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Many speakers, consultants, and small business owners alike
feel confident with communicating their message orally. They can
spout their message in an elevator speech with the accuracy of a
scientist. But when it comes to putting it on paper, some grown
men & women end up crying like a baby.

Through speaking and writing, I have discovered 9 myths that
often block others from writing their best book now. I promise.
It’s not hard once you know exactly what to do. Successful
writers set up a system of writing. Destroy these myths and
setup your system of writing with nine easy solutions.

Myth #5 I am stuck. I have to stop writing until I feel it again.

Unseasoned writers may play the martyr and push through just to
put something on paper or give up and try again another day. We
would never get it done like that. When you get stuck simply
close that chapter and pull out your chapter outline and choose
another chapter. If you have been following this program, you
have listed main points for each chapter. Select a topic from
that chapter and begin there.

Solution: To maintain your momentum keep your writing
commitments. Go around writer’s block by working on another
chapter. For example, while writing this book in one of my
writing sessions, I wanted to finish my fourth chapter on titles
but I ran into a writer’s block. Instead of breaking my
momentum, I came down to chapter eight about easy writing and
began there. I was able to complete my time commitment of one
hour and keep my momentum.

Myth #6 I just write whatever comes to my head and there’s no
need to re-write.

My editor will handle all that. It’s o.k. to free write when
you are working on your first draft. The idea is go get the
thoughts out of your head onto paper. For no one can express it
quite like you. Oh sure, there are some better or worse writers
but not exactly like you.

I know this may not feel good to some but its smacks of plain
ole laziness if you don’t work on making your copy the best it
can be. Don’t leave all the dirty work for your editor unless
you really can’t do any better.

Solution: Successful authors rewrite and organize their ideas
for the most impact. Avoid re-writing during your first draft.
Concentrate on finishing each chapter then you’re your tracking
time to self-edit: Check your ideas for flow, grammar, spelling,
and chapter endings. Work on your chapter titles and lead in
introductions.

Myth #7 I have to do it all myself.

Do your research and reading time apart from your writing
sessions. You may be able to ask your spouse, a teen-aged son or
daughter, a friend to help with your research. Know when to let
go of your chapters and book. Don’t self-edit and pick your book
apart word by word. Learn to use your skills at the highest
level possible. Some of the mechanical tasks of proofreading ask
a family member, part-time employee or again a friend to help.

Solution: After using your skills at the highest level, learn
to delegate faster and faster. Do the best job you can with your
manuscript, and then don’t be afraid to pass it to a
professional.

Myth #8 I don’t know anything about computers so pecking my
book out would probably take forever.

Don’t run from technology. At least take the time to learn
about the shortcuts in your current software. Welcome to the new
millennium! Embrace technology make your software work
efficiently for you.

Solution: Value your time. Learn how to do it easier and faster.

Myth #9 Computer crashes, loss of information would never
happen to me.

If you have been computing long, you know computer crashes or
loss of data can happen to anyone. Don’t take the chance of
losing your hard work. Print out and back up daily.

Solution: Develop the habit now to save your work and print
daily. Save your manuscript to an alternate space. Use a floppy
diskette or burn a cd/dvd. Safeguard your time investment backup
today and every day.

Writing a book is a journey. Most journeys go so much smoother
with a map or in our case a writing plan. Taking the simple
steps above will get you started fast and keep you going to
completion. Start today then complete and release your
significant message in a book to the world.

© Earma Brown, 11 year author and business owner
helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Author of ‘Write Your Best Book Now’, she mentors other writers and business professionals through her monthly ezine ‘iScribe’ Subscribe now at
iscribe@writetowin.org for FREE mini-course ‘Jumpstart Writing Your Best Book’ or visit WritetoWin.org

Congratulations letters are a form of personal correspondence and are typically sent personally from you to another person. Although personal in nature, these are routinely sent to co-workers and associates within one’s profession. It’s not uncommon to send congratulations letters even to competitors. This type of correspondence conveys respect and professionalism that earns the sender a professional reputation and keeps doors open for future dealings, whatever they might be.

Format
1. Use the Friendly format arrangement for congratulations letters:

a. to the right side of the letter header place the return address
b. make two carriage returns
c. directly below the return address, place the date
d. make three carriage returns
e. do not include a reference line
f. begin your letter
g. indent the body paragraphs five spaces each
h. center the closing and signature so that the left-most character of each are justified to the center of the page if the paper were folded.

