Once of worse problems of working on the internet is the inevitable distractions, how much time do you waste on things you know you shouldn't but cannot quite help yourself.
It's not difficult to waste a whole day watching tv and video and then the spouse comes home and you reassure them you have of course had a productive day.
And it is very easy to deceive them as well as most of the time what we are doing could be good or could be bad. The trouble is the person you deceive most is yourself because you will have acheived a very expensive nothing!!
Whats to be done can we try and change our habits over night schedule every second, this will make this a job and you might as well go and work the 9-5 with others if you are going to do that.
No you must decide the times which are the most likely to be productive for you, if you feel you can only work hard for an hour or two hours then you must stick to it. Better to work extremely hard for a short period of time than to do nothing for 8 hours.
Luckily I found a free utility which can start addressing some of these issues its called rescuetime at rescuetime.com it monitors all your time on the internet and what you are doing so if like me you just spent 5 hours watching back to back episodes that you could not wait on. Then its there and if your really brave get your spouse to check up on what you did for the day. Maybe you can plan some reward in there.
But whatever you do if you do not get scheduling under control the you will eventually fail and the alternative is you would be better off staying at work.
Mike Bell
Tuesday 19 March 2013
Thursday 14 March 2013
10 Questions to Ask Before Quitting Your Job to Start a Business
Giving
up the security of a full-time job to start your own
business is a risky,
often stressful move. "The biggest reason people don't end up quitting is
the fear of uncertainty. They don't know what might happen and they don't want
to give up the security that they already have," says Sean Ogle, who quit
a job in finance to live in Thailand and run a virtual search engine
optimization and Web consultancy.
How do you know when the time
is right to make the leap? Here are 10 questions to ask before you quit your job
Are you
just miserable in your current job?
Some people who think they want to be entrepreneurs are just unhappy in their current roles, says Pamela Slim, the Mesa, Ariz.-based author of Escape from Cubicle Nation (Penguin, 2010). Developing a thorough business plan can help you avoid any impulsive decisions. "In addition to wanting to quit, you have to have a viable business idea and an effective marketing and operations plan," she says. As you work on your plan, she advises, keep your job and income as long as possible.
Some people who think they want to be entrepreneurs are just unhappy in their current roles, says Pamela Slim, the Mesa, Ariz.-based author of Escape from Cubicle Nation (Penguin, 2010). Developing a thorough business plan can help you avoid any impulsive decisions. "In addition to wanting to quit, you have to have a viable business idea and an effective marketing and operations plan," she says. As you work on your plan, she advises, keep your job and income as long as possible.
What
will your new day-to-day routine be like?
Instant freedom can be dangerous. Ogle recommends developing a daily schedule to follow, just as you did in your 9-to-5 job. "When you now have all of this free time it gets really easy to say, 'Oh, I'll do that later'," he says. The week after quitting his job, Ogle started going to the gym at the same time he would have arrived at his old office each morning. And after the gym, he worked the same hours that he did for his former employer. How will you raise money to keep the business going?
Lack of capital is one of the main hurdles to entrepreneurship. Rather than figuring out cash flow as you go along, it's best to come up with realistic projections as part of your business plan before deciding whether you can afford to leave your job. Your business may not be profitable for three to five years, so it's important to be realistic about how you'll support yourself financially, says Sharon Lechter, author of Three Feet From Gold: Turn Your Obstacles Into Opportunities (Sterling Publishing, 2009) and a financial literacy expert in Phoenix. Anticipating your financial needs "allows you to focus your energy on building your new business rather than worrying how you are going to pay the bills," she says.
Instant freedom can be dangerous. Ogle recommends developing a daily schedule to follow, just as you did in your 9-to-5 job. "When you now have all of this free time it gets really easy to say, 'Oh, I'll do that later'," he says. The week after quitting his job, Ogle started going to the gym at the same time he would have arrived at his old office each morning. And after the gym, he worked the same hours that he did for his former employer. How will you raise money to keep the business going?
Lack of capital is one of the main hurdles to entrepreneurship. Rather than figuring out cash flow as you go along, it's best to come up with realistic projections as part of your business plan before deciding whether you can afford to leave your job. Your business may not be profitable for three to five years, so it's important to be realistic about how you'll support yourself financially, says Sharon Lechter, author of Three Feet From Gold: Turn Your Obstacles Into Opportunities (Sterling Publishing, 2009) and a financial literacy expert in Phoenix. Anticipating your financial needs "allows you to focus your energy on building your new business rather than worrying how you are going to pay the bills," she says.
