Guest Article

Read First: This article is not about Internet Marketing. However, as internet marketer that will wants to take part in one or two industry event in uk, this article will give you great tip about uk visa. It is a guest article from www.ukvisasecrets.com.
Do you know that in 2006/7 the UK Border Agency handled 2.75 million applications? Of these applications 1,405,330 were application for Visiting Visa; 312565 Student Visas and 79030 work permits.

Here is the actual gist: 201375 Visitors, 98065 Student and 4335 work permit visa applications were REFUSED.
UK visa is the document affixed within your passport that allows you entry into the UK.

Thousands of Visa Applications are turned down weekly due to various reasons; chief of which includes: Lack of proper document presentation, Document Irregularities, Lack of Planning, Irregularities in Arguments & Evidence.

The collection of biometric data as part of the visa application process enables checks at the UK border to ensure that the person travelling is the same one to whom the visa was given. Biometrics are stored on a shared immigration database, making it easier to detect, detain, document and remove people who should not be in the UK.

Once your Biometrics Information matches, you could experience low-risk travelling to the UK. You experience faster, more efficient service from Visa Applications, and in the future as a trusted traveller you’d be allowed to pass through automated gates when arriving the UK.

Here’s a case-study on how Biometric Information can help make or break the success of your visa application; culled from the 2006/7annual reports of UKVisas:

“In Copenhagen, a Nigerian national permanently resident in Denmark applied for a visa for a visit to see his brother in the UK. He was a frequent visitor to the UK who had been issued with a visit visa on 12 previous occasions. The application appeared straightforward.

However, biometrics had been installed since his last application, and data revealed that he had claimed asylum in the UK in 1995 under a different identity. Further investigation revealed that he had been receiving benefits in the UK – including Income Support, Child Benefit, Child Maintenance, Child Tax Credit and Housing Benefit – in the name of the asylum claimant since October 2005. The visa application was refused, and the potentially fraudulent benefits claims are being investigated.”

To obtain a Genuine UKVisa with less than N20, 000; know the relevant documents required for your application, ensure these documents are well presented, answer questions on your application form with evidence and pay the visa fee to the Verification-Centres.

Why have I gone through this length to inform you of the above statistics? You could continue to make the same mistakes like the applicants above and join the long lists of applicants who are refused UKVisa weekly or make use of the same system that I use to get my clients their visa.

I was able to save a client over N450, 000 she would have paid to an agent who knew next to nothing about getting a UK Visa. We did it ourselves and ended up spending less than N20k for the Visa.

Find more details about this system of getting a Genuine & stress-free UKVisa at www.ukvisasecrets.com

Guest Article - Edmund Ng (http://www.internet-empire.com)

Life is full of uncertainties, more so in this century. Almost every
 week, you hear of sad natural disasters like Cyclones hitting Myanmar,
 Earthquake in Si Chuan and many more. It's a tough world out there. More
 importantly there are 6.6 Billion people living in this vulnerable
 world. 

You are but 'One' of the 6.6 Billion people utilizing earth's resources
 but are you making the best of it? How have you repaid the earth? No
 I'm no Al Gore and the purpose of this email is not in asking you to
 protect the earth's and adapt ways to conserve energy.

Life is Fragile. What if you're dead tomorrow? What happens? The first
 thing that comes into your mind is your wife, your children, your
 parents, your in laws...the list goes on and on. You think about
 money...which should be the least of your concern. Why?

As I said before, there's 6.6 Billion people out there. You are but one
 of the 6.6 Billion. If you do your maths, it's really insignificant.
 So, what are the things that matter? Money? How many certificates you
 have? How big your business is? How many assets you have? Friend,  all
 these means nothing if you've not repaid the Earth!

What do I mean by that. It is simple, how many people's life have you
 impacted? How many people's life have you helped turned around? How many
 people have you helped. Basically, we come naked into this world and
 we'll leave naked as well. We can't take any of our physical assets,
 certifications, money with us. What we can leave behind is our legacy.

