Truth & Integrity in Business and Life While Sharing the Success of Others Too!

Songs I Love - My Life, Inspired by Music

2012-01-24T17:03:00.001-05:00

All my life I have sung. Sung in the shower...Sung in the car. I still do. Actually, I sing ALL THE TIME! :)
I cannot help it.

I think it's a gift. But, besides JUST singing, I love SONGS. I recently wrote about some of the songs that have inspired me throughout the years, and have included them in my Squidoo lens entitled "Songs I Love - My Life, Inspired by Music =>Songs I Love - My Life, Inspired by Music

Please be my guest and take a look... let me know if you like my selection (although I know that some of it is a little esoteric!)

You'll hear a little Judith Durham (The Seekers), Joni Mitchell, Michael Oldfield (Moonlight Shadow), John Renbourn, Dan Fogelberg, Brothers Four... and even a madrigal! :)

At any rate, this was fun... so I hope you like it! :)

Planning Articles Submissions

2011-12-29T09:28:00.001-05:00

It's been quite a while since I worked with this blog! And actually - there's a pretty good reason (and not just an excuse LOL!)...

Well, it turns out that some time ago, Blogger and Google changed the way we log into our blogger accounts. ALSO, I had inadvertently started ANOTHER blogger account with a different access email. Anyway, being the relative newbie that I was (I'm only marginally beyond newbieness, by the way), I got completely entangled and confused between the different accounts (which I somehow thought would link to one another...)

And THEN, they switched over to logging in via our Google Account emails instead of our blogger user name.

Now I was REALLY confused! To the point where I just said, "Oh, forget about it... maybe someday when I have a few minutes I'll try to figure this out..."

But, as you might imagine, someday turned into ... well... when, exactly WAS the last time I posted here? Hmmm!

So today I took the bull by the horns and said, "I AM going to figure this out!" And finally I did.

This time, I'll make a note of the information somewhere and hope it doesn't get caught in a pile of stuff that goes out to recycling...

But anyway, the actual and original intention of this particular post is to share something I just wrote and posted over at Squidoo - my new lens about Planning Articles Submissions. I have long been a proponent of using article marketing as part of my overall affiliate marketing campaigns, and I'm sharing my thoughts with you here. Please have a look, and feel free to comment! Ok here it is: CLICK HERE TO READ: Planning Articles Submissions

Thanks! :)

Internet Marketing Education with Chris Farrell is the BestSelf Development and Growth

2011-07-13T11:02:00.000-04:00

Internet Marketing Education with Chris Farrell is the BestSelf Development and Growth

Miss South Carolina Bree Boyce Lost 100+ Pounds the Old Fashioned WaySelf Development and Growth

2011-07-13T10:35:00.000-04:00

Miss South Carolina Bree Boyce Lost 100+ Pounds the Old Fashioned WaySelf Development and Growth

By the way... Need to find a Mantis Rototiller for Sale?

2011-04-06T13:49:00.003-04:00

Because I am a VERY satisfied owner and user of Mantis Rototillers - you know... those awesome little small garden tillers that you see on infomercials - I have a little blogger.com blog dedicated to them.

You can see it here => Mantis Rototillers for Sale

I also put them on my Portable Garage and Shelter website - and dedicated a "small garden tillers for sale" page to the Mantis.

SO.... Given that Spring is in the air, and garden time is right around the corner, please visit me at www.PortableGaragesAndShelters.com/small-garden-tillers-for-sale
and
www.mantis-rototillers-for-sale.blogspot.com

Happy Gardening! :) Kath

Discount & Downright CHEAP Kids Clothes | Wholesale Children's Clothing

2011-04-06T13:35:00.003-04:00

I have been having SO MUCH FUN with video these days! Just made this one for my www.SaveOnKidswear.com website, where I market discount (aka CHEAP) kids clothes to both individuals & families, as well as retailers and wholesalers.

What I really wanted to convey in the video is that I am an independent dealer for a company called Magic Kids USA, and that my website is the best way that I know of to get the word out and market their clothes.

I only get paid if someone purchases kids clothes and uses the code (MK Code 31254) that is assigned to me and John. John and I have been running our discount children's apparel website since 2007, and I'm finally getting around to making videos for it.

There's a bit of a learning curve, but I'm totally hooked!

If you are in the market for discount or wholesale prices on children's clothing, please visit my site at www.SaveOnKidswear.com - I've had numerous retailers who have purchased more than once - so that's a good sign! I THANK YOU! :) :) Kath

A Day at a Mini Storage Unit Auction

2011-04-05T16:17:00.002-04:00

Ok... This was one of my first attempts at doing a video for John and his new site, www.BuyingAndSellingToMakeMoney.com - which is being dedicated to sharing John's and my experience, strategies, and tips on selling on eBay, buying and selling with Yard Sales, CraigsList, and auctions.

This was our very first mini storage unit auction - and it was fun!

I also document this day at Squidoo, at my post: www.Squidoo.com/mini-storage-unit-auctions - Please do visit! I think you'll enjoy the write up!

In the meantime, I've got a lot of work to do, getting John's new site organized and loaded with content.

He has a LOT of information he wants to share with readers and viewers - and I think we'll be using a lot of video in this venture.

After nearly 30 years, he's got this "buy low sell high" strategy fairly well in hand.

Visit www.BuyingAndSellingToMakeMoney.com and see what he's up to! See you there!

Let the fun begin! :) Kath

FREE Goal Planning from www.SelfDevelopmentStrategies.com

2010-10-29T17:37:00.002-04:00

Ok folks! Just launched my website - www.SelfDevelopmentStrategies.com - you can now get your own copy of my eBook (yes, I actually DID write one myself! ) to help you understand and plan personal goals and objectives. Check out my page, and the video below.

I have lots of great newsletters to add to the mix as well.

Thanks! :) Kath

Do You Squidoo? I LOVE Squidoo!

2010-07-29T15:39:00.010-04:00

I have definitely been on a Squidoo joyride lately. For some reason, I absolutely love it!

It started about a year ago, when I began reading Pot Pie Girl's One Week Marketing Plan and started making these cool little "Squidoo Lenses," which are - for lack of a better definition - mini little "microsites" that give the writer a free web platform from which to:

1) Voice an opinion

2) Teach a skill

3) Sell some stuff

4) Promote a cause

5) And just about anything else (that's G-rated, that is!)

I have not written nearly enough of these small "micro-sites" yet to be considered an expert by any shake of the stick.

But I've written enough of them to (drum roll...) actually do well enough to have won a neat contest Squidoo is hosting this summer called the Summer Sunshine Awards!

My last "lens" (A lens is the actual webpage the user creates, and the user is a "lensmaster.") was about Squidoo Tips for Newbies and I not only won $99 for my efforts, but I also helped an animal charity called Paws Animal Kingdom win $99 as well!

To tell you that I was really psyched is an understatement!

I am also really humbled and honored.

Sure, I sell stuff on Squidoo. But I also LEARN stuff - I learn from a bunch of other lensmasters who are sharing info (and also selling stuff) - and I've made some amazing connections with people from all over the globe as a result!

Not bad for a writer living in a remote little corner of northern New Hampshire!

So, if you have not checked out Squidoo, please go on over to my humble little Squidoo Guide and Tips lens and check it out - and feel free to grab a copy of your Free Squidoo Guide eBook while you're at it.

It's easy, and you may find yourself getting as hooked on it as I am!

Have fun

!

:) Kath

New Myrtle Beach Living & Life Section on my Fine Resort Vacation Website

2010-06-29T16:13:00.004-04:00

Hi everyone!

If you have been keeping up with our Fine Resort Vacation site over the last few months, you'll notice that we have been adding pages about some more adventures!

As some of you know, we have spent the last 2 winters in the Myrtle Beach, SC area (North Myrtle Beach for the winter of 2008-2009, and Myrtle Beach for the winter of 2009-2010), and so are adding information that we have been gathering about Myrtle Beach Life & Living as well! And, we'll be adding more as time goes on!

Even though we are "snowbirds" in the Myrtle Beach area (at least for now!), there are several great vacation resorts in the area through your GRN (Gold Crown) vacation membership. If we go back this coming winter (and it is looking likely... keeping our fingers crossed!), I am going to visit a few of the resorts in our membership and check them out.

Since I spend numerous months there, it doesn't make a lot of sense for me to book a vacation right down the road :) but there isn't any reason I can't pop on over and take a photo or two, and give all of you my impressions (keeping in mind, however, that I won't be able to give you a TRUE 1-week experience run down).

Anyway, the information I add about Myrtle Beach Restaurants and shopping will come in handy to ANYONE who is either snowbirding or vacationing in that beautiful spot!

So, keep your eyes open, and please let us know if you find great places that YOU would like us to add to the site as well!

VERY Cool Blog Following a Nesting Bald Eagle

2010-03-19T15:56:00.003-04:00

Hi all,
I just wanted to let folks know about a really cool blog on blogger.com right now. A good friend of ours who works for Fish & Wildlife has a blog that is following a nesting Bald Eagle that is about to hatch a chick any moment now - or at least within the next couple of days.

Evidently, the Outdoor Channel is sponsoring a live web cam that looks down into the eagle's nest in Shepherdstown, WV. What a wonderful opportunity to see something like this live!

Steve's got a lot of folks following this live webcam, so when you click on the live cam, it may load slowly. If you can't get the live feed, you can click on the "still cam" link that updates the photo every 30 seconds or so.

Steve's blog is here at www.EagleCam.Blogspot.com - to see the live cam or the still cam, just scroll down his blog and you'll see the links in the right hand column, just above his photo.

How cool is that!

Page about Christa's Country Corner - the Famous Pineola NC Corner Store & Deli

2010-03-01T14:19:00.008-05:00

Well, I know that we took our trip to Banner Elk, NC last May, and that it's a little late to be writing about the trip now. :) Honestly, I don't know where the time goes! I think some of it has to do that we're getting ready to sell our beloved and beautiful Randolph, NH home, and that has had us a bit preoccupied...

Anyway, better late than never! One part of our visit that truly stood out in our minds was our afternoon at Christa's Country Corner & Deli, on Route 181 in Pineola, NC (located at Mile Marker 312 off the Blue Ridge Parkway).

Christa's is a classic country store that is truly so much more than your typical tourist stop. You can see the pride that goes into everything Christa and her crew does. The store is so popular, and it doesn't take a visitor long to realize why.

We were greeted and treated so graciously (not only by Christa Poore, the owner, but also by able crew member Janine Hughes). The ambiance is perfect for a mountain gathering place. Warmly decorated, and full to the brim with unique gift and food items (as well as the more standard tourist items), the real draw for us was the FOOD! Oh wow... Southern Hospitality AND great food all in one place. Heavenly.

Rather than recount everything here in this blog, we invite you to read all about our afternoon visit here at our Fine Resort Vacation site. I think you'll soon know why we needed to write all about it. :) And, if you find yourself in Pineola, NC, we whole-heartedly recommend a visit to Christa's Country Corner!

Web Copywriting, Blogging, and Watching the Myrtle Beach World Go By

2010-02-15T17:57:00.007-05:00

Watching the world go by also provides a never-ending supply of blog fodder, which I absolutely love sharing with others. Whether it’s motivational, inspirational, educational, or entertaining, I enjoy it all.

For example…
I was just standing on my balcony overlooking the dunes on Myrtle Beach from our 14th floor unit (where it snowed 1-2 inches the other day - see photo for proof!).

This winter (January - April 2010) is our 2nd winter down here, and I found myself thinking about last winter when we stayed in the Cherry Grove section of North Myrtle Beach.

As I stood on the balcony, overlooking the beautiful dunes (and watching the resident cats run around in the world's largest litter box), my mind travelled back to the last few months of our stay last winter. At that time, the city of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina sent out crews to improve and protect the fragile sand dunes. (Now, stay with me, because this story weaves into an important web copywriting concept that we need to understand.)

Ok. So, I’d watch these guys work the beach for hours and hours over the course of several weeks. First they put up hundreds of small protective fences in front of the dunes up and down the beach for a stretch of at least a couple of miles.

Then, they came back and drilled tiny little holes – lots of them – into the sand behind the fences.

After that, they took tiny baby dune grass plants – probably a gajillion at least, and carefully planted them into their tiny little holes.

You couldn’t miss ‘em. Really.

Anyone walking out onto the beach from any point of entry would have to stop at the fences and marvel, “Wow! Look at all those tiny baby dune grass plants! What a lot of work must have gone into planting those! I’d better keep off these dunes!”

But just in case the newly planted dune grass somehow escaped one’s attention, the city was prepared. The crew came in yet again. This time with signs. They put signs – dozens of signs in front of the dunes, politely asking us to refrain from messing up the restoration work.

As if that weren’t enough, there are signs – big signs – at the beginning of every public beach access walkway informing people of the rules of the beach and telling them to protect the dunes (again, see photo for proof).

At this point, one would think that people would reverently avoid walking behind the protective fences to – well, help protect the dunes and respect the restoration project.

So why is it that as I stood on my balcony in Cherry Grove, I saw people in the dunes? And guess where they just plopped their beach chairs?

Right smack dab on top of all the little baby dune plants.

And get this… They were sitting RIGHT BEHIND THE SIGN. The very sign that is asking them to please protect the dunes by leaving them the heck alone. I am not joking. This was for real.

Right behind the sign that was now obscuring their otherwise lovely view of the ocean.

Sigh. I mean, c'mon - look at the photo - and if you look closely enough, you'll see lots of footprints in the sand.

So. What has this got to do with web copywriting? A lot! Consider this:
It is obvious that the signage and new plants did not get the visitors’ attention.

Let me say that again:
It is obvious that the signage and new plants did not get the visitors’ attention.

How can that be?

Well, two thoughts come to mind:
Either the people damaging the dunes just don’t care and/or can’t read (in which case it doesn’t matter how much the city of North Myrtle Beach tries to protect the dunes)…

Or…

The signs are not written or presented using proven copywriting techniques.

Getting someone to your website is one thing. Getting them to pay attention to what you have to say is something else entirely.

So. Let’s get back to our dune protection scenario. The signs look a lot like most “Do Not” signs. You know the type: Do not do this, do not do that…blah blah blah.

This particular sign reads: “Dune Protection…Please Do Not Walk On, Cut, Break, or Destroy Vegetation.”

What’s missing? Keywords! These signs contain no keywords at all.

Not a single eye-catching keyword that people care about. No sense of urgency. Nothing unique. Nothing appealing to the visitors’ emotions motivating them to respond (translate: “buy”).

The city of North Myrtle Beach evidently does not employ copywriters to write and design their signs.

Let’s analyze the situation. Do you know how many people searched the term “Do Not Walk On The Dunes Sign” that month? Four. That’s right. My keyword reverse-search tool indicated (last spring) that four people in the whole wide world searched that term. Ok. Maybe that phrase is too narrow.

So, I entered the phrase “Protect Dunes,” and ONE person searched for “How To Protect Sand Dunes” last month.

Pop in the keyword “Dune Protection.” Only eight searches.

Obviously, a sign begging people to help protect dunes just isn’t going to cut it.

So, contemplating a fitting punishment for disrespectful dune tramplers, I typed in “Let’s Go To Prison,” and behold! 345 people searched that phrase that month! (You can see that I was in a research frame of mind.)

Even the misspelled, “Lets Go To Prison” got 1,104 hits. (Ok, maybe it’s a movie title, but I knew I was on to something!)

As I watched adults (who should know better) destroy the baby dune plants, additional phrases came to mind. The thought, “Why don’t you people grow up?” was among them. Believe it or not, 4,923 people searched the term “Grow Up” that very month. Hmm.

So, instead of the current sign, I submit to you the following sign:

Please Help Our Dunes
GROW UP!
Stay Off Them or You Can
GO TO PRISON!
($1,000,000 Fine, and Please Note:
People in the Condos are Watching You!)

Whaddaya think? (Ok, maybe they won’t go to prison or get a $1,000,000 fine, but I kind of liked it…)

So, when writing web copy, 1) use terms people are looking for, and then 2) place them strategically in the text so that people actually notice them when they do see them.

Otherwise the website will not attract qualified visitors, and those who do visit won’t stay.

Oh… I had one final idea to help the City of North Myrtle Beach help protect the dunes:

How about pointing an identical sign INWARD towards the dunes? Even if people miss the sign from the outside, they can’t miss it when they plop themselves down in the chair that looks right at it.

Just a thought.

PS: What do you think of my little snow man? He lasted just a couple of hours here on the deck (see photo for proof.) :)

Review of our Trip to Banner Elk, North Carolina!

2010-01-17T17:32:00.003-05:00

At long last, I have compiled a bunch of information (and a review) of our trip to Banner Elk, North Carolina. We had stayed at the Blue Ridge Village resort (one of the thousands of resorts available to GRN members through your membership), and had a great time.

I've posted the information at my Fine Resort Vacation website. What I have done is developed a page called "Vacation Review," and will be adding sub pages pertaining to various vacation reviews - such as the Banner Elk vacation. There will also be a sub page for Caribbean Vacations since we enjoy St. Maarten so much!

Don't forget to check out the short YouTube video I posted about the Banner Elk trip! It's on the Banner Elk, North Carolina review page at Fine Resort Vacation.

In a nutshell, here's the review: Banner Elk is wonderful! It's scenic, the people are friendly (which seems to be the norm in the South!), and if you even remotely enjoy the outdoors, it's a dream come true! A visit would be well worth your time.

Enjoy the review! :)

Interview w/ 5th Grade Class from Woodland Elementary School in Perrysburg, OH

2010-01-14T09:43:00.006-05:00

Ok... This was the coolest thing! Folks from Woodland Elementary School in Perrysburg, Ohio found my Fine Resort Vacation site online, and contacted me about a project they are doing that incorporates several fields of study - science, math, social studies, etc.

Mr. Jason Hubbard's 5th grade class has formed an "intergalactic tourist board" to design a planet that will entice Darth Vadar to visit, relax, and shake off his evil ways.

So, they asked if I would participate in a question and answer session to help them understand what types of activities and ammenities might be good at such a resort. And since I market Global Resorts Network memberships which include access to thousands of different resorts (and since I visit them myself), I was able to add some insight based on my own experiences.

What we did was set up a video conference using Skype, and I have to say it was awesome! What a blast! The kids had great questions, and it was the most fun I've had in at least a week! :)

We also talked about the things I have seen based on my experiences in Antarctica and New Zealand. We discussed how New Zealand might be a good country to study since it is such a beautiful destination.

Anyway, I'll update this blog if I learn anything else about how the project turned out.

I'm very grateful to Woodland Elementary School for inviting me to participate, and quite humbled, as well. It was an honor to help.

New YouTube Video - Our Trip to Blue Ridge Village Resort in Banner Elk NC

2010-01-07T16:36:00.008-05:00

Ok... This is a little late, I know! Last May, John & I took a quick vacation to Banner Elk, North Carolina in the Blue Ridge Mountains - or the North Carolina High Country. What an absolutely gorgeous area!

As many of you know, I have been attempting to learn how to film and post things on YouTube, and one of the reasons I've been so late with this particular entry is ... um... well, good old fashioned procrastination due to fear since I am still on the YouTube learning curve!

But, I finally bit the bullet and "just did it." Yes, I followed my own advice! :)

At any rate, here is the YouTube video which is only 3 1/2 minutes long, showing a little about our trip, which included a terrific visit to Christa's Country Corner and Deli where we stuffed ourselves silly on smoked chicken, along with a view of the Blue Ridge Village resort where we stayed (and which is one of the thousands of resorts available through the Global Resorts Network membership we like so much), and a quick look at the Banner Elk Winery. Alas... we ran out of battery power during our visit to the winery, so there is only a screen shot.

I will be getting a larger article out there about the trip and some of the amazing activities that are available out in the Banner Elk area. Stayed tuned to my Fine Resort Vacation site for more!

