My Pride and Joy
This Post Is A Tribute To My Son As He Graduates United States Air Force Basic Military Training
I’ve been majorly distracted of late, since my son joined the United States Air Force. He left for Basic Military Training on February 27, and will be graduating this weekend. (April 27th.) I am beyond proud, and can’t wait to see him.
I’m leaving for San Antonio in about 4 1/2 hours and will be there until Sunday night, watching Sean graduate, and spending some time with him before he moves on to his technical school. I can’t even begin to tell you what this picture does to me. (I just received it in the mail today.)
It’s like, this is my son, but not. I get a lump in my throat every time I look at it.
Next week, I’ll be back, focused on work and ready to move ahead. Until then, read on if you want to see more doting Mom ramblings….
First, look at the progression:
These are: Sean and me when he was just a few months old, Sean at around age 11, Sean before Senior Prom (yes he wore a white tux - with tails – and pink vest, tie and cumberbund, and he looked quite dashing…the pink made his blue eyes pop), Sean and me at Thanksgiving last year, Sean on the first full day of Basic Training , while waiting for his AF haircut, and finally, Airman Sean Miller. I think he was always a beautiful boy, and is now a beautiful man. (Yes, men can be beautiful.)
During graduation this coming Friday, my son will say the Airman’s creed. It will be very emotional, and I’ll probably cry. A lot. I have found a Mom’s version of the Airman’s creed that I’d like to close this post with.
I Am the Mother of an American Airman
I give my complete and unwavering support to my Airman. As my son serves the people of the United States, so I humbly offer up my prayers for his safety and the safety and health of those he serves beside.
I respect his choice to adhere to a strict moral code and system of values that has preserved our great country for over two centuries. I accept that my Airman’s first duty is to his country and I understand that this sacrifice he willingly makes is what keeps our nation great.
I will never expect anything but the best from my Airman for I know he is capable. I know that an Airman’s heart is true and strong, and that my Airman will endure.
I will never abandon my Airman, my son, and my love. I will love him unconditionally. He will know I am there for him, even when he is alone.
I am disciplined, emotionally and mentally tough, learning to wait for phone calls and letters or emails home. I, like my Airman, am an expert.
I stand ready to do whatever I can do to let my son, my Airman, know that we are here for him, beside him, we love him and I will pray for swift destruction of the enemies of our country. I am the person who stood guardian of this man who has become my Airman, now our guardian of freedom and the American way of life.
I AM THE MOTHER OF AN AMERICAN AIRMAN.
-author unknown
The Money Is In The List: Are You Building Yours?
List Building Is Also On My Radar This Year
In my last, crazy rambling post, I told you that writing and publishing is going to be the main focus of my business this year. That is true, but I also really need to ramp up my list building efforts. I think that must be on everyone’s mind lately, because I’ve started seeing a number of products about list building flying into my inbox on a daily (hourly) basis.
How-to products about list building, what to do with your list after you’ve built it, and even a list building challenge. (That one is selling like hotcakes, by the way.) I’ve taken a look at some of what’s being offered in the area of list building, and I want to share my thoughts.
First though, I want to point out one thing. I don’t have a big list. I have a few very small lists. My biggest list is just a few hundred people. In spite of this, I was able to mail out on an offer recently (to just one of my lists) that earned me over $200. Imagine if I grew that list to a few thousand – or more?
That is what I plan to do with the courses I’ve reviewed in this post.
The 2012 List Building Challenge by Charles Kirkland and Keith Dougherty
This is the one that you’ve seen so much buzz about, I’m sure. It certainly looks like it’s going to be good. This hasn’t started yet, so I can’t really review it for you. What I can do is tell you what I see so far with the sales funnel and the member’s area.
Here’s the run down: The goal is to teach you 5 ways to get 500 subscribers in 5 days. It will be a 9-Session live webinar-based follow-along course. Yes, there will be homework.
This is a challenge style course, so they are offering an unprecedented 4 times your money back offer if you fail to achieve results. (You have to be present at all of the live webinars to qualify for the 4X guarantee.) Of course, the standard 30-day, no questions asked money back guarantee is good for anyone, whether they watch the webinars live or via replay.
The List Building Challenge starts Monday, 2/27/12 and continues for 9 sessions, includes action maps and blueprints, and lifetime access to the member’s area. There is an offer after purchase for a paid traffic guide($17), but it isn’t required to complete the course. If you do accept the offer, you get a video, plus PDF files of the slides and a PDF of a mindmap.
