Caffe Nero - 2145 Words

What are the factors contributed to the growth of Caffe Nero in the United Kingdom market? INTRODUCTION: Caffe Nero Group Limited was founded in 1997 in South Kensington, London by Gerry Ford. It is an Italian style coffee shop and the largest independent coffee retailer in Great Britain in recent days. Now, it has over 400 stores and nearly 3000 employees in the United Kingdom. It is also to the development of overseas market, in 2007, Caffe Nero opened the store in Turkey, and after one year later, it opened the shop in the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East. Caffe Nero has a philosophy; it is very simple, which included four elements, Food, Service, Coffee and Atmosphere, especially Coffee and Atmosphere, a good coffee can give†¦show more content†¦On the other hand, it must identify the positive points and negative points in internal factors and external factors. It can divide the key pieces of information into two main aspects, the first one is Internal factors, it describes in the organisation internal environment, the ‘strengths’ and ‘weaknessesâ₠¬â„¢, the other one is External factors, it shows the ‘opportunities’ and ‘threats’ appeared by the external environment (Panagiotou G. 2003). [pic] Figure 1 People called the SWOT analysis to the SWOT matrix; it is very helpful for producing a series of alternatives for a company and an organisation or business unit based on special combinations of four directions of strategic aspects. The SWOT matrix clarifies how the external opportunities and threats confronting a company can be matched with company internal strengths and weaknesses to consequence with four directions of probable strategic alternatives. The SWOT matrix can make managers to bring about many kinds of growth and contraction measures. The SWOT matrix involves four ways; firstly, Strengths- Opportunities strategies concentrate on how to utilize strengths of a business to get a good hand of opportunities. Secondly, Strengths- Threats strategies try to use the strengths of a firm to leave a way from the threats. Thirdly, Weaknesses- Opportunities strategies aim to clear up theShow MoreRelatedCaffe Nero3562 Words   |  15 PagesExecutive summary In this report, the mission statement for Caffe Nero is make sure food and service are excellence in all four areas to achieve their aim. Besides that, Caffe Nero also providing their customers with good quality coffee and comfortable environment to their customers. There are 3 main important to be successful - A high quality and well defined offering, focus on brand value, selective site acquisition and disciplined roll-out. Next, SWOT analysis has included in this reportRead MoreAnalysis of Caffe Nero Essay4351 Words   |  18 PagesIntroduction Gerry Ford founded Caffe’ Nero in 1997. Caffe’ Nero is the biggest privately owned coffee chain in UK. His intension was to open up a chain of continental style coffee shop in UK. Currently Caffe’ Nero operates in England, Scotland, Wales, Turkey, and United Arab Emirates. Caffe’ Nero has over 400 stores and 3000 employees. Caffe’ Nero concessions in some UK major stores like Heathrow Airports, House of Fraser, bookshop chain Waterstone’s and also Caffe’ Nero Express outlets opened up inRead MoreCafe Nero Marketing Plan6124 Words   |  25 Pagesset the next market objectives and plans a one year plan strategy to reach those objectives. In the second part, this marketing plan outlines the issues that need to be considered to implement Caffà © Nero overseas by analysing of international marketing of the company. Caffà © Nero Group Plc Caffà © Nero Group Plc was founded 1977 and currently owns 290 stores from Brighton to Glasgow with  £90,7 million as turnover. We provide Italian coffee in European style coffee houses. Our philosophy consistsRead More7ps analysis for Caffe Nero Essay1613 Words   |  7 Pagesanalysis (7P’s) and recommendation : Caffe’ Nero Introduction Caffe’ Nero was founded by Gerry ford in 1997 which aiming to be authentically Italian, serving premium espresso-based coffee, fresh high quality food, and a neighborhood gathering spot by the end of 2000, the Nero team had built 31 cafes  and established the company as a national brand and received British Design Council award for best company identity (Official Caffe’ Nero website).  Caffe’ Nero considered themselves as bothRead MoreCafe Nero Environment, Swot Analysis, Smart Objectives Essay examples2810 Words   |  12 PagesPage Content Caffà ¨ Nero Facts 3 Environment Analysis 3 SWOT Analysis 5 SMART OBJECTIVES 6 SEGMENTATION 7 Marketing strategies 7 7Ps 8 Monitor and evaluating plan 10 Read MoreNero Cafe Financials2785 Words   |  12 PagesPROFIT CLIMBED BY 38% TO  £13.2M (2007:  £9.6M) STRONG CASH GENERATION CONTINUES TO FUND ROLL-OUT OF NEW STORES A NET INCREASE OF 61 NEW STORES DURING THE YEAR, BRINGING GROUP TOTAL TO 371 YEAR END LAUNCHED â€Å"NERO EXPRESS† CARTS FOR AIRPORT AND RAILWAY STATION HUBS: OPERATING WITH A TOTAL OF 15 NERO EXPRESS CARTS BY YEAR END (MAY 2008) ENTERED FIRST INTERNATIONAL MARKET - TURKEY. OPENED 7 STORES BY YEAR END (MAY 2008) CURRENTLY 393 STORES IN 210 UK CITIES AND TOWNS; ANTICIPATE 410 STORES BY CURRENT YEARRead More Coffee Industry in the UK Essay1613 Words   |  7 Pagescoffee industry has grown rapidly since the 1990s; before Starbucks emerged, people were used to drinking low quality coffee from tins. Starbucks introduced fresh coffee made from top quality beans that have excellent taste and drinks such as the caffe latte and cappuccino, which have helped to fuel the development of the coffee market into a multi million pound industry. The size of UK branded coffee chains have quadrupled from 1999 to 2004, with a current market turnover of over  £1 billion. Read MoreOverview of the Coffee Industry Uk Essay1777 Words   |  8 PagesCompetitors Starbucks Costa Coffee Caffe Nero 6 Barriers to entry 7 Price sensitivity 8 Customer Profile 9 Supply 10 Conclusion 1 Market Overview - Value/Sales/Volume/Growth in recent years The coffee industry has grown rapidly since the 1990s; before Starbucks