The Focus Society

Hello everyone!

Want to know how personal development books written decades ago apply to you in the here-and-now? Look no farther than Chuck Bartok’s FocusSociety.com interactive talk show. Each week Chuck and his partners meet to discuss topics from the legendary books “Think And Grow Rich” and “The Master Key System.”

The discussions are hosted on the TalkShoe interactive podcast system and everyone is invited to attend and participate. I highly recommend it.

By the way, Chuck is also one of the principles behind BeginnersMarketingClass.com. The BMC (I love acronyms!) will have its grand re-opening this weekend, so be sure to check out all they have to offer!

“Build Systems And Prosper!”


Brad Pollina
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PreSales Videos

In affiliate marketing, Videos are HOT these days, but they’re much tougher to produce than writing a few paragraphs of copy. I was Wrong. It was a HORRIBLE business model because there was very little of it I could hire out to others to do for me. I spent ALL of my time making those films, which leaves very little time to monetize them, and even less time to PROMOTE them, which is of course the most vital part of an internet marketer’s job. For Every film I made, I had to:

• Write the whole Script
  


• Create all the graphics
  


• Record my Voice-overs in Audacity
  


• Put it all together and adjust timing in
  Camtasia
  


• Add Effects
  


• Edit & tweak
  


• Save & render to flash
  


• Export to desktop
  


• Upload to Server
  


• Integrate with Wordpress to display on the page
  


• Test, adjust, test, publish etc…
  

It was a nightmare! I CERTAINLY wasn’t making my
time’s worth back for
all that work. Even with the most lucrative affiliate program on Earth,
I still wouldn’t have broken even, considering my lack of
time to
promote it!

All the while, I know that
video converts better
than anything else on the web, especially when it properly pre-sells
the viewers before they hit a landing page. I’ve seen Oodles
of
statistics showing that such pre-selling with video can raise a 2%
conversion rate to above 10%!

Still, I’m just
too lazy to do all that video
production myself, no matter how good the conversion rate becomes.
I’m
not the first to feel like this, either. The guys behind PreSale Videos
know exactly how I feel.

In case you
haven’t heard of my friend Todd Gross
yet, he was a TV weatherman and the real life inspiration for the
blockbuster film “The Perfect Storm.” He was doing
quite well
financially on his own before coming over to internet marketing, but
now he’s doing even better.

Since he’s been
around cameras and video equipment
all of his adult life, and is so photogenic from being a TV personality
for all those years, he simply put two and two together and decided
that he was the right guy to create Pre-sales videos for affiliates to
use!

So do they work well?

Yes, they are GREAT at converting your prospects…
You’ve got to see
some of these videos, they really are just what is needed to get the
best possible conversion rates on your affiliate promotions.

He’s popping them
out at a rate of about one video
(and therefore one affiliate product) per week. At the time of this
writing he’s got 17 videos to choose from in the membership
area.
(Listed below.)

Members can use any
& all of the videos, either
by embedding them in their own websites, or using their free remote
hosting to send traffic to via a link they give you. Either way, your
affiliate link gets placed on the page with your film. It’s
really
professional looking.

Inside their membership
area, for each film is a
button to view it, your link to your page viewing it, and the embedding
code so you can slap it into your own page. Even if you let your
membership run out, you can still watch all the films there and two of
them even stay active for you to promote forever!

But the best part is that as valuable as this service is, Todd and
Derrick are giving away the first week to you for Free!

They want to make sure that
you make money with them
first BEFORE you pay them one red cent. It’s a great way for
you to
make some fast cash and decide if it’s the right affiliate
strategy for
you.

So which affiliate products have they made films on so far?

All are proven converters:

• Atomic Blogging
  


• My Viral Pop Ads
  


• Tellman’s List Building Club
  


• Site Builder Elite
  


• Viral URL
  


• Project Quick Cash (Which you KNOW converts well
  or I wouldn’t rave about it myself!)
  


• Newbie Affiliate Secrets
  


• Blogging to The Bank (One of the best converting
  products of all time, still going strong!)
  


