WordPress Plugins
Important plugins to help explode your blog.

Well you have finally decided to start your own blog. No what? That is the question I get all the time. Should I host my blog or should I save money and just do the free version? Which plugins should I use to help my blog? How will a blog help my business?Today’s post will focus on the plugins that I use and recommend. Let’s briefly answer a few of the other questions first. You should host your blog and not try to save money with the free version. This is a prime example of saving a nickel and losing a dime. A blog also will help your business by allowing your visitors to interact with you and your followers.

Now let’s take a look at some plugins to help your blog.

1. All in one SEO pack:I highly recommend this plugin to help optimize your WordPress blog. This simple plugin will save hours of headaches and help make sure that your blog is being found. This is a must have.

2. Ultimate Google Analytics:Plugin to add Google Analytics JavaScript to each page on your weblog without making any changes to your template. The plugin can also add tracking to outbound links, downloads from your own site and mail to: links.

3. WP Super Cache: Help your blog run faster.

4. TweetMe: A great way to link to your Twitter account. Displays a mini tweetme button on the top of your post encouraging users to tweet your article if they like it. Nothing wrong with letting your post go viral on WordPress right?

5. DoFollow:By default WordPress adds an evil no follow attribute to commentators links, this blocks search engines from indexing the commentators link and that means no link love. WordPress is reducing your chances of getting more comments to my blog. Well if you want to say bye-bye to the no follow link, the Dofollow comments plug-in replaces the no follow attribute with a do follow attribute. This way, your commentators will be more happy commenting on your blog.

6. After the Deadline:After the Deadline plug-in which checks all my grammatical errors. This one is better than the default WordPress spellcheck. If you are like me this plugin is priceless.

7. Commentluv:Commentluv is a plug-in that if you don’t have, get it now! Commentluv is a plug-in that allows commentators to show their most recent blog post.

8. Better Tag Cloud:This plugin makes the options for wp_tag_cloud() available to a tag cloud widget and a shortcode. This means that you can easily choose things like font sizes, HTML markup and ordering. See the wp_tag_cloud page for what the settings can do.

9. Google XML sites:The quicker it is for robots to index your site, the faster your site will get indexed and the better rankings you can get. Google XML sitemaps automatically generates a site map for your blog and you can easily send your site map link to your Google webmasters account for quick and easy indexing.

10. Login Lockdown:To prevent someone from hacking into your account or any of your other users, Login lockdown is a great plug-in to have. Your allowed to set it so after a user has X failed number of log-in attempts their IP is blocked from logging into to your blog for however long you set it to.

11. Google PageRank Tool:This plugin adds a Google PageRank (PR) column to your Manage Pages and Manage Posts administration panels. This will give you the individual PageRank of each page / post on your site. Also includes site-wide PageRank in the top right hand corner of your WordPress Dashboard.

12. SocialGrid:SocialGrid is a simple widget that makes it easy to add and organize links to your various profiles on the internet. It began as a simple addition to my Tasty Theme, and has evolved into a next generation WordPress plugin available for anyone to blend into their site.

13. Contact Form 7:Just another contact form plugin. Simple but flexible.
Contact Form 7 can manage multiple contact forms, plus you can customize the form and the mail contents flexibly with simple markup. The form supports Ajax-powered submitting, CAPTCHA, Akismet spam filtering and so on.

Installation of the above listed plugins is very simple. Once you are logged in to your WP dashboard simply go to Add New under the Plugins area and type in the name of the plugin. It will walk you right through the process. So simple even a caveman can do it.

Get your blog up and running today and join the world of online success. Have an awesome day.

Let us know of any plugins that are working for you and your blog.

When learning how to market yourself and your business many people continue to make the same mistakes. Take a moment and watch this video with Seth Godin about how to stand out in the crowd. Learn how to take your business to the next level.

As we all are aware of, the economy may stinks right now. However the question I have for you is could this be the perfect time to start your own business. Listen is as Josh Levs went to an economics conventions and had the opportunity to get advice from economists. One expert told Josh if you do it right, on your own, you will be a leader of the future economy. Are you ready to make a change?

Remember this very important fact. If we succumb to the illusion and the comfort of a paycheck, we then neglect to build up self-reliant skills and merely postpone the day of reckoning when we are forced to fend for ourselves. It is never too late to start. Let today be the first day of the rest of your life!! Click Here to Learn More!

The Dash Story
What will your DASH say about your life?

First of all if you have never read the Dash Poem by Linda Ellis Click here to read it. The other day one of our Team Members passed away and it reminded me of how fragile life really is. None of us know when we will be called or how many days we have left on this earth. God gives us a birth date and date of death, the only thing that we have control over is the DASH in the middle.

The Impact of your Dash

Ask yourself this simple question: If you passed away today what would people say about you? What impact are you having on your family, your friends and people that may only meet you once? Are you living your life with meaning and passion? Are you having a positive impact on the people you come in contact with?