Have
you factored in possible unforeseen costs?
When Jody Dyer launched Blackbird Tees, an apparel company in Richmond, Va., she was surprised by the many expenses her business plan hadn't anticipated. We spent "thousands of dollars experimenting with different fabric styles and inks, messing up screens, destroying shirts, making the wrong color choices," says Dyer, who sells her products on Etsy. "At the time, those errors were financially crippling." Rather than going out of business, Dyer fell back on freelance copywriting gigs to make ends meet. "Supplementing your income through freelance or part-time work can alleviate some of that strain," she says.
When Jody Dyer launched Blackbird Tees, an apparel company in Richmond, Va., she was surprised by the many expenses her business plan hadn't anticipated. We spent "thousands of dollars experimenting with different fabric styles and inks, messing up screens, destroying shirts, making the wrong color choices," says Dyer, who sells her products on Etsy. "At the time, those errors were financially crippling." Rather than going out of business, Dyer fell back on freelance copywriting gigs to make ends meet. "Supplementing your income through freelance or part-time work can alleviate some of that strain," she says.
Are you
willing to take on multiple roles?
Starting a business means you'll be wearing many hats. "One day you are the tech person, one day you are the salesperson, one day you are the cleaning person," says Shobha Tummala, founder of an eponymous chain of beauty salons in New York City. "You can't have an ego." So before leaving your job, you need to decide if you will be happy performing a variety of functions, from marketing to maintenance.
Starting a business means you'll be wearing many hats. "One day you are the tech person, one day you are the salesperson, one day you are the cleaning person," says Shobha Tummala, founder of an eponymous chain of beauty salons in New York City. "You can't have an ego." So before leaving your job, you need to decide if you will be happy performing a variety of functions, from marketing to maintenance.
What
are your strengths and weaknesses?
As you consider the multiple roles, be honest with yourself about what you're best at and where you need to improve, Tummala advises. Perhaps you need to beef up your programming skills or understanding of finance--or find a partner with a complementary skill set. If you don't have a way to overcome your weaknesses, it may be best to stay in your current role.
As you consider the multiple roles, be honest with yourself about what you're best at and where you need to improve, Tummala advises. Perhaps you need to beef up your programming skills or understanding of finance--or find a partner with a complementary skill set. If you don't have a way to overcome your weaknesses, it may be best to stay in your current role.
Who are
your future customers--and competitors?While you may not be
able to thoroughly test the market potential for your business concept, you
should at least understand who your likely customers are and what kind of
competition you would face. If you're not quite sure, consider pursuing your
idea part-time, suggests Ellen Rohr, president of Bare Bones Biz, a
small-business consultancy in Rogersville, Mo. "You can test your plan and
adjust it in a soft launch before you sink too much into an unprofitable
venture."
Is your support network on board?
To help ease the transition, you should share your entrepreneurial plans with family members and see if they support the tradeoffs involved in starting a business. Be quite explicit about the risks, Slim says. "When one person goes into business, everyone in the family unit is affected." If your partner and other members of your support network are reluctant to back your idea, you may want to rethink quitting your current job.
To help ease the transition, you should share your entrepreneurial plans with family members and see if they support the tradeoffs involved in starting a business. Be quite explicit about the risks, Slim says. "When one person goes into business, everyone in the family unit is affected." If your partner and other members of your support network are reluctant to back your idea, you may want to rethink quitting your current job.
Do you
have a backup option?
Developing a plan B before going off on your own will help you avoid getting blindsided. Is there something you can do part-time if you need to temporarily bring in money, or will you need to seek new full-time employment and put your plans on hold? To keep your options open, stay in contact with recruiters, previous employers and other networking contacts.
Developing a plan B before going off on your own will help you avoid getting blindsided. Is there something you can do part-time if you need to temporarily bring in money, or will you need to seek new full-time employment and put your plans on hold? To keep your options open, stay in contact with recruiters, previous employers and other networking contacts.
How
will you avoid burning bridges?
If you decide to quit, remember that your employer could be helpful to you as you launch your new venture. Rather than resign abruptly, figure out a way to leave in good standing. Give plenty of notice to help your employer handle the transition. And be open about your future entrepreneurial plans, Ogle says. "Usually [companies] will understand it, and even offer to help out however they can." Employers can assist by giving you flexible time off or retaining your services as a consultant.
