Monthly Archives: March 2013

How to Write a Business Plan, Business Planning, Business Planner, Business Plan Software, Business Plan Template, Sample Business Plan, Business Plans, Business Planners, Strategy Development Software, Market Plans, Market Planning, Marketing Plan, Business Ideas, Software – StumbleUpon

How to Write a Business Plan, Business Planning, Business Planner, Business Plan Software, Business Plan Template, Sample Business Plan, Business Plans, Business Planners, Strategy Development Software, Market Plans, Market Planning, Marketing Plan, Business Ideas, Software – StumbleUpon.

Prioritizing Your Life

I recommend the following process to help you align your life with your priorities and your values:

 

1) Make a list of everything in your life that is important to you. This can include family, spiritual life, career, socializing, hobbies, time in nature, education, exercise, and rest. Get specific with this list. For example, instead of simply listing “friendships”, perhaps list particular individuals or groups of friends that are important to you.

 

2) Order you list in number of importance to you. This is now your priority list.

 

3) Now, take a look at the top three items on your list. Star them. Ask yourself: Are these really my top priorities in life, or are some of these items “shoulds” or “obligations”. If there are any shoulds or obligations, re-prioritize so that your top three really connect with you on a heart/soul level. Some questions to ask yourself here are:

 

* Am I excited about this item?

* How do I feel when I devote time to this item?

* Is there any way I’d rather be spending my time than on this item?

 

4) Is the majority of your actual time devoted to the top three things on your list? If yes, wonderful! For the rest of us – what are you spending your time doing? If it’s not a top priority item: why are you spending your time on it?

 

This 4-step process should give you a good idea of how you want to spend your time and how you are actually spending your time. It will also provide you with valuable information about what’s important to you and also why you spend time on things that are not priorities. The next step, which I’ll discuss in a future article, is to begin to make adjustments in your daily schedule to create space for your top priorities in life.

via Prioritizing Your Life.

This and That…: Top 40 Useful Sites To Learn New Skills – StumbleUpon

This and That…: Top 40 Useful Sites To Learn New Skills – StumbleUpon.

 

The web is a powerful resource that can easily help you learn new skills.  You just have to know where to look.  Sure, you can use Google, Yahoo, or Bing to search for sites where you can learn new skills, but I figured I’d save you some time.
Here are the top 40 sites I have personally used over the last few years when I want to learn something new.
  1. Hack a Day – Hack a Day serves up fresh hacks (short tutorials) every day from around the web and one in-depth ‘How-To hack’ guide each week.
  2. eHow – eHow is an online community dedicated to providing visitors the ability to research, share, and discuss solutions and tips for completing day-to-day tasks and projects.
  3. Wired How-To Wiki – Collaborate with Wired editors and help them build their extensive library of projects, hacks, tricks and tips.  Browse through hundreds how-to articles and then add to them, or start a new one.
  4. MAKE Magazine – Brings the do-it-yourself (DIY) mindset to all of the technology in your life.  MAKE is loaded with cool DIY projects that help you make the most of the technology you already own.
  5. 50 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do – While not totally comprehensive, here is a list of 50 things everyone should know how to do.  It’s a great starting point to learn new skills.
  6. wikiHow – A user based collaboration to build and share the world’s largest, highest quality how-to manual.
  7. Lifehacker – An award-winning daily blog that features tips, shortcuts, and downloads that help you get things done smarter and more efficiently.
  8. 100+ Google Tricks That Will Save You Time – Today, knowing how to use Google effectively is a vital skill.  This list links out to enough Google related resources to make you an elite Google hacker.
  9. Instructables – Similar to MAKE, Instructables is a web-based documentation platform where passionate people share what they do and how they do it, and learn from and collaborate with others as the tackle new projects and learn new skills.
  10. Merriam-Webster Online – In this digital age, your ability to communicate with written English is paramount skill.  And M-W.com is the perfect resource to improve your English now.
  11. Lumosity – Learn to improve your memory by playing a series of fun and educational brain training games.