emerged, people were used to drinking low quality coffee from tins. Starbucks introduced fresh coffee made from top quality beans that have excellent taste and drinks such as the caffe latte and cappuccino, which have helpedRead MoreEssay about Costa Coffee Marketing Plan4148 Words   |  17 Pages |32.4% | |Starbucks Coffee Company |314 |403 |717 |23.2% | |Caffà ¨ Nero |160 |250 |410 |13.3% | |Caffà ¨ Ritazza |19 |164 |183 |5.9% | |BB’s Coffee Muffins (went out of |10 Read MoreIdentify, Analyze and Discuss Strategic Issues for Costa According to the Resource Based View (Rbv) and Its Core Competences.1277 Words   |  6 Pagesthey are utilized in order to confer Costa competitive advantage. The coffee brewing industry is a relatively recent market in expansion with little differentiation between the main competitors. In spite of the fierce competition that Starbucks, Caffe Nero and Coffee Republic have given to Costa coffee, ‘the company is the fastest growing coffee shop chain in the UK’ (Datamonitor 360, (2008), Whitbread PLC, company overview). This means that Costa coffee has successfully managed (partly at least)

The Nursing Shortage Free Essays

Melisa A. Smith Dr. Kathryn Skulley Eng 122-500 22 November 2011 Crisis in America Back in the late 1930’s, American men were drafted to go off and fight in World War II while women at home had to learn a new way of life to support their families and support the soldiers. We will write a custom essay sample on The Nursing Shortage or any similar topic only for you Order Now A woman named Florence Nightingale who was recognized as one of the first nurses to care for the wounded soldiers during the Crimean war helped to influence other women to learn how to become nurses and care for the sick and wounded. After the war ended in the mid 1940’s, thousands of soldiers returned home to begin the next chapter in their lives by starting a family while women returned to homemaking. In fact, due to the major population shift after the war, thousands and thousands of babies were born in which it would be named the Baby-Boomer generation. Now fast forward to the year 2010, several decades later, the baby-boomer generation is aging and approaching there sixties and beyond at a time when healthcare is beginning to be used more frequently by many others. Now that America is beginning a new era of healthcare with the creation of healthcare reform that soon will create access for the uninsured and underinsured to gain access to healthcare treatments. On March 23, 2010, â€Å"The Affordable Care Act† was signed into law by President Obama that would create healthcare access for millions of Americans. This is turn would create a huge strain on the American healthcare system at a time when concerns are rising due to the increased need of services for the baby-boomer generation and the current nursing population to care for them. You can read also Coronary Artery Disease Nursing Care Plan If Americans already planned on facing a nursing shortage with the baby-boomer generation, then how would the shortage affect everyone else when healthcare reform becomes active in the year two-thousand-fourteen? This paper will discuss some individual points more in detail and evaluate the nursing shortage situation from the beginning of nursing history to present day that could affect all healthcare workers now and in the future. The nursing shortage topic in America has always been a debatable question where it will be analyzed further in detail starting with some statistical data. Looking at the national level for current nursing employment, the U. S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics stated that, â€Å"2,655,020 registered nurses were currently employed as of May two-thousand and ten† (U. S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics: Occupation section). The information presented here did not account for self-employed nurses or one’s that currently work multiple jobs. Now on a smaller scale looking at the State of Colorado’s population and registered â€Å"nurses per 1000 rate is 7. 98 as compared with a national average of 8. 6 with an additional need of 1,780 nurses to meet the national average† (The Demographic Challenges Facing Colorado’s Health Care Workforce 15). The information noted here did not account for rural areas and small towns where the population is considerably lower. Next, the discussion will continue on about nursing school factors affecting the nursing shortage. Additionally when someone is attracted by the potential for a nursing career and advancement, they must look at all avenues first before deciding and making a commitment to nursing school. However, when someone has made the decision to enroll they must take several prerequisite classes and take a nursing entrance exam before being accepted into a nursing program. Furthermore, after students have taken the required prerequisites, they may not easily be accepted into a nursing program because of limited number of slots available and teaching constraints. In fact, it has been well observed by many schools that the major factor in the nursing shortage is due to the lack of qualified nursing instructors. In the United States, â€Å"nursing schools turned away 67,583 qualified applicants from baccalaureate and graduate programs in 2010 due to insufficient number of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, clinical preceptors and budget constraints† (2010-2011 Enrollment and Graduations in Baccalaureate and Graduate Programs in Nursing 2). Another factor that contributes to the nursing shortage is that nursing faculty members and educators are being lured away from colleges by higher compensation, which in turn reduces the number of potential educators to meet the demands needed. Consequently, most educators are generally older with a limited number of years of teaching left before retirement which in turn could also leave more potential nurses waiting on a list that could reduce the national shortage. Furthermore, the United States started facing some major healthcare challenges with the