Recently, I spent a fair about of time studying a thief that I’m sure we are all familiar with, procrastination. I knew I’d get around to it one day. [Canned laughter... It's a tough crowd.] What I’ve discovered through some serious introspection is it seems to be a topic just about everyone understands. Seems to me whenever the topic is brought up, everyone always nods their head and says, “Ya ya, I know, I know.” But do they really. I think most recognize that procrastination exists, but have a hard time conquering it. Every January people from all over the world make resolutions to change something in their lives. Most of these resolutions fall by the wayside fairly quickly. But people know they should modify their behavior but have a hard time doing it.

When it comes to building businesses online there is a lot to learn. Even if you do have experience, things change quite quickly. You need to be learning constantly. Additionally, you have to become a business specialist. You have to contend with taxes, bookkeeping, affiliates, vendors, advertising, fulfillment, traffic, lead generation, etc. If you are a procrastinator, you’ll be eaten alive. You may as well simply donate your time to some civic group. You at least have something to show for it.

As I mentioned earlier, most people recognize procrastination. They know that they can’t blame others and are responsible for their own actions. They understand that they have to be goal orientated. They understand that even bad action is better than no action and that they need to break bad habits that rob time. But there is one that is a little bit harder to recognize. That is that the time you spend at your computer had better be productive and directly responsible to creating income. That’s the bottom line. Checking your email 15 times a day, perusing over to your Facebook Page, or your Twitter account and following links to who know where and generally, spending time on your computer unproductively is a type of procrastination. There are many ways to rationalize this practice but holding it up to the test of creating income for your business is the litmus test.

There certainly are strategies of using social media, but just make sure you schedule your time for that action. If it is taking more time than you allocated, make sure you are receiving a measurable and tangible benefit.

Now I want to throw a caveat on all of this and it’s that you should concentrate your time on money generating activities and automate or outsource the rest. For some, the money making activity might be networking with people by calling them up. For those who are technically savvy, web creation may be their ticket so to speak. For some it may be copy writing.

So in closing I ask you examine some of the things you may be procrastinating with and try and uncover the root cause, make some resolutions and find ways to combat the thief, and your bank account will love you for it.

Over on Facebook they give you the ability to choose between 6, 9, or 12 people to display in your Friends box on the left hand side of your Facebook page. You also have the ability to edit who you want in them as well. After getting the idea from Steve Hachey about 6 months ago I decided to not only show 6 people but to re-designate the box as Friends of the Month and have a blog post about them with a little bio about each. So without further ado, I present May’s Friends of the Month.

Jodie Thompson blog facebook
Jodie has been involved with online marketing going on 3 years now. She has a large reputation as a giver. She seems to be involved in many things but as someone who knows and understands what it takes to become profitable on the Net, she has many insights not necessarily known to others. She has a solid relationship with many of the movers and shakers in the industry. She is a marketing coach for both on and off line businesses and also has a 6 week course offering that teaches people the technical skills and the mindset to jump start their online endeavors. What I love about her is that she has a way about herself that uplifts your possibilities, instills you with confidence, and has a great sense of humor.

John Chatman blog facebook
I’ve known John for about 6 months and speak to him on a regular basis. While I haven’t done any business with him it’s nice to have someone to bounce a few ideas back and forth with John is very charismatic and a natural leader. He is diligent and is extremely persistent in doing what he needs to do to succeed. There is no doubt that people who enter into business with him have made a good choice.

Danielle Zack blog facebook
Danielle is an upcoming entrepreneur and one to watch. She emotes enthusiasm and teaches everyone that once we realize our power and tap into our potential, we eliminate our limitations and then can manifest our goals and dreams. As a mother of young children she caters to other stay at home moms. She calls herself an Mompreneur and is dedicated to helping other marketers find success. She uses video in her marketing and has an excellent series on how to do just that. You can find it here.

