In 2010, global water companies raked in $508 Billion in revenues.

Most consumers do not think of how much water is actually utilized to produce consumer products when the water usage is calculated from the production of the crop to the final product.

Some sample statistics:

• 71 gallons to produce a single cup of coffee
• 70 gallons for 50 cents worth of milk
• 2.906 gallons for one pair of jeans, accounted for mostly by growing cotton
• 1.857 gallons for 1 pound of prime steak
• 467 gallons for that finger licking good chicken lunch
• 160 gallons for 1 pound of shredded wheat for your breakfast
• 104,000 gallons for a car, mostly from rubber

And the list goes on….

The water consumed by people is not by a long shot the big culprit. Agriculture accounts for 71% of water consumption, whereas industry accounts for another 16%.

The recent drought is only serving to compound the problem, but is also serving as a wakeup call, as oil companies scramble for water sources for their vast operations, where fracking require enormous amounts of water to crack the rocks and bring oil up to the surface.

American farmers also planted a record corn crop this year due to escalating commodity prices and the drought turned corn fields into wastelands. This means that further down the food chain, less developed countries may be facing a global food crisis similar to the one experienced in the 2007-2008 period.

The globe is mostly covered with water; however, the major problem is how to purify the water and make it suitable for consumption. As water shortages spread to an increasing number of locations around the globe, the costs of purification are certain to escalate.

• A few ideas about how to profit from the 21^st Century new gold:
• Veolia Environment is a global leader in environmental services
• GDF Suez Energy North America has customers in 12 states
• ITT is a major competitor in water treatment technology
• PowerShares Water Resources
• First Trust ISE Water Index

The truly alarming fact about the growing water shortage is how nations will react to this situation. Egypt has been embroiled in political uncertainty ever since former President Mubarak was toppled from power, and stepping into the breach are countries such as Ethiopia and Burundi, which are seeking to secure their share of the life giving Nile river. Can military turmoil follow?

So far, no nation has offered any long term solution for the unthinkable. At least, money can be made of their collective inaction and indifference.

Reasons people fail in business:

1) Easy entry:

In almost every commentary about Groupon lately, the same common theme emerges that the big problem with Groupon is low barriers to entry.

2) Assume that you are different:

We all know of that certain high traffic street corner where restaurants replace one another in rapid succession. Hah! Your restaurant is special and destined for greatness. Are you falling into the same pitfall all the previous restaurants have fallen into? Find out why they failed then take the appropriate steps to avoid failure.

3) Advice and knowledge:

Most people will not talk about their ideas mainly out of fear of criticism or ridicule. If your idea cannot survive the test of light, what makes you think it will not be destined for failure? Talk it up every chance you get.

4) Ego vs. reason:

Some people plunge into endeavors out of personal ego that does not have any link with pragmatism, such as the college professor who likes the idea of having a faculty office but does not care about teaching or grading papers. Bills are not paid by ego alone, financial success takes care of bills. Once you have achieved financial success, you will experience first hand what real ego is.

5) Social media and personal networking:

In difficult times, chances are your Facebook pal most likely will not come through with the financial assistance you need, and your LinkedIn connection may not be able to offer you the job you need. However, your colleague or friend may just ride to the rescue with the appropriate introduction. This does not mean you should ignore social media, just do not forget the people who are the most physically close to you.

And if you still fail in your next endeavor, chalk it up to experience and listen to that little whisper saying that failure is the secret to success. You will now feel much better and that is an order.

Image Courtesy: forbes.com

What about the mass of middle class households that may just need simple financial advice every now and then, or may just want to have an expert review their portfolios to make sure they are on the right track?

Here comes the Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) movement, which already controls $1.4 Trillion in assets, as compared to the $5 Billion managed by traditional brokerage firms.

Meet the Garrett Planning Network, the perfect example of the RIA movement.

Operated out of a home in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, by Sheryl Garrett, the Garrett Planning Network aims to become the H&R Block of financial advice, with a network of 325 financial planners spread across the country and servicing 25,000 clients, all within 12 years.

The goal of this network is to bring financial planning costs way down and make it affordable to middle class Main Street investors, whom Sheryl Garrett calls the “83 percenters”.

The Garrett Planning Network operates strictly under a fee only system, with members of the network fully expected to adhere to a fiduciary standard that forces members to only work for the best interests of their clients.

Although members of the network are free to offer additional services on their own, they are required to provide hourly financial advice for about $200 an hour, making the arrangement perfect for investors who may just need some help in investing for a kid’s college education, for example.

The vetting process includes verification of members’ credentials and licenses, as well as investigating the disciplinary history of each.

