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Diamond Rings - symbols of love, romance, marriage, affluence, status. The diamond has the greatest refraction and dispersion of light of all the precious stones known to man. It is also the hardest substance known to man, natural or artificial.

Purchasing a diamond ring, for an engagement, a wedding, or as a surprise gift, usually involves much expense. It pays to know something about diamonds so you can make an intelligent choice.

As a first step familiarize yourself with these main factors which affect the value and price of diamond rings. Then go to the Diamond Ring Tutorial mentioned in the Resource box at the end of this article to continue your education.

Carat

Carat is the unit of measurement used to describe the weight of diamonds. As carat size increases, the diamond's diameter and depth also increase.

Clarity

A diamond's clarity rating is determined by the number of inclusions it has and how noticeable they are. Inclusions refer to tiny pinpoints, clouding, or markings on the diamond. The fewer the inclusions the more brilliant the diamond and of course the higher the value.

Color

Diamonds with less body color are more valuable as the reflection from them is more pure. A letter scale from D to Z is used to grade the color of diamonds, D being colorless through to Z which can include light yellow, brown or gray.

Cut

The cut of the diamond can have a major effect on how it reflects light. A shallow cut will allow light to escape through the sides whereas a deep cut will cause light to be lost through the bottom of the diamond. The more exacting the proportions of the cut, the more valuable the diamond is.

With that background consider now the shape you prefer. Is it Asscher, Cushion, Emerald, Heart, Marquise, Oval, Pear, Princess, Radiant, Round, or Trillion? (See resource box below)

To learn about these shapes and see examples, visit the Diamond Ring Tutorial mentioned below.

Teach yourself about diamonds with the diamond ring tutorial:

http://www.vitalstop.com/Diamond-Ring-Tutorial

Browse the top 10 diamond shapes here:

Top-10-Diamond-Shapes

For nail & cuticle care click here:

http://www.1bodycare.com/milagro.htm

So your thinking about taking the PMP Exam?

You should know, it's a computer-based exam hosted by the Sylvan-Prometric Testing center. It is composed of 200 multiple-choice questions based on the Project Management Body of Knowledge or PMBOK. Test questions are randomly selected from a database of over 2000 possible questions. The test taker has a total of 4 hours to complete the exam. The intent of the test is to ensure a thorough understanding of project management knowledge as set forth by the Project Management Institute.

The newest version of the PMBOK, the PMBOK Guide-Third Edition, was released to PMI members in October 2004. In addition, the exam and the passing scores have been adjusted. The passing score for the new exam has now been changed from 81% to 61%. The exam taker must answer 106 questions out of 175 correct. 25 additional questions will be asked on the exam for a total of 200 possible questions. The 25 - pretest items will continue to be part of the exam. PMI uses these questions to understand the performance of the questions prior to counting the questions towards a candidates score. The exam taker will not know which 25 are not applied to the pass/fail score. Out of the score able 175 questions, approximately 19 will come from Initiation, 40 from planning, 47 from execution, 37 from monitor and control, 16 from closing and 16 from Professional responsibility.

Initiating the Project......11%

Conduct Project Selection Methods

Define Scope

Document Project Risks, Assumptions, and Constraints

Identify and Perform Stakeholder Analysis

Develop Project Charter

Obtain Project Charter Approval

Planning the Project......23%

Define and Record Requirements, Constraints and Assumptions

Identify Project Team and Define Roles and Responsibilities

Create the WBS

Develop Change Management Plan

Identify Risks and Define Risk Strategies

Obtain Plan Approval

Conduct Kick-off Meeting

Executing the Project......27%

Execute Tasks Defined in Project Plan

Ensure Common Understanding and Set Expectations

Implement the Procurement of Project Resources

Manage Resource Allocation

Implement Quality Management Plan

Implement Approved Changes

Implement Approved Actions and Workarounds

Improve Team Performance

Monitoring and Controlling the Project......21%

Measure Project Performance

Verify and Manage Changes to the Project

Ensure Project Deliverables Conform to Quality Standards

Monitor all Risks

Closing the Project......9%

Obtain Final Acceptance for the Project

Obtain Financial, Legal, and Administrative Closure

Release Project Resources

Identify, Document and Communicate Lessons Learned

Create and Distribute Final Project Report

Archive and Retain Project Records

Measure Customer Satisfaction

Professional and Social Responsibility......9%

Ensure Individual Integrity

Contribute to the Project Management Knowledge Base

Enhance Personal Professional Competence

Promote Interaction Among Stakeholders

Exam Questions are designed to check both key understanding and the ability to practically apply concepts. The types of question and formats you may encounter are; Situational questions which require you to rely on your knowledge, PMI (PMBOK) experience and judgment in order to answer them correctly and Conceptual in which you must apply concepts to a new situation by using more than simple memorization. (All questions are multiple choice with four possible answers). Test questions will intentionally use different terminology or alternate versions of similar questions for the same concepts to test your understanding of the topic rather than your ability to recall a term.

You may encounter:

Time-consuming questions that cause you, the test taker, to feel disoriented or overwhelmed. It's particularly stressful if you encounter these types of questions early on in the exam. (The Ready Set Pass program is designed to reduce the chance of this happening by including many exam-like questions in our practice material.)

