Hi guys, welcome back to another session of how to get rich and stay rich. Today I want to focus on how to develop leadership qualities. Because, let’s face it, the captain gets the largest share of the booty. Always.

In these economic times, making money all by your lonesome is very difficult. We just don’t have enough resources individually. The trend has been to pool resources together for businesses and splitting the profits. You invest less, and do less, but still see returns. The trick is to have a great leader.

Whether you are choosing a leader, or want to be one yourself, there are a few traits that a good leader must always possess or develop. A good leader must be able to remove roadblocks. If there is a problem, you better be able to solve it, or at least motivate the team to come up with a solution.

A good leader must be able to facilitate open, and honest communication. Never sugar coat things, or lie. It will always come back and bite you in the ass. Always.

Do as I do. Never do as I say. A good leader must always model behavior that he or she wants from the team. On the same vein, act instead of react. A good leader can facilitate decision making and discussions. He or she must be able to see the big picture and communicate each member’s role in that context. Don’t make it personal.

A good leader must be able to recognize the strengths of each team member and focus those strengths to the benefit of the team. Remember, everyone is good at something. The trick is to encourage independent thinking and trust each team member to make good decisions. And when assembling your team, a leader must be able to gather team members with complementary skill sets and draw from the strengths of each member.

Hope this helps some of you guys. Now go assemble your dream team and tackle that 200 unit condominium conversion! See you in seven (or less!).

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Hi guys! Today I will be sharing how I utilize web directories to get richer. For those of you new to the Internet era, a web directory is a directory on the World Wide Web that specializes in linking to other web sites and categorizing those links.

To explain further, a web directory is not a search engine, and does not display lists of web pages based on keywords; instead, it lists web sites by category and subcategory. The categorization is usually based on the whole web site rather than one page or a set of keywords, and sites are often limited to inclusion in only a few categories. Web directories often allow site owners to directly submit their site for inclusion, and have editors review submissions for fitness.

And there, folks, is the key. It doesn’t matter what field you do business in. All businesses require customers, whether returning or new. To retain your old customers and make sure that they are repeat ones, well, that I would have to leave to you. You had better do a damn good job. If not, then you should really be looking at doing something else. Anyhow, any and all businesses would love to attract new customers. The simplest way to do that? Well, get your name out there, of course! Able to include your contact information? Even better!

Now, most web directories are very general in scope and list websites across a wide range of categories, regions and languages. But there are also some niche directories which focus on restricted regions, single languages, or specialist sectors. And these are the ones you want to look at and submit your website or contact information to.

Examples of well known, general, web directories include the Yahoo! Directory, Business dot Com, and the Open Directory Project (ODP). ODP is significant due to its extensive categorization and large number of listings and its free availability for use by other directories and search engines.

One of the best ways I have used a business web directory is to simply just submit my business name, website, and contact information. For example, as a Realtor, I constantly have new listings that I purchase a URL solely dedicated to the property address. This drives traffic directly to the listing site, and the more people look, the more chances I have of making a sale.

So, what are you waiting for? People are not going to just find out about you just by accident! Get your information out there! Find a web directory specializing in your field, and post up!

Alright guys, see you in seven (or less!) for more tips on how to get rich and stay rich.

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Hi guys. I know many of you have been feeling the pressure in our downward facing economy. Business is slow to almost non existent, and new ventures just don’t seem to be working. It feels like you are working twice as hard to get less returns lately.

Never fear, I found an article written by Scott Bywater that may give you a little pick-me-up. Yes, it is tennis related, beacuse, yes, I was a tennis player. And yes, Mr. Bywater does try to push some service, but pay attention to his lesson. Enjoy!

Copyright (c) 2010 Scott Bywater
Copywriting That SELLS
http://www.copywritingthatsells.com.au/

Yesterday, I just lounged around… hanging out with my little boy most of the day. Having breakfast, playing with leggo, pulling “The Bear With the Big Blue House” out of the cupboard and watching that.

