Blog Boost for March 29, 2006

The lucky blogger that gets boosted this week is Patsi Krakoff.  Her blog is titled Writing Great Ezines and Blogs from Patsi Krakoff.  The blog is located at http://coachezines.typepad.com/coachezinesblog/
The target audience of this blog consists of speakers, coaches, and consultants who want to learn how to write great ezines and blogs.  This blog has a clear format and is easy to read and follow.  Patsi’s blog is chock full of information to help improve your ezine or blog.  So what are you waiting for?  Read her blog today!

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Cyber Schmooze YOUR way to the TOP!

Cyber Schmooze YOUR way to the TOP! by Kristie Tamsevicius

What if I told you that there was a secret force right under your nose that could help you to be successful, if only you reached out and claimed it.  Well, it’s true!  There are people all around you who can help you to be smarter, achieve greater success, and do incredible things with your life.  So how do you identify those people and more importantly, how do you MEET them?  Here are 4 simple steps for how to network your way to “King” of the Cyber Mountain!

=> Step 1. Who would you like in your Dream Network?

If you had a magic phone and could pick it up and talk to ANYONE in the world, whom would you want to talk to and why?  Dream big… How you like to meet Oprah, or Bill Gates, Cheryl Richardson or even Brad Pitt? The first step to building a powerful network is to ask yourself, “Who do I want to meet?” 

Take a piece of paper and write at the words, “My dream team” at the top and then jot down the names of these individuals.  By writing it down, it becomes more than an intention, it becomes a personal goal.  You may even want to post pictures of these people by your desk.  Have fun with this.  You could even draw a picture of you and your dream network all standing arm and arm like pals at a party.  The key here is that if you can picture it, you can make it happen!

=> Step 2. Where can I go to meet my Dream Network people?

If you are creative, there are lots of ways to meet people.  First, check if they have a web site.  If they do, look to see if their contact information is listed.  Another way to check is to see whom the individual is affiliated with.  Do they partner with any other companies?  Is their contact information on a recent press release or news article?  Is their information listed in the Who Is database for their domain?  Now, write down their contact info.

Step 3.  What will I say to when I approach someone in my Dream Network?

If you were having dinner with Oprah, what would you talk about?  Ask yourself, “Why should they care?”  Remember that these people don’t know you from Adam.  You need to give Oprah a reason to be interested and care about what you have to say.  The more you know about the your dream network individuals, the more it will allow you to have a genuine conversation with them. 

Tell Oprah how much you liked her recent show on “Work at Home Success”.  Tell her home much you loved the latest book in her book club.  Tell her how she has inspired you in your life.  People love to talk about themselves.  So be interested and ASK!

For example, if you read their newsletter or use their product, tell them what you like about it and why.  After you engage with them, them ask, what you can offer them, how you can help them, why you like them, who you know that could help them.  If you end the conversation with this, you are establishing a connection and a way that you can work together. 

If you don’t know much about the person, then you need to learn what they do, why they do it and what makes them tick.  Below are some key questions you could ask. 

KEY QUESTIONS TO ASK

A) Connect with them, learn more about them
If you say, “Tell me about yourself”, people freeze up.  For better results, ask them a specific question.

- How’d you hear about this event?
- How do you know the host?
- What type of work do you do?
- How did you get in this line of work?
- What projects are you working on?
- What do you hope to accomplish?

B) Ask out how they can help you

- Could I ask your advice about a particular situation you are facing?
- Who do you know that I should talk to?

C) How can you help them?
- Ask them how you could help them.  If you have listened to them, you should be a to tailor an answer that offers a true way to assist them. 
- Invite them to participate a project or event with you.
- Invite them to attend a seminar
- Tell them who YOU know that could help them.

=> Step 4: Make the connection.
Ready to take the plunge and make the connection?  You could start by making an initial contact by email or phone.  Another way is to learn if there are any bulletin boards that they frequent.  What business events are they attending?  It may be well worth the price of attending a seminar, if you get a chance to meet the right people.  Are they a member of any groups or associations that you can join?  Do they support any charity causes that you could get involved in? Why not send them a surprise? No one can resist a thoughtful gesture such as sending flowers, a book, or other small gift.  Even a hand written card will make a nice first impression.  If you can’t seem to contact them directly, then find out who the gatekeeper is. 

SUMMARY
I encourage you to start dreaming about who you’d like to meet, and how they could help you. What type of people would you like to add to your mastermind group?  Who
Could you add to your list of advisors?  Who could you partner with?  The Internet makes the world a smaller place.  Now we can reach out and connect with neighbors, friends, and potential partners anywhere with the click of a mouse.  Dare to start connecting today and you’ll be on your way to making your dream network come true!

Article by Kristie Tamsevicius – Dubbed as the "Marketing Maven & Brander Extraordinaire" Kristie Tamsevicius turns entrepreneurs into the lavishly paid in-demand experts in their field. Learn how branding helps you to attract customers, build income, & gain visibility while successfully promoting your business online with our FREE report "Web Branding Secrets" by visiting www.brandingonthenet.com.