If you decide to quit, remember that your employer could be helpful to you as you launch your new venture. Rather than resign abruptly, figure out a way to leave in good standing. Give plenty of notice to help your employer handle the transition. And be open about your future entrepreneurial plans, Ogle says. "Usually [companies] will understand it, and even offer to help out however they can." Employers can assist by giving you flexible time off or retaining your services as a consultant.
Saturday 9 March 2013
5 Year Goal Setting Why its crucial
People commonly overestimate how far they can get in a year, but grossly underestimate how far they can get in 5 years.
If you actually want results, make a 5-year commitment to a particular path, like building an online business, developing your social skills, becoming a world traveler, etc. A lesser commitment is largely pointless.
When I began blogging in 2004, I expected I’d still be blogging in 2009. If I didn’t have that expectation, I wouldn’t have started blogging.
Many other bloggers quit within their first year, which is largely a waste of effort. If they were going to quit within such a short period of time, they were never serious about it to begin it. The best results come well after the first year. If you can’t make it at least 5 years, why bother with it at all?
Sure there’s some experiential value to be gained from dabbling, but there won’t be much value in terms of results. If you just want to rack up a bunch of short-term experiences for the fun of it, then by all means feel free to dabble. That’s fine. It’s not a mistake to do that if that’s your intention.
But if your intention is to actually generate some meaningful results, like strong new relationships, a commercially competitive skill set, a fulfilling career path, or some significant income streams, then forget about dabbling.
If you notice that you keep starting over every 6 months or so, you’re being way too noncommittal. As soon as you reach the point when you’re just about to transition into moderate results territory and get into the long run of nice results, you’re pulling the plug and erasing your progress.
In the first year, a new website will just begin to get some links, search engine placement, social networking recognition, and some moderate traffic. The seed has grown to a sapling. Then the owners look at the sapling with disappointment because they wanted a full-grown tree by that point, so they yank it out of the ground and start another project from scratch. This is nonsensical. After five years of this pattern, they have little to show for their efforts.
After a single year on a new path, it may look like you’re barely getting anywhere. Transformation often looks that way at first. But fast forward five years and look back, and the total transformation can be profound.
In 2004 I also joined Toastmasters to build up my speaking skills and experience. After a year of membership, I had switched to a stronger club, but I was still doing mostly 5-7 minute speeches and just beginning to do occasional 20-minute talks. I had done a few speech contests too. To prep for a 20-minute talk would take me a full day. I was gaining skills, but results-wise I didn’t have much to show for my efforts.
However, after I’d been in Toastmasters for 4 years, I was doing my first paid speeches, earning $3000 for 90 minutes on stage, and they paid for travel and hotel expenses. That’s a result.
And a little over 5 years after joining Toastmasters, I was doing my first public workshop, for which I earned over $50,000 for 3 days of speaking. That’s a result.
Now I can do weekend workshops whenever I desire and earn tens of thousands of dollars for each one. I’ve done 9 of these so far. Every workshop I’ve done has earned more money that I earned in my entire first year of blogging. That’s a result.
It used to take me a month to prepare a new workshop from scratch. Now I can do it in about a week. Today I can also prepare a new one-hour talk in about 15-30 minutes, and the delivery is better than when I used to prep for a full day just for a 20-minute talk.
This isn’t the result of luck. It’s the result of practice and commitment. Not a 6 month commitment. Not a year. But 5+ years.
I only left Toastmasters in 2010 when I felt I was well beyond the point of needing it anymore. Over a period of several years, I went from doing 5-7 minute speeches for free to doing my own 3-day public seminars and earning tens of thousands of dollars for each one. Again, that’s a meaningful and measurable result, not just a learning experience.
And this was my commitment all along. I knew I’d make it to this point if I stuck with it. If I didn’t expect to be in Toastmasters for at least 5 years, I probably wouldn’t have joined in the first place.
The first year of any new commitment is invariably the most awkward. Your skills are weakest then. You don’t know what you’re doing. You make a lot of mistakes.
That first year is also the time when you learn the fastest. However, that 5th year of 5 is typically when you enjoy the best results.
Deep down we love shortcuts. If one happens to come your way, take advantage of it. But don’t enter into a serious line of personal growth if you aren’t willing to make at least a 5-year commitment — assuming you’re interested in gaining some actual results.
