Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Rules to blog by, for blog publishers and readers

by Dr. Jeffrey Lant

Maybe HE likes all the hubbub.

But will you?

The calm of my Cambridge, Massachusetts neighborhood was punctuated the other day by student protestors outside Harvard University's Science Center. There 1960's wannabees chanted "Harvard, Harvard, shame on you, honoring a racist fool."

The cause of this mayhem was Professor Martin Peretz and his latest blog post on his The New Republic website: "But, frankly Muslim life is cheap, most notably to Muslims." It was more than enough to stir up a reaction from the politically correct, who live to chant and picket.

They shouted... they taunted... they heckled... and HE, owner of The New Republic, the subject of so much fuss, got valuable, eye-catching full-page publicity in The Boston Globe, New England's paper of record.

Bingo!

One of America's most experienced provocateurs had succeeded, yet again, in using his blog to get even more publicity for his "take no prisoners" opinions.

Martin Peretz' blog had done its work and done it well.

Will yours? It most assuredly will... if you understand the true purpose of a blog, run it accordingly, and learn to be a responsible blog publisher and blog reader. Here are recommendations to assist you.

Bogs MUST be honest.

The purpose of a blog is to give ANYONE ANYWHERE in the world, whatever creed, class, station, nationality, or political position, the opportunity to be heard on any subject
whatsoever.

Thus, your task as a blogger is to open yourself up... to tell the truth, straightforwardly, honestly, bluntly. The blog is, first and foremost, about you, its publisher and focus. To write anything other than the whole truth, so help you God, is to demean the medium -- and yourself.

If you are new to blogging, you'll find this kind of openness difficult, challenging. Most people grow up adept at masking their true opinions. For fear of what the listener may say or do, we moderate and water down the way we really feel and what we say.

That will never do on a blog where truth is called for at all times.

Now, you may think you are a straightforward, honest person but blogging will show you soon enough that you, like all social beings, are considerably more adept at masking how we feel, our true views, rather than telling them.

In the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird", for instance, there is an incident that makes this point lucidly, succinctly. Atticus Finch is walking with his children past Miss DuBois' home. She is a notorious termagant and scold. Does he say that to her? Certainly not.
He lifts his hat cordially, saying "Good afternoon, Miss DuBois. You look pretty as a picture." Scout, his young daughter, says just loud enough "You notice he don't say a picture of what." Miss DuBois just catches a few words and wants to know what the impish Scout has said... but Atticus Finch is a wise man, a gentleman and knows the value of good relations, over the strict, unyielding truth. He lifts his hat again and moves his children along. Most of us would do the same.

But bloggers cannot. Bloggers must opt for candor, honesty at all times.

The more honest YOU are, the more reactions you will get. Take Professor Peretz, for example. Given that he is an experienced blogger, I take him at his word, when he writes his latest anti-Muslim diatribe.

Others, who feel differently, will abhor and detest what he has written... and propose such sanctions as having a speaking engagement at Harvard cancelled. But this is wrong.

Voltaire, that very clever fellow, said it best:

"I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it."

Unfortunately, sanctimonious members of the Academy (usually the least intelligent on campus) have forgotten their true calling: facilitating free speech, not suffocating and penalizing it. Blogs, then, do the work academicians should do (the reason they are given tenure to do), but are now too often emasculated, self-protecting and lazy to do.

Thus, when you write, the objective is always to achieve Harvard's ultra clear motto: "Veritas", the pure and always unsimple truth.

Write regularly, consistently.

One of the major problems with most blogs is that they are not regularly produced. Remember, whatever else a blog may be it is also and always the story of your life. It is a window into your thoughts and occupations. Blogs must therefore be regularly undertaken. Don't start it.... unless you mean to do it.

Write regularly and consistently, being always aware that the first day you do not feel like writing your blog is the very day you must be sure to write it... or risk the ending of your blog altogether.

The more honest you are, the more and stronger reader reaction you should expect.