Article Source: www.ladypens.com

Are you content with your advertising expenses?  Get affordable online advertising today with Learn Small Business.  For more information go to www.learnsmallbusiness.com

Conversations Blog

This week’s blog boost goes to the Conversations Blog.  Now personally I’d like for Philippe to give this blog a more descriptive title so I know what the blog is about before I open the website.  I could be at work and need to know that this blog is something that is safe for me to read while I’m at work.  Other than that it’s an interesting blog if politics and journalism are things that  you are interested in.  Personally that’s not my cup of tea.  I’d rather be reading about something related to money….

Aside from the cryptic title, the Conversations Blog is a good read.  Phillippe doesn’t take too long to get to the point of the message.

LinkedIn Tip…

Here’s a tip to grow your LinkedIn Network.  Find LinkedIn related Yahoo Groups.  There are LinkedIn related groups on yahoo that are full of people just waiting for the chance to be connected to new LinkedIn members.  Here are some that I belong to:
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/LinkedinBloggers/  (LinkedIn Bloggers)
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/linkedinlions/   (LinkedIn Lions)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LinkedInPowerWomen/ (LinkedIn Power Women)

I’ve also started a yahoo group for Atlanta LinkedIn Members.  It’s located at http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/linkedinatlantaoptinnetworking/

If you want to find more groups you can just do a search on yahoo groups with the term LinkedIn.  When you join these groups be sure to post an introduction and participate in the discussion before you send invitations.  People will be more likely to want to connect with you if they know something about you.

Are you content with your advertising budget?
Visit this small business resource today to get affordable advertising for your business.

Blog Boost For March 15, 2006

The LinkedIn Blogger Blog that is featured this week is Me, Myself, and I.  This blog has an interesting mix of news, job postings and humorous things to help you pass the time in your hectic day.  Stop by and read Me Myself and I anytime you want some diversion or if you happen to be looking for a job in Nigeria.  Leave a comment in the blog telling the blog owner that you found his blog here!

Okay public announcement over.  Everyone back to work!

Are you content with your advertising budget?
Visit Learn Small Business today for affordable advertising.
http://www.learnsmallbusiness.com

Oh no, Scott’s been “Joe Jobbed”

I use the personalized google homepage to keep up with a few of my favorite blogs, one of them being, Scott Allen’s blog, The Virtual Handshake.  I fired up google to look for some podcasting tools when I saw the headline that said he had been joe jobbed.  Now I had no idea what that meant, so I had to go to his blog and read that entry to find out what was going on.  Well according to wikipedia, joe jobbing is “an incident of spamming designed to tarnish the reputation of an innocent third party.”

Apparently some evil person is going around leaving spam comments on people’s blogs in Scott’s name. That is just plain wrong.  I have no idea what someone could gain other than a nasty lawsuit from doing something like that.  Apparently this unenlightened person hasn’t read Scott’s book, or spent any time on his Ryze network, or he or she would know that this sort of behavior is the exact opposite of what Scott teaches!  I’m doing what I can to help Scott by writing about this in my blog so you guys are on alert.  Just know that any spam sounding comments you get claiming to be Scott Allen aren’t him.  I just can’t see where he would have the time to go around doing that anyway.

If you want to know more about the real Scott Allen and his philosophy on networking, you can purchase a copy of his book, The Virtual Handshake, from my website, Learn Small Business by clicking on the link.  Just click on the Virtual Handshake icon.

In the meanwhile, if you see any suspicous comments alleging to be from Scott, please let him know.  His blog is on the sidebar.  Just look for The Virtual Handshake.  Let’s help put a stop to this comment spam!

Are You Content with Your Time Management Skills? 7 Reasons Why You Must Have a To-Do List

Are you content with your time management skills? 7 Reasons Why You Must Have a To-Do List

by DeAnna Spencer

As an entrepreneur with ADHD, I often struggle with staying on task. One way I combat this is by making lists. This strategy can help people without ADHD stay on top of things as well. This article lists 7 things to remember about to-do lists. I know you’ve heard time and time again that you need to make lists. Here’s why it’s important to have a to do list.

1. It will help you to remember what you have to do today.

Small Business owners often wear a lot of hats. You usually find yourself with a kazillion and one projects going on at once.
When you have a to-do list, you won’t have that, "Now I know I was supposed to be somewhere." thing happen to you as often.

2. A to do list keeps you on task.

Sometimes you get distracted by things such as forums, games, or shopping when you’re supposed to be finishing a project.
One surefire way to combat that is to keep that to do list in front of you to serve as a gentle reminder before you go to that non business related forum
and spend hours reading the posts.

3. When you complete the items on your to do list you feel a sense of accomplishment.

I don’t know about you, but I get a warm and fuzzy feeling when I can scratch items off of the to-do list.
Even when I have completed a "small" task it makes me feel good to know that there’s one less thing that I have to do.

4. A to do list should be recorded somewhere. It doesn’t count if the list exists in your head. You are guaranteed to forget something.

