Slap The Guru

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Any self-annointed guru who can’t handle a little rough treatment — and a vigorous dissection of his offered materials — needs to leave the stage. Just put your hype down, and back away slowly.

Teaching is, and should be, hard. At the public level, I think it’s a friggin’ crime both that our teachers earn shitty wages… and that the job doesn’t command the respect necessary to lure truly bright and motivated people with an aptitude for sharing knowledge and skills.

I slogged my way through 16 years of school, and I met exactly one teacher who took her job seriously. She taught the course, vigorously… she engaged each and every student individually, and strove to motivate you using every trick possible (from flattery to bullying, from deep discussion to specific challenges)… and she honestly cared about you.

Meeting her represented my first encounter with “real” teaching, and it rattled my cage profoundly. This was in community college, where I got a two-year degree in slacking off and partying. This teacher took me aside and upbraided me for being a brooding, rudderless wannabe writer… and gave me something that no other adult had ever offered before: Specific, useable advice.

And I took it.

It was my first experience with having a goal to focus on… and following through on that task required discipline (which I had almost no history with) and changing my worldview from “what’s the point?” to “this is what I want.”

Mind you, it still took me another 12 years to finally get my act together… but that’s why I’m diving into this “guru glut” subject.

That teacher was my first “course correction” in life. I was definitely headed in the wrong direction, and she whacked me upside the head (metaphorically, though I don’t doubt she would have used physical force if necessary — she cared that much) and sent me careening off on another path altogether. A new path that eventually opened up all kinds of opporunitities and possibilities.

Looking back, she gave me two distinct gifts as a teacher: First, that specific course of action, which gave me hope and direction. And second, a sense that — with just a tiny bit of concerned advice — there were secrets of living well that I needed to learn.

Those secrets weren’t going to just fall into my lap. They were a privilege, and they had to be pursued and earned.

Life is rough. Pitfalls are everywhere, and modern society seeks to lull you into a life-long slumber. Most people are sleep-walking zombies, terrified of risk and willing to trade in the wonders of this amazing ride for a safe, warm couch to snooze on.

Teachers are not a luxury. They are vital to living a full life.

Yet the good ones are few and far between. It’s your main job, until you learn what you need to learn, to search them out.

And caveat emptor applies at all times. (”Let the buyer beware.”)

When I started my career as a freelance copywriter, there were ZERO teachers available. Count ‘em, zero. I’d been fortunate to have a few bosses, while I was still working for The Man, who gave me tidbits of advice here and there… but there was no roadmap for freelancing.

No guru’s anywhere.

Joe Sugarman and Joe Karbo (look ‘em up if those names are not familiar — very important guys in advertising) offered small seminars, but not on any regular basis. Strictly for insiders, and a startling small population of insiders at that.

I met, and started working for, Jay Abraham right around the time he was stepping forward to offer more structured teaching. Still, compared with what’s available today, it was fairly meager stuff.

Mind you, for an ambitious twerp like me — chomping at the bit to devour every shred of knowledge and every trace of skill I could find — it was a cornucopia of amazing learning opportunities.

I was VERY lucky to have encountered quality teachers early in my career.

By the time I started co-producing regular seminars with Gary Halbert, in the late ’80s, more and more people were realizing the need for teachers.

That didn’t mean the best and brightest stepped forward, of course.

Still, I was happy to see so many options suddenly become available.

Today, the Web is crammed to the rafters with wannabe guru’s. (The word “guru”, by the way, means “teacher”. In case you were wondering.)

Most of ‘em are just opportunists, looking for easy ways to make a buck. For many, their plan seems to be this: Slap together a course or seminar, hype the bejesus out of it, get good at making joint ventures with people bearing large lists… and see what happens.

And yes, it’s frustrating for the guy looking to learn. Who do you believe? How do you separate the crafty hype from the serious opportunity?

Thus, we get flame wars on forums about the “death of the guru”, and angry rebellions among seminar junkies over the relentless pitching going on at many events.