• Zero Effort Graphics
  


• Profit From Affiliate Marketing
  


• Affiliate Elite (Brad & Matt
  Callen’s latest blockbuster)
  


• 15K in 7 Days
  


• Affiliate Cash Secrets
  


• My Marketing Goldmine
  


• Adsense Domination
  


• Free Monthly Gifts (Todd’s other great
  Service)
  


• And PreSale Videos itself, of course!
  

As you can see, all the
products so far are in or
near the largest, most lucrative niche market online, Internet
Marketing. (IM2IM) If you have a way to drive such traffic to your
offer page they give you (and that includes free safelists and
listbuilding services!) then you’ll be making money, period.

The Proof is in the pudding…

Well, I’m not
exactly sure what that means exactly,
but at any rate I couldn’t resist trying out a video for a
week just to
find out what kind of conversion rates I would get.

I used three FREE traffic resources, and sent out several messages
until I got 200 clickthrus, which took
less than a week. (One mailing a day to each times 5 days should be
enough for anyone with any writing skills, but it only took me three.)

If you know anything about
free list-builder
services then you know that their traditional conversion rate is VERY
LOW. Usually less than 1/2 of 1% ever buy anything… In fact,
they are
not much better than safelists at all in their conversion rates.

Out of the 200 that landed
on the page Todd and
Derrick hosted there, SIXTY EIGHT people clicked through to the
product’s sales page, (that’s a 34%
pre-conversion!) and ultimately 8 of them
purchased!

Yes, Eight out of 200
overall is only a 4%
conversion ratio, however, consider the source of the traffic! If I had
just written some better-than average sales copy and sent it out to
those same list builders, I’d only expect at most just ONE
sale… So
this effectively multiplied my conversion rates TIMES EIGHT!

(Not to mention, they did all the hard work for me.)

So the bottom line on
PreSale Videos is that you
still need to drive some traffic, but they’re easy to use,
and they
simply WORK. I have no reservation in thinking that each of you can
make some great money using this system, ongoing forever!

So Click Here to try
PreSale Videos FREE for 7 days!





Brad Pollina
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Newbie Blogging Moron Tells Blogosphere What's What

I'm evaluating a multi-media course on blogging from the folks at Simpleology. For a while, they're letting you snag it for free if you post about it on your blog.

It covers:

• The best blogging techniques.
• How to get traffic to your blog.
• How to turn your blog into money.

I'll let you know what I think once I've had a chance to check it out. Meanwhile, go grab yours while it's still free.

Brad Pollina
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Azz Cardfile Software gives away free licenses

I have been using AZZ Cardfile for quite some time now to track user ids passwords and the like for my Safelists and Traffic Exchanges that I belong to. It is da bomb!

Check it out!


Brad Pollina
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Circumstances

Here's another wonderful post I found fro Bob Proctor's Insite of the Day email:

"Circumstances may cause interruptions and delays, but never lose sight of your goal. Prepare yourself in every way you can by increasing your knowledge and adding to your experience, so that you can make the most of opportunity when it occurs.'"
Mario Andretti Auto Racer

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I saw this from Bob Proctor's Insight of the day and thought I'd share:

"Look up, laugh loud, talk big, keep the color in your cheek and the fire in your eye, adorn your person, maintain your health, your beauty and your animal spirits.'"
William Hazlitt 1778-1830, Essayist	Click to hear quote

Brad Pollina
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I was fired from my day job yesterday and live to tell about it!

Yesterday I went to work as usual only to be escorted to HR and then out the door! It came as a total shock, but I lived to tell about it!

Today I received 2 leads for better jobs. I applied instantly and am waiting for contacts from them.
Today I was reading some John DiLemme motivational material from his pamphlet 8 Fundamentals that will make your Network Marketing Business Explode and found this little gem on pages 14-15. See http://FindYourWhy.com for more information:

In MLM Success Language, Failure Means - You Are Almost There!

We all know as we progress towards our personal WHY that we will fail repeatedly, and then all of a sudden we will achieve our ultimate outcome and attain our personal financial freedom through the most powerful method-MLM!...

Each failure is a stepping stone to success, which in turn will become a very long and lovely stone walkway into the castle of your DREAMS.

You must truly internalize the need to fail in life.

-- A relatively unsuccessful marketer of restaurant equipment, he didn't sell his first hamburger until age 52. At a time when many people prepare for retirement, Ray Kroc built McDonald's from a handful of hamburger stands into the world's largest food chain.

-- Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper for lacking ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

In MLM Success Language, Failure Means - You Are Almost There!

So what say you? Please leave me some comments

Brad Pollina
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Enhance Your Energy

Everything is energy. Money is energy. Big money takes big energy. So get into shape, eat properly, and get enough rest!

- From T. Harv Eker's Secrets of the Millionaire Mind cards

Brad Pollina
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Develop An Empowering Motivation For Success

What is your motivation for acquiring money or success? Where does it come from?

Let's see what our friend T. Harv Eker has to say about it:

"If your motivation for acquiring money or success comes from a nonsupportive root such as fear, anger or the need to 'prove' yourself, your money will never bring you happiness. Practice coming from 'purpose and joy.'"

- From T Harv Eker's Secrets of the Millionaire Mind cards.

Brad Pollina
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Thought for the Week

Here's a thought for the week, brought to you by Peak Potentials Training:

It is never too late to become what you might have been.

George Eliot

Brad Pollina
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Persistence

Here's another fine post from Bob Proctor:

Persistence

Napoleon Hill devoted an entire chapter in Think and Grow Rich to persistence. In that chapter he said, "there may be no heroic connotation to the word persistence, but the character is to the quality of man what carbon is to steel." Hill also pointed out in another part of the same chapter, that the only thing which separated Thomas Edison or Henry Ford from the rest of the people in the world was persistence. For both of these great men had an image and they would not let anyone or anything dissuade them - they were persistent. One illuminated the world; the other put the world on wheels. Both were, of course, richly rewarded.

Bob Proctor

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No Regrets

Today's story comees from Bob Proctor's Insight of the Day email:

No Regrets

At the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, the sport of canoe racing was added to the list of international competitions. The favorite team in the four-man canoe race was the United States team. One member of that team was a young man by the name of Bill Havens.

As the time for the Olympics neared, it became clear that Bill's wife would give birth to their first child about the time that the U.S. team would be competing in the Paris games. In 1924 there were no jet airliners from Paris to the United States, only slow ocean going ships. And so Bill found himself in a dilemma. Should he go to Paris and risk not being at his wife's side when their baby was born? Or should he withdraw from the team and remain with his family?

Bill's wife insisted that he go to Paris. After all, competing in the Olympics was the culmination of a life long dream. But Bill felt conflicted and, after much soul searching, decided to withdraw from the competition and remain home, where he could support his wife when the child arrived. He considered being at her side his highest priority, even higher than going to Paris to fulfill his dream.

As it turned out, the United States four-man canoe team won the gold medal in Paris. And Bill's wife was late in giving birth to their child. She was so late, in fact, that Bill could have competed in the event and returned home in time to be with her when she gave birth.

People said, "What a shame." But Bill said he had no regrets. For the rest of his life, he believed he had made the better decision.

Bill Havens knew what was most important to him. Not everybody figures that out. And he acted on what he believed was best. Not everybody has the strength of character to say no to something he or she truly wants in order to say yes to something that truly matters. But for Bill, it was the only way to peace; the only way to no regrets.

There is an interesting sequel to the story of Bill Havens...

The child eventually born to Bill and his wife was a boy, whom they named Frank. Twenty eight years later, in 1952, Bill received a cablegram from Frank. It was sent from Helsinki, Finland, where the 1952 Olympics were being held. The cablegram read: "Dad, I won. I'm bringing home the gold medal you lost while waiting for me to be born."

Frank Havens had just won the gold medal for the United States in the canoe racing event, a medal his father had dreamed of winning but never did. Like I said, no regrets.

Thomas Kinkade eloquently said, "When we learn to say a deep, passionate yes to the things that really matter, then peace begins to settle onto our lives like golden sunlight sifting to a forest floor."

Steve Goodier

Steve Goodier is an author and speaker. You can visit his website by going to: http://www.lifesupportsystem.com/

Brad Pollina
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Who Am I?

Here's another one I heard from John DiLemme. See how long it takes you until you get it!

