life? �

Winning NHS Contracts �

To win an NHS Contract is no easy feat. In principle, one would think it would be a matter of filling a few forms and then hey a few meetings later and then you will have been awarded a contract. But sadly, in this competitive world this is no longer the case. The process is extensive, with a significant amount of time and resources required to even submit a worthy submission.

Even after you have gone through the PQQ, ITT etc stages, there is still no guarantee that you will be awarded the contract. In fact, i have seen many dentists who have submitted such tenders fail. Their submissions usually look pretty good, with all the clinical and patient centred activities well thought through and argued. However, it is usually the pricing of the UDA's where i have seen them lose at the last hurdle. Either pricing the UDA's too high, putting them out of the game in the early stages, or alternatively pricing them too lowly, making the venture pretty unfeasible over the long term. Although PCT's want to ensure they are looking for good value for money, my gut feel is they are looking for the most, for the cheapest, wouldn't you?

Many a times, i feel this is not necessarily good business sense for dentists, yet they continue with the contract, until further down the line certain problems arise such as cashflow and cost management problems or the claw back of UDA's. Many a time claw back has meant the final nail in the coffin for the practitioner, but do the PCT really care? Probably not.

So what is the solution? Well in my opinion the answer lies in understanding your cost base in detail before entering such PCT tenders (If Warren Buffett was a dentist i reckon he certainly would understand his projected costs!). By understanding your cost model, you can then determine a break even point, which can then translate into a break even point per UDA. Any price above the break even UDA value is then profit. However, when financial modelling such scenarios, one must take into many assumptions in the model, such as:

• Probable private income. If you price your UDA low, to be very competitive, could you earn a good amount from private dentistry?
• Expected opening hours. If they require an emergency service have you factored in paying more for dentists working sunday evenings?
• Dental Healthcare Promotion. What do the PCT require? How much will this cost you in terms of time and money? ...

Winning an NHS contract is very possible, but in my experience, one must be very careful as to what you sign up to. It may look like a good deal in the beginning, with big figures, but if you have not considered all the financial implications and considered all of your costs and appropriately priced this into your tender, you could be asking for trouble. For those who do the math up front, we usually see a successful NHS practice.

At Samera, we have a team, who not only understand the full cost base of dentistry but also can help with the financial models you require to assess if the venture is right for you. For more information about how the Samera team can help you win the right NHS tenders for you visit here. We can help with the full submission process, or alternatively with building a realistic financial model for your needs.

Give a Little Love 2009

The momentum is gathering, the gifts are slowly beginning to trickle in, we just now need you to help us put as a many smiles on disadvantaged kids faces this Christmas. To get involved, inspire your team and community and find out more how this all works, visit www.givealittlelove.org.uk.

Why Get Involved? Simply, to help others less fortunate, BUT also help your team forge even stronger alliances amongst themselves and your patients. You can read and watch how our team greatly benefitted from this campaign in 2008 here! Go on get involved, and have a laugh at me make a fool of myself online with my kick off video!

Master your Wealth- 4th December 2009- 100% Money Back Guarantee

Finally, this is your last chance this year to learn about how to take control of your own financial investments and destiny in my "Master your Wealth" course. From 2010, i will be increasing the fee significantly from £250+VAT to well over £1000+VAT in 2010, and i will only be doing it once in 2010. Why? Well I know the content is priceless, but ultimately it is about stepping up in your own life and implementing change to grow your wealth. A few have already started off on this journey, if you want to come along for the ride, book your space, before the big price rise in 2010. Take a look at this recent blog post of mine which details some of the tools and techniques i personally use to manage my own money.

To make your booking click here. I am so certain you will find such value, that i am happy to even offer a 100% money back guarantee if after the morning session you feel you are not on the right course. At the lunchtime break you just need to hand your course notes back and we will offer you a full refund there and then if you wish for a full refund. Go on step up, you will not regret it!

Can't make it fairer than that!

Have a brilliant weekend!

Arun Mehra FCA

P.S . Not downloaded our latest Full Incorporation Study?...Then get it here!

The Tools I Use To Invest

I thought it would be useful for readers to understand how I manage my own money, from a practical point of view. All too often one does not know what tools to use to manage one's own money as there are so many to look at, and so many that can confuse.

I outline below some of the low cost tools I use to help me invest and trade. However, it is well worth spending a little bit of money so you have these key tools to make smart and quick decisions. I use these tools regularly and now are integrated into my lifestyle of growing my own wealth.

In no particular order, these are some of the tools you will require:

On line Broker

I use on line broker TD Waterhouse to buy and sell my shares. www.tdwaterhouse.co.uk. They are a pretty large broker (known as a a Ameritrade in the US) and have access to most well known markets including the US. They normally charge £12.50 per trade (buying or selling) irrespective of the size of trade, whether it is £1000 in value or £100000! However, if you trade regularly the charge does fall to £9.95 per trade.

I don't use them for any advice, they are my execution broker online. In addition, i subscribe to their live pricing feed for the London Stock Exchange which costs me around £50 a quarter. If however, you do a lot of trades you can even get this free of charge. Is it worth having live prices? Absolutely, as sometimes on a trade you may get in and out within minutes after taking your profit! There are some other good companies out there too, such as e-trade, self trade etc.

However, for the US markets (which open at 2.30pm UK time at the moment), you do not need to subscribe to live pricing as this is free on sites such as www.google.com/finance (see below), but bear in mind if you want more detailed information about US market trading activity then it maybe best to subscribe accordingly to a site. However, a site like Options Express (see below) will provide usually enough information free.

Although i use TD Waterhouse for most of my trades including US trades, i also have a separate US broker known as Options Express. I have not used them much but they seem pretty good too.