And, we also get many wannabe guru’s jumping in front of that very parade, claiming to be the “anti-hype” teacher.

Whatever.

Again: Learning is tough. It’s a process… and it’s up to YOU, the seeker of truth, to do your job separating the crap from the gems. There is NEVER going to be a golden age where truth wins out completely, and it becomes easy to find your perfect teacher.

I found ONE teacher who actually taught me something as a young man coming out of the public school system. I could’ve easily lumped her in with all the others who’d wasted my time… but I’m damned lucky I allowed her to shake me up.

The “magic” in learning comes not from any secret way to master something without effort. That doesn’t exist.

No. The magic is all about finding a relationship with a teacher who not only aces the facts… but also cares enough to metaphorically smack you around until you “get” it.

The winners in life never stop learning, and never stop seeking the truth. They’ve learned to love the challenge of encountering something new, and mastering it. They don’t whine about how hard life is — they roll up their sleeves and dig in with gusto.

I’m GLAD there is a glut of guru’s out there. The charlatans are easy enough to spot, if you just pay attention. The good ones are known, too. They may not be the most popular, or the most savvy at getting attention.

But they’re the ones who get the job done, teaching you what you need to learn.

Bitching about having too many guru’s is like complaining about having too many choices at the local sandwich shop.

Just get over your bad self. As a student, you have a job to do, and part of it is finding out the right way for you to learn.

Having choices is a good thing.

And remember — the best teachers are not necessarily good at elbowing their way to the front of the crowd.

They do, however, have the most vocal fans.

Stay frosty…

[Via - MarketingRebelRant.Com]

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Schools Out, Summers In!

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As young student entrepreneurs, the summer season is the time to get down to business! That also means it is money making time!

Here are a couple tips for business success this summer:

Make a Plan
Without a plan of what you want to do, you will not be able to accomplish your goals for the next few months. Take some time and figure out what you want to do (your goals) and put a timeline together. Many entrepreneurs need deadlines to be able to finish something, so if you want to redesign your website, put a launch date with it; if you want to gain more clients, set deadlines.

Stick To The Plan
There is no use in making a plan if you are not going to stick to it. This is pretty simple, so I won’t spend time dwelling on the importance of it.

Find a Balance
Find a balance between your business ventures and your life (family, friends, fun, etc). It is important for you to realize that if you work in corporate American after you leave college, you may get no more than 2 weeks of vacation a year, so enjoy your summer and vacation time while you have it and do stuff you enjoy – hanging out with friends and having fun, spending time with family, etc.

Keep Records
Be sure to keep records of what you do with your business. Keep track of all your expenses and revenues, whether that is in excel or through bookkeeping software. Keeping track of your financials is not only important for your business if you are officially registered with your state, but it is important to also help you gauge how you are doing on reaching your goals.

Besides your financials, keep track of your clients and conversations you have with them, the work you may be doing, or any developments you are making. All of these will help you see how you are progressing on reaching your goals and having success over the summer.

Just be sure to have fun no matter what you are working on this summer. If you can have fun, love what you are doing, and find a balance, you will be successful! Keep up the good work and be sure to share your successes with everyone else!

What are your goals for the summer?

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As young student entrepreneurs, the summer season is the time to get down to business! That also means it is money making time!

Here are a couple tips for business success this summer:

Make a Plan
Without a plan of what you want to do, you will not be able to accomplish your goals for the next few months. Take some time and figure out what you want to do (your goals) and put a timeline together. Many entrepreneurs need deadlines to be able to finish something, so if you want to redesign your website, put a launch date with it; if you want to gain more clients, set deadlines.

Stick To The Plan
There is no use in making a plan if you are not going to stick to it. This is pretty simple, so I won’t spend time dwelling on the importance of it.

Find a Balance
Find a balance between your business ventures and your life (family, friends, fun, etc). It is important for you to realize that if you work in corporate American after you leave college, you may get no more than 2 weeks of vacation a year, so enjoy your summer and vacation time while you have it and do stuff you enjoy – hanging out with friends and having fun, spending time with family, etc.