  12. 100 Skills Every Man Should Know – Another compilation article with instructions to help you learn new skills.  This one says it’s geared for men, but I think most of these skills are applicable to women as well.
  13. 5min Life Videopedia – Lot’s of great tutorials and DIY videos.
  14. HowStuffWorks – Knowledge is power.  While this site isn’t exactly geared to help you learn new skills, it contains so much useful information that you’re bound to learn a skill or two while you browse.
  15. StumbleUpon – A collective set of recommendations from thousands of hours of searching by web users who share your interests.  It’s basically a recommendation engine.  Users add to this engine by providing their personal recommendations on what sites are worth your time.  If you select topics and tags of interest like ‘Self-Improvement‘ and ‘DIY,’ you’ll be learning new skills in no time.
  16. Work.com – An extensive directory of how-to guides for beginning entrepreneurs.
  17. Howcast – Hosts professional how-to videos as well as how-to wiki tutorials.  Howcast combines user ideas with the expertise of professional studio video to deliver what is nothing short of amazing, informative content.
  18. VideoJug – The video content on this site covers a variety of topics including informative ‘How To’ and ‘Ask The Expert’ films that guide you step-by-step through everything and anything in life.
  19. MakeUseOf – A booming daily blog that features cool websites, computer tips, and downloads that make you more productive.  Lot’s of insightful tips and tricks to learn.
  20. WonderHowTo – This site is focused on one clear organizing principle: aggregating and linking to truly great, free how-to videos from which you can learn new skills.
  21. SuTree – Another useful aggregator of how-to videos from all around the web.
  22. Zen Habits – The ultimate productivity and self-improvement blog.  Zen Habits is about finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives.  It’s about clearing the clutter so we can focus on what’s important, create something amazing, and find happiness.  Lot’s of learning material here.
  23. Academic Earth – Online degrees and video courses from leading universities.
  24. About.com Videos – Another solid collection of how-to video tutorials.
  25. PCWorld How-To – Lot’s of useful tutorials and guides related to fixing and modifying computers and other electronic gadgets.
  26. Spreeder – This site is focused on teaching you one new skill:  speed reading.  And it does a great job of doing so.
  27. Woopid – Watch free technology training videos.  Get help and answer your computer and gadget questions with thousands of video tutorials for PCs, Macs, and various software applications.
  28. DIY Network – A go-to destination for rip-up, knock-out home improvement projects.  The site offers expert answers the most sought-after questions regarding creative projects for DIY enthusiasts.
  29. Scitable – A free science library and personal learning tool that currently concentrates on genetics, the study of evolution, variation, and the rich complexity of living organisms.  The site also expects to expand into other topics of learning and education.
  30. All Recipes – A complete guide to recipes and cooking tips.  If you’d like to learn to be a better cook, this site is for you.
  31. 43 Folders – This site is more about inspiring you to follow-through with your goals than it is about learning new skills.  But I think following-through with your goals is a skill.  Most people never quite get there.
  32. Dumb Little Man – Another awesome productivity and self-improvement blog hosting lots of useful information.
  33. iTunes U – Hundreds of universities — including Stanford, Yale and MIT — distribute lectures, slide shows, PDFs, films, exhibit tours and audio books through iTunes U.  The Science section alone contains content on topics including agriculture, astronomy, biology, chemistry, physics, ecology and geography.
  34. American Sign Language Browser – Teach yourself sign language online.
  35. BBC Languages – Teach yourself a new spoken language online.
  36. Delicious Popular DIY – Lots of popular DIY articles bookmarked by users from all over the web.
  37. Khan Academy – Over 1200 videos lessons covering everything from basic arithmetic and algebra to differential equations, physics, chemistry, biology and finance.  Lot’s of educational material to help you learn new skills.
  38. The Happiness Project – Learn the skills necessary to create happiness in your life.
  39. How To Do Things – Another solid collection of how-to tutorials.
  40. ShowMeDo – A peer-produced video-tutorials and screencasts site for free and open-source software.  The large majority are free to watch and download.

