Make A Blog

Have you decided on a name for your blog?  Go to www.godaddy.com and do a domain name search.  You can pay for a domain name - it's about $9.99.  Don't order anything else with it - you only want the name.   .com extensions are still the most popular and I recommend you stick with that.

Now, go to www.google.com  Click on the gmail link.  Set up a gmail account.  You will have this associated with your blog.  If you decided your blog name is Firstnamelastname.com - make your email address firstnamelastname@gmail.com

Okay, now go to www.blogger.com Click on Create A Blog.  Okay, sign in first with your gmail account.  

Title your blog.  This will appear at the top of your blog.

Put the name you decided on in the blog address (firstnamelastname)

Do the word verification.

Click on continue. 

Choose a template.  Look at them all.  Find one that fits your personality.

That's it.  You are ready to start blogging! 

Now, go back to www.godaddy.com  Sign in.  Go to Domains and then to My Domains. Click the box to the left of your website address and then click on Forward.  Click on enable forwarding box and Type in your blogspot address for example: (http://www.firstnamelastname.blogspot.com)  Choose 301 moved permanently.    Click on OK.

Now, when people go to www.firstnamelastname.com - they will automatically go to your blog!  

Take a break - you deserve it!    Tomorrow we will actually post an entry on your blog.  Think about what you want that post to be.  See you later! 

photo courtesy of Howdy I'm H Michael at flickr.com 

News You Can Use

They say that home is where the heart is, but unfortunately, it's also where everyday products pose health dangers to you and your family. More than 33 million people are injured by common consumer products each year, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which oversaw 563 recalls of 60.8 million individual consumer products in 2008. (Make sure your home is safe by checking Recalls.gov.)And those are just the documented hazards. What may be the hidden ones?

The slinky little dryer sheets that keep clothes fresh are chock full of chemicals, including scary‐sounding ingredients like ethanol and alpha‐Pinene. Industry representatives says the exposure levels are too low to impact people but we think better safe than sorry. If only for peace of mind, try a few drops of essential oil on a washcloth instead.

Household bleach contains a concentrated form of chlorine. When people use chlorine bleach and an acidbased or ammonia‐based cleaning product together, or even one after the other, they produce a cloramine gas that can be fatal. Short term effects of chlorine exposure include vomiting, difficulty breathing, coughing,and eye, ear, nose, and throat irritation. Experts say the single most important thing to remember about cleaning products is that you need good ventilation when using them.

Scientific tests have shown that fragranced home products, everything from spray disinfectants to scented candles, contain known carcinogens and other dangerous additives. Some fragrances can contain 100 or more different chemicals ‐‐ none of which are required by law to be listed on the label ‐‐ and can cause nose and throat irritation, headaches, shortness of breath, nausea, and dizziness. Experts recommend making your home fragrant with scents straight from the source, such as mint leaves or cinnamon sticks.

In addition to containing known harmful ingredients like ammonia, lye, phosphate, and chlorine, the majority of home cleaning products (just about everything under your kitchen sink) contain a vast array of chemicals, including toxic ethylene‐based glycol ethers and noneffects of "second hand scents" in everything from air toxic terpenes that become dangerous when they interact with ozone in the air.Experts say the single most important thing to remember about cleaning products is that you need good ventilation when using them.

Dr. Anne Steinemann, a professor of engineering at the University of Washington, has long warned about the fresheners to laundry detergent, spray disinfectants to scented candles. In 2007, she performed a chemical analysis of 30 of the bestselling scented household products and found that they contained known carcinogens and other dangerous chemicals. (The study appeared in 2008 in the Environmental Impact Assessment Review.) The products she studied contained more than two dozen volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, which the EPA says can cause nose and throat irritation, headaches, shortness of breath, nausea, and dizziness. Together, the products Steinemann tested contained more than 100 different chemicals, none of which were listed on the labels. "The labels look benign," Steinemann says. "But some of these chemicals are classified as toxic under federal laws and can be affecting you even without your knowledge." She recommends making your home fragrant with scents straight from the source, such as mint leaves or cinnamon sticks.

The slinky little dryer sheets that keep clothes fresh are chock full of chemicals, including ethanol and chloroform. The ingredient benzyl acetate has been linked to pancreatic cancer and benzyl alcohol is known to cause upper respiratory irritation. When it reacts with ozone, the ingredient limonene can form formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, or cancer‐causing agent. "We have gotten used to these wonderful lifestyles with 'better living through chemicals,'" says Kathy Loidolt, a consumerhealth advocate and author of the Shopper's Guide to Healthy Living. "But our bodies are being overloaded with toxins. We don't need to be scared of everything. We just need to get different habits."

