To start you need to get to at least level 5 and learn the
herbalism profession. Already we know that herbalism is a very
money ridden profession, and with that, comes the idea that with
just a little effort, you can be rich with only a few hours
work. This works the best if you are the Undead race, but also
will work as Human, or Tauren. Like stated before, be sure to
pick up the herbalism profession (and for added bonus, go with
mining).

Now if you do go with herbalism, stick with theFind Herb skill
most of the time, as the herb we are looking for sells more then
copper at the lower levels. From this point we are now going to
travel outside of the newbie area, and into the real world in
search of, yes, you guessed it, silverleaf. Silverleaf is
EXTREMELY abundant in the early and second areas of the game,
but even more abundant in the Undead and Human areas.

Why this is I’m not sure, but after farming only one stack of
silverleaf, you can sell it on the Auction House for as much as
1 gold 25 silver. Yes, for only at most 10 minutes work, 1 gold
25 silver for a level 10. Too good to be true? Well, the lowest
I’ve seen silverleaf go for is 85 silver, so still even then, at
that level anything over 20 silver is a lot, believe me, I know.
You don’t even need a map for this, as with the “Find Herbs”
trait you can easily find those abundant silverleaf no matter
where you are. All but some servers may have a more crippled
economy in the lines of silverleaf, give it a few days and watch
the price skyrocket.

Another great resource at higher levels are the ghost mushrooms.
Your Herbalism level should be around level 245. Ghost Mushrooms
are located in a little cave called Hinterlands. This guide can
be used by both Alliance and Horde characters. You can easily
gather about 10-25 gold per hour. Your character should be at
least level 44, the higher the better however. The mobs in the
cave are level 46-48. Another great herb to find is the Black
Lotus. The herb can sell for 5 to 25 gold depending on your
server. You can easily get 30 gold per hour. Morning would be
the best time to hunt for them since there’s probably alot less
players at that time. If you combine herbalism with mining
you’ll be sure to make a ton of gold over a short period of
time.

In theory every Planning Application should be supported with a design statement. This is simply a written document that explains certain aspects of the design and why it is required including the clients needs.

The advice of Planning Policy Guidance: General Policy and Principles (PPG1) is that all applicants should be able to demonstrate how they have taken account of the need for good design in their development proposals.

However, most small scale developments do not require a separate design statement to support a Planning Application as most issues & principals can be demonstrated on the actual drawings. Regretfully, Local Planning Authorities are under increasing pressure from Central Government to have this written support statement with applications & complicated or contentious schemes usually require a design statement in any case.

How will a Design Statement help?

It will help the Council, Councillors, neighbours, the public to: understand fully your proposals and the principles of the design; consider the proposals against design policies in the Local Plan; consider the proposal against design objectives in Planning Policy Guidance Note 1 from which the Design Statement requirement comes.

There are three essential steps to producing a Design Statement and these are:

Step 1 - site analysis and evaluation.

This is a factual account, which should be essentially based upon drawings and sketches explaining the site within its context, e.g. urban, residential, conservation area, sloping, industrial, vegetation etc. It is important that this analysis has its basis in fact and reason rather than opinion and should include: building styles and sizes, street patterns, the nature of spaces between buildings and their uses, the character of the area, proximity to Listed Buildings, etc.

An explanation of the constraints and opportunities the site has in terms of its design, e.g. important views, features worthy of retention or protection, features which are detrimental and need to be addressed, and
an explanation of the constraints and opportunities the site has in terms of its context, e.g. local building, changes of levels, physical features such as underground services, drainage systems, overhead powerlines, service trenches, trees, ecology and wildlife habitats etc.

Step 2 - Identifying the design principles

These should be the main criteria that the design needs to fulfil. These principles should be so important that they are not easily changed. They should not be a list of preferences but a clear list of what needs to be included in the design and should remain consistent irrespective of any approach taken. These principles may also include critical constraints to the applicant such as minimum floor space to be achieved, the importance of signs to a commercial proposal, financial constraints, etc. It should also include principles that are a requirement of the Council as may be set down in Local Plans and Development Briefs or other Guidance Notes.

It is important to understand that each site and proposal is unique and there is no right or wrong set of design principles.

The design principles should clearly relate to the site analysis and evaluation findings. The design principles will vary in number and complexity from proposal to proposal.

