Hopefully you are also offering good value for money in whatever product or service you are providing. Then that your service, even if it is just online sales, is good [...]]]>

Just as with any business, the aim of the game is to make sales, increase revenue, keep costs low and increase profits.

Hopefully you are also offering good value for money in whatever product or service you are providing. Then that your service, even if it is just online sales, is good service. People pay for the item, receive the item they paid for in good faith and it actually does what it promised/is the actual item they bought. Then for added bonus it could be worth your while to offer free bonuses and/or a moneyback guarantee.

Let’s say your business is a blog…. or should be. Ie it is not a hobby posing as a business (which in reality could be a business losing money!)

How can you make your blog profitable?
Keys to success may be:
1 affiliate marketing – selling other people’s products on your site.
2 sell your own products

However for both of these to occur there are certain conditions to ensure success – the main ones being you need traffic and the right sort of traffic – the buying kind!

Your own products may be free such as with your blogging content. However the aim of blogging for money is to make money, so it is also a shop (or needs to be). What are you selling? Have you considered your target market? Who are they? Will they buy your product? Is your pricing suitable to your market? Are you monitoring the statistics of your site and your sales to review your marketing strategies?

Are the products you are selling matching your site? Eg Google Adsense can make good sense for many blogs, however if your blog is too broad or the Google Adsense area is too broad for your narrow niche, then the advertisements being displayed will not match eg a dating blog for women advertising Russian brides!

Your own product:
Does it offer good value for money? What are some of the reviews? It is always a good idea to have testimonials saying how your product helped someone, solved their problem or met their desire.
Blogs can also be hybrid where they offer your offline services, however why not incorporate some online marketing strategies and also offer double the value by promoting other quality items (yours and/or someone else’s)?

Do you know of anyone who has successfully turned their hobby blog into a successful online business? Have you?
Share your story here and inspire others.

Your thoughts?

One facet mentioned was – Lead By Example.

We all know that we only listen and retain a certain percentage of [...]]]>

The first article on ‘Strong Leadership Will Make You Money’, which was based on a list found in Napoleon Hill’s ‘Think and Grow Rich’, proved so popular that I decided to delve further into this topic.

One facet mentioned was – Lead By Example.

We all know that we only listen and retain a certain percentage of what we hear, however we do learn by modeling behavior.  Much of this happens sub-consciously such as taking on the habits, either positive or negative, of our parents or adult role models from childhood.

How can we choose who to model from?

Study successful people.  However firstly we need to decide for ourselves ‘what is success?’ Success means different things to different people, however in general the wants of us all fall loosely into the following categories:

Love, peace, joy, hope, financial freedom, good health, and living a purposeful life.

So look around at the people you see as successful, then just for fun give them a report card on these various aspects of their lives using the following legend:

A doing great, B doing pretty good, C – average, D – needs work, F – requires a major overhaul.

Examples

Love

A = has close family and friends, supportive peers, generally well liked and respected

C = Most family is close knit, few close friends with others being more like acquaintances, needs work on people skills

Hope

A = optimistic.  If having a bad day they will choose to feel the emotion, then choose to turn it around into a positive such as swimming laps to work through the anger, or listen to a motivational audio on the way to work to change the attitude.

F = pessimist, does not see a future, does not believe there is a God or any reason to live

Living a Purposeful Life:

A = heads an expanding company with a great team of motivated managers and staff.  Volunteers on weekends as his son’s assistant football coach.

B = Has an okay job, earns good money and is writing articles on the side in preparation for a career change to then work in his passion of writing for the national newspaper.

D = Unhappy in his job, doesn’t earn much and is not using his skills, however volunteers on the audio visual team at church which has an international television program. [so minimal changes are required to radically improve this area]

So successful people are not those who have achieved the highest in their field or earn the most money or have the biggest toys – although they could also have these!!  Success is living a balanced life.

If you plot this report card on a wheel, the ideal is balanced.  The person can have all C’s so there is room for expansion. However if the person has AAA then an F in love or purposeful life, the wheel will cause the vehicle to spin violently out of control and crash.  Even little bumps can cause unbalanced wheels to derail over time.