Don’t force yourself to commit to something random for the next 5 years. But do put some thought into decisions that can rack up long-term results if you stick with them. This requires a degree of self-awareness, i.e. knowing what you’ll stick with and what you won’t. If you know you won’t still be into something 5 years from now, don’t bother putting 6 months into it.
Ask yourself what interests and goals of yours are still likely to be very important to you 5 years from now. If you’re reading this in 2012, then what will you still care about in 2017? Look to your past. What were you interested in 5 years ago that you’re still into today? What goals and aspirations keep resurfacing year after year? Can you expect these pattern to continue? These long-term interests will give you a hint about where to double down and commit bigger.
When I committed to blogging, I’d already been writing free articles for 5 years prior (from 1999 to 2004), so I could reasonably expect I’d continue this pattern. I just hadn’t committed to it in a big way yet.
When I committed to speaking, I’d already been speaking for free at software and game developer conferences for several years prior, so again, I had established a pattern there.
Even if you’re in your 20s or younger, you have patterns that you’ve established. What are the threads that you keep weaving into your life? How far could you get if you actually got serious about these threads and made a genuine 5-year commitment to generating some real results?
The 5 Biggest Twitter Marketing Fails of 2012 and how it can help you.
Social marketing media can be difficult to do but when done right, it can strengthen your brand value and ideally even your bottom line. When done wrong, it can alienate consumers and thrash your reputation.
Here's a look at five of the worst corporate mistakesover Twitter this year, and what other business owners can learn from them:
January 18: McDonald's hashtag gone wrong.McDonald's (@McDonald's) created the #McDstories hashtag on Twitter to inspire customers to share personal stories about their favorite McDonald's moments. What McDonald's didn't bargain for was that customers would share both good and bad stories. And share they did -- everything from allegedly crunching on fingernail clippings in Big Macs to getting food poisoning. The fast food mammoth yanked the #McDstories campaign only two hours after launching it, but a quick search on Twitter shows that the hijacked hashtag still goes on strong.
Lesson: You can't control what consumers will say using your hashtag, and they can be hijacked by negative comments that can never be taken back.
Related: What to Do When Customers Get Mean on Social Media
Related: What to Do When Customers Get Mean on Social Media
January 27: Snickers gets caught paying for celebrity tweets. Marketers from Snickers' U.K. branch (@SnickersUK) were hungry for retweets when they hired British model and reality TV start Jordon (aka Katie Price) to tweet about topics she likely would never normally tweet about, including Eurozone debt and China's gross domestic product. Jordan followed up her rash of out-of-character tweets with a message about feeling like herself again thanks to Snickers. The stunt left many of Jordan's followers reeling for thinking her Twitter account had been hacked.
Lesson: Pranking consumers in clever ways can draw attention to your brand, but usually not the right kind.
February 5: Toyota Camry drives away potential drivers. The Japanese car giant created nine Twitter accounts to get the word out about the new Camry during the Super Bowl. Toyota (@Toyota) then tweeted -- in this case, spammed -- unsolicited messages about a Camry giveaway contest to anyone using a Super Bowl-related hashtag. The ensuing consumer backlash prompted Toyota to close all its "The Camry Effect" promotional Twitter accounts and issue an apology.
Lesson: Impersonal mass marketing tweets can alienate customers. Stick to unique, personalized messages that engage consumers one-on-one.
Related: 5 Tips for Talking About Politics on Social Media
Related: 5 Tips for Talking About Politics on Social Media
October 3: KitchenAid cooks up a half-baked political tweet. On this day, KitchenAid's Twitter feed (@KitchenAidUSA) wasn't about cooking with the company's famous kitchen appliances. It was about politics. After Barack Obama mentioned his late grandmother during a presidential debate earlier that evening, the person running KitchenAid's Twitter feed tweeted an insensitive comment about her and his campaign. The individual responsible for the inappropriate tweet was relieved of his duties and the company was forced to clean up the mess.
Lesson: Your social media manager should adopt a tone that reflects your company's image and keep his or her personal (and political) opinions out of your social media marketing.
October 29: Retailers' Hurricane Sandy sale slip-ups. During the storm, Urban Outfitters (@UrbanOutfitters) tweeted: "This storm blows (but free shipping doesn't)! Today only...bit.ly/S8fADV #frankenstorm #ALLSOGGY" An email promoting the sale included an image of Frankenstein with the word "Frankenstorm" on it. American Apparel, The Gap and Sears got in on the Sandy storm sale action on Facebook and Twitter, too. Angry reactions to these inappropriate sales still continue on Twitter.