Keep Records
Be sure to keep records of what you do with your business. Keep track of all your expenses and revenues, whether that is in excel or through bookkeeping software. Keeping track of your financials is not only important for your business if you are officially registered with your state, but it is important to also help you gauge how you are doing on reaching your goals.

Besides your financials, keep track of your clients and conversations you have with them, the work you may be doing, or any developments you are making. All of these will help you see how you are progressing on reaching your goals and having success over the summer.

Just be sure to have fun no matter what you are working on this summer. If you can have fun, love what you are doing, and find a balance, you will be successful! Keep up the good work and be sure to share your successes with everyone else!

What are your goals for the summer?

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Creations come to life at school

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Future scientists and inventors dropped marbles down water pipe insulation sleeves transformed into roller coasters, dodged acid rain on Planet Zack and assembled inventions at Hornung Elementary School last week.

School is out, but Camp Invention took over the Genoa Township school last week and brought it to life with students scurrying from one project to another. They took apart computers, hair dryers, VCRs and other household items and used those pieces to create their own inventions. They also worked in group settings to solve problems.

"I thought it would be cool if you could zap it at somebody and send them back in time," said Lauren Coughlin, who was creating her invention from an old hair dryer.

The Lindbom fifth-grader, wearing goggles, said she, of course, would only send people back in time if they wanted to go.

"I like taking things apart and seeing what's inside," she said.

Sophia Garner, camp director and a first-grade teacher at Hornung, said 109 children in grades 1-6 participated in the five-day camp that ran from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

The camp concluded Friday with each student showcasing an invention he or she made.

Garner said students rotated among five classrooms each day and worked on different tasks. They designed and created a roller coaster, built cars and tested them for safety using eggs as passengers, and were stranded on an imaginary planet and had to figure out a way to leave.

Garner said she's impressed with the students' problem-solving, working together and using their critical thinking.

"It's really interesting to sit and listen to them and how they should create these things," Garner said.

Sarah Hively, a Lindbom fifth-grader, decided to make an iPod with a computer.

"I like it here because it's so fun and it's not boring," she said.

Camp students C.J. LeClair, Connor Gordon and Riley McMahon sat at a table strewn with pieces of a computer and VCR.

They were building a "comoky," a computer and karaoke invention.

"I like taking stuff apart
and putting it back together," C.J. said. He took apart an old computer and was impressed with how complicated its interior was.

"It's amazing that somebody actually knows how to put something together like that," he said.

Press & Argus - www.livingstondaily.com - Livingston, MI

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41 Money Facts That Will Blow You Away

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Do you think you know a lot about money? Maybe you do. Maybe you don't. But let's see if any of the following facts are in any way surprising to you:

