Archive for Writing
Thinking Positively for Maximum Growth
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Turn on the news and you’ll get an earful of how bad things are – not only in your community but around the world. Head to the coffee shop and conversations will battle for your attention as folks around you discuss their woes. The financial situation and the disposition of people around you are enough to make you want to bury your head in the sand.
Yet, when you can harness a positive mindset, the sky is the limit. A positive mindset not only helps you get through the tough times, it helps you profit from them and continue to grow and succeed. The trick, of course, is actually being able to think positively in tough times. Here are a few tips and ideas to help.
Gratitude
Gratitude is one of the most powerful emotions human beings are capable of. It’s right up there with love as a potent and significant emotion. One of the easiest ways to stay in a state of gratitude is to create a gratitude habit. Start or end each day by listing the things you’re grateful for. Also consider turning to gratitude when you feel negative emotions sneaking in and taking over.
Focus on What Is Working
If something is always going wrong, rest assured something is also going right. The trick is to focus on the things that are working. So make a list. Right now, make a list of the things that are going right in your life, in your business, and in your relationships. Print the list and hang it in a place where you often feel overwhelmed. When negative thoughts begin to creep in, take a glance at your list. Read it aloud if it helps. Absorb it and change your thoughts.
Create Positive Surroundings
Surround yourself with things that you love and people that support you. Emotions are contagious. When the people around you are negative, it’s easy to become negative too. However, the contrary is true too. When you’re surrounded by positive people it’s much easier to feel positive.
And when you’re surrounded by things you love and things that make you feel good, it’s easier to focus on the good. Make your home comfortable. Place personal pictures on your desk. Buy pillows and blankets in colors that you like. Paint your room or office a color that makes you smile. Change your surroundings and change your life.
Personal Care
Taking care of your mind and body makes a huge difference in your ability to stay positive. Exercise, eat well, get plenty of sleep and take time during the day to meditate. A little self-care goes a long way.
When it comes to maintaining a positive attitude, it can be a real challenge during the tough times. Small things matter and can make a big difference. Take care of yourself. Surround yourself with people and things that make you smile and remember to focus on what is good in your life. If you have to, make a list and keep it handy.
CONTEST: Blog More, While Stressing Less
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Is the thought of blogging for business stressing you out?
Is your blog neglected and in dire need of refreshment?
Do you want to attract the right type of client to your website?
If you answered YES to any of these questions have I got a treat for you! I am giving away ONE seat to Laurie Foley’s class “Blog More, Stress Less: Six Steps to a Sustainable Blog” valued at $497. You can find out more about the program here but now for the best part…how YOU can WIN!
We’re going to have a contest and here’s how it’s going to go:
#1 – To enter, simply create a post on your blog about why you would like to be in the class “Blog More, Stress Less”. You’ll even get bonus points in the contest if you link to Solopreneur.biz and the “Blog More, Stress Less” websites here:
http://blogmorestressless.com/
#2 – After you post to your blog, simply go to our contest page on Solopreneur.biz on Facebook and post a live link to your blog post.
That’s it! You’ll be entered into the contest. We will be reading your posts everyday and promoting them on the Solpreneur.biz on Facebook Wall and we’ll pick the final winner on Friday, March 2nd.
You’ve got nothing to lose (except perhaps STRESS) and everything to gain. Have fun and be creative, which relieves stress too! 
About Laurie Foley:
Laurie Foley is an online business coach with a thriving practice that specializes in branding. She got off to a rough start with her blog – Laurie wanted it to work but felt clueless and unsatisfied for months and months. Then she read in the New York Times that 95% of blogs are abandoned within 4 months, and she knew she wasn’t the only one who had been struggling to sustain a creative and helpful blog.
Laurie then spent a solid year (and a lot of money!) studying blogging to learn how to create a blog that is easy to sustain and helps you achieve more in your business as a coach or consultant. She put what she learned into practice and was awarded one of the “Top Ten Coaching Blogs” from the School of Coaching Mastery in 2009 and 2010 for her blog at lauriefoley.com
About Janet Slack and Solopreneur.biz:
Janet is a Professional Certified Coach, well-known author, speaker and blogger on topics related to running a successful small business. She has mentored, coached and supported hundreds of others as they started or grew their own small businesses. Her passion is coaching people to succeed in life through seeking fun, challenges and rewards whether they are small business owners, women in transition or even those conquering fear and learning to find joy. Her first book, Mind Your Own Biz, is a guide to starting and developing a coaching business. Janet is a coauthor of How the Fierce Handle Fear.
Every Blog Should Have…
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There are a few pages that every blog should have. These pages will help give your readers an idea of who you are and what you blog about. They’ll help your readers navigate your website. Also, some pages are required for other reasons, such as web regulations or search engine optimization.
Here are a few of the pages and widgets that every blog should have.
An About Me Page
At the end of the day, people want to know about who you are.
If they’re reading your blog and taking advice from you, they want to know who you are. They want to know about your past accomplishments and failures. They want to know what makes you who you are. They want to know your story.
Put this in an about me page and make it easy to find.
Contact Page
Not all bloggers want to be contacted. However, it’s a good idea to at least have a contact form. Why?
You could be contacted by potential partners or someone could be considering referring a buyers to your site and just wanted to ask you a question.
