Upward Lifestyle

Motivation 12: There's More To Life Than The Corner Office

2009-11-01T15:58:00.000-08:00

"What is the best, most redemptive thing I can do for the greatest number of people?"

While the question is simple, it too often goes unsaid in our daily routines. If there was one message that I walked away from this book repeating, it was this.

There's More To Life Than The Corner Office by Lamar Smith and Tammy Kling is an extremely quick read. Both my wife and I finished it in a single sitting, which is extremely rare. The format of the book is an educational fable. Much in the same way that The Richest Man in Babylon (One of my all time favorites!) delivers a message of frugality and saving, There's More To Life Than The Corner Office uses an entertaining story that forces us all to step back and reexamine our priorities in life.

The story starts with an overworked, slightly bitter protagonist named Patrick Mitchell slogging through a stressful and depressing life. While his career seems to be moving along well, his personal life is in shambles, with a pending divorce staring him in the face. Through a fortunate encounter on-board an airplane, Patrick is introduced to a "business icon" named Al Crafton. After realizing that Patrick is a good person with tremendous potential, Al decides to mentor him and teach him the ways of the world.

Through regular meetings, the two discuss their life stories and Al provides innovative ways to look at the problems that Patrick faces. In many ways, most of us can relate to the situations that Patrick encounters, and I constantly found myself making parallels between his life and mine. The lessons that Al teaches are delivered in thoughtful and insightful stories, many of which derive from his days as an aviator.

My main complaint with the book was the simplicity and predictability with which the messages were delivered. Although the lessons learned were valuable, the story lacked surprises or the true "rising action" that most great fables contain. In addition, the authors write the book in relatively simple linguistics, appropriate for many that read infrequently but not as sophisticated as most business savvy readers would like to see.

Finally, I can endorse this book for the unique method with which the message is delivered. I hope that it begins a new trend of using clever fables to deliver life's lessons rather than the simple lecture style that most business books tend to adhere to.

I also support the key message of maintaining balance in every aspect of our life. When is the last time that you REALLY told your wife that you loved her? How about spending a night on the back porch staring at the stars and thinking about your hopes and dreams? And most importantly, when is the last time that you asked yourself "What is the best, most redemptive thing I can do for the greatest number of people?" before planning out the next few years (or days!) of your life.

Think about it.......

For more on Lamar Smith and his teachings, you can visit his website at improvingyourbalance.com.

Sidebar 8: My First Billion Dollar Company

2009-09-29T18:10:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to announce that I have my first billion dollar company!! By selling a 0.000001% share in my company to an eager young investor, my company's official value finally crossed the billion dollar threshold!

Ok, so I stole the idea from the article below, which you should definitely read. I posted this for two reasons, entertainment and education. The entertainment side speaks for itself, but the education lies in the shear genius of this press release. By thinking outside the box, this company managed to generate a lot of positive buzz for their company. Kudos to them for the effort, and hopefully this will inspire you to think a bit more creatively with your future pursuits.

Enjoy the article!

37 Signals Press Release

Path 19: Copy And Paste (ie. Buying a Franchise): Part 1

2009-09-27T17:14:00.000-07:00

Resources On The Topic:

Entrepreneur Magazine
Fast Company Magazine
FranchiseMart.com
Street Smart Franchising by Joe Matthews, Don DeBolt, and Deb Percival

While McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken may get all the credit for the franchise concept, it has actually been around far longer. History shows evidence of franchises in China as far back as 200B.C., though they may have started even earlier. If 2200 years of success isn't enough to convince you of the power of a good franchise, then hopefully this article is.

For starters, because the topic of franchises is so large and important, I plan to break it up over a few postings. The first post today will address the franchise discovery process. Later postings dive even deeper into the franchise topic.

So my guess is that if you stumbled upon this article, you have some pent up desire to head down your own road to financial freedom, but you haven't found that "guarantee" just yet. While there are no guarantees in the world of small business (or big business for that matter!), buying a great franchise is the closest thing out there. You gain the knowhow/processes/marketing support/web presence/name recognition of a successful business, which allows you to focus on one thing: being a small business owner.

When starting the franchise discovery process, there are a TON of resources available to you. A trip to your local library or book store will provide you with a host of magazines such as Entrepreneur Magazine or Fast Company. These magazines do a great job of profiling several successful franchises, telling you about the new rising stars. If you prefer to do the work on your own, there are also magazines such as Business Opportunities Handbook that are nothing more than a listing of franchises. They can be a bit tedious to read through, but provide more than enough information on the available franchises, no matter what niche you are considering.

In addition, a new company called FranchiseMart is spreading around the country and can provide a useful resource for your franchise search. Visit their website and see if they have a location near you. For a small fee, they will work with you to find a franchise that fits your needs.

These resources serve as a great starting point for understanding what is available, but the next step is even more critical. You need to spend some time answering the following questions and use them as a guide to selecting the right franchise for YOU:

1) How Much Money Am I Willing to Spend Upfront? Depending on your resources, some franchises may be out of the question right away.

2) How Many Hours Per Week Do I Want To Spend Working? While being a small business owner is rewarding, it can actually become more time consuming than a normal 9-5 if you aren't careful.

3) What Does My Geographic Area Need? While a chain like Pak Mail is very highly regarded, you need to consider whether or not there is enough local business to support it.

4) What Competitors Are Out There? To use Pak Mail as an example again, if your region already has a FedEx, UPS, and DHL, then you may struggle to pull customers away.

5) What Will I Enjoy Doing? One of my favorite franchises is Little Jimmy's Italian Ices. Operating a snow cone cart outside on sunny days is hardly working in my book. This is important to consider.

6) What Is My Final Goal? Do you want to run this business for life? Do you want to establish a business that you can sell to someone else for profit? You need to understand your long term goals before you take the plunge.

This should be enough to get you started. Use the tools and questions above to narrow down your options. In future articles we will discuss the franchise management process in a bit more detail.

Good Luck!

Keys to Success:

Read Up! There is a ton of material on the subject.

Take Your Time. Selecting the right franchise for YOU is critical.

Ask For Help. Once you've chosen the franchise for you, don't hesitate to contact the owners of existing franchises to ask questions. In most cases, they will be glad to help.

Entretool 5: How I Made My Millions

2009-09-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

At Upward Lifestyle, we believe that everyone has a million dollar idea hiding deep within them. At some point in our lives, all of us have said, "You know what would be a great business?", but unfortunately few of us follow through on those ideas. When I stumbled upon the show "How I Made My Millions" on CNBC, I saw it as the ultimate inspiration, and I think you will too.

