Crayon Writer

One of the blogging trends I’d like to implement is treating my blog like a newspaper or magazine. Both have regular features, which helps keep the publication current, and helps the publisher think of what to write next.

I’ll be featuring websites or links that I find during my internet travels, and hopefully you’ll check them out and let us know what you think.

This week I found out about the Japanese American Citizens League. This non-profit civil rights organization is based out of Los Angeles, California, and began before World War II. I particularly like that the group honors a Woman of the Year, pays homage to its elders, and even offers a scholarships to at-risk youth.

The JACL is dedicated to promoting and preserving the values and culture of Japanese Americans, and they do so much for the community as a whole.

Even more impressive, the Downtown Los Angeles JACL fought for, and won, compensation for Japanese Americans that were wrongfully put in U.S. concentration camps during WWII. At the same time, tens of thousands of Japanese Americans volunteered their services as soldiers during the war. The JACL is hoping to get the U.S. Postal Service to honor these brave men with a commemorative stamp.

Take a look at the Downtown Los Angeles Japanese American Citizens League site to learn more. The history of this group of Americans is rich, and as I always say, you can never learn too much. My thanks to George for telling me about this amazing organization.

Stay tuned for next week’s website or link of the week. Please let us know what you enjoyed about this one.

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Interested in some good reading about web hosting?

When looking for hosting for a new or even current blog, doing your homework also includes reading what others think. Not just what others think about your potential host, but also what people think of web hosting in general. There’s so much to learn, and I’m fan of research. That’s probably why I’m addicted to the Internet.

I just found a new blog with lots of web hosting articles.

From my understanding, the rest of the website isn’t launched yet, so don’t be turned off by the articles. There’s more to come, including tutorials and more specific web host information.

If you check out the site, let us know what you think about it.

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Bloggers know that having a reliable hosting service is key to running a successful blog. Constant outages and limited domains are some of the worst issues you can run into.

I’ve been pretty satisfied with my current provider, but I’m always on the lookout for others. Shopping around just makes sense, and it might be a good idea to use more than one provider to protect against outages.

I found a new company called Concentric Business Solutions. They are a shared hosting provider that caters to small businesses (and if you’re a blogger with any monetization, you are a small business). Besides the usual suspects, including email, web hosting, and domain registration, they also offer free virus protection and spam filters.

If you’re in the market for a new provider, check out Concentric. They might be just what you need.

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Is your blog a business? Would you like it to be?

If you answered “Yes” to either question, then you’ve probably heard about Yaro Starak’s Blog Mastermind program.

I haven’t joined it yet, but I did read his free Blog Profits Blueprint (chock full of lots of useful, practical information–a must read).

What is Blog Mastermind, and how does it work?

See for yourself. The Blog Mastermind program is focused on marketing. What I like most about Yaro’s style is that he’s not just writing to fill up space. He isn’t just saying, “Marketing is great. It’s important. You’ve really got to do it. Yep. Marketing. I love marketing.”

Yaro’s program actually gives an action plan, and includes specific steps to take (homework), gives real life examples, and even tells you what he doesn’t have much experience with.

I’ve bought an ebook or two that filled up pages with useless, obvious information that was clearly hypothetical. The free Blog Profits Blueprint is more than just theory and ideas.

If you’re serious about making good money from your blog, read the Blog Profits Blueprint. If it resonates with you, then the Blog Mastermind program may be just what you’re looking for too.

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In my quest to make freelance writing work for my family, I joined a freelance writers’ group on Yahoo. It’s a great resource for anyone wanting support and advice for their commercial writing business.

One of the members, Danny Thompson, started a Yahoo Group to help freelance writers survive. It’s completely free, it has tons of resources in the Files section, and it sends you daily reminders for your business. He acknowledges that it may not fit your particular situation perfectly, but there are definitely gems for any business owner.

Check out Danny’s free group, Freelance Survival Training. You won’t be disappointed. Remember to check out the Files section too.

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I can dream, can’t I?

A vacation would be wonderful, especially since the last time I went anywhere just for the fun of it was the Bahamas, and I won’t tell you how long ago that was (or how short my visit was). It was beautiful, though. The beach was amazing, with sand that was so white, and with ocean water that was so clear and blue. I’d love to go back one day.

Because I lived in Detroit, I often visited Canada. And thanks to Anne of Green Gables (one of my favorite non-fantasy/sci-fi book series), I’ve always wanted to go to Prince Edward Islands. One day I’ll have to check out the rates for flights to Canada from Arizona.

I just found out about a company called DialAFlight where you talk with someone over the phone to book your next vacation or holiday. If I’m ever in the market, I’ll definitely see how they compare to other travel agencies. It never hurts to shop around.

When was your last vacation? Where did you go?

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I think that one of the most important parts of a freelancing business is generating viable leads. I’ve done my share of cold emailing and cold calling, and that’s definitely one way to get leads. Perusing the classifieds for companies that are looking to hire permanent people with my skills is another.

Recently I found a web site that offers to find leads for your business to business telemarketing needs. It might be worth it to take a look at their services if you’re looking to build your business.

Have you tried a lead generating service like The Lead Dogs? If you haven’t, would you? Why or why not?

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Many freelancers work with clients remotely. The world’s the limit!

But there are times when meeting face-to-face with a client or even a prospect might be a good idea. Email correspondence can leave too much room for interpretation, and phone conversations are only a little better.

There’s a fairly new company, LifeSize, that offers high-definition video conferencing services and other products to help you connect with people all over. They even have what they call “LifeSize Room” where you can connect up to 6 people at a time.

Check out LifeSize if you’re looking for ways to reach out to your customers in a more true-to-life way.

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Writing a blog on a regular basis can be difficult. You have to think of something to write about constantly, and every so often you get blogger’s block.

I recently read a wonderful post by Graham Jones that is really going to make my blogging life much easier (if I make myself take his advice, that is).

Basically, Graham likens blogging to being the publisher/editor of a major publication like a newspaper or magazine. You have certain columns that are written on a regular basis. You know what I’m talking about. Like “Dear Abby,” letter to the editor, horoscopes, etc.

To translate this for your blog, you come up with the type of story you want to write each day for a week, month, 2 months, or whatever timeframe you like. I’ve noticed a lot of bloggers have “Wordless Wednesdays” where they post only a picture for that day. Or Thursday 13. Perhaps you’ll save Fridays to announce your projects for the week. You get the idea.

What makes this appealing to me is that I won’t have to come up with a topic all the time. It’ll be mapped out for me in advance, even if I don’t have the actual post written. I’ll just know that today is Copywriting Tip day, or that tomorrow is New Poll day.

Do you have a blogging schedule? How does it work for you? Or do you write by the seat of your pants, like I tend to do? What’s your preference if you’ve tried both methods?

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As we all know, having health insurance is a lifesaver.

As business owners, it’s very important not to neglect your own health by omitting health insurance. Being without insurance is a major gamble. Do something to get it, even if it means going back to a ‘day job’ so you can save money toward an individual plan (while getting the company’s group plan).

Even though I am insured, lately I’ve been overlooking my own health because I’ve been “too busy.” But I found this website, Inside Cardiac Arrest, that reminded me I really need to get checked out.

Years ago I started having heart palpitations, but my doctor told me it was nothing. So I’ve left it alone for almost 10 years. All that’s happened is I’ve gotten older, and my Irregular Heartbeat issues are even scarier now. If I wind up having a heart attack while my daughter is home, she won’t be able to help, and worse, I won’t be able to help her.

So it’s time for me to get a second opinion. Past time.

Is your heart healthy? Are you at risk for cardiac arrest? Insured or not, your health is important to someone.

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