baby-boomer generation beginning to impact the healthcare system in two-thousand ten. Now that this generation is in their sixties many of them will be facing increased health problems due to aging thus putting a greater demand on the healthcare system for treatment and prevention. Consequently, this generation will begin turning sixty-five at a rate of approximately ten thousand baby-boomers per day for the next nineteen years starting in the year two-thousand eleven. This in turn will create a huge stressor to the already problematic nursing shortage. In addition to the baby-boomer generation, America will soon be forced to provide healthcare to millions of individuals who previously did not have insurance starting in two-thousand fourteen when the Affordable Care Act goes into full force. Furthermore, â€Å"healthcare reform will soon provide subsidies for thirty-two million citizens to more fully utilize the healthcare system† (Joint Statement from the Tri-Council for Nursing on Recent Registered Nurse Supply and Demand Projections 2). This in turn will create a huge stress on the medical profession especially the nursing sector, as the healthcare system is grappling in the shortage of nurses to care for the baby-boomers. Emergency rooms and physicians’ offices will soon be faced with a massive influx of patients to provide care for, which would cause an increased demand for more medical staff including nurses and physicians. Patients then would be going to local hospitals for elective surgeries and diagnostic testing which would cause a surge and a need for more hospital beds to accommodate the needs of patients. When the demand exceeds the amount of resources available people could be facing other challenges such as emergencies or disasters of magnitude. With the introduction of the healthcare reform and the baby-boomer generation, the healthcare system could also be facing emergency preparedness scenarios that have not been attempted before with the combination of emergency disaster plans currently available. Some may remember the hundreds killed and injured from the two-thousand eleven tornado outbreak or the terrorist attacks on the twin towers that caused mass casualties and injured numerous people on September 11, 2001. This is just to name a few disasters that America was impacted by with the need for emergent healthcare services. Additionally in the United States, â€Å"there is little flexibility for unanticipated fluctuations in patient acuity and demand on a daily basis, and an absence of standby capacity for large-scale emergencies† (McHugh 442). Consequently, if the United States doesn’t come up with a large scale disaster plan that has been attempted before, then many will be faced with total destruction and demise. Nurses have gone through the grueling process to begin and succeed in their careers from the dedication of going to school to meet entry level standards, as well as taking the national licensure examination prior to practicing. Some nurses graduate with the expectation that the wages and demands of the job will be satisfying to keep them in their current role. But some people may know very little about the profession until they are faced with the reality of the job demands versus the salary. A new graduate nurse just beginning his/her career maybe making less than the more experienced nurses, but still held to the standard of providing the same type of care to all patients. According to the U. S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the national median wage for registered nurses as of May two-thousand ten was â€Å"$67,720 annually† (U. S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages). However this statistic did not report the level of education held other than the title of registered nurse. Furthermore, nurses are held to a high standard to uphold to their duties and continue to give accurate, compassionate and safe care to all patients. Nevertheless, nurses play many roles other than a care-taker or pill pusher, they are expected to know about possible medication interactions that could harm a patient since they are the last line of protection for patient. Nurses have also been trained to think critically in times of crisis and to intervene with life-saving interventions without the supervision of a physician. Many of the â€Å"hazards on the job, include blood and body fluid exposure as well as musculoskeletal injuries related to ergonomic hazard from lifting and repetitive tasks† (Stone et al. 1984). During times of busy patient demands, nurses may also run the risk of harm to themselves, especially during the administration of an injection that could cause a needle puncture that may potentially be from an infected needle, or come in contact with the splashing of body fluids on exposed skin. However, many hospitals have currently up-graded equipment to help prevent unwanted needle stick exposures through the use of needle free systems, but there is still work to be done to keep nurses and patients safe. Furthermore, nurses may also be exposed to occupational injuries while lifting a patient in bed, or when a patient falls on a staff member and injures them in the same turn as well. Obviously some hospitals have improved the safety for staff, and patients with the use of lifts or ssistive devices, but time maybe of essence. With this in mind, the physical and mental demands of the nursing profession may take a toll on a person’s body, or it may potentially provoke thoughts of a career change from the risks involved. However, since nurses are also held accountable for mistakes made even when times are proven difficult, in hind sight turn this could potentially create a stressful environment full of expectations without satisfaction. Furthermore, â€Å"nurses’ working conditions have been associated with medication errors and falls, increased deaths, and spread of infection, but nurses report making more errors when working shifts greater than twelve hours, working overtime, or working more than forty hours per week† (Stone et al. 1984). In some hospitals nurses are