For starters, you can find the full version of the show on CNBC's website. The host, David Faber walks through several amazing stories of people who took a simple idea and grew it into a remarkable business. Some of the cool companies include Burt's Bees, 1-800 Flowers, and SuperPretzel. While I won't ruin the details of the show for you (You should watch it ASAP!), I do want to walk through my quick and dirty analysis of the unique cases presented. I think there are a few similarities that all the companies shared, and we should be mindful of these as we wander down the road to our alternative career.

Here are my thoughts on the common themes between the success stories:

1) No Groundbreaking Inventions: Most of us have this misconception that we need a groundbreaking idea in order to start a successful company. This show proves that taking products that already exist in the market and tweaking them slightly can be enough to dominate the competition if marketed properly. "The Headblade" is the perfect example of this. Todd Greene was going bald and was frustrated by the difficulty of using conventional razors on his head. By simply tweaking an existing razor to fit his hand better, he cornered the market for head shaving devices. Check out his website at www.headblade.com

2) Minimal Startup Costs: If money is your worry, look no further than Kernel Seasons for motivation. By mixing up a few different popcorn seasoning flavors in his kitchen and selling them to the local movie theater, Brian Taylor created a whole new market for gourmet sprinkle-on popcorn seasonings. The lesson here, poor people can start companies too!

3) A Good Website is Critical: In order to judge the credibility of your business, most customers will head to your website. And as they say in business, first impressions are EVERYTHING.

4) You Don't Need an MBA: While some business knowledge may be useful, most of the daring entrepreneurs on this show lacked high level educations. The one common denominator though, all of them spent extensive time studying the things necessary for their success, such as web design and marketing.

5) It Takes Time: None of these millionaires were overnight success stories. They developed a concept, refined it, marketed it, and slowly grew their business. Quitting your job to start a business is a dangerous proposition and a good way to go broke. Start small and then as your side business grows, look for the right point to exit your old job, but don't jump off the ship without the raft........

Enough of my ramblings, head on over to CNBC, watch the show for yourself and let me know your thoughts in the comment section below!

Entretool 4: www.Webs.com

2009-07-13T17:45:00.000-07:00

As promised, we proceed with our entretools section. These are essential tools to help you get your entrepreneurial dreams off the ground. We have moved through two great books, The Dip & The Four Hour Work Week and a great podcast called Internet Business Mastery. If you haven't checked them out by now, I strongly advise you do so.

For this posting, we will move into one of my favorite online tools, webs.com. As we discussed in several past postings, every business endeavor, regardless of the field, must have a web presence, and webs.com is without a doubt the easiest way to get that web presence in place, RIGHT NOW.

The site starts with an easy user interface that anyone can use. It also eliminates the hassle of registering a domain name and paying for hosting. Webs.com handles all of these tasks for you. The true beauty of this site is that it can serve as the ultimate spring board to your success. While many of us struggle to get started for a variety of reasons, a few minutes setting up a website can make you realize that the road ahead of you isn't nearly as challenging as you once thought.

So what can you do on the site? Well it starts with an incredible array of clean and classy templates. They look far more professional than other free templates you would find in programs like Microsoft Publisher. Pick a template that fits your theme and get rolling. From there, you can set up your home page, info pages, forums, a blog, merchandise order pages, and a huge variety of other pages to meet all of your customer needs. If you are just getting started, focus your efforts on a professional looking homepage. Review your competitor's pages for ideas. At a bare minimum, you will want a brief description of your company and some great looking graphics.

Once your site is up and running, you can continue to add pages that fit your company's needs. I would highly recommend a blog to update your customers with your latest products or offerings and for many businesses, a forum is also a great way to encourage repeat visitors. Finally, most businesses will eventually add a product sales page to distribute your products to your customers.

It's that easy. With less than a half hour of work, you can have a high quality, professional site up and running. Webs.com can allow you to establish a presence online and start you down your path to entrepreneurial success.

Good Luck!

Sidebar 7: Lots of Ideas Leads to Great Ideas

2009-07-07T16:38:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Thomas Edison's name is listed on 1,093 United States patents? And how many of those great inventions can you name? The phonograph? The lightbulb? (kind of...) Let me tell you something, a good portion of those other thousand ideas were not so meaningful. You can read about all of the inventions here, but I wouldn't waste your time.

So what is the lesson of the story? Not every idea is a home run, but the more you have, the more likely you will find a winner. As an aspiring entrepreneur, you simply can't afford to ignore interesting ideas that pop into your head.

Your lesson for today is to pick out a small pocket size notebook and take it with you EVERYWHERE! You will be amazed how many ideas pop into your head throughout the course of a day that you simply ignore. This notebook is used to record every these ideas and give you the chance to filter through them later, when you are in an entrepreneurial mood.

I want to give you one more tidbit of motivation. Have you ever heard the name Charles Goodyear? I am guessing that at least the second part of his name sounds familiar. That's right, he founded Goodyear Rubber Company and is credited with inventing the vulcanization process that makes rubber usable. Goodyear was actually a bit nutty. He spent a good portion of his adult life obsessing over rubber and ways to improve it. You see, the problem with rubber in its natural state is that it is extremely temperature sensitive. As the heat rises, rubber changes from its useful, springy state into a globby, sticky mess. This makes it useless for most applications. Goodyear tried every additive he could think of to improve rubber's characteristics, to no avail. Luckily enough for him, he left a small piece of his rubber sitting next to the stove one day. As the material cooked, it's properties amazingly changed, and the vulcanization process was discovered. While the invention was a bit lucky, Goodyear was observant enough to notice the change, and capitalized on it.

How many times have you stumbled upon a great idea and simply let it pass? Well not any more. Starting today, you can document these ideas and eventually, you will find your home run, and once you do, head over to our Inventing and Reinventing posts to find out how to bring your idea to life.

Good Luck!

Motivation 11: Your True Hourly Wage

2009-06-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

Do you want real motivation to leave your job and get to work on your own business? If the cars, houses, vacations, and freedom haven't yet motivated you, then I am certain that this posting will. The activity that I am about to describe below is truly eye-opening.

Before we get into the details of the exercise, let me first give credit where credit is due. One of my FAVORITE all time books on money, Your Money or Your Life presents a ton of unique perspectives on careers and money, but none resonated with me the way that this exercise did. I would highly recommend clicking on the hyperlink above and picking up the book for yourself, but if nothing else, at least follow this exercise as directed below and you will be SHOCKED at the results.

The exercise is called "Calculating Your True Hourly Wage". It is designed to help you realize that the great "career path" you are currently heading down may not be as great as you imagined. Let's start with your current "hourly" wage. For the purpose of this example, I am going to use $20/hour. This is certainly considered a respectable wage in our society, but we are about to see just how deceiving (And disappointing!) that number really is. For the rest of the exercise, we will represent this hourly wage as a simple ratio as shown in the image below.
Makes sense so far, right? For an eight hour day, your employer pays you $160. Well this is where the exercise gets interesting. Now we are going to apply some modifiers to the top and bottom of this ratio to account for the conditions of the real world.

