Living in Los Angeles exposes one to a lot of luxury-spending opportunities. Most of them are wasted on me.I don't get the appeal of a $500 T-shirt, a $2,000 purse or a $100,000 sports car with a trunk smaller than the overpriced handbag.But the appeal of some perks the rich enjoy is obvious even to skinflints like me. In fact, when I can get a taste of the luxe life at fraction of the price, I go for it -- because what I envy most is the luxury of less hassle. And there are ways to buy that without being Leona Helmsley.Richie Rich perk No. 1: A private jet No security lines. No set schedules. No wasting hours on a tarmac or at a luggage carousel. Just zip to your destination -- and would Madame like her prime rib rare or medium?The appeal is obvious even to fellow cheapskate Warren Buffett, who for years resisted buying a private jet before caving. Now the investing superstar understands the appeal. In his latest letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, Buffett declared that "once you've flown (private), returning to commercial flights is like going back to holding hands."Of course, Hollywood's greenest types now frown on private airplane transportation, citing the contribution of increased carbon dioxide emissions to global climate change. So we can solace ourselves that we're doing less damage to the planet stuffed back in coach.But here are ways for fliers to get a taste of luxury:• Be elite. If you fly a lot, concentrate your trips on one airline to qualify for its elite frequent-flier status (typically 25,000 miles flown a year). That will qualify you for shorter security lines at many airports and win you more-frequent upgrades to first class.• Invest in an airport lounge. Again, if you travel frequently, consider investing in your airline's lounge pass. Most are quiet, comfortable places to read, work and get a free snack.• Get a pass. Even if you travel infrequently, consider buying a day pass to an airport lounge if you have a long layover. Day passes typically cost $25 to $50.• Pick the right flights. Choose nonstops and flights that depart early in the day to minimize hassles. Because airports and airlines are so overbooked, any weather or mechanical problem can touch off a cascade of delays that get worse as the day progresses. The later you leave and the more connections you have to make, the more likely you are to get caught in the gears.Richie Rich perk No. 2: A personal assistant Someone to mail your packages, pick up your dry cleaning, wash the dog, fill your prescriptions and listen -- for the 100th time -- to your complaints about your ex.Personal assistants are a de rigueur accessory in La-La land. Their full-time pay ranges from $40,000 to $120,000, said Jack Lippman, the owner of the Elizabeth Rose Agency, a Los Angeles placement agency for domestic help. The more experienced the assistant and the more intense the job, the higher the pay.Wannabes who can't quite shoulder those costs turn to services that provide assistants for as few as four to eight hours a week, usually for about $30 an hour.CNBC reporter Darren Rovell takes a look at what $1 million can buy you.Can't quite swing that? Here are ways to shed some of the hassles of daily living:• Investigate which businesses near you will deliver. In my neighborhood, for example, are several dry cleaners that pick up, deliver or both; independent pharmacies that bring medicine to your door; and a delivery service that picks up food from most area restaurants.• Schedule pickups for packages. This isn't just a perk for businesses. The Postal Service and most delivery companies will come to your home to collect packages if you schedule in advance. It sure beats standing in long lines to ship holiday packages.• Hire an errand service. These businesses have cropped up in many areas and do everything from waiting for the cable guy to stocking up for your New Year's Eve party. Craigslist is one way to find them. • Check out the world of virtual assistants. If your task can be handled on the phone or the Web, a virtual assistant can do it. They can buy movie tickets, wrangle with customer service departments, research airfares and write letters. There are a ton of sites to choose from, including Elance, Workaholics4Hire.com and GetFriday.Timothy Ferriss, the author of the best-selling book "The 4-Hour Workweek," extols the value of virtual assistants and recommends considering one anytime you can pay less for the outsourced task than your time is worth. A quick way to assess the value of your time, he says, is to knock the zeros off your annual pay, then cut the result in half. Thus, if you make $50,000 a year, your time is worth about $25 an hour.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Make Money, Build Traffic, and Increase Sales
When you are just starting out with your Internet business, you want to keep expenses down to a minimum. Yet, you must still attract people to visit your website. Without traffic, you have no business. Fortunately, there are many free or low cost ways to attract visitors to your website. One of the best free and easy techniques to make money, build traffic, and increase sales is through the use of online Internet forums.Internet forums are websites that focus on the exchange of information. Some people are asking questions and others provide answers. And others just want to vent or discuss topics that are related to their niche. Most forums are targeted to one particular area. An advantage of using forums is the fact that almost all of the people on the site are interested in the same topic. Almost all forums allow you to participate for free, but in most cases, you must first register in order to participate. You can find forums related to your website by going to Google. Once there, go to Groups and enter your keyword information.An important matter related to forums is the fact that you must take the time to read their terms of service. Those who repeatedly violate the rules will quickly be banned and prohibited from using that forum in the future. That brings us to the main focus of this article. How can you advertise your business, make money, build traffic, and increase sales using online forums? Most forums allow you to add a signature (sig) file to each posting that you make. Develop a signature file that promotes the website or product that you are promoting. Your sig file should read like a small two or three line classified ad. When you set up your account, check the box to indicate that your sig file should appear with each posting that you enter.Don’t start posting blatant advertisements on your first visit to a forum. If you do this, people will view your postings as spam and will ignore the information you post. Start out by answering questions in your area of expertise. Of course, with each question you answer, your sig file will quietly advertise your site. After you have answered a number questions, people will begin to see you as an expert in the field, and you will begin to see increased traffic to your site. Make sure you register with as many related forums as possible. To get maximum advantage from your forum sig file, post information every day on each forum you are registered with. By using this technique, you will be quite surprised at the amount of traffic that you can generate through forums. Do you want to learn more about how I make money? I have just completed my brand new guide on how to Make Money Every Day!
