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With everyone being very conscientious about their finances, you’re probably looking for ways to save on your everyday necessities. One of the biggest costs in household budgeting is in pet supplies. Whether you’re shopping for a growing puppy, a spoiled cat, a roomful of birds or even an exotic iguana, who can deny that pet supplies are expensive? The solution is not to reduce the amount of food or health supplies that a pet needs; rather, you can save money by buying discount pet supplies online. Consider these four tips.

1. Order Quality Discount Pet Supplies

Resist the urge to buy the cheap stuff. It will harm your pet’s health, and in the long run, cost you more money due to pet doctor visits. Cheap products are made from cheap ingredients that can become toxic over time, making your pet feel sick and depressed. Change the way you buy, not the quality of food you buy.

2. Order Discount Pet Supplies From Other Sources

Our first reaction when buying supplies is to take the advice of the veterinarian or his/her assistant. The doctor and his or her assistants will usually try and sell you pet supplies at an inflated cost. They are going to be honest about most things, so don’t turn against the pet veterinarian’s office entirely! They are just doing their job in trying to push over-priced food and pet supplies, as that is part of their office income as well. What you should remember however, is that you can buy practically anything from the vet’s office online at a lower cost. It’s the same great quality product, but at a much more affordable cost. Plus, you don’t have to stop by the veterinarian’s office every time you need to purchase pet food or flea control.

3. Invest in Preventive Measures

Many families make the same mistake when it comes to their pets. They pet and cuddle the furry fellow, ignoring tips on how to improve the creature’s general health when things are going well. Then they have to spend hundreds, perhaps thousands, of dollars a year in professional treatment. If these households would simply devote some attention to preventive treatment, they could improve the quality of life of their pet and avoid more doctor visits. Make a checklist of what a pet needs and ways to provide a safer environment when it is well.

4. Look Online for Discount Pet Supplies

Discount pet supplies can be found by way of mail coupons, online website specials, discount online stores and other special promotions. Remember to figure in shipping and handling costs as well as bulk discounts, because this is where you really find the biggest savings.

Take a more strategic approach to stocking your pet food and supplies. Research the brand of food you’re buying and what other options are available to you. This is the best way to find discount pet supplies.

PetSupply Store provides you with easy access to your most needed pet supplies. No matter what type of pet you have, you can find supplies easily through their online store. For more information, visit http://www.PetSupply-Store.com

The need to eradicate poverty through increased literacy

One of the central goals defined by the Government of Mozambique in its long-term development strategy is “poverty reduction through labour-intensive economic growth”. The highest priority is assigned to reduce poverty in rural areas, where 90 percent of poor Mozambicans live, and also in urban zones. The Government recognizes also that, for this development strategy on poverty eradication to succeed, expansion and improvement in the education system are critically important elements in both long-term and short-term perspectives.

In the long term, universal access to education of acceptable quality is essential for the development

of Mozambique´s human resources, and the economic growth will depend to a significant extend on the education and training of the labour force. It is very important to develop a critical mass of well trained and highly qualified workforce which in turn will improve the overall literacy, intellectual development, training capacity and technical skills in various areas of the country’s economic and industrial development.

In the short term, increased access and improved quality in basic education are powerful mechanisms for wealth redistribution and the promotion of social equity. This policy is consistent with the provisions of the new Constitution of Mozambique adopted on 16 November 2004, in its articles 113 and 114 which deal respectively with education and higher education. Around the year 1990, the Government of Mozambique decided to change its social, economic and political orientation system from the centrally-planned system inherited from the communist era and adopted a western-style of free market system. At the same time, it was also decided to adopt fundamental changes in the education programmes. Since drastic changes and wide ranging effects were resulting from the adoption of the new economic and political orientation, it was necessary to provide new guidelines and rules governing the management of institutions of higher education.

The struggle continues: “a luta continua” !

The economic and political changes were progressively introduced with success through legislative and regulatory reforms. However, it has not been very easy to evenly change rules of social and cultural behaviour. In particular, vulnerable younger generations are the most affected by the rapid changes in society, while the reference model and values they expect from elder people in the modern Mozambican society seem to be shifting very fast. And in some instances, there seem to be no model at all. The new wave of economic liberalism in Mozambique, better defined by the popular concept of “deixa andar”, literally meaning “laisser-faire”, was mistakenly adopted as the guiding principle in the areas of social, cultural and education development.

The “laisser-faire” principle is better understood by economists and entrepreneurs in a system of open market and free entrepreneurship, under which the Government’s intervention is reduced to exercising minimum regulatory agency. The recent considerable economic growth realized by the Government of Mozambique (10% of successive growth index over four years) is attributed mainly to this free market policy. This principle should be carefully differentiated from “laisser-aller” which, in French language, rather means lack of discipline in academic, economic, social and cultural environments.

Reforming higher education institutions represents a real challenge, both at the institutional and pedagogic levels, not only in Mozambique, but elsewhere and in particular in African countries faced with the problem of “acculturation”. The youth seeking knowledge opportunities in national universities, polytechnics and higher institutes, where students are somehow left on their own, having no longer any need to be under permanent supervision of their parents or teachers, are disoriented. Since reforms in higher education institutions take longer than in any other institutional environment, it is necessary indeed to adopt adequate transitional measures to respond to urgent need of the young generations.

This essay reviews current trends and the recent historical background of higher education institutions of Mozambique. It argues against the adoption of the classical model of higher education from European and other western systems. In its final analysis, it finds that there is need to include ethical and deontology (social, cultural and moral education) components as priority sectors within the curriculum in higher education institutions, with a view to instill in the students and lecturers positive African values in general, and in particular, national Mozambican models. It is rejecting the neo-liberal thinking, which proposes that students in higher education institutions should be allowed to enjoy unlimited academic, social and intellectual uncontrolled independence, in conformity with western classical education and cultural orientation. It advocates for critical thinking and brainstorming on key issues towards the development of positive cultural and ethical models in higher education institutions which could be used to promote knowledge development and poverty eradication in the country’s rural areas and urban zones affected by unemployment, pandemics and economic precariousness.

The colonial legacy and its cultural impact on higher education in Mozambique.

Many experts have described the Mozambican mother of higher education as an institution for colonialists and “assimilados” . The first institution of higher education in Mozambique was established by the Portuguese government in 1962, soon after the start of the African wars of independence. It was called the General University Studies of Mozambique (Estudos Gerais Universitários de Moçambique EGUM). In 1968, it was renamed Lourenço Marques University. The university catered for the sons and daughters of Portuguese colonialists. Although the Portuguese government preached non-racism and advocated the assimilation of its African subjects to the Portuguese way of life, the notorious deficiencies of the colonial education system established under the Portuguese rule ensured that very few Africans would ever succeed in reaching university level. However, many educated African were led to adopt the colonial lifestyle.

In spite of Portugal’s attempts to expand African educational opportunities in the late 1960s and early 1970s, only about 40 black Mozambican students – less than 2 per cent of the student body -had entered the University of Lourenço Marques by the time of independence in 1975. The state and the university continued to depend heavily on the Portuguese and their descendants. Even the academic curriculum was defined according to the needs and policies defined long ago by the colonial power.

Soon after Independence in June 1975, the Government of Mozambique, from the FRELIMO party, adopted a Marxist-Leninist orientation and a centrally planned economy. The educational system was nationalized, and the university was renamed after Dr. Eduardo Mondlane, the first president of FRELIMO.

Many cadres trained in Portugal and other European and American universities came also with their own educational and cultural background. Apart from the Eduardo Mondlane University, new public and private universities and institutes were established. These include the Pedagogic University, the ISRI, the Catholic University, ISPU, ISCTEM and ISUTC. Most of these institutions adopted a curriculum clearly modeled on the classical European model. There is still need to integrate African traditional values in the course profiles offered and research programmes developed by these institutions.

The traditional role of a university is to enlighten and serve as a reference within the society: “illuminatio et salus populi”. Today, Mozambique is one of the most culturally and racially diversified society of Africa. This diversity should be considered as a cultural treasure for the nation. It has become however apparent that it’s more a “Babel Tower case”, as no unified Mozambican values appear to develop from this wide variety. With the creation of new public and private universities and new faculties, it would become easier to increase a critical mass of university lecturers and academic professionals, who would in their turn, influence the society, creating and instilling national positive values and ethical principles of conduct in the younger generations. According to many lecturers and students contacted at UEM, Universidade Pedagogica UP and UDM, the impact of higher education on the development of positive academic, scientific, social and cultural values in Mozambique is yet to be felt.

It is however necessary to acknowledge the importance of newly introduced community-based education programmes in some institutions. For instance the emphasis on community and service has guided curriculum development at the Catholic University; its course in agronomy (Cuamba) concentrates on peasant and family farming systems and leans heavily on research and outreach within local farming communities. The CU course in medicine (developed in collaboration with the University of Maastricht) which concentrates on teaching medicine, was particularly deemed appropriate for the rural and urban poor populations of Mozambique, as it is more based on problem-solving and focuses much more on traditional issues.

New Reforms in higher education institutions with a more participative approach

Mozambique is one of few countries in Africa where a new generation of leadership has stepped forward to articulate a vision for their institutions, inspiring confidence among those involved in higher education development and the modernization of their universities. In a series of case studies sponsored and published by the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa , it was confirmed that African universities covered by the studies have widely varying contexts and traditions. They are engaged in broad reform, examining and revising their planning processes, introducing new techniques of financial management, adopting new technologies, reshaping course structures and pedagogy, and more important, reforming practices of governance based in particular on their own contexts and traditions.

Important institutional reforms concerning the strategic planning experiences of the Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM) were initiated and implemented so far. Two strategic planning cycles were developed, the first in 1990 and the second one in 1996 / 97. The second one was meant to adapting to the impacts of newly adopted multi-party democracy, market competition, and globalization. Whereas the first reform cycle was the result of high level officials at the University, the second one was generated using a participatory methodology deemed to be more effective in involving the university staff in the process.

It is important to listen to everyone, and to be seen as listening. We are also convinced that various components of the population in Mozambique should be involved in the next phases of the process with a view to define what kind of education orientation the population would wish to have for their children.

There is important progress but yet limited academic impact on the development of the society

Considerable progress has been so far made in post-independence Mozambique. After the initial problems caused by the long years of civil war and then the long efforts necessitated by the adjustment to a market-driven economy and a multi-party democratic political order, Mozambique is now considered to have a higher education system that offers a wide variety of course options and extensive research opportunities. However, a major weakness highlighted by many observers is that all the institutions remain basically concentrated in the capital city of Maputo and its neighboring provinces. It is argued that they serve only a limited fraction of the Mozambican population, and are destined to train the elite of prominent people in government and in the professions, industry and commerce. It is also alleged that the majority of the students who succeed in entering public and private institutions of higher education are from relatively rich families.

It is finally emphasized that nearly 80 per cent of university students in Mozambique use Portuguese as their principal means of communication, thus strengthening the perception of establishing, reproducing and consolidating a hereditary elite, with model values copied on western societies. In response to this challenge, it was suggested that the government should encourage the emergence of new and non-traditional HEIs closer to the local communities, able to respond more rapidly and flexibly to the demands and expectations of the public and private sectors for a high quality trained workforce, while addressing both regional and socioeconomic imbalances in the country.

In our final analysis, we find that the impact of higher education institutions on the development and dissemination of traditional African social and cultural values would be very limited for a long period. As long as the access and feed-back from all levels of the society and regions will be left out of the core interaction with the highly educated elite and higher education institutions mainly concentrated in Maputo, the role of universities in promoting African positive values, a culture of academic ethics and deontology in the entire national society will be very limited.

The process of “Nation building” needs to rely on a strong academic support. One of the Government’s main constitutional commitments is to promote the development of the national culture and identity (article 115 of the 2004 Constitution). It is clear that many institutions, for instance the television, are actively promoting cultural diversity through various means. Institutions of higher education should be seen doing more, in particular starting with the students themselves and the academic community members, who are expected to be the light of the society. Such actions would include the integration of courses on ethics and deontology, and develop a wide-ranging variety of education models that reprove negative behavior and promote positive values. Our recommendation is that the Government should for example instruct public universities and other higher education institutions, to appoint “Ethics and Deontology Committees” at the level of their University Councils and within all autonomous faculties.

Bibliography

-Fry, Peter and Utui, Rogéro (1999), The Strategic Planning Experience at Eduardo Mondlane University, ADEA Working Paper on Higher Education, ADEA, Association for the Development of Education in Africa, Paris.

-Mouzinho, Mário ; Fry, Peter ; Levey, Lisbeth and Chilundo, Arlindo (2001), Higher Education in Mozambique: A Case study, The Partnership for Higher Education in Africa, New York University, New York

The author, is a lecturer and an International Consultant on Trade and Investment, Director of InterConsult Mozambique and is the Representative of Emerging Market Focus (Pty) in Mozambique. Coments on this article are encouraged.

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How to positively handle almost any child throwing a tantrum and have them all smiles within 60 seconds.

To fully understand why tantrums occur and how to reslove them quickly you should read the entire article. 22 years of teaching guitar to children and adults has taught me far more than I would ever have imagined. Most of all I have learnt much about how both adults and children learn and interact. This article will cover some of my findings and will be focused on tantrums. To help present you with as much useful information as possible I would like to use as many examples of real life situations that I and teachers face every day. By using real life examples I believe you will be able to relate your situation and see how I and others overcome each challenge in a positive way.

Firstly let me say that working with children is a skill. Our knowledge of children comes mostly from our own experience which has been passed down from our own parents, relatives, friends and society at large. As with any skil if you were lucky enough to be surrounded by good teachers and mentors as a child might advice may be obvious to you but for the majority of us it is something we need to learn. Although the skill of parenting and teaching initially require the same skills teaching a child and parenting a child are not the same thing.

Children are not adults

Children are not that much different to adults but they are different. We need to understand the differences when working with children. If we treat children as little adults frustration may be the result. Would you give a 4 year old the keys to the car and expect them to know how to drive? Silly question I know yet many adults expect young children to respond and behave like an adult. We have all seen and perhaps been guilty of yelling at our child for not behaving while out and about. We say things like. “Stop that. How many times have I told you not to…..” We get frustrated because our 4 year old seems to be ignoring our requests. So we must firstly remember children are not adults.

Different yet the same

Of course there are differences between each individual child but we are of the same species. So as with any species there will be many responses to stimuli that are the same. There is also learned cultural and social behaviour along with genetic factors. Most of what I will talk about will apply to the large majority but may not work in certain situations with certain individuals. Some children have learning disabilities that are outside the scope of this article.