Technology

I have a separate netbook which is just used to getting my live pricing on. I find having a separate PC, with this live data, much easier to us. I have a Dell netbook which costs me around £20 a month (for 2 years) from Vodafone which includes a good 3G allowance too ( you can get them even cheaper now). This can connect to a wi-fi connection too, where i can log on and get my live pricing if necessary.

I have an Iphone too, which has prices of shares that come directly via bloomberg. Pretty good too, but there is a 15 min delay in UK pricing.

Key Websites

Most of my research comes from the web. I use the following free websites:

1. www.google.com/finance - for US and International company information
2. www.google.co.uk/finance - for UK company information and news
3. www.yahoo.com/finance - for US and International company information

The above 3 websites are free and excellent. They act as an aggregator of information which then you can read as you wish. In addition, each stock you maybe following usually has a discussion board....which usually are pretty interesting to read. However beware, some postings are dubious at the best of times!

In particular I use the google sites for charting. They have a great free facility to be able to see the charts of the shares but also allow you to see key technical analysis too.

I also use:

1. www.iii.co.uk - for more information about UK companies and associated discussion boards
2. www.bloomberg.com - for breaking and up to date financial news
3. www.ft.com - for UK and international news

So what next?

Ok you have the account, the technology and know where to find information about companies, then you need to start choosing stocks and shares to invest in!

Most people never get to this stage as they feel that it is too difficult or they think it is easier to get their financial advisor to manage their finances. But my experience has shown that if you can get the above set up for yourself, then you can actively start trading and investing for you! If I can do it, so can you! And i would strongly suggest you take control of your own investment strategy. A good individual investor can usually beat the Professional Fund Manager!

How To Beat The Market!

The last six months have been a great six months for both active and passive investors. I had every intention of blogging about my investment strategies and sharing my thoughts with all. However, rather than blog, i decided, i would just get on with making some brilliant returns, and they have been brilliant. Therefore no time for blogging. Sorry.

I am sort of the person that believes rather than talk a good story, the best way to show to others is actually do it. Whether it is dental practices or trading shares, i would only expect others to do what i say if i have actually done it myself. Far too often, i hear and read of people doing what experts tell them, yet the expert has never actually done what they are suggesting. My brief time as a Management Consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers and an analyst in the City taught me how to be a master of consultancy and analysis, however, i have only become a strong investor in business and shares by doing it myself (and of course by making plenty of mistakes!).

In this edition of our newsletter, you can read my piece about "How to beat the market! - Passive vs Active vs DIY Investing". In particular I highlight the benefits of DIY investing (assuming you know what you are doing) as opposed to investing in managed of tracker funds. I genuinely believe and feel that most individuals can manage their own funds and grow their own weatlh smartly, as opposed to using funds that charge and take away a lot of the returns. If you like what i say in this piece, and want to know more then i would suggest you then join us on our "Master your Wealth" day on the 30th October 2009. If you want to take control of your own financial well being, and not leave it to so-called experts, this day will be the impetus for you to do it! This will be a very small group, for more details and to book click here.

Passive vs Active vs DIY Investing

I personally don’t understand why people invest in ‘tracker’ funds. Why pay someone just to replicate the performance of the index?

A friend I was talking to the other day was singing the praises of this kind of ‘passive’ investing. He made the point that you may as well go passive since few active fund managers can beat the index over a sustained period. And that’s fair enough.

But to me it misses an even more important point. You don’t need to settle for market-tracking returns. It’s perfectly possible for individual investors like you and me to beat both passive and active funds by picking suitable stocks.

Let me show you what I mean...

There’s little doubt that index, or passive funds are a much better bet than actively managed funds. John Bogle, who founded the well-regarded Vanguard Group of index tracking funds in the US, has done a detailed comparison. The arguments in favour of index funds over actively managed funds are convincing.

Most actively managed funds don't beat the market in the long run

For example, he followed all 355 equity funds existing in 1970 over the period from 1970 to 2005. Of these, 223 did not survive to 2005. Only 24 of the remaining 132 beat the market by at least 1% per year. Just nine of those 24 beat the market by at least 2% per year and two beat it by 3% or more.

Choosing one of the few outperforming funds also proved to be difficult. Bogle looked at the 20 top performing funds in each year from 1995 to 2005. He found that the average rank of these top 20 funds in each following year was 619! In other words, if you bought one of the best funds one year, it often ended up being among the worst funds the following year.

One of the reasons the funds did so badly is their high costs, which are compounded over the years. Another reason is that funds advertise most heavily when the markets are reaching a peak. That means most investors invest more when shares are expensive rather than cheap.

Finally, large funds find it hard to invest in the stocks that are most likely to show the best share price growth. This is one area where smart individual investors have a serious advantage over fund managers. Here’s why. Let’s assume that a fund manager has 50 stocks in a £1bn fund. That is £20m per company on average. Now the manager will probably not want to own too large a percentage of any one company’s shares. This means that for a £20m holding that's worth, say, 3% of a company, he is limited to stocks with market caps over £660m. This figure will be even higher for a larger fund.

This means the fund must concentrate mainly on larger companies – the FTSE 100 if it is a UK fund. Indeed, many so-called active funds are just ‘closet’ trackers but with charges much higher than those of any tracker.

Every investor looking to beat the market consistently should avoid these funds - they can be dangerous.

The Best Way to Consistently Beat the Market

So we can see that index trackers are a smarter play than actively managed funds. However, there’s no need for you to settle for simply tracking the market. Because you have several advantages over the average fund manager that should enable you to beat the market. These advantages include the freedom to pick stocks from any sector and any market, right down to the smallest micro-cap. And you do not charge yourself any initial or annual fund charges.

You also have an advantage over the index fund because you can decide how much you invest in any single company. The index fund has to invest in proportion to the company’s market cap.

