26th June 2008
Winclear :Erase Search History
A small piece of spyware can affect the individual’s PC very adversely. An affected PC rapidly becomes infected with wide arrays of spyware elements. Often, users notice unwanted degradation and behavior in their PC’s performance. I have known friends complain that their software keeps notifying them when it eliminates spyware and malware (close cousins) so they disabled it.
However, this last feature often comes as an obstacle for the parents. They think that keylogging their children’ online activity equals to spying and that such harsh supervision in not required for their beloved ones. Well, even if your child is very smart and kind, he or she is still a child so there is still a threat that they can make a wrong choice. And the consequences may be horrible. There are online predators that try to gather information about children in various chat rooms to take hostile actions against them in the real life. Even though children who realize they should keep their private information really private, can reveal some bits of information to a predator, who will then stick the facts together and find out what he needs. Data loggers, key loggers are just a few programs which harvest info from your computer. Winclear is the only program created specially to auto remove such spywares. The company responsible for SpectorSoft is currently defending itself stating that its program was never marketed as a way to steal information. That is why every computer owner needs winclear.
Protect With Winclear :Internet Sales History
Until you remove the malicious software from your computer, your account is still vulnerable. Your email account has also been compromised so it is important that you change the password for your account after your computer is cleaned. If the malicious software is still on your computer, someone is able to read your emails, delete your emails or send emails from your account. Winclear is the only software which is capable of removing keylogger programs. You will need to work with cookies – however if you know when to delete them and when not to you can still enjoy the conveniences they provide. Winclear has been the industry leader in fighting keyloggers for the last 8 years.
Winclear:
Identity thieves have developed yet another scam to trap unsuspecting victims into revealing their passwords login names account numbers and other personal information without realizing they are doing so just by opening an electronic greeting card. That is the reason why you need Winclear installed onto your computer. There are also a number of programs that claim to be anti-spyware that do not work. Protect your computer security by using Winclear! More about Winclear here: Winclear.
Financial Aid Options
Before entering college, you may find yourself pondering exactly how you will be able to pay for college. Many public colleges and universities cost thousands of dollars, while private colleges and universities can cost $10,000, $20,000, $30,000, or even more just to attend. Before getting too worried about these high prices, it is important to know that help is just a click of the computer mouse away, as the internet can help you to find the financial aid option that is right for you!
FAFSA First
Without knowing any of the options, it is important to first fill out a FAFSA form with your school’s financial aid department. The FAFSA form allows you to tell the federal government all of your financial information. Once they have that in hand, they can determine what your best financial aid options are.
Loan Options
One option often used by students entering college is loans. Loans, like the federal PLUS loan, Perkins loan, Stafford loan, and FFEL loan, can all help you to pay your way through college without putting a dime down to do so. You will, of course, be required to pay back some or all of these loans (depending upon your financial status and the financial status of your parents), but loans can be an effective way of paying your way through college.
Grant Options
Another option is grants, which can be obtained through the government (like the Federal Pell Grant, for example) or through your particular school. Grants pay your way through college and do not need to be repaid once you graduate. These grants are usually only “granted” to those who are in need of financial aid, but be sure to apply for them if you think that you are eligible.
Other Financial Aid Options!
Other less conventional methods of financial aid are also available to college students. Federal work study allows students to work at colleges and universities while they are enrolled there for several hours per week. Money earned can then be used as a means of financial aid. Check with your specific college or university for other financial aid options that may exist and be at your disposal.
This article is distributed by NextStudent. At NextStudent, we believe that getting an education is the best investment you can make, and we’re dedicated to helping you pursue your education dreams by making college funding as easy as possible. We invite you to learn more about Financial Aid Options at http://www.NextStudent.com.
My goal is to help every student succeed – education is one of the most important things a person can have, so I have made it my personal mission to help every student pay for their education. Aside from that, I am just a pretty average girl from SD.