So the goal here is two-fold.  Aim to change your life to be one of balance and also choose to follow balanced people.  This could be as a coach or mentor (remembering that all successful people have others in their lives, who hold these types of roles, either formal or informal).

Stay tuned for the next post on how to live a balanced life and stay in control.

For further information on this topic, go to the tag cloud on the left hand side or do a search on this blog.  A great search is ‘Zig Ziglar success’.

I have long been into mindset and various strategies to create a passive income.  This is one reason I decided to go put my offline businesses online.

So why was this event different to others?  Well it was free – that is always a plus.  The value [...]]]>

I participated in a life changing CONFERENCE on the weekend.

I have long been into mindset and various strategies to create a passive income.  This is one reason I decided to go put my offline businesses online.

So why was this event different to others?  Well it was free – that is always a plus.  The value I received was priceless.  This Australian city tour was to launch Stuart Zadel’s new book, ‘Think and Grow Rich Cashflow’.

There are many strategies for wealth creation.  The most popular ones today are property (various strategies for buying and holding, buying and renting, or buying and selling quickly, or renovating), shares, and internet marketing.  The fun is in listening to the top millionaires in these fields, share their stories and secrets to success, for free.  Of course, there are opportunities to further learn from each of these experts via their own coaching programs.

Just for attending I received free books.  It was interesting that some of the hard copy books I received were ones available at no cost (either ebook version or postage only) through this website.  So when you attend something with like-minded people (all being passionate about the same concepts in these books), there are opportunities to network and encourage each other.  I love synergy where two minds are exponentially better than one.

Although not associated with Napoleon Hill or his inspiring book ‘Think and Grow Rich’, this book, provides the inspiration behind the conference.

These people, lead by Stuart, were impressive in their sincerity for not only wanting to make a difference in the world but by offering a way to change the world through raising the awareness of prosperity particularly regarding a new way of approaching financial matters.  The world has changed.  One classic example in Western countries such as Australia is the move to short term contracts rather than ongoing employment being the norm.  Outsourcing internationally such as large corporations having their helpdesk based out of India, also demonstrates how radically different the world now is.  Technology has indeed made the world a much smaller place.

We have also seen that the long held belief that a good education, leading to a good job, with hard work as the recommended way to live, is not so successful.  Look at the older generations, particularly during this time, post-recession.  We know that working hard for approximately fifty years, even with investing in superannuation does have it’s weaknesses.  Right now in Australia many retirees are having to return to the workforce after they lost money in the last couple of years.

What is needed is a new way of thinking and that is what I loved best about these two days – I was shown various methods to create wealth and minimize risks, for free.  Gotta love that!

For further details – see here

TGR Internet Conference Australia

Think and Grow Rich Free Book Here

So how to get someone to like you? Let’s face it, being lovable does not come easily to some of us and all of us have our moments!

Everyone wants to be listened to and appreciated. So if you [...]]]>

In business, as in any other sphere of life, people are attracted to people they like.

So how to get someone to like you? Let’s face it, being lovable does not come easily to some of us and all of us have our moments!

Everyone wants to be listened to and appreciated. So if you can learn to become genuinely interested in the other person, doors open.

Some people may not seem so interesting, you say… yes, but we all have a story.

Let’s put this into a business context. Say you are the new manager in town working for a consulting company and seeking new contracts with the big players in town. Let’s say a mining town. Research who it is you need to see to get the contract. Then research what he likes to do in his spare time – what is he passionate about.

One mining town I lived in had a major focus on landsailing – yes, quite a unique hobby! However whether it be just going out and trying it for the day or joining the club if you genuinely are interested, this has created a bridge to open communication in a non-threatening way. All business is based on relationships. Relationships are based on common interests.

We have all met the young and brash newbies who join a new company or business council and want to promote themselves or sell their wares. They do not create the relationship they so desperately desire, then wonder why.

