Freelancers who are trying to build their portfolios
occasionally asked me, “What can I do with good work that was
never used?”
The good news is, you should use it in your portfolio, if it’s
work you’re proud of. Marketing professionals are used to seeing
work in all of its stages, and as long as your sample is
“perfect,” your prospect will see its potential and value.
In an ad agency, the copywriter’s work is called a “copy deck”
and when printed out, it builds thicker with each revision. When
most of the changes are made, it then goes to the art director,
and the work becomes a “copy proof.” At this stage there are
final copy edits, art direction edits, and refinements from
others such as the creative director and production.
If your work sample got to this stage, it should be as
impressive as any work that actually did get published. Most
likely, at this stage, you’re working in PDFs.
If you have PDFs of art-finished work, so much the better. But
if your work did not get to the art direction stage, and all you
have is a copy deck, that’s fine too.
Whereas the PDF samples mask the fact that the work was not
used, the copy deck reveals it. In either case you would want to
explain to your prospective client that the work did not mail
(or go “live,” or get printed), and explain the reason why, if
you know what it is.
There’s no shame in good work that never saw the light of day,
because there are many reasons why good work gets “killed.”
Not long ago I wrote a fundraising letter for the YMCA. It was
targeting the wealthy “snowbirds” who come to the Palm Springs
resort areas to play during the Bob Hope Classic golf
tournament, and the tennis stadium events as well.
Like the many people who live in this area, where the
temperature gets up to 120 in the summer, our target audience
would be at their winter homes for only a few months.
Well, due to no fault of my own, the YMCA missed its window for
mailing. So the project was shelved for “next year.”
But by the time next year rolled around, the old marketing
director was gone, and so was the possibility that my work would
ever get printed and mailed.
Do I list the YMCA on my web site as a client? You bet!
I did other paid work for them, but I’m most proud of the piece
that didn’t mail because they gave me full reign to create the
piece I wanted; it shows what I can do when the client backs off.
If a potential fundraising client came my way, I would not
hesitate to show my work for the YMCA, and tell them a more
entertaining story about why it didn’t mail than the one I’ve
told you. The lesson here is to turn lemons into lemonade…
Jobs get killed all the time (clients run out of money, new
competitive information pulls the plug on an idea, a national
disaster changes the marketing landscape)…
And a seasoned creative director or marketing director knows
this. Tell them why it didn’t mail, unabashedly. Be confident,
even a little conspiratorial. Everyone loves a good story. And
the story about the mailing that didn’t mail, or the brochure
that didn’t get published, or the web site that didn’t go up,
has power.
Use it to your advantage, rather than your disadvantage.
There are some buyers out there who understand value but there are many of them who understand only price. A few years ago when I was doing a course for my Certified Management Consultant accreditation, I had some debates with one of the instructors. He kept saying that my idea about value was a delusion, and the reality of consulting was the number of hours I spent working with the client. His idea was that clients must be able to derive huge value from my services, but I could only get paid for the number of hours I actually worked because of the obscure nature of “value”.
I may be wrong, and unlike him, I don’t have an MBA, but I believe if the client derives huge value from my help, a deserve more than a competitive(ly low) hourly rate. I got into business to overcome the typical wage slave syndrome as an employee, and it would be plain silly to become a self-employed wage slave. I also believe that I shouldn’t be penalised just because I don’t take much time and effort to create that new value for the client.
1. Nickel-And-Dimers Waste A Hell Of A Lot Of Your Time
Have you ever noticed how easy it is to come to agreement with prospective buyers who actually have an intention to change and now is just looking for a fit with a consultant with whose help and guidance to go through the changing process?
Now contrast this to Nickel-And-Dimers, who want to make sure all Ts are crossed and all Is are dotted even before making a shred of commitment.
When Carl Rogers, a pioneer in social psychology was asked about the most important aspect of human interaction when there is a strong difference of opinions, he said this: “Unconditional positive regard for the other person. It’s about holding the other person in a positive light and assuming that his/her interest is for the best interest of the discussion and the relationship, regardless of what the person actually believes at that moment.”
A few months ago the business development manager of a web design firm told me “I’ve forgotten more about marketing than you will ever learn. I just don’t have time to do it.” Yet, instead of implementing proper marketing (which he’s apparently a master of), his firm peddles its services using three call centres (Los Angeles, India and China) to cold call harass people to find new business. It seems the worst underperformers claim to know the most about everything.
Remember, low-level prospects usually drop to an even lower level as clients. Send them on their way with an imaginary recreational kick in their butts, and move on with a lesson learnt.
2. Nickel-And-Dimers Like Bragging About The Special Deals They’ve Received
A few years ago a friend of mine worked with a large manufacturing company, and some six years later that manufacturing company referred one of their vendors to my friend. Yes, the manufacturing company was a Nickel-And-Dimer and they were bragging to their vendors that with the right pressure they could arm-twist my friend to give them very very good per diem rates. The vendor expected my friend to give the per diem rate he was charging the manufacturing company six years before. It was a retarded situation. He was given a fait accompli: “Either you give us the same rate you gave them or you’re out.” And sadly my friend did, simply because the immediate smell of money was more attractive than the gut-wrenching stench of a slowly decomposing project that was waiting for him down the road.