Perception
My friend Donald said to me one evening, “this is what I admire about you, whenever you say you’re gonna to do something, YOU DO IT”! People always ask me how do I stay motivated? How do I stay encouraged? Whenever I am asked this question my answer is always the same. I tell them that I stay focused and motivated by remaining in an autopilot mode. However, when I ponder that question on a deeper spiritual level, I come to the realization that the true answer is much more involved than the “auto-pilot” response. Would you like to know what the real answer is? Keep reading.
For those of you that follow my writing, you may have read a story that I wrote entitled Zenobia’s Life Lessons A True Testament of Love. In that narrative, I briefly tapped on the fact that I once lived in a shelter. How I ended up in a shelter in the first place was because my job downsized and relocated to Atlanta. My employer offered me the chance to keep my job by moving with the company, but unfortunately, they only offered financial relocation assistance to the higher ups. So there I was. Two young children to support and the future for employment looked grim.
I applied for unemployment and ultimately had to apply for Welfare for the first time in my life. During this time, I began to prepare my children to live in a place that in my opinion at the time, was the worst case scenario in the WORLD. My children were about 7 and 8 years-old. I knew how impressionable young children were at that age, so it was acute to their emotional development the manner in which I informed them of the news.
My children and I used to have what we called “family rap sessions”. These sessions took place once per week, usually after dinner while sitting in a circle on our living-room floor, or during dinner seated at the kitchen table. My children grew to love and look forward to these sessions because it gave them the opportunity to vent to me anything, in any manner (remembering that I was still the parent of course), and I could and would not reprimand them for what we discussed afterwards. We simply would talk and I would offer suggestions and solutions for them to handle any of the small problems that a child would encounter at their young age. I learned years later that this was the enzyme for the open relationship that I maintain with them to this day.
This is when I broke the news. We would be moving soon so I paid careful attention when describing the shelter to them. It was significant that they quickly developed a positive outlook on where their new home would soon be. I centered their attention on a few of the key things that they could do while living there that I disallowed or did not provide to them while living in our home. I figured that this was a way to encourage them to become excited about our move.
I told them what happened with the job and that we had to move out of our apartment soon. After each of them asked me where we would be moving to, I described this wonderful place, where kids could all play together after school (my children were “latch-key kids”, and weren’t allowed to go outside after school having to come home and do homework). I described a place where they would get unlimited food and snacks, (I never bought sugary; drinks and limited the amount of snacks that I kept in the house). I told them how we each would have our own beds (they used to share a bed), and they would get the opportunity to meet and play with other boys and girls. At the shelter, bedtime was moved back an hour later to 10:00. If you have ever been 7 or 8 years-old, when a parent tells you that your bed and playtimes were going to be extended, that was more than enough reason to look forward to going to this place wouldn’t you think?
The “Place”. That is the code-name we agreed to use when speaking about the shelter (I trained my children to be really good at keeping a secret, and they were. I am sure that this was due to the fact when I was young, I was such a BLABBER mouth. As a result of growing up and understanding the significance of “keeping a secret”, I developed an inbred disrespect for those who could or would not keep their mouths closed.). That was our code word used when we were discussing the shelter amongst people that we knew. I did not want anyone to know that we were living there. I was ashamed. During this time, no one ever found out. I was extremely mortified for being in that situation and I was still trying to come to grips with hitting rock bottom and having to go there in the first place, even though my children adjusted impressively well.
Until I had to experience life in a shelter as an eyewitness, I looked at those who lived in these alien places and wondered what happened in their lives that put them there? That would never be me, or so I thought.
Usually when you hear the word SHELTER, at least for me, I envisioned and related those places to the types of people that I expected to live there. People taking food from garbage cans, dirty, grimy people begging for money, bodies covered with paper bags while lying on park benches. Others sleeping in subways, walking the streets pushing shopping carts filled with what appeared to me to be nothing more than garbage. Not realizing that to the person pushing the cart, the contents often held their entire life. How do those sayings go? One man’s garbage is another man’s gold? Don’t judge a man until you’ve walked a mile in his shoes? No truer sayings were ever penned.
