“Success” Stories?

In the middle of an unrelated post on Simpson’s Paradox:

Am I the only person who cringes at those success stories about slowly working one’s way from minimum-wage mail clerk all the way up to management? I’m not, am I? Tell me a lifetime of waiting for a promotion makes you feel just a little bit dead inside, too.

Do you agree? Is this feeling the reason we’re all looking for non-traditional income streams?

Via Simpson’s Paradox » Blog Archive » Oligatory Election Comments

My Online store

Online selling is really a hit, I’ve been selling stuffs since last year and its my 1st year anniversary. Selling stuffs is also hard. Being an online seller is also stressfull. You could have at least 99.9% of your patience everyday for
1. answering questions
2. inquiries and telling your products information
3. for those buyers who dont pay there reservations.

I still don’t have that kind of buyer as of the moment and hopefully I will not encounter one of them.

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Photo Contest for Coffee-Table Book

I saw this today on the Stickley Museum blog and thought some of you with side photography projects might like to enter, or at least browse the other travel photos. It’s free to enter and could get you some attention.

I’ve seen some amazing Craftsman Farm photos in our Flickr group! If you have a great picture of The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms, why not submit it to Great Destinations NJ’s New Jersey photo contest? The best pictures showing the beautiful side of our state will be in a full-color coffeetable book of New Jersey photograhs. Details here!

Via SM@CF blog — Do You Have A Great Craftsman Farms Photo?

Unwearable Free Shirts

One of the side effects of blogging and my other freelance assignments is that I get a lot of free samples. I’ve gotten magnets, scented markers, promo keychains and a lot of free t-shirts. There often become smocks for my students/campers, because they’re usually far too big for me. I’ve gotten some nice ones but sometimes they are just hideous and the sooner the kids get paint all over them, the better! (Note to any marketing people: that doesn’t mean you should stop sending them to me! Just consider a size smaller than super XXXL! And lay off the grainy logos, ok?)

Anyway, The Rally Flag (a newish but welcome addition to my blogroll!) has a funny post on the really dreadful freebies. It’s good advice if you’re promoting your side project, and funny if you’ve been on the receiving end of these freebies.

Free t-shirts are still one of the most powerful and cheap incentives out there. People go nuts for these things.

Having said that, plenty of people seem to know how to make shirts that nobody will wear. If you’d like to join them, here are some rules you’ll need to know:

1. Make only one size of the shirt - preferably XXXL.
2. Use a ridiculous color, like blazing green. Bonus points for using pink font. Double bonus for making the shirt feel like a damn optical illusion when trying to read it.
3. Use sandpaper-like fabric. Make the shirt feel real cheap and uncomfortable.
4. Understand that great design is overrated. Don’t waste money on that crap.
5. Assume people will want to wear a shirt with your giant logo on it.
6. If you have copy on your shirt, play it safe.
7. Don’t bother with 1:1 marketing techniques or those WOW! shenanigans. Putting personal things like last names on shirts would be a lot of work.
8. Find a way to make the free t-shirt very expensive. Make sure it costs a lot of time or a lot of effort or a lot of personal information to get it. When you do finally give a shirt away, spam anybody who took one relentlessly

Via How to make a free t-shirt that nobody will wear « The Rally Flag

Free Encyclopedias For Bloggers!

If your home business involves a blog, you might be able to get free encyclopedias. Here’s the story:

Encyclopedia Britannica often is used in case studies as a definitive example of how new technology can disrupt a business. Everything was great for the nearly 250 year old privately held company until the Internet came around and a Category Five hurricanedInnovator’s Dilemma (see also the Music Industry).

You can purchase the 32 volume Britannica, which has 65,000 articles and 44 million words, for just $1,400. Or you can access it on the web for $70 per year.