When Professor Peretz posted his incendiary opinions about Moslims (a subject on which he writes often), I suspect he knew that tea cups in Cambridge and beyond would be rattled. What's more, being a true provocateur, he probably relishes the instant, insistent responses of those he has provoked. He might not like being followed through Harvard Yard by hecklers... but he cannot truly have been awfully surprised by such a response. Relish, rather than alarm, was most probably his reaction.

You, too, need to reach this level of reaction and response as you achieve greater candor and honesty in your bog. Because as my grandfather used to say, some damned idiot is sure to protest; the stronger the opinions rendered, the stronger the response from those disagreeing. (He would have been a great blogger, grandfather Walt would have been.)

Prepare for the reaction... expect it... ignore it.

Blogging is one of the jewels of the Internet... treat it with care and consideration.

Millions and millions of folks have come and gone on this planet without leaving even a foot print in the dust. To our chagrin and detriment, we do not know them in any way at all. But blogging has changed all that, not merely for the potent and celebrated... but even
unto the lowest among us. At last they have a place for their opinions...not matter how alarming, uninformed, and (to the rest of us) silly they may be. And this is a very good thing... for our job is to cherish the bloggers, protecting and defending them, even at their most reprehensible and loathsome. And that includes you, too, Professor Peretz, as you sit in comfort and security here in Cambridge, spewing venom. I defend to the death your right to say it... and blog it worldwide. Defending you, I have done the right thing, while taking joy from the fact that every hostile word you blog drives down the certified circulation figures of your moribund rag, The New Republic. In the end the marketplace , not censorship, will determine your fate. So blog on....

About The Author

Harvard-educated Dr. Jeffrey Lant is CEO of Worldprofit, Inc., where small and home-based businesses learn how to profit online. Attend Dr. Lant's live webcast TODAY and receive 50,000 free guaranteed visitors to the website of your choice!

Republished with author's permission by Rahimah Sultan Check out Mobile Monopoly
http://rsultan.mobimonop.hop.clickbank.net

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Massive Passive Income: What is Autoblogging All About?

Autoblogging is simply a methodology for automating blog content. Traditionally, when you set up a blog you then either create the content by hand yourself, or you hire a freelancer to create the content for you. Either way it is both time consuming or expensive. But with autoblogging and the Massive Passive Profits system, you simply set up the blog once, set up the automated content stream and the blog updates itself on auto-pilot generating passive income for you while you focus on doing other things.

But isn't autoblogging a 'black hat' technique that will get your site banned? I can hear you asking that question and I will tell you that if you set up your blogs properly following a proven method such as Massive Passive Profits your sites will not get banned and you will finally start generating some real passive income from blogging.

What is Massive Passive Profits? It's a mass deploy autoblogging format that automates the creation of Wordpress multiuser sites and content. No longer do you have to sweat about your sites getting banned, and Wordpress multi-user platform saves time and effort of logging in and out of and maintaining multiple blogs. With this elegant solution, autoblogging becomes a complete no-brainer and you are free to point and click to create and launch new blogs on the fly and watch your bank account grow as you add new blogs.

With autoblogging your blogs will generate income in much the same way as a traditional, hand written blog, but because they are so quick to set up, and effortless to maintain you can focus on generating a large quantity of blogs and on generating traffic to those blogs.

You would begin by doing your keyword research to find profitable niches, install Wordpress, add then follow along with Massive Passive Profits to set up your niche blogging empire.

Now bear in mind that these are not going to be pretty, award-winning blogs that you'll be inviting your family members to visit. What you will be doing, is gathering up and providing useful content around your chosen topic to your blog visitors that are searching for information on your topic. You?ll choose ads and CPA offers that will appeal to those visitors and eventually these blogs will start generating cash for you automatically.

Setting up an autoblogging empire does not take a lot of time or effort, and once everything is set up and humming along you can move on to other projects while your little blog farm continues to produce month in and month out.

So, if you are willing to invest just a little bit of time to set up the Massive Passive Profits system you will soon see lifestyle-altering income streams flowing in from you ever growing autoblogging empire.

Ready to get the details about Massive Passive Profits? Check out our ready set go link below to get all of the details and sign up before the doors close and you lose out on a sweet opportunity to generate passive income from niche blogs that you can set up in a flash.