And it was waiting all right. The client demanded detailed reports on everything. My friend had to write reports on report, memos and meetings. He had to document every second of his time. Really. The client demanded a time sheet from him in 15-minute segments. He would hand in the time sheet and the client would decide which segments got paid and which got deleted. On average, 35% of his time sheet got unpaid. When he asked the client why, the client just shrugged, “I don’t think it was necessary for the project.” Imagine, here is this egotistical, stupid idiot who hasn’t been able to solve his problem for himself, and then when the hired help does the work, he decides what’s needed and what’s not.
The problem is that when Nickel-And-Dimers brag, they don’t brag about the great service they’ve just received. No! They brag about how cheap the service was. And just as birds of the feather flock together, so do Nickel-And-Dimers. So, if you accept work with one of these business cretins, rest assured that you will be favourably inducted into the world if Nickel-And-Dimers, and many of them want your help. And from here on it’s a downwards spiral. Bad projects attract each other. The world will soon know that you’re the Nickel-And-Dimers specialist and more of them will come.
I believe money is the walk of the talk. When you ask people to invest in their own futures, you quickly learn how serious they actually are by whether or not they cough up the dough.
3. Nickel-And-Dimers Ruin Your Market Reputation And Your Credibility In The Eyes Of Great Clients
While Great Clients and Nickel-And-Dimers hardly ever flock together, still, Great Clients can hear from the good deals Nickel-And-Dimers got cut for themselves. How do you think it will impact the perception Great Clients have about these deal-cutters. Why do you think people haggle with car salespeople and realtors but not with lawyers or doctors?
Car salespeople and realtors are notorious for “cutting deals”: “Buy now and I’ll give you a special deal.” In spite of the “special deal”, most people hate this approach because they know what the special deal really is: No big deal. Just a previously inflated price shrunk back to normal with lots of fanfare and manipulation.
My friend, Katie (not her real name) is a web designer. She got a call from Fred on a web design project. With lots of pep talk and promises on future projects, Fred convinced Katie to design a site with a serious drop on her fees. Fred manipulated her by telling her how good this would be for her portfolio. By the way, I’ve always believed that this “portfolio stuff” is highly overrated. Smart clients want to see value not portfolios. Well, she accepted the deal. And then two more.
Then she found out that Fred was just a broker between her and some real buyers. Fred knew that the lower price he could demand from Katie, the more money he would pocket. I have nothing against brokers per se. I too broker projects here and there. Over the years, thanks to my military training, skydiving and other experiences, I’ve become a damn good project manager and I have an innate talent to have people work together as a - real - team towards a common objective, so I co-ordinate large high-stake projects with functional experts. But I do have a problem that the greedy bastard Fred increased his money by lying to a good designer about future projects.
And rest assured that Fred will brag to his friends, that “If you need a super-cheap web designer, let me know. My contact is super-cheap and super-good.” Yes, she is super-cheap because she was manipulated by this scumbag, and she is super-good because doing excellent work is part of her DNA. By genetic design she doesn’t rest until she produces “WOW!” calibre work. And these are the people slime balls like Fred are seeking for “contract work”.
Then she participated in my Fee Audit and Protection Plan programme and learnt that clients don’t pay for portfolios but for value. With this realisation Fred was immediately out of the picture.
4. Nickel-And-Dimers Do Most Of The Complaining About You And Your Services
Nickel-And-Dimers are extremely good at complaining. They keep nudging you that they could get the same service next door a lot cheaper. Well, if they could, they wouldn’t be arguing with you. They would go and get that cheaper service. But that cheaper service won’t be the same.
There are some common factors in projects. Two of them are are…
- Certainty of successful completion
- Velocity of progress
And your fee is a reflection of these two elements. The funny thing is that Nickel-And-Dimers want to maximise both factors while minimising your fees.
If I want to travel from New York to Los Angeles, I can take different options. The option with the lowest investment can be a pair of running shoes. That will give me a certain velocity of progress and certainty of arrival. But if I invest in a plane ticket, I increase both the velocity of progress and certainty of arrival. I, the buyer, can choose which option to take and I get what I paid for.
And of course this complaining can go as far as the courtroom. When these people make up their minds to get full refund on a project that failed (over 90% of failed consulting projects fail because of clients’ diminishing commitment - Dr. Edgar Schein, Process Consultation), they stop at nothing to blame their consultants and are willing to go to any length to recover their investments.
Studies done by McKinsey & Co also indicate that…
- 75% of solutions don’t return a profit to the buying company
- 50% of solutions don’t deliver the expected value
Now referring back to Dr. Schein’s research, we can see that more often than not it is clients who disallow consultants to deliver the value that was laid out in the agreements.
Nickel-And-Dimers complain because to them this is negotiation and they feel this is the only way to get a fair deal. They learnt in some Arab bazaar that haggling is part of life and without haggling they would be taken for a ride. So, they apply what they’ve learnt: “C’mon man, you can do better than that” or “Is this your best price”. The funny thing is that when you start taking value elements out of your agreement, they scream like the proverbial stuck pig. They want it all and they want it now but at a lower price.
In negotiation the experts teach that upon hearing the price you have to flinch and the seller is likely to reduce the price. Yes, likely, but who says that you have to be a typical “likely” seller. When the buyer flinches you can also recommend an appointment with a neurologist. Check what the buyer’s step is to this. Or if you’re not sure what to say, just say what - according to Alan Weiss - can be said in almost any situation: “What’s your point?” You will see some major league back-pedalling on the buyer’s end. After all, they expect you to argue and defend yourself and your fees.