given an assigned number of patients to care for, but patients are coming into the hospitals’ sicker than in previous years which can create a dilemma when assigning patient care. Some hospitals’ have been designated as a Magnet hospital where the maximum ratio is one nurse to five patients which could help ease some demands to be able to provide better care to patients, but this trend is still new to some healthcare systems. On a typical working shift nurses are responsible for medication administration, physical assessments and general care of the patient, but during times of staffing shortage nurses may have to provide all the care for all assigned patients. Generally speaking, nurses care for four to eight patients per shift while â€Å"an additional patient within this range was associated with a seven percent increase in the odds of dying within thirty days of admission and a seven percent increase in the odds of death following complications such as shock or pneumonia† (Keenen 1). In addition patients have a greater risk of infection due to lack of adequate infection control from proper hand washing by healthcare staff when staffing shortages occur. When nurses are held accountable for a certain number of patients, and one person falls out of bed down the hall while they were getting another patient up to the bathroom can create an unsafe and unsatisfactory environment for all involved parties that in turn can cause higher morbidity in patients. With a stressful environment and combined fear of making a mistake which would result in punitive action against them, â€Å"the U. S. healthcare system contains a safety climate which blames individuals for errors instead of the system or organizational failures that may really be at fault† (Fox and Abrahamson 235). With that said, more nurses feel pressured to not make any mistakes instead of being human. However, when hospitals’ are dealing with staffing issues and nurses are not able to give proper attention to their patients this in turn could create a dangerous situation for patients that have an increased mortality risk due to complications or co morbidities. Studies have shown that staffing insufficiencies increase the mortality risk in patients due to the inability to adequately care and educate patients on complications such as pneumonia or bloods clots which can be proven fatal. Nurses are also expected to perform many tasks that include life saving techniques in critical situations, but in order to keep these individuals with these skills employed by a specific facility it takes a clever approach to nursing retention. However, â€Å"research shows that nurses contribute heavily to the quality of patient care, reimbursement based upon performance outcomes would likely increase the economic value of nurses, thus improving wages, work environment and recruitment and retention† (Fox and Abrahamson 235). In the past, when hospitals were dealing with nursing shortages some would offer a sign-on bonus or a contract to pay for a portion of education expenses as an incentive to attract employees for difficult to recruit positions such as night shifts. Due to cost constraints some facilities were beginning to do away with sign-on bonuses and offer other assistance after a specific time period of employment. On the contrary, most facilities do not recognize nurses with compensation based on performance other than an increase in cost of living wages, but could benefit further through increased recognition programs. Since World War II the nursing profession had always been a female dominant profession until now, with the addition and encouragement of male nurses in the profession. Most patients saw nursing as a female dominant profession due the delicate nature of caring for sick patients and the need for gentle interactions and nurturing. Furthermore, working conditions were often poorer in nursing with a predominately female occupation. During times of economic recession more nurses were choosing to work, or continue employment to help meet the financial expectations of their households especially in times when other family members are facing a layoff or furlough. Although when the economy improves the shift of nurses actively working may change and create an even bigger nursing shortage while some may change careers or retire all together. Furthermore, with the introduction of men in nursing things have begun to change and more and more men were joining the nursing profession for career stability and advancement opportunities in an already female dominant profession. A man named James Derham â€Å"in 1783 who was a slave earned money to buy his freedom by working as a nurse† making him the first male nurse (Bonair and Philipsen 19). Nursing schools began offering scholarships to male nursing students as a way to attract more people to the nursing profession. With men in a female dominant profession they were making up â€Å"five to ten percent of the workforce in the UK, USA and Canada† while in the nursing profession they were more likely to be promoted into leadership roles (Brown 120). Male nurses generally started a nursing career at a younger age compared to their female counter parts. As working nurses were getting older many of them were planning for retirement at a time when a majority of people were retiring with the baby-boomer generation. More and more people began to choose a nursing career later in life, so consequently most nurses ended up retiring earlier due to the strains of the job or age factors. Consequently, the average age of nursing students graduating was thirty-one, while the average age of the working nurse is forty-six years old. Due to the popularity of nursing for some it is becoming a second career for individuals after many years of employment in other fields such as business, or computer industries that have had many changes and layoffs that contributed to the employment shift. With this new employment shift new nurses that began a nursing career as older adults are not working in the field as long and retiring sooner. Furthermore with the