I am your constant companion.
I am your greatest helper or your heaviest burden.
I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.
I am completely at your command.
Half the things you do, you might just as well turn over to me,
and I will be able to do them quickly and correctly.
I am easily managed; you must merely be firm with me.
Show me exactly how you want something done, and after a few
lessons I will do it automatically.
I am the servant of all great men.
And, alas, of all failures as well.
Those who are great, I have made great.
Those who are failures, I have made failures.
I am not a machine, though I work with all the precision of a machine.
Plus, the intelligence of a man.
You may run me for profit, or run me for ruin; it makes no difference to me.
Take me, train me, be firm with me and I will put the world at your feet.
Be easy with me, and I will destroy you.
Who am I?
I am a HABIT! - Author- Anonymous



Brad Pollina
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FREEDOM

I heard this on a John DiLemme CD I was listening to on the way home from work and just had to share it:

FREEDOM (author unknown)

In the United States of America lies a large industrial city which is the site of one of the world's largest slave labor camps.

Located in and around the center of this city are community settlements where the slaves live.

Each morning the slaves move herd-like from their quarters into the slave labor camps.

Each one is at his or her station by 7:30 AM. Here they report to their master for the day's duties. And here they remain chained until 5:00 PM when they're released to go home.

The slaves have no choice as to how many hours they must labor. Sometimes they are required to work overtime until their master tells them they may leave and go home.

Each year the slaves are told when to take their vacations, for how long, and when they must return.

They have little choice as to how much money they earn as they are paid not what they are worth, but what the job is worth.

They are allowed very little time for lunch and coffee breaks during the labor hours.

The slaves will remain in their chains in great fear because the master can punish them with the "firing" or "layoff" whip.

It is said that even some of the older slaves who have been good and faithful have felt the sting of the whip.

Day by day, year-by-year, the slaves toil and grow older until the master decides it is time to release them to the retirement camps where they're forced to sit idle and wait for death.

It's a well-known fact that the old slaves who try to keep working are sometimes whipped with a "stop-their-pension" whip.

I know these slave camps exist for I once was a slave.

But now I am a free man who lives among the slaves.

The reason I am free is because I am in business for myself as a Network Marketer.

Yes, I am truly free. I arise in the morning at the hour called for by my schedule.

I decide my own hours. I can even sleep in late while the slaves are at work.

I can vacation when, where, and for how long I please.

I'm free to take my coffee break and lunch when I decide.

And of course, I can decide my own paycheck because I am not a slave.

I can choose to work when and where I please and with whom I please.

I'm free to stay in the city for as long as I want, or to move on to greener pastures if I decide to.

I've seen many slaves sadly pack their belongings to leave their city in search of a new master, but it is always the same.

There is, however, a ray of hope for the slave.

He or she can buy their own freedom.

The cost is not high, yet it seems high to those who do not have the courage to pay the price.

What is the price?

ONE MUST BE WILLING TO BE ONE’S OWN MASTER!

Live Your Freedom!

John Di Lemme
http://www.FindYourWhy.com

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Don't listen to Broke People!

Are you broke, rich, or somewhere in between like me? To whom do you listen to: Broke people, rich people or somewhere in between?

Let's listen to what T. Harv Eker has to say about it:

Rich people take advice from people who are richer than they are. Poor people take advice from their friends who are just as broke as they are.

-- From T. Harv Eker's Secrets of the Millionaire Mind cards


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Own Your Own Business!

So how was your weekend?

Ours was very busy but in a good way.

Do you own a business?

Let's see what our friend T. Harv Eker has to say about it:

Start a business full or part-time, work on commission, get a percentage of revenue or company profits, or get stock options. The vast majority of millionaires became rich by being in their own business.

- From T. Harv Eker's Secrets of the Millionaire Mind cards

Brad Pollina
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Because I Was Told I Can

Received this today via email that I thought I would share:

Because I Was Told I Can

About 6 months ago, I joined a gym. Every morning, there is one personal trainer there that works out at the same time that my little group does our workout. He does his "routine" with such a quiet determination that he makes it all look very easy; although I know all too well how hard he is working. When I am tempted to whine and quit, I watch him push himself to his own limits, and I find myself motivated to work as hard and without complaint.