Wording
1. Congratulate the reader for their achievement, accomplishment, promotion, etc.
2. In an upbeat tone, tell the reader where you learned of the news.
3. Add a personal note or personal comment of praise in a separate paragraph.
4. Restate your congratulations and wish the reader good luck.

Tone
1. Keep your tone warm throughout the letter regardless of any personal feelings you may have to the contrary.

Email
1. With time being more and more critical, sending a congratulations letter via email, once considered a faux pas, is now becoming increasingly more accepted.
a. Send your letter in the same format as you would for snail mail – this conveys to the reader that you took the time to create a professional correspondence.
b. Depending on the circumstances, send the message from the appropriate email account: personal email account for a personal congratulations, professional email account for professional congratulations.

Printing
1. Before printing, decide on what paper to use. For Letters of Recommendation, it is best to use heavy, card stock, bond paper.
2. Make three carriage returns between the closing and your typed signature. Inside this space, sign your name for professional correspondence. For personal correspondence, there is no need for a typed signature. Simply, sign your name.
3. Print your letter and envelope on the same printer using the same font and an envelope that matches the stationery.

For samples of Congratulations Letters, take a look at…

LetterRep.com.

Rob Noyes owns and operates the Internet’s premiere Personal and Business Letter-writing site. LetterRep.com. Contact Rob at admin@letterrep.com for answers and solutions to common letter-writing situations.

It is no secret that public speaking is causing a lot of fear and stress, in fact public speaking ranks high in causing fear in many of us.

The problem that most of us face is not speech making per se, it is actually any kind of frontal lecture or exchange of information that we need to deliver. College students are well aware of the devastating effects of the fear of public speaking, the need to present seminars or to protect a work from criticism makes public speaking “victims” out of most of us.

There are a lot of tips and advice on delivering a well planned and perfectly executed speech. Lets try and consider the few basic points of good public speaking, the points that matter the most and that will increase your chances of getting to the end of your speech alive and well.

A great speech starts with a great topic. It is so important that you select a topic that interests you, and you believe will interest your audience. Try and find as many things that interest you in this speech, discover things the you know a little more about and that you can use to leverage the speech to your benefit. When researching the topic of the speech look for as many divers subjects within the topic, try and locate one that you feel very comfortable with and that you can base most of the time in your speech to.

Think carefully of your audience and its needs, if this is the silent audience, coming to hear a public speaking and that would be grateful for any piece of information you through their way, or the savvy interested audience that will make your life hard and ask questions, if you prepare for the worst – you will be protected. The problem is that you don’t always have the time to spend in preparing for the audience from hell.

Writing your introduction, the base of the speech and the opening of your public speaking should be a powerful one, if you want to capture your audience attention and minds you will need some passion here. Start by writing a 3-sentence introduction. Think of it as trying to explain this subject to someone in a pleasant casual talk, key to giving a speech is a conversational tone. In the introduction tell your audience what you’re about to say.

The first thirty seconds of your speech are probably the most important. In that period of time you must grab the attention of the audience, and engage their interest in what you have to say in your speech. Once your audience is interested and intrigued you can move forward and advance to the later parts of your speech.

Now is the time to address each of the general points in your introduction, and apply the “meat” of the speech. You need to explore a few points in a profound way, to show that you have done your homework and give the audience that feeling that you re just talking to them and not reading out a prepared speech. When an experienced speaker gives a public speech the feeling is as if he was talking about something he is very familiar with, that diverting the subject is not a problem, that he is in control over the whole scope of the topic. That is what you should aspire to – not necessarily to actually know this, but to give this feeling.

Most good writing, we are told over and over again, must have structure. A good speech is no exception. By providing your speech with a beginning, middle, and an end, you will have laid the foundations for a successful speech that fulfils all of your aspirations.

The finishing touch, the conclusion is your last touch, and it will probably not make or break you general performance, do not rush to the conclusion, make a lengthy speech before you get to the point when you say “in conclusion”, give the audience the feeling that you have exhausted all the possible interesting things you could have said, and move to the conclusion. Make sure you finish with a considerable amount of confidence, it will send you audience home with a feeling that they have learned something, and try to make sure you know what you are talking about.

Simon Oldmann has been studying the effects of cognitive alertness on performance for the last 5 years, he has a wide knowledge of public performance and personality traits. Simon is currently writing tips and advice on Public Speaking for the internet based site www.ZupaTips.com

Exhaling

Often first timers exhale straight in the bong, after breathing it in. This of course is a rookie mistake as it will push the water back up through the stem and give you wet smoke, which nobody likes.