But defence can be dangerous, as General Patton explained in his address to his troops in England, on 5th June 1944.
“I don’t want to get any messages saying, ‘I am holding my position.’ We are not holding a Goddamned thing. Let the Germans do that. We are advancing constantly and we are not interested in holding onto anything, except the enemy’s balls. We are going to twist his balls and kick the living shit out of him all of the time. Our basic plan of operation is to advance and to keep on advancing regardless of whether we have to go over, under, or through the enemy. We are going to go through him like crap through a goose; like shit through a tin horn!”
I believe in win-win situations, but you can create win-win only with win-win people. It’s a mentality. I also believe that you have the right to - figuratively speaking of course - wipe the floor with buyers who are pushing you.
The other problems is the so-called satisfaction. And Nickel-And-Dimers usually have a very twisted notion of satisfaction. They believe that if they buy a car from you, it is their statutory right to receive free driving lessons from you and at the end of the day you pay for their driving licences. Then they try to convince you that it is also your duty to service that car for free until you die.
As Jim Rohn says, “Liars lie, cheaters cheat and the perplexed are always perplexed.” And complainers always complain. The tendency for complaining is more than skin-deep. Just think of a tiger. It’s not just the fur that’s striped, so is the skin. And it’s striped in the same pattern. You can hardly change that. Then let’s stop trying.
5. Nickel-And-Dimers Prevent You From Attracting Great Clients
Nickel-And-Dimers take up so much of your time and effort that it can prevent you from attracting great clients. There are several facets of this problem. One is that they demand so much of your time and attention that you simply have no time left to diligently execute your marketing plan. For a while your practice is carried forward by momentum from past clients, but since you’re not planting today, tomorrow’s harvest is doubtful.
The other problem is that the quality of your service falls. One reason for that is now your time is occupied by taking remedial action to please Nickel-And-Dimers. And this action not only eats up your time, but also eats you up emotionally. And the real problem is that you act out these emotional problems on great clients. Yes, you may want to argue here, but don’t. Life is holistic and non-compartmentalised. If you’re hurt, then you will show that hurt feeling both at work and at home. Personally I wouldn’t want to be operated on by a surgeon whose teenage daughter has just run away with the Hell’s Angels, or whose family dog has just been eaten by a crocodile in the back garden swimming pool.
Clients come to you not merely for the service you provide (accounting, doctoring or lawyering). They come to you for the overall experience. And experience is a highly emotional thing. If you’re on an emotional roller coaster, your clients receive a roller coaster of an experience. It is your job to keep yourself on even keels, so your clients receive a consistent experience with you.
6. Nickel-And-Dimers Like Delaying and Forgetting Payments
Now you’ve secured everything. Really. The fat is in the fire, the die is cast, the gun is loaded, the fuse is burning, the sausage is sizzling, the stew is simmering, the jig is up, the fate is sealed, the stamp is licked, the goose is cooked and even the cat is out of the bag. It’s time for payment. And this is where the trouble started.
Nickel-And-Dimers left their wallets at home, they have to check the price with their spouses, dogs, cats or the spirit of their long-dead parrots. All in all, by now they’ve got everything they wanted from you, and as far as they’re concerned, you burn in one of the most pestilential pits of hell in screaming agony, before they give you even a penny.
Of course there are cases when Nickel-And-Dimers actually start working with you. You were generous and trusting enough to give them instalment payments. But the payments are not coming. The cheques seem to be in the mail every time you call but never seem to arrive. Then they get irritated by your calls to collect your money and threaten you that unless you stop making these “collecting” calls, they simply cancel the project and you’ll never see your money.
A few years ago I started working with a high-tech firm and the very first cheque the president wrote me bounced. When I asked him what happened, he told me that he suddenly took all the money from the company’s bank account to put down the downpayment on a new BMW. When I asked him when I could expect a real cheque, he went on his usual delusional journey about bills and expenses and tough times. When I asked him about why he bought the car, he said it was a special deal and he just couldn’t resist.
So, here is this guy with two cars in the driveway and no money in the company’s kitty. And he’s just too busy hiding from his vendors and dodging payments.
7. Nickel-And-Dimers Demand Huge Upfront Commitments From You Before They Commit To Projects
Nickel-And-Dimers expect you to jump through many loops before they make, not even a commitment, but a mere decision. Just think. The ultimate Nickel-And-Dimers are governments. Have you ever checked their retarded processes of hiring consultants? A few years ago a colleague, to the demand of her local government in order to win the contract, dropped all her clients. She started working on the government contract and then two months later the committee pulled the plug on the project. We know that the most amount of work goes into projects right at the beginning. Nevertheless, after putting in all the initial work, all she got paid was a pro rated hourly fee.
But at least that was paid for. But she was expected to climb the proverbial mountain of broken glass and rusty nails barefoot and butt-naked just to win the contract. And she even relinquished all her clients for this “big gig”. And the big gig bombed miserably. Then it took her a good six months of living on her savings to get some clients back.
So, be very careful about what sort of commitments you make upfront. Make sure that every commitment is a mutual commitment. For instance, if the prospect requests a proposal from you to think more about it, then ask for a small payment, which later you can lump into the project. The payment shows the prospect is serious.