The big criticism coming from the investment old guard is that you get what you pay for, the lower the fee, the lower grade the advice becomes. In all honesty, this is very possible in certain instances; however, the advice rendered by the old guard is what landed us into this quagmire in the first place. A quick search of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) yielded no complaint whatsoever. Good sign indeed for the Garrett Planning Network that has been in business for 12 years and has been accredited by the BBB since April 29, 2005.

With a well deserved reputation for sloppiness and arrogance, the credit reporting industry has thus far been able to completely avoid oversight as no single federal government agency has been able to get all the necessary information to get a true picture of how the industry operates. Now, the CFPB will enforce existing laws and write new rules as warranted.

The three main credit bureaus maintain credit files on 200 Million consumers and sell 3 Billion such reports to lenders, landlords, employers, utilities and insurance companies annually.

Although it is impossible to know the real extent of mistakes committed by the credit reporting industry, the Columbus Dispatch has released a report in May after a year long investigation, and these are the findings:

• 25% of complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) were about mistakes made in mortgages, car loans, and credit cards.
• More than 5% involved personal information such as names, dates of birth, or Social Security Numbers, or a combination thereof.
• A further 5% reported the listing of accounts that did not belong to them.
• 200 people were declared dead and refused credit.
• And remember that each 1% represents 2 Million consumers.

It is hard to presume that this latest action by the CFPB had anything to do with the credit reporting agencies coming up with a new credit score to supplement the current FICO score that has been used for decades to evaluate credit worthiness, but at first glance, the new credit score shows certain benefits to specific segments of consumers.

On July 10, Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) partnered with Santa Ana, California based CoreLogic to introduce a new credit score formula that culls information from a wider variety of sources, such as rental records or short term installment loans, than the traditional FICO score, which mainly focuses on credit cards, auto loans, and mortgages.

This is an analysis of the new credit score as performed by FICO and CoreLogic:

• The number of consumers with credit scores between 800 and 850 more than doubled, to 44% of borrowers. Scores at this level represent no risk to lenders.
• The increase in the top level corresponds to a similar decrease in the number of consumers in the 700 to 799 range. In other words, more people with good credit ended up with excellent credit.
• Overall, approximately 70% of consumers scored better with the new scoring system.
• 24% of consumers saw their scores improve by a minimum of 50 points.
• 45% of people in the 580-619 range experienced enough improvement to meet credit thresholds set by lenders.

Good news for the borrowing public? 25 lenders are currently testing the new credit score as a supplement to the old FICO score, and no results have been reported yet. Nevertheless, if the findings presented by FICO and CoreLogic turn out to be correct, then the borrowing costs for a large group of consumers can only fall.

Also Read: Top 10 Youngest & Smartest Billionaires in the World

Iron Man Suits – $8 Billion

iron man net worth

We all know how this suit was built up when Tony was captured by a troop of terrorists and since then he has developed several advanced exoskeleton war machines. These suits are worth billions. The following is the bifurcation of why these suits can be so expensive. The previous suits of Iron Man were worth more than $1.4 Billion but the Iron Man 3 suit is worth whopping $8 Billion.

J.A.R.V.I.S The Computer – $10 million

J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just a Really Very Intelligent System) is Tony’s computer. Entirely elabled with artificial intelligence integrated with his suit and all the weapons.

Tony Stark’s Residence – $600 million

Tony’s residence Stark Tower is extra ordinarily superb house located in the costliest are of New York, Manhattan. The tower is considered to be of $600 million worth or even more. It’s a property which always appreciates in area like Manhattan. There is a war room on the top floor of the tower and there’s a transparent conference room which serves 360-degree city view. The house also has facility like surface being able to generate 3D holographic displays and acquiring news feeds from various news stations etc.

Tony Stark’s Cars – $3.4 million

I saw Tony Stark driving Bugatti Veyron Hyper Sport which is priced at $2 million. He also drew an Audi R8 (Electric car, e-torn concept) which is worth more than $100,000. His other vehicles previously seen in the movies were

1932 Ford Flathead roadster ($40,000),

• 967 Shelby Cobra ($45,000)
• Saleen S7 ($550,000)
• Tesla Roadster ($110,000)
• Rolls Royce Phantom ($388,000) and
• Audi R8 Spyder ($152,000)

After looking at all these, his net worth can be estimated to be $9 billion which doesn’t include his share in Stark Industries which is worth more than $20 Billion according to Forbes’ list of world’s largest fictional companies.

1) Consider: Harnessing the Power of Reflective Thinking in Your Organization ( Daniel Patrick Forrester)

Taking time off for reflective thinking may sound counterintuitive, but the author does an excellent job of gathering the methods used by great leaders and managers to manage crisis with real life anecdotes.