You don’t have to answer every single question you get, but it still helps to have contact information up.
Social Media & RSS
Give your readers a number of different ways to follow you.
In your sidebar, have buttons that allow people to follow you on Twitter, on Facebook and even on Google+.
You should also have a clearly displayed RSS button that allows people to subscribe to your feed.
The Best Posts
Also in your sidebar should be a list of your best posts, most popular posts or your personal top picks.
When someone lands on your site, they don’t necessarily just want to read your blog in chronological order. A lot of people would prefer to start by reading your 5-10 best articles to decide if they like your content.
If they do, then they’ll start reading your blog regularly. Having these 5-10 top posts easily accessible helps give new visitors the best stuff right up front.
Privacy Policy, Disclosures, Sitemap and Terms of Service
These four pages are meant mostly for search engines and regulatory agencies.
If you’re using Google AdSense, collecting email addresses or using tracking software, you need a privacy policy.
Google strongly recommends having both a privacy policy and a terms of service. Not having them could be detrimental to your ranking. They’re also required for AdSense.
Having a sitemap will help search engines index your site.
These are a few of the pages and items that every single blog should have. Adding them will increase both your usability and your compliance.
Tips for Repurposing Your Content
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Content is an investment. You spend a lot of time writing it. You probably also spend a lot of time planning and researching it. It makes good business sense to make the most of your investment. When you repurpose and reuse your content, you maximize your return. Here are five tips and ideas to repurpose and reuse your content.
Build it up - Gather articles that fit together nicely and create a report. You’ll want to add an introduction and a conclusion. You may also need to add some transitions and polish the content to fit a cohesive theme. To monetize the content, consider adding affiliate links where appropriate. You can also include the occasional product or service promotion for your own business.
Break it down – If you have existing reports, then they’re perfect to create articles and blog posts. You have many options here, too. You can simply pull apart segments of the report to create articles. Add an introduction and conclusion paragraph and you’re ready to publish. Or you can take it further and create lists and other information-packed articles.
For example, if you have a “how to” report with ten steps and ten pages of content, you could create an article that’s a much abbreviated version of the report. List the ten steps with a one or two sentence explanation. You could also write a “three things you need to do to…” article. In fact, with ten steps you could write three of those articles.
Republish old content with updates - Often evergreen content isn’t as evergreen as you hope. The world moves quickly and most industries grow and change regularly. Take a look at your “evergreen” articles and blog posts. How can you refresh them with updated content?
Partition ebooks - This method is similar to breaking down reports to create articles and blog posts. You can break ebooks down into reports, articles or blog posts. In fact, you can get quite a lot of content from an ebook. Take a look at the ebooks you’ve purchased or written and brainstorm content ideas.
Group reports – If you’re looking to create a new information product, consider grouping them to create an ebook. You’ll want to organize the reports in a logical manner. You’ll likely also need to add an introduction as well as a conclusion. Transitions will be necessary and you can add some nice graphics. Add checklists, worksheets and lists to add value to your ebooks and reports for extra value.
Repurposing your content is a smart business strategy. With each new piece of content you create, consider how you might be able to use it in the future. Content is essential for online business success. Make the most of your efforts and maximize your content to the fullest.
Secrets of Email Subject Lines – Wisdom and Fun
Posted by: | CommentsMy friend and colleague, Linda Claire Puig, has me wondering how she has grabbed so much wisdom and fun at the same time!
You see, she has an important free 75 minute training on Tuesday (Oct 11th) called “Subject Line Secrets: How to Get Your Emails Opened and Acted Upon So You Can Have a 6-Figure Business and the Life of Your Dreams!” If wisdom and fun are a combo that work for you, you will want to be there.
Here’s the wisdom:
Your email subject lines are vital to your success. If your readers don’t open your emails, they won’t sign up for your services, buy your products, or register for your programs.
It doesn’t matter how amazing or persuasive your information and product are. If your subscribers don’t open your email and see your words, all you get is wasted marketing efforts and disheartening results.
Linda is an expert in subject lines and taught me tips that make a difference in my business to this day. More than 3000 people have already signed up to learn from her on October 11th. Wouldn’t it be wise for you to be there too?
Here’s the fun:
Because she is such a wise biz person, Linda is giving gifts to you just for registering for this exclusive training! First, you will receive Linda’s “Subject Line Success Checklist” which is a $79 value. Then you will also receive a fun series of short training videos from Linda about using newsletters and other emails to create a 6-figure business (videos that were shot in Italy as she runs her own 6-figure business abroad!).
And there is fun for me too. Linda is wise enough to have a contest for those of us who are recommending her free training to see who can get the most signups. She’s giving us great gifts from Italy – including time in her home there that goes to the big winner. (I am currently in 5th place so I am thinking more about the Italian pizza prize. That’s fun too!) If you sign up to help me, I guarantee Linda will help your business as well.
I’ll be joining Linda on the “Subject Lines Secrets” training for a dose of her wisdom and a side of fun. I hope you’ll be there too.
WHEN: Tuesday, October 11, 2011, at 1 pm Pacific, 2 pm Mountain, 3 pm Central, 4 pm Eastern, 9 pm UK (London), 10 pm Italy, 7 am Australia (Sydney, Oct. 12)