Let's start with the top. That $160 sounds nice until you start to adjust for taxes, lunch, fuel, car depreciation, and various supplies such as clothes, briefcases, etc. The numbers below are just examples, you should try and come up with your own numbers. In the example below, that daily take home pay quickly drops to $101.

Now let's move to the bottom of the ratio. Again, the 8 hours that your company pays you for is actually a much larger number when you add in your commute, your lunch break, your prep time prior to work, and finally your decompression (think Miller Lite and Seinfeld reruns) after a rough day at work. This example works out something like this:
Now with the top and bottom modified, let's revisit that equation again......
Ouch. No more twenty dollars per hour for you! As it turns out, the true reward for your toils in the office/restaurant/factory is far less than you realized. Kind of depressing isn't it?

NO!

It isn't supposed to be depressing, it is supposed to be liberating, motivating, and EXCITING! If you leave your job, you won't be leaving nearly as much behind as you thought! So what are you waiting for? Scroll through the list of alternate career paths on the right of the page and find the one that fits you. After all, what have you got to lose (other than that 9 measly bucks an hour?)?

Path 18: Following the Herd (ie. Technical Analysis)

2009-06-22T18:10:00.000-07:00

Resources On The Topic:

Technical Analysis For Dummies by Barbara Rockefeller
Chart Your Way To Profits by Tim Knight
Yahoo Finance
Rob Black's Website and Podcast

When I say the word "lemmings", what comes to mind? Most of us think of a herd of lemmings following their leader off a cliff to a horrible mass suicide. While the legend of the lemming is pure fiction, the lessons learned apply extremely well to human nature. In fact, a whole genre of investment strategies have been born by studying this "herd mentality". That genre is known as Technical Analysis. We discussed Value Investing (aka fundamental analysis) in a previous posting, and now we will look at it's evil brother.

For starters, let's briefly discuss the herd mentality and talk about a case study, the recent housing collapse. Home prices escalated at an utterly unsustainable rate over the past few years, constantly luring in more and more investors. Many people who rode this wave up made millions as long as they were smart enough to jump out of the game before it all came crashing down. Technical analysis aims to use mathematical methods to look for these waves in the stock market. If a wave can be identified, investors can hop in, ride the wave up, and (HOPEFULLY!) hop out before it all comes crashing down.

While this posting is far too brief to dive into the full details of technical analysis, let's hit the basic concept:

These waves (known as trends) often occur in similar, repeatable patterns, which can be manipulated for financial gain.

Books such as Technical Analysis For Dummies do a great job of introducing these various trends, discussing their success rates, and helping you use the patterns to trade more effectively. If done properly, you will learn when to enter, how to set limits for your trades, and finally, when to exit in order to maximize your gains and minimize your risk of getting caught in a wave that's crashing down.

So how do you get started down this path to prosperity? Well this path really requires a LOT of studying. The most popular chart patterns take some serious skill to detect, so your best bet is to start by jamming your head into one of the resources above. After some time reading, your next move is to head over to Yahoo Finance. This site is a fantastic resource for studying and tracking stocks. They have a ton of powerful charting tools to help you easily spot and identify trends. You can add trending tools such as Bollinger Bands, Moving Averages, and MACD (Moving Average Convergence-Divergence). With a little knowledge of common trends and Yahoo Finance's powerful charting software, you can tear through a ton of stocks in a hurry until you find some that fit your trend criteria.
Now that you have found some charts that appear to be "trending", it is time to take the next steps.

1) Determine the right point to make an entry, and do it.
2) Set a trailing stop, basically an automatic selling point that protects against quick and unexpected reversals.
3) Follow the stock religiously, and when your selling rules are met, EXIT!

In the end, the true beauty of charting is that it has become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more people that study charting, the more times the patterns fulfill their expected outcomes. Of course, this also means that you will be competing against some brilliant mathematical minds, so set your rules, stick to them, and suppress any emotional responses. You may miss some big runs, but you will also be protected against those devastating drops. The key is to run with the lemmings, but do everything you can to jump out of line right before that cliff......

So what are you waiting for? Pick up a book, listen to Rob Black's podcast, and set up a fake portfolio on Yahoo Finance. You'll be talking the technical analysis talk and walking the technical analysis walk in no time!

Good Luck!

Keys to Success:

Study! You will be competing with some great minds, so don't bring a knife to a knowledge gunfight.
Set Rules and Stick to Them. There are a ton of different techniques, so pick one you like and follow it religiously.
Don't Be Afraid To Miss The Tail End Of a Run Up. Just ask any homeowner who got burned in the housing collapse and they will tell you how painful it can be. Better to jump out too early than too late.
Ask For Help. As great as Yahoo is, finding great trending stocks is not easy. Listen to podcasts, watch TV shows, and count on some others to help you find the big winners.

Entretool 3: The 4 Hour Work Week

2009-06-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the famous quote from The Matrix?

"You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes. "

In my opinion, reading The 4 Hour Work Week is the same as taking the red pill. Once you've read it, you will NEVER be able to return to your old life. Why? Most simply, the author has an uncanny ability to distort your image of the dream life. Where you previously fantasized about a big house and nice car, Ferriss will have you dreaming of a life without borders, filled with travel, unique experiences, and absolutely nothing holding you down.

The book's author, Timothy Ferriss is, among other things, an entrepreneurial genius. He developed a nutrition supplement and an incredibly clever system to market, sell, and distribute his product online with little to no effort. This system allowed him to generate a healthy income with a limited time commitment. He shares this simple money making program and all of it's secrets with his readers.

As if this system isn't enough to encourage you to pick up the book (This is an entrepreneurial website after all!), then the other concepts of the book will definitely draw you in. Timothy introduces and explains the concept of "The New Rich." This is an entirely new class of wealthy individuals, with goals that differ greatly from those of past generations. He rips apart the old traditions of owning multiple high price (and high maintenance!) homes in this country, in favor of a free lifestyle with "mini-retirements" in various locations around the world. These retirements of several months allow you to fully immerse yourself in different cultures. In Ferriss' case, he chose Germany, China, and Latin America. Leaving behind all of his worldly possessions, he traveled with the goal of immersing himself in the culture, taking in all of the wonderful things that these other countries had to share, and evolving as a person because of it.

In the end, this book is THE SINGLE BEST entrepreneurial motivator that I have ever read. While many books help encourage you to get up and get to work, none of them FORCE you to leave the security blanket of your current job the way that this one does. Mini-retirements are simply not possible without setting up a successful business venture and cutting the strings to your old career. Only then, can you truly experience the wonderful cultural revolution that is The 4 Hour Work Week!

So what are you waiting for? Go get the book right now!