For extensions or alterations to dwellings it is likely that there may be only one or two principles, e.g. the extension should be designed to be sympathetically related to the existing property and not to cause harm to the neighbour.

In more complex proposals, design principles may include the retention of important public views, mass and scale of buildings should be similar to those in the street or conversely a new building ought to be larger because of the relationship of the site to neighbouring buildings. Important trees may need to be kept or the buildings may need to face a particular way or be in specific positions to meet the needs of industrial activities etc.

Step 3 - Creating the design solution.

The third stage is to produce the design solution. The important factor is that the design solution should incorporate the design principles, which in turn can be justified against the site analysis and evaluation.

So what will a Design Statement look like?

There are no set rules or ways of presenting a Design Statement. Much depends upon the scale and nature of the development proposed. It should first comprise a detailed site analysis based upon drawings and sketches setting out the constraints, opportunities and design principles. Written statements alone may not be enough and photographs of the site and its surroundings can be helpful. The Statement should relate to the wider context of the site and not just to the site itself.

Our ‘Maximum Build Planning Guide’ explains further the issues involved when developing or extending a property for planning permission.

http://www.planning-approval.co.uk

Nursing scrubs or uniforms can be available at cheap prices or discounts, and also at attractive wholesale prices from many leading companies in this field. Cherokee Uniforms, Landau Uniforms, Crest Uniforms and Dickies are among the most popular brands available.

Cherokee has established itself as one of the top ten brands for women’s apparel since 1972. Renowned for comfort and fashion, Cherokee has also created a fun atmosphere with its “tooniforms,” featuring cartoons for entertaining kids in children’s hospitals. Its medical uniforms, nursing uniforms, scrubs, scrub tops, medical scrubs, lab coats, hospital work wear, surgical scrubs, and hospital uniforms are available at cheap rates as well.

The Landau brand is famous for its high quality and professional designs. Highly quality-conscious, Landau makes scrubs and uniforms that are designed to ensure greater comfort and ease of movement. They are made from high quality fabrics, resulting in high durability.

Crest, too, offers excellent uniforms and scrubs at great prices. These scrubs and uniforms are not only comfortable, but also durable and stylish. In addition, they are stain-resistant and do not allow color to fade away easily.

You will find varieties of brands like Cherokee, Dickies and Barco available if you want to buy scrubs online. The online purchase of scrubs will have the designs, the code numbers and the pattern available. The scrubs and the uniforms are available in different sizes and patterns. They are all excellently tailored, with minute attention to detail.

To purchase scrubs and uniforms online, have a look at the catalog for cheap and inexpensive medical uniforms. Many stores also purchase these scrubs and uniforms, and these are sold at discount prices as well.

You will come across several stores where you can purchase scrubs online or in person. Most suppliers will have size charts for the type of scrubs you want to have.

There are millions and millions of websites on the Internet. You NEED to be different in some way from all of them! If you could get a visitor to your website, that means nothing. Only returning visitors must be counted. When they return the second time, “branding” starts to occur. Huge companies advertise not because they want to provide you with information about their product. They do that because they’re trying to “brand” its name and image. Actually, it is the brand you are paying the money for when you buy something from “Adidas”, “Nike” or “Coca-cola”. People will actually be willing to pay for the brand they know, so make it as bright and memorable as possible. However, it is useful to remember that too complex logo will definitely slip out of peoples’ minds.

Have you seen small companies with the better products then the leaders in their industry and with the lower prices? When you actually pay the money to a big company for some service or product, be sure that 30% or even more from the price of the product will be the “branding” expenses. But why would you waste 30% on company branding? The thing is that branded companies make people feel safer, especially when they purchase through internet. Think for yourself - when you would feel safer if you give your credit card number to an unknown company but with the attractive prices or to a company everyone knows and trusts, even if their price is a bit more expensive? The answer is simple, right? If you want to be a recognizable company, be ready to spend even more than 30% when you start your website.

“Branding” plays the same role in online business as in the regular one. If people see your banners, links, adds, etc. all over the related websites, they begin to recognize your company. First, they do that unconsciously, than after running into your website several times they will recognize your logo, website, etc.

Let’s think how we can brand our website online.

1) Before you start branding I would recommend studying the methods your competitors used. That may be very useful as you may borrow some of their techniques.