Back in South Carolina - Happy New Year 2010!

2010-01-06T13:51:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone!

I'm back in South Carolina - this time in Myrtle Beach (versus Cherry Grove where we were last winter). We were encouraged by the locals who all said that last winter was the coldest in years.

Hmm. Today, it is about 40 - not too bad. But yesterday's wind chills were COLD!

Glad I brought my long-johns! :) We do wish we had come back earlier - we had to be plowed 8 times before we left New Hampshire on December 29th. That's a LOT of plowing - even by New Hampshire standards.

Anyway, I realize that I've been "gone" for quite a while - We've been caught up in beginning to get the house up in NH ready to sell, staying caught up with the summer and fall Portable Garages and Shelters sales, and then sneaking away for a couple of weeks to St. Maarten.

(Ahem... Note to self: NEVER schedule a vacation during the high season for Portable Garage sales. We had scheduled the St. Maarten trip earlier last year, and honestly did not know that November was still a busy time of year for Portable Garage sales. We won't make that mistake again! BUSINESS TIP OF THE DAY: It is a BAD IDEA to leave a busy store unattended.)

So, here I am, settled into our winter quarters high above the gorgeous sands of Myrtle Beach. I have my computer set up, files organized, pencils sharpened, and a refreshed sense of humor.

Time to get back to work! In the coming days and weeks, I'll be writing and posting numerous articles and (yes!) some YouTube videos from some of our trips over the last year. Hopefully they will give viewers and potential travelers some insights into where we've been.

I'll keep you posted! In the meantime, I wish all of you a happy, healthy, safe, and prosperous year ahead.

Inspired by Appalachian Trail (AT) Thru-Hikers

2009-09-03T16:12:00.004-04:00

I just got back from "town" - which is what we call Gorham, NH - the closest place we can do any shopping up here in rural Randolph, NH. Whenever I see a backpacker this time of year, I can fairly accurately determine if he or she is hiking on the Appalachian Trail - or "the A.T."

You really cannot miss a thru-hiker (which is the term used for an A.T. hiker whose intent it is to hike either from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine or vice versa). The majority of thru-hikers go from south to north, beginning in early spring so that they can reasonably expect to complete the 2,000+ mile trail before the snows fly in the fall.

Of course, there are also a number of "flip floppers" who hike from north to south. When my husband and his buddy decided to do a stretch of trail some years ago, they started at Katahdin.

Anyway, there are several things that scream "thru-hiker" when you see one. By the time these hardy souls arrive in Gorham, NH (a point close to the trail in the northern White Mountains of New Hampshire) they are usually very lean, a bit shaggy looking, have voracious appetities, and are a bit - ummm... shall we say "ripe" - after all, it's tough to wash your clothes very well on the trail.

They also typically go by "trail names." For example, one of our very good friends hikes for approximately 6 weeks every spring on the A.T., and calls himself "slo-go'en'" since he is never in a hurry. I love hearing the trail names. Of course, there's always gonna be the "Katahdin Kid" or "Blister," but I cannot help but enjoy wondering where "whykickamoocow" or "crazylegscrim" got those particular monikers.

All part of being on the trail.

Thru-hikers sometimes have a little bemused look to their faces by the time they hit Gorham as they deal with the sudden rush of population, diversions, and noise (which is actually quite tame in my view - but then again, I'm originally from suburban New Jersey - so who's to say?).

Although I have never attempted nor accomplished a long backpacking trip , I always appreciate the intense effort it takes someone to complete this type of endeavor (my longest hike was about 5 grueling days on the Long Trail in Vermont years ago when I was fit and sassy).

So, it is with respect and great regularity that whenever I see an obvious thru-hiker in town, I stop and give them a lift somewhere. To the store (the closest grocery store is a few miles out of Gorham), to their hostel or hotel, or occasionally to a restaurant where we ply the hiker with food or ice cream...

This summer, I have had the usual pleasure of meeting a few hikers - one whose trail name escapes me at the moment. I'm sure he's long since finished the trail and is hopefully relaxing safely at home and reminiscing about how simple and basic life in the woods can be.

While I was giving this particular hiker a ride into town, he told me of another thru-hiker who had fallen into some bad luck this summer. This unfortunate hiker had made it rather far north when - during some time of high water (which was most of the summer it seems), he evidently fell into a river and lost all his gear.

Pack, clothes, cooking gear, food, sleeping gear - gone. All of it.

Imagine for just a moment the feeling this guy must have had (after, of course, being thankful that he didn't drown and was able to escape his pack while in the water). This can be a difficult situation for one who is more than 20 miles from civilization. Again, he is extremely lucky to be alive - but, being cold and wet out in the middle of nowhere with nowhere to go at the moment could not have been anything but miserable.

But, true to the spirit of the participants in this culture - and it IS a culture all its own - somehow the guy was temporarily outfitted during this emergency in order to make it out of the woods safely. And once he reached civilization, I am told that he was taking a couple of weeks off while his family and friends re-outfitted him.

The thru-hiker who told me about this indicated that even after that scary experience, the guy would be finishing the trail. Of course, this came in from one of the hikers, so since it's 3rd hand, who can be sure of the whole story? I'm guessing that on one of the A.T. websites - maybe http://www.trailjournals.com/ or other hiker resource, we could probably find reference to this incident.

But, then, came today when I gave "The Phoenix" (his trail name) a ride from Wal-Mart (the closest store with food on the shelves in any quantity) back to where he was staying in town. He told me of his own experience on the trail thus far - and told it with such nonchalance, I could scarcely believe it.

Turns out that while this young and lanky lad was in a shelter down in Maryland or thereabouts, he got bitten by a raccoon. He had to leave the trail and endure rabies treatments for a while. He told me this story in the same casual tone of voice as though he had just told me he found the aisle in the store where they kept the bottled water. "Hey guys, found the water. It's over in aisle 10." "Hey guys, I just got bitten by a raccoon and need to think about getting back to civilization pretty soon so I can get shots to be sure I don't die."

Anyway, once he felt better, he headed north to Katahdin and was now hiking south to finish the trail where he had to leave it when he had his unfortunate encounter with the raccoon.

Absolutely amazing! How can ya NOT be inspired when hearing these types of stories?

Actually, I really do give these folks a lift and some trail magic just because it's fun to do so - but, hearing their stories is priceless.

As for me - although I still am not inclined to go without a shower for as long as these hardcore thru-hikers can - I AM inclined to get out from behind this keyboard tomorrow and go just a little bit further up the trail for my daily exercise.

Ok, signing off for today - and for those of you who enjoy a little bit more cushy vacations at comfy resort condos, I invite you to check out our wonderful vacation travel memberships here at Fine Resort Vacation, where we are changing the way we take vacations (and can leave for dayhikes from the comfort of our lodgings)!

Fine Resort Blog

2009-09-02T09:43:00.000-04:00

Fine Resort Blog

Selling Our House in Randolph NH (White Mountains)

2009-08-22T15:12:00.005-04:00

Hi folks!
I've been a bit "absent" this summer on my blogs since returning from South Carolina, and I apologize for not writing as much lately.

It seems that as soon as we returned, it was time to begin planning once again to leave! Renewing our passports, planning for our upcoming St. Martin vacation in November, working on the house, working on our Portable Garages and Shelters, Discount Kids Clothes, and Fine Resort Vacation websites, welcoming new Global Resort Network team members, and preparing to go back to South Carolina for the winter (we miss all of you guys down there, and cannot wait to see you again!) - all those things seemed to make this summer go by in the quickest blink of an eye.

Plus, to top it off, we have made the very difficult decision to sell our White Mountains (Randolph NH) home after being in this peaceful paradise for more than 9 years. Actually, we have been in Randolph for much longer - John, for nearly 30 years, and I, for 20.

But, after doing a lot of soul-searching and realistically looking at our goals and dreams, it makes sense for us to move on. So, this is another reason for my writing having taken a bit of a back seat for the time being.

For right now, we have placed a complete listing for the Randolph NH house on our Fine Resort Vacation site here => www.FineResortVacation.com/RandolphHouseForSale.

I promise to get back to regular posts as soon as possible! Thanks for your patience!

Avoiding Travel Scams - Read & Heed!

2009-08-02T18:49:00.003-04:00

I just saw this great article at the travel section of MSN regarding avoiding travel scams. Since I market really nice fine resort vacation memberships, this topic is of great interest to me, and I'm passing it along to all of you with the hopes that you will avoid these when travelling.

The more we know about stuff like this, the more pleasant our vacations and travel in general will be! Here is the article => The World's Worst Travel Scams

And, in the meantime, I just booked my own flights to St. Martin! We're not going until November, but we thought it was time to start looking at what's out there.

I'm pleased to say that through our own Global Resorts Network membership (the membership is actually with Gold Crown Resort), we got a FAR better deal from Boston to St. Martin than we found on Expedia. For the 2 of us, travelling non-stop on Jet Blue to and from, it cost a total of $1,207.10 (This price includes the taxes, which were over $100 each. Aren't taxes amazing?).

So, I am very glad to report that the travel membership has terrific value well beyond the actual resort stays. Please check us out! Fine Resort Vacation - Truly a vacationer's dream come true!

WONDERFUL A Capella Video - "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa," and How can I Use this to promote my new Fine Resort Vacation site? Hmmm.

2009-07-17T15:05:00.007-04:00

Preface to why I am using this awesome video:
Those of you who have read any of my old blogs know that I enjoy internet marketing - actually, what I enjoy most is the copywriting - I love writing, and always have. You probably already know that I market wonderful vacation memberships through my www.FineResortVacation.com website.

And, besides writing, I have an absolute passion for singing - and have an especially deep love for harmony and harmonizing - which is possibly why peace and harmony are keystones of my life in general.

So, that said, I got to thinking today about a very cool YouTube video one of my dear friends sent me, called "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" which is an absolutely astonishing a capella rendition of the old song "Africa," originally sung by Toto. I'm adding it here to my blog post so you can enjoy it too. It is far too incredible for me to attempt to describe this performance. Just watch it for yourself! (To see the video: Scroll down to the bottom of this post - and you'll need to let it run for about 15 seconds before you'll hear any sound - the first sounds are very soft.)

Anyway, after watching this unbelievable performance (and wishing I could be part of their troupe), I began thinking about how I could use stuff like this video in bringing people to my website. I thought about how I might use the "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" example because the travel memberships that I sell have gorgeous vacation properties in Africa as well (e.g. Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal, Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and South Africa).

I just looked at a few of the resorts - and they are wonderful. As I reviewed the information about where some of them are located, I was thrilled - and enlightened. I had not known that such incredible beauty exists. While I am aware that there are many African nations struggling with challenges and difficulties, I am now aware that there is great beauty and joy there as well.

Ahh.. Alas... For one in the USA whose pockets are of humble depths, it will likely be a while before we can afford to fly to some of these amazing places. Sigh.

Nontheless, there are plenty of people in the world for whom a holiday at one of these beautiful condo resort properties is far closer to home and easy to get to.

So, I thought again about inviting this beautiful "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" video into my website and blog as a way of inviting anyone who might be as taken by the beauty of Africa and its potential for a holiday to see what that vast continent has to offer.

Enjoy!

FREE Resume Writing Help is Here!

2009-06-08T09:45:00.004-04:00

I'm back in northern NH! It's good to be home, but it's time to get back at it. I'm told a lot of people need some info I have on resume writing... Ok. Let’s get right to the point! You need Resume Writing Help – and you need it NOW! I understand!

In times like these, it’s easy to be a little intimidated by all that’s out there, so right here, I’ll give you a bit of FREE resume writing help (you can see a lot more of my tips for writing a resume here).

When you begin creating a resume, it’s important that right at the get-go, you employ EFFECTIVE resume writing strategies. For example:

Use bullet points. In other words, do not use paragraphs. There! That’s a VERY easy step!
Leave plenty of “white space” on your resume – your reader needs to be able to scan it quickly and easily.
The days of the “chronological resume” are over. In other words, don’t begin your resume by listing your employment history. (I go into greater detail at my FREE Resume Writing Help lens at Squidoo.) You’ll find my other lenses there as well!

Hop on over there – and if you find you need more help than I can give you there, visit Creating a Resume. Because I'm a copywriter, I really like this guy's style (and that's another reason I've decided to market it!) - it's effective stuff.

My Hometown - Fairfield, NJ

2009-05-12T14:35:00.003-04:00

While we slowly work our way back up north to our place in New Hampshire after spending the winter at Cherry Grove Beach in South Carolina, we have been visiting my dad in Fairfield, New Jersey. I grew up in Fairfield, having moved here when I was three years old.

Because we don't have high speed internet at my dad's place, we came over to the Fairfield Public Library. Wow, how things have changed! I was telling one of the library staff that back in 1963 or so, when Fairfield opened their first library, I had the eleventh library card issued in town. The library then was a tiny 2 or 3 room building on Fairfield Road (it is still standing, and is currently housing a barber shop).

My dad would take me to the library on Saturday mornings for story hour, and I just loved going there!

After a while, the library moved to larger quarters - an old school located across from the Police and Fire Station. Then, sometime long after I left Fairfield for my various adventures, the town built the Anthony Pio Costa Memorial Library located on Hollywood Avenue - and what a wonderful library it is!

The library is adjacent to the marvelous Fairfield Recreation Complex, where - prior to coming to the library - we played a great set of tennis (I lost miserably), and watched people as they walked on the park fitness trails. The town has beautiful ball fields at the complex as well as a gorgeous pool for the townspeople to enjoy during the summer. My dad has a great place to walk, which he does almost daily, and a wonderful library to visit as well.

We're so thankful that while we travel we can pop into public libraries almost everywhere and find internet access and computers for our use. And I'm equally thankful that I had an opportunity to take advantage of this great complex in my old hometown of Fairfield, NJ - which truly is a great town.

I'm glad I'm from here.

Next Adventure: Banner Elk, North Carolina

2009-05-03T11:11:00.003-04:00

The last week and a half was filled to overflowing with activity as we prepared to end our 5-month stay in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was with mixed emotions that we closed the door behind us for the last time on Friday morning, 5/1/09, car packed to the brim, to begin our trip back to northern New Hampshire.

We made some wonderful friends in South Carolina, enjoyed true southern hospitality, and expanded our interests and knowledge in ways we never could have anticipated. What an adventure! And we plan on returning next winter.

Instead of racing home, however, we decided that it was time for a little vacation. I know a lot of people think of our winter in SC as more of a vacation, it really wasn't. One of the advantages of working online for yourself is that you can pretty much live wherever you want (within reason!).

Anyway, since we market luxury resort vacation memberships, we took advantage of one of the resorts, and booked a week here in Banner Elk, NC at the Blue Ridge Village resort. You can check out the resort here at the resort registry at my Fine Resort Vacation website.

In the one day since we've arrived, we realized that I'll have a lot to write about! This area is just magnificent! Even though we live in the mountains of northern New Hampshire, these mountains are different, and the communities offer different activities which we are going to be exploring this week.

Stay tuned for more! For now, it's time get ready to go hear some bluegrass... :)

What Smoke on a Beach is Like. Nasty!

2009-04-23T10:40:00.010-04:00

Well, this is certainly as close as we ever want to be to a wildfire. A couple of our neighbors up north in NH have worked on forest firefighting crews, and until we actually saw the smoke billowing up yesterday during the Myrtle Beach, SC wildfire that began yesterday (Wednesday, April 22, 2009), we had not seen anything like that.

Believe it or not, this is supposedly a clear and sunny day here in North Myrtle Beach. This is not fog - it's smoke. I have never seen this before, and I have a renewed and deepened appreciation for people who risk their lives to fight fire. And we're not even near the fire!

We've also heard that the National Guard mobilized this morning to help, as have a lot of organizations (Red Cross, etc). It's just incredible to me when I see how many people in this great land volunteer to protect and serve us when they know that they are putting themselves at risk. Wow!

The winds were howling yesterday, and the smoke from the fire was blowing towards the ocean - and of course through a lot of other places. It was pretty frightening to see.

When I see smoke like that, I cannot even begin to imagine what it must be like to be a firefighter. My hat is off to all of them.

Overnight, the winds shifted a bit, so smoke and ash was travelling up the coast a little to where we are in Cherry Grove Beach (northern part of North Myrtle Beach, SC). When I took the photos (above) and video (I posted the video here) this morning, I was only out on the deck for a minute or so, and came in smelling like I'd been near a campfire.

And even though we are proably 10-20 miles away from the areas hurting from the fires, we can taste the smoke and feel it in our throats.

So, my message today is to thank a firefighter for his or her service! Also, let's thank the police, volunteers, the folks who serve in the National Guard...the rest of the Military... everyone who steps up to help others.

I know that I will...

Our NEW SITE! It's Up & Running! Welcome To Fine Resort Vacation!

2009-04-07T12:11:00.004-04:00

We did it! We have FINALLY gotten our new Fine Resort Vacation site up and running - and it's looking pretty good! It's pretty exciting to see the progress. So, if you visit us at the site you'll see our smiling faces on the home page - the same picture we are using here at this blog.

We wanted to use the same picture since it was taken on vacation at one of our favorite Caribbean luxury vacation destinations - St. Martin (where, by the way, we'll be heading back to this coming November for a few weeks).

We figured we should use a vacation photo since we are marketing luxury vacation travel memberships at the site. Makes sense, doesn't it? :)

Anyway, we also posted a page if you want to learn a foreign language - John & I have begun using the Pimsleur approach, and lo & behold, the method works! We are retaining what we have learned in our initial lesson, so it's quite impressive. Check it out here.

We also have posted a foreign currency converter, links to the US State Department and other links for up to date information on international travel, and a blog for the site itself (of course!). :)

We've also added a page so that potential members (or anyone who is interested) can view our newsletter where there are some amazing deals. For example, if you wanted to travel to Maui next week, there is a $298 special - which is amazing! $298 for the WEEK! This page gives potential members a glimpse at what the membership portal looks like.

We've also given a dollar-for-dollar comparison of what our timeshare ownership has cost us against how economical our Global Resorts Network luxury vacation membership costs. You can see that at our "About Us" page.

We've added an exhaustive FAQs page that addresses a lot of the questions people have about our luxury vacation travel memberships.

Throughout the site, we have illustrated the pages with lots of photos from the resorts themselves.

We'll post more information as it comes in. For now, I just wanted to share the good news about the new site! Please stop by and visit us - and if you are interested or have questions, don't hesitate to contact us - all our contact info is at the "Contact Us" page.

Review of Two Cool Affiliate Marketing Systems for Global Resorts Network

2009-04-03T17:35:00.006-04:00

Most people who see my blog know that I have a bunch of home based business irons in the fire - gotta remain diversified! But, focus and consistency is key.

My favorite affiliate program - and I really believe one of the best affiliate programs out there is Global Resorts Network (GRN). And I'm not just saying that because I'm a member and affiliate. Considering the payout (approx 30% commission) on membership sales versus the payout on other sales that I make on line (approx 10%)it's a great return. Of course, I also love to travel, so that helps! :)

Anyway, I have been experimenting with a number of different marketing systems to promote GRN. My latest is my very own site (which is still VERY much under construction - so if you visit, please be kind!) at Fine Resort Vacation. I've got a lot of work to do on it yet, but at least it's getting there.

I also use a GRN approved system that helps market the stand-alone luxury travel membership as well as the business opportunity. Those two related sites are Fine Resort Vacations (notice the similarity to my newest site), and Presenting GRN. My favorite part about this particular system is the numerous landing pages, along with the retail-only aspect. This is great! After all, some people just are NOT interested in a home based business - but they want to travel. So this is a really great option. It's also extremely affordable - only $30/month.

Then, I use a different internet marketing strategy and system that is really geared for the high energy type of entrepreneur who wants to build a business using article marketing, etc. It is an interesting system that has taught me a LOT about internet marketing. These guys are young and very energetic, and they call it the GRN Team Builder. That system is the one that intially introduced me to blogging!