What legacy? It is what you want to remember for. I have a habit of
 taking a peep at the obituary everytime I see the newspaper. I always look
 at the deceased and wondered what have they accomplished in their life
 time. Sometimes, you see awards like BBM, PBM which accounts for
 nothing. 

I have to confess I've got a self professed theory. That is, if you're
 not contributing to mankind, there's no meaning in you living on this
 earth. That is, you're just a consumer of Earth's resources and have not
 contributed to it. Then, God will kind of tell you to hand in your ICs
 earlier. (IC = Identity Cards)

The fact that you're alive, is God telling you your time is not up yet.
 You'd better do something. You'd better contribute. You'd better help
 more people. You'd better leave a legacy.

I know there are many of you who are barely making ends meet. Remember,
 your current situation is the result of what you did for the past few
 years. The equation is pretty simple and you need to work backwards.

No Goals = Mediocrity = Barely Make Ends Meet
Big Goals = Life of Abundance = Helping More People = Leaving A Legacy.

Start building your legacy now. Set a big goal in how you're going to
 help more people and who knows, during the process your life will change
 tremendously and you'll achieve your goals and leaving a legacy at the
 same time. Be thankful you're still alive and don't assume the Angel
 of Death is not knocking on the door soon. Start working your butt off
 and contribute to the Earth by helping more people. Maybe God will see
 that and let you live longer to accomplish your goals.

Edmund Ng is my Singaporean friend. I call him 'Asian' Search Engine Optimisation 'TIGER'
because is number #1 when it comes to getting free traffic from search engine.

Since so many of you seem to like it, I am going to publish  a few more of the questions I have been asked … along with my answers, of course … if you’d rather I’d publish something besides these Q&A sessions, please let me know.

Q: Can you give a primer on setting up a business from the legal aspect?  Any guidelines on how to move in this regard?

A: Whoa!  I’m not an attorney.

Suggest that anyone planning to start a business should call on an attorney; or their legal aid society, to get guidance from a qualified professional.

Q: How would someone with zero money, zero credit, and no product go about raising money to start a business?

A: With no money, no credit & no product, what reason would any person have to raise money to start a business?

If you don’t know what you are going to do (no product), you shouldn’t even be considering starting a business - but …

As I have said a thousands times, “If I had it to do all over again, I would never create my own products.  I would simply sell other people’s products.”

So … before you decide to raise funding for a business, you need to first find a product to sell.  Only then can you even begin thinking about financing a business.

Q: We live in a very competitive world, how do we stay in front of those that may be marketing identical products?

A: If necessity is the Mother of invention, competition is the Mother of necessity.

Rather than restate what I have already written on the subject, I’ll just direct to you my Free report …  “Competition! - To compete or not to compete? — Should we even ask the question?” … at:
http://www.businesslyceum.com/compete.html

Q: What would you say your secrets to becoming a Marketing Genius are?

A: There is only one secret (??) to becoming a Marketing Genius … it is also the only thing that separates the professional from the amateur in the marketing game. — That secret is to test, Test, TEST, then, test some more.

You can write the very best ad copy in the world - but - if nobody buys, you ain’t yet a marketer.

Some 30 years ago, I wrote what I thought was the most powerful ad copy I had ever written.  I passed it around among the office staff … they all loved it and praised it as being the best I had ever written. — I gave copies of it to the production staff … they loved it even more - SO, I didn’t even test the copy.  I mailed 10,000 pieces.

The results were abysmal … that 10,000 piece mailing produced one (just one) paid order.  (I never made that mistake again.)

Of course, if you are really asking about how to write better ad copy, you can find out everything you’ve ever wanted to know about ad copywriting in the June, 2000, issue of my “Business Lyceum e-Letter” at:
http://www.businesslyceum.com/Jun00.html

Q:  How do you see the correlation between offline and online marketing?

A:  If you had asked me that question just 10 years ago, I would have told you that online marketing was a fad … soon to pass into marketing oblivion; just as the 900# marketing had.

Today, I see online marketing as a viable marketing tool - but - it should be made part of the complete marketing package of any business, rather than being touted as the sole method of marketing.