But of course, these advantages only give you better performance if you pick stocks wisely. There are a few simple rules to follow that will help in this. Of course, a company’s valuation needs to be reasonable to start with. But there are other important things to consider.

The first rule is to select companies with financial strength – look at the balance sheet and cash carefully. Secondly, make sure the company is growing profitably and has a leading market position in its niche. And thirdly, make sure that it is doing well in overseas markets as well as the UK – there is much more risk if a company is limited to the UK market.

But perhaps most importantly, the company also needs to have a sustainable edge in its market. This usually means it re-invests in its own future. Put another way, it is sufficiently profitable to be able to invest a sizeable chunk of its revenues in new products and services coming out of research and development. This kind of re-investment can have a dramatic positive impact on the share price down the line.

If you want to know more and learn about some of the keys to successful investment plus my investment allocation strategy come along on the 30th October. For more details and to book click here. I will share with you in detail how big my returns have been in the last 6 months, plus all the strategies i employ to grow my own wealth as a DIY investor.

Happy Investing and Reading!

Arun Mehra FCA �

How to add £100k to your top line

My latest Samera Newsletter....i hope you enjoy it. Click here to read it!

Has the market peaked?

Has the market peaked?

As an active personal investor in the stock market, this recent unprecedented rally is looking rather top heavy in my humble opinion. The markets have taken some good profits reported by most of the banks and used this as an impetus for rising. In addition, certain key data regarding unemployment in the US was more positive than expected. However, as a keen observer, markets always over-react to news - in a good and bad way.

My feeling it is doing this now too, and that the market is due some sort of correction soon. When? I have no crystal ball, but fundamentally the US and UK commercial and residential property market plus their economies are still weak, no matter how much money is pumped into the economy the fundamentals are still weak.

Unemployment is rising, banks are still hesitant to lend to small businesses, public spending is high...so fundamentally still many problems do exist. This rapid growth in the markets will no doubt come down with a bang very soon, in my humble opinion.

However, you can still make money in a downturn too - you just need to short the stocks or indices!

Happy investing and trading

Setting Up In Practice in a Recession

Setting Up In Practice in a Recession

Over the last few weeks i have been visiting many high streets across the country, and as you have probably noticed already, many of the units in many shopping centres are now empty. This recession has forced the closure of many well established names including our beloved Woolies. In many thriving centres, Lidl, Aldi Iceland, and Wilkinson's are opening up, changing the face of UK High Street. In fact, since the demise of Woolies, 7 out of 10 of its stores still remain empty, with such discount retailers taking Woolies old prime sites.

The UK High Street is undergoing a revolution, as consumers search for better value, much of the time online. Most well known department stores, once the preserve of higher prices, all price match on the Internet now. They have to, else the customer will go somewhere cheaper.

However, this shift in profile of the high street, in my opinion, will mean a change in how UK High Street will look in the next 5-10 years. I believe increasingly local councils will change their planning needs, as many shop units remain empty. This presents an opportunity for any budding dentist, as i personally feel over the next few years it will be easier to get change of use from shop status to dental practice status. The future of the UK High Street will include many more service oriented businesses, whilst the shopper shifts their spending on commodities onto the Internet. The high street will be dominated by large company brands and service oriented businesses, such as opticians, dentists and even doctors. Customers will come to the high street for big brands and their services.

As i mentioned, this represents an opportunity for those entrepreneurial service providers. Although rents will be higher in such prime locations (compared to off high street locations), such locations usually justify the prices charged. Being in the centre of the action, where the potential for greater footfall is usually so much higher is usually worth the extra spend. I have seen this in many of our clients who sit in such high street locations.

Location, location, location is ultimately the best marketing investment.

So what should you do now?

Well, as i have said many a time, opportunities don't hang around. Whilst times are tough (especially for commercial landlords) it is a good time to try and get a bargain and set up your own practice. Will it be easy to do? No, but rarely are the great things in life easy.

So if you are one of those dentists wanting to make that move but still feel scared about doing it, good, that is exactly how you should feel. Setting up a practice is not easy, and it is definitely for everyone, however the potential returns can be great, personally and financially.

If you take no risk, the rewards will be minimal, but if you take some risk (managed properly) the potential upside is big. So if you have some savings, lets £50k, you could put it in a savings account and after 5 years, with current interest rates have around £56k. Alternatively, if you use these savings, use your skills of dentistry, raise some finance and combine that with some business and entrepreneurial flair, that £50k could be worth much nearer £500k after 5 years (assuming you set up a 2 surgery practice)! That's not a bad return in anyone's book.

Of course, it isn't so simple, else every dentist and his nurse would be doing this. But if you want to get on board, and take that massive step to setting up your own practice, then you need to come along our "Setting Up In Practice" event on Friday 18th September in London. This is the only event of its type we are holding this year, so don' t miss it.

In this one day event, we will cover all the aspects of setting up a successful practice, Private AND NHS, but we will also be highlighting what you should be looking for when buying a practice cheaply.

So If you really want to open up your own dream practice or buy the right type of practice for you, and build long term asset wealth, this seminar is for you!

During this 1-day seminar you will gain a plethora of theoretical and practical advice from two experts who have set up a multitude of private dental squats across the UK. Moreover, you will learn first hand the real deal in how to set up a successful practice in a short period of time. To book your space, please click here.

Please note the pricing for this event doubles every month, so book early to avoid paying the higher price as we are doing this event only once in 2009!

Book in July - £100+VAT
Book in August - £200+VAT
Book in September - £400+VAT


Book by 31st July 2009 to get your seat for £100+VAT.

We will be only doing this event once in 2009, so make sure you book today, as i can assure you this will not happen again until 2010. If you want to set up your dream practice AND grow your wealth whilst being a dentist, then this event is for you.

Have a fun week ahead!