short periods of nursing employment, this again creates problems with fixing the nursing shortage across the country. Now that the factors of the nursing shortage have been described in detail, the next discussion will be about ways to fix the nursing shortage problem in America from the faculty shortage to loan forgiveness programs. If America is going to get out of the nursing shortage crisis the first step is to address the shortage of educators, and nursing faculty that teach and train the future nursing students. In order to create an interest in teaching there needs to be some changes with regards to income levels, and more education assistance to give nurses the ability to increase their knowledge. Some hospitals ffer opportunities to take a leave of absence from their jobs to pursue further education options without the fear of job loss. However, this in turn would not only be an asset to the individual but the facility as well that encouraged their employees to seek more education. Another factor in the nursing shortage is the number of clinical sites needed to give adequate clinical experi ences for nurses to learn in. In hospitals today nursing schools generally have clinical experiences five days a week instead of an additional two days on the weekend to meet more needs of clinical experience time. By offering the additional two days per week, nursing students would meet their clinical expectations ahead of schedule therefore they could graduate earlier and begin nursing practice sooner. This in turn would help to ease the shortage of trained nurses sooner and decrease the waitlist time for entrance into nursing school. In order to attract more nurses to continue advancing their education there needs to be more monetary compensation to pay for the cost of education in order to encourage more nurses to advance into teaching. Furthermore in order for the healthcare system and colleges to meet the recruitment demands and the shortage requirements there needs to be some collaboration between facilities for education and tuition assistance. Consequently to address the aging of the nursing faculty, more people need to be encouraged to continue their education without any lapse of time after graduation. Nevertheless, since most nurses cannot afford to pay for the higher expenses of college and continue to work then only a selected few would advance their education. However, some nurses may choose not to continue their education due to conflicts with work schedules and family, unless there was some loan assistance or forgiveness program widely used. The United States currently has loan forgiveness programs that pay the entire amount of the loan after requirements are met. Furthermore, after a nurse has completed two years of service in a hospital then they can apply for the loan forgiveness program that may take up to six months before a decision is made, and only a limited number of individuals are selected. In addition, if the United States invested in more healthcare facilities and offered more loan assistance and scholarships then people would be more attracted to the nursing profession and possibly reduce the nursing shortage. In conclusion, after discussing the many challenges that the nursing profession faces, it is still considered a highly respected field by many but may not be the choice for everyone. However, until the United States aggressively pursues a solution to the nursing shortage, better wages, and working conditions, then healthcare reform will define the critical needs of nurses that may end up costing more lives than money. In the end, if the nursing shortage continues, it could be catastrophic to American society at a time when healthcare has made so many advances to increase the life expectancy rate. Works Cited â€Å"2010-2011 Enrollment and Graduations in Baccalaureate and Graduate Programs in Nursing. † Fact Sheet-Nursing Shortage (2011). http://www. aacn. nche. edu/Media/Factsheets/NursingShortage. htm. Bonair, Jennifer, and Nayna Philipsen. â€Å"Men in Nursing: Addressing the Nursing Workforce Shortage and Our History. † Maryland Nurse. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. EBSCO, 10. 3 (May-July 2009): 19. Web. 29 Oct. 2011. Brown, Brian. â€Å"Men in nursing: Re-evaluating masculinities, re-evaluation gender. † Contemporary Nurse: A Journal for the Australian Nursing Profession. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. EBSCO, 33. 2 (2009): 129. Web. 29 Oct. 2011 Fox, Rebekah L. , and Kathleen Abrahamson. â€Å"A Critical Examination of the U. S. Nursing Shortage: Contributing Factors, Public Policy Implications. † Nursing Forum. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. EBSCO, 44. 4 (Oct-Dec. 2009): 244. Web. Sept. 2011. Joint Statement from the Tri-Council for Nursing on Recent Registered Nurse Supply and Demand Projections. AACC, n. d. Web. 4 Sept. 2011. http://www. aacn. nche. edu/Media/NewsReleases/21/tricouncil. html. Keenen, Patricia. â€Å"The Nursing Workforce Shortage: Causes, Consequences, Proposed Solutions. † Issue Brief. CINHL Plus with Full Text. EBSCO, (2003): 6. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. McHugh, Matthew D. â€Å"Hospital Nurse Staffing and Public Health Emergency Preparedness: Implications for Policy. † Public Health Nursing. 27. 5 (Sept/Oct 2010): 449. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. EBSCO. Web. 29 Oct. 2011. Stone, Patricia w. , et al. â€Å"Nurses’ Working Conditions: Implications for Infectious Disease. † Emerging Infectious Diseases 10. 11 (2004): 1989. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. http://www. cdc. gov/eid. The Demographic Challenges Facing Colorado’s Health Care Workforce. Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence, n. d. Web. 4 Sept. 2011. http://www. coloradonursingcenter. org/colorado. U. S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics. Occupation: Registered Nurses. http://data. bls. gov, May 2010. Web. 1 Nov. 2011. How to cite The Nursing Shortage, Papers

Memoir Writing and Desire Line free essay sample