For many of us this is common sense, however if it is perhaps you could share your knowledge and mentor someone else!

An even better strategy than a common interest is to research what that person needs or wants then help them obtain it. I don’t say this to manipulate but as the inspirational Zig Ziglar teaches us ‘if you help enough others get what they want, you will get what you want.’

Success begins with being genuinely interested in others.

Is it possible to have a number of goals at the same time?

Many peak performers and motivational speakers such as Anthony Robbins believe that to have [...]]]>

We all intellectually understand that to achieve success in any area we need to focus on a goal and have a plan to get there from the real starting point.

Is it possible to have a number of goals at the same time?

Many peak performers and motivational speakers such as Anthony Robbins believe that to have one goal to focus on at a time is optimal and preferable.

In our complicated lives especially for those of us with more ‘loose’ employment or contract work where we are unsure even in which continent we will be working in, how can we also achieve our goals?

I honestly believe that just as the overall employment market has changed drastically over the last fifteen years, with current trends including outsourcing and even direct employees are on short term contracts, that our goal setting must also become more flexible.

However some things do not change – there are still only 24 hours in a day.

If you do not have a goals program. I strongly suggest you research the one that suits you and then work on your own. I highly recommend the one outlined in Zig Ziglar’s book, ‘Over the Top’.  Alternatively most business mentors and coaches have their own.  If you would like to create one but don’t know where to start or you would prefer to have someone do it with you, contact us.  This is definitely one of our own services.

In this new year and new decade, I have a checklist however my next step is to really make my goals program more detailed. I do like whiteboards!!! In this way the goals and measuring progress toward those goals is visible and indirectly helps us to be more accountable. Just as we may have multiple projects on at work, we can monitor various goals in different aspects of our lives.

If you would like some suggestions or further information, please post a comment here or drop me a line at admin@onlinebusinessconsultingservices.com

See here for Steve Job’s inspiring address to graduating students from one of the world’s top universities. From Apple to Pixar – you cannot keep a good man down.

As it is [...]]]>

Who would have thought that being sacked from a multi-billion dollar company that you owned was in fact the biggest blessing in your life?

See here for Steve Job’s inspiring address to graduating students from one of the world’s top universities. From Apple to Pixar – you cannot keep a good man down.

As it is put so succinctly in Zig Ziglar’s book “Over The Top” – Your Choice:  Boom Attitude or Depression Attitude.  What I personally love about being around motivational people who know the value of inputting good stuff into your brain is that we can choose at any moment how we feel and our attitudes to things.

For example, over the last couple of years there has been a world-wide recession.  Most of the world has been glued to the television or stock exchange to see how their superannuation or stocks are faring.  Yes, many people did lose money.  However many did not.  What do I mean here?  Well if you chose to leave your money in the stock market for example and did not take it out when the market was down, that same stock may already been going up again.  Many are.  Please do not misunderstand me, to lose money especially at retirement is terrifying for many people.  Others however no matter their age, see the opportunities.  Some see the bust as a time to buy more shares at a lower price so when prices go up they can make money.  Of course, due diligence needs to be practiced and I do not recommend gambling on the stock exchange but rather minimising your risks by becoming educated in matters of financial management, whether on a personal or business level.

Even not-for-profit organisations receive funding that is to be used over a certain time period, say a year or two.  Why not check out the best rates for different types of accounts at various banks.  Obviously a not-for-profit would need to be more conservative with grant monies and I do not recommend putting this money in high risk ventures.

Back to Zig’s advice – what separates the successful people out is not only their attitude but also their momentum – maintainance.  Others call this stickability – the ability to stick with things.  ‘Positive Thinking + Positive Training = Positive Results’

Is there envy? Are people genuinely happy for your success or are [...]]]>

Judgment and resentment – are your colleagues or employees clock watchers checking to see what time the bosses come in? Are they resentful and just do not understand the long hours out of the office required to support and build the organization?

Is there envy? Are people genuinely happy for your success or are your colleagues jealous of your position or lifestyle?

Pride – do you feel like you have to do everything or it just doesn’t get done or worse – is not done properly?