Arun

P.S Spaces are strictly limited, so if you want to book, make sure you book here today. �

To Laugh...

is to risk being a fool
to weep is to risk appearing sentimental
to reach out for another is to risk involvement
to expose feelings is to risk rejection
to place your dreams before the crowd is to risk ridicule
to love is to risk not being loved in return
to go forward in the face of overwhelming odds is to risk failure
but risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing
the person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing
he may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he cannot learn, feel, change, grow or love
chained by his certitudes, he is a slave
only a person who takes risks is free

One Book That Changed My Life Forever

One Book That Changed My Life Forever

I was reminded by Mahen the other day about a book we both read around 5 years ago. The book in question, was called "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki.

This book changed my life forever.

Picture this, back in 2002, i had just quit my highly paid big six figure salary job, and was feeling pretty good about myself. However, i had no plan as to what i was going to go and do. I had been married to a dentist (Smita) for around 6 months, and could quickly see she did not want a layabout of a husband sitting around at home most days (besides, being a very driven person, sitting at home was not what i wanted to do, i had quit the City to do my own thing!).

Well after 6 months of travelling and charity fund raising, i was recommended to have a read of "Rich Dad, Poor Dad". Being the cynical guy that i am, i thought initially, what do i need to learn from a book? At 28, in my last 2 years in the City, i had made more money than many people had in a lifetime. Anyway, curiosity got the better of me, and so i decided to have a good read of it. I did not regret that decision.
So what did i learn from the book?

Well the book traces the author's life from the age of 9, comparing the financial teaching that he received from his own, highly academically intelligent, real dad ( a doctor), and that of his friend's, financially intelligent, dad. Having experienced first hand the teaching and upbringing resulting from both of the dads, he is able to reflect on how they differ and how these differences had a profound effect on financial wealth.

The book for me highlighted, that working flat out, earning a high income was not the answer to growing wealth. Up until 28, that had been my strategy. Increase my income and i would become super wealthy. However, with such high income, come hig taxes, so seeing 40% of my income go each year was not much fun.

However, the book taught me (yes a qualified Chartered accountant, successful City Boy) the answer lay in creating and buying assets (cheaply) which then provided cashflow. By creating or buying assets cheap, my asset base would grow in value and my net worth would grow considerably. This meant for me in 2002, that Samera was started on a shoestring, no loans, just some innovative ideas and hard work in the early days from a core team. Whilst The Neem Tree required a certain level of financing, but with the right business strategy to move it forward. Our aim was to grow these businesses into valuable assets in their own right. Income was not our focus (only enough to cover our monthly needs), asset wealth creation was .

Almost 7 years on, i can safely say this strategy has worked 100% for us. Our liabilities, are low, cashflow is healthy, but most importantly our asset wealth is very strong. This provides us with a firm foundation to take on the next phase of our expansion strategy (you didn't think we would sit still?).

Focusing on asset wealth creation as opposed to income generation, has saved us considerable amounts in tax, and enabled us to build net asset rich businesses. This was the book that started it off to me, so if you have not ,read it, and if you have read it already, read it again, this is one of the best books in the market for taking charge of your own financial future.
So what about dentists?

Well like myself at 28, i see many dentists who have fallen into the same trap as i had up until 28. They have big liabilities, their income is high, their taxes are high, and so ultimately their cashflow is usually poor, and after all the sums (after taking into account all the large loans they have, especially if they have bought a practice in the last couple of years), their net asset position is not great even when working 60 hours plus per week.

Well as some of you may have come to know, i have never followed the well trodden path, i always invest when everyone is fearful (like now) and do things a bit differently. If you want to become asset rich, firstly read "Rich Dad, Poor Dad". If you enjoy reading this book, then secondly book yourself on our "Setting Up and Buying a Dental Practice in a Recession" event on Friday 18th September 2009, at our offices in London. You can read much more about this here.

Please note the price doubles every month until the event. Book in July for £100+VAT, book in August for £200+VAT, and book in September for £400+VAT .

We will be only doing this event once in 2009, so make sure you book today, as i can assure you this will not happen again until 2010. If you want to grow your net asset worth by being a dentist, then this event is for you. �

Emotional Strength

At school we are all taught to do well academically, or to excel at sport or the arts. We are measured by our success in academia by our grades or the height we reach in our sports. However, we are never measured on our emotional strength.

I know so many individuals who are great at sport or who have the best degrees possible, yet emotionally they are weak. Weak? Yes, weak in a sense that they have not trained their emotions. They have trained their academic brains, or sporting prowess but not their emotional strength.

Yet, if you look at some of the most successful entrepreneurs and individuals they are emotionally in control. They have been through the ups and downs of running their own show, but by constantly challenging their emotions they have created the emotional strength they require to succeed in life today. Being a successful entrepreneur requires emotional strength...do you have it? Or do you need to develop it?

The Truth About Your Accountant

Face facts, your accountant probably knows very little about your business. Yes they may have prepared your annual accounts, told you how much tax to pay, but do they know the impact of a closed lunch hour on your annual profits? Or the impact of changing the price of your crowns on your annual take home pay?

Probably not.

As a general dentist you probably are not going to carry out complex orthodontic work, or specialist endodontic work, you would refer this to a specialist colleagues of yours.

Well the same principle applies to your choice of accountants you use to advise you. Small or big, in these changing dental times, it is now more important than ever to have advisors who know their subject. I can proudly say, at Samera we eat, live and breath dentistry. By having our dental practices, we see and experience many of the same problems our clients face every day, so not only can we relate to you, we are always looking for ways to overcome the many problems you face daily, just like we do.

