I was privileged to join a number of lovely ladies at a Wire networking meeting yesterday in Penkridge, Staffs. I talked to them briefly about something that I'd discovered and I thought, in the spirit of the talk I would share it on here too. I was talking about leverage. While this can be focussed on small business owners or the self-employed, I think that it's also useful for individuals. We all need to earn a living don't we? We need to pay our bills and also to live, to have a fulfilling life and maybe to contribute back to society too. So, I'm going to talk about money for a while, hope that's ok.
Alot of businesses are struggling, alot of households will also find things get tougher over the next few months, and possibly, for some, years. So, I believe leverage is a key to help anyone not only ride out the tough times, but also, help themselves to have a better life all round.
Could you do with an additional income in to your home, or your business?
Who is in a position where they work for an hour, get paid for an hour? Do the job once, get paid once? Unfortunately that means that you limit your income. You do, you limit your income to the number of hours you can work, or by the number of products/jobs you can do. Unless you get a pay rise,or increase the cost of your products, but your income is still limited by these factors.
Who is in a position where they are time poor?
Who is in a position where they have something they want to share with the world and don't know where to start or how to do it? Are you limiting yourself to sharing something wonderful with only a handful of people? Would you like to reach a larger market?
If any of these apply to you, then please, ask yourself this question:
HOW CAN I LEVERAGE MY TIME, KNOWLEDGE OR EXPERTISE?
The following questions may help you to answer it.
Have I got something that I've already done or produced that could be turned into something else? Such as articles, newsletters, presentations, talks, handbooks, leaflets, artwork, random scribblings.
What am I an expert in?
What do I have knowledge of or a passion for?
What would I really like to share with the world?
One way to leverage your time is to become involved with a network marketing business. This is recommended by Donald Trump, Robert Kyosaki and many others who are very wealthy individuals in their own right. But you have to find the one that's right for you. Personally I am involved with TelecomPlus plc which is service based not product based so you don't have to keep re-selling product but you still generate a passive monthly income. I get paid whether I work or not. I believe in the company and the service that it offers and find it extremely ethical. Saving people money in the current economy is a no brainer if you ask me. (If you would like to know more take a look at this
website and click on 'earn with us' for a short video presentation - UK only)
Another is to create products that you can sell online. Lets have a look at some these options:
The Written word
Books – leaflets – downloads of valuable information or advice & e-books
The Spoken Word
podcasts, audio books, mp3 downloads, cd's
Workshops /Talks/ Presentations - do you do any of these? Can you turn them into videos to promote yourself, podcasts or other audio products. Can you sell other products in the room when you're putting on these events.
This isn't just about money. It's about getting your message across to as many different people as possible, and by using these different methods you can do just that. A busy person on the road all day may not get time to read a book, but would be happy to listen to a CD in the car. So you maximise your market with different types of products. If you've got something worth saying, use today's technology and say it to the world. And if it really is worth sharing then you can earn from it. You have just as much right to a good lifestyle as anyone else. And realistically in the UK, most individuals and households at this moment in time will benefit from any little extra.
"Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness - great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy." - Jim Rohn
So, leverage your time, maybe turn the TV or computer off and go spend that time more wisely by planning how you can put some of this into practise.
web resources that you might find ueful when creating some of the products mentioned:
www.lulu.com for self publishing/Print On Demand/e-books
www.smashwords.com for e-books
cpi- anthony rowe for short runs of books & print on demand publishing
www.lightningsource.com – Print on demand publishing
www.kunaki.com – produce on demand CD's and DVD's
www.thekunakiguy.com – expert in kunaki, free 'how to' guide or he'll do it for you for about $10
www.melodyloops.com – pay per track, royalty free music loops for background music for DVD's and events or presentations
Helen Leathers
you can view my products here
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
Wednesday, 4 August 2010
Ever thought you might write a book?