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Sunday, March 16, 2008
The Five Secrets To Making Money
If you were granted one wish what would it be? Most people, in one way or another would wish for more money. They believe that making more money will solve all of their problems and buy them happiness.Many of these people play the lottery, or are always looking for the next get rich quick scheme, but the real reason only 1% of the world's population controls 98% of the wealth is because they know things others don't.What do they know? They know the secrets to making money. These methods are tried and true and haven't changed for hundreds of years. On their own these practices will not guarantee you wealth, but if you use them in accordance with good business and marketing strategies it is hard not to become successful.Making Money Secret #1"Start your own business." Hardly anyone gets rich from a job, unless they are about to be the next CEO at a giant corporation. Even then, you only technically make your money when you are physically at work.Really making money entails making money 24/7, when you work, play, eat or sleep. Start a business that provides you cash flow whether you are there or not.Making Money Secret #2"Time." Time is the one variable on this earth that is the same for everyone. There are only twenty-four hours in a day and one of the main differences between the wealthy and those that aren't is how their time is spent. Wealthy individuals use their spare time to improve their future quality of life. The rest spend their time eating potato chips and zoning out in front of the television.Making Money Secret #3"You are what you think about." If you think about negative things and negative circumstances, you will get negative results. On the other hand, if you think positively about your future, you will achieve positive results.Making money is no different, you need to tell yourself exactly how much you want to make and then believe it to be true. It is this unconditional belief, along with good business skills that will make you money and bring you success in whatever you desire.Making Money Secret #4"Learn, learn, learn, and apply." You are going to need to devour and I mean devour every piece of instructional or educational material that pertains to business and making money. Then you are going to need to take action and apply that knowledge.Making Money Secret #5"Be persistent." This doesn't mean to use the same newspaper ad over and over again if it isn't producing customers or leads, being persistent means to always be focused on your end goal and do whatever is necessary to achieve it.You will probably be surprised at the amount of effort required and the difficult earning experiences you need to go through to become successful. Always keep trying new angles.The road to wealth will be bumpy so you had better be able to face whatever comes your way without getting down on yourself. This is why most people quit, they expect impossible results in a very short amount of time and then when they aren't meant they shout out, "this stuff doesn't work," and go back to their job saying that "money is the root of all evil."Believe me, money is not the root of all evil. Have you ever heard a wealthy person say that? I haven't. Follow the secrets to making money and give your life the freedom it deserves.
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Make Money and Generate Traffic With your Article
People write articles for different reasons. Some people write to see their name in print, others try to generate traffic to their blog or website, and some write articles to generate income. I write for traffic and income. And, I must admit, it has worked out quite well on both fronts.Before I started writing articles, the traffic to my sites was growing quite slowly, as was my income. One month I made $3.67, the next month I made $5.21. Hardly enough to live on!I did some intensive research to develop a strategy to increase my income as well as traffic to my site and do it as cheaply as possible. I researched hundreds, maybe thousands, of articles on the subjects. I concluded that I could achieve both of my goals quite effectively by writing articles.When I began marketing articles, I focused primarily on the income they could generate. The traffic was an added bonus. All of the articles I write are targeted to correspond to a product or service I’m promoting. This strategy has worked extremely well for me. In my first month using this method, I made $167. This represented a huge increase over prior months. Now, after applying this strategy for a little over six months, I make several thousand per month and it’s growing very nicely. Of course, to make this kind of money, you have to write a lot of articles. You will not achieve these results by writing 10 articles per month! You have to write and submit several articles each day.With each of my articles, I carefully craft a resource box with either two or three links. Each resource box is targeted to the information contained in that article. Each link is closely related to the subject of that article. If a reader was interested in my article, they will probably be interested in the related links that I provide in my resource box.If readers like my style of writing, the information I provide, and the design of my article, they will click on my links. If they do not like the article, they will most likely leave the article before finishing it. For that reason, those who are interested in the topic and like my style will click my link.My website provides me with another advantage. I offer many free ebooks, pdf’s, and articles at my site. And, as a general rule, people like free stuff. I publicize this fact in my resource box and get plenty of traffic from my articles. If you want to generate additional traffic, offer people plenty of stuff for free