If you are unsure if your accountant knows his stuff about dentistry, ask him (or her), amongst many other, the following questions:

1. Does he know what Invisalign is and how much should you be charging for it in your practice?
2. What treatments provide you with 80% of your profit in your business?
3. What non financial Key Performance Indicators should you be monitoring in your practice?
4. How can you increase chair occupancy through low cost marketing strategies?
5. What gross profit margin does a hygienist generate compared to an associate dentist in your practice?
6. What patient cancellation policy should you have in practice?
7. What hourly rate should your fees be set at to ensure a profit margin you desire?
8. What remuneration strategies should you have in place for your Dental Associates? Should you be paying 50% of gross fees or higher/lower?
9. As a % of turnover, what should your staffing costs be?
10. How can you make more money, than you currently are, in dentistry?

These are just the tip of the iceberg. In today's climate your accountant should be able to answer all of these questions easily along with the pre-requisite tax advice. If not, then perhaps it is time for you to demand more or make a change.

Calling the Market

As some of you maybe aware, over the last few months i have been going back to my roots, of financial analysis and trading. I have got so back into it, very excited, and are in fact now teaching courses on my expertise. This has been one of the main reasons i have not had time to write this blog, as i have been poring over charts, and online information

My expertise which was learnt several years back is now stronger than ever. I have been watching the UK and US markets closely, and have seen my portfolio grow in double digit % figures in the last 3 months. I feel i managed to call the market at the beginning of March. However, at the moment i do feel the market may well be going through a small correction, with certain stocks due a correction, whilst more defensive stocks may start growing at better rates.

With so much volatility in the market, this is a great time to be in the markets. You can make a lot of wealth create in these times.

Watch this space on all aspects financial, as over the last 12 months, i have realised my forte is in 3 areas:

1. business, marketing and entrepreneurship
2. internet marketing concepts
3. investment and trading

so this blog will increasingly become come dedicated to these areas, plus a few more issues that maybe playing on my mind!

Have fun

arun

One life, live it! The Big Moroccan Adventure!

One Life, Live it!

3 weeks later, thousands of miles later, I am back from my overland adventure from London to Morocco, using all modes of transport - except planes.

How was it? Brilliant.

Myself, Smita, my son Parus (who is 4 going on 14) and my daughter Aashima who is 11 months (and the very reason we went by land!) are exhausted physically (well myself and Smita are), but mentally relaxed and have a treasure trove of memories. After all, at the end of the day, it is our memories that count.

So where did we go?

Surrey-Portsmouth-Bilbao-Valdepenas-Estepona-Algeciras-Tangiers- Meknes-Fes-Marrakech-Tangiers-Algeciras-Seville-Salamanca-Bilbao-Portsmouth-Surrey

How did we go?

We took our car on the ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao ( a 30 hour crossing) - my least favourite part of the trip. I realised early on the ship that cruising is not for me, stuck on a ship, with nowhere to go, is not my idea of fun, so future overland trips will have as little ship travel as possible.

We drove through Spain, left out car in Algeciras, took the short ferry to Tangiers and Morocco was covered via train....pretty good trains indeed (including the sleeper)

Key Highlights

There are so many to mention, but they include:

1. The chav's on the ferry who go on a 60 hour cruise - Portsmouth to Bilbao return for a £99 mini cruise and get stinkingly drunk, a really interesting part of British culture
2. Delicious Tapas in Valdepenas (Wine region of Spain)
3. Club Sandwiches by the pool after a long 7 hour drive
4.Arrival into Tangiers via ferry, and getting hassled for taxi's. i love their front
5. The roof terrace on La Tangerina hotel in tangiers - with amazing views of Tangiers (makes me feel like Jason Bourne in the Bourne Ultimatum!)
6. The chicken heads being chopped off in various Souks
7. The medieval city of Fes - a different world
8. Riad 9 - in Fes, our favourite riad we stayed at - and the wonderful Attika for putting up with us- check out the website
9.Shopping for carpets in Fes (yes we did buy some!) and the haggling!
10. The arrival in Marrakech to see other family members join us for a few days
11. Seeing Jardin Majorelle again
12. The hammam at La Maison Arabe.....very cool indeed
13. The train journey overnight from Marrakech to tangiers
14. Finding our car in Algerciras in one piece and in tact
15. Seville, my favourite Spanish city, my 6th visit there!
16. The prettiness of Salamanca
17. The amazing Guggenheim museum in Bilbao...simply stunning and interesting
18. Reaching home to see my dad and to sleep in my bed!

Plus a few hundred more experiences, which will stay with me forever, most importantly spending this time with my loved ones!

Watch out for my next overland trip....

The Adventure Starts Here

Today i am off on a true adventure with my family. My little daughter cannot fly due to health reasons, but that won't stop the Mehra family with their travels and adventures. 2 adults (well kind of, Smita and I) and two young kids, one four year old and one 10 month year old. Call us insane or adventurous, one thing for sure, this will be very exciting!

Travel is in my blood, having done a lot of travelling in my earlier years. Travel broadens the mind, and has taught me much about my life and existence. Anyway my philosophy is for another day.

We are heading to Morocco via land. We are taking the following route:

Portsmouth to Bilbao (2 nights on the boat)

Then we drive through Spain with our car over a 2 night period down to Algeciras,

We leave the car in Algeciras, and then grab a boat to Tangier.

Then via Moroccan trains, we travel to Fes, Meknes and Marrakech....

and then we do it all again on our return!

I cannot wait to go on this adventure, we don't really have a destination in mind, just the fact that the journey is the destination!!!

Don't let your life go by focusing just on the destination and goal...always remember to appreciate NOW, as NOW can go away in a heartbeat!

Upon my return get ready for my explosion in words!

No-one will look after yor money as well as you will!

Visit here to read the latest Samera newsletter - i think you will enjoy it!
have fun!
arun

Investment Strategies

Investment Strategies

The last few weeks I have begun to put my investment strategy hat back on! As you may know, I used to be part of a leading Equity analyst team when i used to work back in the City. I was on Bloomberg, in the FT....and was one of those "experts".