Questions that require you to Fill-in-the-blank and other factual-type questions. These questions simply require the test taker to recall the definition or context of a word or set of words. (Likely worded identically as in the PMBOK Guide.)
Questions in which you need to select the exception from the four possible answers. If 3 correct answers are present look for the Odd man out.

Some questions will be long drawn out short stories. Much of the text of is not essential in answering the question. The test taker will need to weed out the non-essential data. More often than not the essential data is the last sentence in the paragraph. It may benefit you to read the last sentence first.

Questions that require you to perform calculations and/or draw simple diagrams. These are typically questions about earned value, cost, network diagrams, and schedules. In our estimation, around 75% of the exam questions come directly from the PMBOK Guide.

The remaining questions are derived from other reference materials and real-world situations. Solid common project sense should help you in answering these. Some key exam topics you won't find in the PMBOK but should understand are: Conflict-resolution techniques, Organizational theories, Problem-solving techniques and Theories of motivation.

You will encounter questions that will be difficult to answer with confidence. Commonly these types of questions seemed to potentially have more than one correct answer. Two or more of the answers are reasonable responses. However, there is always one best response, as determined by PMI. You should track these questions and revisit them at the end of the exam before it is submitted.
Be alert about answers that reflect common project management errors and unapproved practices. It is important to remember that the answer should reflect PMIs views. Remembering this should help you rule out any common sense answers that dont coincide with the PMBOK. The test taker must sift through answers that are factually correct but are not the correct response to the question.

As a Test Taker, it is important to develop a Strategy. Anticipate that many questions will have multiple correct answers. It is your challenge to pick the best answer based on how PMI outlines the situation should be handled. Remember to answer questions from PMIs perspective, not from your real-life experience. Think, What does PMI say I should I do? rather than Whats worked in the past? The actual exam allows you to mark any question for later review. Plan on making several passes through all 200 questions of the exam. (Double-check yourself on questions that you are unsure of your answer). On the initial pass through the exam, mark any question that you are not 100% sure of the answer. On the second pass, review all the marked questions. You may discover that the answer to a given question is detailed out in another question or answer throughout the exam.

During the exam, as the test taker, you will need to manage your exam time. 200 questions in four hours (240 minutes) = 1.2 minutes per question. Some questions will be as easy as 15 seconds; others may take 3 or 4 minutes.

You are not required to immediately take the exam when you sit down at the computer terminal. Use this time to gather your thoughts and prepare your reference sheet. Write down all formulas, diagrams, and information that will assist you with the exam. This allows you to clear your thoughts and focus better as you begin the exam. When you begin the exam process, you will initially be provided a tutorial of how to use the terminal and how to take the exam. If you feel comfortable with the information, you can pass over this tutorial quickly and begin the exam. Pace yourself and be sure to read all four answers completely. Do not just choose the first potentially correct answer you see, there may be a More right / Most right answer available. Take breaks throughout the exam. You have 4 hours for the exam, you need to complete at least 50 questions per hour and allot for periodic breaks to allow yourself to regain focus and rest.

Key Notes: By now you should have a copy of the PMBOK, A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge 3rd Edition. If you have not, you can download it at http://www.pmi.org. It is available in a .pdf format, that is, an Acrobat Reader format. You can also download the Acrobat Reader tool from that Website.

http://www.readysetpass.com

Making money online is the best thing that can ever happen to a person. I honestly believe so. Making money online allows you to do a lot of things you otherwise could not. Being able to do what others can't is always a privilege. What is it you can do when making money online that others cannot?

Stay at home - you don't have to travel or be around any annoying co-workers. This is great, work can actually be done, no worries about a boss or supervisor hounding you. You have complete control of everything, it is your home.

Avoid hectic traffic commuting to work - the commute to work in early morning rush hour is one that everyone despises. Yet for most it is a must to get to work. Making money online allows you to stay home and avoid the crazy traffic and road rages that lurk among the city highways.

Be your own boss - no boss, no one pointing you around telling you what to do, no scolding for what they feel was a mistake on your part. No fussing over unwanted schedules, no worries about not getting the proper benefits, unions, or anything else. Make money online and your the boss of it all.

Make your own hours - hate your schedule? Then make money online and set your own schedule and hours that you want. Hey, something pops up the day you set yourself to work? Hey that's okay you can choose not to go to work and go do what you have to do. When you make money online, it pays 24/7 at all times and your the boss.

Control your income - Not getting the pay you desire? Make money online, many people have surpassed and up to tripled their income, by hard work and determination. Make even more and you are working the same amount. Working for a company, you have to make them a profit - that's how it works, otherwise they would not need you. Work for yourself and this problem disappears. You keep all the profit!

Much more family time - The best of all, spend time with your kids and family. Get to raise them yourself not your nanny, or babysitter. Get to enjoy what it means to be a family.

Making money online is great and is something everyone deserves. The typical job or career does not allow us time to be with our families and live out our true dreams. We already sleep a third of our lives away (that's 33%) by just sleeping 8 hours a day. Combine that with the typical 8 hour work day and that's 66% of our lives spent working and sleeping, both times we are away from our families, one is required (sleeping) the other can be changed. It is up to you.

Make Money Online