Adults are teachers

We are all good at teaching children to some degree. Children look to adults for information on how to act and respond to situations. So whether you like it or not if you are around children you are teaching them. Children learn from our behaviour more so than our words. You only have to see how little boys want to grow up to be like their Dad or little girls want to dress up like Mum. My 4 year old nephew expressed to me on a recent visit how he wants to be a truck shiner when he grows up. “A truck shiner” I said. What do you mean? It turns out his Dad is a truck detailer. But this act of following adult behaviour runs very deep. Children can and will adopt many of your behaviours. So here is my first suggestion.

Start with yourself.

Be the person you hope your child will grow up to be. Don’t tell them to be a certain kind of person. Be THAT person yourself. Live by example. Let me give some examples;

Diet – If you eat a certain diet your child will most likely follow you. How often do we hear people say “My Mother’s cooking is the best”.

Smoking/Drinking/Gambling – Children of parents who smoke, drink or gamble have a greater chance of adopting the same habits themselves.

Career – Children will often take up a similar career to a parent or in some cases will take up a career related to an interest or passion one parent has. I have played guitar professionally since I was a child and this stemmed from my Father’s passion for guitar even though he didn’t play himself until later in life.

Health – We often end up with similar levels of health as our parents not so much because of genetics which is of course a factor but largely because we follow the eating and lifestyle habits of our parents.

Stress – A great example I see so often is that of time and money issues that lead to high levels of stress. As adults we find ourselves often trying to make ends meet. This leads to stress.

I have been teaching guitar for more than 20 years and I often hear from parents that they would also like to learn guitar but they are simply too busy. This would be okay if they are busy doing what they love. The problem arises when they are busy doing what they apparently ‘have to’ to make ends meet. If you find yourself in this situation then it is important to realise you are teaching your children to follow. Ironically parents will often be working hard so their children don’t have to.

There is a famous song called ‘Cats in the cradle’. The song lyrics describe the life of the writer and his relationship with his father. There are basically two sections to the song. The first part describes how as a young boy his father was always too busy but promised him they would spend time together soon. Soon never came. When he grew up and his father had finally retired the father was ready to spend time with his adult son but the tables had turn. The son had become like the father and was now too busy to spend time with his father but always promising they would get together soon. This was a very sad account of a father and son but not uncommon.

The list goes on and the evidence is undeniable. The argument of nature verses nurture is not one that needs to be won because we are all aware that both play a role. The good news is the nurture side is in our hands.

The mind of a child

This is a tough one for most adults because we forget what it was like to be a child. We are not children and therefore cannot see the world from their perspective. Even if we could remember it is only a memory of our own childhood and not our present reality. Many adults try to teach children as if they were adults. Teaching a child as if they were an adult just doesn’t make sense to them. Teaching children requires an understanding of how children think and respond.

Children respond to repetition

The adult mind is looking for new experiences. Most adults will watch a movie or a TV show once maybe twice. A child can watch the same movie 100 times or more. I can have a running joke with a child for months. The same joke would not be funny to an adult after the third time. The trick is to use repetition to your advantage. Let me use an example. If you want to teach your child to count you only need to make up a game that involves counting and do it everyday for fun. Your child will learn to count in record time. The biggest challenge for music teachers of children is often parents. Teaching children music requires playing the same song hundreds of times. For parents this drives them crazy but children are happy to do it again and again. A common request from parents is ‘Can my child learn a new song?’

Children need rules

Everything is relative. The world seems to shrink as we get older. To a baby the world is not even comprehensible. Their world consists of their home, the car and maybe the local shopping center. As they grow their world expands. Perhaps as they begin to walk their street and the local park become their world. When they enter school the suburb becomes their world. As they age the city, country and beyond become their world. For this reason their imagination of the outside world begins to run wild. A child needs to know their world is in order and the adults in their world control the events for the most part. A child who lives in a world without limits and boundaries becomes insecure. This can be a difficult concept for adults to understand. Especially adults who feel there were too many rules during their own youth.

Children seek security

Children need to know who is who in a given situation. They work out who are the adults and who are the children. Their natural instinct is to seek security. This is perhaps nature at work. Children are the most vulnerable and need to be aware of all possible threats. The problem is they still don’t know the real world. Much of the world comes from their imagination. Adults have a much better understanding of what is real. Adults can defend themselves for the most part and their understanding of possible threats is reasonably clear. Children rely on adults to be their protectors and connection to the unknown outside world. Adults provide the security or not as the case may be.

Who is the boss?

Adults often seek approval from children so will often begin by befriending a child. This is fine if there is a protector present but if you are in charge of the child the situation will be very different. The child will at some point begin to test you. They want to see if you are in charge. They will use various strategies to see if you are up for the job of protector of their universe. Here are some examples;

Cheeky or rude comments – They know which words or phrases overstep the mark. By overstepping the mark they can see how you react. If they get away with it they will take it further.

Argumentative – They will debate you. Again testing the boundaries.

Tantrums – Many children know that tantrums will get them what they want because adults want to avoid a scene. If it works once they will do it again and again and again.

Children react to adults

Some adults like to believe that children are good or bad and we adults have no control over them. This is especially true when they are other people’s children. I often hear teachers say things like ‘That child is a nightmare and impossible to work with’. The teacher dismisses the child as a problem child and places them in the too hard basket.

Many teacher’s will claim that the student or parent is fully responsible for their behaviour. They do not realise that the child’s behaviour is very much in their control when in their care. This is not their fault because very few teachers or adults for that matter are trained in child behaviour. Teachers may know the information they wish to share but child behaviour is a very different subject. In effect a teacher of children must know two things. How to control child behaviour and of course the subject they are teaching. Being a guitar teacher in my case I began at age 19 years with a knowledge and skill of guitar but with no real understanding of how to control child behaviour.

Adults who were forced

This is a common issue for many adults. I use the example of the child who was forced to learn piano as a child and hated it. They grow up and look back on the whole experience as a very dark period in their childhood. But there is a misconception here. They believe the problem was being forced to learn something they did not want to learn. I believe the problem has nothing to do with the fact they were learning to play piano and has everything to do with the negative emotions attached to the events of that time. Their parents were most likely not presenting the whole experience in the right way. This resulted in family feuds and a lot of bad memories. The way it usually goes is parent decides to enrol child for piano lessons. Child is happy to go along for the ride at first. Parent is spending money and therefore wants results. Parent tells child to practice. Child doesn’t want to practice. Parent gets angry. Child gets upset. The rest is history.

So where did this all go wrong? There is a critical point in this process that makes all the difference between a child who practices and one who does not. When a child begins to learn the parent must set up the routine. A child will rarely establish routine practice by themselves. Think of it like teaching a child to take a bath or get dressed or clean their teeth or make their bed. The key is consistency. Parents are often not consistent about their child’s practice. As adults very few of us would allow our children to go a week with out cleaning their teeth or taking a bath. I cannot ever remember someone complaining about how their parent’s forced them to clean their teeth or take a bath. Reason being, they were consistent.

Human behaviour is predictable

Let me use dogs as an example. Put almost any dog in a car and wind down the window and they will stick their head out of the window. Why? Because that’s what dogs do. Go to a movie or a concert and most people will aim to sit about half way back and in the middle of the row. They are trying to get the best position of course but still it is predictable human behaviour. Fact is we humans as with all animals are predictable. Children are of course very predictable but what is even more predictable is the way parents or adults respond.

Predictable child behaviour

So children seek security. They do this by testing the adults who are protecting them. They test adults by pushing the limits. If a child is able to push the limits and get away with it they enter new often unexplored territory. This makes them feel insecure because there seems to be no boundary. They will continue to push the boundaries until they find the limit. Let me use crime as an example. What we class as crime is only a crime if society says so. In one country what is consider a crime may be regarded in another country as acceptable. If a child learns to steal at an early age without consequence it is likely they will continue. The reason most of us are not thieves is because our parents and society in general make it very clear that stealing is not acceptable. So with behaviour so predictable it is very easy to get children to act and behave in a positive way.

The magic of consistency

Humans thrive on consistency. Many of the most successful human endeavours are the result of consistency. Think of Olympic athletes who consistently turn up for training or students who consistently study or business people who consistently open their doors. The list goes on. Consistency is actually part of human survival. Consistency allows us to see what is predictable. Our chances of survival increase if we know what is predictable. Even animals respond to consistency. The behavioural scientist Pavlov show this with his famous experiment. He rang a bell just before giving the dog food. After several times the dog began to associate the bell with food and would salivate before the food even appeared. By creating a consistent relationship between the bell and food the dog would behave in a predictable way. Children respond to consistency. If you want a child to do anything then do it consistently. Set up the routine and their behaviour will become predictable.

Children with learning disabilities

There are of course always exceptions. Some children will have learning disabilities such as autism or ADD that are simply out of your control. In this case you should do as much as possible to research and learn about their condition so you can find the best strategy for teaching them.

Working with ADD – The most common challenge teachers will come up against is ADD . I have had many students over the years with varying degrees of ADD. I would go as far as to say we all have some degree of ADD. Children with serious ADD will not be able to focus for any length of time. This affects their ability to learn. If say their concentration span is 2 minutes any concept that takes more than 2 minutes to explain will be lost. I like to keep things simple. I use a two pronged approach.

Work at increasing their concentration span – Let’s say they have a 2 minute attention span. I set their goal at 3 minutes. I make a big deal of it. Clapping and shouting out “Hooray!” when they make it to 3 minutes. This slowly increases their concentration and in most cases works. If it fails you need to focus more on option 2.

Work within their concentration span – If it’s 2 minutes give them exercises or explanations that can completed in 2 minutes. Break everything down into bite size pieces.

Bringing out the best in children

What we want for any child first and foremost is a sense of security. All children come with a history but the end result if you use the correct strategies is a happy child who is more than willing to learn. It does not really matter what the history of a child is because you cannot change the past. You need to work at giving the child a sense of security when they are with you. I have a simple strategy that works almost every time. This strategy requires you to be patient, consistent and confident. The reason it works is simple. We are human and humans respond to certain situations much the same.

The strategy for optimum child learning

This strategy will be so simple you may find it difficult to believe but I guarantee you it will work on most children.

Be consistent – Let’s say you want a child to go to bed at 8pm on the dot every night. Do it every night at the same time. Have a set routine and DO NOT waver. Regardless of how much they fight and cry and scream at 8pm it’s off to bed.

Acknowledge good behaviour – All children want to be noticed. If you make a big deal and respond positively to good behaviour (E.g. going to bed at 8pm) they are more likely to want to do it again.

Time out – When children misbehave and resist your requests you need to give them time out. Time out is often necessary when a child is use to getting their way. In other words they are use to winning.

Tantrum time

So far I have given you an understanding of how children think and respond to a range of situations. Now it is time to tackle the big one. Tantrums. A tantrum is just extreme behaviour. A young child is not physically capable of doing much else. Almost all children discover the tantrum at some point. For the child a tantrum is often initially a build up of emotions. They begin by wanting some control over their situation. When they are unable to get control they get frustrated. The frustration usually comes from the fact that they believe the object of their desire is just out of their reach. Imagine there was a cake sitting on a kitchen bench and it was just out of their reach. At first they try to stretch out their arm but once they realise it they cannot grab it they will become frustrated which leads eventually to an emotional outburst. Once you give them the cake they instantly stop and are all smiles. But this unfortunately is not the result we are looking for. What we want is for the child to stop instantly without receiving the cake. We want them to deal with this emotion in another way. If the cake becomes the diffuser they are heading for a difficult adulthood. So let us begin with the strategies for avoiding tantrums without the need for cake so to speak.

Time out

Time out is an interesting one. It is a very predictable human behaviour. Time out must be done correctly. In most cases it needs to be demonstrated because it is mostly in the delivery. If you are not serious about your delivery children will quickly pick up on the fact and it will be ineffecteive. The whole idea is the child must know they will not win so they may as well deal with it and play by the rules. If a child knows there is a boundary that cannot be crossed they will soon give up. Conversely if a child knows they have a good chance of winning the will persist to the point of a tantrum.

A typical example of a child tantrum

I will use a fictional child named Mary. Now Mary is out shopping with Mum and has spotted the ice cream shop. The conversation goes something like this.

Mary – “Mummy I want an ice cream”

Mum – “Not today. May be next time”

Mary – “No I want an ice cream now”

Mum – “I am sorry Mary but you can’t have an ice cream now. How about we have a look at the book shop”

Mary -”No! I hate books. I WANT an ice cream. If you don’t buy me an icecream I will get very angry”

Mary begins to get upset and angry. Mum does everything she can to try and distract her and calm her down but Mary is getting more and more worked up and begins to cry and even scream. Mum also is getting frustrated and even a little embarrassed.

Mum – “Stop it Mary. You are embarrassing me. I am sick of your screaming. You always do this. You always want to get your way missy. Well not his time. If you don’t stop it we are going home now”

Mary continues her crying and screaming and Mum realises the only way to stop Mary’s behaviour is to either give in and buy her an ice cream or drag her home kicking and screaming. Either way is a bad result.

There is a better way.

First of all remain calm. Depending on the age either pick them up or hold their hand and take them to any place where they can stand safely. Ask them to remain there until they are ready to behave. Walk away but stay within sight. Now just wait a few minutes. Keep your eye on them but avoid eye contact if they are looking at you. After about 2 minutes walk back and crouch down to their level and ask them “Are you ready to behave?” At this point they will either be ready to behave or they will need more time. If they need more time say “I will be over there when you are ready” and walk away again. Three times if necessary. Finally when they back down ask them if they understand what they did wrong and ask them to apologise.

The routine should be consistent each time. This is a time out process. Time out for a child gives them a chance to deal with their emotions. You are literally teaching a technique to calm themselves down when they get upset. You are also teaching them that throwing a tantrum will only ever result in them getting time out. You send them a clear message that when they are with you they need to act and behave with respect for your rules.

When you master the above technique children (especially young children) will literally go from a tantrum to a happy child within a minute or two. I will do this with children I am working with an their parents think I have performed some kind of magic. It’s no magic. A child’s behaviour is simply predictable most of the time.