What I like about that system (besides the marketing techniques that they've taught me), is that I also have the option to have their experts call my surveyed leads. I'm just not that comfortable on the phone, so it's nice to have the option to let someone help me.

Also, when I use the GRN Team Builder site - when the visitors opt in, they receive a nice little Free eBook called, "It's Only Easy If You Know The Truth...Exposing the Lies, Myths and Hype to Help You Finally Succeed Online."

Another thing I really like about this system is that it teaches us about personal "branding," and there are several landing pages where we can write our own text (which I have done here), or put video in (which I haven't done yet! But I will!). What I also like about this system is the price - it's very affordable, and only costs about $30/month to maintain.

But again, consistency is really key - working numerous systems takes quite a lot of effort. Of course, with my very own site, the new Fine Resort Vacation site, I'll promote only the retail product, the luxury vacation travel membership. But, the fun thing about that site is that ultimately, I have control over what is said in it. AND...Yes! I'm adding a blog there too! :)

It's a very interesting experiment! Please feel free to visit my sites! And if you have had any experience with these or other GRN systems, you can comment on them here!

My Old Antarctic Home

2009-03-26T09:53:00.007-04:00

For some reason I found myself thinking about Antarctica this morning. Probably because I've been recently corresponding with a few prospective customers from New Zealand, which was one of my favorite stomping grounds after leaving "the ice" (as we called it) after a season of working in McMurdo a number of years ago.

It may also be because today, on the beach at Cherry Grove (North Myrtle Beach, SC), the wind is just howling - and it sounds just like it used to in McMurdo on some of the nastier days.

Aside from the internet marketing work I have embraced over the last year or so, I would have to say that working in Antarctica was some of the most enjoyable time I have ever spent. It wasn't necessarily the jobs themselves, but the people who made it such a blast.

Please indulge me as I take a little trip down memory lane...

During the numerous seasons I spent at McMurdo, I recall thinking that we were all part of Peter Pan's "Lost Boys," and that we just were all a bunch of kids at heart. There really weren't that many of us back then - during my first season in 1984 I think there were about 900 men and less than 100 women. Living conditions were a bit more primitive than they are now, but none of us seemed to care.

For my first few seasons, I worked in the sheet metal department with a group of the most hilarious and fun-loving group of guys I have ever known. Sometimes, we would laugh until we would be a quivering mess, slumped over the sheet metal table - laughing so hard that tears would be falling down our faces. Who knows what we were laughing about... I recall, at Christmastime when everyone would be looking forward to mail. If there wasn't any mail on any given day's flights, we would woefully sing a modified version of "The First Noel," replacing the "Noel" refrain with "No Mail...No Mail..." and a few other choice lyrics. What we did to butcher or modify other songs is not fit for print.

Sometimes our personal renditions of various songs, stories or poems would take on a rather bawdy form. I recall a number of us in the "Foldaway" - the large building housing the carpenters, electricians, plumbers, welders, and sheet metal workers, participating in a type of "round robin" style of poetry, where each person would take a juvenile-type of poem, and re-write a line while illustrating it in our own special way. The result would be about an 8-frame comic of some of the most insane rhymes one could think of. They were, of course, the kind of poems where "you had to be there" in order to understand their meanings. I still have copies of these (maybe one day I can scan one when I get back up north).

I still stay in touch with a few of my old friends - my songbird singing partners Ann and Dawn, with whom I spent countless hours learning how to sing madrigals (thanks to Ann!) - and we became known as the McMurdo Madrigals, where our star (and only) performance was at the Art Show that our friend Neal (who is beyond genius)somehow cooked up. The imagination and different talents people had were unbelievable.

On my occasional visits back to NJ, I see our former construction superintendent Steve - who is now my brother in law. Art is still going back & forth to the ice and New Zealand with the National Science Foundation, and we talk on occasion - but a visit with all these people would be far better!

I often think of Gary and Mike and Nick in the sheet metal shop, and wonder where they are, and if they still laugh as much as we did then. The sheet metal department holds some memories for me that are downright sacred. I miss my fellow "Bio Blondes" Kristin and Lisa, and Steve and Jim (who were honorary Bio Blondes) with whom I worked at the old Bio Lab (which was dismantled after my winter over season). Hmmm. We laughed like crazy in there, too!

Wintering over with Dave, Dawn, and J.B. was amazing - we spent hours upon hours singing folk tunes...

I have hilarious memories of laughing insanely with Neal over scenes in "The Sound Of Music" that he re-interpreted in a manner that absolutely defies description... the fun group in the Chalet - Stephanie, Diane, Art, and Dawn... and singing backup with Kerri for Neal, Dane, and "Falling Bodies," the band that entertained at any excuse for a big base-wide party.

Ahh. I find myself smiling over these memories as I sit here on the beach of Cherry Grove - looking over the ocean, wondering about all the people who were part of my life, and hoping that - wherever they are, they are doing well, and have the same fond memories that I do.

Nearly 20 years later, I have accepted that I will not be returning to Antarctica, although revisiting New Zealand is certainly a high priority for me. But, as I watch from the sidelines as the "new watch" get ready to deploy each October (there are a number of people from northern NH who participate in this annual adventure these days), I can only hope that they are enjoying their experiences at least as much as I enjoyed mine.

Thanks for indulging my little journey back to the land of the Lost Boys, those crazy years on the ice - back when "the men were tough, the women were few, and the penguins were nervous..."

A Little Review: Five Guys Burgers and Fries in North Myrtle Beach

2009-03-12T14:16:00.007-04:00

Occasionally, I am moved to write about a business that stands above others. Since I like to write about truth and integrity in business and life, I thought that I would share my thoughts about a little restaurant I visited today.

What We're Working On...
If you have been reading my blog, you may know that John, my husband and I have been spending the winter in the Cherry Grove Beach section of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It has been a great place to get move forward on our online businesses - whether it's updating our Save On Kidswear discount children's clothing website, our Portable Garages and Shelters website, the marketing system for our Global Resorts Network business and Luxury Vacation Travel memberships, our latest site to go live.

Bicycle Riding is GREAT in North Myrtle Beach
One of the nice things about this area is that it is very conducive to bicycle riding. Today, John had the car and so I took the bike into town to get the mail and then go over to the bank a few miles away. Riding a bike in the brisk spring air tends to work up an appetite, and I had a hankering for a burger. For at least the second time, someone mentioned Five Guys Burgers and Fries as a place we just had to visit.

Geno's Pizza - Gator Hole Plaza in North Myrtle Beach
Since it was only a few blocks further, I took the recommendation and ambled over to the restaurant. I should also mention that one of the folks who recommended Five Guys happens to be another restaurant owner. The folks at Geno's New York Pizza (located in the Gator Hole Plaza on Highway 17 in North Myrtle Beach) told us that if we wanted REAL fries, then we needed to go over to Five Guys. How's that for a recommendation!

By the way, Geno's is excellent, as well. We've been back several times. Another easy bike ride! So, please, visit Geno's too (I'd give you their website, but they don't appear to have or need one - the place is always filled with locals)!

Back to Five Guys...
So, as I walked into Five Guys, I immediately noticed that, like Geno's Pizza, it was filled with locals. I also noticed that it was spotlessly clean. There was what appeared to be a pallet of hundreds and hundreds of pounds of fresh potatoes ready to be cut into fries. This was a good sign! I have since learned that Five Guys is a private franchise with about 300 restaurants, but you'd never get that impression since it has the appearance of a home town place.

On the advice of one of the folks at the bank, I went with the "Little" burger as opposed to the "Regular" burger. I also ordered "Regular" versus "Large" fries. This was a combined wise move. I barely made a dent in my fries - which are wonderful! I packed the leftovers into my backpack and brought them home for John. Definitely reminiscent of the "Pier Fries" that we indulge in every time we go to Old Orchard Beach in Maine, which is the closest beach to our place in northern New Hampshire.

John will be very pleased at this little snack that awaits him when he gets home this afternoon!

The burger was excellent - freshly cooked. If I had attempted to load my burger with the 15 different free toppings offered at Five Guys, I never would have been able to take a bite - it would have been huge!

For once I was glad to ride back home into a stiff breeze - it made me pedal harder, so it helped to work off at least some of the meal!

The menu is simple. Burgers, Hot Dogs, Grilled Cheese, French Fries, and Soft Drinks. Great value, friendly staff, the ever present crowd of locals, cleanliness, and their honest menu give Five Guys Burgers and Fries my vote. They obviously run the show based on truth and integrity.

So, if you find yourself in North Myrtle Beach, SC, and have a craving for a burger and fries, stop by Five Guys - they are the corner of 2nd Ave North and Highway 17 - the northbound side, in the Lowes Home Store plaza. A jillion locals can't be wrong!

Ok... Back to work on the websites! Have a great day!

Another Good Affiliate Marketing Program and System

2009-03-07T13:30:00.004-05:00

As you know, there are hundreds of different affiliate marketing programs and systems out there. I belong to more than one, and in some cases, the various online marketing systems are offering the same end product - just using different strategies.

I like this, not only because it affords the online entrepreneur a variety of methods and systems to test, but also gives the entrepreneur an ability to target different markets or individuals.

For example, using the Global Resorts Network business opportunity, which I am extremely fond of, one person may prefer a more subdued approach to marketing whereas another person may be attracted by something that comes across as high energy. I fall somewhere in between, but I am aware that everyone is different.

Working with these different strategies is a lot of fun, and my work day is never dull!

With all that said, I am fully enjoying Bucky Shiver's system of introducing the business opportunity seeker to Global Resorts Network product. I think one of the things that catches my fancy is the fact that he is well aware of the need for self-branding - which is very important in today's internet marketing world. His system is inexpensive to maintain, and offers a good 10 landing pages which you may or may not decide to brand with your own picture, video, words, etc. Here are just a few different ones I've been using (feel free to click on all of them just to get a quick idea of what I mean): Truth To Wealth Online, Join The Success Team, and You Earn 1K per Sale.

He also offers a nice eBook for free called "It's Only Easy if you Know The Truth: Exposing the Lies, Myths and Hype to Help You Finally Succeed Online." It's certainly worth a visit for you to not only grab a copy of the eBook, but to get a tour around the system and product.

I look forward to seeing you there!

SOME Keys to a Successful Home Business

2009-03-02T16:55:00.004-05:00

Are you considering starting or just starting a home business? These days, a lot of people are talking about one opportunity or another. As one who has been working from home for a long time, I can assure you that there are many things that you need to be sure you're doing as you embark on a home business.

Remember: a home business isn't just something that you just consider puttering with in your spare time. Right from the start, you should begin envisioning your home business as something that will develop into a substantial source of income for you. Otherwise, you'll treat it like an occasional activity instead of something that can and should be taken seriously.

If you are really serious about it, and if you do it in all of the right ways, you will find that your home business really CAN be successful, and it can be a great way for you to improve your financial and personal life.

So, if you want to be sure that your home business is actually going to succeed, there are several things that you have to do carefully.

First, you always want to be sure that you are in it to win, and not "dabble" with or otherwise take lightly. If you are going to start a home business, the best thing that you can do in order to make it successful is right from the get-go to make the decision that you are going to do your best. One of the keys to this is always operating with the attitude that you are already a top name, recognizable and successful business.

This means being professional at all times - even if you are working from home, you should still "dress for work" (in other words, get out of the pyjamas and actually act like you are going to your office - which you are), and always answer the phone as though your next big sale or prospect is on the other end (in other words, smile, speak clearly and politely).

Keep your eyes on the prize, and consistently think of the next steps that you can take in order to really make yourself successful. For example: What advertising strategies are your colleagues using successfully? Are these strategies YOU can adopt? What are the leaders in the industry doing that you are not doing but can do? What isn't working? What mistakes have you learned from?

Also, you want to be sure that you are always presenting the best face that you have in your small business. This goes along with your day to day professional behavior. For example, if you are doing video marketing, carefully scrutinize your recordings before you post them. You want to make sure that as you go through your small business you are weeding out anything that doesn't say the right thing about you, and making sure that everything that gets put out there is correct and says something good about you.

This is going to take a lot of time on your part, but it is also part of building up your reputation. Remember - people don't join opportunities, they join other people! Be the type of person you want to work with, and you shall attract those people. You want to make sure that no matter who is looking at your business or your name, they are going to see only good things.

You want to be sure that no matter who you deal with, what you do, or how you feel about it, the consequences end up putting you and your business into a good light.

Last, you have to make sure that you are playing by the rules and doing everything right straight from the start. You have to be sure that every step you take with your home business is a step that allows you to get the most out of your home business and that allows you to grow.

Don't cut corners, don't exaggerate and tell people you're earning 6-figures a month in an effort to impress them (even if it's true, it's called enticement, and that's a no-no!) and for Heaven's sake do not fall into desperation marketing techniques such as spamming. Call it what you will: lying or exaggerating - either way, it will come back to haunt you in the end.

If you follow these steps you will see that your home business truly CAN grow to be a successful home business, and that you can grow right along with it. And doing it right means you will be helping a whole lot of others along the way, too.

And isn't that what it's all about?

Blog now on Portable Garages And Shelters website

2009-02-23T08:50:00.006-05:00

The art of business blogging was something we didn't completely understand a year and a half ago when we opened the doors to our Portable Garages and Shelters business.

In fact, had you told me that I would become a "blogger" a year and a half ago, I would have thought you were nuts.

But, those of you who have been reading my blog here know that I've become passionate about blogging, writing ezine articles, and seeing websites and businesses build and prosper - not just my own, but those of others as well. It's a lot of fun to see people doing well!

So, now I have added the blog to my Portable Garages and Shelters website. It's not an interactive one, because I haven't quite figured out how to allow comments in that website's particular template, but perhaps down the line I'll get it. For now, it will remain just one more tool to help potential customers see that there is a real person behind the site.

We're having fun now!

Why I'm Working the Best Affiliate Marketing Program From SC instead of NH

2009-02-20T10:45:00.016-05:00

So why am I working on promoting the best affiliate marketing program online today from South Carolina instead of northern New Hampshire?

Well... Because I can. Look at the pictures accompanying this post, and tell me which one looks more appealing.

Ok. It's purely a matter of preference. Maybe you LIKE the view of the 7 foot snow bank. There are a LOT of people who cannot wait for it to snow; they pray for snow all year long, they do snow dances under the full moon, they ski, they snowshoe, they ice climb, they ride snow machines... I just don't happen to be one of those people.

Perhaps it was my years working in Antarctica that sort of pushed me over the edge. Or, perhaps it was the last 20+ years in northern New Hampshire where it felt that 50% of my days were spent shoveling, chipping ice, and skidding around on slushy roads.

But, this winter here at Cherry Grove Beach had all but made me forget about those dreary days. Being able to work from home on my affiliate marketing program and other internet based opportunities has given me the option of living seasonally, which is an adventure in itself.

Then yesterday, one of my friends sent me the photo of the bottom of my driveway (see photo at top of blog post. This is a real photo. This really is my driveway.). Ok. I asked her to send me one. I was in one of those weird moods where I really had to see for myself if northern winters were really as fierce as I remembered them.

Evidently the answer is yes.

So, in case my readers are wondering if I've been exaggerating about the extent of our winters up north, here is the proof. I asked my friend to send me a photo of the house, but the bottom of the driveway was all she could get to - the house is up that hill, just under 1/10 of a mile - and she was telling me that you can't even see the house right now given all the high drifts.

So, what does this mean? We were supposed to be venturing north at the end of March.

It just isn't gonna happen. We've decided to stay through April (for now). We'll see how the snow looks then, and what life brings us. We're really enjoying South Carolina (except for the palmetto bugs), and the people are as friendly as any we've met anywhere.

But for now, I've got some serious online marketing to do, which is something I actually have time to do since I am not outside shoveling.

Have a great day! :)

Affiliate Marketing Resources and Self-Improvement Books

2009-02-17T08:30:00.011-05:00

Good morning from beautiful and sunny (if just a tad chilly) Cherry Grove Beach!

I just wanted to pass along a few websites today that might be helpful to those of you in the business of reaching for the stars using internet or affiliate marketing. A couple of these might be of interest to you if you are studying the principles of the Law of Attraction and Attraction Marketing.

Self Improvement Books

For some really good, no-fluff, no nonsense self improvement books, I just love my friend Tony Michalski's Kallisti Publishing site. He is a walking-talking example of the Law of Attraction at work, and I've learned a lot from him. This is absolutely worth checking out - and there is way too much for me to list here! Click Here to visit. (And yes, I AM going to earn a commission if you buy anything. But don't worry - there's good free stuff there too!)

Attraction Marketing

If you are interested specifically in attraction marketing, branding, etc., and you are in a business where recruiting or sales prospecting is imporant, this is a high energy group of people! Start by having a look at Mike Dillard's Free Video here.

High End Product Affiliate Programs

If you are looking for nice, high end product affiliate programs, and working from home in the travel industry is appealing to you, I just love Global Resorts Network (GRN). I love them for several reasons:

They have a "big ticket" item, which means handsome commissions,

The service is completely stand-alone - that is, you are not required to recruit others to sell the luxury vacation travel membership that we market (Click here for my website that is devoted ONLY to prospective travel customers), and

The customer service we get from our travel partner is second to none.

Plus, the fact that our travel partner has more than 20 years of experience shows great credibility and financial stability.

There are more than a few ways to market Global Resorts Network. If you are interested in GRN as a business opportunity, it's one of the finest. The internet marketing strategies I've been learning with Mike Dillard and his excellent and highly energetic team over at the Black Belt Recruiting are very impressive. Learn from them, and then apply what you learn.

What an outstanding bunch of people! These guys keep me young.

If you have other systems or resources to share, please feel free to comment! Have a great day!

Great Kids Books by My Friend Peggy Gifford

2009-02-10T16:31:00.007-05:00

Hello everyone! Today I just want to talk about kids books - not just 'cause I've written one that will hopefully see print some day, but also because I've had the great honor of meeting a wonderfully clever and sassy kids' book author while down here in South Carolina this winter.

Peggy Gifford has written a couple of great books based on an impossibly precocious procrastinator (a trait I, myself share and am going to get to work on curing - maybe starting tomorrow) by the name of Moxy Maxwell.

The books - Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little, and Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank You Notes - are hilarious! They are written in a very relaxed voice that you can just "hear." I love the chapters such as: "Wherein Moxy's Mother Says No..." or words to that effect - and the entire chapter is as follows - and I carefully quote:

"No."

The next chapter gets a little more detailed - but I'll leave you in suspense...

The books flow, kids will love them (actually, they already do), and I recommend that if you have kids anywhere from 8 years old and up, they will just fall in love with Moxy. And so will you. Peggy is a brilliant writer, and I'm not just saying that because we're pals.

While there are already a couple of Moxy Maxwell books out there, as I understand it, there are more in the works. Which is a good thing, because they're addictive, kind of like the Harry Potter books.

One of the great things I love about Moxy is her never ending and ever growing list of "Possible Career Paths." Of course I'm a little partial, but I think that Moxie ought to add "Internet Marketing Entrepreneur" to this list! (You knew I'd have to put a plug in for my own passion, didn't you!?)

So, visit Peggy's site - and tell her I said Hello!

From my First YouTube Video to "Video Marketing Queen!"

2009-02-07T18:20:00.004-05:00

Ok, I admit it. I'm now thoroughly hooked on YouTube.

After last week's post (see last post), wherein I DID NOT QUIT and successfully uploaded my very first YouTube video (about assembly a Party Tent), I got to thinking about Video Marketing.

Turns out that Video Marketing is big. And, I need to begin using this fascinating medium. It's one of the things that I have been learning as part of the strategies taught by the folks at Mike Dillard's place, which is a great learning platform for online marketing.