8. Nickel-And-Dimers Demand Extensive Proposals Just To Steal Your Intellectual Property For In-House Implementation
Nickel-And-Dimers tend to call it the bidding process but realistically it’s nothing more than euphemism for the theft of your intellectual property. These people demand detailed information on everything and then with your information they often go to the lowest bidder for implementation.
Just think about the typical request for Proposal (RFP). It gives you a detailed guideline on how to write that proposal. So, the RFP creates a level playing field where are unique value is cut out of services and bidders are completing purely on price. And RFPs usually specify very expensive and detailed proposals. A proposal I’ve seen lately started with a 21-page executive summary. The whole proposal was 410 pages. The appendix section was a separate document some 700 pages long. Can you imagine how many hours it takes to create such a monster? And who’s going to read it all. Maybe a civil servant who has nothing else to do anyway.
9. Nickel-And-Dimers Never Become Repeat Clients And Never Refer You Anyone
This is just a foregone conclusion from the previous points. They create a pretty relationship dynamic and blame you for everything. So, it’s just normal that they spread only bad words about you and your services. What else can they do? What they don’t realise is that they are the only rotten apple in a whole barrel of good apples (great clients). And as we all know even one bad apple can spoil the whole barrel.
Summary
So, what is the lesson here? Sometimes it’s worth negotiating, reasoning and explaining things to people but reasoning with Nickel-And-Dimers is the same as wrestling with a pig. You get dirty and the pig won’t enjoy it either.
It’s the same as trying to negotiate with Hitler about world domination. No. Instead of arguing and reasoning, the Allies shoved a bomb up his butt and blew him and his empire to hell. Now I don’t suggest that you do that to your Nickel-And-Dimers, but you’re free to walk away, saving your sanity and start with a clean slate and live another day.
And what is the other option? You can try to please Nickel-And-Dimers and they’ll consume your life. They are the people who just take, take and take some more. And you may try to be the good-hearted Samaritan, but eventually you get run to the ground and resentment starts kicking in. As the former UN General Secretary, Dag Hammarskjold once said, “It is more noble to give yourself to one individual than labour diligently for the salvation of the masses.” Being a Nickel-And-Dimer is a serious disease, and most of us are not qualified (hopefully not interested either) to cure these hopelessly lost souls. The best we can do is just to avoid them with amazing accuracy and move on with our own lives.
Organisational Provocateur Tom “Bald Dog” Varjan of Dynamic Innovations Squad helps providers of professional services to achieve the income and lifestyle levels they desire through high-trust high-impact client relationships. For a FREE fee-setting guide: “Why most service professionals consistently and persistently undercharge for their services and what to do about it” visit his website at http://www.di-squad.com
There has been a lot of talk about the reality of success regarding opt-in lists. Due to this talk there have been many marketers partaking in surveys conducted to ensure that website promotion through opt-in list building is not just internet hype. The results obtained in these surveys have clearly shown that opt-in list building is still the hottest marketing tool for website promotion.
The surveys are also a means of eliminating some of the internet marketer’s fears based on the technological advancement which might pose as a threat to the success of opt-in list building. It also helps bring new understanding to the huge earning potential that an opt-in list creates.
It is without a doubt that new website owners will have fear with all the SPAM filters making it hard for their prospective clients to receive their mail. However it has been proven that most opt-in list marketers have not been hurt by this technological advancement. This is due to the obvious fact that opt-in list subscribers are not being spammed as they have willingly parted with their email address.
Other fears that have hit the scene of internet marketing in terms of opt-in list building have been that most people are not willing to part with their emails these days. These fears are unfounded as the increase in broadband is making it easier and cheaper for people to get online. Therefore more customers are made available and are indeed willing to part with their email addresses.
The other reason for the success of opt-in list building is that many websites are allowing subscribers to join the opt-in list on the websites own home page. This is making it easier for people to sign up on the mailing list as opposed to having to click on another link to get the option of joining the opt-in mailing list.
Opt-in list building is about giving your potential customer the option and incentive they need to purchase your product or service. It is requires you to have the customer in mind. What are their needs and how can your product provide for those needs? A good opt-list building technique is about getting your customer to have a relationship with you.
Once you have your subscribers email address you have one foot in the door. Your subscribers are like minded people who are in some way interested in your product. Don’t disappoint them by offering something that you cannot deliver. An opt-in list is also a good way to get traffic to your site. The best way that a website can survive is through generating consistent,growing website traffic.
Shon Christopher is the owner of www.advancedmarketingsoftware.com which offers 11 powerful software toolkits created especially for webmasters and affiliates to help them drive website traffic and increase sales.
This retirement account is so new and unique that you may not have heard of it. For additional reasons, I describe in my home study course, corporate insiders may not want to offer it to corporate employees. This is because some executives only consider their employees canon fodder.
The Roth 401(k) was created when the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 was passed. There is a provision in the law that allows employers to offer their employees the opportunity to make Roth 401(k) deferrals. Nobody paid much attention, since the new provisions applied only to tax years beginning after 2005, but now 2006 is almost here, and people are waking up.
Deductible IRAs and regular 401(k) plans work well for those taxpayers who expect their marginal tax rate to decrease during retirement because they will be making less money. This means that you’re waiting until you retire to pay taxes on dollars you make today at a higher marginal tax rates. You pay on all that money during retirement when your marginal tax rate is less.