2) Strengths Finders 2.0 (Tom Rath)

Strengths Finder

Strength assessment is an invaluable tool that any business owner can use for himself or herself, as well as apply it to critical management team members. Developed by the Gallup organization, the book provides online strength assessment.

3) Carrots and sticks don’t work: Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles of RESPECT (Paul Marciano)

Employee motivation is not just a buzzword, but a practical business principle. This book evaluates motivational techniques throughout the years, then ends with recommendations.

4) Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming Obstacles Between Vision and Reality Scott Belsky)

Making Ideas Happen

This book guides readers through the process of converting an idea into something tangible by maintaining focus, developing the chemistry of your creative team, and harness the power of the community.

5) Awesomely Simple Essential Business Strategies For Turning Ideas Into Action (John Spence)

This is the nuts and bolts of organizational development with a clear and concise roadmap for management practices

6) Better Under Pressure: How Great Leaders Bring Out The Best In Themselves and Others (Justin Menkes)

Better under pressure

Some people flourish under pressure, while others simply crumble. In depth interviews with 60 CEOs from a wide range of industries will take you into the mind of great leaders.

7) Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? (Seth Godin)

linchpin

Today’s world demands the best from managers and subordinates alike and the book strives on how to become indispensable in the workplace.

8) No jerks On The Job: Who They Are, The Harm They Do and Ridding Them From Your Workplace (Ron Newton)

No jerks On The Job

There is always at least one of those in any business setting. Learning ways to identify and not feed into it will lead to a more productive environment.

Make it a point of reading through all of these management books, then sit back to ponder how your own actions are similar or may have differed, and you may just find yourself amazed at what you find.

Also Read: How President Obama’s Student Loan Forgiveness Act, 2012 Works

These loans are not easy to apply for, and  filling out a simple loan application is definitely not the end of the story, as most require essays and/or interviews. On the other end, is this not what college is supposed to do for students anyway, that is to prepare them for real jobs after graduation?

A big stumbling block for these loans is that they mostly require cosigners and some demand payments even while in school.

List of student loans at 0% interest that do not require payments during school and their maximum loan amount and number of loans available:

1) Massachusetts No-Interest Loan ($4,000-1,700): open to Massachusetts residents to enroll at participating institutions.

2) Military Officers Association of America ($5,500-1,700) : children of military personnel.

3) Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis ($14,000-660): need based for St. Louis residents.

4) Leo S. Rowe Pan American Fund ($15,000-100) : citizens of Latin American or Caribbean countries who will return to their countries after graduation and also have a cosigner.

5) Evalee C. Schwarz Charitable Trust For Education ($15,000-83) : open to students with excellent grades and test scores who are also eligible for Pell Grants.

6) Central Scholarship Bureau of Maryland ($10,000-75) : residents of Maryland with GPA of 2.0 and above, with income restriction on cosigner.

7) Bill Raskob Foundation ($2,000-50) : open to students who have finished freshman year.

8) Student Education Loan Fund ($25,000-20) : residents of Livermore, California.

9) Rotary Club of Amesbury, MA ($2,500-4) : residents of Amesbury, MA with cosigner.

10) California Weingart No-Interest Loan ($4,000) : need based California students only at participating institutions.

11) Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara ($5,000) : need based for Santa Barbara, California students.

Also Read: Consolidating Your Student Loan Is A Good Idea Or A Bad Idea?

List of loans requiring payments:

1) Abe and Annie Seibel Foundation ($6,000-900): $50 per month for need based Texas residents with good grades.

2) Jewish Free Loan Association (Southern California) ($3,500-650) : $75 a month for Los Angeles residents with two cosigners.

3) Hebrew Free Loan (of Detroit) ($4,000-112): $50 a year for Michigan Jewish students with cosigner.

4) Phoenix Jewish Free Loan Association ($5,000-35) : at least $50 per month for Arizona Jewish residents.

As you can see, these 0% student loans are only restricted to certain groups of people, but if you meet the basic qualifications, why not test yourself and see how well you may perform in college?

Image Credit: jobs.fourseasons.com

1. Define Your Financial Objectives

You have to decide what financial goals you want to achieve and in what time you want to achieve them. When you know what you want to achieve and how long you want to do, you know what is the best way to achieve the goals. According to your financial goal, determine how much you will save a week, a fortnight or month. The personal finance experts recommend that saving should be 10% of your income. If your expenses allow you to save more, nothing like it. Consumerism may tempt you to spend more money but you can always ask your bank to make automatic discounts on your payroll and put those resources into your savings account.