——————————————————————
Scott Bywater is an advertising copywriting expert and the author of Cash-Flow Advertising. To gain access to all of his copywriting tips on how to get more customers via his eye opening “Copywriting Selling Secrets” newsletter, simply head on over to his web site at http://www.copywritingthatsells.com.au/

See you guys in seven!

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Hey guys! Back in seven as promised! In today’s tight economy, who doesn’t want to free up some cash? Trim the fat but not the fun from your budget.

Here’s how to slash your grocery bill.

Only shop once a week. The more trips you make to the store, the more likely you are to buy on impulse when you see tempting items. About two-thirds of purchases are unplanned; cut that in half to save around $143 a month (if you spend $100 a week on groceries).

Give up the bottle. Stop drinking bottled water and instead buy a filter for your faucet (about $34, plus $25 for replacements). If your family consumes 12 gallons a month, you’ll save about $15. Not too shabby right?

Eat what’s ripe. Out-of-season produce costs 20% to 50% more than it does when it’s in season. Estimated savings: $7 a month.

Ditch your second (or third) car (Eeks! That’s my department…)

Sure, she turns heads, but that 2009 Aston Martin DBS is an expensive mistress. An oil change can put you in the hospital. If something goes wrong, it can downright kill you! Can’t do without two cars? Trade one in for a new (shudder)Camry and save close to $221 a month.

Visit your local cobbler

Last year’s Cole Haans are so … in this year. Rather than shell out $150 or more each season to buy a new pair of good shoes, clean up last year’s kicks. Your local shoe-repair shop will charge about $10 to fix worn-out heel tips for women. Men can get another year or more out of their dress shoes by replacing the rubber heel and the sole. Cost: about $50. If the lady of the house buys four pairs of shoes a year, and the man buys one (at $150 each), you’d save more than $50 a month.

Twitter to Save
Get timely if terse tips about bargains by following these twitterers. Not up on the technology? Get a tutorial at twitter.com.

Music: @amazonmp3
Travel: @JetBlueCheeps
Fashion/beauty: @DealDivine
General retail: @DealsPlus
Giveaways: @fstimes

Time your buys

Don’t get gouged, buy that air conditioner in January, not July, and get it for nearly half the price. You can save 25% to 40% or more if you know when to buy these goods.

Stretch it out

Look like a million bucks without spending a million by slowing down your personal care regimen. Sounds gross? Please, in this economy, read ahead. Trust me.

Go easy on the dry cleaning. Cut the number of trips you make in half: 65% of clothes that are dry cleaned can be washed by hand or machine. For example, you can put linens in the washer and do most sweaters in cold water by hand (including cashmere and camel hair). Most silks are hand washable too. Exception: bold colors like brick red, deep brown, and navy should still be dry-cleaned.

Do home touch-ups. Add at least two weeks to the time between hair coloring appointments ($100 or so a pop) by using over-the-counter products (about $10) from the drugstore to cover up your roots. Or, damn it, quit coloring your hair! What’s wrong with a little salt and pepper? It’s distinguished.

Get to work cheaper

A suburban driver commuting to the city might shell out $575 a month for gas, parking, and car upkeep, assuming a 30-mile round-trip. These downshifts can help:

Grab a tax break. Sign up for your company’s transportation reimbursement account, which lets you pay up to $230 in monthly parking fees with pretax dollars. (You can set aside the same amount for mass-transit costs.) Savings: about $80 a month.

Drive with a buddy. Carpool to work with a colleague. Soak in some office gossip. Or not.

Go from four wheels to two. Buy a good commuter bicycle ($500) and cycle to work as the weather permits. Try Craigslist for great second hand bikes for even more savings! Do that six months a year and you’ll save $250 a month.