Well – good news … here are some tips to creating unity in your group.
There needs to be love! OMG I can hear you say – what??
Love in a workplace or committee can be as simple as honoring those in authority, each other and supporting the vision of the group.

What does this look like?
• Respect authority by following instructions willingly,
• listening without interrupting,
• working together as a team (utilize those talents within the group)
• encourage one another
• cover each other eg if there is a complaint. Treat it with full respect and handle it internally if possible
• have empathy for others – we all have good days and days not so good – be forgiving and turn it around into a positive

On the other side do not speak negatively about others in your organization or the vision.

If you have a wonderful idea which will really help – approach it diplomatically – run it by others and check their feedback. Allow others to become part of the process so they too can buy into the vision.

A wonderful resource for this topic is Dani Johnson in her Spirit Driven Success series.

Remember that one is only able to do so much. Together there is synergy which means the results of people working in harmony for a combined vision are able to accomplish much more than two individuals separately. This for your business also means increased profits!

Wishing you unity in your organization!

Zig Ziglar, the world class motivational speaker, is an amazingly passionate man, who continues to inspires millions many decades on. He has researched and come up with a list of 8 things that everyone wants and what constitutes success: 1. Happy 2. Healthy 3. Reasonably Prosperous 4. Financially Secure 5. Friends 6. Peace of mind 7. Good family relationships 8. Hope

So this is where we can agree that [...]]]>

Are you successful?

Zig Ziglar, the world class motivational speaker, is an amazingly passionate man, who continues to inspires millions many decades on. He has researched and come up with a list of 8 things that everyone wants and what constitutes success:
1. Happy
2. Healthy
3. Reasonably Prosperous
4. Financially Secure
5. Friends
6. Peace of mind
7. Good family relationships
8. Hope

So this is where we can agree that this is the goal. Obviously the next step is how do we get there?
One way that most people think they can get there is by emulating their role models.
In Western society, heroes are often sporting champions, rich and famous actors or even socialites. As a high school teacher ,it was enlightening to see how much youth revere their chosen idols. In 2008, a class project involved students researching and writing a paper on their hero. Some of the more well known idols were Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan for the girls and usually with the boys sporting heroes such as Ben Cousins and Chris Judd, both now former West Coast Eagles stars in Australian Rules Football. Aside from Chris Judd, the commonality for the other four are that they live very high profile, glamourous lives of the rich and famous AND they are all well known as being out of control with addictive behaviours to various substances, usually illicit drugs and alcohol. Perhaps it is in one sense a reflection of how we may view ourselves that we too are far from perfect and as one student explained, how would we cope with all that attention in our personal lives? From feedback over the time it seemed that the students wanted to be given more chances to redeem themselves whether it be at home, school or with friends.
Who are your heroes?

So as Zig Ziglar suggests, I challenge you to hold up your heroes, mentors or boss to the above list.
Are they happy? If they always seem stressed then give them a big X.
Are they healthy? Tick or cross
Are they reasonably prosperous? It seems that most heroes now have a tick on this one. This is due to the world’s reliance on money and personal wealth as outward sign of achievement.
Financially Secure – Is this possible? We have all heard of extremely wealthy people who have gone bankrupt later. Most of us have had ups and downs financially with volatility in stock and property markets and even the job market where short and medium term contracts have become more widespread. However of course, by executing such basic principles as receiving income for your activities or ideas, saving and investing, we have the best chance of accumulating wealth and minimising the risks of future loss.
Friends – does your idol have many? Often if you look closer perhaps the so called friends are more business associates with not much depth to the friendship.
Peace of mind – If people are continually stressed usually this is a sign that they are unable to quieten their mind.
Family relationships – Is the person happily married or they undergoing a divorce proceedings or have never allowed anyone close enough and so are perpetually single? What kind of relationships do they have with their children?
Hope – do you think the person is hopeful about their present and future?
Now give them a score out of 8. Do you still want to emulate them?
None of these by the way are saying that the person is good or bad. It is a reflection of how they are inside and where they are at in a particular point in time.
How do you rate? Interestingly sometimes when we feel that we are not so successful , then consider this list again – perhaps our own lives are not so bad.

