Work At Home:Are You Prepared For Home Business Disasters?

If you are one of those people who like to work from home and take charge of your own destiny, then perhaps this article will seem more appealing to you than anybody else. You have started your home business with the wonderful dreams of achieving your goals: maybe buying a beautiful house, purchasing a car, or just plain financial independence. Maybe you are like me who doesn't like the idea of working for a boss and be a constant victim to their tantrums. Perhaps you have already achieved your goals or are on the way to do so.

Of course you shouldn't think of doing a business without a properly chalked-out marketing plan. You can't promote products successfully without a properly drawn-up marketing plan. These plans are your roadmaps to success and will help you reach where you want to. In general marketing or business plans are generally held as fool-proof and nobody likes to think of what would happen if the plan doesn't go well or if your achievements are suddenly pulled out from you, yet it does happen.

But let's now think of the worst that can happen to your business. Have you thought what to do in case your home business gets disrupted due to a hurricane, tornado, fire or simply operating system crash? If not then it is time to think of it. Disaster can happen anytime; rather than hitting the panic button you should have a business continuity plan. A business continuity plan is a plan that will tell you a list of things to do in case your primary business, say your home business, fails for some reasons.

If your business is totally managed from your home, then both your business and your livelihood are at risk in case misfortune strikes your business. Natural disasters are not the only risk factors. I know it is painful to think of but robberies and thefts can happen anywhere anytime.

If nothing then a plain hard drive crash can put you off business for an indefinite time. I know people who had had a very good business then once their hard drive crashed they lost everything. After all, computers are only machines. It is only a matter of time when your machine will stop working. You need to be prepared for the worst.

When you think of how much money you've put in your business, it only makes sense to make sure that your business is well-protected and can survive a disaster.

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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info
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How Americans are struggling with their finances and careers.

To be "middle class" in America once meant living well and having financial security. But today that comfortable and contented lifestyle is harder to achieve and maintain.

The traditional American Dream is based on the belief that hardworking citizens can better their lives, pay their monthly bills without worry, give their children a start to an even better life and still save enough to live comfortably after they retire. But many average Americans are struggling--squeezed by rising costs, declining wages, credit-card debt and diminished benefits, with little left over to save for retirement.

Does the dream survive? Do most Americans still believe they can forge better lives for themselves?

The Stressed Middle Class

National statistics show the increasing pressures on middle-income Americans:

The real median household income declined 3% from 2000 to 2004.

The percentage of households earning $25,000 to $99,999 (roughly middle-income range) shrank 1.5% from 2000 to 2004.

Last year, real average weekly earnings actually fell 0.4%.

The savings rate for Americans is the lowest it has been in 73 years.

Credit-card debt is at an all-time high, averaging $9,312 per household.

The average cost per year of a public college (in state) is $12,127, a 25% increase since 2001.

A private university costs $29,026 or more these days.

Here's What Americans Say

The last survey of middle-income Americans about their financial outlooks showed both skepticism and hope.

More than 52% of middle-class Americans think that they're better off than their parents were, but...

56% think things will be worse for their own children or for future generations.

Nearly 57% say they believe that the middle class in America is decreasing.

51% of employed members of the middle class have experienced either increased health-care costs or a cut in health benefits, and 39% have experienced cuts in overtime, raises or bonuses.

66% say they tend to live from paycheck to paycheck.

47% say that no matter how hard they work, they cannot get ahead.

Nearly 83% say that there is not much money left to save after they have paid their bills.

89% of the respondents believe that businesses have a social responsibility to their employees and to the community, but...

81% believe that American businesses make decisions based on what is best for their shareholders and investors--not what is best for their employees.

74% of the middle class say they take responsibility for their own financial success or failure.

80% say they believe it is still possible to achieve the American Dream.

What Can You Do?

In this (and every) election year, many politicians rev up emotions that keep voters from focusing on the pocketbook and daily-life issues that truly matter. You know what really touches your family and life: The cost of milk, gas and prescription drugs. The quality of schools. The hope that the government will step in fully prepared to keep you safe and secure if a disaster hits your neighborhood.

