Learn how to prospect from Trick or Treat'ers

I remember the first time I was allowed to go out trick-or-treating on Halloween night with just my friends. Our mission was a singular one - get as much candy as possible in the shortest amount of time. In other words, I wanted my big plastic orange pumpkin overflowing with goodies.

We literally ran from house to house as we scoured our neighborhood intent upon our goal. On occasion, we approached a house, rang the bell, and nothing happened. The lights were on but no one answered the door.

Put in that situation, what do most kids do? They move on to the next house.

"Come on, let's go" and they're headed down the block.

They don't stop for a second to wonder why the owners didn't answer the door.
They don't take it personally.
They don't think that they're wearing the wrong costume.
They don't walk around the house peering in the window trying to see why the owners didn't answer the doorbell.
They don't sit down on the front step and pout
.
And can you even imagine that they would just quit and go home? No way.

You see, kids are neat people to observe with regard to how they handle rejection. It just never occurs to them that the rejection is about them!

And why?

Because it's not.

Kids have a unique ability to observe the world just the way it is.
As we grow up, our self-esteem takes a few hits and we start to think that everything that happens to us is about us.

It's not.

When you hear no, no thanks, I'm not interested, it's not for me, I don't like selling, please don't ever, ever, ever call me again for any reason whatsoever....it is about them, not you and not the opportunity you have to offer.

Run to the next house, and the next one, and the next one.

That's where the candy is.

Remember, your goal is a full plastic pumpkin, and you don't care which houses or how many houses it takes to make that happen.

Three Skills To Improve Conversation

By: Brian Tracy
One key to becoming a great conversationalist is to pause before replying. A short pause, of three to five seconds, is a very classy thing to do in a conversation. When you pause, you accomplish three goals simultaneously.

The Benefits of Pausing
First, you avoid running the risk of interrupting if the other person is just catching his or her breath before continuing. Second, you show the other person that you are giving careful consideration to his or her words by not jumping in with your own comments at the earliest opportunity. The third benefit of pausing is that you will actually hear the other person better. His or her words will soak into a deeper level of your mind and you will understand what he or she is saying with greater clarity. By pausing, you mark yourself as a brilliant conversationalist.

Ask Questions
Another way to become a great conversationalist is to question for clarification. Never assume that you understand what the person is saying or trying to say. Instead, ask, “How do you mean, exactly?”
This is the most powerful question I’ve ever learned for controlling a conversation. It is almost impossible not to answer. When you ask, “How do you mean?” the other person cannot stop himself or herself from answering more extensively. You can then follow up with other open-ended questions and keep the conversation rolling along.

Paraphrase the Speaker's Words
The third way to become a great conversationalist is to paraphrase the speaker’s words in your own words. After you’ve nodded and smiled, you can then say, “Let me see if I’ve got this right. What you’re saying is . . .”

Demonstrate Attentiveness
By paraphrasing the speaker’s words, you demonstrate in no uncertain terms that you are genuinely paying attention and making every effort to understand his or her thoughts or feelings. And the wonderful thing is, when you practice effective listening, other people will begin to find you fascinating. They will want to be around you. They will feel relaxed and happy in your presence.

Listening Builds Trust
The reason why listening is such a powerful tool in developing the art and skill of conversation is because listening builds trust. The more you listen to another person, the more he or she trusts you and believes in you.

Listening also builds self-esteem. When you listen attentively to another person, his or her self-esteem will naturally increase.

Listening Develops Discipline
Finally, listening builds self-discipline in the listener. Because your mind can process words at 500-600 words per minute, and we can only talk at about 150 words per minute, it takes a real effort to keep your attention focused on another person’s words. If you do not practice self-discipline in conversation, your mind will wander in a hundred different directions. The more you work at paying close attention to what the other person is saying, the more self-disciplined you will become. In other words, by learning to listen well, you actually develop your own character and your own personality.

Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.

First, make a habit of pausing before replying in any conversation or discussion. You will be amazed at how powerful this technique really is.

Second, continually ask, “How do you mean?” in response to anything that is not perfectly clear. This gives you even more time to listen well.

How to Present Your Story to Get Free Publicity

If you're anything like me, you've probably seen thousands of
stories on the news, or read about them in the paper, that made
you think, "Don't they have anything better to cover?"
The truth is, the media probably only covered those questionable
stories because someone suggested it to them. The question is, do
you have a better story for them? Because if you do, that could
mean tons of free publicity for you.

The trick to getting free media publicity is in the presentation.
Here are a few common angles to take on your idea:

New ideas and technologies - Do you offer a product or service
that makes peoples' lives easier or more convenient? Think of an
angle along the lines of convenience that came with credit card
gas pumps, email take-out, and convenience store/chain
restaurants.

Follow-ups - If you see a news story or article about a product
or service similar to yours, call the reporter who did the story
and offer another angle or a follow-up. The first story could be
for people who want to learn more.

Try Piggybacking - This means you put a fresh twist on something
already in the news. You can piggyback on news items, trends,
holidays, community events, any hot news item on which you can
supply a new angle--one that promotes you!

Awesome Marketing Example

"The Secret" is out
I'm breathless, excited, inspired, on fire,
and beside myself with the following news --

The movie Joe Vitale's in will be out soon. The producers
have kept everything hush-hush -- until today.

They've spared no expense and involved hundreds
of people to bring you what he think's will be the
most powerful, life-changing, and world
transforming event of this century -- if not all time.

You can see a teaser for the movie at the below
link. While you won't be able to see the movie
yet, this will get you excited about it.

Believe me, you've never seen anything like it.