When I established my website in September, 1999, I did so because my mailorder customers were, more and more, asking “Where can I find your products online?” — In response to those inquiries, I established the website as an addition to my offline marketing.

In the beginning, the Business Lyceum was nothing more than an online catalog of my offline products. — Beginning in September, 1999, we added our URL to all of our outgoing mailings.  The site had covered all of its costs and produced a profit by January, 2000.

Today, our website is producing over 80% of our revenue - but - over 80% of the online orders are still coming from my offline customers.

Think about this for a moment …

AOL is one of the largest online companies in the world - but - they didn’t start by advertising online.  If you will remember, they used to send you disks … later CDs … inviting you to sign-up for Free Minutes, by Mail. — They are a prime example of building an online business using offline techniques.

Just ask yourself, “Am I smarter than AOL??” — If you think you are, try building your online business solely online.

Q: What do you see as the biggest hurdle that any new marketer has to overcome to succeed … be it offline or online?

A: You’re probably going to think I’m beginning to sound like a broken record but the biggest hurdle any new marketer has to overcome is their lack of testing.

Believe it or don’t … 99% of beginning marketers NEVER test anything.  They just “try” things.  If it doesn’t work the first time, they move on to something else that “might” work … when it doesn’t, they move on, again.

It isn’t all their fault.

Unfortunately, much of the problem is caused by the pseudo-gurus themselves. — They provide their dealers, distributors and/or affiliates with “ad copy” to use to sell the guru’s products - but - in all too many cases, the guru him/herself has never really made any money using that ad copy.

What does it matter to the guru? — If 100 dealers use that ad copy and produce just one order for the guru, the guru is ahead by one order - BUT - in 99% of the cases, the dealer “tries” the ad once; doesn’t get any response, and moves on to the next “make a fortune overnight” deal.

If a “dealer” (affiliate) tested the ad copy and discovered it didn’t produce, the dealer should; if he/she “really” wants to make some money from that product or service, change the ad copy and test it again; and again; and again, until the dealer finds ad copy that works.

Let me tell you a true story I use to illustrate the method for my affiliates …

Here’s the “secret” used by my most productive dealer to produce an income of nearly $100,000 per month selling my products and services.

When Gene first became one of my dealers … 1977 or 1978 … I sent him copies of all the various (and many) classified ads, space ads and sales letters we were using to sell our products and services (just like we did for all of our dealers). — All tested and proven successful.

At first … like most of my dealers … Gene began earning a few hundred dollars per month. After a few months, he jumped from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars for a month. Then, his earnings began getting bigger and bigger, month after month … in a few years, his earnings grew to over $100,000 per month (producing over $100,000 for me as well).

When I finally asked Gene what he was doing to increase his income so much, he told me …
He Was Writing His Own Ads!

Every month, he would go through my publications to pick out new phrases and ideas to include in his advertising. — He even began writing ads directed to very specific customers … using the catch-phrases, headlines, and other items from my publications.

When Gene died in 1992, I lost a friend - and - $100,000 per month.

The few (very few) of my affiliates who are knocking down the big bucks each month are following my advice. — It won’t be long before I’ll have another Gene; maybe more than one … maybe YOU will be my next Gene.

Q: Both offline and online marketers say that the key to your business is your list.  What advice can you give to those that want to quickly build their list … are there any secrets you can share with us?

A: Over the 50 years I’ve been in business, I have found that anything you do “quickly” usually isn’t worth doing.

I once signed up for a list building service … shame on me … that really produced.  The service seemed to be phenomenal.  I was adding people to my list almost faster than I could keep up with them - and - I kept that list separate, so I could run specific tests against it … just to find out what kind of customer list I was building.

For over a year, I tested that list again and again … with every offer in my stable. — I even went so far as to change my ads that had worked for years, to see if I could reach them. — Nothing worked.

After I discontinued the list building service, most of them … slowly but surely … faded from my list.  Some asked to be removed but most of them just ended up in my dead letter file to be removed.

The secret (??) to building a list is to test, Test, TEST and test some more until you find one (just one) method that adds addresses to your list.  Then, expand your use of that method while you continue testing more methods to build your list. — It won’t be too long before you will have a stable of tried and proven methods of your own … for your own use.