2. Control Your Expenses

Also Read: How to Become Frugal Without Compromising Social Life

Control your expenses made in cash as well as by credit cards and make a budget. Start recording all your expenses in this budget. Never spend more than you earn. Doing so will definitely create barriers between you and your financial goals. Developing a budget is not a rocket science, a simple excel sheet is good enough to take control of your expenses.

Financial Success

3. Prioritize Your Expenditure

You need to set priorities for everything in your life. If you really want to achieve your financial goals, they should be at the top of your priority list and nothing should divert your attention from your goals. You have to tighten your belts and leave those expenses that are useless. You can cut down on expenses made on luxuries and pleasures.

4. Stay away from credit cards

Also Read: 10 Tips to Use Your Credit Card Wisely and Save Money

Well credit cards often serve as tools for consumerism to encourage expenditure. Don’t get too much into credit cards. Stay away from this financial tool as much as possible.

5. Also allocate some money regularly for unforseen contengencies. Life is uncertain, you need to have funds to spend when required.

6. Investment

Also Read: The Best Investment Options for 2013: Brilliant Opportunities

Once you have enough money, consider investing in instruments that give high yields. Approach your bank and ask for advice. You can also approach your financial adviser to get the best investment options. Know the risks involved in all the instruments and respective returns. Keep constant watch on market even though you are not investing, knowledge is important. If you feel there is an opportunity in any instrument, don’t miss it and invest adequate amount.

7. Be Consistent

Creating budget is not enough, you need to constantly watch the budget. If your expenditure is not going according to the, inspect where have your gone wrong and take requires actions.

Thus as explained above, it’s totally in your hand to create a great financial plan depending upon your income and expenditure. Share your personal experiences regarding the topic discussed above. Give your suggestions and feel free to ask questions below in the comments, our experts will be more than happy to answer your queries.

Also Read: Top 10 Youngest and Smartest Billionaires in of the World

Top 10 Richest Women Billionaires in World

1.Liliane Bettencourt

Liliane Bettencourt

She is the richest women in the world with wealth of $ 30 billion. She is the richest person in France in 2013. At the age of 90, she is a businesswoman, philanthropist, socialite and heiress. She owns majority shares in L’Oréal after her father passed away and transferred all the shares to his only daughter. L’Oréal is the largest cosmetics company which was started by her father. She has founded the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, which helps cultural, humanitarian and medical projects. The foundation has annual budget of approx € 15 million ($ 19.5 million).

2. Christy Walton

Christy-Walton

She is widow of John Walton and daughter-in-law of Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart. She inherited the wealth after death of her husband in plane crash. She is citizen of USA and her net worth is $ 28.2 billion. The 58 year old has major shares in Wal-Mart and First Solar Company. Her wealth recently got a thump after 2006, since the shares of First Solar Company have risen over 500%

3. Alice Walton 

Alice Walton

The heiress of Wal-Mart, is the sister-in-law of Christy Walton (#2) and the only daughter of Sam Walton. The major source of income of 63 year old is the shares of Wal-Mart and her estimated net worth is $ 26.3 billion. She was also recognized as one of the most influential person in the world by Times magazine. She is divorced after being married for a very brief time in her 20’s.

4. Iris Fontbona  

Iris Fontbona

Her billionaire husband died of cancer in 2005, leaving the entire business empire at her upkeep. She along with her three sons control the world’s largest Copper mine of Antofagasta, Chile. The 71 year old has $ 17.4 billion and is richest person in Chile. The Fontbona family has diversified investments in food and beverage, energy, bank, port and transportation industries too.

5. Gina Rinehart

Gina Rinehart

Also Read: How Gina Rinehart Became The World’s Richest Woman

The 59 year old ‘Mining Billionaire’ is the richest person in Australia. With a net worth of $ 17 billion, she is the daughter of late Lang Hancock and heiress of Hancock prospecting. She took the business to new heights and also invested in media organisations and is the largest shareholder of Fairfax Media. She is known for visiting girls orphanages and Hope of Scholarship Award Programs.

6. Jaqueline Mars 

Jacqueline Mars

The 72 year old is the granddaughter of Frank Mars, the founder of one of the biggest candy companies of USA, Mars! She lives in the plains, Virginia. Her share in Mars is the same as her brother and is worth $ 17 billion. She married twice and is divorcee.

7. Susanne Klatten 

Susanne_Klatten

At 50, she is the richest person in Germany with total wealth of about $ 14.3 billion. She inherited 50.1% stake in Atlanta which is a pharmaceuticals and chemicals manufacturer. She also inherited 12.5% stakes in a popular car manufacturer BMW. She often used to work under the disguise name of Susanne Kant in order to prevent herself from the dangers which arose due to her wealth. She lives a quiet life in Munich.

