Update 13/01/10: I linked to Roland Millward’s post about Staying Positive in a Negative World.

Whilst channel hopping just now, my sister decided to watch Inkheart (an incredible film based on the awe inspiring books by Cornelia Fluke) and the first line I heard was “Don’t be selfish just because that’s how I wrote you!” which is such an amazing quotation.

If you have not read or watched Inkheart then you will wonder what it means, here is a quick background to the story. Basically, when a girl called Meggie was very young her father (Mo) was reading a book called Inkheart (yep, the book is based on a fictional book in the book… confusing right? Just wait, it gets worse!) when he accidently used his amazing, and somewhat magical, voice to read Meggie’s mother into the book! At the same time, he read many characters out of the book. One of these characters was Dustfinger, the person who author Fengolio was speaking to in the quotation.

“Don’t be selfish just because that’s how I wrote you!”

Author of the fictional Inkheart, Fengolio

The reason I find this quotation so powerful is that, although it is spoken to a character made out of written ink, these wise words relate to everyday life and I expect every single one of us has some use for it!

Think about the words. The first part is the problem, the second part is the excuse. “Don’t suck your thumb because Jimmy does it.”, “Don’t argue with your brother because your friends do.”, “Don’t become an alchoholic because your father was.” These are all valid points which come from that quotation.

It is all about ATTITUDE. If you use excuses all the time then you need to change your attitude. It may help to think back upon this quotation whenever you are in need of an attitude check!

As I am sure you all know about all of these, even those that do not pay attention probably know it, I am not going to talk any more about it. I would just like to say, if you have watched/read Inkheart then please share your opinions of it, also if you can recommend any other fiction (I love fantasty, and inspiring fiction is always a bonus!) then please do!

Whilst writing this (the first time around, I accidently lost it so rewrote) I was speaking to my good friend and mentor, Roland Millward, and he mentioned that he is currently writing a post about ‘Staying Positive in a Negative World’ which sounds the perfect complement to this post as it is all about attitude and having a positive outlook! So as soon as he publishes it I shall link you all to that post.Roland has now published Staying Positive in a Negative World… read it!

Well now is the time to stop! I would like to introduce you to a book that I recently had the pleasure of reading. “Stop Peeing On Your Shoes: Avoiding the 7 Mistakes That Screw Up Your Job Search” is a book written by career consultant Julie Bauke.

There are two main reasons as to why I recommend you to buy this book (don’t worry, I am not trying to make you click an affilite link). The first reason is obviously content (after all Content Is King), every single word in the book is important. There is no “filler” content, the whole book is useful. Secondly, Julie has a writing style rarely seen in books… she is funny. Yep, a useful humourous book… impressive!

I was going to give you a massive review but why? Nope… better idea… lets interview the author!

Firstly, could you please tell us about yourself?

I am a Career Strategy Consultant and I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. I speak professionally, write and coach clients to live the career of their dreams. Most of my one-on-one work is with senior level professionals and professional athletes, but in my writing and speaking, the messages, and info are for everyone.

What did you want to be, during your childhood, when “you grow up”?

I always liked talking to and learning about people and I always loved to write. I got into Human Resources work for the first half of my career- it’s the most people oriented side of business. I found that no matter what job I was in HR, I was always drawn to career conversations. I made a decision to move in to the career field for the second half of my career and have been wildly happy ever since. What I do is what I was meant to do.

You have recently released your book “Stop Peeing on Your Shoes”. Why did you write it?

The book was the result of my 10+ years coaching really smart professionals and seeing them make the same mistakes, regardless of how successful they were in their careers. Career Management is something that no one teaches us- we typically stumble through it and hope to figure it out. The problem is that most don’t.  My book as meant to get people started on the right foot- and to prevent them from making those mistakes.

As I have mentioned earlier, you are a very clever yet humorous woman. Most people either write really intensely with amazing information or they are more casual but with less useful information. Yet you write in a funny AND amazingly informative way, how do you manage it?

Thanks. My writing style is exactly like my speaking style. In fact, one of my good friends read the book and said it was exactly like spending the day with me. There really isn’t much to laugh at in job search as it is very serious and fraught with all kinds of pitfalls. BUT, at the same time, it can be very funny in kind of a “ya gotta laugh, or you’d cry” way. I really tried to capture that in the book by filling it with 100% true client stories of the good, the bad and the hilarious, and the use of cartoons.  My style is very direct, so I wanted the book to be very direct and very helpful, while making you smile.

Who/what is your greatest inspiration?

I would say that every client who sat at my desk over the years so completely burnt out and feeling so hopeless inspired me to inspire others to be in control of their careers. Companies absolutely do not care about your career the way you should. You have to drive your own Career Bus instead of careening through it as a passenger.

What would you say is your greatest passion and how does this passion affect your work?

Because I am in a career I love, I want others to experience the joy that it can be to truly be excited on Monday morning and as I say “skip to the shower”.

How would you describe your lifestyle?

