One of my regular clients that provides me freelance work is based over  at razorfish (London), one of the biggest digital media companies in the world which was sold by Microsoft for the sum of $530,000,000.

I was over at linkedin making an update to my profile when I  noticed that in order to complete the profile I needed to upload a resume.  I remember the original résumé that I passed onto the client that wanted to see the work I had done relating to SEO.

Instead of dropping a standard .doc that displaying the result [which really all they wanted to see] I decided to send sonething that would ensure I got the job. Take a look a secton of the résumé I sent;

What you think? Different?

This contributed to me getting the job, why? It stands above the crowd.

It is not just about the creativity, it is about going the extra mile.

If you go that little bit extra then you will be listened to.

Remember the rule, Think Smarter, Not work harder.

Create an exceptional CV that just can not get ignored is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing

Starting a business takes a lot of different preparation whether its materials, place, building, capital so on and so forth.

But one thing that stays the same is you are the pivot of it all.

You are the key, the one who drives the engine. You are the one who connects all the external and internal requirements of every field. So it is up to you to develop yourself to take on all of this, to get your business to become a success.

So what do you need as THE individual driving force? You need so many qualities fused together to make yourself an able person who can handle it all.

What do I mean? I mean that you as a person need to be or become competent enough to take it all on. What is a competent level, you will find out as you travel the road.

You will come across so many obstacles like, do you know the legislations?  Do you know the packages and how they work? Do you have the right tools and understanding to work to deadlines? Do you have the ability to stay calm when it all seems to be falling apart? So on and so forth. All this I say not to put you off but to make it real, clear and EASIER.

Let us cut the chase and get to the point. What I’m saying out of personal experience and so many courses etc. is. There is one simple solution to a lot of problems. They are qualities required by each of us to succeed. Let us name a few. Flexibility, endurance, management, knowledge, and decisive, the list will go on.

These qualities all linked into each other as we all know but one of the most important interlinking factor that is like the glue for them is DISCIPLINE. That’s our key. We will touch on the other qualities in other post but to start with DISCIPLINE is the first topic.

Discipline is a carrier for our qualities and abilities. It is discipline that allows us to form these qualities that we do not have, and if we do have it – it engages those qualities into the field of action.

Dictionary meaning to -dis·ci·pline

n.

1. Training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behavior, especially training that produces moral or mental improvement.

2. Controlled behaviour resulting from disciplinary training; self-control.

3.

a. Control obtained by enforcing compliance or order.

b. A systematic method to obtain obedience: a military discipline.

c. A state of order based on submission to rules and authority: a teacher who demanded discipline in the classroom.

4. Punishment intended to correct or train.

5. A set of rules or methods, as those regulating the practice of a church or monastic order.

6. A branch of knowledge or teaching.

tr.v. dis·ci·plined, dis·ci·plin·ing, dis·ci·plines

1. To train by instruction and practice, especially to teach self-control to.

2. To teach to obey rules or accept authority.

3. To punish in order to gain control or enforce obedience.

4. To impose order on: needed to discipline their study habits.

Some discipline quotes

“Discipline is the refining fire by which talent becomes ability.” – Roy L. Smith

“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” – Jim Rohn

“It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through.” – Zig Ziglar

“With self-discipline almost anything is possible.” – Theodore Roosevelt

Where does discipline fit in my business venture?

Like I was saying it is an underlying factor that engages our other qualities the simple way to see it is by answering these few questions.

Am I disciplined enough to wake up and start work early for my objective?

Am I disciplined enough to fit it around my other schedules and stick to it?

Am I disciplined enough or willing to learn those skills and implement them to make my endeavor succeed?

Am I disciplined enough to make a plan of action and see it through?

Am I disciplined enough that when the inevitable obstacles do arise I will conquer them?

And finally am I disciplined enough to see all these questions through over and over again even if they become boring, unattractive, if I am feeling lazy, angry, frustrated?

Have you got the message? It is simple is it not?

It is work that I have to do as part of my business, I have to nurture it and control it and it is a part of my life. We just have to be disciplined enough to see it through. But please don’t over do the discipline we need the right balance of everything.

Where does discipline fit in my business venture? is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing

Starting up any business online for the first time or not, the same principles or formulas always applies.

I recall the saying “Any great thing is 1 % inspiration and 99% perspiration.” If you’ve thought of your niche then that is the 1% inspiration done. Now what is left? That’s right folks the 99% perspiration.

Now let us break the perspiration down. What causes perspiration? The answer is easy …hard work. (Unless you are naturally perspired) This is where the real work starts so this is where our motivation, determination and all those other qualities that drive a person, needs to start assisting us. It is the balance that ensures that we are working at the level we need to.

