Between Northern California’s East Bay and the Silicon Valley is a perfect marriage of sophistication and comfort, located on 1031 Walnut Avenue in Fremont. Known as both a destination and a home, residents find a charming new community at The Asher. Developed by Carmel Partners, specialists in the multifamily real estate industry, The Asher is a distinguished and appealing property in the Fremont market, with contemporary style, community energy and a leisurely atmosphere. Carmel Partners designed the four-story property to surpass other options available in the market, particularly in its amenity package and unit finishes. With such elevated features, The Asher has leased 82% of its 632-unit property after only 18 months since opening its doors.

Centering The Asher’s enviable resident experience is a vast array of amenities, starting with its abounding green spaces. Knowing the importance of an indoor/outdoor experience to the Northern Californian culture, Carmel Partners integrated six distinct courtyards among the property’s two four-story buildings. A 1.2-acre Linear Green also serves as a hub for outdoor community activity, with a sprawling walkway lined with seating that invites residents to sit as they stroll through a wine bar, pet spa and full-service bike shop. On the rooftop, residents find a pool surrounded by a spacious deck, furnished with lounge seating, private cabanas, firepits and outdoor TVs. With no shortage of outdoor amenities, residents of The Asher find a gateway to Northern California’s spectacular climate and landscape, from the comfort of their own home.

The Asher’s interior amenities are no less captivating. With in-house teams bringing knowledge and insight throughout all stages of development, Carmel Partners appealed to the growing remote workforce with The Asher’s coworking space, a sophisticated alternative to a home office. Finding a balance between work and relaxation, residents may opt for a lunch break at The Asher’s full-catering kitchen or activate their playful side at the Clubhouse, furnished with a TV lounge and game room. Also offering space to decompress is the fully equipped Fitness Club, with a yoga and spin studio.

Indoor and outdoor amenities find unity in a timeless palette throughout The Asher’s interior, with tasteful pops of contemporary design. Incorporating statement light-fixtures, abstract art and modern furniture, Carmel Partners cultivated an eye-catching appearance from the moment residents enter the foyer. Inside each one- to three-bedroom apartment unit, open floor plans with an abundance of natural light are joined by neutral walls and lightly stained wood to match the modern yet inviting appearance that inspired Carmel Partners’ vision for The Asher. Filling the spacious units are high quality kitchen appliances, a full-size washer and dryer and walk-in bedroom closets.

Just steps away from Carmel Partners’ The Asher, residents find themselves in the heart of Fremont, a picturesque town with no shortage of shops, cafes and craft breweries, surrounded by endless opportunities to immerse in nature. Conveniently located nearby Fremont’s BART station and at a nexus point between the East Bay and Silicon Valley, residents with a morning commute are proximate to nearby employment hubs. Also connecting Fremont to nearby metropolitan areas is easy access to freeways, offering residents an estimated commute of 25 minutes to Silicon Valley, 30 minutes to the East Bay and just over 45 minutes to San Francisco.

Including an impressive amenity package, stunning design and unbeatable location, the popularity and success of The Asher comes as no surprise. Inviting residents to wander one of the many courtyards, sit beneath a poolside cabana, or simply find rest at home, Carmel Partners is in the process of pioneering Fremont’s most desired community.

About Carmel Partners

Carmel Partners is one of the leading specialists in real estate investment management with a focus on U.S. multifamily acquisition and renovation, and development and construction. The company also specializes in debt and lending opportunities. Carmel Partners, LLC was founded in 1996 and has offices across the country, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Irvine, New York City, Seattle, Washington D.C., and Denver. For more information, please visit www.carmelpartners.com.

If you dream of starting your own company and making your mark on the world with a unique product or service, you’re not alone. Many women fantasize about quitting their day job to start the business of their dreams —whether that’s a whimsical bakery or a high-powered investment firm.

One thing that all aspiring business owners need to consider before opening their doors is how they will approach company culture.

It might seem premature to wonder about culture before you have your first employee, but  Prissy Nikki CEO Nikki Corson says that it’s not.

The founder of a glamorous lash company, Corson founded her newest venture to help women embrace their inner beauty and fierceness. And she knows the business world inside and out. She’s been the President of multi-million-dollar roofing contracting company, Roofcrafters, for over a decade.

Today, she runs two companies in very different industries. However, she’s noticed that many aspects of company culture are universal and not industry-specific.