Don't leave decision-making and priority-setting to zealots who have an axe to grind--or to the blindly ambitious people who emerge in every generation. For more than 200 years, our system of government has encouraged power to the people. Be an active citizen.

For most working class folks the American Dream is no longer attainable.The costs of living has outpaced wages making it impossible to save. So many of us are living beyond our means and not within our means. The only people who are living the American Dream are the educated and ruling classes. Those who live in the working classes have almost everything working against them because they can't change the ruling classes. Again, just look around you and see what all the politicans are getting away with.

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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is *the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info
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Launching A Home Business On A Budget

Despite what you may think, starting your own business doesn't have to deplete your life's savings. Many successful businesses have been launched from home with a little investment and a lot of determination. If you have the desire to start your own business but have limited resources, below are three tips to help you stay on budget:

1. What do you (really) need?

Before you head out to purchase the latest and greatest technology for your home office, assess your needs. Decide what equipment will be essential to your business start-up and then shop around at local retailers for the best price. Basic office equipment generally includes a computer, printer, fax machine, telephone, answering machine, desk and file cabinet. Unless your business is in a computer-related or hi-tech field, chances are that you can do everything you need with your existing equipment, last year's computer model or refurbished equipment that includes a warranty or service contract.

TIP: Computer and office supply stores often offer credit cards with 0% financing for 6 months to one year which will help buy you more time to launch your business and start generating some revenue.

2. Seek out free resources.

Whether you need advice on how to set up your business's legal structure, marketing strategies or accounting techniques there are numerous free resources available for entrepreneurs. Before you invest in costly outside advisors to help you launch your business locate and visit a local SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) chapter in your area. SCORE is a nonprofit association run by volunteer business counselors who donate their time and talent to provide free and confidential business advice to entrepreneurs as a community service. (To find a SCORE chapter near you, visit their website at http://www.score.org.)

The U.S Small Business Administration (SBA) also offers the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Program to provide management assistance to current and prospective small business owners. Entrepreneurs can find an SBDC chapter by visiting the Small Business Administration's website athttp://www.sba.org.

Finally, the Internet is an amazing source of information and support. Search online for websites and other business owners in your field. Join chat groups where others in your industry meet to share ideas and offer support to those just starting out.

TIP: Not all resources are free. You may also need to hire professionals with a specific area of expertise (i.e. lawyer, graphic artist, website developer, etc.) to help you with certain aspects of your business. Decide what tasks you can handle on your own and outsource other tasks to people with training in that field. Colleges and Universities or Retirement Centers can also be great places to find new talent or part-time help for your business.

3. Don't overspend on advertising.

Many new business owners invest in expensive advertising campaigns that don't produce results. Paid advertising isn't always the best promotional tool. As a new business owner with limited start-up capital, seek out promotional opportunities for your business that are less expensive or--better yet--free!

For example:

- Contact the Business Editor of your local newspaper and pitch your business to them for a story or offer to serve as an expert for an upcoming story on a topic related to your industry.

- Donate your product/service as a giveaway at a local charity event.

- If you have a website, seek out other businesses with websites that generate traffic from your potential customers and offer to put a reciprocal link your site.

TIP: Networking is an effective and inexpensive way to generate business. Look for opportunities where you can meet other professionals who can help generate word of mouth referrals for your business. Make a list of trade organizations, merchant associations, Chambers of Commerce and/or networking groups in your target market and ask to attend a meeting to see if the group is a good fit for you and your business.
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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info

I Want To Be My Own Boss!

Ok, I'm sure everyone one has said "I want to be my own boss" at some point in their lives. Probably with such a regular occurrence that people are bored of listening to you and wish you would actually do something about it. Struggling from one inadequate pay cheque to the next is most likely not how we had hoped our lives would turn out to be. But for the majority of us, it is what we have come to accept as our fate.

The idea of setting up a business on your own probably sounds quite scary, and a lot of time what is holding us back is knowing what type of business to go into. Actually seeing it through to its fullfilment may well seem like a distant day dream.

