Continuous Learning for Individuals, Management & Business

If you're considering becoming an optometrist, you've likely heard about the American Board of Opticianry (ABO) certification. The ABO is a non-profit organization that administers certification exams for dispensing opticians and contact lens technicians. But do you need an ABO certification to work in optometry? And more importantly, what is an ABO certification? 

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic nearly 100% of Mimi Martin's Wine & Spirit Archive's revenue came from in-person classes. The restrictions on gatherings in Oregon forced her to redesign existing courses to offer online training. Mimi was able to develop new classes suited to the stay at home orders. Her “Wine Class in a Box” provides a unique antidote to the isolation many people are experiencing. This is her story of resilience and adaptation.

Making the leap towards pursuing your dream of running a restaurant, or food cart, or breaking into the food service industry takes a lot of hard work, patience, preparation and planning before you even hit the "start" button. The competitive industry requires a steadfast focus for all of the aspects that come with running your own business. You must prepare to face unexpected challenges, and learn how to become a master marketer.

From first-time management roles up to C-suite executives, one of the challenges of leadership is experiencing more responsibility and as a result, more pressure. While your direct reports feel pressure from you to complete their work objectives, management up through the ranks have bigger goals to meet and less direct control over the outcome. It's important when implementing your leadership style to make sure you're maintaining balance even as things get stressful. These maintenance choices are part of what helps you ride the waves of pressure and come through stronger and more capable than before.

In your professional life, you've probably seen many people handling conflict poorly. There are so many ways to minimize or maximize conflict: escalating a situation with angry words, ignoring injustice and sweeping it under the rug, or even letting a situation unravel to the point where work cannot get done. 

More and more people are realizing that nutrition is a key factor in good health, and this is creating a demand for professionals who can provide guidance in how to use it to its fullest. This goes far beyond the idea of using food to control weight. Nutrition has been linked to conditions like heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, digestive concerns, and more. It makes sense that while bad nutrition can increase risks, good nutrition can decrease them and may even help people heal from certain conditions.

As a budding entrepreneur or employee in the Portland real estate market, you know that there are many ways to run your business. One very important concept is to make your business choices in a way that is equity-informed. Many people believe they've fully considered the concepts of diversity and inclusion, but equity-informed businesses take this a step further and attempt to integrate equity into every aspect of their work.

While the diversity of thought and experience, as well as backgrounds and ethnicities, has been a hallmark of modern workplaces for decades now, many companies still experience uneven inclusion. Inclusivity is focused on making all diverse members of a team feel equally welcomed, valued, heard, and supported in their work. It is not enough to bring in employees who add diversity to the team if they feel ostracized or ignored in the workplace. 

Amy Boggs owns and operates a local cleaning company that is on the cutting edge of innovation.  Amy opened Sparkling Places in 2002 in an effort to afford to continue her college education and has turned to cutting edge technology to expand her business to address the needs of customers dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. 

A Child Development Associate certificate provides key foundational information for a career as a teacher or child care professional. Whether you want to be an assistant teacher in a preschool or run your own daycare center, understanding the wider scope of how children grow and develop is key to understanding the milestones children will reach while in your care.