Sidebar 6: Plan-Do-Check-Act

2009-06-15T21:24:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe, but this site is quickly approaching the 4 month mark (Fortunately for me, there is no way for you guys to vote me off!). Upward Lifestyle is designed as the ultimate alternative career guide and it's time to check and see if the site is headed down the right path.

When I launched this site, I had 2 goals. First, we wanted to present every method of wealth building that has helped the world's newest millionaires (and billionaires!) achieve that status. Second, we hoped to provide motivation for YOU to follow through on any one of these ways to get rich. Along the way we added an Entretools section that provides all the tools that you'll need to help you find your way.

Is it working? Have you found your path yet? Was it Blogging? Ticket Scalping? Cheapskating? Inventing?(or reinventing?) Card Counting?

If not, don't give up yet! We will help you find it. There are still a lot of paths remaining. In the next few months we will tackle even more avenues of entrepreneurship, but before we do it's time for one of the ugly necessities of any project. The CHECK phase. In the engineering world, we constantly rely on PDCA, and as an aspiring entrepreneur, you should too. Here is the process:

PLAN

DO

CHECK

ACT

For this site, the planning phase was a lifetime in the making. With my love for money, I have been studying and pursuing paths to wealth since I was a kid. After years of knowledge accumulation, I figured it was time to share this information with the world (or at least my 9 fans and 26 followers! Please join them, you will be glad you did!)

The doing was easy, thanks to great blogging sites like Problogger, Young Entrepreneur, and Blogger.

Now it's time for checking. This is where I need your help! I have added a new poll to the right side of the site. I need some feedback from you on the content. Is it what you were looking for? In addition, the comments section below can act as your sounding board. What do you think of my writing? Too boring? Too brief? Too long? Too many stupid jokes? Not enough stupid jokes? (PLEASE PICK THAT ONE!) And any other thoughts you may have. In addition, if you have a site that might help my readers out on their path, don't hesitate to throw it in the comments section as well.

Thanks for your feedback and here's to the successful business ventures coming down the road for all of you!

Motivation 10: Dupont Registry

2009-06-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

For those of you not familiar with the duPont Registry, consider yourself lucky. Once you open those pages for the first time, you WILL be hooked. It's like a real life chocolate factory for testosterone charged men.

Started in 1985 as a classified magazine for exchanging high end cars, the Registry has grown to a whole new level by adding boats and real estate. The web site, DupontRegistry.com, is a nice addition but certainly can't replace the high end feel of the glossy old magazine.

In a nutshell, the registry is THE ultimate guide to high end toys. While Car & Driver and Motor Trend do a great job covering the factory produced vehicles in this world, only the Registry will expose you to all of the amazing customized cars, trucks, boats, and other toys that the wealthiest members of our society get to enjoy. Sure you've heard of Porsche, Ferrari, and Lamborghini, but how about Ronn, Panoz, Koenigsegg, or N2A? If you haven't heard of them, you really don't realize what you're missing.

So what does this have to do with the Upward Lifestyle? Well, for those of you stuck in a dead end career, planning on slowly plodding along to a mediocre retirement, the magazine can make you realize just how much fun money can bring you. Flip through the pages, pick out the toy of your dreams and MAKE A PLAN TO GET IT! Do it right, and the automated wealth system you create will have you riding in your customized Spyker C8 Spyder in no time.

Good Luck!

Path 17: E-Booking It

2009-06-06T11:51:00.000-07:00

Resources on the Topic:

The Well Fed Self Publisher by Peter Bowerman
Mastering Niche Marketing by Eric Van Der Hope
From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur by Stephanie Chandler
Internet Business Mastery Podcast

Did you know that around 80% of all internet searches are for information (you were thinking porn, right?) and only 20% are for products or merchandise? Thankfully this opens up a whole world to burgeoning writers looking for a new career. For those of you who are quick to give up on this article because you fear you lack the knowledge to educate others, just realize one thing:

YOU KNOW MORE ABOUT SOME TOPIC THAN 99% OF THE PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD

I don't know what that topic is, but I know it exists. Take my colleague Shahin for example. As an Iranian American, he had a great passion for a small, little known Iranian car company named Paykan. Throughout the years, he had accumulated a ton of pictures of Paykans. To share this passion with the world, www.paykanhunter.com was born. He was astounded at the results. As one of very few sites in the world dedicated to this niche, nearly every search led people to his site. In a world with over 6 billion people on the web, you would be amazed how many were looking for Paykans!

So what is your niche? Well this is a topic for another posting, but the quick and dirty is this. Pick a topic that you know and love, take fantasy baseball for example. This is your start, but to find true success you need to narrow your sights even further. There are millions of sites, articles, and blogs related to fantasy baseball. How will you stand out from the crowd? With a tightly defined niche. My specialty in fantasy baseball is finding great young starting pitchers in the late rounds of a draft using 3 specific metrics. The Cole Hamels, Tim Lincecums, and David Prices of the world are rare, but I have a great system for finding them and getting them at a great discount. This is the tightly focused niche that makes a great blog or E-book. We have already discussed blogs in a previous post, so now let's move on to the E-book side of things.

An E-book is simply a digital compilation on a particular topic. Simply type E-book into google search and you will get 323 million results. Put more simply, you WILL have a lot of competition in the E-book world. This is why your specific niche is so important. After the niche is selected, the E-book compilation can be completed in any word processor. Here are the key components:

- Cover Page: Make some unique and interesting graphics using a free graphics program such as The Gimp. This is important because you'll use this cover page when marketing your book.

- Table of Contents: Time is money, and most people don't want to waste time searching, so make it easy to find specific topics.

- Introduction: You will also use this when marketing your book, so make sure the grammar is flawless, the writing is witty, and purpose is clear. Many people offer the introduction free when selling their book, so it needs to be an absolute home run.

- Content: This is the meat and bones of the operation. You need to spend some time researching your niche. Include some humor, a lot of information, and a lot of helpful links.

Now that isn't so hard is it? Depending on the topic, your e-book length will vary. Some will need hundreds of pages, but most need far fewer, around 30-100.

When writing this e-book, you need to focus on one more KEY goal: Establishing long term customers. Your first e-book should lay the seeds for a long and successful relationship. Provide great information, plug your website, and plug your other (or future) product offerings. While one e-book sale is great, the referrals and future product sales that you can earn really make the difference between writing for a hobby and writing for a career.

Once the book is complete, you will want to convert it into a pdf file to make it easier to sell and distribute. You can purchase Adobe Acrobat, or you can use a free program such as PrimoPDF.

That wasn't too bad right? Now the fun really begins. Marketing your E-book can be done in a ton of different ways. Internet marketing will be a future topic, but let's hit on a few of the quickest and easiest ways to market your book:

- Your Own Site: Start with a free site like Webs.com, which can do everything from website design to order processing to email list management.

- E-book Sales Sites: Simply run a google search for Ebooks and you will find some of the most popular sites such as ebooks.com.