Write down your goals - Only about 3% of people actually write down their life goals. Seeing on paper what you intend to do is a great help in visualising what it is you want to achieve, and of those 3% who do write down their goals, about 99% do reach them!

Verbalize those goals - If you say to yourself everyday, I'm going to achieve this goal I've set myself (you can chose any short phrase as your mantra) it will become more real in your mind and the positive reinforcement is very self-motivating.

Visualize those goals - Sit for a moment, close your eyes and imagine you have reached the goals you have set yourself. How will you feel? Who will be there with you? What are the sensations you are feeling? Try and get to that place and how it feels. Try to retain that feeling and make sure you have time in your day to visit that place at least once. Just the fact that you are visualizing those achievements will bring you closer to actually achieving them!

Do your research- This is a key element. Know your market. Is there a market for the type of business you are planning to go into? This may seem like a silly statement, but thinking something is a good idea and the reality can be poles apart! Do your homework first -Who are your competitors? What will your start-up costs be? These are just some of the many considerations you have to research.

Be Realistic - If you are serious about becoming your own boss you have to be realistic. Unless extremely lucky, you are not going to become a success overnight. It is not going to be doing minimal work for maximum money. You will probably be working harder than you did at your job. All these things can be quite off putting but keep visualising your goals.

Make a start - This is probably the hardest part! The leap is great! Don't think you have to just get up and quit your job and become a entrepreneurial wizard. Start small, take small manageable steps. Breaking it down makes it seem like less of an obstacle and more a challenge.

If you really do want to become your own boss, make a start today! Even if it is just the decision of becoming your own boss. That step is huge! Best of luck in your endeavours.
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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info

The Importance of Integrity

The single most important quality you can ever develop that will enhance every part of your life, is the value of integrity. Integrity is the core quality of a successful and happy life. Having integrity means being totally honest and truthful in every part of your life. By making the commitment to become a totally honest person, you will be doing more to ensure your success and happiness in life than anything else you can ever do.

Integrity is a value, like persistence, courage, and intelligence. It is your choice of values and resolution to live by those values that form your character and personality. And it is integrity that enhances all your other values. The quality of person you are is determined by how well you live up to the values that are most important to you. Integrity is the quality that locks in your values and causes you to live consistent with them.

Integrity is the foundation of character. A person who has integrity also has an unblemished character in every area of his or her life. One of the most important activities you can engage in, is developing your character. And one of the best ways to develop your character is by consistently doing the same things that a thoroughly honest person would do in every area of his or her life.

To be totally honest with others, you first have to be totally honest with yourself. You have to be true to yourself. You have to be true to the very best that is in you. Only a person who is consistently living a life with the highest values and virtues is a person truly living a life of integrity. If you are always honest and true to yourself you cannot be false to anyone else.

The mark of people who have high integrity is, they always do the highest quality of work in everything they do. They are the people who are always totally honest with themselves in everything they do, and strive to do excellent work on every occassion. People with high integrity realize that everything they do is a statement about who they are as a person.

The Universal Law of Attraction says that you inevitably attract into your life the people and circumstances that are in harmony with your dominant thoughts and values. This means that everything in your life you have attracted, is because of the person you are. If there is anything in your life, your relationships, or your work that you are not happy with, you need to begin changing the person you are, so that you stop attracting those people and situations into your life.

Your integrity is manifested in your willingness to adhere to the values that are most important to your. It's easy to make promises but often very hard to keep them. But every time you keep a promise that you've made, it is an act of integrity, which in turn strengthens your character. As you act with integrity in everything you do, you will find that every part of your life will improve. You will begin to attract the best people and situations into your life. You will become an outstanding person as well as a success in everything you do.

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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info

Guide to Staying Motivated Working From Home

Working from home is a trend that is here to stay. Particularly suited to moms with little ones, even dads are getting in on the home working scene. There are many advantages, such as the money saved by not needing professional clothes or babysitting. Still, there are some real pitfalls, and one of these is that it can be hard to stay motivated. Here are some ideas that may help you keep at it and make that work-at-home business a success.