Many people go through their whole life without ever thinking about the impact they are having on others. We should treat everyone the way that we would like to be treated. This should not be driven by the mood that we are in or the situation that we are involved with. Now I understand that we are not perfect and there will be times when we may slip and say something we regret or do something that we regret. The DASH is a summary of our entire life not a snap shot of one specific moment.

How does this impact your Business

You are probably asking how this impacts your business and where am I going with this. Well it is really quite simple. We need to treat people in our business with honesty and with a sincere interest in their success. So many people that I speck with continue to chase the almighty dollar with no thought of how their actions are impacting their DASH. I am very proud to say that I have some great friends who are no longer in business with me. We developed a friendship that goes beyond business. They understood that I was more interested in their being part of my life than my business. What approach are you taking with your business?

The best part of the DASH is that we can add to the story beginning today. We can change our outlook and our mindset. We can become a beckon a light for that person who needs help. We can have an impact on the youth of our world. We can teach them about honesty, work ethic and how to be a positive force. Let’s all set a goal to make 2010 that year when we all begin to make a difference. When you wake up in the morning let your family know that you love them. Reach out to someone you haven’t spoke with in awhile and let them know that you haven’t forgot about them. We all need to pay it forward as they say. Try to make a difference each and every day and see how your life is impacted. Instead of asking start giving. Instead of being negative be positive. It is never too late to start.

God Bless everyone for being part of my life.
I hope I am making a difference in some way for you and your family.

2010 is here and it is time to state your resolutions for the New Year. As I look back on 2009, I noticed a few areas of my life that need to be improved and the same with my business. I always like to reflect on the past year and make a list of my accomplishments and a list of the things that I fell short of. I don’t like to call them failures because I don’t look at them like that. My opinion is the fact that I tried and fell short is a learning process for future decisions. I encourage everyone to do the same.

The most important point to remember is that for things to change you must change. We are not in the wishing business. We need to layout a plan for the New Year with thought and reflection. Let’s first take a look at the definition of resolution.To be effective you need to first understand the meaning.

Resolution:

• a formal expression by a meeting; agreed to by a vote
• resolving power: the ability of a microscope or telescope to measure the angular separation of images that are close together
• resoluteness: the trait of being resolute; “his resoluteness carried him through the battle”; “it was his unshakeable resolution to finish the work”
• finding a solution to a problem
• settlement: something settled or resolved; the outcome of decision making; “they finally reached a settlement with the union”; “they never did achieve a final resolution of their differences”; “he needed to grieve before he could achieve a sense of closure”
• analysis into clear-cut components
• (computer science) the number of pixels per square inch on a computer-generated display; the greater the resolution, the better the picture
• the subsidence of swelling or other signs of inflammation (especially in a lung)
• (music) a dissonant chord is followed by a consonant chord
• solution: a statement that solves a problem or explains how to solve the problem; “they were trying to find a peaceful solution”; “the answers were in the back of the book”; “he computed the result to four decimal places”
• a decision to do something or to behave in a certain manner; “he always wrote down his New Year’s resolutions”

Let’s get started. First of all you have to realize that for a resolution to have any chance of succeeding it must have a plan attached. For example, many people will state that in 2010 they will get in shape and focus on their health. The problem is that they never break it down into it’s components and make a plan. A better resolution would be, in 2010 I will get in shape. I will accomplish this by doing the following. I will join our local gym, I will exercise 3-4 times a week for 45 min or more, I will eat healthy meals and I will not eat after 7:00 PM. I will commit to this for the entire year. Can you see the difference between the two examples. To many people are wishing versus committing to change.

The same principle goes for the next favorite resolution. I will get out of debt in 2010. The problem is they think they are going to show up at work one day and get a major raise. How many people think that is actually going to happen? So just like the previous example you have to break it down into components for you to achieve this resolution. You might start by getting educated on the benefits of starting a home business and doing a search for a company that you can be passionate about. Try their products and develop your own product testimonial. Commit to a weekly plan of action. I will commit 5-10 hours a week to my business. I will commit to my business for 12 months. I will not be swayed by other offers. This is critical. Many people jump from one company to next and never give their business enough time to succeed. Their is no shortcut to success. Any business worth your time is going to take time to build.

My hope for you is that everyone achieves all of their resolutions. 2010 is the year of improved health and wealth. It is the year of improving your relationships  and building new relationships. Deep down inside whether you believe it or not success is closer than you think. No matter how tough your situation may be presently you each have the opportunity to change it. My thoughts and prayers are with each of you as you prepare for 2010 and the impact it will have on the rest of your life.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!!!

Come January 1st many people will make resolutions for the upcoming year. They will make statements like this is going to be my year. We are going to get out of debt this year. You have probably made the same resolutions. The problem is that in order for things to change, things must change. You can not just wish for change you have to make changes to make your resolutions come true. It is time to pick ourselves up and dust off and get ready for a very fruitful 2010. It can be your best year ever if you are willing to make changes.

My family and I would like to wish everyone a very Happy Holiday Season. I hope Santa brings you everything you are asking for and that you have a healthy and happy holiday.