During the week (in which most of it was spent indoors since it was freezing down here at Cherry Grove Beach - no, it really WAS freezing - in the 20's and 30's) I had time to think about how I could begin using video marketing as a tool to drive more traffic to my website.

I knew it works, because the other day, I had a call from some guy out of the blue who saw my video on YouTube, and he was looking for a specific portable shelter from my Portable Garages and Shelters website.

Who would have thought that someone would find me that way?

I learned how to embed the video from YouTube into my website, and now someone can watch the assembly demonstration.

Today, I experimented further, and came up with YouTube video number 2, which primarily introduces the viewer to my Portable Garages website, and encourages them to visit. We really do have some great deals, and I am so fond of the folks up at the MDM Rhino Shelter warehouse in Milford, CT, that I just want to bring in more orders. The customer wins by getting a good deal, I win by getting an order, and MDM Rhino wins by getting the order through me.

So, by tomorrow, my home page at Portable Garages and Shelters will feature my latest YouTube creation, and customers will see the actual face behind the site.

I got to thinking even more... As my regular readers know, I'm hooked on entrepreneurial pursuits. I love working from home - actually, let me rephrase that: I love working from home ONLINE - because it is that "working from home" and "internet based business" stuff that has enabled us to be here in this magnificent beach community for the winter.

So, why not start doing some short YouTube videos to promote my other online business opportunities? I can introduce myself briefly - again, so people can see that there is a real person behind the site and opportunity - and offer little training segments, as well as words of inspiration and motivation.

This is getting more exciting by the minute, and again - I'm glad I didn't give up! :)

Stick To It and Don't You Quit!

2009-01-31T17:42:00.009-05:00

Ok. Today I am living proof of the belief that as long as you don't quit, you'll eventually succeed. First, I am an admitted techno phobe - It was all I could do to begin a blog, only because I didn't understand what a blog was, and it all sounded fairly complicated to me. Of course, now here I am merrily "blogging" away.

The point is, once I realized that blogging and article writing were important parts of today's internet marketing strategies, especially the affiliate marketing system that has been teaching me these strategies, I knew I would have to learn how to participate.

And, the interesting thing is, once I got the hang of it, I began not just writing my own blog, but visiting and learning from other peoples' blogs as well.

But, today's post is about YouTube. It was about a year ago that I stumbled upon YouTube. I was looking for information about an old TV show or movie online, and stumbled upon this online TV gizmo called YouTube, where - lo and behold - there was a segment of what I had been searching for!

After that, I was hooked. But only to WATCH YouTube - mind you, never to actually use it myself.

Then, as I learned more and more about internet marketing strategies, I began to hear the whispers... "video marketing" for affiliate marketing systems and terms like that. Like the typical little kid who doesn't want to hear that it's bedtime, I went around with virtual earplugs in my ears, singing "La la la la...I don't hear you... I don't hear you!"

Because there was NO WAY I could figure out how to put videos on the internet.

Until this last week.

You see, as an experiment this last summer (August 2008) John and I had started putting up one of the party tents that we sell on our Portable Garages and Shelters website, when it occurred to me to video tape the process in case someone wanted to see the procedure at some point. I thought maybe I could find someone who understood how to do these things, and put the video on my website for me.

Well, it became increasingly apparent that "if it's to be, it's up to me." So, I tried without any luck whatever to transfer this video file to the website. It was just too big. Then, the people who host my site suggested that I upload it to YouTube and then embed it in my site.

The day I thought could never come came upon me. I bit the bullet. I signed up for YouTube. Piece of cake. Uhh...except for trying to find a user name that wasn't taken. Once I finally got in, I glanced around and breathed a sigh of relief. It didn't look that hard after all. Just click "download video" and away I go.

Or not. The first try lasted over an hour. I cancelled the download. I tried again. Still nothing after an hour of "whirring" around somewhere between my computer and YouTube.

I searched their forums. Ah ha! Perhaps the file is too big! Perhaps it's in the wrong format.

After a few more tries, I called it a night. "Tomorrow," I thought, "this will all be clear."

When tomorrow came, the same thing happened. I tried cutting the video back, removing frames here or there to shorten it. I saved it to different file types, and tried uploading it - in fact, at the end of day two (Friday), I was thoroughly frustrated.

I emailed my sister who has all sorts of videos on YouTube. While she had some good suggestions, she used certain terminology that went over my head. Stuff like "firewall," "uploaders" and "m4v" - but I got the gist of it.

So, this very morning - on day three - I jostled a few more things around, and tried uploading again. Nothing. Then again. Nothing. Then... just when I thought I should give up - I stopped. I'm a student of self development, and am always telling myself to keep on keeping on and see things through. So, I thought - "how about just one more time..."

And it happened. The video uploaded! It took a while, but it uploaded. And now, I can tell you that I'm no longer dreading using YouTube. In fact, I have my next website swirling around in my head, and guess what! On every page, I can see my little YouTube videos welcoming my visitors to the site.

I didn't quit. And I am now on YouTube. Just don't ask me how I finally got the thing to load, because I have no idea. And I still haven't figured out how to embed it into the website. That will be cake after this ordeal.

But, I know I can do it. I'm one step closer to leaving Techno-Phobe-Land.
So, don't quit! I don't care what you're trying to do. Don't quit.

Oh - if you are at all interested, here is the weasley little video that I was struggling with that whole time: Kathy's Very First YouTube Video!

Oh... By the way. I'm on a roll. Notice the little picture in my post - the TV set? I just learned how to do that, too. Ha! What a day... Hope you have a great one too!

Animal Rescue Site Helping to Feed Abused & Neglected Animals

2009-01-26T14:13:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone! I heard from an old friend from my days in the Antarctic program, and she knows that I'm a pet lover. She found this site, where, thanks to many great sponsors, they are getting free food donated daily to help abused and neglected animals!

The site is called The Animal Rescue Site, they need people to visit daily, and click on the purple box labeled "Click here to Give - it's Free!"

It's one of the easiest ways I've seen to help. And, if you have a soft spot for animals, like I do, you can do it daily - just save it to your favorites.

Please feel free to pass this post along! Again, this doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for advertising.

Once again, here's the web site! Please pass it along to people you know.

Once again, this posted in memory of my little Kitty - who was also abandoned at one time.
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/

Affiliate Marketing System? What About It?

2009-01-21T21:08:00.013-05:00

Since most people who know me know that I work 100% from home now, they often ask me how I do it. I have been getting a lot of those questions this winter, since John and I left the north country (northern NH) for the warmer climate of coastal South Carolina.

Except that it snowed here on the beach yesterday. And it's in the 20's tonight. Brrr! Old Man Winter wasn't letting us go without a fight! :)

Anyway, I guess the reason people ask us this question is because we don't fit the typical "snow bird" profile - which means we are not retired (yet!).

We assure people that we most certainly DO work! And we work hard. Well. "Work Hard" is a relative term. My back aches, but only because I'm hunkered down over the computer keyboard for work.

As you know, if you've been reading this blog, we work our online business opportunities. A couple of our internet marketing strategies are centered around products which are physically drop-shipped from our supplier, and yet another is an affiliate marketing system.

I know that some readers might ask what I truly believe the best affiliate marketing program is - and that is a difficult question to answer. Everyone is different, which means that different people will prefer different products. I've addressed this topic in other blog entries, wherein I advise people who are interested in business opportunities online to carefully review their likes/dislikes, how much time they have to devote, etc.

Also, when asked, I will typically tell folks that I prefer to represent a company that has a solid, stand-alone product. You've probably seen that in my writings, as well.

And an affiliate marketing opportunity may very well be different from an affiliate marketing system. At least in my eye.

Because the affiliate marketing opportunity you choose to represent may not necessarily have a marketing system to help you learn the ropes of online internet marketing.

So what to do?

Well, you've undoubtedly heard me tell my readers to do some due diligence and soul searching before joining up with anything. Because, I don't care how good the internet or affiliate marketing system is - if you are not going to put in the time to 1) LEARN the system, and then 2) WORK the system - and by work the system, I mean on a CONSISTENT basis, then you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Because nothing works unless YOU do.

So. That said, there are a few affiliate marketing systems out there that have good information, good educational products, and the type of training that - once you wrap your head around it - you can implement, and begin to see results in the following ways: 1) More visitors (aka "traffic") to your site, which leads to 2) more sales at your site, which leads to 3) more commissions in your bank account.

I like Mike Dillard's style - talk about "no nonsense." You can check it out and get some free information and see if this affiliate marketing system resonates with you.

Of course, it's no secret that I'm extremely fond of Global Resorts Network as an excellent affiliate marketing opportunity, since John & I love to travel and have been very impressed by the exclusive luxury travel club that we market (which really is a standalone product). For people who want to travel AND earn some money marketing a luxury vacation travel product, the GRN commission structure is impressive. For us, it's both an entrepreneur's dream come true as well as a vacationer's dream come true (Hey! That's our motto!)

As far as the affiliate marketing systems that we work, we've learned a great deal through the sites we've already mentioned - which you can visit at your leisure. They are certainly not the only affiliate marketing resources out there, but they're certainly a good starting point. The direct links are:
Presenting GRN (this gets right to the point of the opportunity)
Black Belt Recruiting (this is Mike Dillard's approach)
Truth To Wealth Online (this is a great GRN Team Building System - plus you can get a nice free eBook about dispelling the myths of working online)

But ultimately, it is up to you to discover what it is you enjoy doing, decide if you have the time to devote to learning an affiliate marketing system - and then, once you choose your particular affiliate marketing opportunity that "grabs you" - STICK WITH IT!

Must Have Cats

2009-01-18T10:50:00.006-05:00

We are really enjoying life here in South Carolina this winter. The last 2 days were quite cold by southern standards – and it chilled even us to the bone. It actually went into the teens overnight the other night – and this cold snap reminded us why we left New Hampshire this winter to begin with.

But it isn’t just the differences in weather that set each region apart. There are all sorts of differences that we’ve noticed. For example, last night we visited with some of our new friends down here (have I mentioned how friendly everyone is down here?), and the talk turned to our respective cats. First, if you’ve been reading along in the blog lately, you may recall in my entry about the Miracles of 2008 that we recently lost our own little Kitty. So, I still get choked up when we talk about cats…

I had never had a pet when growing up in suburban New Jersey. So, having a pet was a totally new concept to me. The idea of having a little furry companion initially appealed to me when I moved to northern New Hampshire, after having worked for several seasons in Antarctica. In the mountains of New Hampshire, I was alone for most of the year with no family, and I didn't know many people - this was a very quiet area. After the experience of working with hundreds of amazing people in Antarctica over the course of the last 7 or 8 years, life was pretty lonely. That's when cats entered my life, and I've never looked back.

During my years in NH, I worked for a short time for the Mount Washington Observatory, which is a great educational non-profit organization that has been monitoring weather from the top of Mount Washington since the 1930's. They have a wonderful staff, some of the best folks I've ever worked with.

And at the summit (of Mt. Washington), they also have a cat. This has been a tradition for decades. One of my favorite photos from the Observatory, taken of the crew that witnessed the world-record high winds of 231 miles per hour on April 12, 1934, includes a little cat being held by one of the observers.

Just a year or so ago (December 2007), a nationwide primary vote was conducted to find the next summit cat since longtime mascot, Nin, was retiring to live in Gorham, NH. It's a lot of work being the summit cat, and it was time for a younger cat to take the controls. About 8,000 votes came in, and the winner was Marty, a cat from the Conway Area Humane Society, who of course has big paws to fill, but as I understand, is adjusting beautifully.

Back to South Carolina. While we were at our friends’ house, I was petting her newest cat, an adopted shelter kitty who is battling to regain his health. Thinking of how much I miss my Kitty, I mentioned how difficult it is to find a rent that will accept cats – and yet, quite a number of places will allow dogs. Our friend explained one of the reasons for this – cat dander is difficult to remove from the rental units, and some people are highly allergic to cat dander.

Somehow, the discussion turned to the topic of bugs. You know, like spiders, and such. There is this unusual bug that we’ve recently encountered called the Palmetto bug. Oh. And another bug I had never seen before called the cockroach. Evidently, Palmetto bugs are ever so slightly different than the common cockroach – at least that’s what the Bug Man tried to explain when he came to our unit for the monthly pest control routine.

Now as I understand it, cockroaches are just about everywhere in this country. I just had never seen one.

When I did see one, I reacted how some people react when they first see a mouse.

Now, the funny thing is, some of the folks I’ve met down here have said that if they saw a mouse, they would freak out. I mentioned that up in rural northern NH where we have our house, mice are so common that I hardly even notice them.

Except when they skitter and scratch in the walls, waking me up during the middle of the night.

Of course, I noticed them when Kitty would leave one in the hallway at our bedroom door as a gift – obviously placing it there so we would be sure to find it (kind of like anticipating giving out presents on Christmas morning).

So it’s all kind of relative, I guess.

Back to last night. Well, after an absolutely wonderful evening, we drove back to the condo complex with our other new friends staying at the same place – who also have a cat. Fortunately, they were able to find a unit that accepts cats.

And, maybe this is a coincidence, and maybe it is not – but they don’t have any Palmetto bugs or cockroaches in their unit.

I then recalled that another new friend of ours here was telling me how her pets chase the bugs like mice.

And I got to thinking that these condo owners have it all wrong. They should be INSISTING that we all have cats. Even if they only caught a few bugs, the cats would certainly earn their keep. And think of how far this would go in helping raise the pet adoption rates.

John and I began talking about how we would handle mouse control at our New Hampshire house if we decide to use it as a rental property. After all, it is in a gorgeous area, and a lot of people really love the views we have. But, then I’d be concerned. What happens if our renters have the same reaction to mice that I have to the Palmetto bugs and cockroaches?

That’s when John said, “Well, that does it. They’d have to have a cat.”

So here’s our potential rental policy statement:
“You must have a cat. Any mice your cat dispatches can and will be used against the costs of rodent control. You have the right to more than one cat. If you cannot afford a cat, one will be provided for you.”

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention – When I see a tick crawling up my leg in the summer in NH, I react in a similar fashion to how I reacted when I saw the Palmetto bug.

At least the Palmetto bugs don’t crawl up my leg.

(Note: There are so many homeless pets, and it is absolutely heartbreaking to me when I visit animal shelters. I realize that we can't all have pets, and that some people should NOT have pets - and of course we can only have so many pets...

But, if you are in a position to have a pet - please consider adoption, and visit your local animal shelter, or visit http://www.petfinder.com/ or similar website.

This is a public service message from me, because I really miss my Kitty.

If you can't have a pet, please consider helping your local shelter in some other way. The Humane Society of the United States has a lot of information about adoption and how to help at their website here. Thanks for reading!)

Personal and Corporate Accountability - Some Recent Observations

2009-01-16T13:10:00.004-05:00

I was just looking at a 4-oz jar of one of my favorite seasonings - this wonderful stuff called Busha Browne's Authentic Jerk Seasoning. This is really flavorful - and very spicy Jamaican rub that my husband and I just love. Unfortunately, it is really hard to find in stores.

So, prior to Christmas 2008, we decided that if we could find this delightful seasoning on line, we could order a bunch of it, and include it as part of the gift packages we were sending out.

It was easy enough to find the company on line - but more difficult to find someone actually carrying this particular seasoning. Busha Browne's had a listing of where we might be able to purchase it, and we began making the rounds.

This is where it got interesting. I refuse to name the company where we finally decided to order from, but they seemed sincere enough. So, we ordered 10 jars and paid about $12 for Priority Shipping. It should have reached us well before Christmas.

A few days went by, and then a few more. No jerk seasoning. Finally, 2 days before Christmas, I called them to find out where the seasoning was. Turns out they sent it to the wrong zip code - instead of using "North Myrtle Beach," which is where we are, they sent it to "Myrtle Beach," which is about 20+ miles south of us.

When I mentioned that I was disappointed that the package was misdirected, the person on the other end did not apologize at all. Instead, she said, "Well, it went to Myrtle Beach." To which I replied, "I am aware of that - this is why, when I placed the order, I told you what my zip code was and that I was in NORTH Myrtle Beach."

Still no apology. Just an excuse. "Well," she said, "The computer automatically put in the zip code for Myrtle Beach." I again explained that this was the very reason why I clearly said NORTH Myrtle Beach, and again, why I emphasized the correct zip code.

Still no apology. However, at this point, she said, "Well maybe it's still at the Myrtle Beach post office." At this point I got on line, and found a number of contacts for the Myrtle Beach post office - for which there are numerous branches. At least at this point she told me that she would call the post office and get back to me.

She finally got back to me and said that someone had claimed the package. She did not offer to send along another package until I said something to the effect, "Well hopefully, they will be honest and return the package to you since it clearly had someone else's name on it... but in the meantime, what about my order?"

She finally said that they would put another package into the mail for us the next day (we finally received the package on January 5th 2009).

It really stuck in my mind how this person never once apologized for the inconvenience. No, "Oh, wow, I'm so sorry that this happened..." Never once a, "I'm terribly sorry for the mistake - we evidently took down the information incorrectly; don't worry - we'll take care of this and send you out another package immediately..."

Nothing like that.

Now, I'm the first to admit that if one of my orders to a customer goes wrong, I want to crawl under the covers and hide my head. But that's not very professional.

As difficult as it sometimes is to have to call a customer and explain that something went wrong, it's the only way to do business. Likewise, if a customer calls me and tells me that something was wrong with the order - and sure, it happens sometimes - I truly do practice what I preach, and immediately offer an apology. After all, the customer ordered from me in confidence, and if something goes wrong with the order's fullfilment, how can that possibly be the customer's fault?

It isn't. So, I apologize and tell them I will do everything I can to make things right.

One final memory along these lines - this one's almost comical. I recall that a few years ago, I was in a fast food restaurant, and ordered a meal that should have come with a side order of mashed potatoes. Instead I got something else - I don't even recall what it was now.

But what I DO recall was the reaction of the clerk behind the counter (who was not a young kid just starting out, by the way, but someone who would have had a few decades of solid work experience under her belt). When I brought the meal back to the counter to point out the error and ask for the appropriate side dish, she looked at me - almost in horror - and splurted out, "Not my fault! It's not my fault!"

I assured her I wasn't upset - I merely hoped to exchange the incorrect dish for the correct one - but all she could do was mutter, "Not my fault! It's not my fault!"

But, ultimately, she did get me the correct dish, and all was well with the world, once again.

Working from Home in the Travel Industry

2009-01-15T07:51:00.006-05:00

When I was a kid, one of my fantasies included working in a travel agency. At the time, my only experience in travel was going down to "The Shore," as we called it growing up in New Jersey. I pictured working in a sunny office, helping eager families choose their motel or bungalow for their summer week or two in Ocean Beach or Wildwood.

My experiences in travel have broadened somewhat since childhood, but my interest in marketing vacations hasn't changed. Just the methods have. Perhaps you’ve noticed that some of the travel agencies in your town have closed their doors. Up in the northern White Mountains of NH where we have a home, we’ve seen two travel agencies leave town.

Considering how easy it is to find good travel deals on line, this turn of events is not surprising!
Nowadays, we book almost every trip we take online with the vacation travel club we belong to.

We did feel a little bad when we saw the writing on the wall, and noticed the “For Sale” sign in front of our former travel agent’s building. We had always enjoyed working with her, and seeing what exciting trip she would come up with for us.

For several years, as the internet changed from something I vaguely heard about in the news to my primary tool for my livlihood, I heard the whispering – “travel agents will be doomed by the internet!” or “travel agents will all be going out of business.”

Of course, that’s utter nonsense, since there are plenty of areas where the population still supports a local travel agency - and there are plenty of people who still want someone else to prepare their travel arrangements.

Just not in our rural area.

But, why the doom and gloom? If you love travel (whether or not you have experience as a travel agent), then why not hop on the “Working at Home Online” train?