How many times I have started on a business venture which was a potential goldmine, but as the hard work started, the glitz and the glamour of the potential goal that I had dreamed up seemed to fade into the far distance!

You might have been there or you might be there now. Like most of us we hear about a good opportunity we read how a certain individual has made it big through a similar venture. You imagine yourself in that position earning that money spending that cash free to go on holiday etc. That’s the initial dreamers phase that everybody enjoys.

But as you decide “yes that’s what I want and that’s what I am going to do. Not like the person on the top but even better.” Your ego, motivation, determination etc. goes into overdrive. Your emotions make you feel as if you have already achieved your dream. The initial stage you can say is like a sudden and storm of ideas that blow up dust everywhere you become a little blinded with the overwhelming thoughts of success.

We then start the project/venture with that high. As we start taking the initial steps we obviously come across obstacles that we did not apprehend. From basic things like… it is going to cost more than you thought or somebody else has already thought of the innovative idea you had planned, one of the biggest off putter the amount of competition etc.

The reality of the journey starts dawning on us and we say to ourselves “hold on, this isn’t going to be as easy as I thought.” Have you been there too? This is the first leg when you lose most of the people who didn’t really mean what they hoped for. This where the wise mans saying comes true. “My dear son, take the road of hardship as on that road there is very little competition”

So this is the point where you need to re-remind yourself the reason you have decided to take up this venture. The benefits, the perks, how this venture is going to let you live the life you want. Keep the dream alive and watch your motivation and emotions pick you up again.

This is your dream.You are a winner and you can do it………

Here are some quotes that might help.

“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will.” Vincent T. Lombardi

“The successful always has a number of projects planned, to which he looks forward. Anyone of them could change the course of his life overnight.”
–Mark Caine

“Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you’ve got. “
Jim Rohn

“Everyone who got where he is has had to begin where he was.”
– Robert Louis Stevenson

“Duty makes us do things well, but love makes us do them beautifully.”
Zig Ziglar

Found a cracking niche? Get a reality check now is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing

Steps to pick you up.

Human emotions are as unpredictable as the weather. It’s shining, then a grey dot appears in the sky and all of a sudden it’s raining buckets. We all see it on a day to day basis. The weather is never constant, neither are we.

Ever heard the phrase “Falls down six stands up seven falls down eight stands up nine”.

That is what we need to do.  Programme ourselves to do this every time we feel we have fallen. As we start taking control of our mindset we start controlling the way we feel. There was a conference I was once attending where a young man said a great thing to me he said in a conversation, “Do you know there are two types of people here? A going to be and a want to be; only one group will make it”. So there are many formulas in the world but intentions without actions are only intentions and intentions alone move nothing. Here are a few strategies to help us keep ourselves focused and motivated.

1)      One goal at a time – what do I need to do NOW! Whenever I have had too much to do and I know I won’t be able to achieve all of them. I know that if I do not take a step back, nothing gets done.

A great scholar of India had a simple but effective method. When he was busy with a task and suddenly he thought of an answer to another problem he has been struggling with, instead of tackling that answer he would write a little note to remind him later and would complete the task at hand.

So many times I realise I have too much going on in my life, I am trying to do too much; and it diffuses my energy and motivation.

It is probably the most common mistake that people make. We take on too much, trying our best to accomplish too many goals at once. It is very very difficult to maintain energy and focus (the two most important things in accomplishing a goal) if you are trying to do two or more goals at once. It is almost impossible to be at two places at once.

2)      Motivation / Inspiration – The psychological feature that arouses an organism to action, toward a desired goal; the reason for the action.  That is the dictionaries definition but I am not a dictionary! We need to recognise what motivates me? The actual road to the destination? Ask yourself why did I want this? Read other blogs look at success stories. Re-ignite that spark. Make yourself feel that happiness that zest and energy you once felt.

3)      Remind yourself – This is such a simple method but we seldom do it. Stick up post-its, put a reminder in your memo, write it in your diary, and put a sign near the places you frequent. Get your friends and family to help keep you on track. If you’re thinking of which ones will be good for you. You can do them all, soon you’ll realise yourself what works for you.

4)      Start small and steady – do not over do it. How many times I have felt inspired then I have ended up joining the gym, started running outdoors, doing exercise at home, and new diet regime. All the inspiration comes at once, then week 4 or 5…… ALL GONE! Consistency is essential.

5)      Keep the motivation – motivation is like fuel to anything, no fuel no movement. The best method I find for myself is being around motivated people all the time. There energy is contagious they inspire dead hearts back to life. If there isn’t that opportunity we can find that inspiration by reading about positive people, find articles, quotes etc.