Actually, the big problem with too many beginners is they want to do everything fast, faster & fastest … without considering the results.

Just remember the story of the tortoise and the hare.

Q: What’s the best way to market my products and services to Fortune 500 companies?

A: Don’t be silly. — There is no difference between marketing to Mom & Pop and marketing to the Fortune 500.

It’s just a matter of defining your audience; studying your market audience; then “selling” to them.

Source - present edition of business lyceum newsletter.
Note from Rich Kid: If you haven’t join Jim’s newsletter I will advice that you do now. That way you will get the monthly dose in your email box directly. Join here:http://www.BusinessLyceum.com/join.html

http://www.BusinessLyceum.com/join.html

“There is only one way to make a great deal of money; and that is in a business of your own.”

J. Paul Getty

A Quick-Start Guide for the Internet Entrepreneur

By Michael Masterson

I recently got an e-mail from a man I’ll call Jim, a longtime ETR reader. His question is probably the most common question I get. If you are interested in breaking into the Internet, pay attention. What I have to say to Jim might give you the information you need to get started.

Jim writes:

“I have been struggling with the idea of starting my own Internet-based business. The question is, how and with what product or service?

“I have been a loyal fan of ETR for many years now, and you guys throw so many sound ideas and businesses at me it gets a little confusing. I would like to start small with some proven methods and techniques and build from there. I do not have countless thousands of dollars to experiment with, nor do I have the luxury of being able so sit in front of my computer day in and day out. I need your help to get me started in the right direction with a system that will hopefully start generating some return fairly quickly.

“I believe in and trust your advice more so than anyone out there when it comes to building an Internet-based business - or any other type of business, for that matter. Please help me make this the year I finally took the plunge and started achieving success!”

Everybody knows what a great opportunity the Internet offers. It is the only medium where someone without a lot of money can start a multimillion-dollar company. There are lots of good programs available that teach the ins and outs of Internet marketing. But choosing the right product or service to market… there’s the rub!

I’m going to give Jim some general advice. And then MaryEllen Tribby (ETR’s publisher and CEO) and Patrick Coffey (ETR’s Director of Internet Marketing) will jump in with some specific suggestions.

Which product to choose is a big question. Not the kind that can be answered simply and quickly. It depends so much on you - who you are, who you want to be, what you know, what you don’t know, etc.

That said, a few general suggestions apply.

First, and most important, it is always best to start a business in or around an industry/area that you understand. So many of the most expensive mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make are “outsider” mistakes - errors that someone with experience in the field would not have made.

Lots of first-time health publishers, for example, spend too much time explaining the disease or health problem they hope to cure. They do so both in the publications they create and the promotions they use to sell those publications. What these novices don’t understand is that the most active health buyers don’t need to know more about their problems. They can find out all they want to know on the Internet - for free. What they need are solutions.

So the first thing you must do is make a list of all the things you know about. Start with the business you are in (or employed by). But don’t stop there. Include all your hobbies and interests too. You don’t have to have any professional experience to know enough about a subject to start a business based on it.

I have a friend who started a successful business providing advice about astrology. She’d never taken a course in it or received certification. But she’d read about it for 30 years, and her knowledge was deep and wide. Because of that, she began her enterprise with a good idea of what kind of astrology she would practice and what kind of products and pricing would work.

Another friend started a successful Internet business selling martial arts information. He was a world-class black belt who had been competing for 20 years. He knew the industry inside and out. So he had some good ideas about new and exciting instructional videos he could produce that really caught fire.

This brings us to my second-most-important suggestion: If you are not an expert at direct marketing, you should become one before you spend a nickel on your new business.

I cannot overstate the importance of understanding the techniques of direct-response marketing. Direct marketing is the primary method for generating profits on the Internet. Other forms of advertising - from public relations to event marketing to social media and branding - are usually not nearly as effective.

Luckily, there are plenty of good information products and educational programs available that teach direct marketing for the Internet. On top of the list, I’d put ETR’s own Internet Money Club, The Magic Button, and Instant Internet Income. But I’d also recommend Bob Bly’s Internet Marketing Retirement Plan.