Stepping off the gas

You don’t have to buy a Prius (thank god), trade in your clunker or ride the bus to cut down on the money you spend for gas each month. Just make a few adjustments to your driving habits:

Drive sensibly. Aggressive driving on the highway, speeding, rapid acceleration and braking, can lower your mileage by 33%. Hear that, Speedracer?

Observe the speed limit. Gas mileage decreases rapidly above 60 miles per hour. Reining in your speed will save you up to 23%.

Keep tires inflated properly. Check your owner’s manual to list your vehicle’s proper tire pressure, buy a good dial-type pressure gauge ($8), and check your tires once a week. Keeping them properly inflated can improve your mileage by about 3%.

Empty the trunk. Don’t carry around unnecessary items, especially in small cars. An extra 100 pounds in your vehicle could reduce your miles-per-gallon by up to 2%.

Buy ink not cartridges

Instead of buying new black and color ink cartridges when your computer printer runs low, just get them refilled at your local drug store or shopping mall. After all, you don’t buy a new car every time you get low on gas, do you? I wish!

Be loyal to your brands selectively

Save your brand loyalty for where it counts, a Chanel bag or a Brooks Brothers jacket. After all, when you’re battling Rafael Nadal in Grand Slam Tennis on your Wii, who cares what batteries are powering your remote? If there’s no innovation happening with the product, the private label can be just as good, or better.

We estimate you can save up to $15 a month by going with the store-brand or little-known brand for batteries and these other products: pain relievers, canned fruits & vegetables, pantry staples and basic beauty products.

Work out for less

Sweat on your high-end health club’s StairMaster, and unwind at the martini bar.

Better: $50-$90. Work out at the YMCA. There are nearly 3,000 locations throughout the nation.

Best: $0. Free online boot camp whips you into shape at www.marinecorpsfitness.com.

College expenses

Tuition is the largest single bill you’ll pay for Junior to get a degree from Bleed You Dry U. But other costs add up fast. Slash these three:

Books: Nix Brief Principles of Macroeconomics from the college bookstore ($146); rent it from Chegg.com or CampusBookRentals.com, which carries the intro econ text for $68 a semester.

Meals: Go for a seven- or 14- meal plan, not a full one. Your kid will be up late partying, er, studying, and skipping breakfast a few days a week. And no one eats in the cafeteria on Saturday night.

Travel: For trips home, buy a Student Advantage discount card ($20) to save 15% on train and bus fares, 10% off selected flights.

Hope this helped! See you in seven!

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Hey guys, sorry it’s been a while since I updated. It seems that the sagging global economy has even affected the best of us. If we’re not scrambling to make ends meet these days, we are pissed at some random person for some random act, that we would never have given a second thought in a better economy. The downward spiral is getting out of control, and it has even affected our physical health. We need to take back control people. And the first step is identifying the problems. So, what every day activities may be threatening your financial health? Here are seven:

1. Using a debit card without writing down the transactions in your account register.

Debit cards are expected to account for 60 percent of transactions this year, but debit-card users tend to lose track of their money: Swiping plastic triggers 44 percent of overdraft fees, while paper checks account for just 27 percent.

Why write down debit spending? Because swiping a card doesn’t feel the same as laying out cash. The discipline of recording the transaction may reduce mindless spending and makes money easier to track. Simplify your money trail by using online bill pay for all your regular monthly bills, rather than having money withdrawn from your account by outside companies. Then take 30 seconds a day to log on to your account, add the pending transactions in bill pay to the outstanding checks and debits listed in your register that haven’t cleared yet. Subtract from the current balance. If the result is nearing zero, add money to the account. Voila! No overdrafts, no fees.

Sounds simple, but it’s more difficult than you think. Start small. Baby steps. Once you see what a dramatic difference it makes, you’ll want to apply this sort of order to every aspect of your life.