- Contact Other Sites In Your Niche: If you can contact other bloggers in your niche and offer them some kickbacks, they may help you promote your E-book.

- Affiliate Sales: Sites like Clickbank.com help match marketers with people selling products. You provide the product, they sell it, and you both share in the profits.

Let me just reiterate one key point again. To make this a career, you MUST establish loyal customers. Before your sales begin, get a website up and operating. Lead your readers to your site, and advertise future product offerings. Do whatever it takes to get them on your mailing list. This is the key to long term success in this industry.

So that's it! Writing and selling an e-book is a great way to kick off your entrepreneurial career. You can write and develop your web page in your free time, and slowly build a host of loyal readers! What are you waiting for? Start writing NOW and your sales will be off and going in no time!

Good Luck!

Keys to Success

Choose Your Niche Wisely: It must be interesting, tightly focused, and in-demand.

Work on Your Writing: If your writing skills aren't up to par then read, practice, and ask others for help. Bad writing will turn readers away quicker than a Ben Affleck Movie.

Build Long Term Relationships: Don't give it all away in the first book. Give your readers a reason to visit your site and buy future products.

Be Witty! You don't enjoy reading textbooks and neither do others, so give them something to remember.

Motivation 9: The Story of The Mexican Fisherman

2009-06-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

I certainly can't take credit for this story, and I'm not sure that anyone knows the author, but it's certainly a story that everyone should read. Forward it on to your friends....

An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The Mexican replied, ‘only a little while.’

The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish?

The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs.

The American then asked, ‘but what do you do with the rest of your time?’

The Mexican fisherman said, ‘I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siestas with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine, and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life.’

The American scoffed, ‘I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise.’

The Mexican fisherman asked, ‘But, how long will this all take?’

To which the American replied, ‘15 - 20 years.’

‘But what then?’ Asked the Mexican.

The American laughed and said, ‘That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!”

“Millions - then what?”

The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

Entretools 2: Internet Business Mastery Podcast

2009-05-30T18:14:00.000-07:00

I don't care who you are or what business you are looking to pursue, you absolutely MUST have a web presence. And no, a "web presence" does not mean some cheap, unprofessional web site that you set up with Frontpage 2000. If you truly want to understand how to set up, run, and drive traffic to a top notch web site this podcast is a great starting point.

Sterling and Jay, who moderate the podcast, are the perfect pair to guide you down your path to web domination. Both are inspirational in that they left their old (and successful!) careers behind to pursue their dreams of Internet Business Mastery. Podcast number 1 was launched very shortly after their internet careers started, and as the show has progressed their knowledge of the internet world has grown. Through their witty delivery, they share their experiences and help us avoid making the same mistakes that they did.

Unfortunately, they've chosen to pull many of their old episodes off Itunes and charge customers for access to them (BOOOOOO!). While I was really disappointed to see this, it is a testament to their business savvy. If you are willing to pay for them, I would recommend picking up the old episodes. If you are a cheapskate like me, the last 20 or so episodes are still available for free on their website, www.internet-based-business-mastery.com. And of course, they still regularly release new updates that share the latest technologies and trends to help improve your internet business mastery.

This Podcast is great for one reason, the breadth of topics discussed. Every week they give a quick update on their personal business activities and then move into some topic related to internet entrepreneurship. While their personal goal was creating a web based business, they share a ton of information that is applicable to any business that needs a web presence, whether you're managing real estate or running a restaurant. They teach you how to set up a professional web page, track your statistics, optimize your site for search, and build long term relationships with your customers.

The beauty of a podcast is that you can listen in your spare time. I listen in the car or when I'm working on the computer. They keep me motivated and up to speed with the latest web technology. The best part about this site is that the hosts are a little nerdy (just like me!), so they come across really well. I don't feel like I'm getting lectured by some arrogant Donald Trump wannabe. These guys admit their flaws and errors and use them to educate listeners.

No matter what your entrepreneurial passion, Sterling and Jay will help you enhance your web IQ, which is key to any successful business venture. They've taught me a ton and can do the same for you, so get listening!

Path 16: Slumlord Millionaire: Part 2

2009-05-27T17:03:00.000-07:00

Resources on the Topic:

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Landlording: A Handymanual for Scrupulous Landlords and ....by Leigh Robinson
Every Landlord's Tax Deduction Guide by Stephen Fishman
SmartMoney.com's "So You Want To Be a Landlord"

For those of you who missed it, make sure you start with the first post on this topic: Slumlord Millionaire: Part 1.

For the rest of you, let's get right into the details of managing your real estate rentals for cash. We are going to move through 3 main topics, tax benefits, managing your rental, and when to sell. Do it all right, and you'll earn the title of Slumlord, which puts you in some pretty great company!

Let's start with taxes because they ARE the primary reason that real estate success is a near guarantee of long term wealth. There are 3 main tax deductions that owning rental properties will open up for you:

1) Mortgage Interest and Real Estate Taxes: Just like a primary residence, you can deduct all interest and taxes on your rental properties.

2) Operating Expenses: Includes utilities, maintenance, condo fees, yard care and any other fees that you spend maintaining your property.

3) Depreciation: This is the true jackpot! Even though real estate tends to appreciate in value, the government allows you to deduct the "estimated" depreciation of your residential building over a 27.5 year period. For example, on a $100,000 property, you can deduct $3,636 per year, which allows you to collect a decent amount of rent without paying any taxes.

Just add all that up. If done right, your total tax deductions on a $100,000 rental could easily top $10,000. Amazing huh? You can quickly see how people who acquire 5-6 rental units never pay a penny in taxes. That's why we call them SLUMLORDS......

Now that you're a tax master, let's move on to managing your rental. For starters, you will need an air tight rental contract. You can start with a standard contract online. If you simply google "rental contract" you will get plenty of results. These can act as starting points, but I strongly advise paying a real estate lawyer to look over the contract, especially if you plan on having multiple units. It is worth the money.........

Next comes finding tenants for your rental. With the explosion of the internet, their are a ton of free sites such as Craigslist to find your tenants. In today's market, this process should be a breeze. People are struggling to get financed for homes, so they are entering the rental market. I don't believe in paying to find tenants. Use all the free resources available to you first, and only then can you move onto the pay sites.

Don't hesitate to be selective. While the fair housing act prevents you from discriminating against tenants, this is YOUR property, so don't just open the doors to anyone. If Homer Simpson or Cosmo Kramer came marching up to my property, I would turn them away in a heartbeat (And then take them out for a beer of course!).

Once the tenants are in, your life should get a lot easier. You will certainly have some maintenance issues to handle, and personally I believe in paying someone else to do the job professionally. Not only does it look good to your tenants, but it will simplify your life and let you focus on finding your next rental.

Finally, we must discuss the sale of your property. When should you sell???