I learned from this experience just because you live, and maybe even sleep in the street, does not necessarily mean that you are dirty or grimy for that matter. You just do not have a descent place to call home. The average person is just a paycheck away from being homeless anyway aren’t they? That is what I was told most of my life.
Immediately, and I mean “as soon as I put my hand on the doorknob to open the doors” to the “Place”, I began to see just how wrong my perception of the homeless and shelters really were.
“How did I get here?” I asked myself, as I led my children inside. I was neither dirty nor grimy. I did not beg others for money. My body was never covered with paper bags to shield the evening wind from my person, nor did I push a cart filled with what appeared to be garbage. I just did not have a place to live. I became one of the very people that I grew up loathing. I was one of THEM now. I had become one of the homeless. TALK ABOUT THE SHOE BEING ON THE OTHER FOOT!!!!
Life was always and continues to be my BEST teacher, coupled with final exams that are powerfully honest.
I remember for the duration of my stay at the “Place”, especially around shower time, when my children would play and eagerly jump into the stall to wash their little bodies, I stood in the shadows as a guard ensuring no harm would come to my little life sources. Nonetheless, after the little ones were snuggled in bed, I too stood in the shower. However, I was not lathering my body to simultaneously relieve my mind of the tribulations that I contended with day-to-day as I should have. Nor was I luxuriating in the gratification that one feels as you allow the rhythmical current of warm water to cleanse away your “9 to 5″ anxieties. Uh-uh. Not this time. Want to know what I was doing? Crying.
I knew in order for my children to continue to have a “positive perception” of the “Place”, I had to become their compass. Subconsciously they received their direction of how they were supposed to feel about living in this new environment from my actions and/or reactions. Hence, I had to put on my game face. I had to be ready to play my “A” game “e-a-c-h”-and-”e-v-e-r-y” morning. Miraculously I trained myself to remain in autopilot mode. I did not allow myself to think about what had to be done. I just did whatever had to be done for the emotional betterment of my children. I did not want them to walk away from the “Place” feeling “less than” or “not as good as” because they had to live in a shelter. I did not want them to feel the shame and guilt that I was saturated with 24-7. After all, I was the adult. I was supposed to be able to rationalize my situation and handle it wasn’t I? I was supposed to take charge, make everything better. Essentially, on the outside I performed as though my stay there was as gratifying as drinking an ice-cold glass of lemonade on a lazy, muggy Sunday afternoon. I should have won an Academy Award for my performance.
For weeks each night, while everyone was fast asleep, in the darkness, I stood. Barefoot, in the corner of a damp, rusty, stale smelling shower stall, swallowed up by my aloneness, I cried. I stuffed my washcloth deep inside my mouth to muffle my robust sounds of hopelessness. I would repeat this late night ritual for the duration of my stay at the “Place”.
My children never knew the anguish and torment that I withstood because of our living arrangement until approximately several years later when I decided to once-and-for-all justify us living in a shelter. I was still harboring guilt for placing them in such a place. Even then, years later while sharing and clarifying my grief to them, I cried. This time we all wept together. They were growing up. They understood.
The real answer to how I stay motivated and encouraged is due to my perception of life. The way I perceive life is indicative to the way that I respond to life’s challenges. During my stay at the “Place” life so affirmatively atoned me in an earth shattering way. Today, when faced with a situation, a task, or a problem that initially appears to be too much for me to handle, I am reminded of my stay at the “Place”.
Today, I ALWAYS ensure that I have a job, I ALWAYS ensure that I have my OWN house or apartment. I ALWAYS try to exude a “rock-of-Gibraltar” persona when forced to mesh with life’s ups and downs. I have to. There is no alternative for ME.