Over the years, she has learned a few things about treating yourself well, being a graceful leader under pressure, and scaling a company. Entrepreneurs regularly go to her for advice, either in person or by tuning in to her popular podcast, Life Amplified with Nikki, where she shares topics that are important to working women.

We sat down with Corson to hear her three best pieces of advice for female business owners wondering about company culture.

Aim To Be a Leader

Corson knows from experience that there are different kinds of people leading companies.

“Some people with the title of CEO, Founder, or President might be a boss and shout orders all day. They might even be good at their own job, but they don’t enable others to do their best work,” said Corson. “There’s a world of difference between being a boss and being a leader. It’s important to be a leader.”

She explains the difference between the two like this: a boss is someone that demands and dictates, but a leader is someone that inspires and encourages.

She knows that her staff at both companies do their jobs out of a sense of responsibility, but she constantly strives to ensure that they are doing it out of a place of enthusiasm, learning, collaboration, and growth too.

The dual-company executive works toward her own personal evolution in order to be an example to her employees and to attract the kind of talent she wants to work with.

Live by Your Company’s Core Values

“Whatever your company culture is, you have to live by it every day,” she said. “It all starts with you. How can you expect your employees to buy into the cultural mindset if you don’t follow it first?”

She explained that a team that aligns with and lives by a company’s culture works to make that culture richer, more dynamic, and deeper every day. “The truth is, you create your culture, but your team builds it up and strengthens your legacy. It starts at the top — with you — and trickles down into a deep pool,” she explained.

At Prissy Nikki, Corson has created a culture where self-improvement is integral. So, she knows if she’s not improving herself regularly, she can’t reasonably expect her employees to do it.

Serve Up Self-Love

Corson is a true believer in self-love and treating yourself with as much kindness as you do your family, friends, and employees.

“When I was younger, I didn’t even realize I didn’t love myself. I ran around with such a confident front, and I didn’t understand that it was to hide my extreme insecurities. I was so mean to myself under the guise of confidence. I think a lot of women can resonate with that,” she said.

So, whether self-love to you means taking an afternoon off to do something you enjoy or forgiving yourself for striking out at a big meeting — do it. You need to be your own biggest supporter.

Corson’s valuable advice can be used by business owners across a variety of fields and will help new bosses develop into inspiring leaders.

About Nikki Corson

Nikki Corson is a powerhouse CEO of Prissy Nikki, who provides top-tier lashes to bring out your natural bold, and beautiful self. Nikki is a Women’s Entrepreneur VIP Award winner, a certified roofing contractor in three states, and is recognized as one of the Top 3 roofing contractors in Georgia. She is also the host of the popular podcast, Life Amplified with Nikki. For more information on getting high-quality lashes, please visit https://prissynikki.com/

It’s no secret that high employee turnover can be expensive. From recruiting to onboarding to training, having to constantly replace employees is something most business owners would like to avoid.

In addition to these hard costs, high employee turnover also has hidden costs that can directly affect your business. That’s why Vice President of Human Resources at Gavilon, Ron Cardenas, says it’s so important for business owners to do everything they can to retain talented employees.

Here are some of those hidden costs of high employee turnover.

Damage to the Brand

When employees leave a business, they create a hole in certain aspects of the operations. It could lead to a period of poor customer service, a slowdown in product fulfillment, or a scramble to get organized.

This can often lead to your customers and clients not getting the experience they are used to. High employee turnover can seriously damage a business’ brand if they’re not careful and prepared.

Damage to Productivity

Current employees can also be seriously affected by departures. When one employee leaves, it’s incumbent on those who remain to pick up the slack until a new hire can be made.

This stretches your employees quite thin and could result in a significant decrease in productivity across multiple departments. As employees chip in to cover the departed employee’s responsibilities, they may fall behind on their own day-to-day duties.

Damage to Morale

When current employees feel overworked, they often don’t feel appreciated. And when they don’t feel appreciated, they typically have a less favorable view of the company.

Low employee morale is directly associated with lower productivity, less care about the company, and an overall sense of every person-for-themselves.

In addition, high employee turnover may cause some of your most talented employees to question why they are sticking around. As employees continue to leave your company, they may start to look around for other opportunities as well.