I hope this article has been informative. Remember it is action that is required. Please come and visit my blog for more proven strategies on working with children either as a teacher. http://howchildrenthinkandlearn.blogspot.com/

If you have any questions or need advice on working with children please feel free to contact myself at g4guitar@bmpmusic.com.au

David Hart has been teaching guitar for over 20 years and playing since 1980. David’s experience with young children is extensive. David now owns and operates a chain of guitar schools across Sydney. David also advises many other music schools and teachers on how to work with children in terms of learning music. In the field of guitar education there are few teachers how would have more real life practical experience than David. David’s key to success is what he calls his research approach to teaching. This means he treats his lessons like a research project constantly looking for what works verses what does not. This research also includes keeping up to date on the findings from around the world. David’s gift is simplifying what he knows so it can be applied and understood simply and easily. To contact David please feel free to email him at g4guitar@bmpmusic.com.au

As a pet owner, do you need to have a pet trust or will in your estate plan? Well, maybe so, given the fact that in the American society of today one fundamental sociological reality has now become absolutely indisputable and well-established, namely, that America’s house pets (generally defined nowadays to include dogs, cats, fish, reptiles, and other small animals) are increasingly considered a member of the family or a child, and not just “animals” any more.

The evidence? The results of many credible surveys and studies, for example, which show, as in the case of an October 1999 report by the USA Today newspaper, for example, that more than 66% of American pet owners consider their pets as “a member of the family,” or as in the case of a more recent survey by the American Animal Hospital Association, which show that a whopping 84% of them thought of their animal companions as being their kids. As well as the evidence from the physical attitude, treatment and relationship of pet owners towards their companion animals. Unfortunately, however, that’s not the case! Not at all. In deed, quite the opposite is the case with most pet owners. Yes, it’s true that among pet lovers a strong impulse and wish often exists to make such a provision for the care of their pets in the event of the incapacity or death of the pet owner. But, typically, the vast majority of the American pet owners generally fail to follow through, however, to actually translate that professed desire into reality for the pets’ future. In point of fact, the most modern and effective way to “plan” for the pet’s future protection and care in case of a serious contingency, is through setting up an estate planning instrument called a “pet trust” for the pets. With a valid pet trust (and a few other simple estate planning vehicles related to it), you can make specific provisions for the care of your pets in the event of your disability or death, and provide for a reliable caretaker and funding arrangement for the pet which will be legally enforceable by the courts.

Nevertheless, most pet owners fail to set up such a device for their pets. Most pet owners, in deed even the estate plan professionals and lawyers in the field, are not too well informed about it. Pet owners pathetically fail, in overwhelming numbers, either to make any estate planning at all in their own affairs, or to include their pets in such plans, and frequently wind up leaving their pets with no protections and subject to undue sufferings, agony, even euthanasia after their owners are incapacitated or dead.

David Congalton, co-author of “When Your Pet Outlives You,” puts it this way: “How many of us have already gone the extra step to make sure our animal companions are safe if something unexpected happens to us? The Answer is NOT many.”

One 2000 study, for example, by pet law expert and pioneer, Prof. Gerry W. Beyer, reports that only between 12 percent and 27 percent of pet owners have provisions in their wills relating to their companion animals. JUST 27 percent – AT THE MOST!

NO WAY TO TREAT YOUR REAL MINOR CHILDREN. Pets, Our “Children”? Our “family members”?

Many studies have been conducted which show that many dogs, cats and other pets found in shelters end up there only because their owners became unexpectedly ill or incapacitated, or were for some reason unable to care for them, or died without leaving any plans for their pets’ next home or care.

A survey conducted between 1994 and 1997 by the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy, for example, found “that 64 percent of all pets that entered the participating shelters for any reasons, were euthanized.” And David Congalton & Charlottte Alexander, co-authors of When Your Pet Outlives You, confirm that “More than 15 million dogs and cats are euthanized in animal shelters across the nation annually…[shelters] currently handle less than 1 percent of the nationwide abandoned parrot population.”

Can you possibly imagine our treating our HUMAN minor children with such gross neglect or carelessness, even indifference and callousness? We would all almost surely be hauled to jail en mass for the crime of abandonment and neglect of our helpless, innocent, loving minor children, wouldn’t we? Can you possibly imagine us leaving our minor or infant HUMAN children completely to fend for themselves when we’re not there, and without the normal protections and safeguards as would assure that they’ll have some substitute home and a caretaker, if we were not able or around, as are largely accorded them today? Or, possibly imagine us leaving our real minor human children behind with virtually one certain realistic fate for them – euthanasia and death?

Clearly, the main reason why these animals wind up wandering the streets or get euthanized, after their owners are incapacitated or dead, is because they simply can’t find homes. Their owners had made no thorough plan or arrangement – an estate plan – that would have put together such an arrangement for a next home, a suitable caretaker, and the funding plan, to assure that objective for the pets. Not a particularly comforting scenario especially for those of us who think of our pets as being like our kids! We have all heard the “horror stories” about pets being left behind in homes and apartments after the September 11th tragedy and the Katrina disaster. Such stories were, of course, more “visible.” And are seemingly more horrifying because of that visibility factor. The central problem of the kind of frightening fate that pets face when they’re left behind with no good estate plan arrangement, however, is not by any means uncommon or limited. It is general and widespread. And, it is real for most pets – long, long before September 11th and Katrina, and thereafter to this date.

THE MESSAGE? Take advantage of the recent advancements in the pet laws of the nation and simply create a good estate plan, including a valid “pet trust,” making specific provisionsfor the care of your pets in the event of your disability or death, and provide for a reliable caretaker and funding arrangement for the pet that will be legally enforceable by the courts. A good estate plan for the pet, to be complete, should also include a host of other special instruments, ranging from a suitable durable power of attorney, animal cards and animal identification and information documents, to Inter Vivos or Testamentary trust, etc. With such a plan in place, you’ll pretty much assure that in the event of any serious emergency in your life, your pets will not likely wind up in the pound or shelter somewhere awaiting euthanasia, but will be taken into a safe home and will be properly cared for by a responsible, caring caretaker

WHAT A WAY TO DEMONSTRATE OUR OWN UNCONDITIONAL LOVE FOR OUR PETS! We talk all the time about the unconditional love of our pets for us – unfailingly. Now, what about our own UNCONDITIONAL LOVE for them? Clearly, the ultimate, most genuine expression of ‘LOVE’ that we can bestow as a pet owner upon a beloved animal companion, is to assure a legally valid estate plan by which that pet animal would be protected and properly cared for in the event of our incapacitation or death.

Dog, cat, pet estate planning your pet’s future pet trust and will dog, cat, pet estate planning with will and pet trust [http://www.EstatePlanAndTrustforPets.com/index.html].

http://www.EstatePlanAndTrustForPets.Com [http://www.EstatePlanAndTrustForPets.Com/id60.html]

Learning tennis can start at various ages. Some pick it up at a tender age of 3 – 4 years old. Others do not have the opportunity until later in life. Nevertheless, learning tennis is important for all ages, especially for kids for the following reasons and arguments:

• Tennis is a form of exercise

No matter how you see it, tennis will always give you some cardio work out which makes it a form of exercise. Tennis involves running, sprinting at times, stretching for the ball, power and grace. It not only requires physical agility but mental prowess as well. I thoroughly enjoy tennis as it gives me a good work out;

• Tennis stimulates the mind

For most people, tennis is merely a physical sport. Nothing more. But, if you look closely, you will realize that tennis requires more mental toughness and mental alertness than one would think it requires. For the competitive player, it is easily more than 80% mental than physical. Choosing the correct shot at the appropriate time is more important than just whacking the ball hard. This requires the mind to be nimble and agile to quickly discern the appropriate shot to make in order to win the point.

• Tennis improves your social network and self esteem.

We are all human beings. We require to be amongst people. Tennis will give you that opportunity to mingle and interact with people in a fun and engaging environment. It will help you to form or enter an already established social group. It helps to build you up as a person too. Not all of us are champion tennis players. That said, being able to hit a tennis ball well at times certainly gives me a sense of satisfaction and raises my self-belief a little more. It allows you to make more friends and feel that you belong.

• Tennis improves your mental toughness

Tennis, unknown to most players, requires one to really focus and execute an action within a split second. For competition players, tennis helps to improve their self worth and esteem. One has to be able to lose graciously, pick one self up and move on in life to the next match. Losing helps to humble oneself. It teaches one how to lose and yet be happy about it. One has to realize that here is more than life than just winning.

• Tennis is good for young kids

If you have the ability, let your kids try tennis at a young age. It will help to build them up physically and mentally. Tennis will open doors for these kids ie they may be able to get scholarships to various universities. It will help to toughen them up mentally. Of course, the physical aspects of tennis training will also make one stronger and fitter.

• You could learn tennis and be a coach

Tennis can be a means for making a living for some. Ideally, a competitive player, once retired or being injured could decide to take some coaching courses and become a tennis coach. Coaching can be rewarding financially but more importantly it can also be beneficial emotionally as you see your charges grow up to be men or women of stature in society. For some, tennis could give you an extra bit of income while you are studying in university.

• Tennis can be a business

Apart from being a coach, there are many business aspects relating to tennis. One can open up a sports shop selling tennis gear and equipment. You can sell tennis rackets, tennis shoes, tennis bags and many other items related to tennis. You could start and run a tennis club with membership fees. It can be quite lucrative and fun at the same time. Organising tennis tours to various tournaments globally can be another venture to look into.

Ultimately, if you ask any tennis enthusiasts what he thinks of tennis. You will get the answer that tennis has become a part of his life because of all or some of the reasons above. So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for your first tennis lesson and you will not look back again!. Happy Playing and Learning!

As an avid tennis player, I had my fair share of experiences in trying to find out which are the best ways to learn tennis in Singapore.

I hope this article will provide some guidance for all would-be tennis players! If you find this article useful and would really wish to learn tennis, please visit: http://www.singaporetennislesson.com

Happy Learning & Playing!
http://www.1sports.asia
Premier Sports Marketing Asia

Let there be no doubt about it…you need to be very careful when selecting a professional resume-writer. These days, anyone can say, “I’m a resume-writer,” and technically never have even finished high school…much less have any idea how to write a professional resume that will get you interviews.

 

Also, with the popularity of the Internet, I have heard that some companies have actually tried to fool the public by ranking themselves as #1 in fake Top 10 Resume Writing Service lists! And let’s not forget those resume-writing services that actually send your personal information overseas and outsource the writing to someone who has no idea about the person you are.

 

Can you believe it?

 

When people are considering the purchase of professional resume-writing services, I advise them to “shop around.” So here are the five factors you should consider when choosing who to trust writing your professional resume and cover letter…

 

1. Are You Purchasing Services From A Resume-Writer Or A “Resume Factory?”

 

The easiest way to tell if the resume-writing service is a “resume factory” is their very low prices. No one can make any money in this industry charging less than $100 for a resume – unless, they have a production line setup. Or they create low-quality resumes or have poor service.

 

If you choose one of these “resume factories” that claim to have written thousands and thousands of resumes, you should know that although they say they never use “cookie-cutter” templates, they probably do.

 

And as a result, your resume will be just like everyone else’s and will sabotage your chances of getting calls for an interview.

 

2. What Kind Of “Process” Does The Resume-Writer Use?

A great resume can’t be written from a questionnaire alone, no matter how good the resume-writer is! Unfortunately, many of the resume-writing services make this very claim that they can create a winning resume with just a 20 question questionnaire filled out online.

 

Now seriously, how much could a complete stranger know about you in 20 measly questions without talking to you or meeting you?

 

You will find that the best professional resume-writers will be willing to meet with you in person (if possible), or do phone and/or email consultations with you as they write your resume and cover letter in addition to providing you with a questionnaire and compiling information from your previous resumes.

 

Additionally, when it comes to “turnaround time,” those resume-writers who promise to have your resume complete in 48 hours or less are either part of a “resume factory,” are using “cookie-cutter” templates and merely plugging in your work information, or they get a very low volume of business (something that should concern you).

 

So be sure to do your research about a resume-writer’s or company’s writing process before purchasing any of their services!

 

3. Does The Resume-Writer Have Any Proven Sales Or Marketing Experience?

 

Now this may sound like an odd factor to consider, but if you never learned this, you should know that your resume is a direct marketing sales-letter! Let’s face it – you have no doubt heard of best-selling authors. Have you ever heard of best-writing authors? Of course not! Those best-selling authors are able to sell and market the message of their books.

 

My point is this, just about anyone with spell check and grammar check on their computer can write a resume. But, it takes a very special person with a background in sales and/or marketing to bring that resume to life and “sell the reader” on why they should call you for an interview!

 

4. Does The Resume-Writer Offer A Guarantee For Their Services?

 

Any great resume-writer will stand by their work and offer to re-write your resume at no additional cost if it is not getting you any interviews within a certain number of days (usually 60-90). This is their professional pledge to you.

 

However, you as a job-seeker must also do your part in sending out more than just a few resumes, and most importantly – follow up with the employers you sent your resume and cover letter to. It’s amazing how few people actually do this!

 

Remember, your resume is a direct marketing sales-letter. Your “customers” are prospective employers. Any good salesman or saleswoman knows the rewards are in the follow-up!

 

5. How Much Does The Resume-Writer Charge For Their Professional Services?

 

I am sure that you have figured out (hopefully not the hard way) that in life, you definitely get what you pay for! Of course the price is important, but it is not nearly as important as having a winning resume that gets employers to call you for an interview today!

 

It all goes back to “cost versus value.” What do you get in terms of benefits for the price you pay? What do you get in the package deals? What kind of guarantee do they offer? Have they had other satisfied customers share their stories in believable testimonials?

 

You might want to look at it this way…

 

If I offered you a piece of paper with some scribbles and drawings on it for $1,000 – would you buy it? Probably not. However, if that paper with scribbles and drawings was a map that led to a buried treasure worth $100,000 or more – would you buy it?

 

Let’s hope so! That would definitely be the investment of the century! A hundred-fold return on your investment. (If only Wall St. could create those kinds of returns…legally!) I like to look at investing in a resume-writer the same way. If a resume-writer charges $200 for a professional resume, and that resume leads to a job that pays a yearly salary of $40,000 – you just made a two hundred-fold return on your investment! Now that’s really smart investing…

 

Additionally, if a professional resume-writer is guaranteeing his or her work and is willing to re-write your documents for 60-90 days at no extra cost to you, then you don’t have anything to lose. The risk is all on the resume-writer! So when you are considering investing in a professional resume-writer, take all of these five factors into consideration and make a wise career decision!

Known for writing winning resumes and cover letters that have led to job interviews for over 90% of his clients, Kristopher Marek provides professional resume writing services for job seekers looking for a better paying and more personally-satisfying career. If you are interested in learning more about his services, you can contact him via email at winningresumewriter [at] yahoo.com

Are you in the market for a dog trainer? Do you want your dog to learn from a top notch certified dog trainer? You may have dreams of seeing your dog in professional dog competitions and shows. Therefore, you need to have your dog trained by a certified dog trainer to ensure the best results.