In conclusion, I believe if a person can live on the streets and survive off of the remnants found in the pit of a garbage can, if they can, make gold from discarded junk and generate heat to warm their bodies from plastic and/or paper bags on a day-to-day basis, my life and the slings and arrows and uncertainties that I must brave are as easy as taking candy from a baby. My perception in and of itself, is what motivates ME to survive.
How you view a situation dictates the outcome. Perception is everything. Whether you want to believe it or not, and everything is perception.
(c) 2005 by C.V. Harris. All rights reserved.
C.V. Harris pens with ease about topics others would rather forget. She has the unique capability of drawing insightful parallels from real life scenarios forcing one to think, think and re-think again. She lives in New Jersey with her two young-adult children Michael and Ashlei, and her favorite family member of all, her dog Mitzi. View her Blog at http://www.onewriterwriting.blogspot.com, or send an e-mail to her at onewriterwriting@hotmail.com. She is currently working on her Memoir and a book of short stories.
24th June 2008
What Every Tyro Has to Know About Online Sports Results Wagers
Connect man’s most important pursuits and you have got is a rage that’s universally titled a sportsbook wagering web location. Seriously: what could be more inventive… Envision a gathering of devotees rooting for their favorite players, and regularly wagers are sure to be advertised in addition to the bluster. Aiming to catch more of the enjoyment, onlookers usually endeavor to augur who will win in the forthcoming race. All this eventually evolves into a friendly bantering race called sportsbook wagering web location.
So it may well seem neurotic, but, rather, sports wagering is really simply an amusing entertainment and of teaming up with one’s fellow sports admirers. You can wager a a minute sum of kitty and yet have a amazing time. Read on sundry infos to help you get started sports wagering.
In order to wager, you’d be well advised to check out a sportsbook wagering web location, i.e. a setup that receives sportsbook wagering web location. In the U.S.A., there’s four states where to go for sports wagering legally, but semi-legally you can attempt it essentially anywhere if you find a bookie and you’re legally of age. On the list of sports events you’ll have a choice of wagering on are pro alongside college league football plus basketball, professional baseball, professional hockey, alongside horse and dog racing. Punters will have the option of placing wagers on the overall combined score of a game or fight, in what round a given competitor will be defeated, and even if a given tossed coin in a game or fight will come down heads or tails.
The odds maker establishment bank on mere numbers to assist you discern which players you suppose will win. First off, there’s the spread, or points lead given to a the weaker side that is expected to fail by a given number points. You will find plenty of different manners of wagers: straight, parlay stakes, teasers, including, obviously, over/unders, i.e. bets on the totalized points achieved in the struggle by both participating competitors, the straight being the most prevalent in sports wagering.
Why not do some test runs, and enjoy the amusement for good measure… But remember to ensure that you won’t get gripped and deplete your entire social security checks on a whim… For you will most likely catch yourself distressful all your life… Sign up for the best legal online sports wager games here.
No Matr How Goud The Infomation…
Typos, misspellings, hideous grammar, exclamation overkill and run-on
sentences all undermine a Web site’s message. Your reader will have to
work too hard, and you won’t have that reader long.
Grabbing a reader’s attention is a key point in getting your message out,
but there is such a thing as too much grabbing–and the wrong kind of
attention. Negative attention can lose a great many visitors and potential
clients.
Clean content and neat appearance are not merely a matter of
aesthetics. It goes to the core of establishing trust and reliability between a Web site and visitor. Relate it to a deli. A potential customer heard about you through an ad. Cool ad, got his/her attention, so he/she stops by on the way home. On the outside everything looks nice, meets
expectations, so the visitor walks in, looking for tonight’s sandwich
goodies. Once inside it only takes a few seconds to notice the dust on
the shelves, the dirty footprints, the unidentifiable smudges on the glass
counter-fronts. No matter how good the food smells, if the counterperson
has dirty hands or there are papers littering the floor, how many people
are going to feel comfortable reaching over a crumb-covered counter to
pay for their dinner?