6)      Negativity – is the opposite of positivity. We all get them the negative ideas, the negative energy around us, the results of not accomplishing exactly to your own standards. These are the punctures in our souls. Seek them and replace them one at a time with a positive one. Try it yourself .You are a winner and you know it.

6 Steps to get motivated even if you are down is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing

“The meeting of preparation with opportunity generates the offspring we call luck.” – Anthony Robbins.

I am sorry to disappoint you from the outset of this blog but the truth of the matter is that there is nothing out there that can turn you instantly rich! There are many online marketing money making services/products out there, some who pride themselves on the quality of the work that they have to offer and others that are just out there to scam you.

With the sheer number of newbies (new people) coming online some believe it is ok to produce crap products that market and exploit their vulnerability and there are others who will stake their reputation on the line and cannot afford to be have their reputation tarnished and will work hard to produce quality content.

The first part of the mindset that you need to get a focus on is that no single thing or item is going to get you to the success that you want to achieve!

That thing that will turn you into an overnight success, instant riches simply does not exist.  You cannot have an eureka moment and think that this churn into success since it is a revolutionary idea.  You do not pick an item from a shelf and pay for that item in the wishful thinking that it will reach you to that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow in a few simple steps.

Now if you gathered all your savings in the hope that the superb course by MrX marketer is going to help you gain a 400% return on the invest you have happily made to him in a few weeks, then I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news; but I think you have flushed that money away down the toilet!

Did you know that over 90% of people who buy an eBook online actually read beyond the first chapter? About the same numbers of people that buy an internet marketing course actually go on to use the material in the course.

Most people thing that the power from above is going to miraculously bless this course and it will pop out and change your life forever or something whilst it is sitting on the shelf up there.

Please digest this important fact all the way down to your stomach until it hurts: No is not thing or item that can give you success.

The only force in this universe that can determine your success is….YOU!

What is meant here is not to take any power or mighty from his majestic lord, but to understand that:

• Either you will do what it takes to attain success or you will not.
• You will personally develop yourself to have the needed qualities, the personality, the reputation or credibility that is needed to become successful or you will not.
• You will want to achieve success so much that you will be determined to have it, but have enough insight to understand whether you are treading in the right direction or you simple will do nothing.

Now I do not want you to think that this is one of those post that is telling you to become a ‘fatalist’, fatalism is whereby you think everything is predetermined in a way that cannot be changed, like if I walk in front of a bus if it written for me then I will survive if not I will die.  No not at all, far from it.

This post is about empowerment.  Understand that with the correct knowledge and the right tools you can gain success in online marketing.  All the necessary tools lie with you; human beings are amazing creatures and have the strength to achieve wonderful feats.  You have got to have a focused determination, a drive within you to want to succeed and then the doors will open.

The eBook that you have bought or the course you have purchased, you will read it to the end; you will execute the guidelines that are in there.

Sure you have to make sure you have the right tools.  A Black and Decker power saw will get you faster results then a hand saw, but if you are not the carpenter then you may not realise that the saw will perform better and faster if it has been oiled.  So learn the right information, gain the correct knowledge; find the eBook or course that has a proven formula.  Did you know that by the time you have gone through most of the free information available on the internet you would have gained enough knowledge to decide what eBook or course you should actually pay for that is going to get you SureFire results.

What determines the success online; you may be surprised by the response is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing

Have you really thought about the value of your time, if time was a currency would it not have the highest exchange rate? In fact it is a currency that certainly cannot be exchanged for any monetary value in this lifetime.

Pondering over it, time is the all that we really have.  More importantly there in no such thing as free time.

You cannot just store time away. Store it for another time to be used up later, sure you have time that you will use at your leisure, but certainly is not spare time.

When that precious time is wasted in front of the PC or Laptop without a care just surfing the internet and then attempting to justify to yourself that you were actually using up your spare time – what actually happened is that valuable time of our life has been wasted.

It is not actual time that would be termed as leisure time.  Leisure time is when you are occupied with something above all other activities.  All other activities like going on holiday, or going swimming, spending the moments with your loved ones or family, spending it with your friends or engaged in hobbies.

The Pious Predecessors understood the value of time. The great scholar of the exegesis of the Qur’an Ibn Jarrir At-Tabiri whilst he was on his deathbed it was brought to his attention of a narration of the Prophet صلىالله عليه وسلم that he was unaware of.  Whilst he was in the final stages of his life, he requested for a pen and paper to be brought to him so that he could make a record of this narration.  The people that were surrounding him were astounded; they wanted to know from him why on the final moments of his life why he wanted to undertake this task?  He explained that people should not give up the search and pursuit of knowledge until death has actually overtaken them.  The pressure that these pious predecessors exerted on themselves was such that every moment of their life was precious and every second was valued.