Why should you hire a certified dog trainer instead of a basic dog trainer? A certified dog trainer is one that takes their dog training career seriously enough to become certified. You can feel comfortable in the fact that they have met high dog training standards and passed certification exams and tests. You don’t want a fly-by-night dog trainer, but a certified dog trainer that is in it for the long haul.

How do you find a certified dog trainer? There are numerous dog trainers available in the market place today. Dog trainers range in age, skill level, and experience. Your neighbor might tell you that they are a dog trainer because they have read a few books on the subject and taught their dog to fetch the newspaper. This is not sufficient dog training experience.

You should consult a variety of resources. Try asking your dog breeder, groomer, and veterinarian. They can direct you to local dog training schools that have certified dog trainers on their faculty. Various pet supply stores have dog training programs that train and certify their dog trainers. Example pet supply stores include PETCO.

However, research what they mean by “certification”. Is the certification by PETCO standards only or by a universal certification? Find out what the requirements are for their certified dog trainers. Only then can you determine if their dog trainers will supply the skill level and experience you desire.

You need to find a dog trainer that has had comprehensive training and can proudly demonstrate that they are a certified dog trainer. Be aware, though, that there are many “certified dog training” schools and home correspondence courses available. Not all of these schools are credible nor do they provide proper instruction. You need to find a dog trainer that has certification as described by the Certification Council for Pet Dog Trainers.

The Certification Council for Pet Dog Trainers is a well respected organization that provides testing and certification services for dog trainers. They administer specific dog training tests in various states around the country approximately twice per year. These intensive tests root out the professional dog trainer from the average dog trainer. Check out their website at: http://www.ccpdt.org/.

The Certification Council for Pet Dog Trainers also provides a listing of certified dog trainers. You can search through this listing to find a certified dog trainer in your area. This roster of certified dog trainers comprises certified dog trainers all over the world. The certified dog trainer list will give you their contact information including name, city, phone number, and e-mail address. Another great feature is that they list the date the dog trainer became certified. This will let you know how many years they have been in the dog training business. Peruse the list at: [http://ccpdt.org/rstr/index.html].

Certified pet trainers do not only need to pass a certification exam and testing, they must also continue their education through workshops, conferences, and other means. When selecting a certified dog trainer ask them about the extent of their continuing education. You want a certified dog trainer that continues to hone their craft. They should actively learning about various dog training methods. This demonstrates that they are committed to providing the best dog training.

A certified dog trainer should have at least three to five years of dog training experience. This is especially true if they charge higher fees. You can take the plunge with a newly certified dog trainer if cost is an issue. Newly certified dog trainers may charge lower rates in order to establish a list of clients and garner experience. “Master” certified dog trainers are those that have twenty to thirty years of experience. They may have great skill and in depth background experience, but may come at a higher price.

You have the beginning knowledge regarding finding a certified dog trainer. Spend time searching resources available through your dog breeder, veterinarian, and pet supply store. Scour the book store, library, and Internet for detailed information. You can find a certified dog trainer in your area as well.

You wouldn’t go to an unlicensed doctor would you? So why would go to a trainer that is not certified? Certified dog trainers are out there and ready to help you and your pooch learn valuable skills. They are committed to your dog, their career, and learning everything they can about becoming a top notch dog trainer. Who knows, your certified dog trainer may help your dog win the Westminster dog show. Not only would your dog be trained well and achieve glory, but the expense would be well worth it.

Visit the dog products [http://www.dog-breeds-infosite.com] website to research dog breeds & get free tips on dog training, dog health, dog grooming & how to find dog sitters & dog walkers.

The idea behind a conventional, commercial blog is find a money-making marketing niche and then post large amounts of high-quality, original content related to that niche on a very regular basis. If you are an excellent writer who is an expert in the subject of that blog, you might be able to post new content on a daily basis. If you don’t do this, your blog will slip in the search engine rankings and no longer be a profitable venture. So, by starting a commercial blog, you have just signed up for a full-time profession as a writer and webmaster. It would seem that a single person, regardless of how much of an expert they might be, would run out of new ideas for posts at some time and then the blog would fail for lack of new content. At some point, you might want to think about adding posts from sources other than yourself, as long as the content is original. Original content that you did not write yourself is very difficult to find unless you pay other people to create it for you.

You must also monetize your blog, meaning that you must place banner and text ads for products closely related to your blog theme. The idea there is that you will have already attracted highly targeted web traffic to your blog for the very products you are selling.

In order to have this targeted traffic in sufficient quantities to sell enough products to make all your hard work worthwhile you must do the things needed to rank high in the search engines for the best keywords for your blog. Your blog should be optimized for the search engines and you must build as many quality backlinks as you are able in as many locations as possible, all of them pointing back to your blog.

This may include submitting lots of articles related to your blog theme to different article marketing sites. You should optimize your articles to contain your foremost keyword or keywords in a ratio of 1 to 4 percent of the total words in the article. The “self-serving” links you will be permitted at the end of your article will be converted into powerful backlinks for you in the years to come. You might also want to think about paid advertising such as Google AdWords but I would not recommend that because of the high “cost to result ratio,” particularly when you are just beginning with no profits yet to pay for the advertising.

You can also post positive and pertinent comments to closely-related blogs and forums. After all this additional work is done, you may want to think about adding a squeeze page to your blog, building an opt-in email marketing list and formulating email campaigns with the purpose of encouraging visitors to return to your blog and obtain your products.

If all this sounds like a lot of work, it is and I have simply been talking, so far, about keeping and promoting a single blog related to a single theme and selling only products closely related to that theme. Under the theory that more is better and pretending that you are some sort of gifted being with endless time on your hands, why not create another blog on another popular but different theme and double your profits. How about 4 blogs, thus quadrupling your returns or 7 or 16 or 32 or even 64 blogs and becoming staggeringly wealthy in the process?

I’m sure, by this time, you can deduce where all this is leading: How is a single person going to be ever able to achieve this? This brings me to the subject matter of auto blogging. Auto blogging software was invented to automate the process of periodic blog posting to numerous blogs. At first blush, it sounds like a miracle but it is, upon close inspection, far from a perfect solution. Auto blogging software goes out onto the web and locates articles and videos that can be legally reproduced and which match the keywords related to your niche. You input these keywords into the software during the process of setting up each blog.

After this is complete, you then have to decide whether to let the software robotically post up to a specified number of articles or videos on an hourly or daily basis. Alternatively, you have the option of simply collecting those prospective posts in a folder where they will wait for your personal review. You can then pick which articles and videos will actually be posted on the blog and which will be erased. Using this option will improve the quality of your blogs considerably. It will also take more of your time.

It is crucial not to have the software post automatically. If you automate the process, you will just get a lot of rubbish on your blogs, some of which does not even apply to the individual themes of your blogs. You will be creating a bunch of blogs that no one will want to read. To make matters worse, the search engines will never list your blogs high enough that they will be seen in the listings. In short, all of your blogs will probably fail and you will have wasted all your time and money.

The good news is that there exists a middle-ground alternative to pure auto blogging and that is to post all the articles and videos by hand. It should be understood that the search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing are biased strongly in favor of blogs using purely-original, high-quality content. As we have already discussed, making such a blog is a very labor-intensive and time-consuming venture but it is frequently rewarded with listings on the first page of search engines in some of the niches that relate to your keywords. These keywords should appear frequently (up to 4%) in your posts to exhibit relevancy to your blog theme.

If you go the auto blogging route but thoroughly screen your posts before permitting them to appear publically, you will increase your odds of excellent search engine rankings. However, you will be still saddled with the search engines determining that your content is not original. The search engines will know that it has showed up elsewhere on the web previously to being posted on your blog. If you keep your content pertinent to your theme and of the highest quality and post systematically (preferably 7 days a week), you can still magnetize an abundance of traffic and fairly high search engine rankings. If you add in some absolutely original articles that you have written, your search engine rankings should go even a bit higher.

Admittedly, you are making a compromise here between top-quality content and saving time and work. Modified auto blogging provides you with a means of making up for using somewhat less-than-original content: You will now have the opportunity to build multiple blogs on different themes and hence promote different types of products in larger quantities. The perception is that while no one blog will perform as well as if it were made up totally of high-quality, original material, some or most of the blogs will, in due course, bring in some amount of cash each day. As an example, if you maintained 50 blogs averaging only $10 each in sales a day, you be raking in $500 each day, on average. That would equate to annual gross sales of $182,500 a year. If your 50 blogs averaged $100 each a day, the annual amount would be $1,825,000. No lone blog is going to provide that for you.

In actuality, you will soon discover that a number of your blogs perform very well in the long run while others bring in no income at all. Even with partial automation, posting to 50 blogs each day and promoting them all simultaneously is going to end up being more than you can manage if you hope to do the best possible job with each individual blog.

When you initially set up your blogs, take care that each is set up to be tracked by Google Analytics so that you can periodically observe and record the progress of each blog in terms of traffic. Keep a spreadsheet of these traffic results and update it frequently. After a couple months of systematically posting to all of your blogs, you will find out that some are beginning to perform very well while others are a big disappointment. You need to give this process sufficient time for your blogs to be discovered and followed.

At this point in time you must cull or get rid of all blogs that are performing below a certain standard while keeping the more lively ones. If you did away with twenty blogs out of your original 50 you could slash your total daily posting time considerably while giving complete support to just high-performing blogs. After a period of time, you might decide to remove even more and replace them with new blogs promoting new products and see how those perform.

Look at it this way: Which is better, 50 blogs bringing in $10 each a day ($500) or ten blogs earning $50 each a day ($500)? The answer is obviously ten blogs each bringing in $50 a day because the labor and time required to accomplish that is just 20% of the first option. Look at the entire process of arriving at that point like planting a garden, waiting for the plants to grow, finding the strongest plants and then weeding out all the lesser plants to provide the sturdy ones the best opportunity to grow while cutting your labor to the bone. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Bob Gillespie

© 2011 Robert M. Gillespie, Jr.

About the Author:

Bob Gillespie writes on many subjects including multi-blog marketing. He is a full-time Internet marketer and author who lives on the island of Maui in Hawaii. Learn more about multi-blog marketing online at Bob’s blog at:

http://multi-blog-marketing.inetwyoming.com

Another blog of possible interest:

http://niche-affiliate-marketing.inetwyoming.com

The incredible art of fly fishing was initially developed as an angling method to catch salmon and trout. Whilst its predominantly enjoyed by the older generation of anglers,this time tested technique is fast catching the attention and interests of a whole new generation of enthusiasts. In recent years, interest in fly fishing has surged as baby boomers have discovered the sport. No matter what your skill level is, fly fishing can be highly rewarding.

The two major misconceptions about this technique is that it’s difficult to do and expensive. If you are a beginner fly fisherman, get started by: Getting involved with other sportsmen from your community or try a fishing club. Treat yourself, your spouse or your entire family to the pleasures of the sport. Explore new water,discover resources and start your fishing journey. If your looking for a place to fish,you can research all major rivers and many lesser-known ones on the internet,obtaining helpful fishing and information about each. With thousands of miles of fishing tributaries and lakes the opportunities are many. You can go fishing in the morning before work for a hour or two if you live close enough to good fishing water. I used to live in Cody WY and many anglers fished at sunrise and sunset for an hour or two trying to get one of the monster rainbow trout from the local lake.

Fly Fishing Equipment

Compared to the gear of other sports, fly fishing gear has changed very little over the years. When going on a fishing trip you want to be sure you have all the proper fishing gear such as flies,lures and accessories. There is nothing worse than getting to your destination and finding out you forgot something.

For the most part,the gear used today is not so different from how it was yesterday. It’s just important to pick the appropriate fishing equipment, for the type of fishing you will be doing. A fly rods length factors into the fishing rods action. Shorter rods generally have less action than longer rods because they generate less torque when casting and reeling. Use medium-sized eight or nine-foot fishing rods in most fly fishing conditions. Beginners find medium-action fly rods easy to handle. Stiff fast-action fly rods bend at the end of the rod and do not have a lot of give.Graphite fishing rods are more expensive than fiberglass rods but lightweight graphite fly rods typically allow more accurate casting.

Fly Fishing Knots

The fly line and leader are important parts of fly fishing physics. Learning to tie the proper knots to attach your leaders and flies is critical. Some of the most common flies used in fly fishing include dry, nymph, and streamers. A detailed discussion of most of these knots is available in any good book on fishing. Your fishing education will progress rapidly if you take advantage of the free information you can get at the library. In a good book you will find fly fishing knots that will cover just about every situation you will encounter where a specific knot is needed.

Learning to Cast

Unlike other casting methods, fly fishing can be thought of as a method of casting line rather than a lure. Besides the obvious difference in the actual method of casting, normal fishing and fly fishing also vary in the equipment used. If you would like personalized instruction, there are hundreds of fly fishing schools scattered about the world. So,if you have never been fly fishing before, a great way to learn is to take few lessons from a local instructor. Taking lessons from a professional instructor to learn the basics and perfect your technique will speed up the learning curve. This means you’ll have a lot more fun fishing. If you can’t cast you can’t catch a fish. There are many Fishing Shops and guides whom teach basic fly fishing classes both off the water and on.

Continue to Learn

Get as much information you can from books, magazines, and videos on fishing,fly casting, tying flies and tying knots. Join a fishing club to further your fishing education and enjoy the company of interesting people that enjoy fishing. With the right fishing equipment and information on hand you will have a lifetime of fun fishing.

I’ve been fly fishing my whole life, over 30 years. It seems like I’m always learning something new. I try to share what I know with people because that’s how I learned. I make this information available for FREE at http://flyfishingeducation.info/

By the end of 2004 blogs had established themselves as a key

part of online culture. “Blog readership shoots up 58% in

2004 6 million Americans get news and information fed to

them through RSS aggregators But 62% of online Americans do

not know what a blog is.” – Pew Internet & American Life

Project

Tip #1 – How and Where Should I Start?

You should begin your blog with a free blog hosting service

such as Blogger (http://www.blogger.com), or other similar

free services such as JournalHome.com, LiveJournal.com or

Blog-City.com. The learning curve for using such free

services allow you to spend more on developing your content

rather than worrying about the advanced areas of scripting,

hosting, or programming.

Tip #2 – The Things You Should Decide to Write About

Although not a required prerequisite for you in order to

write a blog, it is highly recommended to try to find a

topic to write about based on your level of interest and

knowledge. The higher your level of interest, the easier it

is for you to get your quality content posted on your blog.

Always try to choose an area which you can enthusiastically

write about on a daily basis.Try to pay attention to a niche

which suites you well. A niche is basically a targeted

product, service, or topic.