Loss of Intellectual Capital

Talented employees possess a wealth of individual knowledge. No matter what position they have in the company, and no matter how much you standardized operations, the company will lose valuable insight and knowledge when high employee turnover occurs.

The most talented employees bring unique skills to the table that are hard to replicate. They also often bring years of industry experience and some ways of doing things that are hard to teach.

This knowledge isn’t transferred to your other employees when there is high turnover, either. This means your company will lose this valuable knowledge.

The company may also lose valuable relationships the departed employee established with key stakeholders, vendors, and clients. When there is high employee turnover, this could be an enormous hidden cost that will be hard to overcome.

Ron Cardenas, VP of HR at Gavilon, emphasizes the need for businesses to do everything they can to retain talented employees. Turnover doesn’t just result in high costs of recruiting, onboarding and training. These hidden costs could have lasting effects on the business long after the employees have departed.

About Ron Cardenas

Ron Cardenas is the Vice President of Human Resources at Gavilon Agriculture Holdings in Omaha, Nebraska. He is a versatile Human Resources professional with over 30 years of domestic and international experience. His track record includes creating and launching talent strategies for global organizations in varied industries.

Failures: the mistakes that show us what we need to do to succeed. If framed well, mistakes or failures can be viewed as a learning experience, one that will lead you to the outcome or goal you’re after. When you make a mistake or experience failure, it’s important to find the emotional and mental strategies to stay the course toward the outcome you know is necessary.

Joey Klein is the CEO of Inner Matrix Systems, a personal mastery training system for high achievers. Here is his step-by-step approach for reframing failure to turn our setbacks into valuable tools to reach our goals.

Step 1: Focus on Your Vision

Focus. Remind yourself what you’re working towards. Failure can derail your goals if you allow yourself to get lost in a fear-based state. Mindfulness meditation or other inner training methods can help you become aware of your emotions and leverage them to create what you want. Remind yourself why you were doing this in the first place—not just what the goal itself is, but how achieving that goal will affect other aspects of your life.

Use visualization techniques to reduce anxiety and harness your motivation. Mental imagery trains your brain for real performance, particularly motor control, attention, perception, planning, and memory functions. Picture yourself achieving your goal and how that will feel. Really visualize all the related positive outcomes that will snowball once you hit that first milestone. Creating a crystal-clear vision for your life can help when you’re really in the lurch by physically forcing you to visualize your future successes.

Step 2: Pros and Cons

Once you have focused on the vision and the benchmark you wanted to fulfill and your emotions align with that outcome—it’s time to get down to business. Failure is a huge opportunity to collect data points to make your endeavors successful in the future.

First, focus on what went well: what went well in this circumstance? For example, maybe you were just turned down for a promotion, but taking the initiative to make a positive change in your life is a huge plus that you will be able to carry forward in your goal achievement process.  By doing this, you can get your attention off of the problems and the things that weren’t working and start getting your focus and attention on the things that were working.

Now for some brutal honesty: what could have been optimized? Learning from failure is critical to understanding where you’re hitting the mark in terms of fulfilling your vision/outcome and where you’re missing it.

Step 3: Integrate Your Findings

At this point, you have the data you need to make a new plan and integrate what you learned from analyzing your situation in the previous step. Learning to shift our perspective can be tricky, though. We have subconscious inclinations to react to situations in the same way. By aligning our emotions with the outcome we want to achieve and working toward that, we can break out of ineffective thought strategies.

Step 4: Repeat

You had a setback, figured out how to optimize your strategy to move forward, and implemented your results into your current routine. And then, guess what? Another setback. But we know now that that’s okay because our setbacks help us understand how to become better, stronger, and more unstoppable than before. With every setback, we have the opportunity to become closer to achieving our goals. Continually name your vision and practice these steps to move towards your dream until it is fulfilled.

About Inner Matrix Systems

Inner Matrix Systems, based in Denver, is a personal mastery training system for high achievers. For more than twenty years, IMS has delivered a proprietary methodology that rewires, trains, and aligns the nervous system, emotions, and thought strategies to create real-life results. CEO, Joey Klein, and IMS have worked with more than 80,000 individuals from around the world through both live and online training programs, as well as one-on-one coaching. Clients have included: Boeing, IBM, Dell, Google, Panda Express, Coca Cola and The World Health Organization. Joey is the author of The Inner Matrix: Leveraging the Art & Science of Personal Mastery to Create Real Life Results (June 2021).