There are plenty of opportunities working from home in the travel industry these days. Spending less than 5 minutes in an online search will prove that to you!

You’ve seen the advertisements touting the benefits of working from home on line – but you need to focus. For example, if you like NASCAR, but there are no NASCAR related jobs in your neighborhood, then find products in that niche and begin selling them online!

If you like travel, then focus on a travel product. Don’t let the lack of travel agencies deter you. There are PLENTY of opportunities for working from home in the travel industry – and yes, they are now online. You can easily find any number of travel related MLMs and affiliate programs (for all you NASCAR lovers, I don’t know if there are any affiliate programs for you!)

Before you jump headlong into the “internet working from home” pool, but after you’ve weighed the advantages of working from home – along with the benefits of working from home (and there are many! But that’s a different story.), please check the credentials of whichever program floats your boat (pun intended, if working from home in the travel industry is what you want!).

Make sure that your program – whether it’s an MLM or affiliate program has a solid, stand-alone product. One you can confidently offer to the person who just wants to go on vacation without worrying about whether or not you’re going to try recruiting him or her to join your business, or take a timeshare tour.

For example – and I refuse to name companies here – I know people who regularly ask me to join their travel businesses in true MLM fashion. They know I love travel – and typically, they know that I’ve had a lot of experience in MLM. For me, I have noticed that personally contacting people I know in an attempt to interest them in my “working from home opportunity” dilutes my relationship with them. I don't want them avoiding me when they see me at the supermarket.

Hey, that’s just me. You may have different feelings and levels of success with that.

And that’s fine.

BUT… If the friend happens to have an opportunity and can use customers as well as a sales force, I’m all in! I have a very dear friend who is a member of a travel MLM, and if her price on something beats mine, I’m in. For one of my last vacations, I booked a car through her site and got a 2 week rental for less than $200. No joke.

I just want to be sure that whatever working from home opportunity I choose has a stand alone product.

Because I enjoy travel so much, I want to be able to offer someone who loves to travel an opportunity to do JUST THAT. Travel.

Stand alone product. And, so that is what I market. You can buy it, or not buy it. You can join as an affiliate – or not.

Hey, if the customer is interested in learning how to earn commissions marketing the luxury vacation membership him or herself, I’m all over it. But, it remains their choice – and not until they bring it up.

Because, there are so many people out there who really just want to travel – and they want a good deal. Which we have.

One of the best analogies I ever heard in relation to this is “Don’t try to sell a steak to a vegetarian.” It’s true. Remember: Not everyone wants a work at a home business opportunity. So, why try to sell them that?

But, they might enjoy travel, and might be seeking a way to enjoy luxury vacation travel for a lot less than they’ve been paying.

So, keep these things in mind when you are looking for ways you can be working from home in the travel industry – or working from home on line in general. Once you have decided on what you are going to market online, you'll need to put a system in place - an internet marketing system and plan of work to market successfully. But that's a chapter all its own.

Start with an opportunity offering a high quality, stand alone product. It’s critical.

What Finding Sharks' Teeth on the Beach Has to do with Internet Marketing

2009-01-14T17:34:00.007-05:00

So, what does finding sharks’ teeth on the beach have to do with internet marketing?

Well, quite a bit, as it turns out. And I'll share this with you here.

See, when we got down to Cherry Grove Beach, South Carolina to escape the cold and snowy winters of northern New Hampshire, we noticed a lot of people beachcombing for different shells and – sharks’ teeth.

First of all, we need to note that the only reason we could uproot ourselves from the bitter northland for warmer climes is due to the amazing opportunities that the internet and internet marketing have given us. For this, we are thankful.

Anyway, as we settled in, and began walking along the ocean front, we decided that we, too, would look for sharks’ teeth.

And so we did. Every day, for a month, we looked for sharks’ teeth. But, nary a tooth was to be found.

This was getting frustrating.

Finally, one day we noticed a couple down by the Cherry Grove Pier who looked like they were completely engrossed in whatever they were finding in the sand. Intrigued, we approached them and asked what they were finding (Note: Down here, everyone – and we mean EVERYONE is exceptionally friendly, so we weren’t concerned about approaching strangers.).

Well, not only were they looking for sharks’ teeth – they were FINDING them. Lots of them. We asked if we could see them – they showed us numerous types and sizes, and they even knew what type of shark some of them were from (they even had a Great White Shark tooth – which served as a reminder as to why we do not want to ever encounter one…).

A week or so later, we decided to walk a little more slowly than our usual pace – just in case we could more easily spot a tooth. Because typically, we were hurried, more intent on getting exercise with the hope that we’d spot a tooth. And every day we said, “THIS is the day we find a sharks’ tooth!” We kept visualizing what it would be like when one of us finally said, “Honey, I found one!”

And all of a sudden, about two weeks or so ago, it happened. We were strolling along – not intent on exercise, but on finding a shark’s tooth. John bent down, picked something up – and said, “Honey, I found one!” And sure enough, it was a sharks’ tooth!

Now, moseying along ahead of us was a gentleman who was also a shark tooth hunter. He had a plastic zipper-lock bag with a bunch of them – and one was very large.

We asked him where and how he found all of them. He explained that we needed to concentrate our search on where the tide was going out, leaving a “wash” of debris behind – almost like a sluicing action one might see in a gold pan or sluice.

Well, wouldn’t you just know it! Within minutes, I found a sharks’ tooth, too! Then another. And another. Before we knew it, and several days later, we had amassed a collection of about 24 sharks’ teeth.

Then, a few evenings ago, I went out for a breath of air on the beach. It was nearly sunset. I noticed that the “wash” from the previous high tide was quite high on the beach since the day before saw extremely high winds, and subsequently, high and rough wave action.

I thought of what the various experienced shark tooth hunters had taught me, and I decided to search in this particular spot. Lo! Within a minute I saw a sharks’ tooth.
And another. And then another. In less than 40 minutes, I came home with 12 full sharks’ teeth!

And to think that less than a week or so before, we hadn’t found even one.

So. What does any of this fascinating story have to do with internet marketing?

Plenty. Because as I marveled at how we were transformed from well-intentioned, but uninformed beachcombing dilettantes, ignorant of the knowledge that would help us find that elusive prize – the coveted shark’s tooth, into beachcombers who were now having success and finding sharks’ teeth easily, and on a daily basis – it hit me. It hit me hard.

Internet marketing success is NO DIFFERENT than hunting for sharks’ teeth. What is it we all want in our internet marketing efforts? We want sales. We want customers. We want like-minded members to join our organizations.

If you decide to market online, but don’t know: 1) what your customer looks like, 2) where to find your customer, and 3) how to find your customer – then you are just like we were when we started searching for sharks’ teeth.

But, the second we 1) slowed down, 2) asked someone what they looked like, 3) learned how and where to find them, and 4) focused on the search until we found one, we became successful.

So, what this means to you, as an internet marketing specialist, is that you – we – all of us, need to do the following:
1) Slow down – don’t work in a frenzy, jumping from product to product, marketing strategy to strategy. Don’t try to focus on more than one thing at a time. It doesn’t work. My eyes prove this – I cannot look at the computer screen while at the same time clearly see the ocean in front of me.

2) Learn from people who already successful. Hey, this is no secret. Every internet marketing guru out there will tell you to follow success.

3) Learn strategies that are proven to be successful, and then implement them. And keep implementing them until you, too, find your first shark’s tooth. Then, by some kind of wonderful magic, you will find more and more of them.

What if – after talking with all the people who are successfully finding sharks’ teeth, day after day – what if I walked away and said, “Well, he doesn’t know anything! It must have been luck! I’m going to look around the base of the Palm trees next. Surely, there must be a shark tooth there…”

What if I did that?

Even worse, what if – after all that discussion, all that initial interest – I decided, “Nah – it’s not worth it to find one silly little tooth.” And then I just walked away, thinking, “Maybe I’ll just find something easier to identify on the beach.”

Hmmm. Beached jelly fish are certainly easier to identify.

Hopefully, you would say that I am a fool for ignoring what is clearly a proven strategy for finding such an intriguing part of nature.

Yet, how many of us do that very same thing, day after day! We say we want to learn a good internet marketing strategy. We pay money – sometimes a lot of money – to learn from those who are successful. Then, after one or two limp gestures, we drop it.

Maybe the next strategy will succeed...

Maybe...

Miracles from 2008

2008-12-31T11:56:00.002-05:00

As I sat in meditation moments ago, my mind began contemplating the year that is about to end this evening. I opened my eyes, and was gazing out at the Atlantic from our winter rental here on the beautiful South Carolina beach. I marveled at the miracle that made it possible for us to leave our cold and snowy northern home for the winter – and as I marveled at that, I began to think of all the other miracles of this past year.

And I was inspired to write this post.

I have not yet attained millionaire status; however, if the miracles of 2008 are any indication, I am surely on my way – not only monetarily, but spiritually as well. May I share with you the multitude of things that awe and inspire me about this past year?

Thank you.

As I review the year, I realize that early in 2008, my focus began to sharpen. I am so grateful for the first 45 days of 2008, wherein I detoxified my body and mind to a state where mental clarity became the norm. How grateful I am.

In 2008, I made my first large affiliate sale, resulting in a real commission check – made out to me – and I no longer needed to visualize something that hadn’t yet happen. Because now it DID happen, and I could visualize even more of them. This first success made me realize that success truly is within my reach. How grateful I am.

I am so thankful for that experience, and thankful I didn’t quit the way I used to quit when success wasn’t mine overnight.

I am also thankful that, as 2008 continued, my other websites began producing sales. I didn’t quit 6 months after getting my websites up and running, even though I wasn’t yet earning enough to live on. How grateful I am.

I am extremely grateful that I have learned to calm my mind and become patient – and through this calmness and patience have seen my faith deepen.

Many times during 2008, I felt thankful that we had discarded our television 4 years prior. I am thankful that I avoided newspapers and newscasts, because I was unaffected by others’ pessimism about whatever was happening in their economy. The time I did not spend in front of the television set or newspapers was spent in learning to visualize my goals and intentions, and these were untainted by whatever was happening to others.

During 2008, as I walked along the quiet country road where we live in northern NH, I often found myself thankful that I didn’t really know or “hang out” with anyone in town – because my solitary walks became walking meditations wherein I could formulate new visions for my life. When I had first moved to that area, I felt lonely because I didn’t know a lot of people or have friends there. Once I turned my vision inward, I realized what a gift that the solitude truly has been for me. How grateful I am.

I am so grateful that 2 years ago I lost my job – another in a series of grant-funded work that always evaporated when the funds dried up. If I had been able to keep any of those jobs, I could not have packed up and left NH when the snows fell this year. I’d still be shoveling, scraping ice, driving on snowy mountain roads, and spending money on heating oil, plowing, and firewood. Instead, thanks to the fact that my jobs were gone, I was able to work on becoming an internet marketing entrepreneur – AND go to a beautiful southern climate for the winter. How grateful I am.

I am also thankful for laptop computers and cell phones which make it possible to work wherever I want to be.

Although this sounds sad, I cannot begin to say how thankful I was when, 6 days before we were to leave NH for SC, that we were both home when our beloved little cat, “Kitty,” suffered a stroke – and that we were both with her, petting her and loving her as she made her transition over the rainbow bridge. If we had both been at a job, our little Kitty would have suffered and died alone. Another miracle is that the vet – who is only in our rural area 3 days/week – was there and still open when this occurred. How grateful I am for the 9 years we had our pet. How grateful I am.

I am thankful that I reconnected with friends that I thought had moved on. I spent many pleasant hours with some of these folks, and heard new insights and gained a new appreciation for who they are. What a blessing these friends are.

We are told that the real estate market is doing poorly. There is a small city in northern NH where more than 120 single family homes are for sale, and few are selling. During 2008, we had a small single family house in that town that we needed to sell. How thankful I am for the miracle of the house selling within 7 days of being put on the market. How grateful I am, and awed, when I think of the person who bought the house – who we discovered was born 4 doors down the road, 68 years before, who had moved away 40 years earlier, and who just decided to “come home” to his hometown. How grateful I am.

I realize it is by no accident that, over the course of this last year, I have stumbled upon remarkable books, some written in the early 1900's, about the universal Law of Attraction. These books are not widely discussed today, as other, more contemporary books have since been written. Nonetheless, these older volumes resonated with me, and have quickened my progress in my own ability to visualize and act on my goals. How grateful I am.

I am overwhelmed with thanks that my husband joins me and supports me on my path, and that together, we spent the 2008 holiday season volunteering in our new winter community instead of purchasing and opening gifts. This experience was unlike any other we have ever had, and touched our hearts and changed our lives forever – and we will never be the same. How grateful I am.

Throughout the year 2008, I have learned to hear, listen, and follow the intuitive messages speaking within my spirit. I have been led along the path, guided to make certain turns – and have learned to trust the direction I find myself following.

I am seeing potential I never saw before.
I am meeting friends I never knew existed.
I am being introduced to business and marketing strategies that – a year ago – I had never even heard of.
I am trusting and loving myself as I never have before.
I am feeling a depth of love in my heart for others that I never thought could be so strong – so strong that tears come to my eyes whenever I contemplate it.

I am so grateful for the joys, miracles, and awe that 2008 has brought to me – and I have touched on but a few of them here. These words I have written come nowhere near the feelings and thoughts that are bubbling within my heart and mind.

But, I wanted to share them in the hope that they spur you to contemplate the miracles that may have occurred in your life – and to anticipate the miracles that are yet to occur in 2009 and beyond.

I wish you all a blessed and happy new year.

Christmas in Cherry Grove

2008-12-25T08:47:00.002-05:00

Today is Christmas day and it is a very interesting feeling to be looking upon the ocean at Cherry Grove Beach here in South Carolina versus up in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Coming here to South Carolina definitely shifted me from snug within my comfort zone to just outside that zone. And that's a good thing. Because it made me think in new ways. For example, the act of preparing for the winter move insisted that I take a decidedly different focus and action than would have been necessary if I had just stayed home.

If I had just stayed home, I suspect that very little would have changed in my daily routine. I can guarantee that many hours each week would have been devoted to shovelling snow, scraping ice off the car, and working to keep wood in the stove. But making the decision to go south for the winter brought an excitment and feeling of anticipation that I haven't felt in years. It's a similar feeling to those that kids have as they wait for Christmas morning.

I'm finding myself exercising without even thinking about it, sitting at the computer to work without even thinking about it, and gazing meditatively out the window at the ever changing ocean - without even thinking about it.

Yes, it was worth pushing the limits of my comfort zone to come here. We left behind the trappings of Christmas past - we don't have the beautiful scent of the Balsam fir Christmas tree, we don't have our Christmas stockings or gifts, and we don't have family coming over for a feast.

Instead, we have a little Chia seed Christmas tree that my mother in law sent us (which looks awesome!), and are going to help the local Red Cross serve up 4,200 pounds of turkey today. We can't wait!

While I am sure I'll be glad to see my mountain home again in April, I am extremely thankful to be where I am right now. Merry Christmas to all who celebrate this holiday. And to everyone: Peace, blessings, harmony, and joy!

Timeshare: Deal or No Deal?

2008-12-16T08:29:00.009-05:00

"Let's face it. Travel is big business. Huge business. Even in "this economy." Consider that international visitors to the United States spent more than $122.7 billion on travel and tourism-related activities in 2007 - that's just people coming to United States alone! (Source: Office of Travel & Tourism Industries (OTTI) March 11, 2008)

I've also seen estimates attributed to the Travel Industry Association that the travel and tourism industry itself generates more than $1+ trillion in economic activity.

These are significant figures. And a lot of people want a piece of that pie. Who can blame them? Traveling is fun, and it's a fun industry to work in if you enjoy traveling yourself."

And so I began this article earlier this year for the EzineArticles.com site (If you are interested, you can find this article there in its original state, along with my other articles.) With slight variations and some additional content, I share it with you here because the content is relevant to what I keep hearing about "this economy."

The idea to rework and republish this piece came to me as we winter here in Cherry Grove Beach, South Carolina. Down the road a space are numerous and lovely timeshare resorts inviting "walk ins" to tour their facilities. When we arrived here in Cherry Grove, I called the North Myrtle Beach Visitor Information Center with a specific question. Once the person answered my question, she tried to sign me up for a 120 minute "tour" and presentation of one of the timeshare resorts.

I tried to explain to her that I was not interested, and indeed market exclusive luxury vacation memberships, but she didn't give up. I was finally able to end the call, but the conversation stuck with me.

I've never cared for the timeshare sales tactics - I do not like feeling pressured. My husband and I purchased a timeshare ourselves years ago and have never been all that satisfied. We decided to sell it, but have been unable thus far to sell our timeshare week for even a fraction of what it cost us initially - not to mention how expensive it is to keep it up and running. We are truly caught between a rock and a hard place with this thing.

Never again.

Once we found the vacation membership we ultimately joined (and now market), it was the classic "no brainer." The differences between the concept of timeshare and our vacation memberships are staggering, which you will clearly see as you continue to read.

As an aside, it occurred to us as we were discussing "this economy" is that people are still vacationing - and if they aren't, they want to. They just don't want to pay through the nose. And they don't want to stay in some crummy and cramped hotel room, either. They want to be able to prepare some of their meals at their room instead of going out three times a day. Of course, the timeshare resorts are the perfect setup for vacations because they are typically roomy, have fully equipped kitchens, and are in lovely areas.

But, there are problems with purchasing a timeshare. And if you are seriously considering purchasing one, I only ask that you read on to see the truth in the numbers first. If what you read makes sense to you, then I invite you to go to our website to see how you can stay at these very same resorts without being shackeled to them or going into debt for the ability to vacation there.

I don't know if you have ever vacationed at a timeshare resort, or if you have purchased a timeshare in the past. If you have vacationed at a timeshare, then you already know what happens when you arrive: You are invited to a presentation about the property, and you are usually offered a gift certificate to a local restaurant or show in exchange for your time (typically 90 minutes - maybe more).

The resort isn't doing this to help you become acquainted with the area. They want you to purchase a timeshare at that specific location. After all - the resort is beautiful, and since you're having a wonderful vacation, why not purchase a week you can enjoy every year for years and years to come?

Whoa! Before you whip out your credit card or sign any financing papers in the magic of the moment, take a deep breath.... No... make that five or six deep breaths. Ask yourself these questions:

1) Do you really want to be locked into a contract where - after you pay thousands of dollars for the initial purchase - you'll be paying annual maintenance fees (which never seem to go down)? (According to Timeshares.com the industry average is $16,000 for a purchase. And, WorldMarkTheClub.com, says that the 2006 industry average for maintenance fees was $512 for a one-bedroom, and $614 for a two-bedroom unit.) My husband's and my annual fees are currently at $500 - just to keep the darned thing active.

2) In the event you'd like to exchange your week for a week at a completely different resort, do you want to pay annual membership dues to an exchange company and then pay for the exchange itself (cough up another couple hundred dollars a year). In our case, in order to trade for a week somewhere else, we have to belong to Interval International, and keeping that membership costs us about $80 per year. Then, to make the exchange itself, it costs us another $130 or more depending on where we're going. So, annually - if we want to use our timeshare at all, we are up over $700. And that's just for the right to go somewhere for one week!

3) Also, if you want to exchange your week for a week at another resort - even if you're willing to pay all those fees - are you prepared to be disappointed if you are told that the location you want to visit is not available (such as Hawaii, the Islands, etc... You might have to try Branson, MO - there are usually weeks available there ...)? In our case, we have never gotten the exact trade we have wanted. Ever. We have had our timeshare for at least 12 years, and while we certainly can travel with it, we have never gotten what we requested. We are extremely fortunate that we work our own schedules, and are very flexible, because otherwise we would be at the mercy of where a timeshare was available for a week possibly determined by our employer. For example, when I worked for a school system, I was limited to school vacations for our own travel. Hmmm. Think anyone else in the world has limitations? Again... we can almost always go to Branson, MO.

