How can authors make promote via web/social media?

If you are an author looking for ways to promote your new book, here are just 5 ideas to get going. Read the entire article for more tips and tools...

clipped from www.chrisbrogan.com An Author’s Plan for Social Media Set up a URL for the book, and/or maybe one for your name. Need help finding a URL? I use Ajaxwhois.com for simple effort in searching. Set up a blog. If you want it free and super fast, WordPress or Tumblr. I’d recommend getting hosting like Bloghost.me. On the blog, write about interesting things that pertain to the book, but don’t just promote the book over and over again. In fact, blow people away by promoting their blogs and their books, if they’re related a bit. Start an email newsletter. It’s amazing how much MORE responsive email lists are than any other online medium. Build a Facebook fan page for the book or for bonus points, build one around the topic the book covers, and only lightly promote the book via the page.

How do you keep referrals coming into your business?

There are a few people that are simply must-reads. John Jantsch is one of them. It has been a while since his book the Duct Tape Marketing came out and this one is worth the wait. Pick up a copy and pump up your referrals today...

clipped from referralenginebook.com Download a free chapter – Chapter 1 The Realities of Referral Marketing expert John Jantsch offers practical techniques for harnessing the power of referrals to ensure a steady flow of new customers. Keep those customers happy, and they will refer your business to even more customers. Some of Jantsch’s strategies include: Talk with your customers, not at them The sales team is the most important part of your marketing team. Educate your customers The secret to generating referrals lies in understanding the “Customer Referral Cycle”—the way customers refer others to your company who, in turn, generate even more referrals

Do you doodle?

I am one of those not-so-rare types that like to doodle. It has nothing to do with attention deficit, drawing skills or boredom. OK, sometimes it has to do with those things for me but as you can read below, it may have a greater reason too... Do you doodle? Leave us a comment, link or tweet.

clipped from www.creativity-portal.com What do you think when you see someone doodling during a class lecture or a department meeting? Are they paying attention or mindlessly daydreaming? Do you ever wonder if doodling helps them in their learning process? You may be surprised. Here's the old thinking and new wisdom Wenner shares about doodling: Old Thinking: "Scribbling circles on a notepad while your company's chief inspiration officer drones on about synergy means you have trouble focusing." New Wisdom: "Doodling can boost your mind's ability to notice and remember mundane information by nearly 30 percent, according to research from the University of Plymouth. The theory is that the act of drawing makes use of visuospacial processes in the brain that might otherwise be used for daydreaming, thereby preventing your mind from wandering."

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Is your brain operating at its creative best?

Image via Wikipedia

This article sounds like the old left brain/right brain discussion that has been around for a long time. I guess it is still of interest to everyone in trying to increase personal and professional performance. Take a look at the book for more in-depth exercises and creativity tools.

clipped from www.problogger.net At a recent conference, Harvard psychologist Shelley Carson spoke on harnessing your brain state for optimum creativity. Carson is an expert on creativity research and the author of Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity, and Innovation in Your Life (aff). The Deliberate Pathway The deliberate pathway handles problem solving, planning, reasoning. You use this pathway when you’re actively focused on a problem or task. For those interested in brain anatomy, this pathway primarily uses the prefrontal cortex, the most frontal portion the brain. The Spontaneous Pathway The spontaneous pathway, on the other hand, comes into play during idea incubation, immersion, and free association. You’re in this brain state when you defocus your attention: when you’re sleeping, in the shower, in a boring meeting, etc. The spontaneous pathway uses posterior portions of the brain.

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How do you define beauty?

The best line in this article is "people tell me that I have captured the persons inner beauty. This is not about inner beauty, this person is beautiful!' Watch and read on...

How do you define beauty?

clipped from www.psychologytoday.com Most of us feel that we aren't photogenic. But what if you have a genetic condition or physical trait that really makes a difference in how you feel about yourself and how others perceive you? Maybe it sounds counterintuitive, but photography actually can be the cure for a broken self-image. We humans have a common response to other people who look different. We turn our gaze away from individuals whose physical appearances make us feel uncomfortable; just think of your reaction when you see those ubiquitous television ads asking for donations for children with cleft palates. Or some of us may even stare, mesmerized by what we have been conditioned to view as physical deformity, defect, or disability. But what if a photograph could change those reactions