NEVER!

As a real estate mogul, your goal should always be growing your portfolio of properties. If you have too many to manage, hire help. My personal belief is that you should only sell in case of emergency or to help fund a better retirement. Beyond that, those properties should be yours for life!

So now that you know the basics, get out there and start looking for that first property!

Good Luck!

Keys To Success:

Educate Yourself. Managing real estate for a career is complex, but fortunately there are a ton of great resources on the topic. Start with the books above and never stop learning!

Be Frugal. If you can knock out simple jobs on your own, do it. When renovating, look to garage sales and clearance warehouses. You will find a lot of the things you need.

Be Patient! I know this is a theme on every topic, but especially here. Don't over-leverage yourself, and don't rush into the wrong properties.

Sidebar 5: Shameless Site Promotion

2009-05-19T18:15:00.000-07:00

Budding entrepreneurs, this post is for you!

Have you gotten a business website, podcast, or blog up and running in the past few years? Do you have something to offer my readers? This is the chance for you! As motivation for my readers to get up and start working, I would like to highlight the sites of some other entrepreneurs.

In the comment section below, answer a few quick questions, then post a link to your site. It's that easy! More viewers for your site and some motivation and informative sites (hopefully!) for my readers.

Here are the questions:

1) When did you launch your site?

2) What is your site about?

3) What is your one biggest tip for new entrepreneurs?

4) What is your biggest mistake since starting?

5) What is your favorite Entretool? (Book/Website/Podcast/Blog/Magazine/etc.)

6) Now just add your site Homepage!

Thanks for reading!

Entretools 1: The Dip

2009-05-11T17:16:00.000-07:00

Have you found your path to prosperity yet? If not, look at the list of topics on the right! If you HAVE found your path, then it's time to start refining it and learning more about the fundamentals of becoming a successful entrepreneur. To that end, we have added a new type of posting that we call Entretools, short for entrepreneur tools. These are all the resources that you'll need to perfect your trade, whether it's podcasting, flipping houses, or counting cards.

These tools include:
Books
Websites
Podcasts
Magazines

Enough introduction, let's move on to Entretool number 1, The Dip : A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (And When To Stick). At under 100 pages, it is the perfect length for those entrepreneurs afflicted with ADD. The premise is simple, in life we have a limited amount of time and resources. Sometimes quitting one endeavor is the only way to free up enough resources to allow success in another endeavor.

The book's author, Seth Godin, has made a living off of short, concise, and extremely well written books such as Tribes: We Need You To Lead Us, and Purple Cow: Transform Your Business By Being Remarkable. This book is no exception. For once, an author has enough respect for his readers to not waste our time with fillers and fluff. The material is delivered clearly, straight from the start.

If you are anything like me, you tend to start a LOT of projects. Some get finished, and some don't. While The Dip won't discourage this behavior, it will help you make sure you're quitting for the right reasons. Quitting because things are too hard is simply unacceptable and will likely lead to regrets and missed opportunities. But the key is that realizing a project is a dead end and quitting early on can really save time and wasted resources. This book will help you tell the difference between that dead end project and a potential home run in a difficult phase.

In addition, The Dip will help you realize that you've gotten lazy on some projects just because things became too difficult. With a little different perspective, you'll be motivated to restart some of those and fight through the hard times to the pending success ahead.

So get on over to Amazon, pick the book up and make sure that you're using your time and resources wisely!

Path 16: Slumlord Millionaire: Part 1

2009-05-09T22:58:00.000-07:00

Resources On The Topic:

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Landlording: A Handymanual for Scrupulous Landlords and ....by Leigh Robinson
Every Landlord's Tax Deduction Guide by Stephen Fishman

Donald Trump. Need I say more? If there is anything in this world that can be considered a guarantee, it is that owning rental properties WILL lead to wealth. That is, of course, if it's done properly. This article will run you through the basics of buying and managing properties for income.

Let's start with WHY? Why is it such a guaranteed path to wealth? 4 Reasons:

1. Renters pay your mortgage (And if done right, they pay even more!)
2. Phenomenal tax deductions
3. Historically, real estate values increase with time.
4. Unlike stocks, you can use leverage(borrowed money), to purchase and own real estate.

Robert Kiyosaki does a fantastic job describing the reasons for entering the world of real estate in his best selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad. If you are just getting started down your path to prosperity it is a must read.

Now let's talk about the process. It starts with the pre-planning. Before you even consider buying a property, you need to do 3 things:

1. SAVE for a down payment. All of these "No Money Down" programs are recipes for disaster. I would highly recommend a minimum 25% down payment before you even consider purchasing a place. (Lenders will require 25% down if this is your second property).

2. SAVE in case you are without renters for a while. Notice a theme here? One of my key themes is risk mitigation. You must prepare for having your property vacant for at least 6 months.

3. Get a great realtor. This is a HUGE investment and you do not want to go it alone. Find a great realtor and depend on their experience to find you great properties.

For your first building, my personal preference is a low cost, multi-unit tenement. Your realtor should be able to find you several of these. The beauty of having multiple units is that having 1 or 2 vacant isn't the end of the world. If you go for a more expensive single unit rental, there will be less work involved, but if you struggle to fill the rental for a few months, you can quickly end up in financial trouble. In addition, if you purchase a multi-unit as your first property, you can live in one of the units, which will allow you to keep a closer eye on the ruffians renting and destroying your other units!

In today's market, patience is key. There are a ton of properties on the market, and many that have fallen greatly in price. This IS the time to buy if you are looking for long term properties. Be selective, and trust your instinct. In addition, consider your fix-it up capabilities. If you can't hit a nail to save your life, you may have to pay a little more for a unit that is in great shape.

Once you have found that perfect property, call around a LOT of banks to find financing. A small difference in your interest rate can save you thousands over the life of the loan. Consider both local credit unions and also larger institutions. Depending on the economic climate, one option may be better than the other. Insist on no points or origination fees and ask for the FULL closing cost.

After shopping around for the best lender, it is time for a full and thorough cost analysis to make sure that you can afford the property. Consider your mortgage, insurance, taxes, water, sewage, trash, and maintenance as expenses, and ask your realtor about average rents in the area to get an idea of the income you can expect. In today's market, rents are high and property values are falling so you should not buy a property unless you can have a POSITIVE cash flow every month.

If the numbers work out, go for it! In the next post, we will discuss the keys to successful property management, the tax advantages of renting, and finally, your long term path to prosperity from renting.

Check out the THRILLING conclusion to this post at Slumlord Millionaire: Part 2.

Motivation 8: Others Who Have KISS'd

2009-05-03T16:19:00.000-07:00

The old saying is famous in the engineering world: KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID. And for good reason, simple inventions are easy to design, produce, and sell. I've already discussed the Sham-Wow, Snuggie, and Perfect Pushup, so today's post presents 5 of my favorite lesser-known KISS inventions created by people just like us. If you are looking for inspiration to follow these inventors, I recommend my two favorite books on innovation, Medici Effect, and JUICE.