That may sound like a silly comparison to Web content, but really, it’s not
so far off. The principle stands: clean, neat, appealing content builds
comfort and trust. Sloppy, haphazard or distracting content repels, and
breaks down credibility. And the principle is very easy to apply to all
Web content. Just remember the acronym, “Get It All”
G- et another set of eyes to take an objective look
E- xtra attention to spelling lends credibility
T- ell your message with exciting words; don’t rely on graphics
I- talics, bold and all caps are rough on the eyes, use sparingly
T- ake the time to read the entire content… backwards (you’ll be amazed
at what you’ll notice this way)
A- lways do one last look-see after it’s finished
L- et all content sit for at least a full day before a final edit
L- ose the guesswork–keep a dictionary and grammar/editing reference
at your fingertips, and use them often.
Whether your content is a one-line ad or five-page report, taking that
little extra time and effort will improve your site, build customer
confidence and add respectability. Saving time now and risking poor
content quality can end up costing you more later. After all, the object is
to get and keep customers at your site; to keep them reading. How long
would you have kept reading this article if it had all been written like that first paragraph?
Cherie’ Davidson is a freelance writer and Web content developer who
lives in the Pacific Northwest with her toy poodle, Auggie Dog, her
“energy muse.” She has her own freelance writing business, Suitable
Words Publications (http://www.suitablewords.com), where she writes
and promotes Website content, designs and develops e-books, hires out
as a copywriter and writes a wide variety of articles and essays. She has
started a blog at http://suitablewords.blogspot.com and a free article site
at http://www.writerscontent.com
19th June 2008
Northern Exposure (Season 3) DVD Review
Nominated for a numerous of Emmys and other critical awards, Northern Exposure is part-drama, part-comedy, a show successfully built on the tried and true premise of a “fish out of water”. During its short five-season run, the show’s rapier like wit and originality earned it a place among some of the best television shows of its era…
Northern Exposure follows the life of recent medical school graduate Joel Fleishman (Rob Morrow) who is informed that he must work in a small town in Alaska in order to fulfill the requirements of his medical school loan. Making matters worse, he’s the only doctor in the small town which is filled with eccentric characters from every walk of life. The wealthy entrepreneur Maurice Minnifield owns the town (named Cicely), and he’s determined to transform it into an ideal vacation paradise. Other memorable characters include pilot Maggie O’Connell (Janine Turner), radio deejay Chris Stevens (John Corbett), filmmaker Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows), and husband/wife restaurant owners Holling (John Cullum) and Shelly Vincoeur (Cynthia Geary)…
The Northern Exposure (Season 3) DVD features a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere “The Bumpy Road to Love” in which Maggie learns of Rick’s extensive past of lovers when a statue is commemorated in his honor. Meanwhile, a disagreement hinders Maurice’s pursuit of Officer Semanski and Joel is kidnapped by a reclusive mountain man and his hypochondriac wife… Other notable episodes from Season 3 include “Jules et Joel” in which Joel gets injured, prompting a visit from his twin brother Jules, and “Things Become Extinct” in which Joel experiences feelings of isolation as he searches for other Jews living in Alaska…
Below is a list of episodes included on the Northern Exposure (Season 3) DVD:
Episode 16 (The Bumpy Road to Love) Air Date: 09-23-1991
Episode 17 (Only You) Air Date: 09-30-1991
Episode 18 (Oy Wilderness) Air Date: 10-07-1991
Episode 19 (Animals ‘R’ Us) Air Date: 10-14-1991
Episode 20 (Jules et Joel) Air Date: 10-28-1991
Episode 21 (The Body in Question) Air Date: 11-04-1991
Episode 22 (Roots) Air Date: 11-11-1991
Episode 23 (A-Hunting We Will Go) Air Date: 11-18-1991
Episode 24 (Get Real) Air Date: 12-09-1991
Episode 25 (Seoul Mates) Air Date: 12-16-1991
Episode 26 (Dateline: Cicely) Air Date: 01-06-1992
Episode 27 (Our Tribe) Air Date: 01-13-1992
Episode 28 (Things Become Extinct) Air Date: 01-20-1992
Episode 29 (Burning Down the House) Air Date: 02-03-1992
Episode 30 (Democracy in America) Air Date: 02-24-1992
Episode 31 (Three Amigos) Air Date: 03-02-1992
Episode 32 (Lost and Found) Air Date: 03-09-1992
Episode 33 (My Mother, My Sister) Air Date: 03-16-1992
Episode 34 (Wake Up Call) Air Date: 03-23-1992
Episode 35 (The Final Frontier) Air Date: 04-27-1992
Episode 36 (It Happened in Juneau) Air Date: 05-04-1992
Episode 37 (Our Wedding) Air Date: 05-11-1992
Episode 38 (Cicely) Air Date: 05-18-1992
Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of the Northern Exposure (Season 3) DVD.
