The other day while visiting and reading a favorite blogger of mine, Lisa had a guest writer post that really struck the right nerve for me. I’m sure it will be true for you, too.

It was another way of looking at success versus failure. Actually, it was much clearer than that – how “Success is not the opposite of failure; it’s merely the other end of the see-saw”.

Succinctly put, without failure, we would never move forward. If life came easily, we would not have to try. Sure we need successes in our lives, but if we cringe at the word “failure” and spend all our time avoiding it, when do we step up to the plate and really give something our all?

The other message writer Brian V. Hunt inspired me with is the thought of how to wake up and approach each day. To, honestly, embrace failure as a friend. He actually has written an entire section on “How to Court Failure”.

Interesting things start to happen when you stop looking at the word from the negative – and no this isn’t some law of attraction post (although it sort of is). My words cannot do justice to the value of reading Brian’s post on Lisa’s blog the other day.

By changing the way we look at success and failure, our family life changes, our business lives change, our friendships change. For me, the affect has been a very positive one, so a big thanks goes to Brian for writing, and Lisa for posting!

My suggestion, and challenge, for you today is to read it, too.

Then be sure to COMMENT and tell me what you think. All the links will open in new windows, so you can return here easily.

I will be the first one (okay maybe not the very first one, but…) to tell you that commenting on blogs is an excellent, free way to potentially expand back links to your own website. Not every blog gives out “link love,” but those that do (like this one) I salute you. Those that don’t, depending on who they are and how they are doing, are still invaluable.

The reason is simple. People read the comments almost as much as they read the post itself. In fact, I’ve spend literally an hour or more going down through the comments of some posts totally intrigued on the back and forth that happens. Some truly strike my fancy, and I am apt to right click on a name (this way I control how it opens – in a new tab or a new window) just to see what that particular person is all about – what they are “into.”

Yet, logging into the admin area, there is also the inevitable spam comments. With good plugins, they are kept to a minimum, but on occasion the software doesn’t quite know how to classify the remark. Thus, the yellow box (in WordPress) tells me someone has said something and WordPress needs my hands on assistance to decide should it be posted or tossed in the trash. (more…)

This morning, after reading the news of the day, and of course stumbling several of the news items of import, I also started stumbling (using StumbleUpon of course) one of my favorite categories, Web Design.

Immediately, I came across two that I would like to draw your attention to:

o CSS Basics
o Nice and Free CSS Templates

The first is a lesson-by-lesson, 18 “chapters” leading you by the hand so you can create your own website stylesheet. You can also choose to download all the chapters, or even print them all out (put in a binder, sometimes it’s easier to reference points via print).

The second web site actually gives you 11 pre-made stylesheets. From a single box on a page to a full four-column layout, all your css stylesheet components are right there! Of course this would be the easy route to take, however, I urge you to also visit and study the principles behind doing anything online.

Sure there are WordPress, Blogger, Moveable Type, and other blog frame works from which you can work. There are also numerous html editors one can use to create web sites themselves. I, personally, believe that everyone needs to know the underlying reason and/or methods used that make the magic of a blog or website happen.

Ten years (plus) ago, I knew absolutely nothing about web page creation. In fact, my first “web site” consisted of nothing but banners centered down a page. At the time, I was thrilled to have accomplished even that much. But, as we all should know, that’s just not going to cut it out online. Visitors need a sense of uniformity and the means to navigate a website or blog. Knowing how to do this yourself, independent of the program you use, really understanding the coding involved in linking up, inserting images, creating the framework page, and navigation are but a few of the “I really need to learn this” strategies I would recommend you learn.

Then, you are no longer confined to a web site given to you (or one you pay for or use for free). You have learned a new, and highly valuable skill. In fact, for job seekers or those looking to add to their present skills, learning and implementing coding can be a good job skill enhancement.

Coding by hand is an art. Coding an entire website of say over 100 pages without understanding how it all comes together is insane. After visiting the above, you might also like to check out an article I wrote quite a while back titled, How to Learn HTML Without Even Trying.

Go for it! You can do this – it’s fun and you will never be at the whim and mercy of others. I’ve seen people pay exorbitant prices for web pages (websites) not worth a fraction of what they spent. When you learn a new skill, duh, you grow. Today is your day to do just that

How many times have you paid more than you feel you should to get information you know you must have to be successful online?

The beauty of it all is that you do not have to do this – it’s ridiculous really – when online marketing and advertising how to’s and more exist right now at paper back prices.

Trust me, I have two large computer hard drives – no make that three – stockpiled with all the “advice” and “secrets” and (supposed) “directions” every marketer and advertiser needs to know. Many, many, many of them I paid WAY too much for… rehashes of the same old same old. Sad imitations of (existing Private Label Rights (PLR)?) copy either never modified or not modified enough. In other words, extremely generic information too basic to justify its expense (if new I’d be willing to pay, but not be gouged… and I’m not new to all this).

So what do I do? I rely on staying on top of things in an economical fashion.

For instance, this weekend my Dime Sale running includes seven (7) reports, up to 350 internet usage tactics, covering: (more…)