Some taxpayers who are smart investors actually expect their marginal tax rate to either remain the same or actually increase when they retire because they are a lot wealthier from their stock investments. They also want to spend and have fun since they taught their kids well how to fend for themselves. There are many investors out there that would certainly fall into this category, even if they don’t know it quite yet from investing smart in the stock market as I teach in my home study course.
For those taxpayers who are going to be worth a boatload of money down the road, the Roth IRA used to be the absolute king. Like You pay taxes today when you aren’t worth as much but get to take it out and go on world cruises and the like after you retire (assuming certain restrictions are met). And that’s just “neater than peanut butter” for those taxpayers who expect to get whacked by the IRS on taxes when they retire. But don’t forget that the nasty drawback to the Roth IRA for many people is the fact that contributions can’t be made if income is above certain limitations.
For the Roth 401(k), this is longer the case. Beginning in 2006, a 401(k) plan may allow employees to designate some or all of their elective contributions as Roth contributions. Different from regular 401(k) contributions, which are excluded from the employee’s taxable income, any amount designated as a Roth 401(k) contribution would be included as taxable income to the employee. But when you take cash out of your Roth 401(k) contributions at retirement it is completely free from federal tax. Also, unlike regular contributions, Roth 401(k) contributions are allowable regardless of your income level. So, if you are pulling down the big bucks this allows you to have the glorious benefits of the Roth IRA account I told before that you couldn’t put money into because of your high income.
Your employer is going to kick up the administration fees but if you understand the great benefits you probably won’t mind. In order to make this Roth 401(k) thing happen, the company that administers your regular 401(k) plan will have to perform additional accounting. The Roth 401(k), and the associated earnings, will have to be maintained in a separate account from your regular 401(k) monies. Additionally, the administrator will be required to separately to separate out, on a reasonable and consistent basis, gains and losses between the designated Roth contribution account and other accounts under the plan. Because of this increased accounting requirement, I guarantee that they are going to pass on these increased fees to you to administer these types of plans.
One of the drawbacks to the Roth 401(k) plan is that no employer matching contributions or plan forfeitures can be allocated to the Roth contribution account. That means that you won’t get any matching and won’t be able to roll over dough from your regular 401(k). If you study my course carefully you will understand why you probably won’t care.
Here are some other notes relative to the new Roth 401(k) account:
• Section 403(b) Plans are eligible. While the new law specifically refers to 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans are also a go.
• Plans must be amended. Before accepting Roth contributions, 401(k) and 403(b) plans must be amended to allow for separate tracking of the Roth contributions. Again, this will be an additional expense to the employer that they will pass on to you.
• Plan changes are voluntary for the employer. There is nothing in the law that requires employers to change their 401(k) or 403(b) plans to allow for the Roth contribution. If this is the case with your employer, there is essentially nothing that you can do about it. It simply means that you will not be allowed the benefits of a Roth 401(k) with that employer. After you study my course you will understand why the executives up top may not want you to have a Roth 401(k).
• This is for a limited time only. Roth 401(k) plans are scheduled to expire at the end of 2010. Therefore, after 2010, Roth contributions could remain in the plan, but no new Roth contributions could be made after that time. Obviously, Congress could extend these provisions at some time in the future. This is likely should these plans become popular and the managing insiders let their corporations have the plan.
So it’s not too soon to start hammering your corporate employer about this plan for 2006. You can see if your employer is interested in making the plan amendments. It’s likely that the major corporations will be more interested in adding the Roth provision to their 401(k) plans than smaller corporations or businesses because of the cost but again it depends on where your employer’s executive inside interests are aligned. You’ll want to check with your employers to find out where they stand on the Roth 401(k) and how likely it might be that they will make the appropriate adoptions necessary to implement the plan.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Scott Brown, Ph.D., a.k.a. “The Wallet Doctor”, is a successful futures trader, real estate investor, and stock investor. Dr. Brown holds a Ph.D. in finance from the University of South Carolina. His 1998 articles in Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities were prophetic in predicting an impending stock market crash. He has helped many people become profitable investors by teaching them to look out over many years to spot stocks that are low and primed for rise in the new bull market. His second article met with approval by Dr. Bob Shiller of Yale University. Dr. Shiller is the economist that Alan Greenspan most highly regards who coined the term “Irrational Exuberance.” In 1998 he shouted to the world to “get out” of the stock market but now he is shouting to everyone that it is time to “get in!” The Wallet Doctor is not only sought after for investment advice and coaching in stock investing but also in futures trading and real estate investing.
Visit Dr. Brown’s site at http://www.BonanzaBase.com or sign up for his investment tips at http://www.WalletDoctor.com
Sometimes people end up in trouble and in need of a defense lawyer. If this is you, the first thing you need to do is find a qualified defense lawyer to pull you out of it. But, where will you look? Should you rely on the court appointed defense lawyers as your defense lawyers? Perhaps you are wrongly being accused, who is going to fight for your rights? Defense lawyers are quite in demand. No matter if a crime or wrongdoing was actually made or not, it is still important to have a defense lawyer present to help you resolve your case.
Defense lawyers are available to help just about anyone in just about any case. Let’s say that you are being accused of drug crimes. You will need a defense lawyer to help you win your case. Perhaps it is a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Perhaps you were helping a friend. Perhaps you know that you did do the crime. In any of these cases you will need a defense lawyer to help you. You need that defense lawyer to sort through the charges, to understand your side, to interpret the meanings of the case. In serious cases like drug crimes, you may find yourself lost in what should be happening and who to trust as your defense lawyer. One way to get a better understanding about what drug crimes are and what defense lawyers do is to look online. Websites like www.thesmartattorneys.com express information about these situations in regards to defense lawyers.