17th June 2008
The Best Way to Practice Your Instrument
Believe it or not, the biggest reason why some students make such slow progress on
their instrument is not that they aren’t practicing enough; it’s that they aren’t
practicing correctly. Many students waste valuable time trying to get their music to
sound right, but often feel that their progress doesn’t reflect the time they’ve put
into it.
Bad practicing doesn’t just mean that you are not solving your problems, it often
means that you are reinforcing errors, and actually making it more likely that you’ll
make those errors again. In that regard, you might actually be worse off after a bad
“practicing session” than if you were to keep the instrument closed and in its case.
The main culprit with bad practicing is the reinforcing of errors. It happens this way:
the student plays through the music until a mistake is made. He stops because he
hears something wrong. He then fixes that note, and continues on from that spot.
And that is the error!
This is what’s really happening: when a mistake is made, the error really happened
on the note or two before the mistake. Our brains are always thinking ahead, usually
by three or four notes. So if you make a mistake, whatever your brain told you
regarding getting to that note was the actual error. When you make a mistake, you
need to go back several notes, slow things way down, and program into your fingers
how to get to the next note.
When you fix errors in this way, it will sometimes surprise you how far back you
need to go to solve it. But if all you do is fix the note that you heard being played
incorrectly and then move on, you are only reinforcing the error, and actually
making things worse. Students with bad practicing technique actually spend more
time trying to undo mistakes caused by bad practicing technique than they do any
other kind of mistake.
So here’s a summing-up of what you should be doing, as well as some other hints
that will allow you to use your time more efficiently:
1- Don’t just “play through” your music. When you make a mistake, go back a few
notes, and play through the trouble-spot at half the tempo. Do this several times,
deliberately and slowly placing the fingers until the trouble is worked out. Then
slowly increase tempo.
2- Do some silent practice. Do the fingerings while singing through the music,
especially if you play a brass instrument, where constant playing can be tiring.
3- Use a metronome. A metronome will not result in an unmusical performance.
The metronome will keep your tempo steady, and will greatly discipline your use of
practice time.
4- Play your instrument every day. You will begin to lose the fine muscle-control
you’ve been developing by skipping days. Once in a while, you need a break, but try
to practice six out of every seven days.
There is another aspect of music performance that holds musicians back, and that is
the inability to hear oneself objectively. If your practicing technique seems fine, but
you just don’t seem to be improving, it’s usually because you are not really aware of
how you really sound. The best way to hear yourself the way you truly sound is to
record yourself. Get a digital or tape recorder, set up a good microphone, and play.
The first time you hear yourself playing on tape is usually a negative experience, but
don’t let it discourage you! Try to listen critically but constructively. Instead of
getting down on yourself, think of the ways you want to improve, and then go back
to practicing. Diligence is the key. Practice every day, and record and listen to
yourself at least once a week. You’ll reap the benefits almost right away.
Gary Ewer is a veteran music teacher, clinician, composer and arranger. He is most
well known as the author of The
Essential Secrets of Songwriting and
Gary Ewer’s Easy Music Theory
Gary has taught music to students of every age group, from five-year-olds in
elementary school, through to university-level musicians. This enormously wide-
ranging scope has given him a unique perspective on how people learn. Teaching is
his passion.