2) Think of a good company name, logo, website domain name and company slogan (e.g. company name: Metamorphosis Design, domain: http://www.metamorphozis.com)

3) Advertisement is the key to success in online branding. Links, text ads, graphic banners and any other means you can think of. Your logo, company name or business slogan should be everywhere on the business related websites.

4) Web design companies very often offer free redesign services and discounts on web design for the companies that provide a link back to their website on their pages. That is another way of branding.

5) Offer affiliate percentage from sales if they agree to place a banner or a link to your website. (You should have affiliate program up and running in this case)

There are many other ways to brand your company. Different companies use different methods and techniques. When you start your own business you will have to study them and select which one is better for your needs and your pocket. If you would be able to brand your company, it may bring you millions and millions of dollars.

This article may be reprinted and distributed with no charge until the credit line (links) below remains without changes.

Thanks for reading.

Article source: http://www.metamorphozis.com/tutorials/make_your_own_brand.shtml

About the Author:
Oleg Lazarenko
Production Manager of
Metamorphosis Web Design Studio -

Flash templates and Web Templates
http://www.metamorphozis.com

In a hectic world, it’s all too easy to reach the point of feeling stressed out beyond our ability to cope. Yet it’s our ability to cope that makes all the difference. The point is that stress is not going to go away; it’s here to stay.

If you find yourself reading a book or attending a seminar that says you can eliminate all stress, either throw the book down or leave the room.

You cannot eliminate stress. But you can learn to handle stress successfully.

Let’s look at six different strategies for successfully handling the stress in our lives. Each can be used separately or in conjunction with the others.

1. Talk it out

Whatever we don’t talk out, we act out. That’s a basic rule of mental health. If we don’t discuss the issue, it’s sure to surface in some other way.

2. Take mini-vacations

It’s a mistake to think that we can push hard all year (or maybe longer) and then expect that all our stress can be healed in a one or two week vacation. It just doesn’t happen.

Our bodies, minds and spirits need more frequent breaks. This is especially true if you are one of those people who schedules a vacation as they would a typical work day, so as to get the most out of it.

3. Distinguish between stress and pressure

Stress comes from the outside; pressure, on the other hand, is an inside job. Pressure is what we tell ourselves about the stress.

Here’s a saying I came across recently:

“All the water in the ocean can’t sink a ship unless it gets inside.”

Sometimes, telling ourselves something as simple as “I can handle it” is all we need to keep the stress outside of us.

4. Create your own relaxation triggers

This exercise involves three simple steps that allow you to relax anywhere, any time.

Step 1: Picture yourself in a relaxing place. Create as much detail as you can in the picture, making it bright and colorful. Immerse yourself in the scene: See it, hear it, feel it.

Step 2: While you are picturing yourself in this place, create an immediate trigger that will instantly remind you of the relaxed feeling. It could be a snap of the fingers, a word or phrase, or a mental picture. It should quickly and strongly remind you of your relaxing place.

Step 3: When you find yourself in a stressful situation, simply fire off your relaxation trigger and feel the almost-instant relief.

5. Stop worrying

That sounds too simple, but just consider for a moment: What good, what change has come about from worrying?

6. Take action

Do something about what is causing you to worry. It’s difficult to worry when you are busy doing something about it.

This list began with a suggestion that you talk about your stress. That’s a good idea, most of the time. It can become a bad thing, though, if that’s all you do.

To make stress work for you, it’s essential that you take concrete action.

So there are six strategies for making stress work for you. Here’s one more suggestion: Practice one of these each day for the next six days.

At the end of those six days, you’ll have strong tools for dealing with stress.

Visit SecretsofGreatRelationships.com for tips and tools for creating and growing a great relationship. You can also subscribe to our f*r*e*e 10 day e-program on how to enrich your relationship today, from relationship coach and expert Jeff Herring.

Animals make the headlines today for many reasons. The problem is that animals tend to make the news for the horrible and unthinkable things that happen to them. In every state across the United States and every country across the globe atrocities happen to animals great and small everyday. We have covered news stories involving dogs and cats as well as assorted types of animals being stared to death, beaten to death, burned with acid, inhumanely executed in addition to countless other ways. We have written stories about animals that were killed for the fun of it by the sickest of individuals and by accident by the ones who loved them the most. But, with all of the negative headlines that animals are involved in, there are a number of animals that make the news for wonderful, heartwarming and humorous reasons.