Tip #3 – Always stay on topic.

Opinions are generally accepted but the content of the items

in the blog should all relate to a general theme. The

majority of your readers will be interested in the content

that relates to a specific defined theme or loosely defined

area of interest. Define a topic and try not to run too far

away from it. This will ensure that you create a loyal

following of interested readers.

Tip #4 – Information is king, be informative.

If you are attempting to create the impression that you are

knowledgeable about a specific industry or sector, be sure

that you stay current on news. Checking your facts before

you’re giving out an opinion or a product review is always a

good idea, your reputation is at stake. If by any chance

you’re utilizing other people’s articles for you blog

content, ensure that you follow the terms of usage defined

by the author.

Tip #5 – Old news is not news, but old information can be

recycled and made new.

While blogging everyday can be

strenuous and time consuming, it is important that the

information presented is current and accurate. Information,

articles or any other archived resources can be recycled /

modified to add more substance to your content. As long as

they’re relevant and informative, there’s no reason why it’s

not a good approach.

Tip #6 – Be disciplined and stick to a fixed posting

schedule.

Realizing that blogging requires time and effort,

don’t create unrealistic expectations and be unable to

deliver. If you have worked hard to develop an audience and

a community you don’t want to lose them due to lack of

communication. If time is not on your side, take advantage

of tonnes of automatically updating contents which are

available for your blog. Looking at the constantly updating

nature of RSS feeds, other RSS feeds from similar topic can

be inserted within your blogging post.

Tip #7 – Posting Frequency.

If your blog content is updated frequently, search engines

will tend to spider the pages at regular intervals. Updating

your blog daily not only keeps your blog more interesting to

readers, but it also gives your blog fresh content on a day

to day making it more appealing to search engines. To keep

your blog traffic and retain your visitors interest it is a

must to update your blog daily with multiple entries. You

should try to update your blog everyday with at least 2 – 3

or more daily entries, depending on your daily schedule.

Tip #8 – Quantity matters.

In order to attract the attention of search engines, you

will need to produce a relevant amount of content and

information. A headline or simple sentence is not going to

generate the interest of readers or help with search engine

ranking. Be sure to archive old blog posts to develop a

large portal of similarly-themed content.

Tip #9 – Clarity & simplicity / Short & Concise.

Keep your posts and blog entries clear and easy to

understand. Simplicity always produce better results at the

end of the day.

Aside from the lengthy article a week for syndication and

publication your blog entries should be short & concise (if

you can help it). Should you insist on partaking on the

lengthy road, try to maintain a clean paragraphing style,

proper spacing, use different size, color and bold for your

titles as well as the subtitles. Use bullet points, go

straight to the point and never run out of topic. Insert

images to spice up things if you’re an avid fan of long

posts.

Tip #10 – Utilize the “blockquote” and “code” tags.

Being one of the few most underutilized blogging formatting

tags, these 2 items can help you on emphasizing certain

points, in the most efficient and striking way. Formatting

is simple and straightforward. Just get your message into a blockquote tag, and your message will apear

distinctively different from the rest of your text, thus

gets more attention which it deserves. Take note that the

formatting for these 2 tags differ from blog to blog

depending on how the owner defines the tag in the CSS

(Cascading Style Sheets).Click the below link if you want to read more about CSS.

http://www.w3schools.com/css/default.asp

Tip #11 – Keyword-rich.

If the goal of your blog is to increase your visibility,

include related keywords in the title of the blog. Use the

title as a headline to attract interest. Each item post

should have a title that will attract attention but still be

relevant to the post. The title should be no longer than

10-12 words. Experiment with the titles if you must,

possibly try to avoid general and ordinary titles. Try to

include extraordinary and innovative titles to grab the

readers’ attention.

Tip #12 – Spell checking and proof-reading.

It only takes a few extra moments and can save you from

having to make embarrassing explanations. The hazards of

Internet is that if you’re too late to correct your mistake,

most likely it’s already been crawled by the search engines

and read by many. It is extremely essential to think / proof

read carefully twice or even thrice, about what you post

before doing so. Take note of your language and grammar.

Tip #13 – RSS Feeds

RSS to a blog is like fuel to cars. Mostly every single free

blogs or bloggin software out there will have an automatic

RSS feed generating feature. Although it’s most unlikely

that you’ll find one without a RSS feature, simply leave it

and find a new one, if you happen to come across one without

it.

Tip #14 – The essence of the Internet – Traffic.

It’s no

secret. You must have traffic to realize the definition of a

blog.. There are numerous ways to build traffic. Paid and

free advertising, viral marketing, search engine marketing,

RSS/XML feeds, word-of-mouth, submitting to numerous blog

and RSS directories, etc. RSSBlogsubmit (

http://www.rssblogsubmit.com) provides a submission service

for your Blog & RSS feeds. You should always use your blog

URL address in the signature of your email, forum

discussions, message boards, or any other communication

media. Never forget to share your blog to your friends,

colleagues, and any other invidious that you know of.

Tip #15 – Track Your Blog

Tracking your blog does not have to be overly sophisticated

usually a simple free page counter like StatCounter.com,

ActiveMeter.com, Extremetracking.com or Sitemeter.com will

do the trick. Install (copy/paste) the code into the html of

your blog template and start tracking your visitors. Its

better to use a service which gives you advanced traffic

analysis, such as keyword tracking information, referral

information, and search engine information. Visitors,

returning visitors, and unique visitors should be standard

for any page counter service you choose.

Tip #16 – Make use of your Blog’s statistical and tracking information.

Believe it or not, your visitors’ information

from your tracking scripts will provide you priceless

information on how you can attract more readers. Keep note

on the keyword terms used from search engines which bring

you traffic. You can identify relevant closely related

topics which you can venture into and add more variety into

your blog, yet staying very much in topic. Simply put, more

topic coverage and more variety = more traffic. You may

analyze your tracking information further on how you can

strategize your blog’s content. You can also apply some

keyword optimization strategies here.

Tip #17 – The essence of your Blog is your Audience, listen

to them.

Always interact with your readers who post comments

on your blog. Reply with a brief thank you note or just

simply attend to their questions if they have any. It’s a

proven fact when there’s a direct human interaction and

knowing the fact that there’s a “real human” at the other

end of the blog makes most of them coming back. If your

audience provide suggestions, comments or feedbacks, take

them constructively and inform them if you have any desires

of implementing such ideas on your next update. And of

course, don’t forget to thank them for their ideas. If it’s

a great idea, why not throw in a free gift? Mention their

website in your blog?

Tip #18 – Create and increase the “Why Must I Return” Value to Your Blog.

Everyone knows the fact that Blogs get a huge level of

returning visitors because of its constantly updated

content. Why don’t you add more interesting items to that

return value by having fixed periodical posts / offers, e.g.

Monday Top 10 Tips, Picture of the Week, Free Bonus of the

Month, Free Daily Wallpapers, etc. to give them the absolute

excuse to return to your blog. As long as you can

efficiently and appropriately increase that Return Value

constantly, it is mostly guaranteed that you’ll be getting

tonnes of repeated visitors, period.

An advance notice, prelaunch announcement or anything

similar to that also can act as a short term return value

strategy. Encourage readers to comment on your such notices

/ posts. Experiment and play around with this idea.

Tip #19 – Multiple blogs.

It never hurts to use multiple blogging accounts to attract

more people. You can even have multiple blogs within

Blogger.com itself, but you may also want to try different

free blogging services such as JournalHome.com,

LiveJournal.com, Blog-City.com, etc. Should you have the

urge to have multiple similar duplicates of your blog just

to gain more traffic, it is wise to avoid it as search

engines / feed directories might translate that as excessive

redundant information which simply brings you trouble, and

you’re tend to get penalized, banned or even accused of

spamming.

Tip #20 – Digital Art, Creative Graphics.

Another proven fact – Monotonous and continous display of text will make your

readers run away! Try to include non- advertising graphics,

pictures, photos, and art in your blog entries, but try to

keep them at a limit. Too many graphics also mean slower

loading time and messy text and graphical combination. You

don’t want your blog to look messy. Most of the time,

graphics can bring your blog to life. Pictures can make

boring texts interesting no matter how long it is. Graphical

elements are by far the fastest message delivering element

available on the net today. It may deliver various messages

by a split second of a look.

Tip #21 – Maintain a Personal Blog.

A blog is most successful when it is kept personal. Try to

include personal experiences which relates to the topic of

your blog entry. Stay away from the business style of

writing. Write with a more personal style and use first-

person narratives. Share product reviews and personal

endeavors, instead of trying to make it sounds like you’re

selling.

Tip #22 – Credibility & Popularity.

As thing progresses, things need to change in order to cope

with the flow and nature of development. If your number of

readers are reasonably huge, and still using a free blogging

service to get your messages out, you may want to consider

getting your own domain name and hosting plan to have a more

personalized Blog.

Domain names and hosting plans are pretty much

straightforward. Research is all what it takes to get the

best of all the available options. For the most highly

recommended comprehensive listing of Free Blogging software

out there, drop by at http://www.opensourcecms.com. This is

by far the best place to drop by if you want to get your

research done about which blogging software to choose.

Reviews, ratings, public votes, demos, etc are provided. And

the best thing is, all of them are Open Source, which means

they are totally free. Try going through the server

requirements for each software before purchasing your

web hosting.

Tip 23# – Customize the look of your Blog

If you happen to be using one of the Free blogging services

out there, you might notice that most of us are using the

same template again and again for our blogs. It is well

understood that not everybody has the technical knowledge to

change the layout as how they want it to be, but if you have

the knowledge, by all means try to customize it and make it

look DIFFERENT. You can grab that extra attention, if you’re

different in certain ways. Create that image for yourself.

Tip #24 – Blog and Make Money

Once your blog has gained some real momentum and your blog

traffic is increasing then it is time to start thinking

if you want to turn your traffic into profit. Some of the

recommended income generating sources are as follow :-

Google Adsense, Amazon Associate program (www.amazon.com),

Blogads.com, Crispads.com, Tagword.com, Affiliate Programs

and any advertising related text links can be your place to

start off.

Final #Tip – Conclusion.

Following these blogging tips should make your blogging

experience much more rewarding. Blogging is generally done

out of interest and enthusiasm and sometimes for income

generating purposes. The flexibility of blogging will never

cease to expand. Through time, dedication, and persistence

you will be rewarded with all the royalties of blogging.

About the Author

John Teh is an internet blogger enthusiast, exposed to the fun and the extreme possibilities of blogging on the net. Get to know more about the author at his homepage.
http://www.rssblogsubmit.com

– Internet Marketing Determines Web Success –

Internet marketing is essential to the success of web sites. You can have a professional looking website but what good can it do if internet users are not able to find it when they need your products and services? That is where an internet marketing campaign comes into play.

“Your website has to magically appear before buyers when they need products and services.”

Internet marketing is similar to designing websites- it does not require much experience to do a good job, just good knowledge and a keen eye for details. It is fundamentally important for a good internet marketer to constantly update himself weekly, if not monthly, of online markets. There are many ways to market your website .

– Find A Competent and Reliable Internet Marketer –

Justify the costs of hiring an Internet Marketer – First of all, getting an internet marketer is not essential for every website. If your website is a business website or a website which you want to generate revenue from, it is good to seek a competent internet marketer to work on your website. The costs spent on your website for internet marketing has to be justified and often, they are justified by having more revenue and traffic to your web site.

Potential customers have to know that there are no guarrantees in SEO. Since everything is fundamentally based on search engines, SEO work is at the mercy of major search engines like Google. Many SEO companies tried to secure customers with guarrantees that they cannot fulfil, resulting in lawsuits or customers getting burned for hiring their SEO services.

– What an Internet Marketer can offer –

In short, an Internet Marketer oversees that your website is built properly for visibility and promoted with the best dollar spent on your internet marketing campaign. It is no good having a website and not appearing in internet searches. Your website has to magically appear before buyers when they need products and services. Internet Marketers deploy search engine optimisation techniques to make your website visible and targeted to internet users.

Internet marketing requires research and analysis effort for individual website, followed by optimisation of website. Hundreds of hours may be spent on each website, depending on the size of your targeted market. You are essentially paying for the amount of effort involved, effectiveness of your internet marketer and daily sales tracking of your website.

How to choose an Internet Marketer- Internet marketing requires constant updating of skills and knowledge. One crude way to test if your internet marketer is a genuine or fake- Ask your internet marketer about recent events that happened in his field. If he cannot answer that, he must have a genuinely good reason to back himself as a good internet marketer! At times, it is easy to fall prey into the hands of bad internet marketing companies as happened in US and other parts of the world.

It is also important for you to feel comfortable with the amount of money you are spending on getting your site popular before committing yourself to a internet marketing campaign. Internet marketing campaigns typically last a few months and requires monthly tune-ups to your website. Include the costs of an internet marketing campaign when doing your company’s advertising budget.

Lester Boey works in an Australian SEO and Web Design company (Australian Seo and Web Designs Services). His life revolves around SEO; providing full-time and freelance seo services to US and Australian businesses. Email: projects@definiteweb.com

The Best Way to Make Money Without Spending Money and Time is to Have the KNOWLEDGE! Learn how to From the best expert.

I worked my butt off for two years before I made my first sale online. Two years of trial and error, late nights and too much coffee. Making money online is not easy. To set up your business in the Internet marketing world, you need to have the knowledge and the ways and means to go along with to sell your products. I want to help you to make money without spending a lot of money and time.

Know that 99% of money making websites and information products are scams, and real money-making recipes need real authority.

To make money online is NECESSARY to use Proven Online Marketing Strategies, Secrets and Tactics That Will Boost Your Online Sales And Explode Your Profit. It is NECESSARY to Learn Internet Marketing from Internet Marketing Experts. These Internet Marketing Experts come from all kinds of backgrounds, but have one thing in common.

They make a living providing Internet Marketing tools to help us build better online businesses.

If you want to be a success, you must study the great ones: Internet Marketers, have a lot to teach. All you need to do is begin studying what works for them and adapt it to your own site. Study great sales letters, see what they have in common and then apply those techniques to your own site.

THE BEST WAY TO MAKE MONEY WITHOUT SPENDING MONEY AND TIME IS TO HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE! LEARN HOW TO …… FROM THE BEST EXPERT.

Feel free to meet some of our favorite Internet Marketing Experts.

Allan Gardyne is THE No 1 affiliate marketing expert.

Alex Mandossian is well known on the Internet for traffic conversion strategies, showing his clients how to turn website visitors into customers.

Alexandria K. Brown is the best Ezine Articles Expert.