Filled with male creatures. I have a husband, two teenage sons and three dogs, so that is 6 males and me. I love it. My kids, husband and dogs are all great. I like to think that I have found my perfect balance as the kids know they are top priority but that Mom is a better Mom when she has a career. I’m not a domestic- cooking and all of the other stuff that goes with running a perfect house is not my strengths or interests. I admire people who do it well, but it’s not me. We can’t do it all, so I choose to focus on the stuff I love and know that my kids will not be in therapy some day because there was dog hair in the corner.

Have you ever had times where you thought yourself as a “failure”? If so how did you stop feeling like it? If not how do you keep yourself so optimistic?

Yes… When I was in a big job with a gorgeous office and looked around and felt empty. But I quickly got to “it’s not me, it’s that the job is wrong for me” and set about making a change.

Your book speaks a lot about common mistakes, rightly so as it is what makes the book so useful, yet what intrigues me is what would you say is the most unique situation/mistake you have come across whilst you have been coaching?

Definitely the guy who had toy safes delivered to his top companies of interest that had his resume locked inside. This was before 9/11. Needless to say, it fell flat.

What advice would you give somebody wanting to speak at an event, possibly even as the keynote speaker?

You have to have something to speak on that people want to hear. Start speaking for free at lunchtime professional events, church, etc. and get your message honed and your speaking skills polished.  Be ready for someone to come up to you and say “I’d love to have you come speak at an event I’m hosting. What is your fee?” You’re off and running!

If you could go back and change one thing in your past, what would it be?

Not a thing. I am so happy with where I am today, that I believe everything that has happened, good & bad, has brought me here.

How has the internet improved your business? If there was no internet how would your business differ from its current form?

It’s been transformational. People can find you, follow you, engage with you from anywhere in the world. Without it, I would be limited to handing out marketing materials in my own community and hoping for the best.

Could you please describe your personal definition of the word “Success”?

Using your natural skills and talents, and pursuing your interests (and getting paid for it!) while maintaining a healthy personal life.

Obviously you have written your own book but what other books would you recommend to somebody that is looking for a job, or to improve their career?

I like Career Distinction by William Arruda & Kirsten Dixson. It’s a great way to get in touch with your personal brand, i.e. how others see you and how you see yourself

What plans do you have the future?

Continue to grow my business to spread the word that we all need to find what makes us skip to the shower. Yes, it’s takes courage, answering hard questions, and some risk. But the result is more than worth it.

If there was just one thing that you would like people to remember about you, what would it be?

I genuinely care about others finding their own version of career success but believe it is something that cannot be delegated or outsourced. And that I love to laugh…!

Thank you Julie.

Usually I try to write reviews, even if I do not publish them, that are hundreds of words long and are grammatically perfect. I cannot do that with this… even after reading only the introduction I was stunned. WOW!

Right from the beginning, Frances Cole Jones forces us to understand “how to wow” in all aspects. One of the biggest points she makes is that presentation is vital; be it when you’re in a meeting, on the phone or speaking at a seminar.

There are two techniques that she uses in her book that I really really like: activities and quotations. My favourite activity that she makes us try (hopefully she will not mind me telling you it!) is the “pumpkin/raisin” exercise. Basically you need to screw your face up really small like a raisin then inflate it like a pumpkin. It sounds stupid, I sure thought it was… but it WORKS!

Throughout her book she shares quotations with us all. You all know that I really love quotations, I even wrote a short eBook about them (which I shall be improving very soon), I purposely look for quotations all the time but there were so many in this book that I had never heard of before… unbelievable! If you follow me on Twitter then you will have already seen it but I would like to share with you a quote from the author herself.

“More isn’t better. Better is better.”– Frances Cole Jones (How to Wow)

She explains this by telling a story, which is another one of her successful techniques, but I do not believe it needs explaining. I sometimes have trouble remember parts of books that I like, but I read that page over 6 days ago and it is still engrained into my mind.

There really is no other book that you should read if you want to know how to wow, it really wowed me!

Have you ever read it? If so please give your opinions, if not then go and get it (nope, that is not an affiliate link, I genuinely want you to read it… I did not write this review because I want money)!! Also, if you have not yet read it then please read the article that Frances Cole Jones wrote for Success Circuit which gives her top 10 Do’s and Dont’s for interviews.

Shane Hudson

As I am sure you can remember, last month we ran a contest. Roland Millward was won of the winners and part of his prize was a review. Usually when I write a review it is about a blog, or a website of which I am familiar the genre. I am 15, so how am I meant to know how a Mortgage Broker website works? Reviews are so that website in question can be critically analysed and improved. Instead of focusing on the content and other elements that I would usually focus on, I am going to talk about the design of the website.

Throughout the design there is a definite blue colour scheme, cyan and a darker blue which is very close to purple, which convey trust and truthfulness. First impressions are very important and if the audience does not instantly trust the website then it is not very likely they will stay for very long.