8. Abigail Johnson

Abigail Johnson

An American businesswoman, she is the president of Fidelity Investments. Fidelity is led by father of 51 year old. She joined as a portfolio manager in her father’s company and today she is the president. She has also won the title of most powerful woman in Global Fund Management business. Being an alumnus of Harvard Business School, her net worth today is $ 12.7 billion.

 9. Miuccia Prada 

Born in Milan, she is a Ph.D. in political science, a fashion designer and Italian entrepreneur. She also studied and performed as mime for five years.  The 63 year old is granddaughter of Mario Prada who started the fashion powerhouse Prada, has wealth of $ 12.4 billion. The brand currently has operations in 63 countries with over 250 stores. She was known for her cool, classic and comfortable luxury. In March 2013, she was awarded by Guardian as one of the best fifty people dressed over fifty.

10. Anne Cox Chambers 

Anne Cox Chambers

The 93 year old is the daughter of James Cox, a newspaper publisher. She is a media proprietor and has stakes in privately owned American media company Coz Enterprises. The business of company includes newspaper, radio, television, cable television and others. She along with her sister co-owned the family company for over 33 years. She is the oldest richest women on earth today with wealth of $ 12 billion.

Also Read: How Gina Rinehart Became The World’s Richest Woman

Mark Zuckerberg

Personal wealth estimated at $ 13.3billion, the CEO of Facebook is under media scrutiny all the time. Just 8 days elder to Dustin Moskowitz. this hoodie wearing billionaire is Harvard dropped out and America’s internet entrepreneur, computer programmer and amongst 100 most influential people and Person of the year by Time magazine.

Sean Parker

Co-founder of the file sharing computer facility Napster, the 33 year old American entrepreneur is worth $ 2.1 billion. He has also co-founded Airtime, Causes and Plaxo. He served as founding President of the then six month old company, Facebook, at the age of 24. He bought the first investors to Facebook and played an important role in transforming it into a company from a college project. He is very active philanthropist and has raised huge funds for anti-malaria groups and cancer.

Dustin Moskovitz

He is America’s internet entrepreneur worth $ 3.8 billion and aged only 28. He co-founded Facebook along with Mark Zuckerberg and now works for Asana. He is selling about 450,000 Facebook shares which would fetch him about $ 8.7 million.

Eduardo Saverin

Another co-founder of Facebook, he is Brazilian internet entrepreneur and investor. His net worth is $ 2.2 billion and owns less than 5% of Facebook shares. This 30 year old has also invested in start-ups like Qwiki and Jumio. He now invests in early start ups and resides in Singapore.

Albert von Thurn und Taxis

This 29 year old German aristocrat first appeared in the list of billionaires when he was 8. Real estate, art and woodlands of Germany (36,000 hectares; largest forest holdings) are amongst his assets. This eligible bachelor, worth $ 1.5 billion is enthusiastic about race car driving and excursions with a German auto-racing league.

Fahd Hariri

Youngest son of slain Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafik Hariri, completed his graduation in architecture from Paris in 2004. After his father’s assassination in 2005, the 32 year old inherited his wealth and has net worth of $ 1.35 billion. He lives in Dubai and is involved in a number of real estate construction projects which was the love of his father.

Scott Duncan

Resident of Houston, Texas, this 30 year old, son of Dan Duncan, inherited his father’s massive fortune from his father and is worth $ 5.1 billion. His father was founder of Enterprise Products Partners which was started in 1968 with two trucks, selling door to door. Today, more than 50,000 miles of natural gas and other petrochemicals are owned by the Enterprise.

Ayman Hariri

Elder son of slain Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafik Hariri, completed his bachelor of arts from Georgetown University. He is involved in family construction business, Saudi Oger, and is worth $ 1.35 billion. The 34 year old has also invested in telecom companies like Turk Telecom and several Middle Eastern banks.

Huiyan Yang

With an estimated net worth of $ 5.7 billion, the 31 year old Chinese, Ohio State Grad, is major stakeholder in Country Garden Holdings. Her father started this company in 1997 and transferred 70% of stakes to his daughter in 2007 just before its IPO.

Marie Besnier Beauvalot

Marie Besnier, 32, inherited Lactalis, a huge dairy and dairy products firm, owned by the Besnier family. Her grandfather founded the company in late 1930’s which is fully owned by the Besniers till date. Lactalis is major producer of Président brie which is very popular alongwith various types of cheese, yogurt and milk brands.