Robin Lynn Brooks blog facebook
Robin brings a vast experience of life from all around the United States. She’s lived in Connecticut, Florida, California, Hawaii and South Carolina. She focuses on finding opportunity through networking with people and showing others how to as well. She is optimistic and finds good in people. If your looking for warmth and sincerity you can’t go wrong befriending her.

Omar Briones facebook
Omar lives out in LA and has been marketing for about 2 years. He has been working behind the scenes so to speak as an internet marketer. This means he is good at writing copy and affiliate marketing. I’ve seen some of his work and he is quite good. He hasn’t necessarily made the jump to social media marketing but does have a presence in some private communities which we both belong in and is always on Facebook. Though he is young he has much more experience than the average guy. So I’ll say this. If I knew what I know now when I was 21…. Anyways, jump on over to Omar’s Facebook page and give him a shout.

Terry Petrovick blog facebook
Terry is a 7 figure earner in the MLM and Online marketing industry. Terry is a genuine and friendly guy. He has a down home genuineness that seems to draw people in. He used to have a nick name called “Country”. Sorry Terry…. When it comes to brass tacks, taking the bull by the horn and implementing ideas, Terry is tenacious. Action is his middle name, thus his earnings reflect this. Terry is always willing to help you in any way possible. Even with his multiple income streams in several organizations, Terry is both approachable and available. My wife and I have met him and his family at a conference and can attest to his sincerity. Terry’s strong point is his ability to talk with people. There’s a lot to learn there.

So there’s my Featured Friends for May 2010. Go visit their Facebook sites, befriend them if you haven’t leaving a message that I said you should connect. Go visit their blogs as well, there’s a lot to learn.

As an afterthought, while writing this I just wanted to make sure some of you don’t feel slighted. There are so many people that I’m grateful to having met over the last 16 months. It’s a reminder of the power of networking and relationship building.

Till next month.

Old Ways
Every day more and more people are coming to the internet. Not only do I meet people seeking freedom, ways to replace the income from a traditional job, but there is still a HUGE wave of people internationally that are finally getting wired to the internet via phone, DSL, and cable. I’ve spent a fair amount of time internationally and have had a lot of experience where the only access I’ve had to the internet when I was visiting was through dialup speed at an internet cafe. Most people did not even have a personal computer let alone one that connected to the internet till a year ago. On subsequent visits to the internet cafes, the speeds have increased to a network that had at least 256kps. I now talk weekly to many people who now have DSL into their homes via Skype.

Today
Folks, this is for the first time opening the world of the internet to people that is in the range of 60 million over the last few years. I talk, work, and do business with people from all over the world. I am not limited to English either. There are many tools that do translations now so it is possible to provide your content to non-English speaking people. Though what I am finding is that English really is the language of the worlds business. The people coming to the internet, no matter what country, know they need to be able to speak or read English.

To the Rescue
Nevertheless, allowing people from foreign countries to be able to quickly translate your Blog into their own language can attract people internationally. They may be somewhat familiar with English but can read and grasp thier own native language much easier. WordPress plugins come to the rescue once again. There are a host of them out there. I can’t necessarily recommend one because they all have been written at various times and not all of them work with all themes. This is a time you will have to experiment and see what works for you. I however do recommend Wibyia. Wibyia is the software used at the bottom of this blog. There are many functions available with this toolbar and translation is one of them. This toolbar can be found at www.Wibyia.com .

Intro
I’d like to tell a story that I think I first read in one of John C. Maxwell leadership books.  It’s about 5 different monkeys, their names have been changed to protect the innocent.  You will know who you are after your done reading this post.

Story
There was a large cage that had five monkeys in it. Well you know how much monkeys like bananas right? Someone tied a banana onto a piece of twine and hung it high in the center of the ceiling. It was hung so high that none of the monkeys could jump up and get it. The monkeys stood staring up at the bananas. The door to the cage was opened and a set of stairs were placed underneath the bananas so that it would allow a monkey to walk up and jump and get a banana.