4) Are you absolutely sure that you only want to come back to this particular resort year after year? When we purchased our timeshare, we were in northern NH, and the liklihood of our actually staying at the property (only an hour from our own beautiful mountain home) was nil. For a few years, and when my husband's daughter was a little girl, we would occasionally drive over to the resort to use the swimming pools, but that's it.

Ok, if you answered yes to those questions, then by all means, buy a timeshare. And, in all fairness, we have met people who are extremely happy with timeshare ownership.

If, however, you are thinking twice, and taking another eight to ten deep breaths - you might be asking yourself, "Well, if not timeshare, how else can I vacation at these gorgeous resorts? Is there another way?"

The answer is "yes." And this is where I introduce to you the luxury vacation memberships that we now market through Global Resorts Network (GRN). GRN has the exclusive worldwide rights to market a private vacation club membership that has twenty-two years experience in outstanding customer satisfaction.

Since these memberships are now marketed via the internet, this trend is catching on very quickly. And why not?

You won't have to sit through a sales presentation, and the process is extremely simple. What you see is what you get.

When you visit my website, you can explore the membership at your leisure without someone pushing you to make a buying decision on the spot.
As you go through the website, you will see that a lifetime (Platinum) membership is only $2,995.00 and that there are no blackout dates for travel.

Hmm.

Then, if you need more information, you can either email or call me (or request a call from me) with your questions. Here are some of the questions you may have:

1. "Is there an annual maintenance fee to use this membership?" (The answer is, "No.")
2. "How much do I REALLY have to pay for a week at one of these resorts?" (The answer is, "Anywhere from $298 - $798, but not higher.")
3. "Yeah, sounds great, but what are the odds that I'll really get to use a resort in Hawaii or the Florida coast?" (The answer is, "Once you put in your request for a location and range of dates, customer service will be bending over backwards to find you your location - that's what they do. And because of the club's tremendous buying power, the odds are very, very good that they will find you a beautiful resort.") Note: I know this because I have experienced their customer service myself. It is second to none.
4. "If I purchase a membership, who will the travel club membership be with?" (The answer is, "Once you make your purchase through my GRN site - http://www.fineresortvacation.com/, you will become a member of Gold Crown Resort, our travel partner. Gold Crown Resort has more than 22 years of experience in outstanding customer service.")

So, let's recap the differences here:

Timeshare ownership can cost an average of $16,000. Our vacation membership has one low cost to join - $2,995 for a lifetime membership.
Timeshare ownership dues/fees range from $300 - $1,000. Vacation membership does not have annual dues or maintenance fees. You never pay for a vacation unless you actually take one, and then, your cost is only $298 to $799 for the week. And you can take as many vacations per year as you wish; you are not limited to one week.
Timeshare ownership default on yearly dues could jeopardize ownership. Vacation membership means you join once, you're a member for life, with no extra fees.
Timeshare ownership exchanges are difficult and costly. Vacation membership means no more exchanging, and members choose from more than 5,000 luxury resort properties worldwide.
Timeshare ownership has maximum depreciation on the investment worth approximately 10 cents on the dollar. Vacation membership has retained its full value for the last 21 years (there is a $75 transfer fee).
Timeshare ownership means that the owners may pay additional fees for property remodeling and renovations. Vacation membership means that the members do not share in remodeling or renovation costs.

It is ultimately up to you to do your due diligence and determine what really will work best for you. There are times when a timeshare purchase might initially seem to be the best way to go - as an example, perhaps if that resort is near family and you will always use that particular resort.

But again, compare apples to apples: Would it really be cost effective to do this? If you could purchase a vacation membership for $2,995 instead, and then simply book your subsequent vacations at one particular resort - I believe you would be better served through our membership. You would also not be locked in to one particular week.

After all is said and done, the best suggestion is that you do the math and carefully consider all your options and preferences before you purchase either a timeshare or a vacation club membership. After all, travel and vacation is supposed to make you feel good - not stressed!

Why I’m So Proud of My Portable Garages and Shelters Site!

2008-12-11T16:42:00.005-05:00

A lot of people thought I was nuts when, in August 2007, I announced that I was launching a website dedicated to marketing portable garage and shelter structures. After all, I had been a writer, career coach, and resume writer for years! Many folks just didn’t see the connection between those former careers and marketing carports, party tents, and other such items.

You, too, may be scratching your head, wondering what the connection could possibly be. I mean… portable garages and shelters? Given the name of my blog – Truth & Integrity in Business – I assure you that there IS a connection.

To understand this, we need to go back to when I was about 7 years old, when my Dad asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I answered that I wanted to be either a fairy princess or a writer. My Dad, wise man that he is, assured me that being a writer would probably work better for me.

So, I have always had it in my mind that I would indeed, be a writer.

Being a writer is what initially enabled me to help others develop their resumes. I had studied copywriting (Yes, I’m one of those people who – if I were hired to do so – would be behind the catalogs and mail order offerings you all receive. I refuse to call it junk mail.), and used those skills to write winning resumes.

The problem I had with resume writing is that many of the people where I lived (in northern NH), were either out of work or going to be out of work and didn’t have a lot of money to pay for such services.

But, as I started looking around at how else I could market my writing skills, I came to realize that every website contains the written word. As I a little deeper, I further understood that my copywriting skills, along with my new-found knowledge of search engine optimization, are critical components in internet marketing.

I soon realized I could turn my skills and my values into marketing products online myself, and began searching for something to sell.

What is also important (at least to me), is that I really care about others. And I had to work with a company that cared about others the way I do.

I stumbled upon the good folks at MDM Rhino Shelters (who are the company behind all the products on my Portable Garages and Shelters website), and we hit it off instantly. A little more research on my part indicated a growing need for affordable, portable storage solutions. So, I became one of MDM’s dealers, and promptly began building my website.

I loved developing the site, because it was the perfect place for me to put my web copywriting skills to work while developing a stream of income.

In addition to loading the site with as much information as possible so that my customers could find answers, I also made it my goal to make my customers feel valued, and like family. In order to give everyone as much value as possible while still earning a few bucks, I took a hit on shipping charges and kept the product prices as low as I could.

This strategy evidently works, because I have amazing customers! I get calls from customers who will buy from me simply because they know I care about them. Sure, they save money and get good value for their dollar, but just as important, I value each one of them. I’ve helped get motorcycle shelters out to soldiers overseas (yes, we ship to APO and FPO addresses), mini greenhouses to families who have kids who want to learn about gardening, party tents to churches for their functions, portable garages to contracting companies who need shelter for their workers and equipment… The list goes on and on.

I have had the site up since late August, 2007, made my first garage sale by the first week of September, 2007, and today my business gets sales on a regular basis. I’m not knocking the cover off the ball yet, but I’m definitely getting on base! I will soon be adding our largest structure – a commercial 40x60x18 Domed Truss building – to the site so that I can serve an even wider, commercial clientele.

My customers get great service not only from me, but also from everyone at MDM – from the owner to his mom (it IS a family business!), to all the account managers, to all the guys loading the trucks day after day in the warehouse – everyone at the facility (and especially my own account manager and true right-hand man, Dave Clayton). Everyone there treats my customers with the same care and respect that I do. They are a family business, and they treat me like family as well.

So, aside from the products we sell – from the popular “evergreen” 1-car round top portable garage to the new “Cycle Shelter,” which is a cool tent-like shelter for motorcycles to the large commercial buildings – the fact that I’m dealing with a company of great integrity has resulted in a growing business for me. I’m proud of my website and my affiliation with everyone at MDM Rhino Shelters.

It all makes perfect sense to me!

Forming SMART Goals to Crystallize Your Vision

2008-12-10T08:50:00.005-05:00

I recently wrote about how positive thoughts and mindset are your most powerful tools in Internet Marketing.

We reviewed the importance of staying in the present moment. If you missed that article, please feel free to either scroll down to below.

Today I'll talk about formulating goals that are S.M.A.R.T.

Before we discuss this, however, please be sure you understand the importance of keeping your thoughts in the present moment. This is critical, because all of your goals MUST use words that keep each goal in the only moment when ANYTHING can be accomplished – and that is now. This very moment. Not yesterday, and not tomorrow. Now. Again, I briefly review this topic in the article mentioned above.

As we move into making S.M.A.R.T. goals for ourselves, I want to point out that there are entire websites dedicated to this well-known and well-used acronym. If this is a topic that resonates with you, I recommend that you visit one of the many excellent sites that cover this in great detail. Simply type in the search term “SMART Goal Setting” or some similar term. You will find numerous variations on the acronym, but, for our purposes, we’ll break it down as follows:
S = Specific.
M = Measurable.
A = Attainable.
R = Relevant or Rewarding (some sources use “Realistic” – we’ll stick with Relevant and Rewarding for our purposes).
T = Time-Based.

Let’s review each term separately:
S = Specific. When we write goals, they should have a razor-sharp focus about what, exactly, you want to have happen. It answers the question “What?” What is it that you want?
Example: Instead of having a goal to “have a lot of money someday,” try “have $10,000 cash flow every single month by October 2009, over and above business expenses.”

M = Measurable. How will you tell whether or not you are making progress toward your goal? Different goals will call for different types of measuring criteria. This answers the question “How?” How is this going to be accomplished?
Example: If your goal is to walk for 30 minutes each day, the way you measure progress towards that goal will be somewhat different than if your goal is to walk 5 miles every day. Your measurement criteria for the goal of walking 30 minutes each day may be to begin with 10 minute increments for the week, 20 minute increments for the second week, etc. If your goal is to walk 5 miles every day, your measurement criteria may be in half-mile increments for each week. In either case, the way you see your progress is easily determined by the criteria you have chosen.

A = Attainable. You want your goal to be something you can commit to reaching without giving up. The goal should push you – but not overwhelm you.
Example: Instead of having an initial goal of running 10 miles without stopping within the next month if you have never been a runner, how about starting out with a goal of running 2 miles without stopping? Again, I’m not saying don’t reach for the stars – I just want to be sure you stick with your commitment towards your goals. If you find yourself running 2 miles without stopping fairly easily, then by all means, up the ante and go for that 10 miles!

R = Relevant (also, Rewarding). Your goal should have meaning to your life and purpose. If it isn’t relevant to your life, or rewarding, you won’t want to spend a whole lot of time or effort on it, will you? It not only needs to impact who you are and what you’re doing – it also needs to be completed by you, and not someone else.
Example: Let’s say you love to sing, and want to find a way to earn some extra money through your singing. As you brainstorm goals to move you in that direction, the goal of “By March 10th, research 10 different venues in town that are open to auditioning new singers” is relevant – because YOU are the one who will need to attend the audition, and singing is important to YOUR life. However, forming the goal: “listen to 10 new CDs of different famous singers by March 10th” isn’t relevant to your desired result. How would committing to listening to some CDs get you closer to earning extra money by singing? Certainly, listening to others can be inspiring, but unless it compels you into taking some action, it’s not relevant – and if you’re not taking action, it’s not a rewarding goal either.

T = Time-based. When will you reach this goal? In a month? 6 months? If you don’t put some kind of time commitment to your goal, when will you actually make any progress toward your goal? Without any sense of urgency and importance to accomplishing your goal, it can get very easy to fall into, “Oh, I’ll start tomorrow,” or “Maybe I’ll get going next week sometime…” Setting a timeframe for your goal will help keep you accountable. It answers the question “When?”
Example: You may have a goal of earning $10,000 per month online. When do you intend to get to work on this goal? If it’s that important to you, you should crystallize your starting point, as well as mid term points where you can account for your activities toward the goal. In what month and year are you anticipating reaching this goal? Without a starting and ending point framing your goal, at what points would you know to do a check up on your progress?

Ok. So that briefly reviews the idea of the SMART goal. Let’s see if we can come up with a goal that meets all the points we just touched on.

NOTE: For purposes of this example, this goal assumes that I am already earning some money through online marketing, and the starting point is December 1, 2008. Here’s the goal statement (notice that the wording is in present tense – it’s happening right now, even though I am using certain calendar timeframes to help define measurement criteria):
GOAL:
“Beginning today, I implement one new strategy from the ABC Training Manual daily until each of the 10 named strategies is in effect – an effort which, monitored and updated on a daily basis, results in my earning an extra $1,500 or more per month from my website’s sales, building up sales each month so that I am earning $5,000 or more from my website’s sales each month by March, 2009.”

S = Specific: Is the goal specific? Yes, it gives an exact figure that we can visualize occurring – for example, we can picture deposits being placed in our checking account as they add up to the goal.

M = Measurable: Is the goal measurable? Yes, it gives us a “ruler” in the form of the method we will use (the strategies of our company’s training module) so we can begin looking at our progress. We also have the measure of progress by days for the 10 strategies – we either implement one each day, or we don’t. At any point, we can stop and examine what it is we are doing and adjust our activities to bring us back into alignment with the goal.

A = Attainable: Is the goal attainable? Yes, because it is something that, due to our plan and right attitude will be well within our reach in the given amount of time. It is definitely going to stretch us – but it isn’t going to overwhelm us. We will feel great as each day we see the progress that keeps us going.

R = Relevant and Rewarding: Is the goal relevant and rewarding? Yes, because once we see ourselves implementing the strategies and seeing the income grow, we will feel that our efforts are rewarding. We have the relevant strategies at hand that will help propel us to the goal. Just because we may not yet have implemented the marketing strategies, they are a critical part of the goal that will prove to be very rewarding as we move forward.

T = Time-Based: Is the goal time-based? Yes, because we have given ourselves a sense of urgency but at the same time have given ourselves a reasonable timeframe in which to accomplish the task. By outlining the initial 10 days of activity (implementing one new strategy per day), and giving ourselves a few months to monitor and update – all of which can be checked and accounted for on a daily basis – we have an excellent starting point as well as a finish line to aim for.

I have one further clarification to make regarding the way I worded this goal. I mention that “I implement one new strategy from the ABC Training Manual daily until each of the 10 named strategies is in effect.” You may be thinking that this is the only vehicle that will result in my earning the extra $1,500 or month per more.

This wording is not meant to limit the ways in which the extra money may come to me – it is a starting point. This goal may well be a “sub goal” – one of several smaller goals that are part of a bigger picture or bigger goal that is not evident in these examples.

I believe it is important to remain open to how goals might be accomplished. Please do not limit yourself to attaining goals through means that you can only perceive with your five senses, because there are possibilities you may not yet have been exposed to or introduced to yet that could far exceed any expectation (again, see the article I wrote earlier about mindset).

There are certain spiritual proclivities that I have when it comes to my own goal setting that may or may not agree with your own ideas or beliefs. In my case, I may indeed word a mini goal as I did in the above example, but I may also add that I am open to receiving the extra $5,000 per month in a way that has yet to be revealed to me.

I believe that it is perfectly acceptable to change goals as circumstances change. But, the important thing is that you have a starting point, and that it is written down. At very least it will help you to crystallize in your mind the picture of what it is you want to achieve!

Ok. If you are feeling up to a little exercise, here are a few hypothetical scenarios and corresponding goal statements that do NOT meet the SMART criteria. What can you do to change them?

Have fun!
Scenario #1: You want to get back into your old jeans which stopped fitting you approximately 20 pounds ago. You want to slim down before your college reunion, which is scheduled for November 2009. It is now July 2009. You know you need to cut back on the junk food, which you indulge in nearly 3 times a week. You also don’t exercise much – there’s just no time.
Ok… here’s the goal:
“On November 1, 2009, I weigh 20 pounds less than I do on July 1, 2009 by eating less junk food and beginning and sticking to an exercise program.”

Scenario #2: You want to start a home based business, preferably online. You don’t know where to begin – but you do have a good computer and high speed internet access. You would like to earn $1,000 extra per month for starters since you are still working full-time. It is April, 2009, and you would like to have something started by June, 2009, and be earning $1,000 extra per month by December, 2009. Some of the things you have decided you could enjoy marketing include luxury travel memberships.
Ok… here’s the goal:
“I have an online business selling luxury travel memberships for XYZ Company, and since each sale brings approximately $1,000 commissions, I am selling one or more memberships each month, beginning in November 2009.”

I hope this goal exercise has been helpful to you! Again, if you want more training regarding the S.M.A.R.T. goal, type the term into your favorite search engine, and study the various sites out there.

Remember the theme of the James Allen book, “As a Man Thinketh:” As you think, so you are, and so you will become. So, let's get SMART with our goals now!

And Yet ANOTHER Cool Thing About Legitimate Home Based Business

2008-12-04T15:45:00.004-05:00

Today is Thursday, December 4, 2008, and just the other day, John and I arrived at our "winter headquarters" on the beautiful coast of South Carolina - the Cherry Grove Beach section of North Myrtle Beach, to be precise. So, working from home this winter will be a bit more comfortable and fun (no shoveling or scraping ice from the car!)

While we traveled down the coast from snowy (and cold) northern New Hampshire, we visited with John's brother in Massachusetts, and then with my family in New Jersey over Thanksgiving. We had a nice, leisurly drive (except during a bit of a rainstorm en route), and arrived safe and sound here in Cherry Grove Beach.

While we were driving down here, neither of us did any actual work - other than returning a couple of emails to potential customers. The interesting thing thing, however, is that our businesses earned us money while we traveled.

When we got to our winter condo - the cutest little oceanfront place that will serve our purposes perfectly - and I turned on the computer, my email announced several new sales that we had made while we traveled. How cool is that! Just another thing to be thankful for this Thanksgiving...

We also noted that while we were traveling, other people were on line, looking for legitimate home based businesses and opting in to get informaton at our Global Resorts Network marketing site - which is a great testimonial for how important it is to have a system to use when promoting your business.

Anyway, I just wanted to get this out there while I was thinking of it. Now, it's time to get unpacked, organize my office here in Cherry Grove Beach, and get back to work! Because, even when one has a system to work with, we still need to work the system and promote it!

:)

What I did about a Telemarketing Call. After all, I'm an INTERNET Entrepreneur!

2008-11-13T15:50:00.004-05:00

This is a draft of my thoughts which I've just submitted for publication. Perhaps it will resonate with some of you! :) It's all true, by the way...

This morning, I received a call from “Unknown Caller” as the caller ID displayed. My first reaction – as I’m sure many of you may recognize from your own experiences – was to ignore the call. “After all,” I thought smugly, “who would be calling me without allowing me to see his or her phone number?”

With shame, I admit to you that my first thought was, ‘Hmmm… must be someone trying to sell me something.” And my next shameful thought was, “I’ll just let the machine pick it up – after all, I’m busy working on my internet marketing strategy.”

Ahh, yes. That obnoxious, self-righteous thought that “I’m an internet marketing expert. I don’t have time for sales calls…” Shame on me!

Ok. Important Lesson #1:
Ask yourself – and please be honest with your answer, because no one but you will know how you answer: If or when you receive a similar phone call, what is your first thought? Do you think similarly, as I did? Or, do you look at the phone, smile, and think, “This may be the very call that is going to bring me some new business or other good news!”

There’s no need to discuss your answer. I’m glad to report that I corrected my initial thought, released the smug attitude, and began quickly thinking in terms of the call being one that changes my life for the better.

Let’s move on…

Fortunately, my husband – who is a pretty wise guy (I mean that seriously), said, “It’s probably for you!” He answered the phone, and sure enough it was for me. Well, as it turns out it was a telemarketer after all! It was a woman who mentioned that she had my name as one who was interested in earning some extra money from home. She asked if that was the case with me.

I will step back just a moment and mention that I have had this call – or a variation of this call – at least 50 times within the last year. And why is that? Why, because I am interested in earning money from home – have been for years – and am probably on a list somewhere that shouts out: “Live One Here!” or “Call This One!”