Although I left the market then, as i had desires to be my own boss, i was the grounded in the essentials of stock analysis. Of course i don't have a crystal ball, but my knowledge and more importantly my application of the knowledge is nice and strong.

Some of you may feel this is a tangent from my business expertise, but i argue that this compliments my expertise as someone who can advise a client base on how to get a best return on your capital.

Whether you want to set up a practice, or buy a practice, one must also consider the longer term strategy of whether one could get a better return by investing into other areas such as shares, gold or sugar!

I personally feel now is a great time to start investing, yes the markets are volatile, but volatility allows for some real short and long term gains!

Watch this space for some new exciting developments!

Being right

Not trying to sound arrogant or full of it, my business history to date has rarely been wrong. I have worked hard, and studied from the best, and despite making many mistakes I feel i have the knowledge, experience and ability to get most things right.

I personally feel the economic climate is not strong. However, this should not deter one. Opportunity is plenty, you just need to know where to look. Whether it is within your business or elsewhere.

Drawing of my experience of the markets, I am certain this is the right time to invest. The professionals are now coming back in to the market, this is a sure sign to take some action. It's not going to be a straight line up, the ride will be bumpy, but it's going to be an exciting journey upwards. I have never felt more certain of this...and am sure I will be right!

Ignore what the media says, and go with your gut feeling. Nine times out of ten, your gut will provide you with the right answer.

Watch this space!

Saving the world

well a website that is pretty damn interesting....

http://www.breathingearth.net/

thanks gavin

Now is the right time to invest

"You should get greedy when others are fearful and fearful when others are greedy"

Warren Buffett, Berkhire Hathaway

The markets are down, people are losing jobs, and there seems to be endless fear in the market. All the news is dominated by this depression (economic and emotional), however, just one thing highlights to me that this presents an opportunity. As Warren Buffet puts it in his quote, when everyone is fearful is the time to get greedy!

What is this opportunity?

Historic FTSE 100 Graph

Take a look at the graph and this will tell you the answer. Got it?

Maybe?

If not, the graph highlights one simple fact. The FTSE 100 index is almost at its lowest level for the last 10 years. 2002-03 highlighted one such low, but since then the market has risen and now fallen to an extremely low level now.

This to me presents an opportunity. Call it foolish, bold or plain right stupid, but my gut, as well as my brain tells me NOW (not next year) is the time to start getting back in to shares.

Yes, the economy is not in great shape, and the rest of the world is struggling along too, but, you and I know there are quality shares out there to buy, it is just a matter of knowing which ones to buy.

Just yesterday, I have taken a personal stake in some quality companies, such as Tesco and BP, based on historic analysis as well as trading action, but also just looking at the fundamentals of such companies. People need fuel and need food.

So which other shares?

I am writing as a former leading City Analyst. I left the City 6 years back as a Vice President of Equities (that means shares to you and me) and now feel that this time NOW, presents a buying opportunity for those bold enough to take that position.

If you want to learn more about getting into equities, and making the right investment decisions in these tough economic times then you had better come along to my "Master your wealth...even in a recession!" seminar on the 26th March, I can assure you that you won't regret it!

Click here to find out more details! and if you book by close of Wednesday 11th March you get an extra £50 off! Just quote MYW50 to get your discount.

Just itching

Do you find it sometimes difficult to juggle all those things in your life? Family, business, money...what comes first?

Family always comes first - all times, hence my desk at home is a pigs ear, after taking from the office all those box files (sorry sylvie). It is sunday afternoon, and still nowhere nearer getting to a half decent tidy stage.

My son now wants to watch all those wonderful iphoto pictures to music....i can't blame him really.

If i look at my values in life, i suppose a tidy desk at home is not really at the top of my priority list. Travelling the globe with my 2 kids, now that is a different story.

Just under a month until our big Easter adventure - off to Morocco by sea, car, train....how exciting!

Football tribes

I had the fortune to see Man U vs Spurs yesterday at Wembley for the Carling Cup Final...i am not the biggest footie fan (but i do have some seats there for several reasons) so did manage to enjoy a great day out!

A wonderful meal at Galvin on Baker Street (best french food in London for a great price - that pear tarte tatin!) and then on the tube to Wembley.

My tube experience was the usual pre-match football banter. Club anthems, swearing and cursing eachother at the top of their voices all for the sake of football. Yes, football is a a fun game, but to many it really is everything to them. Why?

I had not really figured it out, until yesterday. I figured that all the fans want to belong to something. They want to be part of a "tribe", talk about their experiences, share their views as supporters, and hate the enemy. This goes back to the basic needs of human beings. Maslow states that one of the humans needs is "love/belonging" - this is what football fans desire - a sense of belonging!

Football is all about tribalism. The big clubs are just better at marketing to their tribes and getting more members to join their tribes.

Football is a perfect example as to how to get people to live, eat and breathe a brand. So how can you create your own tribe to follow you and create a sense of belonging for your customers? Apple has created a perfect tribe that follows everything they do. The tribe can also wield alot of power and change how the tribal leader does something!

Never underestimate the power of your tribe.

What have BIG MAC's and Practice Management got in common?

What have BIG MAC's and Practice Management got in common?

Find out more on my latest Samera newsletter!

The New Industrial Revolution

This last week has been eventful as ever. Around the UK, a session with Seth Godin, a visit to the Science Museum (well it is half term) and then back to the office.

As you all may know, I have huge respect for Seth Godin, a true business visionary. I don't know the guy, but it is his thinking and vision that has helped me develop my whole business (not just marketing) strategy.

He is the one that has helped me grow a business from a bedroom to over 30 employees in 5 years, and growing strong. So let me give you my view of Seth's London session and a summary of his great insight.

