Monday, March 30, 2009

Tools for work

Work isn't just work.

Well of course it is, but how do we grow and develop and learn if we're not finding new ways to do things. I have a desitre to be innovative and to improve my skills.

I love:

Twitter - from personal information about peoples' lives to article links, to blog links, to marketing tips, to advice for business people, it is and has been an effective marketing tool. I have learnt a great deal of business information from using Twitter.

Google - If I need to know anything at all, I can find any answer I need and if I need more reference or better answers I ask Jeeves or simply Ask.

I visit news sites every day to stay in the loop, including blogs, newsletters, RSS feeds publishing houses and literary agents feeds.

When I have a task to do, I look and search for examples so I can learn to do things better.

We're lucky we have so much information open and available to us to use and benefit from. From Forbes to the Herald to bloggers and to whatever industry we are in.

It's not just about networking or being social, it's also about learning skills and staying informed.

What do you use to keep you informed?

Saturday, March 14, 2009

The Secret Millionaire

Money is not everything when you're a Secret Millionaire.

A lot of the secret millionaires had tough starts to life and grew up in dogdy neighbour hoods and worked hard to build their lives up.

Then they got selected to be on a reality TV show and faced their pasts, or went to a poor neighbourhood and worked in cafes, in takeaway outlets, in nursing homes or at community centres to see and meet people who were stuck, or who didn't have enough money to get by or do what they needed to do.

Most of these millionaires really connected with the people who helped others. Like a mum helping single women getting their lives on track while living in a tiny apartment herself. Or a community centre ensuring that kids get off the streets. Or a centre which feed the homeless. It is up to the millionaire to decide who to help, who to give the money to, who will benefit from their help.

And the people they have given money to have brought a bus to help people get out of the nursing homes, or build a kitchen, or really help single women. They've taken the money and really helped each other, really benefited and bettered their situations.

Most of the Secret Millionaires have become mentors, they still visit the communities, they've aided and assisted the communities and made genuine friends with the people they came to help and actually discovered that they found themselves instead.

This is not marketing, this is not a millionaire sitting at home surrounded by his/her success - this is something that really works. People really benefit, really help each other, really form friendships and really see how their hard work means that money does mean something ... if you put it in the right hands.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Office marketing

Around the water cooler or in the communal kitchen?

If you work in a large building or a shared office or in a serviced office - this is a great place for networking and marketing.

You'll have access to a range of services and people who you could possibly do business with or refer. Graphic artists, designers, marketing and admin people who you can talk business and swap ideas with. And they can refer your business.