After a while a monkey goes and starts climbing the stairs. When he reaches the second stair, all of the monkeys are sprayed with cold water. The monkeys retreat and stare once again. Another monkey decides he will try which resulted in all the monkeys getting sprayed. A strange thing occurs. When the next monkey tries to get a banana, the other four monkeys prevent him from trying by attacking him.

Then the water is cleaned up, and one monkey is replaced by a new one. Of course it also sees the banana and want to climb the stairs and get himself a treat. To his surprise he is attacked before he even gets to the stairs.

So the pattern is repeated. Remove one of the original monkeys, replace it with a new one, monkey tries to get banana and it attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm. This is done till there are no more original monkeys left in the cage.

So now after replacing all the original monkeys, none of them have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, none of the monkeys approach the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know, that is the way it’s always been done.

Why the Story?
I hate to say, but we have a little bit of monkey in all of us. How many of us heeded our fathers words when they said, “Get a good education and you’ll get a good job”. Well how can you argue with that I can hear you saying. Well the age old promise of working a 40 hour job for 40 years just isn’t holding true anymore. Tell that to the millions and millions of people who are layed off of their jobs, whose jobs have been outsourced, who owes between $80,000-$100,000 dollars for their education before they’ve even earned one dime, who got into a profession that isn’t in high demand, or those who are now qualified for a job that they will hate.

Now I certainly don’t have anything against a good education. You are going to have to be proficient at writing, math, communications, and some level of competency on the computer. Most of these things can be learned in high school. There are certainly a lot of lower priced colleges. The only thing your going to get when your done with Yale or another Ivy League school is a $150,000 dollar bill and a push into the 40-40 plan.

Alternatives
What are the alternatives? If you’re good enough to work in whatever your profession you do now, do it working for yourself. Become a consultant. Become an entrepreneur. Make your own job. Start a business. This is exactly what people who have realized the lie of the 40-40 plan are doing. They may still be employed, but have a 1-2 year plan on replacing their income or more, are willing to do what it takes, are not listening to the naysayers of their life, and are grabbing the bull by the horns so to speak.

Benefits
What are the benefits? How about reduced stress? How about enjoying your passion so as not to even think of work as work? How about retiring early, in better health, with real freedom.

So what are you doing? There is no one going to spray cold water on you. That banana is waiting for YOU and you better make sure you even like them to begin with.

Emotional or Rational
People whether they admit it or not are not rational beings, especially when it comes to buying things and following things of interest. They are led with emotion. I know.. I know.. you guys think you are strong and would not fall for the emotion. But you too are led by emotion. As an example, picture yourself driving down the road in your own classic midnight blue convertible, top down, fancy blue-rays on, lumbering down a remote hi-way, on a sunny day. Now most guys would think this is cool. I know I would. So let’s examine what buying decision went into purchasing that vehicle? Was it because you could get fresh air? Air conditioning works great in my estimation. Was it because it was fast? Last I looked you can’t drive faster than 65 MPH in most places. Was it because you consider the older vehicles to be more dependable? Well today’s cars are much more dependable. The real reason… It’s because it looks cool! It’s because you can use is to attract the opposite sex and maybe get lucky! It’s because you like the rush of being pushed back into your seat when you accelerate. It’s because you like the idea of having everyone envious of you. It’s because you like to have people think your rich. It’s because you want people to think that the vehicle is just simply an extension of your personality, sleek, exotic, sporty, open, attractive, and sexy. So don’t tell me you’re not emotional. These are far from rational.

If you understand emotions you can find their triggers.

Stories
So why this little story here? Well people like to read about stories. And because they are emotional beings, they like to relate to stories and put themselves in the story. They like to compare themselves and they like to find people who are just like them.

The other benefit of using stories is that it helps your Personal Brand. Letting others know some of the emotional things that make you tick, and conveying stories about life, your family, your dreams, your plans, helps people relate to you. People like to know that there are people just like them. So remember, people love stories.