Republished with author's permission by Rahimah Sultan http://www.SureFireSuccessNow.com
Check out Mobile Monopoly

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Pension Tips For The Self-Employed

"Hello, I'm from the government. I'm here to help you." Ordinarily, these words have a chilling effect on the self-employed, knowing as we do just how ironic they can be. However, every once in a while they are true and advantageous. This is the case with the tax-deferred pension options the U.S. government makes available to the self-employed, people like you and me.

1) Do YOU have a pension plan? It's crazy not to!

The sad fact is, a MAJORITY of the self- employed don't have a pension plan. Survey after survey documents the fact that millions of people -- each of whom wants to get old (it beats the alternative) -- are NOT using their business and the pension guidelines to arrange for a comfortable retirement. This is madness.

Don't wait another minute to do the necessary. Call your accountant today and listen carefully as he presents your pension options. Make sure you take notes and question him liberally until you really understand what you can do.

2) Be clear on how much you can invest in your tax-deferred pension account.

Your accountant should give you a precise figure to invest. Keep it close at hand. Knowing this figure, and doing what's necessary to achieve it are both crucial to your long-term comfort and security.

3) Know the next pension deposit deadline.

Ideally, you should deposit the full pension amount at the time you file your federal taxes. If not, your accountant should give you the date (generally six months after you've paid your taxes) that you can still pay into your pension plan. This date is VERY important

4) Once you know the figure you can deposit into your pension plan, make
achieving it your #1 goal.

Say you are authorized to deposit $5,000 into your tax-deferred plan. Say you have until September 1 to do so.

First, you want to deposit this amount in your pension plan just as early as possible. Today if possible. Why? Because you want to put time to work for you. All things being equal, it's better to make your pension payment on April 15 rather than September 15. It gives the funds just that much longer to grow. This makes a great difference over time.

5) Treat your pension payments like a bill, your #1 bill.

Most people pay into their pension accounts after they've paid all their other bills, when there may or may not be anything left. This is a mistake.

If you are unable to pay-off your pension balance at tax filing time and must make (say) monthly payments, then ensure you make these payments the very first thing each month, before you've depleted your available cash.

6) Cash windfall? Think pension!

Made a big sale? Had a bit of luck? Got some extra cash? Think PENSION!

Remember, deposit into your tax-deferred pension account as SOON as you can, and if a bit of extra cash comes your way pay off what you "owe" your pension account.

7) Pay your pension fund in advance whenever possible.

Had a good year? Made some extra money? Already paid the maximum into your pension account? Then deposit some more! The future is, by definition, murky and uncertain. That's why if you can deposit more, you should. Take any extra funds you can spare and make an early deposit into your pension fund. When a rainy day comes, you'll be glad you did!

8) Look but don't touch!

When that rainy day comes and you need extra cash, you may think longingly about the funds in your tax-deferred pension account. DON'T!

You must regard your pension funds as sacrosanct, not to be touched until commanded to do so by the federal regulations governing access and withdrawal. If you withdraw them now, you will ordinarily pay a hefty penalty. What's more you lose the benefits of time... and jeopardize the comfort and security of your golden years. Find another way to get the funds you need. Don't dip into this till.

Conclusion

We all hope to get old, but to get old without security and comfort is to be in a most unenviable situation. Use your business -- and the tax-deferred pension options provided by government --, to ensure your old age is as ample as you deserve and desire.

Harvard-educated Dr. Jeffrey Lant is CEO of Worldprofit, Inc., www.worldprofit.com where small and home-based businesses learn how to profit online. Attend Dr. Lant's live webcast TODAY and receive 50,000 free guaranteed visitors to the website of your choice! Republished with author's permission by Rahimah Sultan http://www.SureFireSuccessNow.com>. Check out Mobile Monopoly -> http://rsultan.mobimonop.hop.clickbank.net

Monday, November 08, 2010

5 Unexcelled Ways To Kill Your Business!

by Dr. Jeffrey Lant

The key to increasing your business profits is to get your existing customers to buy more faster. The key to this is simple: Make SURE what you do is fostering this vital relationship… not killing it.

