How to Use Writing to Sharpen Your Thinking

Tim Ferriss on improving your thinking by writing.

Your Goals Are Achievable

We all need encouragement in our pursuit of our ambitions. There is nothing like a number of small successes to give you the motivation to reach that goal. For example you may say you want to be a millionaire in five years time. That is your big goal. The first small goal is that you have to make a dollar today. You have to double what you make today, tomorrow and so on. When you make your first dollar, you will have a sense of satisfaction. But also it will show you that your goals are achievable. If you can make one dollar, you can make two.

You will have different goals for various areas in your life. But they all share similar characteristics. In addition to being written down, they must be specific, achievable and realistic. When I say if somebody somewhere has achieved something similar I mean that it helps you see that it is achievable. World peace but it isn't really a realistic or achievable personal goal to make for example, but we would all love it. The outcome needs to be somewhat under your control. For this reason, you cannot make goals for other people.

The ultimate goal should be broken into a series of shorter term goals. These smaller targets will support you in getting to the final destination but will help spur you on by giving you a sense of achievement when you meet them.

In our pursuit of our ambitions we all need encouragement. To give you the motivation to reach that goal, there is nothing like a number of small successes. For example you may say you want to be a millionaire in five years time. That is your big goal. The first small goal is that you have to make a dollar today. What you make today, tomorrow and so on you have to make double. When you make your first dollar, you will have a sense of satisfaction. But also it will show you that your goals are achievable. You can make two dollars, if you can make one. Taking action, one step at a time will lead you to success. Too few people know what they want out of life, fewer still write it down and even fewer will take any action to achieving their own wishes. The human brain is a formidable machine and it is absolutely amazing what you could potentially achieve if you just decided to go and do it.

People are more open to the possibilities around them when have their written goals. There is no obstacle they can't overcome. They will work around, over or through anything that life puts in place of their destination. If they believe they are going to succeed, nothing stops them putting the work that is required into action.

Having goals gives you the energy and vitality to ensure you are successful. You will accept new challenges. Opportunities will find you or so it would appear but in reality if you don't know where you are going how do you know you have got there when you arrive?

Your energy levels will rise to meet the requirements you make of them and this quite simply makes you feel great.

Article Source: https://articlebliss.com/Article/493996/Your-Goals-Are-Achievable.html

A Helping Hand Vs. A Handout

I keep hearing complaints about people feeling entitled to living the good life but unwilling to work for it but, from where I’m sitting, I see these same people contributing to that sense of entitlement that’s permeating our society.

On the one hand, it’s understandable that you want to give your children more than you had, but on the other hand, if you do that, you will probably be contributing to their sense of entitlement.

I was just talking to a woman who is barely scraping by and she is putting her nineteen-year-old through college. I asked, what I thought was a logical question, “Why don’t you send him to a community college since it costs so much less than the college he’s attending?” Her response was that he loves the school and if she made him go to a community college, he would stop talking to her.

Whoa!! Her nineteen-year-old son would stop talking to her if she transferred him to a community college? Talk about entitlement issues. Then I asked her if he could get a part-time job and contribute some money toward his tuition and her response was that when she was young, all she had time for was studying and working; she had no time for a social life and she doesn’t want that for her son.

So then I asked her why he couldn’t have a little bit of a social life if he works fifteen hours a week, and her answer was the same. It was a catch 22. She wants a different life for herself because she’s feeling like a prisoner. She’s depressed at the thought of having no money and doesn’t see a way out of this situation but she’s not willing to make any changes.

She wasn’t even receptive to my suggestion that he go to the public library and look up the thousands of scholarships that go unclaimed every year and start making applications. She didn’t even want him to investigate the possibility of getting some grants.

This woman probably thinks I’m hard-hearted but I told her that if she’s not willing to change anything, she shouldn’t expect a different outcome. And I also told her that she’s not doing her son any favors because he’s not being given any responsibilities and he’s having everything handed to him on a silver platter. How can you become a man if you’re still being treated like a child?

If this is how we’re raising our children, can we really complain about how our society is rife with people expecting handouts? If we do nothing to remedy this travesty, can we really expect anything to change?

Article Source: https://articlebliss.com/Article/882187/A-Helping-Hand-Vs-A-Handout.html

3 eCommerce Challenges & Solutions for Tough Times

How to Start Selling Online More Effectively
To call these “tough times” may be a bit of an understatement to you, or perhaps you’ve pivoted your marketing strategy nicely and aren’t negatively affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

There’s no arguing this pandemic has led to increased internet traffic as people work, socialize, and entertain themselves online.