Carbs

This is a starter’s bong smoking technique, take off the container from the pipe, this exposes the pipe to the outside air pressure, this allows you to inhale easier. The result is increased inhalation of smoke and a better high.

Please note: Some plastic hookah pipes will have this hole apart from the stem.

Filling up the Bong

When feeding the bong it’s important to consider:

Are they used to smoking much? You don’t want people passing out after a few hits!

The quality of smoke? If the stuff you’re using is really good you won’t need much, if it is low quality, pack it full!

Are there many people sharing? it’s dead boring having to wait an eternity for the bong to go round because it is packed so heavily each time.

Is there enough smoke for everyone? How much time are you smoking for? It’s not easily available and there is nothing worse than running out! If you are low on supplies, reduce the size used accordingly.

Is it your stuff You may wish to request the amount people want in the bong Some people can easily get upset.

Golden Rules

Don’t spill the hookah pipe, the water will smell for hours perhaps even weeks. Don’t forget, if you break the hookah pipe you’ve just labeled yourself as public enemy number one! No matter how much you breathe in, always be nice to the hookah pipe!

Finish your load, you’ll get there eventually. The hookah pipe will be empty and the pipe is smokeless. Never waste any!

There is some good news for people who thought ubiquitous broadband connectivity is just a distinct possibility. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has emerged as the biggest supporter for “broadband for all” plan, which is likely to be completed by 2012.

Mr Brown said that there is an increasing need felt for improving the existing broadband network across the UK, as this will provide a big boost to Britain’s economy. He added that digitising Britain and an upward trend in the economy go hand-in-hand, and that providing broadband access to all UK households would be the first important step towards Digital Britain. He made these statements while addressing the communication and technology industry bigwigs and media persons at the Digital Britain summit held in London.

Another speaker at the summit, the Trade Secretary Lord Mandelson, suggested that financial aid would be required by companies working on the project in order to lend speed to their effort and in establishing networks to provide broadband access to all British households. He said financial backing by the government is essential in turning this dream into a reality, even as he accepted that the market would be able to provide most of the top-class technological infrastructure required for the project (click for info on free laptop mobile).

These positive statements by two big political leaders have assured the communication industry players that the government has some serious plans for the development of broadband infrastructure. Government funds will also be available to mobile broadband providers who will work towards the goal of providing broadband access at every UK home.

With the PM equating the economy’s success with technological advancements, the vision of 100% broadband access to UK homes has finally begun to look achievable.

The Software 2005 conference is now a wrap. This conference, presented by M.R. Rangaswami and The Sandhill Group, is now an annual event and attendance increased 35% this year over 2004. It is an ideal opportunity for those in the enterprise software industry to see what’s new and what’s coming, as well as to catch up with old colleagues and make new connections. It is also a perfect forum for startups to gain exposure as well as solicit funding and key partnerships.

According to Sandhill, there were 1500 attendees this year, including 100 press and 100 VCs. Half of those in attendance were CEOs. We spotted a number of them, including entrepeneur/CEO (now a VC) Ken Ross, Indus CEO Greg Dukat, Composite SW and entrepeneur Jim Green, former webMethods CEO Phillip Merrick, and a host of others.

M.R. has a rolodex that anyone would die for, and he put it to good use in attracting the top executives from major enterprise software and services companies such as Oracle, Intuit, McKinsey and others for keynote addresses. There were also a number of breakout tracks on the latest trends in our industry, including SaaS, open source and offshoring.

There were a couple of unique forums made available for select startups. including the Launch and the Funding Forum, where startups were given a fixed amount of time to present their business plan to investors, who were invited back to the conference floor for further discussions if interested. Mark Cosway, a member of our board of advisors and President of ActStream Technologies, participated in Launch, and reported new contacts with a number of interested investors.

After taking in this conference, we think that it is safe to say that enterprise software as an industry is ‘cautiously optimistic’. Venture investments are picking up, M&A activity is growing, and the overall buzz was a good one, after the last 4-5 years of doom and gloom. Many of the people that we talked to had taken long sabbaticals after the dot-com bust, and are just now getting back in the game.

All in all, the feeling was that it is a good time to be in the software and information technology business. We hope they’re right – we certainly feel that way.

Ash Seha is a partner at The Launch Factory LLP, a consultancy specializing in marketing, sales, and product management strategy for software and IT companies. Their expertise, garnered from such IT highflyers as i2, webMethods, SAP, and Baan, is focused on breaking the growth bariers that stand between high-growth software and IT companies and their revenue and marketshare goals.