My third and final suggestion is this: In addition to focusing on an industry you are already familiar with and becoming an expert at direct marketing, you must learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. Starting a business can be a daunting task for the beginner. Most of those who try fail. And with good reason: They make some very basic mistakes.

The biggest mistake first-time entrepreneurs make is spending too much of their time and money on all sorts of secondary business concerns (getting business cards, setting up a website, finding a business location). But when you’re starting any new business, your priority has to be on making sales. In fact, at this stage of the game, at least 80 percent of your time should be devoted to selling.

To bring yourself up to speed, I recommend that you read Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat. The book is based on my own experiences with building small businesses. It’s all about how to get your business off the ground and continue to grow it.

Okay. Those are my general suggestions. Now, here’s some specific advice from MaryEllen and Patrick:

* To develop your marketing materials, hire a copywriter who has in-depth and up-to-date knowledge of your niche. They should be on the cutting-edge of their specialty and always learning, whether it’s the financial markets or alternative health. “I never hire a copywriter who says they can write about anything,” says MaryEllen.

* Do some quick research, then TEST your idea. Says Patrick, “One of the biggest problems I see is that people will take too much time analyzing what market to get into. I’ll talk to people who have been studying one of our programs for months and they’ll say, ‘I’m still in the market research stage.’ In my opinion, market research for a new online business should take no more than a week.”

A week is plenty of time to decide what to sell. In fact, it’s a generous amount of time. At ETR’s annual 5 Days In July Internet Marketing Conference, attendees have to make this decision in a day.

To figure out what market to enter, you need to look for two things:

1. Are people looking for this information?
2. Are people buying this information?

“And,” says Patrick, “you can get the answers to these questions very quickly with a few key strokes.

“One of the best ways to find out who is looking for what is with a free tool like WordTracker. And to determine if people are buying, simply enter a few search phrases for your product in Google. Then check the Web pages of the advertisers that come up. The fact that they’re paying for advertising and selling stuff is a good indicator that the market they’re selling to is buying.

“Sign up for e-mail lists of potential competitors, study their marketing materials, and even purchase some of their products. After that, you immediately begin working on your own offer so you can start testing. That’s what students of our Internet marketing programs who become most successful do.”

Will all the ideas you’ll come up with work? No. But the only way you’ll find out is by trying to sell to the market. If an idea does not work, simply try to re-work the offer or explore a new idea.

* Remember that starting an Internet business - just like beginning any worthwhile venture - will take work. In his e-mail, Jim talked about wanting to generate some return “fairly quickly,” despite the fact that he does not “have the luxury of being able to sit in front of [his] computer day in and day out.” You need to have realistic expectations when you begin a new business. And one thing you must be prepared for is that it takes time and energy.

One last piece of advice from Charlie Byrne, ETR’s Editorial and Creative Director: Get started. Now. By no means is this all you need to know about starting an Internet business. But the best way to get it going is to begin. Ready, Fire, Aim. You can take time to adjust your product or marketing later. What’s most important is taking that initial leap.

Source: Early To Rise Newsletter

Few years ago I interviewed Jim F. Straw for one of my book. On Sunday (yesterday 9th of march) while at Sheraton hotel’s (lagos) lobby waiting for a US business partner (to be) I met the publisher of moneywise magazine Mr Ayo Arowolo.

After exchanging greetings with him I started thinking of how reading his column in financial standard (then) helped me. While still in this thinking mood I remembered my interview with Jim Straw as well. It was a very interesting experience.

I am very sure you will learn something from the interview article.

Enjoy yourself.

———

The message bellow was shared with attendees of DMI IV at SADC last week. While thinking of what to send to you this morning I got the feeling that if I will have to be part of those that will assist you this year, then it is necessary that you read this message too.

Here you have it………….

Personal Message from Lateef Olajide Of www.internetmarketingnigeria.com

Dear friend,

Just like I told you during my presentation I was once where you are today. I can imagine your feelings. I may be of help.

So I ask you now:

How can I help you?