Lesson: Attempting to make money on and exploit others' suffering in times of crisis can cause serious backlash. Just don't do it.
Friday 8 March 2013
How to Pick and Trade Penny Stocks
Penny stocks are loosely categorized companies with share prices of below $5 and with market caps of under $200 million.[1] They are sometimes referred to as "the slot machines of the equity market"[2] because of the risks involved. There may be a good place for penny stocks in the portfolio of an experienced, advanced investor, however, if you follow these steps.
- 1Invest within your Means. Penny stocks are as risky as larger stocks if not traded wisely. Set aside sufficient savings to last three months in case the investment goes wrong.
- 2Understand why penny stocks are considered a dangerous investment. Penny stocks are among the most volatile and most manipulated form of investment in the stock market. The companies usually have no track record of solid financial performance.[3] In addition, the stocks are often manipulated by scam artists.[3][4]
- 3Get at least one year's experience with mid- and large-cap stocks first. You should become adept at reading a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement during this time.[1]
- 4Learn more about the specific aspects of penny stocks that make them both potentially lucrative and dangerous to your portfolio. Understand the mechanics behind money flow, market capitalization, and share structure. Also understand the purpose of a public company and the commonality of scams, dilution, and loss of investment value associated with penny stocks.
- 5Know which stocks to reject off the bat:[1]
- stocks that aren't traded on one of the major U.S. exchanges (aka bulletin board or over-the-counter [OTC] stocks)
- companies that have less than $10 million in revenue annually
- any company recommended in e-mails about penny stock trading (promoters are often paid to create hype so that the shares will sell)
- companies in industries that you don't like or understand well (based on your experience)
- stocks that aren't traded on one of the major U.S. exchanges (aka bulletin board or over-the-counter [OTC] stocks)
- 6Look for "Red Flags" - Common attributes of companies running a scam or operating for the sole purpose of raising money via stock dilution.[5]
- 7Look for companies that have consistently generated cash and are growing their free cash flow over time.[1] Avoid companies with a heavy debt load.[2]
- 8Instead of share prices, compare price per share against book value per share (assets minus liabilities).[2]
- 9Buy companies at a very low multiple on their cash flow (ideally under six times).[1]
- 10Limit any tiny stock to no more than 5% of your portfolio.[1]
- 11Trading is not a hobby, its a business. That means understanding and managing your profit and loss. Once this thought pattern is established, it makes the whole process so much easier. Simply ask, "Will this investment / trade / software / subscription make or lose me money?" Once an answer has been established, a clear course of action will present itself.
- 12Get some great investment management software. These days, a speedy internet connection and good money management and investment software costs virtually nothing. Why spend the time and effort trying to figure out the best ways to do things when solutions already exist. Ideally, look to purchase two types of software. One will be for personal money management. This can be used for profit and loss and keeping track of the costs of subscriptions, stockbrokers and the like. The other will be used for tracking stock and fund prices, storing company news, technical and fundamental analysis and more.
- 13Get an education. Warren Buffett has suggested in the past that every investor should be able to understand basic accountancy principles, an annual report and stock market history. You probably do not need to become an accountant, but being able to understand the scoring system of the game can only help.
- 14Learn about money management. Every investor will have the occasional (at best) loser and it is vital that no individual trade can wipe out a portfolio. Understanding asset allocation is vital.
- 15Read widely. Getting a wide-ranging education in personal finance, corporate finance, taxation, economics and investment theories will help. However, finding areas of the world or business in which you can become relatively expert can help in the process of finding good trades.
- 16Find a good penny stock service to subscribe to. Many of the suggestions above can now be covered by joining a trade advisory service. These services now aim to pick stocks, offer trading and portfolio management software and educational services too. If things go well, then by investing in the stock market picks, the service can be paid for with profits. Though these services are often not 'cheap' they are generally very valuable and can help to make an investor or trader profitable whilst learning the ropes. This is a great way to learn or experience the stock market for beginners.
- 17Know when to Quit. Setting a time to sell your stocks is important because it can change the course of your investments. Capping at 50% profits is already a good margin. Getting greedy and expecting further profits can make stocks wipe out the investments.
- http://www.wikihow.com/Pick-and-Trade-Penny-Stocks
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