The importance of financial and time management

The basis of modern science is on Calculus, Calculus is based on Algebra, and Algebra was developed on the basis of the complexities around inheritance that Islam had designated to the heirs.

One scholar has given a juristical opinion that upon marriage the husband and wife should actually label who owns what exactly, the wisdom to this is that if one or the other dies then the siblings will not be fighting against their parent over any property/item that  assume is owned by the deceased parent.

The point of the above is that you should endeavour to calculate and manage all of your expenses and keeping records of these, in the long-term this will be beneficially not only to your back pocket but nurture you intelligence; since you have to exert intelligence to achieve financial balance especially in an age of waste and excess.

I was once mentored by two brothers who were millionaires; part of that mentoring was to collect receipts for everything I purchased over the month; even if it was from a local bakery for a cheese and onion pie that cost 36p.

At the end of the month you would calculate the expense and examine whether it was necessary to spend that money or should you have saved that money or better still give it to charity.

Now I am not asking you to stop eating out and enjoying a few pleasures, however I am asking you to start reflecting on your finances and what changes can be made to improve the financial situation.

At least the initial stages it to be able to start reflecting on what we spend on and how necessary was that spend and whether you are becoming excessive in your spend.

Since this blog is about personal development and internet marketing, you got the spiel about the personal development and would want to know when internet business aspect kicks in and what it has to do with that.  Well I want to tell you that it has EVERYTHING to do with that!

The main reason that you are not making the kind of money you want to from your business or from the amount of hours that you work is because you have not made it a matter to continuously increase the value of your time.  Let me explain that in the layman’s terms.

All time has a value attached to it; the way you perceive or view time and think about it yourself is going to have an effect on everything within and outside of your business for the rest of your natural life and beyond.  Frankly you have to give value to your time before anyone else is going to value it as well.

In regards to financial terms, do you know the value of your time? Or even how you increase the value of that time? A fundamental question that needs to be asked here is, “what do you think that your time is worth?” and also, “Do you know what your actual time has to be worth in order for you to achieve the income goals you are aiming for?”

If you are unaware and do not know what is the value of your time and what that value needs to be, then you will be not be able to maximize and make those decisions that are effective on exactly what activities you should be working on and spending your time towards and what activities you should have others working on as well.

Here we can both look at this together and try and get an idea of the value of your time as finance is concerned and what that time should be worth.

Here is a slide show that I have taken from Rich Schefren Internet manifesto, which frankly I owe gratitude for his introduction to me of outsourcing the work online and that after the grace of Allah.   This process is going to be the basis of the calculation to the value of your time that we will attempt to assess together.

However we will not be covering it all in this one single post you will have to await an additional post that will cover on what is what the exact hourly rate of your time is worth! So let us look towards a short term goal that will be 10% of your long-term goal.

In the image to the right you have a box.  In the box you want to insert the ideal amount of money you want to achieve if you owned your own business.

Now in the box immediately below it you want put the amount you made over the previous 3 months.

In the box at the bottom will be the income over the previous 3 months x4 to get on track to what you currently want to achieve.

Now what you do is take-away what you are on track to achieve i.e. the current reality from that amount that you have always wanted to achieve.  You know have the magic number which is the amount you want to achieve and reach as the income target.

What you would do now is times x that magic number with 0.1, then add that to the amount you are actually earning to establish what the amount you need to increase to get your income target.

I can imagine how confusing this can get. So let us look at an example.

The target income to be achieved is $1,000,000 a year.   If the person is earning over the previous 3 months was $30,000 it would mean that that they are progressing towards 160,000 annually.  You would take-away the $160,000 from the $1,000,000 and you will assert that $840,000 is needed to achieve that goal.

What you do is now take 10% to get a result of $84,000.  If you add that amount to the $160,000 then you have a new short-term target which is $240,000.

So there you have it! You will have set yourself a target to achieve, now we need to look at how that can be achieved; how are you actually going to get there? You definitely have to make some changes if you truly want to achieve that.  And you definitely need to change the actual amount of money you are earning and the amount of money you make on an hourly basis.

Following on from this post expect to see the post what the exact hourly rate of your time is worth! Also a post about how you go about assessing the target rate you want to achieve as your income.

Do You Measure The Time Also As a Currency? is a post from: Technical Internet Marketing