Armand Morin is the developer behind many of the top selling internet marketing software tools today.

Keith Voiles is copywriting experts. Keith Voiles has authored sales copy for the top names in Internet marketing.

Brian Tracy is expert in personal development and leadership training.

Bryan Winters is copywriting experts.

Charlie Page is copywriting experts.He is considered the leading expert on marketing with ezines.

Corey Rudl was one of the most respected experts in the internet marketing world.. He was a marketing strategist, author, speaker and software maker. Rudl specializes in utilizing unique and powerful Internet marketing techniques.

Dan Kennedy – Legendary marketing expert. He is a leading consultant in direct marketing, copywriting, internet strategies, and profit improvement systems. Dan Kennedy is one of the greatest marketers of all time.

Dan Lok is a reputed marketer and web site conversion expert.

David Vallieres is expert in selling different items on eBay.

Derek Gehl is internet marketing expert who specializes in teaching real people how to start and automate a profitable Internet businesses.

Ewen Chia is expert in the affiliate marketing and the traffic generation.

Harvey Segal is the man behind The Complete Guide to ClickBank Websites and The Complete Guide to Ad Tracking Programs, and the publisher of SuperTips Ezine.

Professor James Bradley is an expert in the field of world finance and in the analysis of the Internet market.He is money making guru.

James Martell is internet marketing expert who specializes in online work-at-home business thru affiliate marketing.

Jason Potash is expert in ezine and article writing.

Jay Abraham has to be the most successful marketer of all time. Jay has had more success than any other so called marketer out there.

Jimmy D. Brown is an expert on Viral Marketing. His information products and tools are helping people to generate and increase traffic to their websites.

Jo Han Mok is a copywriter who’s highly in-demand. Hi has written copy for some of the top names in marketing and one of his sales letters grossed 6 figures in 4 weeks.

Joe Vitale is “Mr. Fire” for Copywriting.

John Carlton is the copywriting legend. He, the Marketing Rebel, reveals the secrets behind the most successful and profitable ads in advertising history.

John Reese is expert in traffic generation and conversion.

Jeff Mulligan is the king of Clickbank.

Jill Whalen provides free advice and expert search engine optimization, SEO copywriting, search marketing consulting, and SEO seminars.

Jim Daniels is the best of the best in the complicated internet marketing universe.

Jim Edwards specializes in helping small, internet-based businesses find, use and profit from new and existing marketing and automation tools.

Jonathan Mizel is a well known and respected internet marketing expert. He is the acknowledged expert on targeted opt-in e-mail.

Ken Evoy is the creator of the revolutionary Web site-building system.

Dr Kevin Nunley helps small and mid-sized businesses build effective marketing.

Kevin Wilke is the master of automation – which is one of the goals of all marketers, so he or she can keep an income active while maintaining now product development and new activities. He is one of the best copywriters in the world.

Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero is one of the most sought-after copywriting experts.

Lynn Terry is expert in: Internet Business Development & Start-up.

Dr Mani is webmaster and an expert commentator on Ezine Publishing and Marketing.

Matt Gill is an expert forecaster of marketing trends – and with the Internet changing so rapidly he is able to keep us up to date on where to spend our marketing time and dollars for the year to come.

Marc Goldman is the pre-eminent expert in using joint ventures to jumpstart.

Mark Hendricks is Internet entrepreneur, business coach, author and software developer.

Markus Allen is the creator of The Marketing.

Marlon Sanders is an Internet marketing legend and a genius in copywriting, all in one. He has a masters in psychology and puts all his knowledge to good use to understand the psychology of his customer.

Michael Campbell is a self-taught search engine marketer, turned affiliate marketer.

Michael Green will be giving you the lowdown on e-book creation, product creation, copywriting, software creation and Teleseminars to help grow your Internet Business.

Michel Fortin, known as “The Copy Doctor”, is recognized as one of the greatest direct response copywriters in the world today.

Mike Filsaime is internet marketing expert who specializes in viral marketing, safe lists and membership site.

Mike Merz – his main focus being Internet Marketing start up consultation, specializing in affiliate program related campaigns.

Neil Shearing internet marketing expert who specializes in membership site that has complete business and marketing strategies and tools.

Perry Marshall is undoubtedly one of the world’s leading authorities on Google’s Pay Per Click.

Phil Wiley is a self proclaimed internet marketing expert that shows beginners how to create profitable mini sites.

Dr. Ralph Wilson is expert and writer of many e-books about SEO (search engine optimization). He’s also very well informed about internet marketing and other online business tools.

Rosalind Gardner is expert in affiliate marketing. She Rosalind provides down-to-earth advice primarily on affiliate marketing methods.

Shelley Lowery is expert in designing e-books, designing e-zines, designing websites and building promotional strategies.

Stone Evans is famously known as ‘The Home Biz Guy’. He runs the “Plug-in Profit” site, which assists those that are interested in starting an internet business.

Ted Nicholas is direct marketing and copywriting master. Ted is a well-known and respected leader in the information marketing business.

Terry Dean is considered one of the top small business Internet expert in the world today.

Yanik Silver is an established internet marketing expert.He is a master copywriter and student of everything to do with “salesmanship in print”.

Zig Ziglar is Sales Guru.

When you’ve learned all the knowledge of all that you need to know from e-books, you will have to implement what you’ve learnt.

Be yourself. Take what works for the experts and make it work for you – for your own products and services.

Feel Free to Meet World’s Top Internet Marketing Experts and Their Unique Products.. Learn from them, this is the only way to discover The Power of the Internet Marketing.

Maria Bumbarova, If you want to learn more visit to my blogs
Best Selling Internet Marketing Courses http://onlinemarketingtraining.blogspot.com/
Ultimate Affiliate Marketing Resources http://affiliatestoolsonline.blogspot.com/

1. Paying too much for Car Insurance, its time to seek change.

2. When you must think of a new car insurance company.

Auto insurance is not a luxury but a necessity. And in order to get the maximum advantage experts recommend that you should shop around for auto insurance every 2-3 years. As policies change and newer players enter the market there are so many new attractive auto insurance schemes that you could benefit from. You should consider changing your auto insurance when:

o You are availing a huge mortgage to buy property and the bank or institution offers you a lower interest rate on home and auto insurance through their tie -ups.

o You have moved to another state where the auto insurance rules are different and you will make a saving by transferring your insurance to a new car insurance company. Or when your old car insurance company does not offer service in your new state.

o You want to cut costs and are trying to run your life on a budget. Shop around online for competitive auto insurance rates and change the car insurance company to one who offers the best deal.

o You have purchased a new car and the dealer is offering free insurance for three years. New cars have lower insurance rates so it is best for you to do a comparative study and find a car insurance company that offers a great deal. Car insurance rates vary greatly between car brands and types; find out which car insurance company offers the maximum coverage for the lowest rate.

o You are getting married and now will have two cars. Think about cancelling your individual car insurance policies and getting a joint one for both cars. Similarly if your family is growing and you have many cars used by adults as well as kids, ask auto insurance companies about group insurance schemes that will cover all the cars and drivers in your home. Most companies offer great discounted rates for combining car insurance policies.

o You are retired and now a senior citizen. Car insurance companies offer discounts to those who are 55 and above. There are a great many discounts available for a car that has a good insurance claim record, a car that is not driven every day, and a car that is single driver driven and well maintained.

o You are eligible for coverage through your new job. Many large companies have facilities like auto insurance schemes at premium rates lower than the market. If you are working in such a firm then you must consider cancelling your old policy and taking a new one with the car insurance company chosen by your workplace.

o When the rates being paid by you are high and your car insurance company shows no inclination to offer you a competitive rate. If you are paying too much for car insurance its time you changed your car insurance company to one that is offering you great facilities and rates.

Whatever the reason to change your car insurance company, the World Wide Web has sites where you can compare offers as well as quotes. Sites like LowerMyBills.com give quote comparisons in a click. So, read all you can about car insurance and the companies and determine which car insurance company offer will suit you best.

Aaron Brooks is a freelance writer for http://www.1888carinsurance.com/, the premier website to find Car Insurance Quotes including auto insurance quote, online auto insurance quote, free car insurance quote, cheap car insurance quote, on line car insurance quote and more. He also freelances for the premier Cars site http://www.1866cars.com

Fly fishing is an old exercise, over the centuries, the fishers and manufacturers have developed a lot of knowledge about the design of fly fishing equipments. This exercise beginning at the time of the Roman Empire, and till now the basics haven’t changed. The superior thing to do is to learn about fly fishing equipment and how all of the parts works before a person become one in the quest for catching variety type of fishes.

Using Fly Fishing Equipment

It is very important that you select equipment that is well fit to the particular fishing situation. While a particular fly rod might be used in different or special situations, its’ range of applications is very far narrower that a spinning rod. If one really wants to be familiar with about the equipment used for fly they should engage a fishing instructor or guide that is proficient in fly fishing equipment and have them teach the person what they need to know. By the ways, certain parts of the fly fishing equipment can be very costly but it’s a needed and part of learning to fly fishing.

More about Fly Fishing Equipment

When you want to try fly fishing for species other than trout, the rod and reel must be heavier but just as important is that the lure will be dissimilar. One can’t fish with spinner baits with a fly rod or plastic worms, but in the market there are baits that are sold for specific use with a fly rod. There are many smaller cork top water types of bait. Some look like a frog or other amphibians and aquatic reptiles. The difference between fly fishing lures and regular lures is easy to tell. The fly fishing equipment is a lot lighter than conventional baits. The action of the bait is imitated with the fly rod in a popping manner that will attract fish to the lure.

Following will explore some of equipment options. Although this may look quite basic, but I ensure you will learn something new and interesting.

Choose the Best Gear

With fly-fishing equipment, you have to choose the correct gear with the type of fishing in your mind. In order to do this, you need to study the basic gear that every fly fisherman, whether deep-sea fishing, going out to a local creek, lakes, rivers or streams, it is composed of the following components: the rod, reel, line, and of course the almighty fly.

The Rod

The rod is one of the most unique parts of fly fishing gear. It is longer and more flexible than your normal fishing pole, sometimes more than twice as long as the normal person high. The rods are sold by weight, the weights indicating a rod suitable to use in what type of situation. The higher number weights, its mean the rod is better for heavier game. For instance, a line weight of one to three is suitable to catch small trout. While a 15-weight line, is used for saltwater fishing for larger fishes. The material of the fly fishing gear is usually made of fiberglass or graphite. The graphite is the most common type. It is much lighter than the fiberglass, and it also casts line much better.

The Reel

The reel is used to store the fly fishing line and it has evolved so that mechanical improvements can make it an asset to your fly fishing experience. Now, the reels can help you catch fish more effectively, with drag systems that let you to better catch fish that pull a lot of line during the fighting. One thing you may want to take note is when you plan to go fishing in saltwater, you need to purchase a reel that consists of corrosion-resistant components like titanium or anodized aluminum.

The Line

When purchasing your fly fishing line, you need to consider the weight of your fly line; it must be match that of your rod for the best results. It is important to use the correct weight of fly line when fishing. These fly lines can be basically grouping them into two groups, Floating or Sinking Lines. The Floating Lines also call dry line are used for techniques that are require a top water lure or the fly just below the waters surface. The Sinking Lines are used for techniques that use a wet fly, which goes underneath the surface of the water, like when fishing a nymph or other under water bugs.

The Fly

It is important to use the correct files at the right places. You also need to tailor your flies to the fish that you’re trying to catch, whether wet or dry. Some flies, such as streamers, try to imitate and look like the small fish that make up the diets of other fish, while others, like midges and mayflies and attempt to resemble the surface insects that they take their names from. With this information and other pieces of fly fishing gear provided above, if you purchase based on what type of fish you trying to catch, it will definitely increase your successful rate.

Cindy Heller is a professional writer. Visit Fly Fishing Women to learn more about fly fishing in Canada and fly fishing in Montana.

Your mobility depends too much on your possession of a private vehicle. You may go for a car, motorcycle or truck as your own vehicle. But due to severe weather conditions in many regions it is not a good idea to depend on motorcycles all the time. It is also not a good idea to have a truck or SUV as they drink lot of gas and the maintenance is high. Somewhere in the middle and perfectly positioned vehicle for Desi would be a car. There are various types of cars to suite your need.

What you should have

If you are a single man and do not depend primarily on your car for commuting to your work, then go for anything as you wish.

There are coupes which have capacity for 4 persons but only two big doors. Primarily these cars are designed keeping in view for two, driver and one passenger. The other model is the sedan which has capacity for 5 and has 4 doors. This can also be called a family car. Depending on the size of the car, they are categorized as Compact, Mid-sized and Full. Compact cars are very small in size and have a good mileage per gallon too. Some manufacturers even make two seated compact cars. The power of the compact car is also little less than the cars of other categories. There are other cars that have powerful engines and are rated as sports cars.

On the contrary, if you have a big family and need more space in your vehicle, then go for van/SUV. But I wont suggest this idea to people who have just come to US, before/after marriage and don’t have any kids.

Besides, it is always your dream and desire that makes you to go for a particular type and model. But before deciding upon something, you must give a thought to the other factors like, the mileage, sitting capacity, transmission, trunk capacity, engine power, ease of driving/safety, interior, power doors and anti-theft devices. Also your affordability plays a major role in purchasing a vehicle.

Do you have a driver license yet? It is most important to have one before going for a vehicle. Various states have different rules for issuing drivers license. You can logon to Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) sites to know about the pre-requisites and methods of getting one driver license for your state. Normally it involves a written examination, minor vision test and a road test.

The never-ending comparison

Now you have to decide whether to buy a new car or a used car. I wont suggest you any thing or force you to go for what I think is right, but you must know the good and bad things involved in each.

Used Cars

* They are cheaper.

* They may be old.

* They might have more than one owner.

* They could be purchased from private parties or authorized dealers.

* They might have gone through serious maintenance/repair in the past.

* They might have gone through an accident in the past.

* Some parts/components are just about to die.

* There may not be enough warranty/guaranty on some expensive parts.

* The mileage may not be good.

* They may need more maintenance.

* They may not be reliable for long drives.

* Resale may be a headache.

New Cars

* They are not cheap.

* They are covered under manufacturer/dealer warranty.

* Their fuel efficiency must meet the specification.

* There is the satisfaction of owning a new car.

* Easy to get a finance for new car than a used car.

* No need to worry about the engine, body, suspension, tyre, batteries and interior conditions.

* Insurance premium may be higher.

* Can only be bought from an authorized dealer.

There are many other things that can be discussed as advantages and disadvantages under both the headings. However, I don’t want to focus on them right now. If you are convinced to buy a new car, then go for it.