Conclusion
So in your Blog posts, your copy, and your email campaigns if can weave stories into them you will garner their attention much better than if you are more expository. Now this isn’t the easiest thing to do if your topic is something technical but if you can at least convey some of the benefits and consequences for not acting into a story line, you will have their attention.

Baseball and Marketing
Well most of you know I’m a baseball fan. I’ve been a Minnesota Twins fan all my life. There are a lot of clichés out there about America’s game. I’ve also written about one of the Minnesota’s players, Justin Morneau. Justin was a player with high potential who was called up to the big show and demonstrated flashes of potential. However, he struck out a lot. He eventually played a whole season but only managed a low batting average. The next year, he hit .321 with 34 home runs, 97 runs scored and 130 RBIs. That won him the American League’s Most Valuable Player honors. See “Can Your Marketing Have an MVP Season”. I explain what he did and how you can too.

Today’s Game
So this year, actually as the game is on TV, the only game I watch each week, usually a Sunday game, the All-Star catcher Joe Mauer, is hampered by a sore ankle and unable to play. His backup Drew Butera had to catch an extra-innings game last evening and was involved in a collision as well, so Wilson Ramos got a call last night. He was called up to the “Big Show” as they call it to catch today’s game.

Who Would of Thought?
The Twins needed a body behind the plate. Everyone thought that’s what they were getting. His batting average in the minors was under .200. So as I’m writing this in the 7th inning, Wilson Ramos is 3-3 today and was involved in a spectacular play at home plate where he held on to the ball on tagged out a runner who would have tied the game.

Why the Baseball Story?
So why the baseball story? Well, Wilson Ramos played in the early preseason games and did well. But the Twins had an All-Star catcher and someone much younger who showed a lot of promise. How was he going to pass these guys up. (Note: Ramos is up in the 7th with 2 on and only one out). Did he just figure he’d go through the motions? He’d get to get paid for a game most men would do for free? He kept trying, even though he was sent down to the minors. Even down there he had to have been doing something. His batting average didn’t do it. Maybe it’s the way he doesn’t quit. Maybe it’s the way he hustles. Maybe it’s the way he pays attention to detail. Whatever the reason, he’s doing something right. We have a story about someone who doesn’t quit and when asked to deliver, performs better than he has ever done before.

Are You Ready for the Majors?
Is that your story? Are you quitting or coasting a bit in what you need to be doing to grow your business? Does it seem like you’ll never make it out of the Minor Leagues? What does it take to get to the Major League? I think you know the answers. You just have to “Do It”.

***Added an update: Ramos was 4-5 today just missing a homer in the last inning.

The Person Not the Job
There is no future in any job or single product. The future lies in the person who holds the job or sells the product. This steadfast principal is a cornerstone of Personal Branding. Given a similar product or opportunity by two individuals, who do you buy from? You buy from the person who has offered the most value to you. The person who has answered your questions. The person went beyond the simple answers. The person who made themselves available to you. The person who appears to be a leader. Did you read that last sentence? “The person who appears to be a leader.”

Leadership Attracts
People are attracted to leadership. You may have some leadership within your own organization and not even realize it. In fact they may not either. I’m talking about distributors and affiliate marketers, whether it be an MLM or you selling your own product. I’m reminded of a story about Michelangelo. He was asked one day about one of his masterpiece called “David”. He said that the statue had always existed in the stone and he just had to chisel away the rock on the outside. As a leader, you need like Michelangelo. You need to look for your own masterpieces in the people you recruit and people who are already in your organization. Think of this way. When someone discovers gold, it is usually a flake or two or maybe a small nugget. The huge lode is not just laying on the surface of the ground. It is discovered only after digging below the ground where the flakes or nuggets where found. The same is true of individuals.

Qualities and Traits
So what qualities and traits should you look for in your potential leader?

Positiveness occurs while having to work with and see people and situations in a positive way. This only seem natural in that people usually don’t like to hear about doom and gloom all the time. There are enough avenues for this via the daily news.