1) Next Gen Pizza Box. Who needs plates? This eco-friendly design that turns a standard pizza box into 4 plates and a storage container should be standard at every pizza joint in the country soon.

2) Evolve Showerheads. How about a showerhead that automatically shuts down to a trickle once the desired temperature is reached? All that wasted water while you search for the perfect tie is a thing of the past.

3) Under-Stair Shoe Drawers. Everyone is looking for better ways to utilize the empty space in their home. It doesn't get much more efficient than this. No more shoe closets, let the stairs do the work!

4) Instant Beverage Cooler. How many times have you been frustrated by this. You purchase a case of your favorite beverage, let's say Cherry Coke to keep things politically correct, and you want one instantly but it's still too warm to drink. Problem solved, simply drop this cool little invention in and the drink is ready immediately.

5) Pot in a Pot; Using Sand and Pots To Cool Food. Now if this story doesn't inspire you, then I don't know what will. A simple story about a Nigerian inventor who changed the world for many of his native Africans and other societies lacking electricity. Take two pots, one slightly larger than the other. In between the two, place some sand. The invention works because the water in the sand migrates towards the outer pot, which causes a temperature drop in the inner pot, thereby keeping the food inside fresher for longer. Simple, and yet an amazing life changing invention.

So what is your contribution to society going to be? Start looking around your home, think of small things that irritate you and FIX them.

Good Luck!

Path 15: My Kid Beat Up Your Honor Student.....

2009-04-27T16:55:00.000-07:00

Resources on the Topic:

Cafepress
Graywolf's SEO Blog
Google Adwords

Any idea how much money that now famous phrase made for it's creator? Me neither, but I bet is was a LOT. Back in the day, witty one-liners and trendy images made thousands, if not millions for their creators. Some of the best examples that we all know:

-99% of all lawyers give the rest a bad name
-Hang up and Drive
-Keep honking, I'm Reloading
-Stupidity is not a crime, so you are free to go
-Cancer cures smoking

And this doesn't even include the Jesus fish, the Darwin Jesus fish with legs, the yellow smiley face, or the ribbons for a cause. Think about it, each year in the US, nearly 15 million new cars are sold, and a decent percentage of those cars will be bestowed with at least one bumper sticker before they end up in the junkyard (That average jumps to at least 8 or 9 in Kentucky!). Add in T-shirts and mugs, and those now famous lines quickly lead to a lot of product sales.

Back in the day, entering the bumper sticker, witty T-shirt, or clever mug game was a bit more difficult. It usually required a bulk order, sales through some sort of store, credit card processing, etc. But my friends, that has changed for the better.

Enter Cafepress.com. This website has made it easy. All you need are a one liner, a few minutes on their web site, and a little time marketing your ideas. They handle the rest, creating the product, sales, shipping, and credit card processing. They sell the product, you collect the profits. The beauty is that you can quickly and easily throw your lines on shirts, bumper stickers, mugs, and more. The possibilities are endless!

But before you run over and start cranking out "Buy American" stickers, let's talk a little bit about making your products a success. First, the idea is everything. As you can imagine, with the increased ease of this process, more and more people are entering this world, so you need to be even more creative.

If you want to make a career out of it, your best bet is to focus on current events. Remember the Somali Pirates? How about Octomom? Maybe the Swine Flu? Any idea how many people googled each of these things? Me neither, but I bet it was a LOT. And the beauty is that you can develop your idea and get it up on the web immediately! People googling these topics are likely to stumble upon your products, driving up your sales.

Next, let's talk about marketing your products. For starters, you want to develop a great web site. Cafepress allows you to upgrade your store for only $4.99/month. It is definitely worth it. If your site isn't professional, people won't be willing to give you their credit card information. Next, you need to spend some time working on SEO, or search engine optimization. Sites such as Graywolf's SEO Blog can provide you a ton of information on moving your site up the free search results. If you know you have a home run idea, consider using Google Adwords to advertise your site. You will pay per click, but it will really help drive traffic.

It really is that easy! You can have your products up and selling before the day is over. Good luck, and remember, Friends Don't Let Friends Work in a Cube!

Keys to Success:

Be Creative. There is a ton of competition, so you need to be great.
Be Professional. Would you give your credit card info to a random half-ass site?
Market it. Ever heard of Billy Mays? Yeah, Oxyclean is good, but not THAT good.

Sidebar 4: Okay, Okay I'm Motivated, Now Where Do I Start?

2009-04-23T19:07:00.001-07:00

As great as Upward Lifestyle is, it is only designed to serve as a launching point. Reading our articles should educate and inspire, but finally our goal is to help you find YOUR path. Once you have found it, you will need better guides to show you the way.

To help in this cause, I have put together a list of the best and brightest authors and the books that changed my life. If these books can't set you off on the right foot, then I am guessing you don't have a right foot......

Okay, here they are. No matter your flavor, you will find something for you. In addition, if you have some suggestions for me, please add them in the comment section below. I am ALWAYS looking for great new books to inspire and educate ME.

Thanks for looking!

Proceed to my recommendations.....

Sidebar 3: Poll Results, How Much Money Would You Need To Retire Right Now?

2009-04-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

First off, thanks to all of those who voted in our first poll! There will be more topics forthcoming, so keep an eye out for them. As you may have guessed, there is a reason for each of these poll questions. Hopefully they will generate some good discussions.

Here is my take on the poll results: Surprise. When I was selecting the values, I honestly believed that more people would choose >$1,701,000. As burgeoning entrepreneurs, most of us have big dreams, and feel that we need big bankrolls to back them up. As it turns out, most of us are wise enough to realize that FREEDOM is far more valuable than money. Let's talk about the 2 most popular responses, ranging from $900,000 to $1,700,000 and discuss how easy it is to get there.

According to Internet World Stats, nearly 1.6 billion people around the world are currently on-line. This is a staggering total, and should help you realize just how easy it is to reach that $1.7 million target that most of us would happily retire with. Let's do some math. If you can develop a product to sell online that earns you $10 per sale, you would only need to sell 170,000 of these products to hit the high end of your target. There are a ton of products that you can develop with a $10 profit margin, whether it is a book, e-book, toy, software program, fitness plan, or something else.

To sell 170,000 products, you would only need to sell to 0.01% of the 1.6 billion users currently surfing the web!

That number drops even quicker if you can increase your profit margin to $15 or $20! In reality, your goal is much closer than you realized. By developing one effective sales web site (We will discuss this topic in a later post), creating a product of great value, and marketing it properly, you will be there in no time.