1. More of our fantasies are about money... than sex.
2. If we could have any luxury in the world (and money didn't matter) more of us would choose to spend money on a butler and a maid than anything else.
3. 90% of Americans who own pets buy them Christmas gifts.
4. Money is the leading cause of disagreements in marriages.
5. 65% of Americans would live on a deserted island all by themselves for an entire year for $1,000,000.
6. For $10,000,000 most of us would do almost ANYTHING! Including abandoning our family and friends and our church. A very high percentage of us would, for that same amount of money, change our race or sex. And, 1 in every 14, would even murder someone for ten million bucks.
   What's really strange about this is, the statistics remain the same whether it's ten million dollars all the way down to three million. For three million bucks, most of us would do the same horrible things we would do for ten million. But, guess what? Few of us would do these things for a "measly" two million.
7. 92% of us would rather be rich than find the love of our lives.
8. Here's a weighty one: Money (or the lack thereof) is the biggest stress inducer in the lives of Americans. We worry more about money than our marriages, our health, or even who's going to win the Superbowl Game or come out on top in the latest Survivor TV show.
9. If you get your money out of a Hitachi ATM machine in Japan, it will be laundered. The way they do it is, they briefly press the bills between rollers at high enough temperatures to kill most bacteria.
10. Women have very fixed ideas on how much they are willing to spend on a bra. 38.3% of women won't spend $30 for a bra. 28.4% won't spend $50. 10% would pay as much as $75. And, only 3.5% would shell out $100. But, you know what? Almost 20% of women say they would pay almost anything for a bra. This is because they consider (and I guess so do a few men) that the contents of what those bras are encasing is of extremely high-value.
11. Nearly half of the people who sell their houses with furniture included will take all the light bulbs out of all the lamps when they vacate the premises.
12. Most people won't bend over to pick up money lying on the sidewalk unless it's at least a dollar.
13. Most Americans think pennies are a pain in the ass and the U.S. Mint should stop making them.
14. There is about 405 billion dollars in circulation. Only 32 million of that amount is counterfeit. That means, the percentage of counterfeit money in America is .0079%. And, $20 bills are more often counterfeited than $100 bills.
15. Do people care if their bills are crisp? Indeed, they do. Fresh, crisp, clean bills are considered much more valuable than those which are old, wrinkled and dirty.
    I once sent a 'dollar bill thank you' letter to a guy who sent a sincere letter back to me bitching the free $1 bill I sent him was wrinkled instead of crisp as I had described in the letter.
16. Let's flip a coin and try to guess whether it will come up heads or tails. Three times as many people guess 'heads' than 'tails'.
17. Here's one I personally think really sucks: One out of every four Americans believe their best chance of getting rich is by playing the lottery.
18. How about this one for a shocking fact: 5% of lottery ticket buyers buy 51% of all tickets sold. (Trust me, none of these people belong to the "Einsteins of America Society".)
19. A staggering 74% of us are influenced by how much we can win in a lottery as opposed to the odds of us winning.
20. That's a good thing for the Government because the odds of winning a lottery jackpot are about 10 million to 1.
21. A person who drives 10 miles to buy a lottery ticket is 3 times more likely to be killed in a car accident while driving to buy the ticket... than... he is to win the jackpot.
22. Sunday newspaper coupon inserts are the second-most read section of the paper, after the front page.
23. Few people know it but, you can buy single-disease insurance.
24. Only 6% of people in America regularly buy clothes tailor made just for them.
25. Here's one that's really important: 63% of us decide NOT to buy a product advertised on the Internet... because... we think the shipping and handling charges add too much to the order.
26. Eight times as many Americans would rather use an ATM than deal with a real live teller.
27. This one's going to blow your mind: 83% of Americans still pay with checks instead of credit cards!
28. Almost 30% of us say we would need 3 million smackaroos to feel rich. This ties in with the fact most of us would do anything for as little as $3 million... but... not nearly as many of us would do those identical things for a measly $2 million. (Hey, here's your chance to take advantage of that situation. If you only want to pay $2 million to have something done, ask me if I'll do it. The chances are, believe it or not, I WILL DO IT.)
29. Here's another fact which is really, really important: 80% of Americans say giving personal information (especially their credit card information) over the Internet scares the living shit out of them.
30. Two-thirds of Americans say they wouldn't let their spouse spend the night and have sex with another person for a million dollars. Many of these people are liars. There's a big difference being asked if they would do it for a million dollars... as opposed to... handing them a paper sack containing the million fungolas and simply saying, "Here, you can have this if you'll let me sleep with your sweetie tonight."
31. The average wedding in America costs a staggering $20,000.00.
32. More than one-third of American women consider money more important than good sex to the success of a marriage.
33. According to Employee Benefits Research Institute 96% of all people who have jobs right now won't be eligible for their full Social Security benefits when they reach age 65.
34. When it comes to houses, more than anything else, people want a state-of-the-art kitchen.
35. When people shop for a car, what they want more than anything else is reliability for the best possible price.
36. One of the best ways to raise money for a charity is to have a free dinner for a lot of people and have an empty envelope tucked under their plate... for the express purpose... of making whatever size donation they want.
37. People tip more on sunny days than they do on dreary days.
38. More than 80,000,000 people call the I.R.S. Information Hotline phone number every year. One-third of those calls go unanswered. And, according to the Treasury Department itself, 47% of the answers the 'get-through' callers receive are incorrect.
39. Almost two out of three people have modified their financial behavior because of their fears.
40. Almost three times as many people who live in the South worry about losing their jobs as compared to people who live in the Midwest.
41. Which would you rather do: Shop till you drop... or... have great sex?
    For men, this is a no-brainer.
    However, more women would actually rather have an unlimited shopping spree than spend a weekend with a fabulous lover. In fact, the #1 favorite fantasy of women is to have a blank check to shop at their favorite store.
    The favorite fantasy of men (at least in my opinion) is what we would like to DO to the sales girl... rather than... what we would like to buy from her.
42. You can make a lot of money, suggesting domain names. Yes, it's true.