Your target

Now it is the time for you to decide the Make, Model and Type of your car. In US you will find hundreds of Make and Models (no Hind Motors/Maruti cars of course). From a Desi prospect I would say it is better to start with Honda/Toyota/Nissan. These Japanese car manufacturers know our requirement and never ditch us on the highways. The engines are good and prices are low. They run long enough before giving up. The life of a Honda/Toyota is considered to be 300K miles. But the look and interior designs are not at par with the American/European cars.

Buying a New Car

Take a cup of coffee, chat with your friends and go through some reviews before you decide upon the make model and color of your first dream car in USA. Check for the existing/upcoming models of your car by logging onto the sites. Select the color and interior and look at the car through the simulator. The most important thing that you must consider here is that, when the next model is going to be released. If it is very soon, then don’t go for it, because after you buy your car, you will see the newer model in the market and the resale value of your car will fall drastically.

Cars with automatic transmission and power window have good resale value. ABS and anti-theft devices are added advantages. Leather interior is as per your wish.

Now you have all the details in your mind and the budget is also finalized. Next step is to study the finance market and look for the bank/credit union who gives the best APR. Also don’t forget to decide upon your auto insurance. Find out a good insurance company and try to get a quote from them. The premium varies from place to place. With all these things set up, go to the Auto-Mall of your city. Go for a test drive for the car you have already decided. Beware of the car sales representatives. They will always try to sale you the most expensive car they have. But you shouldn’t deviate from your decision. Try to bargain with them for a possible reduction in their margin and ask for extra accessories.

What is the status of the loan? Have you arranged one or you want the dealer to make some arrangements for you? Always try to bring down the APR. If you are very new to US and don’t have any credit score, you may not get a good APR. However, dont worry about the APR right now. You can always refinance the loan with a better APR after you buildup the credit history after few months of repayment of the loan.

Once the deal is final, you need to sign some papers and then provide the Insurance details if you have. Otherwise, you could also provide the insurance agents phone number and the sales representative will talk to the insurance agent to get the car insured before leaving their premises (dont worry too much for the insurance premiums now, it is important to get your car insured before you drive out of the dealers premises, however you can easily change your insurance later, if you find a better one). In case you didn’t get any insurance, you can always go for binder insurance, but they are quite expensive, but you can always cancel them in the middle once you establish your insurance with somebody else and get the refund for the unused portion of your premium.

The next thing is to make the financial paper work. You will be guided to the dealers accounts department and one of the accountants will assist you in finalizing the loan and payment for the car. At that time they will try to sale an extended warranty for another 3 years after the manufacturers warranty. It is you who will decide for that. Don’t listen to them, but evaluate it being unbiased. They will try to sale so many other things like paint guard, gap insurance etc. I would suggest not to go with all these things except paint-guard.

After everything is over, they will apply for the vehicle registration/license plate to DMV on your behalf and give you the temporary ownership license (stuck to the windshield of your car). As far as I know, they wash the car and give you a full tank as a compliment before you drive your car back home.

New cars don’t give you much trouble as long as you do all the regular oil change and maintenance in time.

Buying a Used Car

Used cars are good but not as new cars. They are much cheaper than the new cars, but at the cost of your peace of mind. You can buy used cars from either a private party or from any dealer. Here also you have to decide your budget and the make, model and year of the car that you need. Also the other main factor is the odometer reading.

There are many sites that give you the links for used cars for sale. You can also refer to the local news papers for any such advertisement. There are places in some cities where people come with their cars for auction/sale. Since you are new, don’t go to such places. Rather get contact information from news paper ads or internet. Get the details of the car like make, model and year of the car, miles it has run, condition of batteries, tires and engine condition etc.

Now go to Kelly Blue Book (www.kbb.com) or Edmund (www.edmund.com) and try to evaluate the car. KBB will ask you some question depending upon the private trading or buying from dealer. After you enter data about the private trading car, it will show you an approximate value of the car.

Private Party

If you are buying a used car from a private party, then you need to be more cautious about certain things like, the engine condition, the body condition, the interior and the accident/maintenance history of the car. Don’t go for cars that have already run almost 300K miles (for Honda and Toyota). You can start locating for used cars for sale from various sources like, news papers, local ads and internet. After locating the availability near your place, prepare your matrix.

* Call each of them to fix an appointment for trial.

* Get the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) from the owner.

* Check for the approximate cost of the car using KBB or EDMUND sites.

* Compare the advertised price with the approximate cost that you arrived at.

* Use the VIN to find out accident/maintenance history from CarFax.com and check for any major incident. There will be a registration fee for CarFax.com, go for the one month pack.

* Talk to a mechanic for pre-purchase inspection of the vehicle. Mechanics charge around $50 per car. It is better to go to some brand names like Pep-Boys. They are good and reliable, but you may need to take an appointment beforehand.

* Go to the owner, see the car physically (for any visible dents, body color, torn airbag containers and interior) and then drive it with the owner.

* Take the car to the mechanic and have it inspected.

* (All the cars need a timing belt replacement after running for around 100K miles, so if the car is around or over 100K, then you need to figure out if the timing belt has been replaced, this information could be obtained from the CarFax report too. One thing you must remember that, in US, the auto spare parts are not that expensive, but the labor charge to install them is too high.)

* The mechanic will give you a report, in which it will indicate the current condition of the car and what needs to be fixed with a rough estimation.

* Check for the vehicle registration, is it current?

* Is the vehicle smog certified?

With the Kelly Blue Book report, CarFax report and the mechanics report, you can have a good bargain with the owner. If you really like the car and every thing looks OK to you, then start bargaining. Don’t focus more on the tires/batteries, they are not that important as the engine.

NEVER BUY A CAR THAT HAS A SALVAGED TITLE.

Once you have decided to buy the car, talk to the owner about the payment and mode of payment (check or cash). The owner has to give you a pink slip indicating that you paid for the car and it is yours now. He cant simply lodge a complaint with the police saying you have stolen his car. It is his duty to inform the DMV office about the sale and transfer of title. You should also apply to DMV for transferring the title to your name. For registration, you will need the pink slip, the insurance (get one immediately) and smog certification. After you apply for the transfer of the vehicle registration into your name, you are the proud owner of the car.

It is too cumbersome to buy a used car from a private party, sometimes it is too risky and in all the cases it is damn cheaper. For some unlucky guys it might have resulted in spending huge money on maintenance the next day. But it is not always true. However, you are supposed to visit the mechanic frequently and spend lot of time there.

Buying from Dealer

The next best thing that you can do is to buy a used car from a dealer. It may not be as cheaper as buying from private party, but 100 times more reliable. Even some dealers give warranty on the used cars they sale. They buy the used cars, clean them up, do a thorough checking of the engine and repair any damages, dents etc before putting them on sale. You don’t have to take the car to a mechanic for inspection, worry about the smog certification. But never forget to check the approximate price through KBB and have a CarFax report handy before making a deal with the dealer. Normally, good dealers don’t keep cars for sale that have any major issues like bad accident history, salvaged title etc.

Go to the dealer, talk to the sales representative about your purpose. He/she will show you all the different used cars they have that fits your requirement as well as your budget. Once you have selected the model, make and color, go for a test drive (don’t forget to check the odometer reading). If everything feels ok to you, then go to the dealers office and access their computer to logon to KBB for approximate pricing as well as to CarFax for accident/maintenance history for that car. Some dealers even do this for free. Now with all these things handy, start the bargain. You must always consider the worry free deal with the worth of the vehicle you are paying for. You may end up paying a little more than that of a private party deal, but there wont be any worries after you buy the car. If there will be any problem with the car (which is covered under warranty), you can always comeback to the dealer for having it fixed for free. The dealer may also arrange a loan for you and take care of the other formalities like title transfer etc. You will save a lot of time/worries in this. Time is important and costly in this country. So it is your call again.

After you finalize the deal, it follows the same process as a new car purchase. So finish all paper work and drive the car safely back home.

Tips

* If you own an old used car that needs maintenance and the mechanic gives you a list of jobs to be done, then do all of them once. That way you may save a lot of labor charge.

* As per my experience, buying a new car is always better than buying a used car from a dealer and buying a used car from a dealer is always safer than buying a used car from a third party.

* It seems to be a huge amount in the beginning to buy a new car. But if you compare the money spent for new (repay the loan) and used car (repair/maintenance), then over a period of 3 years they will almost equate with each other. So, why not to enjoy the ride of a new car.

Everyone’s wearing vintage style from the girl on the high street to A list celebrities. Even high street shops are now following suit with their own ranges of vintage inspired clothes. But why is vintage clothing so popular and how can you get the vintage look?

Vintage clothing is described by Trudie Bamford, author of Viva Vintage (Carroll & Brown) as clothing made between 1920 and 1970. Anything before 1920 is antique and anything after is retro. Although many people use vintage as a term to describe clothes that are not brand new. The popularity of vintage clothing is currently huge with large numbers of people owning at least a few items of vintage clothing and some people only ever wearing vintage clothes. Celebrities have fueled the popularity of vintage by wearing vintage designer clothes like Julia Roberts in her Vintage Valentino gown, worn for the Oscars in 2001. In the High Street Oasis and Next have also created there own vintage inspired clothing with similar styles and colors as clothing from various different eras of fashion.

The popularity of vintage clothing is probably due to three factors. The individuality of vintage pieces is a real attraction to many people. The range of clothing on the high street almost always follows the seasons trends. You are much less likely to see someone wearing the same or a similar outfit if you wear vintage clothing. Many will use one key piece of vintage clothing or an accessory to give an outfit bought on the high street an individual twist. Vintage clothing has also proved popular as many love the beautiful , delicate and detailed ladylike styles that can be found when buying vintage clothing. Many vintage clothes lovers have a keen interest in the history of fashion and finding vintage clothing is an interesting hobby.

Key looks such as 1940′s Dior New Look frequently inspire designer and high street main stream collections and those who wear vintage clothing have the benefit of wearing the ‘real thing’. Finally the beauty of vintage clothing is often in the quality of the garment. The vintage clothing that has stood the test of time and has managed to remain in a reasonable and wearable condition will usually be of a superior quality to many clothes mass produced in the present day. Clothing made before 1960 is probably handmade and quality natural materials such as silk and wool were used as man made and synthetic materials were not available. Styles and trends of clothing did not change as frequently as it does today so clothes were made to last.

Buying vintage clothes can be a time consuming business. Finding the right item takes time. There are many shops specializing in vintage clothes, charity shops and flea markets are also good hunting grounds. The internet provides an excellent resource for finding vintage clothes. eBay is treasure trove for vintage clothes and you can often get a real bargain if you look hard enough. There are also many online vintage shops which make it easier to find the item you are looking for but are likely to charge a bit more for the privilege.

A word of warning, there are some key pitfalls to watch out for when buying vintage clothing. Do not automatically trust the sellers description of the item. Check for indicators of the age of the items such as metal zippers and buttons instead of plastic on pre-1950′s clothes, any clothing with a care instruction label will be post 1970′s. When buying designer vintage you will need to do your research to ensure that the item you are purchasing is genuine. It also important to consider the quality of any vintage clothing that you would like to buy. When buying online you will not be able to assess the quality so should ask key questions to make sure you are happy with your buy. Due to the very nature of vintage clothing, it will be in varying conditions. Wear and tear can range from the easily solved tear along a seam or small moth hole to less desirable underarm perspiration stains.

Finally sizing can present a problem when buying vintage clothes. Sizes have changed quite a lot over the years and a size 12 item from the 1950′s may be the equivalent of a side 6 or 8 now. It is also possible that clothing can have shrunk in the wash making it even smaller than expected. If unable to try the item on use a tape measure to measure yourself and ask the seller to do the same with the clothes.

When you manage to find the beautiful vintage item that you really love, look after it well. Check the type of material and find out how it should be cleaned. If in doubt take it to a professional dry cleaner. Store carefully using acid free tissue paper for very delicate items and moth balls/ cedar wood for wool.

This article was written by Ceri Heathcote for Designerhighstreet.com For all the latest fashions including party cocktail dress and ladies evening dress

If you are like most used car buyers looking for a good deal then you are looking to spend as little as possible to get you rolling. If spending as little as possible is your main focus in buying a used car then you should be shopping with a strict set of criteria that any car must meet in order for you to consider buying it.

There are a number of factors that affect the cost of owning a car both short term as well as long term. Here are a list of factors to consider when looking to spend as little money as possible when buying a used car:

1) the car must not be too expensive to buy

2) the car must be in good mechanical overall condition

3) parts for repairs must be readily available and affordable

4) the car must meet reasonable expectations of longevity

5) the car must be economical on fuel costs

6) the car must be economical on insurance costs

These are general guidelines that are based on the cost to buy, maintain, repair, insure and drive the car. A car that meets these requirements will have the greatest likelihood of costing the least both up front, but also in the long run when you factor in the ongoing costs of driving the car.

What is the best type of car for a small budget?

If you are shopping within a tight budget but require a car that will be consistently reliable for the foreseeable future then you really should be shopping for a four cylinder car that is front wheel drive and has four doors. Additionally you do not want the vehicle to be newer than 5 years old and no older than 12-15 years old.

Vehicle Age

The age of the car you are buying will be one of the most important factors in determining the value of the car. In addition to being an attribute of the condition of the car itself, the vehicle year will also affect the insurance quotes that you will get on the car, the availability and cost of replacement parts, as well as the resale value in the future should you want to sell the car.

Buying a brand new car

Buying a brand new car is a rewarding experience to be sure but seldom a wise investment since a new car will devalue instantly as soon as you assume ownership of the car. This measurable loss in equity is a result of the car no longer being brand new and thereby losing its most valued attribute. For any person looking to buy a car on a budget a brand new car will almost always be a bad decision. If you are intent on buying a new or nearly new car, the value of your buying dollar will go much further on a car that is even six months or one year old.

Buying used cars 1-5 years old

Used cars in the category are a substantially better investment than cars that are brand new. The large depreciation of the car when it transitioned from being a new car to a used car has been experienced by the current or previous owner. A car in this age range will be less likely to experience mechanical failures than cars moderately older, which is important as replacement parts are more expensive and less available than cars which are a few years older. Additionally the insurance premiums you are quoted for newer cars is substantially higher than a car which is a few years older. This is a very important factor for any used car shopper which falls into a moderate to high risk category due to age, experience or previous claims on their insurance history.