The header is very simplistic which results in a cleaner looking website. It consists of a logo, four navigational links and an image. The image has a wispy blue sky that successfully emphasises the trust by using the colour blue. It also shows many houses, this is vital as it instantly shows that the business is about houses in some way.

Below the image there are two more navigation bars. Usually I would say that having even two navigational bars is very risky, as it often confuses the reader, however Roland has succeeded by having three bars because they act as categories for the types of links.

The only concern I have about the website design is that there is a table in the middle of the content. I know this is needed because it includes the prices but it does seem to “clutter” the design. Other than that it is a very beautifully designed website.

It is a shame that I could not be of more help to Roland, as he always helps me, but unfortunately my knowledge of his job would lead me to a very inaccurate review.

Thank you for reading,

Shane

Last night I posted a tweet about giving away a free review, the usual price being $30, and I was amazed by the amount of direct messages I had about it! Everyone that sent me a message had a website, or in one case had a gallery of amazing paintings, that I would have loved to review. Maybe I shall do another free review another time. As I said in the tweet, the first person to contact me got the review. So everyone please welcome ZERGmoney.com and Cameron, the owner of the blog, to the inspection table!

Firstly lets take a look at the design that ZERGmoney currently uses. I very rarely see such simple designs now there is so much “Web 2.0″ publicity everywhere. Usually simple designs such as this lack the “special something” that designs need to succeed, in my opinion this design is very well suited to the blog because it tries not to take focus off the the content. To improve the design I would recommend changing the sidebars, perhaps either by merging the two together or moving one to the left of the content so that the important information is in the centre. It might also be worth investing in a logo, as it helps to brand your blog.

The focus of the website is fairly simple, though many would say it is too broad, the subtitle says “Blackhat, Whitehat, Money Making, and Internet Marketing Blog” which tells the audience straight away what the blog is about. One thing that I find suprising is that there is no about page and no archive page. My time machine page is one of my most viewed pages, which makes me wonder why Cameron has not made one. One reason might be because he has not wrote enough posts and does not like to admit it. If this is the case, then I believe that the best thing to do would be to make the archive page and prove to people that even a small blog can have some very useful posts. Also, an about page would be extremely helpful for the reader to understand why the blog was made and who the author is.

The content that Cameron has written so far is very interesting, most of the posts are fairly unique and not the type that are covered over and over again. I also really like his style of writing, because it is very similar to my own. The way he speaks personally and asks questions is really good because it makes the reader interested and want to answer. This creates a community, which is what I love about blogs. I comment I do have about the content is that some of the posts are uncategorised, it is always best to find a category for every post as it makes the author seem more organised. I have been looking through the posts and the spelling seems to be checked well, there are a few grammer mistakes but nothing that is too obvious.

That’s it from me, I believe this blog has a lot of potential and could improve by tweaking it as I have stated already. Please can I have your opinion of the blog, what do you not like? What do you like?

Thank you,

Shane

Hello everybody,
Today I have a review for you all! I am writing this review because I am really impressed with the idea, it is so simple yet extremely effective. This is not a paid review, but even if it was it would still be my opinions whether good or bad. This, fairly short,  review is about iLikeToBlog, which is a wordpress plugin that you can see in action on my sidebar.

The first thing I would like to write about is the design work. Now, this is going to be hard as at the time of writing the website was only launched about 2 days ago. I know that Dave, the owner and creator, has many plans for the design so I shall not go on too much about it. The layout of the website is extremely basic but it is still in BETA and seems to be very clean. The logo however is one element of the design that keeps making me go “wow”. It is fairly basic but is very aesthetically pleasing and captures attention.

Now we have briefly covered the design, it is time to cover the content and focus of the website. Even with just a quick glance it is easy to see what the website is for. It has a sidebar on the left that says:

iLikeToBlog is a free wordpress plugin and link exchange service that helps you to easily build up quality organic backlinks on your blog.

Important: Plugin requires at least WP 2.7 and PHP5+ in order to work.

Not only does this tell us exactly what it does but it also gives the requirements. The front page lists all of the websites that have signed up, which gives a very good backlink without even considering the fact that the sites can also be put on peoples sidebars. Another part of the website is the new forum, there is not really much to write about yet but I believe that the forum could be used as a good source of exchange making.

The plugin works in a very basic way. It uses the idea of the Wordpress “Blogroll” but rather than having to manually add websites to it, this plugin lets the user exchange a link with another website that uses the plugin. It is so simple that it does not make the load time any slower and it is extremely effective. The way it works allows all links to be 100% organic and SEO friendly.

Personally I believe the plugin and website idea to be extremely good, as it is simple but is very useful. Although the plugin is still in early beta stages, it seems to have the potential to “revolutionise” the link building industry. Of course there are many problems with the current website, but I shall only list them as they are fairly obvious.

1. The RSS Subscribers feature does not seem to work
2. The website design could be made better, but it is only in beta
3. A way to search and filter the websites might be needed as there will be many more than there is now
4. Not enough different niches yet

That seems to be all for now. I hope this review helps the owner of iLikeToBlog and has been interesting for you all!

Shane