Just to wrap it up, the Google guys have made Billions with their website, so a couple million should be a breeze for you! Start brainstorming for product ideas, and check back shortly as we will talk about developing an effective sales web site for your idea.

Good Luck!

Motivation 7: Desperation

2009-04-18T10:34:00.000-07:00

Argggggggggg matey! With all the Somali pirate talk lately, I thought this would be the perfect time to talk about one of the best motivations in the world, the same motivation driving these pirates. While it sounds glamorous, the pirate life is actually miserable. Putting your life on the line every day to steal from others gets old really quick, and there is only one reason they continue down this path. Desperation. The same reason crack dealers keep dealing, car thiefs keep stealing, and prostitutes keep hooking. When your options are limited, you do what it takes to survive.

The global economic situation has knocked the wind out of a lot of people and for all the horror stories we hear, it can be extremely valuable to look back at history and realize the number of businesses that were started during recessions, oftentimes by people who lost their jobs. Some examples, courtesy of InsideCRM.com:

Hyatt Hotels
Burger King
Ihop
Lexus Nexus
Microsoft
CNN
MTV
Trader Joe's
Wikipedia
General Electric
Sport's Illustrated
Hewlett Packard

While the businesses are all different, the concept was the same. They saw a niche that was available, and their founders took chances. Instead of mourning about his struggles at Harvard, Bill Gates founded Microsoft. Les Garland didn't settle for being an average DJ. He took his innovative concept of a VJ to the TV screen and gained thousand of followers by starting MTV.

You have a choice. Settle for your current situation, whatever it is, or take a gamble and start something new. One of the key lessons from the Medici Effect is that quantity of ideas directly correlates to quality of ideas. Thomas Edison is still the world leader in number of patents granted, so it is no surprise that he pulled out some amazing inventions such as the lightbulb. Don't fear failure, learn from it and come back stronger the next time.

So if your situation is not what you envisioned as a kid, get up and do something about it! Find your niche, perfect your art, and change the world!

Good Luck!

Path 14: Rush Limbaugh You Ain't. (Thank Goodness!)

2009-04-13T18:01:00.000-07:00

Resources on the Topic:
podcasting-tools.com
Podcasting Bible by Mitch Ratcliffe
How to Do Everything With Podcasting by Shel Holz and Neville Hobson

All it takes is an opinion, a microphone, and a computer and the world of Podcasting can be yours. As of September 2008, more than 173 million Ipods have been sold worldwide. Behind every one of these Ipods is a listener begging for interesting material. When the music gets old, oftentimes these listeners wander into the world of the audio podcast. This is where you come in....

Much like blogging, the key to a successful podcast is picking a great topic. A topic that will not only excite you, but resonate with your listeners. The most successful topics fall into one of two categories, informational and controversial. To get some ideas, simply log onto Itunes and download a few popular Podcasts in both categories. This will help you understand what sells.

Informational podcasters were the pioneers, discussing topics such as finance, medicine, or sports. They educated and entertained listeners at the same time, and by doing so, built a loyal fan-base. The other primary group of podcasters rose to prominance using controversial topics such as politics and religion. People like Rush Limbaugh made a fortune for themselves by appealing to a narrow group of political radicals on the radio, and you can do the same on your podcast. Because the cost of entry is so low, you can pick a topic that may only appeal to a limited number of people, but hopefully those people will be passionate and dedicated to your cause.

After topic selection, the next step is setting up the equipment to record and edit your podcast. Programs such as Recordforall, Replay Radio, and Mixcraft are good pay programs, but for me, the best option is FREE! Wild Voice Studio is a completely free program that is a breeze to use. You will be up and Podcasting in no time. While this software makes things easy, you must spend some time with the editing. If your podcast doesn't sound professional, your listeners won't come back, period. A couple of key things that every podcast should have are a nice intro, a disclaimer, and some nice audio segways. These add to the professional appearance of your podcast.

Now that you have your first podcast edited and ready for the airwaves, the next step is uploading to Itunes. While there are other sites to find Podcasts, this is by far the most popular. Register your podcast, upload your content and then wait for the listeners to come. A couple of key tips for success: Choose your name wisely, develop a regular posting schedule (Usually 1 per week for starters), and develop a simple website to accompany your cast. Oftentimes you will want to refer your listeners to articles or clips. This leads to the final component of your podcast, MONETIZING IT!

Much like blogging, there are a few key ways to monetize your blog. If you're podcast is an information cast, you have two primary methods of making money. The first is selling products, either your own, or your affiliates. I discuss affiliate product sales in my blogging article, and I will talk more about creating your own product in a later post. For those that choose to speak about the controversial topics such as politics, your primary means of revenue will be advertising, both on your site and on your podcast. If you have ever listened to Rush Limbaugh, you know how ridiculously overwhelming the advertising is. Try not to overwhelm your audience with too many ads because unlike the radio, your listeners will simply fast forward past your ads if they are boring. Keep them sweet and simple.

So that's it. In no time, your podcast will be up and running. If the content is good enough, the listeners will come and the revenue will follow! So get up and start brainstorming those topics!

Good luck and happy podcasting!

Keys to Success:

Spend some time on topic selection. If it isn't interesting or informational, no one will listen.
Make it professional. Practice recording and editing to perfect your sound. There is a reason that Paul Harvey was a radio god. He perfected the voice and the delivery.
Make it fun. If your listeners are falling asleep, it doesn't matter how good your material is.
Focus on listeners and content before you monetize. If you overwhelm your listeners with ads before they are hooked, you will chase them away.

Motivation 6: The Quarter Life Crisis

2009-04-09T17:29:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, it's supposed to be the midlife crisis, but you know that our generation hates to wait. For most of us, this sad realization sets in much sooner. It might be 25, it might be 30, it might be 60, but we all hit it.

We are raised on optimism. Optimism that hope, hard work, and ambition can take us anywhere we want to go. For me, it was the Boston Celtics, running the fast break with Larry Bird and winning games with last second three pointers. As it turns out, the court was traded for the cubicle and Larry Bird was replaced with the multi-purpose printer. When we reach this fork in the road, we have two choices. Read on and we will discuss them both.

First, we can take the path more commonly traveled. Buy a sports car (probably a cheap one because it's only a quarter life crisis!), settle into that cube, and give up on those dreams. Unfortunately, because this is the easy way, it tends to swallow most people.

But not those seeking the Upward Lifestyle....

Instead, WE take the narrow and difficult path. We pass on that cheap sports car now, knowing that with some dedication and hard work, we can opt for the Ferrari later. We use that cube as motivation to pursue our dreams. Look at that list of paths: blogging, flipping, inventing, or scalping. The true beauty of all of these paths is that THEY CAN BE STARTED IN YOUR SPARE TIME!

So stop reading this article, start looking through the paths on the right, buy a book or two that discuss your path and then

GET TO WORK!

Good Luck!