A memoir Is a story about your life, tracing your experiences, hopes, failures, success and triumphs. Its also a way to share your wisdom and leave a legacy. Some famous memoirs are: Memoirs of a Geisha, which was written by a ghostwriter, and Angels Ashes, the famous Frank McClure memoir about growing up in Ireland. The Memoirs off Geisha movie was a blockbuster, while the movie version of the McClure memoir also won many awards. How to Start a Memoir How do you condense decades of your life Into a comprehensive, engaging and compelling narrative?One way to start a memoir is to tell your story to a ghostwriter. The ghostwriter digitally records you talking, transcribes the material, then edits and revises it into a memoir. You can start a memoir by creating a timeline. You do this by creating a timeline of the period you want to write about, then listing the key events and emotional experiences that happened at each point. Another way to start a memoir Is to simply start Journaling your life experiences, Including your memories, thoughts and feelings. It doesnt matter if you dont know what to say, worry about saying it right, or simply cant remember the details. Just get started.Once you have something down, you can start picking and choosing which experiences you want to focus on in the narrative. Then write more about that. After a while, you can organize the material and shape it into chapters. You can then hire a ghostwriter or editor to read your Journal, organize the material and edit It Into a compelling memoir. If you are unsure. You can start a short memoir _ Short memoirs allow Individuals to tell their stories without committing time and resources to an extensive autobiography. 12 Tips on Writing Memoirs 1. Be Kind to Yourself You are not going to remember some things you wish you could.And you will remember things you wish you could forget. Its k. Life is like that. It is filled with ups and downs, triumphs and despair. While it may be painful or exhilarating to experience, it is also what makes a good memoir. Writing a memoir is as much about telling the truth about your life, as it is recording Important events. As you write your memoir, remember to have compassion for yourself, 2. Memory is Unpredictable You never know when or how your memories will emerge. You may remember the strangest details like the smell of your grandmothers kitchen but not remember there important facts like your grandmothers maiden name.Thats k. The answers may come in dreams, chance conversations, photos or letters. Trust that the right memories will emerge. If you are writing about someone who did you wrong, try to find the good in the other person. What redeeming qualities did he or she have? Why did that person behave the way he or she did? What pain did that person experience that made him or her behave that way? The more you can present understanding and even compassion for your bad guys, the more interesting and compelling your memoir will be. 4. Just Write Maybe you dont know what to say. Write that down. Maybe you dont remember. Write that down.Maybe you think you sound stupid. Write that down. It doesnt matter. Just keep the pen moving across the paper; keep typing those words into the computer. At some point, you will find the words start to flow. 5. You Dont Have to Write You can use digital recorders, software and video to record your stories. You can also hire a ghostwriter to interview you, organize and write your memoir. Many people including politicians, business people, celebrities and everyday people use ghostwriters. Writing a memoir does not have to be hard. 6. One Day at a Time It took you years to live your life and have the experiences you had.Do you think you can write it down in a few short days or weeks? Probably not. But if you can write Just a little each day, you will have something in a few short weeks and months. Like the tortoise who eventually reaches the finish line, so will you. One day at a time, you will reach your goal of completing your memoir. One day at a time, you will achieve your dream. 7. Turn Off the Inner Critic Sometimes, you need to shut up. Shut up your inner critic, that is. The one that says, But thats not right, Maybe Im saying it wrong, Im not good enough to do this, l onto know how, l need to eat something, l have to vacuum the floor For now, just let the words flow. Write whatever is on your mind, in your heart, from your memories. Let your creativity loose. You will have ample time to turn on the critic later when youre editing the work. But for now, while you write, turn it off. 8. You Can Change Everything Later Dont worry about naming people, offending them or being sued. Dont worry about getting things wrong. You can change everything later names, dates, times, places, details, even the story itself. You can run it by a lawyer, literary agent or publisher later. When you are writing, your goal is simply to get everything down first. . Emotional Truth is More Important than Factual Truth country was that neighbor from? These are all salient details that you might want to know while writing your memoir. But if you dont remember, thats k. More important was, how did you feel when your son was born? How elated were you when you received those flowers? How did you feel when that neighbor gave your family the basket of food that Christmas after you had lost your Job and didnt have money to buy food? Yes, factual details paint the storys canvas. But the emotional truths memories the storys soul. 10.Writing is Rewriting Writing never comes out perfect the first time. Good writing means rewriting. Give yourself the time and space to rewrite material, until you have something that is an authentic expression of your life, voice and wisdom. 11. Get Support Find a writing teacher, coach, buddy or ghostwriter to spot you. A coach can guide and advise you, especially when you are not sure how to proceed. More importantly, a coach keeps you accountable to your own dreams. 