My acquaintance Al contacts me on the telephone to tell me that he has discovered some on-line gambling websites that I simply have to check. I have never really been deep into gambling, but I figured okey, I have to give it a try. So I tested out some black jack and poker, only truthfully, they just are not my thing. And Then I find these on-line e-lottery websites and I realise that all over the net I can take part in lots of several lotteries around the planet. Instantly to me this appears a great deal more fun, so I thought I will give it a try out. To start with I tried out my luck at euro millions, you know a European lottery. I chose my elottery winning numbers and waited and imagined that I may win it big. I didn’t but when the euro lotto numbers came out; I was highly surprised to realize that I had in reality come very close to the winning lotto numbers. I tried out a few other lotteries, only I found that I had come so near the first time on the euro millions, that I just had to give it one more shot. So far, I haven’t scooped millions of dollars, but, I have won some money, and so I continue to play the euro lotto and picking lotto winning numbers, hoping to get my big break. I am one of those individuals who like to think in the likelihood of winning it big, because it is hard to imagine getting that sort of money any other way.

As for my friend, he still stays on with his passion of on-line gambling and finds himself at the online gambling casino for at least 60 minutes a day. He too has won some money, but it is up and down and the difference is, when you lose at gambling you commonly lose a lot but when you lose at the lotto, it doesn’t cost you as near as much. I reckon that the lottery is the only path for me to go plus the thought of hitting the jackpot and on top of that, it’s only costing me simply a couple of dollars “makes it more appealing”.

Feeling haunted by a story but you just can’t get it to take a corporeal shape? Have a technical or medical subject to explore and explain, but no time to do it? Have the spirit but not the skills to spell out a start-to-finish fictional story, memoir, biography, or case history?

These are some of the many reasons less experienced authors or subject matter experts choose a ghost writer to carry their tale into the world.

The expression two heads are better than one is never so true as with ghost writing. Whether you’re approaching the ghost writing experience as the ghost writer or originating author/expert, here’s some tips as to what to expect from a ghost writing relationship.

A ghost writer is a professional who writes what the author/expert would write if he or she had the time, skills, and energy. A ghostwriter is basically an extension of the author, someone who channels – if you’ll excuse the ghostly metaphor – experience into narrative.

Ghost writers don’t take over a topic, they pass through it, like, well, a ghost. They allow the authors personality and interests to show through their expertise, in the best possible light.

Ghostwriters zoom in on subject matter, organize it, and
write to reach whatever audience the author desires, whether the audience is a conference of medical professionals interested in learning about a new health issue or breakthrough, or romance readers eager for a fresh setting and vivid new characters.

Along with making an authors words as resonant as possible, ghost writers will often work with author/experts to be certain a book reaches its desired marketplace. He or she will make certain that subject matter and style conforms with accepted mores within a genre, whether it’s a sci fi novel to be sold at a local convention or a how-to manual on successful search engine use with a waiting publisher.

Choosing a particular ghost writer is usually based on that writer’s field of expertise. While my personal experience has ranged from fiction to technically-oriented non-fiction topics – a vestige from years in corporate communication and marketing – many ghost writers specialize in one genre or series of subjects.

Obviously some ghost writers maybe also be better at or more experienced in one type of writing that another, whether it’s fiction versus non-fiction, technical writing versus “soft” memoir or family autobiography. Choosing the right ghostwriter often depends upon past samples or experiences, ability to research, and subject matter expertise or interest.

Deciding to work with any ghostwriter in the first place is usually based upon an author/experts comfort level in confiding their subject to someone previous unfamiliar to them.

Author/experts also need to accept the fact that their story will be presented in words chosen by someone else other than themselves – albeit someone with every vested interest in the success of their project at the highest possible level.

Once a ghost writer is chosen, there are certain elements that are necessary for the ghost writing relationship to work.

The most important is information: ghost writers often need double the material an author/expert thinks they’ll need to create a fully dimensional work.

Ghostwriters most often pull source material together from many difference venues. Besides an author/experts own words, biography, or research, ghost writers will use the full resources of the ‘net, library, and appropriate interviews to complete a project.

Author/experts can help their ghostwriter by checking facts, and sharing ideas. Clear communication is vital in any creative relationship, but its especially important with ghostwriting. No need for seances here! Both ghostwriter and client need to establish a relationship of trust to bring their words to life.

Ghostwriting begins with an author/expert and the chosen writer formulating a plan or map of the book’s structure.
Resources and approach should be agreed upon – for example overall tone, narrator, and audience should be discussed.