Many dogs and cats can says that their owners would not be alive if it weren’t for them. Dogs and cats have called the police when their owners were in trouble and in need of medical help, dogs have waken the owners up to let them know there was a fire in the house and still others have been the driving force behind helpful laws being enacted to help make the world a better place to live. Below I have placed one of my favorite articles I have written which highights one of the many happy reasons an animal has made the news. I hope that you enjoy it.

Black Labrador Honored as Katrina Hero

At the annual Genesis Awards, hosted by the Humane Society, a black Labrador now called Katrina was honored for her life saving efforts. A New Orleans man who was in trapped in flood waters after the hurricane recalled how the dog helped to get him to higher ground, without her he surely would have drowned. The awards dinner attended by leading animal rights activists granted the dog a standing ovation. Katrina was rescued from a shelter after the man’s story was reported on a local Los Angeles TV station.

Yes, animals have certainly solidified their position in the world today for both the good, as seen above, and the bad. Join us as we explore the world of animal news one day at a time.

For more information about dogs or to speak to fellow dog lovers on our pet forum, visit http://www.spectacularpets.com

In my life I have the joy and pleasure of helping others to achieve their goals and ambitions. I regularly get calls from people who have attended one of my seminars or who have bought one of my products telling me that they have doubled or trebled their sales. Whilst this is personally gratifying I have long wondered what it is that actually changes for these individuals that propels them to get these phenomenal results…

As many of my seminars are purely mindset / motivation based it’s not the skills (important as they are) so it has to be some element of mindset, but what?

What is that empowers some individuals to walk out and double their sales virtually over night?

My opinion is that the ones who get the instantaneous results are the ones who manage to locate and destroy sales loser beliefs
that are holding them back from what they want to achieve. This 10-step exercise will help you to find and remove any limiting
beliefs that are stopping you from achieving the success that you deserve….

1. Consider different sales situations e.g. cold calling, presenting, negotiation…

Think about your job on a day to day, week to week and month to month basis. Think about different sales situations that you get involved in, particularly ones which you may find difficult or
challenging. Examples might include cold calling, making sales presentations, negotiating, closing, prospecting, dealing with awkward customers, managing service level issues, handling
complaints, fielding sales objections…

2. “What emotions do you experience?”

Get in touch with how you really feel about these situations. If you feel bad it will effect your approach, pace, tone, pitch, words, body language and therefore the results that you get. Our
society is focused on repressing emotions and managing behaviours but ultimately your behaviour will stem from your emotion so it’s important that you reclaim this valuable information.

3. Does this support or limit me? Help or hinder me? Drive success or failure?

Is this emotion useful in this situation? If you’re walking into a major negotiation and you feel scared is that the emotion that you’d like? If you need to cold call and you feel nervous or
devalued does that help? Not likely. Be as honest as you can be here. Everyone experiences unresourceful emotions from time to time. The question should not be whether you do or not but
whether you do anything about it or not!

4. “What do I believe that causes me to feel this way?”

Our emotions are mostly driven by our beliefs about a situation. Two salespeople in the same situation will often feel entirely differently. This is down to their beliefs about that situation.
If sales person 1 thinks that their product is too expensive, when the client says, “It’s very expensive!” they’re likely to think, “Damn it! I knew it!” They’ll probably get depressed and
either walk away or give away their product.

If sales person 2 thinks their product is absolutely worth the money and the client says, “It’s very expensive!” they’re likely to think, “Yeah! But it’s worth it!” and set about asking questions to start to build up the value again in relation to
the client’s business situation.

5. Is this true? Is this absolutely true?

Most of us see our beliefs as reality so once you capture this little bug you need to question it’s reality by asking whether it’s true or not. Often you’ll get the answer that it is true so
keep asking yourself over and over and ask like you mean to get an answer. If it’s not absolutely true then chances are it’s a belief.

6. Has there ever been a time when this wasn’t true?

Your objective now is to find just one time that this wasn’t true. If you can, it’s a belief. Let’s say for example that you believe that cold calling is a waste of time. This belief might
well cause you to feel unmotivated and down when forced into cold calling. Ask yourself if there has ever been a time when this wasn’t true? One time when either you or someone else got
something out of cold calling? If there has then it’s a belief and not a reality.

7. Would a sales superstar believe this?

Still struggling to shake the little critter? Try an out of body experience…. Imagine the best salesperson you can envisage standing next to you. Would they believe this to be true? When
negotiating some people are consistently more successful than others when defending revenues and profits. Much of the reason for this is down to belief.