[Via TheGaryHalbertLetter.Com]

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Slap The Guru

http://eat-healthy-every-day.blogspot.com/

Any self-annointed guru who can’t handle a little rough treatment — and a vigorous dissection of his offered materials — needs to leave the stage. Just put your hype down, and back away slowly.

Teaching is, and should be, hard. At the public level, I think it’s a friggin’ crime both that our teachers earn shitty wages… and that the job doesn’t command the respect necessary to lure truly bright and motivated people with an aptitude for sharing knowledge and skills.

I slogged my way through 16 years of school, and I met exactly one teacher who took her job seriously. She taught the course, vigorously… she engaged each and every student individually, and strove to motivate you using every trick possible (from flattery to bullying, from deep discussion to specific challenges)… and she honestly cared about you.

Meeting her represented my first encounter with “real” teaching, and it rattled my cage profoundly. This was in community college, where I got a two-year degree in slacking off and partying. This teacher took me aside and upbraided me for being a brooding, rudderless wannabe writer… and gave me something that no other adult had ever offered before: Specific, useable advice.

And I took it.

It was my first experience with having a goal to focus on… and following through on that task required discipline (which I had almost no history with) and changing my worldview from “what’s the point?” to “this is what I want.”

Mind you, it still took me another 12 years to finally get my act together… but that’s why I’m diving into this “guru glut” subject.

That teacher was my first “course correction” in life. I was definitely headed in the wrong direction, and she whacked me upside the head (metaphorically, though I don’t doubt she would have used physical force if necessary — she cared that much) and sent me careening off on another path altogether. A new path that eventually opened up all kinds of opporunitities and possibilities.

Looking back, she gave me two distinct gifts as a teacher: First, that specific course of action, which gave me hope and direction. And second, a sense that — with just a tiny bit of concerned advice — there were secrets of living well that I needed to learn.

Those secrets weren’t going to just fall into my lap. They were a privilege, and they had to be pursued and earned.

Life is rough. Pitfalls are everywhere, and modern society seeks to lull you into a life-long slumber. Most people are sleep-walking zombies, terrified of risk and willing to trade in the wonders of this amazing ride for a safe, warm couch to snooze on.

Teachers are not a luxury. They are vital to living a full life.

Yet the good ones are few and far between. It’s your main job, until you learn what you need to learn, to search them out.

And caveat emptor applies at all times. (”Let the buyer beware.”)

When I started my career as a freelance copywriter, there were ZERO teachers available. Count ‘em, zero. I’d been fortunate to have a few bosses, while I was still working for The Man, who gave me tidbits of advice here and there… but there was no roadmap for freelancing.

No guru’s anywhere.

Joe Sugarman and Joe Karbo (look ‘em up if those names are not familiar — very important guys in advertising) offered small seminars, but not on any regular basis. Strictly for insiders, and a startling small population of insiders at that.

I met, and started working for, Jay Abraham right around the time he was stepping forward to offer more structured teaching. Still, compared with what’s available today, it was fairly meager stuff.