Important Lesson #2:
If you are a business builder, in an internet marketing venture, in a direct sales or network marketing organization, or otherwise deal with prospects and customers – it really could be just about anyone on the phone. Yes, it could be a telemarketer. It could also be a prospect who found your website and just wanted to speak with a human to see if one was actually there.

So, the point is, you should not only expect these calls, but you should answer them. I’ll explain in a minute. First I acknowledge that I am well aware of the strategies that teach us to ignore the phone or turn it off when we are following a schedule designed to maximize efficiency. And I agree with that. I’m talking about other times.

You may be wondering why I believe you should “waste your time” talking with telemarketers and callers such as the one I spoke with this morning.

Here is Important Lesson #3 – and possibly the most important point:
Think about your business. Maybe some of you are in a business where you do not have to call people in order to gather customers or prospects – if so, lucky you.

But I’ll bet a lot of you do have to call people. You may need to invite people to a home business presentation, if that’s how your business works. You may need to call a company and get past the receptionist – who already knows you are in sales – to your eventual prospect.

So, here it was – not even 9:00 am, and this cheerful voice was calling me and asking if I was still interested in earning extra income from home. Wow! Right there – I had to give her 10 points – no, 100 points! Because here is the point:
She DID SOMETHING. She actually picked up the phone, and made the call.

Hey, I don’t know about you, but cold calling is NOT for me. I find myself feeling sick just thinking about it. But this morning, the caller woke up and told herself she was going to do it, and she did it. Just like that! Her voice was pleasant. Confident. Did she actually feel like smiling when she placed that call – probably only one of many? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. Because her voice was smiling, and I could pick up on it.

Here is another question for you – again, only you need to know the answer: When you receive calls like that, and – assuming you answer them – how do you treat the caller? Do you hang up? Do you yell at the caller, telling him or her to never darken your telephone threshold ever again? Cuss at the caller?

If this is how you respond – or have responded in the past, why? Why respond in that way?

From a common sense, just plain ol’ good-manners, polite, golden-rule standpoint, it’s just plain rude. You probably wouldn’t talk to your best customer that way. You probably wouldn’t talk to your top producer that way. And, you probably wouldn’t talk with your next hot prospect that way. Would you?

Ahh. But, here, it wasn’t your customer. It wasn’t your top producer. And it wasn’t your next hot prospect. But – you were. You were the next hot prospect – or so the caller hoped. You were the potential next customer. You were the next potential top producer.

And so was I, when the phone rang, just before 9:00 this morning.

And so, you may be wondering how I answered the call.

I smiled before I spoke. Because – again, I had no way of knowing how this call might affect my life. I wanted to be prepared for it to affect my life in the best possible way! Plus, it’s always good to put a smile on your face before answering the phone – your smile shows in your voice.

I said, “Hello!” The caller gave me her well-practiced scripted question. I smiled and answered, “You are right! I have indeed been interested in earning extra money from home for a long time – and I’m glad to report that I’ve found a business that I’ve committed to, and am now concentrating on. I’ve decided to concentrate solely on that – so I will not be considering any other opportunities! But, I wish you the best of luck in your work!”

And it was true. Every word of it. I hope it gave the caller the strength and confidence to make the next call.

And I hope this little case-study has given you, dear reader and fellow entrepreneur, some food for thought as well. Because, one way or another – we are all hoping that the next prospects we call or run into will join our opportunity or buy our product. We are all hoping that the next people we speak with will treat us with respect, accept our invitation to our next home presentation, and have a smile in their voice when we make that call.

Your Mindset and Thoughts: The Most Powerful Tool You Have in Internet Marketing

2008-11-07T18:11:00.003-05:00

Here is the copy of an article I just submitted to an eZine - hopefully you will find it helpful!

Ok. So you have bought into an internet marketing program. You did your homework, and found a product that you really would like to sell, because you enjoy using it – or would like to use it – yourself.

You went ahead and jumped right in. You bought the whole program, and you also bought into an automated marketing system. You feel great about this! The system you bought is the perfect vehicle for getting potential customers to your site!

So… You straighten out your folders, neaten your desk, sharpen your pencils, and then you… You what? What do you do?

Hmmm. Perhaps you log in to your site – maybe it’s an affiliate program back office where there are lots of links to training tips. Perhaps you start searching the internet to see who else is marketing your product, and to see how they’re doing it. Your mind begins buzzing with confusion.

Perhaps you see a bunch of people out there all of a sudden, and it seems like everyone is marketing – gulp – the same program. “Oh no!” you may wonder. “How can I compete with them?”

A chill runs through you. What do you do now? Your thoughts go from excitement to fear to doubt…

Ok. This is where your mindset comes into play.

The first thing you do is take a deep breath, and let it out – and while you are letting it out, you say to yourself, “Well, of course there are other people using this system! Of course other people are marketing this product! If they weren’t, there would be no demand for it! If there wasn’t any competition, I’d be in big trouble, because that would me no one wants the product. Boy, am I glad I have a product people want!”

Do you get it? First of all, to put the fear of competition to rest, understand that competition is important! When you market your product, you are not going to use the exact same words in your advertising as everyone else does! You are not going to have the exact same ideas for ezine articles or press releases that others do!

You will have your own moments of inspiration. You will have your own ideas for what might be a good advertisement. You will have your own story to tell. But – not if you keep harboring fear and doubt.

The important thing here is to have your mindset right. Here are some quick tips (and believe me, if you ever have browsed through the “Self Help” section of a bookstore, you’ll notice that there is no shortage of material on this subject! – so, when I say “quick tips,” I mean it! Take these as starting points!). And please remember – we are only concentrating on mindset and thoughts in this article.

We’re going to concentrate on getting your THINKING straight.

In a nutshell, this is the age old wisdom repeated in volume after volume of self-help works: “What you THINK about, you BRING about.”

Ever heard that? It’s in the Bible, quoted by the famed James Allen in his landmark book “As A Man Thinketh,” and many, many others. If you’ve ever heard of the movie “The Secret,” this is one of the main topics. If you have ever heard of the universal law of attraction, this is one of the primary points.

Your thoughts determine your ultimate outcomes. Have you ever heard people say that they want something, but their voices say otherwise. They may say, “Oh, yes! I just know I really want to succeed,” but their faces are saying, “Yeah, right. It’ll never happen to me.”

Don’t laugh! Have you ever caught yourself in that negative thought habit? Thinking things such as: “If I’m lucky…” “Well, we’ll see what happens…” “I’d better not get my hopes up too high…” – stuff like that?

Well… STOP IT! Decide to release or surrender any negative thought habit you have RIGHT NOW. You must if you are going to master your thoughts and mind – rather than have THEM master YOU.

“Kath, that’s not so easy,” you may be saying. Perhaps not on your first go around. But, once you get into the habit of correcting and releasing your self-limiting thoughts, and replace them with “can do” thoughts, it’ll get easier.

But, to begin with, you need the right thoughts to think - to replace the negative self-limiting thoughts with, right? Of course! So, this is where you take your goals and intentions, and put them into words of abundance so that you can begin to feed your mind with positive self-fulfilling thoughts (Note: The topic of proper wording for goals and goal-setting will be covered in a different article.).

Let’s say you have a goal to earn $1,000 extra this month. Instead of saying to yourself, “Oh, I sure would like to have $1,000 extra this month,” picture yourself looking at $1,000 deposit in your checkbook, $1,000 added to your balance column – and think, “Oh, it sure is nice having this $1,000 extra this month!” (Another Note: You need to FEEL it, too – and yes, there is a lot of literature out there on this, as well.)

Picture having the $1,000 – instead of wanting the $1,000. The mind doesn’t play favorites – if it sees you wanting, then wanting - or the feeling of wanting – is what you will continue to have. Do you really want to want it? Or do you prefer to have it?

You see, all things you can perceive with your 5 senses that are man-made began with a thought. For example, a table or a chair didn’t just appear one day out of thin air.

Someone, somewhere along the way had to have had a thought about a structure or tool that would somehow make life a little more comfortable. The thoughts might have been of a more comfortable posture, perhaps a more comfortable feeling while eating. Maybe sitting on a rock gave them the idea of a more comfortable feeling. The thoughts probably were not about “wishing” to be more comfortable. They probably thought about the postures that made them more comfortable, and opened their minds until the inspiration came to help them develop the tools. Again, this is just a simple example. But, again, primitive man’s thoughts were probably fairly simple too.

Which brings me to the next point – While you are training your mind to think in terms of your present state of abundance as a result of your business success (Again, think in the present – not the past or future.

Think in terms of “having,” not “wanting.” Think and picture having your goals right now. Practice!), don’t cram your thoughts with worry about how you are going to achieve your goals. You could not even possibly begin to imagine the multitude of ways you might find to achieve your goals. Remain completely open minded to what is out there. Help, guidance, intuition, etc., may come from a place you least expect it.

This is not “fluff.” It’s real. May I give you a true example of something that just happened to us? I’ll make it very short. We had a small property to sell, and were told over and over that we’d have a tough time in “this poor economy,” (by the way, another limiting thought), and in “this area, where nothing is selling!”

We chose to ignore such things, and we pushed on. While working on the house, and engaging a realtor to sell it, what kept going through our minds was this: “This is the perfect little house for someone who really is looking for an easy-to-heat, easy-to-maintain place here…This house is great for someone who wants a place in move-in condition…” etc. When I tell you that we had an offer within 1 week of the house being on the market, I am not exaggerating. Furthermore, the person who bought it was born on that very street – 4 doors up – and had been wanting to come back to that town for years.

You see, we absolutely refused to listen to nay-sayers. We had the idea and thought that this was going to work out. We never wavered on our faith that this was the perfect house for someone, and that the perfect someone would appear to purchase it. We completely released and surrendered any thoughts as to where this person would come from - and the person came from two states away! There is no way we could have even remotely imagined this buyer. We handed him the keys to the house today (as I write this article).

And that is just ONE example. There are many others. Don’t you want to have your own examples to tell others?

So, this is how important your thoughts are. Replace any fears about your marketing efforts by thinking about all the great things your product has to offer. Begin picturing people finding your website, and purchasing your product. Begin picturing the emails as they come in, informing you that you have an order! Begin seeing your checkbook balance grow. And – as you do so, keep your mind open to the possibilities as they come to you with regard to the actions you will take. And remember to not try to second-guess how or where or when these customers and prospects are going to come to you.

Embrace your competition. Look at what they are doing with an objective eye – one that is not fearful, but is curious. Hmm. What are they doing? Is there something that strikes you as an interesting method they are using? Use your competition as a learning tool. Be glad for competition, because it means your product or opportunity is in demand.

Once you get your mindset and thoughts working WITH you, with YOU mastering your mind and thoughts, instead of being mastered by them, you will soon find that you are ablaze with ideas and energy to help you get to your goals more quickly.

Remember to stick with it! Again, you may not have any idea where, who, how, or when your customer is coming – just keep those thoughts of abundance going. Keep your mind open. Keep the faith. And, while you are releasing all your previously limiting thoughts and replacing them with positive ones, keep working towards your goals with the knowledge you have, knowing full well that the knowledge you need will be revealed. Because you now have success on your side!

Truth & Integrity Review of a Recent Direct Mail - "Salba" vs "Chia"

2008-10-22T18:24:00.006-04:00

Ok. I admit it. I'm a closet "junk mail" reader. Because I enjoy copywriting, I review a lot of direct mail pieces in order to keep up with trends in copywriting - particularly in alternative or naural health, since this is a field of great interest to me. I am also keenly interested in how truthful these mailings are - and even more importantly, whether they are advertised with integrity.

(Quick disclaimer: I have nothing against people making money. I have nothing against people making a lot of money. I just like to work honestly and with integrity - and I want to buy from people who value honesty and integrity.)

So - back to the topic at hand. I recently received a mailing regarding a particular superfood that - according to the copy, "leaves broccoli, blueberries, flaxseed, soy and salmon in the dust!"

I love hearing and learning about various high-octane superfoods, so I read through the mailing. It discussed this near "perfect food" which has so many benefits, one would think that there would never be any need to eat any other food again. Throughout the mailing (by NorthStar Nutritionals, Frederick, MD), this miracle food was first referred to by the name "Salvia Hispanica L."

It was the next paragraph that made me smile - "And when modern researchers ran tests, THEY NEARLY FELL OVER...They noticed that Salvia Hispanica L. came in two colors - black and white. The black ones proved unremarkable. But the white ones tested off the charts!"

(I have to chuckle when I picture researchers nearly falling over in their excitement over a discovery. It's a great image!) The mailing talks about about how scientists bred a strain of white seeds, and named this "supergrain" Salba.

Right there, my little spider senses began tingling, and I stopped reading and went to the computer and looked up Salvia Hispanica L. which was clearly identified as "chia" seed within about 3 seconds on my Google search.

So, now I felt forearmed, and read the rest of the mailing, which goes on to sing the praises of Salba for a good 22 pages.

I sensed that the writers and nutritional company anticipated people like me looking Salvia Hispanica L. up on the internet, because later in the mailing, in a shaded box at the bottom of the page, we are warned not to be fooled by "wanna-be" seeds - which are the common black chia seeds that are offered for sale to consumers.

There is no doubt that the company is warning us, because this little box begins with the word, "WARNING:" (it reminds me of the warning label one might see on packs of smokes or on bottles of liquor).

I am not going to get into the debate about the virtues of "white chia" versus "black chia." If you would like to read a lively discussion on this topic, there is a great forum at Wordpress, with a thread started by "LeisureGuy" - and I highly recommend visiting and reading this discussion. Let's just agree that chia is, indeed, an outstanding food. I use it nearly every day, and I love it - it's the primary ingredient in my breakfast drink.

What I want to bring to the reader's attention is that - as exciting as this mailing makes Salba sound - remember that it is advertising copy. If the copywriter did his or her job correctly, the company's phones are undoubtedly ringing off the hook. And, hopefully the copywriter made a bunch of money on the mailing.

The other thing I want to bring the reader's attention to is the price. You have probably already guessed that this product is not cheap. They didn't spring for more than 22 pages of advertising to sell you something you can buy at your local health food store or favorite online vendor for just a few dollars.

Here are your price comparisons: The product being sold as Salba is approximately $30/pound (plus shipping and handling).

To be fair to that company, if I purchased their product on their auto-ship program, they wouldn't charge shipping. If I purchase 6 bottles, they would only charge $159.70 with free shipping - which drops the price to only $26.66 per pound.

Anyway, if we mosey over to our friendly and nutty buddies at one of my favorite online stores - Nuts Online (Yes, I'm partial to them, and No, they don't pay me to advertise their name - they don't even know I'm doing it) we can buy white chia seeds ($7.99/pound at this writing) OR black chia seeds ($6.99/pound at this writing). Plus shipping and handling. But, I can guarantee that they won't be charging you $26 to ship it. I just experimented with purchasing 5 Yummy pounds of white chia seeds - which dropped the price to $7.75/pound. Then, shipping to my address was only $7.87 via either FedEx or UPS, 2-day delivery.

So, for whatever my thoughts are worth: At the end of the day, I did feel that the mailing regarding Salba was truthful overall - at least about chia seed's benefits as a wonderful food source. I don't know enough about the company to voice an opinion on whether or not they value integrity. My only misgivings - if they be called that - were about the "warning," which I feel was uncalled for, and the price, which seems extremely high for what the product actually is.

Thanks for reading!

Law of Attraction and Attraction Marketing

2008-10-09T17:00:00.008-04:00

Most people in the online marketing or home based business industry have probably heard of the Law of Attraction by now. And from the many forums and discussions I've seen surrounding the subject, it appears that a lot of people are looking to tap into this universal principle to help improve their business - and therefore, their cash flow.

Fair enough. After all, why be in business if not, ultimately, to earn one's daily bread?

It seems that a natural direction to take would be to figure out how to market in such a way that attracts the right customer or prospect to one's product and/or business opportunity. Hence, we can now find the term "attraction marketing" springing up everywhere.

Regardless of whether you own a bricks and mortar business on Main Street or your own a home based business opportunity that you are marketing on the internet - you need customers. The Main Street business - if you are selling something that a good number of people in town or passing by want and need - will most likely get buyers stopping in since they see your sign and store. Or, if you advertise in the local flyers, the local buyers will visit.

CAVEAT: We must hope that before you put up your shingle on Main Street, that you did some market research to ensure that there was enough demand for your product in your area. After all, if you absolutely love surfing, and really want to sell surfboards but live 4 hours from the coast in the mountains, would it make sense for you to have a surf shop?

It is not much different on the internet or in network marketing prospecting (Again, we must hope that you have done some market research to see what people are buying online before you start your business). We need to target our market. We need to learn how to attract the right people to our product, service, or opportunity. How do we do that?

Fortunately, this is a learned skill. You won't master it overnight, but you can - and should learn how to understand and use the universal principle of the Law of Attraction and how it pertains to business. I am not going to go into this here. There are dozens - if not hundreds of sites out there now who can teach you these principles. Just do a "Google Search" for "Law of Attraction."

However, 2 of my personal favorites include http://humanscience.wikia.com/wiki/The_Secret_Project, and http://mental-science.com/.

In addition, I'd like to turn your attention to a few other specific learning resources to get you started on some action steps that you can begin using the second you read them.

If you are of a spiritual temperament, you can learn a lot through a very interesting site called "Growth Online," which discusses "fundamental factors that enable an individual to grow and evolve." From my own experience, whenever I feel that I am "stuck" or otherwise not succeeding, I have found that 100% of the time it's because I have somehow hindered my success through limiting thoughts and behaviors - essentially, not being able to "get out of my own way" as the saying goes.

This extensive site uses a little different terminology than you might ordinarily hear in more mainstream Law of Attraction sites. But, Growth Online, run by an individual speeding on his way to true enlightenment (if he's not already there), discusses techniques to encourage positive "Life Response."

I have utmost respect for this individual, whom you'll meet at his site. He's taught me more about self and business growth in months than any number of other experts have in years. I'll not say more - just visit and decide for yourself.

Another site that has helped me understand at a very deep level that "people do not join a business - they join YOU," is Magnetic Sponsoring which offers a very inexpensive book on the subject. Also visit another one of my sites, http://www.truthtowealthonline.com/ to get a great free ebook on the subject of why a lot of folks just don't make it in internet marketing. It's no-nonsense, and no-excuses. All business. Again. See for yourself.

Finally - and I don't have a specific site to send you to on this topic - if people don't join a business, and they join YOU, then it stands to reason that YOU are also a good part of the reason someone may PURCHASE something from you. Those of you who know me know that I have a small commercial website from which I market Portable Garages and Shelters - hence the name, http://www.portablegaragesandshelters.com/ (pretty clever, huh? :)

Now... I won't pretend that these structures are something that everyone just can't live without - but a lot of folks can and do use them. There are also many, many dealers out there selling them, and also several manufacturers for them.

So, if a lot of us are selling the same or similar items, why should they buy from me? I employ what is (in the advertising copywriting lingo) a USP - Unique Selling Proposition. What is unique isn't the product. It isn't necessarily the price.

It is this: I make sure that my customers know that I CARE about them more than the average salesperson does (or at least appears to). I make sure they see it in my writing, when I answer the phone, or when I respond to an email. Do I get every order? No. Of course not. But I get the orders from people who want to know someone cares about them as a person, and not just the money I earn from the sale. After all, we are all one in this universe. If I show caring for others, I'm showing the same for my self and business.

So, at the end of the day, it comes down to this: We need to learn how to dissolve our self-induced limitations, and get out of our own way to allow the universal principles to work through us.

The concepts can be learned. Practice them consistently and with faith, and you WILL succeed.

Poor Economy? Who Says So? And Why Do You Listen?

2008-09-23T16:57:00.003-04:00

I was just on the phone with one of my business partners. We got into a great conversation about how awesome our Global Resorts Network (GRN) business is, and how our product (the luxury vacation memberships) is truly changing the way the world looks at travel.