Try spending some time with the best negotiator you can find and elicit their beliefs. Next time you enter a situation and you find yourself thinking, “We’re going to
have to offer X here to get this?” try asking yourself if your sales superstar would truly believe this? If they wouldn’t, what would they believe?

8. What’s it costing me to believe this?

One powerful way of getting leverage on yourself is to work out the cost to yourself of holding your belief. I once worked with a chap who believed that selling at a 20% margin was the most
that he could ethically commit to. After considering his ethical reasons we studied the performance of the rest of his team who were selling at 25-30% margin. We calculated the personal
financial cost to him of this lost commission over 6 months, 12 months and 10 years! When he realised that 10 years of holding this belief would cost him a villa in Spain he was far
more willing to let it go!

What is your belief costing you… personally, financially, emotionally and spiritually?

9. What evidence contradicts this?

Search for evidence to contradict your beliefs. Most people spend most of their lives collating evidence to support their beliefs. This is fine if they’re superstar beliefs but totally
unproductive when they’re not. Find people who don’t believe the same as you. Study top performers. Listen to clients. Create your own loser belief rebuttal programme. The more evidence that you
have to contradict a belief, the easier it is to let it go.

10. How would I benefit by letting this go now?

Consider what you could achieve by letting your belief go now and adopting a sales superstar belief. How will it benefit you financially and personally? How will you benefit in your career?
How will others see you? What will it do for your relationships? Your morale? And your long-term health? What about your security and your happiness?

For the last 10 years, sales motivational speaker and author, Gavin Ingham has been helping sales people to explode their sales performance by turning self-doubt, fear and lack of motivation into self-belief, confidence and action. With his inspirational approach to sales performance and motivation Gavin combines commercial experience, personal excellence and communications technologies in delivering personal and business sales success.

Visit http://www.gaviningham.net now to join Gavin Ingham’s free newsletter Real World Sales Tools ~ tips, tricks & techniques that will help you to outsell, out-manoeuvre and outclass your competition! Refer us to your friends & colleagues but never to your competition!

Gavin is also founder of http://www.salesessentials.net the online sales resource packed full of top class sales tips that will help you to increase your sales results right now!

Any business will cringe at the thought of what the banks put them through to use credit cards. If you do not know what I mean, then this article is for you!

The fact is that everyone online wants to use a credit card or debit card to process their order. It is very true in our society that the credit card is a way of life, and if you do not offer that ability to accommodate them, customers will move on to another website that does allow them to use their cards. This society has become driven by instant gratification and expects to receive their products immediately, either by a download or a short shipping duration. Taking credit cards as a form of payment on the internet or offline should be thoroughly understood. Read on to see what I mean and how to protect yourself.

The fact is that any merchant taking in payments is immediately at risk for whatever amount is charged and MORE. The banks will take the charge disputed along with a “charge back” fee right from your merchant account, and you better have enough in there that has cleared to pay your own bills or you will be charged more for “overdraft charges”. Some banks are waking up to the fact that it is not always the merchant at fault and most merchants are more than honest in their dealings. There is so much credit card fraud out there and since the merchants are ALWAYS liable, you need to realize this and take action to prevent as much disaster for your business as possible.

First, if you have your own merchant account, then you have a lot of work to do when you receive a credit card order. You must verify as best you can that the card, the name on the card, the address, the cvv number verification, and the quantities are all in order. You need to verify the IP address of every order and see if it is within the location of the card holder. A person living in Toronto, Canada, probably would not be in Las Cruces, New Mexico, charging products. This is a red flag but not a deal breaker, some people DO travel. Caution needs to be taken to protect your cash flow. As a merchant you must get money safely into your account for any goods or service you provide, so that you can become a larger or more substantial independent business.

Do not just take in cards and believe that everything is going to be just fine now that you have the money in your account, because it can come out just as fast, or faster, than it went in. There is a real need for you to understand a lot more than can be mentioned in this article.

The best way to receive all the tools and services you need to protect yourself and to make your voice heard is to check this website: http://www.merchant911.org This is a group of dedicated individuals who have been working for years to try to change banking and processing company rules and regulations as relative to merchants, both large and small. If you need any more proof of their dedication, just read some of the press releases and look at the tools they have assembled for merchants to use.