I want to make the “Internet Marketing” a valuable resource to help you achieve your career, business, and financial goals.

To do that more effectively, I want to ask you:

· What’s your biggest marketing, business, or financial problem - the one that’s keeping you up nights with worry?

· Have you ever wished that someone could sit down with you, in person, and physically look at your shoulder, point at computer secret and SHOW YOU how to start your own Internet business?

· Or will you need someone who could help you decide what to sell, design and build the website for you and show you exactly how to accept credit card payment on your site?
Tell me now!

I can be of help along with my team of ‘caring guys’ that we work together in my office.

Post your response here as comment. Alternatively you can email me your response directly here: lateefolajide@gmail.com

You’ll have my undying gratitude. And you might just get exactly the right idea, strategy, or advice you need to solve your biggest internet business problems and achieve your most important goals this year!

Sincerely,

Lateef Olajide

Success Brothers Ent.
117 Obafemi Awolowo Way
Allen Avenue Junction
Ikeja
01-8500619, 08063121325

Hey,  am I able to catch your attention with that heading. It is not hype. It is true my US.Based Multimillionaire mentor and publisher interrogate himself in his recent edition of Business Lyceum Newsletter. I don’t think any investigative policeman could have done it better.

If you haven’t heard about Business Lyceum e-letter before you are missing alot. It is one online magazine that always start my months with. If I may tell you the truth this is one of my secret source for powerful business growth information.

You can do yourself a favour by signing up here so that you can get next month edition: http://www.businesslyceum.com/join.html

But why waiting for another 30 days to receive your first copy here is extract from March edition. Enjoy yourself. And drop a comment here. I am very sure my mentor (Jim F. Straw) will drop by to read your comment one day.

Business Lyceum E-letter March 2008

Greetings & Salutations:

It seems all of you … well, a ho’bunch  of you anyway … liked the Q&A format from last month. — So, I’ll  do some more this month.

Q:  What are the biggest mistakes you’ve made in your career?

A:  Mistakes?  Who, me?  Never!  But, there was this one time …

All kidding aside, there are really no mistakes that I’ve made that stick-out as being “the biggest” or even the most important.

Babe Ruth was known as the “Home Run King” - but - he had more strike-outs than he did home runs.

I can count my successes on my fingers - but - when it comes to mistakes, I couldn’t count them on all my fingers, toes and hairs on my chest.

The secret to real success is to make mistakes. — You don’t learn anything from your success but mistakes teach you valuable lessons … IF you don’t make the same mistakes over & over again.

It’s like the one-time wonders who hit one big success, then never do it again.  They couldn’t learn anything from their success, so they are locked-in to telling the story of their one big success over & over & over; ad naseum.

Q:  What would you say are the best offline opportunities?

A:  Who is the most beautiful woman in the world?? — Depends upon who’s looking, doesn’t it.

Look around you.  There are millionaires in every field of business endeavor.  There are millionaire garbage collectors … millionaire bankers … millionaire shop keepers … millionaire day-care operators … millionaire internet marketers … etc., etc., etc.

As Albert Einstein said, “Anyone can be a genius, if they pick just one specific subject and study it diligently just 15 minutes each day.”

The same holds true in business. — Just pick one specific business. Do it every day until you do it successfully.

Most people don’t fail, they just fail to stick with any ONE thing until they have mastered it.

Q:What do you see as the best opportunities online at present, and in the next 2 years?

A:  Again, it’s all in the eye of the beholder.

There are very, very few opportunities that couldn’t be the “best” for someone.  It is all a matter of persistence.

As Benjamin Disraeli said, “The secret to success is the constancy of purpose.”

What would be “best” for me … since I have a very high risk threshold … wouldn’t be the “best” for anyone seeking any kind of security; or privacy.

To succeed in business, you must leave your comfort zone and tread into untried waters … willing to take the risks.

Q:  Do you treat your online business as you would a brick and mortar business?

A:  Yes. — As Benjamin Franklin said, “Keep your business and your business will keep you.”