Write it down, put it on your pda, use outlook, do whatever you have to do to get your to do list recorded.
I use Plaxo and my pda to stay organized. Basically plaxo is an online version of outlook.
It has a section that is a calendar and there’s a place for your tasks for the day.
The great thing about using plaxo is that it’s on the web so even if your computer crashes, you still have access to your calendar.

5. A to do list is never set in stone.

It’s just a guide for the day, week, month or year.
You should always allow room for the unexpected to happen.
You could get sick or there could be a dire emergency with one of your clients.
You may have to work overtime on your job.
You could get stuck in traffic.
Always allow a cushion for these sort of things.

6. Your to do list should be realistic.

If you work a full time job and are running a business, don’t put too many things on your daily to do list or you’ll feel discouraged
when you don’t get all of the things accomplished on your list.

7. Make sure to include some time for fun in your to-do list.

You should always schedule at least one hour of "me time" on your to do list.
This could be your time to exercise, read, write in your journal, or stare at your bellybutton.
It’s important to have down time so you don’t get stressed out.

These are just a few ways to manage your time better.
For more ideas, please read my article, 31 Ways to Get an Extra Hour Out of Each Day,
located at http://ezinearticles.com/?31-Ways-to-Get-An-Extra-Hour-Out-of-Each-Day&id=3191
You should also pick up a copy of the book, Getting Things Done, by David Allen. This book has a lot of
useful tips on time management.

When you manage your time well, you can focus more on marketing yourself.

DeAnna Spencer publishes the website, Learn Small Business, to help small business owners grow their business.  Visit this small business resource today for more tips on running a business.

Audio

Balance Atlanta, Great Chiropractic Care

1/2 Hour to Health
presented by
Dr. Caroline von Fluegge AKA "Dr. Caroline"
of Balance Atlanta

Quote to remember: Just because you feel dood doesn’t mean you’re healthy.

Today’s post comes from my job hunting experience.  Yep, I’m at that spot that most entrpreneurs dread being in.
I’ve got to go out and get a J.O.B. 
I had an interesting experience over the past few days.
I had an informational interview with Balance Atlanta , a chiropractor in the Atlanta area, Buckhead to be exact.

The first thing that I noticed about this company (before I got to the interview, by visiting the website) was that the logo
was purple and orange.  I thought that was creative, not what I expected from a chiropractor.
When I got to the office it was decorated with all of these vibrant colors and stuffed animals.

So fast forward to the interview.  She gives us this whole spiel about chiropractic care and disses traditional medicine (politely of course)
and I’m wanting to say "Preach, preacher", but we aren’t at church and she’s no preacher so I just sat there and nodded in agreement.
Then she goes on to give us the job specifics (duties, salary, benefits).  Then she asks if someone wants to volunteer for an adjustment.
Now you know I can’t pass up a good deal.  So I raised my hand (as Dr. Caroline is volunteering me).  I’ll admit it was hard to stay
still for 3 minutes while she did her thing.  I can tell you that I felt awesome that whole weekend.  It was such a pretty day that I walked
a good 2 miles that day.   I also had a marathon Sunday (meeting after church) which meant that my Sunday afternoon nap was truncated.
Usually when that happens I’m exhausted for the rest of the week.  Well this week was different.  I had a catering gig on Monday and I stayed up late on Monday night
working on a project for school, but my energy level was still high on Tuesday.
Dr. Caroline has definitely made me a believer in chiropractic care.

Dr. Caroline also knows a thing or two about marketing.  She has free wellness workshops called 1/2 Hour to Health every Tuesday at 6:45.  We know how important
it is to give people valuable freebies, don’t we?  While she doesn’t sell directly in these workshops, she does a fabulous job of making you want to include a chiropractor
in your team of health care professionals.  After all if you’re not healthy, your business will really suffer because you won’t be able to perform at your best.

So to all you Frugal Entrepreneurs out there, if you don’t have a chiropractor you should find one.  Don’t wait until something serious happens to start looking for one.
Of course if you’re in the Atlanta area, just go to Dr. Caroline over at Balance Atlanta.

Today’s Podcasting News

Podcasting News for Monday, March 06, 2006

Will this be the end of "Hey can I borrow your notes?"

One university is using podcasting to post lectures.  Find out more by reading the article in Boca Raton News.

http://www.bocanews.com/index.php?src=news&prid=14445&category=Schools

WordPress Plug In Available for Podcasting

For the record, I prefer my nice simple typepad + odeo (which by the way is free) format for blogging and podcasting.  However, I know there are some folks that just LOVE their WordPress, so here is a tool for you guys, podpress, a wordpress plug in. 

For more details go to http://www.mightyseek.com/podpress

Are you content with your small business skills?  Visit this small business resource site for information on how to grow your business.  Affordable online advertising is also available there.

March 6, 2006 podcast

Amanda Monaco 4
Jazz Artist
The CD is available on cdbaby.com
I found this artist at http://music.podshow.com