He is in demand as an adjudicator, clinician, conductor and composer. His music
has been commissioned and performed by ensembles from amateur level through to
professional, including the world-renowned Elmer Isler Singers, The Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation, Symphony Nova Scotia, and others.
He currently teaches orchestration, theory, ear training and choral conducting at
Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
16th June 2008
Blog Strategies: Building Your Fan Base
Very few people go through life hoping no one will notice them. This is especially true if you have been bitten by the blogging bug and spent the last few month, weeks or even days churning out post after post of clever repartee. But in order to build the fan base you secretly crave, you have to let blog surfers know where you’re at and why you are worthy of their undying devotion.
1. First, be sure your blog is search engine friendly. It will help the search engines pick up and categorize your site easier. Edit your blog template to include a meta tag with search terms related to the content of your blog.
2. Then hang out your ‘open for business sign’ by getting your blog listed in directories and on topsites. Choose your directories wisely as most require a link back and you do not want clutter up your blog with fifty pages of directory links. Ideally, you want to get listed in directories with a high page rank but don’t completely discount newer directories. You will, usually, get included into newer directories much faster because they are trying to build their database as quickly as possible.
3. Submit your RSS link to syndication directories. Many aggregators look here for content to offer their subscribers.
4. Write and submit articles to article repositories. Content is king and article directories have exploded on the scene as a great way to get it quickly. It doesn’t matter if you are the CEO of a megastore or a regular ole Joan, they’ll take what you have to offer. Be sure to edit for grammar and spelling and include an anchored link to your blog in the author bio section.
5. Weigh in on controversial topics related to the content of your blog. Let’s face it, we are a nation that loves drama and people will search for and visit places that offer information or opinions on the latest scandals.
6. Be sure to provide a link to your blog on your website and vice versa. Also most forums allow you to add a signature to your posts. Write something witty and include a link to your blog.
7. Join a blog community such as Blog Explosion or Blog Clicker. You earn credits by visiting blogs listed in the community directory which translates into return visits to your site. You can also use earned credits to purchase ad space in the form of a banner rotation or being featured on the opening page of the site.
8. Be active in the blogosphere. Most bloggers will allow you to link to add a link to your site so visit other blogs and leave comments. DO NOT SPAM! The quickest way to lose fans is to spam them. You are much more likely to receive visits if you offer thoughtful comments relevant to the post.
9. Take part in a banner exchange. It is the same type of situation with the blog communities. You advertise banners on your site in exchange for the partner site advertising yours.
10. Join a webring or two or three. Webrings are a great way of hooking up with likeminded bloggers and to gain traffic via the host’s marketing efforts.
11. Exchange blogroll links with bloggers whose internet homes you like to visit.
12. Slap your slogan and blog address on a t-shirt or coffee mug and either sell or give away as apart of a contest. Cafepress is a wonderful resource for creating and selling personalized items.
13. Write a Meme and tag others with it and/or submit it to Meme directories.
14. Give out awards. Be sincere about this and make sure it is related to the content of your blog. (i.e. if you are a blog template designer, give out awards to blogs whose designs you like.) Make sure the award links back to your site.
15. Tell people about it. Recruit visitors offline by talking to internet savvy friends and family about your blog. A guerilla marketing tactic is to print a bunch of business cards with your blog address and leave them in public places. Cheesy, yes but hey people are curious.
Despite what you see on reality television, there is no such thing as instant fame. It takes patience, persistence and perseverance to snag and keep worshippers. These tips will help put you on the road to deification. The rest, my friend, is up to you.
Happy blogging.
Indigo Black is a freelance writer with an innumerable number of interests that include: writing, blogging, erotica, mythology, philosophy and web design. Currently, she operates resource sites for bloggers and erotic writers.