12. Hold on to Your Vision When you are stuck or discouraged, remember why you are doing this. Is it to leave a cagey? To share your wisdom?Think about how happy or touched others will feel after reading your memoir. Think about how your story will make a difference in their lives. Think about how satisfied you will feel completing it. Hold on to your vision of completing your memoir. THE KEY ELEMENTS OF WRITING A GOOD MEMOIR So lets take a look at exactly how to build your arc, starting with the key elements: the desire line, actions and obstacles, emotional beats, the initiating incident and, of course, the ending. The Desire Line The first step in drawing an arc is to answer this question: What did you (as the orator/protagonist) want in the story youre telling?You should be able to state the desire line in a sentence: I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I wanted to stay in the police department. I wanted to love my stepson. I wanted to make a new life in Uganda after the death of my wife. I wanted to be a model though I weighed 160 pounds. Keep in mind that the desire line can change by the end of the memoir. For example, a teen author might begin by chronicling the methodical engineering of his own destruction, but end by deciding he wants to live. Even so, its his original desire that rives his character to that unexpected conclusion. Dont expect to come up with your desire line immediately: Its not that easy. The desire line must be one that makes the like, l wanted to be loved, or, l wanted to belong-?theyre too general simply because everybody wants those things. If youre stuck, a good way to come up with the specific desire line is to write a one-page fantasy in which you get your ideal ending in the story youre telling. Thats the story of you getting what you wanted. Now: What was it? Actions and Obstacles Once you have the desire line, you can lay out the events of your book. What did you do to get what you wanted?What got in your way? Begin planning your story arc by jotting down a list of actions and obstacles: I wanted the desire line). To get it, I To get it, I then But so, I (And so on. ) action). Obstacle) got in my way. In your memoir, remember that you are the action hero. You try a lot of different things to solve your problem, with mixed results. You have setbacks, you make mistakes and you push on, until you either get what you wanted, or you dont, or you stop wanting it, or whatever. For this reason, the obstacles in your book are Just as important as the actions.Obstacles are often external: other people (the nurse who got herself written into your mothers will), bad luck, natural disasters and so on. Even more interesting to the reader, however, are the internal obstacles: the ways in which you screwed up, got things wrong. (After all, we all do, right? If your story is one of pinioning from triumph to triumph, keep it to yourself, thanks! ) Why did you ignore evidence that your husband was lying to you? Or that you were lying to yourself? (In Hold Me Close I start by preening myself on what a natural mother I am.This is why its such a blow when my daughters life falls apart. Often the real drama of a memoir is in watching the narrator shed beliefs and behaviors that keep him from getting what he wants. If you cant come up with a clear list of things you did to get what you wanted-?and of obstacles standing in your way-?that might be a sign that your book concept is too internal, too talky or too dependent on psychological insights (for instance, realizing that youre leading the life your dad did, or that you married a woman whos a lot like your mom).If that happens, revisit you r desire line until a clearer, more action-driven story arc presents itself. It could also be that youre having a hard time identifying actions and obstacles because youre writing a victim book, in which something bad has happened to you, and all you can do is react, rather than act. Take it from me: You dont want to write a poor-me book. The best memoirs show how human beings change under pressure, not Just the bad things that can happen to people. And that change means change in you. If you marry a doctor who turns out to be a crook, thats not change.Its bad luck. If you marry a doctor who turns out to be a crook, and you knew all along something was wrong-? hose unexplained phone calls, a repossessed Porch-?then you have a story to tell. Your memoir should be about what you found out about yourself, not about him, the night of his arrest. Be brave. Sometimes theres a difference between what you want pursuing publication, its not a bad idea to recognize this discrepancy early, so you can plan the book differently, this time with the readers needs in mind.Emotional Beats A memoir is an emotional Journey. The events in the story are there not because they happened, but to show the shifts in emotion the narrator (you) goes through, event by event, over the course of the book. These shifts are called beats. A beat is an event keyed to an emotion. Heres an event: And then my mother told me shed had an affair. But how does that event affect the story? Heres the beat: It was the first time that she made herself vulnerable to me, and for the first time in months, I really looked at her. Take a look at these beats (with the emotional keys italicized, and of course simplified) in my student Erik Johnnys memoir-in-progress, Wicked Stepmother: (BEAT) Erik is excited to be marrying the man she loves. He has a 5-year-old, Max, but thats no problem: After all, the boy is with his mother half the time. BEAT) On her wedding night, she waits downstairs in a negligee for her husband to finish putting Max to bed, only to find the two of them fast asleep. She realizes there is an intruder in her marriage. (BEAT) She scolds herself for resenting and disliking the son. (BEAT) She vows to be a good sport. That very morning, as a first step, she transforms Mamas bedroom into a page out of Pottery Barn Kids. (BEAT) Being a good sport doesnt work. (BEAT) She avoids the boy by first staying away from the house as much as possible, and then by taking a Job in India. (BEAT) She is lonely. (BEAT) She decides the answer s to quit her Job and throw