2. Tossing out the “junk mail” from your credit card company.

The Credit Card Holders Bill of Rights Act goes into full effect in February. Ahead of that deadline, companies are changing the terms of customer agreements. For example, the new law prohibits raising the interest rate on existing balances unless a customer pays more than 60 days late. To skirt that provision, firms are notifying customers that their cards are now “variable rate.” (Translation: We can jack up your rate whenever we please.)

So watch those benign notices, and be ready to call and demand a fixed-rate card or take your business elsewhere. Amid these tactics, a new bill calls for moving up the deadline on the credit card law to December 1st.

I just got one from Bank of America. The basic “rock and a hard place” ultimatum they gave me was, cancel my card and stay with the 9.9% APR until pay off, or keep my $10,000.00 limit and get raped (excuse my French) for 29.99% every month. My solution? After I gave them the finger, I transferred the amount to another card. Always keep a few open folks.

3. Ignoring new bank charges.

You may have noticed banks are a bit desperate these days to make a buck. One of the more recent innovations is dinging customers who make electronic transfers to an external account.

For example, last year, Wachovia started charging customers $3 per transfer to an outside bank. Let’s say you automatically stash $100 a week into a savings account at an online bank offering 1.8 percent interest (the current top rate). Smart move. Except Wachovia will now ding you for 3 percent of that weekly deposit. Annual cost? $156.

Meanwhile, Wachovia doesn’t offer any savings accounts that compete with a 1.8 percent rate. The solution? Find a local bank or credit union with no transfer fees, so you’re free to access higher returns.

4. Investing time in the wrong things.

Maybe you’re someone who will drive 20 minutes to a store on your lunch hour to get $5 off a $20 sweater. Or you’ll spend 45 minutes on the phone protesting a $3 error on the cable bill. It’s just not worth it sometimes. But, it’s still money you argue.

Well, let me tell you what is worth your time. Joining the 401(k) plan at your company. Don’t just leave your contribution languishing in a money-market account.

Make a weekly to-do list of your financial decisions (savings and spending) and then prioritize them in terms of bang-for-the-buck over time. When you do the math, you’ll see why paying off credit cards in full and contributing to a retirement plan that offers a match should be at the top of the list.

5. Spending with no goals to guide you.

One definition of insanity, attributed to Albert Einstein, is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Yet that’s how some people approach their finances. They earn and spend and earn and spend, and wonder why they aren’t making any progress.

Break the mindless cycle by figuring out what you value most, whether it’s world travel, returning to school to change careers, home ownership, a peaceful retirement or a debt-free college education for the kids. Then set specific goals, with real time frames, and track your advancement on a monthly basis. Make this a daily discipline by putting a list of those goals in your face: the fridge, your desk at work, your wallet.

Remember what I said about those monthly meetings with your significant other? This is what I was talking about. Or, just set up a day each month and sit with yourself to go over these things. It will pay off. I promise.

6. Failing to track spending.

You can’t succeed at No. 5 if you don’t know precisely where your money is going. When I first started working, I carried a pencil and paper around and wrote everything down. Today, there are numerous desktop software applications and Web sites that will aggregate your finances and track your spending and savings. If you own a smart phone try Mint.com.

You can pay upfront for software. Choose an online program that’s free, but supported by sponsored ads and offers you’ll see when you log in (and the service may sell your data). Or you can pay a monthly fee for a site with no outside ads or offers.

7. Failing to exercise.

How can this hurt your finances? Daily physical activity lowers the risk of a multitude of ailments, from heart disease to diabetes to certain kinds of cancer, which are obviously expensive to treat, even for people who have health insurance.

A study has found medical bills are behind 60 percent of U.S. bankruptcies, and more than 75 percent of bankrupt families had health insurance at the onset of the illness.

Meanwhile, a regular work-out might even get you a raise. Studies have found exercise can improve your performance at work by boosting cognitive skills and productivity, and reducing stress and absenteeism. And, the most important factor, you’ll just feel better!

Thanks for staying with me guys. See you in seven (promise!).

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