Servanthood is an ability and willingness to submit, be part of a team, and follow the leader. There is an old saying about paying your dues, whether it be politics, sports, or learning online marketing. If you want to succeed, at some time you are going to have to follow a mentor. A potential leader, by paying their dues, will be in a position to eventually mentor others just as they were.

Growth potential exists when someone is hungry for personal growth and development. They will always be willing to learn more as their role gets bigger.

Follow-through is the guts and determination to get the job done completely and with consistency. This is a hard one for me because we’ve been conditioned to always do something “good enough”. I’m getting better but it’s something we all have to work on.

Loyalty is the willingness to always put the leader and the organization above personal desires.

Resiliency is the ability to bounce back on your feet if you are knocked down. I like the analogy of pulling yourself up by your own boot straps.

Integrity means walking the talk in your trustworthiness and your character. If there was only one characteristic here that I had to choose from, integrity would be it. Solid character may not always be as readily visible as some of the others, but when you see it and recognize it, it stands out above the rest. People are attracted to this tremendously.

Big Picture thinking allows one to see and understand the whole structure and organization and all of it’s need.

Discipline occurs when someone is willing to do what is required to achieve a goal regardless of their personal mood.

I’ll finish up with gratitude. This is one here that has some psychology behind it. At least to me. Most people when complimented say, “Awe, it’s nothing.”. What they are doing in reality is diminishing their effort. After years and years of doing this they are programming themselves to expect less of themselves. A firm and gracious “Thank You” will not only promote your self talk but also instill a sense of connectedness with the person who originally complimented them.

Questions:
So these traits and characteristics are paramount in both recognizing and growing leadership within your organization.

Do you have some I didn’t list?
What are your experiences with them?
Do you have any examples that further demonstrate these characteristics or that you’ve observed?

If you found value in this post please comment below and click the retweet button if you haven’t already. I would be most gracious if you would.

Be Like Mich!

This has to be one of my favorites from the eighties, “Don’t Stop Believin’”, by Journey. Maybe it has something to do with me always rooting for the underdog. Maybe it has to do with the stories I hear where people are driven by their longings and passions to find a better way than their current situations find them. The lyrics always do end up with what motivates everyone, either positively or negatively, emotion. The characters in the song, you and I, are on a journey to fulfill our destines. As long as we continue to “Don’t Stop Believin’”, we can create and fulfill our destiny.

A case in point is the 5th grade choir who preform the song. They are from Staten Island New York, (PS 22 Chorus), and have achieved world wide accolades. They have been on Night Line, MTV, ABC World News, and many other shows. Hearing their worldly themes of love, cynicism, loss, faith and often betrayal sang with so much earnestness by such young children lends the lyrics an aching vulnerability that yanks at my heart strings and should brings tears to many eyes. What a great gift these children have given to the world for all of us to experience.

Just a small town girl
Livin’ in a lonely world
She took the midnight train
Goin’ anywhere
Just a city boy
Born and raised in South Detroit
He took the midnight train
Goin’ anywhere

A singer in a smokey room
A smell of wine and cheap perfume
For a smile they can share the night
It goes on and on and on and on

Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching
In the night
Streetlights, people
Livin’ just to find emotion
Hidin’, somewhere in the night

Workin’ hard to get my fill
Everybody wants a thrill
Payin’ anything to roll the dice
Just one more time
Some will win
Some will lose
Some were born to sing the blues
Oh, the movie never ends
It goes on and on and on and on

Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching
In the night
Streetlights, people
Livin’ just to find emotion
Hidin’, somewhere in the night

Don’t stop believin’
Hold on to the feelin’
Streetlights, people
Don’t stop believin’
Hold on
Streetlights, people

Interesting Facts About Groundhogs
* Woodchuck and groundhog are common terms for the same animal
* Scientific name: Marmota monax
* Woodchucks can climb trees and also swim
* Groundhogs in the wild eat green plants, such as dandelion greens, clover, plantain and grasses
* They feed heavily in summer, storing fat for winter hibernation
* By February, hibernating woodchucks have lost as much as half their body weight
* So how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? About 318 kg

This morning Punxsutawney Phil came out of his winter slumber from his oak stump and saw his shadow. Phil sees his shadow.