Mind you, for an ambitious twerp like me — chomping at the bit to devour every shred of knowledge and every trace of skill I could find — it was a cornucopia of amazing learning opportunities.

I was VERY lucky to have encountered quality teachers early in my career.

By the time I started co-producing regular seminars with Gary Halbert, in the late ’80s, more and more people were realizing the need for teachers.

That didn’t mean the best and brightest stepped forward, of course.

Still, I was happy to see so many options suddenly become available.

Today, the Web is crammed to the rafters with wannabe guru’s. (The word “guru”, by the way, means “teacher”. In case you were wondering.)

Most of ‘em are just opportunists, looking for easy ways to make a buck. For many, their plan seems to be this: Slap together a course or seminar, hype the bejesus out of it, get good at making joint ventures with people bearing large lists… and see what happens.

And yes, it’s frustrating for the guy looking to learn. Who do you believe? How do you separate the crafty hype from the serious opportunity?

Thus, we get flame wars on forums about the “death of the guru”, and angry rebellions among seminar junkies over the relentless pitching going on at many events.

And, we also get many wannabe guru’s jumping in front of that very parade, claiming to be the “anti-hype” teacher.

Whatever.

Again: Learning is tough. It’s a process… and it’s up to YOU, the seeker of truth, to do your job separating the crap from the gems. There is NEVER going to be a golden age where truth wins out completely, and it becomes easy to find your perfect teacher.

I found ONE teacher who actually taught me something as a young man coming out of the public school system. I could’ve easily lumped her in with all the others who’d wasted my time… but I’m damned lucky I allowed her to shake me up.

The “magic” in learning comes not from any secret way to master something without effort. That doesn’t exist.

No. The magic is all about finding a relationship with a teacher who not only aces the facts… but also cares enough to metaphorically smack you around until you “get” it.

The winners in life never stop learning, and never stop seeking the truth. They’ve learned to love the challenge of encountering something new, and mastering it. They don’t whine about how hard life is — they roll up their sleeves and dig in with gusto.

I’m GLAD there is a glut of guru’s out there. The charlatans are easy enough to spot, if you just pay attention. The good ones are known, too. They may not be the most popular, or the most savvy at getting attention.

But they’re the ones who get the job done, teaching you what you need to learn.

Bitching about having too many guru’s is like complaining about having too many choices at the local sandwich shop.

Just get over your bad self. As a student, you have a job to do, and part of it is finding out the right way for you to learn.

Having choices is a good thing.

And remember — the best teachers are not necessarily good at elbowing their way to the front of the crowd.

They do, however, have the most vocal fans.

Stay frosty…

[Via - MarketingRebelRant.Com]

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Schools Out, Summers In!

Online Personal Trainer Who Makes Over $70,000 A Month

As young student entrepreneurs, the summer season is the time to get down to business! That also means it is money making time!

Here are a couple tips for business success this summer:

Make a Plan
Without a plan of what you want to do, you will not be able to accomplish your goals for the next few months. Take some time and figure out what you want to do (your goals) and put a timeline together. Many entrepreneurs need deadlines to be able to finish something, so if you want to redesign your website, put a launch date with it; if you want to gain more clients, set deadlines.

Stick To The Plan
There is no use in making a plan if you are not going to stick to it. This is pretty simple, so I won’t spend time dwelling on the importance of it.

Find a Balance
Find a balance between your business ventures and your life (family, friends, fun, etc). It is important for you to realize that if you work in corporate American after you leave college, you may get no more than 2 weeks of vacation a year, so enjoy your summer and vacation time while you have it and do stuff you enjoy – hanging out with friends and having fun, spending time with family, etc.

Keep Records
Be sure to keep records of what you do with your business. Keep track of all your expenses and revenues, whether that is in excel or through bookkeeping software. Keeping track of your financials is not only important for your business if you are officially registered with your state, but it is important to also help you gauge how you are doing on reaching your goals.

