Guest Blogs

Knowitall.ch often invites local experts in their field to contribute to their own blogs on our site. This means not only you will benefit from the useful recommendations that we make on our News pages, but you can also profit from some of the great advice and tips that these experts have to make on their favorite subjects. Whilst each of these bloggers has been recommended to us at some point during the evolution of Know-it-all passport and knowitall.ch, obviously we are not able to test out all the suggestions they make on their blogs, nor do we necessarily agree with all their opinions. So if you do find one of their tips useful (or not!), do let us know!

To make these blogs more accessible to you, we have now decided to group them altogether in one section, entitled Guest Blogs, accessible from our main menu bar. We will also post the most recent blogs on the home page of our site in the right hand column.

We are still building up this area of the site, and are looking for bloggers in a number of sections, including Your Home, Travel, and Leisure, so if you feel you have a useful contribution to make in either of these areas, and have the time to submit blog entries approximately every month, then please get in touch!

: Published: 23 March 2018

tara white crocus

By Tara Lissner, Swiss Gardening School

There is a softening underfoot, a warmth in the air and dare I say that feeling of spring abounds! It’s true we’ve been fooled before; a lovely gentle week in February followed by lots of snow and a wind chill that felt like -16c. But it will come, that light in the day, that stretch in the evening and that warmth in the air that means below zero temperatures are just a memory.

I do so love the optimism of March. Every DIY catalogue that comes through the letter box is packed with the promise of spring with bunnies and daffodils in almost every picture; lawn mowers and garden tools to make every job a breeze. Furniture catalogues encourage us to enjoy outdoor living with new patio furniture, parasols, coffee tables and sofas, to plan dinners and parties with friends. We the gardeners know that this is all just a sales tactic for it is far too early to even begin thinking about outdoor living, we are all preoccupied with outdoor working; beds to dig, mulch to spread, plants to grow, shrubs to prune and seeds to sow.

: Published: 08 March 2018

notchup jo anne

By Diana Ritchie, www.scc-centre.com

In today’s business environment, how to persuade and entertain an audience is of paramount concern and there are a large volume of books and articles out there on how to give a great presentation. But nothing replaces the opportunity to learn, practise and get feedback on delivering powerful presentations in a safe environment of like minded peers, who equally want to learn and grow professionally.

We’ve all attended a training session, a meeting or a conference where the presentation was, shall I say it – awful.

I was at one yesterday, where there was so much text, and we were sitting so far away that everything was a blur and my frustration started. I paid to be here, and I was spending my time to learn something and it was not happening. I was at another presentation earlier in the week, where the presenter was speaking to the slide, even though the slide was only a picture – what did he need to read? It was disturbing. Rule number 1, also face the audience and keep them engaged.

A presenter should speak to the audience not the slide. But how many of us have done that? Another speaker at the same conference had 4 points to share with the audience and gave us time to discuss, then ran out of time after point 2, rushed through points 3 and 4 and told the audience it was our fault that we ran out of time, as our discussions took too long.

How did that make me feel and what impression do I have of this guy’s organisation?

: Published: 26 February 2018

CDC Swiss media landscape 500

By Claire Doole, Claire Doole Communications

On March 4, the Swiss will vote on getting rid of the compulsory radio and television licence fee. If they say yes, Switzerland will become the first country in Europe to abolish the bulk of its public-service broadcasting.

As a former BBC journalist and recently naturalised Swiss citizen, it is a subject close to my heart.

I have seen ads in the cinema, watched discussions on Swiss television and walked past posters in the street.

: Published: 21 February 2018

peter warton

By Sunita Sehmi, Walk The Talk

Experts in the global search and selection industry, Antal, work with professional and managerial talent worldwide. Every day, they help businesses all around the world to find the talent that they need in order to drive their growth, profits and long-term success.

Utilising an extensive international network to carry out cross border work allows them to bring a truly unique approach to the recruitment sector. They do this with 1000 experts from more than 120 offices, spanning over 30 countries globally.

Over the past 24 years, they have worked with over 60,000 clients making over 100,000 placements. They have continuously improved and refined their internal processes, training and methodologies in order to reflect the business needs of their clients, and market changes in general.

Looking for a new challenge where he could leverage his experience, international management network and personal strengths, Peter Wharton acquired a franchise in Antal International in Geneva. Having hired more than 50 employees over the years he has developed a knack for identifying talent and placing them in the right positions.

I caught up with him to chat to his business, and his tips on how to navigate yourself in this market and present your best version of yourself.

: Published: 08 February 2018

robert harris feb 2018

By Robert Harris, Forth Capital

As Partner and Chairman of the Investment Committee at Forth Capital, I have been asked to give my thoughts on the recent market volatility:

It won’t have gone unnoticed that stock markets fell by over 4% at the end of January. So, what happened and what lessons should be learned? Should you be concerned about your investments and pensions?

In the short term, markets never move in a straight line and they often make big moves both up and down. The large fall in the market on Friday 2nd Feb in the US was caused ironically by better than expected performance in the US economy. The effect of President Trump’s massive fiscal stimulus (tax cuts allied to government spending) has boosted the US economy and caused wages to rise faster than expected, which in turn will fuel inflation.

The fall in the stock market is a result of expectation of rising interest rates (not actual rises!). On the 6th Feb markets rebounded as investors bought cheaper assets.