Right now is the time to start to protect yourself from credit card fraud. If you have read any of the newspapers or listened to any of the news reports, then you already know you are at risk. There are reports of over 40 million cards in the hands of criminals and thieves and they will sell these cards or will use them in various illegal methods. It’s not hard to imagine that some day soon you will be approached and asked to spend your time and money to ship a product or provide a service with these fraudulent cards.

Do your part to keep America strong and allow your business to grow and prosper, not be destroyed by thieves and credit card sharks.

Copyright 2005 Brad Eden

Brad Eden is a Entrepreneurial Sciences expert with 14 years of industry experience in real estate, marketing and technical communication. He currently consults with IBM in CA. Brad owns & operates a free traffic resource for entrepreneurs.

http://www.americanfreetraffic.com

If you really want to become rich, then begin by evaluating your work habits and work environment. That’s how most millionaires made their first million. According to Dr. Srully Blotnick, a psychologist and consultant who spent 20 years studying how people became rich, most millionaires didn’t make their money in real estate, the stock market, or waiting for their ship to come in.

They made theirs, instead, through their business or profession. They became so good at their job that they made quite a bit of money. Then, and only then, did they turn to real estate and stocks as sites to invest and grow their money. Even then, their basic business continued to produce the bulk of their gains; their investments usually produced only mediocre results by comparison.

There’s a monumentally important lesson to be learned from the hundreds of millionaires that Dr. Blotnick studied for 20 years. The lesson is this: If you really want to become rich, invest in yourself first; invest in real estate, stocks, and other ventures later. Dr. Blotnick divided this into two stages:

The first takes place when you’re consumed by a business or profession that you enjoy so much that you would do it for nothing.

After it pays you enough income, you enter the second stage. This is when you become a bona fide investor. You start thinking of and looking for opportunities to use your surplus income.

To set yourself and your career on track, evaluate yourself by answering these questions about:

<> liking your work:

How much do I really like my job?

Does my job bring out the best in me?

Has it caused me to do more than I ever thought I could do? If you answered any of these questions in the negative, consider a job or career change.

<> determining if your work is right for you:

How can I tell if I really like my work?

How do I know if I’m doing my work right?

How do I know if I’m doing the right kind of work?

The best way to determine that is to apply these test questions:

What would I do for free?

Am I enjoying my work so much that time seems to fly by?

How would I like the work to be done if I were on the receiving end?

What would I do if I didn’t have to support myself, but did indeed want to work?

What work would I do if my doctor told me that I had only five years more to live?

<> considering my financial rewards:

Am I contended with my current income?

Am I in position to influence a change in my income?

What if the work I enjoy doing doesn’t pay very well?

If you’re satisfied with the first two, then I say, “Hang in there! You’re on your way to becoming rich.” People who became rich did so because they persisted. Only a personal involvement with what you enjoy doing will produce the kind of persistence that propels you out of bed in the mornings and makes you willing to work long and hard.

<> investing in yourself:

Am I developing my skills, talents, and abilities?

Have I made a plan that will help me to develop them?

Am I constantly improving my relationship with others?

Do I ask my co-workers for feedback about my performance?

Investing in yourself means developing both of these aspects: the technical knowledge you need in order to do your work effectively and the human relations skills you need in order to work effectively with others. Mr. Joseph Brooks, CEO at Lord & Taylor, once said, “If you love your work, and do it well, someone will spot that … Let the quality of your work do it for you.”

Conclusion: To become rich, do it your own way. Rely on your own talents, skills, and abilities. Invest them in a business or profession that you enjoy doing very much. Invest in your personal growth and development. Become the very best at what you do at your work even if it pays you little right now. If you really like what you are doing, eventually a fat salary will catch up with your reputation. The bottomline is persistence. Become an expert at relating well with others.

Remember: When you maximize your potential, everyone wins. When you don’t, we all lose.

© Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW

PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in ezines, newsletters, and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Although advance permission is not required, please notify us at eagibbs@ureach.com when you use this article.

Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW, Management Consultant and Trainer, conducts seminars, lectures, and writes articles on his theme: … helping you maximize your potential. He offers management, marketing and parenting resources at http://www.maximizingyourpotential.blogspot.com

Blue’s Clues for Success: The 8 Secrets Behind A Phenomenal Business by Diane Tracy

In a previous book review, I warned readers not to judge a book by its cover. I feel compelled to once again issue that warning.