Unfortunately, all too many online business people treat their business on a catch-as-catch-can basis.  They don’t establish office hours or keep with any established schedule … worst of all are the ezine publishers who set a circulation date for their publication then allow almost anything to keep them from meeting their own deadlines. — Even while I was in the hospital; after my heart surgery, my publications went out on schedule.

If you are going to have a business; any kind of business, you MUST establish all the “rules” you will follow … then, follow them.

Q:  In the respect of customers there is a kind of unwritten rule that says the customer is always right. Does this apply in the online world as well?

A:  The customer may not “always” be right - but - a customer is always a customer.

Too many wannabees want to “make sales.” — Those of us who succeed “make customers” … then, we do everthing in our power to keep those customers.  Our customers are our only real asset — BUT …

Unfortunately, there are some customers who become a liability; rather than an asset.  When a customer costs more than that customer is worth to keep, it is best to drop that customer from your roles.

Q:  How important is a business plan if you don’t need to raise funding to start your business?

A:  A business that doesn’t plan, plans to fail.

Even when financing is not required, a wise business person writes a plan … even if it is just a list of gonna do’s … to keep track of what they are doing; what they are going to do - and - what results they anticipate. — Of course, the plan is subject to change at any time.

———End———-

If you enjoy this post. Leave a comment here. I know Jim will read it one day.

Well … well … well!

You will live to fulfill your days.

Guess what the Spirit of God is saying to
me as I’m typing these words?

He is saying to me: “Soon, the rest of the world will
turn their gaze on you [Nigerians] and wonder whether
the same people that they have malign online unfairly
are those making waves on the same Internet.”

I know His voice. And I see you fulfilling that
prophecy.

We need to be focused. We need to eschew any
act that will tarnish our image. Above all, we need
to understand that the Internet is a TOOL that
can be used to bring ideas that will solve peoples’
problems and make their lives easy.

Once we realize that, we will begin to create
online products and services that our people can
use - just like the Americans, Europeans and
the Asians are doing already.

When we get to that point, when we create
our own Ebays, our Googles and Yahoos, our ClickBank,
our PayPal etc., for Nigerians, and we are doing well,
then the world will pay attention.

Let me give you an example of what I’m saying
so that you’ll catch the vision.

Take newspaper publishing. Nigerians are
not relying on newspapers published abroad to satisfy
their need for news.

Rather, you have Nigerians who use the same type
of machines as newspaper publishers abroad to serve
Nigerians news.

And those who are running their newspaper business well
in the country are making good profit from it.

Just imagine if that were not the case. And that Nigerians
had to rely on The Sun of London for their news. One day, we
could be told that we have been black-listed and we could no
longer get our newspaper supply from them.

Which was what ClickBank did. It was possible for a Nigerian
to open a ClickBank account back in 2000 with no questions
asked. Then, one day, I woke up to discover that had become
history.

If someone here creates a system where Nigerians
can be buying and selling digital products — that’s what the
ClickBank model is all about — would we need to break our
necks to have ClickBank account?

That is the vision. That is the way to our future dignity
online. Listen to this: if we have a successful website like
that; that has reputation of being well managed, you will
be surprised that many of the info merchants online who are
always looking for avenue to sell their products will soon
start to offer them through the Nigerian site.

Once again, happy New Year!
Source: This is edited copy of Dr Sunny Obazu Ojeagbase’s post on sdlc forum

Video of presentation made by Philip Emeagwali  at Africa in Diaspora Showcase Tucson, AZ

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHAU25zXsIg[/youtube]

Editors Note: Print out this article if possible because as a nigerian you can make it here. Even if you can’t become a millionaire internet marketer I believe extra hundred grands a year is not too bad.

I’ve known Bruce since high school. His family and mine, both extra-large Irish-American clans, lived less than a mile apart. Although we ran with a gang of kids who seemed destined for questionable futures, Bruce and I always had the sense that we wanted more. We both went to college. We both studied hard. We both traveled the world and took risks. And when we finally settled down into careers, we were hell-bent on becoming successful.During his heyday, Bruce was a corporate vice president for several Fortune 500 companies.