Go to --

http://www.whatisthesecret.tv

How To Get Into An Article Writing Mindset

Sometimes it's really difficult just to sit down 'cold' and write
an article. But procrastinating makes no difference, because when
you eventually return to it, that 'block' is still there. Here's
a few helpful tips ...

1. Remove your limits

Reduce your subject to a single core word and then brainstorm
around it. For example, if you're trying to write about "Study
Skills", expand your thinking to "School". Now jot down
everything that comes to mind when you think about School, and
when you run out of ideas start asking yourself open questions
around the subject and noting your answers.

Example: Assume you are wanting to write about "how to improve
your job prospects" Ask yourself ...

What did I do in my first job?
Why did I enjoy it/hate it?
When did I realize that it was time to change?

This will help you get back into the mindset of someone
struggling with job issues of all kinds and you'll start to get a
feel for their concerns and worries.

2. Restore your focus

Once you've started to understand the general feelings of your
readers, allow your mind to focus back on your original topic of
Study Skills. From your new perspective, what questions would you
ask? What would you want to know? Is this really a "Studying"
issue or is it more about Time Management or being able to work
without distractions or being paralyzed by the fear of not doing
well?

3. Be your own audience

Write each question on a separate sheet of paper; don't stop
until you have at least ten and preferably more. Stay in the
mindset of your readers until you feel you've asked every major
question that concerns them.

4. Take a step back

Put your pile of question aside for a few hours, overnight if
possible. Don't consciously think about them; just go about your
day as usual. Give your subconscious time to process them without
any further prompting from you. If new questions come to mind jot
them down somewhere safe and then forget about them.

5. Get out your pen and write

When you're ready, sit down with your pages of questions and
simply start to answer them. Writing your answers by hand can
give you access to ideas that might be missed if you type them.
Don't edit yourself at this stage. Using Speech to Text software
or a digital recorder can also be helpful in bypassing the
internal editor.

Imagine someone sitting in front of you asking for advice and
just talk to them. Keep your tone natural and conversational and
stay with the question-and-answer format.

6. Edit lightly

Trust your first instincts. Proof-read and correct any obvious
errors, but don't do any major editing until your piece has had
time to "sit" for a while. Again, leaving it overnight will give
you a fresh perspective the next time you look at it, but even if
your deadline doesn't allow for that it's important to give
yourself a break from it.

When you're pushed for time, writing several articles at one
sitting can create enough change of focus to make you "forget"
the one you've just written.

7. Polish it up

Short articles are unlikely to need major editing if you've
written them as described here. They will flow easily and
naturally already and having each Q & A on a separate sheet makes
it easier to select only the ones you want. Your job now is to
put them in a reasonably logical sequence and make sure they're
understandable and that the reader is led smoothly from one
question and answer to the next.

8. Put a begining and ending on it

Write a brief introductory paragraph as a "teaser" for the main
article. Many article directories now put the first paragraph of
each piece into RSS feeds which are picked up by other websites,
so you'll want to make sure that your two or three major keywords
appear at least once in that first paragraph.

Write another short paragraph to summarize the major points of
the article and provide some ideas for the reader to explore the
subject further. Don't of course forget your own resource box
like mine below.

9. Submit it!

It does no good for anyone if you don't let others see it.

Inspire the Copywriter in YOU!

Last evening's Veretekk update was nothing short of inspriational for me. If you have listened to these Sunday evening updates you know that before and after the conference there is music. Well that is a special added touch to these conferences in my eyes.
Everybody has something that moves them to get their creative mood going, for me it's music that gets me in the mood to write copy. Unfortunatly I just recorded the conference not the before and after music. I got to thinking in the night if music can move me to write good copy, there must be others that it can inspire too.
One source of Free inspirational music that I use to write copy is at: InspirationalPeak.com. At this site you will also find some great quotes that might help you to add to your copy.

Another source I use is the Yahoo Messenger Music. It's very easy to download and put on your computer. Just download the latest Yahoo Instant Messanger at yahoo.com. You can set it to the type of music you want it to play and when a song comes on you can rate it so it will be played more often or never again. Pretty soon you have a great library of the songs that inspire you.

If you are a user of the Veretekk Automated Marketing System don't miss the Sunday evening updates every Sunday. They can be quite inspirational to say the least.

Information Packed- Veretekk Update on Veremail

Well the folks over at Veretekk have done again... they are about to unleash the new most comprehensive auto responder system to the net. Hear the latest update on Veretekk's new veremail system from Tom Pendergast.

10/9 Sunday evening update Recording of Tom Pendergast

Read all about the New Veremail features http://www.veremail.com/members/home.php

Silver Veretekk Recording of Ron Eagle

For people who haven't been able to find a Silver Veretekk Training that fits into their schedule. This is a very detailed recording of Ron Eagle teaching how to the amazing Veretekk Automated Marketing System works.

Silver Training Veretekk Recording- Ron Eagle

Why you should start and never quit a home business

If you have ever thought you might like to start and own a business you owe it to yourself to listen to this recording..
Here is the link:
http://www.byoaudio.com/play/WRTSzkQs

My business has given me the opportunity to create something that I love to do. Having the flexibility to stay on the farm, enjoy country living lifestyle, to be able to work when I want and with the people I choose to work with. More important to me is working with our boys helping them create a business, which can be passed down to future generations.

I market my business strictly online using many tools to help with my marketing efforts. To learn more about me and what I do visit www.cindymcasey.com

Doing business this way has allowed me to step out of the business clothes that I wore for many years in Corp. world and go barefoot in the garden when ever I want to!