Seth's London Session

Barbara and I were luckily enough to see Seth on Tuesday afternoon, along with 400 other people, including a few familiar faces in dentistry.

The room was packed with MBA's from Microsoft, IBM and advertising agencies, whilst there were a few of us individual entrepreneurs. The audience was pretty much wearing a standard uniform of edgy glasses, brown shoes, jeans (yes i was one of them too - however barbara stood out as ever in funky orange clothes!)

So what did we learn?

As an avid reader of all of his books and his daily blog, to be honest I did not learn anything I did not know, however, it was great to see him discuss his thoughts.

For those of you not familiar with Seth, let me give you a synopsis!

"Too Important to be left for the Marketing Department"

The marketing department is a thing of the past. Rather than create average products/services and have a marketing department try and flog them to the masses, we now live in an era of innovation. Average products will not survive.

We need to be pioneers and go to the edges of our ability and create such wonderful products/services that people will seek out. Just take Apple as an example.

Seth argues that the marketing budget should now be part of the R&D and Design budget. I do happen to agree with him. The days of creating average products and services and then trying to market them via the normal media of tv and newspapers is well and truly over. Do you remember the last newspaper advert you read? Probably not.

The Internet allows people to search, assess and form an opinion with their keyboards in just seconds. People are either seeking the best or the cheapest. Anything in between, is just not interesting. In addition, in the era of Web 2.0 consumers and users are now interacting with other users to assess a product or service. The power is now firmly in the customers hands NOT the providers.

Now is the time for Innovation. This is not a choice for most organisations but a matter of survival across all industry sectors. Just like Stephenson changed how we travel with the steam engine, the Internet, especially this second Web 2.0 phase will change how we interact and communicate with eachother. Embrace it, it is here to stay with us.

Advertising is a Dead Man's Game

So how do you get new customers? Surely I must still advertise? Well yes you can advertise your products and services, but really the truth of the matter comes from what is profitable for your business. Should you be investing hard earned resources into adverts, or using that money to develop your products/services, innovate and create something special?

I know the latter is the only way to survive and win, especially in this economic climate. In his book, Permission Marketing (which is actually over 10 years old), Seth argues that marketing is like dating, in that we need to turn strangers into friends. The only approach to doing this successfully takes time. Communication required to turn strangers into friends must be Anticipated, Relevant and Personal - is your communication like this?

Leading a Tribe

In Seth's final book, Tribes, he argues the world needs people to step up to challenges we face. To lead and not follow. Obama became President by creating a tribe. Now it is down to you to create your own tribe. They want you to lead them.

Business and marketing (in fact life) today requires individuals whom are ready to step out of their comfort zone to experiment, fail and lead. Are you up for this challenge, as this will require you to lead and create a tribe to follow you!

Go build your tribe!

You can learn much more about Seth Godin by reading his great books. Check out the Samera booklist for details.

Google's 20% Rule

You are going to learn a lot about Google over the next few weeks, as they are a great firm we can follow and learn from.

Did you know that for many executives at Google they spend 20% of their time innovating. So they have pet projects of their own which they work on and develop. Once they reach a certain stage Google management gets involved and then if appropriate Google may even take these ideas several stages further!

So for example many of the tools, such as Google maps, Gmail, Google checkout have emanated from individuals in Google being allowed to innovate.

They have made innovation the heart of their organisation.

Maybe it is time for all of us to start following their lead!

Don't procrastinate - Innovate!

What are Associates earning in Dentistry?

Take a peek at this on Samera Connect* - don't forget to download the article! You may not agree, but the economy is moving quickly and so dentists will need to understand their business even more!

cheers

arun

Google Powermeter

Google is now taking on the world. Not enough to be the search engine of choice, it is really is now entering new domains.

To help people save energy at home they have launched the Google Powermeter, a service that allows you to track electricity usage at your house. It will work by smart electrical meters being intstalled in your house which will then report data back to Google, which can then be displayed on your iGoogle home page.

How amazing??? What ever next? Google dental??? (do not under estimate them!)

Team is everything!

A Big thank you to ALL my wonderful team at Samera. The run up to the 31st january 2009 was the calmest, coolest we have ever had and was in full control. This was down to the superb team assembled at Samera - without them, this business would be nowhere.

I recall hiring my first hire, mahen back in 2004, when he joined me at my dad's dining table, after I interviewed him over a coffee at the local gym. One interview later, he was working with me at the dining table attempting to change the dental business world.

4.5 years since then, he is still with us, but how things have changed.

Last Friday, we had a team lunch, and around the table were my core team members. Mahen, who now manages much of the business is currently enjoying the delights of his home land in Sri Lanka, missed out, but it really did highlight to me how the business has grown and developed.

The Samera team really is an experiment in social and cultural diversity. From Hungary, to Sri Lanka, to Mauritius, to India, to Nigeria, to Ramsgate, to good old SW London (that's where i herald from via Indian ancestory) we have an assortment of wonderful individuals who together work so well! There are no boundaries here. Yes, there are differences, but that is what makes it so exciting.

If you are reading this, thanks guys, all your efforts are so much appreciated by me. My life would not be the same without ALL of you!

My Saturday's!

An early rise with two young kids and then the hard work begins.
Number 1 kid off to Stagecoach to do his dance/music thing!
Number 2 kid, a wee bit small for dancing, so dad stays at home playing and feeding, whilst mum hits the gym!

Number 3 kid, dad, once Number 2 kid is asleep, hits all the paperwork he needs to organise before, Number 1 kid and Number 4 kid (mum) come home!
Once all kids are home, time for brunch/brekkie and then time to catch up together for the week.

Number 3 kid (dad) likes to read ALOT, so having number 1 kid (and number 2) makes it virtually impossible.