The member’s area is very well organized, and looks like a Fladlien-Mattos production on the inside. (Same theme, and same login interface – WP MemberChamp?) There is a welcome video, a get-started bonus, and your upgrade, if you purchased it, already in the download area.
In the section to sign up for the live sessions, you have an option of three different times. Each live session will run at three different times each day. You only have to attend one per day. The way it is set up, you choose one time of day and it signs you up for ALL of the sessions at the same time. I’m not sure if you could sign up for multiple times and then pick and choose according to your schedule each day. I know that I don’t always have the same schedule every day.
Lazy List Building by Michael Gunn
Unfortunately, this one isn’t getting much press, because of the overwhelming attention the Challenge one is getting. That’s a mistake, in my opinion. I’ve been in on a number of Michael Gunn productions, and they are always GOOD. Yes, this one is a little bit more expensive than the Challenge, but only a little. It still isn’t an expensive course.
What are the benefits here? Well, for one, Michael Gunn. In my opinion, that is the biggest benefit. Michael is a professional when it comes to teaching (literally) and his courses are always well-structured and well-presented. Also, this one will be much more exclusive than the Challenge, and the environment will be more personal. You will definitely feel a connection to Michael if you are in one of his courses.
This one is three sessions; each Thursday at 8:00 PM EST (90 minute classes.) There are bonuses: How to Do Squeeze Pages with WordPress and AdSwap Fire Starter.
Why do I recommend combining these two? For one thing, I like to get as much information as possible when I focus on a subject., and I am definitely focusing on list-building right now. The other reason is that I think these products will approach list-building from different angles, and that’s important.
Michael Gunn is a part-time marketer, who makes a full-time income. He still works in his regular job (yes, he really does work at a school.) He works in a lot of niches, and IM is just a tiny part of what he does.
Charles and Keith are both full-time marketers. I’m sure that they have things in other niches, because they are smart guys. But their primary focus is, I think, IM.
I think that these products are going to complement each other well, and I’ll be a part of both. If you have to choose, though, here is what I suggest: If you have more time to spend, the Challenge might be the way to go. If you want the shortcuts, then I would bet on Michael. (This is totally based on past courses, since neither of these have started yet.)
After You Get A List: List Love by Avani
When you get a list, you need to know what to do with it. I have a few very small lists, and until I made a few tweaks recently, I hadn’t had much success with email marketing. I did figure out and make some changes on my own, that helped matters. I struggled though, with what to send to my list and Avani’s course is very helpful if you are in that position too.
Avani not only gives you ideas about what to send, she actually sends you to some resources where you can get some stuff to send. Your list will LOVE you! (List Love) If you are more into creating a relationship with your list than the quick buck, then this will be a refreshing change from what a lot of people teach.
With Avani’s product, you get the guide, some of her own email archives, access to a private Facebook group, and much more. Avani also continues to add new bonuses and information to the download area constantly.
Do You Have A Niche?: Secret Niche Files by Calvin Woon and Patricia Lin
I have to throw this in here, because it has been a HUGELY popular product with my list. It is one of the hottest things I’ve promoted in a while. If you want done-for-you niche research, this is the product for you. 60 HOT niches are pretty much handed to you on a silver platter. You get the demographics, psycho-graphics, the questions people are asking, and the problems that they have in the niche. You also get video training on how to use the information to create your SALES COPY!
So you have the research for your product, and a guideline for using the same info to sell the product.
If you aren’t yet sure which niche you want to start building a list with, this will get you headed in the right direction. Even if you do have a niche, this will open your eyes to the way to actually research a niche. I recommend this very highly.
Other Resources
The other products and services you’ll need to build a list are:
An Autoresponder: Aweber is the only one I’ve ever used. I love it, both from a list-owner standpoint, but also I prefer to receive emails from Aweber users.
A Registrar: The two I like are Namecheap and Moniker. I don’t use the big Daddy one, if I can avoid it.
And finally, a Hosting Company. Hostgator is what I use and what I recommend. If you are just starting out, get their Baby Plan. That will give you unlimited domains and all of the space you’ll need. Get 25% off your initial order with the coupon code: teresa25off.
There are lots of other courses and products that have popped up just this week alone. I really do believe that we have to go with the type of course or teacher that “resonates” with us. If these that I recommend aren’t your cup of tea, then find one that is. List building IS important, so get started ASAP!
Much Happiness and Success!
JVZoo Hot Products
CreateSpace Publishing Kit
My new product, the CreateSpace Publishing Kit has been live as a WSO for about a week. It hasn’t sold a whole lot of copies, but the people who have bought it have been very happy with it.I’ve really been focusing on writing and publishing lately.It’s what I know and love, but unfortunately, my product launch skills aren’t that sharp. 