A couple of weeks ago, I was watching him do chin ups. He made them look effortless. I broke away from my group and asked him if I could try a chin up. I had never tried before, but he just made it look so easy. He eagerly stepped aside and encouraged me to step up to the bar. I pulled myself up without thinking...once...then twice. That was all I had in me, I had no strength left. I told him that was all I had, so he stepped up behind me and pushed me up for a third and fourth "pull." It felt so good. I felt strong and I smiled from ear to ear.

The next day when I was done my workout, I asked him to spot me again. Again, I did two. Again on day three and so on. I thought it was pathetic that I could only do two, but when I came to the gym at the end of the week, he was standing there just shaking his head. When I asked him what was up, he said he was impressed with my chin ups. He told me that when they are training firefighters, the men are required to do 5 chin ups, and women are required to do 1 or 2. He explained that most people can't do them at all, and that he was impressed that I could. He further told me that if I practiced every day, I would be doing 5 or 6 in no time. At this point I should probably add that I am 50 years old...and female.

The moral of this story...because I didn't know any better, because he told me I could, I saw no reason to doubt. I just jumped in and gave it a try - and I did it! I didn't see it as a great accomplishment, because I didn't realize that it was difficult and it became my goal to get stronger. No one told me I couldn't do it, in fact, I was encouraged to try. Had he told me initially how difficult it was, I more than likely would not have tried at all. Or I might have tried, but given it only half an effort, because failure would have been the expectation. I applaud him for letting me believe that for me, it was not only a possibility, but that success was a realistic expectation.

How many times have we decided not to try at all because we were told that we couldn't, that we shouldn't, that we had expectations that were too ambitious? How many times have we told our children, our friends and our co-workers that they couldn't do something; that their ideas were impossible or beyond reach? How many times have we told ourselves that we would fail before we even started?

I started to ponder examples that I had witnessed and this came to mind...I recalled a conversation a friend of mine had with his daughter just prior to her heading off to university. He spoke to her (with good intentions) of how hard she would have to work in order to succeed. University wasn't like High School - this was the real world and now she would have to grow up. This child quit after two years. Another friend spoke to her daughter of the adventure she was embarking on and how proud she was. I remember how we laughed because the mother already had her outfit picked out for convocation day! This child just graduated with her degree in physiology. Looking back, neither daughter was more intelligent than the other. Was it the silent expectations (or lack thereof) that predicted the outcome?

I have a new approach now. I have experienced first hand how good it feels to rush in so innocently. To believe that we CAN do it and go on to accomplish exactly what we set out to do, because no one told us we couldn't. I've learned how important it is to support others (and ourselves) in our endeavors and to let them know that we believe they can do it rather than telling them we think that they can't.

I personally want to be like my trainer; standing there behind the people that I love, encouraging them, believing in them and being ready to catch them when they get tired. I will be the one that is there on the second and third day making sure they try again, because I know they CAN.

What a powerful lesson this has been for me. I'll be doing "5" in no time at all. Because I was told I CAN.

Jan Graham

Jan Graham is a realtor in Calgary, Alberta. She is a single mom to three amazing young women (23, 21 and 20). Feel free to email her your thoughts on this story to: jan.graham@telus.net or visit her website at: www.jangraham.ca

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Be The BEST at what You Do!

Are you the best at what you do? Let's see what T. Harv Eker has to say about it:

To get paid the best, you must be the best. Rich people are experts in their field, middle-class people are mediocre in their field, and poor people are poor in their field.

-- From T. Harv Eker's Secrets of the Millionaire Mind cards

Brad Pollina
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Arguing

I came across this in an email from Bob Proctor and thought I'd share it:

"Don't argue for other people's weaknesses. Don't argue for your own. When you make a mistake, admit it, correct it, and learn from it - immediately." Stephen R. Covey Author and Speaker

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What is YOUR definition of success?

I was listening to a CD in the car on my way to work today by T. Harv Eker as he interviewed Bill Bartman.

One question Harv asked him was if he could pass on one word of wisdom to his kids or grandkids when on his death bed, what would it be.

He responded that he would pass on his definition of SUCCESS that he learned from Lou Holt:

1. Something to do....
2. Someone to love...
3. and something to hope for

What do you think?

What's your definition of success?

Comments welcome.


Brad Pollina
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