Next, a written proposal should be drawn up for the
author/experts approval. A good proposal will include content and formalized approach, as well as practical information such as how long the writing experience will take, i.e. dates to complete research, first draft, and completed drafts. The proposal should also cover payment information, and a contract stipulating the author/experts rights to the material, as well as the ghost writers requirements – both in terms of financial payments and content information – to complete the project.

Once the proposal has been accepted, many ghostwriters start with an outline, and a sample chapter so that an author/expert has the chance to approve the tone and focus of the book before substantive work is completed.

The schedule varies greatly from there by each ghost writer and authors consent. Some authors and writers complete one chapter at a time. Others prefer to write an entire book based on the outline, or a combination thereof.

Ghost writers and authors will of course stay in close communication throughout the writing process, over the phone, in person, or over the Internet.

The end result? That story that’s haunting, the procedural that needs to be explained, the how-to that simply had to be told – all these the stories that just wouldn’t shape up without an outside driving force – are made into a cohesive, professional manuscript.

And two creators – one a shape shifting wordsmith, the other whose message just had to be shared – will experience the solid pleasure of writing well done.

Genie Davis’ romantic suspense The Model Man is her first with Kensington/Zebra. The noir Dreamtown was published by a small press in 2001. Also available – the short fiction of The Girl and the Gun on Amazon Shorts.

Coming July 2006: erotica written as Nikki Alton from Kensington Aphrodisia’s The Cowboy – Rodeo Rider; January 2007, more suspense with Five O’Clock Shadow.

A produced screen and television writer, director, and producer, her work spans a variety of genres from supernatural thriller to romantic drama, action, family, teen, and comedy. Her credits include ABC’s Port Charles; the independent film, Losing Hope; reality programming and documentaries for The Learning Channel, PBS, and HGTV, numerous television commercials and corporate videos.

Personal Computers, Servers Or ISP?

You need a server to host your site so that it can be viewed over the internet. This server can either be an Internet Service Provider or of your own. Most websites are hosted by an Internet Service Provider because they can provide powerful server hardware, high speed connections and reliable server support.

Most providers have very fast connections to the Internet such as a full T3 fiber-optic (45 Megabytes per second) connections which is about 1000 high speed (56 Kilobytes per second) modems combined.

For those who are looking to set up their own servers and host their own websites, a personal computer is often not powerful enough to do the job. As the name suggests, a personal computer can hardly handle multiple visitors to your website- servers are needed to handle these visitors simultaneously.

Getting Your Web Hosting

There are thousands of companies that offer web hosting for your website. Which to choose and what to look out for? With the multitude of features and terms in each hosting plan, it can be puzzling for those who are just starting out. The golden rule in choosing your website: Nothing beats reliable web hosting. Many web hosting plans offer more space, more benefits than others. The decision to your web hosting should be based on reliability. We have seen too many disappointed website owners who chose benefits and space over reliability.

Leslie Boey works in an Australian Web Design and Internet Marketing company (Australian Seo and Web Designs Services). His life revolves around websites; providing full-time and freelance seo services to US and Australian businesses. Email: maintenance@definiteweb.com

A lot of people design their business websites to make direct sales. That’s great, but in some cases such an approach is not appropriate.

For example a small service-oriented business like a landscaping company or computer repair service is more likely to use a website as a prospecting tool. Likewise, many network marketers are using their websites to build their contact list or promote some type of free e-zine.

If you are using the web to gather leads for your business, it is crucial that your site is a very clear representation of what you have to offer a prospective customer. This will save you loads of time and frustration in the long run, and will result in higher backend conversions.

It’s best to seek a business relationship only with those people who want specifically what you have to offer.

There may be hundreds of people selling the same product or service as you. But it’s a safe bet that you are not 100% identical to all of your competitors.

Perhaps you charge slightly more or slightly less for a particular product. Or maybe you have a radically different approach to rendering a given service.

Give your prospects as much information as possible about how you operate, what you charge, how they can expect to be treated, what you are unwilling to do in terms of scope of service, etc. Ideally, you want to capture clients who are a great fit for your individual business philosophy.

If you are intentionally vague with your promotional copy, you might end up doing business with people who don’t like you or your methods of operation. Of course this is going to happen, but you can eliminate some of the headaches associated with poor-fit clients by pre-qualifying your audience.

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Tim Whiston is a full-time entrepreneur and internet marketer. He publishes a monthly ezine, has written multiple e-books, and assists small businesses in his local area with the development of a web presence.

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