Author: robyn

  • 2024 Reflection & 2025 Planning: Lessons, Wins, and Goals

    2024 Reflection & 2025 Planning: Lessons, Wins, and Goals

    The end of the year is the perfect time to pause, reflect, and plan. As 2024 winds down, I’ve been looking back on what worked, what didn’t, and what I want for the year ahead. It’s not always easy to see the wins, but taking stock helps clear the path for what’s next. Let’s dive…

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  • Can I Succeed on Amazon KDP in 2025? My 90-Day Challenge to Find Out

    Can I Succeed on Amazon KDP in 2025? My 90-Day Challenge to Find Out

    Hey there, beautiful people! It’s been a minute, but I’m back, and I’m diving into something I’ve been toying with for a while—Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing). For the next 90 days, I’ve got a challenge lined up. I’ll be documenting everything in real-time to see if I can finally get some real results, and…

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  • The $1K Side Hustle Experiment: Boosting My Income Before 2024 Ends

    The $1K Side Hustle Experiment: Boosting My Income Before 2024 Ends

    Hey everyone! Today, I wanted to hop on here during a little work break to share something exciting. I’m starting an experiment—a 1K experiment, to be exact. My goal? To make $1,000 per month by the end of the year. Sounds simple enough, but let’s face it—this year’s been extra tough. I’m not just doing…

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  • Final Thoughts on my 2016 Thesis – Thesis Part 7

    Final Thoughts on my 2016 Thesis – Thesis Part 7

    5. Conclusion In Barbados, since the implementation of the pension reform in 2006, the number of contributors has increased due to changes in eligibility terms for benefits, such as the minimum retirement age. However, this work highlights that the latest reform will not solve the fiscal problems of the NIS, but rather delay them, as…

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  • Results – Thesis Part 6

    Results To establish a basis for comparison, Table 4 summarizes the results of various countries, showing how Barbados, a developing country, compares to more robust economies. As previously mentioned, the Old-Age Dependency Ratio (ODR) is widely used to measure how aged a population is. In 2000, during a period of concern about the future sustainability…

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  • National Insurance Scheme Pensions Data – Thesis Part 5

    National Insurance Scheme Pensions Data – Thesis Part 5

    3. Methodology 3.1. Data The data used in this study includes information on contributors and beneficiaries, insurable earnings, and average benefits provided by the NIS Barbados. Additionally, population data and participation rates were obtained from the United Nations. The objective is to observe trends in these variables over the analysis period of approximately 50 years…

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  • Ways to Improve Social Security in Barbados – Thesis Part 4

    Ways to Improve Social Security in Barbados – Thesis Part 4

    As we continue the Thesis series, let’s talk about some ways I thought we could improve social security in Barbados. Do I still agree? Have I thought of new ways? Watch the video below to find out: [INSERT VIDEO HERE] 2.3. Proposals for Improving Social Security in Barbados This section presents various proposals for improving…

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  • Retirement in Barbados – Thesis Part 3

    Let’s continue looking at the literature review 2.2 [INSERT VIDEO HERE] 2.2. Retirement in Barbados This section aims to present the benefits provided by the social security system in Barbados. Previously, it was mentioned that the Barbados National Insurance Scheme (NIS) covers five main types of benefits: short-term benefits, long-term benefits, retirement benefits, unemployment benefits,…

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  • The Pension System in Barbados  – Thesis Part 2

    The Pension System in Barbados – Thesis Part 2

    Welcome back to my graduate thesis review! [insert video here] 2. LITERATURE REVIEW This section aims to demonstrate the link between population ageing and the sustainability of a pension system. It will also present the pension regime in Barbados, known as the National Insurance Scheme (NIS). The main objective is to report on the performance…

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  • The Pension System in Barbados  – Thesis Part 1

    The Pension System in Barbados – Thesis Part 1

    I started writing my thesis in 2015 and defended it in late 2016. Here is a translation of my thesis which was originally written in Portuguese. The aim behind translating this is to then share my more recent findings almost 10 years later and discuss the current state of affairs of the Barbados National Insurance…

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