And now, you can get access to the online version for free through a new program called Britannica Webshare - provided that you are a “web publisher.” The definition of a web publisher is rather squishy: “This program is intended for people who publish with some regularity on the Internet, be they bloggers, webmasters, or writers. We reserve the right to deny participation to anyone who in our judgment doesn’t qualify.” Basically, you sign up, tell them about your site URL and a description, and they review it and decide if you’ll get in. I wonder if Facebook, MySpace and Twitter users are eligible? They all certainly “publish with some regularity on the Internet.”

on their parade. According to Comscore, for every page viewed on Brittanica.com, 184 pages are viewed on Wikipedia (3.8 billion v. 21 million pave views per month). In short, they are a classic example of the
Via Encyclopedia Britannica Now Free For Bloggers

Let’s Get Ahead!

Today I visited Let’s Get Ahead by Neil Smith, an advice blog about starting a business and growing a start-up into a stable business. Most of it was not applicable to me since my own work isn’t really related. And I already believe that we need multiple income streams, even if they are income trickles, especially in today’s economy, so it was good to hear my views reinforced! He also had one great piece of advice for freelancers:

You wouldn’t tolerate an employee who brought nothing of value to your company, so why do so many feel compelled to tolerate “DEAD WEIGHT CLIENTS?” If you are just starting out with your business, it could make sense to put up with a few clients who are seemingly more trouble than they are worth in order to have a list of satisfied (though in reality, some may be unsatisfiable) customers you can point to in order to gain new business. But as time goes by, if you are not able to derive what you need in order to continue your services, CUT BAIT, MOVE ON AND DON’T LOOK BACK.

This is such excellent advice. As freelancers, we end up taking clients who aren’t so hot because they’re better than an empty calender (which quickly becomes an empty bank account). Or we suffer from clients who simply aren’t sure what they want, and we spend more time trying to pin down their assignment than actually doing the assignment.

It’s not easy, but it’s good advice!

Via FIRE YOUR CUSTOMERS! … by neil smith « LET’S GET AHEAD! … by neil smith Make Money, Save Money, Live Well!

Tutorials and children

I have always loved kids. I am a child at heart and being with children detoxes me from the hustles and bustles of the adult world.

I have decided to do tutorials for preschool children. In teaching preschoolers, I serve as an educator in the adult world and a playmate in my preschool tutee’s world. What I like best about being a preschool tutor is that I learn from a child. And learnings from a child are the most wonderful; they are the simplest things yet the most important.

Being with children taught me to laugh at my own mistakes, to try again and not be afraid to commit another mistake, to be patient and forgiving, to be calm and understanding, and to be contented and happy with whatever life gives me.

Not only did I get to experience how it is to be a child again, I also earn even a little extra income. It’s a good feeling that I know I am getting paid for something that I do not consider work. What I get from tutoring kids not only multiplies my income but also makes my heart big.

I thank the kids for helping me remember all those simple things, and for renewing a crumbling adult life into a new and hopeful existence.

Gustav Stickley On Facebook

I saw this today on the Stickley Museum At Craftsman Farms site:

The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms is now on Facebook! Come see us on Facebook, and you’ll be able to get Stickley news and updates and upcoming events via Facebook messages and interact with members and friends of the museum. You can also view our photos or share your own. Please visit our Facebook page, and tell us what you think!

That’s right, a museum Facebook page! (There’s also a Flickr group) Great to see a historical society moving with the times, and using web 2.0 instead of file cards.

It just shows the importance of social media. No matter what your product is, you need a web presence. Do you have one?

Via Stickley On Facebook

Gutsy Bloggers Wanted!

I’m a big fan of True Wife Confessions, so I thought I’d pass this one on.

Now seeking funny, witty, acerbic, erudite, urbane, caustic peeps to help out on Desperately Seeking…Something

Must not be faint of heart or stomach.

Men, women and any other humans welcome to apply.

Hit me with your best shot at:

balefulregards@gmail.com

or

truewifeconfession@gmail.com

Via True Wife Confessions: So, do ya wanna be a blogger?

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