When I get talking to people about the books that I've written, (currently 4 on sale, 1 in the wings and 1 in the process of being written) a very high percentage of those people say something like, 'I've always wanted to write a book'. They (whoever 'they' are) do say that there's a book in everyone, don't 'they'?
So, I thought I'd put some bits together about what helped me to write my books and maybe it will help all of you out there to get writing. You might not ever publish your book, but being creative is about so much more than that. It might be therapeutic or cathartic, or just a big challenge for you to produce something.
One day I just got up and knew I had to write. I was inspired, and I could see, in my head how it had to be. I wrote solidly for three days and wrote the first half of 'The Spiritual and Psychic Development Workbook'. I had never done anything like it before. I didn't think I'd have anything more left to write about but I am continually inspired and haven't stopped writing since. I love it, and I love that my work helps and inspires others.
So what are my top tips? Here you go...
1. I wrote about a subject I loved, felt passionate about, researched, and had practical experience of.
2. I had a strong desire to share my knowledge with others.
3. I allowed the creative process to happen in it’s own way. For me, when I felt inspired to write, I simply took up a pen and wrote.
4. Once I had enough material and a clear outline, I set myself deadlines / a project plan, to ensure that I got finished. But I didn’t force the creative side.
5. I developed a clear picture of my reader.
6. I got serious about it and developed a plan, not only to finish the book but what to do once it was done.
7. As I wrote I often got new ideas, flashes of inspiration about a new project. I simply made a note of them and carried on with the job in hand.
8. I started writing
9. I carried on writing
10. I finished writing
11. I had a clear vision of what I wanted the book to say to the reader, and how I would say it.
12. I asked for feedback from friends, who would be honest, but didn’t change anything unless the changes fitted in better with my vision.
13. I stopped checking for errors, sometimes you just have to finish and get the book out there.
14. I went on a ‘Market Your Book’ workshop that really helped me with my writing and marketing. And in fact, I came up with new ideas, for more books & projects.
Something that I’ve discovered…
“Anyone can start to write a book, it takes a lot of courage to finish one”
Helen Leathers
http://www.stmpublishing.co.uk/
So, I thought I'd put some bits together about what helped me to write my books and maybe it will help all of you out there to get writing. You might not ever publish your book, but being creative is about so much more than that. It might be therapeutic or cathartic, or just a big challenge for you to produce something.
One day I just got up and knew I had to write. I was inspired, and I could see, in my head how it had to be. I wrote solidly for three days and wrote the first half of 'The Spiritual and Psychic Development Workbook'. I had never done anything like it before. I didn't think I'd have anything more left to write about but I am continually inspired and haven't stopped writing since. I love it, and I love that my work helps and inspires others.
So what are my top tips? Here you go...
1. I wrote about a subject I loved, felt passionate about, researched, and had practical experience of.
2. I had a strong desire to share my knowledge with others.
3. I allowed the creative process to happen in it’s own way. For me, when I felt inspired to write, I simply took up a pen and wrote.
4. Once I had enough material and a clear outline, I set myself deadlines / a project plan, to ensure that I got finished. But I didn’t force the creative side.
5. I developed a clear picture of my reader.
6. I got serious about it and developed a plan, not only to finish the book but what to do once it was done.
7. As I wrote I often got new ideas, flashes of inspiration about a new project. I simply made a note of them and carried on with the job in hand.
8. I started writing
9. I carried on writing
10. I finished writing
11. I had a clear vision of what I wanted the book to say to the reader, and how I would say it.
12. I asked for feedback from friends, who would be honest, but didn’t change anything unless the changes fitted in better with my vision.
13. I stopped checking for errors, sometimes you just have to finish and get the book out there.
14. I went on a ‘Market Your Book’ workshop that really helped me with my writing and marketing. And in fact, I came up with new ideas, for more books & projects.
Something that I’ve discovered…
“Anyone can start to write a book, it takes a lot of courage to finish one”
Helen Leathers
http://www.stmpublishing.co.uk/
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