One of us (I don't remember who) mentioned something about how some folks really believe that "the economy is poor." We both kind of chuckled - we are both into practicing the principles expounded in what is commonly referred to these days as "The Law of Attraction," and my business partner said something to the effect that he sees this as a time of fantastic opportunity - and I fully agree!

Whenever I think of the Law of Attraction in terms of society and what the media report, I always go back to "you bring about what you think about," and if people are stuck on listening to reports that boo-hoo our economy, and if these same people complain to others about their finances, and then everyone at the party starts boo-hooing the perceived woes of the economy, well... Guess what?

So, as we were chuckling over the perception of "poor economy" he went on to say that:
1) People want to SAVE MONEY - which means they don't want to WASTE it! And our product SAVES people money on things that they really love to do - and they can do it totally without guilt! Kind of like eating chocolate, now that we know it's good for us. :) Besides, there are PLENTY of people who have the money to go on vacation. Ever been to the beach in summer? Ever visited New England during Leaf-Peeping time?

2) People are looking for ways to earn a few extra dollars. And we so happen to have an exceptionally sound, exciting, and even prestigious way to do so (if you're into the prestige of selling high end stuff)!

None of these ideas has "worry about the economy" attached. Instead, we are attaching "think about the opportunities" to our business and strategies to grow it.

By the way, it helps to stop watching so much TV. :)

Decisions...Decisions...How to Decide?

2008-09-11T15:34:00.002-04:00

In my last entry, we discussed finding legitimate home based businesses.

I also mentioned my own preference for marketing online versus home meetings - again, just my personal peference. There IS another reason for this preference, apart from my aversion to rejection. :) This other reason is that the internet gives us a far wider customer and prospect base than say, a community of 200 people might give us. Note: This is NOT to be used as an excuse to not join an opportunity. I personally know people who have made a LOT of money in Network Marketing (MLM) who started in their own little towns. So, don't use "I don't know a lot of people" as an excuse. I've used it myself. No more. Be done with excuses! Remember the old saying: "You can make excuses or progress, but you cannot make both."

That's not to say you should join an opportunity just because you feel you might be the only one missing the boat if you DON'T join - Your opportunity MUST resonate with you - of course, this is my opinion. My reasoning is this: If you do not just love the product, how excited do you think you will be when it comes time to share it? Hmmm.

Ok... Back to the subject at hand.

While you are searching for the right opportunity, here is another thing to consider:
DEMAND: What is the demand? What are people searching for on line? Example: A lot of people are looking for ways to recruit others to their opportunity. This is a biggie. There are ways to capitalize on this need. I don't know about you, but I have a strong dislike for prospecting. I say that prospecting stinks, and if I need to prospect (and who doesn't), then I need some help. You can become an affiliate of a few different prospecting and marketing programs, and advertise these to earn some cash. I personally use a few of these.

DETERMINE THE MARKET: But, how can you determine the market? How do you know whether people are looking for a particular item or not? If you sign up for an account at www.WordButler.com, you can use their reverse keyword search tool for about $20 per month or so. You can also get these tools if you sign up for Yahoo Sponsored Search or Google Ad Words.

There are other places to get reverse keword search tools, too. I am a Stores OnLine customer, and have a few websites hosted by them - and one of their tools for merchants is a Reverse Search Lookup - where we put in a keyword and we get a report on how many people are searching the internet for that particular term. Pretty valuable stuff! Search the internet for "keyword research tools" and you'll find something that can help you.

COMPETITION: Then, of course, you need competition. If no one else is selling the thing that you're interested in, chances are good it's not a strong enough product to sink your teeth into.

BACK TO WHAT INTERESTS YOU: I do think it's important to stay within your range of interests. For example, I mentioned that I don't particularly care for jewelry - but one of my friends does, and is a representative for a jewelry company that markets via home parties - and she's earning a nice chunk of cash doing so. She's not earning it from me - but evidently a lot of people like jewelry out there!

In my case, my husband and I really enjoy travel. So, that's why we market for Global Resorts Network (GRN). We love it! And some of the reasons we love it so much is because:
1) GRN's travel partner has more than 22 years experience in customer satisfaction;
2) We get paid fairly ($500 - $1,000 per sale before our expenses);
3) We had experience with some of the resorts even before we joined and they are top-notch; and
4) We can market the memberships without EVER having to tell someone that there is a business opportunity attached to it. Talk about a true stand-alone product. We have a retail-only site - where there is NO mention whatsoever of a business opportunity. Let's face it, not everyone who travels or loves to vacation is necessarily interested in going into the business end of things. It would be like trying to sell a car to someone who doesn't have or want a driver's license.

And YOU may not be interested in travel at all... So let's move on.

STAND ALONE PRODUCT: So... that's another thing you might want to consider - marketing a product that does not require that you build a sales organization. In our case, we welcome both aspects, as mentioned above. If you have a strong interest in natural health products, study the business model and see if you can market the product without the need to market the opportunity. Same goes with any area of interest to you.

Well, that's about all I have today on this topic! I'll write more as I become inspired.

Finding Legitimate Home Based Businesses

2008-09-11T14:54:00.000-04:00

I have been receiving a lot of emails and ads lately from people who know that I have some history in network marketing and home based business in general. I guess up here in New Hampshire, where the area boasts beautiful scenery - but not a whole lot of diversity in employment options - a lot of us are attracted to the idea of working at home.

Naturally, when someone gets involved with a network marketing group (aka MLM), the phones begin ringing while new representatives call up the top 10 people on their list (MLM folks, you know what I'm talking about!) :) and give invitations to their various home meetings.

I cannot tell you how many of these meetings I have been invited to - and how many times I have personally invited people to my own meetings. There is nothing wrong with this - many fortunes have been made in this way!

If I do not join a particular organization, it's not necessarily that I'm not interested in selling the product itself - in my case, it's just that I do not want to have to contacta network of people I know. I think I'm pretty much done with that method of marketing (I don't have a very thick skin for rejection).

But, because I do love selling, my own preference is to market via the internet.

Ah. Usually, when I'm having this discussion with someone about internet marketing, I get this question, "But Kathy, aren't there a log of internet scams out there?"

My answer is: "I don't know. I don't look for internet scams. I look for legitimate products, legitimate companies, and legitimate home based businesses." Kind of using the Law of Attraction... If I were thinking about being scammed, I'd probably find all sorts of ways to be scammed. Personally, I find lots of terrific products, and equally terrific companies.

As an aside: Because I enjoy copywriting, I do tend to look at my daily direct mail pieces I receive here at home (aka "Junk Mail"). And, because I do look fairly carefully at this stuff to see how other writers are promoting products and opportunities, I have to say that the ONLY time I have personally seen MLM or Network Marketing organizations that are scams or untrustworthy are some of the "Get Rich Quick" schemes, chain letters or astrology reports (from psychics who tell me that they are sincerely alarmed about what is about to happen to me - and that they can help me, but only if I respond to their offer) I've received via Direct Mail.

Most of the programs I've been involved with or invited to view are all high class, first rate programs with excellent products. It's just that a lot of them don't resonate with me on a gut level.

As an example, I love candles in my home - but I'm not interested in selling them. The same goes for jewelry. I just don't really care about it.

Now we can talk about selling things via Internet Marketing though! I love internet marketing. Again, I prefer to see the positive, real products and opportunities - and not spend my time looking for scams.

So, how can a person find a great internet marketing opportunity? Well, for starters - ignore all your spam emails. If you don't know the person writing to you, or it's just an advertisement for the latest "get rich quick" scam - just delete it. Don't spend any of your time or energy on it. None.

When you are searching for a product, check out the scam or ripoff websites to see who is saying what about a product or company (keep in mind that there will always be people who are merely complaining - ignore them. Go for the well-balanced, well-thought-out responses.

Check out the Better Business Bureau Online - and again, keep in mind that no one is perfect. Even the best business opportunity or product will have someone who is a detractor or has a complaint. Hey, it's a big world out there, and lots of people having lots of reactions to things. So, look for balance. If it seems like there is a heavy leaning towards problems with a company, and not a good enough rating, then keep on searching.

That's good for starters... I'll write again on this topic, because there is a lot to say! Suffice it to say that doing your due diligence BEFORE you join an opportunity is the prevention that is the best medicine!

Article Published in Ezine Articles!

2008-02-22T10:47:00.001-05:00

I am so pleased to announce that I just had one of my articles published in Ezine Articles (http://ezinearticles.com/?id=988616)! I have reprinted it here for your enjoyment! :) I hope you get something of value from it.

Internet Home Based Business - Scam, Hype, or the Real Deal? Due Diligence is the Key!

With all the online business opportunities flooding the market today it is becoming more difficult to tell the difference between the real deal and one that exists simply to take your money and disappear the next day.

On the other hand, an online business opportunity may NOT be a scam - but it may be so steeped in hype that you don't know WHAT to believe!

Remember, there is a difference between a scam and hype. "Hype" usually overstates the value of the opportunity and a "scam" presents an opportunity that does not usually exist.

Scams usually rear their ugly heads at the beginning of the sale pitch. You may read something like "make tons of money with little or no effort" (ask ANYONE who really works a successful home based business if they "did it in their sleep!").

Another popular come-on claims that you will be making money within 10 minutes of signing up (again - ask someone who IS making it if they turned a profit within 10 minutes! I know I didn't!).

There are NO business opportunities where you can make tons of money and not do anything. Yes, it IS possible to make enormous sums of money online. But overnight?

Not likely.

It can take weeks, if not months to generate enough traffic to your site to begin making money online! Is it worth the effort? Absolutely yes! ...IF you want it badly enough to actually do the work., and IF you are investing in an opportunity built on truth, integrity, and value.

Invest in a home based business opportunity only after doing your due diligence. A lot of the hype you read is designed to entice you act right now - impulsively, based on your emotions at the moment rather than based on calm, patient, and rational review of the opportunity.

Let me ask you this: If you have a hankering for a donut one day, and happen upon a donut franchise offered for sale, would you buy it, based on your immediate craving for a donut? Of course not!

Instead, you might ask: What is the demand is for a donut shop in the area (after all - why is it for sale to begin with?)? Is there enough traffic driving by to sustain a donut shop?

In other words, you would certainly not invest in a business based on your immediate emotional response. Well, the same logic should rule your decisions regarding a home based business opportunity.

Here are some things to consider as you continue your due diligence:

1) Can you speak with someone to get your questions answered before you invest? For example, in my case, I am fortunate that we have real humans who are ready to speak with a prospect about any questions they have - sometimes within 15 minutes of filling out a simple request - BEFORE they invest!

2) What is the demand for the product you will be marketing? Don't depend on the hyped advertising and testimonials to determine actual demand. Search the internet for the product you are considering. Is there a wealth of information, and numerous vendors selling the similar products? If so - that's a good thing!

If, however, the only listings showing up on your internet search happen to be the opportunity you're looking at - well... you might be better off finding a different product to market!
The particular opportunity that I represent taps into the luxury travel market. But I'm far from the ONLY person on the internet involved in the travel industry! Travel happens to be a multi-billion dollar a year business - and not likely to be monopolized by one product or opportunity.

3) Finally, does the company offer value to the customer? Does it operate based on truth, honesty, and integrity? Follow your gut instincts! If something doesn't sound right - if you feel that the customer isn't really getting something of value, then you are wise to have second thoughts before committing. After all - how hard are you going to work promoting a product that you don't feel good about?

So, learn the truth and the facts about what it really takes to start, build, and - most importantly - sustain a home based business BEFORE you invest! You will thank yourself later!

Kathy Tremblay loves internet marketing, which allows her to reach out to people all over the globe. She is an active affiliate of the ground-breaking Global Resorts Network business opportunity. "It's much easier to succed in home based business if you start with and build on Truth and Integrity - and this includes having a real product with real value to your customers!" she says. For more info, please visit her websites here: http://truthtowealthonline.com/ or http://jointhesuccessteam.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kathy_Tremblay

What's In YOUR Self-Development Library?

2008-02-21T14:47:00.000-05:00

I belong to a number of entrepreneurial and self-growth communities, and I'm always interested in hearing about what people are reading and learning from. What inspires them?

I started thinking about my own journey on the spiritual and entrepreneurial path, and noticed a trend in the types of books I was attracted to. I thought I'd share them with you now. If you are a person attracted to spiritual matters, home based business, self-development, the Law of Attraction, Quantum Physics, then some of these might sound familiar!

My all time favorite - probably because this book REALLY started me on "the path" is Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda, founder of the enlightened organization, Self Realization Fellowship (SRF). I continue to bow to this amazing guru, and learn something new every time I pick up the book (or anything else that comes from SRF).

Other favorites on my shelf include:
The Sedona Method, by Hale Dwoskin
Creating Affluence, by Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Quantum Healing, by Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Think & Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill
The Magic of Thinking Big, by David J. Schwartz, Ph.D.
Master Key System, by Charles F. Haanel
Mystic Christianity, By Yogi Ramacharaka (a pen name of William Walker Atkinson, a leader in the "New Thought Movement" of the early 1900's)
Money Freedom, by Patricia Remele
The Unmistakable Touch of Grace, by Cheryl Richardson
The Science of Getting Rich, by Wallace Wattles
Ask and It Is Given - Learning to Manifest Your Desires, by Esther and Jerry Hicks (The Teachings of Abraham)
A New Earth - Awakening to Your Life's Purpose, by Eckhart Tolle

As I look at this list of books (oh, there are many more!), it occurs to me that the reader may come away with the impression that all I care about is money since so many of these titles deal with financial gain.

But, while monetary gain IS important in this world (after all, how can I GIVE if I don't have something to give to begin with!?), I have come to understand that everything is interconnected - that there is no separation between anything.

And all of these titles - while there may be a reference to material wealth in the title - delve far, far deeper than the superficial "want for money."

When I talk about home based business (especially internet based business and marketing), my thoughts and excitement are not just about what's in it for me, but what's in it for others, as well. The more, the merrier!

What's got me so excited about home based business (especially Network Marketing - aka MLM)? In case you have missed my other entries, it's the fact that we are finally aligned with a business that's based on truth, integrity and value. Learn more here: http://www.truthtowealthonline.com/ or here: http://www.PresentingGRN.com

So what DOES one do with an English degree?

2008-02-18T14:24:00.000-05:00

I was just looking over my profile, and I chuckled at the part where I mention receiving a B.A. in English. Really... What WAS I thinking?

Actually, what I was NOT thinking was "Internet Marketing," or "Home Based Business." No. I think I had "Writer for National Geographic" on my mind - but since I feel out of place in Corporate America, I guess I'm glad it didn't go that way.

But, once - while working as a helo scheduler on the Ice (see my profile about Antarctica) I had the distinct pleasure of being on a helo trip with an absolutely brilliant National Geographic photographer (I think George Mobley is the name...), and watching him work really was an honor.

When I was about 7 years old, my dad asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I told him, "Either a fairy princess or a writer." He then wisely suggested that being a writer might be the way to go.

But who knew, in the late 1970's, what a writer would be doing in the 2000's? A short journey in the land of the freelance magazine writer proved quickly to pay about $2.00 per hour. That was my first foray into the world of "home based business." Surely, I was good and stuck if something didn't happen.

I almost gave up. I nearly bought into the idea that I just needed a "good job." Oh... the shudder of it all...

I played around with a variety of early models of home based businesses such as mail order. Once, my first husband and I tried an early model of network marketing. I think, if I could locate the bottles of the fiber wafers we stocked up on, they would probably be pretty moldy now - but the guy who introduced us to the concept was pretty successful. He drove a new Chrysler that his commissions paid for. Considering the fact that we drove around in a '72 Duster, that Chrysler looked pretty good.

I think that very short experience set the stage though. I have ALWAYS loved the concept of network marketing or direct selling as a home based business. Of course I never succeeded in those early years - but I never forgot about it (thank goodness!)!

Fast forward to the world of the Internet. It was on the Internet that I learned about the skill of copywriting (aka advertising writing). I love it! I have finally found a use for my writing skills. I now use them to create all the text on web pages on my Portable Garages website, http://www.portablegaragesandshelters.com/.

As far as my GRN business landing pages (http://www.truthtowealthonline.com/ and http://www.PresentingGRN.com hint... hint... hint) I have to hand the kudos for the development and writing of them to others! I've had a lot of people comment on the retail page (to sell vacation memberships to people who are not interested in the business opportunity end of things) - and while I wish I could take the credit for it, I cannot! Again, the great work of other copywriters: http://www.FineResortVacations.com

I use my skills when creating ads, running pay per click campaigns, doing internet research... and all sorts of things! I used help others develop resumes and cover letters - but I don't do much of that anymore. It's far too tempting for me to tell clients to forget about a 9-5 job and go for a home based business - preferrably an internet based marketing business - instead.

Anyway, to any of you aspiring writers or English majors out there - don't lose hope! While teaching is a grand and necessary occupation - it's certainly not the only one! Get some copywriting classes under your belt, join with a good home based business opportunity (pick me! pick me!), and broaden those horizons!

Truth & Integrity in my Home Business - Why Write About It?

2008-02-17T16:33:00.000-05:00

Me? A "blogger?" A friend said, "Why not? After all, you like to write - and you can type fast."

Well. This is only half-true. The true part is everything the friend said. The part that's not the half-true part is the "friend" part.

Actually the friend who said this was an imaginary friend - the one who lives in my hyperactive imagination and tells me all sorts of wonderful things about me when no one else will.

This is probably because I live in a very isolated part of the country and hardly ever interact with real people - but that's why I do business online! Where else can I get customers?

I digress... Perhaps we can chat more about that later.

But this helps me get straight to the point - which is Truth & Integrity in Business. The reason I'm really doing this.

I stopped working the "9 to 5" stint over a year ago. It just didn't resonate with me anymore. Probably because there was no money in it.

Every single J.O.B. (translate either "Just Over Broke" or "Jerked Outa Bed" - take your pick) I have had in the last 15 years started with:
1) Grant funds and
2) The hint of a glorious future ahead - uh... IF funding continued. Which it never did. Ever. And I suspect I'm not the only victim of this sad state of affairs.

So. All the stuff my guidance counselor in High School would have said if he had actually ever taken the time to speak with me (stuff like: "Go to college, and get a good job with a good company and good benefits - give them your best, and come time for retirement, you'll have a nice pension with nothing to worry about...") was the FIRST pack of lies I believed regarding business.

I've heard a LOT of lies in my life. Lies from kids, lies from an ex - and lies even from my imaginary friend who talked me into "just one more grant-funded job - because this one will be different."

But, I don't want to harp on lies. Being the positive and philisophical thinker that I think I am, I prefer to accentuate the positive, and talk about Truth and Integrity.

I actually practice truth and integrity in my home based businesses. That's why I named this blog the way I did.

I suppose if I ever become a real jerk, I can rename it. But, after all I've gone through to make it in business, and to build some business ventures that really do reflect truth, integrity, and value - I sincerely doubt that I'll turn to the dark side.

If you happen to be someone who wonders, "Gee, How can I also become a person who operates a home business based on Truth, Integrity, and Value?" I invite you visit my sites and explore a great opportunity with a terrific stand-alone product - and I invite you to get in touch with me to get your questions answered. The company has integrity. The product has value. We operate from Truth. A winner!

This is a blatant advertisement - I want you to visit my sites. I want you to examine the membership. I also want you to know that there is a growing population in the home business industry who are awakening to a higher consciousness - and our lives are amazing and peaceful.

Start here: http://www.truthtowealthonline.com/ - or, here: http://www.PresentingGRN.com - and check the retail site here: http://www.FineResortVacations.com It's fun!

If you happen to be in the market for a nice portable garage, greenhouse, motorcycle shelter or party tent, visit one of my other sites - where you will see how I put my money where my mouth is: http://www.portablegaragesandshelters.com/

Well. That oughta do it for now!