Where will you find a defense lawyer then to handle this drug crimes charge? Who will you trust to do the best they can to help you get out of this situation? Defense lawyers are available in every state. But, when you do not know anyone, should you simply just open the phone book and pick a defense lawyer? You would not feel safe with your choice in a defense lawyer this way. Instead, use websites like www.thesmartattorneys.com to help you find qualified defense lawyers who truly want to help defend you against these charges.
No matter what the situation, whether it is drug crimes or something else, if you are in a situation and need a defense lawyers, you will have to do some research, find a reliable defense lawyer, and do your best to help them win your case. It is hard to say whether or not you have a case or not. Only your defense lawyer will know. But, rest assured that your defense lawyer will tell you how to act, what to say, and what to do to get out of your situation. Defense lawyers are invaluable resources in times of need like these.
About the Author
S A Baker is staff writer at http://www.thesmartattorneys.com
As we are coming up on the end of the latest presidential term of office and the dawn of what has to be anticipated as “better times”, I pause to reflect on our current president and how he will look in the history books of the future.
Now I have to preface my comments by saying that I am a devout Republican who registered to vote, along with 14 of my high school classmates, in the wake of one of the most publicized presidential scandals of our time, in 1974. Not being deterred by Watergate, I find myself struggling with the possibility of voting Democrat for the first time in a presidential election. I have to admit that I listen to most of the talk shows and pundits who still call our president “Mr. Bush” (whatever happened to the title president?) but I am perplexed by what seems to be a dichotomy of opinion concerning the president. You have the republicans who continue to support him and the war and everything red white but not blue. But the Dems baffle me because I hear the president being called “Satan” and “the great evil” and at the same time he is called a “moron” and a “dope”.
Now, knowing what you know about me so far you can perceive astutely that I am disallusioned with the Grand Old Party and think the proverbial pendulum has swung precariously far to the right. And you would be correct. But before we bury the president for the sins of humanity lets take a look at his presidency for hints of his identity.
Well there is this war thing. You could say that we are in Iraq because the president’s father “didn’t finish the job” This current president certainly will stay until it is over but I am already hearing that he “isn’t finishing the job”, because Bin Laden is still alive. The presidency is a thankless job for sure.
Next there were these hurricanes this past year. Certainly they can’t be blamed on the president. However the federal government should have fixed everything before it happened right? But wait. Who did we vote for? A republican who believes that the Federal government should have a limited role in the lives of people. So in that respect we got what we voted for. If we want high taxes and the federal government “helping us” out of all of our problems then we know what to do. Vote Democrat. But not only in the presidential election but in the Congressional elections as well! After all they make the laws.
So I can’t see how the president can be the great evil and a buffoon at the same time but I know this that President George W. Bush is the most hated President in my time. Even Nixon was pittied more than hated. We were embarrassed by him. And besides he had that “China thing”. How will the current president be viewed in the coming years? My guess is the hatred will be mellowed and he will be looked on as a president who was tricked by his aides and confidants (including the vice-president and his father) and was overwhelmed by the awesome reponsibility of the most difficult job in the world. So buffoon will win out over Satan but is the job itself getting too big for one person to fill it? Can the Democrats nominate someone who will interest enough republicans to swing the election in their favor? I know one thing, this republican will NOT vote for Senator Hillary Clinton, and not for the reason you think. She is a politician for sure. But she is a democrat who wants increased government involvement in my life and I don’t know if I’m willing to give up the control that I’ve gotten. So there is the problem. Is there a state govenor who can convince the country that He or She is the answer to the country’s problems? We will see. I kind of hope a democrat is elected president. I miss listening to Rush Limbaugh on the radio.
I love the decorative look of a ceiling fan as much as the next person, but there are things to consider when you put one in your house; especially the bedroom. Ceiling fans make wonderful decorating and utilitarian statements in a room. You can look at the fan and see how beautiful it matches the décor of the room, and then turn it on and realize how comfortable you can feel in the winter or summer. Ceiling fans will circulate the air anywhere at different speeds and look beautiful at the same time. Some fans have light kits that come with them, or you can install them another time. Other fans don’t have lights; they are just there to look great and circulate the air.
Ceiling fans come in every decorative style imaginable. You can even make your own to match the room you want to install it in. The one place I choose not to have a ceiling fan is the bedroom. All ceiling fans all have one thing in common and that is they have “blades”. When you hang a fan above something, metaphorically you are hanging spinning blades above that object; such as a table, bed, couch etc. It is usually a little disconcerting if you are sitting beneath blades spinning above your head, don’t you think? Have you ever tried to sleep under a moving ceiling fan? It could be the quietest fan in the world; but the spinning blades will always keep me awake. I don’t like to sit under one either. Logically, I’m sure ceiling fans are installed with great care and they won’t come crashing down, but they symbolize just the opposite. In Feng Shui, we look at things such as this and analyze how they make you “feel” energetically. I don’t mind ceiling fans if they are hung high from a cathedral ceiling. They are well out of the way and not right above the head. I do like the way they move the air, just as long as I don’t have to sleep under it.