Besides your financials, keep track of your clients and conversations you have with them, the work you may be doing, or any developments you are making. All of these will help you see how you are progressing on reaching your goals and having success over the summer.

Just be sure to have fun no matter what you are working on this summer. If you can have fun, love what you are doing, and find a balance, you will be successful! Keep up the good work and be sure to share your successes with everyone else!

What are your goals for the summer?

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Before You Buy Software on eBay

7 Steps to Better E-Mail Management

eBay can be a great place for finding great deals on software but before you place a bid on some software, here are a few important points you should take note of:

1. Read the fine print again to ensure that the software is a full retail version and not a trial CD, beta evaluation, upgrade version or even an OEM version that ships only with the hardware.

2. If the software is old or not sealed inside a box, always ask the seller to send you real photographs of the installation CDs with hologram and software manuals that came along with his purchase. This is to confirm that the seller owns the authentic version of the software.

3. Read the item description very very carefully. Make sure that it is not the academic version of the software which are generally available at significantly discounted prices but only students, faculty members and educational institutions are allowed to buy them.

4. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If the eBay seller is willing to sell Adobe Creative Suite or Microsoft Office 2003 at rock bottom prices, they are pirated software for sure. [see real screenshot from eBay where Adobe CS2 is available for $33 alongwith Adobe Premiere Elements]
5. Always compare the eBay's price with the retail price of the software. You may also want to add shipping charges, insurance and other taxes / custom duties applicable in your country. Infact, there have been cases when people were found selling freeware software on eBay.

6. Never purchase software from eBay sellers with low feedback scores. Don't buy software from new ebay sellers who are yet to receive a reputation.

7. Try to get the address and phone number of the software seller before finalizing the purchase. Check the items that he has sold in the past and if possible, get some feedback from his previous customers on eBay.

8. Most software titles now require you to activate the installation over internet before you can use them. Also, vendors may have their own policies with regards to transferring ownership of software. You should always confirm these things before the purchase.

9. The EULA document in most cases allows the owner to install the software on two computers though you aren't allowed to use them simultaneously. You should confirm that the seller has uninstalled all copies of the software from his systems.

10. The safest bet is to buy only software that is available in sealed retail boxes.

When there isn't much difference in price between the eBay copy and the retail version, always procure the software from authorized stores only - you are guaranteed to receive a genuine copy of the software with documentation, after-sales-support, warrant and enough peace of mind.

Go to source.
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Mompreneurs® Still Going Strong—10 Years and Counting

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February, 2007 - It was just over 10 years ago, in September of 1996, that authors Ellen Parlapiano and Patricia Cobe released their first Mompreneurs® book—catapulting work-at-home mothers into the spotlight, and coining and trademarking the catchy word “mompreneurs” to describe entrepreneurial moms. As work-at-home moms themselves (both were home-based writers/consultants raising young children), Parlapiano and Cobe decided to pen the book when they couldn’t find anything on the market addressing the special needs of mothers running businesses from home. “Wherever we went—whether to the playground or the supermarket—other moms would ask how we did it,” says Parlapiano. “So we decided to write our own how-to book about starting and running a business from a mother’s perspective.”

That first book, Mompreneurs®: A Mother’s Practical, Step-by-Step Guide to Work-at-Home Success (Perigee, 1996), caught the attention of the media, landing the authors on Oprah, Good Morning America and several other national shows. It also led to follow-up books and a five-year stint as featured Mompreneurs® experts on iVillage.com, where the authors dispensed home business advice.

Today, Cobe and Parlapiano offer support and advice at their own website, MompreneursOnline.com (www.mompreneursonline.com), which features message boards, articles, and a unique Mompreneurs® Marketplace showcasing mom-owned businesses. They are recognized by the media as the go-to experts when the topic is work-from-home moms. Last month, Parlapiano offered tips on The CBS Early Show’s three-part series about women entrepreneurs, which also highlighted two MompreneursOnline community members, Ester LaPollo of MamaAfrika (www.mamaafrika.com) and Kathie Papera of Lilypad Baby (www.lilypadbaby.com).