When you first spot this bold blue cover, you see the name of a popular children’s cable TV show accompanied by the blank stare of an animated puppy who appears to be in search of the nearest fire hydrant. That’s two good reasons for me to question the position of this particular book in the business section of my favorite book store and to keep browsing for something of more substance. However, I strive to walk my talk, when possible, so I delved a little deeper. In addition, I must admit that I did recognize both the name and the animation as a result of long conversations with my eight grandchildren. I must also admit that I still struggled to make a connection between this Nickelodeon icon and useful business wisdom. My curiosity led to investigative browsing, purchase of the book, and an enjoyable and enlightening read.

To my pleasant surprise, this wasn’t a revealing expose’ of an animated puppy and her 20-something live male sidekick. Instead, I found a blueprint for achieving phenomenal success if you simply “clue into” your mission, customer, research, technology, work processes, brand, leadership, and culture!

I guess my next question dealt with my motive for seeking business wisdom from a team of young people who have turned a children’s television program into an extraordinary business triumph. It didn’t take me very long to answer that question.

Blue’s Clues, which hit the airwaves in 1996, now has over 13 million viewers in 60 countries and had earned about $1 billion in licensing products in the year 2000 alone. More than 8 million kids and parents tune into Nickelodeon each week to watch Blue’s Clues. Today this same business is generating over $3 billion in merchandising various products. This business has also spawned several best selling books, videos, CDs, and thousands of other consumer products. It’s a business that reaches millions of people in more than 60 countries each week. It’s a business that has changed the lives of its customers in a positive, educational way. This magical business is not a fantasy. Since 1996, Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues not only has become one of the most popular and successful shows for preschoolers in television history, it also has literally changed the way children watch television with its interactive approach.

Such success provides much rich case study material. Executive coach Tracy presents a hybrid case study/business guide based on the creative culture of Blue’s Clues. The show employs a deceptively simple concept, yet its creators succeed by expertly doing what cutting-edge management books say to do: walk the talk, live the vision, and discipline yourself to be the best in every aspect of your business.

Readers will learn:

• What can happen when leaders of an organization put their egos and self-interests aside for the accomplishment of a worthy mission.
• The power of relationship, and how trust in one another, from the top down, can break through enormous barriers.
• How a clear, grounded vision can allow individuals to push through their own personal barriers and limitations to create something truly phenomenal.

Author Diane Tracy reveals the eight principles behind the success of this amazing show for the business community. She will take you into the Blue’s Clues’ offices and studios and introduce you to the creators, the animators, the live host, the writers, the producers, and the executives who have turned this show into a phenomenal success.

Blue’s Clues for Success provides the eight clues to achieving phenomenal success. Learn why the following clues are fundamental to business success and how to apply them:

1. Mobilize the energy in your organization by turning your MISSION into a “mantra.”
2. Know your CUSTOMER, love your customer, and make them the focus of everything you do.
3. Stay connected to your customer through RESEARCHand lots of it!
4. Be the master of, not a slave to, your TECHNOLOGY. Use it creatively.
5. Create WORK PROCESSES that serve your customers and enable your people to do their best.
6. BRAND your product or company. Know what you want to be and live up to it.
7. Provide LEADERSHIP that meets the needs of people, so they can meet the needs of customers.
8. Consciously manage your CULTURE the way you manage every other aspect of your business.

One intriguing thread to this book is the level of balance that the Blue’s Clues team seems to have across all of these clues. If companies could harness the imagination and creativity of the “child within” their people, they would have no competition. Blue’s Clues for Success will help organizations and individuals tap into this energizing resource to realize their potential and lead more profitable, satisfying businesses.

At some level this book represents an interesting case study of how living out these clues can contribute to a vibrant business. Equally interesting is that each business must search for the answers to these clues and they will be different for each business. To be effective these clues must be answered with the specifics of your mission, business, customers, technology and processes.

More than 100 business book reviews written by Harry K. Jones are available at http://www.AchieveMax.com/books/.

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Harry K. Jones is a professional speaker and consultant for AchieveMax^®, Inc., a firm specializing in custom-designed keynote presentations, seminars, and consulting services. Harry has made presentations ranging from leadership to employee retention and time management to stress management for a number of industries, including education, financial, government, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. He can be reached at 800-886-2MAX or by visiting http://www.AchieveMax.com.