Distributel, a company that buys wholesale access to Rogers Communications Inc.’s internet backbone, has seen a traffic increase of about 50%, according to this article.

But an increase in internet usage doesn’t necessarily translate into increased sales for your small business.

Many consumers are hesitant to buy, either because they aren’t sure when they’ll be able to use the service you sell, or because they’ve been laid off or have had their hours reduced.

That’s why I’m sharing 3 eCommerce challenges and solutions to help you maintain and even grow as an entrepreneur during this crisis.

The Challenge: Making Your (eCommerce) Business Essential Many entrepreneurs are panicking because they don’t have a traditional eCommerce business model, or an eCommerce website.

And, many worry they don’t have an “essential” enough product or service to offer online, like grocery stores do. (According to Apptopia, downloads of Instacart, the Walmart Grocery app and Shipt have increased 218%, 160%, and 124% compared with a year ago.)

Okay, so chances are you don’t sell groceries. But you can still be essential to your customers.

Are there certain products or services you can focus on that will better serve your target audience? For example:

? If you have a clothing store: fabric face masks, casual outfits for working from home ? If you offer financial, life, or other counseling services: 30- or 60-minute mental health sessions; many people are feeling lonely and isolated because of COVID-19 ? If you sell entertainment-related items: create short videos highlighting games, crafts, or puzzles that will be fun for bored kids or adults

While it’s not possible for every small business to pivot this way, the reality is that if you don’t adjust to this “new normal” as much as possible, your small business will suffer.

Changing your marketing strategy can be tough, but it’s amazing how a bit of creative thinking can transform your situation and increase your web presence.

The Challenge: More Customer Questions & Complaints While having a phone number on your website and in your Google My Business results may have been enough pre-pandemic, your customers need your support now more than ever.

More people online means an increased number of questions, comments and complaints could be coming your way.

I’m sure you’ve been incredibly frustrated at one point after being put on hold for ages, or not getting an email back when you inquired about something. Don’t let your customers have a similar experience on your website.

If you don’t have the capacity to manage customer service, consider implementing a chatbot to increase your web presence. A chatbot allows business owners to provide responses and solutions—and even generate leads and sales—24/7 through automated customer service live chat.

According to IBM, up to 80% of routine customer service questions could be answered by a chatbot. While not every query can be tackled by a chatbot, it could take on the easier, yet still time-consuming, questions your customers might have. Learn more about chatbots here.

The Challenge: Website Tech Issues Let’s say you already have an eCommerce site for your small business. If you have a broken link, 404 page or slow loading times, your visitors will go elsewhere. (This is true all the time, not just during COVID-19).

Even a clever 404 page can’t save you from losing visitors (and potentially sales).

Also, you’re not going to build trust among your audience with a poor user experience. Nobody is going to enter their contact or credit card info if they don’t trust your website.

Not to mention, an unkempt website is a target for hackers.

Remember: You’re not only responsible for protecting your own data, but also for your visitors’. Security requirements are always changing, and no small or large business is safe.

That’s why it’s essential to monitor for glitches, update your software and back up your site regularly for an optimal user experience.

Now, what if you have to start selling online in response to COVID-19? While there are sites out there that let you start an eCommerce website yourself, remember that your website is your number one marketing tool.

From calls to action to the font type and images on your pages, how you present your small business to the world makes a big difference to how you’re perceived.

Also, you’re not going to have the same customization options if you go the DIY route.

A professional web development company will understand not only the technical aspects of the build, but also the best ways to get your message across to your target audience.

READ: 17 Strategic Business Pivots to Make in the Time of COVID-19, on our website. Just like that we woke up in a different world! The coronavirus epidemic has completely changed our lives and transformed the way we do business.

For many, this can be an incredibly frightening time to be a business owner. You worry about the health of your employees and the business, the bills that keep coming, your income and family obligations.

But rather than let worries overwhelm them, smart small business owners can use this opportunity to plan and prepare for future growth and success. We’ve created a COVID-19 checklist to help you make the most of this uncertain time.

Whether you have to start an eCommerce website from scratch or adjust your existing marketing strategy to increase your web presence, now is not the time to sit back and wait for the pandemic to blow over.

Right now, your target audience is “living” online, so you’re going to have to tackle eCommerce business challenges as quickly and smoothly as possible. Be proactive, pivot your marketing strategy, and learn from this journey!


Article Source: https://www.amazines.com/Business/article_detail.cfm/6258895?articleid=6258895