Buying used cars 5-10 years old

Used cars in the age range of five to ten years old represent the best likelihood for a good long term car investment for a thrifty shopper. The insurance rates on these vehicles will be much lower than newer vehicles and replacement parts should be readily available and cost effective to buy. The purchase price of used cars in this age range are low and the possibility of finding an undervalued car to buy for cheap is high if you shop around enough. There is a sharp drop off in price as cars age from the five year to the ten year point. A used car that is more than ten years old will be priced according to its condition more than its age.

Buying used cars more than 10 years old

Once a car is more than a decade old it will be priced for sale according to its condition and vehicle reputation alone. It can be expected that used cars of this age will require regular maintenance and ongoing repairs for the remainder of its life. Some older cars will sill run trouble free for years while others will need repairs on a regular basis just to keep them on the road.

A used car buyer shopping in this age range must be comfortable with performing vehicle repairs and maintenance themselves or have a dedicated monthly budget to allow for ongoing repairs.

Additionally a used car in this age range can develop a problem which will be very expensive to repair such as an engine or transmission failure so the importance of being able to buy a used car that is in good condition is even more important. Rust and rot can also become a pressing issue for cars in this age range, especially in colder climate areas where road salts are used to keep the roads cleared in winter. A ten year old car that has not been maintained or rust proofed located in a cold climate could easily be rotted beyond repair on the frame or sub frame. Vehicles in this age range are likely to be the least reliable and are recommended only for those who are capable with DIY repairs on an ongoing basis and carrying a basic tool and emergency kit is a must at all times.

As you can see there is more to consider than simply the price tag when it comes time to buy a used car. There is no such thing as the best used car, only the best used car for your needs and your budget.

Steven Goodale is the author of the Used Car Buying Guide which explains in simple English how to inspect a used car before you buy it – step by step.

I couldn’t maintain my little farm without the help of my New Holland Compact Tractor, a TC29DA Boomer. This tractor is just the right size to maintain my farm and allows me to do many things that I could not otherwise do. She makes all my tasks easier and a lot more fun!

As my son said to me, “A Boomer for a Baby Boomer”! Yes, he was right, although he had a lot of fun on it also.

Several friends and acquaintances have asked how I made the decision to purchase my New Holland Boomer, instead of one of the other popular brands, and if she really has enough power to do anything besides mow the fields.

My compact tractor, Blue Bessie, is a workhorse that made the following projects possible:

• helped put in a new septic system
• built a road
• dug the foundation for a house
• dug the ditch for the power
• dug ditches for foundation drains
• spread 450 yards of soil
• dug drainage ditches and filled them with gravel

Then she has her regular jobs:

• mowing the fields
• moving fallen trees
• re-doing the gardens
• moving shrubs and plants around
• grading the driveway

Twelve years ago we down sized to a little 6 acre farm. My husband maintained our farm with his two Ford tractors a 1939 9N and a 1942 8N. We looked at new tractors and decided to keep the old ones running as they did what was needed.

After my husband passed away, we were unable to get his old tractors going; spring was upon us and the fields were growing and needed to be cut. I made the decision to buy a new tractor.

My husband had told me when it came to machinery always talk to the people in the service department. He said you’ll probably have to go through a salesman but then talk to the service department and find out which models are the most reliable, what are the usual problems one can expect to run into, and then the parts department, basically get all of your questions answered. He also said to research at least three different brands.

I took the tractor folder out of his desk and looked at the fliers for the New Holland. He had also noted on the flier that the salesman, Brent, was a good man, no double talk. My decision was made to start there.

We had looked at the New Holland Boomers 3 years earlier. The salesman, Brent, whom we had talked with, was still there and was now the sales manager. He also remembered us, the size of our farm, and what we would be using it for.

Brent showed the model to me that he thought was right for my farm. He then went over everything on it as I knew nothing about tractors and had never been on one. He explained the benefits of the HST, hydrostatic transmission and the HST foot pedal, the 4WD, the clutch pedal, differential lock, dashboard, and all of the gears. As well as the front loader, the snap release hoses, the PTO, 3-point linkage, and the seat; if you get out of the seat while the tractor is running, the tractor will stop. Brent also went over the importance of wearing the seat belt when the Roll bar is in the up position.

After showing the tractor to me and answering my questions, he introduced me to the Service Manger, Tom, and the Parts Manager, Dan. He also had me drive one in the parking lot. When I asked about trading in the two old tractors, Brent said no problem. We went over what attachments I had to make sure they would work with the new tractor. I left with my head swimming with a new education on tractors.

Next was the Kubota dealership. The salesman was nice and showed comparable models to me. He thought I should have a smaller tractor; no offer was extended to drive one. He couldn’t take my old tractors in on trade but offered to consign them. The service manager was at lunch and I didn’t get a chance to talk with him.

The third dealer was John Deere. This was the first place where I had trouble just getting a salesman to talk with me. When I tried to talk with anyone in their service department, they suggested I come back with my husband. A salesman finally talked with me, acted offended when I asked if they would take my old tractors in on trade, and gave me the ‘dumb woman’ treatment.

I then did my research online for a complete comparison of the three tractors. The price was about the same. All three had the features I was looking for and were the top 3 brands. The most important feature to me was who was going to be there when I needed help, who had the best support. That was Brim Tractor Company, the New Holland dealership.

I went back and talked with Brent two more times and the last time my son went with me. He talked with Brent and agreed with everything Brent had to say. He test drove the tractor and felt it was a safe machine and that I would be able to handle it.

I purchased the New Holland TC29DA Boomer Compact Tractor with front loader and a backhoe. When it was delivered my son and son-in-law were here to give me lessons on it. My husband wouldn’t let me drive the old tractors; I never knew driving a tractor could be so much fun! It gives one a whole new perspective on tasks that need to be done. The tractor has replaced the wheelbarrow and given me a new freedom.

The New Holland service department is always there for me. I can call up and explain the problem I’m having and they will walk me through the solution. I am treated with respect, courtesy, and they answer all of my questions. When a service man comes out to service the tractor they explain what they are doing and why.

Tips in purchasing a tractor:

• Do your research: be prepared to tell the dealer why you want a tractor, what kinds of work it will be performing, how much land you have, and what the terrain is like.
• Research the brands you are going to look at so you are familiar with them and can get your questions answered.
• Learn the terminology before you look at tractors.
• Test drive the tractor, just like you would if it were a car.
• Talk with the service department as well as the salesman.
• Go with the dealer that spends time with you and has a good support department that is willing to give phone support.

Once you have purchased the tractor:

• RTM: Read the manual, make notes in it. Take it out and go over the different parts of the tractor with the manual.
• Become familiar with the correct terminology so when you call support they will know what you are talking about.
• Familiarize yourself with the different sounds it makes so you will know if something doesn’t sound right and can describe it to support.
• Keep the maintenance up on it.
• Even though it seems like a toy, its not, it’s a machine; stay alert and aware so you don’t get hurt.

Enjoy yourself and have fun!

I am an herbalist and have grown and used herbs for culinary and medicinal purposes, along with making herbal wines for the last 30 years. My tractor is one of my gardening tools. Please visit my website for tips on growing and using herbs. http://www.homeherbgardenanswers.com

Car importers know that car auctions in Japan are a great place to find low mileage, high quality used cars at good prices. My aim in this article is to help you understand these car auctions in Japan better so that you can make a good, informed decision about whether to buy from them or not, and how the whole process works.

Why consider buying from Japanese car auctions?

This is a good place to start. After all, right now where you sit reading this article is probably many thousands of miles away from Japan. So why would you want to import cars from a country so far away?

There are two excellent reasons to consider buying cars from used car auctions in Japan.

First of all, the selection is immense and you can view all these cars remotely online. Auto auctions outside Japan may typically have a few hundred used vehicles, but only the tiniest auction in Japan would have such a pitiful selection.

In terms of individual auction locations, we are usually talking about over 1,000 cars per location, and sometimes over 10,000 cars (in the case of USS Tokyo) all in one place and being auctioned there weekly. Put all these individual car auctions together on the Internet, and over 30,000 on a single day is really not at all unusual.

So there is a huge breadth of choice. But that is not all. There is also a great depth of quality. The fact is that Japanese people just do not drive as much as people in other countries. An excellent public transport system and high levels of neighborhood walkability, in addition to the simple fact that urban driving speeds in Japan are incredibly low, all works together to keep people from using their cars very much.

Then on top of this the Japanese are fastidious in caring for their vehicles and yet it does not take long before the car they have seems old to them and they want a new one.

So, cars that are low mileage and well maintained are a dime a dozen. But the ironic thing is that the Japanese themselves are really not into secondhand items, so they don’t really want these used cars for themselves.

You can see where this is going: The car auctions in Japan have a great selection of great condition, low kilometer cars, but the Japanese people are really not that interested in buying them, so prices are relatively low and there is all the more opportunity for buyers from outside Japan to compete.

Car auction groups and locations in Japan

In Japan individual auctions are rare. They are usually part of a larger auction group. Here are just some of the more prominent groups:

• USS
• TAA (Toyota)
• Honda
• JU
• JAA
• CAA

USS Tokyo is the largest single used car auction location in Japan. This car auction runs once a week on Thursdays, and at peak season can have up to 20,000 vehicles all being auctioned on one day.

One auction group that does not have multiple auction locations (called kaijo in Japanese) is Aucnet, who hold their auctions on Mondays. Their model is a little different in that they do not have a physical auction house where all the cars are gathered.

Instead, they send out inspectors to car dealers who then keep their cars on their lots until they are sold. Since these dealers are still hoping to sell to a regular consumer at retail price, their reserve price at auction is often a little high compared with what a similar car might fetch at a regular auction.

How can you access the car auctions in Japan?

So far, so good. But wait a minute: How on earth are you going to be able to get a car from some used car auction way over there in Japan? You don’t know anyone there. You don’t speak Japanese. Even if you could buy the car, how would you ship it?

You need a Japanese car exporter to help you with this one.

Car exporters in Japan are set up to handle the process of bidding at the Japanese car auctions, transporting the car from the auction to the port, doing the paperwork and shipping the car over to you.

There are many car exporters shipping used vehicles from Japan, so this then begs the question of how you find yourself a good one. After all, we are not talking about trivial sums of money here, so it is vital you find one who is going to do a good job for you.

Here are some things to look for:

• How many auctions can you buy from, and can you access them all from one place online?
• Can you deal with a native English speaker who is also fluent in Japanese? (Nothing is more stressful than trying to overcome language barriers.)
• Does this exporter offer professional translations of the car auction inspector’s reports and help you really understand the condition of the cars in the auction?
• Does the exporter in Japan have good communication skills, keeping you in the loop about what is happening with your vehicles so you don’t worry?
• Does the exporter work hard to ensure your cars get to you from the car auction in Japan as quickly as possible?

Who will bid for you at these car auctions in Japan?

In order to buy from a car auction in Japan, the first thing you need is to be a member of that auction.

This usually entails being a registered business in Japan as well as having property as collateral and having a guarantor. This precludes regular consumers accessing these car auctions directly, so they tend to be a place where Japanese car dealers and Japanese car exporters buy at wholesale prices.

Japanese car exporters are usually registered Japanese companies and therefore have access to the car auctions in Japan.

Japanese car auction vehicle inspections

Car auctions in Japan have a strict inspection regime. Obviously the quality of the inspection can vary a little between auction houses since they are independent companies, but in general the grading system they use is very similar and easy to understand.

The cars and other vehicles are registered for the following week’s auction, after which they are inspected by inspectors who are qualified mechanics.

Now, it is important to bear in mind that these inspections are very thorough, but they do not involve any dismantling of the vehicle, nor do they involve test-driving it. They will often pick up mechanical issues very well, although problems which would only come to light if the vehicle is driven at anything more than the kind of speed you would expect in a parking lot can be missed. This is no fault of the inspectors, just a limitation of an inspection that does not involve a road test.

The inspector writes his report on an auction sheet. He gives the car an overall grading as well as a grading of the interior quality. He also writes details of issues that he has found. Some comments he writes in Japanese, and then issues like scratches and dents that relate to the car’s exterior condition, he writes on the “car map” – a diagram of the exterior of the car.

Remember you should not need to just rely on the overall grading when buying from Japanese car auctions: A good car exporter should give you detailed translations and help you understand what the Japanese car auction inspector has written on his report.

How does bidding work in these car auctions in Japan?

As we have noted above, only members of these auto auctions can actually bid. They do so in two ways: Either at the auction location (kaijo) itself, or online from anywhere.

The computer bidding system is the same whether bidding at the auction house on one of their machines or remotely online.

Bidding is very fast. Generally a car will be sold in anything from 10 to 45 seconds or so. The actual process may just look like pressing a button in a video game, but there is a real art to doing it right to avoid paying too much for a car – or equally letting it get away by holding back too much.

Sometimes cars will fail to meet their reserve price and bidding is stopped. It is then possible to make offers to the seller under the auspices of the car auction. Fewer cars sell in negotiation like this than are sold in live bidding. A good Japanese car exporter will handle the process of live bidding and negotiation seamlessly to get the best deals for his customers.

What happens after the car is won at auction?

After a car is bought at a Japanese car auction, the first thing that happens is that it is moved by car transporter to the port. Once at the port, the car waits to be loaded onto a RORO ship, or waits to be loaded into a container.

While the car is in transit from the auction, the car exporter will immediately start looking for bookings on the earliest ship, as well as doing paperwork to de-register the car and pass it through Japan-side customs.

Once on a ship, the car will take anything from a few days to over a month to reach its destination. This is mainly dependent on the distance of the destination country from Japan.

The car exporter will send the end customer the Bill of Lading, invoices, the de-registration document and any other documents that the customer requires for importing the car into his or her country. These import regulations vary from country to country so it is vital to check them before buying anything.

Conclusion

Car auctions in Japan can be a great place for car dealers and car importers around the world to find really good quality used vehicles at lower prices than they would expect to be able to find locally. The huge numbers of used cars in the Japanese car auctions that can be viewed online is another great plus.

The key to doing this successfully is to find a top-notch Japanese car exporter who both can communicate well, and also steer you safely through the process of buying from the car auctions in Japan.

If you enjoyed this article and would like to learn more, I have a huge amount of in-depth articles and videos covering every aspect of buying from the car auctions in Japan, including details about Japanese car auction inspections on my company website.

About the Expert Author

Stephen Munday has 12 years experience living and working in Japan, including 5 years buying from car auctions in Japan for customers around the world. His company, Integrity Exports, was set up with the goal of making buying from Japanese car auctions a stress-free and smooth experience.

This article is (c) Stephen Munday 2011. Permission is only given to reproduce this article in full with the URLs correctly hyperlinked and with the authorship and copyright correctly attributed.