He was a natural leader with an interest in computer technology. During the ’80s and ’90s, he was at the head of his field. He was earning big bucks - three-quarters of a million at one point - and was well-known and well-established.He had achieved The Great American Dream. The big house, the cars, the vacations, the corporate expense account. But then, suddenly, everything went wrong.

His run of bad luck started when he switched jobs to take a more lucrative position with a high-tech company… just before the high-tech bubble popped. Then, in the course of a year, he got divorced, saw his retirement portfolio collapse, lost his job, suffered a tragic death in the family, and had a stroke.“I was down and almost out,” he told me. Yet Bruce, who was and still is one of the bravest people I know, managed to fight his way up from the bottom.

Problem is, he’s not happy with the job he now has. Bruce went to work with a man who promised him a partnership - but when the money started coming in, the story changed. “I’ve just brought in a client that is going to make this guy very rich,” Bruce told me. “But he’s taking it all for himself. I suppose I could take him to court and fight it out. But I don’t have the heart for that sort of thing anymore. I’m willing to settle for less. I want a job that I can love, that can keep me close to my kids, one that can put me back in touch with people. I don’t need to make a ton of money. Just $150,000 a year will cover my needs.”It broke my heart to hear him speak that way.

This is a man who is perfectly capable of running a billion-dollar business. But he’s been banged up so unfairly and so often by life that he just doesn’t have the competitive spirit he had in the old days.I told him that I thought the old fervor would come back to him once he got situated in the right job. “I don’t want it to come back,” he said. “I want to live a simpler life. I want to spend more time loving the things I do.”I’m all for living a simpler, more fulfilling life - and having the personal and financial freedom to do just that.

The career opportunities sponsored by ETR have all been designed to help people lead that kind of enviable lifestyle, so I told Bruce about some of them. But he didn’t really want to work by himself. And he didn’t want to put in the effort to learn a new skill. Yet, he wanted to make good money - at least $150,000 per year.What kind of job is he looking for? “I’m really good with people,” he said, “leading them, getting them motivated, putting a team together and making it click.”That statement bothered me.

It was reminiscent of what I have so often heard from kids fresh out of college. (”I’m a people person.”) “That’s a skill,” I agreed, “but do you think it’s one that someone’s going to pay you a lot of money for?”He saw my point. I gave him a quick rundown of an idea we’ve talked about often in ETR - that the best way to make good money and keep making good money (i.e., keep your job) is to learn and practice a “financially valued” skill. It doesn’t matter what skill you choose to develop, so long as it’s one that will make it easy for you to eventually charge $100 an hour for your time.

The best way to get rich is to own your own business and invest in real estate. But the best way to avoid penury - now and, more important, when you reach “retirement” age - is to be very good at doing something that people will pay good money for.

A hundred dollars an hour is a good minimum number to shoot for. If you worked 50 hours a week at that rate, you’d be making $250,000 a year. Yes, you can make a lot more money than a quarter million bucks a year if you have your own successful business, but in terms of having a reliably high income (one you can earn regardless of how old you are or where you choose to live), having a financially valued skill is the way to go.

You can even retire and work on a very-part-time basis… and still have a good income to live on.

Here’s a short list of financially valued skills:·                                

knowing how to market                          

being able to sell                        

being capable of creating a positive bottom line

Those are the premium skills, the ones that - combined with being able to work well with people - will put you at the very top of almost any organization and assure your employment for pretty much as long as you want it.But there are other, less-valued but still valuable, skills - and I reminded Bruce that he has one: developing information technology.“That’s a liability,” he told me. “All the good tech jobs are in

The situation that Bruce is in right now proves that point.Bruce is too strong, too smart, too gifted a person not to be able to find a good job. But in order to do that, he’s going to have to make some changes. Instead of continuing to search for a high-paying position where he can “work with people,” he’s going to have to perfect (maybe even learn from scratch) a financially valued skill.

When he sends out his next resume or has his next interview, he’ll have to be able to answer one or several of the following questions:·                                

“How will you increase our revenues?”

 “How will you reduce our costs?”                                

“How will you expand our customer base?”                                 

“How will you increase our profits?” Bruce can make the transition. I hope he does.

This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.