46 Ways To Start A Business With No Money – StumbleUpon

46 Ways to Start a Business With No Money
May 16th, 2008

Most people who want to start their own business don’t have a ton of money laying around and it’s probably one the most common questions I get emailed about: How can I get started without a lot of cash?
Well I’ve put together a list below of the best ideas I’ve heard and personally used. I hope you find it useful!
The three basic strategies to starting a business without much money are:
Delay the normal “business starting” activities like incorporating, hiring, renting office or retail space, etc until AFTER your business has started earning money. This is known as bootstrapping.
Doing everything yourself and spending your personal time instead of hiring an expert. (Takes longer but costs less.)
Using some neat tricks and little known deals below.
Start With The Easy Stuff: Eliminate Expenses
Don’t rent an office! – work from home. Or better yet work from the best free office with locations everywhere: Starbucks. If you need to meet with a client and are worried about seeming small time without an office, don’t be. Just meet them at a restaurant for a lunch meeting. This is what people with the nicest offices do anyway.
Don’t hire any employees! – do it all yourself until you have some $ coming in the door.
Don’t hire lawyers, technical people, graphic designers, or assistants (see below)
Legal Stuff and Incorporating
Get a free lawyer and legal advice from the mentors at Score.org
Find a website with a similar legal document and modify it to your needs
An LLC is probably the best business structure, but don’t worry about incorporating until you’re earning money, just do a sole proprietorship, you can always incorporate later (you can get it setup with the IRS in just a few minutes by calling them at 800-829-4933)
Learn how to do your own financial statements for your business in Excel instead of hiring a CPA or bookkeeper (again you can do this after you’re making money)
Take a Quickbooks class at your local community college
Make a website for your business
Don’t pay a premium for a top end domain name, there are plenty of good ones left
Test out your ideas by writing to a blog, you’ll get feedback on what people like and don’t like
Get a free business website at http://www.wordpress.com or tumblr.com. It won’t be your own domain (it will be something like yourbusiness.wordpress.com) but…
When you’re ready to have your own domain, register it at domain.com and add this as a custom domain to your WordPress or Tumblr site.
Get a professional website design for free with a wordpress theme that you can install with a few clicks (no programming knowledge needed)
Getting a Logo
Don’t hire a fancy graphic designer. At least not yet. Use LogoYes to create your own logo (or at least get ideas that you can recreate on your own for free)
Accepting Credit Cards
Don’t bother with a full merchant account to start off with, they are complicated, come with monthly feeds, and require programming expertise. Instead try a simpler (and much cheaper) solution like Google Checkout or Paypal
For a more professional look and a complete shopping cart for only $5/month use E-Junkie, its great and I use it on this site
If you have lots of physical products, try a Yahoo Store
Starting a service business where you consult, coach, teach, etc
Create several pages on your wordpress site: one for your experience, testimonials, rates, availability, etc
Pick a domain name with your #1 keyword in it! (Assuming it isn’t a very competitive keyword you’ll rank on the first page of google within a month or two for that keyword which means customers!) here’s some more info and an example
Creating Info Products
Use an ebook template like these from Eben Pagan
For print books, self publish it at http://www.lulu.com and use print on demand (they don’t print a single book until someone buys it which means you have zero up front cost for inventory!)
Use a $20 webcam or digital camera to create educational video products
Use camtasia ( $200 for PC) or iShowU ($20 for Mac) to record your screen and make great videos like this one. Or record powerpoints and do the voiceover to make great educational products. Update: even cheaper use ScreenToaster.
Use a mac to edit your videos (iMovie is free) and you can even produce DVD’s
Before investing in a retail location…
Go to a local fair or festival and rent a booth to see if anyone buys your product. Talk to potential customers and get feedback.
Try selling it on ebay
Always be learning about business
Go to a meetup.com groups in your city related to business/entrepreneurship
Read all the best business books by getting them from the library
Get 3 of the top 10 books on building wealth for free in PDF
Make friends with other entrepreneurs and share material
Install the stumble upon toolbar and choose business/entrepreneurship as one of your interests to find all the best videos and talks out there (this is literally like going to a free semester of business school, you get to see all the best speakers and thinkers of our time, and those of the past)
Read blogs like this one in google reader
Marketing, free website traffic, and getting your first customer
Get 250 full-color business cards for free to hand out to people you meet
Post an offer on craigslist
Post videos on youtube with links to your website
Post the same video to all video sharing sites (Google Video, Yahoo Video, MySpace, Revver, etc) at once with TubeMogul (this is some of the best free marketing you can do)
Generate leads by offering an incentive on your website for people to give you their contact info (some incentives that work well: Top 10 reports like the top 10 myths about…the top 10 thing you should know before…etc, videos, audio interviews, one page cheat sheets, free ebooks)
Write a good article and send it to more popular websites (include your byline at the bottom). This is also known as doing guest posts and is the #1 thing I used to grow this blog when it first started out.
Learn how to use google adwords and spend $10 and see if it brings in at least $10 (if so keep going!)
If you can’t afford to get links from expensive directories like Yahoo ($299) use Directory Submitter to get links from hundreds of smaller directories for free
Pick a good domain name with your keywords in the domain (use hyphens if necessary). This will help you rank in Google for that keyword and get visitors to your website.
Do some basic on page SEO
Research what keywords will bring you the most traffic (and are least competitive) with keyword discovery, Wordtracker’s Free Service, and (probably the best option) WordTrackers free trial of their full service (just have to remember to cancel within 7 days to not get charged!)
See which keywords are likely to bring buyers (instead of tire kickers)
Get more incoming links to your site by creating a Squidoo page (these rank very high in the search engines for some reason!)
Send an email to everyone in your email program’s contact list with a short friendly note letting them know you are starting a business and ask if they could forward it to just one or two people who might be interested. Offer something free for the first 10 people. This has an exponential effect because it not only reaches who you know, but everyone who knows who you know (an order of magnitude bigger group of people.)
What did I miss? Please make a comment below.

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Book Review of The Wealthy Freelancer |

Book Review: The Wealthy Freelancer

Saturday, June 5th, 2010 at 3:29 am

2

Reviewers note: This book has been reviewed from the observations of a virtual assistant, which is important to note as the book is written for freelancers who primarily perform project-oriented work.

The Wealthy Freelancer

12 Secrets to a Great Income and an Enviable Lifestyle

by Steve Slaunwhite, Pete Savage, and Ed Gandia

“Ugh”, I thought to myself when I saw the cover of The Wealthy Freelancer, 12 Secrets to a Great Income and Enviable Lifestyle (TWF) featuring a bigger-than-life photo of a red Corvette. “Not another get-rich-quick publication selling a phony lifestyle reminiscent of late night gold digger infomercials!” To add ‘insult to injury’ the use of the subtitle word ‘enviable’ was equally as dubious. However, my first impression would prove to be utterly incorrect. Lesson to self: “Don’t judge a book by its cover!” In fact, TWF is not about becoming financially wealthy at all. The introductory chapter titled, What Being a Wealthy Freelancer Really Means explains that … “Being wealthy isn’t just about the dollars you earn; it’s about the life you build-and the kind of person you become in the process.” Unfortunately, at first glance, the book title and its photo cover, most likely used as a visual ‘hook’ promoted a brief amount of uncertainty which was quickly reconciled by the excellent content within.

Read the rest of the review here .

via Book Review of The Wealthy Freelancer |.