Providing a Service? But That’s Not Passive Income!
Because I love to see people get the most out of their online businesses and personal lives too, I always encourage business owners to create as much passive income as possible. That way, you’ll have time for the more important things in your life. Still, when we are in need of money, the Internet is a GREAT place to start building an income by providing a service to others. If you decide to provide a service as a means of making money from home, always make sure you are making the most of your time and are working to create the easiest to manage service business as you possibly can.
Here are some tips for you if you would like to work a little less providing a service online:
1. Do Your Math – If you want to make $400 per week, calculate exactly how many service hours you would have to provide to reach that. If you charge $10 per hour, realize that you will have to work with clients for 40 hours per week. And that 40 hours doesn’t include administrative tasks for your own business, marketing and other things that just have to be done that you don’t get paid for. If it’s reasonable to increase your rate to $20 per hour, you would only have to work with clients for 20 hours per week.
==> Super Tip: Realize that it is likely much easier to find 20 hours of work per week at $20 per hour than it is to find 40 hours at $10 per hour. At $10 per hour, you have to work twice as hard to find work and then when you find that work you’ll have to work double the time.
2. Outsource – Just because you are a Virtual Assistant or another service-providing entrepreneur doesn’t mean you have to do all the work yourself. Find other people to subcontract your client work too or get help with some of your own administrative business tasks. This will help you reduce the possibility of overloading yourself with work. Again, do your math and see if you take on a few extra hours if you might hire a student or somebody else at a lower rate to give you a hand.
3. Make a Plan for Passive Income – As a service-provider, if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. Try to set aside a few hours per week to build up your passive income. You can create information products that teach people how to perform your specialized services (ex. a VA can teach others about bookkeeping, managing spreadsheets, etc if there is a market for it). Or you can venture out into creating your own websites that generate and affiliate income. The possibilities are endless. As long as you set aside a little time each week (or hire someone to help you), this will eventually start to grow.
Having an online business provides us with so much freedom we could never find elsewhere…if we do it right.
Alice Seba is a full-time online business owner that thrives on helping others say good-bye to their J-O-Bs forever. Sign up for her “Internet Marketing Prescriptions” to cure what ails your online business: http://www.AliceSeba.com
15th June 2008
Do You Need to Purchase Registered Agent Service for Your Business?
Registered Agent services aren’t cheap. Many companies charge $100-125 per year to act as your agent. So it’s important for you to know 1. Do you need a Registered Agent and 2. Should you pay for one.
What is a Registered Agent
Every state requires that an LLC organized under its laws have a registered (or resident, in some states) agent at a physical location within the state. The purpose is for the government to be able to deliver official documents to the LLC. The most likely documents are tax forms and notice of lawsuits.
Basically, the Registered Agent is the place and person within the State’s physical jurisdiction on whom service of process can be done. The State wants a physical person and place within their borders whom they can go to with taxes and lawsuits.
If you are forming an LLC in the state where your business operates, you can simply use your business office address. In this case, you are your own Registered Agent. This is the most common arrangement. Even if you operate your business out of your home, you can use you home address for official service.
When do you need to pay for a Registered Agent service?
If you don’t have a physical location in the state where you formed your LLC, then you’ll need to appoint a registered/resident agent within that state to receive official documents.
Example: You live in Missouri, but you formed your LLC in Nevada (there’ll be another post later about why this may or may not be a good idea). Nevada is going to want a registered agent that is located in Nevada to be able to serve with official papers–a.k.a. lawsuits and tax notices (while Nevada has no state income tax, they do have business taxes, for example on gambling). If you don’t have a house or office in Nevada to recieve these papers, you’ll need to hire someone who does to accept these papers on your behalf. This person is a registered agent.
Many incorporation companies will, for a fee, act as your registered or resident agent.
About the Author:
Simon Maher is a contributor for LLC Made Easy. Learn more about choosing and managing your business entity at LLC Made Easy
Copyright 2006 Native Elements, LLC