"Watch warning labels," says Robin Kay Levine, the founder of Eco‐Me green cleaning products. No one expects consumers to be experts, however, or to know which funny‐sounding chemicals are known carcinogens. Levine advises, "Look for products that give away the ingredients. Stay away from anything with a color in it. Labels that say 'keep windows open' and 'use in a ventilated room' are a dead giveaway."

reprinted from Advancing With Us Newsletter written by Dr. Skip Feinstein.   picture courtesy of Michelle Pathe at flickr.com 

contact Deb for more information on how to get toxins out of your home  deb@debworks.com 

Take A Walk?

Chris Brogan is one of my go to guys for all things social media.  He recommended I  read a blog called Levite Chronicles written by Jon Swanson.  Today Jon wrote about this sidewalk.  Hes part of a writing group led by Robert Hruzek.  Today the assignment was to write about What I Learned From a Sidewalk.

Did you see that? All those people?  That's a network.  A loose one.  We are surrounded by loose networks.  Its really up to us to decide if we want to strengthen the network or leave it loose.  

I shop at an independent bookstore called the Kaliedoscope.  It's in my home town.  My friend Denise told me about the store.  I may not have found it because it's on a side street.  The first time I went there, the owner was there.  Keri was nice and very knowledgeable about books.   I spent quite a bit of time there and eventually became friends with Keri. 

Keri told me about Judy who owns another store, Cornerstone Cottage.  I never would have shopped there on my own.  It's a gift store, fun store, cool store!  Now I shop there because Keri told me about Judy.  Now Judy and I are friends.

Judy told me about her friend Karolyn.  She thought Karolyn might like to know more about what I do.  I called her.  She's a client of mine now.  

The network is Denise-Keri-Judy-Karolyn.  It's a network I've worked on strengthening.  If I didn't hang out at the bookstore, no friendship would have developed between Keri and myself -- so no Keri-Judy-Karolyn.

So I see networking like walking sidewalks.  You can just walk on the sidewalk you know and keep seeing the things you are used to seeing.  Or you can stop and visit a friend.  Turn at the corner and see what's down that street.  Make a left and go to the park.  

My point? Denise, Keri, Judy, Karolyn are all clients of mine.  Now.  We are a network.  The detours I took introduced me to remarkable women who recognized the value I bring to the table - and they joined my network.    

Are you building networks? 

Image provided by Editor B over at flickr.com 

Blog and Branding

Are you thinking about writing a blog?  Think hard about what your personal brand is first.  Chris Brogan says, "The first secret trick about personal branding is that first, you have to be known for something."

You may work for a company and want to write about that.  You may have a great personal life and want to write about that.  Remember that who you are must shine through.  You are your personal brand!  

I've been thinking about what I'm known for and how that translates into what my personal brand is.  I love to ask questions.  I'm great at disseminating information and then sharing it.  I'm passionate about shopping local and working from home.  How do those qualities merge into what my personal brand is?  Interviews and information for and about small businesses and network marketers - that's what this blog is about.  

This week we will talk about building a blog.  First though there is some due diligence to be done.  Give thought to what you are known for.  Take some notes.  Mull it over.  Then take a look at some other blogs.  Here's a few recommendations of people I follow regularly.

denisethinksgreen.blogspot.com  Denise is new to blogging and she's going to be good at it.  She knows who she is and she shares that with you.  

www.terrystarbucker.com Ramblings from a glass half full.  

www.chrisbrogan.com The social media strategist.  He's a great writer, funny, insightful.

www.thecasualgardener.com Shawna gets your metaphorically naked and shows you how to get healthier and be closer to nature.  She's also a big supporter of other bloggers/tweeters on the net.

oldfeminist.blogspot.com  Here's a woman who lets you know exactly who she is!  And she's funny! 

Balance

It's very easy to be out of balance in your business.  In life - we are often also out of balance.  

If you've developed your 30-60-90 day plans (and you should), be sure to include some personal time.  If you are new in your industry (as a  lot of network marketers are), know that you will be out of balance.  It's part and parcel of the business.  

Network marketing is not trading dollars for hours.  You don't receive X amount of dollars for X amount of hours.  At first, you'll be working your behind off and receiving very little money.  After a while (hopefully a short while) the money starts to look right.  Then .... ah then, you will start receiving money you can't believe in.  Can those checks be that big?  Yes!  Now your job is to teach others to do the same.

Back to balance -- I'm going to have a little balance this weekend.  It's my 2 year old great neice's birthday party Saturday. (Isn't she adorable?  Don't you just love that funny face?)  

I'll also be meeting with friends Saturday morning and brainstorming on how to increase our customer database locally.  There will be phone calls made to clients and potential clients.  Church, haircut, blogging, writing, tweeting - and always walking and talking.  

I merge my business with my personal life - and I'm working on getting better at that.