With the CreateSpace Publishing Kit, I spent most of my time between getting it written, getting all of the web pages in place, setting up JVZoo… and then there was the premium PLR package that I offered inside Earn1KaDay.
By the time it was launch day, I hadn’t done anything to notify anyone in advance. I love creating and will be doing much more of that, but I really look forward to when I’ll be able to outsource more of the work that slows me down. Sometimes it seems that so much of what goes into product creations is just like “hard labor” for my brain.
Yes, I can set up a website, but I’m slow at it. And sales copy! Don’t get me started. I really don’t know why, but when it comes to writing sales copy, my brain just turns off, or something. I use a couple of templates, and I can usually manage to get SOMETHING on the page. It isn’t compelling or hypnotic or any of those other “must-buy” impulse words though.
The thing is I know my products are good. I work hard to make sure that they are. The people who buy them, love them. Now I just need to figure out how to “pump up the volume.”
The CreateSpace Publishing Kit is much like the Kindle Publishing Kit in that it covers formatting issues that a lot of other people never touch in similar products. The CreateSpace one takes you through how to do running headers, which is something I couldn’t find anywhere when I first started looking. It’s tricky to do, but it is so much harder if you don’t have some clear instruction going into it!
I also do a complete walk-through of the CreateSpace publishing dashboard. Honestly, it’s pretty self-explanatory once you get in there, but a lot of people are nervous enough that they might not even try without a good guide, with screenshots. The kit also includes a checklist, and finally, a basic book promotion guide.
It isn’t a huge package, but the information is solid and helpful. I think that’s more important than having dozens of modules and hours of video.
I’ll be creating more products around publishing, writing, and product creation. (Book writing is just another form of product creation, after all.) Coming soon is my new Self-Publishing Membership site. I’m struggling with the technical side of things right now, but I have great ideas for it. It will focus on publishing the right way, instead of the scam way.
I will still also be offering publishing and formatting as a service, but am in the process of reconfiguring that side of my business. Lots to figure out.
All in all, I’m really looking forward to a great new year in publishing. I’m enjoying the connections I’ve started making now that I’ve narrowed my focus a bit, and look forward to hanging out more with “book-people.” I’ll be posting more about the membership here, as soon as I know more.
As always, thanks for reading my ramblings.
Have a wonderful day!
JVZoo Hot Products
Kindle Triangulation by James J Jones: The Inside Scoop
Why I think Kindle Triangulation by James J. Jones is the best Kindle product to hit the market.
Why would I say that Kindle Triangulation by James J. Jones is the best Kindle product? After all, there are a LOT of Kindle products on the market, right?
Well, I’ve bought pretty much every single one. There have been some I’ve loved, some that were “okay”, and some that I’ve hated. Almost every one of them I’ve learned something from, even if it’s what NOT to do. (Exception: There was one extremely popular low-priced one recently, that was nothing more than an overview, and a waste of $5.) So what is it that I like about Kindle Triangulation?
Well first, James J. Jones was the first person I ever learned about Kindle from. That’s because James has been publishing on Kindle longer than anybody I know. James has been publishing on Kindle longer than I’ve been working on the internet. If you’ve been around a while, you know that the first product James ever did on Kindle publishing was all about PLR. He made a lot of money with that method, so he taught what he knew; what was working. Of course, Read More…
JVZoo Hot Products
The Little Engine That Could – What Inspires You?
I want to follow up a little from yesterday’s post. I spent a lot of time yesterday talking about negative talk, both self-talk and the things we say to others. But what about the positive stuff? What inspires us, or gives us that urge to accomplish something?
For me, it’s the underdog story. The little engine that could, Rocky, that sort of thing. The one who does something they just shouldn’t be able to do. And for myself, having someone not believe I can do something is the torch that lights a fire under me to prove them wrong. I’m stubborn that way.
When I left to join the Air Force at the age of 25 (I was an OLD recruit) I was literally told by one guy I knew that I’d never last through Basic Training. Well, I proved him wrong, I not only made it through Basic, I went on to become Honor Graduate at my Technical Training School, while fighting off a severe case of Bronchitis. I went on to excel at pretty much everything I ever did during the short time I was in the Air Force.
When I started kickboxing at the age of 40, most people figured it was just an exercise class. When they found out I wasn’t doing “cardio kickboxing” but was doing the real deal, complete with sparring, getting punched in the face and Read More…
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