Once Upon A Time…

The other day, I called what its owners think of as Boston’s “premier” silver business. You know the kind: in business since “my grandfather served your grandfather,” all simpering, condescending, and (fatal) above the doing of “business”. Their motto: “Business is inherited, never earned”, a tried and true prescription for dwindling profits… and ultimately a “business to let” sign in the window.

Lucky for you this owner’s self-defeating behavior inspired this article. As a result, even though the folks who inspired this article may not be saved… you will be!

1) Be personable and enthusiastic when you
speak with your customers

Is this “elementary, my dear Watson,” as Sherlock Holmes would have said? Absolutely not. Instead of presenting a bright, chipper persona, too many business owners and their representatives appear above your mere business, which they approach with disinterest, disdain, even dismissal. What’s worse, the higher you go in the hierarchy, the more of this you may see — and hear.

Your job, however exalted, is to give the customer a comfortable and serene experience. Your business is never merely about what you do; it’s always about how you do it, including the tone and temperament with which you approach each customer… the necessity to be pleasant even if you don’t feel like it.

2) Return Phone Calls

There is nothing that so infuriates customers (and rightly so) as failure to return calls in a prompt, professional manner.

In this scenario, the customer calls and leaves a detailed message which is then..,
ignored. Result? With every passing moment, the customer gets more and more indignant… while your chances of repeat business melt.

Cure: return EVERY pending call before the end of business EACH DAY. If necessary, put a note on your computer: “I cannot leave until every customer call has been returned.” There would be a lot less (justifiable) indignation all round if this was the rule. Make it yours!

3) Keep The Customer Updated

Rome wasn’t built in a day… but I bet Caesar Augustus was regularly updated on progress. If it was good enough for the Caesars, it ought to be good enough for you.

Thus, instead of making your customers chase you down for (usually rushed and inadequate) progress reports, be pro-active. Before you leave your office EVERY DAY, call or e-mail reports. These should include commentary on the most important pending items, especially those which may be most troubling and of greatest interest to the customer. Doing things this way, providing reports when least expected, make you the kind of business person people most like to work with.

4) Live Within The Budget — Or Promptly
Explain Why You Can’t

Want a sure-fire, unbeatable way to kill even the longest standing customer relationship? Then over spend a budget… and don’t bother to tell your customer beforehand, much less explain matters clearly.

Everyone is touchy about money. No one ever has enough. Thus, keeping your customer
scrupulously up-to-date on financial issues, especially where increased expenditure is necessary is vital. As soon as you have the facts, inform the customer. Where the sum in question is significant, call; otherwise, a prompt email will do.

The point is: it is the customer’s right to have this information in a timely fashion. And it is your responsibility to provide it… or else!

5) Thank Early, Sincerely, Tangibly
Have you ever watched the way some business people “thank” their customers for their life-(and profit) — making business? No eye contact, perfunctory words, a palpable wish to get it over — and you out — ASAP. Yikes!

Maybe this customer was difficult; maybe you’re just having one of those days when the milk of human kindness turns sour. Even so, you owe it both to customer and your prosperity to thank her properly. If you can do it with true sincerity so much the better; if not, simulate until you can.

More, whenever possible give your all-important customer a “little something” extra, the more so if you have not followed the crucial steps above. People like bonuses. Add one whenever you can.

Last Words

We all want repeat business. It’s the life blood of business success. Many people wrongly think that all you have to do to get it is be good at what you do. WRONG! You must attend to the “little things”, the things I’ve discussed in this article. After all, as the song says “little things mean a lot.” Your customer must always be treated with the greatest possible care and consideration. Empathy is required.

… which is why I decided to pass on taking my business to the silver smith mentioned above. He didn’t earn it.

About The Author

Harvard-educated Dr. Jeffrey Lant is CEO of
Worldprofit, Inc., www.worldprofit.com where
small and home-based businesses learn how to
profit online. Attend Dr. Lant’s live webcast
TODAY and receive 50,000 free guaranteed
visitors to the website of your choice! For details
on Dr. Lant’s 18 best-selling business books,
go to www.jeffreylant.com