Another 6 weeks of winter will there be!

I was over on Chris Hughs blog, (definitely check it out WhosChrisHughes.com ) and he asked as the title of one of this blog posts, “What’s Your Perfect Day”?

This is a very subjective question and we all have different answers. So to help with “MY” and maybe “YOUR” introspection, here is the answer to the first question. And even though I’ve seen this question asked before out here on the web, I’ll answer his. Remember, it’s a “Perfect Day”. I will get to several other questions of the set in later posts. So I ask you to also answer this and let someone know what it is either here, on his site, or your own.

So for now…

Where would you live?
I am a novice traveler but only because I’ve not spent time in been to places that most people haven’t even thought about going to. So my definition of a novice means that being or spending time in Paris, London, Rome, or Berlin, I’ve only gone through their airports. Yes, one day I will be going to Katmandu. I’m one that ALWAYS like to take the path that is least traveled. I enjoy being a rebel. I don’t choose paths because there is less resistance, but because I’ve taken a comprehensive critical look at the facts. This doesn’t stifle any of curiosity nor does it say I’m predictable. I’m number one, an individual. (This information really prefaces all my answers to all of Chris’s questions as well.)

I would like to have homes all around the world. They also are not all going to be in the cities either. I may give locations that are large cities or are a country, but only because either I have not been there yet, or would always have to explain where they are located. The places I have got to live that were outside the United States are limited but I’ve been lucky to spend weeks at a time in may places.

I would like to have a home in Moscow Russia. It is quite expensive to live there but I enjoy the strong, (and I mean STRONG), will of the Russian people. There is no worry about NOT feeling politically correct. They feel and live life for what it is and nothing more. There is no alternative euphoric reality. They make it their own. Family is very important as is history.

I would like a home in Bucharest Romania, a city that lived under the worst of the prior Soviet empire under Nicolae Ceauescu. Ceauescu was the Communist ruler put into place that allowed the country to fall into socialist ruin. He later was executed for crimes against the state and humanity in 1989 during the collapse of the Soviet empire. The people were held under thumb for so long that when I visited many times and spent weeks there, they were a joy. They were now free. They welcomed me into their homes and were proud of their families.

I would like a place in Hayward Wisconsin. The area is home to what I consider the best fishing and wildlife in the world. It is basically a city in the north woods of Wisconsin. It is not uncommon to see bears, deer, every kind of fowl imaginable, as well as elk around any corner you happen to drive.

I would like a place between the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks for some of the same reasons though it is up in the mountains.

I would like a place on just about any island in the Caribbean. I would like the amenities of a classic luxury resort but be within 5 miles of a white sanded secluded beach.

A high rise overlooking Chicago would be nice as well. I enjoy the diverse neighborhoods of Chicago where I can go and feel like I’m in Warsaw or Prague. I love the food.

I would like a home situated somewhere between the Pacific Ocean and the tallest mountains of New Zealand. I picture this as a serene place overlooking a flock of sheep and watching the dogs keep them in line.

So I like the variety of between people and seclusion, county life and the big city, of oceans and beaches, and of snow and sun. I’d like to have the freedom to move around anywhere and stay long enough to learn and enjoy the culture, landscape, and climates of many places whether it be Brazil, Copenhagen, Prague, Saigon, Atlanta, or Bismarck. Each are different and unique.

Of course this kind of lifestyle is only possible is you have a way to generate the income you need to live by that is not determined by where you live. This typically is by business that you create on your own as an entrepreneur, and online. You might find that it is actually cheaper than having to live in the United States 12 months a year. In fact, you may be able to live off of 60-70 percent of your U.S. income. If you haven’t read 4 hour work week, I highly recommend that you do. Tim Ferris explains a lot of this in great detail.

Till the next question…