herself wholeheartedly into the role of stepmother. (BEAT) She is frustrated when the boys mother excludes her from school events. (And so on. ) Can you see how these beats link together to form the arc? These are the events-?linked with emotion-?that must be traumatized in scene in your memoir.The Initiating Incident Notice that some beats will be major turning points, others more minor. The most important event/beat comes near the beginning. This is the day the trouble started. You were perfectly content as you were, saw no reason to change, then the trouble came along and wham! Everything you knew about yourself was thrown out of balance. For Johnson, in the previous example, the initiating incident was realizing she had underestimated the impact of the presence of a stepson in her marriage. For another workshop student of mine, it was the day she crossed her college campus on the way to class and stumbled for no reason. Shed had cerebral palsy since she was 7, and she knew this sudden buckling of her knees might mean she was heading for a wheelchair. This stumble sets off the struggle of the book, with the desire line, l wanted to be able to take care of myself with no help from anyone. Your own initiating incident (called the complication in the short story) might be the day you discovered you were gay, or the day you quit law school or, nibbling toast one morning, read an e-mail that revealed your husband was having an affair.Before the initiating incident, you might have what is called the status quo scene-?the one that shows you in the midst of your ordinary life before the trouble starts. It might be you will disclose your mutual bankruptcy. It might show you at a house, closing a real estate deal Just before the doctors appointment that will change your life. Johnnys wows her complacently looking forward to sex with her husband even though her stepson is at home. The Ending Incident Picking the end point is crucial. Life goes on and on, but memoirs mustnt.Yes, you still have kids, but your story of being a single mother doesnt need to go up to the present. The desire line defines the ending: When the narrator gets what he wants, or doesnt, or stops wanting it, or whatever, the story has reached the end of its arc. We see him changed by all that has come before. The cult member recognizes his group for what it really is. This beat that resolves the desire line must be traumatized n scene, Just as with the initiating incident and all other important beats: We get to watch the cult member pack his bags. My writing partner, Janis Cooke Newman, wanted to become a mother (her desire line) and adopted a Russian boy. She ends her memoir, The Russian Word for Snow, with, l looked back into his eyes, and at that moment I knew that I would forever put myself between him and all the dangers of the world-?a vicious dog, a speeding car, a bullet from a gun. I had become a mother. Drawing Your Arc When youve identified all the elements of your arc, its time to put them together in a sort of outline. I find it helps to put each event and its accompanying beat on an index card.One of Johnnys cards, for example, might read: EVENT: Christmas with the folks. BEAT: They simply and naturally accept my stepson as one of the family. Why cant I do that? What is wrong with me? Take some time to make your own cards for each element of your story. Then, get yourself a big glass of wine and a couple of undisturbed hours, and lay out all the cards on the floor or a table, in chronological order. As you gaze at your cards, you will see, Im guessing, not a neatly laid-out story in which each event leads in a logical and satisfying way to the next. Instead, you will see real life.In real life, the day you realized your husband resented your illness was followed by something entirely unrelated, like that big deal you were about to close at work falling through. This is where you save yourself hundreds of pages of writing and rewriting by simply arranging your cards so that they do tell a coherent story. Do you see events that need cutting? Once we get that your ex is a swine, theres no need for the six scenes of additional evidence. Are all the flashbacks youve planned to include really necessary? If youre writing about a stroke, you dont need events eating up to it: A stroke is a freak occurrence.If youre writing about being a bad father, however, that memory of your own father passing you in a grocery store without recognizing you might be important. Some cards will need moving around (we dont necessarily need to know that you got your tubes tied when you were 18 until your fiance announces he wants children). You might also find that some important emotional beats that would help the narrative flow are missing (you time you need to structure your story before you write. Drawing your arc is not something you can knock out in the half-hour before dinner.It challenges you to survey the tangle of emotions, motives, repetitions and complexities of events you lived through with the cold, dispassionate eye of an editor. It asks you to know not what is important or meaningful to you, but what is important or meaning ful to the story. It means regarding the painful events that actually happened to you-?the doctor taping wires to your fingers to shock you into being straight, picking out the urn for your own memorial-?as material. If you find the process of drawing a compelling and satisfying arc overwhelming, you may still be too close to your experience to get any writer perspective on it.In that case, you might find a writing group or coach especially helpful. Take solace in the fact that Just knowing you need an arc puts you ahead of the game. A good arc is not sexy. You wont be mobbed by readers at bookstores grateful for all the digressions you took out. But an arc will help get you into that bookstore. Life is a hopelessly meager thing, my father said. What counts is what we dream into it, the words we find to describe it when we arrange Jarring details to make a pleasing whole. Thats Just what your arc will give you: a pleasing whole.