Mompreneur® Trends 2007

With their fingers on the pulse of the mompreneur® movement, the authors have noticed many exciting trends that will make it easier for today’s mothers to launch their own enterprises:

?Technology makes working from home easier than ever! “The Web provides a gateway to careers that were practically unheard of when we wrote our first book,” says Cobe, citing examples like e-tailing, personal coaching, online tutoring and virtual assistants (who provide office support services via the Web). Even lawyers, bankers, nurses, teachers and other professionals—who would have been hard-pressed to find work-at-home jobs in their specialties 10 years ago—are carving out all kinds of interesting career niches, without having to switch professions. Attorneys are running advocacy websites for special-ed students, travel specialists launch online agencies, former Spanish teachers help preschoolers become bilingual, and public policy experts run thriving consulting businesses. With high-tech tools like blogs and podcasts, mompreneurs are able to reach a wider audience without leaving the comfort of their homes.

?Mothers of invention are creating new niches. Today’s creative moms are inventing gadgets and safety products that solve problems they’ve discovered in their own family lives. For example, after running out of space to display her children’s artwork, Suzy Fanning, of Plymouth, Michigan, created MacKenzie Kids Art Files (www.mackenziekids.net), a smart storage and display system. The designer of the Stowers Swaddler swaddling blanket (www.stowersswaddler.com), was inspired by her own experience as a mom and a labor-delivery nurse to create a swaddling blanket with a pocket and Velcro closures. The Web makes it easy for enterprising moms to research patents, trademarks and other legalities with the click of a mouse.

?Moms want to make a difference. “We are seeing a big increase in cause-related companies—businesses with a social conscience,” says Parlapiano. For example, Mama Afrika (www.mamaafrika.com) is an online business that benefits African women and children. It was founded by Ester LaPollo, a Lompac, California mom who sells African crafts and specialties on her site, and donates a portion of her proceeds back to the African countries.

?Funding is easier to find. Though mompreneurs® still tend to rely on savings accounts and credit cards for start-up expenses, grants and low-interest loans are more accessible, if you know where to look. Great resources include: Count Me In (www.count-me-in.org) and Accion USA (www.accionusa.com). Also check local small business development centers and women’s networking groups to see if they can recommend potential lenders. The Make Mine a $Million Business® contest, sponsored by Count-Me-In and American Express Open helps moms grow their businesses through monetary support, mentoring, marketing and technology tools. (Enter at www.makemineamillion.org). One of the 2006 winners was Renee Wood, founder of The Comfort Company (www.thecomfortcompany.net), an online retailer of condolence gifts, and a charter member of MompreneursOnline.com. “It was so gratifying to watch Renee get the opportunity to take her business to that million dollar level,” says Cobe, who was in the audience cheering when Renee won.

?Work-from-home moms are now getting the respect they deserve! With about half a million moms running their own businesses, entrepreneurial mothers are finally being taken seriously by the “traditional” work world. Corporations often hire work-from-home moms as consultants, and mompreneurs® find they no longer have to keep motherhood a secret. Moms are on a mission to attain more family flexibility and have proven that they can successfully run a business and family under the same roof. They are confident and capable. “It’s not about opting out, it’s about creating new options,” says Parlapiano.

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High school entrepreneur program teaches students link between learning and life

MICHAEL BRADLEY and George Gonzalez of Oakland are like so many entrepreneurs in the Bay Area. They talk excitedly and effusively about their new business. They spend odd hours night and day working on their business plan. They wear T-shirts with the company logo on it.

But unlike most Bay Area entrepreneurs, Bradley and Gonzalez are 17-year-old inner city youths for whom the prospect of running their own business — indeed the prospect of determining their own destinies — seemed remote just a few years ago.

They are students of a business entrepreneurship class taught at McClymonds High School provided by the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship.

Read more on insidebayarea.com.