1. Congratulate yourself for every achievement, no matter how small. You don't have an office full of people to pat you on the back when you do something right, so you are going to have to do it yourself. It might be something as inconsequential as a star on the calendar or telling yourself, "Way to go!" If it means something to you, it will be motivating. Of course, to reward yourself, you need some goals, which brings us to our second point.

2. Write down your goals. Take the time to write down your long term hopes for your business, and then figure out what you need to be doing today to make that a reality. If you are part of an MLM or party plan, your representative materials probably have some good suggestions. Examples are that you should call five people every day, or spend two hours a week on arranging advertising.

3. Keep a daily to do list, and check off the items as completed. Depending on your own personal preferences, you might want to keep separate to do lists for home and work, or you might like having them all in one place. It's a good idea, however, not to let the distinction between home and work get blurry. Forget about work when you're comforting a toddler, and forget about the toddler (almost!) while you are creating those flyers.

4. Dress up a little. We've all seen the ads about working in your pajamas, but the raw truth is that you will not feel much like working unless you put on real clothes and even real shoes. You don't have to wear a power suit or anything. Just put on something you wouldn't mind being seen in if you were running around town. And you'd be surprised how much more efficient you are when you are wearing sturdy, comfortable shoes.

5. Be consistent. Set office hours, but remember to be flexible. For most people working at home, one of the primary reasons they do it is so they can be there for the kids. If a particular schedule, such as working from eight to noon, is just not working, think outside the box. Maybe you could grab an hour of work during naptime in the afternoon, and two or three more by getting up before the rest of the gang. Maybe Saturday will turn out to be your most productive day!

Don't get discouraged if it seems like you are not making much money working from home, especially in the beginning. It takes a while to build a business up from the ground. Think of all the money you're saving by staying home. The thousands of people who are making money from home right now will tell you that it can be done and that it's worth it.
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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info

How do you know if it's a good Internet business opportunity?

Now days Internet businesses are popping up all over the place and I mean that literally! Seems every time you visit a website if it isn't already suggesting you join, just as you click to leave, you see a pop up window asking for your name and email!! There are so many of these types of ads that it has become an annoying factor, making for pop up blocking options within most browsers.

However, some of these pop ups can actually be a legitimate Internet business opportunity. The challenge comes in knowing which ones you should take action on and which ones to simply delete or ignore.

One-way to judge whether you should "sign up", is to look (study) the information on the screen itself. No matter if it's in the form of a pop up or you've gone directly to the URL address. Use your common sense, if it appeals to you and your senses chances are it will be appealing to others as well. This may make for easy or easier duplication when you decide to market or promote the same information.

A sign of a good Internet business opportunity is seeing they have an attractive lead capture page. Without an appealing lead capture page, you can bet there will not be any solid system in place to contact or follow up with your prospects. Most lead capture pages will gain the prospects name and email address as a bare minimum, others may go a bit farther and request the users phone number as well. Some even go as far as to require the individual to supply a valid address along with other items of interest such as; occupation, hobbies, etc.

The more information required the less "sign ups" however, it becomes a trade off. Requiring more information usually turns into more quality leads but less quantity. Depending on your method or preferences for following up a lead, you may prefer a "slim" selection to a detailed web form.

A good Internet business opportunity will also have a built in auto responding system. Once a lead is captured, it should request a confirmation from the prospect and immediately send the first of many auto generated letters. Prompting them to take action on your behalf. By requesting (actually requiring) a confirmation to their registration, you will eliminate bogus email addresses and eliminate SPAM accusations.

You will want to verify any testimonials or "case studies" that may be published to gain your confidence. Sometimes you will see an overkill of information making you feel as if matters must be true. When it may just be part of the marketing tactics of the promoter. The most common form of advertising today is "long copy"! Placing readers into overwhelm and giving the impression of "gosh ... it must be real (true) ... look at all these people's results!" Focus on the FACTS and not the HYPE!

The old saying "Facts tell, stories sell" definitely applies when researching for a real Internet business opportunity.
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Eugene Rivera is an internet marketing protégé. He is the webmaster of Secrets of Online Success. Learn about all the money making techniques to achieve success on the Internet. Click on our webpage at http://www.secretsofonlinesuccess.info