Wishing you success!

Expectations – signposts [...]]]>

Usually the boundaries in an employer/employee relationship are clear. In most western countries at least there is usually some form of employment contract. However even then there are nearly always some areas that over time become muddy! Of course we are human after all!! One issue is the expectations…..

Expectations – signposts that may mean you are being exploited?

Time boundaries – are your hours clear? Often when your job or business project is not a 9am – 5pm office job or tradesmen’s hours of 7am – 3pm, you end up working many more hours for the same benefits. Are you in control of your work/life balance? Are you able to book family and leisure time or does your boss or senior business partner ‘own you’? Do they call you on weekends and in evenings and expect that you will be free for a meeting? (Remember that often workaholics use their work also as their social life and so boundaries are very unclear. I definitely have fitted into this category so am speaking from experience!!)

Physical boundaries –
a) Workspace – is it conducive to your tasks?
b) Physical proximity – does your boss or senior business partner stand too close to you or over you while you work. They may even be a good friend however when they are invading your personal space do you feel as if you cannot continue with your current tasks? Of course there is also the other area of sexual abuse which could be everything from unwanted sexual advances to more forced situations.
c) Living arrangements – often we are in situations especially when our job or project involves us relocating to a new city, town or country, situations arise beyond our control. Is your superior controlling where you live and how you live? Do you feel totally compromised or even unsafe?

Economic boundaries – is your superior honouring their agreement with you? This usually is in terms of your pay, commission or reimbursement for out of pocket expenses as part of your role. Are you responsible for all costs associated with the project and thus your financial re-numeration is actually not that great? If things have become unclear then set a meeting and ensure expectations either way are clear. Beware you may not like the outcome!

Truth Boundaries – are you required to lie for your superior? Are you aware of any business dealings that are less than honourable however due to your own part in it and/or confidentiality clauses, you must keep your mouth shut and yet your conscience is bothering you. Perhaps you have a feeling that monies received for a certain purpose are now going into another project and although this may be legal you are not comfortable as you are also in part accountable for the progress of projects. This particular scenario has particularly led to economic downfalls of local government authorities. Or perhaps you have assisted in brokering a deal then one of the parties has not honoured their side of the agreement. Life is full of situations like this however it is how we choose to deal with them that marks us both at the time and for some years following!

Mental boundaries – are you respected and valued as an important player or are you belittled in front of others and seen as a disposable asset? Mental abuse is unfortunately common in every sphere of life particularly when someone has power over you. The good news is we can choose to no longer be under someone else’s control, even prisoners can change their internal response to incarceration. One incident in my own life involved me working for a large orgnaisation where they were in control of so much of my life at work, out of work and also living arrangements. My direct superior held my financial commitment over me and would jest – if you don’t like it – then you can buy yourself out it for AUD17,000. Fortunately with the emotional and spiritual support and even some financial support of friends and family, I was able to buy myself out of the contract. This was a huge decision at the time and I had been spiraling into depression until I thought “I am worth more than AUD17,000 dollars” even though at that time I thought it would take me years to be able to financially recover. However thanks to God’s grace, a better job offer was there immediately and I was financially blessed through the property market!

Spiritual boundaries – are you free to practice your religion or beliefs? Or are you persecuted and made to defend yourself?

When we are in situations even where we do not hold the authority, if the relationship is based on mutual respect which basically means respecting boundaries, then the venture will be more likely to prosper. However if you find yourself answering the questions above and do not like your answers then perhaps it is time for you to call a meeting and if you are unable to come to a mutually respected position then you too may need to buy yourself out of the situation. In your case maybe you physically will not have to pay thousands however there are costs associated with all decisions and yours as an employee or junior business partner may be just risk minimization, or to find a new job or outright damage control.

If you do need to make some tough decisions, remember that sometimes you have to close some doors before others open. Wishing you success!