Once brunch is out of the way, Number 3 kid has a party to goto, so Number 3 kid has to drive him there!!

Does this sound familiar??

I wouldn't change it for the world, business, work and most of all family, but back to the office on Monday growing a fast changing and developing multi faceted business is easy peasy in comparison! Enjoy....life is what you make it!

Arun

The $10 Laptop

The $10 Laptop??? Otherwise known as Sakshat!

Is this a joke or a reality? The Indian government believe they are about to launch a $10 laptop, something that will be accessible to all people in India. The skeptics believe this is just hype considering the cost of the components of a laptop...but in probability it will be a $10 laptop (that costs $100 to make) which will be heavily subsidised by the government. The first pictures show that it looks nothing like a laptop...but you never know, things may improve!

Whatever the cost, the idea and concept is sheer brilliant. Those in the 3rd world more than anyone else in the world will have the ability to use the laptop to communicate, share and ultimately develop. I do hope this hype turns in to reality for the many millions who live on just $1 a day! This along with many other social developments will change their world forever. Things are changing very quickly...whatever next???

Are you an Outlier?

Malcolm Gladwell (author of The Tipping Point and Blink ) and now the author of Outliers has surpassed himself with his latest book.

As an avid reader I managed to read it in a just a few sittings, and the gist of the book was that luck, when you were born, and the amount of effort you put into something were the main determinants for success. Yes, but you probably know that already.

Why did Bill Gates do so well? Mainly because by the time he was heading off to Harvard he had a huge unfair advantage, he had been tinkering with software development for many years, at a school that had invested heavy in IT (rare in those days) and many evenings each week he would head down to the University of Washington to get involved in certain projects (whilst he was in school!)

Gladwell argues brilliantly what we already know - hard work = success, but he goes much further using his examples, clearly highlighting that hard work alone will not ensure success. His belief is if you do a specific task for at least 10,000 hours, by that stage you will have become an expert in a subject and success will follow. By the time Bill Gates was off to Harvard, he had around 10,000 hours of software expertise, a rarity in the early 70's in the US!

Did you know that there is a particular year to have been born in to be a mega successful software entrepreneur?

To find the answer and many more go read it, you won't be disappointed! Very Inspiring indeed! If you want to buy it you can click here!

HMRC vs Dentists…let the battle begin!

The 31st of January has passed and your tax return has been submitted and you have paid your hefty tax bill – Again.

In good or bad times, paying your tax is one of life’s certainties. However, now more than ever as public spending rockets, HMRC will be after every penny they can get from you, the hard working dentist.

In Monday’s Panorama documentary it was made clear the new US government would be going after tax havens to disclose information about account holders. The Cayman Islands was in particular highlighted as a major tax haven for US citizens, showing one law firm that had over 18,000 companies registered at its small offices (Maple and Calder). In a similar vein, the UK government now more than ever is after information about people who have hidden money in tax havens or who they believe have paid insufficient tax.

HMRC New Powers - Will they be knocking at your door?

From April 2009, the Finance Act 2008 will be put into action. This may not mean much to you, but rest assured this means a lot to HMRC. From April, HMRC investigators will be using the legislation detailed in Schedule 36 of the Finance Act to go after more tax!

Section 10 of Schedule 36 (visit here to read it in full) states that HMRC now has the power to visit to your business premises, without notice, to check your tax position. With the mess the Public finances are in, Gordon and Alistair need more money, this is just one of the many means they will be going after it!

If you have not already, make sure you take out tax investigation insurance, as next time you get a knock at the door, it may well be an unwelcome tax inspector!

Life is for Sharing

Life is most definitely for sharing. The more we share, the greater we feel, the greater success we will have in life!

The more you give, the more you will receive! So come and share at www.sameraconnect.com - you might amaze yourself and others!

Check it out and learn more from your colleagues in dentistry right at www.sameraconnect.com!!

Samera Academy is launched!

Check out this link - some great info on courses on Practice Management and Business Success we have just launched for 2009! with some wonderful discounts for early bookers!
Enjoy your weekend!
arun

Running your own business

I was asked by a good friend of mine, who is still in the corporate world what it is like running my own business, so i thought i would share my quick 5 minute thoughts here!

His question - What for you are the 5 best things about running your own business?

1. The freedom to do what I want when I want - I answer to no-one - flexibility is wonderful, but with this certainly comes a lot of responsibility too!
2. Being able to create from scratch ideas on paper in to reality - this has been great for developing my creative side. I love being creative - yes accountants can be creative too!
   
3. Challenge - I love the challenge, as you grow bigger and bigger of course new challenges arise, so risk management is an issue then, but they are nice challenges to have.
4. Financial rewards, although not the most important, the financial rewards if you do it right can be much bigger than working for anyone including banking. Most importantly, you can make money by building a passive income stream whilst spending time with kids etc - however this takes at least 5-6 years to get to this level, unless you hit lucky!
5. Building a team I take responsibility for....the right team are essential - wrong people and you have had it! I have had the pleasure of working with some wonderful people on my journey! Thank you.
   

His question - What have you found to be the 3 biggest pitfalls?

1. Things always take longer than one would expect, so make sure you have adequate financial reserves when building the business - we did but I know others who did not!
2. Trying to do everything yourself - the key is to build a great core team. No great team, tough business.
3. Your loved ones - yes they may love you, but they worry for you. So parents, family etc, the less they know the better, they are worried about you - tell them this is a course of action you have to take....once they see the success they will then realise why you did it!
4. One extra thought - if you are in a relationship, make sure your partner is 1000% with you on the journey. There will be times when you hit rock bottom, you will need someone there to support you when the going gets tough!

Good Luck!

Samera Predictions 2009

If you have not read this already, please read this.....my personal view on 2009! I think it will provoke a thought or two!

Arun's 2009 Predictions!