In Feng Shui, we always look at things and how they represent other things. Metaphorically what are you trying to tell the Universe? There may be alternative ways to keep cool in the summer that don’t involve spinning blades above your head. Why not place portable air conditioners in the house? They are ideal when window air conditioners won’t fit, or you don’t have central air. You might just want to put a portable rotating fan a distance away from the bed. The positioning of items in rooms with Feng Shui (the Chinese art of placement) will determine if you have a good flow of energy in the room. Sit quietly in your bedroom and see how it “feels”. If your master bedroom is large enough that you don’t have to place the bed directly under the ceiling fan; then you are ok with the aesthetics of having it in the room. You can use it to feel cooler to your hearts content. When it comes to ceiling fans or anything else for cooling the home; check out http://www.portable-air-conditioner-4u.com
About the author:
Beverly Marshall is a successful freelance writer offering guidance and suggestions for consumers buying portable air conditioners, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, air filters and more. Her many articles can be found at http://www.portable-air-conditioner-4u.comShe gives information and tips to help you save money and make informed buying decisions.
We’ve all seen the Coupon Queens on various television shows and been amazed at how little they paid for a ton of grocery items. Sometimes you may even wonder how on earth she can care for her family when it seems she bought thirty packages of pasta and nothing to go with it. The truth is, she didn’t need the pasta sauce, she picked up thirty jars of that last week, when it was on sale, and she was getting it for free or pennies with her coupons.
The trick to saving the most money on groceries is to be a stockpiler. To do this, you need to gather as many coupons as you can for items you know you will use, match them up with a store sale, and then buy as many as possible while you are getting the items cheap or free. Using this tip, you can make sure you have enough of the needed items without having to pay full price.
Coupons and sales tend to cycle and once you try it for awhile, you will learn the cycles for your area and know when it is time to stock up. By doing this you will have enough supplies on hand, so you can wait to pick up more when the item is on sale again, and you have a coupon to go with the sale.
And there we come to another issue that some people don’t understand, you can use a coupon in conjuction with a store sale. They are two totally different promotions, so you aren’t doing anything fraudulent. You simply cannot combine more than one manufacturers coupon on a single item, but if you put ten items on the conveyor belt and have ten coupons, then that is fine as long as your store permits it. Some stores do set limits on how many like coupons they will accept on one order so always check before doing your shopping. You can also combine a store specific coupon with a manufacturers coupon to realize even more savings.
If you have a store in your area that doubles coupons you can really save some money. Some stores double up to 50cents and some to 99cents, thus giving you $1 or $1.98 off. This is another store policy you will have to inquire about before shopping, as it varies from retailer to retailer.
One of the most important tips that I tell everyone who asks me about my couponing and how I save so much money is to FORGET BRAND LOYALTY! I know there are occasional exceptions where some products suffer in quality between brands but this is not the rule. One brand of tissues will wipe your nose as well as another, and if you can get one for less than $1, and the other is over $2 a box, then by purchasing the one you’re getting cheapest, you’re putting that money back into your wallet for something else. If you are like me, disabled with no disposable income, then every little bit you save can mean another meal that comes home for your family.
The best place to find coupons is in your local Sunday newspaper. Generally, there are two inserts each week, except for holidays, and some weeks there are manufacturer specific coupon inserts. If you find your local paper doesn’t have them, then try looking around to find an out of town paper for the coupon inserts. Each week, I buy at least one early paper, which is available in my town Saturday evening. I browse through the coupons, and if there are good coupons, and I know I will save more than what I am paying for the paper, I will go out the next day and buy another stack. You are not limited to only one paper and one copy of each coupon.
Another great place to find inserts is your local newspaper recycling center. Many people do not use coupons, millions of dollars worth are thrown away each year, so with a little digging you can find a real treasure trove. By searching online or visiting message boards, you can also find links to printables, or people who are willing to trade the ones they can’t use for other coupons, or for a small postage and handling fee.
When you first get into couponing, you will spend the same, or maybe even a little more than you did before on groceries, but once you build a little stockpile you will suddenly see the savings add up. It makes a big difference when you run out of shampoo and can just run to the closet and grab another bottle that you got for free, instead of running to the store and spending almost $3 for a replacement bottle.
Yes, it does take some time and effort, you have to organize your coupons, be willing to store hop, and spend a few minutes to review the sales flyer, and match it with your coupons, but you can quickly turn couponing into a great hobby as well as money saver.
Verleen Wonderly is a published freelance writer and has worked for http://www.dealoftheday.com since its inception in 1999.
If you’re going to play poker—and who isn’t these days–you might as well play it well. Poker is a lot more fun when you’re winning. Now even the best poker players don’t win every time they sit down at the felt. You can’t win them all, but you can win a lot of them. Here are a few little hints to get you started playing poker to win.
The most important thing to know about poker is that there is no substitute for experience. No matter how many books you read or poker shows you watch, your most important lessons will be learned right there at the poker table. You don’t have to risk a lot of money at first. Many online poker sites offer games with limits as low as $.25 and $.50. Keep in mind though that the higher the limits, the better the quality of play you are likely to encounter.
While experience is the best teacher, there are a number of quality books on the market that will help improve your poker play. David Sklansky’s “Theory of Poker” is a great starting point. It will introduce you to basic concepts such as pot odds and relative hand strengths that will tell you what hands to keep putting money in the pot with and when. The two “Super/System” books compiled by Doyle Brunson provide an informative overview of the various poker games you are likely to encounter. If Hold`em tournaments are your thing, Dan Harrington’s two “Harrington on Hold`em” volumes are the best around. The Harrington books get into some advanced concepts though, so you should have a decent grasp of the fundamentals before you tackle them.
If you can’t wait to get into action, there are a few key things you should keep in mind. Poker players are typically grouped along two dimensions: Tight to Loose and Passive to Aggressive. The looser a player is, the more hands he or she is likely to play. Passive players do a lot more flat calling, and aggressive players are usually the ones betting. The best way to play is with a tight-aggressive style. This means that you don’t play that many hands, but when you do play a hand, you play it very strongly, with betting that puts pressure on your opponents to fold. It sounds easy enough, and most players will tell you they are tight aggressive, but it’s harder than it seems.
A good tight player is probably only going to play around two out of every ten hands (this is in a cash game, in tournament play, rising blinds will force you to loosen up your standards as you go along). That doesn’t sound like too much fun. You didn’t come to watch, you came to play, right? But good hands don’t come around that often, and when you get involved in a pot, you’d like to have a better hand than your opponent. If he’s playing a lot more hands than you are, odds are you will have a better starting hand most of the time. The bottom line is that the most important skill for you as a starting poker player, more than the ability to bluff or read tells or anything like that, is patience. If you can wait for a good hand, and if you have the discipline to fold that hand when it’s clear that someone has you beat, you’ll have a big advantage over your novice opponents.
So if you’re only playing 20 percent of the hands, what should you be doing the other 80 percent of the time, watching football? Absolutely not! Watch your opponents. Just because you’re not in the hand doesn’t mean you’re out of the game. Watch the players who are in the hand. It’s a great opportunity because they aren’t likely to be paying too much attention to you and you can get a more honest read on them. Observe their betting patterns. If you’re lucky enough to see their cards at the end, try to remember how they played the hand so that when you are in against them, you may get some clues as to what they’re holding. If this seems somewhat boring to you, make a game of it. Try to guess as the hand goes along what all the players involved have. Adjust your prediction based on the play of the hand. It’s quite rewarding to see someone turn over his hand on the river and find he had exactly what you calculated he would.
Finally, you’ll be doing yourself a favor if you keep track of your wins and losses. At some point, you’ll have a feel for when you’re at the top of your game, and when a game is good or bad for you to continue playing in. Until then, establishing a set amount that you will allow yourself to win or lose will help you to remain disciplined and stay within your bankroll, which will make poker a generally more fun and rewarding experience.
Rick “Stone Face” Ellers started playing poker while he was a paratrooper stationed in Fort Bragg, NC. He currently writes part time for PokerListings.com where you can learn about the exciting World Series of Poker and find great information about Online Poker Rooms.
With the advancement in the treadmill industry, quality machines could now cost you up to $5,000. So purchasing the wrong equipment could prove costly. And with the huge variety of treadmills in the market today, finding one that suits you best has become even more confusing.
This is the reason why I created these guide questions. It aims to educate people on how to purchase the best treadmill for their needs and avoid some costly mistakes.
So before you start shopping for your new treadmill, answer first the following guide questions below. They will guide you into making the right purchase.
1) Who would use the treadmill?
The treadmill you would be buying would depend on how much you weigh, how tall you are, and how many people would use it.
Most treadmills have a maximum user weight limit, so be sure that your treadmill will be able to support your body weight. For tall people, I suggest you choose machines with lengthy decks, since your strides will be longer than normal.
If the whole family would be using it, it would be better to buy higher quality treadmills (those above $2,000) to make sure that it can handle the workouts of everyone in the family.
2) How often would the treadmill be used?
The quality (and price) of the machine you will be buying would also depend on the number of times the treadmill will be used in a week and for how long. As a guide, a person who weighs less than 200 lbs. and plans to run on it for 30 minutes a day, 7 times a week should get a treadmill in the $1,500 - $2,000 range.
3) Where will the treadmill be used?
The size and weight of the treadmill you will buy is another factor to be considered. If you have limited space at home, then buying a huge treadmill would not be a smart move. Also, an extremely heavy treadmill is recommended to be only on the ground floor of an old house.
For those with limited spaces at home, you might want to choose a treadmill with foldable feature. This allows you to fold the treadmill after use to save space.
4) What features do you need?
You need to determine the features that would be useful to you and be sure that the treadmill you will buy has those features. If you want to workout in your target heart rate then make sure that the machine you will be buying has a heart rate monitor.
5) How much can you afford?
Finally, know how much you can really spend for a treadmill then, considering numbers 1-4, choose the treadmill in that price range that suits you best. If you can’t find your perfect treadmill in that price range, then you might have to look for one with a higher price tag.
If you need a webpage which categorizes the best treadmills by price, visit http://www.treadmilltips.com/best-buy-treadmills.html.
Well, there you have it. Hopefully these treadmill buying guide questions was able to enlighten you on the kind of treadmill that you really need.
About the Author
Aaron Co is the founder of TreadmillTips.com. A website that provides unbiased treadmill reviews so shoppers can choose the fitness equipment that suits them best. For more treadmill and treadmill related articles, visit http://www.treadmilltips.com.
This article may be reprinted in its entirety only if unaltered and the resource box is included, with live and spiderable links.
